Chapter Text
Small waves topple over and crash onto the golden sand of the secluded beach Jimin had ran off to. It had been difficult, escaping the guards and the maids, but Jimin needed a little freedom for himself. Although he did not have similar political obligations to his elder siblings, he had no time for himself, constantly monitored. This small beach was his little secret hide-out, far from Busan’s large port and bustling city centre.
He gazes out over the sea. It was calm, with blue for as far as his sight could reach. Summer had come a little early this year, but Jimin didn’t mind one bit. He sits down near where the land meets the sea, just far enough so his clothing doesn’t get wet. He stretches his legs and lets the cold water run over his bare feet.
A light breeze blows a few strands of Jimin’s hair over his face, making him splutter as some land on his lips. He had taken his hair out of the knot, because the tightness gave him a headache, and he had daftly escaped the maids trying to make him wear any headwear. He had heard the lectures about status a million times by now, often enough for him to stop caring.
The sea doesn’t care about his status, though, and thus leaves him without concern. The sky is clear and the water is calm. He doesn’t feel anything weighing him down, even though he has to return home sooner or later.
A seagull squawks and penetrates the harmonious silence. Jimin huffs and looks around to locate the bird. Upon finding it perched atop on one of the larger boulders that provides coverage for Jimin, he sticks his tongue out at it as a way of payback. Not that the bird cares. Jimin doubts it even noticed him.
He can’t enjoy the peace for too long. Soon people will come looking for him, and Jimin really doesn’t want to worry anyone. He knows the risk of being out alone as a young, omega yangban, but Jimin needs his space to breathe and it’s not like he’s completely helpless.
Nevertheless, he gets up and dusts off his pants and coat to remove any sand that was sticking to the shiny fabric. He had left his shoes a bit further away so he didn’t have to walk all the way to the sea with his feet still trapped.
After making sure not a grain of sand is left sticking to his hanbok, he leaves the beach, back straight and chin high. It’s not a long walk to his house, not quite at the city centre but not too near the harbour. It was easily recognisable even to a stranger, as it was by far the largest considering it belonged to one of the only yangban families of Busan.
Jimin slips through the garden gates instead of going through the front doors to avoid possible lectures or his maids’ fussing. No, he knows the garden by heart and knows exactly which bush can hide him well. He slips through the staff door, and it’s just his luck he bumps into the gardener.
“Jimin!” the alpha man exclaims in surprise. “What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be in your chambers or attend to your duties?”
“Ah, I-“ Jimin falls silent for a moment, trying to come up with a lie. “I went on a little stroll, but I lost my way. Would you be so kind as to guide me to by chambers? I don’t want to worry anyone.”
The gardener’s expression softens into a smile. “Of course. Take my arm, these hallways seem like a maze sometimes.”
Jimin politely hums in agreement and takes the gardener’s arm. He knows the way here by heart, could find it with his eyes closed, but this provides a nice cover for his disobedient behaviour.
Only in the hallway that leads to Jimin’s chambers do they encounter one of the servants that attends to Jimin. “My goodness, Jimin!” the female omega exclaims, “I have been looking all over for you! Where have you been? We need to prepare you for the crown prince’s visit tomorrow!”
“Calm down, Yoonhee. He just wanted some fresh air and lost his way.” The gardener lets go of Jimin’s arm and steps away with a bow. “Next time take some company with you. Your parents will not appreciate their youngest son getting lost.”
Jimin intends to say goodbye, but is immediately tugged into the bathing room by Yoonhee. She tugs on his long, dark locks. “What’s this? Loose and tangled! And all this sand on your shoes and robes! How long have I been trying to make a proper omega out of you? Ah, really.” She shakes her head with a sigh. “The alpha who mates you must be at least as crazy and wild as you are. Or be the only one in all of Joseon who knows how to tame you.”
“I’m sorry. It will not happen again,” Jimin says with no real sincerity in his tone.
“I’ve heard those words all too many times,” she scolds and tugs off his jeogeori. “Tomorrow the crown prince will visit. The servants aren’t to be near, it’s you who will welcome him and serve him. I don’t want a repetition of last time, when the officials of Gongju came for meeting and you spilled tea.”
“That wasn’t my fault! The one with the moustache grabbed my butt!”
“Excuses, excuses. Remember your duty as an omega, Jimin. A good omega reflects-”
“Reflects the family’s true face. Yes, I know.” He steps out of his baji and sighs. “I’m sorry, Yoonhee. I will practice during dinner. Nothing will go wrong, I promise.”
“That’s what I like to hear. Now please wait, I will find you clean clothes.”
Jimin nods complacently and sits on a stool by the wall, releasing a deep sigh only after Yoonhee has left. Every day is like this. Etiquette and rules. Jimin doesn’t get similar education and training like his elder two alpha siblings. As omega, it’s all about looking pretty and taking proper care of the household. He knows that his parents are happy with him, not because he’s a son, but because an omega child means being able to marry it off. Marrying it off means creating ties with other families. With both parents as high-ranking government officials, alliances is exactly what they need.
There’s a small chance the crown prince takes interest in Jimin. Jimin isn’t of royal blood, but if he shows himself to be an excellent omega to the prince’s liking, no law can stop it.
Mating is the last thing Jimin wants. He hopes some sort of miracle happens that keeps the prince from visiting tomorrow.
Jimin tries to numb his mind for the remainder of the day. Conjuring up scenarios where he’s free aren’t realistic and it will only make him feel sad, mourning a life he never could have. And he feels ungrateful, because a prosperous future is secured. His home is warm and safe. As he joins his family for dinner that evening, the table is full of healthy, fresh food. His siblings and parents fill the room with cheerful talk about their day. He doesn’t know cold or pain or loneliness. They ask about his day, too, and Jimin mentions getting lost outside and how kind the servants were to help him even though it was a lie.
His elder sister coos and squeezes Jimin’s cheek, joking something about how cute and dumb omegas are. Jimin doesn’t know whether it’s a compliment or an insult, he ignores it with a smile.
As dinner comes to an end, Jimin helps the maids with all the plates to show his family just how capable he is. To show them that, yes, he is the perfect omega and that, yes, he will be according to the crown prince’s liking tomorrow.
It earns him a proud smile from his mother and a dismissal to his chambers to easen up and prepare for tomorrow. Jimin thanks them elaborately with a deep bow and tries his hardest to keep himself from running to his bedroom.
He shoves the door shut harshly. Alone, at last. Jimin slumps down onto his bed and wraps the blanket around himself protectively. Deep, slow breaths. It takes a minute to collect the thousand thoughts and tumultuous feelings raging inside him. A cage is still a cage, Jimin thinks to himself, no matter how large and finely decorated.
The blanket slides down from his shoulders and back into the bed as he stands up and walks towards the window. He can’t see or hear the sea from here, but the wind carries the salty scent of freedom along with it through every street of Busan. Jimin inhales deeply, then relaxes. If only he could keep his window open during the night, but it was too dangerous. The declining temperatures could make him sick and worse, criminals could come in.
Jimin tilts his head to a side, as if letting the sea’s breeze gently caress his cheek. He smiles and inhales the salty scent one final time before shutting the window and securing the lock. He lifts his pillow to retrieve the book on Confucianism that he had nicked from his sister’s room when she wasn’t home. No one thought Jimin should read despite having been taught how to, especially not books on ethics and philosophy.
He reads until his eyes start becoming too heavy to keep open. After folding over the corner of the page where he stopped reading, he hides his book beneath the pillow. It isn’t the most comfortable while falling asleep, but it’s better than nothing.
With a soft tuft of breath, Jimin blows out the candle by his bedside, and the room finally falls into darkness. Jimin tugs the blanket up all the way to his chin and curls his legs towards his chest. He forces his mind into silence as he would hate to wake up with dark shadows slumbering beneath his eyes in the morning. Though his heart can’t quite recover from a sense of anxiety, he drifts off to sleep.
It ends up being the screaming that wakes Jimin. Not the explosions or the cannonballs, but the screaming. He doesn’t get the chance to wake in a sleepy haze. No, he sits upright, his heart pounding and his ears ringing, and he kicks the blanket away to get up and walk towards his window. Although the view doesn’t stretch as wide as it could, he can see the smoke and the rising flames near Busan’s harbour. The screaming, he only then realises, isn’t just coming from outside. It's within the walls of his own home.
Jimin doesn’t hesitate. He seizes the silver candelabra from his nightstand and leaves his room. With the sound of his rapid heartbeat resonating against his skull, he walks through the empty hallway, following the noise.
Yoonhee bursts through the door that cuts Jimin’s quarters off from the rest of the compound. Her hair, normally neatly tied together, is loose and messy, and her eyes are wild with terror. Her forehead gleams with sweat in the moonlight seeping in through the windows. “Jimin,” she gasps, voice breaking. “Go back to your room! Now!”
“What’s going on? Why is the harbour-”
Jimin doesn’t get the chance to finish his sentence. A nearby, fierce explosion rips through all other noise and knocks both Jimin and Yoonhee of their feet with its force. Jimin drops the candelabra to grab her arms and stabilise them. “Waegu, Jimin! Pirates!” Yoonhee hisses, “We need to hide you. If they find you-”
“Find who?” An unfamiliar voice speaks with its tone fierce and feminine.
Jimin looks into the hallway past Yoonhee and spots the figure emerging from the darkness. He takes a shallow breath to catch the slightest whiff of her scent. Sour, his nose scrunches up. Jimin tries to move Yoonhee aside as gently as he can and releases his hold so he can grab the candelabra by his feet.
“Oh, a little omega,” the alpha muses. In this darkness, Jimin can’t make out her features beyond her hair falling until her shoulders and the shape of her waist accentuated by the thick belt with a gun hanging onto it. “Are you this family’s little gem, hm? Were gold and diamonds not enough?”
“Don’t take a step closer,” Jimin responds as his grips tightens around the hilt of the candelabra. “There’s nothing for you here. I’m no one.”
The alpha cocks her head to a side and Jimin can make out the yellow of her teeth as she smiles. “Is that so? Then why were they all shouting Jimin, save Jimin? You’re gonna tell me that’s another omega in silk and bearing silver?”
“If you lay one finger on him-”
The alpha seizes Yoonhee’s hair and pulls her head back with a rough tug. With the other hand, she reaches for the gun hanging by her hip. “Then what, huh? What’s a worthless old maid like you gonna do?”
“Let her go!” Jimin shrieks and swings the candelabra directly towards the alpha’s head. The force of the collision with her forehead sends tremors of pain through Jimin’s hands and wrists, and he drops the object.
The alpha falls backwards with a groan, both hands reaching for her head. “Fuck, you little bitch,” she hisses. When she retracts her hands, Jimin can make out the dark traces of spilled blood. “You want a fight, omega? Go ahead, come at me.”
Jimin remains still. He knows better than to take on an alpha like her. His gaze flicks between Yoonhee and the alpha and finds himself at loss for what to do. “Just go. Leave us alone. Take all the gold you want.”
“How noble of you. Did you know, though, that a pretty little thing like you will get me far more gold than your family’s savings?”
Large, calloused hands grab Jimin from behind. A scream rips through the air, and Jimin belatedly realises that it's coming from his own throat. He struggles and fights as so many hands that he can’t count grab his arms, shoulders, waist, and upon lifting him, even his ankles. “Let me go!” Jimin screams, thrashing in the iron hold.
He can feel himself getting tossed over someone’s shoulder. Jimin kicks his feet and repeatedly slams his fists against the alpha’s lower back, but it hardly seems to affect them.
“Do I gotta knock him out?” The alpha asks, his voice gruff and clearly male.
“Nah. Don’t damage the goods. Taek, help him out with keeping the omega restrained.”
Large, calloused hands wrap around Jimin’s ankles and force his legs to still. Jimin can’t see anything but the ground and the alpha’s legs, he doesn’t know how Taek and the alpha holding him are keeping him down. What he has deduced with what he knows of pirates, is that the female alpha is their captain.
“I’m gonna scream,” Jimin said, his voice strained. “They’ll recognise me and rescue me. You won't stand a chance.”
The alpha holding him laughs, making Jimin’s body jostle uncomfortably. “How? We locked ‘em up or killed ‘em. No one’s gonna come for you, doll.”
“Take him to the ship,” the captain commanded, “I’ll collect the others. Don’t harm or lose him. I decide what happens to him. No playing with him either.”
“You’re no fun,” one of the alphas says, “None at all. Let’s go then.”
They start walking and with every step Jimin’s tensed stomach starts aching more. He doesn’t stop fighting even though he knows there’s no use. He doesn’t stand a chance against two alphas, but he’s not going to give up, kicking, screaming, and squirming.
Cold air seeps through the thin fabric of Jimin’s nightgown. If he could just break free, he could run and hide. Jimin grew up in these streets, he knew every road, every twist and every turn, up to the smallest nooks of Busan’s buildings.
The smell of smoke and fire is stronger now, and Jimin wonders where the civilians are. Have they all been pulled out of their homes and killed? Did they run outside to investigate, just to be greeted with obscenity and violence? In this position, Jimin can only look at the cobblestones. He can’t look for people or assess the damage, and as much as he wants to scream for help, he can’t let whoever hears risk their life for him. Jimin knows all stories about pirates, heard every tale from the local fishermen. Bloodthirsty monsters fuelled by their lust for gold.
Jimin isn’t made of gold, but he’s old enough to know all too well what these people want from him.
The two alphas are awfully silent. Jimin doesn’t know what he expected from them, but it only makes him feel more distraught. At least they seem to be obedient to their captain, which means they won’t do anything to him. Not that he thinks that whatever the captain has in mind for him will be better.
Through the scent of burning wood and the pirates’ stench, he can smell the sea. It soothes his mind for as far as that’s even possible. Jimin hasn’t quite processed that he’s being kidnapped by ravenous pirates.
The sharp, salty scent becomes stronger with each step and Jimin knows it won’t be long until they’ve reached the harbour. He wriggles again in another futile attempt to escape. “Please let me go. I’m worthless.”
“Nah,” ‘Taek’ says, “If the cap thinks you’re worth all this hassle, you ain’t going nowhere.”
“Maybe it’s a reward for the crew. He’s strugglin’ now, but just wait until he’s in heat.” One large hand rests on Jimin’s ass and gropes his cheek. Mortified, Jimin kicks and squirms with all of his might, but the pirate doesn't budge.
“Kwon! Nasty hands off! Cap said no playing!”
‘Kwon’ groans in complant, but at least he stops groping Jimin.
Jimin’s eyes are stinging with tears that haven’t yet fallen. Every muscle of his body is trembling. If only this was all a bad dream. He squeezes his eyes shut despite the intense panic welling up inside of him. He won’t cry, he won’t show them just how petrified he is.
His eyes remain shut afterwards. He can rely on his nose to identify his location. The stronger the scent of the sea, the closer they are to the harbour, to the pirate’s ship, and he never thought he would dread sensing the ocean.
The amount of footsteps doesn’t change, but the sound does. Wood, Jimin realises, right before the tilt as they’re walking up something. Jimin opens his eyes and immediately notices the water beneath them. They’re boarding the ship.
“Imma put him in a cell. He’s too heavy an’ it’s too much effort holding him back. If cap comes back before I’m done, just tell her.”
Taek releases his hold on Jimin’s ankles, enabling Jimin to kick and thrash more than before, but Kwon’s unrelenting grip on Jimin’s body tightens. They descend down creaking, wooden stairs, further into darkness.
“Be still, doll. I don’t wanna hurt ya.”
Finally, finally, Jimin is set down onto his feet. He’s dizzy, head spinning, and he almost loses balance before Kwon takes hold of his wrists. Jimin tries to look up at him and identify his features, but beyond the fact that he’s two heads taller than Jimin, he can’t distinguish anything.
He tries to tear his arms free, but Kwon doesn’t budge as he guides him backwards. “Now, now. Be good. You’re gonna stay until the crew’s back. ‘m sure they’ll love the sight of you.”
Jimin belatedly notices the iron bars surrounding him. He intends to charge forward and protest, but the cell door falls shut in front of his face and Kwon secures the lock. Jimin curls his fingers around the bars, cold and damaged due to the oxidation, crumbs of rust sticking to his skin upon touch. “Let me out,” he demands, rattling his cage.
“Sorry, doll. Can’t do that,” Kwon laughs, sounding exactly like the opposite of sorry.
He disappears into the darkness, his footsteps heavy on the creaking stairs. Jimin slumps down in defeat. The ship rocks slightly on the waves, as if the sea wants to remind him that its there. The iron bars are damaged and weakened with rust. If only Jimin had received similar training to his older siblings, but they were alphas. Omegas weren’t supposed to be strong or have knowledge on martial arts. Strength made omegas undesirable, and Jimin never had a choice.
His eyes steadily grow accustomed to the surrounding darkness. It looks like this is the only cell and that the rest of the room is used as a storage, judging from all the crates and barrels filling up Jimin’s surroundings. It’s a mess and carries a stench Jimin can’t describe. Something is rotting, he just doesn’t know what.
Above the storage, by the deck, noise erupts. The rest of the pirates and their captain must be back. Jimin crawls to the furthest, darkest corner of his little cell and curls his knees up to his chest. It will be harder for them to lift and move him, and no matter how much they will try to tug, Jimin is determined not to let them take him.
The voices blend together in a cheerful chorus of celebration, making Jimin’s gut twist in disgust. How can one find joy in pillaging and murder? They’re dancing. From here, he can hear each footstep clearly enough and make out a pattern. And he hasn’t even started about the stench. All alphas. Dirty, unhygienic alphas.
Heavy footsteps tread down the wooden stairs. Jimin lifts his gaze to the cell door, towards the tall, broad alpha standing there with keys in his hand. “Missed me?” Kwon taunts with a smirk. Jimin can look at him better now, but he’s far from pleased with the fact now that he can make out his unkept facial hair and the tattoos on his forehead.
The cell door creaks open, but Jimin doesn’t stir. “Don’t you dare lay a finger on me.”
“Or else?” Kwon laughs. He doesn’t seem bothered by Jimin’s position. Although the captain had instructed not to harm him, Kwon is far from gentle as he tugs Jimin up to his feet and throws him over his shoulder as if he weighs nothing. “You gonna beat me up?”
Jimin kicks and thrashes even though he knows that has no effect on Kwon whatsoever. He won’t give up, he won’t let them get away with this easily.
The voices had only just lowered their volume, but once Kwon steps onto the deck with Jimin, they erupt again, cheering at the sight of the omega that complements all other treasure they had stolen.
Kwon puts Jimin back on his feet and takes hold of Jimin’s arms so he still can’t get away, with Jimin’s back pressed to Kwon’s torso. Jimin struggles, but the grip on his arms and shoulders doesn’t give away easily. His gaze flicks through the crowd of pirates, they must be with more than twenty, and they all look evenly disgusting in Jimin’s eyes. With the constant presence of water, one would think taking a bath isn’t so hard.
The captain steps forward, and only now, with his eyes so used to the night’s darkness, does he properly get the chance to look at the alpha. She’s strangely stunning, with her sharp, cat-like eyes and strong jaw. A trail of dried blood runs from her forehead down her temples, and Jimin remembers that he’s the one who inflicted that wound.
“There you are again, little omega.” She approaches Jimin and stops in front of him, crouching slightly to be at eye level with him. “I believe I didn’t get the chance to properly introduce myself last time. My name is Jinyi, captain of the Vengeance.” She straightens her back and steps away from him. “I’ve been thinking about what to do with you. Perhaps I could throw you to my crew as a little reward for their hard work and dedication-”
She falls silence to let her crew cheer. Jimin thinks he’s going to throw up soon.
“Or, I could use your value to our advantage. A pretty and undoubtedly well-trained and pure omega like you will earn us more gold than we could have ever dreamed of on the markets over in Japan. You wouldn’t last long among my crew. With the money we can get for you, we can buy as many luxuries and whores as we like. I figured that’d be the better option.”
“You can’t do that!” Jimin exclaims and tries to tug his arms free. With his heart pounding in panic and his eyes stinging with unspilled tears, he makes the perfect image of terror.
“No?” She looks into Jimin’s eyes and smirks. “Let’s put our little omega to sleep for now. I’m sure this night was exhausting for him.”
Another alpha woman approaches Jimin with a cloth in one hand. She presses it to Jimin’s nose and mouth, and Jimin instinctively holds his breath. He uses the hold on his upper body to his advantage and manages to lift his legs, kicking the alpha directly into her gut and knocking her backwards onto the floor.
“Shit,” Jinyi curses as she watches her crewmember gasp and clutch her stomach. “Do I have to do everything myself here?” She picks up the cloth from where the alpha had dropped it, and unsheathes a dagger by her belt. Without hesitation, she presses the cold blade to Jimin’s throat. “I’d be very careful if I were you, omega.”
“You won’t,” Jimin hisses, “You’d miss out on a lot of money.”
She pulls the blade back, and for a second, Jimin believes he’s victorious. Like lighting, Jinyi slashes the blade over Jimin’s cheek. It’s only a small cut, but it stings and is enough to leave Jimin gasping with shock. She presses the cloth to his nose and mouth and Jimin inhales whatever substance they’ve drenched it in. He struggles and thrashes with the last remaining strength in his trembling muscles as his world fades to black.