Zero stood motionless in Severin's arms, her heart hammered in her chest and her hands trembled. She tried so hard to control her breath and her pained expression, but she failed. Severin's warm indigo eyes saw right through her. He saw how hard she tried to control the need to give in and show him, that she was breaking. However, the way Severin held her gently, he pulled her out and grounded her to be with him, even though fire surrounded her, ready to consume her and take her.

After seeing Elijah break in front of her, she had forgotten that maybe she didn't have the strength to help him. But she wasn't alone in this. Severin had held both of their hands when she was too weak this time.

She always knew that this was what having a family meant. But this was the first time, she had experienced it herself. She was always on the outside, always looking at others and seeing they healed each other, but it was too far from her. When she had fallen after Elijah had viciously taken his anger out on her, she had not given up on him, but herself. Although, it seemed that Severin believed in her more than she ever thought he would.

Severin lifted his hand and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "You okay?" he asked tenderly.

Zero leaned into his touch. "I should check on Elijah," she said.

"Don't worry, I'm sure Tom is already with him," believed Severin. "You just worry about yourself for now." He gently caressed up and down her arm, which lessened the stinging pain of her wound.

Zero almost forgot all about the injury when Severin's touch was all she focused on. His hands, his skin, the heat of his body kept her captivated solely to him.

"Has anyone ever told you how pretty you are?" he suddenly asked.

Zero gaped up at him, when she saw the smirk on his face, she dropped her head on his chest in defeat. "You're crazy," she mumbled.

"It astounds me every time," he continued as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

"I'm covered in sweat and blood," she said as she tried to move, but he didn't let her.

"Yeah, so?" He tilted his head and laid a quick kiss on her lips. "So pretty-" he kissed again and then chuckled at her stunned expression. "One more time," he asked and she was about to object, but he quickly stole another kiss from her.

Zero frowned at him.

"Don't get mad," he said.

"Are you going to keep having your way with me?" she asked gruffly.

Severin blinked as his cunning eyes shined. "Was that what I was doing?" he asked innocently. "And here I thought that I was comforting my mate."

"Severin," she said.

"Yes, sweetheart?" He grinned at her. "I almost wish you were drunk again. You were a lot more honest with all your adorable confessions."

Zero stiffened. She barely remembered last night. She did know that after getting shot, they came home and Elijah patched-up her wound, then she took painkillers and antibiotics, then her mind went fuzzy from there. She forgot what happened and then she woke up with Severin in her bedroom, but that was it. What did she do? she searched her head for answers.

Severin suddenly laughed at her. "You should see your face," he jested. "You look horrified."

Zero was horrified, that she probably did something stupid. "What did I do?" she almost regret asking that.

"That's for me to know and for you to fantasize about," he retorted devilishly. "But a little hint is that everything you did turned me on."

Zero's eyes widened and she had tight-lipped her mouth shut. She closed her eyes and ran away from this man.

"Hold on," he laughed more as he followed. "There's nothing to be embarrassed about."

Zero reached the first floor when she saw all of the other pack members lounging around the living-room. They seemed rather calm despite everything that just happened. But that was to be expected, these wolves had seen their own fair share of evil and tormented pasts. No one understood Elijah more than all these men.

Suddenly, the doorbell went off. Tom went to the door first and Zero wondered what that was about. The door opened and a young man with a red uniform stood with a big bag in his hand.

"I have your order," he said with a dull voice.

"Who ordered food?" astounded Zero.

"Don't you know when someone is upset, food helps right away," remarked Zeiden.

Klaus quickly went to help Tom pick up all the boxes. There were quite a lot from what she could see.

"Oh, this is not my house," said Tom as he grabbed the boxes from delivery man.

"Not mine either," added Klaus.

"Zero! Bill!" Shouted Tom.

Severin laughed at Zero's befuddled expression. He passed her and went to pay the bill of the seven boxes of pizza. It seemed a party began without her even realizing it. But this happened whenever everyone got together, and this was only half the gang, the rest of the wolves weren't even here.

"My treat," said Severin as he paid and tipped the delivery man.

"Oh, we have a keeper," remarked Ronin.

The group gathered again in the living room and opened all the boxes, ready to eat and forget what just happened. Except Elijah didn't seem keen on eating, so he sat with a bottle of water and kept to himself most of the time.

Zero went over and grabbed the cheese slice from Tom's box and passed it to Elijah. "Eat," she said. "Never take your frustrations out on food, it's not good."

Elijah frowned. "Just not that hungry," he said.

"We've all heard that line before, buddy," alleged King. "Eat, you'll feel better."

Elijah looked down at the slice and reluctantly took a bite. Zero only ate then too. She didn't realize how hungry she was until the pepperoni and jalapeños loaded pizza touched her mouth.

"Zero, don't you think it's time to address the elephant in the room?" said Marcello.

Zero's eyes went directly to Severin before anyone else. How was she going to tell everyone that Severin was her mate? Wait, if Marcello was asking then they already knew about it. Damn, she did not need to talk about this right now.

"How'd you get hurt?" Marcello suddenly asked then.

"Er- what?" She couldn't control her dumbfounded look.

Marcello's frown deepened. "Your wound?" he repeated. "Who hurt you?"

She let out a breath of relief.

"I thought you were talking about something else," commented Klaus, as he ate pizza with King; both of them sat with their legs crossed on the floor.

All of their attention was on her now wondering what Klaus talked about.

Klaus's blank eyes looked at her as he innocently ate. "Was I not supposed to say anything?" he asked.

"I don't think we were," muttered King.

"What are you two talking about?" Zeiden asked them.

"Zero?" insisted Marcello.

"I encountered Reaper last night," she revealed trying to change the topic. "He was the one that shot me."

"You met him?" astounded Alec.

"No, he sent his men," she clarified.

"You didn't expect him to come in person, did you?" said Vadik. "He's too smart for that."

"Or a fucking coward," remarked Adrik.

"That too," agreed Vadik.

Zero didn't think Reaper was smart or a coward. He was simply a man with a purpose, so he was merely motivated, and that could be dangerous because she was the exact same.

Zero knew what purpose felt like, since her entire life was built around her own commitment to help others. Reaper's motive may be to kill her, but still he had a purpose and she commended him for that. He wasn't a lost soul or conflicted with thorny thoughts. However, that being said, Zero knew that he wasn't someone she'd give a second chance to. He wanted to kill her. Good, now she can focus on killing him. The plan just got a whole lot easier.

"Hurry up and eat," she said. "We continue training after you're all done." She left to the kitchen to get some water.

The chatter in the living room grew.

Zero decided to change her bloody clothes before she continued the training session. She was just about to go upstairs when Elijah approached her. She looked at his worried expression and waited for him to start, but he didn't.

"If you're worried about what'll happen if we train again, then don't be," she said.

"It's very likely I will lose control again, Zero," Elijah warned her.

Zero put a foot on the step and leaned on the railing. "Then I will step in and fight you again too," she claimed and that surprised Elijah.

"What if I hurt one of your friends again?" he asked.

"They're your friends now too," she said, "just apologize and I'm sure they'll be fine."

Elijah raked his tousled hair out of frustration. "Why are they all like that?" he huffed.

"Who?"

"Them," said Elijah. "How are they okay with me?"

"Oh, that's just who they are, they're crazy," believed Zero.

"We are," a voice intervened, it was King. "We all tried to kill one another long ago. Marcello even shot us both not too long ago."

Zero remembered that. "I still need to get him back for that," she muttered.

King approached them with a smile on his face as he faced Elijah. "None of us see you as a threat, Elijah," he said. "And I speak on everyone's behalf, we understand what you've been through... especially me."

Zero stiffened when she heard the ice in King's tone as he spoke of his past. She never thought he would bring it up, since King wasn't proud of his days in cage fights.

"I was in the cages too," he revealed. Elijah's eyes widened. "I escaped with a few friends of mine, but the memories made me feel like I never left that place."

"I didn't know," Elijah muttered. "You don't have the marks."

King smirked. "I covered myself with ink," he told him. "You can do it too. I know a great artist, I'll hook you up if you want."

Elijah gave a small smile. "Thanks," he said.

"Don't be so hard on yourself," King said as he exchanged a soft look with Zero. "It's hard to forget but trust me when I say that it gets better. And it's not a bad idea to surround yourself with people who care about you-" King turned and looked at his mate who was laughing with Severin and Tom - "My mate saved me, and as much as I hate to admit it, my pack's not so bad."

Zero bit back her laugh. "Someone has matured," she teased.

King rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "Although, they still are a pain in my ass," he grumbled. "But no one has my back like my family does. So, you just need to do the same."

Elijah looked at King. "I would like to try," he said.

King smirked. "Then you'll be fine," he added.

"Why are you so smug?" jested Zero. "Klaus basically transformed you. Gotta hand it to him."

King shrugged a shoulder. "I never said that my husband wasn't the best," he said.

"He changed a lot," she said to Elijah. "Should've met him when he was single. A fucking pain, I tell you."

"We don't talk about that," reminded King. "I'm a dutiful mate to the love of my life, thank you very much."

"You better have been because Gabriel would have killed you," remarked Zero.

"Gabriel?" asked Elijah.

"My annoying brother-in-law," King rolled his eyes again. "I don't know how I tolerate him."

"Let me guess, who has green eyes and blond hair?" pointed out Zero.

King chuckled. "True... well, the things I do for my husband don't make sense to me either," he admitted.

"Weren't you scared?" Elijah asked. "Of hurting him, I mean."

King raked his dark hair. "Hell, yeah," he admitted. "I would kill myself if I did anything to hurt Klaus."

"Then how are you with him?" Elijah said. "What convinced you?"

"It's simple really... life was grey without him," King smiled tenderly. "Every day was the same and I didn't repair my broken reality. Until, I met Klaus and he became a home for me. Where he was, I had to go. I couldn't give that up for anything, even if it was to my own fears."

Zero's heart squeezed. She understood that feeling all too well. She looked across the room and saw Severin talking to everyone. His smile was bright enough to lift the room and he had the warmest light, that even consumed her. Home... she could see home in those indigo eyes. She could see it.

"I need to get changed," she told them. "I'll meet you downstairs." She left them standing near the stairs and went straight up to her dressing room.

Zero stripped out of her dirty clothes, although her mind occupied with other thoughts, but her hands unfolded the fresh linen shirt over her head onto her body.

Zero refocused herself, allowing her a minute to cool down. She reminded herself that none of this was in her control; her body nor her heart were in her command. Those two had already made their choice, it was solely her mind that stayed objective to her rational opinion. It was clear to her that in her heart she had accepted Severin, there was nothing that would deny it now. However, a constant fear that sat in her mind didn't allow her the luxury to mark him.

Zero walked out of the dressing room to the group downstairs. She saw that the living room had cleared out. "Where is everyone?" she asked Tom, who was cleaning up with Klaus and Severin.

"Downstairs," answered Klaus. "Marcello got in a fight with King and you know how they get."

Zero could come up with a lot of outcomes that could result from them fighting. "They better not break anything in my gym," she grumbled.

Klaus laughed. "Oh, then you better get down there," he warned. "I'm sure they already made a mess."

Zero smiled at Klaus. "How is everyone back home anyways?" she asked. "I hope Gabriel doesn't keep you all too busy."

Klaus's eyes always lit up brightly at the mention of his family, especially his oldest brother Gabriel. "Everyone is great," he beamed. "And Gabriel is doing his best for us, like always."

Zero put her hand on his cheek. "If only everyone was as sweet as you," she said. "I wouldn't have such a tough time."

Klaus chuckled. "I don't know about that," he said.

"Especially your mate," she pointed out. "The man is in constant trouble."

Klaus's cheeks bloomed a bright red at mention of his mate. "He would be proud if he heard that from you," he admitted.

"I know he would be," she said. "You tamed him pretty well."

Klaus's eyes widened. "Er- I didn't do anything," he fumbled and scampered off to the kitchen.

Zero quickly went downstairs to see what mess those boys got into. Once she reached the last step, she heard sounds of grunting and curses too. More than anything, she heard the impact of bodies colliding and she didn't have to guess that the training had already begun.

Right away, Zero saw the usual suspects sparing on the mat. King and Marcello beating the crap out of each other. At this point, it wasn't even to teach Elijah. They were just evening out their own score.

"What are two doing?" Zero came over and stood near the mat.

King and Marcello's arm twisted around, locked in position, but Marcello had his free arm locked around King's neck. Both of them froze and looked at her.

"We were teaching, Elijah," grumbled Marcello.

"No, you weren't," admitted Alec.

"Yes, we were," added King, as he pulled Marcello's arm further causing the man to let out a sharp sound. "See, Elijah, this is how you break a man's arm."

"And Elijah, to break a man's throat, you to just have to use a little bit more force," Marcello growled as he tightened his hold too.

Zero sighed and dropped her head in her palm. "You're not helping," she said, but those two were not listening at all.

She gave in and merely let them get tired themselves. Besides, despite their lack of brains, both of them were great fighters, so Elijah would learn a lot just by watching.

Zero circled around the mat as she watched Marcello twist out of King's grasp and pull free. He was fast and swift with his movements, while King had a lot more rugged fighting style, it was clear from the harsh punches King packed, that he learned this from being on the streets. While Marcello got better because he was personally trained to fight. However, it was hard to tell who was better. Zero liked the way King stood his ground, never avoided the hits or attacks. Marcello, on the other hand, kept his moves under a lot of control. He never hit unless he saw the need to, which reminded Zero a lot of herself.

"King, watch your left," she warned.

King already understood and turned quickly before Marcello was about to jab him. "Oof, nasty move, Marcello," he remarked. Marcello shrugged a shoulder irking the shit out of King.

"Marcello," Zero called out and he looked at her, when only King knocked him off his feet.

Marcello fell with a loud thud. "What the hell, Zero!" he snapped at her.

"Never get distracted," she reminded and laughed at him, so did the others.

Marcello lifted off the ground with a grunt. "You two planned this," he accused.

"Can't admit defeat no matter what," remarked Ronin.

Marcello glared at him with a moping expression. "They cheated," he said.

"Who cares?" said King. "You lost."

"I hate you," Marcello gritted out.

"I hate you too," King added.