Chapter Six ✧A Grieving Suspect✧

Theo proved to do much less villain-like things then we suspected. Instead, he did normal teenage boy things, but that didn't sway Stiles' suspicions about him. In fact, Stiles was sure that we were most definitely about to catch him in the act of something incredibly evil. 

So now, after hours of watching Theo, I stood in the middle of the woods with Stiles and Liam on either side of me, and Theo far in front of us, grabbing something out of his car. I found myself hoping it'd be something interesting, perhaps something that would actually incriminate him, so hiking out in the woods might actually be worth it. 

Theo shut the back of his car before waling deeper into the preserve. I couldn't make out what was in his hands, so I sighed and looked over to Stiles. 

"I told you he was up to something." Stiles murmured, sounding almost excited. I rolled my eyes before looking over to Liam, who had the same unimpressed expression as I'm sure I did. 

"We just spent three hours watching this dude play video games in his bedroom. He better be out here covering up a mass murder," Liam whispered back. He shoved his hands in his pockets, looking from Stiles over to me. "Does he make you do this a lot."

"I'd rather not answer that." I responded, shooting Stiles a look out of the corner of my eye. 

Stiles was now the one rolling his eyes. "Let's just go find out if this guy is covering up a mass murder. Sound good, you little sophomores?" 

With that, we went back to following Theo around. I couldn't help but feel like we were more stalking the guy, but I didn't mention it to Stiles. Instead, I just followed Liam who was the one doing the Theo-tracking. 

We trekked through the dark forest in silence, mainly because we didn't want Theo to hear us. I was straining my eyes to see where we were going, trying to avoid tripping over something, which was no doubt something I would do. My arms were crossed over my chest as I held myself together to avoid thinking of all the bad things that had happened in the woods of Beacon Hills. 

"You still got his scent?" Stiles eventually questioned Liam. 

"Don't need it." Liam responded. The werewolf motioned down to the mud under our feet, pointing out the foot prints he had evidently been following. 

The three of us then continued to walk in a semi-comfortable silence. I found myself looking through the trees, suddenly feeling like something might be jumping out of their branches and down towards us. My eyes were so busy jumping from on tree top to the next, they almost didn't see Liam hesitating next to me. 

"What's wrong?" I asked him, noticing the distraught look on Liam's face. "Liam, are you okay?" 

"I forgot, I was supposed to meet Mason at the school gym." Liam groaned, looking at me with sad eyes. I cringed, instantly remembering Liam and Mason telling me there plans for tonight. I couldn't help but feel like a horrible friend for not remembering either. 

"Why didn't you just tell him?" Stiles shrugged. The older boy was not nearly as affected by the subject as Liam and I were. 

Liam frowned over to Stiles. "Tell him what?" 

"Anything." 

Liam looked at Stiles in disbelief, apparently shocked he would suggest such a thing. "Well, I can't just tell him anything!" 

"Why not?" Stiles asked, his whispering worsening with every world. I sighed, remembering my analogy from earlier and realizing just how un-stealthy Stiles could be. 

"Because we haven't told him everything." I explained softly, hoping I was a little less like a goat walking across bubble wrap then Stiles was. 

"Still?" Stiles gave both Liam and myself a confused look. "We said it was okay." 

"Yeah, I know but it's not that easy." Liam continued. The look on his face showed how much he cared for Mason, how much he didn't want to lose his best friend because of what he is. I almost smiled, glad that Mason and Liam had at least had each other over the summer. "It's a lot to accept." 

"He watched my dad blow up a berserker with a landmine. I think the ground work has been pretty thoroughly laid for acceptance." Stiles reassured Liam. I nodded along with Stiles, knowing first-hand how acceptance when it came to the supernatural world worked. "Scott and I have been through this, okay? More then once. It's just- it's always better when they know. Wasn't it better when Isaac told you, Char?" 

"I guess, yeah." I nodded again, not bother in to mention how scared I was at first. But after a while, once I realized Isaac wasn't going to let anything happen to me, things had mellowed out. I turned to look at Liam, smiling at him softly. When Liam still didn't look entirely sold on what we we're saying, and I found myself reaching out and brushing are fingers together, causing him to lace them together and look up at me. "Don't worry Liam, we can tell him together. I just highly suggest we don't meet him in the middle of the night at a graveyard with Isaac who has a bite mark in the side followed by a incredibly shady Derek Hale coming out of literally nowhere with glowing red eyes. Trust me, that's not the way to go." 

 "That's seriously how they did it." Stiles questioned, referring to how Isaac and Derek had chose to introduce thirteen year old me into both the supernatural world and the freshly reestablished Hale pack. He narrowed his eyes, frowning at his their tactics. "Guess I'm not all that surprised. Isaac sucks at subtly and Derek used to be a total prick." 

"Guys." Liam snapped, intruding into me and Stiles' stroll down memory lane. "What if Mason freaks out though." 

Stiles scoffed, turning on his heel to continue following Theo's trail. I gave Liam one last smile before letting go of his hand and following behind Stiles. I heard Liam shuffle his feet behind me, deciding to continue on the mission he'd been recruited for just hours ago. But as Liam continued to walk, his worry continued to boil over in his mind. 

"What if he doesn't want to talk to me? What if he tries stabbing me with something silver? Or what if-"

Liam's worrying was abruptly cut off and replaced by the sound of rustling, which led to me being the one that was worried. Stiles and I exchanged a confused look before turning on our heels, not sure what to expect. 

I looked to where I could've sworn Liam was, only to see that he actually wasn't there. My eyes scanned the dark forest floor, only to see a circular abnormality in the leaves. 

Stiles hurried over to the edge of the hole, peering down inside of it with an unimpressed frown. "What the hell are you doing?" 

Quickly, I moved next to Stiles to look down at Liam. The werewolf looked up at the Stilinski, shrugging his shoulders and frowning back, obviously not having planned on falling into the hole, not that Stiles cared either way. The older boy just let out an exasperated sigh, an inaudible swear about sophomores being mumbled under his breathe. 

In the middle of a very colorful sentence, Stiles cut himself off, his eyes widening as he looked over my shoulder. "There he is! Hurry up. Stop screwing around." 

Stiles hurried after Theo, leaving us sophomores in the dust. I looked back down towards Liam, watching as he plucked his phone out of the muddy floor. By the way he frowned guiltily down at the phone screen, I could tell he was looking at messages from Mason. We really did have to tell Mason, or else we might just lose him. Neglecting our best friend like this really wasn't fair to anyone. 

Liam switched over to his flashlight app, sending a beam of light through the hole so he could see what he was doing. I saw him hesitate but I couldn't exactly see why. 

"Come on, Liam." I whispered. I bent down, reaching out a hand towards the beta.

 Liam cocked his head up towards me and grinned, which seemed like an odd thing to do when stuck in a hole. "Don't worry, I got it, Char." 

Proving to me that he did indeed got it, Liam leaped out of pit uaing his werewolf abilities. Stumbling a bit and then brushing his hands off, Liam shot me a small smile. "Told you." He stated proudly. I couldn't help but smile back, allowing Liam to grab my hand before we both chased after Stiles. 

When we got to the brunette boy, Stiles gave us a long look. His eyes trailed down to our hands, then up to our smiles that we were failing at hiding. The boy shook his head, but he didn't look upset. Just amused, like he was reminiscing about a much happier time when he didn't trek through the woods after possible mass murderers. 

But now that I think about it, I'm not sure there was ever a time he didn't do that. Not unless him pining hopelessly over Lydia in grade school counted, which Scott had told me Stiles had done a lot. 

"I can't believed it's happening again." Stiles said in a low voice. His eyes were directed towards me and Liam, but he wasn't really looking at them. He was more looking off into another world, or maybe another time. 

"What are you talking about, Stiles?" I asked, suddenly feeling self conscious about holding Liam's hand. Liam apparently didn't mind though, because he didn't let go. Not that I wanted him to. 

"Just... I'm thinking about my sophomore year, that's all." Stiles took a deep breathe, shaking that other lifetime out of his head as he looked towards Theo. He cleared his throat, making it clear that he wouldn't be answering anymore questions. "Liam, try and get his scent." 

Liam leaned forward, his eyes now on Theo Raeken. I followed his gaze, narrowing my eyes so I could get a better look at the distant senior. Theo had his back to us, but I could still see his shoulders hunched as he stood on the small dock. He was looking down at something in his hands, but I still couldn't tell what they were. 

"Get anything?" I questioned Liam in a quite voice, hoping the other werewolf wouldn't hear me. Then again, maybe it wouldn't be to bad if Theo did hear me. Then maybe Stiles would realize how incredibly unstealthy I am and won't drag me through the woods randomly anymore. 

"Soap," Liam answered. He inhaled, apparently taking a liking to Theo's soap. "It's nice. It smells good." 

I bowed my head at Liam's response, closing my eyes and praying I had heard him incorrectly. But when I looked up at Stiles exasperated expression, I knew I had heard Liam perfectly clear. 

"Not his soap," Stiles cut Liam off before he could go into depth about Theo Raeken's body wash choices. "His emotional state. Chemo signals, remember?" 

"Oh. Yeah. Okay." Liam nodded his head shortly. Liam hesitated before giving us a new answer, his breath slowing as confusion struck him. "He's sad." 

"He's sad?" I questioned, once again wondering if I had heard Liam correctly. 

"Well, not just sad," Liam continued slowly. "It's more like... grief." 

"Grief?" Stiles restated. His eyes brows furrowed together, making it evident that we were all stumped on what Liam was picking up. 

I got on the edges of my toes, Straining to make myself taller so I could see what Theo was doing. He looked to be pulling something out of a package, something that look very much like a white flower. Theo held the flower out, letting it go and watching as it dropped into the water under him. 

"Oh, my god!" Stiles exclaimed in a hushed tone, his eyes suddenly widening. He turned to me and Liam, grabbing our shoulders and turning us around. "Go, we have to go!"

"What? Why?' Liam asked as Stiles continued to steer us as far away from Theo as quickly as possible. 

"Just go. Right now. Just go!" Stiles kept repeating, picking up his pace. 

Stiles sped walked through the forest, making me have to practically jog to keep up with him. The feeling of something lurking in the tree's washed over me once again, this time much more forcefully. I could practically feel someone else's breathe on the back of my neck, causing the hairs to spring up in fearful alert. 

"That's the bridge where they found his sister." Stiles finally explained once he was sure we'd gotten far enough away. 

"What sister?' Liam and I asked at the same time. Normally, I wouldn't have minded speaking in unison with Liam, but right now it made everything seem just that much more eerie. 

"The one that got lost and died of exposure. He's leaving a flower for her!" Stiles told us, his arms flailing as if they were in deed distress. 

Liam looked towards the older boy. "That doesn't sound evil." 

"I know." Stiles hissed, looking over his shoulder at Liam. When Stiles looked forward again, he came to a sudden stop, causing me to run into his back very ungracefully. 

Rubbing my nose that had rammed harshly into Stiles spine, I noticed him staring up into the trees. With a chill racing through my spine and shattering my nerves, I slowly looked up. Standing on a tree branch was Theo Raeken. He lept down, landing on the ground with little effort. He straightened himself out before giving us all a half smile. 

"What are you guys doing?" 

As Theo moved toward us, Liam sidestepped in front of me, a deep rumble coming from the back of his throat. I put my hand carefully on his arm, hoping to keep Liam from doing anything more then growling. 

"Whoa." Theo almost laughed, his hands shooting up in a motion of surrender as his eyes skimmed over Liam. "Why do I get the feeling this kid is tougher then he looks?" 

"Only when we let him off his leash." Stiles promised, his own hand on Liam's chest to keep him at bay. 

"Stiles, we were in little league together." Theo reminded the other boy. His eyes trailed from Stiles, skimming past Liam, and landed on me, and his smile became soft. "Charlotte, I was there when you brother went to pick you up from your first day of Kindergarten. Why are you guys so suspicious of me?" 

Stiles hesitated, looking down before fumbling with something in his pocket. He let out a tiny breathe, handing over the papers he'd shown me earlier. "Because of these. One's a speeding ticket signed by your dad eight years ago. The other one's a signature on a transfer form to Beacon High. They're different."

"Huh," Theo nodded as he studied the two papers. "Yeah, they do look a little different." 

"No, they're totally different. Signed by two different people." Stiles corrected him. I chewed on my lip anxiously as I watched Stiles, wondering where this conversation was going to take us. 

"So my dad's not my dad. Like, he's an impostor." Theo raised his eyebrows, his amused tone showing he wasn't nearly as concerned as Stiles was. 

"Yeah, something like that." Liam agreed, still standing his ground in front of me. 

Theo looked down at the papers and folded them slowly. "Who do you think I am?" 

"We don't know, yet," Stiles mumbled unhappily. 

"Want me to give you a DNA sample or something?" 

"No, I don't have anything from the fourth grade to compare it to." Stiles responded shortly. 

Theo stared at Stiles for a moment before bowing his head. His expression got notably more sincere. "You know, Stiles. I came back here for Scott... but I also came back for you." Theo explained, his eyes looking at Stiles gently. For a second, I found it impossible to believe there was a single hostile bone in his body. "Some one like you. Someone who's willing to walk into the woods in the middle of the night to protect his friends. I don't have anyone like that, but Scott does. You all do. I know I'm in the right place. I'm meant to be here. I'm meant to be a part of this pack." 

I stared at Theo, a look of determination radiating off of him. He seemed to truly believe his words, and I felt myself wanting to believe them to. 

Don't trust him. 

The words came in a scratched up voices, different tones sending the same harsh message all at once like a wicked wind that spiraled past my ears. I felt another chill go down my spine, feeling as though whoever had spoken was standing over my shoulder, ready to send me more warnings, or maybe even be what I should be warned about. 

I didn't bother looking around to see who was putting the words into my ears, because I knew nobody was there. The other's hadn't budged a muscle, making it evident that they hadn't heard the warning. Only I could hear the new voices in my head. 

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Ah an update finally? And this one contained the evil bae Theo, some Stiles comparing Larlotte to Scallison, and Char hearing voices in her head!!! How fun!!! I hope you enjoyed it, cause I loved writing this story. 

Also, a lot of you are asking what is going to happen because of Hayden. Now fist of all, this isn't going to be one of those stories where Hayden gets shit on because it would be easier to keep larlotte that way. As it should be painstakingly obvious, Charlotte is currently going through something. Her changes in her life will affect her and Liam's relationship. That's all I'm going to say because I don't want to spoil anything for you guys!!

Question - Who do you think the voices in Charlotte's head are?