Halic sat patiently waiting on the front steps of Sarah and Nathaniel Gagnon's house. He rubbed his hands together anxiously, he hated this part of the alpha role and he'd never get used to these kinds of house calls. This was a particularly hard one to make, Isaac was so young and he was the Gagnon's only child. This was going to crush his parents.

A light breeze ruffled his golden hair and he caught onto Mavis's scent. He turned his head in her direction, finding her and Ivan heading up the path towards him. He'd seen her countless time by now, but in moments like this she became even more enthralling to him. The way the sun caught her fluttering hair, the hint of red across her cheeks from the cold, the way her hips moved as she walked through the snow. His breathing became more erratic. The continuous puffs of milky steam in front of his face coming out more rapid and increasing in volume.

Halic got to his feet once they had reached him, and he immediately sensed some tension between them. Mavis also wouldn't look at either of them.

"What happened?" Halic asked Ivan through their private link.

"We had a disagreement." He said outloud, casting his gaze at Mavis, but she still refused to look at him.

"Let's get this over with." She headed up the steps first.

Halic frowned, noticing Ivan's navy blue jacket around her shoulders. Ivan knocked twice on the door and a few seconds later Nathaniel answered. The fourty-eight year old man's caterpillar brows drew into eachother, as he stared at them confused.

"Alpha Halic, Alpha Ivan, Luna." He nodded his head to show his respect. "What can I do for you?"

"Nathaniel," Ivan adjusted his tone. "May we come in?"

"Of course." Nathaniel moved to the side and allowed them into his home. "Sarah!" He called as he shut the door.

In a matter of minutes she came around the corner and paused when she saw the three of them. "What's going on?"

Halic watched Ivan shove his hands into his jean pockets nervously. "I'm afraid we have some bad news." He met their gaze. "There was an attack this morning. And... your son, Isaac, didn't make it."

All of the color drained from Sarah's face. She began to shriek. Once at first, sharp and short. Then continuely. "No!" She cried as her heart broke. "NO!!! IT CAN'T BE! NOT MY BABY!"

Nathaniel reached for his wife, wrapping his arms around her shaking body. He turned his attention back to Ivan. "Was it a rogue?"

Ivan didn't answer him, to Halic's surprise he glanced at Mavis. Her eyes met his and Halic could see her visibly swallow.

"I'm not really sure what killed your son," she paused. "But I am sure it wasn't a werewolf."

Nathaniel's eye widened mirroring Halic's expression. This was news to him as well. By the grim look on Ivan's face Halic knew this was something he should be extremely worried about.

Nathaniel's arms tightened around his wife as she began to cry hard, his own agony was starting to take over. This proud man, who never showed his emotions was crumbling before them. He let out a sob that hurt Halic's soul. He was grateful to Ivan for taking the lead on this one.

Halic touched Mavis's arm, gaining her attention. He tried to pull her towards the front door, but she pulled her arm out of his grasp. She sighed loudly, turning towards the Gagnon's. "Nothing could ever make this right, but I can promise you this."

Everyone in the room turned to look at her stunned. "I will find what killed your son, and I will kill it."

Goosebumps appeared all over Halic's arms as he realized what she was promising. The hard look on her face told him that she was serious. He hadn't expected this from her. She was obviously still pissed with Ivan, but she was willing to help the pack? She'd been so against anything related to them or the pack, that Halic wasn't sure how to take this new development. Was she changing her mind? In the three in a half months he had known her he hadn't learn much, but what he did know was that she was stubborn. If she gave in on this then maybe there was hope that she would come around to the idea of being their Luna. That made Halic's heart thumb in his chest. The hope that he felt, made his mind race with excitement.

Not only was this a valuable first step in the right direction, but he had seen what she was capable of and he knew her skills would a considerable asset against this threat. His mind then flashed back to that moment he had seen her unconscious in Ivan's arms and his stomach dropped. This also meant she would be putting herself in considerable danger and their was a very high possibility of her getting hurt again. That terrified him more than whatever killed Isaac. If that thing got a hold of her. He squeezed his hands into fists.

"Thank you." Nathaniel's voice cracked.

Halic looked up at him, so deep in his own thoughts, he had forgotten where he was. Nathaniel approached Mavis and gently took hold of her hand.

"Thank you, Luna." Tears ran from his eyes. "Please... kill that... thing," he swallowed. "Before anyone else loses their son."

It felt as if all the oxygen had been sucked out of the room. The atmosphere hung heavy as Nathaniel continued to stare into Mavis eyes. She nodded her head once to answer him, but remained silent. Nathaniel released her hand. "Thank you for coming to tell us personally."

He turned towards his wife. Sarah's cries intensified as she wrapped her arms around her husband once again.

"We are sorry for your loss," Ivan told the couple as he pulled their front door open.

Halic noticed Mavis's far off look as she watched them. He approached her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. He knew how she had to be feeling, watching that couple go through what she was already enduring. She knew their pain better than anyone else. "Let's leave them alone." He whispered into her ear, ushering her to move forward and letting themselves out.

Ivan and Halic paused on the front porch, both watching Mavis with their eyes as she continued to head down the steps in front of them.

"I think we should keep the scouts at home for now and double up on guard duty." Halic waited for Ivan's opinion.

Ivan nodded his head. "I was already thinking the same thing and I already gave the order."

Halic nodded, keeping his main focus on her as she started to slowly walk down the road towards their house. "I'll go back with her."

"I think that would be best. I'll have James and Travis move into the house for a while. We can't be to careful."

"I don't think that's a good idea." Halic finally turned to look at him. "I don't want to put her in harms way."

"Do you think you can stop her?" Ivan met his brother's eyes for a moment before returning to her. "It won't be like last time. We'll protect her."

"How do you know that?" Halic snarled. "We don't even know what this thing is, or how many there are; and you seem to think you can protect her? We can't take that chance."

Ivan growled. "It's not up to you, remember?" Ivan's face dropped, regretting his outburst immediately. He sighed. "Besides, think about it? This is the first time she's shown any interest in the pack. I call that progress." Ivan patted Halic on the shoulder. "I've got things to take care of I'll see you later."

Ivan hurried down the steps. Halic watched him until he disappeared around the corner. He released a long breath out of his nose before he continued down the steps. Halic knew Ivan was right. He had thought the same thing easier. If there was a chance she would come around to the idea of being apart of this pack, then they had to go with it. It was probably the worst way they could possibly go about it, but with Mavis things were never easy. Even though she was the human and he was the monster, it felt like she was the one who needed to be tamed. The universe had given him the most beautiful mate he could ever hope for, but she was willful and way to smart. It was going to take time to wear her down, if that was even possible.

Snow began to fall and he looked up into the sky. A single flake fell onto his cheek. He reached with his hand to wipe it away, but it melted before he could brush it off.

He paused at the bottom of the steps to his house. Nervous to go inside. Part of him hoped, they had been right and she was changing her mind; but he also feared that he had misjudged her. He took in a deep breath and climbed the steps, intending to ask her right now. Halic stomped the snow off his boots before entering the house. He paused in the doorway when he saw Mavis waiting for him. He could see she was deep in thought. Her arms were crossed over her chest and she had yet to take off her boots or Ivan's jacket.

He shut the door, removing his boots before he approached her. "Mavis?" He caught her attention as he removed his coat and tossed it to the floor beside his boots.

"I want to see the body again." She blurted out.

"What?" He frowned. Thinking he hadn't heard her right, but by the intense look in her eyes, he could tell she had somthing she needed to confirm. He sighed, scratching the back of his head. "Why do you want to see his body again?"

"I'm worried, I may have missed something..." Her voice dropped at the end.

Halic stared at her. He had to know. "I don't understand, Mavis. I thought you didn't want anything to do with the pack?"

"I don't." She said coldly. "Nothing has changed, I have no intention of being anyone's Luna."

He swallowed. That stung. "Then what's different about this?"

Her eyes fell to the floor and she clenched her hands into fists. "His parents."

Halic inhaled slowly, he should have not have been so optimistic. She wasn't interested in the pack, or him, or his brother; she wanted to help a couple of grieving parents. He swallowed, trying not to show how much that hurt.

After a few minutes of silence he met her eyes. It wasn't what he desired, but the more he thought about it the more he realized this was still a turning point. Even if she didn't see it, by offering her hand to the Gagnon's, she was helping the pack.

"Okay," he removed Ivan's jacket from her shoulders. "I need to examine the body, anyway. So we will go tomorrow."