Scott looked out the window as Maia's black Challenger pulled up outside, she having been the only person he could call. He knew that Sheriff Stilinski had probably already called his mother and he had to at least talk to her before Mrs. McCall effectively made him disappear from light of day.
"What the hell did you do Scott," Maia asked venomously when she made it past the front desk.
"He… the Kanima escaped- I don't know how but he got out! And Jackson's parents were already looking for him and he ran into the road, screaming about being kidnapped," Scott tried to explain, exasperated; he had a massive headache and knowing that he alone had screwed up only made it worse. "Jackson's family pressed a restraining order against us: we have to stay fifty feet away from him at all times. That means no speaking, no assault or harassment either physically or psychologically."
She looked at him, registering the guilty look on his face, "Allison was there, wasn't she?"
His silence was answer enough and Maia bared her teeth at him, her hands balling into fists. "I knew that this would happen- because of you and the fact that you can't control your little teenage prick, a kid might die! Jackson doesn't even know what he's doing because his master-"
"Master?"
Maia rubbed her temple and sighed, looking around to see if anyone was eavesdropping before she spoke. "Derek corrected one of my mistakes in the bestiary translations: 'The Kanima seeks a master', not a friend. And I think that when he phases or transforms he's put into a fucking fugue state that causes him to forget his actions. Like Derek said, the Kanima doesn't know who... or what it is," Maia said, narrowing her eyes in frustration. She knew that extreme measures would have to be taken in order to protect Jackson and get to the core of the Kanima issue, scheming a plan quickly in her head. "Alright, then. You're already lucky he's not pressing charges on you so just stick to the terms of the restraining order. You might not be able to get close, but I can-"
"Scott Anthony McCall," a harsh voice said, cutting off Maia's words.
They both stood as the shorter Mrs. McCall approached, Scott trying to figure out how to explain away Maia's involvement with him. However, she beat him to the punch, putting on a smile and extending her hand to Scott's mother. "Hello Mrs. McCall, my name is Maia Hale. I'm Scott's legal council," she said, his mother narrowing her eyes. "I'm sorry that my son hired you for whatever he's done-" Maia shook her curls out and chuckled once, "No ma'am, I'm a friend of… Sherriff Stilinski and his son. I was just providing him with some representation as the restraining order was issued." She lied so fluently that Scott was actually impressed by her, the woman surrounded by an air of authority that no one would readily question. "Wait, a restraining order," Mrs. McCall asked incredulously, looking at her son. "Scott, what the hell are you doing son? This is just the latest in a long line of issues you've been having- you act weird and you come in late at night from doing only God knows what! You're failing classes and they might even hold you back a year; what are you doing Scott?"He looked at the Alpha for answers, unsure of what he should say- she just met his eyes evenly and drew her lips into line. "What do I have to do, huh? Ground you from everything except work and school? Take Stiles away from you-" Scott gaped at her and the thought that she would hold his best friend against him, "Mom that's not fair and you know it!" Mrs. McCall sighed, exasperated, shaking her head at her son. "And neither is the way you've been treating me," she said, Maia sensing her sadness at the change she had seen in her son- a transformation was difficult for any person becoming a wolf and leaving the majority of their ties behind, but she had never thought to think of the people it affected as well… the very people getting left behind.
"I swear to you mom," Scott said firmly, trying to channel as much love through his eyes as possible. "If I could tell you, I would. You just don't understand!"
"Yeah, that makes two of us then. Thank you…"
Maia smiled sadly, helping her out, "Mrs. Hale. Derek Hale is my husband."
"Well, thank you for helping my son; Scott, meet me in the car," Mrs. McCall said pointedly, taking one last look at Maia and walking out. The Alpha exhaled and rubbed her temples, shaking her head. "You cannot tell her- anything Scott. Because a secret like this is something that will tear that woman apart; the only way Derek and I survived everything was because I… wanted it. Even when I was young, I wanted to be with him, a part of him and a part of his world. She cannot know," Maia murmured, reaching out to stroke Scott's hair out of his eyes.
"Or I will kill her."
His eyes widened and Maia shoved her nails into the back of his neck, piercing his skin, "And I swear I will."
The next morning Derek awoke with a start, having rolled over onto Maia's side of the bed to find himself alone. The entire house was quiet and he knew that the kids were at school, but was left wondering as to where his wife was.
After getting up and pulling on a pair of boxers, he walked downstairs to smell a ham cooking in the oven, confused. "Since when did I become a fucking house-husband," Derek asked himself, moving to lift the pot of hot water off of the stove before finding a note addressed to him on the refrigerator door.
Hey honey, make yourself a cup of coffee, get dressed and pick up our package from City Hall- you're gonna be damn proud of me. Remember to watch the ham- please don't let it burn or you'll have three starving wolves on your hands tonight- and to get the "room" ready for the full moon. Wish I could be there with you, but we had an opportunity I just couldn't pass up. We have work to do. The plan is falling into place. Love Maia.
While Derek pondered her cryptic words, Allison was walking into English class and seeing who sat behind the desk, nearly dropped her books.
"Is there are problem miss?"
Maia smiled at Allison, but the gesture didn't reach her entrancing eyes, the Alpha motioning with her hand to a desk directly in front of her, "Take a seat. I insist."
After the second bell had rung Maia stood and smiled at the class, turning to write her name upon the board. "Hello and good morning class. My name is Maia Wyndham Hale- you can call me Mrs. Hale. Your teacher, Mrs. Simpson has had her baby, a beautiful little boy she named Quinn, and will be out for the rest of the semester on maternity leave; I will be filling in from now until then," she said steadfastly, facing her class and tossing her hair back over her shoulder. She could feel the stares of her male students as they took her in and smoothed down her black dress, feeling the fabric stretching tightly over her hips. "So to start out our relationship off on a good foot, I'd like to share some things about myself with you. I am twenty-four years old, an alumni of Beacon Hills and former co-captain of our awesome lacrosse team. My favorite song is 'Howl' by Florence and the Machine and I enjoy both long walks, and the full moon."
The class laughed and she moved to lean against her desk, cocking her head more at Allison than anyone else. "Now, I want us all to have a very good time together, and while I am an extremely easy-going person, I am also a stickler when it comes to the rules. Principal… Argent has made it very clear that we are to walk the line and if any of you has just one toe out of line, I'm afraid to say that everyone is going to lose a foot. Have I made myself clear," Maia asked, running her fingers back through her curls.
"Good then. Let's take our books and go over the last assignment you were given…"
Gerard stood in the doorway of Maia's classroom, his jaw set as he watched her. His arm had been twisted with the former teacher's maternity leave and the werewolf had been the only one who would take over the class. He had warned her not to touch Allison or even talk to her or there would be hell to pay- and that, he meant.
When class let out, Maia watched her students leave before catching Scott's scent, moving to the doorway.
"Mr. McCall, may I speak with you privately," she called, seeing Allison look up at her fearfully.
The young wolf walked into the room and Maia closed the door, "Tell me, are you just completely stupid or mentally retarded?" When he looked at her with confusion written all over his, the Alpha sighed, checking the room for cameras before turning to him. "You can't keep seeing Allison-" Scott was frustrated, throwing his hands up at Maia, "You know, I'm sick you telling me what I can and cannot do! I don't follow you-"
"He knows, Scott," Maia replied lowly, growling in her chest. "Gerard Argent knows about me and Derek and he knows about you as well. He's made it perfectly clear that he has it out for all of us- all of the werewolves in Beacon Hills- but things are starting to force his hand; we need to be careful. You need to be careful and stay away from Allison, before both of you get hurt!"
"If he's such an issue, then why don't you just kill him? You and your husband don't seem opposed to that."
She flashed her eyes at him and leaned into his face, baring her teeth menacingly. "That's because we have an endgame now, with the Kanima and the Argents; and killing him right out would be messy. I'm looking out for all of us now, and you need to keep with the fucking plan. Watch Lydia today- the wolves are on the hunt."
Scott looked at her before grabbing his book bag and walking out, leaving the Alpha to compose herself.
Knowing she had a free period, Maia moved to look for Jackson, needing to get close to him both to protect and threaten him- Derek wanted the pack circling the Kanima, which as of yet, was still unknown to him.
She had just caught the scent of her prey when she heard her name being called, turning to see Erica yellow-eyed and grinning devilishly. Maia moved to wrap her hand around the back of her fledgling's neck, squeezing tightly as she pulled the teen down a stairwell. "What the fuck do you think you're doing walking around with your eyes like that? Are you insane girl-" The young wolf just shook her head and grabbed Maia's face in her hands, "I know who it is Maia- the Kanima! I know!"
"What? Who-"
"Stiles must be really stupid because I found him cornering Lydia in the hallway and asking her about Jackson's biological parents- because he's adopted, you see… But anyway, that's not the point! Lydia wouldn't tell him anything but he was persistent, like it was life or death or whatever. And then I realized: the only thing that would matter that much would be if Jackson was in danger… or he was the danger. When I told him that I knew about Jackson's real parents and that they are dead and buried and that I know how they died, its like something clicked. And then it was clear: he's the Kanima. Jackson Whittemore is the fucking Kanima," Erica said excitedly before kissing Maia, proud that she had figured out the riddle. But Maia was stiff and her lips were still underneath Erica's, the wolf pulling back to look at her. "What's wrong? You don't look happy or anything you should be right now… in fact, you look upset. Because- because you knew, didn't you? You knew that he was the Kanima and you didn't tell Derek? What's wrong with you?"
Maia looked at Erica and shook her head, pressing her finger to her lips. "Sweetheart, I need you to listen to me: you cannot tell Derek about Jackson, not yet. We are in more danger if he knows- you, me, Isaac, Boyd. The Kanima is unknown territory and I know my husband, and I know that he is capable of very terrible things. We have a chance to help Jackson-"
"Help him? And why do you keep saying his name like it means something," Erica asked scathingly, trying to pull away from Maia even as her hands held her face tightly between them. "Jackson- whoever or whatever he was once- is gone now! And the Kanima? It tried to hurt you once already and I couldn't stand it if anything happened to you, Maia! Please… please…"
The Alpha kissed her and shook her head, pleading with her, "I need you to do this for me Erica."
Blue eyes submitted to her and Maia blinked away the stinging in her eyes, bringing Erica's forehead to her lips. "All I need is a little more time," she whispered, the fledgling nodding before Maia released her. The two women moved to the locker room, following Jackson's distinct scent and entering to find him naked in the shower.
"Jackson."
He moved to face her and Maia could see a venomous intent there that she was not comfortable with, her nails curling into talons. "We need to talk Jackson," she said firmly, putting the full force of the Alpha into her words, knowing that just the timbre of her voice made Erica uncomfortable- she could feel the younger wolf shudder beside her. The teen sneered nastily and stepped out of the shower, closing in on both of them, the Alpha taking a half-step back to maintain the distance between them, "You know, I was just thinking the same thing. You fucking kidnapped me and locked me in a fucking box so I would keep your secret, you stupid bitch-"
"Watch your fucking mouth when you talk to her," Erica growled underneath her breath, taking a menacing step forward.
"And what if I don't? You gonna shut it for me… you stupid bitch," he asked mockingly, his eyes seeming to glaze over with every word he spoke. "You have no idea who… or what you are dealing with. I am nothing you have ever seen before-"
Maia snarled at him in a way that brought all of the wolves running to their location, flashing her eyes at him, "Oh, so you think you're bad? Hate to break it to you then Jackson… but I'm a whole hell of a lot worse."
She lunged at him the same moment that Isaac reached her, knocking her off feet as Scott and Boyd sailed over them into Jackson, Erica helping to move the Alpha way from the fight. Isaac shoved Maia towards the door and pointed to the way out, baring his teeth at her, "Go now- before someone sees you." Maia watched as the boys broke the sink in pushing Jackson, wary of what the fight would reveal to them. "No Isaac. You take Boyd and Erica and go home- I can handle this," she snarled venomously, hearing the people outside starting towards the commotion. When he protested, Maia grabbed him by the front of the shirt and threw him backwards through the door, "I said go Isaac!"
When another teacher arrived, Maia was separating the wolves and Jackson, breathing heavily.
"That's it! Everyone here has detention- including both of you," Maia said, randomly pointing to the two figures standing closest to the doorway, one of whom who was recording the fight. She was surprised to find that one of them was Allison, setting her jaw as she looked at the teens, "The library, after school. And none of you better be late."
Derek sat down in the office with the package Maia had sent him to get, furrowing his brow before opening it to quell his own curiosity. Within it, he found various applications and instructions, pulling out a letter formally addressed to Maia. "Dear Mrs. Wyndham Hale, we are pleased to receive letter of intent in running for the position of Beacon Hills Mayor. Enclosed in this packet is everything you need to campaign…"
"Mrs. Hale?"
She looked up from her phone to stare at the nameless kid she had given detention to, irritated by the very sound of his voice, "Yes?" The teen was a slight, but handsome boy, with curly hair and large, green eyes. However, instead on making him seem innocent and harmless, there was a hardened glint to his gaze that made the Alpha's intuition kick in- she had a bad feeling from him…
"Hi, my name is Matt and I haven't done anything to deserve detention-"
"Hey, Mike- it is Mike, right? I just spent my first day on the job breaking up a fight between a freaking naked kid and two other boys much stronger than myself. Forgive me if I don't care that you don't want to be here; frankly, I just get a creepy vibe from you," Maia replied scathingly, seeing how he narrowed his eyes before raising her phone back up to her face.
She was reading over the text from the bestiary again, finally having it mostly translated, "Like the wolf, its power is greatest at the moon's peak. Like the wolf, the Kanima is a social creature but where the wolf seeks a pack, the Kanima seeks a master… A weapon of vengeance, is used to carry out the bidding of its master. The Kanima was once used by a South American priest who took it upon himself to rid his village of all murderers. The bond between master and servant grew stronger until the will of the master became that of the Kanima's and whomever the priest deemed unworthy, the Kanima served his vengeance." Maia continued reading, her voice in a whisper as she thought of being in the same room as Jackson and the innocent lives between them. "The Kanima is a mutation of the werewolf gene that cannot fully transform until it resolves that in its past which manifest it."
"Erica, can I speak to you out in the hallway," Maia asked, standing before looking at the students. "Start shelving these books. They all need to be put away before any of you can leave."
The young wolf stepped out into the hallway, obviously uncomfortable as she rubbed her arms. "Its unfair, you know, knowing and still having to pretend that everything is… normal, well, as normal as they could be with werewolves existing and all that other mythical nonsense. I mean, Maia, Jesus Christ! That thing could attack at any moment-"
"Not unprovoked; in theory, at least. But that's not what I needed to talk to you about- I need to know everything you know about Jackson," Maia said quietly, Erica sighing as she ran her fingers back through her hair nervously. "It isn't much, just that my dad was the insurance examiner who worked the case- his parents died in an accident, single car crash. The car swerved off the road suddenly and his dad lost control, or at least that's what the skid patterns suggested. Both of them were DOA and he- Jackson- was born after his mother had died; C-Section. The city officials had to put him up for adoption because there was no other family left," she murmured, reaching up to tuck her hair behind her ear. She would have been blind not to see the sad look in Maia's eyes, the Alpha swallowing before she opened the door, "Thank you."
Maia walked back into the room to find Scott staring at her, his eyes narrowed. "Don't look at me like that McCall; you should be damn glad I'm here and covering your ass," she snapped, moving to sit back behind her desk before pausing.
"Where is Jackson Whittemore? And that other kid, Matt?"
She moved between the bookshelves before hearing Boyd call out for her, moving to find Matt unconscious on the floor, a long, jagged scratch on the back of his neck. "Oh shit-" Boyd pulled her down as the Kanima jumped from stack to stack over their heads, wrapping his arms around her to shield her from the falling books, light fixtures and ceiling tiles.
"Maia," Erica shouted, running to where she had last seen her, not seeing the Kanima land behind her.
Isaac, having shielded Stiles and Allison, turned to see her trying to get to Maia, the Kanima slithering just behind her. "Erica, look out!" The young wolf turned only to have long claws rake down her arm, a burning sensation seeming to sear her very flesh from the bone. Scott tackled the Kanima and moved to place himself over Erica, seeing Jackson half-phase back into his human form. "Jackson…"
The Alpha rose up, snarling as the teen turned to face her, seeming possessed, "Stay out of my way. Or I'll kill all of you." Before she could move, he jumped through a window and disappeared, Maia roaring as she kicked over a book shelf in frustration.
"Maia-"
Erica choked out her name in the midst of a seizure, the Alpha turning to see the condition she was in, "What the hell? She can't possibly be having a seizure- she's not human anymore!" The pack moved to surround her, Isaac seeming unable to catch his breath as he took her into his arms and looked at Maia. "You should stay here and get an ambulance for Matt; lie to them, alright? Don't worry about her Maia- look at me! Don't worry about her, because you have things to handle here. We have this," Isaac said forcefully, looking at Boyd before passing Erica to his arms. Isaac held Maia's face in his hands and kissed her, "I have this."
The pack brothers ran home, Derek flinging open the door as soon as he heard Boyd howl in the distance.
"What the hell happened," Derek asked, seeing Erica limp in Boyd's arms. "And where the hell is Maia?"
"She got scratched-" Derek spun around in a blinding fashion to look at Isaac as Erica laid on the kitchen table, his eyes ablaze, "What? Where is she?" Isaac gestured down to Erica, frustrated at the fact that she wasn't recovering from the seizure. "Not Maia- she's fine! Jackson scratched Erica though, and she had an episode; I thought that wasn't supposed to happen anymore. I thought that couldn't happen anymore," the young wolf said, Derek's eyes flashing down to his fledgling. "Me too."
Taking a deep breath, he grabbed Erica's arm and snapped it, forcing her to scream bloody murder. Boyd lunged forward to snatch Derek's hand away, baring his teeth, "Stop! You're hurting her!"
"I'm helping her! I have to trigger the healing process and get this venom out of her- if that's too much for you Boyd, I'm going to have to ask you to leave," Derek said with a growl before taking Erica's arm and squeezing it bloody, her screams ringing inside of his ears…
Scott stood beside Maia as they watched the ambulance drive away with Matt, the woman letting out a quiet sigh.
"Did you mean it? When you said you got a vibe from him," Scott asked quietly, taking off his jacket to drape it over her shoulders. She nodded and ran her fingers back through her thick hair, the younger wolf swallowing. "I think he has some weird obsession with Allison. I see him taking pictures all the time- which I expect from him being on the yearbook staff- but… it always seems that he gets really into it when she's around, you know? Stiles even joked about him having something to do with the Kanima, but obviously today with him getting scratched-"
"Don't ever rule anyone out, especially without any proof to their innocence. That innocent before guilty in a court of law shit is exactly that- absolute shit. Someone is guilty here," Maia replied, looking at the police officers she would have to confront. "And surprisingly, it isn't Jackson."
They looked at each other for a moment and Scott sniffed, nervous at how she would perceive his next words. "Derek probably knows by this point that Jackson's the Kanima and he is going to make the pack hunt him down and kill him… But we both know that they're too inexperienced and young to handle this. If you have friends- anyone that can help us- we need them desperately. Now. But until then, I'll stand with you Maia, join… your pack just long enough to capture Jackson," Scott said, his eyes on her face to gauge her reaction.
"You already know that Derek doesn't plan on merely capturing him."
"Yeah, I know. But you can change his mind- you're the only person he'll listen to."
As soon as Maia had entered her house after giving her statement to the police, she found herself pinned against the wall with Derek's forearm on her throat, seeing her boys standing over his shoulder. She looked at them, signaling with her eyes for them to stay back before turning her gaze to her husband.
Derek slammed her against the wall once more for good measure, baring his teeth at her angrily, "You knew. You've known ever since that night at Scott's house, haven't you?"
"Yes," Maia said through her teeth, her husband roaring angrily.
"And you put this pack- this family- in danger to do what exactly," Derek questioned harshly, Maia snatching his arm off of her throat and moving to slam him back into the wall. "To protect him! No matter what he might be right now, the fact of the matter is that Jackson Whittemore is somebody's child! And our blood runs through his veins Derek- Hale blood! 'The Kanima is a mutation of the werewolf gene that cannot fully transform until it resolves that in its past which manifest it'. That means that he can be cured!"
He pushed her back, Maia glaring at him as he spoke, "We are not going to cure him- we are going to kill him!"
"I will stand against you if you try to harm him Derek," Maia said lowly, her every word laced with poison.
"Yeah? You and what army?"
Maia bared her teeth at him, her hands balled into fists, "An army is not an idle threat when it comes to me Derek. And if you want a war, I can give you one. So you need to back down and submit, or I will end you. And that, I promise." He looked at her and saw the faint line of white coloring around her red eyes, unsure of what it meant but knowing that the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end like never before. "Fine, I submit. We'll do it your way," Derek said before snapping his teeth at her and stalking away.
"Good choice."