~AUTHOR POV~

Its been five years since the take over.

Humans once the dominant species to live on earth, now to turn into nothing but the hunted by hybrids that now live above all species.

Humans are dying off and only few people are left.

The Pak family to be one of the few.

Thankfully when the rise of the new age rose up to change the world forever, Pak Juwon was a Hunter. It's a family trait, the skills passed on from generations. The family were so good with their hunts in the wild animals they had their own business to sell their kill to the locals. Well that was before all this. Now Juwon does what he can to survive and to be sure that his wife, Pak Ara and his three little girls are taken care of.

The eldest, Pak Heejin. She is smart yet wise for her ten year old self. Like a second mother to her two younger siblings.

The middle child, Pak Y/n. The stubborn yet adventurous little girl that likes to wonder. She has a mind of her own, yet very brave for someone of seven years old.

Then lastly there is little Pak Nari. The quiet little girl who follows her elder sisters footsteps where ever they may go. Never has she known any other life than this. To be living in the woods all her life as she was only four years old.

Juwon vowed that he would do anything to protect his family and that meant anything.

They lived in a shared tent that Juwon would carry on his back daily as they wondered through the woods far away from the city. The city is the most dangerous place to be. That's where most of the humans have gone and never returned.

Something that the Pak family know to never go if they want to stay alive.

Today was wash day and a chance to fill up their bottles of water from a nearby stream in the woods. Juwon took a few private moments further up stream to wash himself while he knew his wife was with the children. Of course she was armed.

Unfortunately not with any gun as the bullets to the guns they once had, had ran out so they cope with knives. It's not preferred but it does the job.

Ara was squatting down to little Nari's height, trying to help the girl wash in the cold water. As she is young she still hasn't quite grasped the concept of having no warm water even if this all she knows but she'll get use to it. Her parents and older siblings had to even if none of them like it and the only warmth they will feel will be each other's body heat and that from a fire.

Heejin was already washed and dressed, practicing her reading that her mother had set out as part of their homeschooling. It's the best Ara could do under the circumstances to allow her children to have some sort of education.

"Mommy I don't like it!" Nari

"I know honey but you're almost done." Ara

She poured some cold water on little Nari's hair to wash out what dirt could be washed away. Once done Ara took the small towel from her shoulder and wrapped it around Nari's body.

"Y/n! Please done go too far!" Ara

"Yes mommy!" Y/n

Y/n was too distracted in stepping over the stones to the other side of the stream. She swore she saw people, small people and wanted to see them. Y/n liked to wonder on her own but obviously not too far from her family as they are all she has.

She could hear the voices of her sister and mother fade but that doesn't stop her when she sees a little boy around her age standing with his back turned to her but quickly turns around with a scared yet shocked expression on his face.

Y/n flinched back in surprise to see him but yet she was happy to see someone else, someone that wasn't her family. Although she completely dismissed the fact he had little rounded ears on the top of his head and a tail to match.

For the boy, it was his first time seeing a human.

The pair just stared at each other for what felt like forever but the first one to break that silence was y/n. She broke out it her trance and smiled widely at the boy.

"Hi boy!"

He frowned at first but stepped back when he noticed that she was coming closer.

"A-are you human?" Boy

She nodded straight away, eagerly wanting to get to know the boy.

"Yes I am! You a.....a....hybrid?" Y/n

She could quite remember the name for a moment to what he could be but she could there in the end.

"Uh huh. Yep. What are you doing out here?" Boy

Y/n looked around at her surroundings innocently not any of the wiser that her father was actually very close by and watching his daughter interact with the small boy hybrid. He knows he should stop this but the boy seemed harmless and if he had plans to attack, he would do done it by now or at least growled at her even if he is young. So Juwon decided to squat to the floor and watch his daughter carefully.

"I live here. These woods are like my home!" Y/n

The boy felt sadness for her. To finally look at her appearance and see her loose shirt hanging off her shoulder, that had a massive tear on the hem of the fabric. Her wet hair brushed back but he didn't miss the scratches on her arms and feet, her bare feet at that. For someone so young, around his age to look like this, was something he didn't understand. All the boy could think about was how she could live like this.

"Boy? Are you okay?" Y/n

She frowned at his saddened expression and walked towards him. She was concerned when he started to tear up.

"You live in the woods? Are you alone here?" Boy

Y/n shook her head but still brightly smiling wide.

"No silly. I have my daddy, my mommy and my two sisters. It's wash day!" Y/n

She clapped her hands excitedly while Juwon still watches carefully. He was curious about the little boy who looked at her with clear pity all over his face. It made him think about the new generation of hybrids. Would they think the same way of humans as his elders would?

"Wash day? I don't get what you mean?" Boy

Y/n laughed still beaming with joy to speak to him.

"You see that stream over there?!" Y/n

She pointed behind her and the boy just looked over to where she had pointed in curiosity.

"We wash over there! We can't be stinky that's yuck!" Y/n

"You take a bath in the stream?" Boy

The boy tilts his head to the side in confusion. Neither one of them really know of what the big deal is between hybrids and humans. Both been shielded from the harsh reality.

"A bath? What's a bath?" Y/n

She scratched the top of her head in confusion. Juwon looks down to his feet in guilt that his daughter doesn't know of such luxuries. Even if he knows it's not his fault but he does what he can.

The boy gasped in surprise, startling poor y/n.

"You don't know what a bath is? How long have you been out here? How old are you?" Boy

"I'm seven. How old are you?"

"I'm eight years old." Boy

Y/n started to giggle again to see the boy crack just a little bit of a smile. The two both happy to know they're so close in age but the boy was still very upset to see her like this. To know that she lives this way. Even Juwon noticed that look and it made him even more curious but still very alert to their surroundings. The boy can't be that far from his parents.

"Where do you live?" Y/n

"I....erm....my mom and dad are building a new house not far from here. I got bored and came here to play." Boy

"You live in a house?! Your so lucky!" Y/n

The boy nervously laughed and scratched the top of his head between his ears.

"I guess so." Boy

He shrugged not really knowing what to say about that. Y/n just stared at his face, seeing how clean and nicely dressed he was in his light blue jeans and white T-shirt with some sort of writing on the front of it. Actually she thought he was quite pretty for a boy, she liked him a lot. The boys ears on the top of his head twitched and his eyes widen in panic.

"Girl! You need to go!" Boy

There was something about his expression that worried y/n greatly but didn't know why.

"Why? Do you not like me?" Y/n

She pouted her lips but the boy just shook his head and then lightly pushed her back.

"It's not that. I like you but it's......it's my mom and dad. They're coming and you need to go. Please." Boy

Y/n didn't want to go. She didn't want to leave him but she knew that she should listen to him.

"I don't want to leave you." Y/n

She rushed over to the boy and hugged him tight around the his chest. They were almost the same height, she was just a little smaller than he was. The boy startled by this, but eventually hugged her back but out of instinct buried his face into the crook of her neck to inhale her scent. He wants to remember her scent, he wants to try and find her again after this.

Juwon stood up after seeing what his daughter just did but hid behind a tree. He's thankful that some how the little boy hasn't realised that he has been watching this whole time but makes him wonder why he hasn't.

The boy continued to smell the girl hugging him in her tiny arms. To him she smelled sweet, so sweet that he wanted to stand here and smell her all day.

"I don't want to leave you either. I like you but you need to go! I'll try to find you again." Boy

Her eyes lit up with happiness as they parted from their hug.

"Do you mean it?" Y/n

"Yes I mean it. Now go!" Boy

She nodded with a giggle and took off running back towards the stream in pure hope and trust that the boy will find her again and they can finally play and be friends. Even the idea of having him meet her sisters also bright joy to her.

The boy was relieved that she listened to him but yet found himself really upset, even more so than before watching her run off like that. He heard his parents voices near by and didn't want them to find her. As far as he was aware she is his and no one else's. His own little secret that he didn't want anyone to know about.

The boy sighed sadly and was about to turn to leave when he heard a twig break. Now on full alert he turned around to the sound with a little growl in warning. Now he questioned himself to why he didn't do this with the girl.

But pushed that thought away when he seen a man appear from behind a tree. His hands up in surrender and bared a familiar scent of damp water and soil just like the little girl but she had a more sweeter scent to her than this man. However the man also shared a resemblance to the girl, the same lips and dark hair colour.

"Hey I just wanted to talk to you?" Juwon

"About?" Boy

The boy didn't care that he was human just that this man was a stranger and his instincts told him to do what he needed to protect himself.

Juwon smiled and lowered his hands as he now stands before the boy. An idea popped into his mind when he heard that the boy was moving into a new built house not too far away. Juwon knew all about hybrids and how they worked. He knew why this boy after lots of thinking, took such a liking to y/n so easily and wanted to have a chat with him.

"I'm not going to harm you but I wanted to talk about that little girl you just spoke to. She's my daughter." Juwon

The boy relaxed straight away now that it's confirmed he is the father of the little girl that he still can't stop thinking about.

"What about her? I'm sorry if you didn't like me talking to her." Boy

Juwon smiled to see how quickly the boy turned all sweet and polite spoken. Something he isn't use to when it comes to hybrids.

"It's okay but I think the two of us need to have a quick chat before you go back to your parents if you don't mind?" Juwon

"Sure okay. I can talk." Boy

Juwon smiled widely and squatted back down to the boys level.

"I need to ask you a big favour and promise me that you would keep it." Juwon

The boy was unsure how to respond to this stranger but because he liked y/n and this is her father he already feels like he could trust this human.

"I promise I would keep what ever it is you want." Boy

Juwon sighs in relief and begins to explain a few things to the boy. The boy listened to everything that was said from Juwon, listening very carefully now that he knew his parents had gone in a different direction than when y/n was there with him. Shocked, anger, pity all these emotions hit the eight year old boy shocked but one thing he was so sure of is that he was going to keep his promise to the man.

And that one promise will be forever kept a secret between the two.