Pruitt
felt himself slip away into another vivid dream. Flashes of purple electricity separated a dozen recollections in ’s mind.
“Don’t be afraid,” came the familiar and whimsical voice of Fen.
Griff appeared again as the mysterious Theodulf, a smile on his face as he lay naked in bed next to him. “I love you,” he whispered.
realized he was back in same cabin he had recalled in his last memory. “Theodulf,” he said softly, a flood of emotions returning to him.
Purple lightning filled the room.
and Griff appeared now at the nearby river, a full moon looking down upon them. Griff ran down to the edge of the water, giggling as he went. “You can’t catch me.”
“Are you so sure about that?” said, taking off after him.
Looking back at his pursuer, Griff lost his footing and tripped.
“Theodulf!” cried out as Griff fell forward into the river.
watched in shock as Griff disappeared into the water, too far ahead for him to reach in time. As the werewolf tore his shirt off in preparation to dive in, it amazed him to see what happened next. As though shifting all the power used to make the current, the body of water rose into a large tidal wave. At the top, as though seated on a throne, sat Griff. He waved.
“Your powers!” exclaimed. “ They’re unbelievable .”
The current lowered down, gently dropping Griff safely in front of . They kissed passionately, only stopping to finally breathe.
Griff blushed as he looked into ’s eyes.
felt his heart flutter. “Is this what love is like?” he asked.
Another flash of lightning and the two were running through a field, though this time it wasn’t a playful game of cat and mouse. came to as Griff pulled at his hand, the unnerving sound of muskets firing in the distance. “Run, ! They’re after you. They want to hurt you because of the color of your skin,” he pleaded.
He followed Griff’s lead, speeding through the tall grass as the sounds of strangers drew near.
heard the voice of an angry colonist not far behind. “ Get him! ”
“I want to stay and fight, Theodulf!” shouted to Griff.
“No! I can’t risk you getting hurt. Just follow me.”
The two managed their way to a clearing. came to a screeching halt as the two now stood in the middle of at least fifty wild wolves.
“Nature, its creatures, everything —they understand me,” said Griff. “They protect me. Protect us. ”
“What!?” shouted in disbelief.
“Go,” Griff motioned to the wolves. They took off toward the men with guns.
“Turn back!” one of their pursuers shouted. The sounds of men screaming filled the air.
Griff pulled him into a kiss as they now appeared at the edge of a cliff overlooking the forest, dawn now upon the land as the full moon disappeared into the horizon. realized he was in a different scenario now: naked, wrapped in blankets, covered in dirt and blood.
“, be still now. Have no fear. I’m here now, and you are safe.”
“You came to me.”
“Why wouldn’t I?”
could feel in his very bones what had just happened. An uncontrollable transition. “It was dangerous to seek me out on such a night.”
“The night is over, and so is your transition. I love you so, .”
“I-I love you,” said softly. “I owe you the world.”
“You owe me no such thing.” Griff shook his head. “But there is something I would like to ask of thee.”
“Anything for you, Theodulf,” smiled, pushing back Griff’s hair.
“Share with me your gift, and I promise you I’ll share mine.”
“Gift? ” scoffed . “You liken what I have to a gift? More like a curse.”
“There’s so much more,” swooned Griff. “You see it as a curse, but it will change the world for the better. I will make sure of it.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Because,” began Griff as he interlinked his right hand with ’s left, “believe it or not, there is a reason you were chosen for this gift, the same way I was chosen for mine. We cannot control our fate, but we can mold our destiny.”
“Can we?” asked .
Griff presented his other arm, pushing the soft underside of it in front of ’s mouth. “We will make a new path. For nature, for magic, for the world.”
looked into Griff’s eyes, and all the fear and worry left his body. Keeping eye contact, he carefully bit into his lover’s arm.
It was then that the purple lightning directing from memory to memory made sense.
As the magical flashes once again engulfed his vision, he found himself at the same sheer rock face as before. The smell of burnt flesh filled his nostrils. Griff was on the ground before him. He recognized the glimmer in his eyes—the same one he had seen moments ago—but knew this lover was dying.
The shadow of Odessa fell against the rocks and quickly vanished.
“Theodulf!” cried out, rushing to Griff’s side. His lover coughed up blood. “What did she do to you? Let me get you somewhere safe so that you may heal.”
Griff smiled as propped him up in his arms. “No, . Not this time.”
“Nonsense,” pleaded. “Just as you made me, you are immortal!”
Griff shook his head. “Her magic— it’s different now.”
pulled open the burnt robe Griff wore, shocked to see the mortal wounds across his body weren’t healing. “You said we had the power to mold our own destinies,” wept angrily. “You lied to me.”
Griff cried, too, mustering the strength to place his hand on ’s face. “No, . I didn’t. We share the same destiny now. My magic lives on in you, in all the children of nature you create. Remember?”
As Griff placed his hand on his lover’s face, flashes of the first dream had of Theodulf played through his head. The wolves surrounding him, surrounding the cabin.
“I l-love you,” managed, his lip quivering uncontrollably. In this moment, future felt suddenly in control of the situation. “Please, Theodulf. Please show me the real you, so I can remember.”
The pained look on Griff’s face subsided, a hopeful smile crossing his lips as the features of his face changed. ’s heart hurt as he recognized his old lover for the first time, his mind connecting a thousand forgotten dreams, memories, hopes, and wishes.
A knowing look on Theodulf’s face suggested that this was more than just a memory. “I love you, Mondamin. It is your destiny to feel this love again one day. In fact, something tells me you already do. ”
nodded, squeezing Theodulf’s hand tight.
Theodulf coughed again, leaning in and whispering into ’s ear.
“Thank you,” replied as Theodulf tilted his head back. “For everything.”
“Send my love and blessings to Griffin and Uriah,” Theodulf said, his eyes flickering involuntarily. “They are part of your destiny now, too.”
Theodulf died in ’s arms as the full moon rose in the sky.
came to, now back in the present. The first sound he heard was that of Magnus clearing his throat. Blushing, Fen stepped back from the intimate moment he had just shared with him.
“This day isn’t getting any easier,” said as he gave Fen’s hands a final squeeze and released them.
“You okay, Wolf Man?” He recognized his vampire boyfriend’s accent.
turned to Uriah and embraced him. “I’m more than okay.”
“Good to see you, too, Pru,” a surprised Uriah patted him on the back.
“What did you see?” asked Griff as he walked into the room with a bowl of popcorn.
“ You! ” exclaimed , nearly tackling his human boyfriend. “I’m so lucky to have you, Griffin.”
Griff managed to keep his snack from dropping to the floor as scooped him up into a big hug. “I feel the same way, babe.”
Finally, turned to Fen, whose eyeliner was running down his face as though he had been sobbing hysterically while reliving the same moments. “And you. I don’t have the words to thank you.”
Fen smiled. “You don’t need them.”
looked around the room at the battle-hardened faces of his friends, old and new. His chin buried in his hand, a knowing Quinn gave a sympathetic look. As Magnus consoled Fen, he offered a friendly nod. He felt Haven’s supportive hand on his shoulder. Kale, Julian, Darcy, and Orpheus waited eagerly for him to speak.
squeezed the hands of his lovers, the three exchanging a look as his thoughts flowed freely between them.
“Everyone,” began , “I know what to do. I know how we can stop this.”