Scott avoided her the rest of the weekend and into the following week. He was gone before Sadie woke up for school and seemed to be working extra shifts with Dr. Deaton just to be out of the house. Sadie even tried to corner Stiles, but he looked like he was about to pass out every time she started towards him at school so she abandoned the idea. Googling 'werewolves' had turned up nothing realistic and Sadie chastised herself for thinking it would be that easy. She clearly wasn't the Bella Swan in this werewolf story.
It was Tuesday before she was able to corner him in the hallway after school. He'd run all the way to school in lieu of riding with her in their Mom's car, but he had to get a ride to work after school so he couldn't avoid her any longer. Sadie caught up to him in the hallway after her last class. He looked murderous and Sadie didn't think it was a good sign. She glanced over her shoulder at Allison's retreating form.
"She told you to get lost already or what?" she asked, leaning against the locker beside him as he angrily shoved his books into his backpack.
Scott slammed the locker closed, "I don't have time for this Sadie, I have somewhere I have to be."
He started towards the parking lot, trying to lose her but she was still fast, despite not being a werewolf. She caught up to him in several strides, tugging her short corduroy skirt down as she ran. Lydia gave her a wave from the passenger seat of Jackson's Porsche as it pulled out of the parking lot.
"Are you forgetting something Scotty?" she prompted as they reached their Mom's car, swinging her Mom's car keys around her finger.
Scott groaned, tugging at his hair in frustration, "Will you drive me somewhere before work? But you have to promise not to get out of the car."
She unlocked the driver door, leaning over to unlock his door. He roughly threw his backpack into the backseat, narrowly missing her face with his lacrosse stick.
"Uh, maybe not with that attitude. I'll take you, but you start talking or I'm driving you to Eichen house."
Scott info dumped on Sadie at a speed that would rival Stiles on one of his tangents. The hunter who shot him was Allison's Dad. Something about not playing in the lacrosse game. And Derek Hale, the mystery guy he'd mentioned in the car with Stiles who was also apparently a werewolf. Scott was hung up on Allison the most however, not understanding the urgency in Sadie's questions about werewolf hunters and Derek the werewolf who had threatened Scott in his room the night before. And Sadie had thought she had her priorities out of whack. All Scott cared about was Allison.
The old Camry pulled to a stop in front of the burnt remnants of the Hale house and Sadie was struck with a sense of familiarity, but couldn't place it. She didn't have time to question the thought outloud to Scott. He'd already leapt from the car and was marching up to the house.
"Derek, Derek!"
"Jesus Christ," Sadie muttered as she scrambled to unbuckle her seatbelt, reaching behind her to snag Scott's lacrosse stick. She wasn't about to go out there unarmed.
By the time she'd caught up with Scott, he wasn't alone.
Standing on the porch of the barely standing house was the most attractive guy Sadie had ever laid eyes on. This was Derek Hale?!
"Stay away from her! She doesn't know anything!" Scott shouted at him, voice deep with emotion.
"Yeah…what if she does? You think your little buddy, Stiles, can just Google werewolves and now you've got all the answers?"
The mention of werewolves snapped Sadie out of her inappropriate appreciation of the man who was menacingly approaching them. She tipped the lacrosse stick towards him, tapping it just in the center of his chest. His very strong looking chest, she noted.
"That's close enough, thanks," she snapped, scowling at him. Derek Hale looked down at the lacrosse stick, almost amused then back up to meet Sadie's eyes.
"Is there anyone you haven't told about werewolves?" he asked her brother, swatting the lacrosse stick away with one hand.
"She's my sister, I can tell her whatever I want!" Scott shouted back and Sadie nodded in agreement.
"Literally have you ever met someone with siblings? There are no secrets. Or do you just live alone in this shack scaring teenagers?" Sadie asked with an attitude, stabbing the lacrosse stick at the house behind him.
The scowl that was on Derek Hale's face deepened and he let out a noise that was almost a growl. Sadie instinctively took a backwards step, clamping a hand on Scott's arm to get him to do the same, but he didn't budge.
"I used to have siblings, a family…until hunters burned them alive!" Derek shouted, taking another step towards the pair.
"Oh fuck," Sadie breathed, still tugging on Scott's arm to no avail.
"Stop scaring her!" Scott pushed Sadie behind him, but she protested, moving back to his side.
She was the older sister. Not by very much mind you, but she still felt like she had to protect him. Even if she was scared shitless.
"I'm not trying to scare her or you. Believe it or not I'm trying to help you!"
That gave Sadie pause, she slapped an arm across Scott's chest to shut him up. He was panting with anger, staring Derek down with absolute hate.
"Help him how, exactly?" Sadie inquired.
Derek seemed startled by her question and shifted his focus to her. If he could get her to listen, then maybe Scott would listen to her.
"What happens if he shifts on the lacrosse field? In front of all your friends and family? You think those hunters that shot him are going to just let him walk around school? Live his life? No!"
Sadie's mind was a blur with questions. She didn't trust Derek Hale, but he seemed to know more about this than Scott did.
"So what now? Do I need to build him a little shack in the woods like you have and never see him again?"
Scott groaned in annoyance, "Sadie! We don't have time for this and I don't care what he thinks I should do!"
Before Sadie could tell him to shut up, he took off on foot much faster than Sadie had ever seen him run. Her jaw dropped as she watched his retreating form disappear into the trees.
"He's unable to control it."
Sadie jumped and let out a shriek of surprise. She'd all but forgotten Derek Hale standing behind her. He was less than a foot away now, green eyes staring down at her. Sadie pressed a shaking hand to her chest to try to get her breathing under control.
"Jesus Christ! Is that necessary?" she bit out, glaring up at him with all the dignity she could muster.
Derek raised an eyebrow mockingly at her, slowly raising his hands in mock surrender. "I wasn't lying. I'm not trying to scare you. It's…been awhile since I've been around humans."
"And what, you forgot how to act normal? I feel like I should be commenting on what sharp teeth you have."
Sadie's remark brought a wide smile to Derek's face and he did in fact have very sharp teeth. Her heart stuttered in her chest at how much more handsome he was when he wasn't scowling.
"All the better to eat you with my dear. Is that the line?" he replied, still smiling.
Sadie didn't know whether to be terrified or swoon. She went with the former option, realizing he very much could bite her in a not so sexy way. Her brown eyes widened, her feet automatically taking a step back from the werewolf.
"Listen, Scott was already a terrible choice to bite. I don't think I'd be much better, I have a temper and I'd probably eat half the senior class out of rage."
Derek rolled his eyes at her, still smiling. "I'm not going to bite you. I'm not the Alpha."
Her eyebrows shot up at that statement, "Alpha?"
He signed, "The one who bit Scott is an Alpha werewolf. Only an Alpha's bite can turn someone."
"So it wasn't you? There's more werewolves out there?!"
"If I was an Alpha, I probably wouldn't have picked your brother to join my pack."
Sadie snorted a laugh, "He's annoying, but he's got heart. He makes a good brother when he's not having a supernatural crisis," she paused, remembering the real reason she was still standing alone in the woods with a werewolf.
"What should we do to keep Scott safe from those hunters? What else does he need to know? What do I need to know?"
Derek looked over his shoulder at the setting sun, "How long do you have?"
"As long as you need."