Earthshine

“Argent, McCall—the wall, NOW!” Finnstock yelled. It had been almost a week since Isaac had gone missing. Rowan got used to not seeing his smile in class. Allison had told her Stiles was at the station the night he’d escaped. Escaped. They made him sound like a convict, but in a way he was sort of a felon—escaping from jail anyways. They’d discovered a motive for him to kill is father: abuse. Rowan cringed at the thought. She overheard Stiles and Scott earlier talking about how his dad would lock him in a freezer.

“You have something in your hair,” a voice sounded from behind her. She turned to see Stiles preparing to pluck something from her hair. He pulled his hand back holding a small purple flower petal, just like the one she’d seen on the floor.

“What is that?” Lydia joined the two.

“Do you know where you got this?” his eyes widened slightly.

“No,” her brow furrowed. “There aren’t any flowers in my house. My aunt has allergies.”

“Yeah,” Stiles said looking down at the petal. He scrutinized the small sliver between his fingers. “Probably just picked it up somewhere.” His brow was furrowed.

“Stilinski! Erica! You’re up!” Stiles immediately snapped his head upwards. Scott was lying on his back at the base of the wall. Allison stood over him smiling down. Scott look dazed, oblivious to the fact everyone was laughing at him.

Stiles jumped up to the matt gearing up with the harness. Rowan watched as Erica hesitantly began to climb the wall. She was visibly shaky and clung to the pegs in an unnatural formation.

By the time Stiles had reached the top and began to propel back down, Erica had only made it about halfway. She remained there frozen and shaken.

“Coach you know she has epilepsy,” Allison relayed to Finnstock.

“What! Why doesn’t anyone tell me this stuff?” he panicked giving her instruction on how to propel back down. Students behind them began to snicker and mock the blond as she reached the mat. Her breathing was ragged and it was obvious she was going into a panic attack. “Everyone go change! Go on, nothing to see here.”

“Hey, we’ll help you back. It’ll be cooler in the loc-“ Allison began toward Erica.

“No! I’ll be fine. I just need a minute. Leave me alone.” She demanded turning away fro the helping girl.

The girls made their way back into the locker room. Everyone was silent.
Rowan pulled her deep burgundy shirt over her head, removing her short, black waves from the makeshift ponytail.

“Erica!” they heard the coach yell. Immediately they all went running back into the gym.

They were greeted with the site of Erica freefalling from the wall and landing simultaneously in Scott’s arms.

“Roll her on her side! Get her on her side!” Rowan yelled reaching Scott’s side. She watched as Erica struggled, seizing and jerking around. “It’s okay,” she soothed, reaching over and gripping her hand.

“How did you know?” she overheard Allison ask.

“I just… felt it,” Scot whispered, but loud enough that Rowan overhead. The pair of reflective gold eyes she’d seen the week before haunted her for a moment as she gripped Erica’s hand tighter.

Were those websites right? , she thought. The endless pages of werewolves and lycanthropy plagued her mind, and completely blinded her in the presence of Scott.

“Rowan!” Allison called snapping her out of her thoughts. She immediately looked to Erica, who she noticed was no longer in her episode. Sweat beaded against her blemished skin, and a white halo surrounded her mouth. Erica was week but grasped back at her hand. Small tears formed at her eyes before leaving a glistening trail behind them as they ran down her cheeks.

“Back the hell up you idiots! Get to class,” Finnstock yelled ushering stray students away. Paramedics made their way over to the scene, stretcher ready.

“I’m going with her.” Rowan announced.

“Are you sure? I mean, you don’t even know her…” Allison spoke softly, afraid Erica would hear.

“She needs to know someone is there.” Rowan stood aside as they lifted her into the ambulance. She quietly climbed inside. Erica’s head lolled toward her. Her lips were dry and pale; her eyes were surround by dark dewy circles.

“Why are you doing this?” she croaked.

“I’d b asking myself the same question if I wasn’t.”


“Sweetheart, go home.” Mrs. McCall spoke. “She’ll be fine. The doctor will be in momentarily.” She was tan just like Scott. They shared the same smile, too, Rowan noticed. It was their personalities that differed greatly. Scott’s mom had shown her nothing but kindness, whereas Scott—Scott she had a natural fear of. “I can have Scott come give you a ride back to you car if you need, I’m sure he’ll take any excuse to get out of school.” she began pulling her phone out.
“No, that’s alright!” she said a bit to rushed. “The school isn’t far. I was just going to walk.” The woman raised her eyebrow showing she didn’t really buy her excuse. “Thank you again Mrs. McCall.”

“Oh, please! Just call me Melissa. Haven’t been a ‘Mrs.’ In a long long long time, sweetheart.” She smiled sarcastically. “Of course, when you’re the single mother of Scott, that becomes a seemingly permanent title.” She winked before walking down the hallway.

Rowan felt the hairs prick at the nape of her neck; the same feeling she’d gotten after the volleyball match. She felt as if she were being scoped at a distance. Someone was watching her. Countless nurses and visitors passed her as she stood in the pasty hallway. The stench of antibiotic spray and cleaner burned her nose. A man sliding into a side room caught her eye. He was tall and muscular with familiar piercing eyes. His hair was dark and overall he looked rugged. His attire was dark: a black leather jacket and dark jeans.

Rowan narrowed her eyes as he slipped into the dark door way. The slight reflectiveness of his eyes made her stomach churn and her feet lurch forward.

Those eyes.

Her heartbeat jumped in her chest. The matter was so animalistic. It reminded her of a cat in an uneven ray of light; or a dog caught by the flash of a camera.

Animalistic. But it wasn’t a dog or a cat she had in mind. It was a wolf.

Without mental warning, she rushed after him into the empty room. The only light from the room emitted from a screen, which held the image of female x-rays. Tables were covered in various instruments, but there was no sign of the strange man. Before she could continue her search, a light flipped on above her.

“Excuse me miss, you don’t have the authorization to be in here.” A woman dressed in a large lab coat stood in the doorway, a nurse standing just behind her peering over her shoulder.

“Sorry, I was looking for a nurse. I thought she went this way. I’m very sorry.” She hurried an apology and sped out the door. The walls felt like they were closing in on her. Her breathing felt restricted. She walked quickly through the automatic doors at the entrance, ignoring the good-bye Ms. McCall yelled after her.

The sunlight and air hit her like a cold wave of water. Her ears felt hot above the sound of blood pulsing through them. Every instinct in her body had told her to run; and that’s what she had done.
The vibrating of her phone in her pocket seemed to jolt her into reality. Fumbling into her bag, she swiped her finger across the screen.

“Hello?”

“Hey hon! I was just calling to tell you I’m on my way into town now,” her aunt’s cheery voice sounded over the line. “Can’t wait to see you! I’ll be staying for a while this time, so you don’t have to be in a new-ish town alone. I’ll make us a nice meal when we get home, yeah?”

“That sounds great Aunt V,” she smiled against the phone in her hand. “I’m really glad your coming home.”

“Me too, Row. Me too.” She could hear the smile in her voice. “I can’t wait to hear about school. Shouldn’t you be there now?”

“I had a friend who was taken to the hospital after an epileptic episode in gym. I didn’t want her to be alone. Owen never liked to be alone.” She said, her voice now sad.

“Cheer up kiddo. I’ll see you when I get there alright?”

“Alright, Aunt V, be careful,” she ended the call and began walking the block back to the school.



“Oh my god, your Aunt is amazing.” Lydia exaggerated

“I’m seeing the similarities between you two,” Rowan laughed as the walked to lunch. The day after her aunt arrived home, Vivian had begged to meet some of Rowan’s new friends. Allison had been busy, so Rowan invited Lydia, who jumped at the offer. The three girls spent hours talking over the dinner table. Lydia and Vivian especially went on about clothes and traveling.

“I can’t believe she gave me that bag,” she froze in the hallway. “It’s Michael Kors!”

“Like she said, she get’s a ton of freebies from the labels she works with during her interviews.” Vivian worked with a support-local-artisans company who teamed up with larger companies and designers for campaign events and such.

“Can she adopt me?”

“Considering she never really wanted children and she wound up raising me, I’d say that’s a no. Although, you may be able to persuade her.” The girl’s laughed.

”Alright girls, tell anyone about this and it will be my head,” her aunt said pouring them all a small amount of red wine. Lydia’s eyes flashed towards Rowan in excitement.
Rowan couldn’t help but see the similarities between the two: both grew a shade of red hair, sported the same superior intelligence, and seemed fascinated with fashion. Maybe that’s why she had been so drawn to Lydia as a friend.

“So how’s school going?” her aunt asked excitedly sipping from the rim of her glass. “Grades, friends, boys ! I want to know it all.” Vivian had left right before Rowan returned to school. Normally Vivian would be gone for a few weeks at a time, only returning for a few days before hitting the road again. This time however it looked like she’d be staying a while longer.

“It’s good Aunt V. Grades are good, and friends,” she waved to Lydia, “as you can see are great.” The deal, upon returning to school, was that she maintained social contact and attended her monthly psychology appointments.

“No boys?” her aunt pried.

“There was one,” Lydia hummed averting her eyes upward quickly.

That night after they’d gone to sleep, she dreamt she saw him standing in the back yard at the edge of the forest. Just standing there. Tall and lean like always. Except instead of those pronounced baby blue eyes she often thought of, they were replaced with flaming ones that mimicked the low, harvest moon.

“Earth to Rowan!” Lydia called out.

Across the lunchroom Scott sat a ways from the two girls in line. Stiles ran up to the table jingling a pair of old, tattered, leather keys in front of him. The smell of the cracked leather was musty mixed with the overwhelming scents of the cafeteria.

“You think she’ll say yes?” Stiles lovingly looked after Lydia, who stood chatting in line.

“Normally I would, but she I don’t think she’ll go without her ‘best friend’.” Scott all but growled.

“What do you have against her?” Stiles folded his arms watching the two girls. “You even said you watched her house that night, and you didn’t see anything strange. Man, I think you’re the one who’s paranoid now.” Scott remained there staring at her. There was something about her that still put him on edge; there was something about her he didn’t trust. Her eyes were like those of a fortuneteller, but the human side of him didn’t care. It was the wolf side of him it bothered, and because of that, he followed his instinct.

“Dude, she’s a good girl.” Stiles tried to argue. “Not everyone here is connected to something bad.”

“I just can’t shake this feeling Stiles, I’ve never known anything like it.” He leaned closer to his best friend. “She scares me. Well- not me, the wolf side of me; but when I’m around her… I can’t explain it Stiles.” He looked back up to his friend who look blankly behind him with his jaw hanging. “Stiles?”
Stiles moved his mouth but no words came out. His brown eyes were widened and on the verge of popping out of his skull. Scott reluctantly turned to the entrance of the cafeteria where he saw Erica walking in.

“What the holy hell is that?” Lydia spat slamming her hands on the table. Rowan watched as Erica sauntered in through the doors, stealing some kids’ apple. She wore tight leather jacked over a white tank top, and a black leather mini skirt.

“Derek,” Scott growled. After sinking her teeth into the stolen bright red, Erica sashayed back out of the cafeteria, leaving everyone staggered. The boys stood from there seats chasing after her.

“Hmph.” Lydia turned on her heel leaving their table deserted. Rowan jogged after the boys, partly curious as to where Erica was going, and partially to see what interest Stiles and Scott had with her.
They boys slid around the corner to the main entrance of the school. Rowan stayed back to the large windows that gave view of the bus circle. Erica fluttered her eyes while stepping into the sleek black Camaro.

The driver was grinning back at Scott, but even hidden by dark glasses, she knew his face. He was the man from the hospital. Her face burned as she watched the car speed off with Erica as passenger.

“He’s making a pack… he’ll go after someone else. I’m sure.” She heard Scott’s voice.

“You sure? He’s already got two…isn’t that enough?” And then silence fell between the boys for a minute. “What?” she heard Stiles ask, confused.

“I think someone’s listening to us.” She heard Scott growl. Her eyes widened in disbelief.

Maybe the myths were true.

And maybe they were here in Beacon Hills.