☾

"It's her," Stiles says as we walk into the hallway.

"What do you mean?" Scott asks.

"It's Allison," I explain.

"Remember what you told me about the night of the full moon?" Stiles asks. "You were thinking about her, right? About protecting her."

"Okay," Scott goes along with it.

"Remember the night of the first lacrosse game? You said you could hear her voice out on the field," Stiles says.

"Yeah, I did," Scott agrees.

"Well, so that's what brought you back so you could score. And then after the game in the locker room, you didn't kill her. At least not like how you were trying to kill me," Stiles further explains. He mentions Scott trying to kill him a lot, how many times has that happened?

"She brings you back, is what he's saying," I help him out.

"No, no, no, but it's not always true," Scott protests. "Because literally every time I'm kissing her or touching her-"

"No, that's not the same," Stiles objects. "When you're doing that, you're just another hormonal teenager thinking about sex, you know?" A small grin is on Scott's face and he looks distant and I instantly know what he's thinking.

"You're thinking about sex right now, aren't you?" I ask, a little repulsed. Allison may be attractive but I don't want to think of my new friend think about having sex with my best friend. Okay, that's complicated.

"Yeah. Sorry," Scott says sheepishly.

"That's fine," Stiles dismisses it. "Look, back in the classroom when she was holding your hand, that was different okay? I don't think she makes you weak. I think she actually gives you control."

"She's kind of like an anchor," I finish for him as we stop in front of a stairwell.

"You mean because I love her," Scott says, not realizing what he just said while I stare wide-eyed at him. Then he realizes what he just said, blinking fast.

"Exactly," Stiles replies.

"Did I just say that?" Scott asks quietly.

"Yes, you just said that," Stiles deadpans.

I grin at the puppy-eyed werewolf when he says, "I love her."

"That's great. Now, moving on..." Stiles says, practically ignoring the fact that his best friend is in love. I slap his bicep lightly without taking my eyes off of Scott, practically giddy. I find love to be amazing and to see it blossom is truly a beautiful sight. It makes me monetarily forget my on-going annoyance towards the male werewolf.

"No, no, no, really. I think I'm totally in love with her," Scott cuts him off. I squeal and bite my lip, ecstatic.

"And that's beautiful. Now, before you go off and write a sonnet, can we figure this out, please? Because you obviously can't be around her all the time."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Sorry. So what do I do?"

Stiles pinches the bridge of his nose. "I don't know. Yet." He turns in a circle, a contemplative look on his face. Oh, I know that look.

"Oh, no. You're getting an idea, aren't you?" Scott asks.

"Yeah," Stiles instantly replies.

"Is this idea gonna get me in trouble?" Scott asks.

"Maybe," Stiles says vaguely.

"Is this idea gonna cause me physical pain?"

"Yeah, definitely. Come on," Stiles says, taking my hand and we walk off to enact yet another plan.

☾

We walk out into the parking lot and near a black truck, and I instantly can sense the trouble we're about to get in. Some guys are leaning against the building and one of them is the owner of the truck. I have a feeling they have something to do with Stiles' plan.

"What are we doing?" Scott asks.

"You'll see. Hold on. Okay, stand right there. Do you have your keys?" Stiles asks. Scott takes them out and Stiles continues talking while holding up Scott's hand with the keys in his palm. "Perfect. Hold 'em up like so. Now, whatever happens, just think about Allison. Try to find her voice like you did at the game. Got it?" Scott nods while Stiles looks behind him. "Okay. Just keep holding it right there."

Still holding my hand and tugging me with him, he takes out his own keys and we approach the truck... Then Stiles keys the truck!

We stand a little farther away from the truck and Stiles opens his mouth. "Hey, hey, hey, dude! What do you think you're doing to that truck, bro!"

It catches the guys attention, the one in the hat approaching Scott while yelling, "What the hell?"

Scott looks so confused and innocent, putting his keys in his pocket and the dude punches Scott in the face. Ouch, that's gotta hurt. Werewolf or not.

"Ow! My God. Wow," Stiles gasps, while I just wince. Scott goes for the guy but he pushes him off and starts beating him up. "Come on, stay calm. Stay calm," he says to himself and I look up at him with a raised eyebrow.

"This is so cruel," I inform him, but my attention goes to the phone. Scott's heartbeat starts to accelerate as the other dude join in, so to avoid the gruesome scene happening in front of us, I bury my face into Stiles' shoulder.

"Oh, that's not okay," Stiles says.

"Ya think?" I mumble into his shoulder.

"Scott. Come on, buddy." To drown out the sounds of Scott's grunts and the fighting, I focus on Stiles' heartbeat, the sound calming. Maybe Stiles is my anchor. If whatever I am needs an anchor for control.

Soon, I hear the familiar voice of Satan. "Stop! Stop it right now!" I peek out from his shoulder to see the guys running, from Harris. "What do you idiots think you're doing?" Idiot? I'm probably smarter than you, Satan!

I knew we were gonna get in trouble!

☾

I'm sitting next to Stiles with Scott on the other side of him, in the room of Satan himself, in detention. I've only had detention once in my life and that was because I was late to class. Oh, Stiles is so lucky I like him.

"Excuse me, sir?" Scott breaks the silence, making Harris look up. "I know it's detention and all, but, I'm supposed to be at work, and I don't want to get fired."

Harris looks back down, his answer silent but clear. Pompous ass.

"You knew I would heal," Scott states, looking at his best friend. They have their homework out, but I already finished mine so I don't really have anything to do. Stiles will sometimes play with my fingers when he gets distracted from his homework.

"Yep," Stiles responds.

"So, you did that to help me learn?" Scott asks.

"Yep."

"But to partially to punish me."

"Yeah. Well, that one's obvious."

"Dude, you're my best friend, and I can't have you being angry with me," Scott says with a serious tone. Aww, bro moment.

"I'm not angry anymore," Stiles says, and there's a long pause. "Look, you have something, Scott. Okay? Whether you want it or not, you can do things that nobody else can do. So that means you don't have a choice anymore. It means you have to do something."

"I know. And I will," Scott promises.

"All right, all three of you, out of here," Harris orders, out of the blue but I'm not gonna question it.

"Thank you," Scott says as we gather our stuff and leave.

Thank the gods I don't have to spend one more minute in hell with Satan himself.

☾

"So, what's the plan for today?" Stiles asks as he follows me into my room, awkwardly shuffling in the doorway. Still weird about the girl's room, I guess. I drop my bag and jacket on the ground at the foot of my bed. Then, an idea pops into my head.

Smirking mischievously, I grab his hands and walk backward, pulling him with me until I hit the edge of my bed and fall backward, giggles erupting from my throat.

"I did not mean for that last part to happen," I chuckle, meeting his eyes as he gazes down at me with adoring eyes. "What?" I ask, moving to sit on my knees on the bed, draping my arms around his shoulders.

He shrugs a little, his hands spanning almost my entire waist as he holds it, tipping his face down to look at me properly. "Just admiring my amazingly beautiful girlfriend," he flirts, surprising me immensely. My face heats up at the compliment, chewing on the inside of my bottom lip before placing my lips upon his in a sweet kiss that lasts for a moment. I move back to sit with my back against the headboard, watching as Stiles follows suit.

He holds my hand between us as I lay my head on his shoulder, peaceful silence between us. After a while, Stiles breaks it. "What do you want to do when you graduate?" He asks in a whisper, nose in my hair and lips kissing my temple.

My cheeks flush, rolling my lips inward as I try to answer him, "Um, I don't know."

"You're lying. C'mon, I won't judge."

I shake my head stubbornly and before he can try to persuade me, I move to straddle his lap, cupping his cheeks and crashing my mouth onto his. The kiss is deep and passionate, open mouth and lips locking and his own hands cupping the sides of my face.

A moan leaves his lips, fire sparking in my blood by the little sound he makes. "Mmm," he hums. My hands move from his cheeks to curl around the back of his neck as the kiss grows more heated, with me dominating it. That's new for me, as I'd been more submissive and meek in almost everything in my previous relationship.

His hands leave my face, one sliding to the back of my head to tangle in my hair and the other dropping to my waist, holding me tightly against him. I press my chest against his, trying to get closer to him until there's no more room left between us.

I've only kissed one girl in my entire life and Stiles is the first male I've ever kissed, but I'd never reacted to Aurora's touch like this.

Desire flares up in me as we break the kiss to breathe, his lips moving to my jaw and neck, kissing my skin lightly, experimentally, timidly. How is he this good if he's never been with a girl before?

A breathy moan leaves my lips when his lips attach the skin below my ear, sucking on my sweet spot softly. "Stiles," I murmur, knowing I said I wanted to take this slow, and this, is not taking it slow. At least I don't think so. Ah, screw it. This is way too good to stop now and overthink it.

I take the hand that is on my waist and move it to the small of my back, dipping it under my sweater, feeling him detach his lips from my neck to look at me with wide eyes, our faces level with each other. "You can touch me, I don't mind," I whisper, feeling his slender fingers graze my skin. "When it's just us, like this, you don't have to ask to touch me." He nods mutely, hand slowly moving beneath my shirt to grasp the small of my back, his hands cold against my heated skin.

Giving me a brief kiss on my lips, he returns to my neck and travels to my clavicle, nose nudging the neck down slightly, kissing reverently, and it's enough to tease me, leave me wanting him to mark me. To claim me as his, like some primal part of me. My eyes roll to the back of my head, euphoria taking over me. I really don't want this to end, the feeling heady and intoxicating.

He nips at my clavicle, sucking the thin skin lightly enough to make a very small mark, trailing back up with barely-there kisses along the column of my throat and my fluttering pulse. I want nothing more than to spend the rest of the day like this, wrapped up in him, away from the world outside.

But then his phone goes off.

He removes his lips from my skin with a groan of annoyance, and I move off of him so he can get his phone from his pocket.

"Yeah, Scott?"

Scott? Gods, why does he have to be a cockblock?

For once, I can't hear what Scott says, the only thing I can hear is my blood rushing through my veins and my heart beating wildly as I lay on my back, trying to calm down.

Soon Stiles hangs up and gets off the bed. "We gotta pick up Scott from the clinic and we're going to the school," Stiles informs me, tossing me a black denim jacket that was lying on the back of my desk chair. I sit up and slide off the bed, confused.

"Why?" I ask, sliding my arms through the sleeves and fixing the collar.

"We're gonna find the Alpha."

☾

When we picked up Scott he told us what we were gonna do: lure out the Alpha. Terrible idea because I know Stiles told me that an Alpha is stronger than Scott, a newbie werewolf. I have a feeling this is not gonna end well, but I keep my mouth shut, fearful that I'll jinx it and something bad will happen.

We get to the school and Stiles haphazardly parks the jeep and I climb out after Scott, shutting the door quietly behind me.

"This is a terrible idea," Stiles declares as we behind the car, with me next to Scott.

"Yeah, I know," Scott agrees.

"But we're still gonna do it?" Stiles asks.

"Can you think of something better?" Scott counters.

Yeah, I can: we get the fuck out of here.

"Well, personally I'm a fan of ignoring a problem until eventually it just goes away," he says, moving his hand across to show the 'going away' part of his sentence.

"Just make sure we can get inside," Scott says.

Stiles gives me a glance before turning to open up the top window of the back and reaches inside for something. I turn my head to see the headlights of a familiar black Camaro.

"He's here," Scott tells us as Stiles pulls out a pair of bolt cutters and shuts the window.

"Where's my boss?" Scott asks as Derek climbs out.

"He's in the back," Derek answers. We all bend our backs a bit to look into the car, Stiles moving to stand beside me and I see a dark-skinned man in the back with duct tape on his mouth; Dr. Deaton. I remember him from when I found a cat a few months before I left for New York and Nessa took me to bring it to the clinic to get it checked out.

"Oh, he looks comfortable," Stiles quips sarcastically, taking my hand as we turn to head off to the school and enact this suicidal plan.

"Wait. Hey. What are you doing?" Derek questions, confused.

We stop to look back at him as Scott replies, "You said I was linked with the Alpha." Before we turn back around and continue walking towards the school. "I'm gonna see if you're right."

☾

The boys shine the flashlights they're holding as we walk into the main office, me going in first with them behind me.

"Okay, one question," Stiles asks Scott, following me around the corner of the counter. "What are you gonna do if the Alpha doesn't show up?"

"I don't know," Scott says honestly as Stiles and I stand behind the counter with Scott on the other side.

"And what are you gonna do if he does show up?" I ask, leaning my hands on the table as Stiles fiddles with the microphone that's used for overhead announcements.

"I don't know."

"Good plan," Stiles says sarcastically. I know it's not the time to say this but I find his sarcasm very attractive.

"All right. You said that a wolf howls to signal his position to the rest of the pack, right?"

"Right, but if you bring him here, does that make you part of his pack?"

"I hope not," Scott says quietly.

"Yeah, me too," Stiles and I agree in unison.

Stiles places the microphone in front of Scott and twists a button on the control thingy. "All right. All you."

Scott clears his throat and lets out a howl, which sounds more like a cat being choked to death. Or tortured. God this is both pathetic and hilarious at the same time. I have to bite the inside of my cheek to keep a laugh from escaping my mouth.

"Was that okay? I mean, that was a howl, right?" Scott asks nervously.

"Yeah, technically," Stiles answers vaguely.

"Well, what did it sound like to you?" Scott asks.

I decide not to beat around the bush and answer him honestly, "It sure as hell didn't sound like a wolf. It sounded like—"

"Like a cat being choked to death, Scott," Stiles finished.

"What do I do? How am I supposed to do this?" Scott panics.

"Hey, hey," Stiles placates him, moving to stand behind his best friend, taking his shoulders. "Listen to me. You're calling the Alpha. All right? Be a man. Be a werewolf, not a teen wolf. Be a werewolf. Do it."

"Okay. Okay."

Stiles backs away, watching Scott closely, waiting to see if his speech helped.

He presses the button on the microphone, his eyes glowing a golden color, and he lets out a howl. A real howl. It can probably alert the entire state of California with the way I can feel the floor lightly vibrating beneath my feet.

Now that is what I'm talking about!

☾

"I'm gonna kill you two," Derek snaps, pointing to the boys, one on each side of me, as we walk back to the jeep. "What the hell was that? What are you trying to do, attract the entire state to the school?"

"Sorry. I didn't know it would be that loud," Scott apologizes, a small smile on his lips. He totally isn't sorry.

"Yeah, it was loud. And it was awesome," Stiles says, voice a few octaves higher when he said 'awesome', throwing an arm around my shoulders and pulling me into his side. Alright, it was really awesome, seeing that happen.

"Shut up," Derek snaps.

"Don't be such a sourwolf," Stiles sasses him, causing me to let out a low snort.

"What'd you do with him?" Scott questions, looking at the Camaro.

"What?" Derek asks, confused as he turns around to look at the car. I look too and see that Deaton is gone. Oh, shit, this is not good. "I didn't do anything." He turns back around to us but he spits out blood, lifted in the air by the Alpha, the monster's claws embedded deep in Derek's back.

My eyes widen and a little scream leaves my lips, my hand flying up to my mouth to cover the sound. Oh, my Gods, this cannot be happening.

We turn around and run towards the school, trying to save ourselves. But only one thing really registers in my mind:

Derek Hale is dead.