“Jessa!” A cry assaults her ears a she bolts up in her bed, hand coming to her neck, nearly in the same spot as Kyuhyun’s mating mark and feeling a sticky wet slick of blood oozing from her skin.

“What happened?”

“Are you ok?” Leeteuk shoves Hoseok and Siwon aside, takes one look at her neck and growls. “Stay here with her.” He orders his betas. “Do not fall asleep. I’ll bring the first aid kit for the blood.”

“Yes Alpha.” Both betas bow their heads, accepting the order from Leeteuk as the Alpha storms from the room.

“What’s going on?” Jessa asks, confused.

“Hoseok heard you mumbling in your sleep about forests and scared before you started screaming in your sleep.” Siwon tells her, glancing around the room.

“Why am I bleeding though?” Jessa asks, looking concerned.

“I swear nothing was here when we got back.” Hoseok says, confused as Leeteuk returns with the first aid kit. “And I know better than to fall asleep on watch.”

Leeteuk growls in response, taking some gauze to wipe off Jessa’s neck. “Well, you must have had a scab or something.” He tells Jessa as he inspects the now clean skin. “I don’t see any bite marks or bug marks, though it looked like you scratched something along your claim mark.”

“I wonder if you got bit by a mosquito while we were out earlier.” Siwon hums as he confirms the lack of any wound on Jessa’s neck, though they note the presence of pink irritated skin around where Leeteuk thinks she scratched.

“You don’t feel sick or anything do you?” Leeteuk asks.

Jessa shakes her head, sitting up more in the bed, and looking at Leeteuk. “I could use some water though. My throat is parched.”

Things settle back down after that, and both Siwon and Leeteuk are pleased when Jessa sleeps soundly throughout the rest of the night.

The next day finds Kris leading a tall, tanned pink haired teenager to their guest house as Jessa is standing outside to gauge the level of magic in the area. Now that the druid protecting the wards is dead, she’ll have to keep a watch out for anything gone amiss.

Her training didn’t include how to maintain these specific wards, only a druid who’d been handpicked by the previous druid was trained in them, an old tradition that helped prevent any possibility of a vampire coercing a druid to help them by releasing the wards.

The last thing they need is vampire clans crossing the border in order to gain new food supplies and potential new baby vampires to strengthen their numbers.

“Good Moring Alpha.” Jessa bows to Kris as he steps up in front of the house.

The tall Chinese wolf barely gives her a glance, turning to the other and telling him to stay.

“Call me that in front of the boy, and I’ll see you punished, druid.” Kris growls as he passes her on his way inside.

Jessa looks down at the teen. Something about him seems very familiar and as Jessa descends the stairs, she gets a whiff of his natural scent. But before she can say anything, Kris pops his head back out the front door and calls for Luhan to come inside.

Jessa’s pretty sure Kris hates humans, which would account for how he’s treating her, so she slips back into the house as Kris finishes introducing Luhan to the others. “This is Jessa.” Leeteuk hastily introduces her when its evident Kris won’t do it. “She’s like a family member to us.”

Kris doesn’t hide the soft snort when Leeteuk mentions her. She only hopes that the Alpha’s mate is much more caring than Kris is. They settle down in the front room, Kris leaving after a moment, muttering something about responsibilities and that he’d be back for Luhan by the noon hour.

It doesn’t take much to figure out that Luhan’s not exactly human, but no one can pinpoint what he is. Jessa’s subtle scan of him with her druidic abilities yields nothing concrete either, although he’s got a magical aura. He admits to them that he only has contact with Kris and Tao outside of the occasional guard when something happens, and that he knows they’re werewolves.

Luhan’s plan is working well, he thinks later on, after Leeteuk pulls Tao aside to explain things. They don’t know he’s a vampire, and he hasn’t exposed himself in any way that could hurt him or his Clan.

He takes a glance at Jessa, pleased to see that his mark is left undisturbed. He thinks he only needs to get a few more bites in before she’ll willingly come with him back to his Clan.

Luhan also has the power of magical manipulation, something only his family knew as it meant a successful heir to the Clans throne. It comes with a price unfortunately, and Luhan’s already feeling the bloodlust starting to swirl in his gut.

The two biggest problems to his plan to sneak off with Jessa are the wolves she’s with, and the claim mark he’d spotted only after he’d bitten into her neck the night before. The sweet taste of her blood had been tinted with a hint of a mate, but Luhan’s sure that once she’s changed over, she’ll be free of any mating bond save for him.

The afternoon turns from sunny to stormy as Tao decides it’s time to inform Kris that Luhan’s not as stupid as they thought. The storm gets worse before they can even dash across the village square, and are forced to stay with the group as the storm rages on, making small talk.

Even Jessa, with her druidic abilities cannot fathom what had brought the storm on, as the forecast hadn’t stated any type of system to develop for a few days, though by dinner time, it’s slowed down to a drizzle.

“I would invite you to the house for dinner, but Kris seems to be in a foul mood due to a dispute between a couple of betas.” Tao says as he and Luhan get ready to leave.

Leeteuk smiles at the omega. “No worries. We brought enough supplies for ourselves, but the offer is appreciated.”

“I rather like that omega.” Hoseok says as they settle into the steamed rice and curry vegetable mix that Ryeowook had insisted they bring. “He’s a lot more amiable than his mate.”

Siwon goes to cuff Hoseok over the head when Leeteuk stops him. “He speaks the truth Siwon.” He says, turning to Hoseok. “Kris is…..well he’s not a very stable Alpha.” He says.

“A couple of years ago, right after the attack at the house, we had the winter gathering.” Leeteuk starts to explain.

“Was it the gathering that Hyukjae was rejected?” Hoseok asks. He’d still been wet enough behind the ears at his position that he’d remained behind at the Pack house.

Leeteuk nods. “There was a strange rumor in the air that gathering that a couple of Alphas in training were fighting over a fostered omega, but no one could pinpoint either Alpha in training, or the omega.” He says. “Suho was the Alpha of the Pack that Kris and Tao both fostered in, and it wasn’t until the next Gathering that we found out that two of his fostered wolves had disappeared not long before then, and that the other Alpha in training had been killed.”

Siwon clears his throat. “This is why we need to be careful around Kris. He has a hair trigger temper, especially when it comes to Tao, and anything his wolf perceives as his.”

“While no one can officially pin Kris with killing of the other Alpha, or the fact that they’d left secretly, Boa can’t really do much unless Kris shows his wolf’s true nature, or admits to the crime.” Leeteuk explains. “While we are here, Boa has asked me to gather more information on Kris, see if he has actually remained a quiet leader.”

Hoseok and Jessa both nod at the information. “Well, I guess that means we need to tread carefully around Tao then too?” Hoseok asks.

Leeteuk nods. “If you haven’t figured out already, Kris doesn’t think too highly of people who aren’t shifters.” He says to Jessa.

Jessa snorts. “I noticed it.” She grumbles. “He needs to show druids a little more respect though. The next one that comes to watch over the wards will not be pleased with how he treats humans.”

Not long after finding the dead druid’s remains, Jessa had called her old Clan leader to inform her of the other druid’s death.

Bree had promised the new druid would be coming to take over the area and help Jessa figure out why the magic surrounding them had died, but it would be a week or so before the other druid arrived.

“I take it tomorrow we are going to go look at the border?” Siwon asks, steering the conversation away from Kris.

“We should.” Jessa sighs, settling back against her chair and crossing her arms. “I need to determine how weak the wards are, and if any of them have broken.”

**

Jessa wakes up, panting as if she’d been running, sweat dripping down her face as she blinks in the darkness of her room. It’s the third night in a row she’s had the same strange forest dream, though this time, the wolves were trying to pull her away from the man in the woods.

Thankfully, she realizes, she hadn’t woken up screaming again like she’d done the first night of the dream. Her head ached suddenly and Jessa fumbles for the side table where she’d left some water and her cell phone.

Her mate bond is muted, stretched over the long distance between Kyuhyun and herself, though she knows if either of them concentrate hard enough, it can be opened up more.

Even though she’s been feeling physically fine, Donghae refuses to clear her for more intimate activities with her mate. Knowing how in tune Kyuhyun is with his wolf means that the poor shifter has been more irritable since they aren’t allowed to strengthen their bond.

Yawning, Jessa slips back under the sheet, wondering if she’s coming down with a cold or something as the ache in her head starts to spread to the rest of her body as she falls back into slumber.

Luhan, hidden in the shadows of the room, smiles as he the remnants of blood from his lips. He’s starting to become addicted to the sweet taste of Jessa’s blood, and so far, the rest of the wolves in the house have no clue he’s a vampire.

He can feel the tingle of a blood bond starting between them, indicating that her body is responding to the vampiric virus that he’s been injecting into her veins for 3 nights. One more bite and he can delve into her mind without having to physically touch her.

Luhan grins, silently chuckling to himself as he watches Jessa toss and turn in her sleep. ‘It’s too bad I cannot perform the next bite now.’ Luhan thinks as he his lips again. His blood lust is becoming stronger, his desire to take more than a mouthful of her blood is starting to creep into his thoughts.

Luhan slips up next to her bed, placing a soft hand on her shoulder near his own mark and places a chaste kiss upon her lips as she calms down from her restless sleep.

**

“There might be vampires roaming around the territory.” Leeteuk tells Kris the next day while Jessa, Tao and Luhan are wandering around the edges of the village.

Hoseok and Siwon have been put on guard duty around the border in case any vampires try to cross the breech in the wards.

Kris frowns. “That’s impossible. The old druid that lives in the forest clearing outside the border told me a few weeks ago that they were all intact and no blood er could pass through them.”

Kris and Leeteuk are arguing loud enough they can hear the two Alphas clearly from the edge of the village. Jessa stumbles softly and Luhan is quick to catch her, his hands warm against her sides.

Her body responds to the touch in a way she’s never expected, and Jessa nearly gasps out loud as she feels it. “Are you ok?” Luhan asks, concerned.

Tao’s turned toward her, face scrunched up with worry. “You don’t seem to have a lot of energy today.” He notes.

“I just need a minute.” Jessa says, patting Luhan’s hands as she moves away from the male, settling down on the ground. “I don’t know how much you know, but a couple of years ago, I was brutally attacked and nearly killed by an insane incubus.” She tells them. “My recovery is still not complete.”

At the mention of the incubus, Tao growls, and Luhan’s hands clench. “Filthy things.” Luhan spits.

Jessa quietly files away Luhan’s response to the demon. Even though he’s reacted negatively right away in response to the name, she knows that it could be a feint.

Luhan secretly smiles as they wait while Jessa gains some strength. She’s explained with the magic nearly gone around the area, she’s had to use some of her druidic abilities to put up some basic protections for them, even though most of the werewolves in the area are trained to fight.

She’s in the midst of explaining to Tao about what she knows about vampires, both unaware that Luhan is fidgeting quietly behind them, trying to restrain himself from correcting her knowledge, when she faints.

“.” Tao jumps as Luhan dives to catch her falling body. “I’ll call for Yixing. Stay with her Luhan.” Tao orders as he moves away.

Luhan watches, a smirk forming on his face as Tao dashes toward one of the houses near the edge of the village. He takes a look around and caresses the druid’s face softly. “Soon.” He whispers.

“How is she?” Tao’s back with the Pack healer, squatting down next to Luhan.

“She’s breathing ok, and her temperature seems normal to me.” Luhan replies, face etched in worry.

Yixing takes out a few things from his bag, checking Jessa’s heart rate, breathing and pulse and determines that she must have just fainted from overextending her druidic abilities. “Would one of you go find the wolves she’s with?” Yixing asks. “She’ll need to be moved to her room to recover.”

It doesn’t take long to get her back to the house, and tucked into the bed. Luhan’s instructed to stay and watch over her until Siwon or Hoseok can get back from their patrol.

Luhan’s blood lust grows the moment they are left alone in the house, and he’s halfway tempted to take a few sips of her delicious blood, but refrains from doing so. He doesn’t want to overload her body.

A hand on his shoulder wakes Luhan from his self-imposed meditation a few hours later, the tall form of Siwon hovering over him. “How is she?” He asks.

Luhan looks over to see Jessa is still asleep, though she must have woken up enough at some point to throw the covers off her body. “Hasn’t woken up that I know of.” He murmurs.

Siwon relaxes and pats Luhan’s shoulder. “You can go ahead and go now that I’m here.” He says.

Luhan bows to him and leaves the house, knowing he’ll be back in a few hours.

A/N: Soooooo it took nearly 4 days for my voice to return after the BTS concert in Chicago on the 24th. I've posted a review about the concert here! 

Really not much going on right now as I've got 3 weeks before University starts back up. I've been hard at work on my cosplays for Dragoncon (huge convention in Atlanta Georgia in Sept), and watching a lot of kdramas. I just finished Panda and Hedgehog which stars Donghae! 

Sporatic updates are still sporatic at this point. We've still got a number of chapters to go though so don't worry! 

Welcome to all the new subscribers! Do let me know what you think!