"Hey, I'm leaving!"

"Alright, be careful out there Jin," Hoseok called after the red-haired male from inside, before retiring back to the confinements of his room.

It was about half past seven when Seokjin left the cabin with a pleasant whistle, spirits high and bright at the first touch of the morning's nature breeze on his skin. Oh how he adored taking strolls out in the beautiful woods of the town, catching the halcyon landscape at its finest under the lustrous glow of the Sun's early rays, surrounding himself in the fresh, sweet fragrance of Spring in its efflorescence.

The lupine-filled meadow that faced the pack's humble abode seemed to sparkle that morning, what with petals and leaves being coated in countless drops of dew that glimmered under the light like tiny diamonds — an aftermath of the storm that had unfurled over nearly all the towns of Korea's countrysides the previous night.

The male stopped by the mailbox wedged into the ground on a wooden pole, checking for its contents. Upon seeing the two clean sets of t-shirts and pants tucked inside neatly, he hummed in content and flipped the lid back on. While it may have been a mailbox, it served an entirely different purpose for the boys — an emergency pit-stop for instances where one would transform on accident and end up ripping all his clothes, a stash that saved them from the embarrassment of - glory once the change wore off. It was practically meant for Jungkook, most of the time; when his temper had been at its worst, he probably ripped ten sets of clothes in that week alone. The memory brought a smile to Seokjin's face.

Off the elder went, down the path he knew by heart that led to the lake deep in the woods, the place he's been spending all his recent free mornings at. Ever since the last showdown the pack had with a Raven demon barely six months ago, things have been quiet on the supernatural side, so much that he's taken up an interest in collecting rocks for the terrariums he's crafting (don't judge, he's already gotten enough from Yoongi). Though he enjoyed the newfound pleasance in the rare opportunity of peace the pack's met with, he'd be lying if he said he didn't miss those days of tension and adrenaline, fighting side by side his best friends in their battles against evil. Yeap, Shinbi was just that boring for him to harbor such thoughts, being someone without the social life of a high school teenager, or a normal human.

He could get used to it though; it was still a thousand times better than the life he'd had before Namjoon's pack came into the picture.

The lake slowly came into view through the gaps between the tall pines in the distance, and Seokjin broke into a small jog towards the water. Then, five strides later, he stopped in his tracks, suddenly feeling a prick of unease scratching at the back of his neck.

His senses went full on as he turned to scan the vicinity, nose twitching at every sniff he took of his surroundings. It didn't take long for him to find what he was looking for — the distinct, metallic stench of blood.

Brows furrowing in concern, he followed the scent, wondering where it was coming from. An injured hiker? A deer caught in a leg trap? Someone's dead dog? He couldn't quite put his finger (or paw) on what exactly the scent originated from; there were too many other different odors that began to surface the closer he seemed to get — saltwater, mud, fecal matter? — overlapping the blood and leaving him to build on his assumptions.

Bending to duck past a low branch over a mass of weeds, Seokjin found himself entering a small clearing by the side of the lake, a territory he was unfamiliar with. He glanced through the area, eyes darting from corner to corner in search of anything out of the ordinary.

He spotted it moments later, a dainty, fur-coated body of an animal, laying semi-hidden in a cower by a pile of large rocks. With its back facing him, he couldn't tell what it was — it looked close enough to a mountain lion, but something else had stolen his attention before he could ponder any further; if it weren't for the occasional, rhythmic rise and fall of the creature's chest, Seokjin would've been sure it was already dead.

His jaw hung open in utter shock as his eyes took in the nasty, gaping gashes that marked its body all over, so raw that bits of flesh were exposed from its skin. Fresh blood still trickled from the wounds, staining whatever patch of silver was left on its fur with a dark, sticky scarlet. Something about the sight brought a pang to his heart in pity; it wasn't dead, but it certainly was dying. God, he could practically smell its pain, its suffering, its desperation, it almost made him gag. There's no way he's gonna let himself walk away from this, not when he had a heart as soft as marshmallows.

So he stepped forward, approaching it with caution so that he wouldn't startle it, the whole time keeping his eyes on its crumpled body. The last action proved to be a mistake though — forgetting about the twigs scattered all around the ground, he walked right into a whole bunch of them, producing a cracking sound that made the creature whip its head up in alarm.

At the sight of its short, round-tripped ears and broad muzzle, it wasn't hard to guess what it was.

Seokjin watched as the creature began to push itself up onto its four weak, trembling legs, stumbling over its paws in its miserable attempt to stand. Its snout lifted slightly as it sniffed the air, taking staggering steps and gradually turning around. The moment its dark, listless eyes met with Seokjin's, it launched into its defense mode, backing up against the rocks in a crouch as a low, rumbling snarl reverberated from its throat, and bared its sharp set of canines in warning. Its once inanimate eyes now flared a piercing, glorious blue, and that's when he knew — it was one of his own kind.

"Woah hey, easy now," Seokjin said as he stepped back, hands raised in declaration of peace. "I'm not gonna hurt you, I swear."

His own eyes changed then, glowing a golden shade of yellow to serve as a message that he was one of its kind too, hoping that it would proved his point enough for it to back down and let him offer help.

But that apparently turned out to be his second mistake, because the next thing he knew, the wolf had launched itself right at him, tackling him down with a surprising brute strength he barely expected, and out came its claws.

Seokjin never screamed louder than he had that moment.

"It came from over there!"

Following Hoseok's lead, Yoongi and Namjoon sprinted after him, darting past each trunk of pine that obstructed their path. They'd  dashed out right away the second Namjoon recognized the unmistakable tone of Seokjin's voice in the scream that penetrated the woods, worry written all over their faces.

"I see him!" The alpha shouted over his shoulder as they passed the lake, directing his companions' attention to the two figures rolling about in the clearing just beyond the body of water.

The three made it over in no time, leaping over the threshold of the clearing towards their friend. With one rough tug, Namjoon ripped the wolf that had been snapping at Seokjin's face away from him, and flung it towards the pile of boulders behind them.

The canine let out a strangled yelp as it crashed into the jagged surface with a sickening crunch — definitely of bones breaking — and crumpled to the ground in a heap. Namjoon waited, maintaining his stance while he watched the creature str