So I started this story perquest of orionastro. I hope it is what you hope for. Updates may be a little slow since I am in the middle of two other stories, but I hope you enjoy!

Back of the book blip: What would happen if Scott never told Stiles about his attack in the pilot episode? How would things change within their friendship? Still, Stiles manages to get involved with werewolves, three of them, and they need his help to discover who killed their alpha.

Chapter 1

Stiles stared up at his bedroom ceiling. His throat was drier than a desert. The images of last night kept flashing through his head. He and Scott barely dodged his dad and search team, but they ended up separated in the dark and cold of the woods.

"Scott!" Stiles hissed in a whisper. "Dude! We need to split!"

His dad was heading off in the opposite direction now. The two of them had nearly been caught in the beams of his flashlight. The barks of the K-9 unit got farther and farther away. Now the sounds of the night came back. A light breeze rustled through the trees. The quiet was unnerving. Not even the cicadas were singing. Stiles spun around and let out a sigh. He was lost, but only a little. He scratched the top of his head and pointed one direction and then another. The way out was around here somewhere. In the midst of running, he forgot.

There was a crackle of a stick breaking nearby. Stiles jumped and ducked behind a tree, thinking his Dad had doubled back. That was a grounding he didn't want. Peaking around it, he sighed with relief. It was just an elk. A very large and antlery one. Stiles's eyebrows rose as his eyes adjusted. There was more than one. There was a whole herd. What did you call a herd of elk? There was a proper term. He couldn't think of it right now.

One of the elk stuck its nose up in the air. Its nostrils filled as it inhaled its surrounding. The entire herd froze, becoming very alert. Stiles remembered seeing something like this on the Discovery Channel. Animals froze like ice when a predator was nearby. He swallowed the lump in his throat. They weren't moving until suddenly they were. Spooked, they came running toward him. Stiles hugged his back to the tree. They flew past him, leaping and bounding. Stiles ducked down and covered his head with his hands. They were so close that he could feel the fur of their legs or underbelly brush his arms here and there. After they passed he looked up in time to see them turn sharply to the left. His heart pounded as heavy as their hooves. He let out the breath he'd been holding in.

He started walking in the direction the elk went. A shadow shifting in the trees not that far ahead made him stop. He squinted but it didn't help any in the dark.

"Scott?" Stiles called out after a minute or two. He recognized his ridiculous mop of brown hair and that ugly red hoodie.

Stiles smirked. Scott truly was a sad excuse sometimes. He was looking for something. Probably lost his inhaler again. Stiles shook his head. What a dork, he thought. He made his way to him, but stopped cold at a rustling of leaves that resembling the sound of footsteps. There was something else out here with them and it was behind Scott. Stiles opened his mouth to shout for his best friend to get out of there, but it was too late.

Scott's sudden howl of pain echoed through the woods and he fell. A large animal, Stiles couldn't see what kind, ran off fast. He gasped. Its eyes were red. Stiles couldn't make out what it was. Scott took off running before it could maul him to death, and so did Stiles, in opposite directions again.

When Stiles made it back to the Jeep he stopped to catch his breath. His hands were on the U-bar in front of the grill of the vehicle. His head was throbbing.

"What the hell?" he breathed. "Scott?"

He didn't call out too loudly. That thing could still be out there. What the hell was it? All he could think about were those eyes. Stiles got into the Jeep and locked all the doors. He drummed on the steering wheel, waiting for Scott. He'd coming running any minute and the two of them would blaze the hell out of here. Ten minutes passed and then thirty. Scott didn't come back to the Jeep. It was pouring hard now. The big droplets hitting the roof sounded like pebbles on tin. He started the car and the headlight beams surged through the darkness. He still couldn't see much. He drove home, careful not to hydroplane.

His dad still wasn't home yet. The APB was on in the kitchen. The speakers crackled with white noise followed by his dad's voice. The police were giving up the search and would go back out in the morning. Two campers were missing.

Stiles hurried up to his room. He thought about calling Scott but what if he didn't pick up because he was dead in the woods somewhere?

"I'm a terrible friend," Stiles groaned.

He fell back onto his bed.

Now, his alarm clock went off, sounding like a fire alarm and making his head pound. Stiles dropped his hand over the off button. He didn't get any sleep at all. He was waiting for a call and then for his father to come and tell him that Scott was dead. It never happened.

The first day of school wouldn't be filled with jitters and happiness in seeing his other friends. He was even contemplating skipping lacrosse tryouts. What was the point? Sit on the bench and be reminded that your best friend was ripped apart?

He didn't eat breakfast and barely said anything to his dad. His jaw was locked tight, afraid that if he opened his mouth he'd say everything. He knew that his dad would only say it was a nightmare or worse, ground him for being out in the woods last night. His head was reeling with what to do.

Upon entering the school parking lot, he slammed on the brakes, causign him to lurch forward and nearly hit his forehead off the wheel. The car behind him nearly rammed into him and honked viciously. Stiles stared, expressionless and slowly pulled into an empty parking spot, but he didn't look away from the sight of Scott who was locking his bike into the bike rack. His face was pinched with frustration trying to get the front wheel to fit.

Stiles nearly fell out of the car he was moving so fast to get out. Scott smiled and patted him on the back. Stiles's mouth was so dry that it felt like it was filled with cotton. Scott was alive and…alive.

"What happened to you last night?" Scott asked. He wasn't hurt at all

"I could ask you the same," Stiles replied with a half laugh.

"After your dad nearly catching us, I just ran. I ended up in the middle of a road. I hiked from there since you already dipped out and left me there," Scott explained. There wasn't the slightest hitch in his voice.

Stiles's eyes narrowed on him. Scott didn't bring up the huge beast from the woods. He saw it, right? This wasn't a case of hypothermia that caused hallucinations for Stiles? He saw it attack Scott or try to.

"That's it?" he asked.

"Yeah." Scott chuckled.

"Really?" Stiles asked.

"Yeah," Scott laughed.

Stiles was thankful that his best friend wasn't dead. He did get away from whatever was out there…but what was that thing? The thought got away from him as the gorgeous goddess that was the strawberry blonde, Lydia Martin, walked past him into the school.

"Heeey, Lydia," he said, falling back on the metal banister of the main walkway. "You look like you're…going to ignore me."

He sighed hopelessly. One look would've done him in,but he didn't even get that. Cold, yet...he smiled.

"One day she is going to recognize that we're meant to be together."

Scott shook his head, patting his shoulder sympathetically.

The first day of school was the usual first day of school. Friends were overly excited about seeing one another even though they've been hanging out all summer. Teachers didn't want to teach on the first day so they gave everyone a syllabus and let them tak until the bell rang. However, Scott fumbling smoothly over the new girl was intriguing.l

Lacrosse tryouts were interesting. The routine was the same as last year except for those that were trying out for the first time. for the others, they were all finding out if they were first or second string.

While Stiles sat on the bench for the first rounds, chewing on the tips of his gloves while his knee bounced up and down anxiously. All of it stopped when he saw Scott throw the ball into the net and score. Everyone froze. Scott scored again. Stiles's jaw dropped. When did he get so good suddenly? Coach Finstock half enraged and half excited, shouted,

"Jackson! Get in there!"

Stiles looked between Scott and Jackson and back. Scott said he'd been practicing, but there was no way that he improved this much. He wasn't the only one surprised either. Lydia and Allison-the new girl, were on their feet. Scott grinned goofily and made his final shot. The ball whizzed straight down the middle, piercing the goalie net into the goal.

Stiles shot up to his feet half amazed and half in shock. Was what Scott just did possible? Who cares!? My best friend is awesome, Stiles thought excitedly. That excitement evaporated quickly as he saw Scott tense up angrily and his…eyes turn yellow? That's not right. That's not possible. Stiles blinked a couple times and what he thought he saw was gone. He had to be imagining it, which was a weird thing to imagine. Stiles blamed it on the lack of sleep. He thought he saw his mashed potatoes move and try to wiggle

Scott looked in his direction and smiled.

"That's my best friend!" Stiles shouted.

He spun around with his hand up in the air much like John Bender in The Breakfast Club. He slowed at seeing a blonde girl up in the bleachers. She looked really familiar but he couldn't place her.

Her blonde hair cascaded over her shoulders in loose curls that were more like waves. Her cheeks were blushed a light cherry and she wore light blue skinny jeans with t-shirt with white daisies on it and light brown leather ankle boots. Those eyes though. They were familiar. She smiled and let her head fall forward. Her cheeks reddened. Stiles smiled in that awkwardly charming way and let his hand drop. She was very pretty.

Turning back around, Scott and the other players were switching out and Coach was calling out his name. My turn to shine, Stiles thought. Except that he didn't shine. Nope. He ended up kissing the ground the most. After the fourth tackle he got the feeling that his teammates were tackling him on purpose. Coach laughing from the sidelines confirmed it.

Coach called out the positions after the long and excruciating drills. Stiles ended up second string again. That's all good and well. Less injuries and a seat with his name on it, though it would've been better if there was a position with his name on it instead. Scott however made first string. Stiles gave him an encouraging nudge.

Stiles turned back to the bleachers. The blonde was gone. A small part of him wondered where she was off to, but then he caught Lydia descending the bleachers and greeting her boyfriend, captain of the lacrosse team, Jackson. I really hate him, Stiles thought. Stiles waited with an overwhelming amount of awkwardness as Scott and Allison exchanged small talk before Jackson and Lydia leered him off. Stiles looked back up in the bleachers, but the blonde was gone.

"Dude," Scott called his attention. "Let's go get some food before I have to go pick up my mom."

"Uh, yeah," Stiles said.

They stopped by the Dairy King. The ice scream shop served more than just ice cream. It also served deep-fried and cholesterol killing foods. Nothing like deep-fried pickles and vanilla ice cream to destroy dinner which is exactly what Stiles went with. He and Scott took one of the less messy picnic tables after getting their food. There was only an empty cup and straw papers.

"How'd you make those shots today? I mean, you were unreal on the field." Stiles said right before taking a bite of deep-fried pickle.

Scott paused, staring at his burger for a long moment before responding. Stiles caught the look. Scott was just as surprised and didn't have a good answer.

"I don't know. I guess I was just on my game." Scott replied with a shrug.

Neither boy realized they were being watched a couple picnic tables down.

"Are you sure or do you just have a crush on him?" came a snide comment.

"Both, not that it's your concern who I have interest in." Erica, blonde and full of bossiness at the moment said.

The one who made the comment turned and looked over his shoulder at Stiles. He scratched his head with uncertainty. His mess of blonde curls wove between his fingers.

"He was a complete spaz on the field today." Brett, tall, broad shouldered, and disgruntled said. His baby blues scowled at Stiles, and he hoped that the human felt it.

"And, you were late for tryouts." Erica pointed out.

"It won't be very difficult to fix that. Just a little…" he grinned cockily, "persuasion."

Erica's eyebrows lifted. She didn't want to know what he meant by that. She shook her head.

Boyd, next to Erica, was eating his garbage fries, letting the two bicker. Though Brett was a year younger than them, he still held his own. Erica was the leader though. Ever since Derek…she just took the lead for them to protect them, and she did well, but now summer was over and school was in session and a problem still sat on the horizon for all three of them. Erica had never been wrong. Her intuition was strong and never failed. If Stiles was somebody they could trust outside of all of this, then he was with her.

Brett pulled up the hood of his black hoodie and lay his head down on his arms. Erica quirked and eyebrow and smirked in victory. The baby wolf was always defiant and protective. She patted his shoulder. He only grumbled incoherently.

Stiles was excited once the first week of school was over. He contemplated not even getting up on Saturday until Scott came by around seven in the morning to catch a ride to lacrosse practice. Stiles groaned and rolled out of bed, hitting the floor with a thud. Fifteen minutes later he was trotting downstairs with his gym bag. Scott sat at the dining table. Stiles's dad had already left for the day.

Aside from the usual drills that all players took part in, Stiles rode the bench. He tightened the net of his lacrosse stick and watched as Scott excelled on the field. He wasn't the only one either. Two new players had been added to the team. One was Isaac Lahey who was sitting at the other end of the bench and staring at the ground in a daze and the other was Brett Talbot who was out there with the other players. He and his sister transferred from some private school. Devenford. Stiles eyed Isaac out the corner of his eye. He didn't move once and he looked like he had a black eye. Stiles could tell if it was just a shadow.

Mostly, Brett and Scott faced off on the field while Jackson tried to keep up. Coach was hooting and hollering at both of them.

"Oh," Coach laugh maniacally, "this season is going to be good."

Stiles looked around and saw Lydia and Allison talking among themselves. Scott was going with her to Lydia's party tonight. That left Stiles stag but that's okay. That was his life. He let out a sigh. What did Lydia see in Jackson? Oh wait. He was captain of the team. Right.

Maybe if he talked to Scott he could teach him some of whatever's made him so great of a player. That would get Lydia's attention and who knows, maybe she'd go with him to Homecoming or at the very latest, Prom.

After practice, he and Scott headed for the Jeep. Stiles slowed halfway there and whatever Scott was telling him about his excitement about tonight was lost as Stiles's attention was drawn to the Camaro that was parked a few cars down. He suddenly looked at Brett who was getting in the car.

"Hey, what do you know about Brett?" Stiles asked.

"Nothing much. He's a freshman. Why?" Scott's eyebrows knitted together in a curious manner.

"Just wondering. He's weird." Brett had a constant intimidating glare.

Scott sighed and Stiles snapped to him, thinking he heard something like 'he's not the only one' come from his friend. Scott didn't elude to anything. Something was definitely different about Scott, but there was something weird about Brett too. Stiles thought about the blonde again. He thought about her a lot this week. She was in his P.E. class. She didn't talk to anyone except…Vernon Boyd. That's when it dawned on Stiles right then. His eyes widened at the small revelation of finally placing her face. That was Erica Reyes. He hadn't seen her in a long while. She had never crossed his radar, but not a lot of people did.

The Camaro that Brett got into with her pulled out of the lot and sped off.