A/N: I feel bad that I had completely forgotten to update yesterday :( I had college orientation today and didn't want to be late, nore unprepared (it is nursing school). However like I said in the news feed, I would make up for it with an update now, and then will update the rest of the story tomorrow as an apology for forgetting yesterday. I'm hoping to get out of second day orientation by noon or 2pm at the latest. Anyway enjoy this short, chapter!

“The Queen is dead?” The words were repeated countlessly in dozens of homes. No one knew for sure what had happened, only that one day the Queen was fine, and the next, she’d been found in a pool of her own blood, several stab wounds puncturing her back.

Victoria knew at that moment she was doomed.  The Pack runner had shown up the day before, telling her that the Packs and Clans were retreating to a hideout far in the mountains due to the threat of the Japanese. Because she was a gisaeng, she couldn’t just pack up and leave like the others of the Clan could. Gisaengs were technically property of the House owner, even though she knew Howie didn’t view any of the girls in the house as property. She wondered if they had already left, until Yesung strolled into the gisaeng house. Victoria latched on to the shifter, grateful to see the clothing merchant after hardly any contact with the Clan even though he was Pack. “What’s going on?” Victoria asked him as she led him to one of the areas reserved for special guests of the House.

Yesung sighed, not sure how he was going to tell her. ‘Just do it and get it over with.’ His wolf snarled, already pissed. “First, I’m going to hate myself, but something strong would really be great.” He said, the ghost of his wolf’s presence in his voice.

Victoria nodded, going outside the room they were in, telling the servant there that Yesung wanted the regular drink, not the special drink they usually served him. While Victoria knew that Yesung hated alcohol, loathed it actually, something really bad must have happened to piss him off enough to drink.

Once the new brew had been brought, Victoria poured him a cup, waiting patiently as he downed it, poured another cup and downed that one as well. The regular alcohol was slowly easing the hurt inside him. Yesung knew Victoria had questions, but wisely had kept quiet. His wolf sleepily mumbling his happiness at the feline shifter for being such a good cat.

“Something happened this week while the Clan was packing up to head to the hideout.” Yesung closed his eyes in pain at the memories that threatened to overwhelm him.

Victoria stilled, her breathing shallow while her heart speed up. This was not good news. “Who’s left?” She whispered, her eyes shut tight as if she could block out the pain that way.

Yesung took a deep breath, steeling himself for the effects of the blow Victoria was about to receive. “Seungri, Zhou Mi, and Yujin.” He clenched his hands in an effort to keep himself calm. “Daesung was seriously injured, but still lives.”

Victoria did what any other person normally does when presented with the sudden unexplainable death of people they know. She poured her own cup of the regular alcohol and downed it. “Who? How?” She whispered, tears spilling down her face after she’d downed the second cup.

Yesung shook his head, his face in pain. Shifters were used to death since they tended to live much longer than the average human. The fact that Victoria didn't know about the decmination of her Clan only solidfied the fact that she was very much isolated from other shifters because she was a gisaeng. Yesung made a mental note to check in on her more often. It was also obvious that feline shifter clans operated differently than the Packs with their connections.

They sat in silence for awhile while Victoria gained control over herself. It would be hard for the Clan to continue since Ji Yong was dead. An alpha was an alpha, no matter if they were feline or canine. Victoria mumbled something that Yesung couldn't quite hear. "What did you ask?" He asked her, hoping by this time that both their animals were well asleep because of the alcohol.

"Did they die with honor?" She asked, the pain still clear in her voice.

Yesung swallowed. He'd been the one to find the destruction along with Heechul, who was with the Packs at the moment, cleaning up the Clan grounds and taking care of Daesung. "Yes." He said. "Daesung was the one who told us what happened." He said. "Heechul has him at the Pack house to protect him from whatever attacked at the Clan houses.”

Victoria slammed a hand down on the floor suddenly, her scent betraying her anger and sorrow. “Do you seriously think that we were weak?” She said, eyes red with grief and anger. “It’s obvious that whatever attacked the Clan could probably do the same to the Packs!”

Yesung growled at her, his wolf not completely sedated by the alcohol. “You don’t think we don’t know that?” He grabbed a hold of her arms, pulling her in front of him. It was rare Yesung let himself show anger, but right now he needed to get some sense into the girl’s head.

Victoria held herself stiffly, realizing he was pissed. Yesung’s wolf was way more dominate that Victoria’s feline. She’d never seen him get angry before, but judging from the trembling of his fingers, it wasn’t very often, and the pain and sorrow of losing people who were not of his Pack, shocked Victoria. Her anger melted just as quickly as it had come on, whimpering in pain as she felt Yesung’s fingers digging into her arms. “I’m sorry.” She whimpered, tears once again overflowing down her cheeks.

They were both on edge, Yesung realized. Not even the regular alcohol could dull that. He softened his fingers, intending to let her go only to feel his wolf wanting some comfort from another shifter, even if she was a feline. Instead he pulled Victoria to him, enfolding her tiny frame within his arms, gently hugging her, all of his anger gone.

“Shhh, little feline.” He crooned, feeling her body going limp in his arms. If Daesung made it through the night, he’d be able to tell Victoria what happened. As it was, Heechul hadn’t been too sure that the feline would make it when Yesung left to check on the gisaeng.

Victoria sobbed quietly into his shoulder, her tears soaking his hanbok as she gripped the material tightly in her fists.

Yesung wasn’t sure how long they stayed like that, his legs slowly falling asleep from the inactivity. The last thing he remembered was that the alcohol suddenly hit his system in a delayed reaction the moment he realized Victoria had fallen into a grief laden sleep.

The morning after, however, was something Yesung never wanted to experience ever again for the rest of his life.