Xander wandered around the sprawling halls of his mansion, each hallway giving him a different feeling of the nostalgic memories he had in that wing, many of them with Viola.

In one of these rooms to his right, he and Viola ended up staying up all night binge watching kdramas. The headache he had the next morning was further worsened by having to spar with his pack members. Thanks to her he almost lost one of those matches too.

He walked further down looking around for his little mate.

He eventually found her lying down on the floor staring at the empty ceiling.

"There you are!" He decided not to ask what she was doing, respecting her privacy and all.

Her head flicked to him, as a wide smile spread across her blank face.

Her eyes stayed in their emotionless place making her seem cold to the average person, but to Xander, her eyes offered him warmth and happiness.

"Oh. Sorry, I didn't know you were looking for me."

"Yeah...um...I had something to ask you." Nerves overcame him.

Xander had never done this before. Never felt the panic and hopefulness of asking someone out. Never felt what it'd be like to fall in love.

She tilted her head slightly, questioning what he wanted to ask.

He froze for a second. His cheeks turned in two round tomatoes as he mentally prepared himself.

It was strange. He, who had conquered and vanquished his many enemies, was stumbling over his words in front of this little human, who was nothing more than an ant compared to the people he killed.

What would he even say? How would he say it?

Finally his brain continued to spin and he managed to form a sentence.

"Would you like to go on a picnic with me tomorrow?"

"Sure I'd love to," she beamed excitedly.

"Oh..Umm...that's great! Is there anything you'd like me to bring? I know this really nice spot we can go to." He stumbled over some of his words in excitement over the fact that he could spend time with Kaya.

He was about to open his mouth to continue what he was saying, when the phone rang.

The shrill ringtone of his business phone drastically filled the silence as he picked up.

"Hello?"

It was one of the neighboring packs, probably asking about something unimportant like transferring members or some shit like that.

"Sorry," He mouthed to Kaya, to which she responded with "It's okay," and a bright smile.

Xander continued to work for the rest of the day, signing different laws and finding a way to replace his beta.

Realizing the pile of documents he had to do was too long for him to leave the office, he decided to call an omega to buy him the things he found necessary to bring tomorrow.

He begged Leto that she wouldn't mess up. Then again, when had Leto ever listened to him?

*

Ten hours later and the sun was beginning to wake up his office with the indigo blue of the early morning.

And ten hours later, Xander was still sitting at his desk, legs cramped and neck stiff, reading email after email of propositions from pack members and neighboring packs.

He still had about 8-9 hours before his picnic.

Shit!

He abruptly got to his feet, almost losing his balance.

Eight hours was not enough time to prepare. He had to shower and do his hair and pick out what to wear.

Xander was scrambling out the door as he started panicking over his looks.

He'd never been on a date before. He had always been busy with leading his pack. Dating was for people who had time...which he didn't, but he could always make time for his mate.

Xander stripped out of the grimy clothes he had worn throughout the night and got into the shower while the water was still cold.

He jumped back in shock, as he tried to bear the heavy droplets that splashed down on him like million mini shards of a crystal chandelier falling down on him.

As he waited for the water to warm up, he began to lather his hair in shampoo while thinking about how he would style his hair.

Maybe he should leave his hair alone. What if he looked like he tried too much? But if he didn't wouldn't it look like he tried too little?

And what would he wear?

He was never the fashionista--it was always Viola's thing. She always picked out what he would wear to the various events he had attended.

He used heaps of conditioner, probably wasting the whole bottle.

When he finished, he put on a pair of random sweats and a t-shirt, preparing for his second visit to the cellar.

He was hopeless.

What kind of idiot was he? Asking the person who hated him the most for fashion advice? He was dim.

Nevertheless, he walked through the dank, windowless halls to Viola's cell.

He wordlessly opened her cell, as she looked up at him in confusion.

"Come on. Let's go." He spoke like a father telling his kid to leave the park.

He grabbed Viola's arm and lifted her to her feet as he began to drag her out of the cell.

He pulled the wooden door open, much to the hinges' shrill protests.

Viola squinted as the light filled her eyes.

Xander led Viola to his room as he dragged her to the ottoman at the foot of his bed.

"Sit," He softly commanded her.

Viola, in utter confusion, just did as she was told, her mind in conflict whether to defy him or to see what he wanted.

"So...I have a date..." Xander was practically begging her like an UwU girl.

Viola laughed. "You think that I am going to help you with that?" She was laughing so hard her stomach hurt. "You're fucking crazy."

"Please." He got down on his knees in front of her and put his hands over her silver handcuffed hands that were now lined with burn scars and bent his head down."You've got to help me. Please. I'll do anything."

"Anything?"

Xander nodded, desperation clouding his amber eyes.

"I will help you if you promise to let me go...Alive." She paused for a second. "And I want to be let go as soon as you finish picking an outfit."

He thought about this.

If Xander chose to let her go, he would have to deal with her later, and this time he might actually have to kill her.

But if he didn't get Vi's help, he would just end up wearing sweats to his date, and that would be even worse.

"A deal's a deal," he promised her.

Four hours later, Xander had tried on various outfit combinations and had finally found the perfect one, according to Viola.

He was wearing a plain white t-shirt under a black floral shirt that was buttoned up halfway. The flowers were white amaryllis, which reminded him of his mate. The white flowers represented the innocence and purity of his mate.

"Thank you," He softly told Vi.

She shook her head. "It's not a problem. I'm happy to help, but now it's time for you to keep up your end of the deal."

Xander nodded as he took a key from his bedside table and unlocked her handcuffs.

Viola's wrists were completely disfigured. What once was soft skin was now a long bracelet of rough scar tissue. As Xander saw the damage he did, a pang of guilt that stemmed from his heart shuddered throughout his body.

He was horrified at what he had done. When had he turned into such a terrible person?

Viola jumped out the window the minute those painful manacles were off. It was wise not to go out through the front door given that most of the pack members would hate her.

As Xander watched her body disappear into the trees, his heart spoke what he could not say to her. "I'm sorry," it whispered, hoping the wind could carry its voice to her.

Xander walked to the kitchen to double check that everything needed would be there.

He picked up the basket as he walked over to Kaya's room.

When he got to her room, the basket landed on the floor with a thud as his eyes widened in shock. He couldn't believe what he was looking at.