SIDELINES

____________

STILES AND SCOTT sit on the first step to the small staircase, other students maneuvering around them as they converse. Emery hovers behind the two with an unimpressed look on her face, her fingers playing with the laces of her boots as she listens.

"I'm sorry about the other day," Stiles expresses, moving his hands around for effect. "I'm trying. We'll get through this. I know because I love you. I love you more than— oh my God!" He cuts himself off abruptly, causing Emery to let out an amused laugh. "I can't— you and Allison just have to find a better way to communicate!"

"Come on!" Scott exclaims desperately. "You're the only one that we can trust," he spins the upper half of his body to Emery, "and you." The girl smiles slightly. Then he focuses on Stiles again. "Is she coming to the game tonight?"

"Yes, okay? Message complete." The human boy glances at their surroundings, gently nudging Scott with his elbow. "Okay, now tell us about your boss," Stiles demands in a lower tone.

"Uh, he thinks that Allison's family keeps some kind of records of all the things that they've hunted. Like a book."

Stiles claps his palms together. "He probably means a Bestiary."

Emery and Scott each give him an odd expression, the girl's face resting against her fists as she raises a brow. "A what?"

"A bestiary," Stiles repeats.

Scott chuckles with a childish grin. "I think you mean bestiality."

"Nope, pretty sure I don't." Stiles asserts, clearly irritated by his best friend's response. "It's like an encyclopedia of mythical creatures."

"Yeah, whatever it is, I wouldn't read it," Emery remarks nonchalantly.

Scott gapes slightly. "How am I the only one that doesn't seem to know anything about this stuff?"

"Okay, you know, you're my best friends," he points to both Scott and Emery. "You're a creature of the night, and you're an evil sorceress— it's kind of like a priority of mine."

"I'm not evil—?"

"Okay," the werewolf nods dismissively. "If we can find it, and it can tell us what this thing is—"

"And who," Stiles adds.

Then, they breathe out heavily, simultaneously saying, "We need that book."

Emery's eyes widen at the disturbing overlap of their voices, and they give each other a blank yet unsettled stare before gathering their belongings. They stand from the steps and walk up the staircase.

Eventually, Stiles parts ways with Scott and Emery in order to find Allison. They've decided to organize a plan to get the bestiary from their principal, but they need the brunette's assistance. Even if it's reluctant.

"Are you coming to the game?" Scott asks Emery as they reach the secondary floor, still waiting for Stiles to come back with information.

"Uh, maybe," she replies shortly.

"Maybe? We could really use your help finding the bestiary. Plus, you make a decent cheerleader," Scott jokes, earning a half-hearted smile from the witch.

Emery hesitates, adjusting the strap of her bag on her shoulder. "I don't know, Scott. I never really go to lacrosse games unless—"

"Isaac's playing," he finishes for her.

"Yeah." She tilts her head slightly, pressing her lips in a tight line. When she notices how the boy appears to be disappointed by her statement, Emery sighs. "I'll let you know if I can make it."

Scott's face lights up immediately, placing a hand on her shoulder with a reassuring nod as though to thank her. "All right," the werewolf smiles. "See you later, Em."

"Mhm," she hums. "Good luck with Stiles."

____________

Emery can already feel the regret sinking into her bones as she sits beside Melissa McCall, Scott's mother, on the bleachers of the lacrosse field. Her hands are uncovered, though the rest of her skin is wrapped in her regular clothes and a light winter coat around her shoulders.

Emery braided a few strands of her hair to form two pieces, tying them together at the back of her head. She regrets this, though, because now her ears are practically frozen. The cold air brushes against her skin, making her cheeks flush a light pink shade as her lips part. "I think I have frostbite," she huffs.

Melissa grins at the girl, until it is replaced by a grimace as the medics carry out a player on a gurney. He groans painfully, muttering something along the lines of, "I can't feel my legs."

Then, another boy on the team meets Emery and Melissa's sides, though he stays standing by the bleachers instead of sitting. He has light brown hair and cobalt eyes, a strap dangling over his left collarbone as he holds a camera.

"He belong to you?" the boy asks Melissa, pointing in the direction of the injured player.

"No, mine is still on the field." Melissa tells him with a slight smile, "While I'm here, really wishing that he would've stuck with tennis."

The dark-haired girl looks at the boy with knitted brows. He raises the lens to his eye and snaps several images, glancing at the outcome before watching the game again. Something about him gives Emery an eerie twinge in her gut.

"What's your name?" Emery questions, leaning over slightly.

"Matt." He extends one palm to shake her hand, and an uncomfortable feeling runs through Emery's spine at the touch. She retracts her arm within seconds, and he gives her a strange expression. The feeling continues to gnaw at her when he stays a moment longer.

Melissa notices the camera, seemingly trying to make more conversation. "Are you the yearbook photographer?"

"No, I just take pictures," he replies shortly.

"Just lacrosse or other things?"

Matt chuckles, clicking through the buttons on his camera. "Anything that catches my eye." Then, he walks away without another word, leaving Melissa and Emery to watch the field.

However, much to their dismay, Beacon Hills appears to be losing because of the other team's player. "The Abomination," is what he's supposedly called. Emery cringes when he knocks over yet another person.

She averts her gaze to the bench of players, where Coach is currently holding up two fingers to Danny's face. The boy cups an ice pack to his forehead, eyes wide as he tries to focus. Then, Danny is pushed off the bench by Coach and into the next round.

"You're still short one player, Coach!"

The man grunts angrily. "Where's Stilinski?" he exclaims, repeating himself once more. Emery searches for the boy, only to find him nowhere in sight. Allison must've gotten the keys from her grandfather.

Finstock whips around and scans the crowd with his pointer finger. He pauses at the other set of bleachers, and Emery twists her neck to find Erica and Boyd sitting towards the back rows. "You!" Coach calls out in a desperate tone. "You play lacrosse?"

Boyd smirks, beginning to stand until Erica grabs his forearm. The blonde gives him a disapproving stare as she speaks, but he simply ignores her words. Boyd rises from his seat and shrugs off his leather jacket, showing off his muscular frame to the rest of the crowd.

"Oh, ho-ho-ho-ho-ho!" Coach laughs maniacally, receiving an entertained cheer from the students. "We got ourselves a player!"

Within minutes, Boyd is on the field in a lacrosse jersey with a stick in hand, leaving Erica by herself. The witch peers at the blonde over her shoulder, biting the inside of her cheek as she turns to Melissa, whose attention is focused on her son. "Hey, I'll be right back."

Emery stands from her row and makes her way to the other set, apologizing to people as she climbs over them and towards Erica. The beta watches her in confusion. "What're you doing?"

"I need to talk to you," Emery answers.

Erica exhales, her breath being visible in the air. Her eyes flicker between Emery and the exit to the bleachers. "Now's really not a good time—"

"I just need to know if he's okay." Erica pauses, shifting her body to face Emery while her features soften slightly. Neither of them needs clarification to know who Emery is talking about. "I haven't seen him since the full moon, and he hasn't called—"

"He's okay," Erica says. The weight in Emery's chest is lighter— much lighter, and relief washes over her in an instant. A smile tugs her lips. "He's still talking about you, you know. He keeps asking Derek when he can see you again."

Emery beams, and Erica mirrors her expression in a gentle manner. "Thank you."

Erica nods reassuringly, placing a hand over Emery's for a moment. Then, she straightens. "I have to go. But I can tell him you said hi, okay?" The witch agrees, and Erica stomps down the bleachers and disappears.

The whistle blows when Boyd manages to knock the Abomination to the grass, preventing him from scoring another point for the opposing team. The referee blows the whistle, raising an arm above his head. The crowd leaps up from their seats, including Emery, and they cry out excitedly.

"Let's go, Boyd!" Emery shouts, using her palms to echo her words over the overlapping voices.

"The bigger they are...!" Coach yells, pumping his fist repeatedly. "The bigger... they... are!"

The rest of the Beacon Hills Cyclones gather in a group, jumping up and down with pride. Scott and Jackson gape at Boyd, who removes his helmet with a wide smirk. His eyes burn amber, suddenly causing Emery's joy to fade.

"Oh, that's not good."

During the next match, Scott hastily approaches Boyd and grabs his shoulder. The beta shakes his hand off and pushes past him, dashing forward to achieve the ball. Scott is persistent, though, and he catches up to Boyd with ease.

"Get it to McCall!" Coach demands, advising his players from the sidelines. "Get it to McCall!"

Scott manages to swipe the ball into the net of his lacrosse stick, rushing towards the goal. His classmates encourage him from the stands as he swiftly avoids the other team's defenses, successfully throwing the ball into the goal and scoring the winning point.

Coach falls to his knees with his arms raised above his head in triumph, until the Abomination slams his body into Scott's shoulder. The applause ceases, replaced by gasps of shock when the boy's leg twists as he collapses to the field. Emery can practically hear his bones shattering within his skin.

"Scott!" she cries out, shoving past the rows in front of her and sprinting across the field.

Allison is the first to reach Scott, kneeling down beside him as she holds his head up. His groans of agony sound through the air as he writhes on the grass. The rest of Beacon Hills' team hurries towards them, along with Melissa and Coach.

Meanwhile, Loma Alta's team congratulates their player by chest bumping, showing no remorse for the injury inflicted upon Scott. Emery scoffs at their arrogance, stalking over to him with an enraged expression.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" she yells, thrusting her palms against his shoulders. The dark-haired girl points to her friend, "You think that's fair?"

The teenage boy merely shrugs. "Seems fair to me," he chuckles smugly.

Emery musters all of the self-restraint in her body to resist the urge to shove him again, instead averting her attention to Scott. She meets Allison's side on the ground, the two sharing a knowing look as they help him up. His leg has already started to heal.

"Don't move!" Coach instructs, stumbling in confusion as Scott straightens his frame. "Woah, woah—"

"Scott!" Melissa hurries to her son.

"It's okay, it's okay," Scott assures them, using Emery and Allison as his crutches while he balances his weight. He laughs nervously when Principal Argent appears at the front of the circle. "I'm fine— I'm fine."

"I could've sworn I literally heard bone breaking from where I sat," Melissa insists, her eyes glued to the boy's limping leg.

"Heard it? I felt it," Coach puts forth.

The people surrounding them are dumbfounded, evidently perplexed by Scott's remarkable ability to recover from the collision. "Seriously, guys, I'm fine."

Allison releases his arm quickly, saying to her grandfather, "We should go."

"Hold on," he tells her. Then, Gerard looks to Scott. "I wanna ask him one more thing."

"Oh, shit," Emery whispers, slightly turning to look at Scott's terrified expression beneath his helmet. "Are you alright?" The boy inclines his chin, muffling another groan of pain by biting his lower lip. Emery rolls her eyes at his previous statement, "Yeah, sure."

"Ah, let him rest for a minute." Gerard suggests, waving a hand in the direction of the bleachers. "I can wait."

So, Allison and Emery duck under his arms and lead him to the bench. The group of lacrosse players disperse, though "The Abomination" continues to glare at the witch and her friends. She briefly holds up her fist, her middle finger remaining straight as they walk away.

When they set Scott down on the seat, allowing him to rest his aching muscles, Emery pulls Allison aside. "Do you think your grandfather knows?" she inquires.

"No, I don't think so," Allison shakes her head, breathing heavily. She glances past Emery's shoulder at Gerard. "Stiles couldn't find the book. It isn't here."

Emery sighs, shutting her eyelids tightly. Then, they snap open in realization, and she looks around the field. "Wait, where is Stiles?"

"He never came back from the school," Allison notes. Scott removes his helmet and gloves, a worried expression displayed on his face.

"I can go look for him," Emery offers. Scott gives her a thankful nod, massaging his calf with pressure. "Okay, I'll call you guys if I find him."

____________

Nearly an hour later, Emery has yet to find Stiles. She wanders the building aimlessly, using the camera flash on her cellphone as a source of light. She had found the Argent's keys still stuck inside the doorknob to his office, but no sight of her friend anywhere.

The witch has probed through almost every classroom in the three-story school, discovering nothing but the number of shadows that envelop the rooms. Her patience has started to run low.

"Where the hell are you?" Emery mutters. She looks down at the screen in her hand, noticing a message banner that she had received almost three hours ago.

STILES: poo

Her features squint in confusion, her brows furrowing at the word. "What—?"

Then, a high-pitched shriek rattles off the lockers, causing Emery to flinch at the noise. The source seems to be on the south end of the school, towards the swimming— pool!

Emery's legs rush forward immediately, carrying her through the halls as fast as they possibly can without tripping. She bursts through the doors to the indoor swimming center, pausing when she sees Erica's unmoving body lying on the concrete. "No, no—"

The witch hurries over to the beta, placing two of her fingers against the front of her neck, just below her jawline. When the beating of Erica's heart lightly pounds through her skin, Emery sighs in relief, swallowing hard.

Unfortunately, the relief is short-lived. A hiss erupts from the rim of the deeper pool, and Emery lifts her head to find the reptilian creature circling the large body of water. Her jaw drops instantly, a shriek caught in her throat.

The creature is the size of a man, its entire body covered in scales ranging from beige to dark brown. The irises are a flaming gold, black slits down the middle of each one. Its mouth is aligned with razor sharp teeth, the tongue writhing within the rows. The tail is long and sharp, the bones shaded in white.

Somehow it hasn't noticed her yet, Emery thinks. Then, her gaze drifts to the creature's main focus: Stiles and Derek, struggling to stay afloat in the eight feet deep water as they argue.

"You've got to be kidding me." Emery removes her jacket, carefully dropping it beside Erica's legs. Then, she mumbles, "perspicuus," under her breath. Emery brings her hand to her eyes to discover that she can barely make out the outline to her wrist. She is unable to fully see the rest of her body — she's transparent.

Using this to her advantage, Emery straightens off the tiles and cautiously moves closer to the pool, refusing to take her eyes off of the shapeshifter on the other side. It crawls in a leisurely manner, though it avoids touching the surface of the water.

She needs to figure out a way to get to Stiles and Derek without drawing the unwanted attention of the creature, but the girl struggles to calm her own emotions and fears. What if it can sense her? Or worse, smell her? Emery wishes that she hadn't put on perfume today.

Moment pass as Emery racks her brain trying to think of something— anything to help Stiles and Derek. Suddenly, their voices go silent, and Emery pauses as she watches Stiles stare at Derek blankly. Then, he tosses the Alpha's arm off his shoulders, allowing him to sink into the water. Stiles hurriedly swims for his cellphone.

Emery barely registers her friend's actions before she finds herself diving headfirst into the pool, inhaling a deep breath as her body is suddenly submerged in water. Her eyes sting from the chlorine when she opens them. She spots Derek at the bottom of the pool, his arms and legs completely motionless while bubbles escape his lips.

The girl plunges down to the floor, hurriedly wrapping her arms around Derek's torso and bringing him close to her. She uses the flats of her shoes to send them upwards, frantically kicking her legs in an effort to get them to the surface. They both gasp once their heads are out of the water, oxygen filling their lungs.

"Are you okay?" Emery heaves, her voice slightly strained as she adjusts her hold on his paralyzed figure. Her clothes are drenched now, her hair sticking to her forehead and cheeks. Then Emery realizes that her body is entirely visible now.

Derek breathes in and out desperately. "Where did you come from?"

She rolls her eyes at his question. "It doesn't matter," Emery forces her limbs to tread water, keeping them both from drowning. Then she says into his ear. "I'm only keeping you alive, so you'll keep him alive."

Before Derek is able to utter a response, Stiles makes his way back to Derek and Emery with his phone in hand. "When did you—?"

"Call Scott!" the two scream at him, and Stiles fumbles with his phone as he dials Scott's number. The werewolf answers, only to end the call less than a second later. Stiles gapes at the device.

"I swear to God," Emery laughs not-so-dryly, "I'm gonna kill him." She keeps her embrace on Derek secure, letting Stiles take a slight break from holding the man up by himself.

"Can't you cast a spell or something?" Stiles stammers, spitting out the water that floods his mouth. "To keep us floating?"

Emery nods, "Natatorius."

However, their bodies remain exhausted and panicked, the incantation rendered useless. "What's wrong?"

"I—I don't know." Emery's eyes narrow. Her magic had been working perfectly merely five minutes before she dove into the water to save Derek. Before she dove into the water. "It's the water!" she yells, much to Derek's annoyance. "The water— it's some kind of block."

Stiles curses under his breath, spinning in circles as he looks for the reptilian creature. "I can't stay up any longer," he states. "I need something to hold on to."

Then, they notice the handles to the diving board, and Stiles rushes towards it. Emery attempts to follow, hauling Derek's heavy body with her. Her muscles begin to ache and throb. How could Stiles have done this for so long?

They manage to get to the diving board, but Stiles's fingers barely grasp onto the handle before his legs give way. He slumps down into the water, and Emery's eyes go wide. "Shit—!"

As she prepares for another dive for the boy, an arm reaches into the pool and yanks Stiles out, hurling him to the tiles. Emery peers up to find Scott kneeling on the board, extending his hand to her and Derek. She grabs hold of it without another thought. Then, they're pulled up to the edge, and the witch lets out many liberated breaths.

Scott releases a menacing roar. The sideburns on the sides of his face as well as his pointed ears have grown. The fangs protruding from his teeth are sharp. The creature leaps towards Scott with ease, tackling him off the diving board. They roll onto the tiles, with Scott landing on his hands and knees.

The creature swings its tail forward, curling around Scott's ankle and pulling his foot out from under him. Scott is dragged through the air and into the wall, shattering the mirror instantly. The glass clatters around the werewolf, and he clutches the largest piece he can find, intending to use it as a weapon.

The shapeshifter slowly crawls closer. Then, it unexpectedly stops at the sight of its reflection in the shattered mirror. Scott's gaze flickers between the creature and the glass in his hand. Then, it lunges past Scott, using the fences and walls to climb to the ceiling. The skylight breaks, and the creature escapes through the opening.

____________

Scott, Stiles, and Emery stand by the werewolf's car, his computer resting on top of the hood as they scroll through pages using the flash drive that had been attached to Principal Argent's keys. Emery tightens her jacket around her soaking body, shivering from the cold.

"Is that even a language?" Stiles asks.

"It's Archaic Latin," Emery says through chattering teeth. Both heads snap towards her. "I took Latin in middle school. I can barely read Archaic, though."

Scott shrugs off his zip-up hoodie, throwing it over the girl's shoulders before turning back to the laptop. "How are we supposed to figure out what this thing is?"

Suddenly, Derek's voice arises from a few feet away, and they turn to find him and Erica striding towards them. "It's called the kanima."

"You knew the whole time," Stiles accuses.

"No," Derek asserts. "Only when it was confused by its own reflection."

"It doesn't know what it is," Scott puts forth.

"Or who."

Stiles purses his lips tightly, ringing his fingers out. "What else do you know?"

"Just stories; rumors."

"But it's like us?" Scott queries.

"It's a shapeshifter, yes. But... i—it's not right," the Alpha struggles to find the right explanation. "It's like a—"

Stiles averts his eyes to his feet, concluding Derek's thought. "An abomination."

The man confirms his statement with an unreadable expression. He glances at Emery, meeting her gaze with a sharp one. Derek nods slightly, and to the others it may seem like an acknowledgment of her saving him, but they both know it's more than that. They've made a deal. Emery kept him alive, now he has to keep Isaac alive.

Derek and Erica turn the other direction to take their leave, until Scott makes them come to a halt. "Derek," he calls. "We need to work together on this. Maybe even tell the Argents."

"You trust them?"

"Nobody trusts anyone," Scott replies in a harsh tone. "That's the problem. While we're here arguing about who's on what side, there's something scarier, stronger, and faster than any of us, and it's killing people!" His voice has raised to a shout. "And we still don't even know anything about it!"

Derek's features have become hard, although Emery can still decipher the fury behind his eyes. "I know one thing. When I find it..." He storms away from the teenagers. "I'm gonna kill it."