chapter thirteen.

HE SHOOTS UP like a rocket, spewing water from his lips gripping the edge of the tub breathing heavily his eyes flickering around the never ending white room. To left stood Stiles and Scott climbing out of their tubs, the ice melted but he couldn't feel the cold, he felt nothing apart from the water hitting his skin.

He swallows thickly, pushing himself up and out of the tub his clothes sticking to him like a glove weighing him down like an anchor. His mind is blank like a clean slate, he didn't feel dead or alive, he just felt there. He wasn't scared maybe because Scott and Stiles were right besides him looking puzzled.

A gush of wind hits his ear chilling his bones, his head twisted followed by his body landing on a tree stump in the center of the white room, its roots dug deeply refusing to be demolished.

Scott inched towards the tree persuaded by Arthur and Stiles, they could feel a pull whispering for them to come forth. Scott stopped a foot away, lifting his sleeve revealing his tattoo glancing at his boys behind him. He doesn't understand what's happening to him, until Scott reaches out feeling the stump eyes closed, an electrifying sensation travels e Rey inch of his entire body sucking him inside.

ARTHUR STUMBLES INTO the boys locker the door slamming closed behind him locking him inside, a low growl behind him sends shivers down his spine spinning around he spots Scott on top of the lockers, he releases a breath of relief.

"Hey, shouldn't you be out there celebrating or something?" Arthur wonders, gesturing at the door. It's strange how much Scott changed over one summer, he knew he has asthma it doesn't just vanish over the summer but here he is, proving him wrong. It made him feel like a proud mother, Scott growls lowly in response making his eyebrows arch. "Ooh Okay, I'm only here to grab Danny's bag."

Scott snarling at him, the brunet staggers back, ice blue irises widen sucking as a body came diving forward he ducks in time his back hitting the locker oppositee the wall. Heart thumping wildly in his chest, he blinks.

"What the fuck, Scott?" He demands. His back facing him breathing heavily, he spins around claws pointed at him and Arthur runs around the locker hearing Scott's labored breathing behind him, could Scott really be drugs like Jackson said, animal abilities as a side effect? What the hell has this world come too.

He trips picking himself up he meets alarmed golden brown, Stiles pressss his hand to his lips pushing him back against the locker, his heart thumping against his arm.

"Stiles?" He hadn't spoken to the boy since they left middle school and drifted apart. "What the hell is ━ "

His hands clamps on his lips, whispering harshly, "Shush, you'll get us killed."

"The fuck do you mean 'killed', please do not involve me in whatever role play this is ━"

"Shut up, Arthur." Stiles hisses. With his knees bend he tip toes around the locker glancing back at Arthur who remained in the same spot, he rolls his eyes and tip toes back hailing his collar until he decides to walk on his own.

They were gonna make it out the door until a figure jumps in front of them blocking their exit.

"Scott, snap out of it!" Stiles demands, backing up. Arthur eyes the two, wondering what happened after he left them. "Scott!"

He launches himself at them, Arthur quickly pulls the closest thing and hits him with it knocking him down with a fire extinguisher.

"You should've sprayed it!" Stiles groans, arms failing.

"He had a helmet on." Arthur retorts, dropping the extinguisher wanting nothing more than to leave and forget about what he'd seen.

Scott removes his helmet dazed, "Stiles, Arthur? What's going on, what are you doing here?"

"Just leaving." Arthur pushes past the boys ignoring Stiles calling for him, the door flies open unexpectedly making him trip landing on his hand and knees.

He winced, his hands stung like they've been stabbed by rocks, opening his eyes he's greeted with the dark sky dotted with white stars in the woods surrounded by trees. So, maybe sneaking out for a party alone wasn't the greatest idea.

A large compelling tree stump stood in an empty space. Veins whipped out pulling the boy towards pricking his skin, his heart gallops in his chest trying to fight them off

"You shouldn't have came here." More than one haunting voices twisted together whines. "You abomination, what dies should stay dead."

"I had too." He replies, twisting to wrists only making the stinging worse, he winces digging his heel into the soil delaying their pull. "Let me go!"

"You're supposed to be dead, Arthur Robinson," They mumble, "This time, we'll make sure you stay dead."

Their veins released him, his head knocked into the ground and he succumbed into the darkness.

* * *

HIS EYELIDS OPEN meeting a blinding white he leaps forward water splashing everywhere as he gallops in air his lungs beg for coughing, he stands gripping onto the edge his legs nearly breaking under pressure glitching the necklace hopping out. He never wants to do that again, his body weighs heavily like he was tied to bricks. He felt drained.

A towel is secured around his back, lifting his eyes and meets ice blue ones. Isaac. His teeth grits trying to offer him a smile.

"Told you I'd come back." He breathed out, hands on his knees trying to catch his breath. He could never leave Isaac alone in this cruel world, he loves him too much.

"Took your time." Isaac retorted, a soft smile on his lips and grips him tightly afraid to loose him again, Arthur returning it. Both for a brief second forgetting the world is about to sink like the titanic, he pulls back ruffling his soaked hair. "Don't ever do that again."

"Promise."

"⏤ We passed it. There's-- There's a stump, this huge tree." Stiles' words comes swimming in his ears, dripping wet with a towel on his shivering body, "Well, it's not huge anymore. It was cut down. But it's still big, though, very big."

"It was the night we were looking for the body." Scott recalls.

"Yeah, the same night you were bit by peter." Stiles adds, glancing at Scott.

"We can find it." Arthur assures them, he could worry about himself after his mom is saved, he needs to get his life's worth. Silence captures the vet, their expression anxious puzzling the three boys. "What's wrong?"

"You guys were out a long time." Isaac answers hesitantly, his tongue poking his cheek glimpsing at the three.

"How long is a long time?" Stiles inquiries urgently by his brief answer.

"16 hours." Deaton announces.

Arthur's eyes widen, how are they breathing right now, he's read about worse scenarios but it happening to himself seems too unrealistic. "We've been in the water for 16 hours?" He splutters.

"And the full moon rises in less than four." Lydia reveals.

* * *

"NO, DUDE, YOU are not going back with them." Stiles declares firmly, walking back into the main area with a brown towel in his hand provided by Deaton.

"I made a deal with Deucalion." Scott counters, he made a promise too indent on keeping it no matter who they are.

Arthur scoffs rubbing his hair dry with a towel, "You've sold your soul to the devil, Scott." Lydia rolls her eyes, playing with his brisk fingers. He remembers what he'd said to her but hadn't asked about it, nor had she mentioned. Both understood now wasn't the time.

"Why does it matter, anyway?" Issac wonders, seated besides Allison who is wrapped in a towel.

"Because I still don't think that we can beat Jennifer without their help." Scott answers honestly.

Allison turns to Deaton, an astonished smile on her lips, "He trusts you more than anyone. Tell him he's wrong." Arthur would be lying if he'd said, her smile wasn't gorgeous.

"I'm not so sure he is." Deaton replies, shrugging, "Circumstances like this sometimes require that you align yourself with people you'd normally consider enemies."

"So we're gonna trust him," Isaac complains in disbelief, "The guy that calls himself death, destroyer of worlds? We're gonna trust that guy?"

"I wouldn't trust him, no, But you could use him to your advantage." Arthur glances at him puzzled, how could you use a murder to your advantage? "Deucalion may be the enemy, but he could also be the bait."

It's smart, but could Scott pull it off alone and on short notice. It's a risk they might have to take.

The entrance door creaks followed by a bell and some noise, they freeze glancing at one another before Deaton walks out to the noise, Scott and Arthur behind him for protection.

"I'm looking for lydia." Ethan voices, outside the barrier of mountain ash.

"What do you want?" Lydia demands, her fingers dropping from the pink scar around her neck arriving besides Deaton.

"I need your help."

Arthur skids in front of Lydia, glaring at the twin he doesn't like nor truth, he demands, "With what?"

"Stopping my brother and kali from killing Derek."

"He's got all the female killers wrapped around his finger." Arthur mutters.

* * *

STILES DRIVES DOWN the dark road coming back from Arthur's house where they'd taken some clothes to help Isaac and Scott track them down easier, nothing is going their way so far. A storm erupted out of nowhere making it harder for them to get to their destination faster, they'd taken Stiles' Jeep because he'd lean his car to Lydia making her promise to guard it with her life. Poor choice of words in their situation.

The wind blew harsher than usual objects flew around almost supernaturally, Stiles' control on his stirring wheel weak against the storm. Arthur knew he should've been the one drive.

A thick fog swims over their view blocking road the deeper he drove, Stiles squints leaving forward trying to find his way around. "Come on." He mumbles.

He takes a turn leaping in his seat when a large three branch whips past narrowly avoiding the Jeep. Arthur grips the door tightly hearing Stiles yelp.

He leans forward noticing a dark figure on the road, the closer they got Arthur realizes it wasn't a figure, "Stiles, watch out!" His head whips spinning the wheel a minute too late, the Jeep crashes into the tree.

Arthur launches forward his forehead colliding into the dash board, he groans his eyelids fluttering closed surrendering to the blanket of darkness.

* * *

A METAL BAT SLIDES underneath the decaying root cellar preventing it from squeezing the people underneath into a milkshake of blood and bones.

"I always said aluminum was better than wood." The sheriff says casually, Stiles launches himself Into his arms.

"Arthur!" His mother wraps her arms his neck, her lips peck his forehead savoring the short lived moment, "Our saviors!"

The roof above them did nothing to protect the rocks breaking around them trying to trap them, the sky colors in a mist of black and orange reflecting in the cellar making Arthur aw mentally, a beautifully disastrous sight. If he were to die gazing at the moon, he wouldn't have minded.

Slowly it fades away revealing the plain white moon breaking its spell on the brunet, his body falls back in release a breath of happiness, his arms wrapped around Isaac and Allison beaming at the two, they did it, they're safe.

Stiles' phone beeps, he releases his dad answering, "Scott?"

"Hey, are you okay?" Scott wonders on the other end.

"Yeah, we're okay." Stiles beams, the weighs he carried anxiously searching for his dad lifted, his eyes flickers between the huddled group making his smile widen. "We're all okay. How about you, you okay?"

He hesitates before answering, his tone still light lacking concern. "Sort of."

"You think you can come get us?" Stiles wonders.

"Yeah, of course."

"Great, okay. Um, uh, bring a ladder."

Laughter bubbles past their tired lips, not because it was hilarious but because it's all over and they can finally breath.

* * *

A FLICK OF cherry snatches his attention from his exchanging books inside his locker, Lydia leans her shoulder against a locker her lips pressed together almost anxiously trying to contain her little secret, he had forgotten about his confession busy
spoiling his mother the entire weekend, his eyebrows arches.

"I like you too." Lydia confesses, her heart fighting against her rib cage find her manicured nails more interring then his expression.

A smile blossoms on his lips, the world better not be playing him today because he swears he heard Lydia Martin admit she likes him back, she likes him out everyone else she chooses him. His hand wraps around hers, forest green meet ice blue, a strange combination like peanut butter and jam, great separated. But when they come together, they're marvelous.

"Wait, for real?" He felt like a rocket about to sore into the sky, dropping his bag on the ground. All the darkness Deaton promised, and words the Nemeton cursed at him erased for a few blissful moments, "You're into me?"

She rolls her eyes playful, her fingers entwining with his larger ones, "Yes, for real, I want to give us a try."

* * *

END OF PART ONE.

( A/N) I had actually planned on them getting together
earlier in the season but it didn't seem fit, but
for part two, oh shit guysss, I cannot wait! It isn't
my favorite season but it my second! I am also
happy because it's the first time I've half completed a
book, and woow it feels great!

⏤ TylerPoseForMe