Calculatingly Wise

13

"You lucky werewolf. Someone angered Zeus. Maybe it was you idiots."

"Hey!" Stiles protested. "None of us did anything. Maybe it was you."

"Me? I try not to anger the gods. Even though they seem to have it out for us demigods, but whatever."

"Maybe you mentally cursed him."

"Menta -- I'm not even gonna say anything. And don't tell me I just did."

Scott rolled his eyes and said, "Liam's still there. I'd call that progress."

Stiles frowned at the beta. "Hey. Trying to have an adult conversation over here."

Liam rolled his eyes. "All right, you're two years older than me. And I'm fine. She's a year-and-a-half older, two school years older. Just let me go."

He rattled his chains trying to free himself. Tess walked towards him and noticed blood in his clenched fists and saw his nails shifting back. She frowned at him before turning back to her cousin and friend. "I see no sign of shifting."

Stiles narrowed his eyes. "It's not that we don't trust you. It's that I don't trust you."

"But after that last full moon-" Scott began.

"It was one slip-up," Liam answered, cutting him off.

Stiles scoffed. "Slip-up? A dozen calls to the Sheriff's Department about a monstrous "dog-boy" running around the streets of Beacon Hills naked. That's a slip-up?"

Tessa frowned at Liam and asked, "Why were you running through the streets naked?"

He sighed and shrugged. "It was really hot out that night, okay? Let me go."

"You sure you're okay?" Scott questioned.

Liam gave him a nod. "It won't happen again."

"You're in complete and total control?"

"Yeah. Complete and total control," he replied as his eyes flicked to Tessa.

Scott unchained him and they climbed into the Jeep. Scott took the passenger's seat, Stiles was driving, and Liam and Tessa sat in back. "Is it a party?" Liam wondered.

Tessa shook her head. "No, it's not a party."

"When does it start?"

"Midnight."

Liam frowned, looking confused. "Then what's at midnight?"

"Your bedtime," Stiles replied.

"Why aren't the girls going?"

Tessa glanced at him. "They are going. I'm going with the girls."

Stiles dropped her off at Lydia's.

Mrs. Martin opened the door and smiled at her. "Lydia is upstairs."

Tessa climbed the stairs to Lydia's room and knocked on the door. Lydia opened it and smiled before frowning at her. "Your camp shirt and jeans? Tessa, come on. Dress up a little."

"It's practical and comfortable," Tessa retorted.

Lydia rolled her eyes and handed Tessa a black sweater. "That adds a little something. We need to get Malia."

Tessa attempted to text Scott that they'd be at the school soon, but the message didn't go through. She glanced up. "Lydia, do you have service?"

Lydia looked at her phone and shook her head. "No, I don't."

"Huh. Weird."

They climbed into Lydia's car and Tessa climbed into the passenger's seat.

Malia hopped in the back when they picked her up and asked, "So what is this senior thing?"