Jessica had to help Bonnie load Scott into her Prius as Scott's hip was aching from Jessica hitting him with a pick-up truck. He needed to be rush to where he could transform into his wolf form and be kept away from mauling everyone at campus. She had only seen Lauren transform once and it had been freaking terrifying. Scott was holding on to the edges of his control, his eyes were still glowing that neon blue, and after a particularly scary growl, Bonnie knocked him out with a spell.
She had stared at her roommate in awe and surprise. It was one thing to know Bonnie was a witch and another entirely to see magic in front of her eyes. Bonnie didn't seem to be bothered and asked Jessica to drive faster. Bonnie cradled Scott's head on her lap and tried to keep her composure.
They ended up in the middle of a forest. Bonnie directed her where to go even in the darkness, their only light source the headlights of the car. They stopped in front of a large tree stump. There was a jeep parked near it with two people rushing towards them.
One was a lanky guy who opened the car door before Jessica could even fully stop the car. He demanded, "Where were you? I have been losing my mind here. Nobody was answering my texts!"
"We were a little busy, Stiles," Bonnie replied as they carried the still unconscious Scott out of the back of the Prius. "Scott got hit by a pick-up truck."
"What?" Stiles exclaimed. "Who was driving? We should sue!"
"Hi," Jessica gingerly got out of the car, following behind them. "I'm Jessica. Please don't sue me. I didn't mean to hit him."
Stiles turned back to her, eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Who are you?"
"My roommate, Jessica, from the East Coast," Bonnie answered him. "I told you about her. She's dating the vampire."
"Oh, right, the sparkle lover."
Jessica tried not to take offense but it was a close call. Stiles seemed to shrug off her existence. The other person with him was a girl of Asian descent that was holding a flashlight to guide their way. There was an opened cellar door and they carefully carried Scott down the steps. Jessica followed and saw what must've been the roots of the tree trunk above.
She questioned, "What is this place?"
"Root cellar," Bonnie explained as she and Stiles put Scott down near a wall. She reached for chains and they cuffed them around Scott's wrists and ankles. "There used to be this tree called a Nemeton, some kind of portal to the Underworld. Still has residual magic we can use to keep Scott in here till morning."
"Magical tree, holding cell, got it," Jessica nodded, taking everything in as quickly as she could. She turned to the Asian girl still holding the flashlight. "Hi. I'm Jessica. And you are?"
"I'm Kira," The girl gave a bright smile. "I went to high school with everyone…except well, you."
Stiles cut in, wrapping an arm around Kira. "And we have been dating for one year, three months, and ten days but who's counting?"
Kira went red, smiling on the ground as Stiles kissed her temple. "Not me. I'm not counting. And it's technically eleven days now."
"Where are my manners?" Stiles said. "I'm Stiles Stilinski."
Jessica stared at him in disbelief. "That's your name?"
"It's a family name."
"Are you a witch…or a werewolf too?"
"No. I'm half-Fae, half-human. Or 'fairy' as people keep calling it," he explained. "Which means I'm a walking lie detector with an iron deficiency."
"Fairy," She smiled. "No wings or fairy dust?"
"Not that kind of fairy," Stiles nudged Kira. "My girlfriend here is a fire kitsune. She's got awesome fire powers and she can transform into the cutest fox you will ever see in your life."
Kira was blushing again. "Stiles, stop."
"For a while I didn't know the fox following me around was a girl and I called her 'Todd' cause of that Disney movie The Fox and the Hound except without the sad ending," Stiles nodded, grinning. "Good times."
Scott was awake again and he let out a loud growl, his fangs showing as he began to shift. Bonnie stepped away from him quickly and ushered them out of the root cellar. They locked the cellar door behind them and stood there huddled together as Scott's screams continued. Jessica was terrified that someone would hear and call the cops.
It might've been an hour before the screams stopped, only to be replaced by growls and scratching at the cellar door. Bonnie reassured them that she used magic to seal the cellar and he wouldn't be able to get out. They stood staring at the cellar door for another minute before the cold finally got to them. Jessica helped Stiles collect wood for a bonfire and Jessica watched as Kira used her powers to light it up.
They sat around the fire and warmed themselves up. The growling and scratching at the door wasn't stopping and Bonnie didn't look away from it, facing herself away from them to keep watch. Stiles and Kira took out some blankets from the jeep and handed one each to Bonnie and Jessica while they shared a big quilt together. Jessica observed their ease with touching each other and wondered if she and Edward looked that way to others. Were they as cute?
Instead, she asked, "Is everyone in New Orleans a magical creature?"
"Nope. NOLA's a mix of magical and ordinary. You got creatures like us then you got your plain old humans," Stiles answered. "It's made growing up quite interesting."
And Jessica thought Forks was crazy. "Do you have vampires there too?"
"There's a coven. We got a bunch of treaties to keep the factions from outing or killing each other," Stiles continued, frowning. "It holds up. Most of the time."
"Most of the time?"
"Power struggles, politics, murder, all that fun stuff."
"I think we have very different definitions of 'fun'."
Stiles and Kira shared a smile and he asked, "How did a normal human girl end up dating a vampire? You don't seem like an adrenaline junkie."
"It was a small town," she replied. "And to be honest, I'm not really sure why he chose me."
Edward could wax poetic about how much he loved her but a part of her was still in disbelief that he chose her out of all the human girls in the world. If they had met in a bigger place like Palo Alto or New Orleans where he could take his pick, would he still have chosen her? If there had been more people in Forks would he even have noticed her? Were they all just a game of chance?
"Do you plan on becoming a vampire?" Kira asked. "You don't have to answer but if you're gonna date a vampire usually people want to be turned so they can be with them forever."
"We've never really talked about it."
They had plenty of things they tiptoed around and they seemed to grow as time went. Were all relationships like that? Filled of unsaid things they were afraid to bring up?
Both Stiles and Kira were able to sense that she didn't want to talk about it further and didn't ask more questions. She asked them more about growing up New Orleans and the different creatures that lived there. Aside from a vampire coven, they had a werewolf pack, a coven of witches, and a sprinkling of other odd creatures. She told them a bit about Forks and tried to be as vague about the werewolf pack, not wanting to infringe on the Quileute's privacy.
Stiles asked, "This is gonna sound weird but do they have any female werewolves?"
Her eyebrows furrowed. "Why?"
"The Council has been discussing depleting werewolf lines and they need more girls. Not enough diversity with their current gene pool and there's the whole recessive thing," Stiles paused, looking embarrassed. "Turns out the werewolf gene is recessive so if they mate with humans, less chance of a werewolf being born. And the Children of the Moon could die out in a few decades."
"And you're hoping we have some girls over at Forks just waiting to be swept off their feet and impregnated?"
Stiles' eyes widened in horror and he vehemently sputtered, "No! No! Of course not! Jesus Christ. I would never suggest that."
"What were you suggesting then?"
"That maybe they'd like to take a trip to NOLA and meet some werewolf men who I have been told are 'very dreamy'," Stiles explained. "I've always thought Derek Hale was more grumpy than dreamy but girls think he's good-looking whatever."
"Derek is quite dreamy," Kira laughed at Stiles' appalled face. "He is! And he can be nice when he wants to be. He's not that bad."
"Not that bad?" Stiles echoed. "He said he would tear my wings off!"
"You don't have wings," Bonnie pointed out, finally speaking. "And you were being annoying. You're lucky he didn't bite you."
"He wouldn't dare," Stiles scoffed and told Jessica conspiringly. "I'm kind of a big deal in the Fae realm. My grandparents were the Unseelie King and Seelie Queen. That would make me royalty and if Derek Hale even leaves a scratch on my fragile skin there will be war."
Kira rolled her eyes and shook her head in negative. "He might make Derek pay a fine but war is a bit much."
Stiles gave her a look of betrayal. "Whose side are you on?"
"Yours," Kira gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Most of the time."
Scott transformed back after sunrise. He was passed out and naked in the cellar. Bonnie woke him up and gave him the change of clothes they had in Stiles' jeep so he could get dressed. He looked exhausted as he walked out of the root cellar, leaning on Bonnie for support. Jessica followed them as they made their way to Bonnie's Prius.
"Sorry about the hitting you with my car," she said. "I hope we can be still be friends."
Scott's smile was tired but genuine. "I've had worse. And I've love to be your friend, Jessica."
"Great," She returned his smile. "I'll see you around campus?"
"See you around campus."
Scott got into the Prius as Bonnie started the car. She told Jessica she would see her later at the dorm and they drove away. Stiles had finished extinguishing the bonfire and offered her a ride back to campus. It turned out that he, Kira, and Scott were all staying at Stern Hall and they had been a bit miffed when Bonnie chose to live at FloMo.
"Bon-Bon said something about being closer to her classes but if you ask me she just wanted some space from Scott," Stiles raised his eyebrows at her. "Don't tell her I told you about they've been on and off since kindergarten. It's exhausting but they can't quit each other."
"Kindergarten?"
"It was like a movie. I know cause I was there. They looked at each other while reaching for the same pack of crayons and suddenly there were fireworks and a choir of angels singing," He cocked his head to the side, rethinking. "No choir or fireworks but there had to be soul mate magic afoot."
Kira snorted. "I didn't transfer till the second grade so I'll have to take your work for it."
"Before you, I was in perpetual third wheel land," Stiles shuddered. "Except when Caroline was…"
He abruptly stopped and Jessica looked between the two of them as they both couldn't look at each other. Feeling more an outsider than ever, she asked, "Who's Caroline?"
"She was Bonnie's best friend. Long story. She got turned into a vampire and she now lives in Italy," Stiles tried to play off the awkwardness in his jeep. "She currently works for the vampire mafia."
"Wait," Jessica said. "Vampire mafia?"
"Didn't your boyfriend tell you about them? We don't say their name cause if you say it three times they appear and take your soul," Stiles joked. "Ask him about the Volturi. It's their government though the NOLA coven does everything to avoid them."
"Why do they avoid them?"
"Because they're jerks."
Jessica remembered Carlisle explaining they had a form of government that was obsessed with control and did not like it when people researched about vampires. Edward had been terrified and distressed when she told him what she wanted to study. She didn't know how horrible this so-called 'vampire mafia' was and she needed to learn. If she ever got to researching about vampires and their immortality, they would be a big deterrent aside from her very disapproving boyfriend.
Stiles slowed the jeep as they approached her abandoned yellow Chevy. Edward was standing in front of it, holding a giant black umbrella to shield him from sun. Even with sunglasses on, she could feel his glare. Sheepishly, she said her goodbyes to Stiles and Kira and promised to hang out with them soon.
Stiles and Kira drove off and she approached Edward who with his all black attire and umbrella looked like a grieving widow at a wake. He scowled at her more and she pulled him into a hug.
"Not that I didn't miss you," she murmured. "But what are you doing here? I said I would meet you at the Dining Hall."
"You weren't answering your phone," He pulled away from her. "I was worried. I followed your scent and found your truck here. I couldn't track your scent after that and…and all I could smell was wolf."
"That would've been Scott," she admitted. "And maybe Bonnie used some magic too. I don't know. My phone died last night and I couldn't really charge it in the middle of the woods."
He raised an eyebrow at her. "What were you doing in the woods?"
"Making new friends," she answered. "And guarding a werewolf from escaping a magical cage."
He took off his sunglasses so she could see the full brunt of his exasperation. "Can you not have one normal year? You've befriended a witch, a werewolf, and from the smell of those two, they're not human either."
She shook her head. "Half-fae and a kitsune."
"Of course they are," He went and opened her car door and gestured for her to get in the passenger seat. "Let's get you some breakfast and hopefully you don't attract a wendigo on the way."
Jessica wondered if Edward was right and she was a magnet, if not for trouble than for magic or something. There she was on a Friday night at The Treehouse on campus, eating greasy cheeseburgers and hot wings with a vampire, a witch, a werewolf, a half-fae, and a kitsune. They could've been a supernatural version of a sitcom but instead of a laugh track, there were just a lot of shared looks.
With them was also the blissfully human Riley who had no idea of how weird their table was. He'd already met Bonnie's friends before in one way or another. It wasn't difficult to like Bonnie's friends who were all nice and welcoming and it felt nice to finally be with people who knew about the supernatural secret. She didn't have to be terrified of spilling secrets and putting her boyfriend and his family in danger.
She could say anything and they wouldn't find it weird because it was normal for them. And if she didn't know what they were, she would think they were just ordinary college students who talked about classes and school events. Bonnie was majoring in History, Stiles was studying Criminology to get into the FBI, Scott was a Pre-vet major, and Kira was taking up Psychology. They were college students and they also happened to be mythical creatures.
"I know this must be so annoying to answer but why Biochem?" Stiles asked. "Are you gonna be a mad scientist like Doc Oc?"
"No mechanical arms. I think that might be more Riley's expertise," She gave a look at Riley who just shrugged. "I want to study Virology and make cures and vaccines. Change the world for the better and all that jazz."
"Why Virology?" Scott asked. "You could go even into Medicine if you wanted."
She glanced at Edward who was glaring at his untouched glass of cider. "It's just what I'm into. I don't think I'd make a good doctor."
Edward snorted and his lips quirked in a smile. "Your bedside manner might need some work."
She smacked his arm. "Shut it."
Edward chuckled and turned to Kira. "Your family name is Yukimura, right? Are you related to Noshiko?"
Kira's eyes widened. "You know my mom?"
"She and my dad met some time ago near Lone Pine," he expounded. "He worked as a doctor in the area."
"Oh," The other girl's eyes widened more if that was possible. "You mean at Manzanar?"
"The internment camps?" Riley questioned. "What would your parents be doing there? Were they even born yet?"
Everybody stiffened, realizing where this conversation was going. Jessica was the first to speak. She laughed loudly and reached over and punched Riley in the arm. He winced.
"Don't be silly, Riley. They obviously meant their parents met at the nearby town," Jessica insisted. "People visit national historic sites and Edward's dad worked at Lone Pine, not at Manzanar."
She turned to Edward. "Right?"
Edward didn't miss a bit. "Of course. That's what I meant."
"Okay," Riley reached for a wing and began chewing on it. "It's a small world isn't it? Your parents met before and now you're meeting each other."
"Yeah," Jessica agreed, realizing she knew even less than she did that morning. "Small world."
Hi again. I had to take a break from writing. I was exhausted after Impossible. I might just not do daily updates for this story cause that was insane.
1. This chapter is very exposition-heavy. Stiles was very good for that. Any information on these characters will be more paced out throughout the story. Just needed the basics about them out of the way.
2. Scott, Stiles, and Kira are all from the Teen Wolf TV show. I am going to be taking liberties with that show's canon to fit into this story. Stiles was not part-fae on the show but he is here for sake of my amusement. Stiles/Kira was not canon on the show by any means but they're a couple here. I will be making references on how they got together. Scott/Kira never happened in this story. He's been in love with Bonnie since kindergarten as Stiles said.
3. Bonnie and her friends are all from New Orleans and it's a mix of Teen Wolf and The Vampire Diaries as we get mentions like Caroline Forbes and Derek Hale. Whether they appear in the story or not later is still debatable.
3. Kira's mom, Noshiko, is also a kitsune. And I took liberties with her history as she was at an internment camp for Japanese-Americans at this fictional place called Camp Oak in Teen Wolf. I relocated her story to the real life internment camps in Manzanar and this all happened during World War II where she met Carlisle.
4. The Nemeton was a big plot tool in Teen Wolf. I've relocated it near Stanford though there is one in NOLA too.
5. Vampire Mafia is from Kenny J.D. on Youtube. I wish I was as funny as her.
