IVY

It was still standing where I had  been moments before.  My heartbeat lurched as if it had missed a step.  I waved at the mirror, and it didn't follow my movement. The first thought that came to my mind was that it resembled one of those mirrors in hotels with people watching behind them, but my mirror wasn't even attached to the wall. So unless there was a spirit lurking beneath the cracks of the glass, I was losing my mind.

I was afraid to look away so I could catch it changing, but apparently it couldn't care less whether I saw it or not because in a split second, it changed back to normal.

It was so subtle that it was as if there was never anything wrong with it.  I backed away slowly, scared my reflection might jump at me.  Maybe the universe was glitching, or it could be because I woke up early for the first time in years. I always tried to tell Mum that waking up before six was breaking an ancient law, and now she wasn't here for me to gloat.

"Damn it, where's my charger?" 

I rummaged under the bed and on my nightstand where I usually kept it, but it wasn't there.  Flipping the sheets off my bed, I darted my eyes around for the cord. There was zero chance that Talia would lend me hers- her phone was always dead- and Mum would kill me if mine died on this trip.

"Mum," I slapped my forehead. 

It's probably in their room.

Picking up my luggage from the bed, I ran down the stairs to their room. I opened the door slowly, already annoyed that I had to come in here at all. I didn't like being in their space when they weren't home. It felt like I was invading their privacy, even though they'd told me countless times before that it wasn't like that.

The room always felt wrong to me. Ironically, it wasn't because anything in particular was off about it, but  because it was too perfect. Everything seemed placed with intention. Even the things that were casually set had a reason for being there. The bed was made, the curtains drawn just enough to let a pale glow seep in. The air smelled faintly of cedar, and golden accents adorned the room-not surprising, seeing as my parents were wolves. They took the technicality of the ancient laws too seriously. Silver was deadly to them, so they believed that putting gold everywhere would be their salvation. 

I crossed over to their nightstand, hoping that the charger would be where it usually was when  Mum "borrowed" it from my room.

I really needed to buy that woman a new charger.

I sighed in relief when I found it there, plugged into her power bank. Not that she ever really used it. I wasn't even sure if she knew what it did.

As I made to unplug the charger from its socket, my eyes drifted around the room, landing on a section of the wall where my parents displayed their most prized possessions from their wolf pack. In the corner was a mural depicting the fall of other supernatural beings against the wolves in an old battle. 

At the bottom of the mural was an ancient inscription in a language that I had never really understood, even as a kid. The symbols had never made sense to me. Not letters. Not numbers. Just shapes. Lines that curved too deliberately to be random.

I straightened, squinting at it.

For some reason, today, it didn't look like shapes.

It looked like words.

Basking under the night's shine, the words rearranged themselves in my head without actually moving, almost as if the code were unlocking itself. 

It read:

"Beware. 

Should shadows falter and silence reign, the tides shall turn and-" 

Just as suddenly as it had formed, the shapes blurred.

They went back to being nothing, leaving me staring at the wall, blinking and unsure if I had seen anything at all.

I stood stunned, wondering if I was hallucinating or if this was another side effect of waking up early.

Halfway between awe and confusion, my stomach growled in protest.

"Fantastic," I held my abdomen.

Nothing like terrifying dreams and cryptic prophecies to remind me that I hadn't eaten since dinner.

My phone buzzed with Talia's text and I knew she was rounding the corner to my house.

I snagged the charger from the wall and ran through the door to get to the living room.

I did not notice, as I closed the door, that my reflection in the window glass lingered half a second longer than it should have.

I skidded to a halt as I reached the living room.  Shoving a piece of chocolate in my mouth, I scooped my remaining stuff from the table while I chewed.

Headphones, plastic cups, and perfumes; I picked them up from the dining table and stuffed them into my handbag.  I was about to dash out the door, when that compelling force came again pushing me to look downwards.

It was then that I noticed the golden platter my Mum typically kept on the table; it gleamed under the silver-blue light, its rays giving the plate an unearthly glow.

Instantly, I started seeing the plate more clearly. It's not like I wasn't seeing it before.

I was.

But now I was seeing microscopic fissures in the metal; marks and scratches that I would have needed a magnifying glass to see clearly. I focused on my reflection in the plate and dropped it to the ground instantly. What I saw was enough to have me screaming bloody hell.

I ran up the stairs.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck," I shouted. The bathroom door swung open and I approached the sink and doused my face in water. Raising my head slowly, I got a glimpse of my now wet face.

Or more specifically, my eyes.

I didn't think they were mine anymore.

My pupils were slit and they no longer had their usual green hue, but were now entirely a  bronze-like shade. My legs almost gave out. I ran my hands down my face.

"This is just a phase. It'll go away soon." I repeated the mantra over and over.

Maybe I could wear a pair of sunglasses, although Talia would never let me walk next to her if I were wearing sunglasses before dawn.

Even Mum wouldn't let me, and she has made some questionable fashion choices.

A car horn sounded outside. Talia was here.

"Please, please just go away," I begged, my head down in the sink. I peeked at the mirror again and it was gone. My eyes were back to normal.

"What the f-"

 Talia honked three times. She wasn't the most patient person. 

I thanked the gods of wolves everywhere as I rushed downstairs to grab my bags.

 "Talia, I'm coming!" I shouted from the living room. I could see her already getting out the car to tear my head off.

Snatching the keys from where they hung, I ran out the entrance door and slammed it shut. Something fell to the floor beside me, a round glowing orb had smashed. I began to look closely at it.

"Get your ass over here!" Talia shouted. 

"Jeez, I'm coming." I kicked the thing under the bushes and plopped into her car seat.

"Took you long enough," she said, rolling her eyes as she turned on the ignition.   

Talia drove the latest Bentley one could get in the US. She probably got it for free as well, because if she had bought it herself, she would have never driven it out in the dead of night.  She was vain, not foolish.

I peeked at the rearview mirror at the top center.  My eyes were normal. "I'm a lady, you know we need time." I responded. She snorted with derision and drove us off.

It wouldn't be until my return that I would  learn what had fallen beside me.

The charm over my house was broken.

IVY

"Ugh, Talia. This song is ass," I groaned.

 We were making our way to the bus pick-up point, the last rays of  moonlight beginning to vanish.  Talia was jamming to something loud and overly motivational, the kind of song that made you feel like you could win in life by getting a gym membership.

She scoffed. "I will not tolerate any slander against Imagine Dragons. They're amazing." 

"Maybe," I said. "Just not at 5:30 in the morning, when I'm still deciding whether I want to be alive." 

She laughed and rolled her eyes at me, but she at least  changed the song.   I was fairly certain the drowsy streets of New York appreciated my sacrifice.

A softer melody flowed out of the speaker.  "Happy, now?" she asked, smug. 

"Absolutely."

I gave her a wide, cheeky smile.

 Talia glanced at me and did a double take. She squinted. "Did you...do something to them? Have they always looked like that?"

"Like what?"

"Pointy," she remarked. "Did you get them done or something?"

I resisted the urge to put my hand to my teeth to check out what she was saying.  Laughing a little too loudly, I rolled my eyes.

"Pfft. No." I said. "You're seeing things. Spent too much time thinking about Townsend, by chance?"

It was a poor attempt at deflection, and I knew Talia only let it slide because she was being nice. 

"Ewww," she slapped my wrist on the armrest.  "That boy is disgusting." 

I chuckled nervously and turned toward the window. I felt the weight of her stare until we pulled into the parking lot.

The place was already crowded when we arrived.  Half-awake students clustered together in cliques and rolled their suitcases across the asphalt, everyone's voices creating an offbeat harmony in the stillness of the early morning..

Talia had parked and was getting our stuff out of the car. Well, mostly her stuff-she might as well have packed for the entire school.

I glanced toward the bus doors, registering a face I vaguely recognized before my attention drifted to Talia.

"Hey, get this for me." She handed me a purple suitcase whose weight almost pulled me to the ground.

 "My God, what's in this thing?"

She pouted her lips. "It's for my LA aesthetic." 

I didn't even bother inquiring what that meant. 

She turned toward the bus and pointed. "I'll get us two seats. "Just wait over here with the luggage until the workmen come to take it in."

She ran ahead before I even had a chance to respond.

Better her than me. I doubt I would have been able to push and jostle for space in there.

I waited a while for the workmen to look in my direction and then waved them over to move our stuff. The sun was beginning to rise, so I fired a few texts to my parents letting them know that I was about to leave for the trip. They wouldn't see it till they returned from the ceremony and that was a few hours more at best.

Looking toward the bus, I saw that our stuff had already been placed inside, so I made my way toward it.  Everyone was already inside waiting, so I expected some groaning from them for wasting their time-the last person to board always got a small ceremony: a glance, a sigh, maybe a few teasing whispers.. But as I walked down the aisle no one even noticed. They were either chatting with their friends, talking about all they would do on this trip- which I wished I hadn't overheard- or on their phones deciding which songs to play during the ride.

Unseen. Even here, among other humans who didn't themselves stand out.

I continued moving, trying to spot where Talia was, the buzz of conversation gusting past me like a breeze, laughter, jokes and elbows all moving around my body. 

Spotting her wave from the back, I stepped into the row in front of her. Townsend, reeking of overconfidence and early morning vodka, strutted over to the empty seat next to Talia. 

"Hello, darling," he patted the chair. "Is this seat taken?"

I've known Talia since we sat next to each other in our first class in college, and we've been inseparable ever since. But I've never understood how commanding her presence is; she is a force herself.

One look from her had Townsend backing away. 

"Just trying my luck again, darling," he smirked, his hands raised in feigned innocence as he walked backward. 

I plopped down on the seat just as Talia suppressed a shudder. "Why does he bother me so much?"

She took a mini perfume out of her purse and sprayed it around her , as if his presence polluted her aura.

"Well," I joked trying to make her feel better. "Maybe, he only annoys pretty girls."

She smiled sheepishly for a second, then seemed to remember that I, too, was a girl.

"Oh shit," she covered her mouth. "No, no. He would have  bothered you too." 

I let out a loud cackle.

 "Mhmm," I mumbled and she blushed, turning to the window to watch the sunrise.

The journey started, and it was a blur of buildings and streetlights that were gradually switching off.  The stars faded into the background of the blue sky as the sun came up. Some girls were trying to film the sunrise and others were fast asleep on their boyfriends' laps. I knew my parents would arrive home soon; they always stayed up the entire night during ceremonies and needed to sleep as soon as the sun rose so that could wake up and get on with their day. Mum would probably call me soon and ask for the outfit I wore-the woman would wear gold earrings to the store-she'd lose it if she knew I was wearing my dad's old shirt.

Not that she'd ever find out, though.

 I stared out the window, letting the rhythm of the road take over. Somewhere past the state line, I realized we'd left New York long ago and were approaching LA. There was a restlessness in the air, in the shadow of the buildings, in the way the city stretched along the coast. Los Angeles wasn't New York. It wasn't the careful, measured chaos I was used to. New York had a pulse I could grasp- fast, unyielding, but predictable.

My parents had brought me once, years ago, when he went for a pack gathering. I was really young, too young to be trusted with anyone back home, so they always brought me along on their trips.  Even then, the city felt alive, not in the way of busy people,  or with the buzz of entertainment and opportunities that LA was known for. It pulsed differently, like a coiled spring ready to snap. I told myself that was just Los Angeles.

 Cities each had their own personalities, didn't they?

"Hey, Collins. Pass me the aux," one guy shouted from the middle seat. 

"Ooh, Ivy" Talia looked to me in earnest. "Do you think I should ask for it, too?"

I gave her a dry look. "I don't think anyone's in the mood to listen 'Radioactive' five times, Talia."

She narrowed her eyes in challenge. "Townsend," she beckoned sweetly. 

He turned to face her eagerly. 

"Could you please get me the aux?"

And then, quicker than a drunk person should have had a right to move, just as Collins was about to pass the aux to the kid who had  asked, he snatched it and offered it to Talia..

Her smile dimmed as Townsend blew her a kiss and I could see that she was trying her best not  to squirm. 

"You're ridiculous." I said as Imagine dragons began to play on the speakers.

Putting on my headphones, I tried to focus on the road.

I was about to get some snacks from my bag when everyone noticed that the bus had stopped moving. 

"What's going on?" Talia raised her brows.

I took off my headphones and looked out the window. 

"What the fuck are those? Coyotes?" Townsend shouted.

 Our bus had stopped on a dusty path beside a green field, and surrounding us, cutting off every way forward, was a pack of wolves.

IVY

No one knew what was going on yet.

Students were grumbling about the amount of time we were wasting and others were still sleeping peacefully. Talia and I ran up to where the driver was and tried to speak with him. Reaching his seat, we quickly realised that there was no talking to this man.

He was jerking his head every which way and mumbling something about dying before GTA 6.

This is who has  been steering us for the last 4 hours??!" She pointed a finger in his direction. "His hands haven't even left the wheel!"

She was right. His grip was so strong on the steering wheel, it would be easier to detach it from the dashboard than to pry his fingers off.

I looked toward the end of the bus and saw that people were starting to take notice of the wolves. Their shadows slid across the bus windows in pieces, warped and disjointed, projected on the glass. 

The earth stood still, the grass darkened in various spots, flattened and bruised. The trees bent forward without wind, and nature held its breath as if waiting for a downpour.

A few girls had picked up their phones and were now recording the animals. 

"I'm gonna get so many views from this," One of them said. "Hey, move you're in my shot!" She elbowed the boy directly in front of the window.

The particular wolf she was filming must have been unimpressed with TikTok because it let out a low, grating snarl. 

The girl dropped her phone the moment she caught a glimpse of the look in its eyes. Shaking and now terrified, she lowered herself down to her seat and sat still.

The wolves began to circle the bus, snarling and growling as they toyed with their next meal. They seemed to revel in our agitation, and I wondered what would finally make them act.

"Can someone just...shoo them away? I don't see why we have stop our trip because of some rabid dogs." 

That did it.

Thunder roared and the bus began the shake. The wolves played a beat on the metal, hitting and denting the surface of the bus. People cried out and edged toward the other side of the vehicle, but that only served to make it unstable, almost toppling us over as the wolves pushed. 

"Everyone, stay calm!" Collins raised his voice and stepped in the center of the throng. 

"They're just animals; they sense our fear. We just need to assert our dominance." 

The pack howled as one, lifting their snouts to the sky like he's just said the most hilarious thing. Collins could figure that out too, because he narrowed his eyes and squared his shoulders in challenge.

Then he did something Townsend-worthy. He turned his back to us and roared at the wolves. 

We all reared back, startled and even the beasts paused. Then all at once they began the roar back in anger.

Collins moved  even closer toward the window , probably wanting to attempt the stupid stunt again, when one of them locked eyes with him and jumped forward,

Glass shattered everywhere.

Before we knew it, he was screaming. With jaws clamped around his wrist, he tried pulling and yanking it out but the wolf held on. It wasn't until he punched it's snout with his free hand that the whimpered and let him go.

He dropped to the floor and crawled his way toward the rest of us.

"Collins, are you okay?" I asked assesing the wound on his hand.

Blood poured in rivulets down his wrist, soking into his shirt and pants. The bite marks formed crescent shaped bruises around his arm, forming a weird sort of bracelet as he twisted it. It was like he didn't even hear me, he just looked around as if he'd been called by a ghost.

"I'm going to puke," Townsend announced before he began to retch on the bus floor. I couldn't even bring myself to be disgusted, because at that moment, we heard a different crash.

One of them had broken in through the rear window.

People were everywhere at once, scattering from the bus like frightened birds, their screams echoing across the empty field. They realized they couldn't outrun the wolves and settledfor crying out and screeching.

 One wolf almost tore Townsend's arm off when he tried to shoo it away with a beer bottle.

"Gah!" He jumped, landing back towards the bus before remembering that there was one in there and rushed to his feet.

In the chaos, I realized that Talia was no longer next to me. A different kind of fear gripped me that instant. I darted my eyes around the scramble of students looking for her and coming up empty.  My stomach churned, but I couldn't move.

"Talia! Tal-" My voice broke from screaming tearfully.

The wolves didn't rush. They circled us.  I gulped when I realized who they were closing in on.

The boy from the bus.

The one I'd barely registered that morning.

I took a closer look at him. His face jostled a memory from years ago, when my dad had just become Alpha. Powerful wolf families gathered in our house to celebrate him; I remember being told to stay in my room so that no one would see me. I was so amazed at the prospect of being around tons of wolves, hoping for the chance to see one transform. 

Peeking from the slit in my door hinges, my gaze landed on a young boy a little older than me. When all the other kids were rushing forward with their parents, he stayed behind his mother. I didn't understand why at the time, but  now, as he cowered beneath the creatures' gaze, I finally did.

A weak wolf hidden among humans. 

And I realized then that other wolves couldn't stand the sight of those inferior to them.

The biggest wolf in the pack stepped forward, as if wanting to take the first bite.

My body reacted before my mind.  I moved to shield him.

The wolf's gaze shifted.

To me.

A low growl vibrated under the soles of my feet. The wind died, carrying the scent of wet earth and fur.  It took its time approaching me, the other wolves studying me as if wondering how stupid I was to be a distraction from their Alpha's prey.  Panic was a living, breathing monster in me. 

I was going to die, and I knew it.

My hands clenched at my sides without thinking, my fingers pressing into the fabric of my jeans. Every instinct screamed at me to run but I stood firm, something inside me holding me in place.

It stalked in my direction, moving slowly, taking its time to assess me.

Time seemed to stretch. The air turned electric. The other students' cries seemed distant, muffled, as though the atmosphere had stilled. 

I wondered how much longer I would need to be brave, when a now familiar compelling force began pushing me to lift up my eyes. I hestitated until I heard someone scream; instantly, my eyes caught the Alpha's, forcing his gaze away from whoever had made that sound.

It stiffened, tilting its head as if considering me.

Maintaing eye contact, I took a step forward. The action carried an instinctive command, a warning.

Its hackles rose, teeth bared, confusion flashing across its gaze. It took one slow step after another, as if  fighting against something  invisible that forced it to obey.

Slowly and unwillingly, it lowered its head.

The rest of the pack noticed their Alpha's stance and began to follow suit.

One by one, the other wolves froze, then lowered their heads in deference.