Erica dunks her spoon into her glass of chocolate milk and stirs it.
Her father grabs a piece of toast and takes a bite out of it. The newspaper makes a noise as he flips the page.
"Are you going to come join us at the table for breakfast, sweetheart?" her mother asks, sipping a cup of coffee. Erica turns to her parents and smiles faintly.
"I'm not that hungry but I'll sit," she tells them, grabbing her glass and moving to the table.
Her parents smile at her and continue eating their breakfast.
"We're so glad you're back honey," Erica's mom tells her. "We missed you so much."
Erica's father puts down his newspaper and says, "We really did, princess."
"I missed you guys too," she says sincerely.
"We were so worried you had had a seizure somewhere and you were all alone. I know you had started to grow out of them, but you never know. We were lost without our baby," Erica's mother adds, her eyes beginning to tear up.
"Well, I'm back, and I'm not going anywhere," Erica promised. "Except for school… which I should probably leave for now. I'll see you guys later."
She stands up and kisses both of them on the cheek.
"Are you sure you're okay to drive, honey?" her father asks as she swings her backpack on her shoulder.
"I'm sure, thanks, Dad."
The man smiles at her and turns back to his newspaper. Erica grabs her keys from the counter and heads out the door to her Impala.
When she steps into the car she sighs happily.
"I missed you, Phillip," she says to the car.
She starts the engine and dials a number as she pulls out of her driveway.
"Hey, you on your way?" Isaac's voice says on the other line when he picks up.
"Yep, just left," she says.
"Alright, I'll be waiting for you. How's it going with your parents?"
"Pretty good, surprisingly. I just told them some bullshit lie about how I was stressed and Boyd was having trouble at home so we just decided to leave for a while. They were a little upset, but mostly glad I was home," Erica tells him.
"That's good. You still mad at Derek?"
Erica replays their argument in his head: he had been ignoring her, so she confronted him and he told her he thought it was time she move back in with her parents. No explanation. He basically kicked her out.
"Yeah, but not as mad as I was. I'm glad I get to be with my parents again, I didn't realize how much I missed them. But I'm still pissed he just decided to throw me out just because he can't deal with his own damn feelings," Erica rolls her eyes.
"Yeah, I getcha. Maybe it's good you two are apart for a while, so you can both clear your heads and figure things out," Isaac advises.
Erica laughs, "You sound like we're a couple."
"Well, everyone can tell there's something there. Even Malum made you a couple in that mass dream," Isaac explains.
"Well, everyone but Derek thinks we could be together apparently," Erica mutters.
"Cut him some slack, the last girl he really liked turned out to be a monster, so he's probably scared or something…"
"Whatever," Erica says, finishing the topic. "I'm almost there so be ready. I'm not coming inside."
"I am, don't worry," Isaac tells her, smirking.
"Good, see ya in a minute."
Erica hangs up the phone and within seconds she pulls into the loft's parking lot.
TEEN WOLF
The boys file into the locker room one after another. They're all drenched in sweat after a grueling morning practice.
Scott and Stiles move over to their lockers and Scott peels off his practice jersey, tossing it into the hamper to the left of the locker. Jackson and Danny come in, moving over to their lockers, doing the same.
Danny grabs his shower gel and says, "Great work out there Leroy."
Greenberg smiles and begins to say thanks when the coach interrupts him.
"You ladies better have your A-game on tonight," Coach Finstock screams at the lacrosse players. "The Waterdale Warthogs may have a ridiculous name but last year they were our toughest competition!"
"Okay we get it," Stiles says to Scott, "we're a bunch of girls who need to be ready to straddle some hogs."
"What was the Stilinksi?" Coach shouts, drawing attention to the boy.
Stiles looks around and sees Jackson shirtless and chuckling, he then begins to stutter, "I, uh, was just um… uh… like… we're gonna win tonight, coach!"
"That's what I thought," Finstock replies with a scowl, "now hit the showers, you all smell like mediocrity."
TEEN WOLF
"Just ask him," Allison insists, "it's not like he's going to say no."
Camilla quickly rolls her eyes, "Armpit, this isn't me asking him to go play mini-golf, I'm asking him to come for dinner with our fathers… the big men with lots of guns and a thirst for werewolf blood. If you were him would you want to come?"
"Just. Ask."
Isaac enters the room just as the bell rings and then takes his seat beside Lydia, throwing a quick smile in Camilla's direction. The girl feels herself blush and she quickly averts her eyes to the cover of her chemistry textbook.
"Alright class," Mrs. Trumbolt smiles, pulling up the sleeves of her maroon sweater. "Today we're doing something your old teacher, Mr. Harris, had in his notes. Around the World Lab, we'll be going counter clockwise and doing one step of the lab with a new partner each time. Let's get right into it, shall we?"
"Looks like you'll be stuck with him," Allison smiles, "he's your first partner."
Just then Allison gets up and moves over to a short boy with curly hair and Isaac moves over to where Camilla sits.
He smiles at her as he sets his notebook down on the desk and begins to smack his pencil against it.
"So what were you guys talking about?" he asks casually.
The dark haired girl sighs and opens the vial of sodium chloride, "My dad sort of wants you to come for dinner tonight. Which is totally ridiculous, he's never been like this with any of my other… whatevers, and trust me I understand if you don't want to come because he is a hunter and everything so, I mean I can just tell him you—"
"I'd love to," Isaac beams.
"Argent family dinners aren't so bad," Scott says from behind the couple, "I mean, yeah there's a lot of hostility in the room but that usually disappears before dessert."
Suddenly Camilla perks up, "Why don't you join us then? I'm sure Armpit would love to have you."
Allison whips her head around to stare at her cousin and at Scott, "You are a thing of evil," the brunette girl glares. "Scott, you do not have to come."
"It's no problem," the boy smiles, "what's one more family gathering? Just, uh, make sure your dad has the cross bow locked up."
Out of the blue everyone hears a ding and then Mrs. Trumbolt's voice saying, "Switch!"
Isaac smiles once again before getting up and moving to the curly haired boy, as Stiles comes and sits down beside Camilla, "You coming to the game tonight?"
Across the room sit Jackson and Lydia, both are silent and intently working on their portion of the lab.
"Are we ever going to talk about the giant homosexual elephant in the room?" Lydia asks as she adds three drops of dye into the beaker that sits between them, changing the liquid from clear to yellow.
Jackson raises an eyebrow, "Excuse me?"
Lydia chuckles, "Camilla pointed it out last week at the dance. You get sent away to England for school and then you're back and you've been kicked out, I've pieced it together and it dawned on me that maybe you're back because you took the phrase 'you suck' to a whole new level."
"Lydia, look it's not what you think I just –"
"How long have you been fooling around with Nolan?" Lydia asks, cutting Jackson's protests off.
"We aren't."
Lydia looks down at the beaker and watches as it begins to fizzle due to something she had just added, "You know, I don't understand how you can just all of a sudden be into boys. We were together for three years and then you start driving stick… didn't you love me?"
Jackson sighs, "Of course I did, but I realized that we were more of a superficial couple than anything. I treated you like crap and you let me; you acted like an idiot and I let you. We were the jock and the it-girl; that was us. I did love you, Lydia, I did, but we weren't good for each other. You need someone who you don't have to act dumb for and I need someone who won't put up with my abuse because they're 'in love' with me."
"I just… we had sex; we were together in every way. How can that just mean nothing now?"
"It still means something," Jackson replies, putting his hand on her knee, "but you and I aren't the same people we were. We have to move on and if I move on with a guy that's just that, it doesn't make you any less perfect than you are – but now you need to find someone who's going to love you for you and not the person you turn yourself into for them."
Mrs. Trumbolt rings the bell again and Jackson gathers his things and moves over to Camilla as Lydia is greeted by a short girl with glasses. The strawberry blonde girl shakes her head and turns to face the girl before saying, "Would you hand me the second beaker please?"
TEEN WOLF
Camilla finishes placing silverware around the dining room table and sighs. She navigates through a bunch of boxes and looks over herself in the mirror.
Allison walks up behind her with a big bowl of salad in her hands.
"Relax, Camilla. You look amazing," Allison tells her cousin. "Everything's going to go fine, I've done this before."
Camilla turns away from her reflection and says, "Yeah but not with my father. He eats my boyfriends alive. Not that Isaac is my boyfriend or anything… but you know what I mean."
"He still hasn't asked you to be his girlfriend yet?"
"No…"
"Well, it hasn't been that long. And things have been kinda crazy lately. But don't worry, he likes you. A lot. Everyone can see it, trust me."
Camilla smiles from her cousin's reassuring words and moves to the kitchen to carry more things to the table.
Scott and Isaac arrive within minutes and soon enough, everyone is sitting at the table, eating.
"So, Isaac," Ron asks, "You're a werewolf?"
"Dad!" Camilla exclaims.
Chris laughs, "Ron, cool it. I think we all know who the werewolves are here."
"Just making conversation," the other man says, shrugging. He takes a bite of his steak and moans, "This is some nice steak."
"My, uh, grandma has a recipe for an amazing mushroom sauté. I haven't had it in a while, but I ate it all the time when I was a kid," Isaac says.
"I love mushrooms," Ron tells him, eyeing him curiously.
"I remember the recipe, so maybe after dinner I could write it down for you. It'll change your life," Isaac says to him.
"I would love that," Ron says, his eyes going wide from excitement.
Camilla doesn't look up from her plate, embarrassed and nervous. Isaac, who sits next to her reaches under the table and squeezes her knee.
She looks up at him and he smiles at her, and in a flash, her worries melt away and her heart pounds.
Ron's phone starts to ring, causing the two to come back to reality.
Ron finishes chewing and glances at the screen before answering, "Hey, Susan."
"Who's Susan?" Allison mouths to Camilla.
"No idea," she mouths back.
Everyone looks at Ron curiously as he chats with the mysterious Susan. When he hangs up, he notices everyone's eyes are on him.
"What? Can't a man have a conversation?"
"Who's Susan?" Camilla asks.
"A woman your dad met at the singles mixer last week. They really hit it off," Chris says, smiling at his brother.
Camilla frowns, waiting for her dad to comment.
"Yeah. I met Susan last week. She wants to go out again this weekend," Ron says, not being able to meet his daughter's eyes.
An awkward silence fills the room.
Scott interrupts when he says, "I hate to leave so early, but I have to head to the school for my lacrosse game. We've got to be there early to warm up."
"I'll walk you out," Allison says, wiping her mouth with her napkin.
"Thanks for having me, Chris and Ron. Dinner was amazing. See you guys some other time," Scott says smiling and waving goodbye.
Chris smiles and nods and Ron waves.
The two leave, and another silence fills the room.
"Isaac, I thought you played lacrosse?" Chris asks.
"I did," he answers. "But this year I decided to quit. My heart wasn't really in it anymore."
"Do you play any other sports?" Ron asks.
"No sir."
"Do you have a job?"
"No sir."
Ron nods, taking in the information. Camilla doesn't say a word, but she angrily finishes her plate with a frustrated look on her face.
Ron leans back in his chair and puts his hands behind his head, "That was delicious. Camilla, when you're done will you clear the table?"
The brunette doesn't answer, but scoots her chair back and throws down her napkin.
She grabs the empty plates and heads into the kitchen.
"What's her problem?" Ron asks, using his tongue to pick food out of his teeth.
"I think she's upset about Susan," Chris tells his brother.
Ron sighs, "I knew she would be. I didn't want to tell her about her unless things got more serious."
"Oh, sorry," Chris says. "I didn't know."
"It's alright. She'll be fine, you just gotta let her blow off some steam and she'll be over it."
The three guys sit in silence and Allison comes back into the room.
"Are you going to the game tonight, Allison?" her father asks.
"I was planning on it," she answers.
He nods, "Alright, just wondering. Are you coming home after?"
"Probably. We might go out for a little after, though."
Before Chris can speak, Camilla storms back into the room and grabs the glasses and other dishes from the table and leaves.
Isaac jumps up, "I'm going to go help her."
In the kitchen, Camilla slams dishes around and cleans up.
"Hey," Isaac says with a small smile.
Camilla jumps, not knowing he had come in.
"Hey, sorry, about that. He's always been like that," she says, turning back to the dishes.
"It's fine," he says, moving closer to her. "You want some help?"
"You don't need to," she says.
"But I want to," he tells her, grabbing one of her arms gently. "What's wrong?"
Camilla stops cleaning and looks at him, "It's nothing, really. He just bugs me when he does that stuff."
"Camilla," Isaac says. "You can tell me anything. I want to know why you're upset."
The girl sighs and wipes her hand on her forehead.
"I don't understand why he's okay with dating so soon. My mother died a little less than a year ago! How can he want to date so soon?" She turns back to the dishes and begins slamming them around again.
"Hey, calm down," Isaac says, grabbing her arm again. "Just talk to me, don't take it out on the dishes."
Camilla laughs and stops. She turns towards him and says, "It just upsets me. I'm not ready for another woman in our lives. I don't understand how he is."
"He was only with her for one night," Isaac says calmly, running his fingers over Camilla's cheek. "It's one little date, he's not going to marry her the next day. He probably just misses being in the company of a woman. He needs to live again."
Camilla's eyes look right at Isaac's as she sighs, "I know. I know. It's just hard. I miss her so much."
Isaac wraps his arms around her, "I know you do. And he does too. You just have to let him do his own thing. He doesn't like you bringing home werewolves and you don't like that he's seeing women again. You both aren't happy with things, but at the end of the day you still love each other, right?"
"Yeah," Camilla says, relaxing into his embrace.
"So who cares about the little things? You both are doing what makes you happy, so it's okay. You still have each other, and those things aren't going to take away any of the love you have for each other."
"Why are you so amazing?" Camilla asks, pulling away to look in his eyes and grabbing his hands.
"Because I know an amazing girl who makes me want to be a better person," he tells her, squeezing her hands and smiling.
Camilla blushes and smiles back. Without a warning, Isaac leans in and kisses her.
Their hands migrate to each other's bodies as their lips move passionately. They don't break apart, and a hunger takes over.
For minutes, they continue kissing and feeling each other, until they pause to breathe.
They both laugh, their hearts pounding.
"We'd better start cleaning these dishes before someone comes in here and catches us," Camilla says, a bit breathless.
"Yeah, we'd better," Isaac replies, his eyes locked on Camilla's.
Within seconds their mouths are together again, that same fierceness in their lips.
Camilla grabs at Isaac's shirt, wanting nothing more than to tug it up and over his head. Isaac's hands wander all over Camilla's body, groping every wonderful curve.
All of a sudden the door to the kitchen opens, forcing the two to break apart.
Allison comes to a halt, "Oh, God. I'm sorry, I—"
"Sorry," Camilla breathes, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.
"No I'll just… go…" Allison says, as she walks right back out the door.
When she's gone the two laugh.
"Oops," Camilla smiles.
TEEN WOLF
A little bit later on, Isaac and Camilla make their way to Derek's loft after Isaac receives a message from Derek himself.
"What do you think his plan is?" Camilla asks, riding in the passenger seat.
"I honestly have no idea," Isaac shrugs as he pulls into the loft's parking lot.
They make their way up and walk in to the living room where Derek sits, waiting.
"Hey man, so what's the plan?" Isaac says. He chuckles and adds, "That rhymed."
Camilla smiles and shakes her head and Derek narrows his eyes.
"This isn't time for rhymes, Isaac. We're breaking the bond tonight."
"Yeah, I know, that's what your text said. So how do you suggest this goes down?" Isaac asks seriously.
"We need to break into the graveyard and burn Gerard's body. And whatever is tying Erica to The Root. Deaton says it should still be on the body," Derek tells him.
Camilla gulps at the mention of her dead grandfather, and Isaac reaches for her hand.
"Who is we? Because Scott, Stiles, and Jackson are all playing lacrosse right now," Isaac says.
"Well I don't want to wait until later and risk The Root figuring out what we're trying to do, so I guess you and I will go soon," Derek says, thinking.
"What about Erica? Shouldn't she be with us, just to see if it works? To see if she's okay after?" Isaac asks.
Derek sighs, "Yeah. But I don't know if The Root can tell where she is or anything. I don't want him coming after us."
"Yeah, you're right," Isaac says, trying to think of another way.
"I can help," Camilla says. "I know I'm no badass wolf like you guys, but I know how to dig. That way one of you can be with Erica, watching her. Plus, Gerard's my grandfather, I would kinda like to be there for his impromptu cremation…"
Derek looks at the girl and ponders her suggestion.
"That doesn't sound like a terrible idea," Isaac says. "We could go before halftime, and nobody would suspect a thing. And you can just bring Erica here and watch her until we get back."
Derek thinks for a moment and says, "Okay. But don't screw it up."
TEEN WOLF
Scott spins around one of Waterdale's players and launches the small rubber ball into the net. The crowd goes wild and several of Scott's teammates come and pat him on the back. Sooner than he'd realized, Scott and the team are back in action.
The ball is tossed from Greenberg's lacrosse stick and to Stiles just as Greenberg is tackled to the ground, grass sliding up and getting caked into his jersey. Stiles turns on his heel and begins running, throwing the ball to Jackson who is quick to throw it to Ethan. Without a second thought Ethan throws the ball as hard as he can into the net, giving Beacon Hills another point.
Whistles are being blown as the other team calls a time out. The team hurries over to the bench, shedding their helmets and taking the waters being tossed at them like they're a life preserver.
Up in the stands, amongst the cheers and clapping, Camilla shifts uncomfortably in her seat, "Can we go now?" she asks Isaac.
"You don't have to do this," Allison tells her, tugging on the end of her blue scarf. "Isaac can easily call Derek and they can go and… do what they need to do."
"Do what they need to do? Why don't you just say dig up and burn granddaddy?"
"Because I'm not tactless," Allison replies, crossing her arms over her chest. She locks eyes with Scott who smiles at her briefly and then looks back at Finstock and nods his head.
Nolan leans around Lydia and says to Isaac, "Once you've dug him up you have to find whatever personal item of Erica's was used and burn that separately. Otherwise the whole thing is a wash."
"And try not to get covered in grave dirt," Lydia remarks, "if two teens run off for a few minutes most people will think they've just gone to make out or something. If you come back all dirty all these parents and kids will know something is off."
Isaac and Camilla nod their heads and then exchange a glance. He sees her brow furrow and wonders if they're really making a mistake.
"Ready?" the boy asks cautiously, wrapping his own scarf securely around his neck.
"As I'll ever be," Camilla responds, standing up and walking down the bleachers and toward his car. Isaac watches her and then turns to Allison.
"Maybe I should just call Derek and have him meet me there. This is beginning to seem like a bad idea," he says to the dark haired girl.
Allison shakes her head, "No, Camilla wants to do this, maybe even needs to, if you try and stop her you'll just be doing more harm than good."
"Besides," Lydia says, "Gerard may have been her grandpa, but he wasn't exactly a big part in any of his grandkids' lives. It'll be hard for her, but she'll get over it."
"Or she'll have nightmares about him for the rest of her life," Nolan says with a smile. "Either way, good luck."
Isaac nods his head, his better judgment telling him that he ought to call Derek and stop Camilla from having to dig up her grandfather. But he doesn't and instead gets into the car with Camilla and stays quiet as they drive to the cemetery.
TEEN WOLF
Back at the loft, Erica and Derek walk in uneasily. The awkward tension is thick.
"Make yourself comfortable," Derek mumbles, making his way to the kitchen to grab a water.
When he returns to the living room, he moves towards Erica to hand her one. Their fingers brush briefly and they look at each other for a millisecond before quickly looking away.
Derek's phone buzzes and he reads the incoming text.
"That's Isaac," he says. "They just got to the cemetery."
"So it begins," Erica says.
At the cemetery, Isaac and Camilla step out of the car. They try and shield themselves from the cold and walk close together.
"You know where we're going?" Isaac asks.
"Yeah, I remember," Camilla nods, her eyes full of sorrow.
Isaac grabs her hand and locks their fingers together.
"I'm here for you. If you need to stop, just tell me. I know this is hard on you…"
Camilla smiles and leans in for a peck.
"I'll be fine. I'm strong," she tells him, resting her head on his shoulder as they walk closer to the grave.
In Isaac's other hand, he carries two shovels for them.
"I know you are, babe," he responds.
In a few minutes they stop and Camilla shines a flashlight on the grave in front of them.
"Here he is," she says quietly.
"You ready?" Isaac asks, handing her one of the shovels.
Camilla looks up at the dark sky before she answers, "Let's do it." She grabs the shovel from his hand and exhales loudly.
"Who would've thought I meet my girlfriend's dad and then dig up her dead grandfather all in one night?" Isaac asks rhetorically before shoving his shovel into the dirt.
Camilla is about to strike the ground but stops, "Girlfriend?"
Isaac stops and looks up, a smile on his face.
"Are you okay with that?"
Camilla smiles and walks over to kiss him, "Honestly, it's just what I needed." She turns back to her spot and hits the ground hard with her shovel, and their digging begins.
A little over an hour later, and a few pieces of clothing less, the Isaac strikes something hard.
"We've struck gold, baby," he says, wiping sweat and dirt from his face.
Camilla fans herself and shrugs of her t-shirt, leaving her in just a camisole.
"Let's do this," she says.
Together, they get the last of the dirt off of the coffin. Isaac boosts Camilla out of the hole and turns to open the lid.
Camilla looks away before Gerard's body comes into view, and Isaac covers his nose, preparing for a possible nasty smell.
"Is it bad?" Camilla asks, still not being able to look. Isaac boosts himself from the hole and comes up next to her.
"You don't need to watch. I can burn him by myself if you want to go back to the car," he tells her.
She shakes her head, "No. I need to do this."
She walks up to the edge and looks down. Gerard's body has begun to decompose, and Camilla shudders.
Isaac comes up to her, and besides them both being sweaty, he puts his arm around her.
"You're amazing for doing this, you know?" he tells her, earning him a smile.
She turns away and grabs the lighter fluid and the book of matches they purchased before going to the lacrosse game.
"Did you get the thing that ties Erica to The Root?" she asks.
"No, I couldn't see anything in there. I'll grab the flashlight and head back down," Isaac answers.
When he gets the light, he carefully jumps back down and begins the search.
"Those aren't the clothes he died in, but we already checked those, seeing if he left a… suicide note, I guess. But there was nothing, so it might be gripped in his hand or something," Camilla says.
Isaac shakes his head and breathes deeply. He checks both hands and comes up with nothing.
"What if The Root took it with him?" he asks.
Camilla thinks for a second, not wanting to accept defeat.
"Okay, you're going to hate me for this…" she says to her boyfriend.
Isaac looks up at her, "That's impossible. Just tell me."
Camilla sighs, "Well, thinking back to all the crime shows and horror movies I've seen, there have sometimes been dead bodies with things in their um….. mouths…."
Isaac's eyes widen as he understands what Camilla is suggesting.
"Do you hate me?" Camilla asks worriedly.
"Of course not," Isaac says. "I hate what I'm about to do." Isaac gathers his courage and reaches into the coffin where the old man lies. He kneels down and puts the flashlight in his mouth.
His work is quick as he opens the deceased man's mouth with a little difficulty. He instantly notices what looks like a piece of paper and pulls it out.
He hands it up to Camilla and pulls himself out of the grave. When he's on his feet, he paces around, shaking is hands and gagging.
"I can't believe I just did that," he says. "I'm gonna pass out."
Camilla reluctantly opens the mysterious piece of paper only to discover it's a picture rather than a note.
"Babe," she says when she recognizes the face. "You did it. This is a picture of Erica. This is what we needed!"
Isaac stops pacing, and a look of relief washes over his face. Camilla throws her arms around him and kisses him.
"Now the hard part's over," she tells him. "We just need to cremate him, burn the picture, and dump the dirt right back on that bastard."
"You have such a way with words," Isaac coos jokingly, pecking Camilla on her lips.
Within ten minutes, their tasks are done and they are walking hand in hand back to the car.
"Let's go back to the loft to check on Erica and get cleaned up," Isaac says. "Then we can probably hang out there for the rest of the night."
"That sounds good," Camilla says. "But I should probably stop back at the game, just to make sure nobody freaks about us being gone for so long."
"Alright," Isaac says, kissing the top of his girlfriend's head. "You should probably send everyone a quick text now, though, too."
Camilla nods and pulls out her phone.
At the loft, Derek is freaking out, replaying the last ten minutes in his head.
Erica sits on the couch and Derek on a chair, both watching Family Feud, trying to make the time go by faster.
Derek glances over at Erica and nearly jumps when he notices her nose bleeding.
"Erica, your nose is bleeding," he tells her. The blonde girl's hand shoots to her face, touching the blood.
"Shit," she says. "I'll be in the bathroom."
The girl stands up and walks away. Derek watches her hips sway back and forth, a bit of worry in the back of his mind.
He waits about five minutes, and Erica doesn't return. He stands up to go check on her, and makes his way to the bathroom.
The door is open just a crack, and he can see the light is on.
He knocks, "Erica? You okay?"
He doesn't hear an answer so he pushes open the door, not sure what to expect.
The light floods into the dark hallway he stands in, and Derek gets a better view of the room.
Erica lies on the floor, unconscious.
Blood covers the sink and is in drops on the floor. The blood from her nose isn't the only source, though.
Derek rushes to Erica's side and examines her closer. Blood soaks through her shirt, coming from her abdomen. He grabs her into his arms and shakes her gently.
"Erica, wake up!" he yells. He pulls up her shirt and sees the Resurrection Triquetra carved into her body.
"What the hell?" Derek says out loud. Worry and anger flow through him as he picks her up and carries her to the kitchen. He sets her on the table and gets a washcloth wet, placing it on her face.
He dials Deaton, but he doesn't get an answer. He leaves a frantic message, explaining the situation.
He hangs up the phone and slams it down in anger.
He paces the floor, not knowing what to do.
Back in the present, Derek still paces the floor, waiting for a response.
His phone buzzes and he expects it to be Deaton, but when he looks at the screen, he sees it's Camilla.
Her message says that they successfully burned the body and a picture of Erica, which was what they think The Root used to bring her back.
Derek is relieved. He looks back at Erica, who still lies unconscious. He dials Deaton again, and this time he gets a response.
"Sorry, Derek, I was at a banquet. I didn't get a chance to listen to your voicemail, what do you need?" asks the man on the other line.
"It's Erica. We broke the bond, well, we think we did. I don't know for sure. But she's not conscious. She got a bloody nose and the next thing I know the Resurrection symbol is carved into her. What the hell is going on?" Derek asks angrily.
"I'm not entirely sure, I've never known of anyone who actually broke the bond. It seems to me this is her body's way of separating itself from The Root. The Triquetra is carved into her now because she is being brought back, but with full control of her body."
"So what am I supposed to do?"
"Just keep an eye on her. Keep her temperature stable and try to stop the bleeding," Deaton tells him calmly. "I'll call you back in a bit, I have to go now. If you really need me, call again."
"Okay," Derek says before hanging up. He closes his eyes and runs his hands through his hair.
"Derek?" Erica says in a croaky voice from behind him.
Derek whirls around and quickly moves to her side.
"Erica? Are you okay?"
"I think so. Why the hell am I covered in blood? It was just a bloody nose," she says, confused.
"It was until you passed out in the bathroom with the Resurrection Triquetra carved into your stomach," he tells her.
"What?" she asks, bewildered. She moves slowly, but she reaches her hand to the hem of her shirt and pulls it up, revealing her stomach.
"Derek… there's nothing here," she says. And she's right. Where Derek saw the symbol is now clean, unmarked flesh.
Derek backs up, confused.
Isaac and Camilla walk in at this time, covered in dirt.
"Erica what the hell?" Isaac asks rushing to her side.
"Yeah, we have no idea," the blonde says truthfully.
TEEN WOLF
Lydia and Nolan watch as the game rages on, Beacon Hills is up by three and doesn't seem to be losing any steam.
"Back in Illinois," Nolan begins, "we had Friday night football. There wasn't a lacrosse team or any mention of this game… why is it so popular here?"
Lydia shrugs, "Beats me, but there's something satisfying about watching Jackson get tackled that I can't quite explain."
"You guys not getting back together?" Nolan asks casually, zipping his coat up further.
"It doesn't look like it," the girl replies, "although I'm sure you're not too torn up about that."
Nolan eyebrows rise, "What makes you think that?"
"Don't play coy with me, Nolan. Only a blind man wouldn't be able to tell that there's something between you two."
"Lydia I would never…"
"It's okay though," Lydia smiles, "I'm over it. Really over it this time, I've got my eyes on someone else."
Just as the words leave her mouth, Stiles is taken to the ground by one of Waterdale's attackers, for a minute all you can see are the blue and yellow colors of the particular Warthogs' jersey. There's an audible gasp from the crowd as it happens.
"Oh my god," Nolan exclaims.
"He'll be fine, Stiles tends to spend most games on the ground anyway."
Allison comes back to the stands then with two hot chocolates in red solo cups in her hands; she gives one to Lydia and sits, asking, "That line was like purgatory. What did I miss?"
"Stiles was just pummeled by one of the Warthogs," Lydia replies.
Allison chuckles and takes a sip of her steaming hot cocoa when Camilla appears and comes up to the stands, her gray and black plaid pea coat moving perfectly in time with her body. As the girl sits she removes the matching beanie and then says, "Grandpa is roasted."
"Great visual," Nolan says flatly, sticking his hands in his pockets.
"So did it work?" Lydia asks quickly.
Camilla shrugs, "I think so, I mean we burned the personal item and then we burned Gerard… And we saw Erica… for some reason the Resurrection Triquetra carved itself into her body. Derek talked to Deaton and he says it probably her body taking back all of the control. Does that mean it worked?"
"That's what all the books say," Nolan answers.
"Are you alright?" Allison asks her cousin, locking eyes with her.
Camilla swallows hard and turns to face the field, "I'm okay. Besides the horrendous smell of burning old man flesh that I will never be able to forget, I'm just fine."
"You're sure?" Allison persists.
"Yes, Armpit, I'm one hundred percent positive. It's not like Gerard was grandfather of the year or anything, all he ever really was to me was a paycheck on my birthday. It's not like I've got fond memories of him teaching me how to ride a bike or how to play tennis. He's just check man to me."
There's a ball of tension that sits with the four teens for a minute and as Stiles scores another point the kids hear his father scream, "That's my boy!" from the front row of bleachers. Lydia's face pulls into a smile as she watches Stiles wave at his dad and then get back into the game.
"Where's Isaac?" Allison asks, hoping to break the tension.
"He stayed at Derek's to be with Erica. I figured I might as well come back so nobody gets suspicious," Camilla answers.
Jackson hurls the ball to Stiles who runs around number seven, Walcott, and gets the ball to Scott. From the stands, the crowd watches as Ethan is tackled trying to block one of the attackers from getting to Scott who is intent on winning the game.
With only seconds left in the game Scott catches the ball and then hops over two of Waterdale's attackers, all the while chucking the ball into the net. As the crowd screams the refs call the game and Beacon Hills reigns victorious.
TEEN WOLF
Derek and Erica sit in Derek's Camaro later that night as he drives her back to her house.
"Are you sure all the blood is off? The last thing I need is for my parent's to freak out about me coming home covered in blood," Erica asks Derek while checking herself out in the mirror.
"You're perfect," Derek says before he realizes what he is saying. Erica stops finger-combing her hair and freezes.
Derek's jaw clenches and he tries to pretend he didn't just say that as he pulls up along the curb in front of her house.
"Thanks for, um, being here for me tonight. I'm sure I freaked you out," Erica says.
"Well, Deaton and Nolan say everything worked, so hopefully that's true…"
Erica and nods and opens the door.
"Give me a thumbs up from your bedroom window if everything's ok," Derek tells her before she shuts the door.
He watches her hurry to the front door and walk in.
Inside, Erica leans against the wall in her front entrance. She hates herself for wanting Derek so bad, when he obviously didn't want anything from her.
She shakes her head and walks into the living room, where she can hear the TV on.
When she walks in, her father looks up from his chair at her and smiles.
"Hey, dad. Sorry it's late. The lacrosse game just got done and I wanted to congratulate the guys quick," she lies.
"That's okay, princess," he tells her, still looking at her.
"Where's mom?" she asks.
"In the kitchen," he says in a weird voice.
"Are you okay? You're not mad I'm home late are you?" Her hand automatically flicks to her hair, where there had been blood before. Her blood soaked shirt was left at Derek's and she borrowed one of Isaac's but it was covered by her coat.
"No I'm not mad," he says standing up. Erica can only see his back as he stands, and doesn't turn to face her. "But no, I'm not okay."
"What do you—" she begins, only to be cut off at the sight of her father when he turns around.
Stab wounds cover his chest and stomach, blood soaking his clothes much like her shirt earlier.
Erica gasps, "Dad? What the hell happened? Are you okay? What's going on?"
Her father smiles and puts his hands on his hips.
"No, Erica, your father is not okay. And neither is your mother, for that matter."
"I don't understand…" she says.
"Oh silly girl. If you hadn't broken the bond, you would've recognized me."
Erica's eyes widen and her heart pounds. "Malum."
"Good job, princess," The Root responds.
Tears flood from Erica's eyes, "What did you do to my parents?"
"Isn't it obvious? I killed them," The Root tells her, smiling.
"W-why?" she asks, sobbing. Her knees give way and she lands on the floor, broken.
"Well, you were taken away from me, so I took something away from you. Simple. Easy peasy. You don't pull one over on The Root and get away with it."
Anger rips through Erica and she stands up, "I'll kill you!"
She growls and extracts her claws.
"No you won't," The Root says. In an instant he snaps and disappears before Erica can make a move.
Erica stands still for a moment, unsure of what to do. She remembers what Malum said about her mother and rushes to the kitchen.
On the floor, he mother lays, similar wounds marking her body.
Erica kneels next to her and sobs even harder.
"Mom…" she cries, grabbing her mother's cold hand.
She bows her head and screams, her body shuddering from the pain and sorrow. Tears spill from her eyes.
She remembers Derek is waiting for her signal in his car. She bends down and kisses her mother on the forehead, then gets up and makes her way out of the house, her knees wobbling.
When Derek sees her coming out, he is confused. When he gets a closer look, he sees the pain and tears on Erica's face and jumps out of the car to go to her.
He gets to her and she begins to collapse, but he catches her in his arms.
"Erica," he says with an abundance of worry. "What's wrong? What happened?"
Erica sobs louder and shakes, unable to speak. She sniffs and with all the strength she can muster she says, "They're dead. He killed them."
Her body can't support itself any longer, and Derek is the only thing holding her up.
He scoops her up and holds her to him.
"Erica, what do you mean?"
Through her sobs she manages to say, "The Root killed my parents."
TEEN WOLF
