Cold Comfort
"You sure this is a good idea?" Isaac asked for the fifth time since they'd left the house.
Derek's gaze drifted to the back seat where Cora's unconscious body was sandwiched between Aiden and Ethan, her head lulling to the side, resting on Aiden's shoulder. The twin's cheek pressed to her hair while his tied hands lay in his lap, gripping hers. Ethan meanwhile sat silently staring out the window, brows creased with worry.
It probably wasn't the best idea taking them to Deaton's with him, but he had little choice. The veterinarian wasn't answering his calls, which increased the nervous sense of foreboding hanging over his head. He couldn't leave them alone with Isaac, even if they were chained up, and with Jackson and Peter at the hospital with Lydia, he was backed into a corner.
It only made Stiles absence more noticeable. The teenager would have known what to do, how to handle this. Derek's chest tightened and he clenched his hands tighter around the steering wheel as they began to tremble again.
Derek's whole body felt cold, a constant vibration beneath the skin. He'd almost succumbed to a panic attack back at the house. He should probably call his therapist but he didn't have time. He needed to find Stiles before he became the next victim of the Emissary.
Darach, Stiles voice corrected. Dark killer druid remember, and don't worry Derek, I'm not gonna be the next sacrifice. I don't fit the pattern.
Derek shook off the voice, swallowing thickly. How did he know Stiles didn't fit the pattern? They hadn't even worked out what the pattern was. Then ask the wonder twins, dude.
Blinking, Derek looked into the rear-view mirror, brows drawn down in an angry frown. "The sacrifices?" he said, voice hard and subtly filled with warning. "Tell me about the sacrifices?" The pair looked at him, then to one another, silently conversing. Now you know how I feel when you and the others have your super-secret wolfie conversation. Not that they were all that secret, I've got super hearing to, but you didn't know that, because I was a boring human. "Well?" Derek snapped angrily, wishing Stiles would shut up. - No, that wasn't true. He wished Stiles was there for him to tell to shut up. It was unsettling not to have him sat in the passenger seat, sarcastically blithering on throughout the drive. It felt like Derek had lost his right arm. Aw, that's so beautiful, you're such a sap Sourwolf. His mind mocked warmly in Stiles voice.
Finally he got his answer, "We don't know exactly." Ethan said, clearly the less aggressive and hostile of the twins, "All we know is that it has something to do with the Nemeton."
Derek twisted his head to stare at the teenager, unconcerned with the road ahead. "I don't believe you!" he seethed.
Ethan swallowed, shifting in the seat, back straightening defensively. "It's the truth." Aiden growled, "She never told us about the magic stuff. Just that we were going to save the world."
Derek looked between them before turning back around and glaring out at the road, the town quickly coming into view. "What's the pattern?" he demanded through clenched teeth.
"What?" Ethan asked, confused.
"The pattern. How is she choosing her victims?"
There was another long silence before the teenagers' sighed. "Oh." Derek looked over his shoulder again, briefly, impatient. He found the twin omegas staring out their windows and growled in the back of his throat, glancing at Isaac, who shrugged apologetically.
"Virgins." One of them muttered quietly.
Derek's chest tightened. Shit dude, maybe we should have slid into home this morning. Stiles voice chuckled in the back of his mind.
"Survivors." Ethan continued, "Warriors, Healers..." he looked over meeting Derek's gaze in the mirror."Werewolves."
"Three werewolves?" Isaac interrupted, voice tightening as the memory of his attempted abduction resurfaced. If it hadn't have been for the woman on the bike, "Me, Erica and Boyd." he growled furiously, twisting in his seat to fix Ethan with an angry glare.
Ethan met his gaze defensively, before his shoulders slumped and he nodded. "Jackson too. – Or Scott, if necessary." He shrugged.
"Four." Aiden added, tiredly. "Four sacrifices." he looked at Ethan then down at Cora with a sigh, his lips playing over her forehead.
Derek stiffened, frowning. He shook of the threat to his own life and focused on the sacrifices. Four sacrifices, but only three bodies? "But there were only three virgins killed."
"Because there'd already been a virgin killed at the school." Ethan informed him matter-of-factly., "Years ago."
The car swerved violently, the scream of tires echoing in the silence. Derek's heart was pounding in his chest, loud. Deafening. It felt as if there were hands around his lungs, squeezing them tight.
I love you.
Derek gasped, fighting to take in air, but all he could inhale was the thick scent of dirt and blood.
I'm gonna die, aren't I?
Sweat coated Derek's back, causing him to shiver violently. His hands clenched against the wheel but he couldn't feel it. Instead there was the phantom touch of wet fingers, weakly embracing his own.
I can't take it anymore. I can't.
The car violently jerked, "Derek? Derek!"
"What's wrong with him?"
"I don't know. Derek!"
Please.
He shoved at the car door but it wouldn't open. The air grew thicker and he could taste the scent of death. The odour of salty tears. The damp earth soaked with blood. The sound of pained weeping echoed in his ears, growing louder and louder by the second.
He pushed at the door again, scrambling with clawed fingers to free himself, but there was no release, no escape from the past. From the blood on his hands.
That's right, Derek, you can't escape it. You're a monster. You've always been a monster.
Kate's voice cut through the sound of crying to mock him, and Derek's gut twisted agonisingly, while bile filled his mouth. You killed that girl. You killed your family.
His claws tore at the fabric on the inside of the door, blindly trying to find the handle, the car rocking as he struggled.
And now Stiles. Kate scoffed, you're cursed Derek.
Please. Paige wept, her brown eyes staring up at him, her face stained with blood and dirt. The moles on her cheeks barely visible anymore. He could feel her weight against his shoulder, her fingers clinging to his arm, her tears seeping into the front of his hoodie as he held her tight, pulling her closer and closer until…. "I'm sorry."
The glass shattered, slicing through Derek's flesh and hot fresh air flooded the car. Derek hunt his head out, gulping in much needed oxygen. Despite the bright sunlight the world around him seemed to go black, the sound dimming until all he could here was one voice.
I love you. Stiles whispered.
_(*-*)_/
The dark slowly receded, leaving bright sunlight burning through the shield of Derek's eyelids. His head felt like a bowling ball stuffed with cotton. There was a high pitched ringing in his ears that made his head hurt. It had been years since he'd had a panic attack to the point of blacking out. Not since he'd started seeing his therapist. He knew he should have called her, and he would, just as soon as he found Stiles, cured Cora and stopped a murdering Emissary.
Stiles. Derek's eyes flew open, unconcerned with the sunlight pouring directly into them. Stiles was missing. He'd been taken. By the Darach.
Shoving himself up into a sitting position, he scanned his surroundings as the fog slowly lifted. He was sat on the side of the road only a few feet from the gas station. In front of the Toyota, the doors wide open, glass scattering the asphalt. Empty.
Immediately Derek scrambled to his feet, shaking off the brief moment of dizziness, and rushed over to the car. Pulling the back door open wider, he looked inside. Nothing. Fear gripped him and he turned in a large circle, looking off into the woodland that flanked the road. Lifting his nose he sniffed at the air. Cora's scent lingered weakly, heading off into the woods. A stronger, closer scent had Derek running around the car. He inhaled with relief at the sight of Isaac, laying on the road, dried blood coating his face from long healed wounds. Guilt clawed at his insides while he hurried over, dropping to his knees beside his beta. He'd left him alone, unprotected, with two unknown omegas who were working for the woman who'd kidnapped his sister. Once again he was proving to be a useless, selfish Alpha. "Isaac?" he muttered, lifting the young man's head and shoulders off the ground, "Isaac!"
Isaac groaned, his eyes fluttering open to stare up at Derek. Their irises stained gold. "I tried to stop them." He said quietly, the strong odour of guilt rolling off him in thick waves, "but they…" he shook his head as if he couldn't believe what had happened, and Derek frowned.
"Are you alright?" he demanded.
"No." Isaac confessed with a groan, wincing as he struggled to sit up. "They took Cora, I'm sorry Derek. I'm sorry."
Derek lifted is free hand to reach for the teenager's neck, pressing his palm into the cold clammy skin at the nape and pulling him into a hug.
"I'm sorry." Isaac whimpered, trembling.
"It's alright." Derek reassured, shaking his head understandingly. "It's not your fault. I know you did everything you could. I'm the one who should apologize."
"But…your sister."
"We'll find her, we'll find them all." Derek replied determinedly. "Let's get you up."
Reluctantly Isaac nodded and struggled to his feet with the help of his Alpha. Derek helped him back to the car and into the front seat before walking back around, closing the doors on his way. Back behind the wheel, he restarted the engine.
"Are we going after them?" Isaac asked, sounding a little….scared.
Derek frowned, slightly nervous at what exactly had put Isaac so on edge. "No. They've probably covered their tracks by now. We're going to Deaton."
Isaac nodded and slouched down low in the seat, seeming to revert to his insecure ways. It twisted in Derek's gut like a knife and he gripped angrily at the wheel while pulling back into the road. He pushed at the edge of the speed limit, desperate to get to Deaton and demand answers, without getting pulled over by a deputy.
"You think they'd take her back to the Darach?" Isaac asked after a few seconds of silence.
Gritting his teeth, Derek nodded, taking the final turn that would take them directly to the clinic. "They want to save her." He grumbled, fingers tightening a once again on the wheel. "And they think the Darach is her only chance."
Isaac sighed, shifting in his seat, his cracked ribs slowly healing. "You… - You don't think she will?" he asked cautiously.
There was a long silence, Derek staring at the road ahead while his heart ached with each quickening beat. Isaac clearly heard it, because he reached out, placing his palm on Derek's shoulder. Derek turned to stare at him, heart twisting when for a brief second he saw Stiles sat beside him, offering him comfort. It felt strange to have someone else touch him after so long of it only being Stiles warm hand on his shoulder. Despite how close he'd become with Isaac over the last few months, there was still a strained distance between them. One that he'd never felt before. He wondered if it was due to Isaac being a bitten wolf, rather than one born of his own blood.
Isaac withdrew his hand almost as soon as he'd placed it there, and Derek felt a twinge of loss. He'd have to try harder to secure the bond between them. – Between all of them.
"I think she needs four werewolves to complete her sacrifice." He finally answered, a shiver rippling through him. He pulled into the empty parking lot outside the clinic and cut the engine. "And I think they need to be connected to either me, or Beacon Hills."
Isaac didn't reply, staring instead out into the parking lot, brows drawn together tightly. He glanced at the clock on the dash. "2pm. This place should be busy as hell." He remarked, looking from the clock to Derek.
That foreboding sensation returned to Derek's gut and he shoved open the door. Isaac quick to follow suit. Together, they cautiously made their way into the clinic. The second Derek opened the door he smelt it, the scent of blood hanging in the air. There was the sound of a heartbeat in the back room, steady and unfamiliar. Derek nodded for Isaac to go around the back, while Derek slowly made his way through the clinic, his flesh tingling as he passed the mountain ash divide.
The examination room looked as if a bomb had hit it. The table over turned, glass from the high windows scattered on the ground, and all the supplies thrown across the room to land in messy piles. The blood he'd smelt was smeared on both the floor and the desk. Being closer to it, made it easier to identify as Deaton's, and he frowned. Why would they take Deaton if he was working with the Darach?
The sound of screaming animals in the conjoining room caught his attention and he stepped over to peer through the window, only for the door to fly open and slam into his face, hard. He stumbled back a few feet, but quickly recovered, in time to fight off an attack as a body sped towards him. Derek lashed out quickly, taking a swipe at the large man before a familiar voice echoed the room.
"Derek!"
The man attacking him drew to a halt and Derek's fist froze in mid-air as he looked over to stare with wide eyes at his ex. "Nick?"
"Hey." The man smiled awkwardly, "I guess this must belong to you." Nick grinned, gently shoving Isaac into the room.
Isaac stumbled forward and turned to glare at the newly arrived werewolf, eyes flashing gold. "Who the hell are you?" he demanded with a growl.
A low rumbling sound from beside Derek, had Isaac flinching back and turned questioning nervous eyes on Derek.
"Isaac." Derek ordered, nodding for the beta to join him, before looking at the man who'd attacked him. He looked somewhat familiar but Derek couldn't quite pinpoint why.
"Derek," Nick said warmly, stepping forward, "This is Jeremy Danvers, my Alpha."
The man, Jeremy, looked Derek up and down, before giving a subtle nod. "I'm sorry about your sister." He said roughly, "She was a good woman, and would have lived up to her mother's legacy."
Derek couldn't help but bristle at that. "You knew Laura?" he asked sharply.
"Of course. I knew your mother too."
Derek held himself firmly in place, even as inwardly he flinched at the man's tone. "What are you doing here? Where's Deaton?"
Jeremy looked over at Nick, before turning back to Derek. "The Emissary?" The older man said between gritted teeth, "I don't know. He was gone when we arrived."
Derek looked disbelievingly around the room, and all the blood.
"I swear Derek, we didn't do this. We came here for the same reason as you. Answers."
"What kind of answers?" Derek looked cautiously between the two men.
"A rogue Emissary is killing people, as I understand it?" Jeremy said, folding his arms over his chest. "But she's also wiped out three of their packs."
"Whose packs?" Isaac frowned, looking confused.
"The Emissaries packs. We have no idea whose side she's actually on, and that's making us nervous." Nick replied, his arms folded as he lounged casually against a counter.
Derek frowned, just as confused as Isaac. He looked between the two men. "I don't understand. The Emissaries are our protectors, our guardians."
Nick scoffed, shaking his head. "That's what they want us to believe. They've been manipulating us all for generations."
"They want to use us." Jeremy added sternly. "We're little more than attack dogs to them. They originate from Europe, then a hundred and fifty years ago, a few of their people rebelled, sailed out here to America and began to build a defence against them. A few of the Native families joined with them, but they soon followed, bring their own packs. Some of the American packs were infiltrated by them, through marriages or breeding, but some… like ours, resisted."
"But Deaton?" Derek frowned.
Jeremy shook his head regretfully. "His father abandoned the Emissaries along with your grandfather, and they came to Beacon Hills looking for sanctuary with your pack. He was raised with your mother and father. She thought he could be trusted, clearly she was wrong." He sighed, "Jealousy can bring out the worst in us."
"Wait, my grandfather was an emissary?" Derek inhaled sharply, shaking his head. When Jeremy nodded, Derek took an unsteady step back, leaning heavily on the counter behind him. "So...Peter was right. Deaton sold us out to the Argents."
"It's more complicated than that. The Argents are… - Hunters are a weapon to the Emissaries. They manipulate them to take out packs that cause them trouble. The Argents are one of the few packs that lived by a code." Derek scoffed. "Historically at least," Jeremy corrected, "I don't know what happened, but they somehow turned the Argents against the Hales. - As for Deaton. I don't know how long he's been back under the control of the Emissaries, all I know is that he lured Laura back here with the promise of information. He said he'd located the Nemeton."
"The what?" Isaac frowned.
"The Nemeton. It's a sacred tree. The Emissaries believe it holds the spirit of their goddess who will be released and bring about the end of the world. The men that left the Emissaries stole it and brought it here. In hopes that she could never be released. The buried it in Beacon Hills."
"Where?" Derek demanded, taking an agitated step forward. "Wherever the Nemeton is, the Darach must be close."
"Darach?" Nick frowned, looking over to Jeremy then back to Derek.
"It's what Cora called her."
"Cora?" Jeremy and Nick said in unison. "Your sister?" Nick gaped, "I thought...?"
"No, this Darach, Emissary, whatever you want to call her, took her. I don't know how or why, but she has Cora, and members of my pack, and my boyfriend." Derek said in a rush of words, his voice straining as he tried to keep from losing control. "We need to find the tree!"
There was a long awkward moment of silence before Jeremy said, "I'm not sure we can find the tree." He sighed, meeting Derek's hard frustrated gaze.
"Why?"
"Because it's invisible. There's no way to locate it, at least in this realm. It's protected by strong magic and apparently, guarded by the dead."
"There has to be a way!" Derek shouted.
Jeremy physically bristled at the angry red-eyes of Derek, but stopped himself from reacting, instead, he looked over to Nick and nodded. "Call Elena."
Nick nodded and pushed himself off the bench, heading for the door.
"Who?" Isaac asked, watching the man leave.
"A member of my pack. Her mother was an Emissary, she fled them when Elena was born." He replied harshly. "She'll know what to do."
They stood awkwardly, waiting for Nick to return.
"If Deaton is one of the bad guys." Isaac whispered, leaning into Derek. "What does he want with Scott?"
"Scott?" Jeremy frowned, looking between them curiously.
"An omega." Derek said tightly, before sighing. "He's under the protection of my pack. Whether he likes it or not."
Jeremy stared at him for a long moment, then turned away without comment. Looking back to Isaac, Derek shook his head. "I don't know, but it's not good."
Isaac shuffled his feet while staring at them, thick wave of anxiety rolling off of him. Reaching out, Derek squeezed at his shoulder, "Go call him. Make sure he's alright. Warn him about the twins."
"And Deaton?" Isaac asked, looking up.
"You can try, but I doubt he'll listen." Derek sighed wearily.
Isaac nodded sadly and headed for the door, his hand already rifling in his pocket for his cell.
"Is he alright?" Jeremy asked once Isaac was out of the clinic.
"He's fine." Derek replied defensively.
They fell back into an uncomfortable silence, Jeremy rifling through Deaton's papers while Derek fussed around one the other side of the room, trying to look as confident in his status as he could.
While he hadn't met Jeremy Danvers personally, he'd heard enough about him from Nick and Clay. Both had an enormous amount of respect for the man, especially Clay. Jeremy had taken him in as a feral child after being abandoned by his pack. No-one knew why, or at least Clay had never told Derek. His friend wasn't the only abandoned werewolf the Alpha had taken in. Clay had mentioned two others, neither of which Derek had met. He supposed one of them must be this Elena woman.
Jeremy may be welcoming, taking in strays that need him, but the Alpha was also strict. He had rules and lord help anyone who crossed him. He was just as willing to throw someone out of his pack as welcome them in, and it made him a formidable Alpha.
"My mom never mentioned you." Derek found himself saying. He turned to see Jeremy staring at him.
The other Alpha nodded, "Is there any reason why she should?" He frowned. "You were never in line to be Alpha so there was no reason for you to know about me."
"But you knew Laura?"
Jeremy looked at him in a way that made Derek feel like he was five years old again, asking his mother all those ridiculous things about the world. Why is the sky blue? How do birds fly? Why isn't Conner a werewolf too? "She's the...was the Alpha."
Derek dropped his gaze, trying not to chew on the inside of his lip. He didn't think he'd felt so intimidated before in his life, and it was making him want to run away home and hide beneath his bed.
What happened to, I'm the Alpha. Come on, dude, don't let this guy get to you. Stiles scolded in his head, but all it managed to do was make Derek wish even harder that he was there. Defusing the tension with his sarcasm.
"Derek!" Panted Isaac, rushing back into the room.
The Alpha's spider senses pricked at the panic rolling off his beta, "What?"
Isaac gulped in breath and shook his head, "There was no answer so I tried the hospital. Melissa didn't turn up for her shift this morning."
"Shit." Derek growled, fishing into his pocket for his cell, just as Nick strolled back into the room. Lifting the phone to his ear, he only had to wait a few seconds before Peter answered.
"Yes?"
"I need you and Jackson to go to Scott's house and check on him."
"What? Why?"
"Because I said so. - If they're there, bring them to Deaton's clinic, whether Scott wants to come or not."
"What about Lydia?"
Derek gritted his teeth, pressing his fingertips into his eyes. "Is she alright?"
"She's unconscious." Peter informed him, voice strained. "Her parents and Jackson are in with her." The bitterness was clear in his tone.
"I'm sorry." Derek sighed, sympathetically.
"Can't you just get the Sheriff to check on Scott and Melissa? When she wakes up, she might be able to tell us who took Stiles."
"No." Derek growled, "If there's trouble, I don't want the Sheriff or any of his deputies getting caught in the crossfire. Stiles would never…." He cleared his throat.
"Fine." Peter sighed down the line. "I'll grab Jackson and head over there."
The older man grunted before hanging up without another word. Derek closed his eyes, as he lowered the phone and slipped it back into his pocket.
"What did Elena say?" Jeremy asked from behind him and Derek turned, pushing the added worries to the back of his mind.
"Nothing good." Nick responded. "There might be a way to visit." He said with quotation marks, "the tree, but it would be dangerous."
"What is it?" Derek demanded, his arms folded over his chest.
"Apparently, someone would have to take a walk into the veil. The realm between our world and the next. That's where the tree is hidden apparently."
"What's the catch?" Isaac asked nervously.
Nick met his gaze, the corner of his lips turned up in that way that had first attracted Derek to him. "Well firstly, whoever goes might not make it back, and if they do, they could bring something back with them. – Secondly, whoever goes needs a guide, someone connected to the veil."
"Such as?" Derek pressed, frowning.
"Ideally, a Banshee."
Derek looked over at Isaac when he gasped out a surprised noise. "Well, we have a problem, our Banshee is currently in hospital unconscious." He turned back to Jeremy and Nick. "Is there another way?"
Nick shrugged, pulling out his phone and shooting off a text. It felt like forever before a reply came. "Well, that's helpful." He mocked, shaking his head.
"What?"
"She said no, unless we happen to have a zombie laying around."
"A zombie?" Derek huffed, looking between an amused Nick and a frustrated Jeremy.
"Living dead. Someone who's already been to the veil." Jeremy clarified.
Derek and Isaac shared a look, before Derek turned back to Nick. "What do we need?"
_(*-*)_/
Peter and Derek arrived just as Isaac and Nick were filling the tin bathtubs with ice and herbs, Derek was stood stripped down to just his jeans. Looking up as the pair entered, Derek stiffened, eyes widening with surprise at the man behind them.
"Sheriff?"
The older man looked around the room, eyes fixing on Jeremy and Nick. "Derek." He greeted, his hand on his belt. "Who are your friends?"
Inhaling slowly, Derek stepped over to Stiles father. "Why are you here?"
The Sheriff tore his eyes away from the strangers to lock them with Derek instead. "My son is missing, Scott and Melissa are missing. Where else would I be right now?"
"He was sniffing around the McCall house when we arrived." Peter smirked, leaning on the doorframe, his eyes fixed on the strangers.
"Did you find anything?" Derek asked, looking between them all?"
"Nothing out of place." Jackson shrugged, glancing over to the tubs and Isaac. "Scott's bed looked like it hadn't been slept in, but he could have just made it this morning."
"Scott never makes his bed." Isaac informed them, dropping the empty bag and reaching for more ice.
"Your friends?" The Sheriff pressed, his gaze flickering back to the visitors.
Derek exhaled a long breath and gave a sharp nod. "Sheriff, this is Jeremy Danvers and Nick Sorrentino, they're friends from New York."
"And why are they here? Now?" John asked suspiciously, looking between the pair.
"Your Sheriff knows?" Jeremy said, more of a statement than a question. And going by his tone, he wasn't impressed.
"Yes." Derek answered harshly, tired of feeling inferior to this newly arrived Alpha. "He's my boyfriend's father, and a trusted ally."
"Your boyfriend is human then?" Jeremy asked, his tone eerily distant.
"Is that a problem?" The Sheriff snapped, looking the man dead in the eye.
Jeremy shook his head after a tense stand-off. "No."
"Good, because if you have an issue working with non-werewolves, you might want to leave." The Sheriff stated firmly, his body tense and ready for a fight.
"We came to help, Sheriff." Jeremy said, stepping forward with his hand outstretched, a tight smile stretching across his face. "We're just naturally cautious."
John looked at that hand for a long few seconds, scrutinising it, before finally taking it in a firm grip.
"What's going on here?" Peter asked from the doorway, Jackson moving stealthily over to where Isaac was continuing to fill the bath.
"We might have a way to find the Emissary. Take your shoes and socks off." Derek ordered.
"Excuse me?" Peter sputtered, eyes wide.
"You heard me. I need a guide. Someone who has already been to the veil. That's you."
Peter looked between all the men gathered, "I don't think so."
Taking a step forward, Derek fixed his uncle with a hard stare, his irises flashing red. "It wasn't a request, Peter. – It's you or Lydia."
Peter stiffened, his back instantly going ramrod straight. Breathing heavily, he narrowed his eyes at the Alpha while toeing off his shoes. Derek gave him a nod before turning back to Jeremy and Nick.
Pulling out his cell once more, Nick called home. "We're ready."
"Okay. Usually, you'd need something to link you to the person you're looking for." Said a voice on the other end of the line, "A trinket that meant something to the person, but as you're looking for pack members, the bond between Alpha and betas should be strong enough. – Now, you need to get into the tub, then a pack member holds you down until you're essentially…well, dead."
"Great." Peter muttered, walking reluctantly over to the metal tub and carefully stepping into the ice cold water.
"The person holding you down will act as an anchor to this world, and will be able to pull you back if necessary. So ideally it needs to be a pack member you have the strongest bond with."
Derek looked over to Isaac, nodding him over and after a moment, the teenager moved over to the tub, taking position at the top.
"What if I don't have that?" Peter asked, shooting Jackson an irritated look.
There was a long moment of silence, before Elena spoke again. "Is there someone who can anchor you?"
"She's…unavailable." He muttered in reply.
Another moment of silence.
"Do you have something that belongs to her?"
Peter gritted his teeth angrily, frustration burning at his throat. If Derek had warned him about this, he could have gone back to his house and found something, but… "No."
"Here."
Looking up, Peter watched as Jackson pulled his wallet out of his pocket, opening it and retrieving a small piece of paper, holding it out to Peter. It was a black and white photo, obviously taken at a photo-booth. On the back was a lock of Lydia's hair. Peter's heart clenched painfully, a wave of jealousy rolling through him. Looking up at Jackson, Peter gave him a grateful nod.
"Okay." Derek sighed, settling back into the ice water while Jackson positioned himself behind Peter's tub. "We're ready."
"Okay. Focus on your pack members, the veil will show you what you need to know. Whatever you do, stay on the path. Don't wander off into the darkness or you might never make it back."
Derek glanced over at Peter. "I'm sorry." He whispered, "There's no other option."
Peter glowered at him for a second before exhaling, his fingertips playing absently with the small photograph, then he nodded. "Let's do this." He said, taking a deep breath and slipping down beneath the ice water.
Derek looked over to the Sheriff. "I'll find him." He said, then followed Peter into the unknown.
A/N: I know I said I wasn't going to use Bitten, but it kind of just happened. Though it's Bitten (Freeform), as the shows mythology doesn't quite mesh with the Teen Wolf mythos. Plus, you know, who doesn't love an awkward meeting with an ex in a time of trouble. Lol. I'm a sucker for drama. Anyway, there's only two more chapters left of this fic, so be prepared.
