ZANNICUS' POV: I groaned, waking up to the shrill sound of my alarm. 'Sweet fiddlesticks, I hate mornings.' I flapped my arm around looking for the dang thing and shut it up by throwing it into the drawer of my bedside table but not before catching a glimpse of the time. Groggily, I sat up, my hair no doubt be looking like a bird's nest. "5:40? Again?" I set my alarm for five twenty but why is it that I always wake up twenty minutes after? 'Ugh, whatever.' Stretching one last time, I drag myself out of bed and trudged to my cramped bathroom, pausing to glance at my cracked mirror and assess my current state: a black and a busted lip that has yet to heal from last night's events. They still hurt. Slowly taking my shirt off, the bruises on my back, stomach and sides no longer hurt and were just beginning to fade into purple-ish blobs. "All this because I was late in serving the pack's dinner last night." I rolled my eyes and divested myself the rest of my clothes and did my morni

After everything that happened this morning, I was glad the room was empty when I came back downstairs. Usually there would be a few stragglers or some skipping their morning runs for an extra hour of rest.'Huh. They must've gone training then.'I was on my way to the living room to start cleaning after finishing in the kitchen only to find Alpha Ryder standing in the middle.Gritting my teeth, I bowed slightly while clenching my fists to stop myself from hurling a fire spear at him. He was strangely quiet so I chanced a glance but jerked back in surprise upon seeing him standing right in front of me.But in one swift movement, too fast even for me, he grabbed me by the neck and hoisted me up. I gasped, scratching at his hand as I couldn't breathe in hopes to release me or even loosen his grip but to no avail. I was on the verge of passing out when he finally decided to let go.I landed with a harsh thud while I coughed and greedily sucked in the air, 'I'm sure a bruise will form in a

ZANNICUS' POV:I woke up right before my alarm went off. I'd set it yesterday to 4:30 because, well, since it's Ronan's birthday and I have a lot to do.The Luna has entrusted me with everything: decorations, food, venue and the like. I rolled out of bed, stretching with a few winces here and there before dashing to my bathroom. I was right when I said that the pain will subside the next day.I managed to catch a glimpse of my bruises and was pleased that majority have healed, just the ones on my sides were left but they are fading.I was busy rubbing a towel on my hair when a knock reverberated through my room. With a small whiff, I knew it who it was as I crossed the room in four strides and smiled upon seeing Seth.'Looks like he's about to go jogging.'He greeted me with one of his sweet smiles, "Morning Zannicus!""Good morning to you too Beta," Seth pouted which made my lips twitch."Aww, come on Zannie. It's just Seth when we're alone."I chuckled, shaking my head as he grinned,

RONAN'S POV:I had no idea how long I've been running but when I returned, the sun was already setting. I spent the whole day in the forest. After my run rage, I rested by a river and I guess I fell asleep. Just before entering the house, I ran behind a tree and changed into the clothes already left there.While I was walking towards the house, I noticed that there was almost no one here. Aside from the pack members that were doing some last minute training on the left side of the house and the omegas in the living room and kitchen, everything was quiet but the houses outside though were lit up."Hello Alpha," The omegas greeted to which I returned with a nod. I walked past the living room heading straight for the stairs when I remembered something. I walked back to the living room and found the carpet cleaned and there were no signs of blood nor lingering scent.'That's good. I wonder how he is. Wait, no.' I released a frustrated sigh before resuming my journey to my room. As soon as

SETH: I arrived at the party the same time Ronan entered. Instead of greeting him, I went and stood under a tree. I'm still mad at him for talking about Zannicus that way. I just don't get it. Zannicus was discovered inside the borders by a patrol when he was a baby. The patrol was shocked but immediately brought newborn Zannicus to Alpha Ryder. However, the moment And Alpha saw the baby, something flashed in our Alpha's eyes but the patrol couldn't decipher what look it was. When Zannie was 7, he was immediately put to work. No one was allowed to converse with him, go near him, look at him or anything at all! Except Theo and the other resident omegas. Why does everyone hate him? Because if Alpha hates him, everyone should too? Because an Alpha's word is to be obeyed and whoever dare question him, they'll be punished? Ryder hates Zannie a lot. He avoided him like a plague or it's as if Zannie killed his cat or something. As a kid, Zannie was often subjected to verbal abuse, Ryd