I sit on the bench next to Stiles as Scott talks to him about Allison. "Did you apologize to Allison?"

"Yeah."

"Is she giving you a second chance or..." 

"Yeah." 

"Yeah! All right. So everything's good."

"No." 

"No?" 

"Remember? The hunters. Her dad is one of 'em."

"Her dad?" 

"Shot me."

"Allison's father?"

 "With a crossbow," I add. 

"Allison's father."

"Yes!" Scott and I reply in frustration together. "Her father!" 

"He didn't recognize you two, right?" 

I shrug my shoulders. "I think you're forgetting I lived with them for a bunch of years but it was dark so maybe he didn't."

"No," Scott replies. "N... No. I don't think so."

"Does she know about him?" 

"Oh, yeah. I don't know." Scott becomes more frantic. "What if she does? This is gonna kill me, man."

I snap my fingers. "Scott! Focus! Just focus on lacrosse."

Stiles stands up and hands him a lacrosse stick. "Okay, here, Scott. Take this. Take this, and focus on lacrosse for now, okay? That's all you gotta do, yeah?"

My brother nods. "Lacrosse." 

"Here we go!"

They join the other members of the lacrosse field. I climb up into the stands to watch from there. I sit in the middle and at the very end. The coach blows his whistle. I'm not looking up as I'm rummaging through my book bag but all I hear is him yelling.  

"Let's go! One on one from up top! Jackson! Take a long stick today. Atta boy. That's how you do it! Greenberg, take a lap. Let's go. Faster, Greenberg! Let's go. McCall, what are you waiting for? Let's go. Hey, McCall. Hey, McCall!"

I do finally look up to see Scott bent over with a very tight grip on his lacrosse stick. I hear Jackson tease him with, "You sure you still want to be the first line, McCall?"

The coach approaches my brother and begins talking to him a low voice. I think he's going to give him some inspiring words but he gets the exact opposite. "My grandmother can move faster than that. And she's dead. You think you can move faster than the lifeless corpse of my dead grandmother?"

"Yes, coach."

"I can't hear you." 

"Yes, coach!"

"Then do it again." He blows his whistle again. "McCall's gonna do it again! Let's go!"

He does try again and, because he's so upset, he ends up dislocating Jackson's shoulder. Since it's him, I don't pay attention to it. I'm about to pull a book from my bag but a strong scent fills my nose immediately. The scent is familiar. It's...pine with a hint of ash. I huff and lean back. "Derek."

I glance over and see him standing on the side. "I see you are learning to use your senses."

"You need to stop appearing like this."

"Look who's talking."

"Touché. Why are you here? Don't you have trespassers to threaten?"

I hear him scoff. "Very funny. I'm here because I know your brother has no control over his transformation when he's playing on the field. Like now."

I look back at Scott to see him bent over again and his panting breath is loud in my ears. I catch Stiles' eyes and gesture to my brother. He nods his head and gets Scott off the field, into the locker room to prevent anyone from seeing his transformation kicking in. "Oh," I hear Derek say. "Here."

I look down and slides me a necklace. The chain is a small black rope and the charm is a dark triskelion. I run my fingers over the engraving. "What is this for?"

"It's like what my mom use to use for all her kids to control their transformation. It never worked for me but I was thinking it could help you. It's not exactly what she used but I had that made."

I smile. By the time I look up, he's gone. Since this is Derek, I'm not really surprised. "McCall!"

I look up and coach is blowing his whistle at me. "Coach!" I yell back.

"Get your ass out here."

I step down from the bleachers. "What?"

"While your brother is dealing with whatever, you are gonna be the goalie."

"Why not ask one of them to do it?" I point to the group of lacrosse players on the bench.

"I want to see what you're made of."

After the practice, I drive home with Scott in my car. We sit in our room in silence for a while until our mom comes in still in her work clothes. "Hey. Late shift again for me. But I am taking Saturday off to see your first game."

"Oh, mom, you can't," Scott says.

"Oh, no, I can and I will. Come on, one shift isn't gonna break us. Completely. Hey, what's wrong with your eyes? You two look like you haven't slept in days."

"Oh, uh, it's nothing," Scott replies. 

"We're fine, Mom," I add. "We're just...stressed." She can know the truth. She has enough to worry about.

"Just stress? Nothin' else?"

"Homework."

"I mean, it's not like you're on drugs or anything, right?"

"Right now?" I ask.

"Right now? I'm sorry, what do you mean 'right now'? Have you ever taken drugs?"

"Have you?" Scott and I ask. 

She doesn't answer right away this time. "Get some sleep, kiddos. And stop with that twin-speaking-at-the-same-time thing you always do."

When she leaves, we laugh it off. Scott gets on a video chat with Stiles as I change into more comfortable clothing for bed. "What'd you find out?" Scott asks him.

"Well, it's bad. Jackson's got a separated shoulder."

"Because of me?" 

"Because he's a tool."

"Come on, be nice."

I make my way to the bathroom. "He's totally a tool."

I throw some water on my face before I start brushing my teeth. I hear a loud bang and a bit of struggle. I walk back out with my toothbrush in my mouth to see Derek holding Scott up against the wall.

I stare at the two for a bit, not saying a word. What did Scott do to get Derek Hale all the way here? I hold my toothbrush in hand and raise an eyebrow at Derek. "Mind explaining what you're doing here? The gay hour is over for the night."

He ignores me. Even being casual, I keep my eyes on his hand that has a very tight hold of Scott's shirt. "I saw you on the field." That's right. Scott lost control on the field during practice. I let it slip my mind.

Of course, my brother takes some time to catch on. "Wha... What are you talking about?"

"You shifted in front of them! If they find out what you are, they find out about me, about your own sister. About all of us. And then it's not just the hunters after us, it's everyone."

"But they didn't see anything! I...swear, I-" 

"And they won't! Because if you even try to play in that game on Saturday, I'm gonna kill you myself."

Derek does eventually release him. I go back to brushing my teeth but don't leave the room. Derek glares at me as he jumps out our window. I simply wave and turn back to my brother who hasn't moved. "I have a question. How did he get into our house, let alone our room?" I wipe my mouth and pat my brother on the shoulder. "Good job, Scott. You got the most dangerous werewolf we know on your ass."

"How do I tell the coach I need to sit out?"

Coach Bobby Finstock is the craziest teacher I've ever had. He's a recovering alcoholic. The anger he has for not being able to drink, he takes it out on his students. I sigh and begin walking back to the bathroom. "Good luck, shaggy."

"You know, you're a mean sister."

"Well, don't forget. I'm the female werewolf with periods, mood swings and now full moon transformations added to the list."

The next morning, I go with Scott to see the Coach. "What do you mean, you can't play the game tomorrow night?" 

"I mean, I can't play the game tomorrow night."

"You can't wait to play the game tomorrow night."

"No, coach, he can't play the game tomorrow night," I say. 

"I'm not following." 

"I'm having some personal issues."

"Is it a girl?"

"No."

"Is it a guy? You know, our goalie Danny is gay."

"Yeah, I know, coach, but that's not it." 

"You don't think Danny's a good lookin' guy?"

"He's not wrong, Scott," I remark. "Danny is actually really hot."

"I...think he's good looking. I...but I... I like girls. And that's not it, anyway! I-"

"Is it your sister? I won't judge."

"Coach!" I protest.

"I'm opening my mind to all possibilities. What, is it drugs? Are you doing meth? Because I had a brother that was addicted to meth. You should have seen what it did to his teeth. They were all cracked and rotted. It was... It was disgusting."

"My God. What happened to him?"

"He got veneers."

Scott glances back at me, confused. "Veneers is a layer of material placed over a tooth, either to improve the aesthetics of a tooth or to protect the tooth's surface from damage." He raises an eyebrow. "It's something like dentures only for people who still have their teeth."

"Is that what this is about?" the Coach asks. "Are you afraid of getting hurt, McCall?"

"No... I'm having some issues dealing with aggression."

"Well, here's the good news. That's why you play lacrosse. Problem solved."

"Coach, I can't play the game tomorrow night."

"Listen, McCall, part of playing the first line is taking on the responsibility of being the first line. Now, if you can't shoulder that responsibility, then you're back on the bench until you're ready."

"If I don't play the game, you're taking me off the first line?"

"McCall, play the game."

We separate to go to our classes then, when I'm at my locker, Allison approaches me. "Hey, Alli."

"Ew, you haven't called me that in two years."

"Oh, get over it." We laugh and begin walking to our French Class. "So, I told your brother I'm going to see him play tomorrow night."

"Are you? That's very 'girlfriend' of you. Still weird for my best friend to date my twin brother."

She nudges me playfully. "Not officially boyfriend and girlfriend yet. Oh, we're all going out afterward. Scott, me, Lydia, Jackson. It's gonna be great. You can come, too, if you want. You can bring Stiles with you." 

"And why would I do that?"

"Aren't you two a thing?"

"Who told you that?"

"Plenty of people, including Lucas."

Lucas is apart of the lacrosse team and just transferred here this year as well. He and I have been talking since my first week but his work schedule runs over mine so we barely have time to spend time outside of school together. Our relationship is almost as complicated as Scott and Allison's. I can't have him find out my secret.

After my class, I regroup with Scott. As we're walking down the hall, Lydia struts up to us. "Why is there a rumor going around that you're not playing tomorrow?"

"'Cause I'm sort of not."

"I think you sort of are. Especially when you brutally injure my boyfriend by ramming into him."

"He brutally injured himself ramming into me."

"Can we not use the word 'ramming'?" I say. "It sounds gross when we're referring to two guys."

"Jackson's gonna play tomorrow," Lydia continues. "But he's not gonna be at his peak, and I prefer my boyfriend at peak performance."

"Okay."

"I date the captain of the winning lacrosse team, and if they start off the season losing, I date the captain of the losing lacrosse team. I don't date losers."

"Losing one game isn't gonna kill anyone."

"In fact, it might even save someone," I add.

"Fine! Don't play. We'll probably win anyway. Then we'll go out after like we were planning and I'll introduce Allison to all the hot players on the team. And Scott McCall can stay home, surfing the net for porn."

"Ew!" I exclaim. "Is that what you do with my laptop?"

"No!"

After school, I immediately go home to change. I plan on going out with Lucas since this is his only day off this week. As I'm about to leave, I hear Derek's voice but he's nowhere to be seen. 'You think your little buddy Stiles can just google werewolves, and now you got all the answers, is that it? You don't get it yet, Scott, but I'm looking out for you. Think about what could happen. You're out on the field. The aggression takes over. And you shift in front of everyone. Your mom, all your friends. And when they see you, everything falls apart.' "What are you doing, Scott?" I whisper aloud.

Lucas and I see some random horror film then sit outside for a few hours before I go back home. When I get to my room, Scott is lying in bed covered in sweat and dirt. On our floor, Stiles in the same condition. I can only huff and climb up into my bed. I'm not even going to ask what's going on. Before I close my eyes, I take out my triskelion necklace and hold it tight in my hand. Scott struggles with his transformation more than I do but that doesn't mean I'm not on edge. Wearing this necklace everywhere I go, for some reason, calms me. I turn over to face the wall and close my eyes. Thank you, Derek. I'll do anything to repay you for helping me. 

The next morning, for some reason, Stiles picks us both up. Instead of making a turn to school, he turns onto the preserve and pulls up near the Hale house. I see a bunch of cop cruisers and a huge hole in the ground. Don't tell me they have something to do with this. Then, two police come out with Derek in cuffs.

Scott stays in the car while Stiles pulls me behind him. He sneaks into the car holding Derek. He gets into the passenger seat and I squeeze next to him. He looks around to make sure the coast is clear before he begins talking. "Okay, just so you know, I'm not afraid of you."Derek glares up with his cold eyes. "Okay, maybe I am. Doesn't matter. I just wanna know something. The girl you killed - she was a werewolf. She was a different kind, wasn't she? I mean, she could turn herself into an actual wolf, and I know Scott can't do that. Is that why you killed her?"

"Is that what this is about?" I ask. "Stiles what did you do?"

"Why are you so worried about me when it's your friend who's the problem?" Derek asks. "When he shifts on the field, what do you think they're gonna do. Just keep cheering him on? I can't stop him from playing, but you can. And, trust me...you want to."

I'm about to reply but we're grabbed and pulled out. It's the sheriff. He moves us away from the cruiser and place us in front of him. "There. Stand. What the hell do you think you two are doing?" 

"I'm just trying to help," Stiles replies.

"Okay, well, how 'bout you help me understand exactly how you came across this." 

"We were looking for Scott and Scarlett's inhalers."

"Which they dropped when?"

"The other night."

"The other night when you were out here looking for the first half of the body."

"Yes." 

"The night that you told me you were alone and the twins were at home."

"Yes." Stiles realizes his mistake. "No. Oh, crap." 

"So you lied to me."

"That depends on how you define lying, sheriff," I point out. 

"Well, I define it as not telling the truth. How do you two define it?" 

"Pfft, reclining your body..." Stiles replies. 

"In a horizontal position," I add.

"Get the hell out of here." 

"Absolutely."

Instead of getting back in the Jeep, I walk home and get in my own car. I wanted to be alone. Derek couldn't have killed that girl. I have absolutely no proof to say otherwise but I have a gut feeling. Even if he was involved, he didn't kill her.

When I get to school, I see Stiles' Jeep already parked. I step down and see Lucas waiting by the entrance with a lacrosse stick over his shoulder. I approach with a smile. "Lucas, why aren't you at practice?"

He shrugs and kisses my cheek. "I thought I would wait for you. Stiles was looking for you."

We walk to the field together. "Was he now?"

"What is it with you two? Is he your lover or something?"

Ever since I came back, that's all I've been hearing. Why does everyone assume me and him are a thing? "Me and Stiles are childhood friends. We have never dated and we will never date."

"Are you coming to the game tonight?"

"Of course. I have a boyfriend, a twin brother and a friend playing. How can I not?"

When we reach the field he gives me one last kiss on the cheek before running into the locker room. I see Scott and Stiles talking at the bench. Of course, they aren't phased by Derek's arrest. They are quick to assume without any evidence. Before the game tonight, I change clothes so I don't smell like the school cafeteria. I change into a black sweater, blue jeans, and black knee boots. As I'm throwing on one of Scott's hoodies, my mom peeks her head in. "Going to the game?" she asks.

I grab my keys and nod. "Of course. Want to go in my car?"

She smiles and nods. We get to the school and climb into the stands. I sit with my mom on the left, Allison on my right her father next to her and Lydia next to him. As the game goes on, Jackson struggles with 'dominance'. Danny and everyone else would rather just win instead of trying to make Jackson look good. Meanwhile, Scott tries to hold back his transformation and begins to suck at the game. "Which one is Scott again?" Chris asks.

"Number 11," I reply with a sigh. 

"Otherwise known as the only one who hasn't caught a single ball this entire game," Lydia remarks.

"Is that what you're related to?" Chris asks me.

I laugh and nod. "Yes, unfortunately."

"I hope he's okay," Allison says.

"I hope we're okay," Lydia says, more focused on the score of the game and her reputation of captain's girlfriend. "We need to win this. Allison. Scarlett. A little help here?"

I roll my eyes. "I'll pass." I jump from the bleachers and sit on the bench next to Stiles. "How's he doing?"

"Well, he's not dead..."

"McCall! Pass to McCall! Did the opposing team just deliberately pass us the ball?"

"Yes, I believe so, coach," Stiles replies.

"Interesting." Scott shoots the ball right in the net, scoring. "Goal! Yes! Yes! There you go. Wha- Way to go, McCall! What? The ball's in the net."

Me and Stiles jump to our feet, shocked. "Ball's in the net," we say at the same time. 

"That's the goal of the game, is get the ball in the net! We got it."

"Go, Scott!" I yell.

Thanks to Scott, the teams wins the game but only due to his enhanced abilities. I see his eyes glowing under his helmet. Come on, Scott. You've come so far. He runs off to the locker room with his head held down. Instead of Stiles, Allison goes after him. I'm about to go as well but Chris steps down in front of me. "Hey, Scarlett. We never had a chance to catch up. Take a walk with me?"

Without thinking first, I agree. We walk out front. "So, I see you've been adjusting well to the move."

"Well, sure. I have my brother, my mom, Stiles and Allison." I lean against my Jeep. "I love it here now."

"Scarlett, is there anything you need to tell me?"

"What?" It hits me. I'm standing in the middle of an empty parking lot with a werewolf hunter. "Chris, I..."

He grabs me by the neck and shoves me against my car door. "I saw you that night, on the full moon. You were out there for a reason. Looking for your pack?"

I'm scared. I've never seen this side of Chris and he could kill me right now if he wanted to. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't play dumb with me. How many of you are there? Were you going to keep this secret from us forever?"

"Chris, calm down. Listen to me. I never wanted to be this way. It happened the night I came home. I don't know about any other werewolves."

He sighs and backs away. "Do you know who bit you?"

"No, and I don't care. I'm scared of what I've become and I'm still confused about what to do."

"Look, I can't promise your life but I'll do what I can to get the hunters off your tail and redirect the attention. What you need to do is make sure you don't lose control or they will shoot you on sight."

We part ways and I don't mention my conversation with him to Scott. At school the next, after lunch, I go to my locker to switch out my textbooks. While I'm putting in my combination, I hear, "Hey, baby."

The voice makes me not want to look up but, when I do, I'm not surprised. "Trent," I hiss.

He hasn't changed much. He still has his buff body from playing football, dark hair and green eyes. He is wearing a lacrosse team jersey, which worries me. Trent and I used to date in San Francisco but he moved away suddenly. I was heartbroken. "Hey, Scarlett."

"What are you doing here and why are you wearing that?"

He smiles. "I miss you. You don't return my calls or texts so I came to see you, be closer to you. And the coach lets me practice with the team. I might be good enough to be the co-captain."

I open my locker. "I don't want to see you. If you're able to go away, without saying goodbye, there shouldn't be a problem now."

He slams my locker shut while my hand is still in it. It slams right on my wrist. I snatch it back hold it to my chest. "Trent, what the fuck is wrong with you!?"

He grabs me by my neck. "Why are you so stubborn?" he hisses through his teeth.

I push his arm away and start backing away with little baby steps. "It's how I was born and how I will always be. Like they always say: 'Old habits die hard'."

He grabs me by the throat again. I push him as hard as I can this time. Unlike Derek, he's easy to push and get away from. I start running down the hall. "Scott! Stiles!"

He grabs me from behind and pulls me into an empty room. As a reflex, I start struggling. I just push and hit. He throws me to the floor, my arm hitting a desk on the way down. While I'm trying to get up, he locks the door. I use the teacher's desk to get to my feet. He grabs me by my shirt and shoves me against a wall. "Get off me, Trent!"

He wraps one hand around my throat and uses the other to rip off my flannel shirt. He gets my shirt in half ripped before I push him back enough to slip away. I cross the room but trip over a chair. My face hits the floor.

Pain shoots through my head, my leg, my stomach, and my neck. Everywhere. He stands over me and grabs me by my foot. He begins pulling at my leggings, trying to pull them off. I grab the hem and pull in the opposite direction. "Trent, Please!"

I hear banging and the door burst open. Lucas busts in and tackles Trent to the floor. They struggle until Scott and Stiles come running in with two teachers and two security. Trent and Lucas are dragged away by the security and I press against the wall, sliding down to the floor.

I start to cry as if my brain is being shredded from the inside. Emotional pain flows out of me from every pore. From my mouth comes a cry so raw that even the eyes of the teachers were suddenly wet with tears. From my eyes comes a thicker flow of tears. Stiles gets down next to me and holds me in his arms, whispering, "It's okay."

I'm taken to the hospital to be checked out. My wrist that was slammed in the locker is shattered. They have it wrapped and in a sling. I have some skull injuries and my head it wrapped, too. My face, neck, arms, and legs are covered in bruises. I get one glance of myself in the mirror before I leave and I don't recognize the person looking back at me.

I sit at the sheriff station, across from Sheriff Stilinski. He asks me a couple questions to put on a report then asks if I want to press charges. I shake my head. I know I should want him away from me but this is just something new for people to talk about. I have enough on my plate as is. "I...just want to go home."

He only sighs and stops writing. "A restraining order at least."

I cave in with a nod. Doing that, I can still feel his hands around my neck. "Fine. Can I go now?"

"I talked to your mom and the principal at your school. They both agreed you should stay home for a little bit, just so this blows over or some of those visible marks go away."

I rub my arm and feel the purple, black and blue bruises. "I'll be fine. Thank you, sheriff."

Stiles volunteers to drive me home. Neither of us says anything the entire time. As I'm getting out, Stiles calls after me. I'm halfway in and halfway out. "I know you don't want to talk about what happened but j-"

"Stiles, don't."

"Let me finish. Just know...my spare house key is always under the doorbell and my room door is always unlocked, especially for you."

"Stiles..."

He holds me by my shoulders and pulls me into his arms. I crack. I begin to shake, holding him tighter for support. Soft cries escape my mouth as I cry in the silence of this car. Stiles holds me tight, maybe tighter than I'm holding him. "It's going to be alright, Scar. It's over."

"I was so scared, Stiles," I sob.

"I was, too, Scar."

I don't know how long we're there but I do eventually fall asleep on his shoulder. When I wake up, I'm in Scott's bed. I feel so drowsy. The pain is numbed, though. The painkillers are kicking in. I want to get up but it's so hard, and I'm so comfortable. Soon, that is all that I'm really aware of.

The soft mattress underneath me, the warmth of the sheets around me. My eyes begin to drift close. I'm blissfully unaware of what's going on around me. Then it's just my dreams and me. When I wake up, a terrible smell hits my nose. I hang my body off the edge off to look down at Scott. He is sound asleep but covered in dirt.

I sigh and turn back over, going back to sleep. When I wake up for the third time, I don't feel like getting up. Everything starts to hurt again and I don't want to go anywhere. Scott wakes up and gets ready for school. He comes out the bathroom and stands on the wood of his bed to look at me. "How do you feel?"

I have my blankets up to my neck and my face have buried in it. "Everything hurts," I croak.

"Mom!" Scott calls.

My mom comes in, dressed for work. "Is everything alright? And I told you not to stand on your bed like that."

He jumps down and gestures to me. "I think Scarlett needs her pain meds. She said everything is hurting her."

"No," I say. "They make me tired."

"Sweetie they'll help with the pain," my mom replies.

"I don't want to sleep, mom. Please."

She huffs. "Scarlett, your options are very limited."

I cave in and take my pills. As expected they make me sleep again. I couldn't tell if I was dreaming or what time of day it is but I hear two voices talking. "I don't know what to say to her anymore. She looks terrible and I doubt she wants to talk about what happened." Scott.

"Dude, just let it be. She's a fighter and she'll move past this like it never happened." Stiles.

"Stiles, be honest. Have you ever seen her so scared?"

I hear our friend sigh. "She wasn't scared in that room. She was terrified then regretful when she was in my dad's office. Has either of us seen her like this? The best we can do is support her."