AUTHOR'S NOTE: Even though I love Allison very much and refuse to have her dead in any of my fics, I've wondered what would have happened if Avery were a vampire during the time that Alli died. And then this popped into my head. Enjoy ;)
P.S- This is only one of the two one-shots that I will write that will have Allison's death mentioned in it.
War pt. II
In which the war is over but there are some casualties and Avery loses her humanity.
Nobody ever said that victory came without casualties.
They say the good die young but they never really tell you that they never die alone.
We all fall down- bury a bit of our soul six feet under ground.
If you die then we die with you.
Save me.
I think we ran out of time.
You said you'd come for me when the world swallowed me whole,
but the war is over.
And there are fallen soldiers.
-Quinn Wentz
Avery thought that life after the Nogitsune wreaking havoc upon her town would go back to normal. Well, as normal as can be in Beacon Hills. But with Allison's death weighing heavily on everyone's mind, Avery felt.. nothing.
Nothing at all.
She had heard tales of a vampire turning their emotions off- shutting everything and everyone out- and vowed to never do that. But with Allison's sudden death brought crumpling grief. She had been a sobbing mess at the sight of her friend's lifeless form being cradled by the ex-love of her life- Scott's sobbing mixing in with her own and it had only stopped the moment Chris gripped Avery's bicep and told her to shut it out.
"It hurts, I know it hurts," Chris told her in a rush. "But I need you to get it under control. Shut it out. Shut it all out and get the ones who don't need to be here out of here. You hear me, Avery? Shut. It. Out."
In Chris' rush to get Stiles, Kira, and Mrs. Yukimura out of there, he didn't think about the impact his words would have on such an emotional vampire and didn't realize the sudden change in Avery's demeanor as she stopped crying and blinked away tears.
She managed to keep herself in Beacon Hills and go undetected by her pack mates as the uncaring being she was now. She had boredly fought side-by-side with Derek, Aiden, and Ethan against the Oni, and dodged swinging and slashing katanas before Derek yelled for her to get the wooden cylinder box to Scott inside the school.
Picking up the box that they needed to trap the nogitsune once it took the form of a fly once more, Avery blurred inside the school just in time to see Scott bite the arm of void!Stiles. Lydia and Stiles stood in shock right before void!Stiles as he screamed, and before his human form cracked and turned to dust before their eyes, he locked gazes with Avery and laughed. He laughed at Scott for having a new monster to take care of- one that they'd have an even harder time killing- and then crumbled into nothing.
Clenching her jaw in anger, Avery happily caught the fly within the cylinder box she was holding and twisted the lid on securely. Locking gazes with her confused pack mates, she shrugged and said she had no idea what void!Stiles was talking about. And then moments later, they find out that not only had they lost Allison but they lost Aiden as well.
So now, here she sat two days later in her room, as she readied herself for Allison's funeral. Well, she was supposed to be readying herself for the funeral but she just.. didn't.. care.
Wanting to get out of Beacon Hills because it was seriously harshing her new found mellow, Avery lazes about her room as she listens to her father and brother rush to get ready. And moments later, she hears someone approach her door.
Knocking twice, the door creaks open and Stiles sticks his head in. "You're not even dressed," he frowns. "Avery-"
"I saw no point in trying to fight both you and dad for the bathroom," she boredly replies. "Now that the both of you seem finished, I'll meet the two of you at the cemetery."
"But Dad wanted to show up as a family."
"I said," Avery grits out as she sits up on her bed. "That I'll meet you out there."
Frown deepening, Stiles steps in his sister's room and it takes everything in Avery to not sigh aloud at her brother's lingering. "I know this is hard but don't shut us out, Avs."
Pinching the bridge of her nose, Avery wills herself to stay calm and not vamp out on him. Bringing forth the tears, Avery gets ready to fool him. "I-I'm sorry," her voice cracks. "I don't know how to deal with this and I- I," her bottom lip trembles and Stiles rushes forward to take a seat next to her.
"Hey, hey, shh," he murmurs and Avery rolls her eyes at his soothing. "It's fine. It's going to be okay."
John then takes the moment to walk into her room, the corner of his lips turning down into a frown. "You're not ready?"
"She, uh, she didn't want to fight us for the bathroom," Stiles comes to Avery's aide, quickly standing up. "She said she'd meet us out there. She won't take long."
John's frown deepens but as he sees more tears well up in his daughter's eyes, he sighs and nod. "Yeah, okay. Don't be too late, kiddo. We wanna show Chris that we're all here for him."
Avery mentally growls but nods nonetheless. "Yeah, Dad, I'll be there soon."
The second John and Stiles are out of the house, Avery wipes away her fake tears and gathers some clothes up for a quick shower. She needed to look her best as she rode her bike out of the suffocating town.
..
..
When Avery's done with her shower and done penning a quick note to her family, she's dressed in black skinny jeans with faded stars on stripes on them. A strapless bra sits beneath a crochet fringed crop tank top, wedge platform boots adorn her feet, and her hair is tied back sloppily at the nape of her neck so her helmet will fit atop her head.
The unforeseen obstacle comes in the form of one Derek Hale who rings the doorbell and lets himself in just as she's coming down the stairs and slipping on a leather jacket. She had been too focused on when her first meal of the day was going be that she hadn't heard the incoming werewolf.
"Avery," his deep voice sounds confused. "What are you- you're not going dressed like that, are you?"
Giving herself a chance to ogle Derek Hale in a suit, a smirk tugs at her lips. Being a werewolf and all, Derek is immediate to pick up on the range of emotions wafting off of Avery and one in particular has him wary. Lust. It's not like he's never smelt it on her before and directed at him that's catching him off guard. It's the fact that she's giving off this particular vibe minutes before she's to meet everyone at the cemetery for a funeral.
"Oohh, you clean up well, Hale," she practically purrs as she advances and Derek takes a step back on instinct. Something's wrong. "Tell me again why you and I never-"
Derek growls at her, eyes flashing blue in warning and his mind screams at him that something is definitely wrong. "Did you hit your head or something?! We're burying one of your best friend's in a few minutes and you're coming onto me?"
Avery's face immediately crumples at his words, her palms coming up to hide her face as she sobs. "You're right.. you're right! I don't know what's wrong with me, D." And just like that, her emotions completely change and Derek relaxes. He can sense some of her grief and sadness now but as he gets closer to comfort her, her head snaps up and her hands clasp behind his head lightning fast. With a cruel smirk, she leans forward and seductively licks the tip of his nose. "You're way too easy, babe."
He snarls at her, reaching behind his head to break her hold on him and shoves her backward but keeps his hands clasped around her wrists. Confused as to how her emotions seemed to be all over the place and never stopping on just one, he tries to feel her out but now- now there's nothing. He can't sense anything from her though she's still smirking cruelly at him. "What's wrong with you? What did you do?"
Avery laughs now, her smirk widening into a full blown smile. "I'm finally free."
Derek's brows pull together in confusion as he thinks over her words and before he can react, Avery blurs herself forward into his personal space and knees him where a man is most vulnerable. Groaning out in pain and leaning forward, Avery tuts at him before bringing her knee up rather harshly and connecting it with his face. Effectively knocking him out with how much strength she put into the hit, Avery lets him fall there in the hallway by the front door.
Shrugging nonchalantly, she picks up her motorcycle key from a bowl that was sitting on the hall table and retrieves her helmet from the front closet. Before she can jam her helmet down on her head though, she casts one last lingering glance at Derek's unconscious form. Grinning, she kneels down beside him and runs the tips of her fingers along the scruff of his cheek.
"Mmm," she sighs. "You really are a cute little puppy. Too bad we couldn't have fun before I left."
Digging into the pockets of his jeans, she pulls out his cellphone and looks up several of his contacts.
Composing a group text message to Scott and Stiles, she send them a quick text. "Avery had a breakdown. Don't think it's a good idea for her to see her friend being lowered into the ground. Will show up afterward."
If her supposed Alpha or brother texted back, she didn't care and carelessly dropped Derek's phone by his side. With a uncharacteristic giggle, Avery steps over Derek's still form and saunters out the front door as she slides on her helmet.
She had a town to leave behind and a plan for her first stop to grab a bite to eat. Those blood bags in the fridge were just not going to cut it anymore.
..
..
When Derek finally comes to, he realizes two things at one. His face is throbbing but the pain is receding as the seconds tick by and he's on the floor of what appears to be the Stilinski's home. His encounter with Avery immediately flashes in his mind and he's quick to get to his feet and pat down his pockets for his phone. When his boot sends his phone sliding against the floor though, he curses and and picks it up before finding Avery's number in his contacts and dialing her phone.
With a scowl, he does a quick search of the first floor of the home but he knows that no-one is there. A ringing, though, sounds from upstairs and without a second thought, he's taking the stairs two at a time towards the source of noise.
Finding the ringing coming from Avery's room, he finds Avery's phone sitting in the middle of her made-up bed with a sticky note attached to it.
Don't bother. -A
Growling, Derek ends the call and grumpily takes a seat on the edge of the bed. When he checks his phone again for anything's he's missed, he finds the text that Avery sent to Scott and Stiles- both having replied that they'd see them later. Realizing that twenty minutes have passed since he showed up to the Stilinski home- he knows the funeral has started and rather wait 'til it's over to drop the bombshell of Avery's- well, he didn't know what was going on with her.
As he tries to think back over her reactions to him when he showed up, he can't quite figure out what's going on with her. At first, he thought that she was just confused- that she didn't know how to deal with her emotions after the loss of Allison and was acting on whatever instinct first intrigued her.
He knew that as a vampire, every one of her emotion's was amplified and for Avery who had been a vampire for only a few years, it could be confusing. He had sensed as her emotions ranged from amusement to arousal within a few seconds then to annoyance and arousal once more. Then- then there had been nothing.
He couldn't sense not one emotion from her even though she cruelly smirked and taunted him, and-
And fuck. He knew what was wrong.
Groaning, Derek picks up his phone once more and dials a number he's rarely ever used. Once the owner of the phone answers, Derek doesn't give him a chance to answer properly. "She's turned them off. Avery's turned her emotions off."
There's a brief silence, though there's steady breathing on the line before Elijah's crisp English accent comes through. "Tell me everything."
Two days later, Elijah and Nik are blowing into Beacon Hills.
The brothers hadn't been too happy to hear about the Nogitsune wreaking havoc or that it possessed Stiles of all people, and were quite pissed that Scott hadn't called in for backup. Although, that little situation was resolved when Scott fired back that he was the alpha of Beacon Hills and needed to prove himself of being capable to handle problems on his own. After a few snide remarks from Nik, Scott let's it all go with promises to keep the brothers both in the loop with any future enemies and to not let his pride get in the way again.
The Pack, also, hadn't been too happy when they showed up to the Stilinski home to find Avery's bike gone and a rather pissed off Derek sitting in the living room. After explaining what had happened and Avery's new emotional state, John was furious that he'd let her get away. Instead of replying angrily, Derek took a breather to explain that it couldn't be helped and he didn't want to pull any of the pack members away from mourning their friend.
Given the head start that Avery had on all of them, there was nothing for them to do but wait until the brothers came up with a plan.
..
..
"What's the plan of action," Scott asks.
When Elijah and Nik finally showed up, Chris had been called over and filled in on what was going on. His face remained stoic during the entire explanation and he remained stoic when the Original brothers showed up and asked for his help.
"First of all," Elijah speaks up. "We're going to need the Hunters to back off." Looking Chris dead in the eye, his gives his reasoning. "Every vampire is different but when our switches are flipped- for some reason- the default clean slate is to be cruel. She'll constantly be hungry and will have no second thought about ripping into veins when she sees fit. If approached, she's be on her toes and if attacked, she'll have no qualms about killing. So if you want your Hunter friends to live, you need to warn them."
"And tell them what, exactly? They just won't want a vampire roaming free. Especially a homicidal one."
"Tell them what's going on," Nik drawls. "Email or text Avery's picture to your contacts and let them forward it to their Hunter friends. Tell them to be on the lookout but not to approach. We have the witches back home working on a tracking spell but knowing Avery, she'll be on the move. Since she won't be in one town for long, we'll only get a trail. I'll be going after her while Elijah stays put."
"What makes you so sure you can bring her back," Stiles asks as he wrings his hands together nervously. "If she doesn't care about anything, what's going to make her want to come home?"
"I'll do what needs to be done," Nik assures him. "Hence the reasoning for me going and not my brother," he grins. "Elijah will hesitate whereas I- I will do what needs to be done to bring her back."
With the determined yet devious gleam in Nik's eye, the pack doesn't argue against his judgment.
Two weeks.
For two long weeks, Avery is free.
Being a vampire has it perks, compulsion being Avery's favorite. She doesn't remember why she ever denied herself this particular perk but all she knows now is that she's never going back to her old self again. She can compel herself free gas, snacks, and new outfits, and then be on her way to explore.
She remembers when she used to feed from humans, compelling and then freeing her victims but now- now she doesn't mind the trail of bodies she's leaving behind. She loves the thrill of having her victims panic and beg to be set free but no- none of them go free. Not anymore.
For being a murderous vampire, she's very picky about her options unless they're somehow annoying her. Most of her victims tended to be the creeps she found in alley's so she didn't raise too much suspicion but sometimes, it just couldn't be helped.
Four days later- and luckily for some random screaming and blubbering brunette- the perpetrator that Avery set her eyes on strikes a cord within her and it's feeding time.
Stealthily scaling the rusted fire escape of an abandoned building, Avery comically leaps from roof to roof with as much grace as possible until she's above the alley in which the vile man dragged his victim in. She watches as he fumbles with a blade in one hand, stripping off the woman's purse and tossing it aside to pick up after he's done with what he has in mind.
Pressing the blade harshly to the blubbering woman's throat, Avery listens as her cries quiet down as to not attract unwanted attention. But luckily for the woman and unluckily for the man, Avery had already heard.
Watching as the average-height, lightly muscled creep manhandles the woman out of her jean jacket and slaps her around a bit, Avery finally has enough after the buttons on the woman's button up blouse fly in every direction. As the woman whimpers and pleads for him to stop and take whatever he wants from her purse, Avery drops from the roof to land in elegant crouch and hisses just as the man's hand reaches for the woman's buttoned jeans.
"What the fuck," he curses in surprise at hearing the thud of Avery's landing.
The woman screams for help when she notices another being but when Avery blurs from their vision one second and the reappears less than a foot away from them in her fanged out glory, the woman's screams turn frightful at Avery's morphed features.
"Please, shut up," Avery scowls at the frightened woman, making direct eye contact with her. The man's eyes widen as the woman does as she's told, her own eyes wide at her sudden muteness. Turing the weapon towards Avery to defend himself, she easily catches his wrist and snaps it, making him drop the blade in the process.
The man hollers and Avery steps in between the two, one hand holding the man by his throat and the other coming up to cradle the woman's bruised cheek. "Listen to me and listen to me carefully," Avery croons as she makes eye contact with the terrified woman, using her other hand to squeeze the man's throat so he can't holler. "You have nothing to fear from me," and instantly, the woman's fear drains. "You're going to pull your shirt together and run to the police department that's two blocks away. You're going to tell them that this man," she gestures to the man who's slowly turning purple. "Mugged you and tried to have his way with you when you found a broken glass bottle and shoved it in his neck. And as soon as you exit this alley, you're going to forget all about me but remember the story I fed you as your own."
Pupils dilating, the woman nods. Avery suddenly lets her go, the woman running from the alley and turning right in the direction of the police department. With the man still struggling, Avery tosses him to the side.
Coughing, the man scrambles backward. "What- what the fuck are you?!"
"Oh honey, I'm simply your end."
In a move faster than the man's eyes could track, Avery is pinning the man to the ground and compelling him to be quiet. As the man's throat closes up, his struggles continue and Avery takes glee in his panic and fear. Hissing and baring fangs inches away from the man's terrified gaze, Avery tilts her head back before snapping forward and sinking her fangs into the side of his neck.
She relishes the taste of warm and rustic on her tongue, the blood coating the entirety of the inside of her mouth and sliding down her throat. With the struggles becoming less and less, Avery practically purrs in satisfaction as she listens to the once wildly beating heart slow to a sluggish beat.
As the heart skips a beat.. then two.. and three, Avery slips her fangs out with a satisfactory grin. Standing from her crouch, she lets the man's lifeless body fall with a faint thud. Licking her lips and wiping her chin, Avery scans the dirty and wet alley for a glass bottle. Finding one laying next to a dumpster, Avery picks it up and cracks it against the wall, leaving her with a deadly weapon. And then walking back up to the lifeless form, Avery crouches once more and slams the pointed glass into the wound on the man's neck.
Hearing a slow clap of applause, Avery blurs to her feet and snarls at the intruder. It's Nik.
"Gotta say, love, brilliant plan. What with the compelling helpless victims into thinking they're the ones who killed their attacker."
"Yes, well, they're scum," she drawls as her eyes dart for a possible exit that won't be obvious one behind her. Nik's too smart for that. "Care to join, old one? We can raise hell together."
Nik's smirk broadens, Avery's faltering. This won't be a peaceful kidnapping. "Sorry, love, but I'm here to take you home."
"I have no home," she snarls, fangs elongating. "The road is my home."
"Your father.. your twin say otherwise." Nik allows himself a smug grin as he watches Avery fidget while trying to remain her anger. "Now behave, turn your emotions back on, and go home with me."
Avery's gaze continues to wander, her eyes landing on a half broken fire escape above a large trash dumpster a yard or two to Nik's left. If she times her jumps right, she can latch on to the fire escape and pull herself up to finish climbing in a blur to the roof and then try and lose Nik that way. Unbeknownst to her, though, Nik is following her gaze and piecing together her plan.
Deciding to give her plan a go, Avery meets Nik's gaze dead on. Crinkling her nose in distaste, she shakes her head. "Nah. I think I'll continue on with being on my own."
Without warning, she blurs to the top of the dumpster but that's as far as she gets. Nik meets her there, hand gripped tight around her throat. "I really wish you'd have gone quietly, love," he drawls. "I really didn't want to do this but you leave me no choice."
Before Avery can retort or hiss in rage at him, Nik's hands move so they grip her jaw and he jerks her head sharply to the left. With a quick snap, her neck breaks and Avery crumples. Sighing and lips tilted down into a frown, Nik climbs down from the dumpster and drags Avery closer to the ledge. Just as he has her body slumped over his shoulder, sirens blare in the distance and he's quick to blur the both of them to his vehicle blocks away.
After buckling in Avery's slumped form in the front seat of his SUV, Nik pulls free his phone and dials his brother. With Elijah picking up after the second ring, Nik tells him the news. "I've got her. I'm bringing her back."
Days later, Nik has arrived back in Beacon Hills.
The sun has long set and Elijah plus the McCall pack and Chris are already at the location Nik told them to be at. Beacon Hills Cemetery.
Taking Avery's dead form from the front seat of his vehicle, Nik easily locates where the pack and his brother are at. They're standing in front of a grave, everyone standing guard as Nik drops her unceremoniously atop said grave. Scott, Derek, and Isaac all growl at Avery's state of unconsciousness- Elijah being the only one to sigh in annoyance and John looks livid.
"What did you do," he asks in outrage.
Nik ignores John's rage and grins up at his brother, shrugging at Elijah and nodding at Stiles to form the circle around his sister. "She kept waking up. I had to incapacitate her somehow."
"So what'd you do, snap her neck?!" Lydia and John are not the only angry ones, Stiles looking put out himself as he forms a circle around his sister plus Nik with a new type of ash that works specifically for vampires.
At Nik's amused expression, Lydia makes a move to cause him some sort of harm but Kira pulls her back with a frown. "Don't worry, love," Nik winks at her. "She'll wake soon. I last snapped her neck an hour or so ago."
The werewolves all growl again, Nik chuckling at their reactions but not really caring. They wanted Avery back home so he did what had to be done.
A few minutes later, Avery finally comes to.
"Heya, Sleeping Beauty. Welcome back to the realm of the living."
Stiles' smugness is enough to tip Avery over the edge, she blurring to her feet and lunging fanged out. Hissing, she slams into an invisible wall right in front of Stiles. Blood red eyes dart down the line of ash in front of her feet and she snarls, "What the fuck is this?!"
"Courtesy of Deaton," Stiles smirks. "New type of mountain ash plus crushed up vervain leaves. You're not going anywhere until you turn your emotions back on."
Avery sneers at him, eyes darting around to her pack. There's pity in each their gaze, fear oozing out of not only her father but Kira and Lydia as well. As she turns around to stare at everyone, her gaze finally lands on the headstone that was to her back.
Allison Argent
1997-2014
"Rest easy fearless warrior. You can sleep now, you can finally calm your bones."
Seeing Allison's name there with her date of birth and death makes her chest ache. Feeling a lump form in her throat, Avery tears her eyes away from it and glares at the only person who she can get her hands on.
"Get me out of here," she growls at Nik.
"Not until you flip the switch."
"I said get me out!" Avery lunges, fangs glinting in the moonlight but again, Nik catches her easily.
With his hand wrapped around the front of her throat, Nik smirks as she starts struggling and clawing at his hand while everyone else around him starts protesting that he's being rough. The werewolves and kitsune can't enter, and the humans aren't dumb enough to get in the middle of things. Well, all except for John who tries to lunge forward but Chris is quick to catch his shoulder and hold him back.
"Turn them on or I'll compel them on," Nik tells her.
"Go to hell."
Done being nice, Nik's hand blurs so he's now gripping the back of her neck and shoving her down to her knees. Forced to face the headstone once more, Avery averts her gaze only to meet that of Elijah who's crouching next to the headstone and staring sadly at her.
"It's okay to feel, Avery. It's okay to hurt. To be ang-"
"Fuck off," she snarls. In retaliation for being cursed at, Elijah lets his own fangs and eyes transform for the first time that the McCall pack has seen and hisses in warning at her.
"Avery," John admonishes from her side.
Her hands are back to clawing at Nik's at the back of her neck, her eyes darting anywhere and everywhere beside the gravestone in front of her.
Everything suddenly feels like it's too much- too raw- and she doesn't know how to deal. Eyes welling with tears, she blinks rapidly to make them go away and continues to struggle against Nik. Feeling the lump in her throat grow again- she tries her best to swallow it down but it doesn't move.
Her stomach plummets, her chest aches, and the memory of her best friend has her choking back a sob. Feeling the pressure on her neck let up some, Avery chances a glance one more time at Elijah who's looking at her knowingly and letting his vampire features bleed away.
"Let it all out," he tells her. "Like I said, it's okay to be angry."
Finally having enough, the pack is relieved to see her eyes light up with emotion. There's a moment when everyone falls silent- the only noise being Avery's harsh breathing. "I am not angry," she suddenly punctuates each word separately, each word dripping with venom. "I am pissed off." Tears blurring her vision, Nik lets go completely and takes a step back. Turning her attention to the headstone, Avery speaks to her. "Why didn't you just listen? You should have listened to your Dad and waited for us. We were the Hunters of the group- the Guardians- and you've left us alone. You left me all alone."
Voice cracking, the werewolves all relax and watch their pack mate crumble before their eyes. "We made a promise. A promise that we'd make it passed our college years and you've went back on it. I don't know- I can't," she shakes her head in denial, tears falling rapidly now as she leans forward and hides her face in her hands. "I'm sorry," she cries. "I'm so sorry I wasn't there to protect you. Just- just come back. Please, come back."
As her cries echo around the silent cemetery, Stiles is quick to break the circle of ash and lets Nik out. As soon as Nik is out, Stiles and John are quick to kneel by her, bringing her into a family hug. Head resting on her father's shoulder, Avery is muttering apologizes left and right for her behavior and disappearance.
John is the only one to tell her that it's fine- that it's over now- and then all three are on their feet. Refusing to meet anyone's gaze because she's so ashamed, Avery is forced to look up when a figure moves to stand directly in front of her.
Peering up, Avery is met with the watery gaze of Chris Argent. To everyone's surprise- including Avery- Chris pulls her into a hug. With his chin sitting atop Avery's head, he allows his eyes to close as a tear slips down. "She thought of you as a sister, you know? You and Lydia both."
Avery starts crying a bit harder now. "I'm sorry I wasn't there for her burial."
"You're here now," Chris squeezes her a bit tighter. "And that's what matters. You have every right to be angry at her- hell, even I was angry," he admits. "But Allison is- was stubborn. Just like every one of you in the McCall pack." Avery chuckles then, vision blurring with tears as she hears the pack chuckle all around her. "But she would have been pissed at you, too, Avery. You can't just turn it off when times get tough. But it's also come to my understanding that I had a part to play in your emotions being turned off and for that, I apologize. I wasn't thinking and-"
"It's okay," she croaks. "It was a hard time for us all."
Chris falls silent, as does everyone else before he nods. "Don't do it again. You being unpredictable is very unsettling."
Avery finally pulls out of the hug, giving him a feeble grin and nod of assurance. Turning to her pack, Lydia is the first to envelop Avery in a hug followed by Isaac, Kira, and then Scott. Derek stares at her warily, giving her a nod of welcoming before John declares that all of them get out of the cemetery and back home where Avery can shower and change into her usual clothing.
He really didn't like the leather look on his daughter.
Two days later, after moping around the house and making excuses to not hang out with the Pack, Avery decides to visit Derek. Out of all the people she needs to apologize to, Derek is her main one.
And when Avery takes the elevator to the top floor, Derek is just exiting his loft.
Catching sight of Avery, he frowns. "I really don't like vampires- what with no heartbeat and smell."
"Get over it, Cujo. You don't hear me complaining about the canine smell."
Derek's lips twitch in amusement but he's quick to mask it. "What do you want, Avery?"
"To apologize," she replies without missing a beat.
Derek pauses but shakes it off. "Can it wait? I have to get some groceries for the week."
"Yeah, it can but no. I want to say this now."
Sighing, Derek gestures for her to follow. "Then you better make it quick. You have about as much time it takes for the elevator to get us to ground level."
As they step into the elevator, she growls at him. "Dammit, D! Just take the damn apology," she snaps. "I'm sorry, okay?!" Derek's eyebrows raise at Avery's demeanor, Avery immediately settling after realizing what she'd done. "I really am sorry. I didn't mean for what happened to happen," she mutters. "I was vile and cruel, and you've been nothing but nice to me since I've blown into Beacon Hills, and you deserved none of that. So please, please tell me I'm forgiven or something. I can't-"
"It's okay," he quickly mumbles back, cheeks heating up in slight embarrassment at having Avery practically grovelling. "You can stop apologizing now. We're good."
Relief pours out through every pore on Avery's body, Derek sensing it right away and can't help but compare to how he senses Avery now to when she had her emotions turned off. When they were off, her emotions were on a constant swirl or just not there whereas now, one or two emotions are a constant stream and slowly change when she feels something else.
When the elevator stops at ground level, Avery flashes him a brief grin. "You wouldn't, by any chance, need help grocery shopping, would you?"
Derek takes one look at her sheepish expression, he shaking his head in slight amusement. "Still avoiding them?"
"It's just weird, okay? I mean, it's weird with you but you're not looking or talking to me as if I'm going to switch my emotions off if you say or do something wrong. You treat me sort-of the same. They're not."
Derek lets her words sink in before finally chuckling. "If you say so.. but you're pushing the cart."
Getting into Derek's car, Avery laughs.
A month later and after giving it much thought, Avery convinces Derek to take her to San Francisco where there's a tattoo parlour that tends to the supernatural creatures with healing abilities so their tattoo will stick.
After making Derek turn away, Avery gives a rough sketch of what she wants to her artist. She tells him to clean it up a bit- make the lines a lot cleaner than what's she's given him and he's allowed free reign on the lettering. And when asked for the placement of the tattoo, Derek is pleasantly surprised to see Avery gesture to the right expanse area of her ribs.
The tattoo takes less than an hour and after it's wiped down, Avery walks out of the small private room with her plaid shirt wide open and her sports bra on display. She doesn't care for the other clients leering at her but she does take great pleasure in Derek glaring at everyone staring at her.
Standing in front of Derek, she pulls back the side of her shirt and turns so he can see what she got.
Two minimally detailed arrows form an 'X' on her ribs, the words Nous protégeons ceux qui ne peuvent curve over the tip of the arrows and pas se protéger eux-mêmes curve below in fancy script. On either side of where the arrows intersect, two A's are inked in.
"Allison Argent," Derek mutters.
"Allison Argent," she nods with a small smile. "Now, I'll never forget her and always have a reminder that she'd want my emotions on."
I apologize for the abrupt ending. For those who don't know, "Nous protégeons ceux qui ne peuvent pas se protéger eux-mêmes" translates to "We protect those who cannot protect themselves." It's the code that Allison came up with for them to live by.
Also, the next update will be Monday =/ Tomorrow, it's going to be a hectic day for the family as we decorate for my brother's wedding on Saturday. And then Sunday, everyone's going to have to cure their hangover mighty fast because we have a birthday party for one of my nieces that afternoon XD Busy, busy weekend ahead.