Horses' feet thundered on the grounds as Yifan rode through the forest. He let out a loud laugh, one that came from his stomach, one that came from pure joy as Chanyeol and Xiumin flanked his sides. 

Chanyeol was riding a deep chestnut stallion, a smile etched on his face as he tore through the forest, following the faint barks of the hunting dogs they sent ahead. Yifan could hear the rustling of the leaves from above as Sehun flew through the trees, following his own falcons who were accompanying them in the hunt. 
Yifan loved going hunting. He loved pretending that he was a normal man, just hunting for food. It was tradition for the royal family, to go hunting together when they were in the mood. It was only time before the eleven of them went on a hunt. 

Yifan was slightly upset that Tao wasn't with him but he was compensated by using Tao's favorite horse. Tao's Black Forest horse was famous throughout the kingdom. 

No one had such a powerful black coated horse with a platinum white mane. Tao took pride in his horse and refused to let anyone even touch her, much less ride her. Yifan was a first, and as obvious as it was, it was a still a huge surprise was Tao offered Yifan his prized horse.

They came across a clearing with a creek passing through in the middle. Yifan patted his horse's side, making it trot to a stop before he slid off.

Yifan let the horse roam loose,  joining his brothers as they sat in a circle. 

"Jeez Chanyeol, you just had to pick the slowest horse." Kai shouted at Chanyeol who had just arrived at the clearing. 

Chanyeol made a face as he slipped off his horse as it ran by, "Shut up chicken boy, I like to let Sprinkles go at her own pace."

Yifan raised an eyebrow at the name, "Sprinkles?" 

Chanyeol flushed, "Shut up, Baekhyun named her when he was little."

"How manly." Kai muttered before sipping from his water bottle. He yelped as Chanyeol tackled him, screaming and kicking as the taller male tickled him with no mercy. 

Yifan was about to say something when he heard loud neighs coming from the trees. He turned to see Junmyeon in all his glory, riding on a cotton candy colored horse.

The boys stifled their laughter as their king rode in on a horse that looked like it came from a carousel. The laughter abruptly stopped when they realized the cotton candy horse was Yixing. 

Yixing rolled his eyes as he sat in between Chanyeol and Xiumin, "You boys really need to learn not to laugh at me." 

No one paid heed to his (somewhat) hostile tone. Yixing was a sweetheart and no matter how angry he sounded, he could never fully be angry. 

Yifan laid back, resting his head on Kyungsoo's lap. The younger boy smiled as he ran his fingers through his brother's hair, patting his cheek before turning his attention to Luhan. 

It was a nice day. Mildy sunny, few clouds in the sky and a light breeze. The kingdom was quiet and the villagers were happy. 

Unfortunately, that peaceful spell was shattered as Yixing sat straight up. 

Shapeshifters were known to have heightened senses caused by the amount of animals they could shift into. Something must of startled Yixing because he was wide eyed, staring at the line of trees that led into the dark forest. 

"Mom?" Xiumin crawled over to his mother, holding a hand out to try to soothe him. 

Yixing shot up and took off running, turning into a sleek cheetah as ran towards the trees he was staring at. 

Everyone groaned as they got up, running to mount their horses. 

Junmyeon simply joined Xiumin, who had a particularly large horse. They followed Yixing into the woods, keeping an eye out for what could have startled their queen. 

They slowed to a stop when they saw the cheetah in the trees, eyeing something through the leaves. 

Yifan dismounted his horse before floating up to join Cheetah Yixing in the trees. He frowned as he caught sight of two large wolves. 

Their eyes were blue, signifying that they belonged to a pack. Yifan held his breath as the two cornered a huntsmen, who looked like he was about to his pants. 

Yifan was about to fly down when he felt a paw on his chest. He turned to see Yixing staring at him. His purple eyes warning Yifan not to interfere.

Yifan turned his attention back to the werewolves who had now turned into human. They smirked as the huntsmen fell to the ground. 

"Oh looky here babe, we got ourselves some prey." The black haired female cooed as she wrapped her arms around her mate. 

Her mate, who was a maroon haired woman placed a sloppy kiss on black haired lips' before turning her attention to the man who was now crying. 

"Shall we do it slowly? Or quickly."

Maroon hair giggled, "Let's torture him sugar, make it look like a real monster got to him."

Black hair squealed as she pulled her mate in for a kiss, "You're brilliant."

Yifan kept a close eye on the woman as they crept closer to the innocent huntsmen. He was getting angry.....very very angry. He was about to jump when he caught something on the back of their necks. 

Yifan nudged Yixing and pointed out the small mark on their necks. It was black, like a tattoo. A wolf's head with fire behind it. 

Yifan's breath hitched when he recognized the mark. Each pack had their own mark, one that showed others that the werewolf was not alone and that it had a strong pack behind them. 

The fluttering in Yifan's stomach dropped as the uneasiness increased. 

Something was wrong. Incredibly wrong.  

Days passed as Tao stayed holed up in Jay's cabin. Nuri kept going back and forth from his own cabin to the greenhouse, making sure everything was in place before they left. 

There were only hours left before they escaped the werewolf village and Tao was close to breaking down.

Yifan wasn't answering his mind messages and no one here could help him. 

Tao took a deep breath as he tried to remember what his mom always told him.

Head up, chin high. Don't let them see you weak, you are a prince my Taozi. 

Tao wiped his tears as he held his chin high. Damn right he was a prince.

He was a prince, a heir. One that would do anything to protect his people and right now, his people needed him. 

Tao changed into his own clothes as the clock ticked down. He laced his boots, tying them tightly, sliding little daggers in the sheaths that adorned his pant legs and cape. 

Tao pulled at his bow, making sure the string was tight and in good condition. 

Jay walked into his bedroom as Tao packed the last of his stuff.

"Ready Tao?"

Tao took one last look around the room, his eyes pausing at the window. The sun was going down and the village chatter was slowly diminishing. 

He turned to Jay and nodded, "It's now or never."

Jay smiled as he patted Tao's shoulder before leading him to the living room where Nuri was waiting. A young woman was next to him, her hair messily in a bun and her eyes light red.

Tao frowned as Jay hissed at Nuri, "Really? You're bringing
Evani." 

Nuri groaned, "I tried hiding it from her but she knows me like the back of her own hand Jay. She threatened me, threatened to expose our plan."

Jay narrowed his eyes at the short, platinum haired woman, "You play dirty Evani."

Evani grinned as she patted Jay's cheek, "You should expect that from me Jay-Jay." 

Tao stifled a laugh as Jay scrunched his face in distaste. 
He cleared his throat, making the three werewolves turn towards him, "We should go." 

Evani raised an eyebrow as she looked Tao up and down, "And you are....?" 

Nuri's eyes widened as he nudged his mate. Tao fought the grin making its way to his face as Nuri hurriedly whispered something in Evani's ear. 

It took three seconds for the sentence to register. Tao giggled as Evani let out a screech, "AHH! YOU'RE THE HEIR? WHY ARE YOU SO CUTE?!!"

Evani ran to Tao, shamelessly pinching his cheeks and cooing at his blossoming red cheeks. Nuri rolled his eyes and pulled her away from Tao. Tao smiled innocently as he shot him a glare, a small warning telling Tao that Evani was his. 

"Chill Fido, I have my own prince."

Jay laughed loudly at the offending nickname while Evani tried to smoother her giggles. 

Nuri growled lowly and swung a pack over his shoulder. 
"We should get going."

Tao smiled innocently as he walked by Nuri. Jay opened the door, peeking his head out to see if the coast was clear. 

"Okay, let's go." He whispered, running out into the night. Evani pushed Tao before following him. Nuri brought up the rear, keeping an eye out for any problems.

Tao smiled when he saw their exit route. 

Jay had went scouring the nights before, making a path through the hunting forest that lead to a creek that washed away their scents. 

It was only a five minute run, there was no was anything bad could happen. But of course, it did. 

It was Evani who first caught the scent of the guards. She opened to yell a warning but was tackled by a honey colored wolf. Nuri let out a shout before shifting into his dark red wolf. 

Tao knew this was terrible timing but Nuri's wolf was gorgeous. It's coat was dark red with lighter red streaks, just like Nuri's hair. 

Jay was the next one to fall. A guard had shot a net at his feet and now Jay was tangled up in rope, screaming for Tao to keep going. Tao increased his speed, shifting from a wolf to a cheetah, just so he could have that extra boost.

But it was in vain. A huge black wolf with multiple scars on it's side was right next to him. Tao internally cursed because there was only one wolf that was this big.

The alpha. 

Tao was brought down in the next second. He growled as the alpha pinned him down. He struggled, fighting to not look the Alpha in the eye. 

"Prince Tao, if you would like your friends unharmed, I suggest you turn back to human."

Tao cursed as he heard the beta shout. He stretched his neck around the Alpha to see his friends being held at knifepoint. 

Tao sighed as he stopped struggling, turning back to human. 

The alpha grinned (if wolves could grin) and turned back to human. Tao averted his eyes as one of the guards brought the now werewolf a robe.  

"Well well well....aren't you Junmyeon's kid."

Tao snarled, "I'm not a kid."

The alpha snorted, "Right and whose the one being pinned down?"

Tao narrowed his eyes before kicking the alpha's legs from underneath him before pinning the alpha's neck down with his knee, "You are." Tao responded, feeling giddy that he was able to bring down an alpha. 

The werewolf chuckled, before rolling them over. Tao gasped for air as the alpha held him by his neck.

"Listen pup, you clearly don't know how things work here. I am the boss, I am the one in charge. Disobey me....." Tao choked as the werewolf squeezed his neck. 

The alpha finally realized Tao, letting the younger male gasp for air. 

"What do you think you four are doing?"

"Leaving. My kingdom needs help. If you won't help, I will find someone who will."

The alpha snarled, bearing his teeth threateningly, "This is my pack. You can't decide who goes in and out of our territory."

"My father is the king, your duty is to serve us."

"I SERVE NO ONE."  

Tao stepped back as the alpha's eyes turned red, his breath laboring. He was getting angry and one more comment could set him off. 

"Kill them."

Tao's eyes widened as he ripped himself out of the alpha's hold. Nuri took that as a sign to start fighting.

Evani was small but violent. She took down three guards as she yelled for Tao to run. Tao didn't understand why they kept telling him to run while they stayed back and fought. 

Tao was a prince, he was supposed to fight for his people. He was sick of being protected. 

So he stayed.

Guards kept pouring in, forcing the four of them to back up into a small circle. 

Their backs were against each other as they stared down the army of werewolves.

"I'm really sorry I dragged you into this." Tao said, tightening his hold on his bow.

Nuri shook his head, "It's my pleasure, the alpha is a anyway."

Tao smiled as he knocked an arrow in his bow, "Ready?'

Evani snarled lowly, her normal green eyes turning a florescent purple. Nuri shifted back into a wolf. Jay unsheathed Tao's sword and held it in his hands. 

Tao waited for three painfully long seconds....then he let his arrow fly.

The line of werewolves surged forward and Tao knew.....this might be his last battle.
He closed his eyes for a brief moment, thanking his family and sending silent messages of love. 

Yifan's smiling face flashed in his mind before his sword met the first werewolf. But the battle didn't last long. 

The werewolves howled, clearly spooked. Tao slowed to a stop, confused on why all the wolves were running around frantically. 

It wasn't until Tao heard a familiar roar. He looked up at the night sky as a dark figure swooped above them.

Tao grinned as the dragon landed with a large thud in front of him, his tail wrapping around Tao protectively. The werewolves froze as the dragon lifted his head to the sky, billowing fire into the night. 

"I'm sorry I took so long love." 

Okay usually I don't have author notes but I have a few things to issue. 

First of all, I am on vacation in London so the updates will be coming a bit slow. So please refrain from commenting for me to update Bc I know!
I have a ton of good ideas for this story and I love writing it but I also have a life outside wattpad. 

But pushing that aside, I want to say thank you for all the support so far! It's really motivating to see so many people enjoying this story. 

That's all I've got to say and I hope you have a wonderful day/night.

-P.S.K