Black Sun
Other things may change us, but we start and end with family.
- Anthony Brandt
Chapter Thirty-Five
Ill Met by Moonlight
My sneakers crunched against piles of forest leaves and twigs. I couldn't see much even under the faint glow of the moon, but at least there was Deucalion's faint footsteps ahead leading the way. And Scott. I was really glad I wasn't there alone.
I forgot how long we had been walking for. Maybe two hours. Or twelve. However long it was, I was starting to feel it in my legs but we had to keep going. Deucalion had something planned in the woods but he didn't say what it was. In fact he didn't talk much at all which wasn't like him, or maybe it was. The only times we had to talk to him he was persuading us to side with him and now that we did I guess he didn't have to say as much. It was still weird though.
I bent my head a little past a long, spindly branch and paused when I saw Deucalion standing calmly in a small clearing. A couple of flies flew around in circles, swooping high and low in the air. His sunglasses were off and he stared off ahead, seeing something but I wasn't sure what. I walked with Scott up to his side and we shared an unsure glance at the Alpha's sudden muteness. It was weird to see him without his sunglasses, the irises cloudy grey and whites around it a faded red. I wondered how much it hurt to lose your eye sight like that. Did it still hurt him? Maybe that was why he was so cynical all the time.
"It's a firefly," Scott said.
"Unusual for this region."
"It's because of Jennifer, isn't it? Just before all this started, a deer crashed into Lydia's car. The cats went crazy at the animal clinic. Birds flew into the high school. That was all her."
Thinking about it now, it was crazy for us to think it was just wildlife being wild. Birds didn't act that way. We should have known something was up.
"They say animals can sense natural disasters when they're about to happen," Deucalion explained. "Maybe they can sense supernatural ones as well."
"Does she scare you?"
"She concerns me," the Alpha replied offhandedly. "If she's willing to kill that many innocent people for her cause, people like your mother and Stiles' father."
His words made me think of my own Dad and my heart lurched with guilt. I silently hoped they were at home, safe and waiting until I got home, if I still had the chance to go home after all this instead of looking for me. It was too dangerous. I missed them. But I kept telling myself that I wanted to see them and hug them again, I had to stay with Deucalion and do what he said. Even if it meant getting grounded until my first college acceptance letter. Or... no, I didn't want to think about that one.
"My Dad told me once it's rare for a Darach to overfill it's sacrament," I told him. "And that their sources of life is also the one thing that kills them."
"Right he was," Deucalion agreed. "She, however, isn't in the minority."
"Are you willing to kill innocent people?" Scott asked boldly.
The blind Alpha paused for a second. "I'll kill any living thing that gets in my way."
Chills ran down my spine. Scott looked creeped out too and I didn't blame him. For a guy who carried himself with superiority and old fashion posh, Deucalion acted as though as if murder was only an art form if he was doing the killing. Did the whole Argent-Aretino betrayal mess him up in the head that bad? I was still shocked he wanted someone like me on his side, an offspring of the people who had a hand in disabling him. Whether it was intentional or not on Uncle Gaius' part, it still had to be a terrible thing to live through.
It made me think about what might have happened if Gerard failed and Deucalion kept his sight. Would he have turned out completely different? Or did the supernatural world have it out for him from the start?
Scott and I followed his lead as he strode deeper into the woods, owls hooing softly up in the trees and the occasional crackle of a leaf somewhere. The longer I was out there the more uneasy I felt, like something was watching us and it wasn't woodland residents. I thought it was my imagination but then Scott started glancing around too. He met my eyes after a second, shaking his head and shrugging as if to say 'I don't know what's going on either.' The best way I could describe it was like we were surrounded by danger. Danger like the Alphas.
After a while we came down a narrow path that led into another small clearing, except this one wasn't empty. Ms. Morrell, the guidance counselor stood in a ring of dark ash, boxed by Kali and the twins. I froze.
"How did you know, Marin, that we'd come for you?" Deucalion asked.
"Because Jennifer and I are the same. And I know you've always been suspicious of us, of what we can do."
"With good reason," Kali shot back and stalked around the circle of ash. "We know you sent that girl. The one who helped Isaac."
"What was her name?"
"Braeden," Ms. Morrell answered the head Alpha. "And I sent her to do what I've always done. Maintain balance."
"What do you know about Jennifer?"
"Nothing more than you know." Ms. Morrell looked our way then, eyes flickering between our faces like she knew what we were thinking. Maybe she did. Emissaries were strange folk. "This isn't you. Go back to your friends."
I shifted uncomfortably, but froze when Deucalion held out his arms out at either side, keeping Scott and I from moving. "They can decide what's right for themselves."
"Not without all the information," Ms. Morrell retorted. "Have you told them everything you've done? How you've piled up bodies in a narcissistically psychotic effort to form your perfect pack? Bodies that include Ennis, by the way." Kali immediately peered over at her leader, brows furrowing in question. Even the twin's expression flitted with disbelief. "My brother saved him. He was alive when Deucalion went in to see him. He wants you to go after Derek, Kali, to force his decision. He knew Derek couldn't refuse if Alessandra joined first. If Derek joins the pack, it paves the way for Scott."
Weirdly enough, Deucalion remained speechless throughout the guidance counselor's tangent. He barely reacted, much less had a change in expression but he did sigh deeply. He began twisting off the cap of his cane. "The lies people will tell when they're begging for their life."
Ms. Morrell shot a knowing look at Kali and inclined her head toward the blind Alpha. "Ask him."
Deucalion threw his cane then, the end now a sharp spear. It pierced Ms. Morrell right in the shoulder and she stumbled out of the protective circle, falling to the ground. Scott hurried to her side, making the other Alphas growl and bare their fangs at him.
"Hey, back off!" He warned them, clutching the bleeding guidance counselor close. "I'm not going to let them kill you," Scott told her. "But if you know something, if you know where they are-"
I knelt by her side and gaped at the cane in her chest. "Should we take it out?" I asked.
Ms. Morrell just shook her head. "The Nemeton," she rasped. "You find that, you'll find Jennifer. Find the Nemeton." Blood dribbled down her lips and she shut her eyes for a moment, breathing heavily.
It didn't appear that the cane hit her heart but still, we did as she said and left it there. Scott used some of his abilities to lessen her pain, which seemed to work since her breathing evened out and the blood flow started to diminish. I looked up at the twins and Kali, who just glared down at the injured emissary. The air around them was thick with tension. I guessed it was in no small part to Deucalion's surprise inclusion in Ennis' death. Or the fact that they looked just as baffled as I felt about the Nemeton. Whatever that was.
They didn't have much knowledge about it and Deucalion didn't give any hints on it's location, so it was safe to assume he was out of the loop too. If even some of the most powerful werewolves like them didn't know, who would?
[O]
Deucalion finally let us go hours later. Ms. Morrell had to stay behind but like Scott promised, he didn't let the other Alphas hurt her. On the way back to the road, Scott's phone rang and we stopped beside a large oak tree while he spoke with, who I guessed was Stiles by how loud the other voice was talking on the other end, and got filled in on what the others had been up to. I missed them. I missed Derek. I missed my parents and for the first time since leaving with Deucalion, I turned my phone back on and saw there was a couple voicemails. One was from my Dad and Allison.
My eyes blurred with tears. I wiped them away before they could fall as I stared down at the screen, feeling like a bad daughter and equally bad friend for abandoning them without an explanation. Even if I was only trying to help. It all might have been for nothing. What if Deucalion was right? What if my mom or Dad were taken next? I wouldn't be strong enough to get them back.
"Hey," Scott said tentatively. I barely realized he ended the call with Stiles. "You okay?"
I sniffed and dried my eyes with my shirt sleeves. "Yeah, I'm okay. Sorry. It's just... I don't know what's gonna happen and it scares me."
"We'll figure it out," Scott reassured me softly. "Honestly, I don't know either and not having answers freaks me out too, but... we'll do something."
I nodded, feeling even more bad that he was the one who had to console me when the pressure was on his shoulders. "Thanks, Scott," I told him. "I hate that we had to go with Deucalion, but... I'm glad that I didn't go alone."
Scott smiled and it looked like he was going to say something else, but then headlights flashed down the road. Then an engine cut off.
"That's them," Scott said and walked down the trail to meet the figures stepping out of the car. It was Stiles and Dr. Deaton. "How'd you guys find out?"
"Lydia. You?"
"Morrell. None of the other Alphas know where it is either."
"So if this works, are you gonna tell them?" Stiles said.
"I can't stop Jennifer without them."
"We'd have to go back anyways," I pointed out and Scott nodded in agreement.
"How about we concentrate on finding your parents first?" Dr. Deaton reasoned.
"What's the plan?"
"Essentially, you, Allison, and Stiles need to be surrogate sacrifices for your parents."
Scott seemed uncertain. "We die for them?"
"Wouldn't that fill Ms. Blake's quota?" I asked.
"But he can bring us back," Stiles quickly reassured us, but then he paused and narrowed his eyes in doubt at the aged veterinarian. "You can you can bring us back, right?"
Dr. Deaton's expression was anything but comforting. "You remember the part where I said it was dangerous? If it goes right, the three of you will be dead for a few seconds, but there's something else you need to think about. This is a dangerous thing for more reasons than one. You'll be giving power back to the Nemeton, a place that hasn't had power for a long time. This kind of power is like a magnet. It attracts the supernatural, the kind of things that a family like the Argents can fill the pages of a bestiary with." Well, that was gonna be one long book. "It will draw them here, like a beacon."
"Doesn't sound any worse than anything we've already seen," Stiles observed.
"You'd be surprised at what you have yet to see."
"Is that it?"
"No. It'll also have an effect on the three of you. You won't be able to see it, but you'll feel it every day for the rest of your lives. It'll be a kind of a darkness around your heart, and permanent, like a scar."
"Like a tattoo."
The low tone of Scott's voice made me peer over at him. His features were unusually passive, like he was feeling neither inadequate or ready to face whatever lied in this limbo afterlife. The decision was kind of already made. In order to get everyone back, we had to try something. Everything.
I went back with them to the animal clinic to help fill the tubs with ice water. The temperature had to be cold enough to inflict immediate effect upon contact and there was at least fifteen bags waiting to be poured, so I knew the night was gonna be a long one. Lydia and Isaac were already starting on it when I came into the examination room. Allison was studying something she held in her hand but looked up at the sound of my footsteps and rushed forward to embrace me. Seeing all my friends together again reminded me that there was hope left for us. No matter which way the plan ended up going, at least there was comfort in knowing we did it together.
Scott and Stiles walked inside shortly after and they both carried random items in their hands.
"All right. What did you bring?" Dr. Deaton asked.
Stiles spoke first, his voice thick with unshed tears. "Um, I got my dad's badge. Jennifer kind of crushed it in her hand, so I tried hammering it out a bit. Still doesn't look great."
"Well, it doesn't need to look good if it has meaning."
Allison stared down at a single bullet cradled in her palm and she caressed it with her thumb.
"Is that an actual silver bullet?" Isaac asked and he sounded a little weirded out.
"My Dad made it," she responded. "It's kind of a ceremonial thing. When one of us finishes learning all the skills to be a hunter, we forge a silver bullet as a testament to the code."
"Scott?"
"My Dad got my mom this watch when she first got hired at the hospital. She used to say it was the only thing in their marriage that ever worked."
"Okay, the three of you will get in," the vet clarified then. "Each of us will hold you down until you're essentially... well... dead. But it's not just someone to hold you under. It needs to be someone who can pull you back, someone that has a strong connection to you, a kind of emotional tether." That definitely made things awkward, giving that one two of us used to be a couple and apparently called it quits a while ago. "Lydia, you go with Stiles," Dr. Deaton told the redhead when she moved toward to Allison.
Allison's eyes widened. "Are you sure? I mean, Scott and I both have to go under." She glanced between her ex-boyfriend and the other lycan standing at her side, which happened to be Isaac. They gazed into each other's eyes for a second but it was way long too be considered platonic. Wow, I had thought to myself. When did this happen? I must have been walking in that forest for a millennia.
Scott never looked more like a kicked puppy. "It's okay," he said to whatever thing they had going on but the hurt in his eyes implied otherwise. He walked off toward the tubs, noticeably downcast and everyone else must have felt it too since they shifted and glanced around awkwardly. As if there was a need to bring romantic feelings into this.
The three went back to change out of their regular clothes then and came out in nothing except t-shirts, shorts and a knee length slip. By that time, the ice water was so cold there was mist waving off from it, making me shiver if I stood too close. I waited by the cabinets as they took their place, staring down at the chunks of ice floating around and the pallid reflections that gazed right back, like it was themselves in another universe. They didn't even look scared. Perhaps they would have if they didn't already know they were going to die.
"Alessandra," Dr. Deaton's voice yanked me from my thoughts. He gestured toward Scott's tub. "Would you mind...?"
I blinked, realizing that he wanted me to be the one to push Scott down. To be his tether. Me? "Okay," I said with a nod.
I met Scott's eyes and he was already looking at me. He seemed just surprised as I was but still grateful. Since joining Deucalion with him, I did feel closer to him. Knowing he was there made me feel more secure and not just physically; more like no matter what my reasons were for following the blind Alpha, he would understand or try to. Maybe he felt the same. Maybe that was why Dr. Deaton paired us up.
The three of them entered the tubs strategically, one foot at a time and slowly submerging it until they mustered up the courage to put the other one in. Allison gasped at the cold sting of the water and grasped the edges of the tub until she fully sank down. Only their necks peeked through the cubs of ice. I could hear their teeth chatter and see the warmth in their breathing whenever they exhaled.
"By the way," Stiles said shakily to his best friend. "If I don't make it back and you do, you should probably know something. Your Dad's in town."
Scott's breathing seemed to get even more irregular at that and I wasn't sure if it was because of the news of his father or the fact that his blood was pumping slower. He turned and nodded at Stiles, giving us the sign that it was time to do our part. I stepped up behind Scott and gripped his shoulders, feeling tightness in my chest for what I had to do. But there was no going back now. They were already on their way to the other side.
We pushed them down at once and it took some effort as Scott was muscular and their bodies natural reactions was to shoot back up above water. Lydia gazed worriedly at me as we held them down for several minutes, but we couldn't let go right away. After so much time, their eyes fell shut and little bubbles stopped appearing at the surface level. Dr. Deaton held a timer in his hand and he watched on grimly as we drew back our soaked arms. Their breathing stopped.
They were on the other side now.
[O]
Waiting was the worst part. I didn't know what to do with myself when they went down under. The dogs in the back were asleep in their kennels, making Isaac also nod off beside a crate of supplies, and Lydia sat patiently in one of the chairs just drifting off into space. Dr. Deaton wouldn't stop pacing, which made me antsy as well so I ended up sitting with my back against the wall. Towels were piled in my lap so they could dry off as soon as they woke up, but the chance of that happening seemed pretty far away. Or at least it happening at a reasonable time.
I fell asleep in that position for a while. With my knees drawn close to my chest and my cheek turned toward the fluffy white towels, I was comfortable enough to shut my eyes and hope that they'd be awake when I woke up. But each time I did, the scene didn't change. Their bodies were still wading in still waters, pale and lifeless. There were a few instances of my cell ringing in my front pocket, but I didn't bother checking who it was from. Whoever it was, I wasn't in the right mind to talk to them. Not when the deadline was rapidly approaching.
When the sun was slated to set a second time, I moved from the floor to a folding chair opposite of Lydia. There was movement inside the tubs, like water sloshing around, before all three of them bolted upright. They started gasping and heaving for air.
"I saw it! I know where it is!" Scott exclaimed, stumbling out of the tub. We all jumped up at that and I heard Isaac jogging in from the hall.
"We passed it," his best friend confirmed. "There's... there's a stump, this huge tree - well, it's not huge anymore. It was cut down. But it's still big, though, very big."
"It was the night we were looking for the body."
"Yeah, the same night you were bit by Peter."
"I was there too," Allison chimed in and she held her arms tightly around herself. "In the car with my mother. We almost hit someone."
Scott's eyes widened. "It was me. You almost hit me." They shared a long look, amazed that their lives were connected that far back. "We can find it." He paused then when he saw our grave expressions. "What?"
"You guys were out a long time," Isaac told him carefully.
"How long is a long time?"
"Sixteen hours."
Scott's jaw dropped. From the crick in my back, it definitely felt longer than that. "We've been in the water for sixteen hours?"
Dr. Deaton had even more bad news to bear. "And the full moon rises in less than four."
"There's no way anyone can find it before then," Isaac lamented, draping a dry towel around Allison's shoulders.
"I think he's right," I said and handed another towel to Scott, which he accepted and started scrubbing it over his mop of brown sopping locks. "Which means... we have to go back to Deucalion soon."
Scott froze for a moment, hair dribbling water all over the tile. At first, I thought he was going to disagree and say that we didn't need him anymore, that we could formulate a plan by ourselves but the look in his eyes said differently. Then he nodded. "I know."
"No, dude," Stiles vehemently refused. "You are not going back with them."
"We made a deal with Deucalion," Scott explained sheepishly and the look on everyone's face was like we'd just donned the school's resident dunce hats. Man, did I really feel alienated now.
"Does anyone else think that sounds a lot like a deal with the devil?"
"Why does it matter, anyway?" Isaac mused.
"Because I still don't think that we can beat Jennifer without their help."
Apparently the whole group was against us. "He trusts you more than anyone," Allison told Dr. Deaton. "Tell him he's wrong."
The experienced vet studied his young employee for a moment, "I'm not so sure he is," he replied thoughtfully. "Circumstances like this sometimes require that you align yourself with people you'd normally consider enemies."
"So we're gonna trust him, the guy that calls himself death, destroyer of worlds?" Isaac remarked. In that case, I guess I could see why people would judge the cover before the book. For Deucalion, the whole tale was a betrayal induced tragedy. "We're gonna trust that guy?"
"I wouldn't trust him, no, but you could use him to your advantage," Dr. Deaton suggested. "Deucalion may be the enemy, but he could also be the bait."
We all went quiet, pondering over the vet's words. Half of us looked convinced that what he said could be applied to our shrinking time table while the other balked at the prospect of siding with the head Alpha werewolf. Even if it was only for a short amount of time. I wasn't sure myself that it'd work. Just being with him in the woods the previous night, how he was so quick to harm Ms. Morrell, an innocent person, without a second thought was a flag of many colors for him. How long would it be until he showed all the others? Until he killed someone? He wasn't afraid to. That much was clear.
The silence was interrupted by the front door opening and slamming shut with an echoing bang. Dr. Deaton glanced quickly at the entry but didn't check to see who it was right away. Whoever it was in the waiting room, they didn't call out or tap the little metal bell at the front desk like regular customers would, so I knew it wasn't anyone coming to get their dogs a flea treatment. Dr. Deaton met Scott's eyes warily before slowly walking to the doorway. I followed suit, peering over his shoulder and felt a pang of shock when the familiar face stared holes through us.
It was Ethan, standing there by himself. His chiseled face, usually neutral and smug, was now overcome with awkwardness and doubt. "I'm looking for Lydia."
The redhead came into view then. "What do you want?" She demanded curtly.
"I need your help."
Stiles' head popped around the corner. "With what?"
"Stopping my brother and Kali..." He paused and for the first since I saw him, he actually looked alone. When his eyes met mine, I knew the answer would be horrifying. "From killing Derek."
I swallowed the rising lump in my throat and turned to meet Lydia's wide eyes. I took an involuntary step back but tried to appear composed, even though I was crumbling inside. "They'll listen to you," I told her.
"What about you?" Lydia asked.
"I don't think Derek wants to see me. Me being there would only make it worse."
Lydia frowned at that, staring back with uncertainty but she nodded anyway. Ethan also looked relieved that she agreed to go along with him, but from the way she subtly glowered at the Alpha twin, she wasn't looking forward to sharing his company. I didn't blame her. He was only slightly less creepy than his straight brother.
[O]
Shortly after Lydia and Ethan left for Derek's loft, we decided to make a quick stop at Allison's apartment complex. Apparently, just because Mr. Argent was 'retired' doesn't mean he gave away his armory of guns and everything that could basically kill another human being. Or non human. Allison came up with the idea to have Scott and Isaac get a whiff of Mr. Argent and Mr. Stilinski's scent before driving down to the cliffs. Naturally that meant smelling something that closely belonged to them.
They lived near the top floor, so it was a long ride elevator ride up. I took the time to call my parents real fast but the first ring went straight to voicemail which worried me... what was happening that made them miss a call? I didn't want to think about it. And it didn't help the music they played inside sounded like the kind you heard in shopping malls.
"Just grab anything?" Scott said into his phone as we stepped off the elevator. "Stiles, I'm not smelling your Dad's boxers." I shot him a really creeped out look then and he just shrugged at me, like even himself couldn't explain for his best friend's behavior. Sometimes I really worried about Stiles... maybe his Adderall dosage was too high. "Socks? Okay, I'll smell the socks."
"What about me?" Isaac asked Allison.
She turned in the key to her apartment. "See what you can find in my Dad's closet," she told him and we followed her down the foyer to a plain white door. "Anything with the strongest scent."
She turned the knob and swung it open. A strange man in a suit was sitting comfortably in what I guessed was Mr. Argent's desk, flanked by two Beacon Hills police officers. He didn't look like a lawyer, but from his pin straight posture he had more power than one. Allison and I exchanged a stunned glance, frozen in our spots.
"Quite an arsenal your father's got here, young lady," the man said and pointed down at the plethora of guns laid across the desk. He stood up slowly and his features turned oddly soft. "Scott."
I looked over my shoulder and saw him standing behind me in the hall. He was stock still too and the look on his face was even more confused and than the rest of us. Did he know this guy or something? Or could he just smell the potential danger wafting off him?
"What are you doing here?" Scott asked dryly.
"Following one of the only leads I have. Now, since I don't know where you've been, why don't you have a seat, and we can talk? You too, Isaac." The man called the last part a little louder, prompting the curly haired lycan to amble around the corner, his head ducked bashfully.
"How do you know my name?" Isaac said.
"Your name's one of the few things I know," the man answered mysteriously. His thick metal law enforcement bag hung low at his chest and it took me a second to register he was a detective. That explained the sharp suit. "To be honest, the rest of what's going on around here has me stumbling in the dark even over the smallest clue."
Scott came forward, stepping between Allison and I. "If you're trying to tell me that you don't have a clue, I learned that a long time ago."
The detective's face fell slightly. "I'm really hoping to avoid the embarrassment of dragging my own son into an interrogation room. Really hoping."
Whoa, I thought, looking over at Scott quickly. This was his father? Now I understood the underlying hostility, at least on Scott's part. I couldn't remember a time where he mentioned him nor saw any photos of him on the wall that one time I was at his house. I guess that was a hint enough that they didn't have a healthy relationship and he wasn't around when he should have been. Physically speaking, Scott definitely took more after his Mom.
"Sit down," Mr. McCall told us, gesturing to the seats in front of him. "No one's leaving until I get some answers."
Scott sighed, turning to look at each of us with a blank, borderline combative expression before nodding. Isaac made himself cozy between the ex-couple while I sat in a big arm chair in the corner, feeling like I had just pulled a thumb tack on a teacher's seat or something and that was the cause for me being summoned by the school principal for questioning. Except this wasn't silly school antics. This guy was more than concerned about the rising numbers in missing people and demanded explanations. Explanations none of us could give.
"I'm not gonna lie," Mr. McCall went on. "I'm more than a little disturbed, not only by the number of missing parents, but the fact that it's Stiles's father, your father, and your mother."
Isaac kicked back idly and pulled out a container of breath mints from his pocket. He shook a couple of in his hand and popped them in his mouth. "Mine are both dead."
Mr. McCall didn't care. "Save the cliched teenage apathy for your high school teachers. The four of you know more than you're saying, and I'm fully willing to keep you here all night if I have to."
"You can't keep us here," Scott firmly told his Dad.
"Not without some kind of warrant," Allison added.
Isaac jerked a thumb in my direction. "You know Alessandra's father is a lawyer."
Three law enforcement eyes dissected my form sitting there on the armchair, like I had the power to indict them right then and there. This must have been how some of the Romans felt when they were plotting to assassinate Julius Caesar. "It's true," I said lamely, shrugging a bit.
Isaac offered me a mint from the container, which I was apprehensive on accepting given the circumstances but took it anyway. I guess one wouldn't hurt.
Mr. McCall sighed. "I've got a desk full of probable cause."
"Probable cause isn't enough to take us to jail," I spoke up. "You'd need proof, right?"
Allison nodded at that and rose to her feet, determination gleaming in her eyes. "My father is a highly respected private security consultant and federally licensed firearms dealer. That means he has to own a few weapons. Like this one hundred and seventy-five pound draw tactical crossbow." She started pointing every one out and picked them up with care. "Or this carbon steel Marine combat knife. 50AE Desert Eagle." She paused when she spotted a metal canister there, heavy and shiny like a spray paint bottle. "Smoke grenade with pull ring igniter." The cap busted off then and she tossed it over the desk so it landed cleanly at Mr. McCall's feet. "Go!" She told us and we sprinted straight for the door as wisps of smoke filled the room.
The coughs and furious calls from the bamboozled detective followed us all the way there and out into the apartment complex's parking lot. Scott jumped on his bike and floored it, while I hurried into the back seat of Allison's car. She drove steadily down the road, fast enough to make me hold on to the seatbelt strapped across my chest but not so fast where my life flashed before my eyes. We had to find the Nemeton in one piece. I peered over at the back windshield every now and then, expecting to see red and blue lights flashing in the distance but it was just a flannel grey mist of fog. The sky was already dark beyond the tree branches, I could see the blurry shape of the moon breaking through the blackness.
The road leading to the preserve was barren. When we pulled up to the chained off section, Scott parked beside us. We were the only ones there, which was weird and unexpected. Stiles was heading for the same direction and he left earlier than us. Maybe he got caught in traffic or something.
"Are you okay?" Allison asked Scott.
The brown eyed werewolf nodded. "I didn't know what to say to him. I couldn't come up with anything, but what you did, that was awesome."
"I still haven't gotten anything from Stiles," Isaac said, scanning the screen of his phone. "You?"
Scott frowned, knowing his best friend should have been there first. "I don't get it."
"All right, well, we can't wait for him," Isaac answered and turned to jog up to the cliff. "Come on."
Allison followed, but I stayed next to Scott as he gazed worriedly down the road. He was probably thinking of where Stiles was, what could have been holding him back and if he was okay.
"He'll come," I told Scott quietly. "He always pulls through." Maybe not very elegantly but he usually came through regardless.
Scott nodded, but his features didn't change. He just skimmed his cell phone one last time before pocketing it and running after the others. The hillside where we were supposed to meet Deucalion was one of the highest in Beacon Hills. It gave a wide view of the entire town and the mountains beyond it. Looking at our home from a height like that, with the sun down and all the city lights on, it was hard to believe it was anything but peaceful. But looks were deceiving. Half of the time, it was the reason we were knee deep in the messes that we were.
Isaac and Allison waited for us by the ledge when we came running up, out of breath. Deucalion was no where to be seen.
"Cutting it a little close, aren't we, Scott?" The head Alpha's voice observed suddenly from the shadowy trees. He slowly shuffled closer, walking stick in hand.
"We got a little delayed," Scott told him. "Where are the others?"
"Occupying themselves with other pursuits."
That was weird. I figured the twins and Kali would want to be there when they finally confronted Ms. Blake, the person who taunted and wrecked havoc on them for so long. Who was probably going to keep doing so for as long as she lived.
"So it's just us three against her?"
"I think you'll be surprised what a good team we make," Deucalion responded, his tone light and airy like we were his extended family and he was going to take us roller skating. I wondered if he expected us to stay by his side when all of this was over. Would we even have a choice?
"Okay, get Stiles," Scott whispered to Isaac. "And then get to the root. We'll keep Jennifer away long enough for you to get them out of there."
"How are you gonna do that?"
"I have a plan."
Isaac must have had a lot of confidence in him because he didn't pry and just followed Scott's advice. Allison seemed nervous to leave us in the company of a lycan like Deucalion, as if she would return and find just our bodies left, but maybe that was just the effect he had on people. Truthfully, despite knowing all the grisly facts about him, I didn't feel completely vulnerable around him. Not exactly safe, but being away from my parents from so long... away from Derek, protection was a feeling that I was becoming distanced from. And Deucalion was no mentor figure, at least not to me... it was the best company I could choose.
I shivered from the cold when Allison and Isaac started down the cliff again to find the Nemeton and looked up at the sky one last time before we had to leave too. The moon looked a lot brighter and closer now.
We went back to where it all started. It was weird to finally see the distillery that Grandpa Argent concocted his schemes in; a lifelong repercussion that my Uncle played a part in creating and left a spider's web trail that encased anyone who was born in the family. It looked like no had been inside it for years and I wondered if the last time was really when Deucalion lost his sight. Coming back must gave the Alpha a funny feeling too because he didn't say a word the whole trip there. He only stood between Scott and I as the doors of the distillery hung wide open.
"You said you had a plan."
"On the first day of class, Jennifer sent all of us a message," Scott explained. "It was the last line from Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness. I got a message of my own to send her."
He went over to a wide wall to then where the moonlight lit everything up and extended his claws to draw a spiral in the surface. The cutout really made it look like the symbol was glowing. I stared at it as Scott took out his cell, tapped the video button and started recording.
"You see this symbol? It's a symbol of revenge." He panned the camera so it was filming him, Deucalion and I visible behind his shoulders. "You talk about balance, about saving people. We know what you really want, and now you know where to find us."
The screen went black. Scott sent the video straight to Ms. Blake's phone and for all we knew, she was already watching it.
Now there wasn't much else to do except wait more. The sky was getting darker by the hour and the later it got, the closer the Darach was coming. Deucalion appeared confident in confronting her with just the three of us there, but I couldn't say I did too now that the final event was running it's course. It was the most nervous I ever been. At least in the face of something unnatural and that in itself was bizarre since I had seen Peter Hale's full werewolf form as he slowly burnt to a crisp. But when I first threw that Molotov cocktail, I knew that somewhere in it was supposed to be an end. But now...
Now I didn't know what was gonna happen. Deucalion made it sound like the only path was a long narrow one but it was really split at the end. And at those split ends were segues to other outcomes. Even if we won against Ms. Blake, what if Deucalion had a change of heart and decided we weren't really worth much alive? Or what if somehow... what if somehow Ms. Blake won? And she wanted to get rid of us after our parents?
"I was thinking... in case something happened," Scott's voice interrupted my thoughts. I blinked quickly and looked up at him, wondering why he was murmuring when Deucalion was right beside us. I waited for him to continue then, but he only spread open his palm, revealing two diamond-like shaped arrowheads... they looked familiar. I took them and pocketed them quietly when Scott only nodded at me, not saying anymore so I guessed it was a big secret. Even from Deucalion.
As soon as we faced the distillery doors again, a black silhouette stalked slowly toward us. It appeared androgynous for a second, but then I saw it's flowing hair. Another shape stepped out from behind it.
There was no guessing who it was. "Derek," I whispered, a tremor to my voice.
Even Scott's eyes widened and he stared down his fellow werewolf, once ally, in confusion. "What are you doing?"
"This might be hard to believe, but I'm actually trying to help you," Derek said and his eyes flashed to meet mine. The last time I saw him he was lying unconscious in an empty elevator and here was alive, awake and safe, and pulled to Ms. Blake's side again. Only now it seemed like he willingly went there.
"Ooh, like brother against brother," Deucalion commented and he sounded thoroughly entertained. "How very American this is." He gently began to fold up his walking stick. "Are you ready, Jennifer? Hm? Did you gather your herbs? Pray to your ancient Gods and your oak trees? Slit a baby's throat, perhaps?" I cringed a little by the disturbing imagery but could only watch as he shrugged off his jacket and tossed it carelessly aside. For a second I thought things were going to get really, really weird and he'd take off his shirt too. "Should we show them why you needed to sacrifice nine innocent people just to face me? Or is it twelve now?"
I gasped and took a step back when his face crossed under the light. His skin... well, it wasn't really skin anymore. Just thick and leathery flesh underneath tufts of ink black fur, covering prominent cheekbones and a full inhuman jawline. His eyes shined blood red. Redder than when he was in his human form. Now I knew why he labelled himself the Demon Wolf. I was sure other supernatural entities were cowering away somewhere.
Derek flicked out his claws then, eyes burning electric blue and he stormed at the much bigger werewolf, but Deucalion easily stopped his attack with both hands. Ms. Blake thrusted her palm at the Alpha's chest then but it did nothing except create small billows of wind. I winced as Deucalion suddenly switched and seized them both by the throats, lifting them up until their feet were dangling inches from the ground. He dropped Ms. Blake unceremoniously and threw Derek to the side after he tried swinging for him again.
With Ms. Blake alone, she stood up again, fury in her eyes and charged at the Alpha again but it was short lived. Deucalion backhanded her and she collapsed at his feet.
I released my long held breath as Deucalion gripped Ms. Blake by her hair and dragged her up toward Scott. "Kill her," he growled. "Do it."
Scott stared back at him defiantly but made no move to hurt our former English teacher. I covered my ears when Deucalion sent out a warning growl, making Scott sink to his hands and knees and it was so loud the walls started shaking.
"Now kill her," Deucalion commanded. "Your parents are dying. That storm you hear, she's burying them alive. It's her connection to the Telluric currents. Kill her and it ends."
"It won't end," Ms. Blake rasped. "Not with me. He'll have you kill everyone you love. It's what he does."
But Deucalion ignored her. "They're dying, Scott. Your mother and the parents of your best friends. Kill her now and it's over. Become the Alpha you're meant to be. Become a killer."
"They're not dead yet."
"And who's going to save them?" Deucalion chuckled. "Your friends?"
Scott rose to his feet, his features wolfed out. His irises glowed gold. "My pack."
My heart lurched at the curtain falling behind Deucalion's cherry red eyes. He didn't appreciate that. Faster than wind, he flew to Scott side and grasped one arm so his clawed hand was spread out and urged him toward Ms. Blake with the other. "Maybe you just need a little guidance."
I almost felt like covering my face at the scene before me. The Alpha's grip was like a steeltrap around Scott's hand and I knew he wouldn't stop until his claws sunk in the skin of Ms. Blake's neck. But they stopped short of her, of the sniveling English teacher, making Scott pause and face his intended mentor.
"I forgot to tell you something," Scott told him quietly. "Something that Gerard told me. 'Deucalion isn't always blind.'"
The said Alpha's expression faltered at the mention of the ill fated Argent but before he could piece it together, Scott quickly glanced at me. And I realized where those arrowheads were from. Allison's apartment.
Flash bolts.
I threw them at the ground the same time Scott did and squeezed my eyes shut so the painful gush of white light wouldn't hurt me. The lycans shrunk back from the effects, falling low to the ground again as a greyish mist came over the distillery. Everything felt dense and difficult to breathe through, as if there was carbon monoxide in the air and when I gazed around blearily, I saw that all three werewolves shifted back to their human forms. They weren't anything supernatural now. They were just people.
"The eclipse," Deucalion breathed, staring up at the blush colored sky. "It's started."
Scott and looked at each other for a moment and we realized what that meant. What exactly was happening if Isaac and Allison hadn't got everyone out of the Nemeton. But it had been hours since they left to look for it. They had to have found it by now. Right?
"Oh, no..." Scott muttered while staring straight ahead at the entrance.
At first I thought it was because he knew that the parents were still trapped in the Nemeton but then I saw what he was seeing. The Darach... not Ms. Blake, but the Darach's fully uncloaked figure marching toward us. I braced myself beside Scott, ready to take any of her blows but then a big hand yanked me behind a stack of wood crates. My cheek brushed against a dark blue cotton shirt, the fabric smelling just like pine needles and smoke.
I looked up at Derek's bloodied features, relaxing when he held me close to his chest and wanting to wrap my arms around him as well. But the sound of the Darach blasting Scott back against the wall made me jump. I tried pulling away to go over to him, but Derek drew me back his to his chest and held on tightly.
"Wait!" He whispered in my ear and I writhed for a second before going still. "Just wait."
I frowned as I studied up at him, wondering why he wanted to play incognito so bad when Scott was facing her alone. Maybe he was gonna be okay after all, especially since the Darach had turned her attention to Deucalion now. She had him on the floor and was slamming his head over and over again into the ground. Blood spattered the walls. I closed my eyes and turned my face into Derek's chest, feeling his hand hold the back of my head and remain there. After a moment, he nudged me farther into the corner behind the crates, kissing me briefly on the forehead before stepping into plain sight.
"Jennifer!" Derek beckoned, holding a hand up to stop her. "He doesn't know."
"Know what?" The Darach snapped.
"What you really look like. He knows the cost of bringing Kali into his pack, but he's never seen the price you paid."
Deucalion looked close to death when I peered out from the crates, his blood gradually leaking in different directions. "No... No, he hasn't," the Darach breathed and laid a hand over the Alpha's eyes. He froze for a moment before whatever she was doing to him made him cry out in agaony. "Turn to me. Turn to me!"
Disoriented, the Alpha opened his eyes and gazed around. The movement seemed almost spastic, like he never used them before in his life, and I realized that his eyes weren't a faded grey and red but a regular blue. Bright and normal. He wasn't blind anymore. He could see.
The Darach readied her hand into the air, but she was too late and transformed back into her old self. She swayed off balance but Derek caught her in his arms. "What is this?" She croaked.
"Healing him made you weak, just like healing Cora did to me," Derek said. "You won't have your strength for at least a few minutes."
"Then you do it. Kill him," Ms. Blake told him and my stomach churned at the affection in her voice.
"No," Derek flat out refused.
"What?"
"Like my mother used to say, I'm a predator." Derek cupped her cheek in one hand, thumbing over her skin. "I don't have to be a killer." His hand swiftly snaked around her neck. "Let them go."
Derek's hand clamped harder around her throat then, but Ms. Blake proved to be too strong and she easily flung Derek back into a set a wood crates. She backhanded him once more, pausing to stare into his eyes as though his actions hurt her. I guess she really did care for him. But not that much if she was so quick to harm him. Feeling a sudden surge of protectiveness and most likely, stupidly courageous, I stood up and yanked her back by the collar of her jacket.
Derek already took a lot of damage from Deucalion and I wasn't sure how much more he could handle. If anyone was going to get royally beat, I wanted it to be me.
Ms. Blake stumbled backwards when I pushed her from him and glared at me. A smirk played on her lips, like this was all still falling into her schemes.
"I shouldn't have gotten between you two," she said. "I should have just killed you instead."
She swung at me, a gust of wind emitting from her palm and even though it sent me reeling back, I dug in my heels and stayed on my feet, which seemed to confuse her since she frowned and looked down at her hand like there was faulty wiring in there. I took the chance to grasp her wrist, twisting it so her arm was bent at a probably pretty painful angle and threw her away from me again. When she spun to face me, I punched her in the jaw, my knuckles cracking and it took everything in me not to wince and shake my hand free of the pain.
I didn't know how professional fighters did that on a regular. But except my opponent falling unconscious, the punch didn't look like it effected Ms. Blake much. Her eyes only narrowed and she answered back with another swing of her hand. She hit me square in the cheek and I nearly fell back myself from how much it stung. I saw her arm about to come down at me again, but then all of a sudden Derek appeared behind her and stopped her attack.
It looked like he was about to lock his hands around her neck again, but then Ms. Blake seized the upper hand and shoved Derek up against a broken heater. She fisted his shirt in her hands and repeatedly slammed up into the steely contraption. My head was buzzing with pain from her attack and I swayed off balancing, inching to get her off him but the wind was too knocked out of me to be of any help. It felt like I was falling.
My vision became blurry and I could only watch as Ms. Blake's assaults grew on Derek and my heart skidded with panic. No, not again... I thought to myself. I didn't want to see him die a second time.
A pale white light misted over the distillery then, sucking whatever murky air the eclipe caused back into the sky.
Derek's eyes glowed electric blue. "Your fifteen minutes are up." He broke free from Ms. Blake's clutches then and the force of his regained power sent her tumbling to the ground. Scott saw this and advanced on her but before either of them could get close, Ms. Blake was on her feet and sprinkling a dark black ring of ash around her.
Now none of us could get through.
"Like I told you, Derek, either you or the parents. Well, I guess I'll just have to take them now," Ms. Blake goaded. "In a few minutes, they'll be dead, and I won't need a lunar eclipse, even to kill a Demon wolf."
The ring of ash she threw was impenetrable like the one Ms. Morrell used and I didn't think there was any practical way of getting past it, especially since Deucalion was down for the count and didn't bring his spiky pointed stick with him. I was starting to panic but then I saw Scott bring his hands up, as if he were touching invisible glass.
"You've tried this before, Scott," Ms. Blake taunted. "I don't remember you having much success."
Scott ignored her and drove his hands forward, a bright blue energy whipping around his body the more he pushed into it. He was actually... breaking the seal. Was that even possible? Did anyone even do that before? A million of thoughts clouded my brain and not one of them made sense until Scott locked eyes with a shaken looking Ms. Blake. The gold in his irises glossed over in a pure, fully charged Alpha red.
The seal broke with a vigorous pop. Ms. Blake landed on her back and gawked up at the newly established Alpha in astonishment. "How did you do that?"
"I'm an Alpha now," Scott said proudly. "Whatever you're doing to cause this storm, make it stop. Or I'll kill you myself. I don't care what it does to the color of my eyes."
I glanced up at the Lycan in shock, chills going up my spine by the promise in his tone. I had no doubts that he'd do it too, if push came to shove.
"It won't change the color of mine," a regenerated Deucalion said from behind us. "So allow me-" he surged forward and swiped his claws at Ms. Blake's throat.
I covered my mouth and resisted the urge to gag as blood poured like a faucet from Ms. Blake's severed neck. She held her throat and choked on her own fluids, form shifting back to her mangled, inhuman appearance. The light gradually faded from her eyes and she fell dead on her side. For the last time. Deucalion looked like the epitome of smug triumph, his own deep blue orbs rabid and wide with his renewed sight.
Scott also looked shocked at the outcome and that the elder Alpha took matters into his own hands like that, but then relief sagged his features and we all collectively exhaled. The atmosphere felt easier to breathe in. It was over. Finally.
Derek stepped backwards and sat down on a wood box, exhaustion to his shoulders as he bent his head down and scrubbed his fingers his hair. I wanted to run over and hug him, tell him that I was so happy he was okay and alive and that I missed and always would, but something in his body language told me that he wanted to be left alone for a while so that was what I did. I gave him space.
I waited and stared up at the clear night sky as Scott spoke with his best friend over the phone. He paused for half a second, glancing back in question at Derek, who only shrugged in response to whatever he heard Stiles ask. When the call ended, he slipped his cell back into jean pocket with a hopeful smile.
"They're alive," he said. "They're all okay."
"Stiles made it there?" I asked.
Scott nodded. "Yeah. He- he said your Dad and Uncle were there. He crashed his car against a tree and they pulled him out."
I grew quiet, remembering when I tried calling them earlier and they didn't pick up. Were they busy hatching their own plan to find the Nemeton, or at the least, made sure everyone made it back in one piece? Happiness surged in my chest by their aid of my friends and it made all the more eager to see them again, to tell them I loved them.
"Hey..." I whispered after a beat. We weren't exactly alone. "What about him?" I inclined my head toward the eldest werewolf, who seemed to be drifting off into his own world. His eyes skirted around from the surroundings, the hole in the ceiling, and occasionally ourselves. It must have been weird for him to see the world in color again. Or maybe he was brainstorming about how to start his next Alpha pack. I wanted out of the contract for that one.
"Maybe he'll change," Scott mused and gazed curiously at the Alpha.
"And maybe he won't," Derek piped in. "He never got his perfect pack, but with his vision restored... he can be someone else."
His old self, I thought to myself as the two approached the said Alpha. Deucalion looked weirdly smaller now. Not physically but inside, like getting his sight back humbled his soul and made him remember he wasn't so blood thirsty and hellbent on revenge, on achieving his own dreams. I guess now that he could see he didn't need any props to make him appear like he wasn't handicapped. He was just Deucalion, plain and simple. And a werewolf...
"My mother told me you were a man of vision once," Derek said. "We're letting you go because we hope you can be that man again."
Scott nodded, but his expression meant business. "But if you're not, then having your eyesight back won't matter. Because you'll never see us coming."
Deucalion had no words and just gazed at them thoughtfully, as if he knew it to be true himself. The threat was subtle but he didn't seem to mind it so much and the three of us turned away. I hesitated and peered back at him for a little longer, giving him a tiny smile despite how he manipulated me into joining his team. It turned out to be the best choice in the end. The Darach was gone, our friends and family were safe, and things could go back to normal again. For however long Beacon Hills allowed.
Maybe I did learn something from him after all. I didn't know what it was yet, but something inside of me felt different. Heavier. I guess that was how I knew I picked up a few things from Deucalion's lessons. I just hoped it was the decent parts.
In the back of my mind, I had a feeling this wasn't going to be the last of the famed Alpha werewolf. I'd hear about him again someday. Maybe under better circumstances.
[O]
My Dad once said about a law firm case that it's the smallest things that can corrupt a man's heart, what they can lose. Their clothes, their friends, their air, hearing, sight; things we normally take for granted and those losses leave us with just ourselves. And that by nature isn't pleasant company and makes people prone to absorb darkness around them. Maybe that was what happened to Deucalion. It was Grandpa Argent and my Uncle's doing that put him on the wrong path and the only thing they could do to correct it was to return what they had stolen.
Reuniting with Mom and Dad was an emotional affair. Mom held me so close to her chest, I thought I would gonna die from overexposure of her perfume until Dad had to pry her arms away just so he could have his turn. He told me he was proud of me. Both nervous and furious as all hell when I didn't come home that night from the hospital, but he was happy to see me alive. I felt terrible for doing that to them. Just imagining my Mom freaking out over the fact that I disappeared made me think of different ways I could make it up to them but the list was long and I'd have my hands full for the rest of my life. I ended up grounded for two months.
The day after the eclipse, Scott informed me that Derek was leaving town for a little while and taking Cora with him. I told myself not to think too much into it but I couldn't help but worry if it'd end up being for good... and if I had a part in his decision to go away. We never got the chance to really talk about what happened between us or rather what pulled us apart. I didn't blame him and I didn't blame myself. I was only sorry that it happened. But there was no point in feeling bad over it now. It was already over and he was alive. That was what I wanted, even if it meant not being with him again. Still, Allison drove me to his loft so I could say a proper goodbye and not chicken out over the phone like I originally planned. She was a quiet and supportive presence and waited behind the wheel as I got out and walked nervously to their car.
Derek was busy stowing a bag in the trunk but he must have sensed my approach or at least his sister's shift in demeanor, since she glanced back and forth between apprehensively us by the passenger side door. He shut the trunk lid swiftly, arms looking big in his leather jacket and my heartbeat fluttered.
"Scott told you," he stated a little grumpily.
"He, uh... he thought I needed to know." I paused and glanced down at my shoes. "Were you really gonna leave and not say goodbye first?"
"I hurt you enough. I didn't want to do it again."
"You wouldn't have. If you're really going, I'd want to see one last time. Talking to you makes me happy." The corner of Derek's lips quirked up then, making me smile as well. "None of it was your fault, you know."
"But I still did it," he answered. "And I'm sorry."
"I'm sorry too."
Silence crept up on us, like credits to a bad movie. I shifted my footing awkwardly while he just stuck his hands in his jacket pockets, a timeless Derek gesture. When I peered back at Allison, she gave me an encouraging smile through the windshield and waved her fingers forward, as if egging me to keep talking. I felt like I was failing miserably though.
But then I did think of something.
"What made you remember?" I asked after a beat. "That night in the loft?"
"It was just you," Derek admitted. "You touched me and all I could think about was that I wanted you safe." I blinked slowly at his words, wondering how just a simple touch could have such a strong effect. "I would have remembered anyway," Derek went on. "Whatever Jennifer did to me wasn't strong enough to erase every memory. You were still there, even if I didn't know it."
That made me think for a moment. I guessed Ms. Blake's plan from the beginning was to gain Derek's trust so he'd act her body guard against Deucalion. Or worst case scenario, she'd go after more parents. Maybe between all that, she really did care about him. All those times I saw them together, I couldn't forget the affection on her face when she looked at him and a part of me thought that it wasn't really faked. That was why it was so easy for me to believe that Derek would want her instead. That and... well, it was clear she dedicated a good chunk of those sacrifices to her physical appearance.
Hearing that he really remembered me all along, though, mode those aspects seem insignificant.
"Would you just get back together already?" Cora snipped loudly by the car, arms folded with her back against the door. She rolled her eyes then, before jerking open the handle and hopping into the seat.
Derek sighed deeply, shutting his eyes for a second before snapping them back open again. His forest green eyes appeared darker despite the sunny skies and the way he was suddenly staring at me made me want to spin on me heel and cut it back to Allison's car. But I didn't. I barely had time to react when Derek dropped a hand out of his coat pocket and weaved it around my waist, pulling me flush against him. He pressed his lips to mine with a surprising softness, his other hand holding the back of my head.
My arms were limp at my sides for a second before locking around his neck, stomach flipping and frying with butterflies. I sighed in contentment, feeling as though it was my first kiss with him all over again.
Derek pulled away, breathing heavier but his eyes were calm and lighter. He kissed my forehead, lips lingering around the skin between my brows. "I love you."
"I love you too," I said back, then pecked him one last time on the lips. "I'll be here." I pulled away, touching his hand for a moment before letting go.
I stepped back and watched him as he climbed in the driver's seat. Cora propped her cheek loosely against her fist, but she smiled very slightly when I waved in her direction. She was a tough one to crack, definitely stubborn like her brother but more likable than her split personality suffering Uncle. Speaking of which, I didn't see the oldest Hale family member anywhere. Maybe he decided to stay behind to watch over the loft. Or they deliberately left him behind.
I walked back to Allison's car when theirs drove off. She had her elbow against the window, head in her palm as she gazed peacefully out the window but she turned to look at me when I got in and closed the door.
"Feel better?" She asked.
"Yeah," I answered with a small smile. "A lot better. Thanks for coming with me."
She beamed back at me and touched my arm gently before starting the ignition. I had to go straight home since I spent the weekend barricaded in a hospital, stalking through the woods with an Alpha pack and making sure my friend's folks weren't gruesomely sacrificed. That left a lot of homework unfinished and it all hard to be done by Monday. At least some things stayed the same.
Allison had to go back to her apartment building too, so when she pulled up to my curb I said my goodbyes before getting out. Both my Dad's and Uncle's car were parked in the driveway which wasn't a big surprise. Although by some miracle, Uncle Gaius managed to score his own house within the area since he arrived. He was rarely around to begin with but since my Dad had his office, I figured he would be stopping by often. A part of me wondered how he even made it happen. I thought renting out places took some time to sort out, but I guessed money changed hands, with Dad being a lawyer and all. Maybe this meant Aunt Lisette could come down too.
I keyed in the front door and shut it behind me, hearing people talking in Dad's office. By that time it was past noon and my stomach was growling with hunger so I decided to raid the pantry for something fast to take to my room. My homework would probably keep me up till eleven at night.
"Alessandra?" Dad's voice when he heard me pass on my way to the stairs.
"Yeah, what's up?"
He didn't answer right away, so I tucked my cold poptart under one arm and walked back to the living room. The TV was on and playing a generic news station, but the volume was so low that I couldn't hear the anchorman's voice. Dad was standing and facing the screen, arms folded while one hand idly thumbed at his lips. A picture of deep thought but it wasn't toward the news caster.
"What is it, Dad?" I asked again.
Finally Dad sighed and turned away from the tv screen. "I'm not sure how to pitch this to you, so I think it's better If I show you instead." He motioned for me to follow him as he headed for the basement door.
I glanced over at Dad's desk, seeing Uncle Gaius occupying himself there on the phone. His free hand was braced against his leg, bent at the elbow and he said something into the receiver that I didn't catch. He winked at me when he saw me there and the action reminded me so much of Ellis, I couldn't help but smile.
I trailed after Dad as he lumbered down the basement stairs. He yanked the chain of the overhead lightbulb, steadying with his hand when it kept swaying back and forth. The contents in the room wasn't much different from when I last been in there, just that it looked dustier. I gazed around curiously while Dad uncovered a few stacked cardboard boxes, wiping the top clean of dirt. A weird roman numeral was scribbled on the front in black.
He studied my bewildered expression with amusement. "Did you think one locked box was all we had to police the supernatural?"
"You mean..." I gulped. "There's more stuff?"
Dad nodded. "There'd so much for you to learn," he said and tucked his hands in his trouser pockets. "If you're ready."
I stared incredulously at the boxes, at a loss for words and it all started to make sense. Why Dad looked so in thought in the living room, Uncle Gaius talking cryptically over the phone and getting a place close by. Also why they were so secretive about what they were doing the night of the eclipse. They had plans of their own now.
"But what about the hunters?"
"What of them?"
"They wouldn't be happy about this, would they?"
"After the eclipse, I think their perspective has been rotated. But if not..." He shrugged then, like he couldn't make any promise. "We'll see."
I admit, that didn't make me feel particularly confident but I took it with a grain of salt anyways. The fact that he was showing me this and letting the opportunity be known showed that he believed I could do it, that I was capable of enough to learn everything they did. Mom must have been fine with it too. I couldn't imagine Dad deciding anything behind her back if he wanted to keep his preferred side on their bed. I had them both to go to now. And my friends.
Derek... who was far away now but would always be important to me.
I took a deep breathe and looked up at my Dad. "Okay."
[O]
On Monday morning, I woke up refreshed and dressed for the day with high hopes. All my homework was completed the previous night and despite me falling asleep on my notebook cover and waking with wire marks on my arm, I felt good about how things would turn out. Usually bad things kicked off the sign of an equally bad day but I couldn't say that happened. My poptart didn't burn in the toaster, there was still orange juice left in the fridge and my mom was able to drive me to school on time. I was thinking that I would be getting decent grades on my last few assignments too, which was nice.
The halls of Beacon Hills High held a nice surprise too. Smiling faces swam all around me as I walked to my locker and punched in the combination. Lydia chatted it up with a newly reformed Aiden a couple locker rows down and she smirked at whatever he was saying, dark lashes batting against her cheeks. Her preference in boyfriends didn't really stray since Jackson went away, but I wasn't shocked much by it. As long as he didn't use her and stopped acting like a creep, it didn't bother me a bit.
As I zipped open my book bag and started stuffing textbooks inside, a soft giggle coming from the stairwell made me glance up. Allison bounced down the steps with Isaac in tow, her smile wide and bright when she looked back at him. Well, that's another development, I thought to myself while Isaac stared at her with eyes as big as saucers. Very subtle.
Another familiar voice made me look to my left and I saw Scott clambering down the hall with Stiles at his side, an unbreakable duo. He met my eyes with a smile and I returned it wholeheartedly. I was grateful when the pieces kept falling apart, he was the one we could look to to help put them together again. He made himself out to be a great friend, even though it was going to be odd viewing him as an Alpha now, the highest rank of a werewolf, but maybe that was because the other two Alphas I could compare him to were pretty deranged.
At least I wouldn't have to worry about them anymore.
The bell rang then. I hurried and fumbled with the rest of my supplies, making sure I had everything before shutting my locker closed and scurried to my first class so I wouldn't be late. I wondered about the new English teacher position and who the school would eventually hire.
They couldn't be any worse than the last one.
A/N: I had a great time writing this so I hope it didn't disappoint. Thinking about it now, the ending seems pretty sad and ironic considering how the show just gets darker in 3B. :(
Anyway, I wanna thank everyone for staying with me for so long. I've had an awesome time writing this story and I'll always appreciate what you guys have done for me by reading.
See you next time. :)