ANYA :

The look in his eyes was completely unidentifiable, all that could be seen was a fire burning in them.

Anya tried to let go of the knife but his strong fingers covered her hands completely. His grip on her remained firm, so as to not hurt her, but to not let her drop the knife.

Anya struggled a bit, trying to withdraw, but Taehyung kept looking at her with his hooded gaze, his body as still as a statue, while the movement caused the tip of the knife to cause more damage, the blood stream flowing down his chest getting thicker.

Anya stopped the moment she realized that.

Tae's eyes burned even more with what he thought was her accepting defeat. He stepped closer, the tip digging deeper in his chest.

The darkness of the night wrapped around them, the stillness of it providing the illusion of an intimate space where only the two of them existed.

"Mark me Master." His silken voice was temptation itself.

The heat radiating from the Tiger's naked body gently touched her exposed skin, his tall body pressing closer to her, his breath, intimate on her forehead.

Taehyung licked his lips once, leaving his lips glossy, as he said again, "Mark me."

"Taehyung, I still have not decided what name I should give you." Anya quietly said.

He stopped for a bit, but then answered, "Write Taehyung, or Tae. It does not matter."

"So the significance of the mark does not matter to you. Only the physical mark itself does?" In a quiet voice, the question exploded between them both.

Taehyung stopped completely. "No." he denied.

"The significance of it is me accepting you for only myself, of making a vow to you. Of engraving the identity that I will forever abide by, choosing to completely erase your past full of pain from the future I will give you. Does the name truly not matter Taehyung?" her soothing voice reached him.

His grip on her relaxed and as quick as lightening, Anya threw the knife towards the sink.

The problem was, the man before her was no meek subjugated slave. He was no longer a submissive hybrid, but a natural predator, a dark being who just happened to be bonded to her.

He had relaxed his grip understanding her reason, but Anya found out, it did not mean that the matter was over. Far from it.

Tae easily caught the knife from its blade, and twirled it around in his hand, his gaze locked on the spinning sharpness reflecting the moonlight when it caught it.

His aura had darkened, his presence had in an instant, become intimidating.

Anya still sat on the counter, in her black cami and shorts, hair completely unbound, while the Tae's dark frame remained standing tall between her parted legs, his dark hair hiding his eyes.

Anya observed her wild cat, she bent her head to watch him fully.

Something was wrong with him. Something was bothering him, pinching him. That was the only reason why he was behaving this out of his character. No matter how much of his true self he unlocked, his bond to her was too strong in its force to let him change his persona so much around her, save for circumstances in which it could be explained.

She needed to understand and address the issue, and that too quickly, because two things had become extremely clear

One: Tae would not be voluntarily sharing whatever it was that caused him to transform and then remain away from his pack, who were sleeping together upstairs, to come sit quietly in the darkness of the living room where he knew no one would be coming.

Two: he would not be stopping anytime soon. And more the time passed, Anya knew, he would be getting more unpredictable. Especially if she let him go with it being unresolved.

"Taehyung?" Anya shifted a bit closer to him and placed her palm on his chest. His skin was burning hot.

Anya's eyebrows wrinkled. Tae's heat was weeks away, and he showed no other signs that he was sick.

She reached out immediately to touch his forehead.

Equally hot.

"Taehyung?" her voice held alarm now.

"When will decide a name for me?" he kept twirling the blade as he asked the question.

Anya ignored it, "Taehyung, what is wrong with you?" she was too concerned now, trying to push herself off the counter, to stand on the floor.

Tae took a step forward flush against the counter. His hand shot out to hold her waist, pinning her to where she was, making her immobile.

Knife in one hand, blood streaming down his taut muscles of his chest, dribbling down every single bump of his abs, he raised his burning gaze to her. His expression made her freeze.

It felt like the wild animal was looking back at her. Even in the body of a human, his gaze was that of a hungry Tiger, devoid of any meekness, no sign of any obedience. No recognition of submission.

Anya swallowed heavily. The heat of his lust was burning her with its intensity. The marble of the counter heated against her exposed thighs.

Taehyung leaned down towards her, his scent of coffee and musk making her dizzy.

His eyes kept himself engaged with hers while he slowly came to her level. With a dark look, he roughly licked her lips with his tongue, swiping at it leisurely. Gathering her taste in his palette.

Involuntarily, Anya licked her lips at the same time.

Their tongues touched each other. For but a moment.

A feral growl came from within his chest as Taehyung smashed his lips on hers, forcing it open to roughly tangle his taste with hers.

The kiss was rough and hard.

The kiss, was desperate.

His hand reached behind her to cup her soft bum and pull her forward. His chest mashed with her breasts, staining her fair skin with the scarlet of his passion, smudging the blood on her.

He angled his mouth to better taste her, letting go of the knife which clattered uselessly to the floor, to hold her chin firmly.

He kissed like a dying man wanting water. He kissed her like she was that element.

His rough kiss forced her back. His teeth biting on her soft lips, then thickly licking her tender flesh.

Taehyung groaned into her mouth as he deepened the kiss further, shifting his hands from her hips, to press it to the bare skin of her back, under her cami, trying to get her fused to him.

A shiver went through his body when he squeezed her, his tongue frantic in its craving for her. Taehyung's breaths became rapid, as his length became impossibly hard, grinding himself desperately in her softness.

He was a whirlpool of molten desire, his epicentre, Anya.

Anya wanted to withdraw.

She needed him to stop.

Taehyung's body felt like a burning flame, driving his heat higher. Her concern for him, her love for him did not allow her to give into the ardour he was creating in her.

Anya tried to push back on him. But the more she pushed, the more he got determined.

Taehyung swiftly lifted her up and strode out of the kitchen.

His lips never parted from hers, his desire did not cease.

Anya was disoriented from the movement. All she could feel was the unrelenting crush of his hard body on her soft frame. All she could feel was the heat of his iron embrace, keeping her locked and close to himself.

All she could do, was let his hunger spiral out of control, as his tongue entered and retreated from her mouth, mimicking the age old dance of passion.

She felt herself being lowered on the sofa of the pit, Taehyung's heavy body on the way to descend on her, to pin her down completely as his lust raged wild.

She needed to stop him. Now.

She swiftly placed a well aimed jab on the spot at the base of his neck, while simultaneously pressing down hard on a spot on the other side of his neck. Immediately, Taehyung became stiff, falling head first on the sofa as she swiftly slid out under him.

Never thought i will be using my knowledge of pressure points of my martial arts on my own hybrid.

Anya panted hard. Taking a moment to grasp all that had transpired within minutes, she calmed herself down.

She stood up to see Taehyung's naked frame lying of the sofa, not moving. His flawless skin was illuminated by the single beam of moonlight flowing In through the parted drapes of her windows.

"Tae . . ." she regrated what she had to do.

Anya sat down on the floor in front of the sofa, and pressed hard on a point on the back of his neck. Instantly, it felt as if life kissed his body again. Violently, her Tiger, started coughing while trying to pick himself up from his position.

"No. Shhh. Shhhh . . ." she gentled him, running her hand down his back. Stroking him slowly, "Lie down." She kept up the soothing caress.

His body was still hot, perspiration gathered down his back. Taehyung let out a mournful moan and gave up on sitting.

He hid his face in his forearms, his body facing down in the sofa, as he breathed in harshly, trying to calm his libido. His body was wracked in quivers.

Anya reached for the throw she kept on her couch, and covered his naked body with it. Then she resumed her seat in front of him again, and continued stroking his back rhythmically over the throw.

As the night once again became quiet, the beautiful girl started singing a melodic song, her voice enchanting and light in the consuming night time, her caresses gentle and adoring on her wild Hybrid, her comfort, his safe haven.

The songs blended into others, while his breathing slowed down. The melody never stopped, as the flames of his lust died down to embers, his body, returning back to normal.

The Tiger remained still as a statue, as he quietly soaked in the blatant love, he felt from the person who ruled the central position of his universe. He lay down to hear her angelic lullaby, embracing him so intimately in its safety, in its concern. He soaked in her silent promise of being there, of never leaving him alone.

Tears spilled from his vulnerable eyes in an unstoppable cascade, as it wet his face and glided down his forearms.

Taehyung tightened his arms around his face, making his head go deeper in them, as in a choked, broken voice he asked,

"Why don't you love me as the others? You should love me just like the others."

His voice was tortured, drawn from the very depth of his being, hurt and insecure while submerged in an innocence of a small child as he framed the question in a simplicity of a pure soul.

This was the issue that twisted him.

This was raw wound he kept hidden, making it fester, right from around the time he was bought.

This, was his poison.

Anya took a huge breath and rapidly blinked while she never stopped her song, never stopped her loving strokes. She understood him. Honestly, she had been afraid of this.

Right from the very beginning, Taehyung had been different. Even when he did not talk much with her, his eyes remained glued to her every movement.

He worshipped her from afar. He did all he could dare to.

For some reason, he seemed almost afraid to come close to her, but he had adored her from distance.

His eyes held a naked yearning, a naked longing for her approval. For her affection. But his conditioning had held him aback.

When she had given any command, that became his new religion.

Back at the cells, his punishment to the guards who had tortured them did not have one iota of revenge behind it. He never even felt any disgrace from the past the guards had inflicted.

It was truly her wish that had turned him into an unforgiving, unrelentingly cold person. It was the insult to her wish of them not being touched that had infuriated him.

Taehyung thought only of her.

The time when he held back from her, affected him when he finally became more open. By the time he had come out of his shell, his packmates had all become more possessive in their gestures with her. Had become more free with their affections.

Even Jungkook did not hold back from touching her however he wanted to. To come seek her for her tenderness. To play with her, or hold her.

On top of that, Tae kept observing the way Jimin unashamedly stuck by her side, the way Jin and Yoongi's raw desire openly made itself known to her, how Hobi's devotion remained firm, how Joon's silent communication entrenched deeper with every encounter.

Worse of it all, how she accepted it all without any hesitation, letting them believe in the right they had on her.

Taehyung was side lined in it all.

He kept observing it, wanting to join in, wanting to know that his place in her life was equally as close as the rest, but the baby did not know how to approach her.

The shy innocent Tiger kept his raging love contained, his devotion, admiration of her suffocating himself in its intensity, due to his inability to express them.

He was clueless to what he could do to get her attention.

So he resorted to the thing that would pacify himself, make him belief that what he feared was not true. He tried the only way he could express himself.

His emotions made him separate himself from the pack, to gloomily contemplate on The Mark, when she came down.

All his insecurities, all his anguish, all his love burst forth, taking the shape of an unquenchable passion that he could not control. A dangerous passion, that was not based on love, but on vulnerability.

Its my fault. I should not have made him feel so alienated. He could not even cry in front of his pack, his emotional pain having no outlet, turned on to himself.

"Love me like the others too." His anguished voice was muffled with the weight of his tears.

"Love me too. I need you." He brokenly whispered as he broke down. He sobbed hard, the agony from the rejection so much more acute than any physical torment he had been subjected to.

Anya lost the fight against her tears. They fell down freely at his voice.

Her mighty Tiger crying like a lost boy, begging for love.

"Tae . . ." she whispered, bending down to kiss his nape. Soothing his hair, softly rubbing his twitching ears.

"I pro-promise to love you so much more fiercely too. I will be your friend, your lover." His thick, pained voice butchered her. His words making her heart bleed.

"Taehyung," she whispered again, not bothering to disguise her torment, "Taehyung, look at me." She coaxed him.

He resisted, but then slowly turned to her.

His face was slightly pink, while his nose was red. His eyes swollen and awash with tears, his lids sparking from the droplets. His mouth was parted as it quivered helplessly.

His expression, devastatingly open and defenceless.

"My Tae . . ." Anya reached down to press a kiss on those sweet lips. Kissing him softly to soothe him. To comfort him.

She drew back to tenderly wipe his tears.

Tae's sobs had calmed down enough for him to keep looking at her with his heart in his eyes.

Anya enveloped him in a hug, gathering his head and shoulders to lean in her embrace as she rested her chin on his hair.

"I love you Taehyung. Just as much as I love them." She said in a whisper, "you are as important to me as my heart is. I have never differentiated between any of you. I was just giving you space to become comfortable. I apologise for making you feel like you were any less for me. Don't for a second think that you are any less adored than anyone in the pack. I love you."

A few seconds passed by as the two of them remained that way in the dark living room, with the rest of the house asleep. The wind made a sound as it blew across the night, the drapes fluttering in a dance coaxed by it, but the rest of the world around them shrouded itself in a void.

A sniffle, "Just as much as Jiminie?" he asked in a small voice.

Anya smiled. "Just as much as Jiminie."

"I can touch you whenever I like?"

A nod.

A beat of silence passed.

"Can I kiss you again like tonight?"

"Yes."

The warm embrace continued, both of them deriving comfort from one another.

"You will Mark me?"

"I will. I promise."

"I will grow to be fiercer than any Hybrid you have known. I will make you proud of me." A note of determination steeled his voice. "I'll shed this self."

Nuzzling his neck, Anya brushed his hair with her nose, softly giving him the physical comfort he craved, "I am already proud of you."

"Then I will make you even more so. I will be lethal, Master. I will be the fear in everyone's eyes. But I will always be just yours. No one will touch me. I promise."

Anya smiled again. "I believe you." It was crazy how Taehyung could be so dangerously seductive, his appeal so intense that he could become the personification of dark passion itself, and in the next instant, be as innocent and childlike as a pure soul, discovering the joys of life for the first time.

"Sing for me?" the voice was small, the silent, tentative possessiveness in it, loud.

And so she sang.

The night lengthened in its course for the allotted time while the girl and the hybrid remained together, intimately bonded emotionally, on the couch.

Her song slowly faded from her lips as the wings of sleep claimed her for its own when the Hybrid lifted her gently to lay her down beside himself of the couch. Securing her in his embrace, her head on his chest.

"No one will ever take you from me. No one will be able to touch you." Taehyung's dark intention whispered across the air like an oath while he now stroked her back lightly, "I promise you Master, I will give the word Danger a new meaning with the way I will evolve. You will only ever be ours."

Saying so, the Hybrid closed his eyes, the light sheet keeping both of them warm, while he welcomed sleep which was necessary for the determination, he established in himself for the training, starting tomorrow.

As both of them lost their awareness of their surroundings after succumbing to the land of dreams, two dark figures stirred from above on the floor overlooking the room.

Both had kept a silent watch over what had transpired.

"His imprinting started tonight." Yoongi's dark voice was deep as it was quiet.

"It was inevitable." Seokjin's silent gaze was still fixed on the two people who were part of his whole world.

A deep breath came from behind him as Yoongi moved closer to the banister to look down. "Should we tell her about the snakes?"

Jin shook his head.

Both of them lingered, their breathing quiet, their gazes sharp.

"I'll kill for her." The statement was said simply.

Seokjin turned his head slightly to look at Yoongi who stood calmly, having delivered the savagely deadly intent.

Looking back at her Seokjin nodded. "I will too."

A silence prevailed between the most dangerous Hybrid among them all, their burning violent love for her, making them the most vicious among the pack.

The pack knew the extent of their imprinting. Knew of the limits which were crossed when it came to their dark love.

They all were slowly approaching that line. But they knew how far gone both Yoongi and Jin were.

Especially after the meeting Jin had called between them. They agreed to keep it a secret from their Master. The depth of the Eagle and Jaguar's affections, shocking even to them.

"We will have to push hard past thee training she has planned." Yoongi murmured.

Seokjin nodded, his eyes dark, as a smirk twisted his lips, "We all will. Just like Taehyung said. The word Danger will have a new definition very soon. We will become far beyond what she expected us to be."

With one last glance, the Eagle and the Jaguar turned around to go in their room.

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

ANYA :

Anya sighed for the millionth time in the afternoon.

They had all completed lunch just a few minutes back. They had shifted from the pit to one of the receiving rooms adjoining the indoor pool house.

A pillow flew in front of her, hitting its intended target judging by the 'Thwack' followed by expletive muttered. Ah must have been Jin.

She sighed again.

Today, had not gone how she had thought it would go. Which was an understatement in itself.

All had started well. She had woken up snuggled with a deeply asleep Taehyung, whose arms had been securely fastened around her, his legs thrown over her thighs, while her head was nuzzled in his neck.

The feeling of waking up with someone, someone whose embrace even in his sleep made her feel cherished, was something that she experienced that morning. It was wonderful. It was addictive.

With a smile on her face she had started her routine. Her hybrids had all woken up and came down with their hearty appetites for the promised breakfast.

All of them seemed to be in good spirits.

The had devoured the rice, spicy duck and broth and eggs. Kookie and Jin had both asked for extra, happily inhaling that amount as well.

Then she had conferred with Ari about calling Guk to check on them in the house, instead of taking them to the clinic. Ari had also agreed that it was better that way, since exposure to other hybrids at this stage would be a bit unbalancing for them.

As they had been subjected to all forms of medical test including Xrays a day before the auction, the examination could be easily carried out in the house.

Her hybrids had been happy about it, not having to leave home. They had gone out to the grounds, talking to her security, and exploring the estates when the doctor had arrived.

Seo in Guk was someone she had met during her university days. He was brilliant, just like her, getting a double majors in biochemistry and hybrid medicine at the same time. His mind was spectacular and his ability to understand, manipulate and control genome, extraordinary.

Although he was 6 years older than her, their odd friendship just, clicked.

His sense of humour was weird, something only she could get, while her odd standoffish ways in those days never bothered him. His father had been in a crucial position as the PA of her father, the most trusted position in the entire time Anya's father had expanded the business in.

They had naturally formed a bond, a trust throughout the college years that was impossible to break. When it was time for him to get hired, he point blank refused to get entangled in the sector of hybrid production or their training, begging Anya to help him out.

With time, Anya helped him open his own clinic, complete with a team of loyal fellow doctors and nurses, who wanted to make a change in the world, wanted to support the hybrids.

With her backing and the contract associating herself with his clinic, the politicians and naysayers stayed away, giving him the space needed to let his clinic prosper, soon becoming known worldwide for its exemplary services and being hybrid friendly.

But that was not all that he did. Guk also was a part of her core group. His ability to extract information from both people and the digital world at par with Suhan. Added on that, Guk's experiments on different substances, using his knowledge about biochem, was deadly.

He truly was a Mad Genius, able to make medicine, or poison for anyone.

Anya also knew, that the tall man, adored her.

Suhan had often pointed that out.

But they both knew that she was someone, he could never handle. Her ways, her personality, her habits, her traits way too much for him to support. She was a bit beyond his league, and he knew it.

That never became a bone of contention for him. His friendship with her, his cornerstone.

But.

There came in the huge BUT.

She never took into account that Guk's affection for her, or the visible easy friendship of years would be extremely apparent in front of her Hybrids.

Her very possessive hybrids.

Lord knows why that never occurred to her!

As soon as the pack entered the room where she and Guk were sitting, laughing about something random, they all stilled. Their noses flaring as they scented the air, each of their eyes narrowing.

Just thinking back on it caused Anya to give an involuntary groan of sheer frustration. That was the point when things just slid . . . sideways.

Guk had turned around and given them a cheerful Hi as a greeting, hoping for a shy acknowledgement.

What had greeted him, was a pure chilly silence, the temperature of the room dropping to below freezing as had his smile.

Hoping to defuse the tension, Anya had walked over to properly introduce them to Guk.

Once within her Hybrid's reach, Jimin had wasted no time in banding a hand around her waist, pulling her to him to rest his chin on her shoulder, his eyes never leaving Guk.

"I am a Cobra hybrid." Jimin's voice had been icily precise as he directed his unnatural eyes towards the poor doctor. "I bite."

At that point, Anya had sighed for the first time. There was no way that visit would be going smoothly. At all.

Not to mention the uncontrollable giggles coming in a constant stream from Arissa and Peter, who had graciously offered to assist.

More like come to enjoy the show!

In her entire life, she had never seen her poor friend this terrified.

Her hybrids had positively terrorized him.

The entire examination, their stares never shifted from him. Out of place, completely unnecessary growls were a common noise. Each made sure to inform him of which breed of species they belonged too.

Whenever Guk came close for a general check up, her hybrids made sure to let him know about their feelings for him with the death glare they gave, the arms they flexed.

Hoseok even helpfully pointed out to him of his Python breed, right when Guk had started measuring their grasp power. He had swiftly let go of Hobi to land on his ass, trying to get away from his reach.

Anya had still tried to calm things down. She had smilingly told him, "They are completely harmless Guk. Stop fearing them."

Yoongi and Jungkook had both come up behind her to give him a look that could shrivel up the dead.

"Yes, we are completely harmless." Yoongi's eyes were narrowed, his deep voice emitting a lethal growl as he said it.

"So don't fear us." Jungkook's dark voice was accompanied with him cracking his knuckles and his neck, both actions yielding fearsome sounds, making Guk go pale.

Anya had closed her eyes at that. She just gave up.

Guk was intelligent enough to understand that the bond they shared was deeply entrenched. He was also experienced enough to as one crucial question.

"What Codes are you?"

"Why? Blue of course." Jimin told him pleasantly, while his dark expression and eyes made his lie blaringly obvious.

Anya hid a smile. When Guk had turned to her she had just shrugged, "Not Blue, obviously." Was all that she had offered.

Seo in Guk had understood the implications immediately. He paled even further while he said to her, "If I die by their hands, I will haunt you for all eternity to come. And remember, I'll haunt you even in your bathroom!" he had muttered.

Peter had been openly enjoying the interactions, often times giving Yoongi and Jimin a thumbs up. Encouraging those rascals even further, to which both of them had grinned and winked back.

The time for giving them their heat shots were even more tensed. Taehyung had been following the doctor all day, keeping himself one step behind him. His presence was acutely magnified, especially with the blank look and cruel smirk he had on his face.

When Guk had tried to ask him to come to his front, Taehyung had simply said, "I like to pounce from the back."

Anya had gritted her teeth at that. That Tiger was just asking for his ear to be pulled.

When Guk had slotted his injection for Yoongi, he had asked in a very friendly manner, "Don't you want to see our animal forms?"

Yep. That was when Guk had just rushed through the whole process, working with a speed she had not seen since the college days.

He had rapidly given the shots and then taken the necessary blood samples for testing.

"I'll come back when they have warmed up to me better." He had parted with a rueful smile.

Once he had gone, the entire demeanour of the pack had drastically changed. After having their lunch, the discussion began.

"Did you see how afraid he was of me?" Jimin giggled.

"Of you? Did you see him when I said I was a Python? He fell back." Hobi laughed out loud.

"Oh please. He was the most afraid of me." Yoongi closed his eyes as he sat back on the sofa.

"Of you? For what? All you did was glare at him like a toothless old man who cannot speak for the fear of spitting his false teeth out." Jin scoffed

Yoongi's eyes popped open, stunned, "What the hell? Do you know his heart was going a mile a minute when he was near me!"

"Oh please hyung, that was because I was behind him." Taehyung swiped a bottle from a nearby table to drink from it thirstily. He wiped his mouth and spoke again, "You really looked like a helpless animal unable to talk so resorting to blankly staring."

"Hah! As if you are one to talk Mr. 'I like to pounce from the back' what kind of a lame ass statement is that?" Joonie imitated Tae perfectly, mocking him.

"Hang on! Wait? Do you not know the power of silence?"

"Lame? Lame?? It was better than you at least!! You did not speak at all!"

"That's cuz there was no need to. You Buffoons were overacting WAYY too much already!" Joon shouted back

"WHICH is why I was maintaining my silence! It has power! It is called the dignified way of instilling fear! Something you guys would not know of! I was-- OOf" a pillow hit Yoongi smack dab on his face.

"Now you start jabbering. Where is your 'Power of silence' now?" Jimin taunted as he launched yet another pillow at him.

Letting out a growl, Yoongi threw the pillow back while saying, "Watch out you talking rope! Once you transform, it wont be hard for me to slurp you up as an uncooked noodle!"

Hobi skilfully dodged a pillow as he reached for the jug of freshly squeezed orange juice Ari had delivered. He poured a glass of it and then turned to Jungkook, "Its delicious, want some?"

Jungkook's eyes shone at that, as he carelessly tossed a pillow at a hotly ranting Taehyung, who lost his balance with the force of it smacking him on his face.

He looked at Jin, who was laughing at Yoongi and Joon and misunderstood him to be the one who hit him. And so, he balled up the pillow and aimed it at the Eagle with all his force.

One second Jin was laughing hysterically at his brothers and in the next instant, got massively slapped by the feather filled square object.

Meanwhile Jungkook trotted over to taste the juice, smiling widely at Hobi as he exclaimed, "This is Delicious Hyung!"

Nodding saintly, Hobi pored more of it in his young brother's glass.

Which brought them back to the moment Anya started.

"ENOUGH!"

The room went to a complete standstill.

"Do you know he is one of the best Hybrid doctors available? He came to personally see you. He also happens to be one of the very few people in the world that you can trust. You guys scared him so much. Poor him just came to help you. Have you guys got no shame?" Anya scolded them soundly.

All the hybrids except Hobi and Jungkook hung their heads, while the duo kept happily slurping on the refreshingly cool beverage, nodding their head piously at her speech, innocently blinking up at her as if they had no part in it themselves.

"But. . ." Joonie's tentative voice reached her. She looked at him to see him make a Oh-So-Virtuous face at her, "At least you admitted we scared him. See? For slaves, we improved!" his voice gaining strength with ever passing word, he continued in a convincing tone, "that is what we are so excited about." He turned to his packmates, "Aren't we?"

Extremely innocent nods of agreement.

Even from the Tiger and Eagle currently on the ground on which they were wrestling a few moments ago.

"Uh huh." Anya raised one brow at them, her droll voice ringing with the dry sarcasm, "I so believe you."

S L U R P !

Every head turned to the Python and Panther, very taken with the orange juice.

"I want some too!" Taehyung lifted himself from the ground to amble towards them.

"Get me one glass!" Yoongi said from his seat.

"A total old man." Jin muttered as he hurried to the jug too.

"Hey!"

Arissa thankfully brought in another jug.

My endearing hybrids.

Anya smiled at the sight of them clustering around the tray, bickering among themselves about who should get what amount.

She turned around to reach for her phone to abruptly come face to face with an Angelic man sitting extremely close to her side, smiling at her.

"So . . ." Jimin said, "Your brother comes home today, tell us about him."

Oh wow. Suhan. Crap.

Anya sighed.

Today was going to be a long day.

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

ANYA :

"So you will just be telling us about the training we will go through? Not do them?" Joon asked.

"I don't think going into it blindly is going to be conductive. That rings too much of obeying blindly without thinking for yourself. You know I hate that kind of lifestyle. So yes. Your trainings will cover different fields, it will be extensive. So I wanted to take this day to just inform you of all that you will be learning."

They were sitting on the porch, enjoying the afternoon scented with wild flowers, a little to the side of Suhan's estate.

"Are you reading the files I gave you?" Anya questioned while drinking her iced tea.

A nod from Joon. "Me and Yoongi hyung are going through it first. Will pass it to the others after that."

"Wait, were we not talking about training? Like, fighting and stuff?" Jungkook interrupted.

Anya looked down at her lap where the panther was currently resting, looking up at her inquisitively.

She softly rubbed his delicate ears, "I am not training you to become bodyguards Kookie. . . yes, martial arts will be included, more than just fighting, but," she looked around at everyone, "Do you think people fear me because I can physically fight them off?"

"Then?" Jin asked, "What have you planned?"

She smiled, "Intelligence, presence of mind, ability to judge someone's character in first glance, ability to read them, their desires, knowing about them, to play the field you are in, when to bluff and when to not, these are the things that are crucial."

Jimin straightened from the post he was leaning on. "That can't be taught, can it? How can you train anyone in those?"

"But you already have the potential Jimin. And yes, if you have potential then you CAN be trained. Or taught."

"Okay, but how?" Jimin still persisted.

"Knowledge. That's the start." Joon answered him, leaning over to casually pick up the dry fruits in front of him.

Anya nodded, still petting Jungkook, "Yep. Books. You will start there. Then, real life situations, then, observations."

"What?" Tae asked her.

"The people around you Tae, the security, the staff. Observed them, try to read them. But not now, not unless I show you how. For now, you will start with fairy tales and aesop's fables."

"Children books?" Yoongi asked curiously.

"Oh Yoongi . . ." Anya chuckled, "many life lessons are learned from it. You need to start from the basics. Just, trust me."

Gently, she lifted Kook's head, then stood up to go to the banister, staring up at the empty fields her brother preferred.

"I talked to my Uncle, he will meet you after 3 months. Till then, his most trusted men will teach you how to fight, how to move, which exercises to incorporate in your life. But that will be the extent of their involvement. Even though I trust them, they will always be monitored by Peter and Jackson. Make sure to keep your guard up at all times too."

The wind blew over, the windchimes making a sweet melody on the bright sunny day.

"The rest will be handled by me, or Peter. How to sharpen your instinct in your animal form, how to hunt, endurance, discipline while being in a situation out of your control. I will need you to openly trust and follow Peter on this."

Anya turned around to face them, her blue pretty sundress fluttering in the breeze, wisps of hair escaping from her long braid, gently kissing her cheeks while she leaned back and rested her elbows on the railing.

"The aspect of your mind training will be entirely by me. Starting out with discussions of the book you read, gradually moving on to observing me and Suhan in our business field."

"Wait. . . wait. Does that mean?" Yoongi sat up from his chair.

Nodding, Anya answered, "Yes, I will be taking you with me to my office too. You need to learn the ins and outs of my empire."

That information managed to shock her hybrids. Again.

Jimin opened his mouth to speak, but then closed it again, rendered mute by her intentions.

Looking at the open mouthed expressions of the pack, Anya laughed gaily, "Did I not tell you, you are not pets? That all of this belongs to you too? Did you think I only meant the properties? I keep repeating it."

Still no answer from the life sized statues.

"Don't be daunted by it. We'll reach there gradually. Until then, try to find out what activities you truly like. . . explore the game rooms, libraries, music room. Try to find something that interests you."

"That is part of Training?" Joonie questioned, not understanding a part he thought did not fit with the agenda.

"Yep. Developing your own likes and dislikes, essentially exploring your personalities is, part of the training. But that's the fun part. I am more worried about the trigger words."

A silence fell.

A trigger word. The cruel psychological violation.

Since a hybrid could walk, the scientist made sure to incorporate it in their brains.

Just a random word assigned to them. Any random word.

But whenever they would utter it, it would be followed by intense pain. For a baby hybrid, it came in the form of a punch to the stomach and face. As they grew in age, the methods of inflicting that pain evolved. Some would be pierced by 40 needles in the most vulnerable places, some almost drowned in ice water. Some flogged till they fell, slipping on their blood.

This was done till age 14.

After that, the victims were so conditioned in their minds, so attuned to the consequences of the word, that uttering it meant them writhing on the floor in the clutches of vicious phantom pain which felt real to them. A pain so strong, that it transcended their memories, to manifest as physical sensation in the present.

Even when they were not touched.

A macabre twisted version of Pavlov's experiment implemented since a baby could start retaining memories, making sure that their first formed memory was that of, agony.

Such a compulsion, instilled at such a tender age would stick even for any human. Human sex trafficking had always used the same method for the girls born in their clutches.

Breaking such a trigger word was going to be hard.

And painful.

Hoseok got up from where he was seated. He strolled towards her and held her waist with his hands when he reached her, keeping a distance of an arm's length between them.

"Master," his dark hair fluttered on his forehead while his charisma pulsed steadily "You need to know, what you dream to achieve, what we dream to live as, is uncommon in this world. As mystic and unattainable as a dragon found slumbering on a random field."

Anya went to speak but Hobi placed his thumb on her petal soft lips, while his fingers gently cradled her chin.

"But together, we will get there. However, something that rare, can never be attained without a little pain."

"That is the only thing that I don't want Hobi." Anya whispered against his thumb.

Hoseok's eyes softened on her, a warmth radiating in him

Joonie in the meantime had joined them, standing close to her, on her side, "In the past, the pain inflicted on us was a violation. This is not."

Anya turned to look at his wise eyes. Joon slowly lowered his head to rest it against her forehead, breathing in her fragrance, as he closed his eyes and said,

"This pain will be our privilege. This pain will signify our desire to overcome a handicap forced on us without our consent." He drew closer to her. "This time, we wont endure it, rather, we'll celebrate it Master. The pain we will experience will only mean that another chain holding us captive is yet again breaking."

"Still." Anya breathed.

"Shhh. Trust us." Hoseok whispered back.

Anya gave in. she wanted them out of this shackle. The trigger words could easily be bought by anyone willing to pay the right amount of price for it. If not to Park, then to their three trainers. She knew how to achieve it, it would be painful, but necessary.

"Anya?" Arissa's voice called out.

Involuntarily, Hoseok hissed, turning at the interruption.

Instantly, Arissa gave him a dark scowl, while both her hands lifted to her waist, "Did you just hiss at me kid?" she asked in a strict voice.

Hobi backtracked. Clearing his throat, he replied in a meek tone, "Uh no. something in my throat."

Anya hid a smile.

Ari's influence in the short amount of time that she had known them, was profound.

She was fast becoming a mother figure that the guys were equally scared and fond of. Well, that was the Arissa she knew.

Ari gave Hobi a wide smile, "Its okay kid, I was young once too." Then proceeded to wink at him.

Hoseok turned red at that. Not understanding how to process that joke, he coughed a little and then adorably looked around on the ground, much to the amusement of his packmates, who started teasing him on the spot.

"Adora is on line." Arissa gave her, her cellphone.

Nodding her thanks, Anya received the call, "What's wrong?"

"Your Mayfield assets are being probed by a third party. They are good enough that they broke through my first three walls of encryption. They were looking for its performing financials. Simultaneously, someone is trying to hack into the reserves and guestlist from your travel agency which is signed at your subsidiary. The very ones you spoke about last night." Adora said curtly.

Anya breathed in deep, "location?"

"It bounced."

"So a pro?"

"Yes. Why did you specify these two? Adora asked point blank.

"Because these are my two most outer circle business in the eyes of the public Adora. Both of the business is in ONLY my name, not having Suhan's and also contributes to 5% of my company shares. But the profits from both of these assets goes directly into my upcoming Empress Constellation collection since they are relatively small enough to not warrant a separate finance balance section. Damage from any of these will directly affect the image of my launch campaign." Anya elaborated.

All her hybrids were listening to her intently too.

"Hell woman! If that is the case then why the fuck did you keep that vulnerability open? You could have just said this to me when you gave me the responsibility of its security! I would have put in more walls!" Adora was plainly shrieking at her.

Cutting across the dramatics, Anya asked, "Did they get any information? Anything to compromise me?"

"OF COURSE NOT! Even if I gave it light digital encryption, its still MY firewalls. Its not that easy to worm through on the first attempt."

"If one was not looking, then will it be detectable? Were they good enough for that?" Anya asked in bullet speed.

"Yes. They are good enough that it would have remained undetectable if one was not monitoring it as closely as I was because you told me to. WHICH YOU SHOULD HAVE SAID MONTHS AGO WHEN YOU LAUNCHED THE WEBSITE! I'll tighten the security and beef up the encryptions. Just give me a few—"

"Leave it as it is!" Anya's voice cut through Adora's rant.

The woman did not respond to her for a few seconds.

"Okay. What is it that you are not telling me?" Adora asked quietly.

Fast, wasn't she?

Anya smiled at her tone.

"I know you are smiling at me. Cut the bs and tell me." Adora said.

"All the information I gave you regarding the two assets was shared with very few businessmen in a dinner event by me, when I was a bit tipsy. 6 to be exact."

"You are never tipsy in the company of any stranger. Let alone an informal business party." Adora spoke slowly.

Smile getting bigger, Anya answered, "Exactly."

A pause. "You deliberately let it out?? You wanted them to know! Which means, the information is bogus!!"

Laughing now, "Exactly."

"Damn girl. But why?"

"For exactly this reason. If any player was planning to mess with me, or anyone was trying to take me down, they would start with this route, thinking that the window was narrow and less known, essentially a burrow so hidden that no one would know. Unearthing it would signify they are someone who play in my league. They would proceed via this route, while the probing would do nothing but alert me that someone was starting something foul."

"Like your own alarm system. You basically directed anyone to pass through a trap you set. Them thinking they are making an intelligent move all the while you could easily find out their identity."

"Yep."

Adora whistled long. "Damn girl, you play on another level."

Anya shook her head at that, "Make a system to track down the location of the probe. Matching or trying to find their ip and id will not yield much result. I'll send you the names of the six people too, check if any are in the vicinity. Don't heighten the security. Let them think they broke it. I need a possible location. Once they enter it, the site will crash, making them think they were responsible for it."

"On it, but I did get to break their tracer to lock on to the origin of the 2nd attempt. Unfortunately got a bunch of ids of social messaging apps they are bouncing the router from."

Anya's eyebrows drew up, "Social media app?"

"Basically you can use the ids there to take as ip to load on the server where you start the router for bouncing. With the lax security measures, you can easily hide behind the id of innocent or unknown people while you do your job. Although, for the extensive bouncing from one country to the other they did with the signal, they would need at least a few of authentic social media ids to link up the chain of the others. I managed to crack that though it was difficult. Probed into who the ghost accounts without any feed belonged to, and got 11 names."

Anya simply rattled off names of the people who were present during the dinner.

A little time spent while the clicking of keyboard was heard.

"Alright. None of the names popped."

Anya sighed. "it was a long shot as it is. I am sure if they are involved, they would not be so easy to track."

"Easy?? Girl, what I am doing is something that even high level software engineers can only think about!"

"Don't you mean hackers?" Anya said drily.

"Ah pshh tomato tomahto!" a sudden flurry of keys, "Huh, that's weird."

Anya waited.

"The names you gave did not pop, but two of the accounts had a recent log in from the sector of one of the businessman you mentioned. Meaning, the location coincides with a time when the accounts were active at the same time..."

"Name of the businessman?"

"Lee Dong-Wook."

"What? Check again!."

"I am sure Anya. He is Suhan's friend, is he not?"

Anya closed her eyes. Yes. Yes, he was. Since his college days. He was her brother's mentor. Dashing and handsome, he was the most eligible wealthy bachelor in South Korea. Also a Hotel Magnate like her brother.

"But, I think it's the accounts that logged in at his home at the same time stamp, that are interesting Anya. The associations are going deeper."

"Who?"

"Han and Micheal."

Mrs. Han and one of the three Trainers.

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

HYBRIDS :

Jin sat on the plush couch, silently immersed in reading the files Anya had given them about the Codes. Yoongi had finished going through them and wanted to discuss a few issues he found in it. So here he was, sipping on Mojito while he flipped through the pages.

Yoongi and Joon were both with him, not speaking, but equally immersed in their own way. Yoongi was reading a book on basic body language while Joon made notes of the things he wanted to discuss with Master.

Speaking of whom, Master had long ago gone to the outer house to work and take some calls, the silver hybrid tagging along with her. Others were roaming about on the estate.

The evening had lengthened into early nightfall when Jin detected the sound of a car stopping on the entryway.

He lifted his eyes to look at Yoongi and Joon, both of whom were closing their books.

It would seem, Suhan was home.

The pack knew how very close Anya was with her twin brother. They had heard about him from her right from the beginning, had been allowed into their private conversations over the phone.

It was a bond that automatically translated to them having to welcome Suhan in their circle too.

That was something, not all hybrids liked.

Not because of the possessiveness they felt, but because they still did not know whether Suhan was worthy of being a part of the special relationship they all were slowly developing.

It was safe to say, some of them would be testing him tonight. A fact, that Jin suspected, Anya knew too.

Knew about it, and wanted no part in it.

Jin suspected that secretly, she wanted to enjoy the amusement her brother would be providing for any to watch, without being a part of it. Their Master, was extremely playful like that, especially when it came to her brother.

The silent agreement of never harming Suhan did not have to be voiced.

But Jin suspected, one particular hybrid would be giving the coming male the toughest time.

The main door opened and they heard a jovial voice calling out a greeting to Arissa.

"Don't tell me my sister is working? Doesn't she have her poor hybrids to connect with? Is she abandoning them so early?" the deep baritone posed the question.

So he wasn't aware of the level of bonding they had already established with Anya.

"Poor hybrids?" Arissa's booming laughter made Jin smile a little.

"Hmmm suspicious. She refused to tell me what she got either. Peter and Jackson would not talk too."

"Oh no boy, you want to know? You ask them. don't angle those eyes on me, your charm does not work on this old lady!" Ari said

"I must be going blind." Suhan sounded genuinely concerned, "Because I don't see any old lady in front of me." He outrageously flirted.

"OHHH you incorrigible rascal!" Arissa laughed fondly.

Jin noticed Joon smiling at that too, while Yoongi quietly murmured, "Would be for the best if Jiminie does not get into a fast friendship with him. Both of them together might just be bad combo for the rest."

Jin concurred.

"Go through to the pit. They are reading there. Peter and Jackson are out on patrol."

"Patrol?" he sounded puzzled, "Why?"

"Some of the hybrids are out and about in their animal forms."

"Ah, they need someone to make sure the guards don't freak out? What did my sister get? Hyenas and foxes? Or something even more dangerous? Like a Jackal?"

"Go through. Ask them." It sounded like Arissa pushed him.

"Hey, be gentle with me! What if you break me? Oof" a sound of a soft smack.

Then footsteps coming their way.

Time to officially meet Her brother.

A tall figure dressed sharply in suit and tie came striding in. His masculine face was chiselled, his eyes a shade of chocolate brown. Notes of vanilla and moss made his presence known. The man with his dark hair, cut and styled in a careless manner stopped to look at them.

His face completely expressionless as he reached up to loosen his tie, the action causing light to reflect from his expensive watch.

The assessing look being directed their way made Jin realise it was the same one his Master used when dealing with strangers. Observing, watching, learning.

Cocking his head to one side, Jin boldly studied him back, making Suhan's eyes narrow a little.

Joon graciously stood up from the couch, breaking the standoff between the hybrids and him.

"Good evening. You must be Suhan. We are Anya's companions." Namjoon ambled forward towards the man who kept his icy gaze steady on his approaching figure, "I am Namjoon" saying so, Joon extended his hand.

Suhan's eyes flicked towards the extended hand as he raised one brow at it. Jin knew that a collarless hybrid assertively greeting a Master of the house by his name while extending his hand in a welcoming gesture, as if they were equal, was, rare.

Suhan took Joon's hand, returning the greeting, "I am Kim Suhan."

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

SUHAN :

Talking with Ari told him one thing, that was, to expect the unexpected. She was too amused, too excited and would no doubt be trying to spy.

Suhan's curiosity kept steadily ascending. Right from the time Anya had gushed about their Uncle being proud of the hybrids she had, Suhan had not known rest. But then, seeing the security cam footage of that pathetic guard Wilson's attempt of laughable assault, Suhan questioned if the hybrids were that good. After all, they remained dumbly seated just like any slaves would.

He knew his sister would never like meek behaviour like that, and neither did he want her to have any links to people in her life that would make her weak. As things stood, she was constantly in a standoff from wannabe opportunists.

Suhan knew that any hybrids she got, would remain with her till the last breath she drew. His little sister was extremely loyal to the fault. So he hoped, the people she would spend her life with, would be worthy of her.

With a smile aimed at Ari, Suhan strode forward towards the casual living room her sister preferred with the sunken cosy area of soft couches and carpets.

He walked straight ahead and kept his eyes peeled for their presence.

Only to be stunned when he noticed them at a distance.

Honestly, Suhan did not know what he was expecting. Whatever it was, the scene in front of him was not it.

Even if he did not want slaves, the behaviour of the three men seated in a relaxed manner on the sofa with their legs crossed at their knees, occasionally flipping through the books on their lap, took him by surprise.

As he neared them, Suhan focused on each one of them. The one on the right was broad shouldered and tall. He sat back at his seat with an assured attitude, silently observing him. He was outstandingly handsome. His dark hair swept up to the side, exposing his forehead, the hybrid could easily be mistaken for a Greek God in distressed jeans and snug polo neck shirt, mildly curious as to who had entered his domain.

His eyes, were carefully blank. So easily guarded, that Suhan could not make any semblance of read on him. His limbs were relaxed, no tension in them.

Suhan's glance shifted to the man sitting on the sole armchair, and paused.

Now this hybrid was a completely different matter. Extremely attractive with his uncommon pale skin contrasting with a black cargo and loose v neck Tshirt, the hybrid was as still as a statue. His eyes catalogued every single inch of Suhan, but gave nothing away.

The stillness in him was not an indication of wariness, rather it seemed to be natural to him. As natural as any hunting predator. His dark hair fell roguishly to his eyes. Eyes that glittered with something mysterious, which in itself managed to bring Suhan up short.

Kim Suhan, for the first time in his life, felt a fission of fear skitter down his spine. The hybrid's black ears twitched and a barely there smirk graced his lips.

Without a doubt, his Uncle would be proud.

This hybrid, radiated danger.

Suhan's eyes swung back to the first hybrid he had noticed, as he reached up to loosen his tie. If the hybrid with Black ears had his aura visible, then this hybrid appearing relaxed was more dangerous in any situation.

Suhan was at par with his sister. Having been in the cut throat world of business and politics, if there was something he was excellent at, it was reading people.

And he knew very well, the people who could carelessly hide their auras completely, were the ones that needed to be looked out for the most.

Just then, the man in the middle unfolded his frame to stand tall. That man was very visibly muscled while his eyes were extremely shrewd. He walked towards Suhan in a manner that made think of a gait of a Wolf.

His attractive personality with his sharp jaw and neutral expression, screamed to Suhan of the abilities the man was carefully keeping hidden.

"Good evening, you must be Suhan. We are Anya's Companions." His deep voice greeted him.

Not only did the hybrid address him by his name, but with his direct eye contact, also established his given identity as a companion, not a slave.

Bold.

"I am Namjoon." Saying so, that hybrid extended his hand to him.

Suhan was taken aback at that. Not many people dared to be so informal with him. His own aura usually scared them to silence. Suhan was well aware of his own cold personality opposite to the society. He knew it, because he had cultivated it. Just like his sister, any given individual found it hard to maintain his direct gaze, much less talk to him without stuttering.

But here were 3 hybrids, completely unaffected by him. They were unbothered to a degree which was slightly insulting to Suhan. And to think, he thought he would have to deal with their meekness.

His sister, as usual, had chosen well.

Suhan grasped the hybrid's hand, noting that his grip was firm enough to not be mistaken as weak, but loose enough to be social.

If a handshake could be judged as the mirror of the hazy silhouette of the person's character, then Suhan would bet his entire fortune that, Namjoon was someone, who was too smooth and intelligent to be ever dismissed. This guy, with his almost friendly, neutral stare, possessed a strength which should be rightly feared.

"I am Kim Suhan." He said, "Anya's older twin brother."

Namjoon nodded and withdrew his hand then beckoned him towards where the rest were seated, "Won't you join us? Master is in the outer house. I am sure you must have a lot of questions about us that we will be happy to answer."

Suhan noted that his tone was cultured and confident even in his politeness. Namjoon's invitation too stated his intention of treating Suhan as a guest, rather than anyone he considered, above him.

"Sure." Suhan answered and walked towards the pit.

Both of the seated males politely stood up to welcome him while Namjoon followed close behind.

"The beverage was delivered a few minutes before you arrived. Would you like it?" The handsome hybrid asked him, his voice as fetching as his appearance, gesturing to the tray that had two glasses of Mojito.

Suhan took one of the proffered drink, feeling a bit unsettled. This treatment was foreign to him at his sister's house. He felt like a guest in a house that he had always thought as an extension of his own. He realized; he too had grown comfortable with the lonely life his sister led.

Suhan stretched out on the oversized recliner, discarding his tie while the three hybrids settled down.

"I heard you all are sex slaves." Suhan started bold. He wanted to test these intriguing hybrids . . . no, intriguing men.

The one with dark aura smirked at him, "Do you want to find out?"

Suhan was shocked yet again by his mocking answer. That, and his deep voice. his low pitch and masculine baritone ratcheted up the danger he cloaked himself with. Still, Suhan maintained his outer appearance.

"Are you offering?" he asked the dark hybrid, his voice emotionless.

The Hybrid's eyebrows went up, as he leaned back in his seat. A pleased smile graced his lips.

"You have a tell. Your sister lacks that."

What?

Momentarily disoriented, Suhan just stared at him blankly.

"If I am that interesting to you, might as well as know my name. Its Yoongi." He sipped from his glass.

Nicely put, Suhan acknowledged internally. Giving him that point, he nodded at his assertion, "Yoongi." Then he turned to the one he was currently the most interested in.

"And your name?" he asked.

The hybrid simply replied, without a single inflection in his voice, nor a single expression crossing his eyes, "Seokjin."

"What do you call my sister?"

"Master."

"Why?"

"Because that's who she is to me."

"That's all she is?"

" Yes."

Seokjin replied precisely to all his questions, never once flinching at it. Not pausing to think. Most of all, keeping his perfect polite mask in place.

Because it no doubt a mask. Suhan understood that well enough.

This level of experience in hiding his emotions was something both him and his sister had taken years to master. Seokjin being so fluid in it was . . . note worthy. And Deadly.

Suhan's fingers tapped on the armchair, "Very obedient, are you not?" he taunted the hybrid.

Seokjin kept looking at him for a few seconds, then he smiled, "No, just very good at keeping you guessing."

Suhan's finger stopped.

This son-of-a-bitch was good.

An involuntary smile dawned on his lips, "Touché."

"Its only natural that you are testing us." Suhan's gaze shifted to look at Namjoon, smiling at him. His nature was inviting, his expression relaxed, "But you have to understand that we are doing the same to you."

"I would expect no less. My sister would have it no other way. But honestly, I am surprised that you are this far unconditioned. Or rather should I say, not conditioned at all."

"Does that irk you?" Seokjin asked smoothly.

Suhan finally dropped his mask. His eyes held a warmth similar to his sister as he laughed at Jin's question.

"On the contrary, that makes me happy."

"I wonder if you will still feel that way once you have met the rest." Yoongi drawled.

Suhan raised a brow, "What makes you say that?"

Yoongi stood up. One hand inside his pocket, he raised the other to slick back his hair, his Tshirt lifting an inch to give a glimpse of his toned abs. "Are you a betting man?" he asked Suhan, dark humour colouring his baritone.

Suhan considered him, "What do you desire?"

"A wish."

A knowing smile on his face, he replied wryly, "A heavy bet indeed."

Yoongi just raised a brow at him, challenging him wordlessly.

Interesting.

Suhan stood up too as he unbuttoned the cuffs and rolled the shirt down his forearm, "I am not a man who is easily scared Yoongi. I hope you can sense that."

Yoongi cocked his head to one side, "I am not a man who wastes his words Suhan. I hope you remember that."

Another chill ran down Suhan's spine. Not breaking his eye contact, Suhan drank deep from his glass.

Yoongi's statement rang not only with a warning, but it resonated hard with absolute violence. A well supressed and hidden violence.

"Statements without evidence are considered empty Yoongi." Placing the glass back on the table, he continued, "I will be looking forward to you proving me wrong."

The hybrid bent his head a bit in acknowledgement.

Yoongi was definitely someone that Suhan wanted to know better. And also befriend.

Turning towards the other two people, he found them standing before him. Loosening the first few buttons of his shirt, he said, "Lead the way. I presume the rest are outside? Will you call them?"

Namjoon shook his head as he turned to walk towards the entrance of the house, the rest of them falling in steps behind him, "No need. If you are planning on meeting Master, then you will encounter the rest on the way."

"They made it known that they will remain in that section of the estate?"

As they reached the gate, Namjoon opened it and held it that way, waiting for all to pass through it. He closed it when he came through and turned towards the direction the outer house was at.

"They will always be close to her. No one will be able to reach her without going through us."

Somehow, that statement filled Suhan with relief and contentment.

They stepped down the stairs and walked towards the outhouse, the gardens and lawns well lit with artistically hidden lights. The summer breeze was pleasant in a sky filled with stars spread out around a waning moon.

Suhan did not pay much attention to the road ahead as he was too familiar with it, instead he thought about what Namjoon had said. He realized, a weight in his heart was slowly lifting, the more he came to know these hybrids.

The level of loyalty that he could sense in them towards his sister, their protective nature was reassuring, to him.

Especially the threat and danger he could sense in them. The more darker he realized they were, the more happy Suhan was becoming. He was grateful to whatever God was watching over Anya when she decided to choose them.

If the rest were just like these three, then he could at last rest easy. The constant worry that plagued him about his sister, might just get lightened.

After all, their human forms resembled too closely to intelligent predators.

That thought brought Suhan back to the moment. He had forgotten to ask the three about their breed.

Suhan took note of his surroundings to understand that they were in the backside of the Manor, the lights of the outhouse visible at a short distance. In the time he was reflecting on his thoughts, somehow his pace had increased enough for him to be at the lead, with the three hybrids walking behind him.

Suhan stopped to turn around and wait for them to catch up so as to ask them about their breed when a sound froze every single drop of blood in his body.

He whipped his head to the side, in the direction of the thin woods, from where he could sense a presence.

His body stiffened completely while his heartbeat pulsed faster. The hair on the back of his neck rose as the sound came again.

In the dark night, on the field, guided by the shadows of the dim lights and waning moon, came a vicious growl of a hunting Cat.

It seemed as the breeze ceased too. So did the three hybrids at his back, who had somehow increased their distance from him. Although Suhan could not really concentrate on that.

He narrowed his eyes towards the Old Oak tree, trying to calm his body down.

"Uncle is going to be so proud of them."

"Poor hybrids?"

"I wonder if you will still feel that way once you have met the rest."

"Are you a betting man?"

All the statements made sense to him now.

His sister, had behaved just the way her reputation demanded of her.

All sound from his surroundings faded away for him. All he could hear and feel was his booming heart and the slow trail of perspiration beading and then rolling down his spine as Suhan made out a pair of glittering animal eyes on the branch of the Oak tree.

Not believing what he was seeing, he gulped hard and remained motionless as he saw the eyes suddenly disappear and then appear at a level where he was.

Another vicious growl split the night air, as the creature steadily started coming closer to him.

The closer it came, the more features he could make out. Just as he identified the long canines of the creature, exposed and deadly due to its constant growling, he almost wished it all was an illusion.

Cold drops of sweat gathered at his temples as Suhan made out the height of the creature. It easily reached his chest! Primal fear running through his veins, made him completely immobile when he understood that the creature was about to pounce.

But just before it could, it closed its jaws, going silent. All Suhan could make out were the shiny Green eyes staring at him in the dark.

However, before he could form a single thought, a loud deep roar pierced through darkness of the otherwise calm night, shaking him to his bones.

Suhan lifted his eyes to look behind the creature to see a huge shape slowly rising itself from the base of the tree. It let out another ear splitting roar, which vibrated deep in Suhan's chest as it too prowled closer.

"I am not a man who wastes his words Suhan. I hope you remember that."

Yoongi's words came back to his mind. The bastard had been right, was all Suhan thought as both the animals slowly came towards him, the nearby light making them visible at last.

He had thought his sister had gone to the extreme and bought a Hyena or a Fox.

How badly wrong had he been.

Before him stood a Tiger and a Panther, their mouth pulled back over their canines as they growled at him, their claws digging the ground, with no collar anywhere in sight, while he stood there, completely helpless.

Times like these, he LOVED his sister.

NOT.

Yeah, he was the king of sarcasm.

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

HYBRIDS :

"Oh shit, I think we should stop the kits now." Jin laughed hard, trying to mute his sounds as he backed away further from Suhan.

"Just a few moments more. He just now saw Taehyung!" Yoongi did not even look at the other two, his eyes fixed on the amusing scene ahead of him, as he laughed at the plight of his Master's brother.

"Its too mean of us." Namjoon said in between his chuckles, his voice muffled by his own hand slapped over his mouth in a brave attempt to tone down his guffaws at the plight of the cold, self assured and confident man literally sweating bullets in front of the pack's kits, who were only goofing around.

"Nonsense." Jin said, almost on the ground from the laughter wracking his frame, "I overheard Master asking to record Suhan's reaction on encountering any of us if it was out of her sight to enjoy it later."

"Arissa, Joseph, Peter and Jackson are right now in the monitoring room. They left as soon as Suhan greeted us." Yoongi barely got the words out, doubled over as he was, clutching his stomach from the roars of laughter escaping him. "Ari especially took popcorn she was making with her."

In front of them, Tae and Jungkook came into light, revealing themselves to Suhan, whose scent had turned Extremely bitter from his fear, his sweat making the shirt stick to his back.

Yoongi collapsed on the ground at that, "I fucking warned him" he choked in between his cackles.

A peculiar windshield like laugh released from Jin's lips as tears fell down from his eyes and he imitated Suhan's voice, "I am not a man who is scared easily, I hope you can sense that"

Both Namjoon and Yoongi broke down, roars of laughter escaping them at the perfect pantomime Jin did of Suhan.

The funniest part was, Suhan could not sense that the kits were simply playing with him.

That, and his statement just seconds ago.

Granted, Anya too had been afraid when she had first seen them, but her fear was far less in comparison to her brother's, that too in a situation that had warranted that emotion. Back then, they had no control over their animal halves.

"Yoongi, go save him." Jin wheezed. "I want to see his reaction to the last two. I need him conscious for that."

Yoongi got himself up from the ground after hearing what Jin said. He too, was eagerly awaiting that particular reaction.

Dusting his cargo off, he strode towards Suhan, who stood stiff and resolute in his place, a whole sweaty mess, looking like he was one breath away from blacking out.

"Ah, so you met the youngest of our pack." Yoongi called out jovially as he walked between both the cats in front of Suhan and smacked both of their head to make them stop.

Both the Wild Predators stopped growling to yelp at the cuffing their Hyung gave. They mournfully moaned at their Yoongi hyung, raising their paws to pat pat his hips, pouting at being stopped.

They were having so much fun scaring the human dammit!

Suhan looked at Yoongi completely lost, his pupils dilated to the extreme, his face so sweaty that it looked like he had just washed it.

He looked back down at the cats dumbly.

Yoongi smacked their heads again, "That is not how you greet Master's brother." He scolded them even while trying to hide his own chuckles, "Go shake his hands."

"NO! No need for that!!" Suhan's desperate shout stilled everyone.

His voice, so congested with fear, his scream, so filled with alarm, stopped every individual's actions.

That is,

Until peals of laughter coming from the outhouse shattered the silence.

That sound ended up breaking the flimsy seal Jin and Namjoon had quite desperately constructed on their humor, making them shake with howls of amused laughter.

"Ah Suhan! Scared so easily??" Anya's shout rang out from the outhouse.

A wet and pale Suhan straightened up and closed his eyes, swallowing thickly as he muttered, "I am going to kill her this time."

Taking a deep breath, he opened his eyes, to look at the amused eyes of Yoongi, his hands still lightly resting on the heads of the abnormally large overgrown monsters, who were licking their paws and rolling on the grass. They did look like kittens at the moment.

If one was to completely ignore their claws and fangs.

Or their size.

Or their breed.

Suhan had, still not reached that point of blindness, Thank you very much.

He lifted his palms to his face, to wipe out the sweat bathing his skin.

He knew he looked like a world class coward and an even greater idiot. Especially after what he had claimed in the living room to the other three men.

So much for first impressions.

I will really kill her this time.

Being a man of his word, Suhan lifted his eyes to Yoongi and promised, "One wish"

"Ah, no my friend. Meet the other two first." At his statement, Namjoon and Jin's hysteria resumed, them now lying on the ground, clutching their abdomen, trying to breathe, while Suhan shrivelled up.

"How much more worse can it be?" he asked, his voice dry and small, understanding the warning Yoongi was giving him this time.

Yoongi just winked.

Nope. No. Just no. That response was not good at all.

"Are you coming or not doofus?" Anya yelled again.

Feeling apprehensive, Suhan turned towards the outhouse, ready to meet his sister. And two other hybrids.

For the record, he was not curious at all.

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

ANYA :

After the barrage of last stage preparations for her line of jewellery launch that she completed, Anya had tried to find out more about the connection between the trainers, Han and Lee Dong Wook.

The connections she found were subtle, but she could sense, that digging deeper might reveal a better picture.

For now, the only thing she got was that Dong wook's sister dated the nephew of Michael. On just the surface, the relation did not seem to be deep, that was until she found out that the nephew was the only surviving member of Michael's family, someone the man shared a close bond with.

That could have been the point of contact between them. As for Han, Park's video logs had catalogued the meeting between the two, 4 years back in the previous auction.

Michael was, disturbing.

His tastes ran to grotesque, from what Anya could figure out. The man was 51, in top form with his fit and athletic body, his manners courteous and polite. But his eyes were wrong.

It appeared flat. Completely dead.

The way he communicated with the other guests, the way his body moved in front of the hybrids in the previous auction, it raised red flags beyond the behaviour of the rest of the crowd of the same elk.

Being the most sought-after trainer was supposed to be good, but apparently, that only applied to the rare auctions of hybrids. Michael and his other two friends were not in the business of training regular hybrids. Only specialised ones.

Even so,

What was missing was, the connection to her, or a motive.

Michael and Dong wook had none.

And Anya knew that Han could not convince those men to go against her just for Yoongi.

She was missing a lot. And she needed that information as soon as it could be possible.

But her musings were disturbed by the phone call from her parents. She supposed it was something she was expecting. Them checking up on her regularly was common, as was their curiosity over her hybrids. Anya tried to be as vague as she could be while describing them.

She did not want them to meet her pack before they were ready. So with a promise of "Soon" she had successfully managed to box that meeting for a later date.

Through it all, Jimin and Hobi had been carefully observing her each and every move. Every note that she made, every video that she saw, every call she received, while making sure to not disturb her at all.

Granted, they were both in their animal forms, coiled on her table and her body. Still, they were not distracting her consciously.

Unconsciously was a whole other matter.

Who would be absolutely normal with a cobra wrapped around her bare torso for its head to peak from her beneath her shirt, then coiled around her neck with a 44ft + Python resting partially on her lap and then laying down on the table she was working, both of them concentrating on their laptop and her notes?

As time had passed, Amazingly, she grew used to their presence. Even the way they felt on her skin. It felt comfortable now.

The late afternoon had transitioned into night smoothly in silence, but it did not feel lonely in the presence of the two snakes, as she completed a lot of her tasks.

That was until a growl made them all flinch.

"Is it Suhan?" she asked.

Immediately, Hoseok slithered away, reaching the door in seconds. He looked outside and then turned to nod at her.

Communicating with a Python. How many people can boast of doing that huh?

Another growl followed the first.

Involuntarily, Anya smiled wide. Her poor brother was going to get a rough time tonight. It was awesome!

For all the pranks he pulled that she could never return, for all the times he had defeated her in their games, for the times he had practised his WWE crazy moves on her innocent and clueless self... today, she would be taking revenge.

An evil laugh escaped her as she rubbed her hands together.

Hah! Take that my Oh-I-Don't-Get-Scared-Easily brother!

Jimin abruptly bumped her nose. She looked at the silver snake staring at her.

"Too much?" she asked, referring to her gleeful laugh at her brother's expense.

The snake nodded once.

"Ah. Okay." She said, only to feel him uncoiling then slipping down her shirt, wrapping himself more securely on her torso, making him not visible to any onlookers.

"Really? You admonished me and now you are not planning to behave?" Anya asked the snake, who simply hissed in answer.

Taehyung's ear splitting roar made her look up again. She could easily understand that the sound was just for show. No real intent behind it.

Jackson better be recording it all! She wanted to see Suhan's expression!

"Hobi listen—" Anya looked at the door where her Python was a few seconds ago, only to find the spot empty.

She turned on her chair to look around, only to not spot him.

A small giggle escaped her. Jimin tightened around her a bit.

"What? I am not supposed to enjoy this but you are?" she whispered.

"NO! NO NEED FOR THAT!"

Suhan's terrified scream boomed in the night.

Never had Anya ever heard this tone from her brother. He sounded petrified!

Suhan was petrified? Her devil may care brother was desperately frightened?

Peals of laughter broke through her, spilling into the outhouse. Her whole body shook with the force of her humour as Anya called out, "Ah Suhan! Scared so easily??"

She gulped and tried to steady herself, for the up coming part.

Still, she whispered to her hybrids, "Guys? Don't scare him too much okay? Please remember that he is really scared of snakes as it is. I don't actually wish to be murdered by my brother."

Loud hisses met her request.

Hmmm, so Hobi was right behind the door, somewhere in the huge pot plants.

"Are you coming or not doofus?" she called again.

When Suhan finally appeared on the door, Anya dug her nails hard in her thighs to not burst out laughing again.

Her usually impeccable, suave and roguishly charming brother was completely dishevelled! His shirt was half tucked out of pants, plastered to his body with sweat, his face dripping wet and red, with eyes that was still startled.

"Find it amusing, do you?" Suhan demanded of her as he swung the glass door open to enter, Jin, Namjoon and Yoongi trailing behind. Looking at the way they were holding themselves together, it was clear that they too were enjoying themselves immensely.

"Yep. Tremendously." Anya grinned at him unrepentantly.

"You do realize that if you had warned me once! Just once! Then I wouldn't have—"

"Been afraid? Oh please!"

"At least not to this level!!" Suhan said hotly, crossing over the room to stand before her table, "Being confronted by a Tiger and a Panther in the night out in the fields without any idea of what they were is a situation in which NORMAL people react the way I did!"

"So you are admitting I am superior to you?"

"I said no such thing!"

"I reacted better."

"Because you were bloody well expecting what they would become and not be surprised by the giant blown up overgrown super power T-rex versions of those cats!!!" Suhan shouted back at her.

"HAH! Why would I tell you? Did you tell me when you blindfolded me to push me in that abandoned shed filled with millions of cockroaches???" Anya said.

"Are you kidding me!!! Firstly those are insects! This is different!"

"Correction, those were the insects you knew I was extremely scared of!" she shot back.

"Secondly! There weren't miilions of them you Over Dramatic Queen! It was hardly 20 or so!!"

"See?? SEE?? You are admitting that you knew the count!!! You knew how badly scared I would be and still took me there!!!"

"THIRDLY!!!! IT WAS 10 FREAKING YEARS AGO!!!!!!!!"

"TIME DOES NOT MATTER! the wound remains deep!" Anya said hotly.

"What wound?!?" Suhan looked at her incredulously.

"The way you were rolling on the ground crying because you were laughing so hard looking at me screeching like a banshee, half out of my mind, running around the room like a headless chicken while those ugly maroon monsters chased me!!!!!!!!!!"

Suhan scoffed, "Look at you go! Afraid or not those were simple mindless insects, their size not even equal of your one finger whereas i—"

"Were encountered with Wise hybrids who would not be ACTUALLY harming you!"

"Seriously??? What harm did those tiny things do to you??"

"THEY WENT DOWN MY SHIRT YOU BIG OAF!!! I had three of them crawling inside my freaking shirt!! Which was why I was wailing so loudly! But did you ever stop your clown self from writhing on the floor long enough to find that out?? N.O.!"

"I cant believe what I am hearing." Suhan muttered, "Do YOU remember why I did that?? You put frogs on my bed at night when I was sleeping! I woke up to two of their stinky asses sitting on my freaking face!"

"Well, it was 10 years ago." Anya said in a very composed, regal manner, shrugging her shoulders while examining her nails.
Repeating what Suhan had said seconds ago.

It was a justifiable reason now, beacuse she needed it to be. Earlier it was not beacuse she disapproved of it. Simple.

"Un-fucking-believable!" her brother said.

"Anyway... moving over that.... How are you? The negotiations went well and we did get the property we wanted without agreeing to the outrageous demands. Calypso is all ready to make her journey, right?" Anya asked breezily, gifting her brother with the most winsome smile she could muster.

As if the poor guy was terrorized for nothing.

Dumbfounded Suhan just stared at her. Then he shook himself to his sense.

"Oh no you don't. You don't get to that to me twice. Fool me once, shame on me, fool me twice?" Suhan looked around the room,

"Where are the other two? Judging by that delighted smirk on the face of your insufferable dark hybrid I am expecting nothing else other than a blasted Grizzly Bear lurking somewhere here!!"

"Seriously Suhan," Anya drawled mockingly, "Where could I hide a grizzly in here? And did you just call the most palest of my hybrid as dark?"

Suhan stopped looking around, "You know what I meant. What with his extra broody mannerisms."

"Excuse me! I take offence to be called broody." Yoongi cut in from behind.

Suhan turned on spot to face him, "Oh yeah? Then maybe don't behave that way?"

At that Namjoon laugh whistled out again.

"Okay fine, I will Mr. I-am-not-a man- who-is-scared—"

"Don't." Suhan gritted his teeth at the sentence Yoongi was referring to. "Just don't."

"Just to clarify, I was taken aback by the surprise and suddenness of what I saw. That's all. Now that I know what to expect you will never catch me having that kind of reaction ever again. So let that isolated incident go." Suhan said in a serious cultured manner, trying to salvage what little of dignity he had. He tucked his shirt back in and not sparing a glance at the three hybrids, he turned back to his sister.

He ran his finger through his hair, finger combing them into some semblance and said, "Nice one Anya. I'll give it to you. My bad that I should have expected you to get such predators. However that is the last time you will be seeing me make a fool out of myself in front of you. You should also be aware—What is that?"

Anya could feel Jimin moving against her, but she kept her face innocent and clueless.

"What is what Suhan?"

"What kind of Alien movie shit is going on with you? What is that writhing thing beneath your shirt??" his eyes were fixed on her abdomen, the shirt loose enough to show the undulating shape of Jimin slowly uncoiling himself.

Alarm dawning in his eyes, Suhan followed the shape of the emerging snake, slowly coming out of her shirt from the neck hole, to sinuously wrap itself around her neck.

"WHAT THE FUCK!" Suhan rapidly took several steps back "YOU GOT A FUCKING SNAKE HYBRID?"

"Hey. Don't generalize him like that." Anya admonished him, then slowly stroked the head of the silver cobra, which rested on her elevated palms, his body coiled around her abdomen, chest and neck.

It was plain to see that the snake was claiming her as his. Taunting any who would come close to her.

"He is a Cobra. An Albino Cobra to be exact. Suhan, meet Jimin." She said, trying hard to not burst out in another round.

Her brother was hyperventilating by now, "You are insane! You brought a Cobra!"

He shook his head rapidly, "NO. nope. That's it. I am outta here." Saying so he turned around but before he could move, his eyes fell of the body of the huge beast lying coiled before him.

His heart stopped as he backed away faster than light, bumping hard on the desk of his sister, to trace the head of the creature.

"TH-That-That's a An-ana-ana-anaconada??"

The snake's body was coiled on the floor, its scales shining in the light, the body then wound about going in the direction of his back.

Panicked Suhan turned back just to come face to face with the head of the snake at his eye level, his body lifted from the desk it had climbed on.

He felt the weight of the beady eyes of the snake, its vertical pupil narrowed as it slowly flicked his tongue out.

This must be what the men who looked into Medusa's eyes felt like, he thought to himself, as they turned to stone.

He blinked his eyes to dispel the sweat sliding in them as both him and the snake stood stand still.

If he survived this, he would make mince meat of his beautiful sister. Right after he disowned her for being his sibling. Then maybe collect all the cockroaches in the whole wide world and make a super massive cockroach hybrid of mammoth size to buy for himself. There must be some mad genius scientist like Frankenstein somewhere on this planet who could make his wish come true, right?

He was aware of uproarious laughter in the background, but right now he did not care about it.

Technically he knew his sister would not let anything happen to him but being faced with his worst fear was not actually conductive for a normal functioning brain capable of thinking through for solutions.

"Hobiii..." Anya wheezed, "Leave him now."

The snake lowered itself slowly, going down his body inch by inch making Suhan remain frozen on spot. Then he slithered towards Anya, wounding itself around her and the armchair like a rope holding her captive, before lowering his head on her lap.

Anya immediately stroked his head as she laughed harder at Suhan, "Hobi is a Python, not an Anaconda."

Suhan shook his head at the sight of her sister being entagled by two snakes, sitting gaily, laughing at him.

Namjoon was rolling on the ground, while Yoongi had long since slid on the wall to sit down on the floor roaring in laughter.

"I HATE YOU!"

"Real mature brother."

Suhan yet again bravely tried to escape the room, but again was taken aback by the sound of flapping wings as a huge black shape darted out to him.

What the hell was going on?? Some mashup Film of Anaconda, Jurassic Park and The Grey????

Could a guy not catch a break????

Yep, times like this he really really really loved his sister!

"WHAT IN THE NAME OF HADES IS THIS NOW??" he shouted swatting away blindly, half running around the room, not sure to head for the door outside with the Tiger and Panther or to snatch his sister to make a shield out of her, who just happened to be oh-so-lovingly snuggling two reptiles.

"DID YOU JUST GO AND BUY YOURSELF A DEMENTOR?? Which demonic entity did they gift you now??" he half moaned half shouted.

Scratch that. He would be taking his chances with the cats.

If he did die, then at least he knew just how to haunt Arissa, Joseph and Anya.

Suhan rushed out of the room, leaving all of its occupants wheezing and dying of their humour, while Jin landed on the floor, shaking his head in acute amusement.

And that my dear brother, is my revenge after 10 years.

Yes. Anya was extremely pleased with herself. She had successful completed her responsibility of being a bratty younger sister.

All was well in the world once again.

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

ANYA :

The night was quiet. In the wraps of silence, the gentle wind rustled the leaves of the trees, the sound soothing to hear.

Dressed in her satin nightgown and wrap, Anya looked up to the moon, her beautiful face tilted to the sky as she stood in her balcony.

Unchecked tears spilled down her eyes.

She didn't bother to wipe them anymore. She knew more would follow.

The crushing grief she felt in her chest, was a weight that she knew would become permanent. Nothing in this world existed, that could alleviate it. No solution was ever going to be born.

Because the root of her sorrow, was imbedded in the past. Its existence, separated from her through the one thing that she could not control. That no human could.

Time.

But its effects lived on in the present, shaping every single moment, influencing every behaviour, yet in a tangible form that one could not take a hold of.

In the form of memories.

Who could fight them? Memories was the one truth, that became even more crystallized with the passage of time. Its value grew, so did its reach in one's soul.

The emotions attached to it became firmer with time, its weight slowly increasing.

Anya closed her eyes and lowered her head as she clutched the balustrade with both her hands, sobbing in despair.

She thought back to the cause:

The evening had gone beautifully, even though Suhan was beyond pissed. Once everyone had gathered back in the main house to have dinner, Suhan was reintroduced to all the hybrids, this time, meeting every one of them in their human forms.

Although her brother barely controlled his reactions of meeting Jungkook, and Hobi, he literally could not help but give away his thoughts when he saw Jimin and Taehyung.

Their other worldly beauty managing to make her well bred and sophisticated brother gape . Although it lasted for just a second, Anya knew it was huge because her brother was even better than her at keeping their exterior mask in place.

Taehyung's personality intrigued Suhan greatly, as she knew he could sense the seesaw of opposite persona existing peacefully within Tae. He could easily observe Tae's playful and innocent side keeping in wraps a side of him, which was as dark and deep as a never-ending abyss. A side of him, which had not manifested in its whole strength yet.

When her eyes had met with her brother's over dinner, he had just blinked once. She had understood. Taehyung's duality was extreme. And treacherously unpredictable.

Jimin on the other hand, was someone Suhan himself, wanted to talk to.

After the fiasco with the first meeting in the outhouse, upon returning to the Manor, she had entered her room to find her brother changed and freshened, sitting in her settee, 2 glasses of wine and some snacks on the table.

"Start talking." Was all that he had said.

And so Anya let him know every single detail that he had missed. All about the auction, the people, her suspicions, the conversations, the USB, their exit, the Codes, the Assets, about the trainers and Lee Dong Wook.

Suhan had merely sipped the wine. His gaze out in the garden, but his entire attention fixed on her words, his mind sharply working out all the implications and the consequences.

"The Cobra is an Unclassified?" he had asked only one question.

"Jimin." She had affirmed.

Standing up, draining the last drop in his glass, Suhan had said, "Then its time I meet him properly."

She had wondered if he would be able to get a read on Jimin. Her silver angel ALLOWED others to see the glimpses of his inners self if he so wished to do. If he didn't, even experienced wise men would only take away what he chose to show.

Jimin's vulnerability hid his dark self. His emotions shrouded his savage brutality. His smiles and jokes covered his lethal intelligence. The only person who knew him thoroughly was her. Not even the pack was fully aware of his aura.

She knew, because he had never hidden anything from her.

So, Anya looked forward to the interaction.

As she had suspected, the only points which struck Suhan hard at first were Jimin's eyes and his ethereal beauty.

Her silver angel was his usual giggly, clingy, witty self, coming off as a naughty, pouty and very cheeky hybrid.

But there was a reason why she respected her brother. Why she only ever looked up to him.

Suhan had known that the surface of nature was an illusion the Cobra had crafted for Suhan to view. It was not his core.

As he had talked, bickered and gotten to know all her hybrids by being completely open with them, he had kept an eye on Jimin. He did not bait him, neither did he try to force any reaction from him. He knew Jimin was intelligent enough to not fall for those. All that would achieve would be more smoke and mirrors.

When the dinner had winded down, they all went for the casual Living room. At that time, Anya had carried a tray of coffee to the table along with the help of Tae and Namjoon.

When she had been straightening up, she heard the whistling of the wind as some object cut through it, her body and mind trained to catalogue the slight disturbances in the air. She stepped to the side instantly, to avoid the possible whip from striking her.

But it never even reached that spot.

Turning, she saw the free end of the belt her brother had swung, to be firmly in the grasp of her Cobra, his back facing her.

Jimin had stopped the arc from coming anywhere close to her.

He stood facing Suhan, not speaking a single word.

Whatever Suhan had seen in his expression had made him smile, "I see you." He had simply said.

Jimin had dropped the belt then, understanding the test while Anya could accurately guess what her brother had seen in his expression.

After that, when they had settled down, Adora had called.

That was when the pastels of the day begun to be shaded in darker tones.

She had kept the phone on speaker for Suhan to listen in too. Adora had wasted no time.

"The assets were probed again. As you instructed, I simply started the modified programme to trace their location. As soon as the site crashed, the timer that showed them minutes of the trace was slowed, as you wanted. I planted a bogus list of financials for them to linger and try to download while i decrypted the firewall of the router."

"What bogus list" Suhan had asked.

"I asked her to link the financials of collections and sections of hotels I am planning to sell off and attach it to the commodities of emeralds. Since I wont be using it in the launch, the entire trail would be nothing but a headache to them while not affecting me in the least." Anya explained.

"Yep, that's what I did. I held off the list till I got their location, then made the list available for them to download."

"So?"

"The location was the villa of Michael. After finding it I hacked into the security cams his society has, to check, and saw Dong-wook, Flaker and Sebastian leave the house afterwards. Checking on them, Michael, Dong-wook and Flaker left the country in the next hour while Sebastian headed to Busan."

"I expected them to move after they thought I would be alerted but to escape to another country? This is confusing. If one of them, or all of them are targeting me for idiotic motives then should they not stay? And where does Han and Jennifer fit in it?" Anya thought out loud.

"Anya." Adora's voice had snapped her attention.

"The download of the list, its location blipped for a microsecond. Enough for me to trace it."

"Hang on, the download was not made by the trainers and Dong-wook?" Suhan asked.

"No. it was done from Anya's Seoul office."

Stunned silence.

"Clearance?" Suhan had asked.

"Executive." Adora's voice was low.

At that, she had drawn in a breath, surprised. She was surprised. Anya had not seen that coming. All her staff were carefully selected and had been with her for years. She worked and allowed only trusted employees on that level of clearance. She knew each and every one of them personally.

No one had any motive to harm her. Not one of them had any connections that raised red flags.

Yet.

Someone from her circle was playing against her. Betraying her.

But, the directions were too diverse. Jennifer with her lust for Tae and Kook, Han for Yoongi, Dong-wook and the trainers at a level differing from the ladies and now someone from her executive level, who had no motive to harm her?

Suhan had looked at her and verbalised what she realized. "Someone above them is controlling all this. The web is too extensive to have a singular motive to act cohesively. Someone is hiding behind them, using them as puppets. Essentially using their personal desires."

Problem was, Anya or Suhan, had no clue of their identity.

They had cut the call with Adora, while discussing and making the hybrids understand the whole situation.

That was when Suhan had said, "We need to tackle this by taking one thread each. Instead of trying to resolve the web, it would be better if we start with one thread, cutting them as we proceed, to gather all we can about the puppeteer."

Upon agreement, they gathered that between them, Suhan and Anya knew about the rest of the players except the three trainers.

They had no data about them or anything about their personalities. Adora had still to submit her reports. But even so, it would only have been surface reports. Dry. Facts.

Humans were creatures, whose habits might be able to define them, but their story was ruled by more rawer attributes.

Emotions, anger, lust, greed.

Suhan and Anya had no personal contact with them to know about them in that level. Or even to get a read.

The ones who had, was the pack.

Understanding the situation, the pack had, on the spot, agreed to share their story not just to her, but to Suhan as well.

Their past with the three trainers since the time they were children. Since the time they could form memories.

Which brought the whole situation back to where Anya stood in the balcony, trying to staunch her tears.

The pack had not held back. They did not sugar coat what they told. But Anya wished they had. She wished she did not know it all now.

Anya recalled what Yoongi had said, when she had asked about the trainers back in Park's Mansion

"You can say we are his ultimate favourites. They have, a kind of, obsession with us."

He had lied then. He had tried to spare what the trainers had done to them. What they had continued to do for a long time.

After the sights she had seen in Park's Auction, Anya had thought there was nothing else left that could disturb her.

She had been wrong.

Her hybrids past, was drenched in red. In a spiralling pit of agony and suffering so deep, that it was a miracle they survived.

If it had been her, she would have killed herself a long time ago.

A pain blossomed in her chest as she realized, that they had wanted it too. They had wanted to die.

But their own death had been a luxury her hybrids were too poor to afford.

The door to her balcony slid open for Suhan to emerge.

Anya did not try to wipe her tears. Her brother came to stand beside her, leaning on the balustrade, gazing unseeingly at the lush luxurious gardens and the road of the society beyond, letting the night calmly pass by.

He too had been equally affected by the story he had heard. He too, felt the pain they smilingly buried within themselves.

He too, was stunned at the openness in which they talked, in the way they lay themselves bare for Anya. Their loyalty to her triumphing over their vulnerabilities.

The moon slowly traipsed the sky, the wind getting chillier, but the siblings stood unbothered.

"Why them?" Anya whispered.

Suhan remained quiet. The answer to her question was the existent proof of the unfairness distributed in the universe they lived in.

"Why only them? Why did they take a liking to only those 7?"

"Maybe because those 7 would belong to you? Maybe because the universe knew, that their past would be healed?"

"Bullshit." Anya whispered after a while.

Suhan agreed.

"What they suffered, the things that happened to them, I cant even contemplate it being prevalent in the deepest pits of Tartarus." Anya said hollowly. "They were butchering their souls Suhan. From when they were babies."

Suhan gritted his teeth at that truth. His forearms flexed as he gripped the banister harder.

No other hybrid had to go through that. At least not to that level.

"Still, they smile. Still, they trusted me. How?"

This he could answer, "You are not like any other human Anya. Someone like you is born once in a million years. They survived because their Codes protected them. It was also their Codes, their animals deep inside them that helped them realize how special and different you are. It was their Codes, which made them trust you."

Lifting his hands, he fondly kept his palm on his sister's head, "You are a Goddess reborn in a Human form. Maybe their animal spirits connected with that?" he teased her.

A small smile appeared on her ruby lips.

Both the siblings faced the lawns again.

"It was because they kept on resisting, did not give in, that the three were fascinated. They NEVER gave in. For a trainer dealing with hybrids for more than two decades, it was a powerful attraction." Suhan said quietly.

"What about Tae and Kook?"

Suhan shook his head, "In a way, they were resisting too. Sebastian, Flaker and Michael wanted to hear their screams. Their silence, was their loudest revolt."

Anya nodded.

"It's a good thing that you started their training this early. I believe right from the day you bought them? I'll help too."

"I was counting on that."

They became quiet again, lost in their own thoughts. Until Suhan asked,

"What will you do?" knowing his sister, he knew that she would concentrate on the one emotion she could take control of.

And he was right.

"The conspiracy against me by whoever is playing the game is too accurately targeted in a manner that I may very easily be lost in the maze of the revealed identities, too disoriented to trace the real culprit. That is what he perceives is his advantage."

Suhan turned to see her face, remaining quiet. He had a notion of where she was going with it.

"What he failed to understand is, in this web of mazes, each thread, each wall is connected to him. Pulling on any one of the threads can unravel a section which will collapse. When it does, the way to the centre will become even clearer."

Suhan closed his eyes and tilted his face towards the moon. "You are planning on going after the trainer in Busan, to lure him here."

"Yes."

"Then using the consequence he will face by you, after leaking a rumour of Sebastian compromising information about the rest, you will force the other two to come back here."

"You know me well brother." Anya smiled.

Yes, Anya knew that she could not do anything about the heavy grief she felt for her hybrids, that emotion would always weigh her down. But there was another emotion that she COULD act on. Another emotion, that she could unleash.

Anger.

Raging fury.

Anya's smile turned cruel. If nothing else, she would get the satisfaction of vanquishing her anger. She could not fight the memories in the past that plagued her hybrids, but she could make sure, that those memories remained locked away in the past.

No shadows of those memories had any place in the wheel of probability of emerging in the present. She would simply uproot that possibility.

"Will you let them handle him, once he is lured here?" Suhan asked, his voice calm.

"Yes." That simple word had a wealth of emotions in them.

"Have you considered that they might swing to the extreme and kill Sebastian?"

Anya remained quiet.

The cicadas in the woods chirped in the scented darkness as the silence lengthened.

Suhan opened his eyes to look at her. With dawning comprehension, he exclaimed in a soft voice,

"You want that to happen."

Anya kept her gaze fixed on the fountain, "Yes."

She wanted him dead.

Suhan kept staring at his sister. After a while he turned to the moon again.

"Good. Me too."

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

JIMIN :

Jimin stood beside the figure of the angelic winsome girl, sleeping peacefully on the bed.

Her blankets were pooled down her waist, the satin nightdress fallen from one shoulder, baring the creamy skin down to the upper swells of her breasts, her hair, a silken inky pool spread on one side of the pillow, she lay on her back, one hand beside her head, the other curled on her stomach.

In the darkness of the room, Jimin's crystal clear vision lovingly traced every bit of her, his finger staying in the air, above her skin.

He could feel the heat radiating from her warm body.

This was his world, right there on the bed. The reason of his existence. The beautiful girl was his home. She was his obsession. She was his love.

He stood there for some time, softened eyes worshipping the woman who tethered his soul. His hands itched to caress her skin, but he was content to know that he could do this. That it was his right to.

Ever since the first day they had transformed, Jimin had slipped through the half closed bedroom doors in his snake form to gaze at her, before personally bidding her goodnight.

He bent slowly, ghosting his lips on hers, pressing them as gently as a butterfly's touch, to kiss her sweet lips.

"Goodnight Master." He whispered.

He rubbed his lips together, tasting them as he straightened up. Cherry lip balm tonight, he thought.

Gently, he pulled the sheet from her waist, to cover her till her neck.

Placing one last light kiss on her forehead and nose, Jimin transformed back to his animal form, quietly slipping out of the room.

Once out, he changed back to his human self and picked up the silken black pyjama pants from the floor, donning them. He started walking back to the adjacent room, when a voice stopped him.

"Are these midnight visits a norm?"

Jimin straightened to look down the corridor ahead of him. There stood Suhan, wearing a simple white Tshirt and pyjama pants, casually leaning on the wall, arms folded on his chest.

He smiled at Suhan, "No, just checking up on her. Goodnight."

Suhan chuckled low, "Come on Jimin. Why do you still adorn your mask? I am well aware that the side of you which my sister enjoys is reserved only for her. And your pack. Its natural of you when it comes to her. But for the rest of the world? It's a pretence."

Suhan cocked his head at him, "I've seen it."

Jimin dropped the act. His eyes narrowed and darkened, while the smile evaporated from his features leaving his expression cold and vicious.

He looked at Suhan with his dark eyes, not a grain of warmth in his gaze. He went unnaturally still and his aura deepened savagely.

"What do you want?" his voice cut across to him.

A chuckle answered him again, "Now that is what I was talking about."

"Useless conversation is something I choose not to partake in." Jimin stated coldly as he grabbed the knob of the room.

"Does my sister know that your Code has been active for a while now?"

Jimin stilled.

"Or are you keeping it a secret?" Suhan drawled.

The Cobra let go of the knob and turned towards the tall human. His every single action, calmly controlled.

Suhan observed him for a while, then said, "You are only loyal to her, aren't you? Your pack gets your company because you grew up together. But other than that, you will not hesitate even once to hurt anyone else. May it be me, Arissa, Joseph, Peter or Jackson."

Jimin's gaze remained Unnervingly calm.

"Your expression when you thought I was going to strike my sister revealed it all." Suhan pushed himself from the wall and walked towards him with both his hands in his pockets.

"The violence in your eyes was brutally uncontrollable. You resembled a cold killer Jimin. Viciously calm but frighteningly inhumane."

He reached the Cobra and lifted his hands to his shoulders.

Jimin's hands shot out to grab his wrists, the grip cruelly strong. But the next second, Suhan yanked him towards him hard and then bent down to hit Jimin with his shoulder, his hands grabbed the snake's ankle and pulled him forward hard, making the snake lose his balance.

Jimin lost his balance, but he twisted his body in a back flip to land on his feet, while Suhan straightened.

"Not bad." He said to the Cobra appreciatively.

"Your tie to my Master is holding me back Suhan. Be thankful for it." Jimin said in a low voice, "Otherwise I might have given you a true idea about pain."

"Unfortunately for you, you won't be able to. You are lacking skills."

Jimin sharply looked at him at that, "I repeat, what do you want?"

Suhan answered, "I love my sister dearly Jimin. The life she has led has been . . . very lonely. For the first time, she has attached her heart to you all. If something happens to you, I will not be able to collect her broken pieces."

Jimin nodded, "You wish to help."

A curt nod.

Jimin stayed quiet, observing Suhan for a while, "I am not a Hybrid who wants to Kill Suhan."

A small merciless smile spread on his face, "I want to be someone who can drive people to their own deaths. Can you help me become that?"

Suhan understood, he wanted to be like his sister and him. He definitely had the potential. "I can."

The Cobra held up his hand. Suhan flinched when he grasped it, his cold skin completely unexpected.

Quicker than light, Jimin spun him around, then kicked his knees to make him fall on them. Before he could make any moves, Jimin's fangs pressed right down over his carotid.

Suhan stilled.

Yes Jimin had attacked when Suhan was giving him a helping hand, the strike completely foul, but he remained unrepentant, wanting to defeat Suhan once, even if it was by unfair means. That's what a snake hybrid was. That was one of the reasons why his breed was feared.

The snake, moved his mouth to whisper in Suhan's ears, "Your sister is My Angel. I would make the streets drown in blood to make her happy. You, Joseph, Arissa, Peter and Jackson contribute to that happiness. That is the sole reason why you will never feel my touch."

Jimin loosened the grip he had on Suhan's hand on his back, "But never dare to interfere in my relationship with her as I shall never interfere with yours. Another thing, Do Not question me about my moves in my own house." He released Suhan, who stood up, smiling ruefully.

This time, he extended his hand to Jimin, "Deal."

The handshake was a seal of their shared intentions for the future. A promise.

Just like a flip of switch, Jimin's eyes lightened and a bright smile spread on his lips, making him an ethereal innocent boy.

In a happy tone he teased, "But that does not mean I will stop scaring you. I am, after all, a snake." He winked at him then turned and entered the room, closing the door behind him.

An unclassified.

Suhan shook his head in amusement.

Yes, he justified his Code alright.

He was truly happy at the way things had played out. It was obvious that Jimin was deep in his bond of imprinting on his sister. His extreme sense of protection disguised in the form of his clinginess; he was the hybrid who would never leave his sister's side.

Once again, Suhan thanked the God above who wrote the fate in that auction, as he strolled down the corridor towards his room

All the hybrids were exceedingly protective of her. Respectful of her wishes, they orbited around her like she was their sun, but protected her like she was their Soul.

Speaking of which, "Did you enjoy the show Yoongi?" Suhan asked wryly.

A dark chuckle greeted him.

Reaching his door, Suhan looked at the man standing where he had been a few seconds ago.

"How much did you hear?" He asked the hybrid.

"How much time do we get till you lure Sebastian here?" the Jaguar's deep, low voice questioned him back, providing him with the answer.

He had heard the talk Suhan had with his sister. But how?

Yoongi's eyes sparkled, as he smiled a little, enjoying the awe in the human's gaze.

"A month." Suhan decided not to ask him about how he had heard. As Jimin had reminded him, this was his house too.

A nod.

"Given a choice, what will you do to him?" he asked the Jaguar curiously.

"Kill him."

Both men remained quiet for a while, then nodded at each other. Bidding a good night, they both entered their rooms.

Once inside, Yoongi silently climbed onto his bed.

"One month?" Namjoon asked in the dark.

"One month." Yoongi confirmed.

"I honestly had no hard feelings with them anymore. Not since Master." Hoseok said.

"But when they targeted her, her business, I felt rage like never before." Taehyung's deep emotionless voice delivered.

"Sebastian . . ." Jungkook mused, "He no longer knows us . . . we have diverged from our old selves too much."

"But our trigger words are the same." Jimin reminded him.

"Not for long." Jin said, reminding them of the discussion they had with their Master.

After that, the hybrids started falling asleep one by one . . .

An hour passed, and every hybrid's breathing deepened, except one Panther's.

"He really should not have targeted her." Jungkook whispered into the night, his eyes hardened into a lethal edge, "He really shouldn't have." A threatening promise in his voice, he closed his eyes.

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

?????? :

The person held up a framed picture of Anya, smiling into the camera.

"I am doing this for you, for us. I know you love me just as much as I love you. But those hybrids you bought!! Filthy mutts should be shredded like ribbons while their mangled bloody body fed to the street dogs!!!" the person shouted out in their home.

"I know you are too kind to give them up, which is why I will help you baby. I will butcher them all for you. So that you can be free from their diseased pathetic existence. Just wait for me. Hold on a little more!"

The person laughed hysterically, "I know you." They said as they kissed the picture of Anya, licking the glass frame over and over again.

"All I need to do is follow the instructions of D and all will fit perfectly. D knows about it all. D knows how much we are both in love" the person took out the photo of Anya to kiss it once and lowered it to their groin.

Rubbing it up and down, the person moaned, moving their hands faster as they climaxed on the photo.

Panting hard, the person fell on their bed, bringing the photo up, to smile at it. "Soon my love. Soon."

🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

A/N : 20.7k.

The past of the hybrids with the trainers will be revealed as the story progresses.

I had completed and edited the 20th chapter here only for watapad to delete it. It was almost this long and I had to write it all over again. I really cried at that time. Writing it afresh took some time, which is the reason for the delay.

The plot is slowly going to become more convoluted... too many exciting things with the hybrids to come.

Did you enjoy the story so far?

Please do comment and vote, honestly, your comments make me extremely happy.

Question : which characters are you the most in love/intrigued with?