Chapter 3: Derek Takes a Stroll to his House... Too Bad It's Gone AKA 117 Part 1

Rose POV
We all watched as Deaton looked over Derek, waiting for the emissary's verdict.
"Wow." he stated.
"Wow?" Stiles echoed, "Wow as in, 'I've seen this before and I know exactly what to do' kind of wow? 'Cause that's the kind of wow we're hoping for."
"I think you might be overestimating my abilities." Deaton informed him.
"He's cold." Lydia said as she grabbed Derek's hand, "Really cold."
"Do you think this is permanent?" I wondered worriedly, glancing down at Derek's de-aged form.
"I'm not sure a medical diagnosis is even adequate." Deaton told us honestly, "This is well beyond my experience."
"So what do we do with him?" Stiles asked the question that had been on my mind.
"Until he wakes up? Probably not much." Deaton admitted, "It might be best to leave him with me. He'll be safe here."
"You mean from Kate?" Scott spoke up.
"If she's alive and she is what you say she is, she won't be able to walk past that gate." Deaton replied.
"Why would she want to do this to him?" Lydia asked.
"Knowing Kate, it's probably for a reason that won't be good for anyone but her. You guys should probably go home." Deaton suggested, "He doesn't look to be in any danger, so maybe the rest of you should get some sleep. It is a school night... and you all need to start taking care of your own lives again."
"Someone should stay with you." I decided, "Just in case."
"I'll stay." Lydia volunteered, "My grade are fine... despite missing a few classes."
"Same here." I added, "I'll stay too."
"I'm so not okay with this." Stiles' brows furrowed slightly as he glanced between Lydia and myself.
"Guys, go." Lydia urged, "We've got this."
"Are you sure?" my brother hesitated.
"We'll be fine." I gave them a smile, "Trust me, we can take care of ourselves."
"Okay." Scott sighed, giving in, "Text us if anything happens."
"Nope, still not okay with it." Stiles shook his head slightly, "Not going anywhere. Just 'cause you're stronger..."
Lydia and I both gave Scott a look, and my brother proceeded to tug Stiles out of the room.
"Hey!" the boy protested, but followed Scott out of the clinic nonetheless.
"Alright," I turned to Deaton with a determined look, "How can we help?"

"How's he doing?" I questioned as Deaton worked on Derek, doing tests and checking his pulse every few minutes.
"His heart rate is alarmingly high." the druid stated.
Lydia grabbed his hand, her eyes widening slightly upon contact with the former Alpha's skin.
"He's a lot warmer now." she informed us, brows creasing.
"Lydia, I'm going to try something." Deaton looked incredibly focused, his expression undecipherable, "I want you to keep holding his hand if that's okay."
The doctor then proceeded to grab a scalpel and run the edge along Derek's arm. The cut left behind sealed up almost as soon as it was made, causing my eyes to widen.
"That looks like it healed fast." Lydia looked confused.
"Incredibly fast." I murmured.
"Unusually fast." Deaton added.
"What does it mean?" Lydia inquired.
"I'm not sure...Let's try something else." he looked up at Lydia and I, "Grab me a five millimeter syringe. Top drawer."
We both turn to search for the needle, and I was sifting through the drawers when I heard a slight growl sound from behind me.

I inhaled sharply and spun around slowly, beholding a half turned Derek.
"Derek..." Lydia breathed.
"Derek, are you alright?" Deaton questioned, holding his hands out in a placating manner.
"Derek!" I called out as diplomatically as I could, but the wolf in question seemed to be getting angrier nevertheless,"What's wrong?"
Suddenly, he lunged forward, knocking Deaton into Lydia and knocking myself into some shelves before he ran out of the clinic.
"Rose!" Deaton called out as he helped Lydia up, "Go after him! Hurry!"

I gave him a quick nod of affirmation before I sprinted after the de-aged Derek.

I ran through the woods, following the trail of trampled leaves and broken branches from Derek's mad dash. Now, I may not be able to follow him by scent as Scott could've, but my time with Allison and her father had taught me how to track almost anyone- or anything- through the woodlands.
About fifteen minutes passed before I slowed to a walk, internally cursing myself for not changing into better shoes before leaving the animal clinic. Out of nowhere, I began to get this tingling sensation on the back of my neck, almost like I was being watched...
I stopped moving and whipped around, peering at the forest behind me.
Nothing.
Cautiously, I resumed walking, but the creepy feeling refused to go away. After about ten more minutes, I finally reached a familiar clearing.
"What the..." I gasped as I stared at the eerie ancient-looking stump.
The Nemeton.
I looked around, but found no sign of Derek's trail- not even the way I came.
Suddenly, a resounding crack echoed through the forest causing me to reach for my dagger, only to realize I had left it at Deaton's.
"Who's there?!" I exclaimed, glancing rapidly at the surrounding foliage, but no reply came.
I didn't realize that I had been backing up until my legs hit the former tree, and I whirled around in surprise. What I saw, was definitely not expected.
Rose. my name had been carved into the stump, jagged and deep.
Feeling as if my veins had been injected with ice water, I began to run away from the old clearing.
The creepy feeling had come back, but now it was stronger than ever, urging me to run faster...
It was as if all rational thought had left my head as I ran, and I was driven by some sort of panicked confusion.
Suddenly, I heard voices coming from ahead of me, which jolted me out of whatever trance I had been in.
I slowed my run, crouching behind a tree and peering around the trunk to see the remnants of the Hale House in front of me, a young Derek seated with two officers standing in front of him, and for some strange reason, thoughts of the Nemeton and what I had found seemed to leave my mind, instead, my brain focused on the scene before me.
"Shut up, Haigh." one of the men stated, looking irritated at his partner, before he turned back to Derek and continued with a softer tone, "Sorry, but you can't be here."
"Hey, dumbass." the other one-Haigh- quipped, and I felt an instant dislike for him, "You ever hear of no tresspassing?"
"This is my house." Derek said, looking lost.
"Nobody's been here for years kid." the nicer cop said, furrowing his brows.
"Yeah." the rude one piped in rudely, hand moving to his taser holster, "Now get the hell out of here. Or i'll make you."
"Hey!" I yelled, already moving towards the trio, "Leave him alone!"
They all turned to face me, the nice officer confused, Haigh glaring, and Derek staring.
"Who the hell are you?" Officer Jerkface's glare intensified when I didn't look intimidated by his harsh tone.
"I'm the girl who's going to kick your ass if you touch him." I crossed my arms defiantly.
"Excuse me?" Haigh looked furious.
"Hey, let's all just calm dow- HAIGH!" I barely had time to blink before the taser moved to my stomach, volts of electricity flowing through my body.
I let out a shriek, dropping to my knees.
The last thing I registered was Derek's labored breathing which was followed by a growl.
Oh crap. was all I could think before everything went black.