I spent the next day wandering around the station, having awkwardly slept in an overly plush office chair Derek found for me. It was a day of little consequence, but excruciatingly turbulent thoughts. I had turned my phone off after the fifth missed call from Danny, and I didn't see or expect any from my mother. I knew I should have kept it on, given my promise to Stiles about keeping in touch, but I just couldn't keep letting myself flood with that hope. Or maybe I just didn't want to give in to the temptation of letting my brother off the hook so easy. At this point, it was impossible to decipher my own thought process.

Then Derek came back and with unexpected company.

At the sound of the door and accompanying footsteps, Isaac and I had both found ourselves at the centralized location at the bottom of the stairs. Both of us looked like rumpled messes, still in our clothing from the night before, but appearances weren't 100% on our minds. Hygiene, though, that was on mine at least. Thankfulyl, I had a brush for detangling purposes in my bag, but otherwise I was only pretty/ clean via my identification to the fairer sex. Honestly, I would settle for a shower over a change of clothes, but that is neither here nor there. What was, however, was finding out who Derek could possibly have brought to us given our legal status. As the pair descended the stairs, I felt my jaw drop before I could compose myself, finally getting the answer, only to be met with more questions.

"Holy Shit!" I covered my mouth with both hands, wincing as I only wanted to have thought the phrase.

Looking far worse for wear than either of the fugitives in the room was none other than Erica Reyes. Her tied back hair held it's typical frizz, and she was wearing a hospital gown and bracelet meaning she must have had a seizure today at school. Poor thing was one of my tuterees, if only because of how often she had doctor's appointments or attacks. She was super sweet, if a little quiet and withdrawn. Looking at her now though, she looked like she would have done anything Derek told her, her eyes dewy with awe and appreciation. As they made their way towards us, I felt my stomach turn. Appearing bright on the waist of the gown was a crescent shaped line, looking almost perforated in the minimal gaps. I'm sure there was a matching one just out of view, given what it entailed.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" My hands dropped in spite of my best efforts to keep them still. "You're harboring two teenage-who are also fugitives may I remind you- and you decided to go recruit another one."

The question came out more as a statement, my shock not shared with Isaac, who just glanced at her with curiosity. "She's the next member of our pack?"

Derek kept my gaze, as if daring me to challenge him as he answered his Beta. "Yes she is."

"So, what, do you stalk the high school grounds or something? Is that how you heard she'd had an attack? Then you just went to the hospital and grabbed her?! I can't be the only one that thinks this is messed up!"" I shook my head incredulously before turning to address her. "And you just let this guy you never met before bite you? Where are your parents? Aren't they going to be looking for you?"

"They were going to be another hour or so...Derek said he'll get me back before they came." She smiled shyly, "And he mentioned he knew you… so I figured he was safe."

"Did he now…" I glared at him before making my way over to the other girl. "Well, that's a bit complicated. It's good to see you, just... I'm sorry. I just didn't think he would try to sell the whole werewolf thing to you too."

"And why not?" She shook her head, "What did you think you were the only one that gets the offer? It's called a pack not a pair of betas. Besides, it's not like he was going to wait around for you to say yes."

"What, no, that's not what I meant at all, Erica." I backed off, shocked by her tone, "I just, I-"

"What, Stephanie, you just what?" Her eyes went cold, turning her into a scary replicant of the Erica I knew.

"I…" I gulped, my shoulders sagging slightly. "I just wanted to say 'Welcome' I guess. Let me know if you need anything."

Turning away, I walked until I couldn't hear or see the others near me. I walked until I felt a cold chill come over my body, the rage and judgement from before sapped out of the air. I couldn't do this, I couldn't let more of my friends and peers be alone with someone as sneaky as Derek Hale. They clearly had no idea what they were getting into and Derek had no idea what he was doing. It was like watching a child pick up and play with everything from the Island of Misfit Toys and expecting them to be better now that he was working with them. Every one of us was broken and he thought that the Bite was going to fix us and make us obedient.

Maybe this was why Danny never told me about him; the young wolf full of hubris. Or maybe he knew that the other boy liked to play mind games. He finds people like us, who are used to not having control over our own lives that we would be easy to control. Either way it didn't matter. I wasn't going to forgive the omission, and I certainly wasn't going to abandon those that have suffered from it. I was going to help them, and I was going to prove him wrong. So, I'll wait for him to come back from dropping Erica off and finally accept his offered 'gift'. It would work out beautifully, He would make me a member of his pack, and I would be able to protect and help the people I cared about. It was symbiosis at the basic level, and it decided my fate.

I was going to take the Bite.

The halls of the sub-basement of Eichen were uncharacteristically quiet as Tess made her final rounds. She'd just gotten off the phone with the upstairs staff, saying they needed extra help there before she left for the day. So despite the relaxing shift she'd been given, it looked like her abilities were to be used elsewhere tonight. Running a hand through her hair, she sighed, wondering what leftovers would be waiting for her at home. Though, now that she thought about it, Daniel had brought her food the night before from the local diner, and she hadn't gotten a text from Stephanie letting her know what to expect.

She hadn't gotten any communication from her daughter in almost two weeks. While they didn't have the closest relationship, the youngest McGrath was always diligent about keeping in touch with her the rest of the household. Maybe she'd just fallen into one of those streaks of talking strictly to her brother. He'd mentioned her going through some stress with school. It made Tess wonder how many slip ups she'd made recently; it was so hard to track them anymore.

Before she could decide on a plan of action regarding Steph, she felt a sharp stab through her eye like a psychic lobotomy. She slipped to her knees, choking back a shriek as she leaned back, her hands covering her eyes. Searing pain burned it's way through her eye sockets and into her brain, with flashes of light, and foreign images dancing in front of her. She was seeing the past, seeing the present, and there was a part of her that was seeing through someone else's eyes.

She didn't know how long she sat there, her arms moving to cradle someone that wasn't there, that was forgotten and trapped at the same time. She wasn't ready for this day to come, not today. She hadn't even gotten a chance to warn the boys, to warn her daughter. No, instead the truth was going to tear itself into all of their heads before she could prepare them.

She didn't know that Steph wasn't home, or that she'd flopped into their world without knowing of the effects it would have on her family.

Derek decided that after my little outburst with Erica, that he was going to make me wait the day before turning me. Part of me was worried he was going to tell my brother, and have him drag my ass home, but nothing of the sort happened. My guess was that he wanted me to sweat it out, knowing that's where my mind would go. Was I being impulsive? Yes I was. Did I need Big Bro to come and save me from my decisions? Hell no. So even if that was the play, I wasn't going to back down now. After all, Stiles was right; I couldn't trust Derek, not completely.

I could trust him as long as he kept me safe, and with each new betta, that became less true. The only worry I had was if my resolve would change once I've taken the Bite. How exactly did the Alpha to Beta relationship work? Would I lose all of my will unless it came from him? Or would I still be able to be myself, just blocked in certain capacities? I sighed, closing my eyes, effectively ending my current staring contest with the man.

"Okay, now that we've done the ominous waiting period-" I stood up, clapping my hands on my legs to break the growing tension between the three people present. "Where do you want me? Do you just...need me to stand still and wait for you to bite me? Do I sit or lie down? Or, or do you need me to run away and give you some weird thrill of the chase?"

I laughed at myself, the mental image of me running away while Derek bared his teeth at me breaking all seriousness of the situation. It quickly faded, however, when I watched Derek's mood shift and he stood taller, looking menacing as he crossed his arms over his chest.

Derek just raised an eyebrow, his expression stoney, "You done?"

"With the joking? Yeah, yeah I think so." I gulped, fiddling with my fingers. "With questioning myself on letting some guy I just met bite me in order to become a werewolf? Probably never. As for the rambling and random bursts of laughter, you're stuck with those, unfortunately. Same as I have for the past seventeen years."

"You don't need to be nervous," He murmured, his voice taking on a strangely soothing tone. If I didn't know any better, I might have even trusted him just from that. "You won't regret this."

"Easy for you to say, Alpha Man." I muttered. "Something tells me you've been at this for a good long while."

"I have, so I know that this won't hurt you, but make you a better version of yourself, not different." He took a step closer to me, his voice growing urgent. "The Bite is a gift, Stephanie."

"Ah there it is." I muttered, thinking back to my conversation with Stiles. "Sorry, just not an everyday occurrence is all. Can we just….I don't know, get this done before I change my mind?"

Derek nodded, turning to Isaac, "Grab her."

"I'm sorry, did you just say 'grab her'" I held my hand out, stopping the other teen in his tracks. "Why are we saying 'grab her?' I'm here, I'm ready, what more do you want?"

"Well, you can thank the guy about to restrain you for that. Even though he came to me, when it came down to it, instinct took over. So, where we don't want to have you hurting yourself, or making things awkward should you run away…'Grab her'. Satisfied?"

"I suppose I have to be." I nodded, willing to play ball to keep to my mission, "Okay, you're right. You heard the man. Let's just do it."

Isaac moved quickly, looping his arms around my waist and pulling me to his chest. His head next to my right ear, causing me to tense when the first breath tickled at the side of my head. I tried not to think about it too much, and remind myself that this was strictly a business type of interaction. Still, unbidden, the back of my neck started to get warm, and I tried to clamp down my stupid teenage hormones before either of them noticed. If a prison cell wasn't the place for such conversations, then being held down as I was about to be bitten was definitely not it.

I felt Isaac loosen his grip slightly, almost as if to indicate that he was aware of my internal struggle. I couldn't bring myself to look at him and see if I was right, part of me scared that he'd discovered my secret. Shaking my head, I rationalized that he probably thought I was still scared of him, or that he was worried about hurting me again like the other night. Unfortunately, the hesitation was lost and I felt the hum of his voice against my ear. His breath tickled again, and his cheek was warm against my hair, making me almost miss what he said as I got lost in such a strange sensation.

"I know it doesn't feel like it...but it will help if you can relax."

"Says the guy that's the reason for me being restrained." I raised an eyebrow as I turned slightly to meet his gaze. "But thanks for the tip."

I felt rather than heard him chuckle ever so slightly, his lips curling in a half smile. I felt one pull at my face, but stopped, my eyes widening as I suddenly became very aware of the proximity of our faces to each other. And even more so, that Derek was in the room with us. The thoughts weren't quite connected, but enough to make me turn away, looking to the Alpha with my best poker face. My hands were shaking, but I clamped them shut. Wherever composure I had was gone in an instant however, since Isaac tightened his grip. I gasped as goosebumps erupted up my arms, the fabric of his sweater brushing against my skin.

"Sorry," He muttered feeling my discomfort, "He, uh, didn't think I was holding you tight enough."

I closed my eyes, "Oh, great, something else to look forward to, a telepathic bond with everyone. Or at least what I can assume is one, since he didn't actually say anythi-"

I let out a scream as Derek flashed forward with uncanny speed, his teeth clamping down into the dip of my waist. I didn't even have a chance to break away from Isaac, or flinch. After he let go, all it took was for me to see my blood on his lips and I slumped down, Isaac catching me as I fainted heavily.

Well...that was certainly not what I was expecting….

Derek wasn't at all surprised when the McGrath girl fainted, passing out in Isaac's arms. While it wasn't the first time she'd pulled up this front in the past couple of days, he knew her brother well enough to see through it. Not to mention the fact that it crumbled the very second his beta went to hold her down. He wasn't sure if it was from the action itself or the who, but there was something about it that made her crack, made her story seem all the more real. He had sensed that she was beaten down, not physically, but emotionally, fitting the same niche as the rest of betas he'd started to gather. The inability to accept someone else touching her though, that was a strange thing coming from someone related to Danny.

Then again, he remembered what happened all those years ago; had seen what it did to the McGraths and Laheys alike. He hadn't hung out with Cam nearly as much as Danny did, but they were friendly. There were scars hidden far beyond the surface of the families, and these two teenagers were connected in more ways than he was comfortable with. There was more to this girl than having been at the wrong place at the wrong time, and something told him there was more to her acceptance of the bite as well.

The alpha motioned for the boy to bring her back to one of the mattresses he'd bought that day. Taking pity on the now ruined shirt he'd bitten her through, he also tossed one of his shirts at him, that he'd prepared just in case. Not that it mattered all that much anyway. While she was out, they were going to take a trip to get what they would need to survive them a few weeks if necessary. Clothing, food, toiletries, all of them were going to be needed.

He had a feeling that she and Isaac both were going to want to get things from their houses, but they'll have to be careful about that. Especially since something told him, Stephanie wasn't going to leave it alone until they did. He didn't really expect her to be as tough as she was, her strength hidden behind nervous speech and a beaten personality. Did he just want to see it in her, or was she actually just like her brother and father? Whichever it was, he did know that she was going to be troublesome. She was too much like Scott and Stiles; too many questions and too concerned about others to mitigate her own impulsiveness.

Deciding to dwell on such things at a later time, Derek shook his head, calling out to Isaac just as the boy was about to leave his eyesight. "Make sure you come right back after moving her. I'm going to need your help getting some things."

There was a slight noise of affirmation, but nothing else. Looking around the cart, Derek let out a sigh. It was all coming together. But will they all be able to pull together to survive what was coming?

It all came in flashes, broken scenes from mingled times cutting into each other uncontrollably. There were woods in the middle of the day, and then there was the edge of a pool late at night. Then there were large arms that felt strong and safe around the viewing point, jostling away from a yelling Mr. Lahey in his yard. There was screaming, running, crying for help, but it fell upon deaf ears in the woods, in the empty room, among the crowd of teenagers. A pulse was thrumming at an accelerated rate, the very sweat that clung to the skin saturated in fear, loss, and dread. It all mingled with a feeling of newfound strength clashing against helplessness.

Then the vision stopped, approaching with strange clarity. It was the pool that night again when a small figure lay still on the ground, a pool of water surrounding it, as my mother shook at their shoulders, screaming noiselessly. It had to have been an out of body experience, for as I struggled against the shoulder trying to hide me from it, the figure almost looked like-

I jolted upright, leaves flying up as I did so. I went to pull the covers up to my chin, not fully aware of my surroundings. It wasn't until I felt more of the foliage under my nails that it clicked for me. I tore my eyes completely open, blinking away at the bright morning sun in my face. At first I couldn't figure out what happened; had I had another dream that led me here? Why was I in the Goddamn preserve again? Why was this the place I kept finding myself in? What even was the last time I even did?

Then it came to me; I had let Derek bite me.

I had bumped into the supernatural unknowingly, been made to think I was crazy, got arrested, then I was told about the supernatural and decided to freaking join it all in one week. To top it all off, I was wearing a large v-neck that I don't remember putting on but could only guess that Derek or Isaac had put it on me. Right now, that wasn't my concern, instead I was worried about what had happened. Pulling up the shirt, I noticed the bloody mark on my waist. Or rather, the bloody stains of where he'd bit me.

Under the shirt, my skin was smudged, perforated, crescents leaving themselves in their place. This was like the week after Danny and I were attacked, only this time, I don't remember anything. The whole night was a blank after I fainted. Oh god, I freaking fainted in Isaac's arms like a stupid freaking girl. Yes, I know I am a girl, but I still didn't need Isaac to see me like that. I thought I'd kept my composure in the prison up until the whole werewolf thing, and now I just fainted into his arms? Talk about lame ways to impress your crush.

Suddenly, I felt myself snap back into reality, looking at my scratched up arms and feeling my straggling hair.. My nails were a thick black with dirt, and I had various cuts from running through the woods at night. A part of me thought that I could smell a hint of chlorine, but that made little to no sense to me, seeing as I was nowhere near a pool. What happened last night? I tried to remember again, only this time thinking more logically, and less about how I could imagine myself. I had taken the bite, and fainted that much was certain, but how did I end up in the reserve after?

I struggled to remember, jumping when I felt a tug that made me listen. I could hear birds that weren't in any of the trees near me, and a few coyotes loping back to their dens in the distance. I don't know how, but that wasn't even the half of it. I could feel things, intentions, sentiments. The exhaustion of those coyotes, the joy of the birds waking up to a bright new day. There was a feeling of fear underlying it all, but it was hard to distinguish if it was my own or animals around me. The fact that I was even thinking that was enough to make me hyperventilate. Looking at the ground, I noticed a small rectangular light vibrating from a few feet away. I moved forward tentatively, my breath still shaking along with my whole body.

Each new feeling was painful, apprehension, the physical scrapping of the underbrush against my knees. Everything seemed to move in slow motion, dragging it all out impossibly. When I finally did get to the light, I found out it was my phone buried among a bunch of leaves, an unknown number flashing. Maybe it was Stiles again? I haven't gotten around to putting the number in my phone yet, but he should be at school. I hit the answer button, taking a deep, steadying breath before pulling it up to my ear.

"He-" I cleared my throat, trying again to force out the greeting. "Hello?"

"Steph? Thank God I've been looking for you everywhere!"

I sighed, thanking whoever was listening for having it not be Stiles when I haven't told him about my decision. Instead, I slumped into myself, falling to my knees even, as a wave of relief flooded over me.

"Isaac…" I sighed, allowing myself to calm down for a few seconds, "I-I don't know what happened, I just woke up here and was covered i-in..." I paused, hearing footsteps from somewhere nearby. "I'm in the preserve...but I don't know how I got here…"

"Okay...uhm….I'll get there as fast as I can…" His voice was frantic as he thought through things, making me more panicked by the second, "You need to lay low until I do….we can't have the cops finding you like this."

I let out a whine, "Shit….I can't be iseen/i at all! I'm a fugitive remember!" I looked from side to side, trying to determine where the footfalls were coming from, my words mixing into one. "whadoido, whadoido, whoadoido?!"

"Woah, don't go losing it on me, Steph." I stilled at Isaac's voice. It was much calmer now, and I allowed myself to isolate it among the chaos. "You need to keep your wits, and find somewhere to hide."

I let out an affirmative hum, allowing his calm to wash over me before giving him a couple of landmarks to find me. After he hung up, I sat still for a few seconds, trying to force my body to get with the program. It worked for all of the five seconds it took me to reach a tree. Then, I clenched into a ball, rocking as I tried to block everything out. Tried to shut out all of the senses and fear that was being thrown at me. From there, time was the last thing on my mind; every sound was thundering in my ears as my mind tugged at each new feeling or aura I felt. I could even feel the anxiety, and I almost wanted to say pity, of some of the animals that came near me. I was numb and overstimulated all at once.

"Steph," I bolted up, startled by the sudden appearance of Isaac, "Stephanie, You've gotta breath,"

"Make it stop, Isaac, everything's...everything's…" my eyes darted all over the place with each new distraction. I looked back at him, "It's like someone took my ADD and multiplied it 100%. I can't stop it, I just keep feeling my mind get jerked and pulled in every direction."

"Your body is just adjusting to all of the changes…" He looked down at my sides, and I followed his gaze to see the red dots blossoming under my fingers. "Something tells me that bruising yourself isn't going to help….Why did you do that to yourself?"

"I wasn't exactly thinking when I did it, Isaac."

I growled, making him place a calming hand on my shoulder. Or at least, it was supposed to be, instead, everything suddenly tuned in on high definition. I could make out the smallest details of a tree's leaves, the individual drops of water on an individual strand of a spider web.

"What is happening to me?"

"You are going through the final steps of the change. As you adjust, your senses will as well." He smiled, as I marveled over the changes I could see. "If you think that is shocking, wait until you see your hair."

"My ha-" I held onto my hair, realizing I had only pulled at it, not looked at it.

The strands that came into view, though knotted, were a lot better than they looked last night. They were shorter, as if they'd been cut, and curled healthily around my fingers. It was wavy, and voluminous, but that's not what Isaac was referring to when he mentioned it. No, he was referring to the golden and copper hued strands that highlighted my hair in an orange-yellow glow. The color was so much brighter than it had been in a while. I had almost forgotten about it with all that's been happening, but it looked just like it did in my dream that started all of this.

I ran a hand through it, marveling at how soft the strands were as they slipped gently through the knots. "Would you look at that….how is-" I shook my head not exactly the time to be questioning the possibility of things. I sighed, realizing I wasn't shaking anymore. "Wait... did you just say that to distract me?"

"Well, yes, but no. I mean it did change, but you needed to focus on something attached to you, so." He let out a puff of hair, and ran a hand through his hair as he tried to think, "It allowed your other senses to dull, so know we can try to piece together what happened."

"You mean try to figure out how I ended up alone and looking like I ran through the woods in my sleep?" I laughed humorlessly, swallowing down the bile of fear burning at my throat. "I take it this didn't happen to you then."

"The bite affects us all differently." He hedged, his voice defensive, yet still maintaining that infuriatingly soothing tone. "Yes, this is a bit new, but at least you're okay...and you didn't hurt anyone."

"That we know of!" I said, worried now, since the thought was not one that occurred to me. "I mean I don't even remember how I got here, maybe I did hurt someone and was chased here. Without any information from last night, who the hell knows what ha-"

I stopped, shaking my head. "Son of a bitch."

"What is it?" He stood up and moved next to me, still keeping a careful distance. "Do you remember something?"

"No…" I rubbed my forehead in irritation. "But I know where we can get answers."

"Where?" He looked around trying to see whatever it was I saw.

I crossed my arms, and started to walk toward where I thought the path was.

"We're gonna have to go talk to my brother."