Once in a Lifetime

35

Scott, Lydia and Stiles attempted to find 'Tabitha' in the dictionary, but all they found was 'Tabata'.

Scott read the definition aloud. ""Tabata is a high-intensity interval training that consists of eight sets of fast-paced exercises each performed for 20 seconds interspersed with a brief rest of 10 seconds.""

Lydia frowned. "Yeah, somehow I don't think this is the Tabitha we're looking for."

Stiles signed. "It's not even the right name." He pulled up the name on his phone. "Tabitha means 'gazelle' or maybe 'gracious'."

Scott looked at his friends hopefully. "Maybe Malia's found something."

Lydia shook her head. "No, Malia's been in a make-up test all morning."

They heard howling and Lydia sighed. "I don't think it's going well."

The teens made their way to the basement.

Scott said to a shifted Malia, "Malia, it's okay. You're safe. I'm not gonna hurt you." She growled.

Sheriff Stilinski glanced at Scott. "Maybe you should growl back? Scott, you're the alpha. Can't you just make her a little docile?"

Lydia looked between her friends. "Back up, guys. She isn't the problem. We are. We're in her space. This is her territory. Let's get out of here."

They backed up and Lydia raised her voice. "Malia used to come here to get through the full moons, before we started using the lake house."

Ms. Martin narrowed her eyes at her daughter. "I thought you said a wild animal got in the lake house."

Lydia shrugged. "Just be happy about all the things I don't tell you."

Malia let out another small growl and her coyote form stalked towards the group as she shifted back into a human. She smiled lightly. "It's all right. I'm okay."

Ms. Martin handed Malia her clothes as the sheriff asked, "Any idea what made her shift?"

"She's under a lot of pressure," Scott replied. "School, her life after graduation."

"Her mom trying to kill her," Lydia added.

Scott glanced at her. "That shouldn't make her shift."

"Could it be connected to Tabitha?" Stiles asked, smiling briefly at the name.

Scott shrugged. "Hard to tell since we don't know what a "Tabitha" is."

"It's a "she"," the sheriff said. "My friend Micah Young would've named his daughter that."

"Who?"

"Tabitha. It's a name Micah loved. But when Robin, well..."

Scott, Lydia and Stiles made their way to Micah's house to speak to him.

The sheriff grabbed a photo from his pocket, met the teens and held it out to the teens. "He was an Army engineer. Ended the war one bridge at a time. He may know something."

"And he went by Stiles," Scott said, reading the name in the corner of the picture.

"So what's all this got to do with the Wild Hunt?" Micah asked as he walked up. "Hey, Noah."

Stiles looked up at Micah. "We think someone was taken from us."

"Any idea who?"

Scott shook his head. "Uh, the Ghost Riders would have erased our memories."

"Well, now, that's convenient."

Stiles fiddled with his hands. "We did find a clue. The word tabata and the name Tabitha."