"You were kidding, right?" Stiles exclaimed over the phone as he continued to drive down the dark streets of Beacon Hills. Night had quickly taken over and we still had no idea what we were supposed to do. Driving around in circles waiting for Scott to finally do something useful was incredibly pointless. "What am I supposed to do with him?" Stiles exclaimed as if Derek and I weren't in the car with him.

"Take him somewhere. Anywhere!" I heard Scott exclaim on the other end.

Stiles glanced at Derek his nose scrunching up in disgust. "And by the way, he's starting to smell."

"Like what?"

"Like death." Stiles replied so bluntly that I hit him in the back of the head. I hated his words mostly because they were true. My brother was starting to smell like death, the infected skin surrounding the wound was quickly starting to smell like the decaying flesh of a corpse. "Ahhh.....what the hell is wrong with you."

"Stop being an idiot." I exclaimed, the thought of Derek dying was starting to put me on edge. Without him I had no one, and I didn't know if I had the ability of being on my own. The thought was terrifying and it was causing my heart to begin beating unusually fast in my chest.

"Okay. Take him to the animal clinic." Scott suggested and I rolled my eyes at the irony.

"What about your boss?"

"He's gone by now. There's a spare key in the box behind the dumpster."

"You're not gonna believe where he's telling me to take you." Stiles mumbled as he handed the phone over to Derek who didn't seem pleased about what he was probably also hearing.

"Did you find it?" My brother asked Scott in annoyance.

"How am I supposed to find one bullet? They have a million! This house is Iike the freaking Walmart of guns!" I heard Scott yell in frustration. It was still dificult for me to accept the fact that Allison was an Argent only because after spending some time with her I actually did enjoy the idea of her being my friend. Hearing Scott say that her house was filled with weapons designed to kill me and my brother was a quick reminder that she was my enemy.  

"If you don't find it, then I'm dead, all right?" Derek reminded him.

"I'm starting to think that wouldn't be such a bad thing."

"Then think about this. The AIpha called you out against your will. He's gonna do it again. Next time, you either kill with him or you get killed." Derek replied through gritted teeth. "So if you want to stay alive, then you need me. Find the bullet."

Derek tossed the phone back to Stiles who groaned as he continued his drive towards to animal clinic. The whole ride was quiet until we got to the animal clinic as Stiles and I helped Derek letting him fall on sacs of dog food on the outside of the building. A few minutes later Stiles got a text from Scott as he looked back up at us in annoyance. "Does Northern blue monkshood mean anything to you?"

"It's a rare form of wolfsbane." My brother managed to inform. "He has to bring me the bullet."

"Why?"

"Because he's going to die without it." I replied causing Stiles' eyes to widen before quickly texting a reply back to Scott.

It wasn't long before we arrived to the animal clinic, and although Stiles attempted to help me carry Derek inside he quickly realized that he was useless. With my strength I didn't need his help, but considering that I was dealing with my own pain it wasn't as easy as it would have normally been. 

As Derek lay there unconscious I had this tight feeling in my chest that wouldn't go away. It was like it was becoming more difficult to breath with every passing second. I couldn't be sure if it was a result of Derek's condition or if it was something that I was experiencing on my own. "I need some air." I stated before I got up and went around the corner of the building, I put my back against the wall as I slowly slid down trying to hold back me tears. Since the fire I had never felt so hopeless and unable to help someone that I loved.

"He's going to be okay." I looked up to find Stiles standing in front of me.

"You just don't understand he's all I have left." I replied before Stiles sat down beside me, and I suddenly felt sadness come over him. It was an emotion that I had never felt from him before.

"Actually I do. My mom...died, my dad is all I have left too." Stiles told me causing me look up into his brown eyes.

"I'm sorry...I didn't know." I told him as I brushed my hair out of my face. Oddly I really did feel sorry for him finding it unfair of me to assume that he had a perfect life. The truth was that I knew nothing about Stiles Stilinski and Scott McCall and maybe my lack in effort in trying to get to know them was the reason the they had antagonized my brother and I. 

"Well, you had it worse." He said with a small smile playing on his lips. "I mean you had to grow up with Derek."

I let out a small laugh at his comment as I wiped away a stray tear. "What?" I asked when I noticed Stiles staring at me.

"It's just...that I've never seen you laugh before." He stated, I really didn't have time to reply as a small wave of pain came over me. Getting I hold of my arm I felt a wave of pain through my chest. "Hey...you okay."

"I can feel him dying." I told him before I covered my face with my hands to keep him from seeing me cry, the last thing I needed was to look weak in front of someone like Stiles. Stiles reached out to touch my shoulder but I shrugged his hand away.

"Will you just let me comfort you?" He said but it wasn't a question as he pulled me towards him, wrapping his arms around me. My first instinct was to push him back but I couldn't deny the fact that this was something I needed. The last hug I ever got was the one Laura gave me before she left, promising that she would come back. But she never did. I found myself wrapping my arms around his torso as I buried my face in his chest not holding back any tears. I felt Stiles become stiff before he ran his hand through my hair.

"Alexis." I heard Derek's voice come from he other room causing me to pull away from Stiles to stand up. Quickly running towards him I helped him off the floor, Stiles also came running as he led us into the room where I could only assume Scott's boss performed surgery on all the pets that went through this building

"You know that doesn't look like anything some Echinacea and a good night of sleep couldn't take care of." Stiles commented as he took another quick glimpse of Derek's would as I helped him out of his jacket. At this point I didn't even have the energy to Stiles for his sarcastic comment. 

"When the infection reaches my heart, it's kill me." Derek began to say looking though the shelves of the clinic.

"Positivity just isn't in your vocabulary is it?" Stiles commented in annoyance.

"If he doesn't get here with the bullet in time I have a last resort." My brother continued tying a rubber band around his bicep.

"Which is?" I asked in confusion as he pulled out a hand saw from one of the drawers.

"Stiles is going to cut of my arm." He replied placing the saw in Stiles' hand. I looked over at Stiles who looked as horrified as I probably did. In fact Stiles looked like he was moments away from passing out, which I couldn't blame him for looking sick at the thought of cutting my brother's arm off. 

"Ugh!" Stiles replied with a look of disgust on his face. "Look, I don't know if I can do this."

Derek truly looked confused at his response as if he wasn't asking Stiles to do something abosluelty horrifying. "Why not?"

"Well, because of the cutting through the flesh, the sawing of the bone, and especially the blood!" Stiles continued to ramble with his usual sense of sarcasm.

"You faint at the sight of blood?" Derek yelled in disbelief.

"No. But I might at the sight of a chopped-off arm!" Stiles exclaimed raising his voice even louder.

Derek gripped the edge of the table as he sighed in frustration. "AII right, fine. How about this? Either you cut off my arm, or I'm gonna cut off your head."

I rolled my eyes at my brothers ability to be so incredibly ungrateful in a situation like this. "Derek stop it."

"Okay, you know, I'm so not buying your threats anymore." Stiles replied before Derek pulled the color of his  t-shirt. "Oh my God!"

"Derek!" I exclaimed grabbing a hold of his wrist forcing him to let go of Stiles. As much as he did annoy me I didn't want to see him dead either. And after everything Stiles had done today I couldn't help but feel the slightest bit grateful. 

"Okay. AII right, bought, sold, totally, I'II do it. I'II do it." Stiles began to ramble until Derek suddenly bent over holding on his stomach.

"Derek?" I questioned taking a couple steps closer to him until he threw up all over the floor.

"Holy God!" Stiles exclaimed covering his mouth with his hand at the sight of the block vomit that now covered the floor. "What the hell is that?"

"It's his body, it is trying to heal itself." I replied as I rushed to Derek's side helping him stand up straight before he decided it was a good time to pass out in his own vomit. 

"Well, it's not doing a very good job of it." Stiles commented with a look of disgust on his face.

"Now, you gotta do it now." My brother said clearly trying to suppress his groans of pain.

"Look, honestly, I don't think I can." Stiles mumbled as he looked as me with pleading eyes, but I was frozen in place trying to process everything that was going on.

"Just do it!" Derek orders as he stretched his arm out on the aluminum table.

"Oh, my God. Okay. Oh, my God. AII right, here we go!" Stiles yelled as he turned on the saw and lifted it just above Derek's arm.

"Stiles? Alexis?" Scott's voice echoed in the room and we all froze at the sound of his voice.

"Scott?" The three of us sighed in relief when we saw him in the doorway. I never would have thought that I would be happy to see Scott McCall, but here I was actually smiling in relief at the sight of him suddenly feeling a little hopeful. 

"What the hell are you doing?" He asked as he looked at the three of us and then the handsaw in Stiles' hand in confusion.

Stiles chuckled as he put the saw down on the table. "Oh, you just prevented a Iifetime of nightmares."

"Did you get it?" Derek asked and Scott nodded before handing him the bullet.

"What are you gonna do with it?" Scott asked with uncertainty.

"I'm gonna..." Before he had a chance to respond he collapsed on the floor. The bullet slipped out of his hand and fell into the drain.

"Derek? Derek, come on. Wake up!" I exclaimed as Scott scrambled to retrieve the bullet from the drain.

"Scott, what the hell are we gonna do?" Stiles asked in a panicked tone as the both of us scrambled to the floor towards my brother.

"I don't know! I can't reach it."

"He's not waking up! I think he's dying. I think he's dead." Stiles exclaimed as he felt for Derek's pulse.

"He's not dead!" I yelled as I tried to get closer to my brother but Stiles held me back.

"You aren't thinking straight." He told me and I nodded as I felt all my nerves on edge.

"Just hold on! Come on." Scott said mostly to himself as he continued trying to reach for the bullet. "Oh! I got it! I got it!"

"PIease don't kill me for this!" Stiles murmered as he punched Derek in the face causing my brother to jump to his feet. "Ugh! Ow! God!"

"Are you okay?" I asked Stiles as he held onto his wrist. Considering that he just slapped a werewolf in the face it was very possible that he could have broken or at the very least sprained his hand. 

"Yeah I'm good." He replied clearly still in pain but I turned my attention back to Derek who was stumbling his way towards the counter.

"Give me that." My brother ordered as he ripped the bullet out of Scotts hand. Using his mouth as his good arm Derek opened the bullet spilling the purple contents onto the counter. Wasting no time Derek put the purple power on his own wound and like magic it seemed to burn away all the wolfsbane running through his veins.

"That was awesome!" Stiles yelled in excitement. "Yes!"

I looked at Stiles in shock before I looked back at Derek who was still hunched over in pain but at least he was no longer being poisoned. "Are you okay?"

"Except for the agonizing pain?" He replied and I glared at him in annoyance all my worry melting away.

"I'm guessing the ability to use sarcasm is a good sign of health." Stiles

"Okay, we saved your Iife, which means you're gonna Ieave us alone. The both of you. You got that?" Scott exclaimed as he looked at Derek and I. Truly I couldn't blame him for wanting to stay away from us, but the reality was that considering the situation we were in it simply wasn't possible. "And if you don't, I'm gonna go back to Allison's dad, and I'm gonna tell him everything."

Hearing Scott side with the hunters that wanted us dead caused my blood to boil. In an instant all the gratitude I felt for him vanished and was replaced with the usual annoyance I felt for him.

"You gonna trust them?" Derek asked with irritation as he took a couple step closer to Scott in an attempt to intimidate him. "You think they can help you?"

"Why not? They're a Iot freaking nicer than you are!"

"Yeah, I can show you exactly how nice they are."

"What do you mean?" Scott asked, I looked at Derek in confusion and he nodded to the side. I walked over with him to the other side of the room and waited expectantly.

"I'm going to take him to Uncle Peter." He told me and I only nodded. I never liked Uncle Peter but what the Argents did to him and our family was unforgivable.

"Do you really think that's going to get him on our side?" I asked knowing how hung up he was with Allison that he would see right past the horrible things that the Argents were capable of.

"He has to, he's one of us." Derek assured confidently. I wasn't sure if he was being optimistic or he was simply too stubborn to realize that Scott was just as stubborn as he was. Of course I wanted to believe that Scott would finally see some sense and not only take his new abilities seriously but that he would also finally stay away from the Argents.

But I was never much of an optimist.