The Next Morning....
The palace was not quiet.
The palace was not calm.
The palace was screaming.
Servants were running, guards were tripping over their own sword, and somewhere in the Royal garden, a noble fainted into a koi pond.
Why?
Because there was a levitating, glowing,cosmic wolf in the middle of the courtyard. And it was howling like it had just remembered its 10,000 years of unpaid taxes.
Namjoon, already halfway through his third stress shower of the morning, walking into the throne room with steam in his hair and his crown worn backwards. " Why is it brighter now?! It wasn't this radioactive last night!"
Yoongi, who'd stolen Jimin's cinnamon bun and hadn't blinked in ten minutes, sighed." It's not glowing. It's awakening."
" That's what you said about my emotional arc." Jin muttered, flipping a page in his ' This Might Be A Prophecy ' journal.
" No, seriously. " Yoongi snapped. " That's the seal weakening. The wolf is a sentinel."
" Sentinel of what exactly?" Jimin, flipping down from the chandelier (finally) asked.
Yoongi looked deadpan." Doom. Or brunch. I don't know. I haven't finished my tea yet."
Suddenly __ BOOM!
Hoseok burst into the throne room, green cloak dramatically flapping behind him like he had timed it with wind magic. He was holding burnt toast. "BAD NEWS,"he yelled. " And worse news," he added before anyone could breathe.
Namjoon didn't even flinch. " Lay it on us."
" Bad news : the wolf is speaking in ancient celestial riddles no one can understand."
"And the worse news?" Taehyung asked, picking glitter out of his toast.
Hoseok grinned wider. " I can understand it."
Everyone:"..."
"Okay?" Jungkook said slowly, sipping soup straight from the bowl . " And what's it saying?"
" It says the crown of Eclipse has been found...and must not be worn."
Yoongi froze. " What did you say?"
Hoseok scratched his head." I just said the crown shouldn't be worn __."
" No" Yoongi cut in, standing abruptly. " The crown of Eclipse is cursed, last time someone wore it, time looped so hard we all got turned into turnips for a week.
Taehyung gasped." That's why I hate salad."
"That's why I craved salad for months?" Jimin gasped.
"And who has it now?" Namjoon asked carefully.
Just then a guard skidded into the throne room, panting, pants half-tucked. " Sire...the prince of the neighboring kingdom..." he wheezed. " He.. he's wearing the crown."
"Please tell me he's a warlock."
"No, he said it matches his vibe."
Yoongi stared into the abyss." We're going to die because of aesthetic preferences."
Jin slammed his journal shut."Nope. I am not getting turned into a carrot again. My pores never recovered."
Namjoon shoved his crown on straight. " All right - squad up ! We're going to retrieve the crown of Eclipse, stop this cosmic werewolf crisis and hopefully not become legumes this time ."
Jungkook raised a hand. " Can I be corn?"
"No!" Namjoon barked. " No one's being vegetables!"
Jimin whispered." Wait...do you guys hear a flute?"
Everyone paused.
In the distance, soft flute music echoed through the sky. The glowing wolf began to levitate higher - its eyes rolling back like it was downloading chaos from the universe itself. Then...it sneezed. The sky cracked. A floating slice of toast - no one knew where it came from - drifted upward like a dramatic anime feather. Everyone stared in silence.
Hoseok blinked,".... okay. Now we panic."