neighbours

Summer had come and gone and Scott’s had been a fairly busy one. Between spending time with his family and friends when he could, doing the reading he had been set over the summer for his classes and working at the animal clinic his life had been keeping him pretty busy but he knew that that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. Scott had always preferred keeping busy when he could and it helped him keep his mind off of everything else that was going on. It wasn’t that long ago that he’d had to bite Hayden to save her after she was targeted by someone who wanted to kill her and claim the bounty on her head and he’d had to do the same for Jasper as well. Scott could still remember how scary becoming a werewolf was at first and he knew that he would have been lost without Stiles and Derek by his side. He hadn’t bitten that many people and each time he did it was only ever to save their lives rather than to build his pack up or to gain more power and with each one he did his best to help them as much as he could.

Outside of the full moons it had been a while since he had last seen a few of them, though, and that was something that he desperately needed to change but that was often easier said than done. That day his last class had just come to an end and he didn’t have work that evening so he was finally free for a while and after hearing his name he turned to find Jasper jogging towards him. “Hey,” he said, offering the younger boy a smile. The two of them had met through their joint connection to Hayden but Scott now considered the guy to be a friend and that wasn’t going to change. “It has been a while,” he agreed before laughing as Jasper asked if he had been hiding from everyone. “No I haven’t, I’ve just had a few things keeping me busy,” he chuckled. “How are you doing?”

JASPER ROMERO

Scott’s group of friends had grown a lot bigger than he had thought that it would when he and his friends left Beacon Hills but the truth was that he wouldn’t have it any other way. He hadn’t known Liam or Hayden too well back then but he had been able to get to know them while they were all living in Mystic Falls and he knew that he had found some good friends in the two of them. Add Riley, Jasper, Stefan, Ben and everyone else to the mix as well and he knew that he was really lucky. There was always something going on in Mystic Falls it seemed but no matter what they found themselves up against they always ended up facing it together and he knew that that was just as it should be. They were so much stronger when they were together and considering that he had tried going it alone in the past only to end up making a mistake that resulted in his friends getting hurt he knew better than to do that again. This time whatever life threw their way he knew better than to try and shut them out again.

Unfortunately lately he’d had quite a lot that he was juggling so he hadn’t seen as much of Jasper lately as he would have liked. Scott had been there to help Liam and Hayden after he bit the two of them and he had taught them as much as he could about anchors and everything else that they needed to know. Had Jasper not had the two of them then Scott knew that he would have made a point of being there for him that much more but he knew that Jasper and Hayden had a lot that they needed to work through so it had seemed like it was for the best to give them some space for a while although Scott was still there for all of them during every full moon. Lately he seemed to have been juggling quite a lot though so it felt like it had been a while since he’d last had some free time in which to just hang out with his friends and if he was honest he’d missed it. “Work, school, lacrosse, you know how it gets,” Scott shrugged, a smile working its way across his face as he looked over at the younger boy. “Don’t worry about the full moons, you’re doing great and I promise they’ll get easier,” Scott assured him. His first few were really difficult but after that they’d started getting easier and he knew that it would be the same way for Jasper as well. He had been through a lot but he was a tough kid and Scott knew that the boy could handle it. His next words were enough to make Scott laugh. “I think she always wants to help but there are some things that we all have to figure out on our own,” he chuckled. It had been that way for him a few times over the last few years and it had been the same for Liam and Hayden as well. Some of it really was just trial and error and he knew that Jasper would figure it all out in time. As Jasper spoke again, Scott shook his head. “You don’t owe me anything. You’re my friend and you’re Hayden’s family, I didn’t know if it would work for you as well but I had to try.”

JASPER ROMERO

Scott hadn’t thought that he would end up making one beta when he got to Mystic Falls let alone four but that was exactly what had happened. Deaton had warned him that his true alpha status could only be taken by a beta of his own making so he knew that he needed to be careful but the truth was that he trusted all of them. He’d bitten Liam, Hayden and Jasper to save their lives because there hadn’t been any other choice in the matter and Derek, well, the guy had become a brother to him after he was bitten. He knew that he could trust all of them and there were plenty of others in town that he could trust as well but there were also plenty that he couldn’t. There were hunters in town and plenty who wanted to take out those on the hitlist to earn some money so there were a lot of people that he needed to be careful around, that they all needed to be careful around, but they had each other’s backs and that was never going to change. The pack was a family and when a person joined then they looked out for them no matter what.

“There is. Stiles, Danny and I are all on the lacrosse team; Ben is on the soccer team and I have friends on other teams as well,” he nodded. He wasn’t sure whether there were any sports that Jasper would be interested in playing but if there was something that he liked then chances were the school had a team for it. “I think it’s the same for most majors,” he admitted. The decision for Scott had been an easy one to make as working alongside Deaton had made him realise that he wanted to train to become a veterinarian but he knew that some of his friends were still in the process of figuring things out. As Jasper said that he wasn’t too comfortable being alone during the full moon, Scott nodded. “I get that. If Hayden’s ever not around give me a call. You’re a part of this pack and we look out for each other,” he assured the boy, knowing that even if he couldn’t be there for Jasper himself for whatever reason then he would make sure that one of the others was. “You don’t need to but I remember how stubborn you are,” he teased. “I had to try, I never would have been able to look Hayden in the eye again if I hadn’t done everything I could to help you,” he added.

JASPER ROMERO

"Depends on who you ask. I have friends who play football and basketball too," Scott chuckled. Lacrosse had always been the only sport for him because it was the most popular one in Beacon Hills but he knew that it wasn't the same for everyone. Most of his friends from Beacon Hills played lacrosse but Ben and Hayden liked soccer while Stefan and Matt liked football and there were others as well. "What sports have you tried?" he asked, not sure whether Jasper had had the chance to try any others or whether he had just stuck with one. In the past Scott had found himself limited by his asthma but even though he no longer had to worry about that he still liked to stick with what he knew especially since Stiles, Liam and Danny were all on the team too. "It can get really competitive but I love it," he admitted. "Have you tried talking to Hayden about the memories?" he added, knowing that was the only way Jasper was going to find out the truth either way. "That just goes way over my head," Scott chuckled as Jasper mentioned coding. "I'm majoring in veterinary medicine. I worked at the clinic back in Beacon Hills and I realised I want to become a vet too," he explained. "How about you, do you know what you want to do yet?"

So much had changed since they had all arrived in Mystic Falls and Jasper becoming a real werewolf was the latest in a long list. Scott knew that Jasper had already gone through becoming a chimera and that couldn't have been easy if what Hayden had gone through with it was anything to go by but this was different and Scott knew that he didn't want Jasper going through it on his own. "I'm sure they wouldn't mind you joining them but if you would rather not just let me know," he offered. Scott sometimes spent the full moon with different members of the pack including Hayden and Liam sometimes but he wasn't sure that Jasper would want to risk being a third wheel. "That's not what you said before," he teased. "Have you managed to find an anchor yet?"

JASPER ROMERO

Scott couldn’t help but feel bad for Jasper as the boy explained what his life had been like. He couldn’t even begin to imagine what it must have been like for him and not for the first time Scott found himself feeling like he was lucky that his mom had always been there for him. His dad had never really been in the picture that much but that was fine because the two of them had found their own rhythm. It wasn’t always easy but they had made it work and his mom had been great about letting both Isaac and Malia move in when they had needed somewhere as well. He really was lucky but now things were different for Jasper and he honestly hoped that the boy would start finding some stability at last as well. “At least you don’t have to worry about that now. You’re out from under their influence and you’ve got people here who would fight to keep you here if the Dread Doctors ever tried to take you away again.” Scott knew that Hayden and Val would be leading the charge if that ever happened but the truth was that he would be right there with them as well. Jasper had found his family again and Scott knew that they would all do whatever they had to in order to make sure that he wasn’t taken away again. “You’ve got all the time you need now, you could try your hand at a few different things and figure out what’s right for you,” he added. It didn’t sound like Jasper had had that luxury before but things really were different now and he hoped that the boy would make the most of it.

“I’m sure she wouldn’t mind helping you if she knew. Talking about it might help both of you,” Scott offered. He would be the first to admit that he wasn’t always very good at talking about what was bothering him but he had learned to lean on his friends when he needed to. That was something that he had learned the hard way and he didn’t want Jasper to end up making any of the mistakes that he had if he could help it. “It’s not that bad, I worked at the animal clinic in Beacon Hills and I realised becoming a vet is what I want to do,” he explained. He really did have Deaton to thank for believing that he had what it took to become a vet. “I almost wasn’t able to take the course at Whitmore because they weren’t going to offer it but a friend stepped in and compelled the Dean into changing his mind,” he added, all too aware that things could have quite easily turned out so differently. He had never actually said anything to Stefan about it but he knew that his friend was responsible and he didn’t doubt that the guy knew that both he and his friends were grateful for it. “I couldn’t do what you do, my mind doesn’t work that way,” he chuckled. Jasper sounded so much more like Danny in that respect and Stiles to an extent as well.

“I bet that must have been weird. The offer is always there if you need it,” Scott said, a smile forming on his face as he looked over at his friend. He didn’t doubt that both Hayden and Liam would have helped Jasper but at some point he was going to have to learn how to deal with it without them and Scott knew that he would help if he could. “I’m not sure that there’s really one definition that fits for everyone, an anchor is someone who keeps us tethered to our humanity and stops us from losing control,” he explained. “My anchor used to be my girlfriend Allison but after she died I had to learn to be my own anchor.”

JASPER ROMERO

Scott didn’t know what it must have been like for Jasper being ripped away from his family and used as a pawn by the Dread Doctors for so long but he had seen the devastation they could cause. Derek had been changed by them and not just physically either, these days he seemed almost obsessed with finding them and Scott couldn’t really blame him. His whole world had been turned upside down and Scott was so glad that everything had worked out in the end. It was the same for Hayden, she had been turned into a chimera and almost killed because her name had ended up on the hit list but thankfully the bite had taken and now she was a normal werewolf instead. It was her ordeal that had made him realise that he had to try with Derek and Jasper, Derek had hated what he had become and like his sister Jasper had almost died so it had seemed like the only thing he could do and thankfully it had worked. So many people had had their lives turned upside down and Scott knew that all he could do was try and protect his pack and his other friends as much as he could.

“It’s up to you. I’ll always be biased towards lacrosse but you don’t have to join any teams if you don’t want to,” Scott shrugged, knowing that the last thing he wanted was for Jasper to feel like he had to do it. Scott had always liked feeling like he was a part of something bigger, that was one of the things that had drawn him to lacrosse in the first place and he had decided to stick with it even after becoming a werewolf. If anything it had made him a better player and that was something that he wouldn’t change. As Jasper said he would probably give talking to his sisters a shot when he had the chance, Scott nodded. “I’m always here if you want to talk to someone outside of your family as well,” he offered, knowing that there were times when a bit of distance could be a good thing.

“I’ve always loved animals but my mom spent years working all the shifts she could to support us so having a pet was never an option. Working there was the next best thing,” Scott shrugged. He had learned so much from Deaton and he knew that he owed the guy a lot. “It is. He’s the reason I was able to stay here in Mystic Falls with everyone and still do what I want to do, otherwise the next college to offer the course is hours away.” Scott knew that if Stefan hadn’t compelled the Dean into offering the course he had wanted then he would have had to go for a different major or go to a completely different school and neither of those things would have made him happy so he really was grateful to his friend. As Jasper said it sounded stressful, Scott nodded. “It can be but being able to take away their pain helps and I can calm them down if they get worked up.” Being an Alpha definitely had its advantages, that was for sure. “That’s still pretty cool, at least you were able to find something to do with your time,” he offered. “You should try speaking to Danny, he’s good at that kind of stuff too.”

JASPER ROMERO

There was a time when Scott had been nothing but a benchwarmer back in Beacon Hills. His asthma had made playing difficult but after he became a werewolf, everything had changed. Playing the sport had become an outlet he had needed to get him away from everything else that was going on even if it was only for a little while and he couldn’t deny that no longer being seen as a loser had been a perk as well. It hadn’t been as easy for Stiles, the two of them had trained together for a long time to make sure that they were both worthy of a spot on the team and Scott had loved every minute of it. There were plenty of other sports on offer as well though and other clubs as well if Jasper didn’t want to try a sport so it was just a case of finding something that was the right fit for him.

“I’m sure they do, or if you wanted to try lacrosse I can get Stiles, Liam and Danny together and we can have a friendly game,” Scott suggested. “Matt and Stefan play football, Ben and Kaleb play soccer like Hayden does and Dec plays basketball so there are plenty of options.” It always amused him just how different they all were but Scott knew that was what made them all work so well together. Either way he knew that he didn’t want Jasper to feel any pressure though so it was completely up to him whether or not he wanted to give any of them a try. “There are plenty of clubs that aren’t sport related as well, I always just liked being a part of a team.” It wasn’t that different to being a part of the pack, they all looked out for each other aside from Jackson who had always had his own agenda back then. As Jasper said it was sometimes hard to talk to his sisters about everything, Scott nodded. “I think so. Stiles has been my brother since we were kids and he’s the one I’ve always gone to when I needed to talk about something but after becoming a werewolf there were certain things that it was easier to talk to Derek about,” he admitted. He had gained more brothers after becoming a werewolf and he knew that he wouldn’t have it any other way.

As Jasper asked if it was too late for a pet now, Scott couldn’t help but laugh. “I don’t think it’s ever too late for a pet,” he grinned. “Maybe when I get a place of my own I’ll get one but it’ll still be tough juggling the full moons around it,” he added. That was something that he always had to think about these days but it was getting easier. “I would. Mystic Falls has its dangers but it’s home now. Stefan didn’t tell me he’d done it, the school just called me and said they’d made a change to the curriculum and were offering the course after all. I figured out who it was later,” he explained. Stefan had done it to help him out and also so that he and Bonnie wouldn’t have to break up and Scott was grateful to him for it. His relationship with Bonnie hadn’t worked out but he was always going to be grateful for the extra time they’d been able to have together. “That’s right, most of the pack did,” he nodded as Jasper asked if Danny went to Mystic Falls High as well.

JASPER ROMERO