Theo sighed as he took another sip of his wolvesbane laced beer, he looked over at his friends having a good time on the dancefloor and smiled sadly. Corey was holding Mason close, they smiled to each other in that secret way only two people who knew each other inside out could and Theo sometimes envied their connection but he was happy for them.
Liam was close by, dancing with a girl who had beautiful red hair which was decorated in waves and little flowers here and there to match her dress. Liam had been content to dance with his two best friends but the girl's friend had nudged her to dance with him and she shyly approached him with a gentle smile.
Corey pushed him towards her and for some reason Mason glared at his fiancé as he tried to subtly nod his head in Theo's direction. The older chimera had merely shook his head with a grin that didn't quite meet his eyes and shrugged as he took another drink, averting his eyes towards the bar.
It's been six years since the Anuke-ite incident, people had found out about werewolves and seemed to be adapting. Things weren't always easy, some people were still afraid and even if there was just a suspicion of a person being supernatural; they were at risk from attack.
Theo knew the word about himself had been spreading rapidly, if the wide berth people were giving him tonight was anything to go by and he sighed again.
About a month ago, Liam had been attacked when he was walking back to their apartment after work and Theo had happened to be driving on the road to the grocery store. The traffic was piled up even though the lights were green and he beeped his horn irritably as he could see the road was clear a few cars up but no one seemed to take any notice.
That's when he heard the frantic heartbeat he could pick up in a crowded room, Theo killed the engine and climbed out of his truck quickly. He hurried over to the sidewalk and he saw a group of about eight or nine men kicking and punching someone on the ground between them.
Theo eyed the people in their cars watching like this was some kind of show, he could see a few kids in the back of one car; a pregnant woman in another and someone frantically trying to get their phone to call the police.
The chimera recognised the pained groan coming from the injured man, Liam was trying valiantly to hold back the shift and Theo had no such qualms as he saw red.
He shifted then, a bloodcurdling howl came out of him like a warcry and he ran forward. His claws dug into one of the men's back as he grabbed him by the scruff and threw him backward. Growls escaped him like a constant scream as the rage he felt consumed him, he threw himself at the others as he punched and kicked them away from his best friend.
"Theo." Liam said weakly from the ground but the only thing he could hear was his blood pulsing through his veins. Most of the men had scattered or were lying unconscious on the ground, except for two and they were trying to surround him to get the upper hand but the chimera just couldn't keep calm.
He launched at one of them, straddling the man as he punched and roared in his face, his friend pulled him back but he turned to attack him too and let out a pained howl when he felt the knife stab into his gut.
"Was that supposed to hurt?" Theo growled and he punched the man backwards. The two men grabbed at each other in fear, pulling another one of their friends from the ground and they ran. Theo howled angrily and made to follow, his skin was darkening and he knew he was close to full shifting in his rage but his growls cut off when he felt himself being pulled back.
"Theo, that's enough!" Liam shouted, trying to get through to him. He tried to turn his head to watch for the cowards but Liam grabbed both sides of his face to get him to focus on him. "Theo, I'm okay, we're okay. You need to calm down now." He said, looking into his eyes worriedly and Theo breathed in his scent, allowing it to sooth him and his claws and fangs slowly receded. His eyes took a little longer to go back to their natural blue colour but Liam was patiently waiting with a reassuring smile.
"You look like shit." Theo remarked with a smirk but his eyes were concerned as they scanned the werewolf's injuries and Liam merely grinned tiredly.
"Says the guy with a knife sticking out of him." Liam said as his hand lightly held the hilt, looking up and asking for permission to pull it out. Theo nodded stiffly, groaning as Liam was as quick and careful as he could but it still hurt like a bitch. Liam pulled his jacket off and held it to Theo's stomach quickly to try and stem the flow of blood. "Need to get you to Deaton's."
"Yeah well, you'll be going first. I'll heal, you're entire body looks like an open wound." Theo said irritably as he pulled Liam's arm over his shoulder and helped him to his truck. After getting them into the car, he beeped his horn angrily as the light was green and the gawkers were still in place. This time they hastily sped off, probably terrified of him now and Theo really wished he had tried to control himself then.
He was paying for it now though; he was told there were videos on social media of his fight by Mason and Corey. Anyone outside of Beacon Hills dismissed it as fake or photoshop for which Theo was grateful but the fact of the matter was that the people of Beacon Hills were starting to find out about him and the rumours were spreading fast.
Theo's eyes fell on Liam again, swaying to the music with the girl and he remembered the fond look Liam had on his face when Theo was ranting at him for being so stupid and when he announced that he was going to be picking him up from work from now on.
"Hey there." A man approached, blocking his view so he was forced to look up at the guy and startling him out of his thoughts.
"Hey." Theo said quietly, drinking the last sip of his beer with a sniff and he checked his watch; considering ditching the others and going home. Corey, Liam and Theo had all agreed that they would have one wolvesbane laced beer each so they could get buzzed but if anything happened they would be okay.
"Can I buy you a drink?" The guy asked him cheerfully, eyeing him hungrily and Theo felt uncomfortable at his gaze.
"No thanks." Theo said, looking down at his phone in clear dismissal and wishing time would go faster so he could leave and be able to brush it off as tiredness and not just him being a jealous dick.
A growl almost escaped him as a hand slid up his thigh and his hand snapped down on the guy's wrist, twisting his wrist with enough force to hurt but not actually break. "Don't touch me." Theo hissed menacingly and the man held his hands out in a surrendering gesture.
"Sorry I got a bit excited there, never again without your permission." He told him softly.
"Don't hold your breath." Theo murmured quietly so the guy couldn't hear him.
"One drink, that's all I ask." He pleaded and the chimera rolled his eyes; catching a glimpse of Liam and the girl hugging when the song ended and slow dancing for the next song.
"Fine." Theo replied grudgingly, he needed more drink to get him through the night anyway. "One drink and that's it." He told him sternly and the man nodded quickly, leaning over the bar to converse with the barman and Theo's eyes strayed to the dancefloor again.
"Name's Damian by the way." The man told him as he handed over a glass of what looked like whiskey, Theo raised a brow as he accepted the drink and was careful not to let their fingers touch in doing so. He could smell wolvesbane but he couldn't tell if it was lingering from his beer or in the glass.
He took a careful sip, knowing that his friends were still at the club should anything go wrong reassured him and he smiled as it tasted good. The wolvesbane wasn't too strong so at least the guy wasn't trying to poison him, it was only when Theo downed the rest that he saw the remains of a crushed up pill at the bottom of the glass.
Damian smiled appreciatively and Theo pretended like nothing was wrong. "What's your name?" Damian asked as he watched the chimera attentively.
"Theo." He answered, looking over at his friends nervously.
"So, what do you do Theo?" The man asked conversationally as he took a sip of his own drink and smiled into his glass when Theo pulled at the collar of his shirt.
Theo started to feel hot, his wolf was pacing inside of him nervously as he tried to take steady calm breaths and keep the wolf back.
"I work in a store." He replied quickly, not wanting to give too much information away to this asshole and he looked down at his lap as he could feel his eyes burning with the need to wolf out in panic.
"What kind of store?" Damian probed lightly and Theo had had enough. His fangs were elongating without his permission, vision getting blurry and he slid himself off the chair and moved through the dancing bodies towards the familiar heartbeat he could barely make out.
"L-Liam." Theo called nervously, keeping his head down as he approached. A clawed hand gripped at Liam's shoulder as he pulled the werewolf back towards him quickly and away from the giggling girl as quickly as he could manage.
"What the hell Theo?!" Liam shouted and Theo allowed himself to peek up at the wolf.
"I...I need hel-" Theo started but Liam slapped his hand away.
"You can't do this!" The werewolf shouted angrily and Theo kept his head down so he wouldn't scare everyone in the room.
"Li-" Theo tried again but Liam was having none of it.
"No! It's not fair, you can't just go off and do whatever you want and then the minute that I try to move on you get angry." The werewolf ground out, arms folded insecurely.
Liam had been pissed at Theo for like a week now and Theo genuinely didn't know why but his brain couldn't function properly and he tried to speak again but his tongue felt too big in his mouth.
"Just go home, I'll talk to you later." Liam said, tone filled with hurt as he walked away and Theo couldn't be here any longer. The room felt too hot and the sound of blood pumping through so many bodies wasn't helping his current situation so he turned and rushed out the door as fast as he could.
He broke into a staggering run, cursing the fact he didn't bring his truck but he knew he wouldn't have been able to drive without crashing anyway and he tried to keep his eyes open as he moved. It was still quite a few blocks to the apartment he and Liam had been living in for nearly two years.
He'll try and figure out why Liam's pissed at him tomorrow when his brain clears but for now, he needed to get home without being seen.
Mason eyed the man at the bar with Theo suspiciously, the man was ordering a drink for Theo and the human member of their group tried to keep an eye on the drink but Corey had hugged him close and he got a little distracted with his fiancé's antics.
When his eyes raised back to Theo, he noticed the older chimera was avoiding the other man's eyes. Looking over at Liam every so often and Mason's heart broke a little for his friend. He watched with a worried gaze when Theo slid out of his seat and stumbled towards Liam breathlessly.
When Liam was shouting at Theo for something, the older chimera had staggered out but looked back and Mason gasped as he poked his fiancé worriedly when he noticed that he was wolfed out. Liam had turned back to the girl, face in a frown and the man at the bar was tipping the barman as he made his way towards the door with a hungry glint in his eyes.
Mason made his way over to Liam urgently, Corey following behind as he had caught onto what was happening as well and he grabbed his best friend by the arm and dragged him off the dancefloor.
"What now Mason?" Liam asked bitterly, the girl had followed them over and she watched the scene worriedly, her own best friend keeping an eye on her from a close distance.
"What did you say to Theo?" Mason asked him incredulously.
"Nothing!" Liam replied grumpily.
"Really? It sure looked like something, Theo wolfed out when he was walking out the door." Mason retorted with his arms folded like a disapproving parent.
"He was already like that when he came over. He's just acting jealous but I'm not letting it slide, he can't just go out on dates and then be mad when I meet someone else. It doesn't work that way." His best friend ranted defensively.
"Okay first of all, Theo cancelled the date." The human told his best friend irritably and Liam's head shot up. "He didn't tell you?"
"No he didn't, I asked him how it went and he said 'it went okay' and he went to his room." Liam said sadly.
"Well Mike told me he showed up and apologised because he didn't want him to feel like he was being stood up and told him he couldn't go through with it because he was in love with someone else." Mason told him matter of factly. "I thought he was going to tell you." He sighed and rolled his eyes at the sheer stupidity of his friends.
"I mean it's not like he's subtle about it." Corey commented, arm going over his fiancé's shoulders as Liam looked between them in surprise.
"Look." Mason said urgently, knowing that they were running out of time. "I think Theo's in trouble." He told his best friend, the werewolf looked at the door in a panic as if he could see Theo there and his hands were shaking slightly.
"Why do you think that?" Liam asked, barely keeping his voice steady as he tried not to jump to conclusions.
"There was a guy at the bar, he gave Theo a drink and a few minutes later he was wolfing out? He left just after Theo with a look that gave me the creeps. We need to go check on him before it's too late." Mason said quickly, Corey squeezing his fiancé closer to him with his own worry and Liam looked down guiltily.
"Is everything okay Liam?" The girl asked quietly as she had watched their interaction but hadn't heard much.
"Yeah, Sarah I'm really sorry but I have to go." He told her with a serious look, she looked hurt but she nodded softly. "It was really nice to meet you." He told her and she smiled shyly but her best friend was making her way over to her so Liam took that as his cue to hastily move out.
The trio hurried out of the club, Liam leading the way as he could smell Theo, panic and wolvesbane in the area. "This way." Liam shouted as they ran towards the older chimera's scent.
Theo kept running, growls beginning to escape as the wolf was slowly taking over the more his vision began to fade at the edges and he could feel himself slowing. He stumbled into a wall, taking deep heaving breaths and sweat was dripping from his temple.
The cool feel of the bricks soothed his heated skin for the moment but he soon pushed himself off the wall so he could try and walk the remaining blocks to their apartment. He only made it a few steps before he felt himself being slammed face first into the wall, a line of heat up his back as someone pressed against him and he growled lightly as his energy was drained.
"Theo, we hadn't finished our discussion." Damian's voice said in a lilt, heavy breaths hit the back of his neck and he shivered in fear as he felt a hand stroke over his back, down to his thighs and around as the hand slid up over his crotch.
"Get the hell off me." Theo demanded, voice a growl as the wolf had almost taken over and Damian laughed lightly as he popped the button to the chimera's jeans and slowly slid them down a little before reaching for his own pants. "I've always wanted to do this with a werewolf." He managed to pull his own jeans down before the chimera's wolf pushed more energy into his body and Theo swiped his claws backwards and dug them into the man's thigh.
"Fuck!" Damian screamed as Theo shoved himself back, knocking the man off balance so he could stagger away and Damian backhanded Theo and he fell onto the ground. Theo used the momentum so he could flip to a crouch and he howled at the man angrily.
Damian made to advance but the sound of another howl distracted him and Liam gave chase as he tried to run. Corey and Mason made their way over to Theo quickly, worry on both their faces but Theo could barely focus on anything.
He pulled his jacket off, his shirt next and he could feel his bones shifting before he could get his pants and shoes off.
"What kind of drug does that?" Corey asked warily as he quickly pulled Mason back as their friend changed into a black wolf, the gold of his eyes could barely be seen as his pupils were so large and he looked over at the two younger men.
"I don't think it's the drugs." Mason said in wonder, recognising the wolf instantly and smiling in relief. His smile promptly faded when Theo growled at them, his breaths were coming in heaving gasps and Corey instantly made them invisible to the older chimera's eyes.
The wolf looked confused for a moment, nose sniffing the air warily and he turned around to run away. Corey and Mason hurried after him, not wanting to lose him while Liam was dealing with the asshole that attacked Theo.
Liam wasn't too far away from them actually as he had easily caught up to the man and had thrown him against the wall. He howled, enraged that someone would try to hurt his pack (and someone he was a little in love with).
He wanted the man to suffer a thousand times over, he wanted him to bleed, he wanted him to die and he wanted to be the one to take the man's life. The wolf inside him howled for the bastard's blood and he held his clawed hand over the man's neck. A fanged grin appearing on his mouth in satisfaction as the man struggled and gasped for breath.
"I-I'm sorry, it won't happen again." He coughed out and Liam growled as his let go of the man's neck but grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, he reached back with his free hand and swung it into his groin, digging his claws in as the man screamed in pain.
"Be glad I don't rip it the fuck off." He growled out as he pulled his hand back and knocked the man out by punching him hard in the face. The man dropped to the ground, Liam's heart was pounding like a drum inside of his chest and he looked down in disgust barely holding himself back from killing him.
The wolf grabbed his phone and with shaking fingers he called Parrish and waited with baited breath until he heard his sleepy voice answer.
"Hello?" Jordan answered tiredly.
"Parrish, it's Liam." Liam said quietly, feeling guilty that he had awakened the hellhound.
"Liam, what's wrong?" The deputy asked worriedly, shuffling could be heard in the background as he was evidently getting out of bed.
"A man attacked Theo tonight and I caught him, he's unconscious now so can you come pick him up? If anyone asks, I wasn't here." The wolf replied vaguely.
"Sure, where?" Jordan asked as he was getting dressed. Liam filled him in on the details and thanked the deputy before hanging up. He leaned down and ripped the man's shirt and clawed in the word 'RAPIST' into his chest, knocking him out again as the man had woken up from the pain.
"You're damn right you won't do this again you bastard." Liam murmured with a self-satisfied smirk, turning away only when he heard someone approaching and he sighed in relief when Parrish turned the corner with his gun pointed.
"Liam?" Jordan asked worriedly when he noticed the blood on his hand, his eyes fell on the unconscious man leaning against the wall on the ground and his eyes darkened in understanding. "You weren't here." He said with a short nod.
"Thanks Jordan." Liam said with a small smile. "I'm gonna go after Theo now, Corey and Mason are following him. He's been drugged and he wolfed out."
"I'll warn the sheriff, just text me and let me know when you find him." The deputy told him with a friendly grin as he lifted his cuffs from his belt and cuffed the man before dragging him towards his car none too gently.
Liam grabbed Theo's clothes and shoes from the ground and followed Theo's scent; hoping his best friends would be okay as he ran as fast as he could.
The wolf-coyote hybrid kept stumbling away as fast as it could, Corey and Mason were having a hard time keeping up with it despite it staggering every so often and it seemed to be heading towards the preserve rather than the apartment he shared with Liam.
The beast froze when it caught a scent as he passed the apartment buildings; their apartment was close to the preserve and the two invisible men stopped as well as they waited for their friend to make up his mind. He took a step towards the forest but his nose was sniffing on overdrive and he turned towards the apartment buildings following his instincts that this was the right way to go.
Corey pulled Mason out of the way quickly as Theo ran past them, they followed as closely as they could without spooking the older chimera and Mason couldn't help the fond grin as Theo began scratching at the entrance door to their building.
"We need to text Liam and tell him we're at his." Mason said as he pulled out the spare key that had been given to him when they had first moved in and Corey quickly snatched them out of his hand.
"I'll unlock it, you text Liam...just in case." Corey told his fiancé warily as he approached the door and Theo moved out of the way so he could unlock it.
"Fine." Mason said fondly as he sent a quick text to his best friend and Theo hurried in, waiting for them at the elevator door. As they walked together to their apartment door, Mason froze when he heard the meow and he looked at Corey worriedly. "What about Midnight, she might freak out and Theo's not exactly himself right now." They had planned to stay tonight so they had brought their kitten with them.
"Shit." Corey agreed as the wolf-coyote hybrid huffed at them impatiently. "I'll make a grab for her and try to keep her out of reach." He said as he opened the door quickly and tried to make a grab for their 6 month old kitten but it was too quick and had went straight up to Theo. It was immediately rubbing against the older chimera and the couple looked at each other in surprise.
"You don't think?" Mason trailed off as Theo walked past them into the living area, Midnight following eagerly behind and the wolf-coyote hybrid collapsed onto the mat. The kitten launched its attack then as it hopped onto the chimera's back and began chewing on his ears lightly, he grumbled a little and the kitten moved down to settle between his front paws.
"I do think." Corey told him, lifting his phone out quickly as he began to take as many videos and photographs as he could.
"He's gonna kill you tomorrow when he's y'know, no longer on drugs." Mason told his fiancé pointedly and Corey had the decency to look guilty.
"Sorry, it's just so cute." The chameleon chimera replied as he watched the kitten meow at Theo until he rolled to his back and she hopped up onto his chest, snuggling under his neck. "Oh my god, he's trained." He squealed as he knew from experience that Midnight preferred to sleep under his neck or on his chest.
"That is adorable." Mason conceded. Theo's ears suddenly twitched and he eased himself onto his side so the kitten wouldn't suddenly fall as he pushed himself up and growled at the door. He moved in front of his friends, the kitten pressing against his back leg as his ears lowered and his growls began to increase when the key entered the lock.
Liam opened the door then, growling back loudly when he heard the howl and Theo backed off suddenly with his neck bared. He let out a whine when he smelled the blood and the kitten began to hiss as her friend was upset.
"Careful Liam, she might actually cut you." Mason said with a grin and Liam rolled his eyes as he looked at the wolf warily. "Hey did you know Theo could full shift?" He asked curiously.
"No." Liam replied worriedly, moving to leave Theo's clothes on the chair.
"Figured as much, remember the wolf that chased us and made you tell me you were a werewolf?" Mason said and Liam rolled his eyes.
"Well that's less surprising I guess." Liam sighed as he headed towards the bathroom. Midnight was still angry with him and she spat at him again as he passed her but the older chimera soothed her as he nosed at her to stop. "I hope neither of them were on the couch?" The werewolf shouted to his best friends as he washed his hands of the scumbag's blood and he heard a snigger from his friend.
"I don't know about Midnight but when Theo came in; he never once tried to go near the couch. Even though he's not himself right now, he instinctually knows you'd kill him if he got fur on your precious couch."Corey answered cheerfully.
"Well at least he listens." Liam sassed as he eyed their cat pointedly. Midnight was in the process of snuggling back up to the older chimera as Theo had settled himself on his side in front of the electric fireplace and Liam couldn't stop the fond smile that formed on his face as he knew that the older man was safe now.
"So what happened with that guy?" Mason asked quietly as he sat down on the couch beside his fiancé.
"Let's just say he won't do anything like that again." Their best friend replied with a dark smirk.
"You didn't?" The human asked warily and Liam looked up sharply.
"Of course I didn't, I wanted to but I didn't. I just made sure he couldn't do that again and called Parrish to arrest him." He told them sternly, his heartbeat elevated again at the thought and the wolf-coyote hybrid on their living room floor looked up with a huff. "I know Theo, I'll calm down in a minute." Liam told the older chimera, Theo's pupils were still too wide but they had gone down a little so that meant progress.
"Maybe we should call Deaton? I mean a pill that can make you wolf out and weak isn't good." Mason suggested worriedly as he noticed the kitten was trying to burrow as far as she could under is neck.
"Good idea." Liam said tiredly. "You two should get some sleep, take midnight into my room with you and I'll lift Theo into his room."
"Where are you gonna sleep?" Corey asked him as he eyed their friend with concern but Liam merely shook his head.
"I'm not planning on sleeping until Theo turns back, I'm gonna give Deaton a call first and then take him to his room." Liam answered and the couple merely nodded, taking turns to hug their best friend before lifting a sleepy but protesting kitten into Liam's room for the night.
Liam sighed as he lifted his phone from his pocket and called their veterinarian/emissary and felt another pang of guilt as he had to wake another sleeping friend for help.
"Liam it's two in the morning, is something wrong?" Deaton answered tiredly and Liam explained the events from the night as quickly and clearly as possible.
"He's still not himself and he's sleeping now in full shift, is that good or bad? Should I keep him awake? Will he be stuck like this? Will he-." Liam rambled hastily until Deaton took pity on him.
"Liam, calm yourself. Panicking will only stress Theo out more. I think when he wakes up tomorrow; he'll be okay." The vet informed him reassuringly.
"How do you know that? Like what could that piece of shit have given him to make him wolf out like this? Will it happen to other supernaturals too or does it only work on chimeras?" The werewolf asked worriedly as he paced in the kitchen.
"Honestly? I don't think so." Deaton replied honestly. "It sounds like the wolvesbane and the pills affected Theo like it would a normal human and as he is a chimera; his wolf acted like a self-defence mechanism."
"So like Theo wolfed out because his human brain was affected?" Liam asked in surprise.
"Yes and no. Theo was drugged and the wolf panicked, reacting as it would a mother to a child, if you will. Drugs like that to humans can make them black out and not remember the night before so they are vulnerable to attack but the wolf was there to cover him. Shield him from harm, so it's not permanent. I think he'll turn back in the morning and he may remember some of it or none of it." Deaton explained and Liam's shoulders slumped in relief.
"So he'll be okay?" Liam asked in a concerned tone, needing Deaton to verify that Theo wasn't poisoned or anything.
"I believe so yes, keep an eye out for any black blood or veins and if there are none, he'll definitely be okay." The vet told him and the werewolf let out a sigh, comforted in the knowledge that the older chimera would be fine.
"Thanks Deaton, sorry for waking you." Liam replied and the vet let out a breathy laugh.
"Don't worry about it, you were right to call. Goodnight Liam." He murmured sleepily.
"Night." The werewolf said as he ended the call, he moved into the living room and smiled fondly when he noticed that Theo had moved closer to the heat from the electric fire and Liam walked over to turn it off.
He reached down and carried the wolf-coyote hybrid as best as he could into Theo's room and he carefully settled him into bed and pulled the covers over him. He grabbed the chair from Theo's desk and set it beside the chimera's bed before settling in for the long night as he watched the wolf-coyote hybrid like a hawk for any signs of danger.
At some point Liam had drifted to sleep.
Theo's brain kickstarted at two things, one his mouth was as dry as a desert and two; he was completely naked in bed. His eyes blinked open blearily and he realised he had been sleeping on his front with the blankets over him and he tried to remember what happened the night before.
He had vague flashes of being afraid...a stranger bought him a drink, he had been unsteadily running home. He flinched when he remembered the line of heat from behind, the hot sweaty breath at the back of his neck and he sat up quickly.
"Shit." Theo groaned as he held his head in his hands, he had a bit of a headache and he looked around his room nervously to see if there were any signs of the stranger. He couldn't help the fond smile that grew on his lips when he saw Liam snoring softly on his chair; they must have saved him then and were making sure he was okay.
That still didn't explain why he was naked but hey, a part of him didn't want to remember and he pushed himself out of bed and reached over for his pyjama pants that he'd left on his desk. He lightly lifted Liam from his uncomfortable position on the chair and lay him down on the bed, trying to be as careful as possible not to wake the sleeping wolf.
He walked out of the room and into the kitchen as he grabbed a glass of water, he pulled out the bottle of painmeds and took two with his water as he needed to get rid of the pounding in his head. Theo startled a little when he felt something rub against his legs but smiled when Midnight mewled up at him and he lifted her up into his arms.
"Don't tell your dads I spoil you like this." He murmured as she snuggled into his chest, he gently pushed her up onto his shoulder so he could have his hands free as he decided to make a fresh pot of coffee for everyone and her tail curled around his neck as she settled down to watch.
"Don't suppose you could fill me in on what happened last night huh?" He cooed to her as he pulled out the mugs for him and his friends, she merely purred and rubbed her cheek against his and he reached up with a free hand to scratch behind her ears.
When he had all four cups filled and made to everyone's tastes, he took a careful sip of his own and clutched his head as he had a flash of being knocked down. He was howling, both angry and afraid and his wolf was going haywire with the need to defend him.
Midnight meowed worriedly when he stumbled to the table and he carefully set his mug down before placing her on the floor so she wouldn't get hurt if he did fall. The cat watched him carefully from a distance, he took some deep breaths to steady himself and when the moment faded, he sat himself down at the table.
Theo took a careful sip of his coffee, the kitten sat beside him on the floor and she watched his every move. He sighed as he reached for her, placing her back up on his shoulder and he went back to his coffee. The chimera knew he should probably wake the others, find out what happened to him and give them their mugs before the coffee got cold but truth was...he was ashamed.
They had all agreed; one drink and he made such a rookie mistake; all because he was depressed that Liam had been dancing with some girl. He hissed as he had another flash of Liam shouting at him, he couldn't really make out the words but he was in the midst of wolfing out and it had annoyed Liam.
No...it had hurt Liam, he could remember the clear look of hurt on the werewolf's face and he'd studied that face for so long that he was able to tell when the other was upset. What had he done? He didn't remember any other reason for Liam's reaction other than pulling him away from the girl and he wished he could at least find out why.
Don't get him wrong, Liam had been pissed at him for like a week; ever since he went on that date. A date that Corey and Mason had set him up with, Liam told them it was a great idea and Theo didn't even go on the date technically.
Theo's had feelings for Liam ever since he got out of hell and he told himself he would be content with just being his friend. He went to the place he was supposed to meet this guy, Mike looked at him with a friendly smile and suddenly Theo didn't want to be with anyone other than Liam. He apologised to the guy and they went their separate ways.
Liam was waiting for him when he had come back, Mason and Corey were on a trip so Liam was looking after Midnight for them and he was playing with the cat when he'd asked how the date went. Theo had looked at the back of his head then, he wanted to tell him so badly but he knew he could never deserve someone like Liam.
So he just said it went okay and went to his room to feel sorry for himself.
"Dude, thank god you're okay." Mason startled him out of his thoughts as he rushed over to hug the older chimera.
"Are you okay?" Theo asked him as he needed to make sure.
"Dude we're all okay, it's you we're worried about. Do you remember anything from last night?" He questioned urgently, petting the kitten on Theo's shoulder.
"Bits and pieces." Theo admitted quietly. "There's coffee over there for you and Corey." He added absently, staring down at his mug as if it held all the answers.
"Thanks." Mason replied gratefully as he lifted his mug, he grabbed Corey's mug as well just as the chameleon chimera walked into the kitchen and handed it over to his fiancé.
"Theo, are you okay?" Corey greeted worriedly and Theo nodded tiredly. He let out a hiss as he clutched his head and he remembered growling at Mason and Corey defensively.
"Was I mad at you guys last night or something?" The older chimera asked warily as he looked up at the couple who seemed to be having a silent conversation with each other about him with their eyes.
"I think at one point you didn't recognise us, you were panicking so you were growling at us but once you got here and could smell the familiar smells in the area you seemed okay with us." Mason answered with a soft smile.
"Sorry about that." He told them guiltily, ducking his head and Corey let out a scoff.
"Dude someone drugged you, it wasn't your fault." Corey said matter of factly.
"I shoulda known better though." Theo muttered grumpily.
"Yeah but you weren't to know that someone would do that to you-" Mason started but a loud clattering noise startled them as Liam ran into the kitchen, hair sticking out at an odd angle and his shoulders slumped in relief when he saw Theo sitting there.
"Why didn't you wake me?" Liam exclaimed in a panic and Theo smirked a little at his dishevelled appearance.
"Liam you looked like you'd barely slept, I was gonna wake you in ten minutes anyway." He replied with a raised brow and the werewolf rubbed his face worriedly.
"Does he remember everything?" Liam asked the couple and Mason shrugged.
"He said he only remembers bits and pieces." The human explained.
"I'm right here." Theo interrupted before Liam could ask Mason anymore questions, Midnight hissed at Liam and Theo looked at the kitten in shock and he petted her head to get her to stop. "What's got into her?" He asked in a surprised tone.
"I uh...I growled at you last night and she freaked out because she was protecting you." The werewolf said guiltily.
"Why did I do something?" He asked warily. He had a flash then, he was howling at Liam from the floor and Liam had growled back with a surprised look on his face. "Oh my god." Theo murmured when he realised he had full-shifted.
"Well at least it's out there now." Mason said lightly as Theo buried his face in his hands.
"Yeah, why did you feel like you needed to hide it from us?" Corey questioned curiously, Liam was uncharacteristically quiet but he was looking at Theo with that hurt look again and the older chimera sighed in shame.
"I did a lot of shit before I went to hell." He said in lieu of an explanation.
"I think we all knew that." Mason retorted. "But why hide an important part of yourself when we've seen almost every side of you?" He added, looking over at Liam with an encouraging smile as he was asking the questions he knew his best friend couldn't right now.
"I dunno, I think I hid it for so long that I didn't really know how to start." The older chimera said with a helpless shrug.
"I think the most important question is have you been wolfing out in front of Midnight because she recognised you instantly." Corey asked with a smirk to lighten the mood.
"Uhh..." Theo couldn't come up with a good answer and the chameleon started chuckling.
"You owe me ten bucks." He told his fiancé who rolled his eyes with an affectionate smile.
"Shut up." The older chimera growled and Corey just held up his phone smugly; the wallpaper on his phone was of a black wolf-coyote hybrid on his back and the black kitten could barely be seen snuggling under his chin. "I'm gonna kill you." Theo said lightly, not wanting to move in case he dislodged poor Midnight who had just managed to find a position to comfortably sleep in.
"I told you." Mason told his fiancé with a grin.
"If you don't kill me I won't put them in the pack groupchat." Corey bargained for his life and Theo narrowed his eyes.
"Fine but if one of those pictures gets out I'm coming straight for you." He threatened, Liam was smiling fondly at the photographs as Corey was sliding through them and Theo rolled his eyes self-consciously.
"Aww, I always knew you were such a sap." Liam remarked, smirking when Theo growled a little in embarrassment.
"Don't make me set Midnight on you." He said as the kitten's eyes had opened to see why he was growling and she let out a big yawn, shivering lightly as she snuggled back into his neck.
"Anything but that." The wolf grinned in fake surrender, sobering slightly as he noticed Theo was rubbing his temple lightly and he walked over to place his hand on his free shoulder. Black veins went up his arm and Theo sagged which disturbed Midnight from her nap and Theo set her on the floor.
"Thanks." Theo murmured and their eyes met when the pain was gone and Liam had backed off.
"No problem."The wolf replied softly and Mason cleared his throat, startling them from their staring contest.
"So we're gonna take Midnight home, we'll check in with you later. Thanks for the coffee Theo." Mason told them as he lifted Midnight into his arms and went to put her in her carrier.
The couple gathered their things and hugged their best friends before leaving. Mason gave Liam a look and mouthed the word 'talk' to Liam when Theo's back was turned and they left the two alone.
When the door closed Theo walked into his room as he wanted to grab some clean clothes before he got in the shower, startling when he noticed Liam leaning against the doorframe and they stayed quiet as their eyes met.
"I'm sorry Theo." Liam murmured and the older man's eyes widened.
"What for?" Theo asked and Liam moved closer, brushing his hand through his hair nervously and looked down in shame.
"You came to me for help and I pushed you away. You knew there was something wrong and you basically begged me for help and I like the selfish dick that I am shouted at you and forced you to go home by yourself. I'm so sorry." Liam rambled and Theo shook his head quickly.
"Liam, that's not your fault." He interrupted before the younger man could continue his tangent. "It's not like you had any idea what was happening, you don't need to be sorry. Things turned out okay didn't they?" He added reassuringly.
"I almost killed him." Liam blurted, eyes meeting Theo's fiercely and his hands began to shake. "When I saw what he was trying to do, I lost it and I made sure he couldn't do it to anyone ever again...But part of me wasn't satisfied with that, I wanted to kill him...Still want to." He added with no hint of guilt to his voice and Theo didn't really know what to say back to that; what could he say really?
Theo looked down at the clothes in his hands before he dropped them and rushed forward to hug the werewolf. He buried his nose in the shorter man's hair and relaxed when he felt Liam's arms hesitantly surrounding his waist before tugging him close.
"I was so worried last night, Mason came over and basically knocked some sense into me because he knew, he knew there was something wrong and then we looked for you. You had fought back but he'd knocked you down and we got there before he could do anything else. Then you were full-shifted and we didn't know if you would snap out of it–." Liam said anxiously but was interrupted again.
"It's okay, it's over now. We're okay."Theo insisted, pulling back to look at Liam seriously. "Nothing happened, we handled it and you were there to stop him from doing anything worse." The chimera told him, hand holding his neck with his thumb lightly pushing Liam's jaw so he would keep looking at him and Liam nodded with a defeated sigh.
"That still doesn't excuse the fact that I was mad at you when you needed me." Liam mumbled guiltily.
"Liam, shut up. Most days you're mad at me; it's kind of our thing." He replied with a smirk which Liam rolled his eyes at but smiled despite himself.
"I love you, y'know?" Liam blurted, eyes widening as he didn't mean for it to come out like that and Theo was frozen in place. "I'm sorry, I just wanted you to know that." He hastily said, trying to ease himself away from Theo but the chimera's hold tightened on him.
"Do you mean it?" Theo asked quietly, barely daring to hope and Liam nodded softly.
"You know I do, the only reason I was so mad this week was because we had been getting closer and then you went on that date." The younger man grumbled and Theo couldn't help but roll his eyes with a scoff.
"You were the one who told Mason and Corey it would be a great idea to set me up with their friend." He retorted hotly and Liam sighed irritably.
"Well you are a grown man, I thought you would've said no on your own." He said defensively.
"Oh my god, are we really this stupid?" Theo asked rhetorically and he couldn't help but let out a breathy laugh when Liam looked up at him in offence.
"Speak for yourself, you-." The wolf began but was cut off by Theo again when he leaned in and brushed their lips together like he was afraid of breaking this bubble they were in if he used too much force.
"You know I love you too right." The chimera whispered when he pulled back just a little and Liam smiled softly.
"Why didn't you say anything? You lied about the date, Mason told me you didn't go through with it last night." He asked, hand reaching up to gently stroke the older man's cheek.
"I don't know, I just felt like I didn't deserve this and I wasn't sure if you felt the same way so I thought it would be better that way." Theo mumbled, averting his eyes but the werewolf wouldn't have that and he urged him to look back at him.
"Well that's just stupid." Liam said as he softly touched their foreheads together before leaning in to kiss him. The kiss was a lot less gentle than their previous and Theo couldn't help but sigh contentedly into the shorter man's mouth.
They held each other tight as if they would lose whatever this was between them if they let go, Liam tilted the chimera's head slightly and slowly slid his tongue into Theo's gasping mouth. Their tongues danced together as they made up for the lost time, hands went into each other's hair and gripped at the other desperately.
"I was just about to go for a shower." Theo said when they finally pulled back for air, Liam looked up at him with a soft smile and the older man saw the glint in his eye. "Could use some company." He murmured bravely, Liam nodded quickly and they began kissing again on their way to the bathroom.
Theo pulled the werewolf's shirt off of him, that brief moment their lips were parted seemed like an eternity and they immediately leaned into each other to kiss again. One of them reached over to turn the shower on, both too heated and wrapped up in each other to really be conscious of anything other than this moment.
Their pants went next, Theo let out a grunt of complaint when Liam had used his claws to take off his pyjama pants but that was soon forgotten when their heated skin was touching in all the right places and the hot water was thrown into the mix as they got into the cubicle.
"Liam." Theo sighed as the werewolf trailed off his lips to kiss his cheek, then his jawline and down his neck. Hands roamed and honestly in all the time they had lived together, they were surprised this hadn't happened sooner.
When they had finished their shower, they dried each other off and went into Theo's room and collapsed into his bed. Theo pulled the blankets over them before he pulled an exhausted Liam into his arms, he kissed the side of his face and Liam turned his head to kiss his lips before they finally settled down to sleep.
"I love you." Liam mumbled tiredly and Theo smiled as he kissed the werewolf's forehead.
"I love you too." The chimera replied and held Liam close as he knew the younger man had stayed up most of the night and needed the sleep. Theo looked up to the ceiling after he heard the soft snores coming from Liam and he thought back to the night before.
He remembered most of the night and although it had been bad, he was just glad it was over. They had managed to pull their heads out of their asses and were able to confess their feelings for one another. All in all a horrible night led to something good and that's the way Theo wanted to look at it to be honest.
Any other way would just upset him.
Liam sighed in his sleep and snuggled closer, nose buried in his neck and inhaling deeply before relaxing. Theo looked down with a soft smile, pulling Liam closer and settling down himself.
"I love you." He whispered before he closed his eyes and drifted, content in the knowledge that everything might not be fine but at least they had each other and that was all that mattered.