"Just so you know, Stiles, if I get axe-murdered on this little mission of yours, I'm officially going to haunt you from beyond the grave for the rest of your life."

"Axe-murdered?" Stiles repeated, eyeing Rowan as though she had just grown an extra pair of eyes, and obviously ignoring her expression of mild trepidation in favor of turning to resume the trek deeper into the preserve, "Seems a little drastic, don't you think?"

"Not really."

"No?"

"No," Rowan confirmed, flinging a hand out against a nearby tree trunk to catch herself from falling flat on her face in the bracken beneath her feet, and almost immediately recoiling as soon as she realized her fingers had become tangled in a spider's web in the process, "This whole situation screams serial killer if you ask me."

"Well I think if it really is a serial killer, they'd use a more updated version of killing people than an axe."

"Fine. If I get Texas chainsaw-massacred out here, I'll haunt you from beyond the grave."

"Much better."

"You know, I don't think normal siblings are usually very happy about the idea of one of them getting hacked to pieces in the woods," Scott piped up, glancing behind him where Stiles was hanging back to help Rowan clamber over a particularly sizable log in the middle of their path, and grinning to himself before going on, "And I don't think most girls think heeled boots are good for hiking either, Ro."

"Are we forgetting the part where genius, over here, roped me into this little inhaler rescue mission without any advance notice at all?"

"Hey!"

"Just calling it like I see it, Stiles."

"Yeah. Calling it sarcastically."

"If you hadn't noticed by now, that's kind of what I do," Rowan quipped, glancing down at the ground to ensure she had a solid place to put her feet at least for the next couple steps, and then looking back at Scott as she realized he had fallen almost eerily silent once again, "So you were saying something about weird things happening to you?"

"I'm hearing stuff I shouldn't be able to hear. And I can smell things-"

"Smell things?"

"Yeah. Like the mint mojito gum in your brother's pocket," Scott supplied, aware of not only Rowan's understandably skeptical expression, but the way in which Stiles had suddenly started frantically feeling around for the aforementioned piece of gum at the same time.

"I don't have any mint mojito gum in my - oh."

"Okay, well that could - that could just be coincidence," Rowan murmured, watching as Stiles stuffed the piece of gum back into his pocket, and swallowing around the knot of apprehension that had formed in her throat before looking back to Scott, "I mean mint is a pretty strong smell generally, so-"

"And I can hear things. Conversations I shouldn't be able to hear from a distance."

"Such as?"

"Remember Stiles told you I gave Allison a pen?" Scott pressed, waiting until Rowan managed a faint nod of confirmation, and risking a glance at Stiles for a moment in hopes that his best friend would be following along, even if his sister was not, "I heard her talking to her mom outside of the school. She said she didn't bring a pen."

"Okay, so you were standing a few feet away and her voice carries."

"I was in class, Rowan. And before you say it, the windows were closed."

"And you think all of this is because - because something bit you in the woods last night," Rowan surmised, her teeth digging into her lower lip as she glanced between Scott and Stiles, a part of her fervently hoping that at some point, preferably in the very near future, one or both of them would burst into laughter and prove that this entire thing was just one sick joke. But when not even the smallest hint of amusement was forthcoming, Rowan forced herself to heave a shaky breath, her fingers curling at her sides in hopes that she would be able to hide the sudden trembling in her hands as Scott spoke up once again.

"What if it's some kind of infection? Like, my body's flooding with adrenaline before I go into shock or something? I could be dying!"

"I actually think I've heard of this before. It's a specific kind of infection."

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah," Stiles confirmed, biting back a grin as soon as he realized both Scott and Rowan were eyeing him with no small degree of interest, and hoping that his sister would not catch on and spare Scott the full impact of the joke he had in mind, "All the symptoms add up. I think it's called - Lycanthropy."

"What is that? Is it bad?" Scott demanded, glancing between the two siblings standing on either side of him, a small sigh of frustration escaping as soon as he realized Stiles did not appear to be backing down, and Rowan seemed perplexed if nothing else, "It sounds bad."

"Oh it's bad. But only once a month."

"Once a month?"

"On the night of the full moon."

"Oh my God, Stiles," Rowan groaned, dragging a hand through her hair and regarding her brother with a look that bordered on mild aggravation before going on, "You're such an ass."

"Hey, he is the one that said he heard a wolf howling last night."

"There are no wolves in California!"

"Save your breath, Ro. I already tried telling him that," Stiles advised, ignoring the almost predictable narrowing of Rowan's eyes, and turning to Scott instead as his friend favored him with a look that almost had him regretting his attempt at making a joke in the first place.

"Guys, there could be something seriously wrong with me."

"I know! You're a werewolf!"

In response to the exasperated looks directed his way from not only his twin, but Scott as well, Stiles lifted a hand to massage the back of his neck, blowing out a breath as he realized he appeared to be the only one gaining any amusement from this little charade at all. And as the trio took the silence between them as a means of continuing their trek through the woods, Stiles still found himself incapable of one final remark, whether or not he knew Scott would see any humor in it at all.

"Okay, obviously I'm kidding. But if you see me in shop class, melting down all the silver I can find-"

"Stiles!"

"Okay, okay, shutting up now."

"Thank you," Rowan breathed, keeping her gaze trained on the leaves and deadened twigs at her feet in hopes of finding Scott's missing inhaler, and getting out of the woods sooner rather than later. The sense of unease she had experienced earlier that day was back again, provoking goosebumps to cover the skin of her arms…

Maybe that was more of a reason to keep her eyes on the ground than any attempt at finding Scott's inhaler. Because if she looked up and saw the glow of red again, like she had just on the edge of the lacrosse field, Rowan honestly did not know what she would do.

Whatever happened, it would probably involve running back to Stiles' Jeep, screaming her head off like a lunatic.

Shaking herself from her thoughts as soon as she realized that not only were Stiles and Scott still talking, but that she had managed to get a few feet ahead of them as well, Rowan slowed her pace, once again attempting to corral her focus back to the task at hand despite knowing the effort would likely prove futile in the end, whether she wanted it to or not. And as she continued moving forward, practically ignoring the conversation going on between her brother and their best friend, Rowan soon found that it was almost easier to exist in this absurdly focused mindset.

Or at least it was until she turned to shift her direction just a bit and nearly collided with something that she had definitely not seen before.

Not something. Someone…

With a yelp of surprise, Rowan staggered backwards a few steps until the heel of one of her boots snagged on a branch buried beneath the deadened leaves that seemed so plentiful in the preserve, whatever air she possessed in her lungs leaving in a rush as she landed on her bottom not long after. Her cheeks flaming, she somehow managed to scoot just far enough from the unexpected obstacle to peek up at whoever it was from her current position on the forest floor. But instead of offering to help her up like any normal person would have done, Rowan found herself stunned into silence as the man simply stared at her for a moment, his expression unreadable as he glanced away from her, and towards Scott and Stiles, instead.

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm fine. Thanks for asking," Rowan retorted, finally managing to summon the wherewithal to haul herself upright, no thanks to the man she had collided with, though she was not entirely so foolish as to attempt any further efforts at making a retreat in hopes that she could avoid another embarrassing tumble to the ground. A part of her was tempted to risk a look back at Scott and Stiles, if for no other reason than to reassure herself they were still there, since they had both remained unusually silent in the wake of the new arrival. But as soon as the tall stranger glanced her way again, it was almost as though Rowan had suddenly been rooted to the spot, her heart hammering away against her ribs as he spoke once again.

"This is private property."

"Sorry, we - we didn't know," Stiles said, frowning as soon as he realized Rowan did not appear anywhere close to putting any sort of distance between herself and the newcomer, and moving forward just enough to grab her wrist and tug her back to stand between himself, and Scott as a result.

"We were just looking for something," Scott added, shifting so that he was standing just a bit in front of Rowan, and choosing to ignore the skeptically raised brow she delivered in response in favor of going on, "Sorry to bother you."

Aware of how Stiles was once again latching onto her wrist and trying to tug her backwards, Rowan held her ground, her attention focused almost completely on the man she had collided with as he reached inside the pocket of his leather jacket and pulled something out - something that looked suspiciously like the inhaler they had been searching for all along. Scott appeared to have noticed it too, as he was able to catch the object as soon as it was thrown his way with little to no difficulty at all. And as the stranger turned to walk away, Rowan caught herself watching as he went, her brow furrowed in an odd mix of confusion, wariness and intrigue until she recognized the familiar warmth of Scott's hand seizing her own, and her eyes met his instead of continuing to watch until the stranger they had just encountered disappeared from view.

"Come on. I have to get to work."

Turning to follow after him, Rowan hardly heard the resumed conversation between her two companions, her thoughts almost entirely occupied by everything that had just transpired. She couldn't quite place why, in spite of not knowing the man - in spite of his obviously standoffish demeanor and clear lack of social niceties - whatever apprehension she had felt prior to literally bumping into him had all but disappeared. It was as though the flicker of that threatening red she had glimpsed on the edge of the lacrosse field had never happened at all, or at the very least, had become significantly less frightening. And, regardless of his sudden appearance, there was something about the man that Rowan could not entirely comprehend, particularly in light of how the one thing she had definitely not been feeling prior to his arrival had become nearly all-consuming after the fact.

She could almost say that she had felt safe with him nearby. Far safer than she had for the rest of the day up to that point. Which was, of course, ridiculous. Clearly, she was losing her mind if she felt such a thing with a practical stranger, as opposed to how she felt with Stiles and Scott…

Either way, Rowan knew she would be abundantly grateful for the familiarity of her own bedroom, and, crazy or not, she fully planned on sleeping with all of the windows closed and locked until whatever it was that had her so on edge had disappeared.

…

"You're kidding me. You didn't even get his name?" Cassidy inquired, indignation apparent in her tone as she leaned against Rowan's locker the following morning at school, the books she would need for her next class held loosely in her arms, "Ro, come on, you're killing me here!"

"I literally landed on my ass in the dirt, Cass. I think I was a little more focused on maintaining whatever dignity I had left," Rowan explained, smiling faintly at the sound of her friend's ready laugh, and shutting the door of her locker before moving towards their shared next class, "I guess the one good thing is, Scott found his inhaler."

"Did either of them tell you how on earth they managed to lose it in the middle of the preserve in the first place?"

"Nope."

"Wow. So much for twins never keeping secrets."

"Tell me about it," Rowan sighed, once again forcing herself to shove aside the lingering guilt she felt over keeping Cassidy in the dark, despite knowing that anything she could have told her friend about the nature of Scott's story of what happened to him in the woods would have seemed highly illogical at best, and downright laughable at the worst, "Honestly, it's probably better if I just don't ask."

"You might be right. But he said this guy - the one who knocked you on your ass, I mean," Cass clarified, biting back a smile at the mock glare Rowan sent her in retaliation for the reminder of her own embarrassment, and ignoring it in favor of teasing her friend just a bit more, "The tall, dark and handsome one-"

"Cass!"

"Stiles said his name was Derek?"

"Derek Hale," Rowan confirmed, aware of the slight furrow that had formed between Cassidy's eyebrows, and slowing to a stop in favor of turning to face her friend directly, "You know him?"

"No. No, not him. But there's a Hale. A patient at the long term care facility my mom has me volunteering at."

"You think they're related?"

"They have to be," Cassidy nodded, turning to head towards the French classroom, and moving to snag a seat at the back with Rowan in tow, "Especially with what Stiles said about the fire."

"The fire," Rowan repeated, taking the open desk beside her friend, her teeth worrying at her lower lip while Cass managed a singular nod before she spoke.

"I overheard one of the nurses saying that this guy - that he was the only survivor. He's completely comatose, Ro, and half his face is scarred over from the burns-"

"So you've seen him. A lot."

"I kind of have to. Part of the whole volunteer thing is to help the nurses with whatever patient needs it the most," Cass said, watching as Rowan turned to gaze out the window behind her desk, and leaning forward to address her friend in a quieter tone, in hopes that the students filtering into the classroom would not overhear, "What? What is it?"

"It - it's nothing."

"You're not the one with a front row look at your face, Rowan. It's something."

"I don't - I can't explain it," Rowan confessed, turning back to face Cass, and then glancing down to toy at the hem of her sleeve for a moment before attempting to explain further, "The guy I ran into - Derek - he said we were on private property."

"Hale property."

"I can only assume so."

"So when your brother and Scott were roaming around the other night, they were technically-"

"Trespassing. Yeah."

"But that still doesn't really explain why you're looking like a missing inhaler and stumbling on private property is a bigger deal than it really is," Cassidy pressed, watching as Rowan swallowed almost convulsively, her fingers tugging at the hem of her sleeve so fiercely that she almost thought she would be capable of causing the fabric to tear, "What is it that you're not telling me?"

"It's not something I'm not telling you, Cass. It's-"

"It's what?"

"It's something I can't tell you. Not yet," Rowan finished, wincing as she saw the disappointment that had become so apparent in her friend's expression, and instinctively leaning across the space between their desks to reach for Cassidy's hand, hoping the gesture would alleviate the potential for her friend to misunderstand and interpret her evasiveness as a lack of trust, rather than what it truly was. An inability to put what she was thinking into words, "I just - I need a minute or two to figure out if any of this is even real."

"Any of this? Rowan, that doesn't even make any sense."

"Believe me, I know."

"But you're going to eventually explain," Cassidy went on, watching as Rowan offered a small nod, and taking some manner of reassurance in the fact that her friend was still holding her hand, albeit almost tightly enough to cause physical pain, "Okay."

"Okay?"

"Okay. I can accept that. For now. Just know that if you don't eventually tell, I will make myself the world's largest pain in your ass until you spill."

"That sounds fair to me," Rowan agreed, finally relinquishing her hold on Cassidy's hand, and turning to face the front of the classroom as the teacher walked in, and the shrill ringing of the bell signified that for the moment at least, their conversation would have to come to an end, "But you're going to do me one small favor in the meantime, okay?"

"What's that?"

"You're coming with me to the party on Friday. If I'm stuck being Stiles' wingman, I'm at least going to try and hook him up with a girl I actually like."

Recognizing Cassidy's wide smile as a sign of victory, Rowan settled into her seat as comfortably as she could, at least moderately pleased that she had managed to tentatively make amends for her secrecy, and hoping that, whatever it was Scott thought had happened to him in the woods the other night, it would not force her to keep any more secrets than she already had to her name.

It was obvious to anyone that knew her that she would do anything for Scott, or her brother. But Rowan wasn't entirely certain that losing her other best friend was something she was willing to face, even if it was for their sake…

She could only hope that that would not be a choice she would ever have to make.

…

Hello there, my darlings! And welcome to chapter two of Rowan's tale! I am so, so happy that so many of you seem to have found the first installment to be a worthwhile read! And I can only hope that as the chapters carry on, that will continue to be the case! I have some really exciting plans for this story (or at least, I think they're exciting, lol). And I cannot wait to see how many of you are going to be along for the ride.

As always, my heartfelt thanks go out to each and every one of you that has taken the time to read, follow, favorite and review this story so far! I appreciate the kind words of encouragement and support more than you know! And I hope you all enjoy this chapter as much as you seem to have enjoyed the last!

Until next time, angels…

MOMM