King started off the porch and Ender scurried after him, his small feet were the reason he was running just to follow King's single stride. The man was severely tall and scary too which lead Ender to speculate about the angel wings tattoo on the back of King's neck; it was a strange choice for someone like him. Ender wanted to ask about it but he kept his curiosity to himself and focused on keeping up with King instead.

It was early but the Institute was overflowing with students and teachers. No one rested here and it was always busy.

King took him inside the school and straight to the private elevators, which weren't used by any of the students. These elevators were used for the pack enforcers and Alpha Gabriel or the Beta Hunter.

Ender hurried in after King into the sleek metal box, the doors closed quickly after them. King clicked a glowing white button and the box started to move. Up or down, Ender wasn't too sure since it felt like it hardly even moved at all. The only way he figured it out was by looking at the large screen on the top that went from 'one' to 'basement'. The doors pinged open. Ender didn't know there was such a place here, he was sure that no one else know either.

Immediately, as they got out, Ender found himself in a large white hallway and a bright light at the end of it. They both went down when Ender heard the sound of voices and other noises. As they emerged from the end of the hallway, a massive area presented itself.

"Welcome to the Centauri training grounds," King said as they walked into the gym.

Ender didn't know where to look first, it was huge. Not only were there countless equipment pieces, but also a bunch of pack members using them at the time too. The entire area was padded with dark grey mats, which looked to be the reason the members could practice their combat tactics. Right now, Azura was leading a class with group of members. Ender found Dante and Leo with her too, they were listening to her words carefully, while wiping their sweat on their shirts. The other members were sitting on the ground waiting for their turn. Azura looked formidable in her leather suit that was molded to her body like skin. She had daggers, weapons strapped to her body too and it was for everyone to see them. She stood cross-armed, her long braid over her shoulder and a stern air around her as she spoke to Dante and Leo. Ender wondered how she got so powerful to be such a scary fighter for the Centauri pack. Where did Alpha Gabriel find these many fighters? Ender pondered.

"Azura," King called out to her.

Her silver-coin eyes looked at King and then down at Ender. "What's up?"

"How's training going?" King asked.

A smirk lifted on her lips. "I'm having fun beating these little pups into shape," she jested and a bunch of groans followed, which proved that everyone was indeed getting beat up by her.

King continued to talk about the training and Ender shifted to the side, standing behind them. He heard them exchange a few words but didn't pay any more attention because he was trying not to watch the training. Dante and Leo were going against two other boys, it seemed that they were being trained as a pair. Azura and King watched carefully and gave pointers, but that all muffled the moment Ender caught the sounds of fists thrashing and bodies hitting the ground.

Ender flinched at every sound, he realized much later that he had stepped away from them, until he needed the wall to support him.

Why did King bring him here?

Darkness overflowed inside him.

Ender tried. He tried and tried to push away the torment surging through his body, which chained him to cages. He didn't want to remember each and every fight he battled through. The scars on his body were the result from using his fists on others, even taking their life with his hands. Ender had killed. He knew what it felt like to take a soul from a body and then beg at night for forgiveness. Ender had even broken his own bones to be punished for his sins, but it wasn't enough. All the faces of the people he killed haunted him, they were still with him with every scar he had on his small body.

Suddenly, through the muffled voices that choked his very soul, laughter erupted in the room.

Ender looked ahead at the boys on the mat. The fight had ended and they helped each other back on their feet. There were no wounds, no blood on any of them, there wasn't the unmoving body lying on the ground. There wasn't a victor nor failure who would be punished for losing their gamble. They hadn't fought to the death.

Ender looked up and met King's eyes, he knew exactly what Ender was thinking right now. King knew, but how? thought Ender.

Another session began just like that. Azura was teaching them how posture changed one from defence to offence. She used another student to help her as she demonstrated her words to the class. Ender found it strange how Azura didn't use her power to hurt any of the kids. She controlled her strength precisely enough to teach the class without harming anyone. He didn't understand why she didn't hurt them, many would've done it and taught them all a lesson the hard way. That's how Ender saw it all his life.

The class went on and Ender watched closely as Azura taught.

"Hey, let's go, kid," King said to him.

Ender followed King out the same way they came. He didn't understand, why were they leaving already. And instead of going to other places inside the school, King took them outside onto the field where Hailey was with her class. She taught all the pups who were transitioning and learning how to build a bond with their wolf from a very young age. Ender wouldn't know about that, he never talked to his wolf let alone meet him or shift either.

Hailey was in a red coat and scarf standing in the snow field with the crowd of small kids running around in the snow too. They were learning to shift but seemed rather distracted by the mountain of snow everywhere. Not only was being a wolf new to the pups, also being in the snow was overstimulating. Hailey couldn't control them, but it seemed she was having her own fun building something with the kids. Ender didn't understand why they were rolling up large chunks of snow and stacking each ball on top of each other.

"What are they doing?" Ender blurted out, not being able to stop himself.

"Building a snowman," King answered, as they crossed the field and approached the group. "Hey, Hailey."

What was a snowman? Ender wondered.

Hailey looked up at them with a radiant smile, her cheeks a bit red from the cold. "Hi, guys," she said happily. "Would any of you be carrying any spare buttons by chance?"

King rummaged through his pockets. "No- hold on, I have-" he pulled his hands out of his pockets and opened his closed palm presenting bullets.

Hailey wasn't surprised. She grabbed the bullets and put them into the second large ball. She pushed in two more on the top ball, which resembled eyes and a kid came running with branches in his arms. Hailey plunged them into the statue, and miraculously, Ender could see how the snow became a man. The kids started to cheer at the large snowman and Ender found himself wanting to help too.

"Alright, everyone, let's take a short break," Hailey announced.

The kids all gathered in a circle and plopped down in front of Hailey in the snow. King was already by her side, he grabbed the large Tupperware box from her hands, as she reached down and grabbed a tumbler.

"Ender, can you help me too?" she asked.

Ender came over grabbing the cups from her hands.

"Hand those out to the kids," she instructed.

As Hailey filled up two glasses with warm apple cider, Ender passed the cups carefully to each kid who were patiently waiting. Ender was baffled by the way the kids were all sitting happily on the ground. They had nothing to worry about here, none of them had to look over their shoulder waiting for someone to hurt them. Ender realized that no one could hurt them here. And Hailey was kind. She was someone who warmed up any place she went. Ender didn't feel fear near her. He was safe, just like the rest of the kids.

King helped Hailey hand out the gingerbread cookies which were in many different shapes; pine trees, a star and heart too, that were also coated in this rich white sugar icing with candy.

After they were done helping the kids, Hailey gave King a cookie.

"Good job," she praised him.

King rolled his eyes but still ate the cookie, which brought a tender smile to Hailey's lips.

She then bent down and faced Ender. "Here-" she passed him a cookie too- "I hope you like it."

Ender bit into the soft dough, and without even a second passing by, a burst of spices melted into his mouth. His eyes widened in surprise from the sweet and warm spice filled him up.

"It's very good," he managed to use his voice.

Hailey fixed his hat by bringing it over his exposed ears. "Thank you for helping me today," she said, "and always smile just like that."

Ender didn't realize that he was smiling, but now that he had, he couldn't stop himself when he was around anyone in this pack. What this pack had was unlike anything Ender ever saw. He understood why Alpha Gabriel was formidable and scary. He had to be so he could guard the entire pack from the people Ender fought all his life.

King started to walk off back towards the second entrance of the school. Ender followed after him.

"Ender," a voice called out.

Both King and Ender stopped in their tracks. Ender turned and saw Jaxx standing at the bottom of the steps in a hoodie and his hands tucked into his pockets.

"I need to talk to you," Jaxx said, as his grey eyes looked up at King then back at Ender.

Ender awkwardly looked at King who sensed the tension too. "Meet me in the library when you're done," he told Ender before he walked inside alone.

Ender stood quietly unsure what to say because he didn't know why Jaxx would want to speak to him all of a sudden.

"Hey," Jaxx called out. "Are you going to keep staring at the wall?"

Ender blinked before he regarded the boy who was standing in front of him now. Jaxx's skin contrasted against the dark black hoodie, but those greyish-silver eyes flashed like diamonds from under those dark lashes, it gave Ender an unsettling sensation in his gut. Jaxx's eyes were invasive, like his gaze soaked in all the information they could and stored them.

"Aren't you cold?" Ender found himself asking because he was curious but also nervous to say anything else.

Jaxx frowned with his dark brows. "Is that all you have to say?" he asked.

"I don't understand," Ender mumbled.

"That day..." Jaxx said, "when the whole pack was looking for you after you had gone missing-"

Ender's gut sank and he was afraid of what he'd ask next.

"What happened that day?" Jaxx asked. "Why'd you run away?"

Ender didn't know what to say to Jaxx. There was no way, he'd reveal anything about his past to him, it'd probably disgust Jaxx.

"It doesn't matter," Ender said looking away from that invasive gaze.

Jaxx stayed quiet, but his silence was as if he drove a dagger into Ender's consciousness. "I saw you..." he revealed. "You were alone when you went to the forest-" Ender's eyes widened, his skin went cold because all the blood drained from his veins- "I wanted to follow after you but I was... scared..."

"Of me?" Ender couldn't recognize his own grave voice.

Jaxx's jaw tightened. "I was afraid that if I called out to you that you wouldn't recognize me," he said.

"Jaxx-"

"And then, when everyone started looking for you, I knew that you had done something stupid," Jaxx said. "I knew that I should've ran after you-"

"I didn't want anyone to follow me-" Ender interrupted.

Jaxx went quiet again, his eyes speaking for him, yet Ender didn't understand the shattering vulnerability in them or why it hurt him more than it did Jaxx.

"I told Klaus where to find you," Jaxx professed.

Ender stiffened. "What?"

"And when Klaus chased after you, so did I," said Jaxx. "I saw you on that cliff-"

Ender was going to be sick and it looked like Jaxx was too.

"You had the same look in your eyes from the first day I saw you," Jaxx told him.

Ender glared into those silver eyes. "You don't know anything about me," he said coldly hoping that Jaxx would leave and never want to be near him again. "Forget everything you saw and leave me alone."

Jaxx wasn't one to back off. "I left you alone and you ended up at the edge of a cliff," he snapped. "I'm not leaving your damn side ever again."

"Why the hell not?" Ender gritted out.

"Because you helped me when I needed it, now I'm going to help you," he said it so simply.

"You can't help me," Ender confessed with pain etched into his tone and eyes.

"Maybe not, but I'm going to try," Jaxx retorted.

Ender released a shaky but harsh breath, it fogged up in front of him from the cold. He ripped down the zipper and threw off the scarf, he pulled away the sweater around his neck and exposed the insidious markings around his throat to the boy.

Jaxx's grey eyes were tainted the moment they landed on the slave markings around Ender's neck. He was exposed like one was to a virus that couldn't be fought against. He was infected once he saw the marks which Ender never wanted to expose to anyone. And deep down, Jaxx was the last person Ender wanted to show these marks to, but he had to so Jaxx could understand that Ender was haunted forever.

Jaxx's skin fell pale, his eyes lingered on his neck. "Those marks..." his voice was so soft to Ender's ears that it made him want to scream from frustration, "who gave them to you?"

"How can you even stand here after seeing this?" Ender was shocked. He pulled off his gloves and exposed his wrists, which bore more slave marks. "I have many more all over my body, even inside my blood-"

"Who did this to you?" Jaxx pressed on the matter.

"It doesn't matter," Ender replied curtly.

Jaxx didn't ask again, but it was clear that he was pissed and curious. He turned away and Ender should've found relief but his body ached in angst.

Ender closed his eyes, when a soft touch brushed his hand. His eyes snapped open and it was Jaxx who had lifted the scarf off the ground and his gloves.

"What are you doing?" Ender shrank back.

Jaxx fixed the collar off his turtleneck, zipped up Ender's jacket and then wrapped the scarf around his neck. He even carefully put the gloves back on him.

Ender pulled away and stepped back. He couldn't let anyone touch him with such care, it hurt too much. He ran into the school leaving Jaxx standing all by himself.

Eventually, when Ender had come to some realization, he found himself on the other side of the school courtyard alone. He stepped outside through the blue doors, when he sensed a figure behind him.

"You didn't come to the library," King had said.

"Why are you doing this?" Ender asked him harshly. "Taking me to see that gym, then Hailey's class, now there. Why?"

King's stern sapphire gaze hadn't faltered with Ender's cruel tone. "Because this is your home," he said.

Ender went still, with no words to say to that. Home. He never had a home. He never thought of a home. He never even brought himself to imagine a home.

"I brought you to all these places to show you where you are now," King said, "and I'm not done-"

"There's nothing that you can show me," said Ender. There was nothing that could make him forget the cage or the years of torment.

King didn't listen. He grabbed Ender by his arm and took him out into the large forest track. Both of them silent and walking for a long while, before King stopped dead in front that very same cliff from the other day.

"You wanted to jump off of here, right?" King stated more than asked. "I'm pretty sure it'd be a nice way to end it all. At least jumping off from here would be better than dying in a cage, then having your body being thrown in the incinerator or the Purge with everyone else."

Ender's gaped up at King. No one outside the cage fights knew about the incinerators, which were used to dispose of the body. Fine, maybe, that was possible to figure that out somehow. However, it was impossible to know about the Purge if you weren't part of the cage fights. The Purge was the large sunken hole where the cage dealers would gather up the dead bodies and throw them into the black, endless hole. Sometimes, many were even thrown into that hole alive unable to climb out, eventually they'd die with the rest of the corpses.

"How do you know about that?" Ender summed up the courage to speak, but he was terrified to hear the truth.

King's strong eyes revealed the truth before his words did. Ender recognized the way those eyes brought all the haunted memories to the surface.

"I was a slave fighter," King confessed.

Ender shook his head, his legs giving up strength, his lungs collapsing on him.

"I've been where you were trapped," King continued.

"No, no, no, no... you didn't have to kill your friends... you didn't have to watch everyone die because of you-" Ender couldn't believe what was being told to him. Someone as strong as King couldn't be a slave, it just wasn't true.

King took off his leather jacket, and peeled off his sweatshirt too, exposing his muscular and ferocious body. However, it was then, that Ender paid close attention as saw the exact same slave markings around King's throat, chest and wrists, they were hard to see with all the tattoos, but they were there. The marks could never truly be erased.

"I watched everyone die over and over again and I was the one that did it," King told him. "I murdered my friends, so I could live another day."

Ender fell back into the snow, his back hit the trunk of a sturdy tree that supported him as his body gave out on him.

"You know everything," he breathed out. Everything that Ender tried so hard to hide from them, King knew it all. And if King knew than Klaus and so did everyone else.