* * *

Alpha Hayden Mystic had stared in awe towards not only his daughter but the large Willow tree that took to shading over the odd patches that grew just where the roots had laid. And there sat his daughter, motionless until she turned, her eyes screaming just how tired she was growing, and the utter fear that was festering in her heart.

With a cautious few steps, she put her hand up to warn them to stop. And it only took a moment before realizing that this wasn't just any coincidence.

This smelled far too sweet that one could nearly taste the sinister intentions. But it didn't pose as too obvious, not to the naked eye—And not to those who couldn't feel how alive things were.

Everything was too clean, too prestige—Too methodically planted to be a natural occurrence.

"Mama..." Sage said, pointing up to the tree. And it was as if the weeping leaves had heard the call.
"Grandma..." She turned her arm and extended it towards the secluded patch of Iris' that were contained and boxed away from the rest.

Yet Hayes choked as soon as he took to realize that the coincidence was not at all possible.

"...Sage." She claimed, dipping her hand back into the folds, hating that it was amongst them. "...Rue...Rowan—"

"What?" Remus hissed, perhaps it was his fault for not being able to identify the plant life surrounding him. But to have each of the children holding the Halliwell line?

Sage sniffled once more, her hands wrapping around the oddity of weeds growing beside the in-betweens of both the Rue sprouts and Rowans.

"Almond is trying to find them...Look at the state of the Willow tree," Blake spoke, careful not to step on any of the flowers or anything of the sort to disturb the peace.

"It's starting to wither—"

"Blake, what is this place?" Hayes asked through gritted teeth, trying to contain himself. But there was nothing that the former Rogue could say to explain this horrific find.

"The woods are camouflaged, whatever happened here was the perfect breeding ground for someone to plant this spark. It's a tether. It binds these—Plants to their counterpart's life force."

"Great. It's a sadistic garden." Andrew huffed, kneeling down at the edge to allow his hands to graze the flowers as well. "Do we leave it alone?"
"I don't see any reason to play with this type of shit, besides, we don't really have any tools to counter the enchantment. I don't think it's doing any harm." Blake said, his eyes trying to read through the shimmers of where the swirls of magic had their limitations.

"We must be close to home base, if this is really Almond's creation." Hayes absolutely hated that theory, that there was another being after his family. But he couldn't help but turn towards the Iris'.

"Does this mean my mate's mother is still alive?"
"She's withered too, but alive...But she's somewhere else, just like the Willow tree is by its lonesome. It's how we see and read this, Alpha. Fuck—My camera doesn't work." It was enough for Sage to rise to her feet and shake her head, looking up at the weeping willow that caused such a disturbance to her dreams.

But she was thankful it had popped up.

"Almond has to be close. That means mom is close." The Luna claimed with a sniffle, but as she neared the males, Andrew had offered his arms up in a sign of offering, and after the horrors of the last day, she conceded without another thought.

Not taking into consideration that Remus was right there beside him, but he hadn't offered—Had he?

Or was he just expecting this from her now?

"Hey, pumpkin. We're good, yeah? This means we're close to what we're looking for. Hell, if this is Almond's way of managing everyone, he'd want it close by to be able to check." Andrew's soothing words were what Sage needed to hear, and the hug was the right type of support she was craving—especially when her knees continued to buckle.

"Does this confirm he's after our pups?" Remus growled, and Hayes responded with a nod as he continued forward to embrace the tree that was meant to emulate his mate's lifeline.

He pressed his hand to the bark, but in doing so he felt the strains of the long leaves and sighed in relief—It was the smallest sliver that connected him to his missing female.

"I promise—I made our vows to protect you when you came to join me in Mystic Grimm and I failed to do so. I will not make that mistake again. I will find you. I will make things right, and I swear this on the goddess that we will be together again." Hayes declared, his voice starting to waver at the expense of his sanity.

It has been twenty-something odd years since he has even felt Willow, and this little glimpse of Sage's vision and feeling the connection her lifeline has to this tree—It was worth it all.

All the years he was alone. That he was a single father—Or the night that he received word that Sage Moon, an escaped female from the Underground, was in fact, his daughter.

It hurt to pull away, but it hurt worse to lay sight over to Iris Blue—To the female who was no doubt still in the hands of that asshole Walter.
But he couldn't be for certain.

As he rounded about, careful not to disrupt this perfect plot of land, he rounded off towards Sage and pried her hands off Andrew, and pulled her directly onto his back. "We're leaving before the bad vampire gets word we've intruded." And off they went, back into the clear forest at the help of the Nymph, who didn't hesitate to do another form of whisping back to the outskirts of where their pack was resting.

And the commotion was just what they needed, as the looks of horrors were reflected on either side.

"We move out in twenty minutes, the sooner we get out of these woods, the better." Remus decided, and nobody dared to look or question him over the abrupt decision.
Or Chloe had, but decided against her initial thought as Sage's pale face and tear streaks were enough to worry the female.

Enough to turn her cold heart into something softer, where one Alpha started to help another—Which is what Sage had strived for since the beginning. After setting an order for her tent to be cleaned up, Chloe took to sitting beside Sage in complete silence.

At least the female knew that nothing she said or did would resolve or aid in what was seen. Not that the group who had ventured for the better half of the day wanted to process what they found, but upon seeing Severin and Andrew going back and forth in hushed tones, it truly did not settle the worry that started to blossom throughout the pack.

Better yet, Sage had taken to riding on her father's back. Completely exhausted and managing to find at least some sort of comfort from what they had just experienced.

There was no denying the sense of dread was attached to the reawakening or discovery, and the longer they traveled in the opposite direction. The more irritated Chloe felt, she wasn't a pup who needed to be coddled and protected. No. She wanted to be helpful and maybe put her own two senses into it!

Her father charged her with trying her best, and perhaps the struggle for power with these strangers was finally starting to cave in. So she found herself asking Blake for the Luna's brew of tea, and the male didn't think twice before handing it off.

He had more things to concern himself over, and that meant trying to describe the unearthly and unnatural garden they uncovered. And just how quickly Sage was to identify the markers.

With the packet in hand, Chloe had to ask her sister for help in figuring it out. And just as she hoped it wouldn't happen, Carter had found his way into the mix. "Really?" He said with dulled tone.

The Alpha-Female had gritted her teeth and looked up from her station with the willingness to start an argument. But seeing the look on her friend's face had caused her to pause.

"What is it?"

"Cousin's on the phone with his mate...It's a mess, Chlo—It's a shit show." He described, joining right beside her and looking into the kettle's center. "Stop! It'll take longer if you do that."

"Why are you bothering to make tea?"
"Sage likes tea."

"Oh, she likes it, huh? So you're waiting for water to boil? Fucking kiss up." She rolled her eyes but withheld by gritting her teeth. "Yeah? At least my long-lost cousin didn't come back and overturn the line of succession." That had caused the male to huff and turn the other way, catching sight of Blake's tent in the row of others.

"He won't. He doesn't want the position. He's already a much higher rank than he would be with us. What's the point? Besides, I doubt Alpha will want a witch in our home." He nicked his elbow to bump her, and she smiled.

No, she didn't want a witch with abilities to come into their territory. It was bad enough that they had to make a deal with a nearby coven to put up a better defense system.

Otherwise, the Rogues would start moving in.

"The question is, Alpha, will we be joining the rest of the packs? I'm not going to lie, I might have enough Alpha blood in me to take a stab in that tournament Alpha Hayes mentioned." Chloe pinched the brink of her nose, knowing that it was not at all what her father had in mind when settling back into the American packs.

But even she wondered if it would be worth it, at least as a no-name—Or a female with rank and no ties to any sort of pack.
Then again, she would have demoted herself to the very kind she hated.

A very hypocritical motion to pass off, but she could agree with her father on one aspect, at the very least.

Those in Coldridge would destroy America, given the chance of any real power.

"I agree that we need to be careful of who is crowned. If Summit believes that Coldridge will band together, then they will. The only way to fight it is to band together. The issue is that Coldridge will no doubt have a plan for who they want. I want to know who Summit wants." Carter frowned in retaliation for the question, but perhaps he could figure out a hint from Blake, given the chance throughout this mission.

"We could ask Hayes...? From what I remember, he's the father with ties to three packs. That is a lot of ground covered through Summit. So my guess is Harlow. Mystic Grimm has a good standing. Always has." Chloe agreed, but another thought wouldn't let up, not when she was the one preparing Sage's tea without being asked.

"I think you're onto something, Carter. Have an ear out for it, even when we head back home." She finalized, picking the kettle off the stove and heading towards the area Sage had secluded herself in, the low fire having nearly gone out with improper care.

Upon placing the kettle down, Chloe made the motion of fixing it. But Sage growled. "No. I want the fire low." She instated, and the female could do nothing more than nod.

With the small cup in hand, she dutifully poured a hefty cup and held it out for Sage to take. But the Luna did nothing more than take one look at it before returning her gaze to the flame.

Completely uninterested, until her nose twitched and she shifted her head off to the side. "You make tea?"
"Yeah, I thought you could use a pick-me-up," Chloe said, nearly burning her hand, again, as she thrust her offering hand once again. But Sage had closed her eyes and allowed a smile to blossom on her face.

"You forget the tea..." Is all Sage whispered, and Chloe looked down at the cup and cursed herself silly as she slumped into her seat. "Damnit, sorry. I was talking to Carter and guess I forgot...I got the tea from Blake." She said, holding the package that remained in her pocket, unused.

Sage took it in her hand and smelled, trying to sense any dangerous additives, but alas, she was safe and decided to finally build up her fire to reboil the kettle and brew the tea.

All while teaching Chloe how to do so.

"We're almost to Lichen." The Luna mentioned, and Chole hummed. "I checked in with Dad. He said there hasn't been much movement. But there's been more than we're used to off in this direction." That was good to know that Chloe was keeping in contact with her father, leaving Sage to turn to see where her own father was stationed.
But he was still speaking with Blake.

Even though Blake promised that he was going to include her in the conversation with Raven, here she was, alone. Her Charge knew she was too exhausted to even think of reliving the horrors of today.

"Are you okay?" The question had been responded to the silence, and Sage was both startled and annoyed that Chloe was the one to be asking.

"Okay?...No. I'm not." It was short and sweet, and usually, Chloe wouldn't pry. But clearly, the female was struggling to keep herself and her thoughts contained.

"The Rogue Beta said you guys found something bad..."

"Bad. Evil. Sadistic." Sage truly didn't know what the word sadistic meant. But if Andrew used it to describe the garden as such, she knew it was at least somewhat correct.

"Is there anything I can do?"

"Keep Crimson ready for a fight." She said, with ease. Though Chloe didn't see how that changed the current directive, or perhaps it was a promise? A promise that there was going to be a fight in the near future that even she was worried about.

"And after we visit Lichen, what happens?" That was a good question, one that relied heavily on the possibilities of what was ahead, given that the garden they uncovered was within fifteen miles of the Lichen borders. With the likelihood of running into something just as sadistic— Goodness, Sage could hardly bare at the dangers that could be unleashed.

Perhaps it was foolish to run and follow the picture, but Blake's reassurance that she wasn't possessed was what fueled them to trust her. To the extent, given that just before she darted off into the garden, Remus wanted to head back to camp.

"Then we go back to our homes, maybe we call, maybe we don't. I don't know." For Chloe, it was refreshing to hear that Sage didn't have an answer. But clearly, at this moment, she had more on her mind than not knowing how to brew tea.

But as the kettle sounded, this time with the set aroma that was overpowering Chloe's nose that she huffed and nearly sneezed the very instant it hit her.

Making Sage smile to the side, not laughing directly—Put fairly close.

"Have a cup?" Sage questioned, and Chloe was once again startled that the Luna of Crescent Moon was pouring her a mug of tea.

"I came over here to give it to you..." She said with a pout, and Sage just shrugged her shoulders. "It's okay. I keep telling males I don't want because then they want to talk to me."

Chloe's nose twitched, as that was exactly what she attempted to do, and decided to push in a different direction. "Which male is bothering you? Carter?"

It was still confusing Sage that Crimson was very dependent on last names, and when she said Carter, she meant Blake.

"No, my Charge is okay. Other males."

"Moon and Clark?" This had followed an instant nod, but no words followed. "I figured. Clark always has his eyes on you, but I didn't think he'd have the nerve to talk to you directly."

"I mate with him, because I think my mate is dead," Sage claimed, and Chloe sucked in a breath—Yeah, that was definitely a situation she did not envy.

"Shit. Yeah, I guess that's why your dad is being a hardass. I didn't catch the full story the last time, but it makes sense." Sage felt a little better speaking to a new face about an issue that's been tossed at her without explanation.

The biggest question everyone seemed to be asking is why she received her Heat, and why it was enacted when she was in Half Crescent.

The only plus side to it all was that both Alpha-Females had felt lighter after allowing the moments in each other's company to settle. Clearly, there was some variance of acceptance between them, and that was definitely a start, considering how their meeting had turned out to be.

Yet just as Chloe had left, Andrew saw his chance—He couldn't wait to tell Sage that he was leaving, he knew she would feel betrayed whether she was told now or later.

No, he needed to tell her as soon as possible.

______

Date: 07/31/23

Time: 8:50

Words: 2985

Author's Note:

This was a fairly soft chapter, and I really love the dynamic between Chloe and Sage.
Chloe is young and primarily sheltered from the rest of her kind, maybe not in the same way Sage was, but for better or for worse, she didn't have a choice.

Now, let's hope Sage is prepared to hear what Andrew has to say in terms of him leaving...

Friday isn't so far away!

Anywho, I hope you all have a great week and I'll see you then!