Mammon's icy blue eyes trained themselves on her, running the length of her body. Ivy shivered involuntarily under his gaze. She knew this day, or rather evening, would come, but she never wanted to think about it. This ultimate devil of all devils had occupied her thoughts the week following their interaction before she was able to put him out of her head.
"What? Can't believe you get to see this handsome face again?" A smug smirk pulled at his lips as he made his way toward her, each step exaggerated.
Whenthey first crossed paths, Mammon had cast a hypnotic net over her, catching herin his crosshairs and rendering her helpless. This time, the trick didn't work,and she felt her power coursing through her veins. She wouldn't fall victim tohim again. Ivy felt clear-headed, watching him make his way toward her. His allblack outfit cast him in the role of a panther stalking his prey.
Mammon reached her side, running a finger over her arm and across her shoulders. A vine jolted out, the finger catching on a thorn and breaking his composure.
"Shit," he muttered, sucking on the blood that had escaped. He stood in front of her and blocked her vision. "Control over your powers, that's new."
Ivy ignored him and stood her ground. She wouldn't fall for the bait, keeping her eyes focused on the back wall. While she knew she could resist his powers, she wasn't confident she could if their eyes met. Mammon must have sensed her doubt. Twirling his fingers in her curls, he brought his face even with hers. Her lip curled back in disgust as the unwanted touching. He did his best to win her attention, but she refused to give him the satisfaction of looking at him in the eye.
"You little witch," Mammon growled at her lack of cooperation. His hand jutted out, pushing her backward until he had her pinned against the wall, the final blow breaking her concentration. His hands went to either side of her head and locked her in place.
Mammon got his wish as Ivy's chocolate brown irises locked with his. The cool, magnetic feeling washed over and paralyzed her. However, unlike last time, she still felt her connection to the vines woven around her.
"You're...awful." She tried to hurl the words at him, but they barely made it past her lips. "Why can't...you..."
"What's that? Cat got your tongue?" Mammon lowered his head to her ear. He breathed in deeply, his head lulling back with closed eyes. "There's something different about you. I can't place it."
Ivy's mouth stayed shut – no doubt a side effect of his influence over her. Her nose scrunched up as she threw daggers at him with her eyes. Hands balling into fist, she willed all her energy into her vines to cause some sort of distraction. She only needed a second to get away and go on the offensive.
Mammon sucked in another breath, his eyes closing to focus. "Something has changed about you, my dear witch."
Moving his head back in front of hers, his hand ran through her curls. The vines moved quicker than he could. The ones across her chest whipped out, the thorns catching his face. Swinging his body back, Mammon's hand shot to the gash on his cheek. He gasped at the sight of blood on his hand, his mouth gaping open. His eyebrows knitted together, the icy blue irises darkening into a cobalt blue.
Using his pain to her advantage, Ivy rushed to the other side of the room. Mammon turned to face her, his movements deliberately slow. Anger flashed behind those glacial eyes, but before he could make any sort of step toward her, a snarl sounded in the distance. Both of their heads shot to the side in an attempt to identify where it came from.
A body tumbled through the door, catching Mammon and Ivy off guard. She stumbled a few steps forward, regaining her balance in time to see Griffin occupying the space just behind her. Surprise with a dash of confusion filled her gaze as she watched him take labored breaths.
"Ahhhhh." Mammon's voice cut through the silence, his eyes darting between the two of them. Straightening out his jacket, the smirk Ivy wanted to wipe off his face had returned. "Leila had warned me, but I didn't think it was true."
Griffin leaned forward, preparing to make a move on him. Ivy's hand darted out, much like a mother does when in the front seat of a car to the passenger side. She wouldn't let any harm come to him, especially through a stupid decision.
"Why don't you get the fuck outta here, Mammon?" Venom dripped from every word. Ivy stood straighter, crossing her arms over her chest. "You're not welcome here."
"And that's stopped me before?" Mammon shrugged his shoulders, bringing his hands up with him. As he spun past her, Ivy noticed the gash on his check had healed, but it left a scar in its place that gleamed in the light. Knowing she had done that through defending herself, she beamed with a giant grin.
"If I ever see you again, you'll have more than that one scar to deal with," Ivy threatened. Griffin's chest brushed up against her, his breathing becoming more ragged with each passing second.
Mammon stopped at the door, eyes sliding from the witch to the man standing behind her then back to her. "You and the mutt stand no chance. You should know that." Shaking his head, a dark look settled on his features. "It's only a matter of time."
"A matter of time before what?" Ivy called. Mammon had already slipped out the door. She moved toward the door, but Griffin pulled her back.
"It's not worth it." His hand encircled her forearm.
Heat blossomed under his touch, reminiscent of their earlier interactions. She tore her gaze from where he held her and met his eyes. No longer were they the vibrant hazel you might find in a forest. A bright shade of amber shone back at her. She yanked her hand away, holding it close to her torso.
"Your eyes," she whispered, feeling the vines cocoon around her. "Why did they change?"
"What do you mean?" Griffin tried to laugh it off, pulling his leather jacket closer to his body. He cast his gaze downward and away from her prying eyes.
"No, your eyes are not amber nor have they ever been. I'd remember."
Her brain went in circles as she tried to piece together what she was seeing and what had been said.
His eyes.
The snarl.
Mammon's comment.
"Why did Mammon call you mutt?" Crossing her arms over her chest, Ivy jutted her chin out, lips pursed as she waited for an answer.
Griffin's eyes remained locked on the ground until she cleared her throat. When he met her gaze, the amber pools were no longer there; the hazel had returned. For a second, Ivy thought she had imagined the whole thing.
"Griffin, I'm asking you a question," Ivy snapped, inching toward him. Griffin took a step back, running out of room when he hit the wall. "What did Mammon mean when he said mutt?"
The dance floor overhead caused the ceiling to thump with the hordes of people gyrating to the music. The distant sound of whoops and other drunken behavior wafted through the hallway, just barely reaching the bathroom. Their breaths seemed to echo even louder in the tiled room, the very same bathroom where it seemed like everything important wanted to take place. Of all places, a bathroom. If Ivy weren't trying to keep a straight face, she'd be laughing.
"What do you think he meant, Ivy?" Griffin exaggerated each word, drawing out the sentence as far as he could.
Ivy'scurls flew around her as she shook her head. Griffin was another witch like her.There was only a slight possibilitythat he could be human, but even then, it was inconceivable with his wholebloodline being witches. Marina had mentioned off-hand in one of their trainingsessions how well connected and powerful the Moreau family was. His mother hadbeen one of the elders before her passing. Griffin had to have been born awitch. No doubt about it.
Stepping forward, Griffin rested his hands on her shoulders. Her body warmed to his touch, and a comfortable smile pulled at the edges of her lips. It felt like she was sitting by a campfire and would be making s'mores any second now. She could have melted at the heat. She didn't generate the warmth, though. She didn't want to admit it, but she knew who the furnace was.
Griffin's physical size alone easily compared to the werewolves she had seen earlier. He could been hanging out with them for all she knew and come to the bar later. Since she didn't grow up with him, Ivy had no past memories to compare him to. She didn't know what he was like growing up, if he was always this...big for a lack of a better word. She didn't exactly know many changed –
"Werewolf," she finally mustered, finding his gaze. His shoulders softened, relief flashing in his eyes.
Closing her eyes, Ivy took an instinctive step back, out of his reach. She shook her head from side to side, looking like a 5 year old who was trying to wake up from a nightmare. Of all people, Griffin couldn't be a werewolf. Those two words in the same sentence just didn't work. Ivy had been trained well enough where she would have sensed it off him.
"Ivy..." Griffin tried to reassure her, but she took an even larger step back toward the door. His body jutted back, rejection in his eyes. "Why is that so hard to believe?"
"No....no....no," Ivy mumbled, fumbling with the door. She yanked it open, sparing him one last glance. "I would have known if you were a werewolf. We would have known."
Ivy darted up the stairs, two at a time. Hot on her heels, Griffin called after her. Vines sprouted with each stride she took and worked to slow him down. They wound around his ankles long enough that he had to kick them off, buying her time to sprint away.
Ivy ran past the creatures, knocking into them as she weaved her way through the crowd. She didn't care. All she wanted was fresh air and to get home. Right before she made it to the front door, she knocked into Marina, sending her drink flying into the fairy in front of her.
"Ivy?" Marina reached out, catching only the vines from Ivy's costume. "Wait, stop."
Ivy was already out the door and halfway down the street before she looked back. Confusion whirled through her. She felt no desire to cry. Why should she? Griffin didn't betray her, well not technically anyway. Plus, she was a witch herself. That territory alone made it even more likely that she would befriend other creatures.
Still, she couldn't shake it off. The rational part of her knew she would come around and be okay with Griffin being a werewolf, but in this moment she wanted to be angry. Maybe it was the fact that he didn't trust her enough to tell her in the beginning, or at the very least when they were starting to be friends. He knew she was a witch. Why couldn't she know what he was?
Rejection.
The very thing that she dealt him when she ran away.
Ivy literally face-palmed as she turned the corner of her street. Thankfully, she lived relatively close to everything and didn't need a car to get around. Pulling out her phone, the Pentacle's group chat had blown up, worried about why Ivy had darted out of there. Throw in a few missed calls and you would think Ivy had gone missing. Reading through them, Ivy chuckled at some of the messages that made it abundantly clear how drunk everyone was.
As she opened the door to her building, she sent the Pentacle a quick, reassuring text.
Made it home. I promise to tell you all what happened tomorrow. Enjoy the rest of your Halloween.
On the walk to her door, Ivy cast off the vines, sending them to weave amongst the potted plants that lined the hallway. When she made it home, she cracked the door open, finding a dark apartment.
Hunter lay in their bed, the sheets covering half torso. A ghost of a smile rested on his lips. Ivy quickly changed into her pajamas and slipped into bed. As she snuggled into Hunter, his hands draped across her waist and pulled her closer, his face nuzzling into his curls. Ivy did her best to drift off into sleep, attempting to push this night into a tight lockbox in the deep depths of her mind.
Yet, even with her eyes closed, Griffin stared back and beckoned her toward him.
A/N
Yes, Ivy might have overreacted, but I did that on purpose. A little unreasonable considering she's a witch? Yup, I know. Please just hang in there.
As a fellow Capricorn, I can really overreact to things and send myself into a tizzy. Ivy would have done the exact thing more than likely.
Butttttttt. Look the the reveal? Did you guess it? How is Griffin hiding it from everyone? What's going on??????
(Answers to all that coming up!)
This is one of my longer chapters I feel like, but there's plenty more to be revealed!!
Thanks again for reading/commenting/voting. Can't tell you how much I love seeing what you think <3