Running with Wolves

Chapter 82

I was following a beetle, Scott and Liam were practicing lacrosse. I quietly growled at it, as I pounced, it landed on my nose, I yelped, and fell back. The lights went out,
I heard Liam say" Well, guess we have to go now."
Scott said" No, we don't." My eyes glowed, I growled at the bug and went to eat it." Don't even think about it, Riley!" I stopped," Don't eat the bug, Riley." 
I said" It landed on my nose! It deserves to be eaten!"
" I'll pay you not to eat the bug."
" One laffy taffy!"
" Okay." I walked away from the bug and tackled Liam, he groaned and looked at me. I smiled at him, he pushed me off, I rolled onto the ground.
After a minute, Liam dropped the ball,
Scott said" What's wrong?"
Liam said" Something's happening to Mason." They dropped the lacrosse sticks and ran, I followed after them, switching to four legs so I'd be faster.

We got onto the library and Mason nearly hit Scott with a fire extinguisher.
Mason said" They were here. The ghost riders."
Scott said" Here? Just now?"
Liam said" I thought they left when the storm left."
Mason said" I guess not, because two of them were right up there."
Scott said" What were they doing?"
" We didn't see when they came in. We only saw them when we turned invisible."
Liam said" You brought him into this?"
" He was trying to protect me."
Corey said" They didn't seem to care about us. They, they walked right by us."
Scott said" Then what happened?"
Mason said" Uh... Then they just jumped down and left."
Liam asked" That's it?"
Corey said" Yeah."
Scott said" They didn't take someone? There was nobody else in here?"
" No. I-It was just us."

I woke up, I looked up, then whimpered, I rubbed my eyes, they flashed. I got up and walked down the hallway, I stopped at a wall, I tilted my head. " You had a nightmare? Okay, we can have a sleepover."
I heard daddy say" Riley, buddy, what are you doing up?" I turned to him, I made a face," How about we go back to bed, huh?" He walked to me, lifting me up, I laid my head on his shoulder and he carried me back to my room. He laid me down, kissing my head, then turning on my nightlight. He walked out, closing the door, I stared at the ceiling.
——
I was sitting on the bench, Liam came in, Scott was tying his shoes.
Liam said" I blew it, didn't I?"
Scott said" You blew it off. You'd have to be trying in order to blow it."
" Maybe someone else can be captain. With school work and all the other stuff we have to deal with..."
" Devenford Prep started practice three weeks before us. Riverside two weeks. We're behind before we even start. Half our team can't even cradle the ball, let alone score."
" Why can't you stay captain?"
" I'm graduating. You know, I'm not gonna be here next year. Somebody's gotta step up and fill in the gap. It should be you."
" Yeah? Well, Coach doesn't want me. I don't know if the team wants me."
" It's not up to them. It's up to you. You have to want this. Because they're gonna keep comin' at you. They're gonna keep knocking you down. And you have to get back up. You have to show them that you can get back up. Leaders don't run." Coach clapped behind Liam,
Coach said" Now that's what I'm talkin' about, McCall. That's exactly the intensity this team needs. And you, I'n lookin' forward to crushing that little adorable baby face of yours." Liam looked at Scott, Scott shrugged, I looked at them, yawning.

Scott and I were walking through the hallway, Scott stopped, he turned his head to look at a locker. He walked to it and put his hand on it before grabbing my hand and we walked away from the locker.

I was spinning around in the hallway as Scott checked out the locker he stopped at earlier. Then Scott was leaving, I yelped and ran after him, I collided into his side. He grunted and lifted me up, I growled at him,
He said" Sorry, sorry."
——
We were at the clinic,
Scott said" I keep having this feeling like there's pieces missing. Holes in my memory. Like this. I took that from a windshield at the Sheriff's impound lot but I can't remember why I was there."
Doc said" The subconscious can be a conduit for our memories. Dreams and waking dreams can be powerful tools to help us remember."
" Could it all be connected? The ghost riders, the wild hunt, the holes?"
" The wild hunt are drawn to war and mayhem. I've never heard of it doing anything to anyone's memory. It's almost like you have a form of Phantom limb syndrome. It's common in war. Amputees can have the sensation of an itch they can't scratch or a pain that couldn't possibly be there. The missing limb is so important, the brain acts like the limb's still there."
" So, my subconscious is trying to tell me what's missing?"
" It may be."
" How the hell do I figure what it's saying?"
" Well, the easiest way to do that would be to simply go to sleep."

Scott took me home, I whined as he made me let go of him,
He said" I'll pick you up in the morning, okay? Keep calm, okay?"
I said" I don't wanna be alone, stay with alpha." I nuzzled his tummy again, he pulled me off again,
" Come on, Riley. Just go to bed and it'll be like I never left."
" What if the ghost riders come?" I whimpered,
" I'm not gonna let the ghost riders get you, little dude."
" Morning, right?"
" Yeah, I'll see you in the morning, I promise."
" Okay, Scott." I walked into my house, I walked upstairs and to my bedroom. I laid down, nuzzling my face under the cover and digging under it. I fell asleep quickly, especially when I heard daddy and mommy coming upstairs... I get along with daddy more than I do mommy... something just doesn't seem right about her.

I woke up when I felt cold, I opened my eyes and saw I was out in the woods. I tilted my head, then shifted... starting to cry.
I heard Scott say" Riley? Riley!" Then I was scooped up, I clawed," It's Scott, it's Scott." I growled," Shh, you're okay, you're okay, Riley. Malia, help me."
Malia said" He doesn't like me, remember."
Lydia said" He doesn't like your scent."
Scoot cooed" Shh, Riley, shh, it's okay, pup, you're okay." I calmed down as he rocked me in his arms, my face nuzzled against his neck, inhaling his scent, but it wasn't as calming as I wanted it to be. My eyes closed, he sighed," Good job, Riley."

I woke up in the clinic,
I heard Lydia say" What the hell is a Stiles?"