Part Four
DISCLAIMER: See Chapter One.
Scott's the one who finds it.
The symbol is carved into the door of Derek's old home. None of the wolves have been there since Derek moved out and he hasn't been back himself for a while, so nobody knows just how long the sign's been there. The Alpha Pack could have been around for longer than they know.
Everyone's staring at the symbol when Lydia steps away from the group; she moves daintily around the small clearing, sniffing the air cautiously.
"It's that scent again," she says. "Whatever it is, it's been here."
"You sure it's not the Alphas?" Scott asks nervously.
Jackson quickly sets him straight. "Oh, wake up, McCall! You know what a werewolf smells like; this thing is not a werewolf."
"Right now we have bigger priorities," Derek says loudly. "And even if the Alphas have been here, we might not be able to track them down. Their human scents could be different from their wolf scents."
"But what if this thing is dangerous?" asks Erica.
"If it is," Derek growls, "we deal with it."
xxx
Isaac's confused.
He's known the Betas in the pack for a long time. They've all grown up in Beacon Hills; they've all gone to the same schools together.
The Alpha's different. Isaac's known Derek for less than two months, but ever since he comforted him after that nightmare, Isaac feels like he belongs to the Alpha and that's just crazy.
Isaac is not part of the pack. Every time he reminds himself of this, it's like a pain in his chest. He's protected by the pack, but he's not one of them. He wants to be strong, confident. He doesn't want to be afraid anymore. But it's more than that. For the first time since his brother died, Isaac feels like he has something resembling a family, and he doesn't want that to go away. He doesn't want this to end. He doesn't want to have to go back.
But there's one thing he does not want to be to the pack, and that's a burden.
xxx
If Isaac asked Derek for the bite, would he give it to him?
Isaac wants to ask, but he doesn't know if he should. Maybe it's something that the Alpha has to offer to you, like Laura did with Erica and Boyd.
Peter didn't ask Scott and Jackson if they wanted to be bitten. He just did it, and he blackmailed Lydia into accepting it.
When Isaac brings this up with Derek one afternoon after school, Derek frowns and says: "The bite is a gift. It's not supposed to be forced on someone unless that person will die otherwise."
xxx
"What exactly were you and Stiles doing that night?"
Scott jumps and looks at Isaac. "What do you mean?"
"The night the two of you found Laura's body - what were you doing out in the woods in the first place?"
"Oh. We were there to see Laura; Stiles figured that if the bite cured Erica's epilepsy, it would do the same for my asthma. But then..." Scott looks down at the floor. "...we found her body and Peter Hale found us."
Isaac decides he's not going to ask for the bite. Derek's got no reason to turn him; he's got all the pack members he needs and Isaac doesn't actually need the bite.
xxx
It turns out there's a lot more to Coach Finstock than Isaac had previously thought. For starters, he keeps the werewolves on the team and allows them to keep practicing with the others, but he won't let them actually play in any matches because the team will have an unfair advantage.
Not even Jackson flashing his eyes in a fit of rage or Scott's pleading expression will change his mind. The only way they can play in matches is if there are wolves on the opposing teams. Ironically, the one player Coach actually wants on first line is the only one who's reluctant to do so. But it's clear that Stiles has no choice in the matter.
Days pass, and the threat of the Alphas lurks like a shadow in the minds of the pack.
xxx
Isaac is alone in the changing rooms. He's just finished putting his gear away when a hand grabs the back of his neck and slams him against the locker door. Fingernails dig into his skin, almost puncturing his neck. His breath catches in his throat and he doesn't dare move.
"Who are you?" Isaac is pressed against the metal by a powerful arm. "You reek of Alpha, but you can't be one. You're too small. Too skinny. Who are you?"
"I know who this is." Twins. They have to be; their voices are too similar. "This is the pack's little pet - the guy they're protecting."
"Really?" The first voice laughs. "What, you can't protect yourself? Doesn't matter. We need to get a message to the pack. You'll do."
Claws burst into his neck. Isaac cries out; when his captor releases him and stalks away, he drops to the floor, hands pressed to the sides of his throat. Blood trickles through his fingers.
Hours later, he still can't forget what they said. He's the pack's pet, just the person they're protecting. There's no way he could be a werewolf.
He's nobody.
He's nothing.
How can the pack deal with the Alphas if they have to take care of him?
xxx
Isaac still has a key to his house. He lets himself in and pulls clothes out of his drawers, stuffing them into a bag. Every nerve at him is screaming that he's doing the wrong thing, but he's made up his mind.
He wonders how Derek will react when he finds the note Isaac left.
As he walks down the stairs for the last time, he wonders if the pack will come after him. He hopes they won't - they've got a much bigger problem.
He opens his front door - and freezes.
The woman smiles, her eyes glowing red. "You must be Isaac."
xxx
He's been shackled to the wall for hours now. His head lolls and he stares at the floor. Cold manacles dig into his wrists; tiny trickles of blood flow down his arms, adding to the stains that are already on his clothes.
At least one of his ribs is broken.
The door opens. Isaac slowly raises his head, bracing himself for the worst.
"Ever heard of Omegas?" It's Kali, the woman from outside his house.
"Yeah," Isaac croaks. "They're lone werewolves."
"No. You don't have to be a lone wolf to be an Omega. You know the one kid who always gets picked on in school? The one nobody picks for teams?" Her eyes glint sharply in the half-light and her smile is like a knife. "Every pack has one of those. Someone on the lowest rung of the ladder; the one who's always getting nipped and pushed around."
Isaac doesn't say anything. He just looks at her, waiting for what she really wants to tell him.
"Gotta say, I've never heard of a human Omega before. Even when there are humans in a pack, the lowest rung is still a wolf. Talia Hale's pack was proof of that." She takes a step closer to him. "You'd better hope her son's as good an Alpha as she was. But I doubt it. She wouldn't have let another were live unchallenged on her territory." Her claws come out with a snick.
Isaac closes his eyes in despair.
If Derek finds the note, there is no way he'll come after him because Isaac's asked him not to and if Derek doesn't come looking for him, he's going to fail the test because that's what this is all about. If he fails, the Alphas will kill him and quite possibly everyone else in the pack and it's all Isaac's fault.
He's just doomed the pack.
His face is wet with tears. Minutes later, his clothes are wet with blood.
xxx
"...Isaac! Isaac!"
It's so dark. So cold.
He barely feels the icy floor as he's lowered onto it.
"...alive? Derek, please! Is he a..."
What are they saying? Someone's talking and they sound familiar, but Isaac can't hear what they're saying. And anyway, it doesn't matter now.
"...oice. It's the only...don't, he will d..."
The darkness beckons. It almost feels like falling asleep.
His side is suddenly on fire with pain. Isaac bucks and he hears someone screaming. The sound is distant and it echoes as if the screamer is far, far from here. Then the pain fades away and the only thing he can hear is his own breathing.
Strong arms scoop him up just as he falls into unconsciousness.
xxx
He opens his eyes to see the loft ceiling above him.
"You're an idiot." Isaac sits up to see Lydia standing at the foot of his bed. "You thought you could just walk off like that?"
"I..."
"You thought we wouldn't come looking for you? You thought Derek wouldn't find you and drag you back, no matter where you went?" She folds her arms and smiles at him. "Accept it, Isaac - you're stuck with us. Permanently."
Isaac runs his hands over his body. There's no pain and he can't feel any scars under his clothes. He's completely healed from everything the Alphas did to him. And he can hear things like the conversation going on downstairs, and smell Lydia's natural scent under the perfume she's wearing. "Did Derek..."
"He gave you the bite. It was the only way to save your life. And he passed the test, but it was a very close call. His Royal Alphaness wants to have a word with you."
Before her last words have a chance to sink in, Isaac hears running footsteps. Scott bursts into the room, the other Betas close behind him. "Isaac!" He runs over to the bed, face and eyes radiant with relief. "Dude, you're awake!"
"Finally." It almost looks like Jackson's genuinely smiling.
"Thank you," Isaac says. "Thank you for coming to find me."
He's about to thank them for saving his life, but he sees the figure of the Alpha walk into the room. Derek doesn't have to say anything; he just looks at the Betas and they immediately leave in complete silence. Scott squeezes Isaac's shoulder before heading for the door. He shoots the older wolf an anxious glance in the process; Derek nods at him and closes the door.
Isaac bows his head. He's too ashamed to look at the Alpha - at his Alpha. Everything could have been ruined because he was too stupid to stay where he was safe. All he can do is say how sorry he is.
"Derek, I'm..."
"Come here."
Isaac slowly gets out of bed. He forces himself to walk towards Derek. Each step takes every ounce of willpower he has and he keeps his neck bowed in submission.
After a few seconds that feel like a lifetime, Derek reaches out and takes hold of his shoulders. Isaac flinches, but Derek pulls him close. It's not just a hug; the Alpha's hands run up and down Isaac's arms, his throat and the back of his neck. He's being scented thoroughly and Derek is getting the message across very clearly.
That doesn't mean there isn't a lecture. There is. It takes an hour, and Isaac knows he deserves every word of it.
He's pack. He always was, he always will be and he will never, ever run away like that again. Does he understand?
"Yes."
xxx
"Do you think Peter would have passed?"
It's pack night. They're all in the loft eating pizza in front of The Blues Brothers (Boyd got to pick) when Erica voices the question.
"No," Derek said flatly. "He wouldn't have wanted to appease the Alphas. He would have wanted to join them."
"How would he have managed that?" Jackson reaches across Isaac to get to the Meat Feast box.
"By killing all of you. An Alpha's power can be increased by killing one or all of his Betas; that's how the other Alphas joined Deucalion. He offered them the choice and they took it. That's probably why Peter turned Lydia and Jackson."
"What about us?" asks Boyd.
Isaac's barely listening to the conversation. He's thinking about what Kali said about Derek's mother.
She wouldn't have let another were live unchallenged on her territory.
What if she wasn't talking about the Alphas? What if she meant the owner of that strange scent that's been lurking about in the woods? Whatever it is, it can't mean harm because no bodies have turned up.
"He'd already forced you and Erica to join him; after he bit Scott, he had all the Betas he needed. Peter didn't have to bite three people. Just one."
Actually, Peter bit four people. The bite only worked on three of them. Too bad Laura didn't have the chance to help someone else...Wait a minute.
Isaac stops mid-bite.
What if she did? If the bite cures asthma and epilepsy, what else can it cure?
She was a new Alpha in the area. She needed to forge alliances, and not just with the Argents. Who better to offer the bite to than...
That's why Peter's bite had no effect on him. He was already turned. He just isn't a werewolf.
But if he's not a werewolf, what is he?
The End
…for now.
