♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ 

CHAPTER FIFTEEN; 15

        Scott was the one to bring the lacrosse team to state, and because of that, all of the praise was landed on him. People were screaming in his face about the victory, relieved that there was finally another player that knew how to play the sport that didn't have the last name Whittemore; Danny was accepting his apology, the boy having a bright heart that was rare in people these days; Allison was talking to him after the high school incident. Everything seemed as if it were good for once in his life since he was bitten. That is, of course, as long as you subtract a missing Stiles, Sage, and Derek— a small part of Scott believed they were all eaten by the Alpha — and the fact that Jackson Whittemore now wanted to become part canine, things were good. 

        Scott sighed and rubbed his eyes, starting to lift his deodorant up when the lights flickered off in the empty locker room. Immediately, out of the pure instinct that he had knowing darkness never meant security, his back arched in alertness. The werewolf's head whipped around, hair flying into his eyes when he heard a small bang as a lacrosse ball rolled on the floor, stopping when it hit one of the lockers.

        Cautiously, Scott took light footsteps over to where the showers were, his exhale getting caught in his throat as he realized there was anxiety building up in his chest at the very idea of something being there and jumping out at him. When the werewolf saw a familiar shaped figure standing in the darkness across from him, he was able to release the breath he was holding. Unlike the possibility of it being an actual murderer, it was only an alledged one. 

        "Where have you been? Do you have any idea what's been going on?" Scott shouted in Derek's face, his rage getting the better of him as he realized he had a lot of irritation towards the man for disappearing on him. 

        Derek didn't reply, his hands shoved deep into his pockets as his gaze moved past Scott's eyes to something hidden behind him. The attention behind directed around his shoulder was enough to turn him around, his body turning stiff when he saw a familiar blonde being held tightly in a man's arms. Sage looked absolutely horrific, like she'd just walked a mile after being hit by a car.  Her blonde hair was tangled and frizzy, clothes torn in certain areas while dark liquid stained the hoodie Scott realized belonged to Stiles. 

        Peter glanced down at the lacrosse stick he was holding in one arm, his lips curling in thought. "I never understood lacrosse."

        Sage didn't even bother moving, just tried to keep her stinging eyes on Scott instead of on the man behind him, knowing very well that if she even took a second glance at Derek then that betrayal would never be forgotten. The teenage girl had also been strictly warned by Peter that if she spoke he would, not so kindly, rip out her throat while Scott watched. Any thought of the man once caring about the blonde was discentagrated, and she was left exposed to everything.

        Scott swallowed the lump in his throat, realizing that all of the pieces in the playing field were beginning to fit together, and knew immediately why Peter Hale had become so important.  "It's you."

        "When I was in school we used to play basketball. There's a real sport," Peter explained, grinning as he looked down at the lacrosse stick. Sage was tempted to spit out that basketball got old in Beacon Hills when Luke tried out for lacrosse and stunned everyone into loving the sport, but she bit back the words. "Still, I read somewhere the lacrosse comes from Native American tribes and they played it to resolve conflict, if I read that right. I have a little conflict of my own, Scott, but I need your help to do it." 

        With no warning, Sage was shoved forward by Peter's careless hand, tripping her way into Scott while trying not to lose her balance and fall to the floor. His hands shot out hastily, gripping her waist as he held her to his chest, the two of them backing up and away from Peter. It was an instinctive nature to protect the girl that he has known his whole life, especially when Sage flinched as she saw the Alpha's piercing glare on her. 

        "I'm not helping you kill people," Scott deadpanned, tightening his hold on Sage.

        Peter rolled his eyes. "Well I don't want to kill all of them. Just the responsible ones; that doesn't  have to include—"

        He looked over at Derek for confirmation, to which the man opened his mouth. "Allison." 

        Scott turned around, completely taken back when he heard Derek speak about Allison. Sage squeezed her eyes shut, trying to ignore the simple thought that Derek was siding with the person that tried to kill him just an hour ago. The boy next to her might have had the slightest hint of hidden faith in the boy, but she knew that Peter was always able to manipulate the younger Hale— all that the alpha had to do was mention the fact that they had the same blood running through their veins.

        Scott seemed to be stuck right in the middle of two werewolves capable to ripping himself and the blonde to shreds in a matter of seconds, and yet he still found himself tempting Derek with a plea of question. "You're taking his side? Are you forgetting the part where he killed your sister? Or the part where he almost killed Sage?" 

        "It was a mistake," Derek disagreed, his eyes never once meeting Sage considering he knew that the moment he saw her green irises, the thoughts that were circulating in his head would be diminished when he realized that she would always be more of a family to him that Peter.  

        "What?" Scott exclaimed, baffled as he practically stumbled on the single world, completely astonished that the werewolf was honestly defending the same person that nearly killed his best friend and actually did kill his sister.

        Derek didn't even flinch. "It happens." 

        Sage leaned forward, taking a deep breath. All of the wounds inflicted from Derek had healed on her body, but the wounds she acquired herself from being thrown to the ground, shoved around by Peter on the way here, and most of the all the stinging in her right ankle which must have been from one of the boys at the game tonight, were what actually got to her.

        Peter caught her eye and frowned deeply when he realized that Scott wasn't going to agree to anything as long as the blonde was glued to his side. Questioning where he was going to stick her without a fear of her passing out, his ears perked up when he heard the small chatter of a boy fumbling with his keys outside. 

        "Sage, please leave," Peter announced, the politeness in his words never meeting the look on his face as his eyes narrowed on her face.  "This involves you no further." 

        Sage took the chance of her getting ripped apart, finally speaking for the first time since she arrived. "I'm not leaving him here alone with you two. No way in hell. You can shove the please up your ass and walk on out of here. Threaten me all you want, I'm not leaving Scott." 

        Peter's eyebrows raised. "Leave or he won't be the only one I kill. I believe you've made a few friends in this town, maybe even something more with a few others." 

        Sage stared for a few seconds, keeping a steady glare on Peter's face when finally she broke. The idea of risking everyone elses' lives wasn't something that she was ready to do, and she knew that if Scott were put in the same position, he would leave as well. The teenage girl reluctantly tore herself from Scott's grip, giving him a hard look of warning. Instead of walking through Peter's path, she walked over to Derek, grabbing a hold of his upper arm before she left. 

        "Just remember that if you hurt him, you hurt me. I don't play nice when someone tries to hurt my friends either, Derek. You of all people should know that," she threatened, bumping into his shoulder as she whipped open the door, walking out towards the parking lot. 

        Among the parking lot were crimson signs and fake lacrosse sticks from the game. The blonde was forced to kick her way through, and just as she did, she noticed that there was one other car present, one that was too striking to not belong to a Whittemore. She walked as quickly as she could with a small limp, making her way to the empty passenger's side of the car. Jackson was just sitting, his head on the steering wheel, completely oblivious that she was even there.

        Grabbing a hold of the car door, she pulled on it and sat down in the overly expensive car, adjusting her body until she was comfortable enough that she felt like she wasn't going to break. Then, Sage sat there for a few seconds, jaw still tightly clenched as she tried to get her emotions concealed long enough to figure out how to start a conversation with the boy next to her. 

        "Are you trying to kill me?" Jackson asked without raising his head.

        Sage snorted and crossed her arms over her chest, staring out the windshield, trying to imagine what they were talking about back inside. "I should be considering you were a total dick and broke up with Lydia over a fucking text, threatened Scott, and made a move on Allison even though you and I both know you don't even like her. Really, I should probably be trying to strangle you instead of just explaining why I want to." 

        Jackson sat up for the first time, looking at her with raised eyebrows. "So, why aren't you?" 

        "Because you might be a complete asshole, and I may hate your presence more than I enjoy it, but you don't really have any friends. Aside from Danny, which I still don't understand," Sage pressed, looking down at her nails to try and occupy her attention on something else.

        She could feel his eyes on her, most likely taking in her appearance. Any normal person would believe that someone more happened to her, and even more people would have opted on taking her to the hospital — again — to make sure she didn't have any broken bones or a concussion. However, Jackson wasn't normal and that meant that the first words were the only, and most inconsiderate, thing that crossed through his miniscule brain size.

        "Did someone run you over?" Jackson questioned, a straight line on his lips as his eyes scanned her from the bottom up. "Because, if they did, I would greatly appreciate it if you didn't bleed all over the leather."

        Sage looked over at him with tired eyes, not finding much humor in his question despite the fact of knowing that he was just messing around. "Almost got killed because of who I'm supposed to be."

        Jackson went to reply even though he didn't even know what to say back, but Sage's hand flew out in such a swift action that his eyes went wide. The blonde grabbed a hold of his arm in a single, hast movement, her muscles constricting as a deep exhale fell through her lungs when she felt a hot flash of pain rush through her body. The teenage boy leaned towards her, alarmed, watching as her eyes started to gaze off as though she weren't even aware of reality.

        He only began to hiss out when her nails started to puncture his skin, trying to pry her fingers off all while calling out her name. "Sage, what's going on? Sage! Is this a seizure? A panic attack? Sage, what in the hell is wrong?" 

        All of a sudden her grip loosened, and Sage turned her head to look over at the exit where Peter was leaving, casually wiping his hand off. That was when the blonde's hand shot up to her neck, noticing that warm liquid was sticking to her skin. It wasn't difficult to put two-and-two together that the alpha left with someone else's blood on his hands, but she wasn't experienced enough to know who. 

         Looking at Jackson, not sure how she was supposed to explain this, she whisked open the door, slamming it shut and leaning in through the window. "Go home, Jackson. I'll explain everything tomorrow. Just..." she glanced over again to see Derek dispersing. "... just go home."

        She jogged towards Derek after leaving Jackson there with a dumbfounded look on his face, trying to catch him before he disappeared. The werewolf must have heard her shoes pounding on the cement because his head tilted to look over, eyes glancing between the car backing out of the parking lot to the blonde running towards him. He didn't have a chance to speak when Sage rammed his body into the side of the school. 

        The first thing that came out of his mouth was Scott's health status. "We didn't hur—" 

        "I don't care!" Sage hissed, pushing him harder. Her eyesight was starting to grow hazy but she focused her attention more on the man in front of her. "Why are you trusting him? I don't care what he says about it all being an accident! I don't care, Derek. Why do you?" 

        Derek clenched his jaw, getting angrier the more she yelled at him. "Because he knows what happened to your family! He knows what you are, Sage. He knows!" 

        Sage looked at him, pursing her lips as she tried to hold herself together. She'd seen everything that Scott did when Peter clawed at his neck. She saw the memories that Peter shared, and she also saw the faces of the people she lost forever. She relived the memory of watching the house burn to the ground with her family inside, the smoke filling their lungs and ash coating their face like a second skin. Luke's blonde hair turning a dark black, her father's inability to move any further as he collapsed to the ground. Her entire familys' screams as they endured every ounce of pain the Hale family felt.

        She experienced everything over again, and now Scott knew everything too. "They died protecting everyone else. They— oh, my god."

        Sage collapsed, her knees giving out from under her as everything suddenly made sense. Derek caught her before she fell, both of them tumbling to the confetti-infested ground. Everything hit her at once— how this was the first real time she cried over the death of her family, how she spent six years not even acknowledging the realization that her family died with a purpose. Of course, there was the time at the hospital with Stiles but that was mostly her fear of losing Derek, not her discovery that her blood sacrificed their lives for the Hales, only to have all but Peter die. 

       It was all for nothing.

        "We need to go, Sage. We've got to go." 

       Sage nodded her head, allowing him to help lift her up off the ground. Just like that, she chose Derek over everyone else. Just like that, she realized that the only person who would understand the suffering inside of her heart would be the only person alive today that had to witness the atrocity that was a house burning with everyone they loved trapped inside. Just like that, she chose the best friend that she has betrayed, and that has betrayed her, because it was always going to be the two of them in the end. 

        Always.

        ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ 

        Sage tripped on a fallen tree branch, hissing out when she almost crashed into Lydia who was having the same troubles. The strawberry blonde and herself had been called by Allison to go shopping for the winter formal that was coming up, and despite the fact that the blonde had absolutely no enthusiasm about putting on a shit-ton of makeup and a dress, she agreed. However, she was still surprised when she heard that it was actually Lydia's plan to invite her, considering they had only spoken to each other when she was having a breakdown over her boyfriend.

        And, hypothetically speaking, that wasn't necessarily a bonding moment. To make matters worse, Sage couldn't help but think in the back of her mind that she had kissed both of their boyfriends. Well, technically, their ex-boyfriends, but the actual idea was still implied that she wasn't the best friend to have at the very moment even though both cases weren't necessarily all on her part.

        "Allison, when you said we were going on an errand before shopping, a hike in the wood? Not what I was expecting," Lydia announced with a deep exhale, speaking freely what Sage was thinking as well as she trudged along the forest floor.

         The strawberry-blonde almost stepped into a hole five seconds later, and Sage quickly grabbed a hold of her arm to pull her away before she broke her ankle. The two of them shared a look that clearly said Allison was losing her mind before continuing to move. Sage normally wouldn't protest to creepy walks in the woods, seeing as she lived with a werewolf, but there was a unsettling feeling she got when she glanced towards the big bag Allison was holding, resembling to a case that a bow and arrow would be in. 

        And Sage really, really hoped there was a pretty dress Allison needed to return to Macy's because the color washed out her complexion, not a weapon that could kill Scott, Derek, and quite possibly, herself.

        "Not that I'm complaining about cardio or anything, but what exactly are we doing out here?" the blonde asked, looking around the forest. The last thing she wanted to happen was for Peter to come out and chomp Allison and Lydia's heads off.

        Instead of answering Sage, Allison completely blew the girl off and stopped so that she could face Lydia. "Before I forget, Lydia, I need to ask you something. Jackson asked me to the winter formal." 

        "Did he?" Lydia inquired, her voice raising an octave.

        Sage pursed her lips, wondering where Allison was going with all of this. She didn't see a single part of this conversation ending well considering she knew from a literal eye-contant-experience just how torn up the teenage girl was about her break up with Jackson. Lydia's hand wrapped around her wrist, and Sage glanced over to see that the girl's eyes were just as deceiving as her voice, hurt washing in them. 

        Allison nodded, barely aware of how agonizing it was for her friend to hear that she was going to be going to formal with the lacrosse player. "Just as friends, but I wanted to make sure that you're okay with it first." 

        "Sure!" Lydia feigned enthusiasm, but the nails digging into Sage's skin told a different story. "As long as it's just friends."

        Allison let out a small laugh. "Yeah, I mean it's not like I'd take him into the Coach's office during lacrosse practice to make out with him or anything." 

        Sage cringed, realizing Allison found out about the whole thing. Lydia noticed her hesitation and gaped. She mouthed a simple, "Did you?" to which Sage nodded. Lydia pursed her lips before looking back to Allison. Sage didn't understand why Allison had to put Lydia on blast when she didn't do anything wrong. Technically, Sage didn't mean to do anything either. She still blames Jackson. 

        The trio continued to walk in silence, tension in the air as Sage tried to figure out Allison's motives. She had been so deep in thought that she just barely missed ramming into Allison. Lydia was quick to grab her arm, pulling her back before she touched the brunette. Sage felt like if they had collided, Allison would have stuck the arrow she was getting out of the bag into her face.

        Repeatedly. 

        Guess it's not a dress. 

        "What does that do?" Lydia asked, coming to stand next to Allison as she inspected what the brunette was holding in her hand, the curiousity of her brain getting to the best of her as she quirked an eyebrow in suspicion. 

        Sage stayed back, leaning against one of the trees. She already knew what Allison had in her hands, it was one of the flash grenade arrows that Argent uses all the time. The only time that the blonde has heard about them was from Derek and Scott, knowing that her best friend had been associated with them enough times.

        "We're about to find out," Allison said, standing up and getting her bow positioned correctly.

        Sage took a deep breath, nervously fidgeting with her fingers. She really hoped Allison would miss, although that seemed almost impossible considering she's living in a house full of hunters. There wasn't a single doubt in her mind that her father and mother raised her into learning something that could be considered a lethal sport when she grew older and matured— apparently, archery had been that lethal sport. 

        The arrow flew through the air and hit it's target, a tree a few feet away. Almost immediately, the thing exploded, sparks bright enough to blind the heightened senses of a werewolf. Sage stepped forward, moving to stand next to Lydia as her eyes narrowed on the defusing electricity. Allison had yet to turn and face them, making the blonde even more wary of this whole situation. If she found out about werewolves, everything would fall apart. 

        "What the hell was that?" Lydia choked out, her eyes widening; the strawberry-blonde was the most affected by the entire thing, never in her life been so close to a weapon while the two girls next to her literally grew up in houses of death and destruction.

        "I don't know."

        Lydia clacked her teeth together, walking towards Allison, tugging Sage along with her. "Well, that was fun. Any more lethal weapons you want to try out?"

         Lydia's sarcastic remark was ended shortly after there was a crackling of leaves in the distance. Sage narrowed her eyes, a protective demeanor washing over her as she stood in front of Lydia, partially holding out a hand in front of Allison. Even if the brunette knew how to shoot an arrow, it wouldn't hold back a werewolf if they jumped in such close contact.

        Allison looked between the two before handing the bow over to Lydia. "Hold this." 

        "What? Why?" Lydia grew more alarmed, especially since she had a weapon she didn't know how to use in her hands. Sage watched as Allison began to take off the glove that helped her aim properly.

        "Because I thought I heard something."

        Sage raised her eyebrows. "So, what if you heard something?"

        Although they clearly weren't on good terms, she was still worried about her friend's safety. 

        "So I want to find out what that something is. Don't worry, it's probably nothing," Allison reassured, although she didn't seem very sincere about it.

        Sage went to step forward to walk with her but Lydia quickly yelped, making Sage scowl in defeat. Allison had a better chance than Lydia did, even when the strawberry-blonde was holding the bow. She looked back to see that the bow was lying flat on it's side, Lydia's fingers not even curling around it. Okay, she was kind of holding it. The point still came across that their friend was practically incapable of protecting herself even with a weapon in her hands.

        "What if nothing is something and that something is dangerous?" Lydia rushed, her nerves getting the best of her. Sage turned around to completely face the girl, already knowing what Allison's response would be.

        Grabbing the bow from Lydia, Sage held it tightly in her hands while Allison started to trail through the forest alone, her final words directed to Lydia's last exclaim. "Shoot it." 

        Lydia whimpered while Sage looked up at the sky, muttering cuss words left and right as she evaluated all the possible scenarios that could take place in a matter of seconds.

        Deciding her first problem started with the frightened, confused, teenage girl standing beside her, she gave Lydia a reassuring smile. "Lydia, everything will be alright. If something does come, don't worry. I know how to shoot." 

        Lydia gaped in shock. "You know how to shoot an arrow? Were you in a military camp while you were gone?" 

        "Something like that."

        ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ 

        "What's wrong?" 

        "We have a serious problem." 

        Sage hopped into the passenger seat of Stiles' jeep, barely having time to close the door before he drove away from Lydia Martin's house. Her body went flying forward, arm gripping the dashboard to keep from flying out the windshield. It was an odd sense of Déjà Vu back to the night he abruptly stopped the car rather than starting it, the same time that she practically revealed what her abilities were. The blonde frowned over at Stiles, wondering what all of this anxiety was about as she put on her seat belt before she died. 

        "What's the problem? Why did you send me that text?" she asked.

        The teenage girl got a text only a few minutes ago, Stiles stressing that he may have found something important out about what Peter's purpose was when it came to all of the people he murdered. Although, it was in the words 'Problem: Derek's uncle killed the people for a reason,' rather than her much less vague description.

        "As important as that is right now, it's not our biggest problem," Stiles said, gripping the steering wheel tighter as he quickly swirved onto another street, completely oblivious to the fact that he just ignored the red stop sign.

        Sage gaped at him. "How in the holy hell is that not our biggest problem?" 

        "Because Peter is on a date with Melissa." 

        "You're kidding me," Sage denied, her eyes widening. "Please tell me you're kidding." Stiles shook his head and Sage felt like she was going to throw up. "Okay, just... just drive around until you see them. I know what Peter's car looks like." 

        They did just that, and it felt like they were going on a wild goose chase trying to find one particular car in all of Beacon Hills. Sage was growing even more nauseous as she tried to think of all the things Peter could be doing to Melissa. She wasn't going to let him hurt her. She couldn't lose Melissa, and she definitely couldn't let Scott lose her. 

        "There! Stiles, there!" Sage exclaimed, pointing towards the car that was pulled over on the side of the street. Her hand went out by instinct and she hit Stiles' arm with her palm, completely used to Derek being able to take her hits. He groaned in pain, using one arm to hold the spot she slapped. "Sorry." 

        "What do we do? Do we just— I'm just going — Hold on," Stiles jumbled together before running his car into the back of Peter's, both of them being thrown forward, seat belts catching them.

        Sage moaned, pressing the eject button it so her circulation wasn't being cut off from her waist. Stiles did the same, both of them glancing up when they saw Melissa slam the car door, clearly pissed off. 

        "Are you kidding me?!" she shouted. Looking over, she saw the familiar jeep and more importantly the familiar teenagers inside. "Stiles! Sage!" 

        "Ms. McCall?" Stiles asked, getting out of the car first. Sage took her time, hoping that maybe if she waited long enough Melissa would be less harsh on her. Melissa's eyes met her's and she immediately that wasn't the case. 

        "Oh wow! That's crazy! What a coincidence!" Sage's voice got higher, and she knew that Melissa could tell it was a lie. She saw Peter glance at her and she couldn't help but smirk knowing he lost. Scott had to be around somewhere. 

        "I mean- I don't know what happened. You guys just came out of nowhere," Stiles continued on with the lie, dramatically raising his hands. Sage wrapped her arms around herself, trying to protect herself from the rain as it started to come heavier. 

        Melissa laughed in astonishment. "Came out of nowhere? We were parked on the side of the road, Stiles!" 

        "How crazy is that, right? I mean, we should probably call the cops, do like one of those accident report things," Sage opted, walking closer to Stiles as their sides bumped against each other. 

        "I don't think that's necessary," Peter replied, challenging Sage. She watched as his eyes traveled around, no doubt looking for Scott. Stiles frowned, looking over at Sage before pulling her into his chest. 

        "Are you sure? I think Sage is feeling a little whiplash," Stiles pressed a hand to her head, further acting on the situation. 

        Melissa grew even more enraged by them. "Whiplash?! You hit us! What are you two even doing out tonight?" 

        Sage spluttered out the first thing that popped into her head. "We're on a date." 

        "You're on a date?" 

        "We're on a date," Stiles agreed, laughing lightly as he pulled her even closer to him.

        Melissa sighed, rubbing her face. "Go home you two." 

        ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐

        Stiles pulled on his shirt, running his hands through his wet hair as he threw his towel on the rack. Just a few hours ago he'd dropped Sage off at the hospital with Melissa since Scott's mom decided to punish them for ruining her date. All of them already knew Sage didn't have whiplash, and Stiles figured Sage was probably yelled at by Melissa. He went to throw his body on the bed when a doorbell rang, creating a loud groan from his mouth. Stiles figured it was probably just his dad needed to get into the house after forgetting his keys. 

        Walking sluggishly down the stairs, Stiles almost tripped but caught hold of the railing before he went tumbling. The door bell rang again, making Stiles move a bit faster. "I'm coming, I'm coming."

        He unlocked the door, swung the door open, only to see that it wasn't his dad standing in the front door. 

        A blonde girl was standing there, leaning her body on the side of the door frame, cringing as she gripped the side of her body. Stiles saw that there was blood staining the shirt she was wearing, new blood, and his eyes widened. Overall, she looked like a completely different person that who he had seen just a few hours previous to this current event. 

        Looking up, Stiles saw tears in her eyes.  "I had nowhere else to go." 

♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐ ♐