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Arc 1 – Omegaverse: The Hunter and the Omega Prince
Day 8 – Night After the Clash
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Fevered Silence
The snowstorm had muffled the forest into an eerie quiet.
Inside the cabin, the air was thick with the damp heat of a burning hearth — but Kyle still shivered under the quilt, knees drawn close, hair damp against his temple.
Aldric sat on the edge of the bed, wringing out a cloth in warm water and pressing it gently against Kyle's forehead.
"You're burning up again," he murmured.
Kyle scrunched his nose, voice small. "Feels like my head is… full of buzzing bees."
"You'll be fine," Aldric said, but his eyes flicked toward the window where the wolf's shadow paced.
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The Wolf Outside – Patient Obsession
Snow clung to its fur in melting crystals, droplets sliding down the thick ruff of its neck.
It had not left since the fight — not even to hunt.
Every few minutes it paused at the window, watching, as if counting each rise and fall of Kyle's chest.
Too warm. Too fragile.
It remembered the way his breath had smelled earlier — fever-sour, heartbeat too fast.
The thought of him fading in the cold made the wolf's hackles rise again.
The others inside could give him water, could keep him by the fire.
But only it could keep him.
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The Room Fills
Torren returned from the woods dragging a small deer. He placed it by the door, eyes briefly meeting the wolf's through the crack before shutting it.
"I don't care what anyone says — that thing's not normal," he muttered.
Eira glanced up from the corner where she was sorting herbs. "It's not just not normal, Torren — it's bonded."
Aldric's head turned sharply. "…Bonded?"
"Yes," Eira said, crushing dried flowers between her palms. "Not by choice. Not by accident. It's claimed him."
Kyle, who had been sipping lukewarm broth, blinked up at her. "Claimed… like I'm a rabbit in its den?"
Her gaze softened. "No, sweetheart. Like you're its heart."
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Childish Fear
Kyle's fingers tightened around the cup, the heat warming his chilled hands.
"I don't want to be anyone's heart if it means being stared at all the time," he mumbled, cheeks puffing in petulance.
His voice wobbled. "What if it gets mad again? I don't like fights. Or teeth. Or… claws."
Aldric smoothed Kyle's hair back. "No one will let it harm you."
"But it already fought someone because of me," Kyle said, his lower lip trembling just slightly. "It's scary."
The childish admission was almost a whisper. "I don't like scary."
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Uninvited Tenderness
Much later, when the others had drifted into uneasy sleep, the wolf approached the window again.
Kyle was half-asleep, head tilted, blanket sliding off his shoulder.
A shadow loomed at the glass, then a soft thunk as the wolf pressed its forehead against the pane.
Kyle stirred, blinking in confusion. Golden eyes met his — steady, warm, and disturbingly intent.
He pulled the blanket tighter. "Go away…" His voice was tired, not angry.
The wolf didn't move.
Only the faintest rumble left its chest, low and rhythmic — not a growl, but something almost like a lullaby.
Against his will, Kyle's eyelids grew heavy again.
The last thing he saw before sleep claimed him was that unwavering gaze, as if the wolf was willing him to keep breathing.
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