Sleep evaded Ivy throughout the night. Whenever she thought she had succumbed to her dreams, her body jerked her awake. The feeling of falling plagued her repeatedly and did nothing to ease the anxiety following the day's events.

Flopping onto her side, she faced the slumbering Hunter. His chest fell in easy rhythms, his hands tucked under his head. Despite it being November, he insisted on sleeping shirtless. The sheet rested on the curve his shoulder, threatening to slip off with one wrong tug.

This was the man she fell in love with and put all her faith and trust into when everything had fallen apart. She needed to ingrain this image into her head so nothing could take it away. After meeting in college, their love blossomed from friendship to what it was today. When Cassie went missing, he took time off work to help Ivy grieve. She wasn't even sure where she would be without his love and support. Somewhere in the midst of cementing this image of Hunter into her mind, Ivy's eyes fluttered shut, and she got the rest she so desperately desired.

Morning light greeted her upon her awakening. Ivy rolled onto her back and just lay there. The blinds' shadows with the fairy lights that hung around the windows cast intricate shapes on her ceiling. She traced their outlines with her eyes until they got too close to the sun, the brightness agitating her vision.

Ivy would rather stay there all day and let all her worries fall to the wayside. She had nothing to do and no one to see. Hunter had left for work, his spot empty on the bed. With no rumbling in the kitchen, Ivy knew he was certainly gone for the day.

The Pentacle had decided not to meet. Ivy breathed a sigh of relief. Ella had mentioned that she would report Calliope's passing to the coven and the Council. From their tear-stained faces, Aura and Marina didn't need to explain why they needed a few days. A couple days would do them all some good.

Glancing over at her clock, the gray numbers told Ivy she had an hour before she needed to open the shop. She wasn't even sure her powers worked, but surrounding herself with plants help reinvigorate them. She peeled the covers off and went for her dresser, grabbing of pair of ankle-length jeans and a flowery blouse.

After brushing her teeth and attempting to run a brush through the rat's nest her hair had turned into, Ivy settled on a high bun and pulled a few curls to frame her face. She slung on a jacket and bolted out the door, locking it with a spell. The bright sun hit her face as soon as she stepped out of her building, providing a much needed warmth on the brisk autumn day.

As Ivy approached the shop, the heat in the pit of her stomach intensified with each step. This wasn't the sun's doing. When she turned the corner to the main square, she found the source.

Griffin lay sprawled on the bench outside her shop's door, teetering on the edge and falling splat onto the concrete. A baseball cap covered his face while his arms were crossed across his expansive chest. Ivy swore the flexed biceps would split his gray shirt. The slumbering giant's foot twitched, the boot hitting the back of the bench.

"I know you're there." His voice almost knocked Ivy over. A blush crawled up her cheeks, and she snapped her mouth shut; it must have fallen during the ogling session.

"Like what you see?" Winking, Griffin pulled himself up, adjusting his baseball cap. A lopsided smile settled on his face, yet it didn't hit his eyes. "Mind if we talk?"

Nodding, Ivy crossed in front of him, her thigh brushing up against his knee. She tensed at the contact, acutely aware of how her body's temperature shot up. Her breathing hitched, earning a laugh from Griffin. Ivy shot him a look, and he quickly busied himself.

When Ivy walked into her story, the feeling of her vines came back to her. She willed them to droop farther from the ceiling, and they listened. When she set her purse down in the back, she grabbed one of the freshly potted plants. With a wave of her hand, a little green nub burst through the soil.

"Yes," she breathed, relief flooding her.

Her powers were back, or at least recharged. The others must be getting theirs back too. Ivy intended to share the good news when Griffin cleared his throat and reminded her that he still existed from the front room.

"Sorry, it's been a long 24 hours. Our powers went out. Calliope passed. We..." Ivy approached him, the words just tumbling out of her mouth without thinking. Griffin's mere presence put her at ease, even if the butterflies in the pit of her stomach said otherwise. She met his hazel eyes, hurt reflecting back at her. The memory of running out on him hit her. "Crap, it's been even longer for you. How could I be so insensitive?"

"Rewind there. Calliope passed?" Griffin pushed himself off the doorframe, his chest puffing out. She forgot that he too was raised under Calliope's influence, especially since his parents were powerful witches in the community.

Ivy stood in front of him and pressed a hand into the center of his sternum. Neither said anything, their chests bumping together with synchronized breaths. She raised her eyes to his, the ferocity of his gaze causing her to break contact and step back.

"I'll tell you about it after." She slipped off her overcoat and smoothed out the wrinkles in her shirt. Crossing the room, she draped the coat on a hanger and continued to avoid his gaze.

"You came to talk about what happened." Spinning around, Ivy returned his curiosity-ridden eyes. "Let me start off by saying I am so sorry for running out on you like I did. It was inexcusable, and I never wanted you to feel like I rejected you."

"Sure had a funny way of showing it," Griffin mumbled under his breath. He followed suit in slipping off his jacket. He searched for a place to set it and his cap on, finding the wrought-iron table and chair in the back.

"What else did you expect? I was completely blind-sided and shocked."

"For you to hear me out," Griffin admitted as he stepped back into view. His lips twisted downward, a frown forming. "That wasn't how I wanted you to find out."

"Mammon – " Griffin growled at the mention of the name, but Ivy brushed it off. "He's a problem, but not this problem. Were you ever going to break the news to us? Marina? She was devastated when she found out."

"She knows?" His eyes flashed amber, going feral. They returned to the hazel an instant later. "Who else knows?"

"Only the Pentacle." Ivy stepped forward to reassure him but didn't cross the room, thinking better of it. Whenever they got close, her body reacted in strange ways. "We haven't told anyone. We wouldn't out you like that."

Griffin sighed and ran a hand through his messy mane. Compared to Halloween, he looked ragged and on edge today, as if he were running from something.

"How did you manage to keep the truth from everyone?" Ivy leaned against the shelves. "Marina would have sensed it on you immediately, especially when she hugged you."

Griffin didn't answer her, but his body betrayed him. His hand shot up to the pale gold necklace that hung from his neck. Twisting it between his thumb and index fingers, he looked down at it.

"My mother made it not long before she – " Griffin gripped it tighter, squeezing his eyes shut. His voice cracked as he spoke. "She knew what I had become and wanted to protect me."

The sound of their breathing provided the only sound in the room, other than the hum of the plant refrigerators. His response provided the answers the Pentacle sought, but Ivy had so many more. She didn't want to pry. They were in the early stages of their friendship, though these butterflies signaled something else if she intended to listen to them.

"Your secret is safe with us," Ivy comforted him with a small smile. "Though, if you're going to stay in Malachi Peak, you may want to come clean before it's too late. Secrets have a way of getting out."

Griffin laughed darkly, as if he knew something she didn't. Ivy wanted to be privy to what made him react in such a way. Her footsteps echoed on the tile with each stride she took closer to him. She crossed her arms over her chest and cocked her head to the side. He met her gaze, something lingering behind his irises. Griffin began to wring his hands, gathering up the courage to speak.

"There's more I need to tell you."

Ivy hadn't even realized he had said anything. Her hands played with the strands that hung in her face. "What's up?"

His eyes bore into her before he stepped back and began pacing across the room. He rubbed his chin, fingers catching on the stubble. Griffin opened his mouth but closed it, seemingly deeming the words incorrect. Eventually, he stopped in front of her and gently gripped her forearms. Her body reacted by wanting to melt into the embrace. Ivy looked at his hands quizzically. The energy buzzed between them, flowing from one to the other. The plants around them perked up, tilting toward them.

"You feel that, don't you?" Griffin's voice dipped. His thumb traced circles into her arm, and Ivy's knees came close to buckling.

The longer he touched her, even as simple as this, the more she wanted to experience what the rest of him felt like. Hunter disappeared from every corner of her mind. Lids closing, Ivy's imagination ran rampant. She sought to give into this primal need until every part of her was satiated. Even then, she didn't know if that would be possible.

When Griffin returned his hands to his side, the proverbial bucket of cold water splashed over her. Guilt crept into her mind, especially when Hunter came to the forefront of her thoughts. Ivy couldn't even begin to explain these feelings to herself, let alone her boyfriend.

"What you feel isn't even the full magnitude of it," Griffin interrupted her thoughts. "I wasn't sure what to make of it at first. It was a random day in the club when I brushed against someone and the heat spread across my skin."

"You felt that too?" Ivy gasped, wrapped her arms around her shoulders. The butterflies fluttered in her stomach.

"It almost knocked me to the ground. I was this close to tearing the Thirsty Fork apart looking for the source." Griffin took in several uneven breaths as he moved toward her.. "Then we met that night in the bathroom."

"When you saved me from the creep," the memory played behind Ivy's eyes, "and when I threw up." Dropping her eyes, she dipped her head low in embarrassment.

"Everything worked out, didn't it?" Griffin drew her chin back up with his index finger. "It allowed me to meet you."

Ivy raised her eyes from her place on his chest. His head wasn't far from hers. She could close the gap between them. Her chest heaved, the internal battle wearing on.

No, she couldn't. She couldn't betray Hunter. This was betrayal enough.

Betrayal.

Helga's word for her.

What if Helga actually meant that I would be the one betraying someone else?

Ivy never thought she would even be capable of such a thing, but the more time she spent with Griffin, the more the possibility grew.

Biting her lip, Ivy pulled her head back, out of his hands. Disappointment flashed in his eyes, and he glanced away to hide it.

"Then there was the time in the forest..." Griffin stuffed a hand into his jean pocket. His shoulders rolled up sheepishly.

"That was you?" The gray wolf came to mind the day the Pentacle tried to summon Cassie. "You saved us."

"And when that devil wanted to attack you on Halloween, I just wanted to rip him to shreds." Griffin stiffened, his body going into attack mode. "The thought of him hurting you..."

Ivy didn't know what came over her. She pulled herself flush against him. His height made this a bit harder for her, but she never backed away from a challenge. Going on her tiptoes, her lips tangled with his in a rush of heated passion. Fireworks burst behind her eyes, the whole shop literally blooming with the contact between the two of them.

Griffin had frozen at the initial contact, but he got the message. He pressed her against work bench, their mouths still working against one another. He picked her up and set her on the counter of her workstation. Now the two supernatural beings were on more even ground.

He planted kisses along her jawline and over the crook of her neck. Dangling against the drawers, Ivy's legs barely wrapped around his thick waist. Arching her back in pleasure, she pushed them further against his. Griffin stifled a moan as he moved his attention to her chest. His hand shot out behind them, having to steady himself with the wall. His fingers played at the top button of her blouse.

Ivy's eyelids fluttered open. She caught sight of a photo taken a couple years back of her and Hunter sitting on one of the shelves. Griffin continued to adore her with kisses, but Ivy had stopped.

"No, no, no, I can't do this." Squeezing her eyes shut, she jammed the heel of her palms into them, trying to keep the guilt at bay. She unwrapped her legs from around his waist and slid past him.

Sighing, Griffin leaned against the workstation. Even his face was flush with pink, his hair a mess around him. His shirt had ridden up, and with a huff, he yanked it down.

"Ivy..."

"No, I barely know you." Her voice jumped a few octaves. She pointed at the framed photo behind her. "I'm with him, Hunter, my boyfriend of almost five years. I love him."

Ivy's chest rose and fell with ragged breaths. Her bun had come undone, more strands falling in front of her eyes. The words didn't seem to sink in. It was as if she said them because they were the right things to say but not because she wanted to.

"That's what I mean. There's something you need to know."

"What more is there for me to know?"

Her tone could have snapped a tree in half.

Griffin hesitated, scratching the back of his neck and avoiding her eyes. Ivy watched as the amber irises fought with the hazel, blending together for a few moments. The amber ones won out in the end.

"You can't freak out­ – "

Ivy rolled her eyes. "Oh what a smart thing to say."

"We're...mates."

The sentence sucked the air out of the room. Ivy blinked a few times, unable to process what Griffin had said. She refused to try to comprehend it. Shaking her head, the bun came tumbling down, and her curls went wild around her face. Shock couldn't even begin to explain how she felt.

"That's not possible," she uttered, meeting his amber gaze. "You're a werewolf. I'm a witch."

"Ivy, we are supernatural creatures. Anything is possible."

"Even if we are mates," Ivy did air quotes, "I still love Hunter. He's my boyfriend. I can't just break up with him because you and I possibly have a connection."

Griffin stiffened, his eyes trying to conceal the hurt she inflicted on him yet again. They shifted back to their hazel color, his werewolf side retreating. Her heart cracked at the thought of causing him harm.

"Tell me. Since all of this began, have you been feeling the same about him?"

Ivy thought back to the last month. If she were honest with herself, the answer would be no. There were numerous instances when she would look at Hunter and feel the love but not in the 'I love you' romantically sense. To take it even a step further, there were times when she felt revolted. The time when he offered to conserve water and take a shower together stood out to her.

Griffin latched onto her hesitation to answer the question and took it as a confirmation.

"That may or may not be because of this bond," he gestured between them, "but if it is, those instances will become more frequent. I've been doing an exhaustive amount of research." He moved backward, heading for his jacket and hat. "I'm not asking for anything. You needed to know the truth for when you make a decision."

The decision whether she wanted to be with him.

Griffin seemed even further away than before. An ocean rested between them, the waves threatening to pull her under and toward him. Ivy resisted every urge she had to lash out, yell or even cry. So much had already happened, and now Griffin put this in her lap. She couldn't deny that something existed between them. She just didn't want to throw away what she had with Hunter over the unknown.

They stared at each other, stuck in a stalemate. He broke first, opening the door and giving her a sidelong look.

"You know where to find me if you ever need anything."

The door chimed as it shut behind him. Ivy didn't move from her spot, her feet glued to the floor. She knew she had to tell Hunter about everything that transpired. She'd leave out a few pieces of course, like the fact that she and Griffin were 'mates.'

Ivy didn't fully know what that meant. Finding your mate was a big deal in werewolf circles. She understood that much, but Griffin wasn't your average werewolf. He was a witch turned wolf. Could he even find his match? Or was the universe just fucking with him?

These questions rolled around in Ivy's mind for the next few hours. She needed to get her story straight if she planned to talk to Hunter. Every so often, she picked up her phone to text the Pentacle but put it back down. This was a conversation that needed to be done in person.

Finally, Ivy closed her shop and headed home. Guilt ate her up from the inside out. Hunter would see through her once she stepped through the front door. She was never a good liar.

When she arrived at the apartment, she smoothed down her blouse for the thousandth time, afraid it would give her away. The hair had returned to the immaculate bun from the mess it has fallen into after the interaction with Griffin. She closed her eyes at the memory of his mouth traversing across her body, the heat burgeoning in the pit of her stomach.

"No, nope." Ivy pushed it deep down into a mental box labeled 'Griffin.' She had done the same with Cassie. She would get past this as she always did.

The door was unlocked, panic rising in her chest. Upon opening the door, she found Hunter's backpack against the couch, and her worries eased. His head popped around the corner of their kitchen, a smile stretching over his lips.

"In here, babe," he said. "I picked up some pastries. Do you want your honey and lemon tisane?"

"Please." She draped her belongings over the back of the loveseat in the living room and headed for the kitchen. "What are you doing home so early?"

"Ivy, it's almost six." Hunter chuckled, planting a kiss on her temple. Ivy tried not to react at the physical contact. "I picked up your favorite. Peanut butter chocolate chip cookie."

"Oh thank heavens." Ivy took a giant bite of the cookie then another and another until it was gone. She had lost her appetite to eat lunch, and evidently, she was famished.

"Long day, I see." Hunter shook his head, trying to suppress a smile. "Here, I'll bring you your drink in the living room. The water's about to boil."

Ivy began the trek back to the couch. The world swam in front of her, legs growing weak. Blotches of black dotted her vision. A crash sounded behind her, but she had no time to look back to check on Hunter. She found herself on her hardwood floors.

Eerily familiar laughter rang through her ears before blackness overtook all of her senses.

A/N

One of my longer chapters. Whoa, over 3300 words. That is long for me. This was a quick turn from the murders. We all knew something was up with Griffin and Ivy. Did any of y'all guess this though?

I took a good amount of time writing this and then when having to go back and edit it. I wanted to get this right, and I hope this version works. I toyed around with a few  parts, but could never settle. There's some sort of saying  about how creatives are never happy with their work and always find something to tweak in it.

It's been making me think about the lore and how it'll all work out. What does it mean? How and why can it exist between a witch and a wolf? Those answer will come ~eventually.~ Teehee

But eeeekkk that ending though! Who got to Ivy and why????

Thanks again for all the support. Hope you are all safe. Please keep California in your thoughts. We're quite literally burning. For the better portion of this week I've driven to work in smoke with ash on my car. To put it in perspective, I live between an hour and a few hours from the fires, depending on which one you're talking about. It's gone beyond forests and started to go after cities. The oldest state park, home to the legendary redwoods, has been decimated. Send all the good vibes you can.

Until next update. Much love.