AN: That last chapter was a pretty heavy one! In this one we get back into the present. The reason for the last chapter was to set the base for the back story of this AU world and help you understand the characters better. I hope it helped!

Enjoy the chapter :)

Riza didn't change back into her human form until she was back at the cabin. She approached from the north, where the bay window was facing. She had been out for a few hours now and didn't know if Rebecca would still be home. She saw her friend standing facing the window she was approaching and she felt herself grin.

Her heart sank as she noticed someone facing Rebecca, their back to Riza. At the same time, Rebecca spotted her, eye widening. The stranger in their temporary home noticed as well, turning towards the window. Rebecca quickly signalled for her to run and Riza darted off to the west and out of the view of the bay window.

"What was that?" a male voice asked. It was a voice Riza recognised.

"Nothing," Rebecca sighed, satisfied Riza was out of sight. "I just thought I saw a bear."

Maes Hughes turned to face her, an eyebrow raised questioningly. "There are no bears around here," he stated with a frown.

Rebecca returned his frown with her own. "Really? I saw one yesterday when we were out on our hike. It was huge, definitely a brown bear," Rebecca lied smoothly. If this was something that would maintain their cover then so be it. It was better for people to think there were bears running around than two humans who could turn into wolves.

Hughes opened his mouth to reply, then shook his head chuckling. "Well, I'll be sure to be on the lookout then." From his tone Rebecca knew he suspected something wasn't quite right, but wasn't going to push the issue. Anyway, he had come here for an entirely different reason. "Where is your friend anyway? The blonde haired woman?"

Rebecca was thankful for the change in subject. "She went out for a hike this morning. She really likes it here."

"Okay," Hughes replied, slightly disheartened. "I wanted to come by and thank her for finding and helping my friend. Could you pass on the message?"

"Hey, I'm home!" Riza called from the front door, interrupting Hughes' request.

"Hey," Rebecca called back. "We have a visitor," she announced.

"Oh?" Riza replied, questioningly. She entered the room a second later and recognised the man in front of her. It was Roy's friend they had met yesterday.

"Hi there, Maes Hughes. Nice to meet you." He smiled warmly at Riza, offering her his hand. She shook it, making sure she didn't grip his hand too hard. She could easily crush his hand if she wanted to. Not that she did.

"I just came by to thank you for your service this morning. I remember you stating where you stayed yesterday. I hope you don't mind me coming by?"

"Not at all," Riza replied with a smile, although she did. They didn't want people coming around unannounced. Not with their condition.

They would need to be more careful from now on.

"I would also like to apologise for Roy's behaviour yesterday as well. He would kill me for saying so, but he was so rude to you."

Both Rebecca and Riza shrugged. "It's not that big a deal." They truly weren't bothered by it. They had bigger things to worry about.

"To be perfectly honest it was nice to see him being taken down a peg. He wasn't always like that." Hughes removed his glasses with a sigh, cleaning them on his shirt. "Something changed within him a couple of months ago. Basically he became a spoiled brat. And I don't like the man he became."

The two woman shared a look. How were they supposed to reply to that?

"Sorry," he replied sheepishly. "Here I am rambling about someone you probably don't care about. I mean why would you? Especially after the way he treated you." Returning his glasses to his face, he smiled warmly at them both.

Riza had expected him to be like Roy. He seemed bored yesterday when he had told Roy to leave them alone. She had mistaken it for not caring about them. Instead, he had probably seen that scene play out plenty of times and he was sick of it.

"Well we were happy to take him down a peg," Rebecca answered sincerely. "If you need me to do it again, let me know."

Hughes grinned. "I'll do just that. Might knock some sense into him."

Riza couldn't get over the fact that Roy hadn't always been so rude and self-absorbed. Hughes had said the change had happened a few months ago. Could that be a result of the lead up to his changing?

Riza hadn't looked into werewolf transformation as much as she had liked. She would kill for some answers, Rebecca would too, but they had been too busy travelling trying to track down other people her Father had tutored. So far, Roy was the only one who had shown any ability to change.

All Riza could piece together was someone who was a werewolf could trigger the change if they were in close proximity. With Rebecca, she had been feeling and acting completely normal until Riza had shown up. Three days later, she changed for the first time.

Rebecca and Riza had only arrived a week ago, so Roy's change wasn't because of them, was it? Had his wolf form started to stir by itself a few months ago? Did they just happen to be simply a catalyst?

She needed to find out.

"How is Roy doing?" Riza asked drawing the conversation back to him. Hughes' answer would determine their next course of action.

"Has a bit of a fever, but he's awake and confused. He couldn't figure out what had happened or how he had ended up in the woods." Hughes quietened, but sensed there was more he wanted to say. "He was back to his normal self this morning too. Everyone was very confused, but hopeful. It is all very strange."

"It is indeed. Luckily we decided to camp there last night. We were wanting to star gaze. We weren't disappointed."

"I'm glad you were there. Thank you again." Hughes picked up his beanie, perching it on top of his head. Pulling gloves and a jacket on, Riza realised how cold it must be outside… And how strange it looked for her to re-enter the house after a hike with only a t-shirt and a pair of leggings on. However, Hughes never mentioned it.

"His normal self," Riza began. "As in the way he acted a few months ago, or the way he acted yesterday?"

Hughes paused in his movements. "To be perfectly honest… I don't know."

Riza frowned. How could he not know?

"I understand wat you're thinking," Hughes added. "But it is even stranger behaviour. One minute he will be his old old self, the respectful and kind man I knew growing up. The next it's like he has snapped and is back to being rude to everyone."

Interesting…

"That truly is strange," Rebecca commented, shooting Riza a look. They would need to discuss this further, and observe his behaviour. It might help them understand a few thing about their condition.

"Well, what can you do?" Hughes remarked, seemingly somewhat defeated. "I just hope he knows what he is doing." Hughes trailed off, leaving the trio in silence. Taking a deep breath, a smile returned to his face. "Sorry to have taken up so much of your time. I really should get going. Thanks again."

"Not to worry," Riza assured him. "We were happy to help." The two woman waved him from the doorway before closing it behind them.

"Okay…" Rebecca drew out in a long breath.

"We have a lot to talk about."

Rebecca nodded. She left the small hallway and entered the kitchen. Pulling two beers from the fridge, she tossed one to Riza. The blonde effortlessly plucked it from the air, not even bothering with a bottle opener. Another perk of their new powers. They could open beer bottles with ease.

"Where do you want to start?" Rebecca asked as she stoked the fire she had started before Hughes arrived.

"We go over everything we know and have gathered. That way we are both on the same page and we might be able to figure this whole thing out. Or, at least understand it slightly better."

"Good idea." Rebecca took a swig as she sat next to Riza, tucking her feet underneath her.

"So, my Father turned us into werewolves." The statement made Riza sick to her stomach. "He did so through a serum, which was injected into my food. My guess is it happened over the course of a few months. He started cooking for me three months before I left for university."

"It must have been the same amount of time for me as well." Rebecca's face twisted in disgust at the thought. "I still can't believe the bastard did it."

"You are preaching to the choir," Riza muttered. "I brought your meals to his study and he collected them. I sure a shit didn't do anything, so my guess is, after collecting them, he added the serum himself. The same must have happened to Roy."

"Damn."

Riza nodded in agreement. "It's sickening to be perfectly honest."

Rebecca shot her a sympathetic look. Yes, it was tough on her as well, but it had been Riza's own Father who had done this to her. Rebecca had sworn to herself that he better have had a damn good reason for doing it. Otherwise she would not be held accountable for her actions.

The thought of Riza growing up alone with that monster chilled Rebecca to her core. She never asked Riza about her childhood. She knew better not to. But after meeting her for the first time she had always worried about the blonde girl. Rebecca only received the tutoring because it meant she could keep an eye on her and check up on Riza. During her visits, the younger girl never commented on anything unusual, but seeing Rebecca always made her smile. Rebecca made a point to visit every week after that.

"I don't know what triggered my first change," Riza continued. "I don't remember it at all. I woke up in a park near the night club I had visited that night. You," her gaze met Rebecca's "Changed three days after I arrived. Leading up to the change, you felt completely normal?"

Rebecca nodded. "I felt totally fine."

"I had asked around, I hope you don't mind," Riza smiled sheepishly. "All your friends said you had acted normal as well."

"So being in the proximity of a werewolf can trigger the change." Rebecca summarised.

"Correct. That's what I have gathered anyway. The others we visited showed no change after a month of the pair of us being nearby. This leads me to believe they are not werewolves."

"I agree. There's no way. I'm not saying it would be as instant as my change had been, but we would have seen some change in behaviour in the amount of time we were there."

Riza nodded. "Roy however…"

"Yeah," Rebecca agreed with Riza's wordless statement. His change had stumped them, turning everything they thought they knew about werewolves on its head.

"Hughes said Roy's behaviour had changed a few months ago. Had his werewolf form began to stir itself? Had it grown to maturity?" At Rebecca's amused, but confused look Riza smiled. "I know it's a weird way to put it, but I can't think of another way to describe it."

"Fair enough. Another possibility would be that another werewolf had passed through the area. They hadn't stayed long enough to cause the change, but maybe Roy's wolf had been able to sense them and wanted free?"

Riza hadn't even considered that possibility. It wasn't out of the question.

"A fair point. I propose we monitor Roy's behaviour. Hughes mentioned he was switching between two personalities. The rude, asshole version of Roy must be from the chemicals in his body reacting with the wolf form. Do you think the whole process of the change could make your hormones go crazy?"

Rebecca considered Riza's question carefully. "It would explain the change in behaviour. Increased amounts of testosterone would cause him to become more aggressive."

"An interesting thought… We will need to look further into that."

"Did you notice any change like that?" Rebecca asked.

Riza shook her head. "I have no idea. Everything before that first change is kind of like a blur. I remember not being able to concentrate properly. I thought it must have been the stress from university. I was really disappointed in myself because it was only the first couple of weeks." Riza laughed humourlessly. "I guess it was because my body was reacting to the wolf form."

"I'm sorry you had to go through that yourself, Riz." Rebecca squeezed her friends hand tightly.

"Thanks."

"Everyone is different," Rebecca continued. "I mean, you and I reacted totally differently to the change. So did Roy. All we can do now is wait until he had recovered and remembered. If he chooses to continue to change, do you think he will want to join the pack?"

Riza shook her head. "I don't know. He has a life here. I don't think he will want to leave it." The thought saddened Riza riefly, before she shoved the emotions aside roughly. Get a grip of yourself, she growled to herself.

"You really like him, don't you?" Rebecca asked suddenly.

Riza frowned. "Excuse me?"

"Riza, I'm not blind. You were relentless in your search for him. Of all the people we have observed so far, he is the one you are most protective over. Every time we talk of leaving this place you become sad and wistful. I mean, I do too because the area is lovely, but for you it is for a different reason, isn't it?"

Riza sat frozen. Panic welled inside her briefly, before she recovered and pushed it down. It had been a childish infatuation, nothing more. She attributed her shock to the fact Rebecca had called her out on it. Riza hadn't expected it.

Riza sighed.

"When I was young," she began. Rebecca turned to face her friend eagerly. Little did she know she wouldn't get the story she was hoping for. "Roy was the only person outside of teachers at school who paid attention to me.

"Hey!" Rebecca nudged her leg gently indignantly, as if you say what about me?

"This was before I met you."

"Ah. That's all right then." With a flourish of her hand, she beckoned Riza to continue.

"Every time he visited he always smiled and said hello. When on a break from his studies, he would actively seek me out and chat. He was the only person who had shown me any sort of kindness. Even including my teachers. They cared like a teacher should, but the quiet kid at the back of the class always gets forgotten about when there are ten other kids running wild around the room.

"Anyway, I developed a crush on him. He was the only person who had noticed me and I latched onto it."

"Ah," Rebecca commented simply, with a knowing tone.

Riza nodded. "It wasn't a healthy attachment. The day of his last session was the day I met you."

"Well," Rebecca commented after a moment's thought. "I'm kind of glad he left, otherwise I probably wouldn't have met you." Rebecca smiled warmly at her friend, who returned it. Riza knew Rebecca meant nothing by it.

"Me too. I didn't latch onto you like I did with him. I didn't want to be crushed again." Riza snorted without humour. "Pathetic huh?"

"No, understandable."

"Anyway, it worked out for the best because I developed a healthy friendship with you. I also got you into this mess, but I try not to dwell on that fact too much." Rebecca nudged her again, this time harder. The pair laughed softly.

"Seeing him yesterday, I mean, properly seeing him, brought back all those childish feelings and I couldn't stop it. I hated it."

"He is attractive though," Rebecca commented, trying to fish for information.

Riza just looked at her, raising a knowing eyebrow.

"He is though."

Riza sighed, and smiled. Rebecca could be relentless sometimes. "Yes, he is."

"Too bad he opened his mouth."

Riza laughed aloud. "I though the exact same."

"At least we are on the same page. He's not my type. Too much showing off. No one likes a smarmy prick."

Riza snorted. "Neither do I."

The pair sat in silence for a few moments as they processed their discussion.

"We should take turns doing a patrol around the house," Rebecca suggested. "We don't want any unexpected transformations."

Riza nodded in agreement. "If he does remember very quickly then we don't want him trying it out without help. That's a good idea."

"I'll take first watch tonight," Rebecca offered. "You'll need to rest after that run."

Riza turned her gaze towards the brunette. She knew well enough that recovery was unnecessary. "Rebecca, I'm fine."

"I know, I just want first watch. I love being a wolf at night," she added wistfully, then grinned.

"All right then," Riza agreed with a smile at her friend's antics. "Just give me a shout if you need a swap."

"Will do partner. I'm going to get some sleep."

Riza marvelled at Rebecca's ability to sleep at any time of day. Riza wished she had that ability. Sleep always alluded her until nightfall. She simply could not shut off her mind. Riza tidied up the beer cans and collected her book from her room. By the time she had returned to in front of the fire she could hear Rebecca snoring gently from the other room. Shaking her head fondly, she dove into her book.