Alec walks alone in the late evening through the woods which lie half a mile from his house. He takes a small, and seldom-used path through them, lighting his way with a small lantern. Normally this would not be a way for a young man to spend his Saturday nights, but during the past few months, he had ceased to be your typical young man. As usual for a Saturday night, and sometimes one or two other nights a week, if the workload on the farm was light, he had gone to bed at his usual time and then risen after he was sure his parents were asleep to make his way into the woods.

Anyone else might have felt uneasy traveling into the darkness of the wood at this hour of the night, but Alec was used to the journey and the woods had become very familiar to him. Also the reward at the end of his trek well made up for traveling alone in the darkness. As he went deeper into the woods, he became more excited, picking up his pace slightly in order to meet his secret lover as soon as possible.

As he walks onward, he ponders the uniqueness of the whole situation which had started a few months ago in early spring. Now in the middle of summer, as the warm night air surrounds him, that unbelievable chance encounter had kindled into a strange romance the likes of which he could sometimes hardly believe.

It had all started on that fateful night as he was returning home much too late from the spring dance in town. Choosing to take a short-cut off the road and through the countryside, he had never guessed what lay ahead of him. His journey had been abruptly interrupted by a griffin swooping down upon him and carrying him away to her lair amongst the mountains lying off to the east.

He had passed out from fright, a fact which sort of embarrassed him now, and when he awoke in the cave, she had prowled toward him out of the shadows and stood up on her hind legs, raising her taloned arms, stretching out her body, and spreading her wings wide. At the time this gesture had extremely terrified him, but he now realized that it was more a playful pose than a display of force.

To his surprise and horror, she had made advances on him which made it perfectly clear that she hadn't brought him there to be her dinner. At first he couldn't believe what this creature was suggesting, but as she had become more insistent he found at least part of himself becoming more agreeable with the whole idea. She had definitely coerced him into making love, but was also gentle with him in her way. She had also had a playful forcefulness about her that had initially shocked him but he then had become somewhat exciting.

After a long night of love play, they had fallen asleep in each other's arms to wake up to share the sunrise together. At first the idea of lying with an animal had seemed unnatural, but he soon realized that while she wasn't human, she was also far from a common animal. Not only had he begun to find her unique form very appealing, but realized that her spirit and personality were also very agreeable.

After another round of play, she had gently flown him back to the woods near his house being careful to stay far away from civilization so as not to be seen. She had wrapped her arms around him making sure as to not to pierce him with her sharp talons, after apologizing for causing his wounds the night before when she had lifted him unwillingly into the air.

The flight home was beautiful, just as exhilarating as lying with her the night before, and in its own way even more enjoyable. He had never imagined being able to see the world in such a way. He had put his trust in her since she obviously could have killed him at any time but hadn't. Soaring over the landscape in her tight and comfortable grip was almost too much for his mind to grasp. The whole trip probably only lasted for about ten or fifteen minutes, but it seemed much longer to him as he took in all the wondrous sensations. Several times he had to consciously force him self from screaming out in wonder and amusement for fear of being seen.

She had landed in a clearing in the woods about half an hours walk from his house. They lived on a farm away from town, so it was fairly safe for them to land there without being seen. As she released him from her safe grasp, he had turned against her and embraced her, squeezing tight and rubbing his hands gently through her silken feathers. She had responded in turn with her own arms and brought her wings up against him somewhat surrounding him with her warmth. Looking into her eyes which just the night before had seemed to be cold and uncaring, he now saw her look back at him with adoration. After ending that comfortable embrace, they had set a time for their next meeting on the following weekend and as he watched with awe and affection, she had turned from him and taken flight with such wonderful gracefulness.

He had finally returned home in the late morning to find his parents extremely nervous and rather upset with him. He had explained his tardiness and torn shirt with a concocted story about getting into a fight after the dance in town and being so beat up that he had slept there overnight to let himself regain his strength. Although they were very angry to hear this, they had believed him and except for a couple of lashings from his father's belt his punishment wasn't too bad. He had to work on extra chores to make up for the whole situation, but he got through the week with the thoughts of the upcoming tryst clouding out just about everything else in his mind.

His parents had noticed some of his strange behavior, but had explained it by figuring he had found a sweetheart during the dance in town the weekend before. They even suspected that she might have been the reason for his returning home so late that morning. His mother was a little distressed by this, but his father convinced her that "boys will be boys" and that it was good for the young man to go out and live a little. Had they known how close they had come to the truth of the matter, it was surely likely that they wouldn't have felt so at ease with the situation.

But they had never suspected anything. He had been able to sneak out of the house a couple of nights a week and meet with his newfound exotic lover for the past few months and as yet hadn't been caught. He made sure to take the necessary precautions so that would never happen.

As he walks along through the woods he recalls how their relationship had grown over the past months. Remembering the fear he had felt on that first night and how that had soon turned into a fiery passion which with time had grown into a strong love between them.

At first there was a part of him that had trouble with the fact that he was sleeping with what some people might call a terrible beast. But he had come to realize that he couldn't deny the feelings he felt for her. He did find her body exotic and attractive and had found the same appealing qualities in her personality too. There was a wildness to her, but she was also a caring and loving person. On their second night together they had begun to talk for quite some time and had begun to grow closer together. She had opened up to him, dropping her somewhat gruff exterior and showing him her affectionate side. During all of this time, he had discovered that he really did love her for what she was and who she was. Although she wasn't human, she acted more like one than some of the animals he had seen walking around claiming to be men.

So they had come to be lovers and it was the most wonderful feeling he had ever experienced. Sometimes he regretted the fact that he couldn't share this with his family or friends, but it also was a secret which he enjoyed keeping to himself and reveling in it.

After the first month when they had become fairly close, he decided he needed to ask her a couple of questions in order to further their relationship; there were just a couple of things that he needed to know.

He had first asked her what her intentions had been on that night when she had dove out of the sky at him and hoisted him screaming into the air. Although he realized she was kind and caring towards him, he also knew that she was a predator and had to know just exactly what her designs on him had been. He had tried to ask the question in as nice a manner as possible as they were snuggling together, and she had not taken offense to it. Although she was a predator she said, she wouldn't have killed an innocent person for food. There was an honor about her kind and she explained that although some griffins had killed humans before, most of it was in defending themselves, although some had been known to kill in revenge for some grave wrongdoing. As with most tales which were greatly exaggerated, their malignancy had been for the most part made up. In fact she had said, except in very rare occasions, griffins tried to keep their distance from humans, being rather wary of them.

So when she had seen him there walking alone in the countryside she had decided to take a chance. She figured that he was young so wouldn't pose as great a threat to her. She also had been rather lonely and was in need of some physical companionship and figured that he would do quite nicely. She had figured that he would of course be frightened of her, but being of the age that he was, she could convince him to lie with her and that he would eventually become eager at the prospect of it. Having finally convinced him to go along with her intentions she had used a little bit of his fear to playfully frighten him in hopes of heightening the passion in a strange sort of way. Later she had apologized for scaring him like that and had become much gentler in their love making.

His second question which was a little harder than his first, was why she didn't have a mate. When he mentioned this, her eyes had clouded over with tears and she had begun to shake softly with her quiet sobs. Realizing that he had uncovered a painful area, he felt incredibly awkward and hated himself for having asked such a question. All he could do was hold her tightly and try to comfort her, trying to ignore the guilt he was feeling in his stomach.

Finally she had told him about how her mate had been killed while foolishly trying to raid a human campsite a couple of years ago. He had been young and too bold and when he saw the small camp there out in the wilderness he had decided in a moment of bravado to raid it for supplies. Unfortunately it had not been an ordinary human campsite, but had instead been several soldiers on a training mission. They had caught him during his raid and as he was flying off had lobbed a barrage of arrows at him. Several had made their mark and he had returned to her extremely weakened having lost a good deal of blood. She had been able to remove the arrows, but his wounds were too great and by the next night he had succumbed to them.

Since then she had been alone and grieving. Griffins were fairly rare to begin with and she hadn't seen a single one in this area in that whole time. She had chose to remain in this area instead of searching perhaps in vain for another mate. So her first night with him had been fulfilling a yearning need, but for both of them it had grown much beyond that.

Listening to her tell him this, he had been at a loss for words. All he could do was gently stroke her neck and tell her how sorry he was. Seeing his awkwardness she had told him that it was okay. She didn't hate humans for what had happened, it was her mate's fault, as much as theirs, for being so foolish and not heeding instinct and better judgment. She had said that if they hadn't killed him, he might have tried attacking them, so in a way they were justified to have done what they did. She pretty much explained it as the law of the jungle and left it at that.

The rest of that night had been a bit straining on both of them, but they held each other tightly and he did his best to comfort her. In the end it had served to bring them all that closer together.

As he walks through the woods he realizes that he is almost upon the clearing which has become their meeting place for these nighttime rendezvous. This week had been a really busy one; he hadn't been able to see her since last weekend, so he is extremely excited for tonight.

As he walks, he also mulls over the current situation with that girl Laurie Daniels who has been hounding him over the past few months. Before he had met his lover, he had met Laurie and had been quite attracted to her, but soon enough he had come to realize her true colors. She had come across as sweet enough, but had soon dropped that charade and acted like the spoiled brat that she was. She was the daughter of one of the town's businessmen, so she was accustomed to a life more luxurious than his on the farm. Normally she wouldn't have associated with the likes of him, but she had somehow developed a fancy for him and had expected him to jump at the opportunity to be hers. Her parents probably weren't too crazy about the idea of the two of them getting involved, but she was extremely head strong and for the most part did as she pleased.

Alec's parents were of course delighted with the idea of him associating with her since if he was to marry her it would greatly improve their family's financial situation. He had come to realize that he didn't want anything to do with her but was having a hard time convincing her or his parents of that fact. Not only did he find her general character and attitude to have become quite offensive, but he had come to realize that he truly loved the griffin and wasn't going to let their relationship get thrown away.

He had realized that he would soon have to make a choice that would affect the rest of his life. If he decided to commit himself fully to his lover, it would mean leaving the world of humans to join her in their own domain. These thoughts weighed heavy upon him, but he knew when the time came he would be able to do what was right for himself.

Finally after the walk and all of his reflections, he comes to the clearing in the woods. Setting the lantern down, he leans down against a tree and waits. He doesn't have to wait for long though. He soon hears a slight shuffling sound from above. She had told him some time ago that she could fly silently without any effort but could also make slight sounds with her wings if she wished. She had done so on their first night together to have a little fun with him, and did so now to signal him of her arrival.

Standing up he walks to the center of the small clearing just as she makes a graceful landing, lit up in the moonlight looking as beautiful as ever. Standing up on her hind feline legs she throws her arms around him as he walks into her embrace and wraps his arms around her feeling her softness against him. He kisses her gently on her cheek and she returns the gesture by rubbing her head softly against his neck. "I've really missed you this week" he whispers as he squeezes her tighter.

Suddenly she stiffens up all over and her talons reflexively dig into his back sending shivers of fear up and down his spine. He doesn't comprehend what could possibly be happening as she turns her head up to look at him with a mixture of fear and anger in her eyes.

Just then he hears a sound from the woods just outside of the clearing. Jerking his head in that direction he sees a man stepping out from the trees, holding a sword ready down at his side. As he watches with terror, two other men emerge from the shadows on either side of them, standing about six feet away. They too have their swords drawn and ready with a look of cold determination in their eyes.

"Mr. Daniels..." Alec stammers not believing this impossible situation.

"Hello Alec. I must admit that I'm surprised to see you in such a situation, but I should have believed my daughter when she told me of your strange nightly meetings."

Alec is just too stunned to say anything, he just stands there with his face a mask of utter surprise. He notices that the griffin has shifted her position some so she now also stands there facing the leader of the intruders. She still has a tight grip on him and is squeezing her talons into him in small spasms.

"Yes Alec, you heard me right. My daughter is the source of this information. It seems you have been a bit careless." At this a fourth figure emerges from the shadows, revealing herself to be Alec's spurned love interest.

She regards him with utter contempt for a moment before finally chastising him. "So is this why you have been ignoring me Alec? How could you possibly commit such a heinous act. How could you possibly have feelings for such a beast?!"

He is too angry and scared to even come up with a retort to this. He can only glare back at her with all the hatred he can muster. She then laughs at him bitterly. "You didn't think that anyone would find out did you? You thought you could cavort with this animal all you wanted to and nobody would be the wiser? Well I had had enough of your games mister, and I decided to watch you closely and see what you were up to. I followed you here last weekend and saw you commit those unspeakable acts. It was all I could do to keep myself from being sick you fiend! I finally heard you make plans to meet here again this evening and I decided to put a stop to this once and for all."

They stare at each other with the greatest contempt for what seems like hours. Finally her father breaks the silence. "Okay Alec, we don't want to hurt you, even if you have debased yourself in this way. Move away from the beast and we'll let you be."

His lover still has a tight grip on him, glancing into her eyes she looks up at him with the deepest of sorrows and slowly releases her hold on him. He hesitates to let go of her as he surveys the situation. "Mr. Daniels, I can't believe you would do something as ruthless as this just because of what your daughter might have said."

"It's not just that Alec, it's also the fact that I have a substantial amount to gain from this venture. Haven't you heard that the pelt of a griffin has certain magic properties?"

Hearing this Alec can hardly believe that he could stoop so low. His anger rises a couple of notches which seems to delight the intruders, especially Laurie. Finally in a burst of inspiration, he hatches a desperate plan.

Slowly letting go of his lover he slowly steps away from her toward Laurie and her father. Putting on his best attempt at a sorrowful expression he holds out his hand toward her. "Laurie, I'm sorry. She put some sort of a spell on me. Won't you please forgive me."

Laurie is taken in by his guise, and her father is too busy sizing up the griffin to realize what he is about to do. As this is happening the men are cautiously advancing slowly towards the griffin with their swords out. They are still very apprehensive at striking the first blow since she has her talons out ready to strike.

As Laurie walks toward him and takes his outstretched hand, Alec secretly manages to pull out his small hunting knife from its sheath. With a blinding movement, he takes her hand and pulls her toward him, bringing the knife up against her throat.

As she screams out, the three men snap around to see that the tables have been turned. Her father stands there disbelieving the situation, finally exclaiming with desperation, "you won't do it Alec. I know you can't do it. I just know you can't do it."

"Do you want to try and call my bluff Mr. Daniels? Are you that certain?"

"But there's no way you could be so barbaric."

"Are you sure of that? It's no more barbaric than what you were about to do, and at least I am going to do it out of desperation and love than out of greed."

"But this is different, she's a human for God's sake!"

"But the griffin means just as much to me, in fact she means much more to me than your shrew of a daughter here. Now if you want her to get out of this, I suggest you call off your goons."

The other two men look at her father for orders, finally in desperation he has them back up behind him, as both Alec and the griffin glare at them with utter hatred.

"Now, have your men drop their swords and walk off into the woods. Don't try and fool with us," nodding toward his lover, "she has extremely good hearing and will be able to tell if they try and sneak up on us."

After getting a nod from their frightened and upset boss, the two men drop their swords and hightail it into the darkness of the woods. Edging towards the griffin dragging a frightened Laurie with him, Alec gives his ultimatum. "Now, you're just going to toss all of the swords into the woods and then sit down over there against that tree. After glaring at Alec for a few moments, he finally complies with the orders, giving him a look of angry desperation.

Alec's lover moves behind him and slips her arms around him getting into position for flight. At the last minute Alec releases Laurie and throws her down to the ground. In an instant the griffin spreads her wings, leaps into the air, and they are aloft. They quickly soar into the night sky leaving the treacherous intruders to cower angrily below them.

They make the flight back to her den in silence, her grip on him tighter than usual but not painfully so. Landing on the ledge to the cave she turns to him with relief in her eyes and tightly embraces him. They stand there comforting each other for a long while, each not believing what has happened and just glad to have come out of it unscathed.

Finally she looks at him with uncertainty in her eyes, "now what are you going to do?"

Squeezing her tighter and caressing her back with his hands he replies in a somewhat shaky voice, "I have been thinking things over for awhile now, and what happened tonight just forced me to make the decision earlier then I was going to. It's obvious that I won't be able to return to town, but that's not the only reason why I've decided this. In these past few months I've felt closer to you than anyone else, and I don't want to lose that. I want to stay with you and make our life together. Let's leave tomorrow for someplace new, let's stay together forever."

Looking into her eyes he sees they are brimming with emotion. She leans against him, resting her head on his shoulder in quiet acceptance of his proposal. Finally she leads him into the cave and to her bedding where they begin the rest of their life together.

Copyright 1994, Will A. Sanborn - was1@shore.net