It was almost strange how calm your life had been since Eun Na and her coven were taken away by the crones. You were allowed to return to school in time for finals, barely passing some but still managing to do it. Jongdae was nearly always by your side in between classes, but the two of you had found that nice balance where you were still able to have your space and Jongdae still received the attention he craved.

Movie dates at the historic theatre became a weekly tradition for you two. It was your alone time, with the nights spent at your own apartment afterwards. Since winter break had commenced, the house was nearly always full of wolves and mates chatting, fighting, and playing. While you mostly broke the tradition and stayed at the house with Jongdae, your apartment came in handy when all the noise was too much.

You especially enjoyed the sleepy mornings just lying there in bed, staring at each other with heavy eyes that didn’t want to open all the way. There was no rush to make breakfast or worry that someone would come banging on the door for you to hurry up so they could eat. Coffee was sipped on the couch as you snuggled into Jongdae’s side, kept warm by his human space heater ways.

Yes, the world had become a nice balance of noisy, chaos filled days with the wolves and peaceful nights spent with your mate.

However, girls’ nights were some of your favorite moments as well. The five of you were always doing something different when you got together, whether it was movie nights at someone’s apartments, chilling on the patio of a bar (it took you a few times to get comfortable with that particular socializing event), or even the occasional shopping trip. You were rarely ever bought yourself anything, preferring to help the girls find a nice dress for date night or choose between two different (albeit very similar) pairs of jeans like at this very moment.

“So, how are you liking our cult?” Kimberly teased as she shifted through shirts hanging on the rack in front of her.

You rolled your eyes, pulling at the neck of your sweater. The mark had healed into a crescent moon scar like the others. It still itched sometimes, mostly when you wore wool or other scratchy-type clothing.

“I think the more important question,” Hae In chimed in, placing a pair of black jeans against her legs before deciding against them, “is why the heck she’s still practically living in that house?”

Ming frowned. “That’s true. I figured you would have wanted out of there considering your last breakdown over being stuck in the house. I mean, sure, you’re allowed to go shopping now, but that still gets overcrowded.”

You cringed. She was right. But… “There’s a difference between wanting out because you can’t and then choosing to stay in.” You shrugged, letting your attention drift to a plain white blouse. “Besides, we do go out, I just like the idea of living in the woods part of the time. It’s nice.”

In fact, it was beautiful. It snowed for the first time last week and you succeeded in dragging a whiny Jongdae out to play in it before wrapping up in his warmth with a fresh mug of hot chocolate. You could only imagine how Christmas would be.

“And she does still have her apartment,” Ji Yeon pointed out. “Which, according to Minseok, they use quite frequently.”

Your face heated up as the girls giggled. Though they were quite comfortable with… that – often talking about it during girl time - you still preferred your privacy. Plus, that was an absolute exaggeration. You were going to kill Jongdae when you got home.

The five of you finished up the shopping after another hour or so and decided to stop for hot chocolate before heading back. The stop at the café took a little longer than it should have as the five of you were trying to decide if it was worth it to take everyone back hot chocolate or not. Ming wanted to get some for the boys as a treat, but Kimberly insisted that it would get cold on the drive back and she didn’t want to have to carry any of it.

Finally, you spoke up and suggested buying some instant hot chocolate from the grocery store, saving the good kind for yourselves and not telling the boys. That ended the discussion and you all made one more trip to the store, Hae In swiping a bag of marshmallows as well.

Most of the boys were already hanging around the kitchen when you arrived back at the house, watching Kyungsoo cook with hungry eyes. Poor guy. He was always stuck cooking for everyone. Occasionally, Chanyeol or Yixing would help, but those two were easily distracted and would wonder off, one usually to find someone to play with and the other off to find his mate. You wanted to help Kyungsoo out, but you were banned from touching a pan after burning the fried rice one night.

Hae In looked around the room, frowning. “Where’s Baekhyun?”

“He and Sehun went to the post office about two hours ago,” Junmyeon answered from the table after sipping on his coffee. “Apparently they ordered some new ridiculous gadget they insist they need but will forget about in a week or so.”

“I heard that!”

Baekhyun stomped into the kitchen with a box almost as big as him. The much stronger and taller maknae strode in behind him, simply holding a stack of letters in his hand.

“Junmyeon hyung, when was the last time you went and got the mail?” Sehun complained, throwing the stack down on the table in front of the alpha.

Jongdae, apparently only now sensing your presence, came running down the stairs and nearly tackled you to the floor. A laugh escaped you when Jongdae peppered your cheek with kisses as if you’d been gone for a week rather than a few hours. The sound got caught in your throat, however, when your eyes met the sad, lonely look in Kyungsoo’s own gaze. He glanced away quickly, pretending your eyes hadn’t met.

You’d noticed that look before. It was always present in his eyes whenever he stared at any of the mates showing signs of affection. It must have been hard, to be an unmated wolf living in a house with other who had found the one. You hoped that maybe someday soon all the others could be complete as well.

Junmyeon was casually going through the pile of junk mail, tossing it carelessly to the side while Minseok, who sat next to him, carefully restacked and reorganized the envelopes. Near the end of the pile, Junmyeon frowned. Putting down the rest, he held up a small letter, barely the size of his palm. There was no return address in the corner and the paper was an odd, parchment-like brown.

Everyone in the room had stopped talking, eyes trained on whatever it was that had arrived for the alpha.

Slowly, Junmyeon ripped open the envelope and pulled out the folded piece of paper housed inside. As he took in the writing on the paper, his eyes grew and you could visible see his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed.

“Junmyeon,” Chanyeol called out, his voice serious for once, “what is it?”

“It’s a letter from… them,” Junmyeon answered in a hushed tone.

Them? Who–

“It’s a warning,” he continued, his eyes never leaving the letter. “They’ve found them.”

Minseok shook his head, disbelieving whatever it was that you were missing. “You don’t mean that–”

“Yes,” Junmyeon laid down the letter, his eyes filled with worry. “The hybrids have found them.”

Turning your head, you looked to Jongdae, whose eyes were nearly popping out from his skull.

“What are the hybrids?”