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Lacy here! Sorry for the delay, guys. Had a ton of shit going on at home, namely taking care of my mom while she recovered from surgery. Writing wise, I'm finally on the second part of season five. Haven't seen any of that so this'll be interesting. For now, let's begin season 3B! Read on, kids!
Disclaimer: I only own Effie.
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~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~
Effie gasped awake as terrified screaming filled the house. Bolting out of bed, she ran into the hall and caught her father rushing into Stiles' room. Following quickly, she watched John grab Stiles, holding him close as he worked to wake the young man up.
Moving to climb on the bed beside her brother, Effie made soothing shushing sounds as she worked with her father to calm Stiles.
Between the two, it took no time at all for them to calm Stiles down. He relaxed into his father's hold and gripped Effie's hand tightly.
"Must have been one hell of a nightmare, kiddo." John said quietly.
Stiles let out a breathy laugh. "Yeah, you're telling me."
"Wanna try and get some more sleep?" John asked.
"Um," Stiles nodded. "sure."
Effie smiled slightly. "I'll stay with him, Dad." she turned her smile to Stiles. "It's about time I returned the favor."
"I was so hoping you'd never have to." Stiles joked.
John shook his head with a smile before hugging his kids and leaving the room. Effie settled on the bed, against the wall and watched as Stiles situated himself.
"Nemeton?" Effie whispered the question.
Stiles sighed. "Yeah, on steroids." he ran a hand over his face. "This is really starting to mess with me, Ef."
Effie reached out and squeezed his arm. "We'll go see Deaton after school tomorrow. He's gotta know something that can help."
Stiles gave a sleepy nod. "Kay,"
Effie watched Stiles drift back to sleep, only letting her own eyes close once he was completely out. With a soft sigh, she welcomed sleep back and prayed her family would sleep soundly till morning.
~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~
John knocked on Effie's door frame the next morning as she packed her bag. "Hey kiddo,"
Effie smiled. "Hey Dad,"
John stepped into the room. "Do me a favor and keep an eye on your brother today. I know he'll brush off last night as nothing but he hasn't had a nightmare that bad since-"
"Since Mom died." Effie finished. "Yeah, I remember." she pulled a denim jacket over her sleeveless dress. "I'll take care of him, promise."
John kissed Effie's forehead. "Thanks baby girl,"
Effie shook her head. "No thanks needed, there's not a lot Stiles and I wouldn't do for each other."
"I know," John acknowledged. "And I am so damn proud of that."
~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~
Stiles caught Effie watching him again as they drove to school. "Cut it out, Ef."
Effie sighed. "I'm sorry but you really freaked us out last night."
"I know," Stiles gripped the wheel. "I freaked myself out. But I really just wanna forget about it until we go see Deaton later." he looked at Effie as he parked. "Okay?"
Effie nodded. "Yeah, okay." she climbed out of the jeep. "So, heard from Cora?"
Stiles smirked. "Oh yeah, she finally got Derek to leave a couple of days ago. She told me to tell you that, once he's back in the states, he promises to get a new phone."
Effie slung her bag over her shoulder. "He better. Seriously, if it wasn't for Cora's hysterical laughter when she told us, I'd never believe he actually ran over his own cell phone."
Stiles had to laugh. "Oh it was definitely one for the ammo box once he's back. He will never hear the end of it."
Effie shook her head. "I'd-" she stopped when she saw Scott stumbling down the stairs towards him. "Stiles."
Stiles saw his best friend and rushed forward, grabbing him by the shoulder. "Hey, hey, you alright?"
Scott panted a bit, getting his breath back as he nodded shortly.
"You don't look alright, Scott." Effie stepped up to them.
"I'm okay." Scott insisted.
"No you're not." Stiles said. "It's happening to you too. You're seeing things, aren't you?"
Scott looked shocked. "How'd you know?"
Stiles went to answer as Lydia and Allison came up behind the trio.
"Because it's happening to all three of you." Lydia answered Scott's question.
Effie looked around as the bell rang. "Let's take this into the school."
"Well, well," Lydia said as she opened the double doors. "Look who's no longer the crazy one."
"We're not crazy." Allison insisted.
Lydia turned to face them. "Hallucinations? Sleep paralysis? Yeah, you guys are fine."
Scott looked between Stiles and Allison. "We did die and come back to life. That's gotta have some side effects, right?"
The bell rang again.
"We keep an eye on each other." Stiles said. "Okay? And Lydia, stop enjoying this so much."
Effie gave Lydia a look as she followed Stiles. She really was enjoying being the sane one too much. Walking into History, Effie took her usual seat at the back. Pulling out a pen and notebook, she slumped in her seat and started doodling on the cover.
"Good morning, everyone." the new teacher faced the class. "My name is Mr. Yukimura. I'll be taking over for your previous History teacher. My family and I moved here three weeks ago. I'm sure by now, you all know my daughter, Kira. Or you might not, since she's never actually mentioned anyone from school. Or brought home a friend for that matter."
Effie turned to her left as the girl beside her let her head drop loudly to her desk. She winced in sympathy as Yukimura pointed her out and she gave a shy wave.
"Don't worry," Effie leaned closer. "my dad's the sheriff so you're not alone with an embarrassing father."
Kira smiled. "Thanks, um,"
Effie held her hand out. "Effie Stilinski."
Kira shook her hand. "Thanks Effie,"
"If you want," Effie continued talking even as Mr. Yukimura started teaching. "you can hang out with me, my brother and our friends. We're kinda crazy but you learn to love it once you get to know us."
Kira smiled again with a nod. "That'd be great."
Effie returned the smile as she turned to pay attention.
~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~
John watched Effie's eyes flash lilac as he finished telling her and Stiles Agent McCall's real reason for being in Beacon Hills.
"Is she supposed to do that?" John asked his son.
Stiles shook his head. "No, not really." he moved to stand in front of Effie. "Hey, Ef, snap outta it. I'm sure you're running through about fifty different ways to kill McCall with just your claws but let's leave dealing with him to Scott, okay?"
Effie exhaled. "Okay," she blinked her eyes and they were back to hazel. "And it wasn't fifty." she shrugged. "Maybe twenty five."
John crossed his arms. "Um, what just happened?"
Effie grinned sheepishly. "Sorry Dad, I forgot you hadn't seen me like that before." she cleared her throat. "When a were creature, who hasn't learned complete control, enters a state of heightened emotion, they can lose control over their shift. An anchor, in this case Stiles, can help bring them back."
"Normally," Stiles picked up. "Derek is Effie's anchor but when he's not around or unable to help, I step in."
John gave a slow nod. "Alright," he frowned a bit. "But why were your eyes lilac? I thought your brother said,"
Effie scratched the back of her head. "You better sit down, Dad. I think it's time to fill you in on what exactly I am."
John sat heavily in his chair. "I'm not going to like this, am I?"
Stiles and Effie exchanged a look. "No idea."
~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~
Effie sat next Stiles and Scott at one of the picnic tables in the quad. Lydia, Allison and Isaac were across from them and all six had books and notebooks open, attempting to study. But the conversation always came back to what the hell was going on with three of them.
"Okay," Scott spoke up. "so what happens to a person who has a near-death experience and comes out of it seeing things?"
"And is unable to tell what's real or not." Stiles added.
"And is being haunted by demonic visions of dead relatives?" Allison threw in.
"They're all locked up," Isaac said. "because they're insane."
"Ha," Stiles said sarcastically. "Can you at least try to be helpful, please?"
"For half my childhood, I was locked in a freezer." Isaac pointed out. "So, being helpful is kind of a new thing for me."
Stiles looked at him in disbelief. "Okay, dude, are you still milking that?"
"Yeah, maybe I am still milking that."
Effie rubbed her brow and was about to snap at the two of them when Kira walked up. "Hey,"
Kira smiled. "Hi." she looked at the others. "Hi, sorry. I couldn't help overhearing what you guys were talking about. And I think I actually might know what you're talking about. There's a Tibetan word for it. It's called 'Bardo'. It literally means 'in-between state'. The state between life and death."
"And, what do they call you?" Lydia asked, a bit snidely for Effie's liking. She gave the banshee a look but was completely ignored. Shocking.
"Kira." Scott answered. Everyone looked at him. "She's in our History class."
"So," Lydia went on. "are you talking Bardo in Tibetan Buddhism or Indian?"
"Either, I guess." Kira said, sitting in the space left by Effie. "But all the stuff you guys were just saying? All that happens in Bardo. There are different progressive states where you can have hallucinations. Some you see, some you just hear. And you can be visited by peaceful and wrathful deities."
"Wrathful deities?" Isaac repeated. "And what are those?"
Kira shook her head a bit. "Like demons."
"Demons." Stiles said, a bit too upbeat. "Why not."
"Hold on," Allison spoke. "if there are different progressive states, then what's the last one?"
"Death." Kira said simply. "You die."
Death. Effie blew out a breath and exchanged looks with the others. That was not an answer they really wanted to hear.
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John shut the front door, catching sight of Effie moving around the kitchen. "Hey kid, where's your brother?"
Effie looked over her shoulder. "With Scott at Deaton's. They're trying to figure out what's going on with them and Allison."
John nodded. "So, here's a question, that might sound a little weird."
Effie gave him a look. "Dad, really? After the conversation last night, you think you can ask me something weird?"
John laughed. "Good point. How good are you at tracking scents?"
Effie set down the mug she had in her hand. "Um, I've never actually tried tracking before. Not scents, anyway."
"What does that mean?" John asked.
Effie cleared her throat. "Well, with our Sparks, Stiles and I are linked. And," she blushed a bit. "as mates, it's the same with Derek and I. I have mental, emotional, links with both of them. With most of the pack really, but theirs is the strongest."
John cocked a brow. "Mates?"
Effie shifted uncomfortably. "Yeah, mates." she cleared her throat again. "So, why do you need me to track a scent?"
John gave her a look that said the conversation wasn't over. "An old case, I was thinking maybe a scent would be able to lead us to the body of that little girl. Give the dad some closure."
"I can give it a try." Effie said honestly. "But it would be better if I had Scott with me. Our senses, speed and strength are stronger in numbers. Especially if one is an alpha."
"Alright," John grabbed his keys from his pocket. "let's go get the boys. And," he waited for Effie to turn to him. "We'll be talking about this whole 'mates' thing when we get back home."
Effie groaned. It was gonna be a long night.
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Effie didn't want to seem like a coward but she didn't feel comfortable breaking into Mr. Tate's house, even if it was to find something with Malia's scent on it so they could find her body.
She waited as calmly as she could, her eyes flitting back and forth as she kept her nose to the air. On the drive, Scott had given her a few tips on how to learn scent tracking. Focus on what felt out of place, what didn't belong.
"Ef!"
Effie whipped around as Scott and Stiles came running towards her. "You look panicked. What'd you do?"
"Dog." Stiles panted. "Big dog."
Effie pointed at Scott. "He's right there, genius."
Scott smirked. "No, an actual dog, in Mr. Tate's house. Almost got busted because of the thing."
Effie shook her head. "So, you get anything?"
"No," Scott sounded disappointed. "the dog's scent was everywhere, covering what might have been left of Malia."
Effie sighed. "Alright, let's go tell Dad."
~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~
Effie followed Scott and Stiles into the woods, near where Malia's family car crashed. "And here I thought our days of sulking in the woods, looking for dead people, were over."
Stiles smirked back at Effie. "What gave you that idea?"
Effie shrugged. "I don't know, the illusion of personal growth? Scott and I being shifters? Knowing the dangers that live in these woods?"
Scott and Stiles both laughed, causing Effie to shake her head, even as a smile broke out over her face.
"You know," Stiles changed topic. "if Dad's right, that means there's another werewolf in town that we haven't met yet."
"I know." Scott said.
"And if it turns out to be something like triplets," Stiles went on. "that form into, like, a three-headed hound of hell, I'm seriously not up for that."
"Me either." Scott admitted.
"Agreed." Effie chimed in.
"Especially since I can't even control my own transformation anymore." Scott added.
A distant howling startled Stiles, causing him to grab Scott, who then dropped his phone into a puddle.
"Sorry buddy," Stiles said sheepishly. "I hate coyotes so much. They always sound like they're mauling some tiny, helpless little animal."
"They're more afraid of you then you are of them." Effie muttered as she jumped into the ditch after Scott.
"Doubtful." Stiles retorted as he slid into the ditch. "Let me see the flashlight." Effie frowned as Stiles took the light and shined it off to their right. "I think we found it."
The three headed towards the turned over car, which had definitely seen better days.
"Uh," Scott sounded confused. "Why wouldn't they move it? Isn't it evidence?"
"Probably too much of a pain in the ass to tow out." Stiles commented. "Look at this."
They got closer to the car and saw deep claw marks gouging out the side of the doors.
"Animal claws would be closer together, right?" Effie asked. "A lot closer."
"Then it was a werewolf." Scott said quietly.
"Then Dad was right." Stiles said.
Effie shook her head. "How could there be another wolf we don't know about? I doubt they'd have gotten past Derek or Peter."
Stiles knelt on the ground, looking inside the car. "Let's not go into what Peter probably hasn't told us."
"What's that?" Scott asked, pointing to something sticking out from the seats.
Stiles reached in, pulling out a beat up babydoll. They looked it over for a moment before-
"I'm hungry."
The three screamed, startled by the sudden speech in the quiet woods.
"I think I just had a minor heart attack." Stiles deadpanned.
Effie, who was leaning her hands on her knees, gave him a look. "Trust me, you're not the only one."
A low growling filled the air suddenly, causing both shifters to look up.
"Hey, Stiles, Effie," Scott got their attention. "Please tell me you see that."
Stiles and Effie moved to Scott's side, taking in the glowing eyes. "I see it."
Before they could blink, Scott took off after the animal.
"Scott!" they called out. "Wait!"
Stiles cursed, looking around. "Why didn't you follow?"
"I'm still learning the ropes of all this." Effie pointed out. "I can't control my speed yet. And I'm not leaving you behind."
Stiles nodded. "Let's go."
~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~'~
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Always fun to end things with a slight cliff hanger. Hush, the next chapter will be up on Wednesday. Hopefully. Life, what can I say? I know you're probably missing the Derek/Effie aspect of things, but it'll be another chapter before he returns. As those who've watched the show know. For now, let me know what you think, flame policy stands and thanks for reading!
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