I own nothing but the OCs I've created...but I wouldn't mind owning the Sons of Ipswich.

"You know," Burko said as he leaned around the bookcase he was perusing to look at his sister, "he's still watching out for you."

Ridley placed the book she was holding back in its place. She was looking for something in particular. "Too bad, so sad. He's the one who can't commit."

"Yeah, but he's the one who gets to watch you die again," Burko replied, adding hastily, "I mean, if things don't go our way."

"I would care, but I can't," Ridley sighed, pulling out another well worn tome from the dustier stacks near the top, "I don't have time to care. I have the talent show to finish up arranging, midterms that need to be passed, essays that need to be written, and impending doom I need to avoid. I've just now gotten over the fact that my life right up until Adam was completely fabricated. I'm still having trouble sorting out which memories are real and which ones aren't. Hell, I don't even know if what happened between me and Reid was ever real."

Burko studied his sister for a moment, brow furrowing in concern. "Is that why you're letting him walk away? You don't think it was real?"

"Maybe," she said finally, looking around the large bookcases. "It felt real. But it didn't feel...right. It felt like we were pushing toward something that wasn't there yet-more my fault than his, I guess. But I remember thinking that even if it wasn't real, it was the one thing I wanted more than anything. Even when I was miserable with him, I was happier than when I was without him."

Burko stepped forward and put his hands on her shoulders. "Ridley, sometimes I think nothing is ever right because it's not supposed to be right. It just is, things just happen to be this way. Us being wolves, might not be right. The guys having powers might not be right. But it still is. And it's what we do with it that makes it right."

Ridley nodded her head and gave him a small smile. "You always were the smarter one." Her smile dropped as she continued, "But I think maybe, he was never supposed to wait for me." Ridley could feel the tears as they began to pool in her eyes. "I want him more than anything and I love him so much that it feels like I'm is being ripped apart, but I want him to have a life. I want him to be with someone who isn't going to put him in constant danger, someone who doesn't have an expiration date. I want him to be happy and I don't think he can have that with me."

"Who's to say he can't," Burko questioned, "say you do die and he does move on. Who's to say she'll feel the same way about him that you do? Who's to say she'll love him enough to put him before herself? Who's to say she's worthy of living your life? Because that's what you're suggesting. I can hear it in your voice. You're talking about giving up."

"It's too much!"

"And it always will be," Burko hissed back, ignoring the tears that streaked down her face. "Life is the war we wage with death. It's why we fight each day to live it to the fullest. If we don't, it's gone and there's nothing left to look forward to. There's no laughter, no tears, no yelling, no fighting, no pain. There's just nothing. And even the pain is better than the nothing. And you know it."

They stood in silence together. Ridley looked down at the floor. "I'll fight. I'll live. But once it's over, I'm leaving."

"Ridley-"

"No, Burko," she interrupted, "I need you to listen to me. I'll live. I'll make it through. I always do. But once it's finished, once this whole thing is over, I'm gone. And I'm not leaving because I'm scared or because I can't deal. I'm leaving because it's what's best. With me gone, things around here will calm down and people can live normal lives. The way they should."

"Your crystal ball tell you that," he asked heatedly, "because unless you can see the future, too, I have to say I think you're going a little too far with this."

"Besides," Ridley muttered, continuing as if her brother hadn't just spoken, "Reid will be fine." She steadied herself with a deep breath and plastered a smile smile on her face that she hoped was both reassuring and content. "I mean, I'm sure he'll find someone."

"I don't know," Burko responded skeptically, "I don't think you realize the effect you had on him. Guys aren't like girls, Rid. When they fall for someone, they fall hard and sometimes, they don't get back up."

"I hate my life and I want to die," Reid groaned as he fell back on his bed. "Seriously, I have to be the stupidest person in the world. I can see it now: 'Here lies Reid Garwin, whose decision making skills led him to this hole in the ground'."

Tyler looked up from his place at his desk and shot Reid a look. "I don't think your mother will put that on your tombstone."

Reid sat up slightly to look at him. "But you think I'm gonna die young? Thanks for the vote of confidence."

"As you said before, you are the stupidest person in the world," Tyler replied absently as he continued his homework dutifully, "I mean, you had the girl of your dreams-"

"-I didn't know she was until-"

"-and you totally treat her like dirt. Then you mope around about not having her, which leads to you antagonizing her by sleeping with her sister-"

"-I was confused and she wasn't giving me the time of day-"

"-then when you finally do get her back, you find out you have to actually fight for her to keep her, and you chicken out and bail-"

"Hey," Reid snapped, "I did not chicken out!"

"Yeah, you did," Tyler argued back, "it's what you do every time you actually have to work for something. You dropped Art once you found out you had to actually make something in that class and you only had to complete one project. How is that not chickening out?"

"I'm not very artistic," Reid mumbled grumpily. "And do you blame me? This whole thing with her is a lot to handle. She's a werewolf, Tyler. Borderline bestiality!"

"Unless you fuck her while she's an actual wolf, I don't think it counts as such...and right now, you're just trying to justify fucking up."

"Oh, so, you're saying you'd have gone through with it," Reid shot back challengingly. Tyler set his pen down and turned around in his chair completely to level his serious gaze on his roommate. "If she'd picked me? Yeah, I would have." They stared at one another in silence; Reid was too shocked to speak. Tyler turned back around and hunched over his desk, a clear sign he was finished talking about the subject, "everything that girl has ever done, has been about you or for you or to get over you. In some small way, it's always been about you. And you don't deserve any of it."

"But-"

"Reid, I can't talk about this with you," Tyler said in a dangerously low voice, pausing as he spoke, "talking about this with you, only makes me hate you."

"Tyler," Reid began slowly, gauging his friend's reaction. Tyler inclined his head to the side, indicating he was indeed listening. "I'm really sorry."

"If you were really sorry, you'd grow a pair," Tyler snapped, "you'd stop dicking around, get your shit together, and fix things instead of making them worse. This whole mess is ruining everyone's lives. Pogue and Kate are fighting, Caleb's about to have an aneurysm from all the stress he's under trying to figure out how in hell we're supposed to help Ridley, which is in turn stressing Sarah out so much her hair's starting to fall out, eight of the new students have been suspended for having a brawl-a fucking brawl- in the cafeteria, Martin's dead, Nicky's thinking about closing up shop and moving to St. Tropez, Aaron got jumped in the school parking lot a couple nights ago, and what are you doing? Sitting on your ass bitching about how everyone else's life and death problems are inconveniencing you. Grow up!"

"But I don't know what to do!"

"Whatever it takes. Same with everything else in life." Tyler gathered his books and started toward the door. "I'll be in the library."

Ridley had never had so much fun at Nicky's in her entire life. She'd met some girl named Mona. She had the greenest eyes Ridley had ever seen and her hair reminded her of sunlight. She smelled...different, as well. But what was so fun about Mona was her friend, or whatever he was, Cyrus, simply because in many ways, he reminded her of Reid. He was predatory in his actions and he was always smirking. And when he spoke, it was solely to get a reaction out of Mona; whether it was positive or negative. It didn't help that he had the same flaxen hair color and pale complexion as Reid either. His amber eyes were every bit as entrancing.

She didn't understand how Mona could bear to look into them without being completely captivated, but Mona acted for all the world as if she wanted absolutely nothing to do with him. She acted as if he appalled her on every level possible. Cyrus responded in much the same way half the time, making sure to throw every conceivable barb possible at the poor girl, who took his stinging comments with ease. It was apparent that they had known one another for quite some time.

What was so remarkable about the two, was the incredible amount of tension that sizzled between them. It was as if they were magnets, drawn to one another through supernatural force rather than mutual attraction. It seemed that Cyrus was more aware of the fact than Mona. Cyrus spent much of the time at a table far enough away from the crowd that he could drink himself into a stupor with a modicum of peace while he watched Mona dance on the small dance floor like a wild-woman. It didn't escape Ridley's attention that every so often he would tilt his head to the side and study her with some knowingly affectionate smile.

What puzzled her about Cyrus was the way he smelled. He smelled strange. Death and life all wrapped up in one singular package. It was as if the two had merged into his being and she couldn't figure it out. Pogue and Aaron had wasted no time in warning her away from him; he was trouble. Ridley had to agree. He was trouble. She'd caught the two fighting behind Nicky's earlier in the evening. Mona had called him an uber creep and he'd called her a tarted up tease devoid of any intelligible thought. Mona had promptly punched him in the jaw and he'd slammed her into the wall. There had been something about the heat in the argument that had stopped Ridley from interfering. All the pain they inflicted on one another-both emotional and physical-had seemed superficial. It was like watching two wary animals circle each other in some strange mating ritual that the wolf in her simply did not understand.

What was even more fascinating was Caleb's response to the pair. The moment they'd stepped into Nicky's Caleb had withdrawn from everyone. He'd eyed Cyrus whenever the blond was within eyesight and he outright stared at Mona as if he knew her. But he'd mentioned never having met her before. Ridley believed him. He was the most honest individual she'd ever met. But it didn't explain the faint hum she felt that flowed between him and Mona constantly. They never spoke to one another, but Ridley could feel it and she could tell by the murderous look on Cyrus' face whenever he made eye contact with Caleb, that he was aware of it as well. It was clear that Cyrus wanted nothing to do with the Ipswich crowd; he was merely there for Mona's sake.

Ridley was so enthralled with the three's interactions (or lack there of) with one another, that it completely overshadowed her own battles with what she was becoming. It was the perfect distraction from the catastrophe that was her life and she loved it. And it was clear to her that some of the other wolves who had migrated to Ipswich were just as interested as her, though some of their reactions to the newest members of Ipswich were less welcoming. But for now, the pressure was off and she wasn't being goaded into choosing a mate. While it wasn't exactly healthy for her to be stalking some random couple she'd spotted at Nicky's, it seemed a lot more healthy than drowning her sorrows in vodka.

But it also kept her wolf fixated in a less than comforting way. At first, she had assumed it was because they were such an oddity in Ipswich. Cyrus embodied violence, destruction, mayhem. He was chaos. There was something beautiful and methodic about him. And Mona was both his contrast and complement, which confused her. Mona was soft, innocent in her approach. She was tactless, yet kind. She was neat and confident and smart and witty and caring. Still, there was something there that Ridley could sense. It crawled and slithered under the girl's skin. There were shadows in her that spoke of suffering and horror and Ridley wanted to bathe in them.

Ridley was pulled from her musings when she someone plopped a beer down in front of her and then lit her cigarette. She raised an eyebrow as Cyrus settled on the stool next to her. He half grinned half smirked at her. "I thought you could use the company. It seems your guard dogs have both run off. Thought you might want a bit of company." He leaned in closer. "What with you burning holes in the side of my head and whatnot."

Ridley was surprised at the mild blush that suffused her cheeks. "I'm sorry. It's just that newcomers tend to be the most interesting thing here."

"Really," he asked, smirking, "in what way?"

Realizing it would sound more than a little weird if she were to admit that the way they smelled kept her up half the night trying to figure out what it was, she wisely chose to conceal the fact. "Well, Ipswich is usually boring and I like having something new to look at." She looked up at him slyly, the mischief alight in her eyes. "And I've never met an Englishman before you."

"Really," he asked, feigning surprise, "I'm the first one you've run across?"

When she nodded and laughed a little, he leaned closer. "Well, isn't that something."

"I would say so," she replied, taking a sip from her beer. She wrinkled her nose at the fumes it put off. Cyrus caught her expression and smiled. Something about the way he looked at her just then told her that he found her reaction almost endearing. "Not one for alcohol I see."

She shot him a wry smile. "Just beer."

"Don't drink it."

"And pass up a free drink," she asked, "not on your life, Buddy."

He grinned largely at that, almost as if there was something in her words that he found highly comical. "Then drink up. The night's young and it looks like you could use a bit of fun."

Their conversation was easy and it took Ridley several minutes to realize Mona had long disappeared, which she found quite odd. But Cyrus seemed oblivious. She told him about Spensers and Ipswich and Burko and Reid. He talked about New York City and some little town in Delaware he'd been to recently that he had been 'stuck' in for several weeks. Cyrus was worldly. He'd been to several different countries. There was a deep restlessness about him that Ridley could sense and it was tinged with newly present pain and grief, as if some recent tragedy had aggravated his restlessness further.

It was late when the two left Nicky's, choosing to travel together rather than alone. Ridley hadn't exactly been keen on the idea of being escorted home by both Pogue and Aaron yet again. She had wolf in her now; she could handle anything.

When Cyrus had asked if she'd like to leave with him, Ridley didn't even stop to think about it. She slid right off the bar stool and up to Cyrus' side, ignoring the curious yet penetrating stare he tried to pin her with. As they stepped out into the cold, he handed her a flask. Ridley sniffed at it. Satisfied that it was merely alcohol-which had not been drugged-she took a sip, letting the beverage burn its way down her throat to settle in her stomach. By the time they'd reached what she assumed was the car, she'd downed the entire contents of the flask and her vision was fuzzy at the edges. Her skin was on fire and everything tingled. She felt good.

It felt as though the feeling was ripped away a moment later. Everything felt hard and cool and Ridley fought to push herself up. The cold was staring to get to her and she felt highly exposed. As her eyes focused, Ridley realized something. She was completely naked. "Aw, shit," she grumbled as she sat up fully and gripped her head in her hands. She tried to look around herself and felt the motion hurt her head a little too much. Covering her face with both hands, Ridley whined out, "Pogue and Aaron are going to kill me."

Feeling something brush against her naked thigh, Ridley jumped slightly and slowly turned. She was not prepared for the sight that greeted her. Ridley stared slack-jawed at Cyrus, who was both sprawled out under the same blanket as herself. And he looked pretty naked as well. Ridley lifted the blanket the slightest bit and then dropped it when her suspicions were confirmed. She blushed crimson when she realized that if the two of them were naked, sprawled out all over one another, then that meant one thing. Ridley squeaked in horror and whipped back around.

What the hell is wrong with me, she screamed at herself mentally as she tried to figure out a way to escape her current situation, why can't I ever just keep my legs closed?

"You know," a masculine voice said behind her, causing her to cringe, "I've been with all sorts of creepy-crawlies in my time."

Ridley turned to look at Cyrus. He sat up and pulled his discarded pair of pants over to himself, rooting around in one of the pockets for his lighter. He lit the cigarette dangling from his lips and smirked at her. "But you're the first werewolf I've ever tangled with." Her jaw had dropped again. Cyrus tilted his head to the side and grinned at her. "What? You thought I didn't know? Please, I sniffed you out immediately."

Ridley jumped up quickly and began pulling on her clothes as fast as possible. He looked at her pointedly then. "Which wasn't easy considering this town is positively crawling with the furry little wankers."

Ridley squinted at him and pursed her lips in aggravation, arms crossed against her chest. "Unbelievable. Definitely should have stayed at Nicky's."

"What? So you could get pawed by some lowlife beta with delusions of grandeur," he scoffed, holding the cigarette out toward her. She shook her head and he shrugged, taking another drag. "I did you a favor."

"Of course you did," Ridley spat back caustically, "because getting a girl liquored up so you can have your way with her is definitely on par with the Good Samaritan."

He studied her for a moment, his expression appraising. "No wonder she likes you."

"Who?"

"You wouldn't know her," he replied evasively, waving her off. "Just someone I met a while back. Told me I needed to fix some things."

"By having sex with a total stranger," Ridley laughed disbelievingly, "or is this some weird supernatural thing? Because you people sure do heap on the vagueness."

"People are only cryptic because the truth has a way of foiling things," he responded in a tone that was far from defensive. His manner was downright matter-of-fact at the moment. "You know, you have a lot of people gunning for you and you're of better use to me alive. You're of better use to her alive. With you around, the world is different."

"How?"

He was silent for a moment, as if trying to decide whether or not he was saying too much. "Because if you're here, it changes everything."

Ridley stared back, annoyed. "Wow, the amount of information you managed to not give me just then, is astounding." She threw her hands up in the air and rolled her eyes. "I don't know why I'm even surprised!"

Cyrus watched her go as she stormed out, eyebrow raised in both annoyance and amusement. "You know, you shouldn't have done that last night," he said, finishing off his cigarette. "I don't think she remembers seeing you, though, so I suppose no harm was done. Just what did you think you were doing anyways?"

Mona sauntered over to the bed, shrugging. "What? Just because things are the way they are, doesn't mean I can't have fun. And since you won't let me go..."

Cyrus scowled up at her from his position on the bed. "You know I can't. None of it turned out right. I have to make it right."

"You know you'll only cause more problems," Mona replied, sitting on the foot of the bed. "I'm gone for a reason. They're not supposed to win for a reason. We're messing with something that's bigger than us-bigger than all of us. Altering reality, even the slightest bit, is dangerous and you know it."

"I'm doing it for you," he snarled, ripping the sheets away from his body so that he could pace the floor, "everything I do is for you!"

"You got inside where you don't belong. I don't know how you did it, but you did," he accused, pointing at her with a shaky hand, "you think I want this? You think I relish the idea of walking the earth over with your ghost trailing beside me? Taunting me, teasing me, tempting me with things I can never have?" He stopped to look at her then, his eyes murderous. "You think I like looking at you? You think I like seeing what you see in me? I hate myself because of you! I want to rip your throat out and bathe in your blood, but I can't," he kicked a chair across the darkened room, "I can't because you're already dead!"

A/N: I know that nothing has really been resolved in this chapter, and I know it's really overwhelming that I've introduced two new characters this late in the story, without really explaining what's going on. I'm vague like that, sorry. But I do answer questions my readers have. So, if you want to PM simply to ask what the hell is going on, I'd be happy to explain as best I can without giving anything away. As for the two new characters, they're there to help in a sense. All I can say, is while their intentions are less than noble they're here to stay. They will be major character in my sequel, which I am slowly working out. As I've said in a previous Author's Note, everyone will have someone by the end of the series. Getting back to the sequel, while I am indeed getting somewhere with it, I would like some input as to what I have worked out, so I'm looking for someone loyal to the covenant fandom who would be willing to to listen to all the crap I have planned and doesn't mind a few spoilers for this story being thrown in their face. If you don't like spoilers, then this probably isn't the job for you. If you do, PM me and I'll give you what I have planned out so far, which is pretty freaking out there, but I think it works.