Torture.
The perfect word to describe the journey home.
Hendrik decided it would be best to remain in his mortal form for the entire trip, fearful of damaging the fragile body if he adopted his pure state.
The Omega was so thin and vulnerable that he had to convince himself he wouldn't break him if he touched him with even the slightest force.
He hadn't woken up since they left the forest, and he didn't look like he would for a long time either. His wounds seemed deep and painful enough to keep him unconscious for at least a couple more days.
But Hendrik knew, from the increase in the Omega's heart rate and the subtle improvement in his skin color, that the impromptu act to save his life was working.
He knew it too when his legs gave way and his vision blurred, when he had to stop to take a deep breath and stay on his feet.
The Omega had slowly begun to absorb all his vitality. A privilege Hendrik gave him by biting him. As soon as his fangs made contact with the skin, he gave him half his soul without hesitation. Half of his thoughts, his emotions, his spirit, and energy.
And he was taking it all, fighting to stay alive and weakening the Alpha in the process.
We have to stay awake, his wolf reminded him. We can rest when my Omega is safe.
Noticing his sudden exhaustion, Keith had not stopped scolding him for most of their journey, relentlessly reminding him how screwed they would both be when they reached the village and how stupid he had been to act that way.
“You're an idiot,” he continued to complain as he walked beside, always alert in case Hendrik needed support. “I love you, you're like my little brother, but right now I just want to smash your pretty face against a tree.”
Hendrik was slow to respond. struggling to catch his breath as he moved forward.
“I'm sorry for always getting you into my problems.”
It was all he could say, genuinely sorry that his best friend always ended up getting caught up in the same overprotective fatherly sermons that Edward gave them both.
“Don't be stupid,” the wolf snorted. “Obviously I have to be involved in your problems, that's the basis of our friendship.”
The only response he could muster was a small, grateful smile; there was nothing he could say to counter his brother's words.
The rest of the walk passed in heavy silence between them, only the echo of their footsteps and Hendrik's exhausted panting breaking the atmosphere. From time to time, Keith seemed to want to say something out loud, but no words escaped his lips.
“I don't agree with what you did...” he finally said, hurrying to continue before Hendrik dared to interrupt him. “I told you, you're my brother and I love you, but...” He hesitated and, in the middle of a sigh, looked up at the gray sky above their heads before turning back to face him. “Hendrik, you're dying to save a stranger.”
He wasn't dying. It might seem that way, suddenly adopting a cadaverous state, pale and cold, and feeling a sudden chill that was not very common in someone like him.
But he wasn't.
Or, at least, he hoped not.
“He's not a stranger, he's my Omega.”
“Just because you bit him doesn't mean he's your partner, you idiot!” The Alpha's tension escalated along with his tone of voice. Keith was nervous, it was obvious, showing it in that uneasiness that very rarely took over his peaceful scent of vanilla with traces of coffee. Between heavy sighs, he had no choice but to let out a long, silent exhale. “You don't even know his name,” he whispered.
Seeing him so genuinely distraught, Hendrik wanted to promise him that there was nothing to worry about, that both the Omega and himself would be in perfect condition when they returned home.
But he couldn't.
“I'll know it when he wakes up.”
That was all he said, trying to ignore the fact that, as always, Keith was right.
For their bond to be successfully completed, the Omega had to bite him too. Hendrik had to earn his mark, convince him that he was the one to give half his soul to, that they were born to be together.
How the hell was he supposed to do something like that?
He was just beginning to convince himself that his decision had been the right one, that his instincts had forced him to act that way for a reason. He had waited so long for that moment, had created countless absurd scenarios in his mind, dreaming of the instant when he would finally come face to face with his soul mate.
It never crossed his mind that he would find him that way.
What would he say to the Omega when he woke up?
Hi Omega, I marked you and now I'm your Alpha, can you mark me too, please?
Yes, he would certainly end up fucking him off.
However, he knew he needed to do something to end their bond as soon as possible. Hendrik had given everything of himself without expecting anything in return, which was why his body was suffering twice as much from all the changes taking place in his spirit. If he continued like this, very soon the Omega would drain all the vitality from his system.
The deepest part of his instincts needed to be recognized by his other half, urgently.
When the path leading to his home appeared before his eyes, he allowed himself to adopt his pure state, begging that his wolf had enough energy to make it to the edge of the village.
Keith helped him place the inert body on his back, making sure that the Omega would not sway too much with each new stride and that his wounds would not be further aggravated by sudden movements. The wolf's legs could barely drag themselves along, his senses gradually beginning to be blocked by a nascent darkness, becoming useless and making his work even more difficult.
He felt clumsy and confused, moving forward simply on instinct.
You can't give up. Not when you're so close.
With tormented growls at every step and moans that prevented him from hearing Keith's anguished voice trying to sneak into his mind, Hendrik reached the outskirts of the village.
Even in his critical state, it didn't take him long to perceive the familiar scents of the inhabitants, dozens of fragrances that only overwhelmed him until the throbbing in his head became the only thing he could think about.
“They're here! They're alive!” he heard somewhere, too far away to catch his attention. He closed his eyes, his breathing becoming slower and more labored.
“Keith! Hendrik! Are you hurt?!”
One of his front legs gave way, and he could feel his side collide with a hard surface. Surely, he thought, it was Keith helping him stay on his feet.
Keith was always there to take care of him.
“Hendrik?! Hendrik! Bring Edward, now!”
The last thing he noticed before being overcome by the darkness rising behind his pupils was the familiar scent of his father approaching.
We're safe, Omega.
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