"Alright, everyone settle down!" Coach Finstock called out, his eyes bulging from his sockets. It was ironic that the loudest, most energetic man was demanding everyone to settle down. Aspen slumped in her seat behind Stiles, counting the minutes till she could go home and rest. Seeing Isaac throughout the day was painful enough. She just wanted things to go back to normal. Instead, they were back to being strangers who only gambled glances at each other. Right now, during Economics, Aspen could only stare at the back of his head as he sat in the front, not looking back once.

"McCall, you mind giving us a brief review of last night's reading?"

Aspen glanced toward Scott, who had been oblivious that the class had already started.

"Uh, I didn't do the reading. Sir." Scott sat straight in his seat, Allison biting her lip as she eyed the boy worryingly. He's been avoiding her all day, hoping to learn control, but seeing as she had taken the seat behind him before Stiles could, it was nearly impossible.

"Nice work McCall. It's not like you're averaging a D in this class."

Aspen could feel the heat radiating off Scott. Quite literally, in fact. She's never experienced anything like it before. She would have realized if she could feel people's body heat but never like this. Aspen felt hotter the more she heard the heart monitor beeping in Stiles' hand. She peered over his shoulder, seeing the numbers increasing rapidly.

Coach Finstock continued to pester Scott, making the boy shift uncomfortably in his seat. If coach only knew that there was a werewolf in his classroom about to go off like a ticking timebomb. Aspen could see his leg shaking, his frustration growing. She knew she had to do something—Anything to pull coach attention away from him.

Aspen noticed a cup of coffee resting on coach's desk next to his laptop. It would be a cruel thing to do, but if it meant preventing Scott's possible episode, she did what she must.

With a deep breath, muffling out the sound of coach's insults, she narrowed her eyes toward the cup focusing all her energy on the air trailing in from the air vents above. With her hand under the desk, she flicked to the side, the cup of coffee slowly tipping over and splatting onto coach's laptop.

The unforeseen sparks made the man spin around and run toward his laptop, curses emitting from his mouth.

The beeping began to subside, and Aspen looked to Scott and smiled when she noticed Allison's hand grasping onto his from under the desk.

"It's her," Aspen whispered, staring at their hands. Stiles leaned back in his seat and tilted his head over his shoulder.

"What do you mean?" he questioned, still wondering how his heart rate suddenly decreased.

Aspen leaned forward close to Stiles' ear. "It's Allison. It only makes sense. When Scott thinks about her, he's in control. Think about it, the night of the lacrosse game, he heard her voice on the bleachers, and he calmed down. He thinks about her."

Stiles turned fully in his seat, realization coloring his features. "And she went to the lockers room that night. He didn't hurt her." he added. "she brings him back. But what about when they're together. He gets excited--"

"That's called a hormonal teenager, Stiles. It's different. I don't think she makes him weak, okay? I think she helps him control himself." Aspen smiles sweetly at the two as Allison began rubbing circles on his hand, Scott smiling at the comforting gesture. "She's like his anchor."

<•>

Aspen decided to pick up a shift at work. With Scott and Stiles getting detention for scratching someone's car and getting Scott beaten up, she didn't see why she should wait for them. Stiles was an odd teacher, but it definitely got the job done. Work would surely act as a distraction to block her mind from Isaac, who still hasn't confirmed their study session tonight.

Resting her head in her hands, Aspen's eyelids were weighed down as business was surprisingly slow for a Friday. The store was usually littering with students, some even coming in from Davenport Prep.

She would have continued with her homework, but her mind was tainted with the thought of Isaac's hands. They always seemed to be messed up in a way. He would do his best to hide it, but Aspen could see something flashing in his eyes. He wanted to speak but refrained himself like he was scared.

"Did you think you could get rid of us that easily?"

Aspen's eyes opened fully, seeing Lydia saunter past Allison as she held the door open for her. Allison saw the dumbfounded look on Aspen's face. She just couldn't seem to hide from insistent Lydia. Allison mouthed a 'sorry' with a small smile before standing in front of the counter.

"Yes, and it seemed that my ploy his foiled." Aspen sighed, earning a laugh from Lydia.

"You can't avoid it forever." Lydia chimed, spinning around and leaning back on the counter, her elbows acting as support. "I will torture you until you tell us why you don't want to go to the dance," it was like Lydia had eyes at the back of her head as Aspen opened her mouth to protest when she held a finger up to silence her, "and don't say they're not your thing June Bug. I know there's something you're not telling us."

Aspen almost choked. "Excuse me?"

Allison placed her hands on the counter, clearly hesitant to say something. "We noticed you and Isaac being a bit distant lately." she began cautiously, almost like she would receive an adverse reaction from their prying.

Aspen was almost relieved it was about that and not about her abilities.

"Oh," she murmured with a quick laugh, "yea, I don't really know what that's about. I tried talking to him today and nothing."

Lydia turned around, her smile gone, and was replaced with a frown. "Did you guys get in some sort of argument? Because I will tell Jackson and he'll handle him--"

Aspen shook her head, amused by Lydia's unexpected protective behavior. "No, no. There's no need for that. It started when he wasn't at school and after that...I don't know; he just seemed off. Like something happened that he doesn't want me to know."

"Maybe it's his home life?" Allison suggested with a shrug, but a smile quickly came to her lips, "or maybe he's realizing he likes you."

"Oh please, that's been a known since like forever, Allison." Lydia rolled her eyes. "I think the tutoring is an excuse to be around you. Creepy yet romantic."

"Or maybe he just wants to get to know her. You know, slowly."

"He's too shy to initiate anything. That's why Aspen has to be the one to do it."

"But wouldn't it be way more romantic if he made the first move?"

"Or." Aspen interrupted, the two girls finishing their dispute to face the girl behind the counter. "Let's just forget the whole thing?" she tried with a small hopeful smile, but she should have known her friends werent letting her go that easily.

"You're totally right, Aspen. Way to think about the relevant things. Like the Winter Formal." Lydia grinned widely while Allison giggled at Aspen, annoyed expression.

"I'm gonna go get cups," Aspen said flatly, making her way to the closet just behind a curtain of blue and white beads.

Lydia leaned over the counter, seeing a newly seeled piled of cups just under a shelf. "You have cups right there!" she called out.

"Oh, I know."

Aspen separated the curtain and opened the door before quickly shutting it behind her to press her back against the door. She felt cornered in a vast space. She loved her new friends dearly, but she couldn't breathe. Her hands trembling at her side, Aspen lifted them to her sight of the vision and uncurled them from the tight fist she hid behind her back while the girls were arguing.

"Oh god..." Aspen saw blood dripping again, and she quickly regretted doing that to herself. Her new abilities allowed her to heal based on the extent of the injury. She figured that out just a couple of days ago, she got a paper cut while filing and watched as the open flesh healed almost immediately in front of her eyes. Her hands would probably heal in a about a couple of minutes, but she still hated inflicting herself just to gain control.

She looked upon one of the high shelves in the closet and figured grabbing a pile of cups would make her statement more believable even though Lydia had already caught her in the lie. Aspen walked over to the shelf and reached up, her fingers brushing the plastic covering.

A hand coming from behind her to grab the cups for her made her eyes widen and scream but was quickly silenced with a hand covering her mouth. She recognized this cycle already and instantly tapped Derek's hand so he would remove it.

She spun around and narrowed her eyes at the werewolf who loved surprising her. First her bedroom and now in a closet.

"You've got to stop doing that," Aspen said, brushing hair away from her face that had fallen during her attempts to retrieve the cups.

"You're welcome," Derek said, handing her the cups.

She took them and eyed Derek suspiciously. He wasn't his usual self. Usually, he looked angry with his thick brows, but now he looked calm. Like he didn't have to stay on guard.

"What are you doing here?" Aspen asked, holding the cups close to her chest. "how did you even get in here?"

Derek sighed as his next words would pain him. "You saved me...Aspen. I could have died that night. I should have died. But you took the air from your lungs to put into mine. It was selfless, and I ow you. So I wanted to thank you."

Aspen was perplexed. Derek had days to give his thanks but decided now I would be the best time.

Aspen suddenly began to blush observing Derek's eyes staring into her own with a softness she's never witnessed. "I-i just did what anyone would have. You said you were the only one that could help Scott against the Alpha. I couldn't let his only chance of survival die."

Derek raised a brow surprised by her declining his thank you. "You know I can hear your heartbeat, right?"

"What about it?"

"You have something to say. Say it."

Aspen let her eyes drift to the shelves behind him, suddenly the room feeling smaller. "I also needed you. I need your help with my control."

"You seem controlled enough. I don't see you're eyes glowing randomly over the smallest inconvenience." Derek rolled his eyes, thinking about his fellow beta Scott.

"I found an alternative. But it's not a good one." Aspen lifted her hands and showed Derek the cuts that were still in the process of healing. Derek took her hands quickly, bringing them closer to his face to observe this.

"When did you start doing this to yourself?" Derek's tone became deeper, seeing the matter as pressing.

"I don't remember. It just became an instinct, I guess. The air comes from my hands, so it's the only way I've learned to prevent anything from happening."

Derek let go of her hands and breathed heavily. Aspen remained quiet, nibbling on her bottom lip, waiting for him to speak.

"An Elementalist," he said like it was a confession.

Aspen wasn't familiar with the word but figured it was important since he mentioned it at such a time.

"A what?" Aspen inquired.

"You're an Elementalist. It's a person who uses elemental magic. They're related to the druids but were labeled as stronger due to their independence."

Aspen's mouth was hung open. Besides werewolves, this was probably the craziest thing she's heard in her life.

"You're joking, right? Are you saying I'm a wizard or something?" Aspen asked her very hopeful.

"Stop hanging out with Stiles," Derek said before merely continuing on, "No, you idiot. You're a Wind Elementalist, which happens to be one of the strongest of the four. The main ones being Fire, Water, Earth, and Wind."

"So, I'm like an Airbender."

Derek squeezed his eyes shut, feeling an onset of a headache from the number of presumptions Aspen was making "What the hell is an Airbender?"

"Have you never seen Avatar?"

"Will you shut up and let me finish?"

Aspen dipped her eyes down and whispered a 'sorry' before nodding for him to continue.

"A Wind Elementalist may be one of the most powerful of the elements. You can bring warmth in the air around you as well as freeze it to your liking. You can make things fly, direct air into people's lungs..." Derek paused, "Then there's the dangerous part. Of course, you wouldn't be able to do this until you strong enough."

"What is it?" If Aspen was to embrace her new power, she had to know every detail. Hurting anyone, especially the people she loved, scared her more than anything. Though air seemed so delicate, it was also capable of harm.

"You could conjure lightning, blast people into the sky, slice through skin effectively killing them. Strip air from one's lungs. Tornadoes--"

"I don't want to do that stuff. If it's dangerous, I won't." Aspen shook her head, just the thought of it sends a shiver up her spine.

"You can't say never."

"And why not?"

"because I can promise you there will come a time when you need to protect yourself, and Scott won't be around to help."

Aspen fell silent, her eyes looming down toward her shoes. Now she understood why Derek withheld this information for so long. It was a lot to take in, and the internet was not likely to give her the answers she wanted. She wanted to belive her abilities were quaint and innocent, but she should have known wind was the cause of many tragedies in the world. The fact that it was possible for someone to hold such power on their fingertip terrified her.

"If you can learn to control your abilities and learn how to use them properly, you could prevent them from hurting the ones you love," Derek said softly.

Aspen met his vision once again. "And you'll help me?"

Derek opened his mouth to answer when he suddenly furrowed his brows, his stern demeanor presenting itself. He inched closer toward the door before his eyes suddenly widened.

"She's here," he mumbled loud enough for Aspen to catch on.

"She? Who's she?" Aspen questioned. She didn't get an answer as Derek grabbed her arm and pulled her closer to him.

"You'll know once you're out there. Sound normal. I was never here."

Before she could protest, Aspen was thrown out of the closet, her shoes making an odd noise on the white tile. She stared at the door for a moment before clutching the cup and turning to the counter to see Lydia and Allison still standing in their spots.

Noting her approach, Allison looked up with a quirked brow.

"Took you long enough." she laughed.

"Yea, they were a pain to find." Aspen quickly with a short laugh, setting the cups under the counter.

Suddenly, Lydia was throwing her hands up and waving somebody over who has been waiting in line to order.

"Oh, look a curious onlooker who has no remote interest in the matter, the perfect fourth opinion." Lydia was grinning proudly, and Aspen looked up to find a gorgeous woman with light eyes, fairly tanned skin and blonde hair strutting over to them

A bright white smiled presented itself on her lips as the woman spotted Allison, pulling the girl into a tight hug from behind.

"Well, if it isn't my gorgeous niece with her equally gorgeous friends that she has rudely decided not to introduce me to." The woman teased, pinching Allison's side, emitting a giggle from the raven-haired girl.

Oh, Aspen thought, that woman.

An Argent.

"Kate, this is Lydia Martin and Aspen Veata." Allison smiled proudly at her new friends as she glanced over her shoulder to see her aunt nodding toward the girls.

"It is great to meet you two. Allison won't shut up about you guys." Kate shook her head toward her niece before catching Aspen staring eyes. "Veata. That sounds familiar--...oh Chris told me about you. Yea yea you're Beckom and Julia's kid, right?"

Aspen nodded, pursing her lips awkwardly.

"I heard about their passing. I am so sorry. They were good friends of ours. Realy great people."

"Thank you..." Aspen wasn't sure what to call her, but Kate only cooed at how adorable Aspen looked in her embarrassed state.

"You can call me Kate, sweetie." Kate winked then faced Lydia, "So what did you need me for Miss Lydia."

Lydia sighed, relieved they had finally finished their conversation before clasped her hands with excitement. "Well, our little Aspen here doesn't want to go to the Winter Formal for reasons that are beyond us, and we need a fourth opinion on why she shouldn't miss this opportunity and just go."

Kate laughed at this silly dispute and leaned on the counter with her hand at her hip. She sized Aspen up with her eyes, her tongue pushing against the inside of her cheek.

"You're a pretty girl. I don't see why a guy wouldn't wanna take you." Kate shrugged, earning a nod of agreement from both Allison and Lydia.

"Well, she does have a guy, but they're just friends. Even so, I don't think it would hurt just to go with him." Allison said, her tone sounding pressuring.

"I say just go for it, girl. You're young. If he wanted to be an ass and risk losing you, that's his sown fault. Besides, no one says you need a man to have a good time?"

Aspen didn't respond, not feeling comfortable with spilling her heart out with the woman who plans on killing all the werewolves in Beacon Hills. Aspen nodded politely, something flashing in Kate's eyes as her gaze lingered on the Elementalist.