Chapter 3 – Night School

Erin stood in Derek's kitchen, grasping the edge of the sink. She was holding onto the metal rim so tight that her knuckles turned white. It took all her concentration and control to keep her tears from falling out of her eyes, but her efforts were futile. Soon the clear drops of liquid fell from the corners and dripped down her face, into the sink. The only sound in the kitchen was the audible tapping of the tears against the sink base.

What had happened? She couldn't fit it all together; not yet anyway. Derek was lying in his bed upstairs, blood still leaving his injuries. It wasn't as bad as it had been but still bleeding. She was a vet not a doctor- there was a difference. A difference everyone seemed to have forgotten.

Unfortunately...Scott and Stiles were still at the school with that thing.


2 hours before…

Erin was on a date for the first time since returning to Beacon Hills. The guy had brought in a cat to the shelter had asked her out and she accepted. She had felt her phone vibrate in her bag twice, but didn't excuse herself from the table until the third time it rang. Stiles' name flashed up on the caller I.D. "Hello?"

"We're at the school! The Alpha is after us! It got Derek and we need your help!" Stiles told her quickly.

"Ok, ok calm down, what do you mean 'it got Derek'?"

"I mean, it attacked him. As in, blood pouring from his mouth and we're trapped inside!"

"Ok, I'm on my way, I'm on my way."

"Be careful, it's still out there," he warned her.

"Yeah I'll be careful," she promised before she hung up the phone.

She didn't even remember the excuse she gave to her date. She just remembers being afraid. Erin couldn't distract her mind from the boys. Scott and Stiles were still with that monster and Derek was seriously injured. Soon after she left the restaurant doors, she was in her car driving to the school.

The frantic phone call from Stiles had scared her and she didn't know what to expect when she got to the school. She had tried calling Scott and Stiles, illegally whilst driving, but neither of them had answered. What the hell was going on?

Pulling up at the school she saw Stiles' Jeep's bonnet broken and destroyed. Derek's car stood near it with its doors open and no sign of Derek or damage though. She put her hand on the door handle, but stopped herself; Stiles said Derek had been attacked. Whatever had attacked him could still be around.

Erin picked her cell phone up from the passenger seat to try Scott's phone again. Nothing. Straight to voicemail.

She tried Stiles once more and it rang three times before Stiles answered in a whisper. "Erin...Erin are you here?"

"I'm outside. What's happening? Where are you? Where's Derek?"

"He's near the front entrance, not far from the car, you have to help him."

"What? No, Stiles, I'm coming in."

"NO," he shouted. Stiles realised he shouldn't and lowered his voice. "No, help Derek, we can handle this."

"Stiles, there's a psychotic werewolf after you in a school. You can't handle this! Put Scott on the phone."

She heard the shuffle as the phone was passed along "Erin, get Derek out of here. He's hurt bad and we have a plan. We're going to trap this thing and finally find out who it is"

"Scott, no…you can't."

"Erin, please, we have to do this. Give us two hours. If you haven't heard from us, call Stiles' Dad." Erin began to protest, but Scott ended the call.

Tears filled Erin's eyes. "No," she told herself. "Not the time to break down."

She would rescue Derek then come back for her brother and Stiles.

Erin opened the trunk of her car to gather things she might need. There was a flash light and tranquilizer gun in the trunk of the car. Ever since learning of werewolves she had kept them in her car and she was so thankful for it now, even though she had no idea whether a tranquilizer gun would work on a werewolf or not. Only one way to find out...

Erin leaned against the car for a minute. She stood still, listening and looking around. Her cell phone began to ring and it made her jump. She fished it out of her pocket "Stiles?" she answered.

"It's trapped. Whatever you're going to do it, do it now. Get Derek and get out of here!" He hung up before she could say a word.

'Now or never,' she told herself. She ran to the top of the stairs and turned her flash light on. It took her seconds to locate Derek. He was lying in the grass on his stomach, appearing to be unconscious.

"Derek!" She ran to him and knelt beside him, putting down the flashlight and putting the gun in her pocket. "Derek," she said again, shaking him slightly. A small groan escaped him which sounded good to hear. She released a breath that she hadn't realised she had been holding. She accessed the damage, deep wounds on his back, and a deep cut to his head. "Why aren't you healing?"

He groaned and spoke softly. "Werewolf." That one word summarised everything.

"Derek, I don't know what to do here. What do I do?" Derek didn't reply he had lost consciousness, the loss of blood taking its toll. "Shit, Derek, please!" She began to panic.

"This is going to hurt." She had no idea why she was talking to him. He couldn't hear her. Erin put his arm across her shoulder and struggled to lift him but managed to get him up. His anterior looked far worse than his posterior region. Blood was stained everywhere possible.

Reaching the top of the stairs, she realised she had left the flashlight in the grass. She stopped, had an internal debate whether to go back for it or not. Then Derek groaned again as if breaking her decision. "If I die saving you, I'll kill you," she told him lightly and struggled down the stairs with him.

Derek's car was closer than her car so she placed him in the passenger seat. After she closed the door, loud crashes come from in the school. She paused before getting in to the driver's seat. "Erin, please," Derek said breathlessly.

Erin looked in at him. He was so pale and looked like he was in a lot of pain. "I've got a kit in my car. I'll just be a second." She put the key in the ignition and started the car before she ran to her car and went to the trunk. As she closed the trunk, Derek called her name loudly. She looked up at the school. The Alpha stood at the top of the stairs watching her with its animalistic red eyes. She felt her heart stop in her chest.

There was a bigger distance between the Alpha and Derek's car than her and Derek's car. "Get away from here, Erin. RUN!" Derek commanded.

"I'm not going to leave you, Derek!" Erin shouted back. She ran towards Derek's car, pushing herself to go faster and faster. As soon as she got in and slammed the door shut, the Alpha hit the side of the vehicle from having skidded to a stop. Erin slammed her foot against the gas pedal and sped away from the site, not looking back at the Alpha.


Erin managed to get Derek out of the car and he was conscious and strong enough to walk aided to his bed. However, he collapsed unconscious on the bed as soon as his head hit the pillow. The walk from car to bed had exceeded the little energy he had.

Erin stood catching her breath as she watched his chest rise and fall. He was breathing but it was laboured. She took her phone from her pocket and held her finger over the call button, what if she called Stiles and they were hiding? What if she gave them away? What if they were already dead? She shook her head. She couldn't think like that. Taking care of Derek would keep her mind off of things. It would keep her mind off Scott and Stiles.

Erin wanted to find a weapon for protection. Derek surely had to have something in his house. She wasn't sure if the Alpha had followed them or not, but she would feel better when she had a weapon, a gun, a knife, a bat- anything. She remembered the tranquilizer gun was in her pocket suddenly. She put her hand on it to make sure it was still there but then Derek began to scream in agony. When Erin turned to look at him, she gaped in horror at the sight of smoke rising from the wounds on his back and the idea of a weapon disappeared.

She rushed to Derek's side not knowing what to do. She noticed his hands weren't hands anymore. She placed a hand on his back and he roared again. Erin turned his face to look at her. His eyes and his mouth were shifting right before her. The sight shocked her, making her jump back. Erin quickly pulled out the tranquilizer gun and shot him twice.


"I'm okay," Scott told his sister on the phone. "Stiles' Dad is here and we're all okay. How's Derek?"

Erin sighed in relief. "I don't know, Scott. I cleaned the wounds and did everything I could for him. I think he started to heal himself, but I can't be a hundred percent sure." She left out the part where she shot him with a tranquilizer gun. There was a time and place for those kinds of things.

"We told the Sheriff that I borrowed your car. You and Derek aren't apart of this."

"I'm supposed to be the one watching out for you and you end up watching out for me," she commented with a smile. "Thanks, bro. I love you. Oh, make sure to swing by and pick me up. I'll leave as soon as I know that Derek is okay."

"Love you too, sis. Thanks for everything," Scott said before he hung up the phone.

Memory – 2 days before…

Erin stood in the kitchen pouring two cups of coffee. What was she doing? She should have been chucking the scum bag out on his ass; not making him coffee. She sighed and carried the coffee to the lounge. "Here." She handed Adam his mug. Adam was her ex boyfriend, the reason she had come home to Beacon Hills.

"Thanks babe," he smiled. She wanted to smack the smile from his face.

"Adam, what do you want?" she asked, sitting on the couch

"I want a second chance and by the looks of things you need one, too," he assessed, looking around the room.

"Excuse me?" she asked raising her eyebrows, daring him to say it again.

"Don't get me wrong; this town is cute and all, but what are you going to do? Be a vet in this small town? Marry some skinny guy who pumps gas for a living, really? Erin you deserve better than that."

"And what, a cheating scum bag like you is better than that? Really Adam, if this is your big plan to get me back you're going the wrong way about it," Erin told him, taking her untouched coffee to the kitchen.

He spoke as he followed her. "I miss you and you need to get out of this town. You said it yourself and I'm your ticket out of here."

Erin laughed. "How do you know I haven't already met my ticket out of here?" She did air quotes as she said ticket. "Someone with potential, a great job, and amazing prospects."

"Well... have you?" It wasn't a question-more of a sceptical laugh. At that precise moment, Derek entered the house by the back door in a pair of shorts and running shoes, sweating like he had been running.

"Hey honey," Derek said while walking directly to Erin as if he hadn't noticed Adam. He took her in his arms and kissed her hard on the lips. "Sorry I got carried away on my run. I did five miles instead of three," he told her coming out of the kiss.

Erin grinned. She couldn't help it. She loved Derek for what he was doing and wanted to jump on him and kiss him again. "It's fine. I was going to order in anyway." She played along with Derek. "Er...honey, this is Adam. Adam this is Derek."

"Sorry, didn't see you there." Derek offered his hand and Erin watched Adam wince slightly as Derek squeezed a little too hard. "Is this THE Adam?" Derek turned to ask Erin.

"The one and only," Erin smiled at him trying her hardest not to laugh aloud as she noticed Adam take in Derek's physique. He was definitely not skinny.

"I got to say," Derek said taking Erin in his arms again. Erin placed her arms around his neck and didn't care he was covering her in his sweat. "Thank you. Had you not been such a douche bag, I wouldn't have this wonderful girl. My careers just taking off, girl of my dreams, what more could a guy ask for?"

Adam stuttered. "Well…I…er…I guess…"

"I think you should leave," Erin told him rather than suggested.

"Yeah I guess." Adam's eyes didn't leave Derek's.

Erin showed him to the door. "Get the picture now?" she asked, but didn't wait for an answer. "I don't need nor want you Adam so, stay away from me." She closed the door and returned to the kitchen. "I owe you big time" she smiled at him. "You here for Scott?"

"Yeah," Derek told her. "Thought we could do some training."

"He's out with Stiles somewhere. Did you crack his bones when you shook his hand?" she asked pouring Derek a glass of orange juice.

"A little," Derek laughed accepting the glass. "Hope the kiss wasn't a bit…"

Erin interrupted. "It was fine, don't worry about it. It's what he needed to see"

"I'm guessing he's the reason you came back to Beacon Hills?"

She sighed and offered Derek a seat at the table, "Ah I guess you heard most of the conversation, super hearing and all that," Derek nodded. She explained her and Adam had met whilst in veterinary school, fell in love, and moved in together when they had both finished school. Adam had proposed and the weekend she was to bring Adam home to meet her mother and Scott, she had finished work early to come home to find Adam sleeping with one of her friends. "I packed my things and came home. I was too embarrassed and humiliated to stay, face our friends, and I never told Mom and Scott we were engaged. Then he shows up here like I NEED him."

"His loss," Derek told her. It was almost robotic like he had heard it said before and just copied it. It was sweet yet awkward.

She smiled. "I gotta get ready for work. I'll tell Scott you stopped by." She stood up and took his empty glass to the sink then turned to find him gone.

Erin fingers grasped the edge of the sink, her knuckles turning white. She took a deep breath and then couldn't help the tears that began to fall. Everything taking its toll on her, the tears fell and made an audible splash as they hit the sink in the otherwise quiet kitchen.

"Erin," she jumped and turned to see Derek leaning against the door frame watching her.

"Damn it, Derek! How many times are you going to do that?" Erin held a hand to her heart and waited for it to return to its normal rhythm. She should have expected it he was good at sneaking up on her.

"Sorry I scared you." The small smile on his face told her he wasn't sorry at all. He found it amusing. "Are you ok?" he asked pointing towards her tears

"Yeah," she said smiling lightly and wiping the tears away. "Everything just got a little too real tonight." Derek nodded. "Sit down before you fall down," she told him, walking towards him and helping him in to a chair. "Lean forward." He obeyed before she pulled up his shirt to check his wounds. "Its healing."

Derek smiled. "You saved my life."

"Again," she added for him.

"Yeah," he smiled up at her "Guess we're even after the Adam thing."

"Maybe not completely," she winced slightly. "I kind of knocked you out." He raised his eyebrows encouraging her to continue. "You let out this almighty roar, well not a roar, scream of pain more like and you started to change."

"Did I hurt you?" His face lost its entire colour as the thought occurred.

"No, no," she assured him, "but I thought you were going to so I shot you, twice, with this." She placed the gun on the table.

Derek looked at it then looked at her "Twice?"

"Well it takes one of these to put a large horse down; I wanted to be sure." Derek nodded as if he understood. "Let me see." She motioned for him to stand up which he obliged and she lifted his shirt again to find the point of entry of the darts. She ran her finger over the two small wounds that were already disappearing. "Good as new...almost."

"I'm sorry," Derek said moving away from her and pulling his shirt down.

"Its fine," Erin told him. "You didn't…"

"But I could have," he spat at her.

"Derek, please," she stepped towards him and he stepped away.

"I think you should leave."

"Ok, I can take a hint. Erm…I don't know what kind of effect the tranquilizer will have on you so maybe you should get some rest," she told him. "Super human or not you need to rest, get your strength back, take a shower and chuck that shirt away." She pointed to the blood stains then stepped around him and out of the kitchen.