Hello all. As promised (somewhat), I am working on a fic that fleshes out the story behind the Paily exchange in my previous fic, Dance in the Dark. If you haven't read it, please do! But no worries, as that story can stand alone. If you have read the story, thank you :) I appreciate all of your reviews, follows and favorites. If you're reading this, I am assuming you know who the PLL characters are, what they look like and generally their sense of fashion. I am not particular adept at describing clothes, so if I don't just feel free to fill in the gaps. Having said that, I hope you enjoy this story! As always, hit me up with any questions/comments/concerns! I will address them in the following chapters.

Point of No Return

Chapter 1

It was evening time, the sun slowly making its way below the horizon. Paige had been walking for some time now, but she was not particularly adept at keeping time. The only thing she learned to never ignore was the moon. She could always tell what kind of moon it would be. And she knew that tonight the sky would be pitch black as the moon's cycle started anew.

This wasn't her first trudge through a forest, although she could tell it was a new place she had been trudging through now. Sniffing, she looked around for any sign of a clearing, needing an escape from the monotonous expanse of trees. Not that I don't appreciate trees, she thought as she adjusted her backpack. She really wanted to lie down under the stars. The blackouts provided by the new moon were always Paige's favorite time. She felt relaxed, as if the absence of the moon provided her body with a much needed rejuvenation. She hated feeling like her actions were constantly being dictated by the moon—she loathed its control over her.

As she looked to her left, Paige saw an opening and made her way over. Her stomach growled, reminding her that she had not eaten all day. Her ears twitched as various sounds around her informed her of all the available critters for her choosing. She licked her lips as she thought of the delicious meal she would be getting.

Making her way to the clearing, she saw a lake. Where the trees ended, a few yards of tall-grassy bank outlined the water, looking from a distance like it might just be a meadow. Excited about her find, Paige quickly shucked her clothes and bag off and jumped in the water finding it to be the perfect temperature for a swim. She laughed out loud as she splashed around, diving and swimming along the length of the lake. Water, for her, was worth about ten new moons. She never felt as comfortable and relaxed as she did when she was swimming. Being able to play around was a luxury Paige rarely afforded herself. She floated on her back, contemplating how she had ended up here.

At 13, Paige was like any other girl her age. She was in that awkward limbo of not being a child and not really being a teenager and she disliked that she was a bit taller than most of the other girls her age. She was in 8th grade, had solid grades and was quite the swimmer. In 6th grade, Paige had joined the school's swim team and whatever natural talent she had then became sharpened through two years of hard work and determination. Having been assured by her future high school coaches that she was a shoe-in for the varsity team, Paige began holding her head high as she looked forward to showing off her talents as part of a distinguished team. But as Paige sat in her bed, shaking uncontrollably, none of that seemed to matter anymore. She tried to grasp onto something, anything. Her hands clawed at her blankets as she tried to hold on, but she seemed beyond the ability to control her body anymore. Deciding-somehow-that she could not sit this out, Paige jumped from her bed and bolted from her room, running as fast as she had ever run in her entire life through the house. She flung open the back door, vaguely picking up the noises of confusion from inside the house as she threw herself on the grass of her backyard. As soon as fell under the light of the full moon, she changed—her body quickly morphed into a reddish-tinted-brown wolf-pup and she scampered away, whining as her mind tried to catch up with the happenings of her physical body. More scared than anything, the wolf-pup ran and ran, trying not to be overwhelmed by the new sights, sounds and smells.

Paige never stopped running after that night, too ashamed and scared to return home. Lucky for her, she lived near a vast expanse of woods and forest and it was this cover that she kept to. Ragged, worn out and looking for all the world like she had survived a fight with a wood chipper, Paige trudged through the thick forest, head down and her (metaphorical) tail tucked. She was the poster child for downtrodden, defeated…and it seemed as if she had no idea where she was going, if she was going anywhere—in fact, it might just be easier to say she didn't care. Her clothes hung loosely off her thin frame and she was covered in cuts, bruises and dirt. Her hair, which was messily pulled back in a loose ponytail, had become matted with all kinds of foliage.

When it was necessary, she traveled in town to "borrow" items and beg for scraps learning quickly that she could change shape at will, during any part of the day. The only time she had no control over the change was when there was a full moon and she changed whether she wanted to or not. She was young enough that her form looked like a stray puppy, although every now and then she picked up snippets of conversations from people who wondered if she was a wolf. Worried that she had garnered too much attention, Paige would spend longer days hiding out in the woods. Having acquired a backpack in one of her trips, she tried to horde as many supplies she could for those longer stints of hiding out. After a few days of this, the young girl was hungry and exhausted. She spent most of her time traveling, under the protection of the trees. Anytime she ran into people, she would change and hide. She found that the more she stayed in her wolf-pup form, the more she understood and used her heightened senses. This came in handy especially when looking for food, as Paige found it bearable to trap and eat small animals in her wolf form. And that's how Paige had lived for the next few years.

At first she loathed the change, thinking she was defective in some way. During her first year as runaway, scared, alone and very hungry for the first time in her life, Paige resented the change and hated herself for it. It was bad enough being an awkward teen, but she felt betrayed that her body had been keeping such a big secret from her. Having been raised by a foster family, Paige couldn't turn to them for support as they more than likely had no idea the little girl they had been raising was also a wolf. She had trotted back one night, curious as to what her foster parents were doing about her absence, to find that they weren't in a big hurry to find her. Apparently she had been spotted mid-shift and they were glad to be rid of such a hideous creature. After that, Paige made sure that she never returned to her hometown again.

Now at age 16, she had gotten quite used to both her nomadic lifestyle as well as the whole turning-into-a-wolf thing. Being a fast learner, she quickly found out how useful her wolf form was both in additional strength and stamina as a human and as a wolf and she had become quite comfortable with this new part of herself. She could run faster than before, which meant that she was in top form for swimming as well. In addition, Paige found that she was able to hold her breath for incredibly long lengths at a time. Whether as a benefit of her change, genetics or both, Paige could easily pass for anyone 18 to about 22. She found this out quite recently when she snuck into a clothing store to get something to wear, something she didn't do too often as she had found out quickly to take her clothes off before she changed. Never the one for fashion, she tended to pick clothing she could be comfortable in, things that were durable. When she threw herself into a changing room, she realized a little too late that it was already occupied.

"Hey."

Paige stiffened, gripping the clothing she had grabbed close to her body. She whipped around, her eyes doubling in size. She stood face to face with a girl that looked to be about her age, with dirty blonde hair curled around her face. Hardly breathing, Paige gave the girl a once over noticing that she must've caught the girl during mid-dress. She had on a skirt, a bra and no shirt. Paige blushed, casting her eyes down immediately. Apparently the other girl found this funny, as she gave a small giggle. Paige couldn't understand what was so funny but she was mortified and for some reason she was burning up and was the room shrinking?

"Guess these doors don't really lock, huh? Maybe that's why people usually knock…" the girl took a step forward, curious as to whom this tall, lean-muscled mahogany-haired girl was. She gazed appreciatively at the stranger's slender form, wondering if she was a runner. For her part, Paige was trying her hardest to avoid eye-contact and really, trying her hardest to avoid looking at any part of the girl in front of her. She was torn between trying to be polite and trying to take her leave, but she found herself rooted to the spot. A couple of things were happening to Paige that she had little experience with—intense, almost paralyzing embarrassment and a slightly uncomfortable sensation that she vaguely recalled having had once before in her life. Before she could start to form an apology, the girl spoke.

"Do you go to college here? I don't think I've seen you at the store before. And I would certainly remember someone as handsome as you…" before she could say another word, her intruder had flung the door open and bolted.

After that little adventure, Paige had come away with more than a couple of epiphanies. Somehow, she was deemed both college-aged and handsome. Since when were girls handsome? And I think I'm a little gay, she thought to herself. But the latter made more than enough sense to her. She thought briefly of a "girl" crush she had had on a former teammate during her middle school years. Not entirely understanding it herself, Paige had taken it upon herself to challenge the girl more than anyone else on the swim team and she realized how much she wanted to be around her, how much she craved her attention. They had become friendly rivals, always trying to outdo the other during practices and swim meets. Their time together was regulated to team activities, as Paige quickly found out they belonged to different circles—"quickly" here meaning she was (metaphorically, thank god) body slammed into reality by a person Paige remembered not-so-fondly as Satan. But that was lifetimes ago for her and Paige shook her head, as if the literal movement would somehow rid her of those memories. But she would never forget that girl. Thinking back on it, the uncomfortable feeling she couldn't place in the store was just a shadow of what she had gone through when she was around that girl—her crush.

Paige sighed. As she turned to get out of the water, something caught her eye. Turning her head quickly, she saw someone on the other side of the lake. Startled, but quick-witted, Paige stopped moving. She was lucky that she had stopped so close to the shore, as the tall grass covered her for the most part. Plus it's really dark. I doubt whoever that is has even noticed me at all. Paige hadn't sensed any humans around, nor did she see any signs of this area being used for camping or anything like that. She was also very surprised that anyone could sneak up on her like that, as she was very proud of her heightened senses and her ability to be alert at all times. Looking at her mysterious guest, Paige could see that it was a darker, olive-skinned girl with long, black hair. She was sitting down, looking at herself in the water absently gliding her fingers along the surface of the lake. Great, she's probably been here awhile. She must be really out of it, if she didn't notice me. Paige cocked her head to the side, feeling a tug of familiarity but still uncertain. Just as she was about to move closer, the black-haired girl looked up not really looking at anything as if she was contemplating something that was giving her a lot of trouble. At this, Paige felt her jaw drop and she gawked at the other girl like she had sprouted another head.

Emily?!