DISCLAIMER
This is purely a work of fiction. None of the characters, places, items, or events that will be read is mine.
AS THE LAST PETAL FALLS
SUMARRY: Sirius Black's promise to his friend far outweighs his need for revenge, so he took his goddaughter out of the ruins of the Potter home and decided to build a life away from the Wizarding World. Iris Potter lived her life in Beacon Hills far away from the clutches of the wizards but that doesn't mean that the world she never knew won't come back for her, especially since she is in love with her best friend Scott McCall, a werewolf.
CHAPTER 4: AS MOONLIGHT BATHES THE SOIL
Jackson had his arms around his sister as they sat in the Beacon Hills Police Department. After he got over his shock of seeing a dead body, well half of a dead body, he called the police station and reported what he and his sister had seen. He rubbed circles on Iris' back to comfort her as her body was shaking with the force of her sobs.
The shock of seeing a dead body, the worry he felt for his still in-shock sister, coupled with the slow response of the police just served to irritate Jackson to the point that he became snippy when the police, headed by the sheriff, came.
They ignored Jackson's complaints and rather colourful words as a female officer asked the two siblings to join them in the police station to get their statements. Jackson was about to snap back at the officer when Iris tugged on his arm and gave him a shake of her head to stop him from badmouthing the officials.
Jackson released a heavy sigh before turning to the female officer and nodding his head in agreement. They were escorted to a cop car and Jackson felt relieved that Iris seemed to have snapped out of shock by the time they reached the station.
"You kids okay?" a man's voice asked
Jackson's and Iris' head shot up at the question to see Sheriff Stilinski sitting across from them. Jackson was about to retort when Iris squeezed his hand to stop him. Jackson turned to face his sister before reluctantly nodding and slumping back in his seat.
"I'm still in shock, I guess." Iris answered weakly
"I completely understand" said the sheriff "but we need you two to give some statements then you would be free to go."
Iris nodded before nudging Jackson to give his statement first.
"We were jogging near the woods and we were talking and stuff" Jackson started "I teased her then I jogged faster when I heard her scream. I ran back to where I heard her scream and saw the body."
"I was just taking a drink." Iris supplied "then I saw a pair of feet. I thought that it was just a jogger who fainted and I went to help but when I looked down I saw that it was only half of a body and I just screamed."
"Before you saw the body, was there any sound you heard? Anything suspicious you might have seen?" the sheriff asked Iris.
"Sorry but I did not see or hear anything, after I saw the body I just sort of blanked out." Iris shakily said
"Well, that's alright, I understand if your mind wasn't completely functioning at the time." the sheriff said
"I'm sorry if we aren't any help." Iris said apologetically
"No, if it weren't for you two we wouldn't know about this." The sheriff assured her "Now you're free to go, I believe your mother is waiting for the both of you outside."
Jackson stood up immediately and beckoned Iris to follow him out of the sheriff's office. Iris bid a quick goodbye to the sheriff before following her brother. Their mother was quick to rush to them and had them in her arms in an instant.
Iris could feel their mother brush her hands on their hair, both to see if her children are alright and to calm her down.
"Are you both alright?" their mother said once she released Jackson and Iris "You're not injured anywhere, are you? What were they thinking bringing you straight here, they should have brought you to the hospital first!"
"It's alright mom" Iris assured their mother "Jackson and I are not injured, just a bit in shock but nothing a day in bed can't fix."
"Are you sure? I can take you both to the hospital, it might be better if we get the two of you checked out." their mother insisted
"We're fine" Jackson snapped "Can't we just get away from here?"
Mrs. Whittemore looked at her children doubtfully before releasing a sigh and agreeing to them.
"If you both are sure that you're fine then I guess we could head home" she said "but once we're home I want the two of you to just stay and not go out for the day alright? Who knows if that crazy murderer is still out there somewhere?"
Iris shivered at the thought and saw Jackson's jaw clench at their mother's words. Iris loves her mother but she sometimes fails at the calming department.
The ride home was silent with their mother too intent on driving and Jackson sulking in the backseat. Iris' mind kept flashing to the half of the body that she saw on the forest floor. Now that she was mostly over her shock, her curiosity started to kick in.
Just who did that body belong to? Judging by the wide hips and the style of the pants, it was most probably a girl. There had been no one missing, male or female, in Beacon Hills. If there was then it would have probably made the news since nothing ever happens in their place.
Who cut her up in half? Killing someone is already psychotic, in her opinion, but cutting them up just blows things off the charts. Why do it in the first place? Uncontrolled anger? In most cases of murders where the killer felt extreme anger towards their victims, they usually stab or shoot them numerous times but never has she heard of someone literally cutting a person in half.
Was it a serial killer? Perhaps the body the two of them saw was his first victim. Cutting the victim's body in half might be his way of making a name, a trademark of sorts. The same way that Jack the Ripper rips the body of his victims and putting it back together, maybe cutting people in half was his own way of creating a name for himself.
Why here? Why in Beacon Hills? Beacon Hills is not a big location. It is in fact more of an everybody-knows-everybody kind of place. If the murderer's motive was to make a name for himself then why pick Beacon Hills? Or maybe Beacon Hills was a test run. The murderer might be experimenting on Beacon Hills and if he succeeds here then he would spread terror on bigger places.
It would make a lot of sense if Beacon Hills was a test site. The police department though doing its best is not exactly top notch. Though Sheriff Stilinski is a good law enforcer, the same could not be said to the rest of his colleagues. The murderer could use Beacon Hills as an experimental run and when the police finally catch up he could transfer to the big cities. It won't be hard for him to keep tabs on the police with how close-knit the town is.
But something just doesn't make sense. The body was in the woods, and it is clearly done by a human. If it were a murdered wanting fame then he should have thrown the body in a place where people could easily find it.
All of these thoughts keep circling in Iris' mind. She was smart ad she could normally connect the dots in every situation, a thing her brother loves and hates about her as it makes it hard to keep a secret around her. But this time some pieces are missing. All she managed to gleam from what she already knows is that there is a murderer around whose plan may or may not involve their town.
As her thoughts try to come up with the missing pieces, Iris heard the car door open and saw Jackson quickly walking out of the car. Iris released a sigh, she knew her brother well and the only reason he was acting arrogant at the moment was to somehow show her, and in extension their mother, that he was strong. No matter how much Iris wants to calm her brother down, she knew that Jackson would like some time alone to gather himself together and who was she to deny him that. Besides she could use that time herself to do some research on her own.
"Iris, are you sure you're alright?" Mrs. Whittemore asked her daughter
"Yes mom, just a bit of rest and I'll be back to normal." Iris assured her before getting out of the car.
Iris quickly went to her room and turned on her laptop once she was settled in her room. She opened an internet browser and started her research immediately.
"Iris! Jackson! Your father is on the phone!" Iris heard her mom shout from the kitchen.
Iris took one look at her search results before getting out of bed to talk to her father.
"I'm coming!" Iris said
On Iris' bed, the laptop remained open, the words 'Criminal cases in Beacon Hills' is clearlyseen on the search bar and right below it is the answer that started everything.
'Hale House Fire, One Lone Survivor'
Fingers thread through the net of a lacrosse stick. Scott had his forehead creased in concentration as he made sure that each lace is precise and would form the correct diamond pattern. His eyes narrowed a bit as he threaded the last lace into position.
He looked at his handiwork proudly before grabbing a ball in his room and using it to test the effectiveness of his newly fixed lacrosse stick. He spun the stick around and observed if he needed to redo his work. Fortunately the work he has done was good and was more than sufficient for the lacrosse try-outs the next day.
With his work done he decided to do some last-minute exercise just to make sure that he is in good form for tommorow's try-outs. Using the rack mounted on the door of his closet, he did some pull-ups until he could feel the burn in his chest and arms.
Satisfied for the time being, he went to the bathroom to wash himself up before getting to sleep. He looked at his shirtless reflection on the mirror thoughtfully. He must admit that his physique improved with Iris' help. Her efforts with him and Stiles were clearly not wasted as he gazed at his reflection. With Iris' help he did not only experienced less asthma attacks, his lithe frame developed some muscles as well. He was by no means muscular but with a few more sessions of exercise with Iris' help he was quite sure that he could get there.
He was about to grab his toothbrush when he heard a shuffling sound. He paused in his movements and he heard the same sound of movement once again. He put his toothbrush down before quietly walking to his mother's room.
He opened the door a smidge, peeking in to see his mother fast asleep. Breathing a sigh of relief he let his hands wander in the small gap, grasping for the baseball bat he knows his mother always keep close to her door.
Once his hands grabbed hold of the bat, he slowly eased it out to not disturb his mother's sleep. He walked out into their porch steps. He looked left and right, his knuckles whitening as his grip on the bat tightens, prepared to swing at a moment's notice.
Seeing no one near him, he relaxes his grip only to tighten it again when he once again heard movement from somewhere above him.
He looked up only to shout in surprise when an upside-down face appears in front of him.
"Stiles, what the hell were you doing?!" Scott hissed as he tried to calm himself
"You weren't answering your phone" Stiles answered "I know it's late, but you gotta' hear this. I saw my dad leave twenty minutes ago. Dispatch called. They're bringing in every officer from the Beacon department and even State Police."
"For what?" Scott asked as he stared at his friend's upturned face
"Two joggers found a body in the woods." Stiles said as he reached up to free himself from his position
"A dead body?"
Stiles looked back at Scott unimpressed at what he said.
"No, a body of water. Yes, dumbass, a dead body." Stiles said before landing upright in front of Scott
"You mean like murdered?" Scott asked, far too used to Stiles' sarcasm
"Nobody knows yet. Just that it was a girl, probably in her twenties." Stiles answered
"Hold on. If they found a body, what are they looking for now?" Scott asked, confusion lacing his voice
"That's the best part. They only found half." Scott excitedly said "So you know what that means? We, my friend, are going on a search mission!"
"Hell no, Stiles!" Scott replied "I want to get to sleep early today and wake up good enough to play lacrosse tomorrow."
"You're seriously saying no to this?" Stiles asked him, shocked "Look, you yourself said that nothing ever happens here and when something finally happens, you back out?"
"Look, if it will make you feel better, I'll be calling Iris once we're in the jeep." Stiles said before Scott could complain "I just swung by you first since you're nearer."
"How are you even sure Iris would say yes to this?" Scott asked Stiles
"Look, how about we make a deal." Stiles offered Scott "I'm going to call Iris and when she says no then I'll leave you two alone but if she says yes then we will continue on this once in a lifetime quest. Is that a deal?"
"Fine, but only if Iris comes with us." Scott relented
"Be prepared for a night of adventure my friend." Stiles claimed as he dialled Iris' number
"You aren't even sure if Iris would say yes." Scott argued
"Hey Iris" Stiles said to the phone, ignoring what Scott said
"Hello Stiles," Stiles heard Iris say from the other line "What do you want?"
"Can't I just call a friend without any underhanded reasons behind it?" Stiles said in a mock-offended tone before shooting Scott a glare when Scott smacked his arm
"It's the middle of the night, Stiles" Iris said "if you wanted to check up on me you would have just swung by and asked me personally and not through the phone, so what is it?"
"Alright, you got me there" Stiles relented "Look I saw my dad leave earlier. From what I unintentionally heard-"
"More like eavesdropped" Scott said
"As I was saying" Stiles continued, shooting a glare at Scott's way "they are called to look for-"
"A body in the woods." Iris finished Stiles' sentence
"Is it international-interrupt-Stiles day?" Stiles asked "How did you know about the body anyway?"
"It was Jackson and me who found the body." Iris said "And frankly it's gonna scar me for life."
"You were the ones who saw it?" Stiles said excitedly "That's awesome!"
"Dude! Really?!" Scott exclaimed, glaring at Stiles as he grabbed the phone
"You alright there Iris?" Scott asked
"Aside from the mental image that would forever remain in my mind, I'm a-ok." Iris assure Scott "Alright Scott, lay it on me, what does Stiles want?"
"You see Iris" Stiles said as he successfully took the phone from Scott and batted Scott's hands away when he tried to reach for the phone "Scott and I thought of going on a trip to the woods to search for the other half of the body, you in?"
Scott looked disbelievingly at Stiles but he was simply ignored as Stiles waited for Iris to answer.
"Are you two out of your minds?!" Iris shouted making Stiles lean back from his phone at the volume of Iris' voice "Do you know how many police officers are already there looking for the body?"
"It's easy to get pass them." Stiles assured Iris "I have personal experience, remember?"
"Personal experience aside," Iris continued "Do you even know what part of the body, you and Scott would be searching for?!"
"Well, that's- now that you say it, I did not think of that" Stiles replied "But lucky us you know what we're looking for right?"
"Lucky, my ass" Scott snorted
"I may know what part you're looking for" Iris answered "But has it escaped your mind that whoever cut that body in half might be lurking somewhere in the woods waiting for another person to cut up?!"
"Also something I did not think about" Stiles said "But now that you said it we could, you know, plan accordingly."
"Plan accordingly?!" Iris snapped "There is a serial killer out there, Stiles and the last time I checked people stay away from them not actively go and search for them."
"We won't be looking for the killer, Iris" Stiles said "We will be searching for a body."
"Nothing I say will stop you, is there?" Iris dejectedly sighed from the other line
"Yup" Stiles said popping his mouth as he looked triumphantly at Scott
"Fine! Come pick me up and you owe me lunch for a week, Stilinski!" Iris said before hanging up
"What are you waiting for?" Stiles asked Scott as he walked towards his jeep "We wouldn't want to keep Iris waiting."
"I hate you" Scott said to Stiles as he got inside the jeep
"Tell me something I don't know." Stiles cheekily answered back
"Come on now guys" Stiles said to his sulking passengers "We're going on an adventure and you look like I'm sending you to your death."
"There's a serial killer on the loose Stiles" Iris answered
"Alright, wrong wording on my part" Stiles said "But can't you at least be a little bit excited about this."
"Searching in the woods for a body in the middle of the night isn't my definition of exciting Stiles." Scott said
"Really, you two?" Stiles asked "Come on now, not everyone can boast that they went body-searching in their entire life! I'm basically offering you something very big here. That makes me a good friend, you know."
"Trust me Stiles, the only reason I'm hesitating to kick you is because you're my friend." Scott said
"Don't tell me the two of you aren't in the least bit excited about what we are gonna be doing?" Stiles asked "Iris even brought a backpack, see."
Scott and Iris fidgeted a bit in their seat. They are scared, rightfully so, as there was a killer on the loose. But there is that childish part of them that longed for an adventure, something that Beacon Hills was not able to satisfy until now.
"What's in the bag anyway, Iris?" Scott asked, trying to hide his excitement from Stiles
"Something that I hope would not be used." Iris said as she opened her bag "I have three flashlights, three pepper sprays, and two tasers."
"Wow, you are good" Stiles said "I only brought one flashlight with me."
"Why do you have pepper sprays and tasers?" Scott asked as he looked questioningly at Iris
"My father's a lawyer, remember?" Iris reminded the two boys "He handled too many rape cases for him to not be a little bit paranoid when it comes to my safety. Besides mom practically shoved this to me when I told her I'll be going out."
"We're here." Stiles said as he stopped his jeep
"Are we seriously doing this?" Scott asked for the last time
"You're the one always bitching that nothing ever happens in this town. Besides, it's our last night of summer freedom." Stiles said looking at both Scott and Iris
"I was trying to get a good night's sleep for practice tomorrow." Scott argued
"Right, because sitting on the bench is such a gruelling effort." Stiles answered back
"Hey, I did not work your asses off the entire summer for nothing!" Iris reminded Stiles
"You know Iris is right, because I'm playing this year. In fact, I'm going to make first line."
Stiles was about to retort but stopped himself when he saw the menacing glare Iris is giving him.
"Are you telling me that you will be wasting all my efforts in trying to shape you up, Stiles?" Iris said in a sickly-sweet tone.
"Pfft, me? Wasting? No, in fact I actually share Scott's goals this year." Stiles rambled
"You better" Iris said as she pushed for Stiles and Scott to get out of the jeep "All right, so each of us would have a flashlight and a pepper spray and Scott and I would take a taser."
"Why don't I get a taser?" Stiles complained
"I'm asthmatic Stiles, I need it more than you." Scott reminded his friend
"My father is a lawyer and I won't hesitate on using Jackson to beat you up." Iris said as he gave Scott his taser "Besides you brought another flashlight, right? Just use it to whack someone's head if we ever see one."
Stiles grumbled at his friends as he took the flashlight and pepper spray from Iris.
"Alright, so which part of the body are we looking for?" Stiles asked Iris
"The upper half, the one Jackson and I found was the lower part." Iris answered as they walked up the path to the crime scene.
The three of them slowed down when they saw the yellow police tape surrounding the perimeter of the woods.
Grinning, Stiles looked back at his friends who despite their earlier hesitations and worries can't help but smile back. Crouching low, the three friends circled the woods looking for the best point to enter the crime scene.
Iris tugged on Stiles' and Scott's shirts and gestured for them to go back and circle around to enter the crime scene. The two boys nodded and followed Iris as she slinked back into the darkness off the woods.
Once inside they carefully manoeuvred their way, avoiding the places where they can see the light from the search party flashing. With their attention focused on the members of the search party, they forgot about the dogs accompanying some of the police officers.
The dog may not be able to see them but they can sure hear and smell the three of them. Loud barks joined the sound of crunching leaves and breaking twigs as the dogs finally take notice of them. The police officers looked at their animal companions and tried to silence their barks, lest they warn anyone, specifically the killer; that the police are searching in the woods.
Iris, Scott, and Stiles shared a wide-eyed look before Iris gestured for them to go. The three hurriedly ran as silent as they could, as they ran to put some distance between them and the dogs.
Breathing a sigh of relief as they heard the barks of the dogs slowly weaken until it was clearly non-existent, the three friends once again tensed when they heard the voice of the sheriff, the voice of Stiles' father.
"Still no sign of the body?" they heard Sheriff Stilinski ask one of the officers with him.
The three looked at each other before turning their flashlights off and trying to find a hiding place. Their gazes went to the light produced by the flashlights held by the officers as they neared their location.
Stiles quickly plastered himself to the side of a wide tree, effectively hiding him from his father's line of sight. Iris followed Stiles' example and used the tree next to her for cover. Iris allowed herself a sigh of relief once her back hit the bark of the tree.
"What are you doing, Scott! Hide!" Stiles agitatedly whispered to Scott.
Iris looked at where Scott was fidgeting near her, clearly unsure of where to go. Iris rolled her eyes before quickly removing herself from her position and dragging Scott to her. Scott let out a sound of surprise as Iris grabbed his hand and pulled him to her earlier hiding position.
Unlike Stiles' tree, the one Iris got was a bit narrow and just enough to hide one body from sight. Iris plastered herself on the tree's side while grabbing the front of Scott's shirt effectively pulling him in front of her.
Scott's face flushed because of their rather close position. Iris was oblivious to it all as she listened to the sheriff and his companions.
"It looks like we'll be pulling an all-nighter here in the woods, boys." Sheriff Stilinski said as he moved his flashlight to get a better view of his surroundings.
Iris pulled Scott closer as the light passed the tree they were holding. Scott let a small squeak as their chests were now barely touching.
"Some of you go back to see if we missed anything the rest come with me to the next area." Sheriff Stilinski ordered his men.
Iris was standing stiff as she and her friends waited for the officers to leave.
"Are they gone?" Iris looked up and blushed, finally taking notice of their proximity
"Y-yeah, I think they are." Scott clumsily answered
The three of them stepped away from their hiding spots and looked at each other before chuckling to themselves.
"That was a close one." Stiles said
"Way too close for my liking." Iris added
"But we pulled through, didn't we?" Scott said grinning at his friends
The three of them shared a look, wide grins adorning their faces.
"I don't want to be a killjoy but I think we should get going before Stiles' father catches us." Iris said after a while
"Yeah, dad would probably ground me if he catches me here." Stiles said
"And you didn't think of that before inviting us here?" Scott asked Stiles
Iris just laughed at her friends as they trekked back to where they came from. Their walk was silent, not wanting to draw unwanted attention to them.
They stopped though when they reached a fork in their path.
"Did we take a left or a right?" Stiles asked Scott and Iris
"I think it was a left?" Scott said
"Are you sure? I thought we took the path to the right." Iris added
Before they could decide which path to take, they heard a rustling in the trees. They moved their flashlight around, searching for the source of the sound when a horde of deer came galloping out of the darkness and into them.
The three of them dove to side and huddled in the ground, trying to make themselves as small as possible.
As fast as they came, the deer herd was gone in an instant, leaving the three friends alone once again. They stood up and tried to calm their rapidly beating hearts.
"Really!" Stiles said "We escaped my dad just to get stepped on by- Oh my God!"
Iris and Scott jumped at Stiles exclamation. Stiles was twitching and pointing his flashlight at the ground and the two of them followed his gaze to the ground.
Iris tried to suppress her scream while Scott grabbed for his inhaler only to find that it was no longer in his pocket. Their gazes were transfixed on a face. Dead eyes peer up from the pale, yet beautiful face of a young woman torn in half.
Stiles excitedly approached his friends only to trip on an unearthed tree root and he tumbled towards his two friends who were unprepared for the impact. The three of them were propelled down a leaf-covered slope, rolling head over heels right into a creek bed.
The three of them stood up shivering as they got out of the icy water. A shivering Scott looked up from where they fell when he felt Iris tugging on the sleeve of his shirt furiously. He turned his attention to his friend only to stop once again when he saw the hulking figure staring at them from afar.
The three of them slowly walked backwards, not once did their gaze leave the beast watching them. They were forced to stop in fear when the creature growled menacingly at them.
They began to turn around when a dark shape came hurling at them. Scott saw the dark mass go for his friends and did the only thing he could do at the moment. He pulled the trigger on the taser and watched in shock as the beast seem to only shiver for a moment before turning its fierce gaze on him.
All Scott heard was a deep growl before he felt immeasurable pain.
Iris and Stiles were torn out of their stupor upon hearing Scott's shout. Stiles ran towards Scott ad whacked the beast on its head with the flashlight. The beast looked up and turned to them. Once its eyes were visible Iris used her pepper spray and the beast closed its eyes and seemed to growl in anger as it was temporarily blinded.
Stiles and Iris took that chance to grab Scott and run away from the rampaging beast.
They whipped through the branches, not minding if the branches were tearing at their skin and clothes, they raced blindly through the forest until they reached a barbed wire fence.
Any further progress was halted when they once again heard a menacing growl behind them.
They watched as the beast slowly walked towards them. Iris, Scott, and Stiles gripped each other's hands tightly. Stiles and Scott covered Iris with their arms, turning their back on the beast as they shielded Iris.
Iris clenched the boys' shirts tightly, closing her eyes and just wishing that they were far away from here. They heard the telltale sound of the beast leaping through the air. Iris felt immeasurable fear grip her followed by a dizzying sensation spreading through her body as if she was being sucked through a straw, like her entire body was forcibly entering a narrow passage.
The last thing Scott, Iris, and Stiles heard was the loud growl of the beast before it preyed on them only to be replaced by the sound of a car's horn blaring pass them.
They opened their eyes and saw that they were in the middle of a road. The driver of the car that almost hit them, shouting profanities as he passed the three friends.
The three of them shared a look of relief and confusion as they gazed at the direction of the woods from where they came from. Scott winced and lifted his shirt revealing a deep and vicious looking bite. Iris gasped and Stiles shouted profanities as they gazed at the reminder of what they just went through.
"Come on; let's get to your house." Iris said as she supported Scott, worry for his friend temporarily eclipsing the fear and shock she was feeling "Stiles, quickly!"
The three of them walked fast to where they remember the jeep was parked only to stop and quicken their steps when they heard the strangest sound.
The howling of a wolf.
It echoed through the woods, across the road, and into their memories.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: (IMPORTANT QUESTION AT THE END, PLEASE READ) Scott finally gets the bite! We are now officially entering the Teen Wolf storyline. You can already see the changes Iris presence made in the story. For those of you asking if Iris is a witch, I guess this chapter answers that. For those who are asking, do not worry Iris and Scott will be together but they have to work on it, this won't be like the teen wolf story where they suddenly get together by the second episode but their relationship would be gradual and evolving. I am saying now though that I hate cheating and love triangles! Once they are in a relationship there will be no longing gazes to other characters and all that. As for the oneshots, based on your answers I have decided to make them, so the question is what prompt would you like me to do first? I'm taking your request now, dear readers. Would you like to read the moment Iris realizes her feelings towards Scott? Or do you want to read about Danny and Iris making the hot-guy list? Or maybe you want to see something entirely different? Just leave your prompt on a review and I will gladly write it!
LOVE LOTS
THE-TROUBLED-NEOPHYTE