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As Winter stepped out of the office, she let out an exhausted sigh and shook her head a little. Just as the door clicked to a close behind her, she was suddenly given a round of applause from those that has jumped out from their cubicles. Winter jumped a little and help her heart from the surprise, glaring at everyone and receiving laughs in return. She had never been good with surprises, which everyone was well aware of. The only person who could pull this off would he Caitlyn, who stood towards the back with a wicked smirk that turned Winter's knees to jello.

Some people gave some cheers on quelling the Bosses anger, while others were just happy to see that she hadn't turned her badge in. As she stepped up to Caitlyn, she shook her head and folded her arms over her chest.

"Really, another celebration?" Winter asked as she raised her brow at the red headed woman.

"What, I figured you would enjoy showing off your achievements." Caitlyn giggled as she winked, causing Winter to blush a little.

Winter dropped her jaw and pushed her tongue against her cheek to hide her smirk, shaking her head to hide her blush. Giving Caitlyn a side eye, she huffed a chuckle and gently held her shoulder. "I'm going to the bar, I'm in desperate need of a beer."

"Save me a seat?" Caitlyn asked as she gave Winter's back a teasing smack.

"You know it, the usual spot." Winter replied as she waved her hand over her shoulder and left the dispersing crowd behind. She'd managed to convince Caitlyn to join her for drinks over the last few months, making her plans to eventually ask her out a little easier.

Her hand found the back of her neck and gently rubbed it as she sighed, missing the looks Caitlyn gave at her retreating back. As she found the door to the security room, she stretched her back a little and pushed the door open.

Inside was John, reviewing yesterday's footage with great enthusiasm. Figuring she might as well see, Winter walked behind John and watched the screens with him. On it was an angled shot of the five armed robbers from the other day. They fired a few shots into the ceiling to make the civilians more terrified while shouting disorienting orders for money or telling others to stand still. Suddenly, Winter felt something was wrong as she watched the footage. The way they held the guns was different from regular robbers. It was like they held these pistols for years, and the one with the M14 was holding it like a military personnel would.

Placing her hand on the chair John sat in, she squinted and looked at the tattoos on the man's arm. "You're fucking kidding."

"What's wrong?" John asked as he looked up at her, munching on some chips he stole from her stash.

"These weren't just random robbers. Look at that guy's tattoo, he's special forces." Winter pointed out as she reached down for some chips as well.

"You're kidding, you managed to take out someone like that?" John chuckled and shook his head. It was understandable why he wad in disbelief considering the circumstances.

Yet, as the camera turned to show Winter stepping out with her pistol on the screen, even she was impressed at how she shot the man she pointed out first and brought him crumbling to the ground. Two others dropped as well from her shots, but as she ran out of bullets, she was forced behind a stone pillar a few feet away to reload. The last two kept firing shots, one trying to keep her in place while the other ran out to grab the AR. His shoulder was hit suddenly as Winter peeked out from behind the pillar, causing him to fall over in pain as well.

It was here that the footage was cut by John, who turned around slowly to look at her. "Has your father seen the footage?"

"You know damn well that he would've been watching as it happened." She sighed as she pulled her phone out. Unlike the rest of the employees, John knew about her relationship with the owner. This was only because John was apart of a subsidiary family who was duty bound to hers. And since they were of similar age, John was trained to be her bodyguard from a young age. However, unlike how they thought things would go, Winter treated John as a brother and used him to skip out on a lot of things. Now, John was used more as a scapegoat than as a bodyguard.

"Hey, I'm headed to the bar. You want me to save you a spot?" Winter asked as she held her hand out and gestured for John to hand it over.

John sighed and slipped a cigarette between her fingers as he rolled his eyes. "If I come you'll just use me as a punching bag, I'm good. Just make sure to message me when you're coming home, alright?"

"What are you, my father? I'll message when I feel like." Winter chuckled as she stepped out of the office with a wave.

John could only drop his head and rub his eyes with a sigh. Once again, he was to be her scape goal in this situation. Even then, he could only chuckle and pull out his phone to send a message. After receiving a text back, he tossed his phone onto the desk and kicked his feet up to watch the screens.

Outside the office, Winter was making her way out of the building through the rear entrance. After a few more congratulations and hand shakes given out to those loading crates on the dock, she finally let out a sigh of relief and walked among the rows of cars.

The sky above was blanketed with a grey hue, threatening a light rain that would continue well into the night. A few raindrops fell to greet Winter and kiss her nose as she stopped next to her truck. It was an older model, but the black paint looked brand new. She'd had her father spend a small fortune to make sure she could keep it ever since she was a young girl, those dirt covered wheels reminding her of the trips through the forest she would take when she went hunting or camping to get away from everything. Though it wasn't as big as others liked their trucks to be, it was just the right size for her. Giving a smirk, she walked to the driver side and brushed her hand over the small Ranger logo before opening the door.

"Alright girl, let's get going." She sighed softly as she hopped into the truck and slammed the door close with a huff.

After a little stretch, she pulled the keys out of her pocket and plugged them in to start the truck. As the engine roared to life, she pulled her phone out and connected it to the newer radio she recently installed. After a few moments, that familiar tune made her scroll through the song list as she wrapped the seatbelt over her chest.

As the little drops smacked against her windshield, she gave a smirk and scrolled to a particular song. As the tune played softly, she turned the radio up and drove out of the parking lot towards the street. As the familiar guitar and drums started to kick in, she turned down the busy street and began to bob her head to the beat.

"Shadows in the street parading, there's no escaping. Hanging head and blood for painting, a starry night." She sang along with the lyrics as best as she could, the truck thumping hard with the drums and bass.

Like clockwork, she recieved a text that dimmed the music a little and forced her to look down at her phone.

[Leave the truck there, I'll have John pick it up in the morning.]

She could only let out a stifled chuckle and tap the automatic reply.

[Okay.]

Knowing her father, she already assumed he had John tell him where she was heading. Though the man can be overbearing at times, she still found it endearing how hard he tried for her considering how busy he usually was. This was apparent in the small city she was currently driving through. Where the main building was stationed in Portland, they instead were settled in Seaside where she was more comfortable.

As the song changed, she turned down a small street that brought her mood up immensely. The buildings were all similar to one another, but the small markings painted to the walls helped to guide her where she wanted to go. Pulling up to the oldest building among the restaurants and shops, she turned the radio down and hopped out of the truck.

She left the keys in the ignition so John could pick the truck up later, taking a deep breath to take in the salty air from the nearby ocean, a hint of alcohol finding its way into her nose to guide her to the entrance of the old building. The name had long been faded from the salty winds, but the door was unmistakably marked for a bar with its various stickers for each brand they sold.

Pushing the door open, she was welcomed by a waft of alcohol, burning tobacco, and a call from the man behind the bar. Though he looked rather young, he was far older than Wolf. It took a few times coming over just to imagine the young man was in his 60s, his young face and well kept black hair making him look just under 30.

"Wolf, welcome in. Finally released from work I see." The man teased with a chuckle, grabbing a mug from the shelf to pour her a drink.

"Yep, after the mess yesterday, I was held over to skip the press." She sighed as she reached the bar and moved to sit down.

Before she could, the older man held up his hand and gestured to the other side of the room. The room was mostly empty, letting Winter see a hunched figure sipping on a drink wearing a hoodie that hid their face. She grabbed the drink that the man poured for her and raised her brow to him.

"Ted, I thought we agreed no blind dates." She sighed as she leaned back against the bar, sipping her beer.

"I tried to send her away, but she won't take no for an answer, beat up Jimmy pretty good." Ted sighed and shook his head. "She's been waiting for you for over an hour. Get her out for me, won't ya?"

"Well, knowing Jimmy, he probably deserved it." Winter clicked her tongue and shook her head. Her deep red eyes glared at the girl Ted spoke of, feeling something felt off about her.

"Well, try not to get distracted like he was. And don't worry about your drinks tonight, hero." Ted teased as she walked down the aisle to continue with his work.

Winter let out a huff at the remark, shaking her head again. Weaving through the sea of chairs and tables, the uncomfortable yet familiar feeling she had felt since she laid eyes on the woman felt stronger as she approached them. Her left eye began to hurt as well, feeling like the scars were getting irritated. She shook this feeling away as she stopped at the table, raising her brow and sipping her beer.

"I hear you've been waiting for me, hope you weren't to bored." Winter called out, making the woman jump a little and look up.

"So, you're the Wolf I've heard about." The woman's voice was soft and welcoming. As she turned to look up at Wolf, those pure black eyes almost made her drop her mug. She was definitely something else. Her fair, flawless cheeks held a light blush under her jet black hair, and those thin lips curled in a warm smile made Winter think she was a celebrity or something. "I have not waited long, thank you for your concern."

It took a few seconds for Winter to snap out of the spell that was casted over her, barely managing to take a large gulp of her beer as she sat down. "O-oh yeah, of course. Uhm, name's Winter, but everyone calls me Wolf. And you are?"

Fuck, she's hot. Poor Jimmy, you stood no chance huh?

"I am Riven, next in line to the Raven household. It's an honor to meet you, Princess." Riven introduced herself as she stood up and gave a bow. "I apologize for my unseemly appearance, but it was easier to blend in with this."

As she spoke, she gestured to the clothes she wore. She dressed about as casually as any celebrity would. Those jeans that hugged her thin body and accented her curves, the tight half shirt that clutched the girls chest under the open hoodie, even the simple shoes and jewelry she wore on her neck and fingers almost made Wolf drool over her.

Winter swallowed her spit and shook her head slowly as her eyes glazed over Riven. "Beau-uhm no, I mean, you look great Riven. There's no need to be so formal with me, I'm not so great a person for all that." She stumbled over her words as she gestured for Riven to sit down. Her face felt hot, her toe tapping the ground occasionally to match her racing heart.

Riven nodded with a heart melting smile, sitting down like a proper lady would in an old movie. "If I may, why do they call you Wolf, Princess?"

Winter was attempting to drink her beer, only to suddenly choke on it and spit it back into the cup and cough a bit. "P-princess? That's-no sweetheart, just call me Wolf. It's because of my scars I got when I was a kid. It's a name that's stuck with me since then."

"Mmm, I had heard your sibling had tried to kill you. It seems that rumor was true." Riven said as she leaned in to get a better look at Winter's scars.

Dangerous, this beauty is way to dangerous.

Winter could only retreat a little as Riven leaned in, her nose immediately taking in the scent of fresh pine and flowers that wafted from the strange beauty.

"R-Riven, I'm not sure what you've heard about me, but my family has never tried to kill me before." She said as she held up a hand in defense. Her heart was about to jump from her chest at this rate, her face practically melting as the sweat dripped down the back of her neck.

"Oh, it seems you still haven't Awakened. I was wondering why you were still like this." Riven spoke softly as she tilted her head and brought her hand up.

Winter froze as Rivens hand came up to her face. She could only watch as the woman gently touched her scars and traced them slowly. Chills ran down her spine as her breath caught, one hand clawed the table a little as her other hand gripped the handle of the mug she was holding.

After a few moments, Winter felt a rush of warmth flood from the woman's finger tips. It was like stepping into a warm bath, both relaxing and satisfying, yet something felt missing. Her eyes were drawn to Riven's, catching a glimpse of violet sparking in the woman's black eyes before disappearing like a fading flame.

"There, that should about do it. I hope you can get through the Awakening safely." Riven sighed as she sat back down, giving a brighter smile.

She was still shell-shocked, blinking a few times and shaking her head a bit. "Awakening? What are you-."

Suddenly, a wave of exhaustion crashed into her and forced the mug out of her hand as she slowly fell over. If it wasn't for Riven's quick action, she would've hit the floor alongside the mug that had shattered and sprayed beer and glass everywhere. The world around her quickly began to fade, her own breathing becoming disoriented under the thick fog that clouded her mind. Looking up at Riven, she tried to ask what was happening, but all she got was a warm smile and a hushed whisper.

"I will keep you safe, please have a safe Awakening, Princess." Riven's voice echoed in Winter's ears, making her feel much more relaxed than she felt she should. With one last thought, she finally slipped into the fog and fell limp in Riven's arms.

Fuck, she's way to cute.