I narrowed my eyes at Connells dull living room, taking in the dark woods and unlit-fireplace. It was like he was the grinch, living in a colorless pit of hell.

"What is wrong with you?" I demanded, crossing my arms as I looked at Connell. He was staring at the same space as I, but with a blank expression. It changed to confusion as he looked at me.

"What?" He asked back, looking over the space. Though it was a clear sunny day, the curtains he had hung up caused a dark shadow to dim the room. The only colorful item he had was a bright blue blanket that he had draped over his spot on the couch- which happened to be mine.

"It's Christmas!" I responded, in a tone that pushed that it was the most obvious thing in the world. Connell furrowed his eyebrows, looking down at me.

Pinching my cheek, he tsked, "It's not Christmas."

I squeezed my eyes shut, smacking away his hand. He chuckled, leaving me in the doorway to go to his kitchen.

I followed him, letting my bag drop to the floor with a slam. Rubbing my cheek, I climbed onto one of his stools.

"Okay, so not Christmas," I admitted scornfully. "Christmas time!"

"And?" he asked, looking through his cabinets for a glass. I frowned, narrowing my eyes at him.

"And," A dramatic pause. "Your house is decorated as though you're going to be executed on the 25th!"

Connell rolled his eyes, handing me a soda. I just stared at him, waiting for a response.

He blinked a few times. "I didn't have any reason to decorate."

I put my hands out, pointing towards myself with big eyes. "Me!" I exclaimed. "You decorate for me!"

He leaned against the counter, his blue eyes meeting mine. I gave him my heartbreaker smile, leaning forward ever so slightly. I could feel him break under my gaze, his wolf pushing him to bend to me.

I loved his wolf, always making him do stuff he doesn't want to do. Dottie tends to have the opposite effect, stopping me from doing stupid stuff. Well, she tries at least.

"Okay fine," He sighed, shaking his head. I grinned, hopping off of my stool.

"Yay," I cheered, clapping my hands. Once I calmed down, I laid out a game plan.

"The most important thing we need to get is a tree," I told him, pulling him by the hand to his living room. He let me pull him along, grumbling underneath his breath.

I pointed towards a lonely corner. "We move the chair, put in the tree there. I'll even decorate it- sort of."

"A tree," he grimaced. "The nearest farm we can go to is 2 towns away."

"What about McGreggors?" I asked. McGreggors were local farm, who bought trees from Northern Virginia to sell.

"Too close, people will be there," He said.

Ah, right. Forgot he was still my English teacher.

"Fine," I said, leaning back. "But we have to go tonight. I have to help with the dance committee all week, absolutely no way to get out of it."

Connell just shrugged, falling back onto his couch with a sigh. I sat next to him, hugging his side.

It was cold in his house, but it was cold everywhere. Not uncomfortably cold though- the good kind of Christmas cold, that you endure because you love the season. When it becomes winter, the fun affect wears off, and you just wish it would all melt away.

We sat on his couch talking for a long time, before he forced me to do my homework. My grade had steadily been going up under his watchful supervision, and him forcing me to do the work.

When it neared six, I finally called my parents to tell them I'd be in a few hours late. They naturally assumed I was working on the dance, and had no problem with it.

Pulling Connell by the hand, I forced him to stand.

"Let's go," I told him, grabbing my coat from my bag. Putting it on, I hurried to his front door, opening it.

"You coming boy?" I asked his husky, Jay, who was tilting his head at me expectantly. He barked happily, running out of the front door before I could stop him.

Connell took his time gathering his thing, his sluggish pace getting on my nerves.

"Come on!" I complained, pulling him away from his closet. He barely grabbed his coat, but followed me wordlessly.

When we got in his car, he cranked it and looked at me. "You're one demanding girl, aren't you?" He asked.

I just smiled, fluttering my eyelashes. He just shook his head and looked away from me, pulling out of his driveway.

The drive to the orchard took about an hour, but it was worth it in the end. The tree farm stuck out like a sore thumb on the dark road we had been driving on. Rows and rows of trees, all under the dim glow of strung-up lights. A small shack was on the side, where you could pay and buy some other things.

When I got out of the car, I was met with cold nipping air. Connell came around to meet me, grabbing my hand. Jay jumped out, running straight towards the trees without a second thought.

We walked towards the small shack first. There was a few rows of items, like peanuts and... well... more peanuts to buy. Most things were notoriously Virginian.

We walked around for a few moments, before going to look at the trees. All of them were different sizes, some ten feet tall, whilst others were small little Charlie Brown esque trees.

My family and I went Christmas tree hunting every year, so I knew the basics of what to look for. Connell looked like he hadn't seen a Christmas tree since he was a kid.

"This one?" He asked, looking at one that was just too big.

Shaking my head, I kept walking, crossing my arms with a shiver. Connell followed me closely, his essence screaming that he didn't want to be there. He resembled a teenage boy on a family vacation.

"This one?" He asked again, pointing to another tree. This time the size was good, but it tilted.

"No," I said, walking away without a second glance. He just sighed, following me.

Jay finally came back to us. Rubbing his ears, I continued looking at the trees. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted one near the back of the row.

I walked towards it, looking at it carefully.

"This one?" He asked hopefully.

I shushed him, kneeling on the wet ground so I could see the underside of the tree. It was healthy, and cut well.

Standing, I brushed off my pants and nodded.

"This one," I told him, taking a few steps back. He just sighed in relief, though I wanted to tell him that he was being dramatic. Considering I was one of the most dramatic humans he probably knew, I think it would be a bit hypocritical.

Connell came to stand next to me, wrapping his arm around my shoulders. I put my head on his chest, looking at the tree we had chosen with a accomplished look.

Breaking the quiet, I looked up at Connell.

"Did your wolves ever figure out what happened down in Louisiana?" I asked Connell. He seemed a little off guard, before he nodded slowly.

"They talked to a few people she came in contact with. Those people said one day she was there, and the next she was gone,"

I scowled. That hadn't helped any.

"But," he continued. "My wolves got a possible lead up towards the north west."

"How?" I asked.

"They're trackers, they have their ways." He just answered, shrugging. In my pack, we didn't have trackers. Only big packs had those, and ours was so small it didn't warrant it.

"So what now?" I asked. It was a question I asked a lot, simply because Connell tended to have the answers.

He stayed quiet, the gears in his mind turning. "Now," He said. "We wait for her to be found, and then we go from there."

It felt so simple, but there was so much more underneath. I still had yet to tell my parents, though Connell was poking me to every second.

My mother had mentioned that she was thinking of tightening the pack up. We had been more a town with werewolves, then a pack in a town. My mother seemed determined to change that.

I looked at the tree one last time, before nodding. "Let's go," I said firmly. We had a lot of work to do.

Authors Note

This one is a bit awkward, sorry bout that! 

-Elle Kay