Whoops I did not update yesterday... but here we are!

This is the second part of The Rabid Alpha, and a wild Deaton appears.

Enjoy!

As it turns out, Deaton knew a lot more about what had happened than they did. The witch, as Scott had so aptly called her, had been drawn to Beacon Hills because of the amount of supernatural activity in the area. The first thing she had done upon arriving was set up some traps meant to put humans (or werewolves, in this case) under her control. Derek had been unfortunate enough to get caught in one, and was now a wild, angry beast searching for its master. Scott and the rest of the pack quickly located and destroyed any other traps they found, but they needed to rescue their alpha.

"There are many things that can break such an enchantment," Deaton was saying. "Of course, without knowing exactly what she did, we can't know for sure which will break it."

He walked over to a cupboard, pulling out various jars and bottles.

"So," he began, motioning to the first few jars, "there are many herbs that have been known to help in such cases, usually by putting the patient in a trance-like state so that they can find themselves in their own minds, and wake up as themselves."

"That sounds like it could work," Scott said.

"Hm." Deaton frowned. "Of course, if she used a different kind of enchantment, Derek may never escape from the trance."

"So… he'll die," Stiles added helpfully.

The druid nodded. "Painfully and slowly."

Scott groaned. "So then that wouldn't work."

"Probably not, no."

"What about these other jars?"

Deaton tapped one containing a dried plant with purple flowers. "Wolfsbane can counteract a spell, if done quickly and properly."

"Wouldn't wolfsbane kill him?" Stiles asked.

"It could, if we used a lot."

"And how much would we need?"

"A lot."

"Then that wouldn't work either," Scott ground out, leaning against the table.

Deaton moved to the other side of the table. "Mountain ash, if placed directly inside his body, would work to expunge the magic."

"That could also kill him," Stiles said again.

"So, all of these would kill him," Scott summed up. "Why are you showing us these if none of them would work?"

"Well, they would all work, Scott. He'd just be dead," Stiles explained bluntly.

"Death would kill the enchantment, usually," Deaton added.

Scott sighed heavily. "Is there anything else we could do?"

"Yes, actually. I'm more experienced with herbs and plants, so I don't know how you would go about this, but destroying the enchantment at its source would work."

"Kill the witch," Stiles translated.

"And Derek wouldn't die?" Deaton shook his head. "So that's great," Scott said.

"Scott, you don't know a lot about magic. We don't know what she's capable of—"

"It doesn't matter. Derek is the alpha." He looked at Stiles. "The pack needs him."

Stiles couldn't disagree.

Deaton sighed when it was clear the boys wanted to go through with this. "You'll need to be very careful," he emphasized. "Stiles is right, Scott. You're quite inexperienced with magic. Killing her will not be easy."

Scott nodded. "I'll call the pack," he said. "Stiles, you stay here."

Deaton spoke up as the boy in question spluttered. "I don't think that's the best idea, Scott. The simplest way to get rid of a witch is to trap her with mountain ash, and Stiles is the only one able to wield it."

Stiles blinked in surprise, but he caught on quickly. Witches and warlocks were not actually susceptible to barriers of mountain ash, but he would need an excuse to go along with Scott—he was the only one who really stood a chance against her, after all.

"Yes," Stiles added, hopefully watching his friend. "You need me."

Scott seemed to be locked in a battle with himself. "You saw what she did to Derek, Stiles. He'll be fighting for her—and he could easily hurt you. He almost did! Not to mention the witch herself—it's too dangerous."

Stiles sighed and put a hand on the werewolf's shoulder. "Scott," he said simply, staring into his eyes.

Scott growled, but the fire in his eyes died down in submission. "Just… stay behind everyone else!"

Stiles grinned. "Let's hunt down this witch!"

"I hate you."

"You love me."

"No, I don't."

Stiles was still beaming when they left the clinic and set off to find the others.

Thank you for reading!