Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Baekhyun knows the stories; he’s heard them countless times over. They all start the same way: with a pretty omega with a heart of gold and a singular yet classic beauty, and they all end the same way: with a handsome and virtuous alpha who saves the pretty omega from dastardly circumstances, and they live happily ever after, having the most beautiful pups together. Baekhyun has heard these stories so many times and with such frequency that he might be able to tell the tales of the pretty omegas and the heroic alphas almost as well as his grandmother.

No one tells stories as well as his grandmother. Baekhyun, if he weren't too big for it now, would still love to be able to clamber into his grandmother's lap and demand she tell him about the alpha who fought away an entire pack by himself, and kissed his beloved slumbering omega awake from the clutches of a sleep like death with the power of true love. Even now, Baekhyun still loves those stories, and even now, Baekhyun still loves to hear them.

But Baekhyun is too big to clamber into his grandmother's lap, is too old to ask her to retell the one about the cruel beta who stole the position of lead alpha in his brother's absence and hoarded all of the food for himself, and the valiant alpha who stole food for the pack from right under the beta's nose and fell in love with the missing lead alpha's omega sister along the way. Baekhyun is old enough now too, and has been for awhile, to know that those stories are nothing more than fantasies, just stories.

Maybe in some other packs, the desert packs or the elder packs hidden away in the mountains, those stories are true. Maybe somewhere that isn't here, Baekhyun would be able to lounge around looking pretty and sing to birds and wait for his one true alpha love to save him from some terrible fate and sweep him off of his feet. However, here is not a fairy tale, and here there will not be any alphas fighting through barriers of thorns to rescue him.

Instead, it's Baekhyun who will be fighting through walls of thorns and poisonous words to get to his alpha. It's Baekhyun who will be a knight in shining armor. But he won't be saving any singular person, just proving himself to his own pack. It's his destiny, his father tells him; it's an honor, his mother tells him.

Follow your heart, his grandmother says.

"Look alive, Baekhyun!" his mentor shouts, and Baekhyun curses, jerking from his thoughts. His muscles scream at him as he pivots hard on his left heel to block his dueling partner's attack. Sehun is fast, pressing through Baekhyun's block. His forearm slides along Baekhyun's, slick with the sweat dripping from their skin. Baekhyun pants, and he slips forward.

Sehun grabs his shoulder, stepping around Baekhyun's heel to trip him backwards, and the rush of the sensation of falling twists in Baekhyun's stomach. He grabs Sehun's shoulders as he falls, kicking at Sehun's ankles and tripping the other omega down with him. Baekhyun's back hits the ground hard, and he grunts at the pain, kicking both legs up hard into Sehun's stomach.

Sehun flies over him, hitting the ground on his back too. Baekhyun hears the breath fly from Sehun's lungs, and he twists up onto his feet, teeth bared. Sehun scrambles up to his feet, copying Baekhyun's crouch, his nails digging shallow grooves into the dirt of their training ground. He shows his teeth, his canines flashing, and Baekhyun leaps forward at him, crashing into Sehun. They roll across the ground, dirt flying up around them, in a mockery of a fight they might have in their other forms, teeth snapping and hackles raised and claws tearing.

They break apart, and Baekhyun ignores the blood he can feel dripping down his shin from his torn knee, pushing himself to his feet. He circles Sehun, a growl caught in his throat, the warning only barely swallowed as he waits for Sehun to get up.

"Get up, Sehun!" Minseok shouts. Their mentor's voice has been enough to jerk Baekhyun from the heat of a fight, enough to distract him for a long second that ends in him flat on his back with teeth at his neck before, but that time is long past. Baekhyun learned his lesson about taking his eyes off of his opponent a long time ago, learned to keep his focus and his head cool in the midst of a fight. Baekhyun is good at this- at fighting.

Sehun stumbles back into a standing position, and Baekhyun watches him for any sign of movement, rocking on the balls of his feet. In a flash, Sehun has moved in close, his eyes glancing left. Baekhyun catches the slight smirk on Sehun's lips before the other omega drops to the ground. Baekhyun jumps.

It's a common trick of Sehun's to glance left and sweep out his leg from the right. Anyone who has never seen the attack before would follow the usual rule of combat to watch the opponent's eyes. Against Sehun, that person would subsequently end up flat on the ground with Sehun's teeth pressed against sweaty skin. Against anyone who isn't Baekhyun, the success rate of such an attack is nearly perfect, but Baekhyun knows Sehun. Baekhyun knows how to read his opponents, and Baekhyun does not lose fights.

Sehun launches himself up from the ground a mere blink after his attack and Baekhyun's balanced landing, but Baekhyun is already throwing himself forward. Sehun doesn't manage to get his block up in time, and Baekhyun drives his knee into Sehun's side. Sehun staggers back, and Baekhyun lunges after him, grabbing his wrist and twisting it behind the omega's back. Sehun drops to his knees, teeth grit against the pain; Baekhyun follows, using his weight to press Sehun down so that his nose brushes the ground.

"Yield," he growls against Sehun's shoulder, teeth just barely grazing over the skin, and Sehun whines to admit his defeat.

"Alright, good," their mentor calls. "That was good. Relax." Baekhyun lets go immediately, prancing away from Sehun before he can get in any last minute swipes at Baekhyun. Sehun growls at him, and Baekhyun bares his teeth, that growl he'd suppressed earlier now spilling past his lips. Sehun shrinks back, still glaring. Sehun can snarl all he wants, but this is Baekhyun's victory. "Baekhyun wins again," Minseok confirms, walking towards them.

Baekhyun hasn't lost a match in the past year; it doesn't matter which omega he's fighting, who he's training against.

"Fucker," Sehun spits, eyes trained on Baekhyun as he forces himself up from the ground.

"Sehun!" Minseok snaps, and the beta’s voice is harsh, the tone something that used to make Baekhyun flinch. Sehun still does, glancing up at the sky and whining "fuck" under his breath. Minseok's fist hits Sehun's shoulder, and the omega yelps, grabbing at the soon-to-be bruise. Baekhyun laughs, pleased at Sehun's misery.

"You need to work on your reflexes," Minseok tells Sehun. "You won't be able to garner any respect from our Leader like that."

Sehun shrugs, getting to his feet. He's much taller than Minseok, but one raised eyebrow from the beta and Sehun is dropping into a bow. He's a good kid, just a little on the young side. In a few sun cycles, he'll really be an asset to the pack. All of them, all of the omegas in training right now, will be.

"You also can't dawdle on the ground like that," Minseok adds, voice sharp. "That won't be accepted at the tournament, and you'll be considered out even if you're not truly down. Understood?"

Sehun nods. "Yes," he says. "Not that it matters." He waves a hand in Baekhyun's direction. "Between the two of us here, Baekhyun is the only one with any real chance of being the next Second."

Baekhyun bristles. Being Second, being the Leader's mate, an arranged match- that's not what he wants. Maybe Baekhyun has been too tainted by his grandmother's stories; maybe Baekhyun has always been a romantic at heart. Either way, Baekhyun doesn't want to take the position of Second. Baekhyun doesn't want to belong to some alpha simply because he's the best omega to lead the pack. He wants to belong to an alpha who loves him, who belongs to Baekhyun first. The Leader of the pack belongs to the pack first, and the Second belongs to the pack first.

There's no love story that can fit inside the tight seams of the hierarchy that structures the top positions of the pack hierarchy.

"So what?" Minseok challenges. "Are you planning to lose miserably in the tournament? To embarrass your pack and your fellow omegas?"

Sehun spits on the ground, a little bit of pink mixed with the saliva, blood from a cut Baekhyun had punched into his lip.

"No," he mumbles. "I'm just being realistic."

Minseok sighs, and he reaches out to brush his fingers through Sehun's hair. "You have to do well in the tournament," he says, leaning in close to Sehun. He's speaking loud enough for Baekhyun to hear him, but his words are not meant for Baekhyun. "The perfect mate for you might see your performance. This is your first impression as an omega of this pack. This is the first time you step out of the shadow of being a pup, you understand?"

"Yes," Sehun murmurs.

No, Baekhyun wants to say. No, I don’t understand. I didn't agree. Could you come here and say that to me too? If between the two of them, Baekhyun is more likely to win the tournament and take the title of Second, then between the two of them, Baekhyun is also the more romantically inclined.

His mentor saw Baekhyun's potential and picked him to train. As Minseok is the eldest grandson of the current Leader, Baekhyun has been lucky, according to his parents, to be able to train under him. Baekhyun isn't sure that's luck as much as it is fate. If Baekhyun were lucky, he wouldn't have been born in the cycles of the moon that dictate the possible candidates for the next Leader. However, Baekhyun was born a night before a full moon in the middle of spring. That spring was in the midst of the sun turns that the moon goddess claims as her time to select the pups who will be participants in the tournament that will determine the strongest alpha and strongest omega. Those two wolves will then take the position of Leader and Second.

Subsequently, the pair will mate. An arranged mating of circumstance- it's something of which Baekhyun wants to have no part.

"You can go home, Sehun," Minseok says, patting the omega's cheek. "You look exhausted." Baekhyun stretches his hand up over his head, breathing with the release of the tension in his muscles. The breeze picks up, and the soft fabric of Baekhyun's shirt ripples over his stomach, tickling the skin there.

"What can I improve on, beta?" Baekhyun asks. He adjusts his loose linen shorts, scrunching his nose at the blood drying on his leg.

Minseok shakes his head. "You have a really good chance, Baekhyun," he admits. "If I hadn't seen some of the other candidates, I'd say it's definitely going to be you."

Baekhyun perks up. He hasn't heard anything about the others and their training. He knows who they are, remembers playing with most of them when he was a pup, but now that they're all deep in their training, the most promising candidates spend most of their time with their mentors, Baekhyun included. He has no idea which of his childhood friends might be right alongside him in the top tier of ability.

"I can't say anything else. You know that." Minseok drops a hand on Baekhyun's shoulder, and Baekhyun nods.

"Yeah," he murmurs. "I know."

Minseok squeezes his shoulder. "Now. About what you can improve on-" Minseok's fist slams into Baekhyun's stomach, and Baekhyun wheezes, curling in on himself, coughing, his arms folding in automatically to block the second blow.

"Spacing out," Minseok says, and he draws back. Baekhyun slips easily into his stance, and he steps inside Minseok's attack, curling his fingers around Minseok's wrist and driving his elbow into his ribs. Minseok stumbles back, coughing out a surprised laugh.

"Come on, Baekhyun," he taunts. "You've always wanted to fight me."

The growl rips from Baekhyun's mouth before he can stop it, adrenaline running high through his system. He knows Minseok is a good fighter, has seen him take down alphas twice his size, and Minseok has been watching Baekhyun fight for many moons now. Baekhyun is at a severe disadvantage unless he does something new and unexpected, and that is something Baekhyun excels at.

"You can try, beta," he goads in response. Minseok releases a short howl, and Baekhyun licks his lips. His canines feel sharper than they should, and he runs forward, arms drawn back like he's going to punch Minseok across the jaw. Minseok turns into the attack, acting like he's going to throw his own punch before Baekhyun can land his, and Baekhyun drops to his knees, sliding across the dirt. His knee aches as his skin tears open again, but Baekhyun ignores it, digging his fingers into the ground and forcing himself back to his feet.

His muscles strain at the sudden change in momentum, and he spins quickly on his heel to kick hard across Minseok's shoulder. He never connects; Minseok is there, taking Baekhyun's kick on his forearm and grabbing his ankle. He yanks hard, and Baekhyun yelps. His supporting leg slips from under him, and he slams hard into the ground.

"That was good," Minseok says with his eyes glinting dangerously, the irises looking more yellow than their familiar brown. "But not quite good enough."

Baekhyun bares his teeth at him, showing his canines, and Minseok’s grin shows his own, his bottom canines reaching almost to his upper lip. He drives downward towards Baekhyun, rolls just a bit left to avoid the hit before throwing himself back to the right, tackling Minseok to the ground. He scrambles to his feet, panting. He's been sparring with Sehun for hours, and Minseok is fresh. This isn't a fair fight at all, but Baekhyun can't ever expect a fair fight in a border skirmish or a real attack on the pack. Then again, in a real fight, Baekhyun would be in his wolf form, but that's not allowed right now.

Whether or not Baekhyun becomes the Second, he needs to be ready to defend the pack at any given moment. A slow smile spreads across his face. Defense. Right.

Minseok attacks again, and Baekhyun ducks, spinning in and out of Minseok's attacks, blocking them only when he has to. A strong attack doesn't lose energy even after contact is made, continuing on with the force until the opponent has felt the full weight of it. With Minseok, there is no pulling punches. Baekhyun relies on this tactic in hopes that Minseok with over index his attack and leave himself flailing for his balance for just a second-

There.

Baekhyun steps in, grabbing Minseok's arm and driving his own shoulder into Minseok's chest. He heaves, and Minseok's surprised intake of breath paints a pleased grin on Baekhyun's face as he throws the beta over his shoulder.

Minseok hits the ground hard, and Baekhyun dives after him, pressing his knees hard into the creases of Minseok's thighs and hips, struggling to get his hands around his wrists. He catches one, pressing it down flat on the dirt, and he tries to get his teeth in Minseok's neck before the beta can retaliate. Minseok's hand twists in Baekhyun's hair, and Baekhyun lets go immediately at the pain, his head yanked back.

Minseok's twists up, and Baekhyun drops his weight again, falling off of the beta and tumbling away. He hears Minseok's teeth snap just beside his ear, and Baekhyun twists on instinct to retaliate, snapping his own teeth.

His lips graze the skin of the back of Minseok's neck, and the beta stills, staring at him with a mixture of shock and pride. Baekhyun pants hard, staring at the beta from right beside him on the ground. If that bite had been real, Baekhyun would have torn Minseok's neck open, teeth snagging through his jugular.

Minseok would be dead, and that says something about Baekhyun. He's strong, probably more than even Minseok realized, and that will make him prized in this pack where strength is the most important quality in those who lead the pack.

"Baekhyun, Baekhyun, Baekhyun," Minseok laughs, getting to his feet. He brushes his hands on his pants before offering a hand to Baekhyun to help him up. "You're one crazy omega."

"You taught me to fight, beta," Baekhyun reminds. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you lost on purpose."

Minseok scowls good-naturedly. "If I have ever met a competitive person," he starts, "it's myself. But if anyone can beat me in competitive nature, it'd be you." He claps his hand on Baekhyun's shoulder.

"You did well today," he says. "Remember to not space out during fights, yeah?"

"Yeah, yeah," Baekhyun grumbles, breaking into a grin when Minseok jostles him.

"Manners, brat," he says. "Now go home. Eat. Clean your leg." Baekhyun glances down. The blood has stained the hem of his shorts. His mother is going to skin him alive.

"Shit," he swears.

"Don't let Byulhee see that," Minseok warns, stepping away. "Spit gets blood out!" he calls back to Baekhyun as he heads away from their training grounds. Baekhyun spits on the ground for good measure, and instantly regrets it, noticing all of a sudden how thirsty he is.

"Water," he mutters. "Water, water, water." He turns and trudges back towards his parents' home, making a detour towards the river to clean the blood off his leg and to hopefully get most of the stain out of his shorts. His mother just finished making these for him for this summer, and if he's already ruined them, well. He can just hear his mother’s displeased grumbling. The scolding he's going to get is already echoing in his ears as he dunks his head under the river water, scratching the dirt out of his hair.

He strips out of his sopping clothing and shifts, picking up the articles between his teeth as he trots home. The slight red in his fur has always camouflaged well with the clay of his pack's homeland, but it's also always made him more distinct among his fellow pack members.

His father carries the same red trait in his fur, and Baekhyun hopes that someday his pups will too.

The water from his clothes drips on his paws as he heads towards home, and Baekhyun grins wolfishly around his shorts and shirt. It's been a long day of training, and he could really go for listening to his grandmother tell him the one about the omega and the alpha who was trapped in his wolf form.

No one tells stories like Baekhyun's grandmother.

Baekhyun sneaks into his home as quietly as he can, hoping the slight drip drop of his clothing on the grass growing up through the cracks of the cabin walls and dirt flooring doesn't attract any attention of keen wolf ears. He presses himself into the shadows, slipping through the small family room before his grandmother or mother can spot him. He draws back his claws as much as he can, avoiding the sounds of sharp nails against the planks of flooring settled along the edges of the walls.

A slight hum from across the room alerts Baekhyun to the fact that he's been spotted, and he presses his ears back, ducking immediately. He steps, still cowing, into the orange light filtering into the house through the open thatches in the roof. On a pile of furs gathered on the opposite side of the family room, his grandmother is resting, thread tangled around her fingers as she braids it into a complicated weave that she's tried to teach Baekhyun many times.

He's never managed to learn the technique, and his grandmother has long since given up teaching Baekhyun anything beyond how to darn his usually torn shorts.

"Hurry up and change before your mother sees you, hm?" his grandmother says quietly, not bothering to look up from her weaving. Baekhyun ducks his head in agreement before he darts across the family room and into the small corner of the house that he calls his own. The stretched leather hung over the open entrance to the room brushes against Baekhyun's fur as he pushes inside, stirring up the warm scent of tanned leather and long-since-dried dye that lingers in the threads Baekhyun's grandmother had used to stitch scenes from the stories she used to tell Baekhyun into the leather.

He drops his sopping clothes at his front paws, and rolls his shoulders back, shifting up into his human body. It's dark in his room, but Baekhyun knows this space so well that he doesn't need much light to locate a strip of cloth and a pair of loose linen pants. He ties the thin band around his knee, hoping that it scabs over soon even if the skin will most likely be torn open again during training tomorrow. Baekhyun slips into his pants, and the fabric tickles as it brushes over the tops of his feet. Baekhyun stretches out and flexes his toes, satisfied with the comfortable burn in his muscles.

Minseok has been working him harder than he ever has, preparing him and Sehun for the tournament, and as much as Baekhyun appreciates his faith in them, his body is ready for a break. He grabs last night's sweater from the low pile of furs where he sleeps, not bothering to put it on as he steps back out into the family room.

The nights are cool this time of year, but Baekhyun's body is still a bit warm from all of the excursions of the day.

"Hi, Grandma," Baekhyun greets, walking up to her like she hadn't caught him walking in dripping everywhere.

"Your mother and father are outside roasting a few rabbits," his grandmother tells him. Baekhyun plops down next to his grandmother, careful to not disrupt her meticulous concentration on her weaving. "They should hurry up," the old woman continues. "I'm starving."

Baekhyun shakes his head, breathing out a laugh. "Don't let my mom hear you rushing her," he warns.

His grandmother releases her weaving to smack Baekhyun's shoulder. "My daughter has always been slow," she declares, smacking Baekhyun's shoulder again. He tumbles over to the side, pouting at her, playing the wounded wolf, and his grandmother laughs, showing a cracked tooth from a fight many moons ago.

"Mom," is called from the back entrance to the house, and Baekhyun jerks up, looking over to where his mother stands with dirt on her feet, and rabbit's blood stained on the hem of her dress. "Stop making me look bad in front of my son."

Baekhyun's grandmother scoffs. "The boy's seen just shy of twenty sun cycles of you, my dear," she says, throwing a wink at Baekhyun. "If anyone made you look bad first, it was you."

Byulhee grumbles something, but she's smiling anyway. "Welcome home, Baekhyun," she says, choosing to ignore her mother. Baekhyun's grandmother tsks from her place on the furs but resumes her weaving without another word.

"Are you hungry?” Baekhyun’s mother asks, and Baekhyun perks up again, scrambling to his feet. He hasn’t eaten since the carrots he and Taehyung had shared out in the fields that morning, and his stomach grumbles loudly enough for Byulhee to hear. She laughs, holding out a hand for her son. Baekhyun kisses his grandmother’s cheek.

“I’ll bring you the best part, Grandma,” he promises, and his grandmother reaches up to pat his cheek.

“I knew we raised a good one with this boy,” she says with a cracked-tooth smile. Baekhyun scrunches his face up at the praise, straightening up and walking over to his mother. Byulhee opens her arms, pulling her son in close to her. She pinches his waist, and Baekhyun yelps.

“Ma!” he protests, curling in around himself. She snorts, ruffling his hair. Baekhyun is by no means tall, but his mother is tiny, standing up on tiptoes to tug on his hair playfully. Baekhyun struggles towards the door, trying to get away from his mother’s tormenting fingers. “Ma, stop!”

She laughs loudly, snatching Baekhyun’s sweater from his hands. He growls, voice too light in his throat to harbor real malice, and his mother shoves him out of the house, shrugging his sweater over her own head.

“Our terrifying little omega,” she teases, grabbing Baekhyun’s hand and pulling him over to where his father is pulling two fat, roasted rabbits apart, his nails lengthened into a wolf’s claws, fingers glistening with grease. He kneels over a platter of meat that’s already been separated from bone and sinew, adding another few pieces to the pile.

“Sungkeun,” Byulhee says, voice gentler as she addresses her mate. Baekhyun’s father looks up from his task.

“Baekhyun,” he greets. “You’re home.” He nods his head towards the second rabbit. “Would you help your mother and me out?” Baekhyun dips his head.

“Sure, Pops,” he says, dropping to his knees opposite of his father and pulling the second hare in closer to him, turning it over on its back. His father is similarly shirtless, his stomach covered in little flecks of grease and blood. Baekhyun sighs in his head. He just washed earlier, and all of his efforts are about to go to waste. On the other hand, his stomach is grumbling all the more violently at the smell of food, and Baekhyun gets work, splitting the hare open from its neck to stomach, peeling the meat from the bones.

“How was training today, son?” Sungkeun asks, his rough voice soothing, a familiar comfort after Minseok’s constant orders and demands for Baekhyun to work harder. He murmurs something to Byulhee, and Baekhyun’s mother settles on the ground cross-legged, sorting the thicker bones to be boiled into stock later into a carved, wooden bowl. Baekhyun snaps the hare’s hind leg from the socket, shredding through the dark meat there.

“Tough,” Baekhyun answers honestly. His father gives him a look with an expectant eyebrow raised. Baekhyun swallows. “Minseok thinks I have a good chance, but, well, obviously, I haven’t seen the other omega candidates.”

His father nods, distracted by his mother poking at his shoulder and holding her mouth open, asking for a taste of the rabbit. Sungkeun sighs, tearing off a piece and popping it into Byulhee’s mouth. She grins around the meat, eyes shining. It reminds Baekhyun of the way Minseok had looked when he’d met his alpha mate nearly five sun cycles ago now. He’d been so enamoured around Changmin, showing off during training sessions with Baekhyun and Sehun if Changmin stopped by to watch.

Baekhyun’s parents still hold that original spark, that sweet bit of romance between them that initially formed their bond. Baekhyun looks away, tearing chunks of meat from the rabbit with a little more force than necessary. Everyone around him, everyone encouraging him and hoping for him to do well in the tournament and take the position of Second, have had their love stories; they’ve tasted the happiness that comes with a mate of their own choosing.

Follow your heart, his grandmother has always told him. Baekhyun cracks open the hare’s ribs. That won’t be an option if he wins the tournament, and losing on purpose isn’t a choice either. The moon won’t allow that to happen, and the disappointment he would face from everyone around him if he doesn’t at least do his best would be unbearable.

“Almost done with that one, Baekhyun?” his mother asks, and Baekhyun drops the last bit of meat into the pile.

“Finished,” he announces, and his father whistles.

“Always so efficient,” he laughs. He leans across the pile of rabbit meat to nudge Baekhyun with his forearm. The scent of his father, calming, beta, settles against Baekhyun’s skin, and he can’t help grinning at his parents. He wiggles grease-coated fingers at them.

“Skilled hands,” he says. Sungkeun nods in approval.

“Let’s take this inside then,” he requests, getting to his feet. He holds a hand out for Byulhee, and Baekhyun’s mother’s skirt flutters around her as she’s pulled up into standing position. She leans back down to snatch up her bowl of bones, and Baekhyun sighs hugely staring up at them.

“Yes, Baekhyun,” his father says. “You can carry that inside.” Baekhyun pouts. “Your grandmother is waiting,” he reminds, and Baekhyun grumbles under his breath. He shifts into a kneeling position, getting a balanced grip on the platter before he stands, following his parents back into the house.

“Finally,” his grandmother gripes, rolling her eyes at her daughter and son-by-the-moon. Baekhyun bites his lip to keep from laughing at his mother’s indignant squawk. “Please, Byulhee,” his grandmother dismisses her easily. “I know you and Sungkeun there take twice as much time as my grandson to prepare dinner.” Baekhyun settles down next to his grandmother, offering her a piece he’d set aside from the rabbit’s hind leg. She takes it, leaning over to whisper his ear.

“Pups in love, those two,” she murmurs. “Can’t get anything done around here.”

“Mom!” Byulhee admonishes, and Baekhyun’s grandmother simply cackles, stuffing rabbit in her mouth. It’s quiet for a few moments after that, the four of them too invested in eating to continue proper conversation. Byulhee and Sungkeun argue for a moment over who gets the last rabbit ear, and Baekhyun’s grandmother snatches it up before they can reach any sort of consensus, leaning back on her furs and chewing happily.

Baekhyun bursts out laughing at his parents faces, and they shove at each other playfully, Baekhyun’s father leaning in to plant a sloppy, greasy kiss on Byulhee’s cheek.

“So, good news,” he starts, leaning back into a more comfortable position, licking grease off of his fingers. Byulhee leans over to pat his stomach, and Sungkeun grabs her hand before she can pull away, tugging her in close to him. Baekhyun’s father isn’t as muscled as he was in his younger suns, his stomach softer, but his shoulders are still broad and strong, a trait that Baekhyun carries proudly. “It seems the tournament for the selection of our next Leader is well underway.”

Byulhee grins, and Baekhyun’s mood immediately sours.

“They’ll be returning soon,” Sungkeun continues, giving Baekhyun this particular look that Baekhyun doesn’t bother to decipher. He doesn’t want to have this conversation right now. Minseok had already spoken to him earlier about the competition, and Baekhyun just wants to take his last days before the tournament to determine whether he will or won’t be the next Second, to pretend that fate isn’t looming over him, digging her claws into his spine.

“How do you know that?” Baekhyun’s grandmother asks, and Baekhyun is almost grateful for the apologetic glance she throws his way.

“Saw our First earlier,” Baekhyun’s father answers. “He was talking to our Second, and it’s been ten sun cycles since the group left. They’ve got to be returning now. Our Leader and our Second are ready for a reprieve, I think.”

“You really saw First?” Byulhee asks, twisting to look her mate in the eye. Sungkeun nods.

“He’s unmistakeable,” he says, and he’s not wrong. The pack’s current First, Chanhyuk, is tall, standing a head over nearly every other wolf in the pack, and the scar that runs down his face makes him impossible to confuse for anyone else.

Baekhyun bites his lip. If the First is really back on pack lands, then he’s determined that the alpha and beta pups he has been training alongside a few of the pack’s unranked alphas for the past ten sun cycles, are ready to be reintroduced to the pack. Two of them will be the next Leader and First, and if Baekhyun is the next Second, then one of them will be his mate.

He tears apart a chunk of rabbit meat with his teeth, chewing violently to hide his unnerved shiver.

“Do you think Seokjin will be the next Leader?” Byulhee asks, and Baekhyun only barely manages to avoid choking on his food. If their Leader’s youngest son is to succeed his mother, Baekhyun would probably be considered a very lucky omega. Their Leader is a very handsome woman, and it’s almost guaranteed her son would be just as attractive as she is. But Baekhyun doesn’t know Seokjin, only knows that he’s an alpha just like their Leader. The current Second, a very delicate looking omega with a positively vicious wolf form, is equally as beautiful as her mate, and by all logic Baekhyun should be grateful if Seokjin did manage to become Leader after his mother. Except that Seokjin is technically Minseok’s uncle even if he’s younger than him by almost three sun cycles, and that’s just weird in Baekhyun’s opinion.

If Baekhyun is Second, then there is a very real possibility that he may never learn to love his mate. At least having an attractive one will make things easier, he hopes.

“Who knows what the moon has planned,” Baekhyun’s grandmother says, her gentle voice soothing Baekhyun’s tense shoulders. “It could very well be Leader’s son, or it may be someone who we would never even consider.”

“I bet Leader’s brother’s son has a good shot,” Sungkeun suggests. “Maybe even his daughter.”

“Juhyeon?” Byulhee questions with a raised eyebrow. “She never seemed like the type to really be able to take that on that position and thrive.”

“They all left when they were only eight to twelve cycles old,” Sungkeun reminds her. “The children we knew briefly will come back as wolves we hardly recognize.” Baekhyun wrinkles his nose. As an omega, he’s never been allowed to meet any of the alpha or beta children born in the sun cycles of selection. He knows some of the names of those who are out training: Juhyeon, Junmyeon, Seokjin, but his friends consist of fellow omegas and the betas who have been around to guide him into preparedness for the tournament.

“I wonder which of the omegas are likely candidates,” Byulhee muses. She glances at Baekhyun. “Alongside our son, of course.” She sounds so proud, and Baekhyun wants to run away, to return to his room and escape this conversation. His father begins some speech about how the moon had better select some perfect alpha for his son, someone who can protect him and provide him with everything he needs.

That sounds nice in theory, but Baekhyun knows the Second of the pack will never be able to live in luxury, doted on by the Leader and loved by the pack. Second is a dangerous position of honor and prowess, and Baekhyun feels like the echoes of his grandmother telling him fairy tales are growing ever fainter in his memory as reality begins to settle around him, the tournament looming closer and closer.

If the moon priests are to be believed, then the moon will guide the tournaments according to her will, and all of their speculations will mean nothing. He doesn’t need to think about this, to worry about this, until he’s standing in the midst of the actual tournament being tested for his capabilities as an omega and as a fighter.

“I’m so full!” Baekhyun’s grandmother exclaims suddenly, cutting through Baekhyun’s parents’ discussion of the alphas and betas they knew from before the exodus of the possible candidates. “I think it’s bedtime for me,” she adds. “These old bones need more rest than bears in winter.” Both Byulhee and Sungkeun look up at the elderly wolf, and Baekhyun pushes himself up to his feet.

“I’ll help you to your room, Grandma,” he offers, and his grandmother offers him a slight smile, her eyes turning into crescents.

“Thank you, boy,” she says, and Baekhyun leans over to help his grandmother up to her feet. She sways for a moment before her balance locks into place, and she slips her hand into the crook of Baekhyun’s elbow, allowing him to guide her away from his parents’ beginning to clean up and into her room.

“Thank you,” he tells her after she’s settled down on her own bedding, draping one of the soft wool blankets over her legs.

“You looked about ready to tear their heads from their shoulders,” she says with a slight shrug and a knowing glint to her eyes. She pats the space beside her. Baekhyun sits down, letting his grandmother lean up and brush her fingers through his hair.

“I just didn’t want to talk about the tournament anymore,” he explains, leaning into his grandmother’s touch as she cups his cheek.

“Then you’ll have to forgive me for saying this,” the old wolf starts, and Baekhyun feels the tension creep back into his body before he can stop it. “But Baekhyun, my son, if you do not want to win the tournament, not even the moon can make you.”

Baekhyun sighs, his shoulders drooping. He draws his grandmother’s hand away from his face, curling his fingers gently over her wrist. “I can’t let Minseok down,” he admits. “Or my parents. Pops really wants to see me fight. I don’t want him to be ashamed of me.”

This time, it’s his grandmother’s turn to sigh. “Your father will love you no matter what happens,” she assures him. “Whether you become Second or if you choose to chase after your dreams and find some handsome alpha who belongs to another pack, he will still love you.”

Baekhyun tries to smile, he really does, but he’s tired. “Will you tell me a story?” he asks after a moment of silence, his grandmother’s thumb brushing over the back of his hand in a comforting manner.

“Which one would you like to hear?” his grandmother asks, and Baekhyun just shakes his head. Anything that distracts him from the pressure trying to crush his chest will do.

“Alright,” his grandmother begins, seeming to understand. Baekhyun lays down next to his grandmother, listening to her steady heartbeat as she begins her tale, her fingers returning to brushing through his hair. He relaxes, listening. “Long ago, when the sun and the moon did not rule separate skies and the prey was plentiful, a lovely omega was born to the Grand Alpha of the largest forest pack. This omega had the most pure white fur, and he was of a singular beauty the likes of which the forest had never seen before…”

Baekhyun wakes to the usual few streams of sunlight over his face, peeking through the cracks between the logs that make up the borders of the house. He groans, rolling over in his furs and stretching out. His back pops, and he flops down face-first in his furs, swearing under his breath about destroying his body before he even gets to the tournament at this rate.

The sun still glances over his face, and Baekhyun presses himself up, blinking in the pale pink light of morning. Before winter comes in, Baekhyun will need to stop up the cracks in his walls with a mix of mud and sand from the river bank.

He shivers. Next winter, he might not be living here. He could be living in the cabin standing behind the cluster of trees at the head of the large glade on pack lands. Or, if he is lucky, he might be in love and mated to another wolf, and they’ll be holding each other through the winter nights to keep warm. Maybe they’ll have a pup on the way. Baekhyun smiles gently and breathes a short prayer to the moon for that future, the one that doesn't end in a required mating, and eases himself out of his furs, rooting around his room for a pair of shorts and a long-sleeved shirt.

He tumbles out of his room, blinking at the brightness in the rest of the cabin. He sighs; his parents forgot to close the open thatches in the roof last night. He walks outside, breathing in the fresh air of morning, the dewy grass clinging to his feet and ankles. He loves this, the gentle hum of morning.

There's a rustle to Baekhyun's left, and he holds himself still, listening for a second sound, a follow-up to clue him into what he’d heard and the exact location.

A wolf leaps out of the underbrush, and Baekhyun twists, dropping down underneath the wolf's attack. He leaps back up to his feet, baring his teeth at the wolf. The red streaks in the fur are unmistakeable, and Baekhyun growls, more of a sound of annoyance than threat. The wolf pants at him, shifting up into human stature.

"Good morning, son," his father greets, snatching his pants from the ground next to the entrance to their home.

"Pops," Baekhyun returns, watching his father warily. "Were you just waiting for me?"

Sungkeun gives a light chortle. "I was out on a run with your mother," he says. "She went to meet some of the other omegas in the fields, and I came back here just in time to see you walking out. Thought I'd test you."

Baekhyun rolls his eyes. "I'm not twelve anymore," Baekhyun tells him. "I'm not going to fall for that."

"Of course not." Sungkeun waves a dismissive hand. "You're our big bad omega wolf." For all of Baekhyun's training, he has yet to learn how to avoid his parents' attacks of affection. Sungkeun swoops in, grabbing Baekhyun up in his arms and holding onto him tightly. "I'm proud of you," he murmurs, and Baekhyun runs hot and cold at the same time.

"Thanks, Pops," he murmurs, returning his father's hug. It's a little awkward, their shoulders bumping, but Sungkeun is still Baekhyun's father, still the one who originally taught him how to hunt. He loves him even though he seems determined for Baekhyun to take the position of Second.

"Heading out to the fields?" Sungkeun asks. Baekhyun nods.

"They'll be expecting me," he says. "I'll be home in time for dinner, as usual."

"Is my mother-in-moon awake?" Baekhyun shrugs.

"I haven't seen her," he answers. Sungkeun sighs.

"I'll take care of her. You go on ahead." He clasps a hand on Baekhyun's shoulder, squeezing it in a comforting manner, and Baekhyun gives him a half-smile, lips still closed.

"Thanks, Pops," he says for the second time that morning before he scampers off, running out into the woods towards the southern middle lands of the territory where the pack works the fields. Mud splatters up his legs as he runs, and his skin tingles with the sensation of running because he wants to, of running free because he can. Branches poke at his arms and legs, and Baekhyun doesn't mind. He's used to this, the scratch of the forest against him. It's home, but the forest can kill him easily if he lets down his guard for too long. His pack is not the only pack that inhabits these woods; his people are not the only predators that call this place home.

The general chatter and birdsong that accompanies the early spring in the fields reaches Baekhyun's ears, and he slows to a jog, stepping out of the woods and into the clearing that his pack has farmed for moons upon moons now.

"Baekhyun!" Someone yells at him from within the flurry of people leaning down to dig and plant, and Baekhyun turns in time to catch a small blur flinging itself along with the newly overturned soil. "Baekhyun!" A small omega girl throws herself into his arms, and Baekhyun takes a step back to take her momentum, spinning them around.

"Morning," he says.

"You're late," Yerim accuses, jabbing a finger at Baekhyun's chest. He grabs her hand, twisting her around to tuck her under his arm, rubbing his knuckles over her head. She screeches, shoving at his side and trying to get away. Baekhyun laughs, pulling her in closer and gently flicking her forehead. She pouts up at him, whining.

"You're still late," she grumps, and Baekhyun lets her go, reaching out to fix her hair. She bats his hands away, trying to tie her hair back into a braid but fumbling.

"I'm not that late," Baekhyun argues. Yerim keeps pouting.

"They made me start planting waiting for you!" she whines at him, and Baekhyun sighs, grabbing her arms and pulling her back close to him.

"Turn around," he orders, and Yerim does, letting Baekhyun rake his fingers through her hair, twisting it into a braid for her. "Are the others working already?"

"Yeah," she murmurs. "Jeongguk and Sooyoung were throwing dirt at me." Baekhyun growls a little bit, and Yerim pokes his cheek. "Don't worry," she adds. "I got them back."

Baekhyun grins at her. "Did you?"

"Yeah!" Her smile widens, eyes bright as they curve up. "Gukkie's gonna be trying to get dirt out of his ears for days." Baekhyun bursts out laughing, throwing an arm over Yerim's shoulders.

"You've done well, kid," he says. Yerim just keeps smiling, leaning into him. Baekhyun didn't grow up with any siblings, but all the younger wolves around him have become something of his own family, his younger brothers and sisters. "Let's go find the others, yeah?"

"Okay," Yerim says cheerily, and leads Baekhyun into the soft soil of the planting between rows of what will be cornstalks taller than Baekhyun himself by the time fall rolls around.

"Hi, Byulhee!" Yerim calls across a couple rows, and Baekhyun's mother straightens up from filling dirt into the holes previously dug into the ground, covering the seeds.

"Yerim," Baekhyun's mother greets. "I see you found my son."

"Hi, Ma," Baekhyun says. He slips out of Yerim's hold to walk up to his mother, kissing her cheek. She pats his cheek in return.

"The pups have been waiting on you," she tells him. "You know it's your turn to take them running today."

"My turn and Taehyung's," he corrects. Byulhee shrugs, dropping back to her knees to continue her job. The hem of her dress is dark with mud and dirt.

"Go find the others," she says. "All of us are tired of listening to them complain about having to work." Baekhyun throws a glare over his shoulder at Yerim, and the younger omega ducks, smiling sheepishly.

"Brats," Baekhyun murmurs.

"Oh, hush you," his mother scolds. "You complained too."

Baekhyun sticks his tongue out at her, and Byulhee flicks dirt at him. "Go run," she says.

"Yes, ma'am," Baekhyun murmurs, and he turns back to Yerim. Behind him, his mother's friends titter at her, talking about Baekhyun. He catches words like 'broad' and 'handsome' and questions about his training and how well he's doing. His mother simply hums in response, and Baekhyun is grateful for her silence. It's not really anyone's business but his, his family's, and his mentor's how well he's doing in training.

Anywhere he turns, he can't get away from the tournament. The results will hang over his head for the rest of his life. There's no escape.

Yerim takes his hand, tugging him over the other end of the field where baskets of seeds are being sorted by a couple of very familiar faces. The wind picks up a bit, and Baekhyun watches both Jeongguk and Sooyoung look up, noses tilted into the wind.

"Baekhyun!" Sooyoung blurts out, dropping the unsorted seeds in her hand back into a basket and rushing over to Baekhyun. The beta girl is much taller than Yerim, but she doesn't let that stop her from barreling into Baekhyun, nearly knocking him flat to the ground. Baekhyun manages to spin on his heel, steadying the both of them.

"You're late," she pouts, and Baekhyun sighs.

"So I've heard," he murmurs, throwing a sharp glance at Yerim.

"Hey," Jeongguk greets him, dropping the last few seeds in his hands into the proper baskets. "I'm bored."

"I've heard that too," Baekhyun tells him. "Where are the others?" Jeongguk shrugs.

"Dunno. Mom ordered them to dig. The two of us lucked out for sorting duty." Yerim scowls at Jeongguk, and the boy shrinks back even as he tries to maintain a dignified glare in her direction.

"I was not so lucky," she mutters, kicking at Jeongguk's shins. The kid omega yelps, skittering back behind Joy. Baekhyun feels fondness warm his chest. These kids have grown up following him around; he almost feels a sense of responsibility over them, a protectiveness.

"You can lead the run then," Baekhyun promises her. "To make up for it."

"What!?" Jeongguk protests, and Yerim claps happily, sticking out her tongue. Sooyoung rolls her eyes.

"Come on," she says, dragging out her words. "I wanna run." Baekhyun pinches her waist, and she squeaks.

"Where's Taehyung?"

The three younger omegas look at each other. Jeongguk turns and bellows across the vegetable field, "Tae!"

"Jeonggukkie!" shouts back across the field, and Baekhyun perks up at the sound of his cousin's voice. It takes him a second to pinpoint the exact location of the voice, but when he spots Taehyung, his hands and shirt covered in dirt and his smile bright, he can't resist rolling his eyes at the omega.

"Just had to roll in the dirt, didn't you?" Baekhyun teases when Taehyung jogs up to them. His cousin swipes a dirty hand across Baekhyun's arm, smearing dirt there with a square grin on his face.

"Puppy," Baekhyun adds, wiping at his own arm. Taehyung just rubs more dirt there.

"The puppiest," he confirms. "We running finally?"

Baekhyun tilts his head back to the sky and sighs hugely. "I was not that late!" he complains, and the three youngest give him a matching dubious look. "All of you are brats."

"You love us anyway," Taehyung says, grabbing onto Baekhyun. Yerim grabs his other arm, and with Sooyoung and Jeongguk in tow, they traipse across the fields, gathering up the other pups scattered about, easily located by their whining and complaining.

Working in the fields is omega work usually, but the full pack assists in the production and storage of the crops. The pups begin working as soon as they're old enough to handle instructions regardless of classification, and the older, unmated omegas are the ones who take charge of them on a rotational basis. Baekhyun and Taehyung have been watching over these pups in the mornings when they're not required to be in training for the tournament with their mentors, watching them grow up for suns. Baekhyun is so relieved these pups will never have to know the pain of recognizing that they may have to mate for the strength and security of the pack instead of for the happiness of being part of a unit of their own choosing.

"Any other pups?" Taehyung yells out across the work fields, and when no one perks up and comes running, he nods to Baekhyun.

"Alright," Baekhyun says, counting the pups with them. There are eighteen of them, a mixed bunch of alphas, betas, and omegas. It's a smaller group than Baekhyun is used to leading, but this means he can take them on a more winding route through the woods, jumping the creeks and climbing up some of the rocks at the base of the mountains that make up the edges of their eastern territory. With more wolves, tiny routes and windy paths make it harder for Taehyung and him to keep track of everyone in their group. "Follow me closely," Baekhyun orders. "Anyone who trails off will be punished. This is your only warning."

Most of the pups nod. They've heard the rule of a run many times before and have long-since memorized it. One pup, an alpha whose scent betrays him as being part of the small family that Leader had mercifully allowed to join their pack after their old pack kicked them out, does not murmur any agreement, his eyes sharp and curl of his lips mocking. "You can leave your clothing here," Baekhyun tells the pups, and pulls his shirt over his head. The alpha pup's eyes roam over Baekhyun's torso, his blunt fangs just digging into his upper lip. Taehyung nudges Baekhyun, peeling off his own shirt.

"I'll take the rear," Taehyung tells him, dropping back. He's always yielded to Baekhyun's orders, and many of the omegas in training for Second are the same. The weight of expectation makes Baekhyun's throat burn, but he shrugs it off. The tournament doesn't matter right now; these pups want to run, and Baekhyun is the only one who can lead them. Taehyung, in wolf form, barks from the back of the pack, signaling he's ready.

Baekhyun takes his cue and slips out of his pants to shift, falling onto four paws. The pups follow his lead, stripping out of their clothes and letting the shift roll through their bodies. Baekhyun, with his red coloring, makes for a good leader on a run, his fur easy to spot if the pups know what they're looking for.

He barks once when everyone is comfortably settled in their fur, and he gets a chorus of low whines and the shifting of impatient paws on the ground. He turns and takes off at a slow trot into the forest, letting everyone adjust to running in wolf form before he picks up speed. He moves into a quick canter once they've gotten far enough away from the fields that Baekhyun won't have to listen to an earful of complaints from the older omegas and betas later.

Someone brushes against his side, and Baekhyun glances to his side to the see the alpha pup from earlier pulling just a nose ahead of him. Baekhyun growls low in his throat, a warning for the pup to step back into line with the other pups, but the alpha just returns his own small growl, speeding up just a little bit.

The group breaks into the open lines of trees, and Baekhyun takes off running for real. Excited howls follow him, but one slightly growling presence stays right at his side. The alpha pup struggles to keep up with Baekhyun's speed, and after a moment, Baekhyun hears Taehyung's bark.

He slows just a bit, glancing behind him. The pups aren't quite as fast as Baekhyun yet, their bodies still a little unbalanced from their young age. Without the heavy training that Baekhyun and Taehyung have been through ever since they were around ten sun cycles of age, pups are not able to fully access the capabilities of their wolf forms until adulthood.

At this slower speed, the troublesome alpha pup is able to regain a spot right next to Baekhyun, and his head raised just a tad higher than Baekhyun's signals his lack of respect for Baekhyun's position as leader on this run. Baekhyun growls again, a little louder, a little lower, a little more threatening than simply warning. The alpha pup bares his teeth, trying to pull ahead of Baekhyun as the group makes it out to the creeks that lead to the river.

Out here, Baekhyun needs to slow down a bit for the benefit of the pups. He's run these trails so many times, knows the steps to avoid tripping in the thin streams of water like he knows his own scent, but these pups, even if they've created mental maps by now, don't have the easy control of their bodies that Baekhyun possesses. Not yet, anyway. With his slowing down, the alpha pup is able to fully overtake him, and Baekhyun releases a real growl.

Worried yips and a few obedient barks sound from behind him, but the alpha pup simply releases his own growl. Baekhyun barks back at Taehyung, and the other omega runs at his full speed, taking the lead of the group. The instant that Baekhyun feels Taehyung's fur alongside him, smells his familiar scent, he takes off after the alpha pup.

The alpha pup will one day be a strong wolf, Baekhyun can tell, but he's not strong now, and he's sun cycles too early to even try to challenge Baekhyun in a fight. His muscles burn pleasantly as he angles himself forward to reach his full speed, and it's only a few strides before he reaches the alpha pup. He releases one last warning growl, and he watches the alpha pup's ears press back against his skull as he realizes that he's not going to be able to get away with this stunt.

He doesn't stop running, and Baekhyun leaps.

He lands hard on the alpha pup's back, sending them both crashing to the ground, and the pup yelps as he flies off course, sliding across the muddy ground on his side. Baekhyun is over him before he even has a chance to roll onto his stomach, pressing a paw, claws extended, into the pup’s shoulder and his teeth grazing the back of the pup's neck. He growls again, this time with an order for the pup to stay still.

Taehyung barks from behind him, and out of the corner of his eye, Baekhyun can see the omega standing at the lead of the group of pups, holding them all at a standstill. Mocking yips and barks ring out from the pups, their eyes focused on the alpha pup trapped underneath Baekhyun.

He closes his teeth around the scruff of the pup's neck and shakes his head a few times, throat raw. The pup whines and whimpers, his ears pressed back still, and Baekhyun waits another moment, pressing his paw harder against the alpha pup's shoulder before he releases him. He turns to step away, and he hears the rustle of paws splashing into a creek before the growl bursts from the alpha pup's throat.

Baekhyun spins, and he’ll bet that the snarl that rips from him is darker than anything the alpha pup has ever heard in his life. The alpha pup shrinks back, whimpering, and the chortles of the other pups soar louder. Baekhyun straightens up, ears and tail held high, asserting his position as the leader of this run.

The alpha pup crawls towards him on his belly, twisting his head to bare his neck, licking underneath Baekhyun's chin to apologize. Baekhyun snaps at his ear, and the pup skitters back into line with the others. They howl, laughing at him, and Baekhyun keeps sharp eyes on the pup for a few moments longer before he signals to Taehyung to return to the back of the group and takes off at a canter that he shifts into a run as soon as he's got the whole group moving again.

Baekhyun leads them out to the mountains, slowing again in the rockier areas of the territory. He focuses on his footing and maintaining his pace, ears perked for any warning barks from Taehyung or the rustle of any pup getting some crazy idea and running off. They splash through one of the shallow areas of the river, mud flying up around them as they cross back into the thick of the territory and towards the main glade.

The loud panting behind him as Baekhyun leads his group of pups into the glade makes Baekhyun snort. The other omegas in training haven't been running this lot hard enough if they're this tired. Jeongguk whines from behind him, nudging his big, black-furred head into Baekhyun's shoulder.

Baekhyun licks over his nose, and Yerim whines from Baekhyun's other side until he does the same to her. He feels warm; he loves these pups. If nothing else, he's grateful for the training to be the Leader's Second because of the wonderful pups that cling to him that he knows are going to become excellent wolves in the future.

The group of wolves walks slowly through the glade, ducking their heads at any of the older wolves that they pass, heading back towards the fields to collect their clothes. The alpha pup that had challenged Baekhyun walks past him last, his tail tucked between his legs. Baekhyun licks over his muzzle, and the alpha pup whimpers, looking up at him with wide, respectful eyes. He's trembling a little in his skin, still scared of Baekhyun, and Baekhyun, as awful as it is, is pleased by this. He nudges the pup off towards the fields, and he turns his attention to Taehyung where he sits, snorting at Baekhyun.

Baekhyun cocks his head to the side. Taehyung snorts again, clearly amused by Baekhyun's actions. Baekhyun shows his teeth, but he wags his tail to show he's just playing. Taehyung leaps up onto four paws, scrabbling at the ground with his front paws, tail wagging behind him. He points his nose towards the opposite side of the territory that they just ran through and scrabbles at the ground again, claws showing. Baekhyun looks up at the sky and then down at the shadows on the ground. There's still a bit of time before either of them are due for training, their mentors similarly busy with their duties as pack members at this hour.

Taehyung wags his tail, his tongue lolling out of his mouth, and Baekhyun nods. He's definitely game for a hunt with his cousin. They haven't had a chance to go hunt together in a few weeks, and Baekhyun misses it, the easy camaraderie of loping alongside his cousin as they search for small prey.

They turn tail and run out of camp together, falling into a two-wolf line with Baekhyun at the lead. His claws grip the mud, spurring him forward on silent paws, and Taehyung falls into step behind him, copying his paw steps.

They slow as they reach the part of the forest where the underbrush is thickest, choosing their steps carefully so as to not make any noise. Baekhyun drops low to the ground, letting his red fur blend in with the clay on the ground. Taehyung and his brown fur already lost in the mud and tree bark.

A sharp scratch on a branch to Baekhyun's right stills him, his focus directed solely on the beaver scratching away at a few sticks. Beside it, another beaver, a little bit smaller in stature but equally fat, chews at the stick caught between its small paws. Baekhyun glances over at Taehyung. His focus is settled on the two beavers as well, and he nods nearly imperceptibly at Baekhyun. They creep forward together, splitting off to leap from both sides, scaring the beaver's onto each other's claws.

Wolves don't prefer to hunt such small game, but as a friendly hunt with only the two of them, Baekhyun isn't about to vote for hunting down any elk or bison. Baekhyun's wags his tail once, and he and Taehyung leap forward at the same time. The beavers look up just in time to see the two wolves descending, and then Baekhyun has his teeth in the back of the larger beaver's neck, his teeth sliding cleanly through its spine.

He lifts the beaver in his jaws, looking at Taehyung doing the same, and together they trot around the territory, heading back to the fields to locate their clothes.

"That was fun," Taehyung says when they're dressed and walking away from the field work with their beavers held in their arms. Blood drips over the crook of Baekhyun's elbow and he gives the dead beaver in his grasp an extremely unimpressed look as it soaks through the sleeve of his shirt. He should give up trying to keep his clothing clean.

"That run was good," Baekhyun agrees. "And the hunt."

Taehyung throws a grin his way. "You were so intimidating," he says. "That pup was shaking so hard."

Baekhyun rolls his eyes, following Taehyung on the route towards his cousin's parents' home. "He's the one from another pack. I don't think he knows that omegas aren't actually alpha toys around here."

Taehyung laughs. "I doubt he thinks that now." He steps over a small creek, shoving through the thick of the branches hiding his parents' home from view. Baekhyun follows him, scowling at Taehyung when he almost lets the branches snap back into Baekhyun's face. "I bet it will be a few sun cycles before he bothers to try to talk to another omega."

Baekhyun just grins, following Taehyung around to the back of his house. "Dad?" he calls. "Dad, I got something!"

"Inside, Tae!" calls back, and Taehyung lets out a loud groan.

"But Dad," he whines. "We're outside with bloody things!"

There a rustle from inside the house, and Baekhyun's uncle appears at the entrance to the house with a panic-stricken expression on his face. "What did you-? Oh." Baekhyun holds up the dead beaver, shrugging. Taehyung cackles beside him, and his birth father shakes his head, stepping up to the two of them to take the beavers off their hands.

"You're a brat," he tells his son, and turns a far sweeter expression on Baekhyun. "How are you, Baekhyun?"

"Doing alright," Baekhyun answers. His uncle gives him a once over, expression unreadable.

"You look like you're doing well," he says as if Baekhyun hadn't just answered his question. "Training going okay?" Baekhyun nods.

"Yes, Uncle," he answers. Taehyung's father looks up at the sky and clucks his tongue against the roof of his mouth. He focuses his eyes on Taehyung, but his following words are for the both of them.

"Doesn't training start soon for you boys?"

Baekhyun and Taehyung both jerk to look at the sky before they meet each other's gaze, eyes wide.

"Shit," Taehyung breathes.

Baekhyun's uncle just laughs. "Get going, kids," he says, and he hefts the beavers up. "Tell your parents to come over tonight, Baekhyun," his uncle suggests. "It'd be nice to see my sister. And you did do half of the work," he adds, shaking the larger beaver at them.

"Yes, sir," Baekhyun agrees.

"You never appreciate me, Dad," Taehyung complains, but he grabs Baekhyun's wrist. "Come on," he says. "We gotta get out to training. You especially." He drags Baekhyun off towards the dry training grounds where Baekhyun has been meeting Minseok everyday for almost ten sun cycles.

"Have fun, boys!" Taehyung's father yes after them, and Taehyung throws a smile back over his shoulder, continuing on towards Baekhyun's training grounds.

"You're going to be late," Baekhyun warns as they near his own training lands. Taehyung just shrugs.

"Do you really think I have any sort of chance to be Second?" he asks, eyebrows lifted. Baekhyun bites his lip.

"If the moon determines that you're best for the position," Baekhyun answers carefully. Taehyung was born the night before the last full moon, the night before the cut off for the cycles of selection. He’s the youngest of them all; if he were to win, the moon would have a heavy hand in it. Taehyung just laughs at him, punching his arm.

"Baekhyun, come on," Taehyung starts. "You, Seulgi, Chanyeol. Maybe Namjoon or Jongdae. Any of you would make a good Second. Me?" He puffs out his chest. "I'm a capable omega, but I'm not a capable Second." Baekhyun smacks his cousin's chest, and Taehyung deflates, dropping down to sit on a fallen tree. He digs his toes into the soft dirt and ferns.

"Taehyung," Baekhyun tries, but his cousin shakes his head.

"Listen to me," he demands. It's rare for Taehyung to give Baekhyun any sort of serious order, and worry surges through Baekhyun. He shuts his mouth and sits down next to his cousin. Taehyung fixes him with a very serious look, his eyebrows drawn in. "I'm going to do my best in the tournament," Taehyung promises. "And as much as I know my dad and my pops would love for me to be able to take the position of Second, they don't expect that of me. Between us, they know you're the one with a real chance."

Baekhyun sighs, closing his eyes, and he shifts to avoid Taehyung's comforting hand on his wrist.

"Did you know no one has asked me if I want to be Second?" Baekhyun murmurs his question, and he laughs out an annoyed huff of hair. "It's always 'Baekhyun, you're really a good candidate' or 'Baekhyun, I know you're going to make a great Second.' No one asks if that bothers me, or I even want to take on that responsibility."

This time, Baekhyun doesn't shrug off Taehyung's hand on his wrist. "Look, Baekhyun," Taehyung says, and his tone is serious. Taehyung, for all of his silliness, is one of the wisest omegas Baekhyun has ever met. He thinks Taehyung probably inherited it from their grandmother. "Don't start resenting something that hasn't even happened yet, yeah?" Baekhyun opens his eyes, meeting Taehyung's. The shade of brown is the exact same as Baekhyun's grandmother's, and Baekhyun instantly feels just a little bit better.

"You worry about this so much," Taehyung starts. "You bring it up all the time, and honestly, it sounds like you already think of yourself as Second." He bites his lip, dropping his gaze. His hand tightens on Baekhyun's wrist. "Baekhyun. Do you want to be Second?"

For all of his griping about no one asking him this question, Baekhyun finds himself without an answer. Does he want to be Second? What he wants is a future with an alpha who loves him, but he also wants the security of his pack, of his home that he loves so much. His jaw works, but no answer is voiced.

"I'm going to find a good alpha," Taehyung says, suddenly conversational. "Someone who wants a family more than anything else." He shows Baekhyun a huge smile. "I really want pups."

Baekhyun licks his lips. Of course Taehyung wants pups; he's always loved pups. Baekhyun could be persuaded to have pups with the right alpha, but as of now, he doesn't have the same strong pull that Taehyung does towards pup-rearing.

"I also just want someone gentle," Taehyung continues. "Like how my pops treats my dad. And you know, I just can't see you with that sort of mate, Baekhyun. Someone gentle. You deserve to be pushed to be stronger, and I think, as much as you don't want to hear this, that Second might be what you've been meant to be all along."

Baekhyun tries to scoff, to shove away Taehyung's words. "You only say that because you think having your cousin as Second will get you special privileges." He expects Taehyung to whine, to lean against him heavily and bat his eyelashes, saying that Baekhyun would definitely give him special privileges. Taehyung doesn't do that though; instead, he says, very quietly, his words an echo of something Baekhyun's grandmother has said to him before.

"The best omega for the position will win the tournament," Taehyung assures. "And the moon will guide the right person to win. And she won't let her Leader and Second suffer together. That will destroy the pack. Everything will work out the way it's meant to."

They sit there for a few more moments, simply breathing, and Baekhyun rolls Taehyung's words over in his mind again and again. Taehyung jumps to his feet, pulling Baekhyun up with him.

"Now, come on," he says, chipper again. "I'm definitely going to be late, but you don't have to be." Baekhyun allows Taehyung to lead him to the dry-dirt clearing where Minseok is waiting, and he greets his mentor on autopilot, his thoughts focused skyward on their goddess, the moon.

Everything will work out the way it's meant to. That's not as comforting as it could be, but Baekhyun prays the words repeatedly in his head, still unsure which result he hopes the tournament produces.

Despite Baekhyun's father's insistence that he'd seen the First wandering around pack lands and speaking with their Leader and Second, Baekhyun doesn't hear any official news until three days later. It's Minseok who tells them, him and Sehun, ending their training session with a very serious look on his face. Minseok is usually serious, but not so much that he won't play around. Today, however, any sense of playfulness is gone. He doesn't give Sehun or Baekhyun any advice, anything that he'd noticed during the session that they need to work on improving. He'd called them over to him after their last bout, another win for Baekhyun, and crossed his arms over his bare chest.

"They've chosen the next Leader," is all he says, and Baekhyun's heart seizes in his chest. The next Leader has been chosen, and that means the tournament will start soon. There cannot be a new Leader without a new Second.

"And the First?" Sehun asks. Minseok nods.

"She has also been selected," their beta mentor admits, and that's the most information they can get out of him. The next First is female, and the next Leader is completely anonymous. Most likely, Minseok himself doesn't even know who the next Leader is, only that that wolf is stronger than the rest of the candidates who left ten cycles ago to train. That much is common sense; that is how the Leaders are selected. That's how it's always been.

"So then..." Sehun hedges, unable to really voice the question, and Minseok nods his head, eyes focused on Baekhyun.

"Yes," he answers Sehun's unspoken inquiry. "The tournament will start in three day's time. When the sun rises three days from now, you both will stand before moon priests and be formally declared candidates for the position of Second in front of the pack."

Sehun's head jerks with his nod of understanding, the motion inhibited by the tension Baekhyun can see now pulling harshly on the younger omega's muscles. Baekhyun understands; he feels the same way.

"You're both going to be fine," Minseok assures them, but his gaze never leaves Baekhyun, never strays to Sehun or the moon or even Changmin when his alpha comes to collect Minseok and take him to their home for the night. Trepidation and pressure- they both take up residence in Baekhyun's chest, pushing down on his heart until the world starts spinning around him. Baekhyun can't breathe.

"We'll train tomorrow," Minseok says, and his own nerves about the tournament tremble in his voice. "Go home, both of you. Enjoy your families." Baekhyun clenches his eyes shut, and Minseok's meaning rings harsh in his ears. It might be one of your last nights with them.

Baekhyun all but sprints home, his feet pounding across the forest floor as he runs. He tries to outrun his own fear, tries to outrun the clear expectation that his mentor has for him, tries to outrun his own lack of knowledge as to whether or not he wants to try for Second or second, if he really trusts the moon to make the right decision for the pack. He questions if their goddess is even real or if she even cares.

He bursts into his home with his heart beating far too quickly, his blood rushing in his ears. He tries to calm down, to relax before his parents see him and question after he well-being. Baekhyun is fine: he's healthy and well trained. Baekhyun is not fine: he's uncertain and afraid.

"You're home!" his mother nearly shouts, bowling into her son. She clings onto Baekhyun tightly, and her excited energy rocks through Baekhyun's body. He forces his breathing to even out. "What's wrong?" Byulhee asks. "Are you feeling okay? You heard the news, right?"

Baekhyun nods stiffly. "Yes, Ma."

His mother reaches up to brush her fingers through Baekhyun's hair a few times, tugging apart some of the tangles before she tucks it back behind his ear and settles her hand on his jaw.

"My omega son," she says, and the pride in her voice resonates in Baekhyun's chest. It calms the fear in his only a little, but it does not stop the thoughts of uncertainty that gnaw at him. "Come eat." His mother takes his hand, leading him outside where his father sits with a freshly-killed buck in front of him. Around him sits Baekhyun's uncles, his cousin, and his grandmother. "You're father and Uncle Dongwon caught a buck for tonight," his mother tells him as if Baekhyun can't see what's obviously right in front of him. His vision blurs. "Just in time for the occasion too!" Byulhee urges Baekhyun to sit at his father's side, and she settles herself beside him, her shoulder brushing Baekhyun's upper arm.

"I see your mentor kept you late," Dongwon greets. "I hope that means exciting things for my nephew." He reaches out, and Baekhyun meets him in a daze, clasping hands with his cousin's father. Sungkeun's hand is steady on Baekhyun's shoulder.

"He's a top candidate," his father says. His declaration could be nothing. Candidates don't battle or even see each other much outside of training, their days in the fields set in rotation so that they work in different fields at different times. The lack of interaction is supposed to keep friendships from forming so that the competition still runs thick in the tournament, no one losing because he or she can't bear to step on a friend's chances.

"He certainly looks like it," Taehyung's birth father agrees. Byulhee grins at her brother.

"Let's not say anything too crazy, hm, Beom?" Baekhyun's mother says to her brother, but she's still smiling, her pride evident at Beom's praise. Baekhyun meets Taehyung's eyes, and his cousin shrugs apologetically, frowning. Baekhyun sighs.

"This isn't cooked," he interrupts the conversation.

"A traditional meal, kid," Dongwon says. He gets to his feet and strips off his shirt, pulling at the ties on his shorts. "Hunters eat first, but since these two-” he point at Baekhyun and Taehyung “-will be fighting for their place in the pack in a few days, I say we give them the first bite." He glances around at them all, waiting for objections.

Baekhyun coughs. "I think that we should thank the reason this is even a possibility," Baekhyun offers. "Neither Taehyung nor I would be here without our omega parents, and they wouldn't be here without our grandma." There's a collective hush around the small group, and it's Beom who breaks it with a small smile.

"Mom?" he asks, reaching out to grab Baekhyun's grandmother's hand. She nods, pulling at the tie around the neck of her dress that holds the whole thing together.

"Thank you, boy," she says to Baekhyun.

"Yes, ma'am," he answers.

"A true omega," Beom says. Baekhyun freezes, staring up at his uncle. "You have the makings of a good leader, Baekhyun," his uncle continues. "The moon has big plans for you." Baekhyun swallows, mumbling a garbled 'thank you' before he tugs off his shirt and shorts and shifts into his wolf form. The others follow suit, and everyone stares respectfully at their front paws at the eldest of them drops her dress to the ground and changes into her own wolf form.

Baekhyun's grandmother is a dignified silver wolf, her muzzle white with age. Her front right canine is cracked, the point of it missing. She's a fantastic wolf, Baekhyun knows. He glances to his side where his father's wolf form stands only slightly smaller than Baekhyun's. He's a broader wolf, but the matching red in their fur brushes against each other, lining up evenly.

Baekhyun's grandmother steps forward and lower her head to the buck's neck. The first bite is hers, and Baekhyun swallows hard at the smell of fresh meat. He hopes he's not drooling as he waits for his grandmother to eat her fill. He glances up at his cousin; Taehyung hasn't bothered to stop himself from drooling. He meets Baekhyun's eyes when their grandmother steps back, the blood on her snout standing out against the white fur. Together, he and his cousin step in to eat their own fill of the deer.

It's been awhile since Baekhyun's been able to eat a traditional meal in wolf form, and he'd forgotten how excellent it is, how much better it tastes, and how messy it is. He eats a little more than his stomach wants, but he doesn't regret it, not when the taste of raw venison on his tongue makes him feel revitalized from the past week of training.

Taehyung and Baekhyun's parents sit around after dinner with Baekhyun's grandmother, talking and joking about the upcoming tournament. They put Taehyung and Baekhyun to work dragging the deer carcass out into the woods for the scavengers to eat, but even out of their wolf forms, they can hear the conversation.

"I hear Seokjin didn't win," Baekhyun's father says. Baekhyun throws an annoyed glance at Taehyung and makes him laugh with the rude gesture he throws back in their parents' direction.

"Sungkeun," Byulhee scolds. "You don't know anything. You're making that up."

"No, I think he's right," Taehyung's father adds. "Leader isn't the best at keeping secrets. She would have been running around all excited if her youngest were to be following in her footsteps."

Baekhyun stops the deer and jerks his head back towards his home. Taehyung grabs him, pressing a finger to his lips.

"They think we can't hear them," he mouths.

Beom snorts. "Dongwon, love, Leader and Second are nearly sixty sun cycles old. I don't think they jump around excitedly for anything."

"Sixty is not that old, boys," Baekhyun and Taehyung's grandmother interrupts. "I was sixty not that long ago."

"Almost twenty sun cycles, Mom," Byulhee murmurs, and their grandmother hums.

"Has it really been that long?" she asks. She raises her voice, "And where are my grandsons? Getting lost in the woods?" Taehyung throws Baekhyun a panicked face, and Baekhyun and his cousin race through the woods back to where their parents are talking. Just before they break through the treeline, Byulhee leans forward to whisper something else.

"I bet it's Juhyeon," Baekhyun's mother murmurs. "She was always a force to be reckoned with." Taehyung grabs Baekhyun's hand, pulling him out of the shadows of the trees.

"They won't stop talking about it unless we're there," he hisses. Baekhyun seriously doubts that.

"There you are, boys," Baekhyun's grandmother greets when they settle into their original positions between their parents. "I was beginning to think a bear had gotten you."

"Don't be silly, Grandmama," Taehyung says. "Baekhyun's good, but he's not that good. But we’re too fast to be caught." Baekhyun's cousin sticks his tongue out at him directly following that, and Baekhyun frowns at him, scrunching his nose. Their parents keep talking, Beom and Byulhee discussing the crops and Sungkeun whining at his mate to join him on a hunt again one of these days. The conversation drags on and on, Baekhyun and Taehyung only speaking when directly asked a question and spending the rest of the time trying to talk with small hand gestures and exaggerated eye movements. It feels like hours later that Baekhyun's grandmother announces her tiredness and shoos her son and his mate home.

"Baekhyun," his grandmother begins after Taehyung has left, waving at Baekhyun as he walks away between his fathers, their arms thrown over his shoulders. "Can you help me back inside? I think shifting took a lot more out of me than I expected."

"Mom, I can you," Byulhee says, getting to her feet. "Let Baekhyun go rest."

"Ma, it's fine," Baekhyun interrupts. "Just. Talk with Pops, if you want. I'll go with Grandma."

Byulhee pauses for a second before she nods, settling down next to Sungkeun again. Baekhyun helps his grandmother to her feet and lets her lean against him as he guides her inside the cabin and to her room. The scent of recently burned juniper berries assaults his sense of smell, and he scrunches up his nose.

"Let me sit down," his grandmother laughs. "You've always hated that smell."

"It's rancid," Baekhyun admits, helping his grandmother settle down on her pile of furs.

"It clears the mind for prayer," she corrects him.

"What have you been praying about?" Baekhyun asks.

"You," his grandmother answers simply. She takes his hand between both of hers. "I pray about you and your cousin most. But we both know Taehyung is not going to make it to the final rounds of the tournament. So right now, my focus is you."

Baekhyun breathes, letting the pain of the stench of the juniper berries stinging his throat calm him. "I see."

Baekhyun's grandmother tightens her grip on his hand, her small fingers still agile as they slip between Baekhyun's own fingers, pressing between his thumb and first finger. It feels nice; her touch is warm.

"The moon has a plan, Baekhyun," his grandmother says. "She will make the right choice for our pack. I promise you this."

"Does the right choice have to be me?" Baekhyun asks, voice low. His grandmother shakes her head, and Baekhyun hangs his.

"No." She reaches out and brushes Baekhyun's hair away from his face. "It will be who the moon decides is the right omega." She hums then, a gentle tune that Baekhyun recognizes. It's an old folk song that his grandmother and his mother both used to sing him to sleep when he was younger. It's a song that Taehyung used to sing when they were playing in the river together, cleaning up after training with their own mentors. He would splash Baekhyun repeatedly until he finally gave in and sang along. Baekhyun mouths the words as his grandmother hums the notes, but he's too tired to really sing along. His eyes burn as he listens, tears swimming at the bottom of his vision, a mixture of emotion and the irritation of the burned juniper berries. His grandmother's warbling voice cuts out.

"You need to cut this mess, boy," she says, tugging on a lock that keeps falling in his eyes. "Your hair is too long."

"But I look pretty, right?" Baekhyun tries. He smiles, but he can feel the expression stop at his cheeks, never quite reaching his eyes.

"Oh, my darling," his grandmother says, and her fingers slip from his hair to his cheek, brushing away a tear before it can drip off of Baekhyun's chin. "You are ruggedly handsome, my son." Baekhyun lays his own hand over his grandmother's where it rests against his cheek, leaning into her touch. "And I promise you will find love."

Baekhyun inhales and exhales shakily. "Thank you," he manages. He stands up then.

"Goodnight, Baekhyun," his grandmother murmurs. "Don't forget to pray." Baekhyun ignores those words.

"Goodnight, Grandma."

Baekhyun circles Sehun slowly in wolf form, his paws soft and soundless against the ground. He keeps his eyes on Sehun's, the pale blue of Sehun's wolf eyes riveting but also tell-tale if he decides to make a move. Adrenaline surges through Baekhyun, anticipation tastes like blood and the tang of not-yet-ripe berries. Baekhyun walks a little slower, circling continuously in step with Sehun. His training partner's gray fur ripples with his muscles at they walk, sizing each other up.

It's been awhile since Baekhyun has seen Sehun's wolf form, but he could never forget the easy grace with which Sehun moves when he's down on all fours. He isn't really any bigger than Baekhyun is, his legs a little longer, his paws maybe a hair's breadth wider. Baekhyun lets his own paws fall into the print he and Sehun have been pressing deeper and deeper into the dirt with each circle.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, Baekhyun registers Minseok urging them to just hurry up and fight. This is their last spar of the day, and both of them are exhausted. But there is something about being in wolf form that is revitalizing; there's something about walking on all fours that makes this fight feel like it means more, like Baekhyun has something to prove.

He leans in a bit, stepping inside the circle of paw prints, slowly closing the gap between him and Sehun. The other wolf follows Baekhyun's actions, and the space between them shrinks considerable as they move ever so slightly closer and closer. Baekhyun's claws extend, and he watches Sehun's to the same, their new paw prints looking more and more dangerous as they step in just a bit closer.

Perfect.

Baekhyun lunges, and Sehun rears back, clearly ready for him. The other wolf lifts up onto his hind legs, and Baekhyun crashes into him, knocking Sehun onto his back. His momentum is too much for him to hold Sehun down, and Sehun uses that against him, rolling over against until it's Baekhyun on his back. He kicks hard, scraping down Sehun's side with his claws, and Minseok shouts a warning at them.

"No claws!" he screams. "You don't want to go into the tournament torn to ribbons already!" Briefly, Baekhyun thinks he might not mind. That would definitely almost guarantee his loss. But then Sehun is ducking down to snap at Baekhyun's neck, and Baekhyun is not about to lose this round. He squirms hard, throwing Sehun's balance before the wolf can get in too close to him. He rolls out from underneath Sehun, jumping up to his paws and whirling around to dive back in to attack.

Sehun rears up on his hind legs again, ready to take Baekhyun's attack, but Baekhyun is prepared for that. He stays low, barreling forward and knocking into Sehun's side, completely throwing off his balance. He keeps running, loping away from Sehun. The gray wolf leaps after him, chasing him around with his teeth bared.

Baekhyun shows his own teeth, and he and Sehun run shoving at each other, trying to get teeth in the other's neck, snarling and barking. It takes one well-timed shove from Baekhyun to get Sehun to stumble just enough off course, and he takes the opportunity. He dives onto Sehun's back, and he and the gray wolf roll again. This time, however, Baekhyun is prepared, and he lets go of Sehun before the other omega can trap him like he did last time. Sehun rolls, and Baekhyun steps over him, pressing him down much the same way he did to the alpha pup the other day. He presses his full weight onto Sehun's chest, and he leans down without preamble, jaws open and Sehun's fur against his tongue as he mimes tearing out his throat.

Sehun is breathing hard, but Baekhyun doesn't let up, holding him down until he hears their mentor call the fight.

"Alright, well done," Minseok says. It's then that Baekhyun steps back, and he and Sehun watch each other warily, changing back into human form and moving to grab their clothing.

"That was good," Minseok tells them when they're standing side by side in front of him, their racing hearts calming. Baekhyun still feels on edge. Fighting in wolf form is something they don't do often; it's something that is reserved for real battles like border skirmishes and camp attacks. His hands shake a little bit with the leftover energy. "Baekhyun, Sehun," Minseok says, grabbing their attention. Baekhyun struggles to get his eyes focused on his mentor.

"As you both know, the tournament begins in two days," Minseok informs, and Baekhyun nods, Sehun beside him doing the same. "Less than two, really," Minseok amends. "There's tomorrow and then, in the morning on the next day, you'll be officially in contest for the position of Second."

Baekhyun catches Sehun rolling his eyes in the corner of his vision. "We know, beta," Sehun says.

"You've both trained hard," Minseok tells them. His gaze settles on Baekhyun again. "Really hard."

"Thank you," Baekhyun and Sehun chorus.

"It's been an honor to work with you," Minseok says. "If I could ever have pups, I'd want them to be something like you."

Sehun snorts. "You're really getting sappy in your old age," he teases, but he’s smiling, pleased as Minseok's praise. As a beta mated to an alpha, Minseok won't ever be able to bear his own pups, but Baekhyun has talked about this with Sehun before. The younger omega claims he would name Minseok the guardian of his pups in the case that anything happened to him. Baekhyun thinks Minseok would love that.

"Hush you, brat," Minseok snaps without any real heat to his words. Sehun just grins.

"We've still got training tomorrow though," Baekhyun interrupts. "Shouldn't you save the goodbye speech for then?"

Minseok shakes his head. "I've trained you both harder than ever these past few days, and you've done really well." He reaches out, settling one hand on Baekhyun's shoulder and the other on Sehun's. "Tomorrow, I want you both to rest. Gather your strength. This is my last order as your mentor."

"Yes, beta," Sehun murmurs immediately.

"Yes, beta," Baekhyun echoes.

"Good," Minseok states. He lets go of their shoulder then, and he pulls Sehun down into a hug. "Go home," he tells the tall omega. "I'm proud of you."

"Thank you," Sehun says, and he briefly hugs Minseok back a little tighter before he lets go. He nods to Baekhyun and scampers off into the woods, running into the shadows of the forest. The next time Baekhyun sees him, they'll probably be enemies, facing each other much like they have for moons upon moons. If that's the case, Baekhyun already knows as well as Sehun does who will win.

"Can I go?" he asks. "Or do you need to hug me too?"

Minseok gives him this incredulous face. "You know I have more to say to you, Baekhyun."

"Right." Baekhyun sighs.

"Listen," his mentor begins. "You have very real chance of becoming Second." Baekhyun just nods. He's heard this before.

"I don't want this to intimidate you," Minseok continues. "But I want you to be prepared in case the results are such that-"

"Who's the top candidate?" Baekhyun asks, cutting through Minseok's words.

"We don't rank you all," he says. Baekhyun flaps his hands at him.

"Yeah, but you do come to watch all of us. I've seen the other mentors hovering around here, watching," Baekhyun argues. Minseok sighs.

"I don't know if you've seen him any time recently," he relents. "His name is Chanyeol. He's tall."

"Sehun is tall."

"Chanyeol has natural leadership qualities," Minseok adds. "He would be an excellent Second for the pack." That makes all the sense in the world. Baekhyun used to know Chanyeol, but he’s sure the chubby kid he knew back before their training began is no more. Chanyeol is the grandson of the First; naturally, he would make a great candidate.

Baekhyun worries his bottom lip. "Better than me?" He shouldn't be asking that; he doesn't want to be Second. Then again, he apparently doesn't not want to be Second, if Taehyung is saying anything with an ounce of his seemingly inborn wisdom.

"Perhaps," is Minseok's response. He meets Baekhyun's eyes again. "This new alpha is going to be a good Leader."

Baekhyun jolts. "You met...?" Him? Her? Neither? He doesn't finish his sentence. Minseok shrugs with a secretive smile.

"I did," he says. "Trust me, Baekhyun. If you win, our pack will be very powerful." He opens his arms then and pulls Baekhyun into a hug, murmuring praise in Baekhyun's ear, telling him how proud he is of him, wishing him good luck.

"Aren't you going to wish the moon's guidance on me?" Baekhyun asks when he pulls back.

Minseok frowns. "Don't tell anyone this," he begins, "but I don't really believe in the moon goddess. I believe in hard work and well fought battles. I think ability will make the right choice in who our Second should be." He stares at Baekhyun as if challenging him to make an argument, but somehow, that's the most comforting thing anyone has said to Baekhyun yet in preparation for the tournament.

"Good luck," Minseok says. "Go home. Rest."

"Yes, beta," Baekhyun agrees. "Thank you." But he watches Minseok leave the dirt clearing first, watches the shift of the beta's muscles under his skin. He looks down at his own body, at his broad chest and shoulder, the slight flare of his hips that belies his real strength. Sure, he tells himself, he has a good shot at the position of Second, but maybe someone else, one of his rival omegas, has a better shot at taking over the role of leadership in the pack.

Ability will make the right choice. Baekhyun clenches his hands into fists, watches the veins in his arms stand out. He wants a bath. He turns and walks off towards the river, humming to himself as ignoring the tickling of blades of grass against his ankles. Ferns brush over his legs, and Baekhyun feels comforted. No matter what happens in the tournament, he has his home. He can at least keep this much to himself, these quiet moments of walking alongside the stars and the moon.

"Show, glow, pretty moon," he sings softly, shaping the words that his grandmother taught him so many sun cycles ago as the happy sounds of the river becomes louder and clearer. "Sing your lullaby." The sky is darkening, orange and purple streaked across the blue expanse. Navy chases the colors to the edge of the horizon as Baekhyun reaches the river. He peels off his shirt and shorts, dipping his toes into the chill water.

"Day will end, I'll see you soon," he mutters more than he sinks, slinking out into the current. It's like this, cold and clean from the river, that Baekhyun can almost forget the weight of the possible future weighing on him.

"After the sun runs from sky," he continues. He bends his knees, dunking underneath the water. Like this, all he can hear is the rushing of the river, the bubble and crash of it into the rocks.

"La la la la hm, so sings the moon," Baekhyun sings softly as he exists the river. "La la la la hm, moon song she sings for you." He imagines his grandmother's voice when she sings the folk song, imagines her awe and reverence of the moon goddess they all worship.

All except Minseok, it seems. Baekhyun tips his head back, staring up at the crescent face of the goddess. "Are you even real?" he asks under his breath. "Are you actually an existing thing that gives a damn about us down here?" He doesn't receive an answer, nothing beyond the usual cool of the nighttime breeze kissing his damp skin. He didn't expect a response, and he's almost glad he didn't get one.

He tugs on his clothes, ignoring the way they darken from the water on his skin. They'll dry soon enough. He shoves his hair back out of his face and starts walking, heading back towards his parents' cabin with his grandmother and her burning juniper.

He catches himself singing again, the same words that have long since been impressed into his heart. Even with all of his doubt in place, even with his uncertainty and lack of security caused by the looming tournament, he finds his comfort in Minseok's belief in strength and power and the folk song that his grandmother has always sung.

La la la la hm, so sings the moon. La la la la hm, moon song she sings for you.

Everything, Baekhyun tries to convince himself, is going to be okay.

Baekhyun jolts up from his furs, claws out and teeth bared. He pants hard, his skin dripping with cold sweat. His heart pounds in his chest, and his skin prickles with a presence that should not be around him at this hour of the day. He swipes out blindly, a warning note sitting low in his throat.

"Baekhyun!"

Baekhyun freezes, forcing his breathing to slow and even out. He knows that voice. He's not being attacked. The upcoming tournament has set his nerves on end, and the slightest stimuli is enough to set him off. The familiar tinge of burned juniper tickles his nose, and Baekhyun swears under his breath.

"It's okay," whispers from his left. "Breathe, Baekhyun. It's okay."

Baekhyun follows instructions, breathing in through his nose and evenly out through his mouth. He glances up to the side. Minseok is there, his aura serious but a welcome, steady calm, his hand set on Baekhyun's upper arm. The pale morning light is streaming through the cracks in the walls, and Baekhyun allows himself to really calm, to release the tension and adrenaline trapped in his muscles. His hands shake with residual exhaustion from hardly sleeping, but as least Baekhyun is where he's supposed to be- wrapped up in his furs in his small room in his parents' home.

"What are you doing here?" Baekhyun rasps at his mentor, his voice thick with sleep.

"You need to get up," Minseok tells him, and Baekhyun flinches away from his touch, bile rising in his throat and the inside of his mouth burns with the taste of blood from his raw nerves.

His stomach twists.

"Why?" Baekhyun inquires even if the answer is already sinking into his mind, carrying trepidation in to color all of his thoughts.

"It's today," Minseok answers simply, and cold fear, terror of silver-masked future crawls down Baekhyun's throat and lodges itself in the pit of his stomach. He shivers. "We have to get there soon."

"Why such rush?" Baekhyun asks, grabbing for his furs again. He just wants to sleep, to bypass the tournament completely by spending the days of ceremony lost in his dreams.

Minseok huffs, obviously annoyed and impatient with Baekhyun's behavior. "You've known this was coming for moons now," his mentor snaps. "Get up. Let's go. The tournament can't start until you're there."

"Can't I just wait another day then?" Baekhyun complains. "If I don't show up until tomorrow, then it won't start until tomorrow." Minseok grabs Baekhyun's arm and all but drags him from his furs, forcing Baekhyun to stand and wake up. He throws a punch, and Baekhyun reacts on autopilot, his arm coming up instinctively to block the attack.

Minseok nods in the dim lighting of Baekhyun's room. "At least your reflexes are prepared even if you aren't," he sneers. He shoves fabric into Baekhyun's hands, and the material is sturdy, thicker than any fabric Baekhyun's ever worn before.

"From the priests," Minseok says. "Pants. Put them on."

"Is there something wrong with my usual pants?" Baekhyun asks, rubbing at his eyes with the backs of his hands. He's tired- he hadn't slept properly last night, too plagued with dreams of being bonded to a Leader who uses him at night and takes over control of the pack during the day, completely taking Baekhyun away from his duties as Second.

That's not how the position of Second is supposed to work; the Second is the Leader's other half. The Second is a position of authority within the pack. Their pack doesn't operate like the others that live in territories that run close to their own where alphas take omegas for mates and use them as little more than dolls for sex and pup-rearing. The position of Second is not granted to the most beautiful omega; it is won by the strongest omega.

Baekhyun swallows hard. His dream is baseless; the pack would never allow such behavior.

"Those ones are dyed," Minseok says. "Put them on. Hurry. We have to get Sehun still."

"Why?" Baekhyun questions, tripping into the pants. The material is soft and thick, and Baekhyun tucks on the cloth a little bit, grinning down at it. This won't tear the first time he hits the ground, he realizes. That's excellent.

It's too dark in Baekhyun's room for him to distinguish Minseok's features properly, but he's pretty sure Minseok is rolling his eyes and baring his teeth in an impatient manner. "Mentors present their omegas to the priests to start the Sun Ceremonies," Minseok explains. Baekhyun's fingers fumble with the tie on his pants, and Minseok huffs in annoyance. He knocks Baekhyun's hands away, pulling the tie on Baekhyun's pants tight around his hips and knotting it with deft fingers.

"I can dress myself," Baekhyun says. Minseok just hands him a leather pouch filled with water.

"Drink that," he orders. "We need to leave now."

Baekhyun allows himself to be pulled from his house, swallowing the water Minseok gave him and only barely managing a wave back towards his home as Minseok leads him into the woods towards Sehun's mother's home. His mother appears in the front of the house in time to wave to Baekhyun, blowing him a kiss and mouthing 'good luck' at him.

Baekhyun isn't sure luck is going to have much to do with this, but he smiles as convincingly as he can at her and walks away with Minseok. His mentor leaves Baekhyun outside of Sehun's home when they reach it, letting himself in and pulling Sehun out in the same dark red-dyed pants that he'd forced Baekhyun into.

Sehun squints at Baekhyun as he tumbles out of his mother's house, his hair sticking up at odd angles. Baekhyun runs a subconscious hand through his own hair, checking for any wayward strands. They're meeting all of the returned alphas and betas today, all of the wolves that have been training for just as long as they have. The only difference is those wolves already know whether or not they are Leader or First.

Now, they return to their home in time to see all of the omegas born in the same sun cycles as them take on a series of tests to prove their strength.

"Fix your hair," Baekhyun mumbles, handing the leather pouch over to Sehun. He takes it clumsily, sleep still clouding his vision. His eyebrows are already drawn down in serious line, making him look more awake than he is, but the tired pout on his lips says he's just as nervous and exhausted as Baekhyun is.

Sehun drags a hand through his hair, but it doesn't completely calm the mess of sleep-mused hair. Baekhyun wrinkles his nose and hopes his own hair looks at least marginally better than Sehun's. He briefly considers running his tongue over his hand in order to get his hair to stay out of his face. Maybe should have listened to his grandmother and let his mother cut his hair. He snorts at himself then; is he preening?

"Thanks," Sehun mumbles, passing the water back to him. Baekhyun sighs, turning the pouch over and dumping just enough on his palm to wet the skin, yanking Sehun down to his level and smoothing his hand over the wayward strands.

"Now, you can thank me," Baekhyun says, and Sehun just nods, mumbling sleepily, leaning on Baekhyun with an arm over his shoulders.

Minseok sighs. "You both are more trouble than you're worth."

"Shush, beta," Sehun tries to snap, but it comes out sluggish. "Some of us aren't morning birds." Baekhyun can't stop the smile that breaks over his face. Being with Sehun and Minseok like this, tension in the air in preparation for a fight and the camaraderie of training together for suns and moons, is familiar. Baekhyun loops his arm around Sehun's waist.

"Morning birds or not," Minseok says. "We have to get you both to the main glade now."

"Lead the way." Baekhyun points one finger in the general direction of the glade, and together, Minseok, Sehun and him all traipse towards the rising noise of the pack gathering together. As they walk, the red pants far too flashy for the forest, everyone, wolves and other forest inhabitants alike, seem to make way for them. Even though the sun is out now, the pale blue of dawn brightening the sky, the moon still hovers overhead. Baekhyun squints up at her.

They break into the clearing of the glade, and much of the pack is already there. The noise of their chatter rises up around Baekhyun, filling his ears and cutting through the sense of detachment he had built up during their walk. At the head of the glade standing in front of the boulders where only the Leader, First, and Second have authority to stand, the priests of the moon stand in a line, their shoulders covered by woven shawls dyed a deep blue. The head priestess has her head covered, the wrinkles in her skin diminished by the bright light of day and the wrapping covering her white hair. The magnitude of this situation suddenly hits him, and his grip on Sehun's waist tightens. His fellow omega glances down at him, and Baekhyun tosses him a reassuring grin that is probably lacking in the 'effectiveness' aspect.

"It will be fine, Baekhyun," Sehun assures him, and if Sehun, one of the youngest of the omega candidates, can have such faith that the tournament will go well and end correctly, then Baekhyun can at least pretend to have the same certainty.

"Right," he says. "Good luck."

"To you, too," Sehun murmurs, and then he's removing himself from Baekhyun's side, pulling away to represent himself. Minseok walks ahead of them a few paces, his shoulders squared. Baekhyun and Sehun walk side-by-side, a forearm’s length between them. It feels very formal, and the cheers only get louder as more and more pack members arrive and Minseok leads them to the middle of the glade. He steps into place in a line with the other mentors, and Baekhyun and Sehun fall into place beside the other omegas.

This is the first time Baekhyun has seen them all gathered in one place. They've been kept isolated from each other for most of their lives, but some of them he recognizes immediately. At one end of the line, standing tall and broad shouldered, is Chanyeol. He's the top choice for the next Second among the mentors, and Baekhyun can see why easily. His resemblance to his grandfather, the First, is uncanny. Taehyung stands only two people away from Baekhyun, and when he catches Baekhyun looking, he winks at him. On the opposite side of Taehyung, an omega Baekhyun would be a fool to not know rolls her eyes.

Seulgi, another grandchild of the First. He hasn't met her in person before, but there's no mistaking the triple-lined scar that runs the length of her arm. Everyone knows the story of her run-in with a bear. He doesn't know where the scar ends, the bindings wrapped around her chest and over her shoulders covering it.

Next to him, his smile curled and eyes bright, is Jongdae. It's been a long time since they've seen each other, but Baekhyun will never forget the trouble the two of them used to get up to. He manages to return Jongdae's smile with a tight one of his own. He hopes it doesn't look too much like a grimace.

"Quiet!" is yelled out across the glade, the tone commanding and familiar. Baekhyun looks up. Ahead of them, standing on the pile-up of boulders at the head of the glade, is Leader, her long hair swirling around her in the morning breeze. The last time he'd seen her, Baekhyun had been in the midst of a spar with Sehun. Her presence had made the whole fight seem heavier, the full weight of her gaze seemingly settled on Baekhyun's shoulders.

"Good morning, welcome all," Leader begins. She pushes strands of gray away from her face, and her eyes are just as piercing as Baekhyun remembers them. "Today begins the final days of my leadership over this pack. It has been an honor." She bows then, deeply, and the rest of the pack bends immediately to return to the gesture. The priests do not move. They've dedicated their lives to the moon, and though they follow Leader's direction without orders, they bow to none but the moon goddess herself.

When Leader straightens, she holds out a hand to her mate, and Second climbs up next to her. Their arms fall naturally around each other's waists. Second's short hair shows the missing tip of her ear, the thick scar that runs from her temple to her neck. Despite that, she's still delicately beautiful. Baekhyun is almost certain she could still tear him to shreds in a fight even with her sixty sun cycles of age.

"This is a trying time for the pack," Leader continues. "We are all gathered in one place after suns of separation for our omegas and betas and alphas who have been training in order to make this pack at powerful as it can be." She dips her head to Baekhyun and to the other omegas standing in line beside him. Baekhyun bites his lip, and Jongdae murmurs something about 'intimidation' at Baekhyun's side.

"But we are also weak as leadership shifts from my hands to the those of your new Leader." She gestures back towards the oldest cabin on the territory where the Leader and Second live. The new Leader is there now, hidden from sight and scent, blessed already by the priests of the moon by her blessing. None of the omegas know the person; and the winner of this tournament will be the one to find out who it is first. It's good incentive to win, Baekhyun supposes. Being mated to the most powerful alpha of the pack sounds deliciously excellent to almost all omegas ears.

"I assure you I am passing the mantle of Leader from my hands into hands more capable than mine," Leader says, soothing. "Powerful hands that will protect this pack." Her gaze focuses on the omegas again, and Baekhyun can feel her eyes rake over him. He shivers where he stands. "And that power will be supplemented by that of the omega that takes the position of Second." Leader quiets then, and Second takes a step forward. Her smile is bright; her eyes are bright. She looks lighter than Baekhyun has ever seen her.

She's ready to step down, he realizes. He glances up at the moon again, but he doesn't find any comfort there.

"The tournament will consist of three tests," Second says. "Though these tests are not difficult in nature, they will find the most capable of you that stand before me." She laughs a little, a light sounds that eases the tension in Baekhyun's neck. "I know, among this lot, stands someone whom the moon has selected to stand at the side of your new Leader."

She dips her gaze then, and once again, Baekhyun feels scrutinized. Sehun's fingers brush his arm briefly, and Baekhyun is grateful for the comfort.

"Before we meet our omegas and introduce them to the pack, let us reintroduce the alphas and betas who have stayed away for moon after moon." Second holds out her hand, and from around the back of the boulders, First steps out. He's so tall, his jovial smile dampened by his intimidating stature. Walking behind him in an even line, their footsteps falling into the prints of the wolf ahead of him, a line of alphas and betas steps into the glad across from the mentors and omegas. In their jaws, each one carries a pair of dyed-purple pants.

There's a murmuring from the pack, the voices of parents and friends and family rising in excitement as their children or brothers or sisters return to them.

First stands tall, and Baekhyun notices Chanyeol fidgeting at the other end of the line out of the corner of his eye. "These young alphas and betas are members of this pack," First says. "They will take a little bit of time to assimilate to the culture of this place, but please welcome them as working members of this pack." He nods, and the line of alphas and betas, about thirteen in total, shift.

Watching an alpha or a beta change is no different from watching an omega change, but Baekhyun is fascinated anyway, attention rapt as dark fur becomes skin. Some of them shift more gracefully than others, and some stumble into their pants with pink cheeks and a haste that is almost cute.

At his side, he hears Jongdae gasp, and Baekhyun turns immediately. Jongdae's gaze is focused forward, his cheeks pink. He licks his bottom lip, and Baekhyun can't believe they're standing at the ready for the tournament that will decide their fate in this pack and Jongdae is busy lusting over one of the newly returned wolves. He follows Jongdae's line of vision, and his own breathing pauses for a moment.

Oh. The alpha Jongdae is focused on is undoubtedly beautiful, her features distinct, shoulders squared and stomach defined even with her tiny waist. The purple pants hang low on her hips, and her eyes are dark. If Baekhyun didn't know better, he'd say the alpha's eyes are focused on Jongdae just as much as Jongdae's are focused on her.

"Your new First," First continues, and the alpha that has caught Jongdae's attention steps forward.

"First," Baekhyun hears Jongdae breathe.

"Don't get attached," Baekhyun hisses under his breath. "You're not exactly an available option right now." Jongdae throws him a sidelong glance.

"Keeping my options open," he retorts. "Who knows what the moon goddess has planned?" Baekhyun clenches his teeth. He wants to scream and ask if the moon goddess even cares, because surely, if she did, she wouldn't put all of them through this nerve-wracking event. She would just choose by shining a moonbeam on her chosen omega, Baekhyun thinks bitterly.

"Introduce yourself," First urges the alpha, and the new First bows.

"I am Seungwan," she says, her voice gentler than what Baekhyun expected, but she still commands attention with her presence. "I am First." The pack bows again, and the First that Baekhyun has known all his life, bows to Seungwan as well.

"I step down from my place as First at this moment," he says. "I will respond solely to my given name. Chanhyuk." He steps away from the other alphas and betas in the line, turning to merge with the rest of the pack members who have gathered. He has no more authority with the pack as of now, and Seungwan, the new First, swallows, her eyes sweeping over all of them.

"I will serve you well," she promises. Seungwan turns to the alphas and betas she spent cycles training with, nodding to them. "Take your place in the pack." Every one of them follows in Chanhyuk's footsteps, walking into the pack to a rising chorus of cheers. Baekhyun watches the way they organize themselves, taking note of who holds what rank of unspoken power within the group. The first to walk away to greet her family is the only other female among them, and Baekhyun knows her instantly as Juhyeon. A very handsome alpha with shoulders near the width of a river turns and moves back towards the rocks, and the happy tears on the Second's face give away exactly who he is.

So that, Baekhyun thinks, is Seokjin, the Leader and Second’s youngest son. He swallows. If that man, that alpha, was surpassed for the position of Leader, Baekhyun wonders exactly what type of alpha, how broad and how fierce, how powerful, they've selected to be the new Leader.

Seungwan then turns and climbs the boulders to stand with Leader and Second. She looks odd standing with them, her skin mostly unmarred, her face young and demeanor commanding even if a bit nervous. Leader and Second are forty sun cycles older than she is, their hair white and skin decorated with scars.

"Now that our pack is whole, I turn this over to our priests," Leader announces. "The tournament will continue as they direct." She places a hand on First's shoulder, and Seungwan nods at her. She is the head power of the pack currently, Leader and Second phasing out as the tournament commences. As Leader and Second descend to greet their son, pulling him into a tight embrace, First stays standing up on the rocks, watching everything around her.

"She's so beautiful," Jongdae whispers with just a hint of longing in his voice.

"You haven't even met her yet," Baekhyun says. "She could be a total fuck."

"I'd fuck her," Jongdae says, nonchalant, completely ignoring Baekhyun's meaning, and Baekhyun has to swallow to bit back an annoyed growl.

"Children of my goddess the moon," the head priestess begins, and her voice is far too smooth for someone of her age. Her eyes almost seem to glow silver. "We have gathered under the blessing of our goddess to decide the new Second for our great pack." Her words are practiced, ritual words. Baekhyun's skin buzzes.

"After a series of test, the wisest and strongest of our candidates will be revealed to us, and it is that omega who will take the honor of being Second." Take, she had said, and Baekhyun feels a twist of anger. There isn't even an option to decline. He's always known this, but hearing it still sets him on edge.

"Mentors, please introduce the omegas chosen by our goddess." Baekhyun doesn't miss the way Minseok's shoulders shake with a short laugh of incredulity as he turns to face Sehun and Baekhyun.

"These are Sehun and Baekhyun," he says loud and clear for the whole pack to hear his words and know their names. He points at each of them, and he winks at Baekhyun before he says the next words. "Chosen by the moon."

There are slight cheers, and Baekhyun thinks he makes out his mother's voice in the mix. Minseok turns back around, facing the priests, and the mentor beside him turns then to introduce the omegas she had trained.

"These are Jongdae and Namjoon," she says. "Chosen by the moon." It continues on down the line, Taehyung and Seulgi, Jimin and Jongin, down the line with the same repetition of words until Baekhyun hears Chanyeol's name and hears the roar of the pack. He's clearly favoured; Baekhyun bitterly hopes that the moon favors Chanyeol too.

"Mentors," the head priestess continues. "You may return to the pack." Minseok throws Sehun and Baekhyun a look, his lips forming a wish for luck, and then it's all the omegas in a line on display for the pack. Baekhyun has never hated the idea of the tournament more than he hates it right now. He feels like he's some sort of prize, like he's on display to win himself. He scrunches his toes in the grass.

"The first test begins now," the head priestess announces. "A race from here to the edges of the mountains to the edge of the forest and back." Baekhyun wishes he'd had more water to drink. That's a long run but not so long that it can't be done at nearly a full sprint. Exhaustion at just the thought of the challenge seeps into his bones, and Baekhyun rolls his shoulders back, hoping to ease it. Butterflies take wing in his stomach. "Anyone who does not run the required path will be removed from the tournament," the head priestess warns. She steps down from the head of the glade and moves to walk to the opposite end. The pack parts for her, and the omegas follow her, reforming their line at the opposite end of the glade, facing out towards the mountains.

"The moon goddess is watching," the head priestess says. She holds up her hands. "All omega candidates, please shift." Baekhyun doesn't waste a second. He steps out of his pants, folding them neatly and placing them on the ground at his feet. He takes deep breath and falls forward, landing on the ground with four paws instead of two feet. He glances down the line, looking at the coloring of the omegas around him. Taehyung's nearly white fur and Sehun's slate gray are a comfort. Jongdae, small and wiry, is nearly the color of night, and his teeth gleam.

Chanyeol is huge, his russet fur gleaming in the morning light. Baekhyun shakes himself. He's not going to worry; he's just going to let everything happen as it's bound to happen.

"Goddess," the head priestess calls out, her hands still raised. "Our pack does not need a leader too slow to escape the clutches of an enemy, nor do we need a leader too slow to reach the pack members who call for help. Please speed the paws of these candidates who run, and allow the fastest, the surest of foot, to be made clear."

Baekhyun breathes, staring ahead of him. He can't see the mountains through the trees right now, but he knows where they are. He's run this route before. Everything around him slowly fades away, and the head priestess drops her arms.

Baekhyun moves.

His paws fly over the ground, his blood rushing thunderous in his ears. He pants, forcing himself to hold of from a full-fledged sprint, but not letting himself slow to an easy run either. He runs, keeping his breathing even, focusing on his footsteps. He tries to avoid seeing the other runners; they're not about to attack him, and therefore they’re out of his range of care. All they're doing is running. He does not need to watch his back right now.

Baekhyun stares ahead, watching the mountains come into view through the trees, feeling the ground change into a slight incline as he races forward. A bark of happiness resonates in his ears when his paws touch the first low rocks of the mountain, and the treeline is only a few more paces uphill. His muscles burn, but still he runs upward until he steps out onto sunlit rocks and ferns. There are no trees here, and for a moment, Baekhyun considers continuing up the mountain and disappearing over the edge to never return.

He loves this forest though. He loves his pack.

Baekhyun turns and races back the other direction, heart pounding and tongue dry from his heavy breathing as he surges back towards the glade.

A flash of black barrels past him, and Baekhyun only just barely manages to make out Jongdae before the other wolf is gone from sight. So Baekhyun wasn't the only wolf holding back just a bit, but Jongdae was really holding back. Baekhyun tears after him, but he can't catch him. He doesn't understand how anyone can move his legs at such a blinding speed, but Jongdae, apparently, can.

Baekhyun is tired, his heart threatens to burst from his chest, to break through his ribcage. He just want to stop, to breathe, to drink water. Still he keeps running, and the moment the glade comes into view, Baekhyun's focus widens just enough for him to make out Chanyeol loping along beside him. Behind him he can hear smaller paws, and he isn't sure which of the other omegas is right on his tail, but he doesn't have time to look.

Chanyeol races at Baekhyun’s same pace, and Baekhyun wishes he'd let himself go at the beginning of the race. He could be the clear second place (because obviously no one was capable enough to beat Jongdae), but now he's racing along with Chanyeol, neither one able to pull ahead.

They burst into the glade together, paws stepping in time with each other. They've made it; they're back. Baekhyun sinks his claws into the ground to slow himself, coming to a halt in front of an already human and dressed Jongdae. The omega pats Baekhyun's head.

"You're fast," he says. Baekhyun snorts, nipping at Jongdae's wrist. The message is clear: not as fast as you.

Around him, the roar of the pack cheering renews his energy, and he listens for a moment to find his mother's voice, to find his father's voice. They're yelling for him, excited for him. He turns then to walk back to his pants, shifting into human skin and pulling the red cloth back over his legs. He catches Seulgi wrapping the bindings back around her chest, and the start of her scar at the back of her neck is visible for only a moment. So it's she who came in fourth behind him and Chanyeol.

“Good race,” stops Baekhyun in his tracks of walking back to his place in line. He turns and then looks up to see Chanyeol there. The omega’s voice is deep, effortlessly authoritative. Baekhyun isn’t sure there exists any reason why Chanyeol shouldn’t be Second. In terms of strength, he seems to have that in spades.

“You too,” Baekhyun says, trying not to pitch his voice lower intentionally.

“The red in your fur,” Chanyeol continues. “You look like a part of the forest.”

“The clay,” Baekhyun responds, trailing out. This feels awkward, like some sort of stand-off. Baekhyun coughs. “Um. Good luck with the next test then.”

Chanyeol nods. “Goddess bless you.” He reaches out and tentatively pats Baekhyun’s shoulder, and though they’re not friends, not really anymore, there’s a sort of comfort to the act despite the awkwardness.

“Yeah,” he says. “And you.”

As the omegas arrive, panting, they all return to stand in their line. Jongdae's eyes keep straying up to the First where she stands on the outcropping of rock, and Baekhyun nudges him.

"I didn't realize you can run twice as fast as any other wolf here," he says just for conversation as they wait for the others to make it back.

"It's about my only talent," Jongdae murmurs to him. "Mum says I was always outrunning everything. This is the first race where I actually got to see how much faster I am." His eyes are bright, his cheeks still flushed with adrenaline. Baekhyun runs a hand through his own hair. He feels windswept; looking at how Jongdae's hair is a complete mess on his head, Baekhyun looks windswept too.

"Do you want to win?" Baekhyun asks. Jongdae just shrugs.

"I want the First," he answers. "Not the Second." A bad innuendo if Baekhyun's ever heard one, but he knows what Jongdae means.

"And if you win?" he prompts.

Jongdae shrugs again. "Then that's what the moon wants." He looks down at his feet. "I don't really have a say in it." It strikes Baekhyun then. All of them are trapped into this tournament. None of them are here because they want to be Second. Mostly likely all of them would rather live in one of the stories Baekhyun's grandmother tells than be forced into these tests of expectations. Baekhyun sighs.

"What about you?" Jongdae asks. Baekhyun just stares down at the back of the glade, watching the slowest of their small group of twelve omegas return. "Do you want to be Second?"

"I just want what's best for our pack," Baekhyun says automatically. Jongdae's fingers are gentle on his shoulder.

"Careful talking like that then," he murmurs. "You sound like Second already."

His words strike deep into Baekhyun's heart, cracking over his skin. Maybe that's why Minseok has always had such faith in him, why his parents have such hope for him. Maybe he acts the way that Second should act.

He swallows thickly, and his mouth tastes like blood. If fate and the moon are really at play here, is Baekhyun already doomed to forever be seen as a good candidate for Second? Even if someone else wins, will Baekhyun ever really be free of this fear of a loveless life?

The last omega, fur a gorgeous brown, steps back into the glade, limping. The head priestess tuts at him, and she gestures for another of the priests to come over and tend to the injured wolf.

"Jongin," Taehyung says just loud enough for Baekhyun to hear. He glances over at his cousin. "He doesn't want this at all. He's not made for being Second." Baekhyun thinks about breaking something too just to get out of this. The desire to forfeit, however, is not really there.

"Welcome back," the head priestess says, and instantly the pack quiets. "Our goddess has blessed this race, the first trial, and now, we let those who she has not deemed worthy of the position of Second rest." She holds out her hands, palms facing up, and her eyes still look silver.

"The goddess has blessed omega Jongdae with the gift of running," the high priestess says. "He will continue on in the tournament." A round of cheers follows this, and Jongdae steps out of line to take the priestesses hands. "Congratulations, omega," the priestess murmurs, and Jongdae bows his head to her before he returns to the line.

"The goddess has blessed omega Chanyeol and omega Baekhyun with speed and sureness of foot, and we welcome them to continue the tournament." Baekhyun feels inexplicably cold at the sound of his name, and he glances over to see Chanyeol staring at him. Together they step forward and take the priestesses hands. "Congratulations, omegas," the old wolf says, and Baekhyun dips his head. This close he can catch the scent of the priestess. A beta, scent tainted with juniper, but the strength that she emits does not feel like one.

Seulgi is called forward next, and the cheers sound again. She's beautiful; Baekhyun would have to be blind to not see that. She would make an excellent Second.

After her, Taehyung and Yixing are called, followed by Jimin and Namjoon. The last name is Sehun, and Baekhyun smiles at that. Baekhyun commits their names and faces to memory. It's these wolves who could be the next second. The other three who raced are not called, and the head priestess calls blessing on them from the moon before she dismisses them to rejoin the pack. The envy Baekhyun feels at seeing the relief on their faces sickens him, and he stares at his feet and the dirt on his skin to distract himself.

"The next test will commence when the sun reaches its highest point," the head priestess announces. "Omegas, you may speak with each other and with your mentors and with any members of authority who wish to talk to you. That is all." She sweeps away then, striding into the large hut built at the side of the glade where the priests work and practice their medicines. Baekhyun watches her go, his breathing finally slowing to a resting speed.

"I wonder what's next," Sehun mumbles next to Baekhyun.

Baekhyun shakes his head. "Sparring, maybe?" he suggests. "I haven't seen or been in this tournament before. None of us have." Sehun sighs.

"I was slow," he says. "They should have just cut me from the competition then."

Baekhyun grabs Sehun's hand. "They've got this thing set up in some specific way," he says. "Don't fret too much. Like you told me, everything will work out, right?"

"Right," Sehun agrees, but he just sounds tired. Baekhyun is tired too. The run was long and hard. If he thought it was appropriate, he would curl up in the grass here and take a nap. Behind him, he hears Taehyung squeal a little bit, and Baekhyun whips around.

"What?" he demands. Taehyung throws him a secret little grin.

"First is coming down," Taehyung says, and sure enough, Seungwan is stepping down the rocks, heading into the clearing of the glade where the omegas are all standing around. Baekhyun glances back at Sehun.

"Is Minseok coming over?"

His fellow omega straightens up, staring around the assembled pack members. Some of them are leaving, heading home to eat or rest before the next part of the tournament. Baekhyun really wishes he could join them.

"Yes," Sehun says. "Do you want to speak to him first?"

Baekhyun shrugs. "You can." He doesn't really give Sehun an option other than that, moving over to Taehyung as First walks up to him.

"Hello," First greets Baekhyun's cousin. Baekhyun steps into place beside his cousin.

"First," Taehyung says, dipping his head. "Congratulations on your appointment." Baekhyun follows suit, murmuring Seungwan's title.

"Oh, I know you," Seungwan says, and Baekhyun is startled to see the First's eyes on him.

"You do?" he asks. He's pretty sure he's never seen the alpha before this moment.

"Your mentor told me to watch you," she says. "Minseok. He said 'the one named Baekhyun. Watch him.’"

"Haven't looked at anyone else at all?" speaks up from Baekhyun's side, and Jongdae is suddenly there, his smile pretty and eyelashes fluttering. Baekhyun sniffs, the only disapproval he can bring himself to show.

"I might have strayed a few times, I admit," First says, and her voice dips and slows, looking at Jongdae. Seungwan’s eyes are dark, and Baekhyun looks back and forth between the First and his fellow omega candidate. Something seems to pass between them, and Baekhyun instantly labels it as nothing but lust.

He can't blame Jongdae; the First is gorgeous. She's a strong wolf too, as is evident by her position. But still, Jongdae is first in the running for becoming Second right now. He shouldn't be flirting with the First of their pack; he shouldn't be looking at anyone.

"You are very fast," First says to Jongdae, and the omega hums.

"Yes," Jongdae agrees. "I'm quite difficult to catch."

Baekhyun thinks he might throw up.

Taehyung grabs him, leading him away from the First and Jongdae back towards where Minseok was talking with Sehun.

"The moon won't let anything happen that isn't supposed to," Taehyung tells him. "Don't worry so much."

"He won the race!" Baekhyun argues. "He's winning for the position of Second. And he's-"

"Baekhyun," Taehyung interrupts him. "The race is only one of three tests. Everything will be fine."

"I'm really sick of hearing that," Baekhyun mutters.

"Baekhyun," speaks before Taehyung can formulate a response, and his cousin lets go of his arm, making some excuse about his mentor and water before he scampers off. "You did well," Minseok praises.

"I did a little better than 'well,'" Baekhyun sniffs. "I came in second."

"Third, really," Minseok argues. "The call might have been a tie, but somebody has to take third place."

Baekhyun really wants to stomp his foot. "And why can't Chanyeol take third?" he demands. "We ran in at the same time."

"Because he's favored by the pack," Minseok answers. "And it shouldn't matter to you after how many times you've complained about becoming Second."

Baekhyun's mouth snaps shut. That is an excellent point. Everything will work out as it should. As tired as Baekhyun is of hearing that repeated over and over, it's the only thing he can cling to right now.

"I can't tell you about the tests," Minseok is saying, and Baekhyun blinks slowly to clue himself back in. "But I can tell you that Jongdae isn't going to stay in first place for very long."

Baekhyun picks at his thumb nail. "How do you know?"

"Trust me," Minseok requests, and Baekhyun figures that while he's stuck in the midst of this tournament, he has nothing to lose by placing a little bit more faith in his mentor’s words.

The grass in the glade is dry by the time everyone has gathered again. The sun beats down on Baekhyun's back, and he's grateful for every bit of water he can get his hands on. He licks his lips yet again, plopping down in the grass of the glade. His skin is starting to tan in this light, and he flops back onto his back, sighing at the slight cool of the greenery.

"I would kill for a swim in the river right now," Taehyung groans, flopping down next to Baekhyun. Baekhyun mumbles, his tongue too thick in his mouth to properly reply. He wonders if this, laying around and thirsting for water and burning up under the sun, is actually a test that the head priestess forgot to mention. They said three tests total; the omegas could theoretically be in the middle of one right now.

"I think that was an agreement, but mumble once for yes and twice for 'go away, Taehyung,'" Baekhyun's cousin jokes. Baekhyun licks his lips.

"I'm just thirsty," he manages. He can sense Taehyung's humor before he actually says anything.

"Like how Jongdae is for the First right now?" Taehyung teases. Baekhyun would choke on his spit if he had any spit to choke on, instead he just takes in a mouthful of air that's far too dry on his throat and rolls over on his stomach as he coughs. Taehyung leans over and pats his back lightly, not letting his fingers linger long enough for the heat to sink into Baekhyun's skin.

"Fuck, it's hot," Baekhyun mutters, shrugging Taehyung's hand away. "Isn't is supposed to be spring?"

"It is spring," Taehyung tells him. "It's just unseasonably warm today."

"Scorching," Baekhyun argues. It's high noon right now, the sun about as high overhead as it can get. Even still, the moon shows her face in the blue sky, and Baekhyun contemplates cursing the goddess out. He wants to ask her if roasting the members of her pack alive is part of her plan to decide the strongest of them. If that's the case, Baekhyun is going to just melt into nothing but steam.

"The mentors went to go get more water for us," Taehyung says with a note of urgency. He's thirsty too, and when Baekhyun glances at the other seven omegas waiting around for the next part of the test, all of them are licking their lips or chewing on their gums to try to get some moisture in their mouths.

"Thank fuck," Baekhyun sighs. He flops back onto his back, throwing an arm over his face to stop the horrible glare of the sun.

"Careful with your language," Taehyung hisses as him. Baekhyun startles, sitting up to meet his cousin's eyes. The other omega jerks his head back towards the cabin where the priests are exiting again. Some of them now have their shawls tied around their waists or twisted in their hair instead of wound around their necks. Baekhyun can't blame them; the day really is too hot.

"I don't care if they hear me curse," Baekhyun says. He would never say that if he weren't so irritable with the heat and the thirst bothering him, and Taehyung seems to know that, judging by the way he sticks his tongue out at Baekhyun.

"You don't mean that," he says. He breaks into a smile then and scrambles to his feet. Baekhyun looks up too, and he feels his dry lips stretch in the same square smile that Taehyung wears. Stepping through the throngs of pack members waiting around for the next test to start with bowls of water in their hands are the mentors of the omegas still involved in the tournament.

Baekhyun considers crying with relief when Minseok comes to a half in front of him, helping Baekhyun lift the large dish to his lips.

"Slow, Baekhyun," Minseok warns. "Careful. You have time. Slow." Baekhyun tries to drink slower, but it's a losing battle with himself until Minseok untips the bowl, turning around with it and passing it into Sehun's hands when the omega sits down across from Baekhyun.

"You're going to give yourself cramps if you drink too much," Minseok warns. Even though he's looking at Sehun, Baekhyun feels like he's giving him a slight reprimand for not heeding his warning. Baekhyun just shrugs.

"We've been out here for hours now," he complains. "It's high noon. All of us are ready to start the next test."

Minseok sets the bowl on the ground, and Sehun thanks him before he wanders away, going back to whatever conversation he'd been caught in before. "They were waiting for all the noise to calm a bit," he says. "And for all of you to get water."

"They should have thought of that beforehand," Baekhyun says. "They could have had water waiting for us when we got back from the race." Minseok's hand connects hard with Baekhyun's shoulder, and Baekhyun yelps, grabbing the affected skin and glaring at Minseok.

"Be grateful you even got water," Minseok tells him, voice stern. "They have a ritual, a ceremony, to follow. It's not the fault of the priests."

"I thought you don't believe in that stuff," Baekhyun whispers. Minseok shrugs.

"I don't," he agrees. "But they do." He gestures towards the priests where they're spreading out again, holding back the crowd. Someone rushes past Baekhyun, and he sees, after a moment of blinking to clear his head, that it's Seungwan. First heads back to the outcropping of rock, climbing up to take her position watching over the proceedings, and Baekhyun turns in time to see Jongdae licks his lips in a way that does not imply he needs water.

Baekhyun rolls his eyes, and Minseok bursts out laughing beside him.

"You seem very bothered," he says, nudging Baekhyun.

Baekhyun wrinkles his nose. "I'm bothered when you and Changmin get handsy. This is not any different."

"Brat," Minseok says.

"Careful," Baekhyun says. "You don't know exactly what type of omega you're talking to."

Minseok gives him the most unimpressed look. "I do," he insists. "And he's a brat."

"Beta!" Baekhyun whines, shoving at Minseok.

"Quiet!" the head priestess calls out, voice still so smooth for her age. "The sun has reached its highest point, and the time for the next test to begin has come." The hush that follows her words sets Baekhyun on edge. What will this test be? Will they be fighting each other? Will they-?

"Omegas, please line up," the head priestess requests, and Baekhyun pushes himself to his feet. Minseok whispers a word of encouragement before he walks away to rejoin the pack spectating.

"The first test determined the speed of the omegas chosen by the moon," the head priestess begins, and Baekhyun is beginning to wonder how many time the head priestess can say the same phrases about the moon before he decides to rip his own ears off. "This next test will determine who can provide for the pack. As we all know, families hunt for themselves here, but those who are too sick or too young or too old to provide for themselves, are provided for by hunting parties that go out every day. Our new Second must be able to provide for those who need the assistance."

Baekhyun shifts his weight from foot to foot. This test is a hunt. Baekhyun knows how to hunt. He knows how to work the fields too, but that's basic knowledge that every wolf in this pack needs to have.

"From now until dusk, our candidates will hunt," the head priestess says. "The greatest kill will determine the winner." Baekhyun swallows. 'Greatest kill' could mean greatest quantity or it could mean most impressive quality.

"Whatever is brought back will be served to the pack during the feast tonight to celebrate the return of our pack members and the appointment of our First." The head priestess raises her arms, and the sun is blinding in Baekhyun's eyes. "You may shift," she says, and Baekhyun does, stripping out of his pants before invoking his wolf form, settling on the dry grass on all fours.

The sun feels even worse on his fur, and Baekhyun pants. He can't wait for the head priestess to drop her arms and send them all off into the forest where there's shade.

"May the goddess bring us prosperity and bless this hunt," the head priestess murmurs, and then her arms drop.

Unlike the race, none of the omegas take off immediately. Like Baekhyun himself, they all stand around, tasting the air, checking for which direction will yield the best results. Some take off towards the eastern border where there is always something, but Baekhyun keeps waiting. He catches the northern wind at the same moment Chanyeol and Taehyung do, their ears perking up. Baekhyun turns then, and the assembled members of the pack part for him to pass, nose and belly already low to the ground.

He walks as quietly as he can, grateful that Chanyeol and Taehyung seem to have had the sense to stay away from him. This isn't a group hunting activity, which bothers Baekhyun at a core level. They're wolves; they've always hunted in packs. They hunt to eat, but this feels a bit like hunting for sport even with the promise of a feast tonight.

Baekhyun wanders around the forest on silent paws for awhile, measuring his breathing and his speed. He thinks through the head priestess' words over and over again, wondering if she means for them to bring back a large quantity or high quality. He has a feeling it's the former because without a hunting party around him, Baekhyun can't bring down most of the large game by himself.

Even if Baekhyun were to have luck and his side, he can't drag anything much larger than himself back to the glade alone, and none of the other competing wolves are going to want to help him drag in any large catch and lose time for their own hunts.

With that in mind, Baekhyun puts his nose to the ground. There are usually beavers or hares in this area, and Baekhyun just needs to be patient and alert. He wanders in circles for awhile, keeping himself out of sight and downwind of anything that might be hiding in this area.

When he hears the unmistakable snap of a hoof cracking through a dead branch, Baekhyun ducks low immediately, creeping forward. A hoof snapping a branch is not going to be the fault of a beaver or a hare, and Baekhyun hopes he hasn't just found an elk. He doesn't want to face that by himself, and only one snapped twig doesn't give him enough information to tell if the animal's herd is around here too.

Baekhyun crawls forward a few more paces, watching and listening for anything else. The wind is mostly still today, and with his shift in position, it makes it very difficult for Baekhyun to figure out if he's upwind or downwind of the area he's trying to hunt.

He talks through the lyrics of his grandmother's favorite folk song in his head to calm himself, to make himself wait another few minutes. He's told countless pups the importance of patience enough times to hear the echoes of his own words in his ears. He needs to practice what he preaches, so Baekhyun adopts a mantra of 'wait, wait, wait,' repeating it over and over again as he slides forward on his belly, careful to not cause any noise.

Sure enough, brown fur and a set of antlers that looks far too small for an elk emerge from between the trees. A young buck. Baekhyun glances over the buck, unable to believe his luck. The buck's hind leg is lifted ever so slightly off the ground, its hoof broken down the middle.

If this were a pack hunt, Baekhyun would howl a signal for his fellow hunters and dive in without hesitation. However, right now, this is not a pack hunt. This is a test, and Baekhyun has a significantly lower chance of killing this deer simply because he is alone.

Wait, wait, wait, he breathes over and over in his head. The fastest way to kill prey has been drilled into Baekhyun's head since he was old enough to crawl- go for the neck. If this deer bolts, Baekhyun won't have a chance to get close enough to its neck, and if it decides to hold its ground, then the antlers are extremely intimidating.

He waits, letting out his claws. The buck looks around for moment, scanning the area, and Baekhyun holds himself as still as he can and hopes the red in his fur is blending into the ground. The deer then turns, bending its head to the ground and leaving its back facing Baekhyun.

Baekhyun doesn't wait another moment. He darts forward, and he leaps at the same time the buck looks up. It's over quickly, Baekhyun slamming into the deer's back and clamping his teeth over the back of its neck, biting down as hard as he can. The taste of the deer's blood and the grit caught in its fur is nearly identical to the taste of success, and Baekhyun does not release his grip until the buck falls to the ground, dragging Baekhyun down with it.

Baekhyun gets to his paws carefully, sliding out from underneath the deer. The animal's hind leg with the split hoof twitches, and Baekhyun snaps down hard on its neck again to put it out of its misery.

Success. It was almost too easy, too lucky, but when Baekhyun turns to look at how far away from the glade he is, he thinks maybe this wasn't luck at all. Though the sun is still high in the sky, he only has until the light dims and the sky is streaked with orange to return to the glade with his kill. This time of the season, the sun drops quickly, and Baekhyun doesn't have as much time as it seems looking at the sun.

He snorts, wiping a paw over his nose before he leans down and clamps his teeth around one of the duck's antlers and digs his claws into the ground. His muscles complain, but Baekhyun just adjusts his grip on the buck's antlers before dragging it backwards.

It's not a particularly graceful way to move the animal, but there is really nothing else for it. If he had another wolf with him, he could shift back and carry the thing with human arms. He growls as he tugs the buck back with him, his back protesting and jaw beginning to ache as the shadows lengthen around him.

His heart is beating too fast, anxiety as his time to be out draws to a close dragging fear down his spine. He tries to pull the buck along faster, but he's just too tired to really move any quicker than his current speed. He pants harshly around the buck's antler, annoyed with how often he backs off course the slightest bit, adding onto his travel time.

Baekhyun feels like his teeth are about to rip right out of his jaw by the time he hears the rumble of the impatient and excited pack waiting for the return of all of the competing omegas. When the glade comes into view, the sky is streaked orange, and Baekhyun can hear the head priestess' voice.

"Dusk has arrived," she's saying over the disgruntled murmur of the crowd. "One of our candidates has not yet arrived, but we must honor the rules we have set. Dusk is here, so we will now compare the success of the hunts that each omega was sent on." Baekhyun is ride at the top of the crest of the glade, and a few of the pack members turn around to look at him, recognition lighting up in their eyes as they begin to shout.

"Quiet!" the head priestess calls out, and Baekhyun does the only thing he can think of to gain her attention. He throws his head back and howls.

The response is instantaneous. The pack and the omega candidates standing in front of their small piles of game all turn to look at him, and Baekhyun grabs the buck again, dragging it across the ground towards the middle of the glade and his place in line. An excited gaggle of voices surrounds him as the pack steps aside to allow him to pass with the buck still sliding along the ground behind him. He drops it once he's made it to his place in between Sehun and Jongdae, and everything seems to hold still for a moment.

Baekhyun shifts into his human form, grabbing his pants and pulling them on.

"I arrived just as dusk came in," he tells the head priestess, bowing his head to her. "Please forgive me."

The head priestess stares at his kill with wide eyes and coughs. She calls for quiet again.

"Baekhyun has returned," she announces. "Let us begin the comparison of each kill." She moves towards the other end of the line, starting with Chanyeol. The omega has a sizable pile of kill in front of him, mostly beavers and hares like Baekhyun had originally intended to hunt down. He's done well, and Baekhyun can tell the head priestess is pleased with the omega's performance.

Baekhyun bends down, resting his hands on his knees as he pants. His arms shake with the tiredness in his back.

"Fuck," Sehun says next to him, leaning over to rest a hand on Baekhyun's waist, supporting him as he sways. "How the fuck did you manage this?" Baekhyun shakes his head once.

"Dumb luck, probably," Baekhyun answers. The crowd begins to cheer, and the head priestess calls for silence again as she moves on to describe the next omega in line's success. "I found it limping. Herd already gone."

"Oh," Sehun says. "Its hoof." Baekhyun nods.

"Yeah. Like I said. Dumb luck."

"Or a sign," Sehun murmurs, and Baekhyun elects to not respond to that.

The head priest is describing Jongdae's kill to the pack now, his fat hare and pheasant a good contribution, but nothing extraordinary.

"And now Baekhyun," the priestess says. "Has returned to us with a buck." The cheers that go up are deafening, and Baekhyun trembles with exhaustion and excitement where he stands. "Although he was almost late, such a feat cannot go unmentioned." Baekhyun simply breathes.

"The moon goddess has blessed his hunt," the head priestess says. And that is all she says about Baekhyun, moving on to praise the two hares and the beaver Sehun had caught.

"The moon goddess will choose which hunter she deems the most worthy of winning this challenge," the head priestess says, and she holds out a small pouch for Sehun to reach into. "Each omega will pick a marked piece of wood from this bag," she explains, and she offers the pouch to Baekhyun. He reaches in, grabbing one of the small carved pieces. She moves down the line. "I will then draw one from the bag after I have recollected each piece." Baekhyun peers down the line, watching Chanyeol take his pick of a chip from the bag. The head priestess watches him for a moment before she holds out the pouch again, and Chanyeol drops the small chip back inside.

Baekhyun snaps out of his staring to look at his own small carved piece. The surface is smooth, decorated with nothing but a simple circle filled with a black dye. A new moon. He closes his fist around the small decorative chip, breathing shakily as he drops it back into the pouch. The head priestess gives him a look he can't decipher before she returns to place standing in front of them all.

"The moon goddess does not choose the hunter based simply on the magnitude of his kill," she says. "The moon is also a judge of character, and so I turn my hands over to her service. I ask that the moon guide my fingers to pick the correct piece so that the winner of this challenge may be revealed."

Baekhyun swallows hard. All that work for another game of luck? This is little more than drawing lots to decide to has to plant and who has to sort out on the fields, only the weight of the outcome is much greater.

The head priestess reaches into the bag, still murmuring under her breath in prayer. It seems a simple concept to reach into a pouch and draw out a piece, but the head priestess' hand stays within the bag for a few long moments as the darkness stretching across the sky falls fully into place. The moon rises high to wash the glade in silver light. She's not quite a full moon yet, but Baekhyun can feel the power, the revitalization that comes with being in the presence of moonbeams seeping through his muscles.

The priestess withdraws her hand from the pouch, and Baekhyun watches her face scrunch up in confusion and concentration before she holds the piece out for all of them to see.

"A new moon," she says. "Who chose this piece?"

A new moon. Baekhyun chose a new moon.

He steps forward. "I did," he says. "That was my piece."

The head priestess regards him for a long, tense moment of silence that seems to be louder than any roar of the pack. She blinks, slow and careful.

"I see," Baekhyun thinks he sees her lips form, but she does not make any sound. In the darkness of the recently fallen night, he can't be certain that's what he saw.

"Baekhyun wins the challenge," the head priestess announces, and the cheers up the pack are wild, carrying Baekhyun's heart back into his chest from the pit of his stomach. The head priestess goes on to announce Chanyeol as the next place and Seulgi as the third. She continues on down the line, and Sehun flinches next to Baekhyun when his name is called last.

"I'm dismissed," he whispers. Baekhyun reaches out, slipping his hand into his fellow omega's.

"We don't know for sure," he says. "We don't know anything about this."

Sehun shakes his head. "Sure we do," he argues. "There were twelve of us originally. Three were cut from the race, and now one will be cut from the hunt."

"It could be another three?" Baekhyun tries.

"Eight omegas to carry out the third task leaves for even competitions, don't you think?"

Baekhyun blinks. "What?"

Sehun gives him a look that asks if he's stupid, and Baekhyun is too tired to be affronted by that. "The next challenge, test, whatever," Sehun starts. "It's sparring. Isn't it obvious?" Baekhyun supposes it is a bit obvious. That's the number one test of strength- whether or not an omega has what it takes to win a fight. That's the number one thing they dedicated their time to in training.

"Oh," he says.

"Yeah," Sehun replies. "So I'll return to the pack as soon as the priestess makes an announcement." He tightens his fingers around Baekhyun's. "Don't give up yet," he urges. "You caught a buck for a reason."

"You make it sound like the outcome is already decided," Baekhyun sniffs, and Sehun shrugs. If everyone's repeated words of 'everything will turn out the way it is meant to' are to be believed, then in one way, Baekhyun thinks, the outcome is truly already selected by fate.

"Sehun," the head priestess says, and Baekhyun squeezes Sehun's hand once before he lets go. "The goddess has not chosen you. Please return to the pack." Sehun bows his head before he stands straight and moves to merge with the wolves gathered around. Baekhyun can only just see Sehun's mother, far smaller than Sehun himself, stand up on her tiptoes to kiss her son's cheek. She's proud of him for just this much, Baekhyun can tell, and he smiles gently.

"With this, the first day of the tournament reaches its conclusion," the head priestess announces. "We will feast now. All of us together in honor of our candidates, of our First and the returned pack members, and of the goddess." She holds out her hands, and the priests other priests move forward to the various pits around the glade where dirt and twig and fallen branch create stone-encircled pits for fires. "Please come forward and mingle with these omegas," the priestess requests. "Help them skin their prey for roasting so that we all may eat and enjoy the company of the night."

The first fire of the night lights, and the orange glow of the flames casts warmth and light over the glade. Baekhyun watches in a numb state as the priests begin to spread the flames to the other pits around the glade until the largest of them all, the one set in the center of the glade, is finally lit, the flames soaring high and loud into the sky. The moon spins jovially overhead, and Baekhyun can't believe this.

He won the second test. With Jongdae's own catch only garnering him fifth place, Baekhyun now stands in the lead of the competition. He doesn't know how he feels about that.

"You're in first!" Jongdae says to him, and his grin is bright. He's relieved Baekhyun realizes.

"Doesn't that upset you?" he asks, brow furrowed. Jongdae's own brow furrows in confusion at Baekhyun's question.

"I want what's best for the pack," Jongdae says. "Don't you?" Baekhyun can taste bile on the back of his tongue as the words he's been clinging to are thrown back at him. "The best for this pack is not going to be a wolf whose only quality is his speed." Jongdae raises an eyebrow. "Or do you not agree?"

Baekhyun swallows. "There are other important aspects," he agrees slowly. Jongdae pats him on the shoulder.

"Exactly," he says. "Now. I'm going to go talk to our First, and I'm going to eat something. Would you like to come with?"

Baekhyun snorts. "Come with to watch you flirt? I think not." Jongdae shrugs.

"Whatever, Baekhyun," he says. "See you later, tomorrow, whatever." He wanders off then, and Baekhyun watches him sidle right up against Seungwan, watches the obvious pleasure the First feels at this in the way her arm drapes easily around Jongdae's waist. No one makes a move to stop them, and Baekhyun glances around. The only omega candidates not caught in conversation with an alpha or beta are Chanyeol, Seulgi, and himself- the top three in the tournament currently.

"You look like you're ready to have fun," Taehyung teases, stepping into Baekhyun's line of vision. Baekhyun frowns.

"I think I'm just ready to go home," he says. "Sleep. It's been a long day." Taehyung laughs at that even if there was no humor in Baekhyun's words.

"Yeah," he agrees. "It has been a long day. Especially for you, dragging that buck back must have been-" He cuts off suddenly, staring at a point somewhere over Baekhyun's shoulders.

"Taehyung?" Baekhyun prompts.

His cousin shakes his head. "Nothing," he says, but when he looks up, his eyes fall right back to the same place. "I just- nothing." It's clearly not nothing if Taehyung can't stop looking, and Baekhyun is curious and maybe a bit concerned. He hasn't seen Taehyung lose focus like this in a long time. His fellow omega might be silly, a bit of a wild card, but he's observant. He rarely loses track of a conversation to stare at nothing.

Baekhyun turns around, trying to match his angle to Taehyung's gaze, and he sees one of the wolves who has just returned to the pack after sun cycles away training in the mountains staring at his cousin. Something protective and something fiercely jealous twist in Baekhyun's chest, and he growls lowly.

"Stop it!" Taehyung hisses, grabbing at Baekhyun. His eyes never leave the wolf with a thin frame and a smile that Baekhyun recognizes as stunning. From here, Baekhyun can't catch the wolf's scent, can't determine if he's an alpha or a beta. "Don't growl at him," Taehyung adds, and he tugs on Baekhyun's arm. He sounds embarrassed, and Baekhyun coughs to clear his throat of another growl he wants to emit in hopes of scaring the other wolf away.

"We're still in the middle of the tournament," Baekhyun tells Taehyung. "You shouldn't be trying to find a mate right now when you could end up belonging to the Leader."

"I'm not going to win, Baekhyun," Taehyung says. "That much is obvious. You and Chanyeol, Seulgi, maybe Jimin if he pulls out a miracle in the fights tomorrow- that's who the real competitors in this competition are, and everyone knows it."

"Still," Baekhyun tries, and he sounds weak even to his own ears.

"Those wolves have only just returned to the pack," Taehyung argues. "They need the attention and the care of every pack member. Are you denying them that?" Baekhyun shakes his head.

"No," he says. "They're part of the pack just as much as we are." Taehyung hums, but he doesn't sound at all happy.

"Maybe instead of worrying over all of us who are catching the attention of alphas and betas, you should worry about how averse you are to the idea of meeting someone before this tournament comes to a close," Taehyung nearly snaps, and Baekhyun takes a step back in shock.

"Taehyung," he starts. His cousin holds up his hand.

"There is a lot happening right now that I know you don't want to hear," he says. "But don't you dare try to get in the way of any of us finding happiness." His mouth is drawn in a straight lane. "You have wanted a happy ending like those stories Grandma tells since forever. Don't be so cruel to stop any of us from having that." Taehyung turns on his heel then, marching toward the fire where his hare is roasting. Baekhyun stares after him, feeling remorse run through him. He needs to apologize, but right now, he doesn't want to focus on how upset Taehyung might be.

The wolf Taehyung had made eyes at is walking up to the same fire where Taehyung is, and Baekhyun clenches his fists. He looks out over the crowd almost desperately. Maybe he too can find someone who holds interest in him.

The only eyes he sees looking back at him are those of the head priestess and those of his family. Baekhyun sighs and steps away from the center of the glade to greet his parents, burying his face in his mother's neck and closing his eyes to the celebration happening around him. He wants to go home and sleep; he wants to be anywhere that isn't here.

His gaze falls on the corner of the cabin where the new Leader hides away, waiting for the chosen omega to walk through the front doorway.

"Let's eat," he suggests, and his mother grins at him.

"You did so well," she praises. "Let's go get some of that venison you brought back, hm?" Baekhyun doesn't argue. He nods his head and says nothing else for the rest of the night. When his parents urge him to pray to the moon to thank her for his good fortune and success, he obediently turns his head up towards the moon, but he doesn’t pray.

He has nothing to say.

Baekhyun hasn't even fully woken up before Minseok is shoving him into the medicine hut alongside the other seven omegas who will continue onto the third test today.

"We're fighting for the test, right?" Taehyung mumbles, his forehead pressed to Baekhyun's shoulder as they stand awkwardly inside the medicine hut. "What are we doing here then?" Baekhyun shrugs gently so as to not jostle Taehyung too much. Baekhyun's only been here before when he was delirious with fever, and he doesn't remember the place well. He supposes that won't be an issue unless they grow a corn maze inside of here and ask him to find his way through it.

"Maybe sparring is just something we do for the tournament," Baekhyun whispers, his voice trailing out in a yawn. Taehyung yawns too, hanging off of Baekhyun who half expects him to collapse on the ground and go back to sleep. Baekhyun would join him on the floor for another nap if he couldn't smell the juniper berries burning faintly. His skin burns with the scent, and he picks at his fingernails with irritation.

"So there's a separate third test?" Taehyung asks, and Baekhyun sighs, reaching up to run his fingers through his cousin's hair. Taehyung murmurs a thank you against Baekhyun's shoulder, and Baekhyun tugs on his hair lightly.

"We'll find out," he soothes. Taehyung wraps his arms around Baekhyun's waist.

"I miss when we were younger," he murmurs. "You were squishier."

"Hadn't been through years of fighting then," Baekhyun says. He pinches Taehyung's side in return, and his cousin yelps, jumping up and tripping over Namjoon's legs. He falls back, tumbling down to the floor, and Namjoon yells in surprise. Taehyung looks up from Namjoon's lap, throwing Baekhyun the most disgruntled of expressions. Baekhyun bites his lip and holds his breath, trying to keep in the laughter bubbling in his chest.

There's a tense moment of all of the omega candidates jerking up to see what the commotion is, and when they see Taehyung sprawled on their fellow omega gaping up at Baekhyun looking terribly affronted, they all burst out into laughter.

Baekhyun laughs with them all, and it feels good to look at them all smiling and relaxed. The tension of the first day and the rising tension of the beginning of the second day of the tournament has not faded completely, but right now, it is eased. Baekhyun takes his small blessings where he can get them.

"Good morning," interrupts the laughter, and all of them straighten up, jumping to their feet and falling into line. With Sehun gone, Baekhyun stands on one end of the line, looking across the other seven candidates. The head priestess looks younger in the dim lighting of the medicine hut, the shadows hiding the wrinkles on her skin. "I hope you all rested well."

There's very little about her tone that says she sincerely means that, and Baekhyun only barely resists the urge to roll his eyes as he bows to her.

"The third test is done in two parts," the head priestess begins. "While the pack gathers, we will conduct the first part as it is quite private and for no one to know of other than yourselves, myself, our Leader and Second, and the moon goddess." At her words, the Leader and Second of the pack emerge.

"Leader," Baekhyun hears Chanyeol say, and directly after him, Jimin's voice.

"Second," the other omega greets. All of them bow to the mated pair, heads turned to the side to show submission.

Leader simply waves a hand, dismissing their actions. "No need for that," she says, voice low and gentle. Baekhyun's heard her shout orders before; he knows exactly how much command she can hold. To hear her speak like this to them, as if they are equals, is a bit unnerving.

As if noticing Baekhyun's hesitation, Second speaks up, her smile still youthful despite her scars and gray hair. "I am stepping down tomorrow after the last fight and relinquishing my position to one of you. There is no need for formality here."

"And directly after that," Leader says, pulling Second in close against her side. "On the morning after, I will step down." Second's fingers curl around Leader's wrist, and Baekhyun watches the tenderness on their faces as they meet each other's eyes. Their days in this pack are numbered down to two now, and Baekhyun grits his teeth.

That's one more reason to not want to be Second. After forty sun cycles of leading the pack, Leader and Second are required to leave by order of the moon goddess. If the goddess is real, Baekhyun thinks, she's rather cruel to the wolves whom she is supposed to love and protect.

"This test is designed to reveal your strength of character," Leader informs them. "As strong as a Leader must be to guide her pack, a Second must be even stronger in order to guide the Leader." She smiles at her Second then before she nods to the head priestess.

"We will begin with Chanyeol," the head priestess says. "After you leave here, the next time you see each other will be in a fight. Good luck, and may the moon goddess bless you." She turns then, sweeping deeper into the medicine hut, Leader, Second, and Chanyeol all following her.

Silence settles around the remaining omegas, and they all settle on the floor to wait, eyeing each other awkwardly.

"Why are we still here?" Jimin whines after Yixing has stood up to follow after wherever Chanyeol went a few minutes ago at one of the priest's urging.

"Because we haven't done the test?" Seulgi says, tone of voice distinctly unimpressed. Jimin throws her a 'no, shit, really?' expression, his eyebrows raised.

"That's not what I meant," he says. "Why are we" -he gestures to himself, Namjoon, Taehyung, and off in the direction Yixing just went- "still here? We're not going to win."

"There's a ritual they have to follow," Baekhyun says before he can't stop himself from speaking.

The others all snap around to look at him. Baekhyun does his best to meet their eyes, especially Jimin's, evenly. "Even if you're not a top contestant, you're still here because the ceremony requires the numbers." Jimin barks out a laugh.

"You've hated this from day one," he sneers. "And now you're defending them?"

"We don't have any other options," Baekhyun says. "No need to gripe about it uselessly."

"Jimin," a priest calls. "Come with me."

The omega gets to his feet with an annoyed sigh. He looks at Baekhyun for a long moment. "The moon loves you," he says. "More than she should considering how much you hate her." He disappears after the guard, and his words hang heavy over Baekhyun's head.

Everything will end the way the goddess intends. Baekhyun closes his eyes, sinking into those words. Jimin might not want to be Second, or maybe he does. Either way, it doesn't matter when everything seems to be slipping into place for Baekhyun to take on that role.

He breathes, even and deep, waiting until he's the last omega left to be called. He bites his fingernails and hums his grandmother's folk song until he can remember the tune backwards and forwards.

"Baekhyun," calls out. "Come with me."

Baekhyun gets to his feet, his toes a little numb and his thighs cramping from holding still for so long. He follows the priest back to a small room where the air is pungent with the scent of juniper burning. He tries not to scrunch his nose, but the smell burns.

"You don't like the scent of juniper?" questions softly when Baekhyun sits on the floor across from Leader and Second. The head priest sits between them, her wrinkled hands curled over their wrists. It was Second who had spoken, and Baekhyun shakes his head apologetically.

"My grandmother uses it often to aid in her prayers," he answers. "I never really got used to the smell."

Second laughs at that. "He's honest," she says. Leader hums.

"That's more than can be said for some of the others already," she murmurs. She fixes her eyes on Baekhyun, and he fights to not shrink back from her stare. "We are going to ask you a few questions, Baekhyun." She holds out her hand for Baekhyun to take, and Second does the same. Baekhyun hesitates, reaching out in returning tentatively. Second's smile is encouraging, calm where Leader is serious. They compliment each other well. "Answer as you see fit," Leader continues. "And do not be frightened."

Baekhyun wants to ask why he would be frightened of anything in this room, but then the head priestess' fingers sink into the skin of Leader and Second's wrists, and her eyes roll back in her head. The dark circles of her irises disappear to be replaced completely by the blankness of white sclera, and her lips tremble as she recites words under breath that Baekhyun is not sure he could understand even if he could properly hear them. As he watches, the head priestess' eyes seem to glow a blank silver that echoes that of the color of the moon.

"Baekhyun," Leader begins. "What do you think of this pack?"

Baekhyun swallows, coughing slightly around the burn of Juniper. He could answer this in his own words, or he could choose to speak lines that he thinks they want to hear even if they do not necessarily match his own beliefs. If the moon goddess expects pretty words, she won't hear them from him.

"The pack is home," Baekhyun answers. "My family, my friends- they're here. So this is home."

"Baekhyun," Second says next. "What is most important to you?"

That's easy. "The safety of my family," he says.

Leader speaks, "Do you like to kill?"

"I love it when it accompanies the thrill of a hunt," Baekhyun answers. "But I have never killed another wolf."

"Would you to protect your family?" Second asks.

"Yes."

The head priestess' voice becomes loud for a moment, and Leader and Second do not even glance at her, simply waiting until she's quiet again to ask the next question.

"Baekhyun," Leader questions. "Have you ever been in love?"

"No," he responds.

"Ever lain with a wolf with whom you did not intend to mate?"

"No."

"Do you want pups?" she continues.

"With the right alpha, maybe."

Second cuts in then, and it's her question that Baekhyun pauses over. "Baekhyun, would you take a mate who you do not know, and perhaps may never love, simply to protect your family?"

Baekhyun sees right through her question. As carefully worded as it is, at the core, the question only asks whether or not Baekhyun would take an alpha to bed tomorrow night should be win the tournament. That alpha would not be any alpha, but the alpha, the next Leader of this pack.

Baekhyun knows how bonds are formed. Baekhyun knows the permanence of such a thing. He desperately wants to answer 'no,' to say that he will only take a mate whom he loves, but Taehyung's words from last night ring back to him, asking him in the echoes of his memory exactly why he held no interest in finding someone to dance with during the feast.

Perhaps Baekhyun already knows somewhere in the depths of his mind that the alpha whom he is destined to bond is waiting for him in the cabin built for the leading pair of the pack.

His stomach churns violently. Where is the love in that situation?

"Baekhyun?" Second prompts. Baekhyun nods his head stiffly, body protesting as he answers.

"Yes," he mouths, voice caught in his throat. "I would." Leader nods at him, and Second gives him a near heart-broken look. In tandem, they release his hands, and Baekhyun almost misses the warmth of their grips.

The head priestess' murmurings cut out, and the smell of juniper seems to disappear. The priestess releases the arms of both Leader and Second, and Baekhyun can see the nail marks left on their wrists.

"You're an interesting omega," the head priestess murmurs, her eyes rolling back into place. She focuses nearly black eyes on him, and Baekhyun simply returns her gaze.

"Honest," she says. "Up until the very end. I wonder..." She tilts her head to the side, scrutinizing him. "Why would you feel the need to lie about that?"

Baekhyun coughs. "I-"

"Don't answer," the head priestess orders. "The moon goddess has heard your words, and she knows what lies in your heart. Now. Get up. Leave that way." She points one long finger towards the opposite side of the room where Baekhyun entered. "Follow a priest's instruction, and we shall all see you in the glade."

The dismissal is clear, and Baekhyun gets to his feet, hurrying out into another room of the medicine hut. A priest is there with a leather pouch not quite full anymore.

"Drink this," he says, holding the pouch out to him. Baekhyun takes it slowly, sniffing the contents. The scent is foul, and he gags.

"All of it?"

The priest shakes his head. "A mouthful will be sufficient." Baekhyun holds his breath and tips the drink into his mouth. The priest holds out his hand once Baekhyun has swallowed.

"Sorry about that," he says. "There's nothing to be done for the taste. You might feel very sick in a few moments."

"What?" As if on cue, pain spirals through Baekhyun's limbs and churns his stomach. He heaves, curling in on himself with his arms tightened around his middle. His hands shake violently, and his body aches with a consistent thrum of suffering.

"Just breathe," the priest advises. "It will pass in a moment." Baekhyun tries his best to follow instruction, but with his stomach twisting like this, he struggles to even take in a shallow breath.

The pain subsides slowly, and Baekhyun wobbles on his feet. He feels weakened from the attack of pain, but nothing else feels out of place.

"Okay?" the priest prompts. Baekhyun breathes in through his nose.

"Yes," he says. "What was that?"

The priest sets the pouch down. "A potion of wolfsbane," he explains. "It's meant to cut off your connection to your wolf form."

Baekhyun stares. "Why the fuck would we want to be able to do that?"

"The first rounds of fights are supposed to be based solely on your ability as a fighter, not your strength as a wolf," the priest answers. "It is a safety precaution in case a fight accidentally invokes a shift." He rolls his gaze down towards Baekhyun's fingers. "Show me your fangs and claws, please."

Baekhyun rolls his eyes. "You just told me I can't do that anymore because of your potion," he snarks.

The priest looks highly unamused. "Please," he repeats. Baekhyun sighs, but holds out his hand, reaching for that easy ability he's always had to draw out his claws and his fangs. He blinks. Somehow, his claws are there, hard and curved and wicked and sharp. He tongues at his teeth, feels his fangs, both upper and lower, extend.

"Is this supposed to happen?" he asks. The priest's bewildered expression betrays the answer to that question.

"I'm so sorry," he says. "It seems your connection with the moon is stronger than that of the average wolf." He reaches back and picks up the pouch again. "I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to drink again."

"Oh, fuck no," Baekhyun breathes, but he takes the pouch obediently and tips the contents back. It burns going down this time, and he expects the pain when it hits. It's twice as bad this time, and Baekhyun collapses to his knees, coughing at the pain of the poison in his body. It turns his stomach violently, and he wants to throw up everything he's ever eaten in his life.

The pain takes longer to stop this time, and when it does finally cease, leaving his limbs all in a rush, he can feel the distinct lack of connection to his wolf side.

"We also use this to keep those with broken limbs from shifting during the full moon," the priest tells him. "Sometimes the elderly request to take it because the pain of the shift during a full moon is too much for their bodies to handle anymore."

"Why," Baekhyun gasps out. "Would anyone willingly put themselves through this. Fuck."

"Sometimes one pain is better than another," the priest answers. "Can you stand?" He holds out his hand, but Baekhyun is a little bitter about this priest poisoning him and ignores the offer, pushing himself to his feet. He takes one step and stumbles a little, but his balance holds.

"I'm fine," he insists, eyeing the priest's worried hands where they pause, extended as if to grab Baekhyun. "Please don't touch me." The priest returns his hands to his side.

"Go out to the glade," he instructs. "The fighting will begin soon." Baekhyun nods his understanding and complies.

Stepping out into the glade has always been something of a comfort for Baekhyun. He loves standing in the middle of his home, feeling the comfort that comes with being some place so familiar.

The other candidates are gathered in their line where they had stood yesterday, and Baekhyun walks with his head held high out to take his place next to Jongdae. Watching over them all, Baekhyun sees Seungwan standing up on the rocks again. Her eyes roam the crowd, and Baekhyun doesn't miss the way she pauses an extra moment to look at Jongdae. Even though Jongdae's back is turned to him, the other omega seems to know that he's being watched, a pleased smirk curling up one side of his mouth.

Baekhyun falls into line. "First is staring at you," he whispers.

"Good," Jongdae responds. "If I'm going to stand here on display, may as well have someone of importance looking at me." Baekhyun shakes his head; he shouldn't have asked.

"Hey," whispers around Jongdae. Baekhyun leans back to meet Taehyung's eyes.

"Yeah?" he asks. "What?"

"How about that wolfsbane?" Taehyung asks, and Baekhyun gags at the memory.

"Made me drink it twice," he answers. "Disgusting stuff."

"Yeah," Taehyung agrees. "Twice though? Baekhyun that's poisonous."

"I know," Baekhyun whispers at him. "But I couldn't exactly say ‘no’ to a priest." Taehyung's eyebrows furrow, but he says nothing else. Baekhyun turns to stare ahead of himself, feeling the grass tickle between his toes.

They wait, all of them, under the fully risen sun, for the head priestess to emerge from the medicine hut with the Leader and the Second. Priests emerge first, carrying pouches of dyed sand. They walk around each other in circles, spreading the purple-dyed sand on the ground in a wide round.

"Boundary lines," Jongdae breathes. "Are they trying to contain us?"

"I don't think they're trying," Baekhyun says, watching the head priestess emerge from the hut with the leadership pair beside her. She's wearing a pleased smile as she watches the priests trail the sand on the ground. "I think that's literally what's happening right now."

Jongdae growls quietly, and Baekhyun agrees with him. He could fight all day and night, but stepping inside that ring of colored sand and limiting his fight to that designated space seems fake. Staged.

"My pack," Leader calls out, and the silence, the hush, is immediate instead of fading out like when the head priestess calls for it. "The most exciting part of the third challenge is now to begin." Baekhyun blinks. He's not sure about exciting; violent might be a more apt description.

"The following rounds of spars will be matched randomly with no divine influence," Leader announces. She holds up the bag of marked chips from last night. "Our First will be the one to draw these. Omega candidates are not permitted to watch the fights, and anyone who attempts to cheat will be thrown from the tournament." Leader and Second then move towards the rocks at the front of the glade, climbing them carefully and quickly. Seungwan takes the offered bag from Leader, and old wolf dips her head to the younger.

First reaches into the bag. "All omega candidates face me," she orders, and all of them turn, facing away from the ring of colored sand. She pulls out one chip and then another.

"A new moon," she announces. "And a star."

Baekhyun breathes. Of course he would be selected to go first.

"Our first two, please make your way over to the ring," First asks, and Baekhyun steps out of line. Namjoon does as well, and Baekhyun's heart begins to beat just a little bit faster. He has never before seen Namjoon fight, and he doesn't know what type of technique he might be up against.

They step into the ring together, facing each other with tense expressions. Namjoon's eyes are sweeping over Baekhyun's body like the answer to exactly how skilled he is in a spar is written there. Baekhyun slides back into a stance. His balance isn't quite at his full capability, and his stomach still hurts a bit with residual pain from drinking wolfsbane. He doesn't let any of that show; he doesn't need to show any weakness.

"Those in a fight will not step over the borderline," the head priestess tells them. "And wolf forms are forbidden in this round." Baekhyun snorts in his head. They'd poisoned their wolf sides away, but of course, they couldn't just tell the pack that they had done that.

"The fight begins whenever one of you decides to attack," the priestess says. "Good luck. Blessings from the moon goddess be with you." Her words stop, and Namjoon moves.

He slams into Baekhyun, and Baekhyun only just manages to get his block up in time, pressing his arms out to throw Namjoon back. The other omega snarls at him, and Baekhyun takes one step forward, then another. Namjoon's muscles tense, and Baekhyun moves before he can.

He tackles Namjoon from the side, grabbing his arms and pushing them over his head, his shins hooked over Namjoon's thighs to hold him down. Baekhyun bends and snaps his teeth at Namjoon's neck, and the other omega stills.

The fight ends, just like that. Only a few moments of battle time, and the sudden stillness is accompanied by the stillness of the shocked pack gathered to watch.

"Baekhyun wins," First announces, and Baekhyun lets go of Namjoon as the cheers begin to rise up around them.

"Return to the line, Baekhyun," the head priestess requests. Baekhyun holds out his hand to Namjoon, helping the other omega stand.

Namjoon's eyes are wide. "That was insane," he says.

"Namjoon," the head priestess calls. "You have been through two tests successfully, but the moon goddess has not chosen you. You may return to the pack." Namjoon goes, and Baekhyun watches him greet his father and mother. They seem relieved to see him out of the tournament; Baekhyun wishes he were done with it too. He returns to his place in line.

It continues like this for three more rounds. Baekhyun listens to the fights, the pounding of feet on the ground, the crack of fists over skin, gasps and groans from pain. Jimin loses to Chanyeol, and Baekhyun is not shocked at all when Seulgi defeats Taehyung. Baekhyun had almost hoped Chanyeol and Seulgi would face off first, but alas his luck is not that good. He could potentially face both of them now. Jongdae takes Yixing down with a tortuously long fight that Jongdae laughs his way through, his cackles goading Yixing into losing his temper and control.

The first round closes with Jongdae's victory, and when he returns to the line at Baekhyun's side, they are only two of four total candidates.

The results are not surprising by any means. The four of them had taken the best places in both the race and the hunt, and now they stand prepared for the penultimate round of spars.

Overhead, the sun is beginning to droop from its place in the sky, pink streaking across blue.

"The mentors may bring forward water now," First says, and Baekhyun hadn't even realized how thirsty he is, mouth still rancid with the flavor of the wolfsbane, until First had mentioned it. He glances around frantically for Minseok, and the beta is already stepping out of the pack, a familiar leather pouch in his hand.

"Here you go," he says, handing it over to Baekhyun. Baekhyun mumbles his thanks around mouthfuls of water.

"You're fight was impressive," Minseok praises when Baekhyun takes a pause in drinking.

"Too easy," Baekhyun says. "Chanyeol or Seulgi or Jongdae will much more of a challenge."

"If it's you against Jongdae, you'll win," Minseok murmurs in a very low voice. "He's a fast runner, but he relies on tricks. It'll be like fighting Sehun again." Baekhyun tips his head back and swallows the rest of the water.

"I'll fight," he says. "I have to."

"I'm proud," Minseok tells him. "If that's worth anything." Baekhyun tries not to smile too broadly.

"Thanks, beta," he says. Minseok ruffles his hair and takes the pouch back, turning to rejoin the pack members.

"We will begin the next round now," First announces, and almost like it's become a habit, Baekhyun steps easily back into his place in the now significantly shorter line of omegas. Seungwan dips her hand into the bag.

"A tree," she calls out. "Jongdae, your turn." She says it warmly, and Jongdae throws First a secretive smile that Baekhyun catches.

"Are you going to lose on purpose?" Baekhyun hisses. Jongdae narrows his eyes.

"No," he says. "But I won't win. I'm not meant to." He stalks off then, and Baekhyun turns his eyes back to Seungwan.

"A wolf," Seungwan calls out. "That would be Chanyeol."

The fights begins only a few moments later, and Baekhyun stares at the ground, listening for any sounds that could be telltale signs of the events. The pack is cheering, and Baekhyun can't distinguish all the sounds of the fight over the roar, twice as loud as it was before.

They're scaring off all the game for miles, Baekhyun thinks bitterly.

It's another few minutes before there's a sudden lull in sound, and the First's voice carries over them all.

"Chanyeol wins," she says, and Baekhyun clenches his eyes shut as Jongdae is released back to the pack. Jongdae is pleased about this, he knows. Jongdae wants the First; he's never wanted to be Second. Chanyeol, however, might legitimately want the position, and Baekhyun, as he's called up to stand opposite Seulgi, realizes that if he wins this, he'll have to make a decision to lose to Chanyeol or to actually fight for the title of Second.

Right now though, Seulgi is smirking at him, and Baekhyun needs to focus.

"When I heard about 'Baekhyun,'" Seulgi murmurs, quietly, taking a very familiar step across her body. She's circling; Baekhyun copies her, moving to circle his opponent as well. "I expected some tall, mountain of an omega." She tosses him a smile that is far more disarming than it has any right to be. "You're much smaller than I thought you'd be."

"I shrunk for the occasion," Baekhyun quips. "Didn't want to make Chanyeol feel outmatched, you see."

Seulgi laughs outright at him, and Baekhyun watches her heel shift on the ground.

"How considerate," she nearly purrs, and then she leaps. She clears the distance between them easily, and Baekhyun allows her to crash into him. They both tumble to the ground, rolling over each other. Seulgi comes out on top, attempting to press Baekhyun down. Baekhyun goes lax for just a moment, and Seulgi leans down to go for his neck.

Baekhyun surges up, throwing Seulgi off of him. He scrambles to his feet, and she's right there with him, throwing out a kick that Baekhyun blocks on his forearm. He grabs her ankle with his opposite hand and yanks hard, stepping backward. Seulgi's supporting leg crumples underneath her, and Baekhyun's grip on her ankle slips as she drops completely to the ground.

He sees her leg sweep out, intending to trip him, and Baekhyun step over it, diving down to press Seulgi down with his weight. She gets an arm free, and her elbow smashes hard across his jaw. Baekhyun rears back, and Seulgi looses a punch into his gut.

Baekhyun coughs hard, thrown back onto the ground. Seulgi breathes hard, pressing herself back up into standing, and Baekhyun swallows the blood from his split lip, pushing himself up to stand. She's not going to fall easily, he recognizes. But he does have one major advantage that she doesn't seem to be taking into consideration.

Baekhyun takes two steps to the left, and then darts in on the right. Seulgi doesn't twist in time to get to block up for her right shoulder, and Baekhyun's hit with his forearm smacks over her skin. She stumbles to the side, and her thrown balance is all Baekhyun needs to dive in and tackle her again.

This time he goes lax immediately, and Seulgi rolls over on top, her hands reaching for his throat. Baekhyun twists hard, and they roll over again, Seulgi trapped underneath him. He grabs her arms, pinning them out to her sides. Her knee digs painfully into the crease of his hip, but Baekhyun leans in despite the pain, holding his teeth over her jugular.

"Baekhyun wins!" echoes out over the glade, and Seulgi stops struggling.

"Get off of me," she says, shoving at Baekhyun's chest. "Baekhyun, what the fuck are you waiting for? First already called you as the winner." Her voice is garbled in Baekhyun's ears as he slowly sits back and lets her up. He's won this fight. He is going to fight in the final round.

He's only one step away from the claiming the position of Second.

"Hey, are you okay?" Seulgi asks, sitting up. She presses the back of her hand to his forehead. "Baekhyun?"

"I'm okay," he manages to tell her. It's a lie, and Seulgi keeps glancing back at him in concern as she's dismissed back into the pack.

Baekhyun stands on shaky legs, walking back over to where Chanyeol is.

"It's just us now," the other omega tells him, and Baekhyun is shaking.

"We've come to the final two chosen by the goddess," the head priestess calls out. "Tomorrow will be the final day of the tournament, and tomorrow night will bring the rise of our new Leader and our new Second."

Seungwan picks up. "Go home, everyone. Hunt, enjoy the evening. Tomorrow we will watch these two fight, and then we will celebrate the strength of our pack!" The pack cheers, and intermingled with the excited yelling are shouts of Baekhyun and Chanyeol's names.

"Good luck tomorrow," Chanyeol tells him, offering his hand. Baekhyun takes it.

"And to you," he says. "I'm just ready for this to be over."

"I'm ready too," Chanyeol agrees. "But I think the results are already quite clear."

"Do you want to be Second?" Baekhyun asks. "Because if you want it, then I'll lose. I'll-"

"Baekhyun," Chanyeol interrupts. "Let's just fight and see what happens. I'd rather not test fate or the goddess."

"Right," Baekhyun says. Around them, the pack is wandering home, and the glade is clearing out. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Sleep well," Chanyeol says, and he turns and leaves. Baekhyun stands still in the glade until he's the last one there. He stares up at the night sky and the moon floating overhead. She seems to be staring at him, and Baekhyun's chest feels tight, a sense of foreboding settling over his shoulders. Some small part of him thinks he already knows how this ends.

"Fuck," he whispers. "Fuck."

Baekhyun inhales deeply before he opens his eyes to the blinding streams of sunlight pouring into his room. His eyes adjust slowly, and he waits patiently. He's in no rush- not this morning anyway. Today is the third day of the tournament, and with only two contestants, it does not start until the afternoon.

The scent of burning juniper that's been in his house for the past few days is finally gone, and Baekhyun is immeasurably pleased by this. He's sick of the headaches that accompany the smell.

He stretches out on his furs, flexing his fingers and pointing his toes. He feels like he hasn't had a chance to relax like this, to take a morning off, in moons even if it's only been two days. He plans to enjoy it fully. As his body wakes up, Baekhyun notices a familiar energy running through his skin, and he jolts up, curling his fingers in front of him.

Claws curve from his nail beds, and when Baekhyun runs his tongue along the edges of his teeth, he nearly slices it open on his extended canines. He wants to cry at the relief of being whole again.

His wolf side is returned to him, the effect of the poison the priest had given him, the wolfsbane, finally nullified after his system has had enough time to get rid of it. Baekhyun rolls out of his furs and onto all fours. He doesn't bother to pull on the red pants for the tournament, instead choosing to shift right away in his wolf form and panting happily when his body complies.

It was not even a full day of suffering through the effects of the wolfsbane, but Baekhyun had felt cut off and incomplete the whole time his body fought to remove the poison from his bloodstream. He never wants to have to experience that again, and he apologizes to his body. Now, able to shift into his wolf form, Baekhyun feels like himself again. He jumps back into his furs, walking around in circles until he's created a comfortable spot, and he plops down on top of the bedding, burying his nose under the leather undersides of the pelts.

He doesn't quite fall back asleep - not with the pressure of the final round of the tournament later today starting a little bubble of anxiety in his heart - but he does manage to doze off, ears pricked in case someone starts yelling for him. He's not sure how long he spends resting, simply relaxing in the form of his second body, but the sun is no longer sending direct beams of light through the walls of his room when the leather covering to his corner of his parents' house moves.

Baekhyun jerks up, and his grandmother startles when she sees him there, alert and silent.

"Baekhyun," she greets. "May I come in?" Baekhyun nods his head and thumps his tail on the furs. His grandmother shuffles over, the hem of her dress pooling on the floor as she sets a hand on his neck, her fingers caught in his scruff to give herself an anchor with which to lower herself down to his furs.

"I haven't talked to you in awhile," she says. It has only been a couple of days, but Baekhyun supposes when she's used to talking to him every day that a span of three would feel much longer. He turns and noses against her neck, and his grandmother laughs, bringing up her hands to scratch behind his ears and down his flanks. Baekhyun pants happily.

"I haven't been watching the tournament," his grandmother confesses to him. "I'm too old to stand out there for so long, but I think I might come today. Would that be okay with you?" Baekhyun licks her cheek in response. He doesn't particularly care if his grandmother comes to watch him fight Chanyeol or not; it won't change the outcome.

Whichever outcome that is going to be.

"I want you to know, my darling," his grandmother says. "You are a powerful wolf, but the best candidate for Second will be the one who wins today. And if that is you, remember this: for all of the goddess' meddling, she will not make it easy. You're in for a tough fight today, and you are possibly in for a tough lifetime."

Baekhyun whines. He knows; he couldn't not know. He saw the relief that seemed to overtake Chanhyuk when he stepped down from the position of First. He's seen the readiness in both Leader and Second's eyes to release the burdens of this pack from their shoulders.

"I'm so proud of you," Baekhyun's grandmother says, and that's all she says, pushing herself to her feet to shuffle out of the room. She doesn't wish Baekhyun good luck, and she doesn't offer him blessing from the goddess of the moon. For this, Baekhyun is grateful.

If he wins the position of Second, he's going to do it on his own strength because he is the best option for the pack. If he loses, it had nothing to do with the goddess and everything to do with him.

Do you want to be Second? Taehyung's question from what feels like sun cycles past but was only a few days previous rings in Baekhyun's head. Do you want to be Second?

Baekhyun still doesn't know the answer.

He doesn't manage to figure it out in that moment or even later before he steps out into the glade, standing next to Chanyeol as they wait for the head priestess to take her place and for First to climb onto the rocks. The head priestess does come out from the medicine hut just past high noon, but Seungwan never does climb the rocks that allow her to stare out over the entirety of the glade. Instead, she comes forward and stands next to the head priestess, her eyes raking over Baekhyun and Chanyeol in turn.

"Today," the head priestess calls to the pack. "Today is the final day of the tournament that our two omega candidates here have trained for their entire lives." That's an exaggeration; they've been training for ten sun cycles at most, maybe less. "Today Baekhyun and Chanyeol will fight each other to determine the strongest of the them." She pauses as the pack cheers. Baekhyun glances up, and today it is Leader and Second who stand up on the rocks. Their fingers are linked, and Baekhyun's heart begins to pound with anticipation.

"Strength," the head priestess announces, "is not built solely on the physical capability of a wolf. Strength is a culmination of intelligence and determination, resilience and power. These two omegas have shown themselves to be holders of all of these qualities. Now our goddess of the moon shall decide which one shall stand beside our next Leader for forty sun cycles as the Second of this pack."

Baekhyun doesn't flinch when the cheering flares up. He only hopes that the hunting for the feast tonight was completed this morning. With all of this noise, there won't be any game in their territory for catching until tomorrow.

The head priestess holds up a hand, asking for silence. She waits patiently until it falls, and she continues speaking. "Unlike yesterday's duels, today there are no boundaries. The entirety of the territory of yours to fight in, should you need it." She looks at Chanyeol and then to Baekhyun. Baekhyun struggles to not glance to his side and see what expression Chanyeol is wearing at this news.

"The fight will take place in wolf form, as this is the test of your wolves' abilities. The fight will continue until someone has made himself a clear winner, but do not actually bite through each other's necks. My priests can heal a lot, but fatality is something from which you cannot be recovered." There's a slight smattering of nervous laughter that follows that announcement.

"After one of you has won this fight, we will move immediately into preparation for the Grand Ceremony tonight. At dusk, we will feast and welcome our new Second into his position."

Baekhyun breathes out slowly, closing his eyes. He can let Chanyeol win- he could. He could tempt fate and make the decision for them both, letting Chanyeol best him and take the position of Second.

Something churns in Baekhyun's chest. His pride won't allow that. He has never lost a fight against another omega even once in his life; why would he start now?

"You may shift," the head priestess says, and Baekhyun strips off his pants, letting his wolf form take the place of his human body. Beside him, Chanyeol does the same, and the contrast between Baekhyun's red-tinted fur and Chanyeol's russet brown almost seems to declare them as enemies instead of pack members.

"First will follow you wherever you go," the head priestess tells them. She steps back, and beside her, Seungwan takes off the dark blue pants that all of the returned alphas and betas were given and tugs her shirt over her head. She shifts into her wolf form, huge paws thudding on the ground as she falls forward, gray fur covering a powerful frame.

She's an impressive wolf with a certain fluidity to her change. It's easy for Baekhyun to see why Jongdae is so enamored.

"The fight begins whenever you are ready," the head priestess announces, and her words are followed by a moment of stillness. Baekhyun can hear his own breathing, the blood rushing in his ears, the wind whistling in the trees. Everything around him seems to fade away for a long span of nothing, and he waits for any movement, any sign of attack. He knows how to win a fight; he's been trained for this moment.

Do you want to be Second?

Does he? Or is that just an expectation that has been placed on him for so long that he doesn't know the difference between his wants and the wants of those who support him? Chanyeol growls, and Baekhyun reacts the only way he knows how.

He bares his teeth and attacks.

He and Chanyeol clash in the middle, both of them rearing up on their hind paws, forelegs grappling as they fight to get their claws in the other's neck. Like this, their balance can't hold long, and Baekhyun brings Chanyeol crashing down with him when he falls.

He lands hard on his shoulder, but he ignores the sting of the pain, pushing himself up to his paws and jumping in again to rake his claws down Chanyeol's shoulder. He tries to snap at him with his teeth, but Chanyeol is dancing back. He barks at Baekhyun, and Baekhyun growls back, the sound ripping through him and bouncing off of the sky. Chanyeol takes off running across the glade, and Baekhyun follows him, pressing against Chanyeol's shoulder, trying to throw off his balance as they bark and snap at each other's necks with bared teeth.

The forest rises up around them, and Chanyeol seems to know this territory just as well as Baekhyun does, his steps sure and even over the roots and foliage as they run. Just behind them, Baekhyun can hear Seungwan following, but he shoves that edge of focus from his mind. Seungwan is not a threat; Chanyeol is.

Baekhyun jumps, crashing down on Chanyeol's back. The wolf crashes to the ground under him, and they roll across the ground, snarls rings around them. A sudden shock of cold encompasses Baekhyun as Chanyeol drags him into a wide creek. Mud and water drip in his eyes, but Baekhyun doesn't pause to shake it away, instead tackling Chanyeol back into the stream.

He used to play like this with Taehyung when they were pups, splashing around in the water and coming home dripping only for Uncle Beom and Baekhyun's mother to yell at them about getting sick.

This is far less fun, but the exhilaration is twice as much. He snaps his teeth around Chanyeol's ear, and the other wolf howls, rearing up. Baekhyun leans up to meet him, and the slip and crash into the water again. Baekhyun breaks free, scrambling up and leaping out of the water, taking off across the territory again. He hears the sudden break in Chanyeol's thudding paws behind him, and he doesn't manage to twist out of the way in time before Chanyeol's claws are in his back, dragging him down as if he were a hunted deer.

Baekhyun drops to his side, rolling, and Chanyeol's claws snag deep. Baekhyun forces himself to keep pressing even as his skin tears, and Chanyeol snarls, letting go before his paw is twisted at an unnatural angle.

Baekhyun leaps back to his paws, and Chanyeol is after him again. Neither of them are backing down, each attack calculated to wear the other down. Baekhyun is panting hard, his shoulders bruised and back bleeding. Chanyeol doesn't look much better, and they crash back into the glade, snarling and snapping.

Chanyeol's slight limp from Baekhyun rolling over his paw earlier has worsened, and Baekhyun attacks again, harsh on Chanyeol's weakened side. He closes his teeth around Chanyeol's scruff and tries to shake him, but the other wolf stands strong. Baekhyun releases his scruff, snapping at his wounded leg instead, and Chanyeol stumbles back.

It's opening enough for Baekhyun who slams into his side again. Time seems to slow, the sun and moon frozen in the sky as Baekhyun watches Chanyeol fall back, his stomach and neck bared.

For a split second, Baekhyun hesitates, distracted by the defeat in Chanyeol's eyes, and then instinct wins out. He dives forward, and his teeth graze over Chanyeol's throat.

Dead. Not really, but if this had been a real fight, he would be, and that’s signal enough.

Seungwan howls, and the song pounds through Baekhyun's skull, ringing with a victory cry that echoes with Baekhyun's name.

Baekhyun steps back from Chanyeol, shifting slowly out of his wolf form. Everything is a daze, sounds nothing but a wall of color that spins around him as Baekhyun sways on his feet, tired and in shock. Minseok is beside him, pressing Baekhyun's pants into his hands, urging him to dress.

"Chanyeol," Baekhyun hears the head priestess' voice over the roar of the pack. "You've fought valiantly, but the moon goddess has not chosen you. You may rejoin the pack." Chanyeol nods, taking his pants from his mentor's hands and stepping into them before he walks off to join the ranks of the other pack members.

Baekhyun stares at his hands, watching them as they tremble. Minseok's hand is warm and comforting on his back, but it's not enough to break through the haze of incredulity clouding Baekhyun's mind.

"Baekhyun," the head priestess says. "Congratulations. You've shown your prowess, and the goddess of the moon has chosen you." She steps in close to him, her hand laid flat over Baekhyun's heart.

"You are the new Second."

It plays over and over in Baekhyun's head as the entire pack dips their heads to him. Up ahead on the rock structure standing at the head of the glade, even Leader and Second have their heads bowed to him, and Baekhyun sags heavily against Minseok as he realizes that the Second he's known his whole life is no longer Second of this pack.

He is.

He can barely hear Minseok's congratulations, can barely make out the world around him as he's led from the glade and into the medicine hut. The world blurs around him, and he faintly makes out the head priestess giving demands for the preparations for the ceremony to begin. The priests lead him into another area of the medicine hut where they strip him of his pants and urge him into a large basin of water that smells faintly of pine.

It's not until Baekhyun is left alone soaking in the water that the shock breaks, and he can only press the back of his hand to his mouth before he sobs out loud. He's terrified. He's the Second of his pack; he's taking on a position that he's spent sun cycles preparing for but just as many cycles avoiding. He wants a romance straight from one of his grandmother's stories. He doesn't want this.

With a jolt, he realizes the purpose of the sudden bath. He's going to be celebrated tonight, led through a ceremony according to the customs of the priests of the moon, and then he will be handed off to whoever the new Leader is. He shudders. The idea of mating is not foreign to him; he's knows the mechanics of it. The idea of mating with someone he doesn't love, however, sets his hands shaking again.

Baekhyun sighs and sinks down into the water, holding his breath and trying to keep himself from sinking into actual crying. He scrubs at his arms and chest until the need for air becomes too much, and he rises up from the bottom of the basin, settling against the edge again.

"It's okay to be afraid," murmurs through the water in Baekhyun's ear, and he shakes his head to clear them. Second, or maybe not Second, sits down at the edge of the basin, dipping her toes into the water. For a moment, with the scarred side of her face not facing him, Baekhyun can see how beautiful she was when she was his age. She probably felt the same confusion and uncertainty that he does right now.

"Even when I'm blessed by the moon?" Baekhyun asks, sinking low in the water again. Second's runs her fingers through his hair, untangling the knots.

"Especially then, if you believe that," she says.

Baekhyun turns to look up at her, and her smile is gentle even if her eyes are a bit sad. "You don't believe in that?" he questions. "The moon goddess?" Second's touch is soothing, but her words are what actually gives Baekhyun any sort of sense of calm.

"We shift from humans to wolves, and only omegas can resist the change during a full moon," Second says. "There is something out there that gives us these powers. But is it some goddess who determines our every move? I'd like to think not. I'd like to think I've been living my life of my own volition and free will."

Baekhyun tries his best to breathe evenly, but his body is shaking to much.

"It's okay to cry," Second tells him, and Baekhyun slumps against her thigh, letting her play with his hair as he lets the shock of his win run its course through his body.

"Listen to me, Baekhyun," Second says. "You know what happens tonight, don't you?" Baekhyun nods his head. "Listen to me carefully. You can't say no." Baekhyun flinches. "The head priestess will check in the morning that the bonding was successful, but you can save a little something of yourself from your mate until you mean it."

Baekhyun looks up at her and furrows his eyebrows. He's about to turn over his entire life and body to an alpha whom he has never met and to this pack. There is nothing of himself that he can keep private.

"Don't kiss our new Leader," Second says. "Trust me on this. Not until you mean it."

"And if I never mean it?"

Second sighs. "Love can be learned, but it won't grow in a hardened heart." She gets to her feet then, turning to leave the room. "And one last thing," she says before she exits. "When the head priestess offers you a pouch, don't drink the potion."

"Is it fucking wolfsbane again?"

Second shakes her head. "It's some sort of potion they've concocted that temporarily sends you into heat. If you want to be you when you meet your alpha, please, just trust me and do not drink it."

"I won't," Baekhyun promises. His stomach twists. He remembers the pain of the wolfsbane, and he knows the pain of heat. He's not going to willingly accept that into his body, but a horrid thought stirs at the back of his consciousness. Would accepting the drug make the night easier?

Second nods to him.

"Good luck, Second," she says, and Baekhyun chokes. "May the cycles of your leadership be blessed."

"Wait," Baekhyun calls after her. "What do I- you're Second- your name?"

"Hana," she says. "I'll see you in the morning."

"You're not going to the celebration?"

Hana shakes her head. "I'm going to spend some time with my children and grandchildren. I'm about to spend be five sun cycles without them, and I haven't seen Seokjin in nearly ten."

"Oh," Baekhyun manages. "Thank you. For the advice."

"You'll do well, Second," Hana says. "Goodbye, Baekhyun." She disappears then, and Baekhyun feels like his life as just another wolf ends at that moment. He picks all the dirt from under his fingernails and waits in the water until the priests return and urge him to get out of the bath. They dry his skin with soft cloth and hand him clean white pants to put on. On his shoulders, they drape a cloak of white fur- multiple winter rabbit furs sewn together.

"We're going to walk out with you," the priest says. "Simply follow the head priestess' instructions. The ceremony requires nothing of you but an offering."

"I don't have anything," Baekhyun says, but he's proven wrong when another priest walks in with antlers in her hands. On one side of the rack, marks that look an awful lot like wolf teeth are dug into the bone, and Baekhyun realizes the antlers belonged to the deer he brought back to win the second test.

"Take these," the priest says in a soft voice, and dressed in white and holding the rack of the buck he had dragged across the pack's territory, Baekhyun walks out of the medicine hut.

The moon shines brightly, set against a backdrop of dark navy and stars. In the glade, fires roar in all corners, and the main bonfire seems to reach all the way to the moon herself. With soft prods at his back by the priests to guide him, Baekhyun walks through the pack, heart racing as they all - both friends and pack members whom he's never met - bow their heads to him, murmurs of 'Second' reaching his ears. He tightens his grip on the antlers and moves to stand opposite the head priestess in front of the main bonfire. It casts an orange glow across much of the glade, and through the flames Baekhyun can just barely see the cabin where the new Leader waits for him.

He knows nothing about the new Leader - doesn't know the new Leader's name or gender or face. Somehow, that makes this easier.

"My pack," First shouts, and the only noise to interrupt the sudden silence is the crackle of the flames. Seungwan meets Baekhyun's eyes. "Second," she greets.

"First," Baekhyun returns.

The head priestess speaks next. "Tonight occurs only once every forty sun cycles, and we thank the goddess for this blessing of the continued strength of our pack." A murmur of agreement fills the air.

"In order to ensure the prosperity of the pack, our Second will leave an offering for the goddess," the head priestess directs. She holds out a hand towards the fire, and Baekhyun steps forward at her invitation. "What do you bring?"

"The rack of a buck," Baekhyun answers, hoping that he hasn't accidentally said something wrong. The head priestess simply nods, and Baekhyun tosses the antlers into the flames. The fire seems to stretch a little higher, a little brighter, for a brief moment, and Baekhyun returns to his original position.

The head priestess is smiling. "Your offer has been accepted," she says, and Baekhyun imagines Minseok scoffing at that to settle his nerves. "The moon goddess always chooses well," the head priestess continues. "Before her now, repeat these vows that our new First has already spoken after me." She clears her throat, and Baekhyun licks his lips.

"From now until a new Second has been chosen by the goddess," the head priestess says, and Baekhyun repeats the words loudly for the pack to hear. The conviction in his voice feels forced, but no one seems to notice. "I swear my life to the good of this pack, and I swear my body and companionship to my alpha." It doesn't seem right to Baekhyun to say vows like that for an alpha who is not even present to hear them, but he repeats the words anyway.

"May forty sun cycles begin now, by the grace of the goddess of the moon."

The words fall from Baekhyun's lips, and he can see that silver glow in the head priestess' eyes again. She nods to one of the priests, and he brings forward a leather pouch that reminds Baekhyun of the one he had been handed and subsequently poisoned with the contents. He accepts the pouch and holds it in front of him.

"Drink," the head priestess encourages, and Baekhyun lifts the pouch to his lips. The smell of the potion inside is sweet, but Baekhyun does not drink, heeding Hana's words.

"Now," the head priestess says when Baekhyun has returned the pouch to the priest's hands. "We eat, and we drink. We dance, and we celebrate." The great resonance of drums fills the glade, and chatter and excitement run rampant in the air, seeming to coax the flames of the bonfire into dancing along with the rest of them.

"I suppose congratulations are in order," First says to Baekhyun, and Baekhyun jolts from watching the flames.

"I- Thank you," he says, managing to catch himself before he protests. "For you as well, First."

"We’ll be seeing a lot of each other, yeah?” Seungwan says. She dips her head. "Second." Baekhyun returns her bow, and he's not surprised at all when the next person Seungwan speaks to is Jongdae, his fellow omega's smile wide and his eyes bright. At least one of them will be happy, falling in love with a powerful alpha who chose him for him and not for some requirements of a ceremonial union.

“You won’t banish me to the fields, right?” speaks low behind Baekhyun, and he whirls around, his white cloak flaring around him. Chanyeol stands there looking every bit as broad and powerful as he had the first moment Baekhyun had seen him. Any other day, any other set of circumstances, and their positions right now could be reversed. Baekhyun can respect that.

“I’d be a fool to put a talented fighter in the fields,” he answers. “But we all do our part around here.”

Chanyeol raises an eyebrow. “Are you going to keep working in the fields?”

This time it’s Baekhyun’s turn to lift his eyebrows. “Why wouldn’t I?” he asks. “I’m Second, not exempt. I’ll pull my weight and set an example.” Chanyeol grins then, shaking his head.

“You were always a better than me, huh?” The question seems to be rhetorical, but even if it’s not, Baekhyun has no response for that.

“Congratulations,” Chanyeol finishes, dipping his head. “Second.” He walks away, and Baekhyun finds he doesn’t quite agree with Chanyeol’s previous question. He’s not sure, had the roles been reversed, that he would have had the grace to walk up to Chanyeol and congratulate him.

It strikes him then how much he still has to learn versus how much he’s expected to already know. His pack expects him to be wise, and Baekhyun is not wise. Baekhyun a mere twenty sun cycles of age. He’s a good fighter, a good field worker, but he’s not a good Second.

At least, not yet. He wonders when the need to prove himself to his pack will kick in and replace the haze of disbelief that all of this is real, that this is really happening to him.

"Second!" calls out, and Baekhyun turns to see a glimpse of his mother's hair and dress before she's throwing herself into his arm. "My baby boy," she sobs against his neck. "I'm so proud. So proud of you."

"Hi, Ma," Baekhyun murmurs, wrapping his arms tight around her. A sturdy hand settles on his shoulder, and Baekhyun's mom lets go of him just enough to pull her mate and Baekhyun's father into the hug. Baekhyun is glad he can say he didn't disappoint his parents, but them calling him by title instead of his name makes a sort of chasm open up in his chest. For a brief, panicked moment, he wonders if his heart is actually going to start bleeding.

"My son," his father says against Baekhyun's hair. "Who knew you could fight like that?"

"I worked hard, Pops," Baekhyun answers him. Part of him regrets it, but he doesn't say that out loud. His father laughs at his answer, ruffling his hair.

"I'm proud of you too," he says. Baekhyun tries to grin at him, and he hopes the dark in the glade hides how wonky his smile feels.

"Thanks, Pops."

"Shall we get something to eat?" his mother asks. "I've seen just about everything there is being thrown on fires, and I'm starving." She nudges Baekhyun. "And you had that long fight today. Surely you're hungry?"

"Not really, Ma, no," Baekhyun answers with an apologetic quirk of his lips. His mother gawks at him.

"I have never seen you turn down food!" she exclaims. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Nerves," his father says by way of explanation, cutting off anything Baekhyun could have said, any truth he might have imparted upon them, and Baekhyun doesn't want to correct him that 'disgust' is a part of it too. His parents are happy about this; they're pleased that Baekhyun has won such an important role in the pack. He doesn't want to disrupt their happiness. For this moment, he'll just enjoy the feeling of being with his family.

"Ah," his mother allows, and what comes out of her mouth next is information Baekhyun never wanted to hear from her. "The first time is always a bit nerve-wracking, but I'm sure your alpha is perfectly attractive. Rugged, a bit wild. There's something wickedly wonderful about that sort of person. And if he’s male, you can't say no to a knot-"

"Ma!" Baekhyun nearly shouts at the same time as his father does shout, "Byulhee!" His mother cackles, losing herself in her fit of giggles, and Baekhyun rubs his temples. It's weird enough to think about what he's about to be sent to do; it's even weirder to think about the fact that the whole pack knows- that his parents know.

"I think we should go eat now," Sungkeun says. He throws an arm over Byulhee's shoulders. "Come with us?"

"Okay," Baekhyun agrees because he has nothing else to do. He enjoys talking with his parents, and watching them as they eat feels like the last bit of his old life that he'll ever get to experience. His grandmother greets him with only a nod and a crooked, close-lipped smile, too invested in her food. The smell of meat cooking churns Baekhyun's stomach, and he can barely even think about consuming it without feeling sick. Everyone around him is happy, though. Baekhyun is in no place to destroy that happiness. A happy pack is a strong pack, and Baekhyun is in charge of them now.

It's daunting.

The butterflies in his stomach feel like they're trying to razor their way out of his belly. He wraps his arms around his stomach, and the white cloak shifts in closer around him. He watches his parents dance to the drum beats, talks with countless members of the pack as they congratulate him.

"What did I tell you?" Taehyung's face seems to say the one time he manages to catch Baekhyun's eye, and Baekhyun refuses to look at him after that. He's Second now, and Taehyung had expected it all along. For some reason, even though it doesn't make sense, Baekhyun feels a bit betrayed by his cousin.

Later, when the head priestess calls the pack together again, she asks Baekhyun to kneel in front of her. He does so, and the head priestess settles her hand in his hair before she tilts her head back and prays loudly to the moon in her too-smooth voice.

"Oh, goddess," she begins. "Bless us here tonight who celebrate you. Bless this one here who has dedicated his life to your pack. Grant blessings upon him, and teach him the lessons that he needs to learn in order to become the Second that this pack needs."

She continues on, repeating what feels like the same things over and over again until she suddenly stops and stares out over the pack with a gasp.

"The time of the high moon is here," she explains herself. "It is time." She urges Baekhyun to his feet, and Baekhyun nearly swallows his tongue as comprehension dawns on him.

"We will now send our Second to the cabin on the hill where our Leader waits for him," the head priest announces. The pack cheers, and Baekhyun wants them to not cheer, to pretend they're not there and pretend they don't know what is about to happen between him and the Leader that only a select few of them have met.

"Who takes our Second to our Leader?" the head priestess asks. "Who releases him into the arms of another?" Baekhyun expects to hear his father's voice or maybe his mother's, but he does not hear either of them respond to the question.

"I will," his grandmother's voice speaks. He twists, and his grandmother steps out of the throngs of the pack members. She looks so proud of him, and yet all Baekhyun can hear are the stories she's told him ever since he was a pup repeated over and over in his ears in her voice. "I will take my grandson, and I will release him."

The high priestess nods in approval. "Then, Second," she says, looking directly at Baekhyun. "Go to meet your future with the blessings of the moon." The pack cheers and roars, and Baekhyun offers his elbow to his grandmother, walking away from the pack and fires and the priests and into the inky calm of undisturbed night.

"Did you drink?" his grandmother asks once they've stepped away from the celebration. The old wolf keeps her hand tight around Baekhyun's elbow as they walk up behind the outcropping of rock towards the cabin where Baekhyun's new alpha waits.

Baekhyun shakes his head. "No," he says. "You know about it?"

His grandmother tuts at him. "There is very little I don't know about this pack," she tells him. "And that is one of our more disgusting practices. Inducing a heat. That won't lead to a strong bond between Leader and Second." Baekhyun squeezes his hand over the fingers wrapped around his arm.

"I didn't drink," he restates. "Hana told me not to."

His grandmother hums. "She's always been a wise one, that girl." She pats Baekhyun's arm. "You will be too. I know it."

Baekhyun chooses not to respond, coming to a halt with his grandmother a mere ten paces away from the entrance to the cabin. Here, he feels like he's on the other side of the territory from the rest of the pack, the orange light of the fires dim and the heat not quite so intense.

"I guess this is it," Baekhyun murmurs. "I don't know who I'm about to meet. I don't anything about this person, our new Leader, and I'm expected to bare myself and become part of a mated pair tonight." He bites his lip "How can they expect this of me?" His grandmother adjusts her grip, taking both of Baekhyun's hands in hers and lifting them to kiss the backs of his hands.

"You will do what you need to do," she says. "As you have always done."

"I'm scared," Baekhyun admits very quietly.

"You would be a fool not to be," his grandmother soothes. She kisses the back of his hands again, and her smile is the only source of encouragement that Baekhyun has right now. "I release you," his grandmother says. "Go and meet your alpha, our Leader." The permission stalls Baekhyun, keeping him still, and his grandmother brushes her thumbs over his knuckles.

"I wanted a story, Grandma," Baekhyun whispers, staring down at their conjoined hands. "I wanted to be swept away by some handsome alpha and be treated like the royalty in the stories you used to tell me."

"I will always tell you stories, child," his grandmother tells him. "It might be something you're not interested in hearing, but listen when I say this: you could very well be in the middle of writing your own story, Baekhyun." Baekhyun, his grandmother had said - his name instead of his title. Baekhyun drops his grandmother's hands.

"Do not worry, my boy," his grandmother says. "I know this will end in happiness for you."

"You don't know that," Baekhyun refutes.

His grandmother reaches up and brushes his bangs out of his eyes. "Don't I?" she asks. Baekhyun meets her eyes, and she grins at him, crack-toothed and all. "Sure I do," she insists. "The moon told me so."

"It's always the moon, isn't it?"

His grandmother shakes her head. "It doesn't have to be," she murmurs. "Follow your heart and become the story you wanted to be a part of, Warrior Beauty." Baekhyun leans in and kisses his grandmother's cheek, thanking her. She walks away then, heading back towards the celebration, and Baekhyun stares after her until the darkness has hidden her from his vision. He turns back to face a new darkness, a future he's now expected to fulfill.

His steps are slow but steady, his heart racing but visage calm, as he takes the final few steps steps towards the cabin and the alpha whose side he will stand at for the rest of his life.

Follow your heart, his grandmother had said. She's said that to him for years, and Baekhyun clings onto those words and the promise of happiness that comes with them as he steps out of his time as just Baekhyun and into his time as Baekhyun, Second. Become your own story, Warrior Beauty.

There is history here. It breathes through the walls of the cabin and whispers over Baekhyun's skin as he steps into the cabin. How many omegas before him have taken these very same steps, nervous and unsure, skin buzzing with the excitement of the celebration still ongoing. How many of them had taken the offered drug and burst through the entrance to the cabin with heat simmering low in their stomachs? How many had walked in the same way that Baekhyun does now - unwilling and scared of the future he's walking into.

The scent of an alpha is faint here, muted by the scent of earth and burning pines. The familiar scents overlaying the one that Baekhyun has never encountered before help to ease his fear, but there is nothing to be done for the nerves that shallow his breathing and set his hands trembling.

He steps out of the entrance into an open space, the ground decorated with furs and pillows colored with dark dyes. Baekhyun's family has never owned and pillows, but now, as Second, he is walking into the privilege that comes with being in the top tier of leadership for the pack. In the center of the room, a small fire crackles merrily, and its happy, carefree dancing is almost annoying. How unfair it is that on this night the fires can lick happily at the air while Baekhyun is drowned under the weight of a singular requirement.

"Hello," Baekhyun speaks, and from the other side of the fire, the figure waiting for him stands.

He's not tall, but he is distinctively male, body thick and sturdy. In the light of the fire, Baekhyun sees his hair has been cut short, the strands stained a bright red. He wears a pair of white pants, identical to the one Baekhyun had been dressed in, but he does not have a cloak of pelts of white hares thrown over his shoulders.

He's handsome, undeniably so. But he's also Baekhyun's mate, and Baekhyun doesn't even know his name.

"Hello," the alpha responds. His voice is not as low as Chanyeol's, but it is deep, tone rich and spinning around Baekhyun pleasantly. The alpha steps forward, and even if he is not even quite as tall as Baekhyun is, his strength is obvious. It's clear in the way he stands, in the set of his jaw, in the callouses turning the skin of his palms white. He's nothing like what Baekhyun expected, but then again, Baekhyun hadn't expected anything.

"What's your name?" the alpha asks, and Baekhyun forces himself to hold his gaze steady on the alpha's eyes. The other wolf meets him evenly. He's not challenging Baekhyun, not leaning forward and asking him to back down. His stare is simply intense, and Baekhyun feels marginally like he's drowning as the alpha scrutinizes him, sizing him up in much the same way Baekhyun had done after greeting him.

"Baekhyun," Baekhyun answers.

"Kyungsoo," the alpha returns. "How many sun cycles are you?"

"Twenty," Baekhyun whispers. Kyungsoo takes a step in closer to him.

"I as well," he says. Baekhyun wants to scoff. The two of them, only recently removed from puphood, are now in charge of a whole pack. It seems more ridiculous than it does like a ploy of strength, but Baekhyun is in no mood to laugh.

Kyungsoo's fingers close around the edge of the cloak Baekhyun is wearing, but he does not make any move to pull it from his shoulders.

"Soft," he murmurs, and Baekhyun is not sure Kyungsoo is even aware he's spoken.

"Ceremonial," Baekhyun corrects. Kyungsoo simply shrugs at that, releasing the cloak from his hold. It settles back around Baekhyun, and he shivers. Silence follows that, the two of them standing facing each other, neither speaking and barely breathing. The crackle of the fire is the only sound, the din of the celebration only barely reaching them. This close, Baekhyun can easily make out Kyungsoo's scent, and he hates how much it opposes the truth of the their situation.

Kyungsoo smells like wild and freedom, smells like the pines and the terror of the forest. He smells exactly like what Baekhyun wants, and yet he too is just as trapped as Baekhyun is. He did not choose to be Leader; Baekhyun did not choose to be Second.

He remembers the fight against Chanyeol, remembers the pause in time when he debated for a quick moment between defeating Chanyeol and letting the other omega get back to his feet. He wonders if maybe Kyungsoo went through something similar, if he too had a moment to decide his own future.

After the silence has drawn out for too long, Kyungsoo sighs and steps back, moving to return to sitting on the furs around the fire. Maybe it's the sudden distance between them, or maybe it's Kyungsoo's completely lost expression, but words tumble from Baekhyun's mouth before he can stop them.

"Welcome home," he says. "To our pack." There's a terrifying heft to that statement. It is their pack that they've both belonged to since birth, but now it is also their pack, the one they are now expected to lead. The phrase, though nothing particular warm, startles the corners of Kyungsoo's lips into pulling up. His smile is breathtaking, but Baekhyun wasn't breathing from the pressure of the situation anyway.

"Thank you," Kyungsoo says, and Baekhyun nods at him. He shuffles forward towards the fire, settling down on one of the piles of furs. This cabin is comfortable, nearly luxurious, but the atmosphere is not. The two do not cancel each other out to make a neutral area; Baekhyun almost wishes they would.

"Do you miss the mountains?" Baekhyun tries. He's not sure if he's stalling or if he's simply trying to make himself more comfortable; maybe it's a combination of both. Kyungsoo leans over and adjusts one of the logs in the fire, setting the flames flaring up just a little brighter. It's a warm night in Spring, but Baekhyun feels cold from his uncertainty. He welcomes the warmth of the fire.

"It's different," Kyungsoo answers eventually. "Maybe I haven't been gone long enough to miss them. I can still see them from here." Baekhyun just nods sort of noncommittally. Kyungsoo glances over at him. "Being in here for three days alone hasn't really made being away from the mountains a good experience."

Baekhyun draws his knees up to his chest, wrapping his arms around his legs. "How did- or. Um. How were you chosen?"

Kyungsoo pokes at the fire again. "A tournament, same as you."

"Did you want to be Leader?"

"Maybe a little bit," Kyungsoo says honestly. "But those who desire to be Leader never are the ones who become Leader." He shifts to sit a little more comfortably on the furs. "I think it's the same for Seungwan. And maybe for you too?"

"Yes," Baekhyun consents, and that same burn behind his eyes, the choking sensation, is back. He buries his face in his arms and tries to control the shaking so that he won't start to cry again.

"Baekhyun?" Kyungsoo's concern is obvious, but he makes no move to console Baekhyun.

"I'm fine," Baekhyun mumbles. "Really."

"You're not," Kyungsoo states. He shifts, moving to sit next to Baekhyun. His warmth next to him is nice, and if they had been meeting under any other circumstances, Baekhyun probably would have welcomed his presence in such close proximity. "Neither am I."

Baekhyun jerks up to stare at Kyungsoo's face.

"You're not," he agrees after a moment of studying the alpha's expression and the tension of his muscles. "I'm sorry."

"You shouldn't apologize," Kyungsoo says. "Fuck that. You should never apologize."

Baekhyun raises an eyebrow. "And you should? We were both put here by some priestess with silver eyes who addles her mind with burning juniper."

"Do you know what the last thing those priests said to me before leaving me here to wait for you is?" Kyungsoo asks. He sounds desperate and upset, and all Baekhyun can do is shake his head. He doesn't know. "They told me to mate you," he whispers. "They said to mark you and mate you to secure my position as leader. They said it doesn't matter if you don't want me to, that I have to do it anyway." Baekhyun's stomach twists up into knots.

"They told me something similar," Baekhyun tells him.

"Baekhyun, you don't even want me to touch you," Kyungsoo argues. "You flinched away when I sat down next to you."

"I was startled," Baekhyun sniffs.

"You're still not relaxed next to me right now."

Baekhyun has no argument for that. "Still," he says. "I know what they- what we- I know."

Kyungsoo looks absolutely miserable. "It's not right," he says. "It doesn't feel right for me to touch you when you don't want me to." That should be comforting, should make Baekhyun feel like he has some say in this, but the reality of the matter is that he has no say, he doesn't get to decide with whom he mates or when. It doesn't matter if Baekhyun is ready for this or not, and anger filters through him, red and blinding. It would be easiest if Kyungsoo would just take, not hold back and express his own concerns over the situation.

It would be easiest if Kyungsoo were like one of those villains in Baekhyun's grandmother's stories, the ones who don't value their omegas, who use them for nothing but pleasure and pups. But Kyungsoo isn't like that- he's made that much abundantly clear. Baekhyun is never going to be okay with this situation that's occurring right now, no matter how gentle Kyungsoo is about it.

"It doesn't fucking matter, does it?" Baekhyun nearly snarls. "It doesn't matter if you want to be chivalrous or courteous or whatever. We don't get that option!"

"I'll just mark you," Kyungsoo tries to compromise. "As long as you're marked, then-"

"The head priestess is going to check," Baekhyun growls, cutting the alpha off. "She's going to check to make sure we've bonded. Or else they can't finish the ceremonies and send off the Leader and Second whom we've replaced."

Kyungsoo freezes. "I'm not prepared for this," he murmurs. "All of that training and I still don't have any fucking clue." Baekhyun closes his eyes. He understands that, but he also understands that they have something they must do together. The night won't last forever, and time runs short.

"I know," Baekhyun sighs.

"We were trained to fight, not question the demands of the goddess," Kyungsoo says, sounding absolutely broken. His shoulders slump, and he looks so small sitting there like that, facing Baekhyun. It becomes clear to him, in that moment, what Kyungsoo is waiting for, and Baekhyun swallows hard. He reaches out slowly, very gently brushing his fingers across Kyungsoo's shoulder and across the line of his jaw.

"It's okay," he whispers, and he hopes he sounds convincing. He needs to sounds convincing; maybe then he can convince himself too. He runs his fingertips over Kyungsoo's eyebrows, smoothing the concerned pucker on his forehead.

"It's okay," he repeats. "This is just-" He slides his hand down Kyungsoo's arm, encircling his wrist and lifting Kyungsoo's hand to where the white cloak is settled over his shoulder. He grabs the alpha's other hand and lifts it to the other side of the cloak, encouraging him to twist his fingers in the fur. "This is how things are."

But Baekhyun isn't sure this is how things should be.

The cloak falls from his shoulders, and Kyungsoo stares at him, eyes raking over his body, tracing him and learning him without touch. Even this much feels like more than Baekhyun is prepared for, but he steels himself, tugging open the tie that holds his pants up around his hips.

Kyungsoo grabs Baekhyun's wrist then. "Wait," he says. "Wait. I- Baekhyun. We-"

"We have to," Baekhyun says, and he cocks his head to the side. "Don't you want me?" Kyungsoo doesn't answer for a long span of a few heartbeats. His eyes are dark, and the smell of him, of freedom that Baekhyun has lost, almost makes Baekhyun dizzy.

"I've been alone for three days," Kyungsoo says slowly, voice cracking. "And then they send me you."

"Is that a problem?"

"For my self control," Kyungsoo admits, and that's as much of an acknowledgement that he does want Baekhyun as Baekhyun needs. He twists his wrist out of Kyungsoo's grip and places Kyungsoo's hand against his chest. His fingers are hot against Baekhyun's skin, and Baekhyun tries his best to suppress his shudder as he reaches out to pull apart the tie on Kyungsoo's pants. His hand brushes over Kyungsoo's crotch, and Kyungsoo gasps, rocking up nearly imperceptibly into the faint touch.

He doesn't want this. He has to do this. For Kyungsoo's sake, for his own sake, for the sake of the pack.

"It's okay," he repeats for the third time. "You can touch." Kyungsoo inhales, and Baekhyun holds still.

"It's okay," Kyungsoo echoes, and then he surges forward. Baekhyun turns his head, tilting his chin up, and Kyungsoo's lips land on his neck just over his pulse. Baekhyun's body reacts to the touch the way an omega is designed to react an alpha, but the way his heart races is not entirely from the sudden sparks that seem to light on his skin.

Kyungsoo draws back. "Baekhyun," he sighs. "I can't- I won't-" Baekhyun stands then, letting his pants fall to his ankles and stepping out of them.

"Kyungsoo," he murmurs, and he plants one knee in the furs, throwing his other legs over Kyungsoo's waist, pressing the alpha back against the furs, his hand on Kyungsoo's chest to balance himself. He not wet at all, his cock still mostly soft between his legs, but determination is something Baekhyun has never been lacking in. "Just feel," he urges Kyungsoo, rocking his hips back, brushing his ass over Kyungsoo's stiffening cock. "Just feel," he repeats to himself, and Kyungsoo lifts his hands to Baekhyun's waist. Baekhyun lays his thumb along Kyungsoo's collarbone, the other set against his ribs, and closes his eyes.

He knows how to work himself up; he's taken care of himself through heats before. He knows how this works, and he knows what his body likes. If he can just shut down the part of himself that is still mad at the moon, close off the trails of thought that lead to how much he isn't ready for this, he'll be able to lose himself in the sensations that come with hands on his body, his cock, working him open.

He rocks back again, and Kyungsoo lets out the breathiest little sigh that sets Baekhyun's spine tingling. He does it again and again until Kyungsoo is lifting up to meet him, his cock hard and pressed up against the seam of Baekhyun's ass.

Baekhyun reaches back, and Kyungsoo's fingers dig into the skin of his waist, supporting him as he works to shove Kyungsoo's pants down his thighs. The first touch of skin on skin contact urges a gasp from Baekhyun's lips that draws out into a moan as Baekhyun grinds down. The slide is not quite smooth, and Baekhyun maintains the slow rocking, teasing himself and Kyungsoo into states of bliss and need. He drags his own hands up his stomach to flick over his nipples with his thumbs, and then back down to wrap his fingers around his own cock.

Pleasure zips through him, and now his heart is racing with a state of arousal. This is okay, he tells himself. This is fine.

Kyungsoo sits up suddenly, his mouth closing around one of Baekhyun's nipples, and Baekhyun arches. His knees slide on the furs, and suddenly he's pressed so much closer to Kyungsoo, his cock trapped between their stomachs, and the friction tightens the coils in Baekhyun's stomach. He feels like he's melting, the heat of the fire and the heat between them mixing and escalating.

He's really dripping now as Kyungsoo works his mouth over Baekhyun's chest, can feel his slick sliding down the insides of his thighs, and Kyungsoo is rutting up against him a little faster, a little more frantic. He's moving like he means it, and Baekhyun's gotten himself so worked up that getting Kyungsoo inside of him is starting to sound like an even more excellent idea as Kyungsoo's little grunts and low moans of appreciation fill his ears.

"Now," Baekhyun says, panting. "Now would be as good of time as any." His words aren't sexy, aren't all that inviting, but it seems to be enough for Kyungsoo who wraps his arms tight around Baekhyun's middle and flips them over.

Baekhyun's back hits the furs, and he sinks into the softness of the pelts, spreading his legs and pulling Kyungsoo in between them. The alpha holds onto Baekhyun with a sort of gentleness that betrays his uncertainty, and the head of his cock pressed against Baekhyun's rim is on the verge of tipping Baekhyun into a state of absolute desperation.

Kyungsoo's hands slide up the undersides of Baekhyun's thighs to his knees and then back down. He whispers apologies and maybe praises as he slips first one, then two fingers inside of Baekhyun, being more careful with him than Baekhyun's ever been with himself.

"Now," Baekhyun repeats. "Kyungsoo, now." The alpha presses his lips to Baekhyun's collarbone as he slides in, the beginnings of his knot catching on Baekhyun's rim, and Baekhyun wriggles his hips, trying to get comfortable.

"Fuck," Kyungsoo chokes against Baekhyun's neck. Baekhyun drapes his arms over Kyungsoo's back, urging him to move, to make all of this official.

"Touch yourself," Kyungsoo urges, and Baekhyun listens, reaching down between them to wrap his fingers around his cock again, jerking his hand in time with Kyungsoo's thrust. His body responds only too well to this, all of the stimulation and pleasure racing through him. On a purely physical level, this is completely okay.

If only Baekhyun were a purely physical person. If only leadership were a purely physical role.

Kyungsoo moves faster and faster, and Baekhyun's hands and feet are tingling, starting to go numb from the onslaught of sensation. He grabs tight to Kyungsoo when the alpha's knot slips fully inside of him, pressing up against Baekhyun in all the right ways, and he throws his head back, digging his thumb into his slit before he comes.

Kyungsoo grinds into him through it, and Baekhyun tightening around him triggers his own orgasm. He shakes, bottom lip caught in his teeth as he comes, and Baekhyun holds him as he comes down.

They pant hard, staring at each other. There's no sudden spark of interest, no sudden desire to do that again. All Baekhyun wants it to dig his teeth into Kyungsoo's neck and call this ordeal finished.

Kyungsoo licks his lips, and when he opens his mouth to speak, Baekhyun can see the tips of his canines as they extend in his mouth.

"Mark me," he says. "You have to."

Kyungsoo's eyes are dark with something more akin to sadness as he leans down and sinks his teeth into the juncture of Baekhyun's neck and shoulder. It's the most traditional place a mark could be placed, and Baekhyun hisses at the pain of it. Kyungsoo's tongue laving over the wounds brings some relief, but now they're tied together, Kyungsoo braced over Baekhyun as they try to avoid making eye contact.

"Do you want to mark me?" Kyungsoo asks, and Baekhyun shakes his head.

"Not right now," he murmurs. "Just. In a little bit."

"I'm sorry," Kyungsoo says with utmost sincerity, and Baekhyun merely hums in response. He doesn't want an apology from Kyungsoo. He just wants to sleep and forget about this night.

Kyungsoo's knot takes what feels like a small slice of forever to finally shrink, and when he pulls out, Baekhyun doesn't make any move to pull his now mate in close to him, to hold him through the night. He doesn't mark Kyungsoo in return.

Now that it's over, there is nothing to stop Baekhyun from wallowing in the pain of accepting that all hopes of his life becoming one of grandmother's stories are dashed. He's Second of his pack and mate to a Leader whose name and body are the only parts of him he knows. He knows nothing else of Kyungsoo, and that's not romance. That's not what Baekhyun desires.

He wiggles around in the furs, trying to find a comfortable position, keeping quiet as Kyungsoo gently wipes him clean and then throws one of the blankets over him. The alpha does not make any move to lie down beside Baekhyun, and Baekhyun does not offer him any sort of invitation. He buries his face in the furs and tries to block out the sound of Kyungsoo's breathing as the alpha falls asleep an arm's length away.

The fire dims and dies, and Baekhyun finally drifts off as the first shadows of day begin to stretch across the floor of the cabin.