Arabella's POV:
After about 15 minutes of Stiles messing around with plyers and bolt cutters, I was chain free. And completely entertained, might I add. The two of us could barely take the action seriously, he was so adorably focused, making me errupt in laughter every time his hands fumbled.
Rubbing my wrist, the last of the metal dropped to the ground, a huge smirk appearing on my face. "Finally!" Stiles exclaimed with a brief chuckle, pulling me into an embrace that I gladly accepted.
I let out a sigh, my head nuzzled against his chest, his hand soothingly playing with the curls of my hair. His chin resided on the top of my head as we relished in the peace of the moment.
"Y'know, we missed you. Like, a lot. I thought you were ignoring me until I found out you hadn't spoken to anyone else." He chuckled, pulling away as the two of us sat on the edge my bed. "What actually happened?" He asked softly, curious, but clearly not wanting to disrupt me emotionally.
Shrugging my shoulders I replied. "I was leaving the store when the ambushed me. It caught me off guard, they injected a bunch of wolfsbane and vervain into my system, then it went black. I would have fought when I woke up, but I was chained up and given more herbs to keep me weak. Those shackles? Spelled with dark magic, they prevent the person from harnessing or using any magic at all, pain in the ass to be honest. I don't even know where they got them, dark objects aren't easy to come by. I was in and out of consiousness the whole time, practically a punching bag and target practice for three days, then you know the rest."
Stiles' eyebrows were raised, once again stunned at how unfazed I appeared. "Jesus Bella. I'm glad you're okay, I think your aunts may have killed me if you weren't. Nothing big happened whilst you were gone, Erica had a seizure in PE, everything else was..well normal. We were all worried though, even Coach asked about you, said he missed you or something." He finished, rolling his eyes slightly as he finished the last part of his sentence with a playful tone.
"Of course he did, I'm the favourite." I said with a wink, getting up as I seethed slightly. I felt an ache, literally all over, a few open wounds grazing my features, although all the shallow cuts had healed. "I'm gonna jump in the shower. Spare clothes are in the closet if you want to change, you're more than welcome to stay."
After a quick, but sure as hell relaxing shower, I stepped into my towel, using another to remove the dampness from my hair as it fell into its natural tight-wavy texture. Slipping on a pair of shorts and a cropped tank top, I stepped out of the bathroom, steam escaping along with me as I walked into the kitchen.
"You staying?" I called out from behind the kitchen counter, a yawn escaping my lips right after. A moment later, Stiles emerged from the door frame in some fresh clothes. "Uh- Yeah. If that's okay with you. I- I told my dad I'm spending the night at Scott's place, school and all."
"Sure, that's fine. How'd you know to bring vervain?" I asked curiously, pouring a hot chocolate for the two of us as we sat at the counter together.
Scratching the back of his neck awkwardly, he replied, "I- uh, I didn't. I might have maybe panicked earlier today and visited hoping you might, I don't know appear? You didn't, obviously, I went into your magic room and I saw those jars, heard your howl and I panicked. I bagged them and went to get Scott and Allison, I didn't really process what it was until Scott told me to get some of it in the woods."
"Guess I should count it a lucky coincidence, huh?" I quirked as he took a sip of his drink. "It's kind of adorable you missed me so much though."
The pair of us continued to chat until our mugs were empty, checking the time, 11:45pm and we have school tomorrow. I'm entirely too tired to complain right now.
Locking the front door, I bid Stiles goodnight, waltzing into my room before practically collapsing on my bed. I was on the verge of drifting off, incredibly peaceful, when a soft knock errupted from my door. "Belle? You still awake?" Stiles called in gently.
"What's up?" I answered, lazily switching on my bedside lamp.
"I- Uh. Sorry. Can I borrow a blanket?" He asked, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly.
There was a short moment where I just stared at the boy in slight disbelief. "Stiles."
"Y-yeah?"
"Just get in the bed." I deadpanned, chuckling dryly, he was still just stood there. I pulled the top of the duvet from the empty side of the bed. "I'm not letting you sleep on the sofa. Plus it's a king sized bed, I'm sure I'll live sharing it for the night."
"Oh- Okay. Thanks." Giving him time to crawl under the covers, I turned off the light. "Goodnight Stiles" I muttered between yawns, right before dropping into a slumber.
---
Before we knew it, morning rolled around, the persistent blaring of my alarm disturbing the both of us. Coming to my senses, I opened my eyes, only to be greeted by the sight of a pale boy beneath me.
Like some kind of magnetic pull, the two of us had somehow gravitated towards eachother in the night, not awkward at all. Our legs were tangled together, my head resting on his chest along with my right hand. Rising and falling with every breath.
His arm was snaked around my waist, holding me in place as if it was natural. Looking up at the boy, I noticed he started to stir before opening his eyes completely, I don't think either of us were fully awake yet. They seemed to widen as he took in a deep breath, making me laugh as I gently removed his hand from around me, tip-toeing towards my dresser. "Morning Stilinski."
"Uh- Good morning." He chimed back, an awkward but content smile on his features.
"We've got about an hour and a half before school. Shower's free, towels are on the shelf." Stiles nodded heading into the bathroom. I took the opportunity to curl my hair into wavy ringlets.
With an idea in my head, I made my way to the magic room for my spell of the day, opting to grab two normal pieces of jewellery from my drawer. One of which was a thick black band, a ring, the other being a beautiful silver embellished bracelet with a golden accent.
I spelled both of them with vervain, placing them delicately on my dresser before moving to get ready for the day. I chose to sport a monochromatic green, which, in my defence, suited me well.
Stiles and I continued to get ready, devouring a delicious breakfast before heading to the door. We stepped into the jeep, checking my phone for the first time in days.
Of course I was greeted with a series of missed calls and somewhat threatening texts from aunt D, along with countless missed messages from my friends. I attempted to dissolve Davina's panic slightly with a simple text.
Me:
Hey D! Try not to kill me for not answering. May or may not have been abducted by some vamps over the weekend, but i'm fine now, no big deal. I'll call you later!! love you <3
As we pulled up to the school parking lot, I was about to exit the jeep when I remembered something. "Wait! I almost forgot!" I reached into my pocket, pulling out the ring.
"What?"
"Here." I said, holding up the ring, only making the boy more confused.
"A proposal is a little sudden don't you think?"
"Just put the ring on, dumbass." I smiled, rolling my eyes as I handed it to him.
"Okay okay, thank you. What is it anyway?"
"A ring." I answered blatantly. receiving a glare before I continued "Fine, it's spelled with vervain. As long as you wear that, you can't be compelled. Now come on, I'm not being late to class because of you." Nudging him playfully, we approached the school, obviously earning teasing from Scott.
- - -
"I said fifty. With a "fa" sound. Hear the difference? If you can't I could demonstrate some other words with the "fa" sound." I overheard Boyd finish, talking to Stiles, who was trying and failing to negotiate the price for the keys to the ice rink.
"Hey Boyd" I smiled, receiving a small grin from the boy. "Hey Ari"
Boyd and I weren't particularly close, but the two of us had always taken the time to make conversation and check on each other during classes, we were somewhat friends at this point.
"Oh, no no no. I think i'm recalling it now. Maybe I just got it confused with forty." Stiles chimed, trying to negotiate further, still unsuccessful.
"Oh come on man have you seen the piece of crap bus that I drive?"
"Have you seen the piece of crap bus that I take?"
Rolling my eyes, I reached into my pocket, pulling out a 20 dollar bill and adding it to the pile. "There, 60, that's more than you asked for."
The boy smiled at me, placing the keys in the palm of my hand as I returned the grin, mainly because of how offended Stiles looked. "Thank you."
Slipping into the seat across from Scott, Stiles sat beside me as I placed the keys on the table. "Remind me never to let this boy bargain anything. Ever."
"Hey I would have had it!"
"Yeah yeah."
"I'll pick you up right after work tonight and we meet at the rink, cool?"
Before Scott had the opportunity to respond, everyone's attention was diverted to the door, watching as a pair of heels strutted into the room.
We watched as the girl leaned over by a table, seductively taking a bite out of some boys apple.
"What the holy hell is that?" My favourite strawberry blonde chimed, leaning over the table so she was now beside us. "It's Erica."
"That's Erica? Jesus how much did I miss?" I muttered, none of us had taken our eyes off the girl.
She waltzed out of the room, Stiles, Scott and I sharing a look before we left to follow her. We reached the double doors, only to be greeted by an unfamiliar sight.
Erica getting in the car with none other than the sour wolf himself. Both of them grinning at the three of us before speeding off. "He's really building a pack huh?"
- - -
After school was over, I took a detour to the store parking lot. Sheriff Stilinski had organised an opportunity for me to get my car back, one which i gladly took as I drove back to the apartment.
Making my way up the stairs, I noticed a figure stood at my door with a small suitcase. Auburn-brown hair falling past her shoulders as she reached to knock at the door. "Hope?" I called as the girl turned to face me.
"Belle!"
You would think we hadn't seen one and other in years, the way we jumped into each other's embrace. But we were purely just excited to be reunited, she was my better half after all.
"I was just about to text you. Oh my god come in!" I squealed, opening my front door.
"you can tell aunt Rebekah helped design this place." She chuckled, pulling her suitcase into my room. "I like it."
We spent the next few hours, that I had originally intended on studying in, catching up on everything and anything. We really did adore eachother, over everything, we were and still remain the only constant in the others lives. As unfortunate as it sounds.
We've been hunted since the day we were born, by anything really, to reset the balance of nature. Abominations in their truest form. Our family have always aimed to protect us, forcing themselves into the eye of danger countless times for us, she was the only one who understood exactly what I went through without their comfort, we went through everything together.
I think secretly, we both knew there had been a long calm before the storm. Being who we were, we were never supposed to get this happy ending, it would all come full circle eventually. Our little empire would collapse. But until that day, and even longer, our vow remains.
Family above all. Always and Forever.
- - -
Receiving a text from Scott, Hope and I got into my car, driving towards the ice rink. Part of me was nervous to introduce her to my friends, although secretly I think the two of us were more excited than anything as we pulled up.
"Hey Ari!" Scott greeted as the pair of us walked through the door, arms linked with smiles on our faces.
"Hey guys!" The small group gathered in front of us as I began the introduction. "This is Stiles, Allison, Scott and Lydia." I gestured to each of them as they gave friendly smiles. "Everyone, this is my sister, Hope."
It didn't take long for everyone to actually get aqquainted, friendly small talk as I retrieved everyone's ice skates with Stiles and Hope. "So are you..yknow? like Bella?"
"A tribrid? Yup. We are twins after all."
"She's the better witch, I'm the better wolf" I smirked, returning to the group as we each handed out the skates. Lydia had seemed to take a liking to my sister, it was nice to be honest, she fit right in.
"Ally, can I borrow you a minute?"
"Yeah sure." she smiled at me, leaving Scott in the middle of the arena. "What's up?"
Pulling the bracelet I had spelled this morning from my pocket, with her permission, I clasped it around her wrist. She looked up at me with an open mouth. "It's beautiful, what's this for?"
"Partially a thank you, for everything really. Also a means of protection. I spelled it with vervain, as long as you have it on you, vampires can't compel you." I smiled, rubbing her shoulder slightly.
"Wow, I don't know what to say. Thank you, Ari, you didn't have to really."
"I wanted to." The pair of us returned to the centre, I would have given her the gift in the middle of the group, but I seriously wasn't up for explaining this to Lydia right now.
Speaking of the devil, Lydia gliding gracefully across the rink, doing all kinds of tricks just as Hope and I hit the ice. Neither of us were particularly experienced with ice skating, but we killed it none the less. "Go get your man." Hope teased, sending me a wink before skating over to Lydia.
I rolled my eyes, approaching the boy, "coming Stilinski?" I took hold of his hand, racing around the rink with him by my side. Occasionally erupting in fits of laughter as we watched Scott fumble. "You okay there bambi?" I joked, earning a disapproving look as he jumped to his feet, only making the pair of us laugh more.
We had only left the ice momentarily, on our way to get food with Hope when a ear-wretching scream filled the small arena.
Squirming slightly, Hope gave me a look as the pair of us ran back on to the ice. "Lydia?"
Scratching at the ice, she looked absolutely mortified, still screaming as Hope pulled her away from the floor. Not really knowing what to do, she pulled her into a hug, holding the disturbed girl. Scott, Stiles and Allison had now joined us on the ice as I tried to distract her from whatever she thought she had seen.
There was definitely something off with Lydia, although I didn't know what.
- - -
To be honest, I felt incredibly guilty for leaving Hope at my apartment during the day. Although unless I spoke to the principal, there wasn't much I could do. She convinced me everything would be fine, she was more than capable of entertaining herself until I got home, eventually making me comply to the terms.
- - -
"I know how it looked, but she came up to me." Scott defended. Me and Allison were sat at the table behind him at lunch as he tried to communicate with her. We had passed Erica uncomfortably close to him in the hall, although in his defence, I had heard the conversation.
"I'm not jealous." my Brunette friend replied.
"You're not?"
"She's with Derek now isn't she? Like Issac?" Allison asked, her face was stern yet curious, as if trying to piece things together. "You can't get caught in the middle of this. Either of you. Don't you feel what's happening? My grandfather coming here, Derek turning Erica and Issac, it's.. it's like battle lines are being drawn."
I placed my hand over hers as an action or comfort, it was clear she was only trying to look out for us, something I did appreciate.
"I know."
"There is always cross fire." She continued, almost warning Scott.
"What am I supposed to do? We can't just stand by. I can't pretend to be normal anymore."
Allison scoffed in return of the comment, tensing slightly. "I don't want you to be normal. I want you to be alive. Both of you."
Her attention turned to me as she finished her sentence, emphasising her point, just before getting up to leave. I left my seat, sitting beside Scott this time, just as Stiles approached.
"Do you see that?" He leaned over our shoulders, pointing to nothing.
"What? It's an empty table."
"Yeah but who's empty table?" Stiles finished, provoking thoughts.
"Boyd's" I muttered in realisation. "You don't think..?"
The three of us shared a look, assuming the worst. The third beta.
"I'm gonna go to the ice rink. See if he's there" Scott mentioned as the three of us walked through the halls. "You coming?" he asked gesturing to me.
"Obviously."
"Good okay. If he's not at home, call one of us, got it?...what?"
"Maybe we should let him?" Stiles quirked, looking at the two of us. "Boyd, you know man? You said Derek is giving them a choice, right?"
"We can't!" Scott answered, looking at our friend as if he was delusional.
"You gotta admit, Erica looks pretty good."
"More than good. She's hot, and confident. Her entire personality changed." I added, not knowing which boy I was supposed to side with.
"Yeah the word 'sensational' comes to mind."
"How good do you think she's gonna look with a wolfsbane bullet in her head?" Scott added.
"Okay he also has a point Stiles."
"All i'm saying is maybe this one isn't totally your responsibility."
"They all are. You know this thing is gonna get out of control. That makes me responsible."
"All right, i'm with you." Stiles caved, looking at his friend. "And i've gotta say this newfound heroism is making me very attracted to you."
I let out a laugh, Scott's face contorting in confusion. "Shut up."
"No seriously, you wanna get making out for a sec?" Just to see how it feels!" He added, just as Scott pushed him forward down the corridor shaking his head.
So much for staying out of this, huh...
- - -
A/N: Filler chapter, my apologies ://
It's hopefully going to pick up again soon, just wanted to introduce Hope now rather than later!
Word count: 3.3k
Until next time...