—
Scott's fight with the alpha, more known to the public as Derek Hale's murder spree, had caused the school to get shut down for a few days. Not only did they need to fix any damage that had been done but they also had to make sure that Derek wasn't lurking around the area.
Ryder hadn't spoke much since that night, which left the house uncomfortably silent. Even if they didn't talk, Ryder's mom would make her way to the girls room to soothe her daughter. Josie and Aaron hadn't known the man as well as they did, so they couldn't really offer their help.
She had been upset about multiple things. The main one being the death of Derek.
Ryder had known the man since she was little, having not spoken to him since she was ten. But that didn't mean she couldn't care about him.
Talia, Derek's mom, and Romona, Ryder's mom had been best friends for years. Romona knew all about the families secret of them being werewolves.
She was too loyal to the family, to the point where she was at risk the night she lost her best friend.
The Hale fire is what made Romona cut any ties she had with the Hale family. That included forcing her daughter out of a friendship she had with Cora and Derek Hale.
•••
Austin and Ryder had spent Saturday (a/n: this was the night stiles took scott the to the woods to get drunk) in the girls bedroom.
She had used her phone, much to his surprise, to call him over. He wasted little to no time rushing over to her house, only stopping to grab them some ice cream.
The pair laid in the girls bed, door slightly cracked as the spoke about whatever came to mind.
"Can I ask you something?"
Ryder sighs, "Might as well. There's nothing better to do."
"Just don't hate me." The way he started off already made her want to hate him, "How do you know Derek?"
He watched the brunette sit up straight, eyes darting to her bedroom door quickly.
The only other person in the house right now was her mother. Aaron had finally left for work, and the middle school wasn't closed, so Josie wasn't here either.
Ryder had told the story once before, obviously leaving any supernatural parts out. It was when her, Scott and Stiles were good friends. The Stilinski was a very curious twelve year old.
The only difference is that for some reason, Ryder wanted her mom to be present. Austin knew of the supernatural world, so she wanted to make sure she got every single detail correct.
"Give me a second."
•••
Romona sat in the living room area, her eyes focused on the tv in front of her. Her ears perked up at the sound of what she recognized as her daughter's footsteps.
"Mom?" Her eyes lit up at the sound of her voice, her expression turning to one of confusion at her daughters hesitant steps.
Her head tilted, Ryder knowing that meant 'what's wrong?'
"Nothing's wrong. I don't think. Uhm— Austin wants to know the story."
•••
Austin didn't want to feel uncomfortable, but unfortunately that's how he felt.
He was positioned in the middle of the couch, Romona and Ryder on either side of him.
He noticed that Romona's stare was on him, he did his best to look anywhere but into her eyes.
"Okay." Ryder cut in, her mother giving her the look, letting her know that she could tell him.
"So, basically... my moms a retired werewolf."
Romona's ears twitched at the sound of his steady heartbeat. She eyed the teen, her brows furrowing in confusion once she realized he wasn't scared of her.
Austin nodded for her to continue,
"Okay, so basically, she was best friends with Derek's mom, Lau—"
"Mmm."
"Talia, sorry." She quickly corrects, "Laura is Derek's older sister. He also had a younger sister named Cora. We were pretty close but she died in Hale house fire, along side her mother and anyone else that was there."
"Okay." Austin nodded, eyes traveling to the woman who focused on her daughter, ensuring she told the story right.
"Basically, my dads an ass."
Austin decided to voice his opinion, "I thought he was pretty nice."
"My biological dad. I don't know who he is, but he's a jerk. He left my mom before i was even born, right ma?"
The woman nods, a stank look on her face as she remembered the man. Austin chuckled at her face, earning a teasing wink in response.
"When I was around five, maybe six, (this would make Josie 2-3) my mom met Aaron, my now dad. They fell in love and got married after like four years of being together. Which is crazy in my opinion, but who am I to judge?"
"He hadn't known she was a werewolf until she accidentally cut her hand and it healed in front of him. He's a cool guy, though, so he didn't really care."
Romona smiles at the way her daughter explained things.
"Anyways... because my mom was best friends with Talia, I grew up knowing Derek, who was seven when Cora and I were born."
"Wait— You guys have the same birthday?"
"No, she's a few days younger than me."
"Oh, okay."
"Moving on..." She sighed, "Can I tell him?"
Romona gave the girl a soft smile, nodding, she trusted Austin.
"She stopped talking a few years ago, she still has her voice, she just chooses not to use it. She stopped talking after the fire happened and she lost all of her closest friends."
Austin genuinely felt bad for the woman, glancing at her with sad eyes,
"I'm so sorry."
Romona waved her hand, not really feeling much anymore.
"And I can't be around Derek because of all the memories that comes with it."
Austin nods, "That makes sense."
The mother daughter duo gave him the time to process everything.
"Okay, I have another question."
"Shoot."
"If your moms a werewolf, does that mean you're you a werewolf?"
"Oh god, no." The Miller snorts, her mom rolling her eyes fondly at the action, "Gene just didn't pass. What made it harder for it to pass was my dad being a human. I'm fine with that, though, i don't really know how i feel walking around being friends with Scott by default."