Chapter Seven
I do not own Teen Wolf
River groaned as Lydia sent her another angry text about having to go to the dance with Stiles.
'Tell her to get bent and go with Stiles anyway'
Lydia didn't like that response one bit. She complained about how Allison was going with Jackson and how she had to go with Stiles for making out with Scott. River had a whole new line of questioning with that remark. Lydia video called her as she hid in a dressing room.
"Save me," she demanded.
"You made out with Scott?" River questioned, confused.
"Yes, okay? I'm sorry. I know that your boys are off limits," Lydia rolled her eyes. "I swear you're dating both of them. By the way, what is going on with you and them? You've all been distant from each other."
"Trouble in paradise," she joked. "They're hiding something from me. I think I've got it figured out though. Why were you distant? That is not your color."
Lydia slipped back out of the dress and tossed it to the side.
"Remember how the video store got ransacked and a dead guy was found?" Lydia asked.
"Yeah," River nodded. "Why?"
"Jackson and I were there," she explained. "I was in a bit of shock and a lot paranoid."
"Was it a mountain lion?" River asked. "Not that one. It flairs too much."
Lydia smiled as she went for the next dress.
"I don't think it was," she admitted. "What mountain lion has red eyes."
"Red eyes?" River asked curiously.
"Yeah, why?"
"The thing at the school had red eyes."
Lydia froze, staring at the phone.
"Can you come over later?" River asked. "I want to talk to you about a couple of things."
"I can do that," Lydia nodded. "What about this one?"
"It's cute," River shrugged.
Lydia groaned and shook the dress off quickly before reaching for another. Once Lydia had a dress picked, River got off the phone, telling her to go easy on Stiles. River went back to the spell book in her hands, finishing her readthrough of the last few spells. She'd read through all three of the books twice now and felt confident enough to begin trying to practice a spell from the first one, but now she wanted to wait for Lydia.
As she waited, she grabbed 'Dracula', turning to the first page and starting to read it. She was about halfway through it when she heard the doorbell ring. She went down the stairs and opened the door wide, smiling at the strawberry blonde standing in front of her.
"Okay," she sighed. "What's so important that I had to race over here?"
"Race?" River asked, stepping aside and letting her in. "You literally stopped at home for an overnight bag."
"Shut up," Lydia smiled, heading up the stairs, taking the stairs slowly since she knew that River had problems going up steps still.
"So, this is all going to sound crazy," River admitted as they sat on her bed, door closed behind them. "Do you believe in supernatural creatures?"
"Like vampires and all that?" Lydia asked with narrowed eyes.
"Yeah," River nodded.
"I think there has to be some truth to everything," Lydia stated simply. "If dragons never existed, why are they drawn on walls by cavemen from different parts of the world?"
"Exactly! Okay, so this is called a bestiary. It's a book on supernatural creatures; what they do, how to fight them. It was super faded, so I traced over the words with a pen, but I didn't touch the drawings," River explained, handing it to Lydia.
Lydia gave her an unbelieving look as she started flipping through the book, stopping at the page that was bookmarked.
"Stiles, Scott, and I went to the woods a couple of months ago looking for some dead body that Stiles had overheard about on dad's radio. I waited in the Jeep, but Stiles and Scott got separated and Stiles got caught. Well, Scott was still in the woods. We found him and he had a huge bite on his side. He said a wolf bit him."
"California doesn't have wolves," Lydia countered.
"Exactly," River continued. "We told him that, but he said it was a huge wolf with red eyes."
"Red?" Lydia asked, her voice trembling a little.
"Yes," River nodded. "Just like you saw at the video store and just like I saw at the school. I also saw it across the street one night, but the pizza guy showed up and it was gone when I looked over again."
"And you think that it's this?" Lydia asked, her voice doubtful again.
"Scott and Stiles practiced like crazy for lacrosse this summer," River stated. "Scott was still terrible before that night though. His asthma held him back so much."
"Asthma?" Lydia asked. "I haven't seen him using an inhaler."
"That's what I'm saying Lyds. He was a severe asthmatic, but suddenly he doesn't need his inhaler anymore. He's stronger and faster than he was before. Before I got froze out, he told me he could hear and smell things that he shouldn't be able to hear or see, like Allison complaining about how she had forgotten a pen while he was in homeroom and she was outside of the school."
"Is he attacking people?" Lydia asked. "I know he hurt you."
"It was a full moon," River explained. "He doesn't have control during it. It makes sense when you take a step back. Plus, Peter basically told me."
"Peter?" she asked, confused.
"The coma patient that I used to read to. No longer in a coma. He offered to bite me, which I did not understand at the time. I told him no though and he offered to teach me magic instead."
"Magic?" Lydia asked, eyebrow raised. "Should I start calling you Sabrina?"
"Only if you call yourself Sabrina, too, because you're going to learn it with me."
"Excuse me?"
"I want you to learn with me," River explained. "You don't have to believe anything else that I've said, but I want to share this with you. I was going to start practicing tonight."
"Let's see what you've got," Lydia sighed.
"I also need a lookout," River stated.
"For?"
"I'm going to go through Stiles' room and see if I can find any proof about Scott."
"So, I just stand outside his door like a creep?"
"No, you keep him downstairs if he comes home early from Scott's house," River said. "He's in love with you. No way is he going to miss the opportunity to talk to you in the living room."
"He's not in love with me," Lydia rolled her eyes.
"He's been in love with you since before I showed up," River smirked.
Lydia sighed, wondering how River could be so oblivious before nodding her head.
"Let's do this."
River shut Stiles' door behind herself, Lydia staring out of River's window for when Stiles returned. Lydia would knock on the wall three times if he showed up, signaling that she had two minutes to get out of his room before Lydia got bored. River went to his desk first, riffling through all of the papers that rested there. She checked the drawers and opened his laptop, typing in his ridiculously long password that included her own name before it unlocked. She went through his history and grimaced and half of the pages before she found the ones that included lore.
She went to Word and looked through the essays and random notes before she found a hundred pages worth of notes about Scott, Derek Hale, and Peter, along with random lore thrown in. She knew he would keep a hard copy somewhere, but worried about time, she emailed the notes to herself and deleted the email before clicking through the rest of the essays so that the documents were back in order. She locked the laptop and closed it, making sure everything by the desk was back in order before she moved to his closet. She moved the clothes on the floor first, knowing he had a box that he hid there with police files that he wasn't supposed to have copies of.
She found files on the Hale fire and smirked at her luck. She began taking pictures of all of the pages on her phone. Just as she finished, she heard three knocks on the wall and put everything back in its place carefully, stepping out of Stiles' room just as Lydia was stepping out of hers on her way to intercept Stiles. Instead, they went to her room and flopped onto her bed, grabbing a magazine and pretending to have been doing some quiz together that was inside.
Stiles came up the stairs and knocked on her door.
"Yeah?" River called back, smile in place as he opened the door.
He peaked inside but froze at the scene before him. He sputtered for a moment before he was able to stop drooling and speak.
"Lydia? What are you doing here?"
"She's staying the night," River answered for her. "I thought you were staying at Scott's?"
"I am," he nodded. "I just needed to come and get my laptop."
"Okay," River stated, going back to the magazine.
"That's it?" Stiles asked, still watching the two girls.
"Is there supposed to be something else, thing one?" Lydia asked, sounding bored as she circled a random answer, not even actually reading the question.
"Thing one?" he asked confused.
"What do you need, Sti?" River asked in a soft voice.
"Nothing," Stiles stated, slamming her bedroom door as he ran to his own room.
River and Lydia sat quietly, listening as Stiles rushed around his room, supposedly talking to Scott on his phone.
"Yeah, she's here," he stated.
River bumped Lydia's shoulder and raised her eyebrow in an 'I told you so' manner. Lydia rolled her eyes as they continued listening.
"No, I'm not doing that," Stiles argued. "I'm getting my laptop and coming to help you."
Lydia and River locked eyes, wondering what Scott needed help with.
"It'll be alright man. We'll figure it out. I'll see you in a bit."
Stiles apparently hung up his phone, because he was knocking on River's door again, this time with a bag over his arm.
"I'm heading out," he told her. "Can you do me a favor?"
"No, we will not make out," Lydia rolled her eyes, not even looking up.
"Not even a little?" River pouted.
"Only if you behave," Lydia smirked.
"Best behavior it is," River smiled looking to Stiles and holding in a laugh at his expression. "What Stiles?"
"Just. Stay inside tonight, please?" he asked.
"Why?" she asked.
"Please?" he begged. "And close your window. What if some creep wants to watch your make out session?"
"I'll make sure to keep an eye out for you climbing the tree before our sexy pillow fight," River smirked.
"I'm leaving!" he yelled, slamming her door and running down the stairs, ignoring the sound or River and Lydia laughing that followed him all the way to his Jeep.
"Sexy pillow fight?" Lydia asked.
"I will sacrifice him in a spell if he thinks that's actually happening," River stated seriously.
Lydia shook her head in amusement.
"Did you find anything?"
"Yeah," River nodded, reaching for her laptop. "So, he has copies of police files about the Hale fire and some mysterious deaths that have been ruled as animal attacks in the area. He also has a Word document with a bunch of notes. He really should encrypt that."
"Does he not lock his laptop?" she asked curiously.
"I know the password," River smirked, passing the laptop to Lydia so that she could read through the notes.
"Of course, you do," Lydia rolled her eyes. "It's probably your name."
"Part of it," River admitted as she opened the spell book, looking for the spell she wanted to try first.
She found the spell pretty quickly and just read it through a few times while she waited for Lydia. Lydia sighed and pushed the laptop aside, not even getting through the first ten pages before she was over it.
"What's that?" she asked, pointing at the book.
"Spell book that Peter sent me. I want to try this one first. Here."
River passed the book over as she stood and opened her closet. She slipped her long sleeve shirt over her head, not worried about Lydia seeing her stitches, before she pulled the box from her closet. She began laying the crystals and stones in a circle big enough for both of them to sit in on the floor as Lydia read through the spell. Once she was done she moved so that she was sitting in the circle with River, book laid open between them.
"Do we hold hands and chant?" Lydia asked sarcastically.
"Do you have a better idea?" she asked. "You think of someone and I'll think of Stiles. Figure out what they're up to."
"I'm going to try Allison," Lydia stated. "She shot this weird arrow at a tree and it lit up like a firework."
"When?" River questioned.
"I'll tell you after this," Lydia waved her hand.
Lydia sighed and held her hands out. River smirked, taking her hands as she read through the spell one more time. She locked eyes with Lydia and they both nodded before closing their eyes.
"Per potentiam in me;
Ostende mihi quid vis videre,
Videam ut faciunt;
Oculi eorum per videre cupio."
As they finished the spell, they opened their eyes. Instead of seeing Stiles, she was just staring back at Lydia. Lydia smirked, shit eating grin taking over her face.
"Hold on," River told her.
River took her necklace and lifted it over her head, placing it outside the circle. This time when she took Lydia's hands, she crossed their hands over the top of the book. They closed their eyes and repeated the spell again. This time when they opened their eyes, they didn't see each other. Lydia's gasp told River that she was seeing something else.
River concentrated, watching as Stiles pulled up in front of Scott's house and ran inside. Once inside, he found Scott pacing his floor, stress radiating off of him. She couldn't hear what was being said, but Stiles opened his laptop and pulled up the 'Find My Phone' app before shutting his laptop again. River's eyes began to burn and she blinked. When she opened her eyes, Lydia's eyes were still wide, mouth open in shock. The glassy look over Lydia's eyes told her she was still watching Allison.
Lydia was in shock at the spell actually working. She hadn't actually believed River but thought that it wouldn't hurt to entertain her friend. Now, as she watched Allison's aunt electrocuting some guy that was chained to a wall, she believed her. She believed everything, especially when they guys face morphed into something else, his eyes glowing blue as his teeth turned to fangs.
Lydia finally blinked, staring at River.
"They're torturing someone," Lydia stated.
"What?" River asked. "What do you mean?"
"Her aunt has some guy chained up and is electrocuting him. I think he's one of them."
"What did he look like?" River asked, concerned.
"Dark hair, abs. He changed though. His eyes turned blue."
"Blue? You're sure?" River asked.
"Yes," Lydia nodded.
"It must be Derek," River stated. "I didn't really get anything from Stiles and Scott. Did you recognize where they were?"
"No," Lydia shook her head. "Is there a spell we can use?"
"There's a locater spell, but we need a map and something personal of his."
"I can get a map. Can you get the something personal from Peter?"
"I can try," River nodded. "Meet back here in two hours?"
"Deal," Lydia nodded and they were on their feet and moving.
They both went to their cars, Lydia heading towards the library while River went towards the road. Once she was on a road where no one would hear her, she rolled down her window and began shouting Peter's name, hoping he was able to hear her. She knew he could feel her fear through the bond but didn't know if that was enough to get him to come to her.
She finally pulled off on a backroad and got out of the car. She sat on the hood of her car and watched the woods, waiting to see if Peter would appear. She closed her eyes and tried pulling at the bond, trying to get him to come to her. She felt a fizzling effect on the bond and she wasn't able to pull on it anymore. It felt like Peter was telling her not to bother him. She groaned in frustration and pulled her phone from her pocket, checking the time. She still had forty-five minutes, so she waited. She heard a branch snap behind her and turned her head quickly, staring into the trees.
She knew it wasn't Peter as the bond had been pulling her in the opposite direction, so she felt on edge as she heard more sticks snapping. Eventually Scott came into view.
"What are you doing here?" he asked her.
"You first," she responded sliding off of the front of the car and making sure she was on the side of the car furthest away from him.
"I was just wondering around," Scott shrugged.
"Lydia had to go for a bit, so I wanted to get some fresh air," River lied.
"You're lying," Scott called her out.
"No, I'm not," River ground out. "If I was, I still don't owe you an explanation."
Scott stared at her before ducking his head. She saw his shoulders sag before he looked up again, puppy-dog eyes in place as he looked to her.
"I'm sorry, River," he said so softly she almost missed it. "I don't know what was wrong with me, but I should never have hurt you. It will never happen again."
"You're right. It won't."
River got in her car, driving away from Scott and back to the house. Lydia was waiting in her room for her, spell book open in front of her with the map spread out.
"Did you get it?" she asked.
"No," River complained. "I couldn't find him."
She sighed before picking her necklace off of the floor. She stared at the necklace for a moment before smiling.
"Family heirloom," she smirked.
"What?" Lydia asked.
"This necklace is a family heirloom. Hypothetically, we could use this."
Lydia smiled and held her hand out for it.
"What's in it?" she asked.
"No clue. It's supposed to protect me from outside forces though, which is why it wouldn't let the other spell work. I think, since you were in contact with me, the protection wrapped around you, too."
"Will we be able to use it for this?" Allison asked curiously.
"We'll see," River sighed. "Ready?"
Lydia nodded and River pulled the book close, looking over the spell. Once she had it memorized, she locked hands with Lydia. The necklace rested above the map and Lydia had lit a random candle she had found in the living room. They both concentrated on Derek, wanting to be led to him and him only.
"Quod perierat reperi.
Redde ad me.
Quod perierat reperi.
Redde ad me."
The girls continued chanting as a strong breeze flew through the room. Once the wind died down, Lydia and River opened their eyes and looked down at the map. The candle was out but there was a burn mark across the map of Beacon Hills leading from the Stilinski house to a spot in the woods.
"Should we go?" Lydia asked.
"What weapons did you see around you?" River questioned.
"Guns, knives, real torture chamber," Lydia said, her lip turning into a sneer at the thought.
"We should wait for Peter to get back to me," River shook her head. "I don't think they'd mind shooting a couple of teenage girls that were just wandering through the woods. We can look up the coordinates and see if anything is there, though."
Lydia reached for the computer, pulling it over to them and opening it. She passed it over, not knowing the password. Lydia smirked at the password, completely unnoticed by River. River pulled up Google maps and plugged in the cords, waiting for the laptop to load and zooming in the moment that it did.
"Is that?" Lydia asked.
"Hale house," River whispered.
"That's sick," Lydia gasped.
"Maybe I should tell my dad," River sighed.
"Would he believe us?" Lydia asked.
"Us?" River asked, smiling at her friend.
"You think I'm leaving you after all of this?" Lydia questioned. "We're a coven now or whatever."
River smiled before frowning.
"We'd have to show him," River stated.
"And hope he doesn't just shoot us the moment we do some sort of magic," Lydia nodded. "Is it safe to tell him about this? Won't it just put him in danger?"
"Imagine how we could have protected ourselves better had we known what was going on," River explained. "I'm pissed at Stiles for not telling me."
"But not Scott?"
"Him, too, but Stiles literally sleeps one room over from me. I thought we didn't hide things from each other. So, since he hid this from me, I'm hiding Peter and magic from him. It feels all wrong, though. I feel like I'm betraying him by not telling him. I doubt he feels the same way about this."
"You sure about that?" Lydia asked.
"What are you trying to say?" River asked.
"Nothing," Lydia shrugged. "So, when do we tell your dad?"
"After we get Derek away from Allison and her family," River sighs. "We need to come up with a plan though."
"Well, Allison won't be there when she's at the dance," Allison shrugged. "I can tell her aunt that we need more adults at the dance and she was the most fun adult that I could think of."
"That just leaves whatever guards are there to deal with," River nodded. "Peter and I could get in and get him out easily, I think."
"Just you and Peter?" Lydia asked, eyebrow raised.
"Do you want me to ask Scott to tag along?" River asked, confused.
"Me, idiot," Lydia sighed. "I'm coming, too. We can keep doing the spell to figure out what else is there. One at a time though that way the other one can keep an eye out."
"You would miss the dance for this?"
"I don't really want to go anyway," Lydia sighed. "Jackson's going with Allison and you won't be there. You two are my favorite people."
"You're my favorite, too," River smiled.
"Yeah, right after Stiles," Lydia smirked.
"Not right now," River sighed. "Typically, it's a tie though."
"I'll accept that," Lydia smirked. "Add it to the things that I'm beating Stiles at, grades included."
"He's smarter than he acts. If he applied himself a bit more, he'd pass you in grades."
"Stop defending him," Lydia huffed. "What else are we doing tonight?"
"We can make defensive spells?" River offered. "Or we can be teenage girls and watch a movie while eating cookies."
"Cookies and spells," Lydia insisted.