"Momma, can I get a snack please!" Avayla asked as she tugged on Seonghwa's hand.

"Sure baby, we will look for something. I need you to be good while we are in here though, ok?" He looked down at his daughter. Her eyes were wide with wonder as she looked around the small market. She just nodded in response and moved closer to him as a group of older kids walked by.

It was a little bit of a sensory overload. Mingi had driven them to the nearest human city, almost two hours away, to find some of the things that Maria needed. There were so many people around, it messed with his senses.

"We don't need much, right?" Seonghwa looked up at Mingi, noticing that he too looked on edge.

"No. Just some herbs and crystals."

"Good. I want to get home as soon as possible." The omega reached down to take his daughter's hand so he knew where she was.

He was impressed by how well she was behaving right now, but the wide eyes on her face told him that her senses were being overloaded too. She would mostly likely be showing signs of her wolf within the year.

They still needed to plan something for her birthday...

"This way." Mingi said, pulling them to the right and down a small alley. He had spotted a small spice shop tucked in the corner.

Stepping inside, Seonghwa knew they'd be able to find most of what they needed. Dried herbs hung form almost every section of the ceiling and there were jars upon jars of dry, ground, and fresh spices.

A kind old lady shuffled up to them and asked how she could help, and Mingi gave her his list. Avayla followed after her, watching with wide eyes as she sorted through everything.

Seonghwa poked around the store, loving the aromas that washed over him. But there was something that he had been wanting to ask Mingi and now that they were alone, he figured he should.

"What's wrong, precious?" Mingi asked, walking over as if he had sensed what Seonghwa was thinking. "I can see it written all over your face, so don't try to hide it."

Taking a deep breath, Seonghwa bit his bottom lip and looked up at his mate. "Why did you do it?"

The sigh that came from Mingi indicated that he knew exactly what Seonghwa was referring to. "Because I needed to know that they were ok. When San said they were locked in this form because of a spell... It made me remember when my father took over my mind and turned me against all of you. I'll never forget the horrible things I said about Wooyoung, or visiting Yeosang and mocking him in his cell..."

Tears started to well up in Mingi's eyes and Seonghwa took his hand to comfort him. The alpha's voice never wavered though.

"I had no idea that I was under a spell either. If anything, I thought my life with you was a lie... That... Being back with Lance and my father was where I belonged. That's why I locked the door. I know it was the foolish thing to do, but I was so scared that they would go after Ava and Theo."

Now Seonghwa turned to pull him into a hug. "You're right, it was foolish... When are you going to learn to talk to me about these things?" He reached up to cup Mingi's chin. "We went through this before with me finding out about you being from Alpha Pack, and again with your father. Mingi, I chose you as my mate. I chose to give you my heart." He fingered the necklace Mingi wore every day with the 'S' and 'Baby Girl' charms on it.

Mingi let out a loud sniff and buried his face in his omega's shoulder. Seonghwa could tell he was fighting so hard to not cry in public. "I'm sorry, Hwa."

The older hummed. "Have I ever told you that I love it when you call me that?"

"No." Mingi said, pulling back to smile at Seonghwa and run his hand through his hair.

"You don't have to be the big tough alpha all the time."

"I'll work on it my love, I promise." The younger said softly.

"Good." Seonghwa tilted his head up to connect their lips, his wolf purring at the contact as Mingi continued to run his hand through the omega's hair.

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After saying a long goodbye to their mates, Hongjoong and San began their journey up to the mountain peaks.

Not being able to communicate with each other didn't make it easy, but at this point in time all they had to focus on was running. Thankfully their wolves had excellent endurance so they could run for hours without getting tired.

Maria had drawn them a rough map that they had stowed away in the pack on Hongjoong's back. It was pretty simple though.

They just had to run to the highest peaks and dig in the snow. It sounded ridiculous, but they had been through stranger.

The higher they traveled, the slower they had to go. The snow was up to their chests and it made maneuvering hard. Several times they would jump up, trying to get on top of the snow, but it wasn't frozen enough to bear their weight yet.

At one point, San whined and yelped when he landed in a drift that swallowed him whole.

Hongjoong dove forward and dug a path out for his fellow alpha, rushing to his side to make sure he was ok.

The soot colored wolf shivered against the wind and rubbed his head against Hongjoong's neck in thanks. Then he turned to leave again, but Hongjoong nipped at his ear to get him to stop.

It was starting to get dark, and the wind was only getting worse.

He jerked his head to the hole that San had made and trotted over to it. Carefully, he started to dig out a little snow cave. It wasn't much, but it was enough to get them out of the wind for the night.

San picked up on what he was doing and ran into the trees, ripping down branches from fir trees to use as additional covering.

Once they were situated, the two alphas curled up together to wait out the cold night.

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Theo squealed and clapped his hands as he sat on Wooyoung's back. The omega turned his head to glance at him and stuck his tongue out before trotting in circles around the living room and kitchen.

Yunho smiled as he watched them. He loved that his son had bonded so quickly with his best friend. It showed that he was a lot smarter than others would probably give him credit for. There was no way you could not trust Wooyoung.

He was the kindest soul Yunho had ever met, and he was so happy to have him home where he belonged.

The small omega had seemed to get a second wind once everyone had said they would help him with the cure. He had been playing with Theo nonstop while they waited for everything to be set in motion.

Yunho sighed when he smelled Jongho enter the room, then closed his eyes when he felt his alpha's hand on his head.

They settled on the couch together and chuckled as Wooyoung made another lap around the room. Theo was laying down now, fisting his fur and giggling.

Are you doing ok? Jongho asked in a private link.

I don't know. I have mixed feelings about everything.

I do too. I didn't think they'd actually find a cure... Jongho chewed on his lip, but then smiled as Wooyoung came into view again. As strange as it may sound to most people, Yunho adored the way Jongho's eyes lit up when he looked at Wooyoung.

It had never bothered him having to share his mate with the omega. He knew Jongho wished he could still show his love for Wooyoung in more ways than just hugs and words, but that was between him and San, and Jongho would never impose.

So Yunho just always made sure to give him extra love when he needed it. Like now, he moved so he was partially sitting in his alpha's lap and he nuzzled his nose against his mating mark.

He felt Jongho purr at the action and his own wolf churned when his alpha pulled him in close.

But they did find it. Yunho said, closing his eyes.

And I'm happy they did. I know it's all Woo has ever wanted. But the fact that it comes with such a high risk.

Yeah... I suppose all we can do is have faith in him. It's his choice to make, as much as we think we can have a say in it sometimes.

Jongho chuckled and pressed his lips against Yunho's forehead. I love you. I feel like I don't tell you that enough.

Yunho felt a wide smile tear across his face. I love you too, Jongho. You're the best thing that has ever happened to me. You and Theo.

Well none of this would have happened if you hadn't stopped to help an injured stranger.

You looked like you needed saving. Yunho said with a smirk. Poor, defenseless alpha.

A low growl came from Jongho's chest as he tightened his grip and moved him so he could nip at his mating mark. Yunho shivered and bit his lip.

A small hand tapped his knee and Yunho instinctively grabbed his son under his arms to pull him into his lap. Theo placed a hand on both his parent's cheeks and snuggled into their embrace.

Jongho shifted, and then the couch jolted. Yunho opened his eyes to see Wooyoung nuzzling the top of his head into Jongho's face while the alpha had one arm wrapped around him. Wooyoung settled down after a moment, laying his head on top of Yunho's legs so it was also resting against Jongho's stomach.

They all let out a collective sigh of relief as they let this moment of peace wash over them.

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Yeosang smiled as he walked through the room and saw his pack huddled on the couch together. They were going to need to savor this moment. If Maria's thoughts on the upcoming spells held any truth to them, they were in for a rough ride.

He worked quickly to prepare some tea for the mated betas and brought it to their room for them.

Maria had been working none stop to decipher the spell books. There were a lot of things in there that could be useful in the future, but their main concern was getting San and Wooyoung back to their normal selves to start with.

Kenneth had gone out and found a small ravine in the mountains that would work for the transformation. There was a cave at the end that they would put the barrier across. The transformation was going to be painful and could take several days according to the book, so the cave would provide shelter for them.

"Thanks honey." Maria said, accepting the tea. "I hope San and Hongjoong get back soon, although I fear they may have to spend the night up there depending on the weather."

"I'm sure they will be ok." Yeosang said, although his heart ached at the thought of his mate sleeping out in the cold. "At least they have each other."

The woman smiled and took his hand. "Yes they do."

"So what happens when they return with this snowbell flower?"

"We will need to keep it in the freezer to keep them cold until it's time to brew the potion. It's a complicated one to make, and it can take almost two months to be completed."

Yeosang hissed at the thought, but Wooyoung had waited this long so he was sure to be ok with waiting longer.

"I know. But thankfully, once it's brewed, it doesn't expire or go bad. And we most likely won't need all the flowers they bring back, which is good. There's no saying how much potion it's going to take." Maria ran a hand through her greying hair.

"I told them to bring back as much as they could, just in case." Kenneth said, placing a comforting hand on his mates shoulder. "Maybe he will be lucky and he won't need much."

"That could be possible." Yeosang said quietly. "He's the toughest little alpha I've ever met."

Maria chuckled. "He'd have to be if he did everything you say he did."

"I watched my pack die when their alpha did on the battlefield. They dropped one by one and I was so worried I would be next. Knowing Hongjoong was out there fighting to protect me was agony. I can't even imagine what Wooyoung when through when he was forced to stay behind. He's been through more pain then any of us, and I wish he didn't have to go through even more... he doesn't deserve it."

"You know," Maria said while squeezing his hand, "I heard something interesting when we were living amongst the humans. They follow what they call 'religions' and one religion has a belief that we are never given more than we can handle. All of our challenges, turmoil, and pain... It's never more than we can personally handle, and it's meant to help us become stronger. I don't know that I personally believe in it, but it seems to fit our little omega perfectly, doesn't it?"

Yeosang smiled. "It does. Thank you, both of you, for being here with us."

"Thank you for having us." Maria said with a wink. "You have made this old beta very happy, dear. Now, how about we do a little exam to make sure baby is ok?"

She carefully placed her hands on Yeosang's stomach. He hummed and relaxed instantly at her touch, enjoying the strange calming feeling the midwife gave him.