SYMMETRY ➽ D. HALE [1]

08 ; want some advil?

08 ➽ WANT SOME ADVIL? [UNEDITED]

"What are you doing here?" Scott demanded, dropping to the ground next to Derek. He had collapsed in front of Stiles' Jeep. Elise couldn't lie, Derek was not looking good. His skin held a sickly, pale tint and his eyes were bloodshot.

"I was shot," he stated bluntly- as if it would explain.

"Why aren't you healing then?" Elise demanded. She pushed her brown locks out of her face as she looked down at him.

"It's a special kind of bullet."

"Like a silver bullet?" Stiles inquired.

"No, you idiot," Derek hissed.

"That's what she meant when she said you only had forty-eight hours," Scott inquired.

"What?" Derek grimaced. "Who said that?"

"The lady that shot you," Scott shrugged as if it were obvious.

"We seriously need to have a talk about you going out in middle of the night when there are hunters and alphas on the loose," Elise shook her head at her brother. Scott had told Elise and Stiles about the existence of the alpha after she had returned from the hospital. The alpha had been responsible for biting Scott as well killing the bus driver and Laura Hale.

Suddenly, Derek's eyes shifted from green to bright blue, causing Elise to gasp. "What are you doing?" Scott snapped, looking around as cars began honking impatiently behind them. "Stop that!"

"I can't."

"All right," Elise grunted as her and Scott pulled Derek to his feet. "Get him in the car." She climbed into the back seat of Stiles' Jeep before helping lug the partially conscious werewolf into the Jeep.

"Scott," Derek breathed, his eyes lidded, "I need you to find out what kind of bullet they used."

"How am I supposed to do that?" Scott demanded incredulously.

"Because she's an Argent," Derek said, referring to Allison. Elise had a feeling that Allison didn't know about her family's 'business', and for some reason, she hoped that it would stay that way. She actually liked the younger brunette well enough that she truly hoped they wouldn't be forced to different sides- mostly for Scott's sake.

"Why should I help you?" Scott asked, raising a brow.

"Because you need me."

Stiles jumped into the passenger seat and turned the ignition in the car before glancing between the McCall siblings, a glare perfectly evident on his features. "I hate both of you so much for this," he groaned and drove out of the school lot.

➽

"He says he needs more time," Elise informed the other two as she read the text from Scott.

"Of course he does," Stiles hissed before glancing at Derek, who was clearly in pain. "Dude, try not to bleed out of my seats, okay?"

Elise rolled her eyes. She looked at Derek. Considering the fact that he had come to them for help, he was probably in a worse situation than he was letting on. Elise rummaged around in her backpack, producing a travel-sized bottle of Advil. "Hey," she tapped Derek's shoulder to get his attention. "Want some Advil?"

"Elise, I seriously doubt Advil is going to help with a bullet..." Stiles trailed off as Derek accepted the small bottle, surprising the other two. Elise hadn't really been expecting Derek to accept her offer, it was more of something to help her feel useful. Nonetheless, she flashed Stiles a look as if to say 'Oh, really?'.

"Where are you taking me, anyway?" Derek asked.

"Your house," Stiles stated.

"What? No, you can't take me there."

"Why not?" Elise asked.

"I can't protect myself," Derek replied as if it were obvious.

Stiles frowned, swerving the car onto the side of the road and parking. "What happens if Scott doesn't find the bullet?" He snapped. "Are you dying?"

"Not yet. I have a last resort."

"What do you mean?" Elise inquired, her voice much calmer than Stiles' erratic tone. Derek lifted the sleeve of his arm, revealing a grotesque bullet wound. Dark veins stemmed out from the wound, and crimson blood splattered the area around it.

"Oh, my god, what is that? Is that contagious?" Stiles groaned, moving as far from Derek as his seatbelt would allow. "Maybe you should just get out."

"Start the car," Derek hissed. "Now."

"You know, maybe you shouldn't be barking orders in your condition," Stiles replied, "As a matter of fact, I could probably drag your werewolf ass out of this car and leave you for dead!"

"Start the car," Derek repeated. "Or I'm going to rip your throat out. With my teeth."

"Well," Elise muttered under her breath as Stiles quickly gave in and started the car. "That was a weird threat."

➽

Elise helped Derek out of the Jeep while Stiles ran ahead to unlock the storage door to the vet office where Scott worked. If she were being honest, Elise was completely envious of her brothers working arrangments. She would much rather work where he did than serve coffee after school.

She grunted under his weight as they stumbled away from the car. "Your butt is nowhere near cute enough for this," she grimaced, earning a dry laugh in response as they neared the garage-like door.

For some reason, his laughter made her smile. He's got a nice laugh, Elise thought. She briefly wondered why she'd noticed it.

Stiles slid open the door, and the sound of barking dogs could be heard as Elise eased Derek onto a stack of what looked like food bags. She hesitated slightly before releasing her grip on his arm. "Does 'Nordic Blue Monkshood' mean anything to you?" Stiles inquired as Elise moved to unlock to door to actually get into the veterinary office.

"It's a rare type of wolfbane," Derek nodded. "Tell him to bring me the bullet."

"Why do you need the bullet?" Elise asked, swinging the door open.

"I'll die without it," he stated simply, shrugging off Stiles as he attempted to help him toward the door.

➽

Another short chapter, oops.
Words: 1001

Feedback more than appreciated <3