Disclaimer – Big surprise, I know, but I don't own anything. Unless I end up creating some OC's which may or may not happened depending on how I feel but if so I do own them…
Summary – In a small, run down house in the town of Beacon Hills lives a boy who is only human. A boy who has lost everything he ever loved. His mother. His brother. His father. No, his father wasn't dead but he certainly wasn't the same man he had once been. A boy who was in the right place at the right time and managed not only to save a life but to finally make some real friends and, you know, save the whole town. His name? Isaac. Isaac Lahey.
Things you need to know about this ALTERNATE UNIVERSE/CANON-DIVERGENT UNIVERSE I've created for the purposes of this story – Isaac is still human; Derek never turned him in Season Two, he just turned Erica and Boyd. Mr Lahey is still alive; the Pack managed to stop Matt before he was able to force Jackson/the Kanima to kill the former swimming coach.
Warnings (will add more as required) – Canon-Typical Violence, Canon-Typical Language, Alternate Universe/Canon-Divergence, Child Abuse, Medical Inaccuracies
~ Only Human ~
~ Chapter Five ~
Scott was in the process of raiding the fridge for a midnight snack when his phone let out a sharp beep, signalling the arrival of a text message. He froze, somewhat guiltily, holding the plate of leftover chicken a couple of inches above the shelf that he had been in the process of removing it from as he retrieved the electronic device from the back pocket of his jeans.
1 NEW MESSAGE FROM – MUM
His eyes flickered guiltily to the plate of leftovers or, more specifically, to the yellow post-it note stuck to the top of the cellophane covering the plates contents – 'NOT FOR SNACKS!'
"…how does she do that?" he murmured to himself as he swiped his thumb over the screen to reveal the message, expecting a lecture about what was considered to be a suitable snack only to find something altogether different. All trace of his hunger vanished in a flash. "Oh."
Honey, Isaac has taken a turn for the worse. We're doing our best to keep the infection from reaching his heart but Dr Geyer doesn't think he'll survive the night. I'm sorry. X
Scott felt as though someone had sucker-punched him in the stomach.
He all but dropped the plate back onto the shelf, slamming the fridge door closed as he hurried across to where he had kicked off his trainers in the front room. Pulling the battered looking shoes onto his sock clad feet he dialled Stiles' number with practiced ease, holding it to his ear with his shoulder as he set about securing the laces, one of which snapped in half.
"…damnit…"
"…'lo?"
"Stiles? It's Scott."
His best friend snorted sluggishly down the phone.
"I know, dude," Stiles muttered through a loud yawn. "Caller ID. What's up?"
Scott sighed heavily, "It's Isaac."
He could literally hear Stiles snapping awake, the sounds of things clattering loudly confirming the fact that his friend had once again fallen asleep at his computer desk.
"What?" Stiles demanded, grunting as something thudded loudly. "Ow. What about Isaac?"
"…my mum just text me…" Scott mumbled, grabbing his jacket and pulling it on one arm at a time, switching his phone from ear to ear as he did so. "He's not good. Dr Geyer doesn't…"
"What, Scott?" Stiles demanded even more sharply than before. "Dr Geyer doesn't what?"
"…think he'll survive through the night…"
Stiles swallowed audibly down the phone.
"I'm…I'm heading to the hospital now," Scott admitted as he grabbed his crash helmet and hurried out of the front door, hurrying down the steps and over to where he had tucked his motorbike against the side of the house so it was off of their drive. "Would you…I mean…"
"I'll meet you there."
Stiles hung up before Scott could even thank him.
As he settled himself on his motorbike, phone tucked safely in his jacket pocket, he paused.
Should he tell Allison?
Things between them had been a little strained ever since they'd broken up amidst all the chaos that was the Alpha Pack, the Darach and the Nogitsune. The fact that Scott still had feeling for her certainly didn't help matters, nor did his suspicions that she still had some sort of feelings for him. But it was because of Allison that he was so worried about Isaac, someone who he was ashamed to admit that he'd never really noticed before the night he had literally sacrificed himself to save Scott's ex-girlfriend, so perhaps she ought to know.
Biting his bottom lip he took out his phone once more, using his elbows to keep his helmet from rolling off of his thighs as he sent her a quick message explaining the situation, not going into too much detail as he was anxious to get to the hospital as quickly as possible.
TO – ALLISON
Isaac not gd. gonna hospital with Stiles. wl keep u updated. S
That done he stored his phone safely in his pocket, jammed his crash helmet on his head, fired up the engine of his motorbike and set off for the hospital heedless of the speed limits.
Stiles, who's house was marginally closer to the hospital than Scott's, was just killing the jeeps engine when he arrived, his tires protesting loudly as he skidded to a halt beside the other vehicle. They said nothing to each other as Scott pulled off his helmet, throwing it into the back seat of the jeep for safe keeping as he killed the bikes engine and set it on its stand.
Moving as one they headed into the hospital, following the all too familiar corridors until they reached the ICU where they knew that Isaac was being cared for. Most of the rooms they passed were quiet, their occupants sound asleep at this time of night, but even Stiles who didn't have enhanced hearing like Scott did could hear the noise coming from Isaac's room long before they reached the correct hallway; cries, whimpers, choked of screams…
"Scott? Stiles?"
They turned as one to face his mum who was in the process of rounding a desk to confront the two of them, clipboard in hand, and ended up with their backs towards Isaac's room.
"What are you two doing…actually, no never mind," she cut herself off with a fond roll of her eyes as she stopped directly in front of her son and her pseudo-son. "I can't let you in."
A particularly sharp cry, filled with desperation, made them all jump.
"I can help with the pain," Scott pointed out, his voice trembling. "Mum, please…"
"Oh, honey, that's not pain," his mum corrected him, regret heavy in her voice as she reached out to cup his jaw in her free hand. "The infection is causing him to hallucinate."
"That's…"
A nurse exited Isaac's room with a tray of dirty bandages, her lips pursed in an attempt to hold back her tears, and whilst the door was open they could all hear Isaac's pleading voice,
"…Cam, don't go…don't go, Cam, don't leave me…don't leave me with him…please…"
"Hallucinations?" Stiles gulped as the door swung shut. "…that's not a good sign, is it?"
"No, sweetheart, it's not," she confirmed softly, reaching out with the hand holding the clipboard which came to rest against his arm as she squeezed his shoulder. Scott worried his bottom lip with his teeth. "We've done everything we can. Now we just have to wait and hope that the antibiotics can stop the infection from reaching his heart. Although…it's not looking good…not good at all which is why I messaged you, Scott. I didn't expect you boys to come in although perhaps I should have given your track record for impulsive decisions…"
"Please…" Scott pleaded with her softly, an unpleasant feeling settling deep in his stomach. Their eyes, almost identical in colour, met and held. "Please, mum, we…I need to see him…"
After a long moment she let out a deep sigh and nodded,
"Just for five minutes, mind you."
Neither teen was prepared for the sight that met them as they stepped through the door, stumbling to a halt at the foot of the bed as Scott's mum followed them into the sterilised room. Isaac's badly burned body had been strapped down to the bed with thick black velcro straps rather than the padded cuffs Scott had seen used on patients before; one across his chest which also trapped his upper arms to his sides, one across his hips and one across his knees. They hadn't applied the one that would secure his ankles for fairly obvious reasons.
"W-Why is he…?"
Isaac himself unwittingly answered his half-asked question by thrashing wildly all of a sudden, his body arching up and straining against the thick black straps as he screamed.
"Stop! No! Dad…stop…please…I'll do better…I'll do better...I promise…please…"
Stiles gasped sharply, the colour draining from his face,
"…shit…"
A pair of fevered blue eyes snapped across to him.
"Cam?" Isaac whimpered, reaching out with his burned arm as best as he could, lifting his head and shoulders up as much as the strap across his chest would allow. "Cam…don't go…"
"Sweetheart, I'm sorry, but that's not Cam," the familiar soothing voice of his mother drew Scott's attention away from the piercing blue eyes and across to where his mum had moved to stand strong the head of the boys bed, gently urging him to lie back down with her hand on his shoulders. Once he was reclining against the pillows once again she carefully stroked the clammy skin of his face, minding the burns, until he began to calm. "That's it. That's it."
They watched as Isaac gazed up set her for a long moment, tears pooling in his eyes.
"M-Mummy?"
He sounded painfully young and none of them could hold back their gasps of sympathy.
"…is that you?" Isaac pressed on, pleading with everything that he had as he twisted slightly so that he could stare up at the owner of the hand stroking his face. "Mummy, I'm scared…"
And it was at this point that an idea popped into Scott's head, one that he was surprised hadn't appeared as soon as he'd heard that Allison's saviour had taken a turn for the worse.
The Bite.
Something must have shown on his face because Stiles reached out to touch his arm.
"Scott?" his best friend murmured with one of his trademark looks. "What is it?"
Scott glanced back and forth between his friend and the boy slowly dying on the bed.
His mum, still soothing her whimpering patient, frowned across at him.
"Scott?"
"The Bite," he blurted out. "I could give him the Bite."
Silence, broken only by Isaac's pitiful whimpers, was his only response.
"Werewolves have advanced healing," he pressed on, thinking back to the countless injuries he had that had vanished if not immediately then overnight. "If I gave him The Bite he would have a better chance of fighting off the infection, of recovering from the burns…"
Stiles blinked at him for a long moment before reminding him that,
"People die from the bite, Scott."
"He's dying anyway, Stiles. Look at him," Scott countered, moving across to stand on Isaac's unburned side. He paused a moment before hesitantly reaching out touch Isaac's trembling shoulder. "Come on, we have to try something. He saved Allison. We can't just let him die."
"But won't it change you, too?" Stiles pointed out, following Scott across the room. He came to a halt in line with the cast encasing Isaac's unburned wrist, the one which had initially alerted them to his years of abuse. "You'll stop being a True Alpha if you turn someone."
"I don't care," Scott responded without hesitation as he carefully pulled Isaac's hospital gown aside to reveal the lightly tanned skin of his shoulder. "We have to do something."
Stiles let out a deep sigh but moved out of his way so that he could lean down, shifting into his werewolf form and baring his deadly fangs against Isaac's skin. He could feel his mum's gaze upon him and glanced across at her with his vivid red eyes, pausing at the last moment.
"Do it," she finally ordered with a sharp nod. "It's probably the only chance he's got."
Placing one hand on Isaac's chest to hold him still Scott took a deep, calming breath and then carefully pierced the unblemished flesh with the deadly points of his fangs. Isaac let out a startled cry of pain, tears falling from his wide blue eyes before they fluttered shut.
Scott withdrew his fangs, straightening up to look down stairs the unconscious boy.
"Now we just have to wait and see…"
A/N This took a slightly different turn than I had originally planned but never mind – it still ended the same way I had always planned for this chapter. Hope you enjoyed it. X