𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐫, m. tate & i. lahey

𝟎𝟎𝟖. the vault

She snatched her phone and walks out of the classroom. The students and off-putting man are left alone; everyone seems to be uncomfortable with him, although he doesn't seem to notice or care. A few minutes pass before Lydia's mother returns, shaking her head as she closes the door behind her. "I can't find him, but Mr. Yukimura is upstairs grading papers. Do you want me to try him?"

"We have to start. We can ask for his assistance during the first break," the man concludes, leaning down to start the timer. He presses the button and looks up at the teenagers. "You may now open your test booklets, and begin."

Everyone instantaneously flips open their booklets; they read over the questions with ease, having no hesitation in scribbling their answers and moving on to the next problem.

Malia glances at her friends and the people around her— sweat begins to drip down her back, and the clothing that covers her shoulders becomes unbearable. The girl shrugs off her jacket, letting it fall to the back of her chair. She swipes her hair out of her face and tries to focus on the test in front of her.

Suddenly, a loud thud is heard towards the back of the class. Everyone whirls around in their seats, searching for the cause of the sound. On the floor, they find Sydney, one of their classmates. Lydia's mother rushes over to the girl, helping her off the floor and asking her if she's alright.

"I'm okay. I just got kind of dizzy..." Sydney replies, moving a piece of hair behind her ear.

Ms. Martin holds her left forearm to keep her steady, but when her eyes land on a pattern of red and white welts on the teenage girl's skin, she starts to worry. "Sydney, how long have you had this?"

"I—I don't know..." she tells the woman, staring at the rash in shock and confusion.

"Ms. Martin, do I need to stop the test?" the strange man asks, clearly irritated and impatient with the commotion.

"No. Um, it's fine," she says. Sydney cautiously sits down at her desk, while Ms. Martin proceeds to make her way to the front of the room. She snatches her phone and turns to address the large group of teenagers. "Everybody stay in your seats. I'll, um, be back in a minute..." Ms. Martin pauses and quietly says, "nobody leaves the room."

Although she tries to be discreet about her words, the four werecreatures overhear. Scott and Allison furrow their brows, briefly looking over at one another. Isaac, Kira, and Malia tilt their heads slightly to the side, perplexed expressions on their faces.

They sit there in silence for the next few minutes, until Lydia's mother's frantic shouts start to echo through the halls. The teenagers jump out of their seats and rush over, Scott being the first one to get to the door. He holds the wooden frame open for everyone else before stepping out.

Ms. Martin is leaning against the entrance of the school, panting as she attempts to catch her breath. When she sees the line of students, her eyes widen. "Back to your seats, now." No one makes a move to get back in the classroom, so she desperately adds, "Please."

With that, Scott and Stiles usher and guide everyone back into the room, closing the door once they're all inside. Malia and Allison place themselves on top of two of the front desks, Allison huffing as she rests her head on the werecoyote's shoulder.

____________

A group of about ten people wearing yellow hazmat suits entered the school almost twenty minutes ago, all of them holding large suitcases. They passed by the classroom, heading to one of the larger rooms. The workers began putting up plastic tents, along with blue tunnels. Soon enough, they covered the windows with the same plastic material.