Disclaimer: I don't owe anything except the characters that I've created.

A/N: IMPORTAN! Bold = thoughts!

Voices

Chapter 4

Olivia was shaking in her spot. After she had heard the damned riddle, there was a piercing scream, but it appeared to be only in her head. And while she was fighting with herself to push it away, Stiles and Morrell continued fighting, but their voices were too quiet for Olivia to hear. The only clear thing that she heard was the scream. It sounded like a male voice and he was calling out for help. The voice reminded her of someone, but her thoughts were too chaotic to even try and figure it out. She knew that she needed to get out of that room, to get away from both Morrell and Stiles. She had made a mistake, Olivia should've stayed away, like she used to. She should've had pretended to be clueless, to spend the last couple of days in Eichen in silence, without the dark voice that promised only pain and chaos.

Taking a step back Olivia caught both Morrel and Stiles' attention. Both looked at the younger girl and saw how pale she was, how her hands shook, and it was clear that she was struggling. Stiles took a step towards her, ready to question her, but she only tensed when he got close and took another few steps back. He looked at her face and saw remorse there. He frowned, and she started shaking her head, taking another step away.

"I'm sorry, I have to go. I need to leave, there are too many voices here." Olivia rushed her words, taking another few steps back. She didn't want to wait for anyone to say anything, so she turned around and quickly walked towards the door. Once she had left the room, she leaned to the wall and closed her eyes, breathing deeply. The hall was empty, leaving her there alone in silence. Well, almost in silence because soon Olivia caught the sound of Morrell's voice in her head and differently than the last time, it wasn't in some unknown language.

"You made the right choice by leaving, Olivia. Walking away before things are going to turn to worse is the smart choice. There is no need for you to experience any more death."

Morrell's words were like a harsh reminder. A reminder that Olivia didn't want or need at the time. She just wanted to escape, to ignore everything and just go home. She just needed some calmness. Pushing herself away from the wall, Olivia walked away with rushed steps and made her way to the library. She needed a distraction, she needed something to make her forget what she had already experienced. She had barely even helped Stiles and she was already in too deep. The things that she had heard, not only mentally, they were scaring her. Fox spirit possessing a teenager? It still sounded surreal for her, but it was true. And was she just going to help and allow things like that to become a part of her daily life? Was she ready to stop pretending that she was just like everyone else?

Making her way to the row of shelves in the back, Olivia didn't pay any attention to any of the patients that were in the library. She only needed to get to her safe corner and get lost for a little bit. Once she had settled on the ground by the pile of books, she grabbed a random one and opened some page in the middle, placing the book on her lap so people would think that she was reading. Olivia stared right at the letters and words on the page without making sense of them, she was too engaged in her thoughts to really read a book. And her head was a mess.

Olivia wasn't sure why she had never decided to help Stiles and his friends before. Maybe it was her mother's warnings that stopped her, or maybe she just didn't want to fully admit that she was different. Ever since she was four and had heard her first thought, Olivia had tried to maintain a normal life. She had friends, wasn't addicted to drugs and smoked rarely, when the tension was just too big. She had found herself a boyfriend that would make her look even more normal. Her father always encouraged her to not use her powers, to separate herself from that part of who she was. He never wanted to deal with any part of the supernatural, he may have even detested the abilities Olivia and her mother had. And Olivia did try to be normal, to not listen in to people's thoughts, she tried to be like everyone else. But still, she wasn't. And the current events were just proving it. Olivia had never been normal, neither were Stiles and his friends. But just because she wasn't normal, it didn't make her a part of their world. She was not cut out to deal with things like the Kanima or alpha pack. And most certainly she couldn't deal with something like the Nogitsune. Especially when it was possessing someone like Stiles.

Olivia was never really friends with him. They were connected through their social medias, but that was all. She was nice and greeted him whenever they passed each other, but they had barely ever had a conversation. Well apart those talks that they had in Eichen. But in the past – there was nothing. They were acquaintance at the best, even if she knew about him more than he knew about her. It was normal for her, she always knew more about people than they knew about her. It was due to a small fact – she knew what they were thinking, which made it extremely difficult for them to lie to her. But with Stiles and his friends, she knew even more. She knew about their crazy plans about their ideas and she knew about the creatures they had faced. Most importantly she knew about their pain, but she never spoke up, she never helped them, deciding to pretend like nothing was going on instead. And she was doing that once again.

"You aren't even reading." Olivia heard a voice and instantly raised her head, meeting Malia's suspicious eyes. "Why are you pretending to be reading when you clearly aren't?" Malia questioned, clearly finding the action weird.

"I was hoping to fool people into leaving me alone." Olivia admitted and closed the book, brushing her fingers through the cover. "Brunski didn't do anything, right?" She questioned Malia and waited for the other girl to answer. Malia simply shrugged and walked towards Olivia, sitting down next to her.

"He tried to restrain me, but then your doctor came and stopped him." Malia explained, continuing to look at Olivia's face closely. "I know that you've said that it is wrong to say it like that, but why do I smell fear and guilt on you?" Malia frowned when Olivia chuckled lightly. "What did I say? Did I word it wrong?"

"No." Olivia shook her head and looked down to the cover of her book. "You didn't word anything wrong. And I am scared, and I do feel guilty." She moved her fingers over the three-masked people on the cover of her book, looking closely at the details on their clothes. "Can I ask you something, Malia?" Olivia questioned without raising her head and Malia grunted in agreement. "Why is it so hard for you to get the normal human behaviour and the norms of the society?"

The silence hung around them for a few moments after Olivia had voiced her question. Olivia didn't want to rush the other girl to answer and she had decided not to listen to her thoughts. Malia needed her privacy and Olivia was going to give it to her. So, while the werecoyote was silent, Olivia continuously trailed her fingers over the cover of the book, following every move with her eyes. Finally, after something like ten minutes, Malia spoke out.

"I know that you had used your powers on me before." Her voice was so blunt that it made Olivia smile. She appreciated the bluntness of Malia, especially when everyone was always so adamant to lie. The truth was refreshing.

"How do you know that?" Olivia asked, moving her fingers to the title of the book, trailing every letter slowly. It was a pretty weird name for a book, a bit bizarre and out there in her opinion. Who would ever think about calling a book "Dread-

"You weren't surprised when I told you that I'm a werecoyote. And I know that it isn't due to you being crazy. It is because you have heard it in my head before." Malia said, and Olivia's fingers stilled. "I have also noticed how sometimes you seem lost in your thoughts when we are talking and then suddenly feel really tired. Like you had used up all your energy. After a while I guessed that it was because you were using your powers." Olivia returned to tracing the letters with her fingers, waiting for whatever else Malia was going to say. "Sometimes you flinch in complete silence and I think that you don't like being touched sometimes because it is also due to your powers." Malia finished and waited for Olivia to speak up. She watched how the other girl silently continued tracing the cover of her book, her eyes following her every move.

"That is awfully perceptive of you." Olivia mumbled and shot a quick look, finding Malia watching her with confusion. "I meant observant." She clarified, and the other girl nodded shortly. "How come you are so good at noticing things like that?" Olivia questioned and returned her attention back to her book, finishing tracing the name of it, once again thinking how bizarre it was. "Dread Doctors" most certainly was a weird name for a book, but unfortunately there was no author's name for Olivia to determine if she had read anything from the author.

"You get observant when you spend most of your life as a coyote." Malia mumbled, and Olivia quickly looked over to her with wide eyes.

"I'm sorry, what did you just say?" Olivia blindly put away the book and then turned her body to face Malia fully. She stared intently at the other girl's eyes, waiting for the needed clarification.

"When I was little, I lost control and killed my mother and sister." Malia said, her voice showing her pain. "Then I turned into a coyote and it wasn't until a month ago when Stiles," She spat his name with anger and clenched her fists. "And his other friends forced me turn back to human." Malia lowered her eyes to her hands, her jaw set tight. "Do you have any idea how horrible it is to have your father look at you like he doesn't even recognize you? I don't know what is right, I have no idea how to act when I'm out there, how to talk to people how to be human. They took everything that I knew from me and I can't do anything about it." Malia raised her head once again and Olivia noticed the anger in her eyes. She really didn't know how to console the other girl because she had no idea what it meant to live like an animal for so long to just be turned back to human. Olivia had no words to offer to Malia, but the information that the werecoyote had shared with her, allowed her to finally make sense of Malia. The girl in front of her didn't think like a normal teenager and didn't act like one because she really wasn't. She was something else, something that Olivia didn't know how to call.

Glancing to the clock the hung nearby, Olivia brushed a strand of hair from her face and offered Malia a kind smile. "Your tutor is waiting. You don't want to be late." She told the other girl and waited for her to nod. Slowly Malia stood up from the ground and Olivia joined her. Together they walked away from the last row and then Malia didn't spare another word before walking towards the room where her tutor would be waiting. Left alone Olivia considered going back outside, but she feared that something else would happen then. And once the outside was out from her list of options, she was stuck hanging out inside of the Eichen House.

Making her way out of the library, she turned to go towards the Doctor Lewis' office, hoping that she would be able to push her session with her then, instead of waiting for the evening. Olivia was also feeling like talking, she needed to talk about some of the problems that she was facing at the moment. Of course, leaving the supernatural part out of it. She had managed to reach the middle of the hall, when she suddenly felt really weak. Not physically, but mentally. Like the walls that she had built around her mind were being torn apart. Olivia stopped, looking around, but at first there was nothing unusual. There were the two Jesuses sitting by one table, discussing which one was the real Jesus. The nurses mingled between the patients. The security guard sat in his place, reading a newspaper and some other patients were loitering around, not doing anything. But then she noticed something wrong. The door that led to the stairway to the basement level was ajar. Brunski stood in front of it, his hand on the handle, while the other male nurse was holding the second door with bars, waiting for Brunski to go either way, so he could lock the door.

And that small open space that was there made all the difference. Whatever was down there was messing up with Olivia's control and she started feeling the thoughts creeping up to her slowly.

"Help me! I don't belong here!"

"What is going to happen to me?"

"Hungry, always so hungry."

"I don't understand how I ended up in here with these abominations. I'm a doctor, an important person. I do not belong here."

The voices were mingling in Olivia's head, so she closed her eyes and took in a few deep breaths. She needed to concentrate and to work everything out. There was no need for panic, it wasn't the first time when she had heard them, and it probably wasn't going to be the last.

Opening her eyes again, Olivia instantly met Brunski's eyes. He was watching her suspiciously, his brows furrowed. It seemed like he knew but it was impossible. There was no way for him to know, no way. The longer Olivia kept the eye contact, the tenser she became. She noticed that Brunski stopped talking with his companion and was instead paying all the attention to her. Slowly he eyed her whole before returning to her eyes and a satisfied smirk stretched over his lips. It was like he knew.

Olivia was frozen in her spot and could only watch how Brunski closed the door, deciding not to get down there, and instead started making his way towards her. His steps were slow, taunting, like he was daring her to walk away. But she couldn't, her body wasn't listening to her. And he was getting closer rapidly.

"Hey, are you ok?" suddenly Olivia heard Stiles' voice and it seemed to wake her up from her shock. Taking in a deep breath she turned around and faced him, noticing his distressed expression.

"No. But we need to move." She whispered urgently and brushed past Stiles, making her way towards the visiting room. She heard someone following her and quickly cast a look through her shoulder and saw that it was Stiles. She noticed Brunski standing where she had been a few moments ago, watching them closely.

Olivia turned her head to look forward once more and continued making her way to the furthest table that would allow them some privacy. Olivia didn't particularly want to talk to Stiles, but if it meant that Brunski was going to leave her alone, she was fine with rushing the confrontation between her and Stiles. In the past day they had quite a few confrontations already and she hoped that it wasn't going to become a thing.

The two of them reached the last table that was the furthest away from any other patient in the room, since there were no visitors. Both sat down on the different sides, facing each other and Olivia felt like it was not going to be just her confronting Stiles.

"What the hell happened there?" Stiles didn't waste any time before asking and Olivia instantly felt like she was going to have to defend herself.

Pulling down the sleeved of her sweater, she suddenly had a wish for a cigarette. It would at least give her some calmness. Pulling her hands closer to her body, Olivia leaned to the back of her chair and met Stiles' questioning eyes. Before she even opened her mouth to answer, she lowered her walls, deciding to listen in.

"Something is wrong. Something is seriously wrong. Something was happening between her and that guy. Something is more than wrong here, and I need to know. I have to know."

"There is another level in Eichen." Olivia mumbled, and Stiles was ready to say something else, but Olivia cut him off. "And I'm not talking about the dangerous patients' level." Licking her suddenly dry lips, Olivia cast her eyes down to the table and started trailing the wood patters with her finger. "It's where they keep the supernatural creatures."

The silence fell around them, the silence that was outside the mental noise. There was no quietness in Stiles' head and Olivia heard it all.

"Supernatural ward? What the hell is going on here? What is wrong with this place?"

"How do you know it?" Stiles finally asked after a few moments, but Olivia didn't raise her head to meet his eyes.

"I've heard them." She admitted because after everything that she had heard that day not only from Stiles, but also about him, there was no point in pretending. Only when she had said that did she raise her head and met his confused eyes. Once again, he had opened his mouth in order to probably ask something else, but Olivia cut him off again. "No, it is my turn to ask." She demanded and for a second Stiles gaped at her, but then nodded slowly. "And I have two questions. First is – what the hell were you thinking when you forced Malia to turn back to a human?" her voice sounded controlled even if she was so far from being in control. Everything seemed like such a mess, but there was no time to try and figure it all out right then, Olivia had the whole night for that because she had a feeling that her sleepless nights were going to come back soon.

Stiles continuously watched Olivia, but something in his eyes had changed. He didn't look like he was confused anymore. No, the emotion in his eyes was guilt and somehow Olivia had expected it.

"We were trying to help her." Was Stiles' answer and then he lowered his head, looking down to his hands, playing with his fingers. Olivia continued watching him and listening in to his thoughts, but everything confirmed her first thought. He really did feel guilty.

Sighing deeply Olivia leaned forward, placing her hands on the table top and voiced her next question in a calmer voice. "What is Morrell going to do when the Nogitsune takes over?" There were no more "if's", everyone needed to get ready for the "when". Maybe it was because Morrell was so sure that it was going to happen that it transferred to Olivia too, or maybe it was just the fact that she had finally admitted to herself that something like that was happening around her and she was already involved. There was no way out anymore and in a way it was disturbingly comforting to Olivia.

Stiles raised his head and met Olivia's cold eyes. His whiskey brown eyes showed his surrender and Olivia knew that whatever was going to leave his mouth next was not going to be good.

"Once the venom wears off and the Nogitsune takes over, Morrell is going to kill me."

A/N: It has been a while… I'm sorry, the university is killing me. I have sooo much work… and if honestly the only reason this chapter is reaching you is because I managed to find some inspiration (let's all thank Halsey for releasing her album, which provided the needed music to write this chapter (and I really recommend listening to the album "Badlands", it's a killer)).

Ok, so some problems arose in this chapter, the plot thickens even more. I'd really love to hear your thoughts about it and who knows, your reviews could give me the needed inspiration to write quicker and update soon!

Oh, and I can't wait to write the confrontation between Brunski and Olivia. It's going to be awesome, trust me on that.

To those who are waiting for the update of "Running Shadows" – no promises when, I'm swamped with work, but I'll try to do my best.

Also, this story is easier to update because the chapters are shorter and most of the characters are already where I need them to be (aka messed up)

So, I hope you liked this chapter, thanks for reading! Oh, and remember to review!