This Mask of Mine Volume Two

1

I'm going to increase word count per chapter from ~500 to closer to 1,000 so I won't hit cap if I end up writing 200 chapters.

Yoongi's eyes were heavy. His body felt numb—he was hurt. He was being lightly jostled around like he was on a cart, but that was all he could tell.

What happened? Where was he? Why was he injured?

When he tried to think back, his head throbbed and he groaned. The cart slowed to a stop and Yoongi heard footsteps nearing him.

"Are you awake?"

Where was Jimin? This wasn't his scent.

He tried opening his mouth to speak, but his throat was so dry.

"Here," the cart owner said, a pop coming after their words. "Drink slowly."

The back of his head was cupped and the opening of a water skin was pressed to his lips. Not long after, water trickled into Yoongi's mouth. The cart owner wiped his mouth with their sleeve when he finished.

"Do you know what happened? Can you tell me your name?"

Where was Jimin? Yoongi tried blinking his eyes open, but they stayed shut. He needed to heal. He needed to get back to his mate.

"Can you tell me what pack you're from?"

"J—Min—" Yoongi scratched before he slipped back under and passed out.

The cart owner chewed their lip and checked the slowly reddening bandages on Yoongi's stomach. Their impromptu stitches were poor, but were the only thing keeping his insides—well... inside.

"We'll get you to a proper healer soon. Just hold on a little longer."

They rounded the cart and sat back up on the driver's seat, clicking their tongue at their horse.

"Let's go home."
———————————————

Jimin was five months pregnant in high summer when they moved a loom into the cabin. His feet were getting painful to walk on, so Taehyung had offered to build a loom for Jimin to have easy access to. Hoseok and Jungkook were moving furniture around to find a good place for it to go when Jimin said it could replace the dining table and chairs.

"Then the set could go into the cellar," Hoseok nodded. Jimin frowned.

"There isn't a cellar. We have a space in the floors for meats in the pantry, but not a cellar."

"Every cabin has a cellar." Hoseok looked around the floor until he saw the rug. "It's probably under here."

He and Jungkook pushed the coffee table away and rolled up the rug and sure enough, they found a door under it.

"Why did he have it hidden?" Jungkook asked.

Hoseok shrugged. "Maybe he didn't need it. Can we put the table and chairs here?"

Jimin nodded, still frowning. When he was alone before, he couldn't move the table so he couldn't easily dust under the rug. Yoongi had always cleaned when Jimin was at work or with friends, so it did make some sense that he didn't know it was there. Maybe Yoongi didn't use it all that often and didn't say anything about it because there was no need to.

Jungkook lifted the latch and pulled open the door, only to let it go to slam shut at the rush of lavender and sandalwood. His head snapped up to watch Jimin's reaction.

The scent curled around him and the now blank space in his heart where Yoongi had slipped in filled just a little. He was missing his mate, and the scent only reminded him again. The marks they had given each other had faded a month ago and Yoongi's scent was all but gone. The only material thing Jimin had of him was the silver coat, his old clothes, and the cabin. Soon, he'd have his baby too.

"Open it."

"Are you sure?" Hoseok asked softly.

"It's not like he'd be down there. Open it."

Jungkook still hesitated, but he opened the door again. Once more, Yoongi's scent filled the cabin.

The stairs leading down to the cellar looked sturdy and worn—meaning Yoongi had used the cellar often. They lead down into inky shadows and Jimin couldn't see the floor.

"I'll get the candles," Hoseok said, going to the pantry. Jimin stepped onto the first step without one, resting his hand on the baby bump.

"Careful," Jungkook mumbled, watching his cousin carefully before resting the back of the door on the floor.

When Jimin touched the floor, the cool stone chilled his bare feet. He could see the beginning of a shelf on his left, but not where it ended. The ladder creaked behind him and a warm yellow glow spread around Jimin. Hoseok rested a hand on his back and handed him a candle in the other.

There were candle holders on the shelves, so Hoseok went around lighting them so they could see into the cellar. It wasn't as much of a room as it was a rather long hall. The cabin was small, but it did come with a larger yard, so there was space for a larger cellar.

The walls were almost entirely covered with shelves and they were filled with chests, boxes, books, and random scattered items. One wall seemed primarily for storage, with Yoongi's old logs through the years, old shoes, old clothes. The other one was filled with items Jimin was familiar with.

Games, puzzles, dining ware, jewelry, books, the rattle wrapped in silk. Loose papers with plans, drawings, and other scribbles covered any left over cracks. Jimin picked up the rattle and turned it over in his hands as he walked further into the cellar. 

There was a chest filled with furs that Jimin had moved upstairs and a chest filled with logs. He picked one up and flipped through the pages, seeing his name written at least five times on every page. The logs went upstairs as well.

At the end of the cellar was a workbench with a half finished fur coat without a sleeve or buttons. The fur was soft and felt like a kiss against his palms, but the dust in the hairs made Jimin's nose begin to prickle.

He picked up the coat and put it on, one sleeve and no buttons all, trying to fold it close over his stomach, but he was too round with child for the coat to close completely. The omega took in a shaky breath and dabbed at his eyes at the stale scent of his mate on the coat, in the cellar, in every courting gift.

"We don't have to put the table down here," Hoseok said, placing a gentle hand on his back again.

Jimin shook his head and wiped his eyes. "It's okay. We've already ruined his surprise and he's not here to say anything. You can put the set down here."

Hoseok nodded and gave his shoulder a comforting squeeze before starting the way back.

"Hoseok."

He turned back around.

"Can you make space for the door to be accessed easier?"

"Of course."

Jimin squeezed the rattle in his hands, looked around the cellar again, over the drawings and poems he didn't know Yoongi made, and started back up the stairs.