Love

I will save you from yourself
Time will change everything about this hell
Are you lost?
Can't find yourself?
You're north of Heaven
Maybe somewhere west of Hell

- Birth By 30 Seconds to Mars

So this must be new to you, being in school, is it how you imagined?

Ethan's question still drifted in her mind. Ariel had to admit, it certainly wasn't. She had attracted more attention than she wanted. She was well aware of the eyes that had stared at her wordlessly when she entered the school halls. Luckily the twins were there to distract her from their nerve racking stares, especially the one of a particular male that had glared her way.

She was currently tuning in her locker combination. She was tired of lagging her bag around she was never a fan of carrying any weight in her arms. Especially when they could be free to fight off enemy. The corridors were empty except for the occasional passing of a random student. They all had that same predictable unawareness that bored her.

She reminded herself to reset the number on the locker. Secrecy will come in hand later on especially with nosey Aiden constantly peering over her shoulder. She hoped that the mission Deucalion gave him would keep him away from her. Ariel wasn't in the best of temper these days.

She heard hasty footsteps coming her way from the left. She smiled recognizing the weight of the steps. She would remember them from anywhere. They stopped beside her, the owner's face hidden behind her wide open locker door.

"Hello." She greeted leisurely picking out a book from the recess of the locker before shutting the steel flap— to come face to face with none other than Stiles Stilinski.

"We need to talk." He said so sternly she could hear the anger he restrained in his voice, she smiled.

"About what?" His eye twitched at the feigned perplexity in her words.

"About what? Oh I don't know how—about the fact that you have been hiding the little tiny detail about you being a freaking alpha werewolf!" He exclaimed flailing his arms about. She stood like a rock in a thrashing river, still and calm.

"I didn't hide anything and I didn't lie I simply—"

"Don't say with held, if you say 'with held' I am going to bang my head against this locker." He vowed placing his large hand against the cool steel for balance. The rage he was experiencing was making his entire body shudder, or maybe that was just his usual jittery nature.

Ariel turned to him, leaning her side to the locker and crossing her arms over her chest while regarding him with her piercing azure eyes.

"How many of those pills have you taken today?" She mused amusement pinching a smirk on to her lips.

"None because I figured I should be little sober for this or maybe I should pop some pills right now." He huffed running his nimble fingers through his hair out of frustration, she grinned.

"So dramatic, I don't know why you are asking for so many answers. What's done is done and I thought I made that pretty clear last week." Stiles was stunned by her words

"So to make things official, here." She abruptly slammed a book against his chest. The weight hitting him hard and painfully. His hand immediately flew to the book when she let go, to stop the material from falling. She held his stare and it was a guarded detached look he had never seen in her eyes, it frightened him.

"Consider the strings, cut." She hissed. Directing him one last wicked smile she turned and walked away leaving him staring after her in mystified and dejected.

Her words had cut him deep and what seeped out was a hate and anger. If she was perfectly fine with denying their friendship then he should have no qualms in ignoring his feelings. They were clearly all built on a lie right?

So when Stiles was invited for Heather's birthday party he practically jumped at the opportunity. He was going to drag his best friend with him, and when Heather kissed him that night in the wine cellar, so ready to lose her virginity to him Stiles accepted. Sure he was hesitant at first but he was comfortable around her and she was attractive and he knew he wouldn't get another chance and it would help him forget—about her. So he raced upstairs to fetch a condom from her brother's room and returned to find her missing.

Part of him was somewhat glad. A wine cellar was hardly an adequate place to lose one's virginity, despite how recluse and dark it was. Stiles was convinced he had no luck with women and Scott was struggling with some emotions for Allison too, neither of them were in any mood to party and left early.

After dropping off Scott at his place, Stiles journeyed home. On the way back his mind began to wander and his eyes lingered on the book that lay on the surface above the cubby. The passing street lights whizzed over the cover and he realized he didn't recognize the book. He didn't even take a chance to look at the book after she had practically shoved it at him. He was too pissed off and had just thrown it in to the space in his jeep out of rage.

Keeping one steady eye on the road he reached over and picked up the book before bringing it to his line of vision.

The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom.

The curiousness in his eyes vanished and his expression twisted into one of pure irritation.

This isn't even my book, its one thing to lie and use me but at least have the courtesy to return my belongings back to me. Frustrated, he tossed the book on to the seat beside him. He glared at the asphalt his fingers twisting tightly around the steering wheel, his knuckles turning white.

Mid throw a loose sheet slipped out from between the folds of the book and landed on the leather. This caught his eye, he gave a vague glance in the direction of the sheet, and despite himself he felt guilty for having thrown the book down so harshly. It was tattered and creased, signs that she had used the book frequently; maybe it was an honest mistake on her part.

His anger simmered down and he heaved a heavy sigh and pushed up the signal lights. He parked the jeep on the side of the road twisted his profile slightly and picked up the fallen book and the sheet of paper. He was about to slide the paper back into the book when the text caught his eye. There were faint lines drawn under certain letters in one particular speech. Eyebrows furrowed he clicked on the ceiling light in the car and peered down at the paper.

" Do you know what hurts so very much? It's love. Love is the strongest force in the world, and when it is blocked that means pain. There are two things we can do when this happens. We can kill that love so that it stops hurting. But then of course part of us dies, too. Or we can ask God to open up another route for that love to travel." 11

The number was scribbled next to the text. It was strange and random he couldn't help but feel like there was some meaning behind it. Memorizing each underlined word he began to spell it out in his head and weirdly but surely the letters were forming into a sentence. He blinked in wonder when the words finally dawned on to him, it was code.

Yourplaceat 11

The date was scribbled on the far top corner of the page, signaling to him that it was meant to be read today.

His attention snapped to the clock of his jeep which read fifteen minutes to eleven. Was she waiting for him? That's what it implied right?

He hastily swerved the vehicle back onto the stretch of road and accelerated hard, racing to get to his house.

His house was in complete darkness which meant his father wasn't home yet. His feet pounded up the steps but in all his haste he hesitated at his bedroom door. Gulping down his nervousness he placed a trembling hand on the door handle—the quaking could be blamed on his sudden exertions. Taking a deep breath he opened the door and a figure moved in the dark but he wasn't afraid.

He clicked the light on and the bulb fluttered for a moment before illuminating the room.

Ariel stood by the window, her blue eyes immediately squinting against the sudden brightness before slowly landing on him.

"Are you mad?" There was no small talk, no bullshit mumbling. It was straight to the point and he couldn't have asked for anything more.

"I don't know how I feel, I know absolutely nothing about you yet you somehow know everything about me." He began trying not to let his voice express how frustrated he was really feeling. He stepped into the room and shut the door behind him before leaning back against it, taking a deep breath he looked to her "Were you ever planning on telling me?"

Ariel stared silently and there was such a thick can-cut-through-like-butter tension within the room. He waited although seemingly patient on the outside Stiles was dying for answers and the moment she averted her gaze defeated. He knew he was about to receive them.

"I was eight years old when my parents died though their death has no relevance to the reasons behind why I became part of the alpha pack. It was that was how I met Bridget. She was part of the pack and just as alone as I was and she took care of me. She was tough at first and there was no slugging when it came to being her pupil but eventually I became more than that to her, even though it was unspoken I am sure she saw me as the daughter she never had."

There was sadness in her eyes that he had never seen before. It was like a warning before a storm and he knew that the story was going to be anything but pleasant. She leaned back against the window. Her gaze never leaving the floor and he saw the way she twiddling her fingers. Clearly uncomfortable with the tale she was about to recite.

"But then when I was fourteen Bridget left without as so much as a letter with reasons or anything. I was confused and hurt because I felt like I wasn't good enough for her, none of us in the pack was good enough for her and that confusion eventually turned to anger—but then on the year that I was sixteen years old the alpha slaughtered his entire pack."

Stiles stared wide and unblinking.

Ariel knew in her lifetime she would never be able to forget the horrifying way her pack was killed that night. The blood gushing from their corpses, detached limbs on the ground. The pure terror in their dead eyes that seemed to be staring at her. She was hyperventilating heavily on the ground. The scars across her abdomen were deep but she was numb to the pain, her mind was blank from the horror before her eyes.

The screams were still echoing between her ears. Her gaze was fixated on Billy, the youngest in the pack who was still writhing on the floor from the shock of the attacks. She struggled on to her knees and strained to look up at her alpha—David. He was a tall burly man with fair hair and icy blue eyes but that wicked grin full of malice threw her off.

He was actually enjoying it.

"Why are you doing this?" She stuttered out tears leaking from the corners of her eyes, he glared down at her.

"Be or be killed remember. Have you learned nothing that I have taught you? This is very disappointing, Ariel." He scolded taking heavy steps towards her. His new found power radiating from his muscular build. She stared wide-eyed and astonished, the man was insane.

"Disappointing? That's all you have to say? Y-you just killed everyone in our pack and we have done nothing wrong."

"True but I consider myself an opportunist and opportunity has arisen and I must take it. Despite the consequences, kind of like Bridget." She tensed at the name that left his lips. He hadn't spoken about her since the night she left.

"Maybe I will go after her once I am done with you." He mused rubbing his chin in thought with his crimson stained claws. Ariel's lips parted to speak but it was like a rock was lodged in her throat. She heard movements behind the trees and more red eyes stared back.

"Who are they?" She demanded hoarsely struggling to get to her defeat, her senses detected more danger. Dave glanced in the direction of the faces that emerged from behind the trees and smiled flashing his canines.

"My new pack, well they will be soon. Notice how they are all alphas? That's real power Ariel. The elite and I will get to be one of them." She narrowed her electric blue eyes at him. She mustered the strength to get to her feet with one hand wrapped around her scarred abdomen.

"You were always power hungry and so full of shit." She spat and he growled claws out and ready to strike. Her plan was working. He was distracted which gave her enough time to extend her own claws without his notice.

"Watch it Ariel is that really what you want your last words to be." He warned dangerously.

"No, because I am not going to die." Were her last words before she pushed of her feet, claws out and attacked.

Ariel was numb to the pain he inflicted on her and her mind was set on the hate she felt. The innocent people he slaughtered so mercilessly and surviving.

Stiles was struggling to process her words, the mental image she painted in his mind was too gruesome to ignore.

"David was cunning but he always relied more on his own strength than speed and strategy. It didn't matter how powerful he was because when I slashed my claws repeatedly at his neck and he made no move to fight back, I knew I had won."

Ariel straddled his lifeless corpse. The power raging through her being was exhilarating and made her heart pound within her chest. The exhaustion she felt didn't matter because she had won and the power given to her was making her scars heal rapidly but the despair didn't elevate and the tears fell hard and fast.

The sudden repeated clap of hands she heard snapped her out of her melancholia. Her attention directed to the sound that seemed to rattle in her ears, even her senses were stronger.

A man emerged from the woods. He was pale and dressed casually with black shades covering most of his face and a very pleased smile curved at his mouth. It was pitch dark and she had found it strange that he would wear sunglasses in the middle of the night, but then she spotted the long silver cane in his grip that he tapped around feeling for the floor. He stepped over the fallen bodies with ease and approached her leisurely.

"Well that's a relief and here I was afraid my little risk would have no reward." He stated fondly. She growled and was quickly on her feet, ready to fight.

"Who the hell are you?" She demanded and snarled in his direction. He paused and his smile only widened.

"My Ariel, you never used to address me in such an unwelcoming manner. Maybe it's these glasses, they do a very poor job in revealing more of my recognizable features." His accent was smooth and alluring. With slender fingers he grabbed the stem of his glassed and pulled them off revealing a pair of terrifying murky red eyes. She narrowed her eyes on the face trying hard to decipher where she had seen that face before but then an image popped into her mind. Doting blue eyes and a caring smile.

She knew he was part of her past but his name was lodged in some dark dusty corner of her mind. The previous figures hidden behind the trees stepped out to form a circle around her. There was a woman tall and fierce beside a man heavy built and broad shouldered.

There were two other males, twins and they were staring down at her passively and one of them had sadness in his eyes like he knew exactly how she was feeling. The other one was glaring down at the man she had killed, surprised by the damage she inflicted from the sight of his barely recognizable scarred face.

"You are the alpha leader?" she asked looking back at the blind wolf. She could tell from the way he held his ground, confident and like a leader.

"Indeed and I am so proud to welcome you to it." There was stillness in the air and when he outstretched his palm for her she took it. Despite the warning in her mind, he pulled her close and smiled down at her.

"Your father considered me to be family once, maybe you can see me in that way again...like you used to."

"Later on I found out he remembered him as being my father's best friend but that was a long time ago and I've been with the pack ever since."

Deucalion was her uncle? Not technically but by acquaintance, Stiles was reeling in shock.

That kind of information is something you find out about a girl through her Facebook profile of something, but then again the circumstances were anything but ordinary. He wanted to ask her why she didn't just tell him before but then again he could never bring himself to tell her about his mother. He didn't expect her to tell him how her entire pack was murdered before her eyes. He was still trying to sink in the story. It was everything he never ever wanted to experience in life, just picturing the blood made him nauseous.

Ariel was watching each and every expression his face formed and he wasn't even attempting to hide the fright on his face, but she really wished he would say something. Her heart was racing from having lived through the same emotions again. Picturing all of the deaths once more in her mind but he had to know, he had to understand. She wasn't sure if he believed him and she didn't blame him. After all she's given him enough reasons not to trust her but he was still willing to listen.

The silence was stretching thin and Stiles parted his lips to speak out in kind when she closed the safe distance between them but walking up him. She was close to the point where he thought she would kiss him again—not that he minded.

He was astonished by the movement at first, excited and confused and itched to ask but then she lifted up her shirt enough for him to see her taut belly. He blushed heavily.

Stiles noticed the mark on hip bone. It was tattoo of some kind. It was a black flat square with four spirals within the borders of the shape, the spirals were branching out to all corners, but the tattoo was misshapen from the painful jagged scar that ran across it, cutting through the mark.

"I did that once I joined the Deucalion's pack. Mainly because I couldn't bear to stare at it any longer without wanting to punch the living daylights out of someone—also everything I had known was built on a lie. They had this code called weakness is betrayal. Ironic isn't it?"

His flustered state began to dim and he cursed himself to thinking it was her way of coming on to him when she clearly wanted to show him the mark. Thankfully, Ariel hadn't noticed being so absorbed in her own conflicted thoughts. Her grip on the material left and hem fell back to rest on her waist. She peered into his eyes and he stared unable to speak.

There was no deceit in her eyes. Stiles had to admit this was the most emotion he had ever seen her express. There was so much pain and sadness in her eyes that Stiles's own instinct to fill that void was scaring him. He knew speaking felt unattainable but his hands found their way to grasp hers.

She was startled by the contact at first but then very slowly relaxed into the grip. He kept his gaze focused on their locked hands. Her hands were so soft and warm, it was hard to believe such elegant hands could cause so much damage. Stiles knew he had to be afraid. She was an Alpha and had to power to be ruthless but he wasn't.

"So you trust him..?" He asked softly and quietly, she shook her head.

"I don't trust anyone, but he is the reason I found all the answers I was searching for and now I am closer to finding Bridget—through you."

"How can you find her through me? I don't know anyone named Bridget." He retorted hastily. She watched him silently as if debating whether or not to tell him. She turned away and began pacing. Stiles went to sit at the edge of his bed, thinking he should have done that before when she first began the story because his muscles ached from running up the stairs.

"After everything that happened I began to wonder what else that excuse for an alpha lied to me about and why he targeted Bridget so fiercely. I figured the year she left must have been important for some reasons so I began to do a little investigation.

"I checked into her hospital records and discovered that she had given birth long before she met me, to a baby girl. The child's name wasn't listed but the father's Brett Sheldon was and far as records go he was missing but I recognized his face." Stiles watched as she pulled out a neatly folded sheet of paper from within the recess of her pocket and handed it to him. He took it and unfurled the slip of paper. It was a column from a news paper article that he instantly identified, considering he had stared at that same article nearly five months ago.

"No way..." He breathed in disbelief his eyes skimming over the letters furiously before looking to Ariel, desperate for affirmation.

"Jonathan Day was an alias created to escape David's wrath and to protect the child. I didn't believe it myself until I saw her a few days ago in the hospital, she looks exactly like her, except for her eyes being amber and not green."

"And are you sure about this?" He whispered unable to comprehend it himself, she nodded slowly.

"Positive, Megra Day is Bridget's daughter." She stated firmly. He shakily got to his feet and began to pace the length of the foot of his bed.

"This is like way too much information and she wasn't even born a werewolf! Does that happen?"

"It's not uncommon. There were humans in my pack who chose to be bitten." She said factually. Stiles stopped clutching the paper in one hand while running his fingers through his hair.

"Oh my God...how is she going to react to this?" his face suddenly stricken, a realization dawning on to him "So that's what you used me for, to get to her. Were you feeding Deucalion intel this entire time we—"

"No it wasn't like that, yes he set us little missions to watch over certain people but I was trying to protect you, Stiles. I am still trying to why do you think I ignored you at school." Her answer was reasonable but he still felt that sinking feeling of being out in the cold.

"You know you could have given a guy a warning." He said suggestively, she smiled.

"I did, you just had trouble reading it, but you got my message so it is not a total loss." She said, but seeing the dejected look in his eyes made her guilty."I had to build a platform, I couldn't just approach you as the real me I didn't want you to run screaming especially with your condition—"

"I don't have a—oh forget it I get it I guess." He sighed out of frustration "It's hard to trust you now. You are technically part of their pack."

"I understand and if you don't want to see me again I get that too, I just wanted you to know because I owed it to you."

"You owed it to me?" He echoed she stared in resolve.

She softly uttered a "Yes."

"That's it? That's why you decided to tell me because you owed it to me." He exclaimed his arms gesturing widely at her, she remained calm and still.

"Yes…are you doing that thing where you are trying to mask the real problem with a weird question? Because I would prefer if you would just get to the point, Stiles." She got him there. His arms fell back to his sides and he exhaled heavily, though his tortured gaze never left her.

"Why did you kiss me?" She was expecting the question, but it still threw her.

"I wanted to make a dramatic exit so it felt like an opportunity at the time."

"You…wanted…to make a dramatic exit." He repeated dubiously.

It wasn't the answer he wanted to hear, she could see it in his eyes. It was obvious in the way the light in them left and his lips itched to frown but remained a wavering thin line. Ariel was surprised by the pang of remorse she felt and the lodge in her throat. She knew what she really wanted to say.

It's because your lips are so damn tempting, it's all I think about before I sleep and those honey brown eyes and I was afraid I would never get a chance to kiss them like I had been dying to so I took my chance

But she couldn't, saying those words would be risking his life. If they knew how she felt, how she truly felt, everything would change. Right now Stiles isn't much of a threat to Deucalion and she wanted it to be that way. Weakness are meant to be masked and Kali was just waiting to pounce on Ariel's vulnerability like a dog in heat.

"Well I hope my mouth was an adequate prop for your dramatic exit." He grumbled dolefully turning away from her.

"You didn't complain at the time, in fact you kissed back." Her snarky comment made him pivot back to face her, outrage in his eyes and a heavy blush colouring his face.

"Th-that's an exaggeration and I was trying to pull away you practically violated me." Her dark brows disappeared behind her bangs and she grinned clearly amused by her words. Stiles gulped when she stepped to him, challenging.

"Violated? A little out there don't you think—if you want we can try again, I'll let you violate me?" Her words were suggestively hypnotic. He didn't know how she could caress and make the hairs on his arms stand on end without even touching him. It was bewitching and terrifyingly arousing. Her eyes were danced awaiting his response.

"It's not really violating if you allow me to do it."He informed though his stare lingered on her tempting lips. He tried to keep his heart from beating so rapidly, and now knowing she could hear it didn't make the task any less difficult. She seemed to be equally absorbed by him and for a moment he thought she would kiss him again and he died to experience it once more, but then her phone vibrated and the sound crashed their moment.

Stiles expression twisted into annoyance the moment she looked away to dig out her phone, but when she looked back he immediately morphed his expression to a look of inquiry.

"I have to go, pack meeting." Ariel said he wanted to hold her hand again, demanding she stayed. She spun around and made her way to the window, he followed.

"So what, you are going to tell me everything that happens." His words made her hesitate, mid exit and looked to him.

"I don't owe you that much, but I am willing to negotiate." She responded smirking at him, he gave her a flat look.

"Something tells me this was your plan all along."

"Always have a purpose for your actions." She said morally "I want to meet Megra and I need your help to validate my story. Not anytime soon but when the time is right, when you come around to believing me."

"Why, what are you planning?" He asked insistently, she only smiled in that mysterious way.

"You will see so do we have a deal?" He reluctantly nodded and she was pleased, she sat on the frame of the window. Straddling the ledge trying to remember what else she had to say.

"Try not to approach me in school anymore, you are making them suspicious."

"Not the first time a girl has told me that." He mumbled hoping she didn't hear, but she did.

"I didn't want to have to be on that list, I enjoy your company Stiles." Her dazzling beautiful smile sent his racing especially when it was paired with such a fond, loving look in her eyes.

"Good night." She breathed before jumping out the window and dashing into the night, Stiles stared after in eyes shining in longing.