The next morning Penelope lay awake in her bed. She’d been staring at the same ceiling tiles for hours. She had been startled awake, at six, with a thought and hadn’t been able to go back to sleep. What if it was one of her own kind, causing the trees to get sick? What if she couldn’t feel the magic because witches were really good at hiding it from others like themselves? If a witch wanted to, they could easily mask their magic from others.

This thought hummed in her head like an angry nest of hornets. With an exasperated sigh, she kicked the blankets back and slipped from the bed. A visit to her friend, the coffee pot, was in order. She stretched her arms high above her head, trying to roll the kinks from her neck and shoulder. Then, with a wide yawn, she shuffled from her bedroom and made her way to the kitchen.

She filled the carafe with water and poured it into the machine. After filling the filter with her favorite roast, she pushed the button and listened as the machine sputtered to life.

“Music to my ears,” she muttered as she looked around the kitchen. She decided she’d return the favor and make breakfast for Han with the leftovers. She fixed French toast as she let her phone read her some articles on plant magic. It didn’t get her very far.

“That smells good,” Han said as he came out of his room. He was wearing plaid pajama pants and looked absolutely adorable, with his hair all ruffled.

While they were eating he received a text message. He didn’t bother looking at the phone.

“Aren’t you going to get that?” she probed.

“Nope. I’m eating,” he said around a bite of food. Once they were finished eating, she cleared the plates. It was only then that he looked at his phone. A frown pulled his brows together as he looked down at the screen.

Penelope frowned, too. “What’s wrong?”

“We’re requested at the home of the alpha, in an hour,” he said, his voice conveying the confusion she felt.

Her eyebrows shot up. “Why? What could he want with me now?”

He just shook his head and shrugged.

“I don’t know. The message didn’t say anything else. We should go ahead and get ready. I don’t want to be late.” He disappeared into his room to get ready leaving her to finish cleaning up breakfast. She went into her room to pick something out something to wear. She’d been slowly transitioning from her witchy black clothes and long dresses to things with flowers and pink shirts. It was a strange shift for her. She chose a short blue dress with a three-quarters cardigan and flat shoes. She was ready quickly.

They left, being sure to lock the door behind them. Locks were pointless. If someone, namely a witch, wanted into your home, they were going to get in, and a cheap lock from the hardware store wouldn’t stop them. They made their way to the car in silence. With each step she found herself wondering why on earth they were being summoned to Stefan’s house.

The car ride was silent, but with each mile that ticked by, Penelope’s nerves grew tighter. When they entered the alpha’s house there was the usual check by the guards, and they were escorted to the waiting area.

“Welcome back Han,” Stefan greeted him warmly. Then he turned his gaze to Penelope and gave her a curt nod. “Witch,” he said by way of greeting. She tried not to bristle at his cold demeanor.

“What’s this about,” she asked, trying to smile as they made their way into his study.

“Well, I think you know. Tell me how you’ve run off the nymphs and diseased our trees.”

“Wait, what?” Penelope was seriously surprised. She didn’t think the alpha would blame her for something she only just noticed.

“The trees. Something magical has made them sick. I consulted with Bernard,” Stefan said.

Penelope fought the urge to roll her eyes. Bernard Estes was an old wizard who thought he was better than everyone else in the magic community was. He had always struck Penelope as cold. Her mother had never liked him. Anytime they saw him on the street she would rush to the other side.

“Don’t talk to that crazy old man, Pen,” her mother had said. “He’ll fill your head full of garbage.”

“No offense to you sir,” Penelope said. “Bernard isn’t quite with it when it comes to feeling the presence of magic. I mean he’s one-hundred-and-fifty.”

“He’s ninety-two, Witch.” The disdain with which he said the word caused irritation to flare through her blood, but she kept her tongue in check, as he continued. “He said a Cradle Witch is responsible. I’ve never been steered wrong by him before.”

“Penelope noticed the trees were sick at the same time I did, sir. She’s been trying to figure out how to help them. She said the magic they’re under has been shaded, so she can’t feel it.” Han poked his chest out and Penelope felt affection for him.

“She has you under her spell already boy,” Stefan said. “You better watch it or you’ll be her slave like Jeremy was.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Penelope felt her blood run hot. A little spark ignited in her hand, but she hid it. “I never once forced Jeremy into a relationship with me. We were together for over a year. He actually wanted to be in it.”

“That’s not what I heard.” Stefan was really enjoying himself at her expense. There was nothing she could do, because it was his word against hers. No matter how bad things had gotten between them she couldn’t believe he’d cheapen their relationship that way.

“Look, I get it. I tried to kill him and his lady friend,” Penelope said. She wasn’t prepared for the shock she saw written on Han’s face. She found it hard to believe he didn’t know the story of Penelope the evil witch, but she’d deal with that later. “But, I’ve never once put someone under my control.”

“No, just under the control of others.” He had her there.

It took every ounce of energy she possessed not to lash out at the arrogant man, but somehow, she managed.

“Look, I’m not the one making the trees sick, but I will figure out who it is. If nothing more, I just want to prove to you that I’m different now. I’m not the same sick person who tried to smash Lily Adams Spencer with a house. I’m not the same person who allowed Rytas to take over a whole village of people for a few hundred dollars.” She figured that while she was confessing things in front of Han, she might as well get it all out there.

Stefan still didn’t believe her.

“Fine, you fix it and I might believe you weren’t the one doing it. I am assuming running the dryads and nymphs off would have taken some time and energy. If you’d done it Donovan would have noticed while you were at his place, and Han would have noticed, since he’s been following you.”

Finally, she was getting somewhere with him. It was nice to know that Stefan wasn’t completely unreasonable.

“Wait,” she stopped, “the dryads are gone too?”

“Yes, all gone. You’ll not find a single one. I’ve tried, so did Bernard.”

“Then whoever is doing this must plan to do a lot more damage. I worry if the dryads and the nymphs have abandoned their livelihoods.

After they were dismissed she felt as if she should try to explain herself to Han. He pierced her with his green eyes and she had to avert her eyes. Her cheeks felt hot and she knew she was blushing. She thought he was looking at her with curiosity though, rather than disgust, so she considered that a good thing.

“I’m not the worst person in the world, I promise,” she said with a little giggle. She didn’t giggle so that was a new noise for her.

“I knew about all that, I just didn’t really believe you could do it after meeting you.”

“That was the old me,” Penelope said as she climbed into the car. “It makes sense that he thinks I’m the one who made the trees sick. That’s something I would have done for money, back in the day.”

“Listen, if it makes you feel any better, there’s a reason I’m assigned witch duty. No offense. I don’t mind this job, but it’s not necessarily the one you get accolades for.”

Penelope was intrigued. She’d never really thought about why he might be the one who was watching her.

“Really?”

“Yeah, it’s a long story, though. You want to maybe stop for some food and talk about it?”

Penelope felt the heat creep into her cheeks. She realized she was also really hungry. The day seemed to have disappeared. When she looked at the clock it was already close to four. Where had the time gone? She looked over at Han and flashed him a wide smile.

“Are you asking me on a date, Han?” she teased.

She couldn’t be sure, but she thought she saw some coloring touch his dark cheeks as he looked at her. He shrugged. “Sort of. I can’t really date my charge, but it would be nice to have some dinner together. You know, you have to eat, I have to eat. We’re just two people that need to eat.”

Penelope chuckled and nodded. “I guess if you put it that way, what choice do we have. You wouldn’t want me to waste away while I was in your care, now would you?”

He shook his head. “Most definitely not,” he said, giving her a sly smile.

Penelope agreed and let him drive her to a restaurant close to the alpha’s house. It was called Falls Diner and was a favorite of most people who lived nearby. They never had the same thing twice and always had food tailored to the interesting clientele they got from all the communities.

They sat down in a booth towards the back of the restaurant. Penelope had seen the fae that waited on them before, when she was under Seraphina’s supervision. He was a beautiful fae with very few words. He had long blonde braids that Penelope envied and lashes she would kill for. He nodded to them after bringing water and pointed to the drinks’ menu.

Both of them ordered sweet tea and the special. It was a salmon soufflé with rice and a side salad.

“It started with my father. He was the black sheep of seven bear brothers. The rest became doctors, lawyers; you know, all the acceptable professions. He became a thief. He swindled people out of their money and until he met my mother he was a pretty bad guy.” Han said, When the sweet tea came he drank down half his glass.

“Bad guy, as in murder and mayhem?” Penelope asked, savoring her own tea.

“He did some terrible things to people who didn’t deserve it.”

“I know how that is.”

“When I was five, my father got back to his old ways and went to jail. My mother and her mother raised me, but they couldn’t control me and I was headed down a bad path.”

Penelope leaned forward listening intently, engrossed in his story. He was possibly just like her. It might be the one reason she could allow herself to be attracted to him. They were on a date after all.

“I got in with a bad crowd; got into some fights, people were killed. I made some enemies. When I went to jail I was still underage, so I was lucky. Some of the clan took me in and tried to teach me how to fly straight, but I’m still paying for it.”

“And that’s why you’re on Penelope duty,” she said, thrilled as their food arrived. It smelled to die for and her stomach rumbled excitedly.

“That’s why I’m on Penelope duty,” he smiled and dove into his salmon. He was a meticulous eater. Penelope noticed that he ate each thing on his plate separately, as she scooped everything together. She wondered how many other ways they were different.

“So, what’s the plan for the trees,” Han asked after he’d eaten most of the food on his plate.

“Tonight, we’ll go to a couple shops. I’ve found a spell I think might help me figure out how to uncover the magic that’s causing it.”

“I have to go with you, you know.”

“I do,” Penelope nodded and thought for a minute. “We may not be let in everywhere, but a couple of shops don’t care who comes in as long as you’re paying customers. I don’t need anything too crazy. Most of the spell uses herbs I have and my own blood.”

Han made a face at that, so she decided to change the subject. The next day would be exciting. She’d be able to uncover the truth about the spell on the trees, nymphs, and dryads. It would feel good to be able to clear her name, for once.