Racing around the forest, she ignored the sound of her pulsing heart that echoed within her head as she tried to find any sign of the twins. They said they were here and yet when she looked around there didn't seem to be any sign of them. Pulling out her phone, she did the same trick Stiles had taught her and that she'd used on Derek the same day and tracked their phones.
Following a map, she ended up at a coyote den and she jumped down to see the twins and no-one else. "Hey," she whispered, not wanting to be too loud just in case the danger was still out there. Both of them were pale and gloomy and black bile was falling from any orifice that it could, "Hey, what happened?" She added on crouching down to check that they were both breathing.
"Hunters," Aiden wheezed out, and she nodded slowly trying to figure out what she could do to help them. To see them both suffering was hurting her. Hearing footsteps, she grabbed onto the stick from beside her holding it up and being ready to hit the attacker.
It was just Derek.
He looked at her confused and mildly horrified. She wasn't supposed to be there and in danger, "what the hell are you doing?" He snapped.
"I came to help the twins," she pointed out gesturing to the two almost unconscious boys on the floor.
"You shouldn't be here. You could get shot."
"Well I'll just have to deal with that when we get to that point," she scoffed, "and don't you start with that tone with me or I swear to god we are going to have issues," she warned and he rolled his eyes about to speak when a coughing Aiden was able to gain enough ability to speak for himself.
"Where are we?"
Hayley quickly turned her attention to him her heart sinking into her stomach. Pain and a lack of hope were laced in his voice and it was terrifying to her. She quickly stepped over his legs placing the stick on the floor to get to him and try and help him if not physically then emotion. "It's a coyote den. Stay quiet," Derek whispered.
"Did you see the shooter? Do you know who it is?" Aiden repeated, not wanting to let it go until he knew whether his brother and he were going to be safe.
"No, I was a little busy..." he cut his sarcasm off as Hayley shot him a look in a warning. Sighing, he glanced between the pair annoyed, "who the hell did you two piss off?"
"We pissed off everyone. It was only a matter of time before someone caught up to us," Ethan wheezed out, and Derek sighed before nodding.
"Well, the bullets had wolfsbane in them... So, if I don't get you two out of here soon, the poison is going to spread. Stay quiet. I'll be back," he warned and he was about to leave before he stepped back in pointing his finger at Hayley, "and I swear if you move from this den then those issues you keep talking about will exist," he warned before leaving.
She mimicked his words for a second before looking back to the twins, "how are you two holding up?" She asked.
"Why do you...keep helping us? Why do you care?" Aiden asked, and she hesitated not knowing what to say. He gave her a better option as he continued, "you're not our mom..."
Sighing, she reached out grabbing onto both of their hands in hopes of bringing them more comfort. Wishes of the being able to take their pain ran through her mind but of course, they wouldn't. "Well I'd be proud if I was," she admitted, and despite the agony, he was in Ethan's lips quirked up a bit. They missed being cared about by someone who wasn't each-other. "Now just stay quiet because I have no idea what I'm going to do if someone actually trained came down here and tried to kill you."
It was a few minutes later when Derek returned moving to pick the twins up, "come on let's go."
Staring down at their two sleeping bodies, she frowned trying to work out what was happening inside them. Hayley had Talia balanced on her hip and she was trying to figure out if they were too hot, too cold, in pain, or if they felt nothing. If they were living a short death where they would wake up soon.
"Do you think I should get them another blanket?" She asked, looking over to Derek who only rolled his eyes with his face filled with amusement. "What?"
"You're mothering."
"I am not mothering, now answer my question," she urged just as a knock came at the door.
He chuckled shaking his head slightly and he stepped closer pressing a kiss to her cheek, "you're mothering," he repeated turning away from her before she could protest and heading to the door. She looked back to the twins pursing her lips in thought.
"I'll get them another blanket," she muttered to herself before she went on a hunt for the two blankets.
Derek opened the door of the loft and Argent stepped in his usual dismal sigh on his face. No-one ever even thought he was capable of another emotion other than a murderous stoic coldness.
"So the twins were being hunted?" Argent asked, looking over to where the bodies were sleeping just as Hayley was tossing a blanket over Ethan, "is she..."
"Don't question it," Derek muttered not knowing what to say about it himself. Had it been less than a year ago and she would have been on the list to have them killed and now she was acting like they were her own children despite the less than four-year age gap. It wasn't about being a mother and being children though, it was about being a family and that was enough. Derek took in a breath remembering why they were there and he reached into his pocket pulling out the few bullet shells he'd found in the dirt, "I found these on the ground."
Argent picked one of them up spinning it around to look at just as Hayley managed to find another blanket and she awkwardly tossed it over Aiden all the while trying not to drop Talia. She was biting her lip out of concentration and it was something that in any other situation would have brought a smile to Derek's lips.
"This wasn't Araya, was it?" Argent asked, that had been his first thought but there wasn't the right crest on them.
"I don't think so. They don't look like her shells," Derek admitted, and Argent spun it around his face turning into that of a ghost.
"That's not possible..." he muttered, but before anything else could be said his phone rang out and Argent quickly grabbed onto it pressing it to his ear, "Allison?"
"They found her. Scott found her, Dad. They found Lydia. I'm on my way," his daughter said, and Argent frowned not liking the words that were coming from his daughter's mouth.
"Allison, hold on. You have to wait-"
"There's no time-- it's already night. There's no time, Dad," she rushed out already making a move to hang up the phone.
"Wait! Allison. wait!" Argent called out just as the phone hung up and he sighed turning away from Derek and rushing over to the door. Derek turned back to look at Hayley only to frown upon seeing her trying to shove a pillow under Aiden's head.
"Okay," he called out jogging down the stairs and walking over to her, "that's enough mothering."
"No, no, no, I need to treat them equally," she pointed out, "now help me give Ethan this pillow," she added on holding the other pillow up. He sighed before doing as commanded. Once it was done she stepped back looking over her handiwork, "do you think they're in pain?"
"Okay, you sit," he urged. Plucking Talia from her grip, he placed a hand on her shoulder forcing her down onto the sofa and she frowned looking at him confused. "Two almost adult twins do not need you mothering."
"Please, you still like being mothered now," she scoffed crossing her arms and he rolled his eyes with them this time being amusement.
He took a step forward taking a seat beside her, "I think you need to go to sleep," he mused and she frowned looking over to him slightly annoyed.
"I do not need to sleep. Not until those pair have woken up and are fine," she explained, and he shook his head.
"Sleep, whilst she's settled," he added on gesturing to Talia.
"Something might happen."
"And I'll wake you up," he assured. She sighed a sulk settling on her face as she thought over it. Seeing the internal debate, he urged her to get back up, "go. If you don't you'll only be complaining to me for the next several days," he reminded. "Go take a nap."
"Naps are for little children," she countered.
"And you have a little child which makes a nap reasonable. So go," he ordered and she sighed before pushing herself to her feet.
"Slightest noise from any of the three and you wake me up," she commanded, and he nodded as she sluggishly walked over to the bed her eyes beginning to burn and her mind beginning to shut down at the prospect of sleep.
Upon seeing the kind-sized mess of comfort she threw herself down. Grabbing onto the duvet she wrapped it around her with her head resting on the cold pillows and for the first time in a while, she was completely and utterly comfortable whilst at rest, and the ache slowly began to leave from her eyes.
Looking down at the child who was trying to shove their entire fist into their mouth, Derek smiled slightly out of amusement. "I think mommy's finally going insane," he mused, and the child looked to him but whether they were actually registering his words or not was debatable, "yes she is..." he added on.
Allison died that night. The twins and Hayley slept through the death of someone in the pack. Derek had gone to bed eventually although he would have been awake at the time of the death. He was eating his dinner when she'd been stabbed. No-one knew what to say. None of them knew whether they should say anything until once Stiles was okay. Until the mess was over.
Hearing the sound of the loft door opening, Hayley rolled over in the bed feeling nothing but a cold empty mattress. It had either been a couple of hours or she'd slept late into the morning like she used to do. Pushing herself up, it took her a few seconds for her mind to clear and once it did she immediately heard incoming voices.
"I saw it and thought she should have something..." Aiden's voice sounded. Climbing out of bed, she stumbled to the side before she pushed forward into the main room and her eyes settled on the small stuffed toy that was designed to look like a wolf. It was sat on Talia's high-chair where the said baby was sat and she was playing with it. "We bought it for Talia as a going-away present."
She was silent for a few seconds as she waited for the words to catch up, "you're going away?" She asked before she looked to Derek, "they're going away?" She repeated, and he nodded. "I told you to wake me up," she urged.
"I tried. You didn't budge," he said and she froze before nodding slightly.
"Right... you're going away?"
"Yes."
She didn't know how to feel about it. She didn't expect them to go away but then she should have. She knew it was inevitable that the two twins would leave and go and do something that they needed to do to be happy. Yet, she didn't want them to go. The selfish part of her wanted them to stay and be in her family. The family she'd created for herself.
Finishing up with checking over Ethan's wounds, Derek gave him a gentle nod. "Should be fine in a couple hours-- unless whoever shot you manages to find you again." He assured.
"Lydia's with Scott. We need to go," Aiden said, and Derek and Hayley frowned as they worked out what that meant.
"You're gonna try to convince her to go with you?" Derek asked.
"I'm gonna try and convince her to run and hide, like any sane person would do."
"And Danny?"
"Allison's dead. Stiles is dying. What do you think?"
"Everyone's leaving?" Hayley muttered. Her own eyes were like ghosts that could barely focus.
"I think Danny won't believe you... And Lydia would never run and hide," Derek pointed out, none of them bothered enough to listen to what Hayley had said.
"Because of Stiles?" Aiden asked, tinges of jealousy forming at the thought of it.
"Because of Scott. You've been trying to find a way into his pack. Trying to earn his trust. Trying to fight for him. You've had it wrong this whole time. You don't fight for a leader-- you fight for a leader's cause."
"What cause?"
"Scott's always been about one thing-- saving his friends. He will do anything and everything to save the people he cares about. When there's no chance of winning? He keeps fighting. When all hope is lost? He finds another way. And when he's beaten down, he stands up again. You want to earn a place in his pack? You want redemption? Find another way to stand and fight!"
"Wait no..." Hayley muttered, "why's everyone leaving?" She asked.
The sound of laughter was heard, and Hayley's head flickered over to where Talia was sat in the baby chair. All conversation was forgotten from her mind as she watched it. She immediately reached out grabbing onto Derek's shirt in a way of grabbing onto his attention, "that... that's... oh my god," she muttered, "that's the first time she's laughed," she pointed out a large smile on her face and the twins and Derek all smiled along as they watched as Talia continued to play with the wolf whilst laughing.
It was so beautiful, and right before they left for war.