tay sat on the hood of stiles' jeep, next to scott. she listened to stiles talk about his plan for the seniors of the pack.
"alright, so i found some cool two bedrooms in mission district, but they're pretty expensive," stiles informed. "a couple in haight and ashbury. also expensive."
"what about berkeley?" scott asked. "don't a lot of students live around there?"
"i don't get it," tay spoke up with a small shrug, accidentally cutting off stiles without knowing. "why is it so important - college, i mean. i get the plan, stiles, don't get pissy."
stiles dropped his look, his face going to a grin.
tay sighed. "why do you guys have to go to college? you don't need it for an education and a job. like, yeah, to some people, maybe. but you guys? it's just extra school that's bullshit!"
scott gave her a look, his lips twitching upward. "that sounds so negative."
"wh- i don't mean it like that!" she defended. "i just- i mean, why do you guys have to leave? can't you at least go somewhere close?"
stiles patted her on the back sympathetically. "well, hey! you'll still have liam, and mason, and hayden, and brett."
tay sighed again. "yeah, sure. but... it's gonna be different without you guys."
"you're gonna be ok," scott assured. "we'll all be sure to keep in contact and visit, ok?"
"yeah, whatever." tay was still pouting, even though she understood.
scott chuckled. he looked at stiles, rubbing his thumb over the girl's shoulder comfortingly. "so, about berkely?"
"yeah, yeah, we could try nob hill." stiles looked a the map in front of him. "but, the jeep would probably burn through a lot of clutches."
"you're bringing the jeep?" scott asked.
"of course he's bringing the jeep." tay laughed. "never leave someone behind, remember that, last year? in mexico?"
stiles nodded at her with a gleeful look. "see, scotty? she gets it. and you know the plan, ok. no one- no one gets left behind. that's the plan. lydia's not gonna have a problem getting into standford. kira's thinking USF. malia's, uh, gonna, you know, she'll figure something out, ok. the plan's perfect."
"or we could also wait until we actually get into college and then figure out where to live."
tay rolled her eyes playfully. "if you're doing this college bullshit, the least you could do is be prepared."
scott shoved her gently, trying not to chuckle.
"yeah, tay! scott, she gets it! start thinkin' like her. i have a vision, dude. ok? she gets that vision. you should too. because it is a beautiful vision. don't ruin the vision." he then sighed, looking at the map again. "ok, we can, uh, check out the east bay."
"no," tay whined. "that's so far!"
"tay, come on, no whining or you'll go with liam at the tree."
"really?" she deadpanned. "the tree?!"
"yes, the tree!"
"fine." tay huffed like a child.
stiles resumed his conversation with scott, "haven't looked at oakland yet, you know."
scott was staring off into the sky and not answering, making the two with him follow his gaze.
he was looking at the moon.
"you're alright? you're starting to feel it?" stiles questioned.
scott shook his head. "no. just thinking."
"about kira?" tay teased.
he shook his head again, trying not to smile since he was now thinking of her.
"about what?" stiles put down his red sharpie.
"senior year."
"hopefully it's a good one," tay stated.
"senior year, come on, that's-that's-..." stiles paused momentarily. "that's nothing. that's going to be easy."
scott stopped leaning back, sitting up. "it's more like something deaton told me once."
"ooh, deaton!" tay exclaimed. she loved deaton. she'd - and the rest of the pack - would be dead if it weren't for him.
scott smiled faintly at her. "you ever hear of regression to the mean?"
"no, i don't think so." stiles shook his head.
"isn't that the thing that's, like, how data evens out or something?" tay asked.
he nodded. "yeah. basically. it was his way of saying that life can't ever be all bad or all good. you know, eventually things have to come back to the middle."
"scott..." tay warned. "don't jinx this year. please."
"i'm not," he denied, "i'm just saying. so, think about the last few months. things have been good, right? but not amazing."
"they've been better than the last, what, three years?" tay shrugged. "i'd say that's progress. good progress."
"progress is my word."
"whatever, stiles."
he rolled his eyes. "scott, i get what you're saying. good, but not amazing, yeah, but no one's tried to kill us in six months either."
scott nodded. "right. we've been pretty much in the middle for a while." he took a breath. "which means, at some point, the scale has to tip one way or the other. things are gonna get really good again..."
"or really bad," stiles finished for him.
"jesus, i swear if you just jinxed it-"
"if it is jinxed, hopefully it's tipping toward the good side."
tay gave a look. "knowing our luck, it'll be the bad side."
then the three looked up when thunder cracked.
"think it's been long enough?" stiles suddenly asked.
"yes!"
they turned toward the big tree where liam was chained down, tay smirking at her best friend.
"hey!" stiles exclaimed after rolling his eyes. "trying to have an adult conversation over here!"
"then why is tay with you?"
"cause she's mature."
tay grinned. "thank you, stiles." she laughed at liam's pouty face.
"i'm mature too!"
"no. no, you're not."
liam sighed and looked at the seniors. "alright, you're two years older than me. and i'm fine. just let me go."
the three walked over to him, scott playing with the key in his hands.
"it's not that we don't trust you," scott started.
"it's that i don't trust you," stiles stated the obvious.
"and that i like to see you suffer," tay smirked, speaking jokingly.
liam made a face. "tay," he whined. "you're supposed to be on my side."
"i'm on my side."
he huffed.
scott went on, ignoring the other three, "but after that last full moon..."
tay fake shuddered at the memory of liam in her room naked after jumping through her window.
-
"liam, what the hell are you doing!?" tay shouted, thankful that her adoptive parents were on a work trip. she gaped at the broken glass that was shattered on her floor.
"i-i don't know! i was running then i ended up here!" he stammered. "tay, what the hell? why am i here? i'm so confused!"
"wh- liam! put some clothes on!" she threw a blanket at him, covering her eyes.
"sorry!"
-
he still owed her a new window.
"you still owe me a new window."
"i'll get you the new window," liam promised. "and it was one slip up."
"you running through my window nude is a slip up?"
"yes! i didn't mean to!"
"yeah, slip up?" stiles echoed from behind scott. "a dozen calls to the sheriff's department about a 'monstrous dog-boy running around the streets of beacon hills naked' after going into tay's room - naked? that's a slip up?"
"why were you naked?" scott asked.
"it was really hot out that night, ok?" liam defended. "let me go."
tay nodded with a considering look. "he's not wrong, it was really hot."
"huh?!" stiles exclaimed, his eyes almost falling out of his head. "what!?" he screeched.
liam's mouth was ajar, a faint blush on his cheeks.
"ugh, no!" tay shook her head. "not like that! it was hot out! not liam's dick!"
"could you not put it that way?" liam suggested.
"what, you want me to sound formal? sure." she cleared her throat. "it was very hot out that night. not liam's penis. which is surprisingly a great size." she cocked her head to the side. "better for you, blue eyes?"
liam shook his head with a grimace. "not really. i, uh, would prefer it if you didn't talk about 'my size'."
"deal with it."
"ok." he looked at scott and stiles, who were sharing a look that said 'too much info'. "let me go."
"you sure you're ok?" scott asked.
"it won't happen again," liam vowed.
scott nodded. "you're in complete and total control?"
tay didn't say anything about liam's hesitation, knowing he was still having a hard time controlling his shift. she liked teasing liam but she knew when to stop. she glanced down, noticing some red on liam's hand that was dripping slowly.
blood.
she didn't know why scott wasn't calling him out on it. maybe he didn't want to embarrass the beta or something.
"yeah. complete and total."
scott nodded again before undoing the chains, letting it clang to the bag that was on the ground.
stiles picked it up and walked to the jeep, scott following.
tay stayed behind with liam, giving him a smile. "lemme see your hands."
liam stiffened. "w-what?"
"you heard me." she gestured to his clenched fists. "open them."
he sighed, reluctantly listening. he stuck them out, looking at the ground shamefully. his fingertips had blood on them and so did his palms, the outline of his claws there from when he was digging them into the flesh.
"you have your music?" tay asked. "if you don't, you could borrow my phone."
he nodded. "yeah, i have mine. i don't know if it'll work though..."
"ok. try using it for now." she watched him put his hands back down to his side. "come on," she said as she held his left hand, walking over toward the jeep. "let's go. and don't worry," she whispered, "i won't tell scott."
liam smiled. "thanks, tay."
"no problem, blue eyes."
𖦹𖦹𖦹
tay tapped her phone to the beat of the song as she sat in the backseat, her head leaning on liam's shoulder. she mouthed the words to the twenty one pilots song she was listening to.
liam tapped her, making her pull out one of her earbuds.
"hm?"
he made grabby hands toward the earbud, wanting to share it.
tay chuckled, handing it to him after she took note that he put his phone and his earbuds away. "you can use your words, you know that, right? and you have your own in your pocket."
he shrugged, placing the earbud over his ear so it wasn't inside but he could still hear the music. "eh. i like sharing with you."
"i noticed," she half-joked, laying her head back on his shoulder. she laughed quietly when liam took her phone and turned up the volume a notch or two.
soon, liam was leaning forward, in between scott and stiles and asking questions. tay was leaning back in her seat, her knees pressed against the back of stiles' seat. she wasn't really listening, just chuckling every now and then at stupid for funny questions and replies.
"is it a party?"
"it's not a party," stiles told him.
"then what's at midnight?"
"your bedtime."
tay laughed, covering her mouth when liam gave her a look.
"why aren't the girls going?" liam continued.
"uh, hello?" tay raised her hand, speaking up. "girl over here."
"i mean the senior girls."
"uh-huh."
"they're meeting us there, ok?" stiles raised his eyebrows, continuing to drive. "and just stop asking questions, alright?"
"hey, stiles?" tay hid her smirk.
"huh? what?"
"can i have your girlfriend?"
stiles glared at her through the mirror. "no! both of you, no questions and no speaking!"
she laughed, closing her eyes blissfully. "malia loves me more," she teased in a sing-song voice.
"shut it, tay." stiles scowled.
she giggled, shooting finger guns in reply. she loved annoying him about stealing his girlfriend. she did the same to scott about kira and the same with allison - when she was alive. same with isaac and allison. she did it to jackson and aiden about lydia, too. she loved agitating them about their girlfriends.
"you sure it's not a party?" liam asked, changing the subject. "why can't me and tay go?"
"it's a senior thing," stiles said. "you'll know when you're a senior."
"oh, i'm going," tay stated with a laugh. "and i may be a junior but lydia wants me there. what the queen wants, the queen gets."
"you guys having trouble with your phones?" scott asked suddenly.
"well, my music's still playing, but i don't have service." tay shrugged. "my music's downloaded and offline, that's probably why." she groaned when the engine sputtered, knowing stiles was going to have to 'fix' it.
"oh. what the hell?" stiles muttered.
the jeep stopped.
"you out of gas?" liam asked.
"no, it's electrical." stiles corrected.
"you need to fix it with something other than tape." tay rolled her eyes.
"tape works just fine!" stiles argued.
tay scoffed. "sure."
stiles turned off the jeep, "probably the alternator again." he then opened his door and got out, scott doing the same.
as scott and stiles popped the hood, liam leaned back in his seat, letting his head fall on top of tay's. "can i pick a song?"
tay shrugged. "yeah, sure." she handed him her phone.
she chuckled when fix you by coldplay came on.
liam nudged her as he started singing quietly. he didn't sound bad.
tay rolled her eyes jokingly before she started to mutter the lyrics.
they both jumped when there was a strike of thunder behind them.
"is it just me, or..." tay started, both of them turning toward it.
"was that close?" liam finished.
they shared a look, looking toward scott and stiles.
"guys..." liam called.
they looked back again, just in time to see another strike even closer.
"ah!" tay jumped.
"guys!" liam raised his voice.
"yeah, give us a second, please."
"kids, stay in the car, ok?"
"we're not kids." tay scoffed.
"just stay in the car," scott repeated.
there was another strike but it was near the seniors, making all four of them jump.
"that was close."
"very close."
liam moved forward and turned the keys that were in the ignition, turning the jeep on. he stuck his head out the window, almost accidentally kicking tay in the face as he did. "can we go now?"
"please?!" tay added loudly, making sure she was heard.
the seniors shared a look before getting back into the jeep. then stiles was driving away, tay and liam going back to listening to their music.
𖦹𖦹𖦹
tay grinned when stiles honked, driving past malia and mister tate and stopping.
stiles stuck his head out, "sorry we're late."
malia ran up to him and kissed him, tay rolling her eyes.
she let them have their small moment before tay pulled stiles away and put her head where his was. "hey, mal."
malia laughed, moving forward to kiss her on the cheek. "hey, tay."
she smirked, looking at stiles. "your girl loves me more," she taunted.
stiles glared at her. he was completely ok with them doing that despite getting annoyed. he told tay it was ok, and he'd tell them if he were really uncomfortable.
liam stuck his head in between scott and stiles, grinning at malia. "i'm sorry too."
tay scowled, pushing him back into the back seat. "shut up, blue eyes. she's mine."
"i'm literally dating her!" stiles exclaimed.
mister tate stepped forward, looking between the two boys. "you boys do remember i own a gun, right?" he looked at tay, smiling. "hello, tay."
"hello, mister tate." she and the man got along great due to all of the time she spent at malia's house.
"vividly," stiles answered mister tate's question that was a reminder.
mister tate nodded before giving his daughter and tay an amused look, walking away.
malia then got in the back, sitting on tay's lap since there was no room for all three of them back there without being squished together.
they all looked at her expectantly, malila playing with tay's fingers.
she looked up, noticing their eyes. "what?"
"did you find out yet?" stiles asked.
"find out what?" liam questioned, putting one putting the earbud back where it was before.
tay gave him a look that said 'shut your mouth'.
"they're gonna email me," malia told them, ignoring liam.
"is this about summer school?" liam continued, not understanding what tay was trying to mouth to him.
tay clenched her jaw, lifting the hand malia wasn't using to make a strangling motion toward the boy.
"you told him?" malia asked the seniors and junior.
tay shook her head rapidly. "it wasn't me; don't look at me! look at them!"
"uh..." stiles trailed off.
liam - being the adorable idiot he was - tried to help. "oh, no, all they said was you had to go to summer school cause the principal said your test scores weren't good enough and you might have to repeat junior year."
malia sighed, giving them a look.
stiles looked at scott. "we should've left him chained to the tree."
tay laughed, smirking at liam's pout. then she got serious again, looking at malia when she noticed malia was still upset. "it wasn't me," she repeated. "and it's not that big of a deal, right? liam isn't judging or anything."
malia just sighed.
"b- hey!" she forced a grin. "you're not gonna have to repeat, ok? you're malia tate. you're smart, even if you hate math. you're gonna pass and be a senior."
malia nodded. "yeah, yeah. hopefully."
𖦹𖦹𖦹
tay leaned on the counter, standing next to malia in the hospital.
she was staring at her phone, waiting for the email anxiously.
"hey," tay got her attention. "just be a little patient. they'll email you."
"what if it's a bad email?" malia asked. "what if they email me and say i have to repeat junior year?"
"that won't happen." tay shook her head. "you're gonna pass and you're gonna be a goddamn senior. alright?"
malia nodded, trying to convince herself. "yeah."
tay gave her an assuring smile, bumping their hips together. "have some faith."
malia chuckled. "i'd rather have deer."
tay laughed. "of course you do."
neither of them noticed scott and stiles next to them until stiles spoke up, "malia, if you were going away and i told you 'don't worry, go have fun', what would you think i was talking about?"
"fun like bowling? or sex with other guys?"
"yeah, it really depends on the context," tay added.
stiles turned to scott with a look.
"ok, yeah. now i'm worried."
then there were some paramedics bringing in someone on one of those gurney things, the man on it groaning with his face scrunched up in pain.
"hey, mom, where's all this coming from?" scott asked melissa as she walked past them, making her stop and turn to the group.
"a jackknifed tractor-trailer on one fifteen," melissa explained, "caused a major pile up."
"one fifteen?" tay echoed with concern. she knew kira was on one fifteen to get back to beacon hills; it was the only way to get back into beacon hills from the airport.
melissa nodded, "yeah." then she walked away, going back to her job.
"ok, ok, there's only one way back into beacon hills from the airport," stiles started, saying tay's thoughts from a moment ago.
"one fifteen," scott concluded.
"kira's never gonna make it."
"i can get her," scott decided.
"um, i could try to?" tay shrugged, speaking at the same time as him.
they all looked at the two.
"ok." scott nodded. "uh, you go to her and check if she's alright and everything and just, stay there until i get there."
"wait," malia stopped the two before tay teleported and scott ran off. "tay, could you take him with you? it might save time."
the girl frowned regretfully. "no, not yet, sorry. i don't know how to take someone with me."
"it's ok," scott told her, knowing she felt bad. "we've got this. just check in on her."
"got it." tay grinned with a nod, shooting finger guns at him. she looked around before closing her eyes and focusing on one fifteen. when she opened her eyes, she was on the highway, rain pouring on her. her face broke into a happy one, grinning widely. she threw her arms up, "yeah! i did it!"
she got some weird looks from people walking around, trying to get service, but she didn't care.
she sighed, looking around for a certain girl. she shrugged, deciding to step onto one of a hood of a random car and climb to the top, looking around. she smiled when she saw kira. she cupped her mouth, "kira!"
the girl looked up, laughing at the sight. "tay!"
they both grinned at each other before tay jumped down, running toward her. they wrapped their arms around each other at the same time, holding tightly.
"i missed you so much," kira whispered blissfully, her eyes closed.
"i missed you too," tay told her, pulling away to kiss kira all over her face - friendly, of course. she'd never kiss someone in a relationship.
kira laughed, playing shoving her away. "oh, man. it's so great to see you."
"ugh, i missed seeing your beautiful face." tay chuckled. she eyed kira up and down, taking in her appearance. "is it just me or did you get sexier?"
"is it just me or would scott kill you if he found out you're basically flirting with me?"
tay made a 'pfft' sound, waving her off. "i'm only joking, he knows that." she smirked. "unless..."
kira raised an eyebrow.
"i'm joking! alright, alright." she put her hands up in surrender. "it's not my fault my mind goes bi panic when i see you all."
kira smiled sheepishly. "i'm not that attractive."
tay scoffed. "kira, you're one of the most attractive persons i've ever met."
her smile widened, a bit less sheepishness to it. "really?"
"hell yeah!" she exclaimed.
kira's face heated up so she changed the subject, "so, what's been going on? what have i missed?"
"honestly..." tay started. "it's been good. no supernatural shit."
kira grinned. "sounds awesome."
"what about you? what happened with you, firefox?"
kira chuckled at the nickname. "it, uh..." she shrugged. "it was fun. new york, it was great."
tay smirked. "there was too many people, weren't there?"
kira nodded, dropping her lie. "yeah. way too many. it was so crowded. not fun at all."
tay laughed, about to say something. she stopped when she saw a green motorbike coming toward them. "look," she said, pointing at scott, who was stopping his bike and getting off.
kira smiled, about to go forward. she stopped and frowned, glancing at where her parents where.
tay nodded. "go. i'll tell them."
kira smiled again and went off to scott, meeting him in the middle.
tay went up to the yukimura's car, knocking on noshiko's window.
the woman rolled it down, chuckling. "hi, tay. it's nice to see you."
"hi, noshiko. hi, ken." tay waved.
ken nodded at her. "hello."
"kira went off with scott. we're gonna head to the school," tay told them.
"thank you," noshiko said.
"it's no problem." tay went to walk away but noshiko's voice stopped her.
"tay," she exclaimed.
"yes?"
"make sure she's ok."
tay was confused but nodded. "'course. she's my best friend."
ken smiled. "thank you again. i'll see you at school."
tay gave them a thumbs up, looking around as noshiko shut her window. her eyes met a guy's in some car.
he looked familiar.
she furrowed her eyebrows when his eyes widened, coughing up a fucking storm.
"hey, tay!"
she turned her head away from the guy, looking at scott and kira. "yeah?"
"are you gonna get to the school ok?" scott asked.
tay smirked. "come on, scott. it's me. of course i am."
scott raised his eyebrow at that. "you couldn't even walk inside my house without bumping into the door."
"that was one time."
"it was more than one time."
"shut up, scott. you're making me have a bad impression in front of our girlfriend." and then she made a face. "and it's technically our house. i basically live there."
said girlfriend laughed at the two, walking toward tay. she turned her head toward scott, continuing to walk, "i'll be right back, hold on." she went up to tay, pulling something out of her pocket. "i forget to give this." she stuck it up.
tay gaped at the shinny ring, slowly bringing it to her hands. she stared at it. "kira... are you proposing?!" she made her voice high-pitched, "yes, yes, a thousand times yes!"
the two laughed, kira shaking her head.
"no. i'm sorry."
tay pouted.
"read what it says."
tay complied. she read it aloud, "t.r. plus k.y." she grinned. "awe, kira."
the girl shrugged, a wide smile on her face. "it's, um, t.r. for tay raeken, you, and k.y. for me, kira yukimura."
tay chuckled. "i got that."
kira nodded awkwardly. "right. sorry."
"don't be sorry. i love it." tay looked at the girl. "is this why you checked the sizes of my fingers before you left and asked my preferred finger?"
kira laughed. "yeah."
tay put it on her middle finger on her right hand, looking at it. "i love it. thank you."
kira grinned. "alright. i'm gonna go back to scott. i'll see you at the school, ok?"
"ok." tay confirmed. she watched as kira ran back to scott, getting on his motorbike.
"wait!" she stopped them quickly, glancing at the ring. "it's not silver or iron, right?"
silver and iron were two out of four of her weaknesses. iron was harmful while silver was deadly.
kira shook her head. "definitely not. don't worry, it's safe for you to wear."
tay gave a thumbs up again before she turned around again. yet again, she met the guy's eyes.
he was staring at her, his mouth slightly ajar.
she raised an eyebrow at him, waving sarcastically. he quickly looked the other way, seeming like he was thinking about something. so, tay closed her eyes and focused on beacon hills high school. she opened them and she was there.
tay sat down on one of the open spaces at the front of the school, playing candy crush as she waited.
𖦹𖦹𖦹
tay walked back to the front of the school after walking a lap on the track, wondering where everyone else was and when they had to go in.
someone ran into her, pushing them both to the ground. tay landed on top of the them.
"ahg!"
tay glared at the person below her. "liam, what the hell?!"
"where's stiles and malia?" he asked.
"i don't know, you're the one with heightened senses!" she exclaimed. "why?"
"scott's in trouble."
"what?" tay jumped up, standing and helping liam stand. "ok, i'll find them, you get stiles and malia."
"them? who's them?" liam furrowed his eyebrows. "wait, scott uses they/them pronouns?"
"no, i-i don't think so, i mean he's with kira." she then waved him off, "go, hurry up!"
liam listened hesitantly, not wanting to leave her, but he ran off and went to find the couple.
tay thought about where the hell scott could be. she remembered this one time she caught scott and kira making out under the bridge. "the bridge," she whispered. "the bridge!" she knew she wasn't able to focus enough so she took off running, going as fast as she could. she almost tripped down the stairs when she stopped due to the rain.
she hesitated for a mere second, hating this bridge with all of her heart.
it was where aiden died.
"kira!" she cried when the girl got knocked down. she glared at the dude who did it. she took note of the very large claws. tay took a deep breath before running forward, punching the dude in the jaw.
she was so damn thankful she had super strength.
"go to hell, you piece of shit!" she shouted as she did so.
the dude growled, his teeth showing. he raised a challenging eyebrow at her, making her scowl.
she stayed where she was. "come at me, fucker," she spat.
and he did.
she dodged his punches and attempts to push her. she kicked him away when he was about to hit her face with his claws. "dude, i'm literally a fairy!" she threw her arms around in a stiles-like manner. "how hard is it to fucking strike me?!"
she grunted as he quickly turned, punching her across the face. "fuck, i shouldn't have said that." tay did her best to ignore the burn as she got back into a fighting position, using her wrist to wipe the blood off her lips. "fuck you."
she swung her fist but he dodged it again, grabbing it and flipping her onto her back. she gasped for air, the wind being knocked out of her. "shit," she wheezed.
the dude went toward scott, who was trying to crawl and stand. "true alpha? where's your power, scott?"
scott growled, sitting up onto one knee. he glared at the dude. "who are you?"
"a devoted fan."
"stalker," tay managed to get out. "that hurt. ow."
she was ignored.
"show me the man who took down deucalion and broke the argents."
"hey!" tay was quick to come to scott's defense even though she was still catching her breath.. "the argents aren't broken because of him, you asshole."
she was ignored again.
"i came for that alpha. come on!"
scott growled again, louder.
tay took some deep breaths as she listened to the two fight, using the wall to help her stand. she watched from the sidelines until the dude grabbed scott by his throat.
she quickly jumped on the dude's back, using her arm to put him in a choke hold. she tightened her arm around his neck, trying to stay where she was as he tried to get her off. he used his free hand to grab her shirt, pulling her off and tossing her next to kira.
kira bent down, holding onto tay's forearms to help her stand. "are you ok?"
"ask me that after scott's not being choked, yeah?" tay nodded.
kira nodded too, both of them turning toward the scene in front of them.
the dude pinned scott to the wall by his neck, holding the boy above him. he dropped scott when tay ran forward and hit him in the back of the head. he turned around and pushed her into the wall, his forearm putting pressure on her neck.
tay grunted when her back hit the wall, her head luckily not hitting it too. "kinky," she taunted. she used all the strength she had to kick him off of her, missing his dick and kicking his gut instead. she slid down the wall, immediately crawling over to scott and checking on him.
kira yelled as she attacked him with her katana, trying to at least cut him. when she had her arm up, he grabbed it, stopping her. she moved her arm the other way, getting out of his grip. she shouted in pain when he striked her in the face, knocking her to the ground.
tay stood up and ran, punching him in the throat. he quickly grabbed her leg when she went to jump-kick him, pushing her away when she did. she rolled on the ground but stood back up, panting and breathing heavily. she kept trying to punch him and every time, he dodged it, and sometimes he'd get a cut to her arms. finally, she got a kick to his legs, sending him to the ground. she smirked, kneeing him in the face.
"no one..." she took some more breaths. "touches my friends." she sent her foot in between his legs, hitting his dick. she was exhausted; falling to her ass right after. she panted, listening to the dude groan. she had a few cuts on her arms and her back and neck hurt like hell. they'd be bruised later.
she groaned in annoyance when the dude stood up, grunting as she got up too. she waited for him to make the first move, backing away from his claws. he swiped over and over again till he finally got her leg. it wasn't deep but it wasn't a scratch. he swung his fist two more times, both of them hitting her face.
she coughed as she fell onto her side, spitting out blood. she tried to stand again but she was tired, unable to get up. she watched as the dude snarled at scott.
"and i didn't come just to claim your status," the dude stated. he lifted his claws, a blue hue surrounding them. he raised them to his head, staring down scott.
"no," tay rasped, trying to stand again. she grunted, spitting out blood again. "shit."
just then, a guy jumped down from above the bridge.
the three conscious people turned their heads to look at him.
tay furrowed her eyebrows when she noticed it was the guy who was staring at her earlier.
there was a growl but tay didn't know who it came from. she didn't exactly care. she used the rest of the strength she had to pull herself over to kira, who was the closest near her. she wouldn't be able to get past the dude anyway. she checked kira's pulse, sighing in relief when she felt a heartbeat. tay watched the guy fight the dude, taking her light jacket off and holding it to the wound on her leg.
she looked over at scott, who gave a worried look. 'i'm ok,' she mouthed after watching the guy go off the wall and hit the dude across the face.
he was unconvinced, smelling the blood.
tay watched the fight with the guy and the dude go down, just wanting to go to liam's house and watch coraline till they fell asleep on his bed. of course, after she got permission from lydia.
soon enough, the guy was rolling over to tay, making her grab him and help him sit up. she treated people nicely and with respect until she had a reason not to.
"are you ok?" the guy asked, the concern in his eyes and voice clear.
tay furrowed her eyebrows. "not to be rude, but two things. why do you care and do i know you?"
the guy made a face. "sorta. you'll know soon."
"um, ok?" tay let go of the guy's shoulders to put more pressure on her leg, watching scott stand.
she was scared.
scared she'd lose another person she cared about.
and at this stupid bridge.
tay winced as she stared at the direct spot aiden's body had been, almost as if she was currently staring at him now.
the dude swung his hand out, trying to claw scott's face, but scott slide under his arm. he dodged another few swings before he was grabbed by his throat again.
tay went to help but the guy held her back, keeping her where she was. "if you don't let me go, i swear to god, i'll break your nose."
"not the first time i've heard that," the guy told her. "but you're not going, you're too injured."
"then you do something!" she snapped, suppressing a grunt. "that's my brother up there, help him!"
the guy looked hurt at her words but it was gone as quick as it was there. he got up ran over, kicking the back of the dude's knee. the dude used his free hand to push the guy into the wall behind him, the guy groaning when his head hit the wall.
"this is what i get for helping," he whispered, his hand on the sore spot. tay didn't hear him, though.
tay grunted as she tried to stand, only to stumble again.
scott was still above the ground, one of the dude's hand around his neck and the other in his chest, blue glowing around them.
tay gasped when she saw it, trying to crawl over. "no," she whimpered.
kira was finally conscious and the first thing she saw was scott with claws in his chest. she couldn't say anything, tears brimming her eyes with her mouth gaping.
the dude had his teeth out, mouth wide open as he pushed a struggling and hurt scott to his knees.
tay was trying to scream out for scott but she couldn't. she was feeling the same pain she did when she saw allison die, aiden die, boyd die, aiden die, and when she saw tara's - her little sister - dead body.
she couldn't even turn her head when she heard the rest of the current pack members - minus lydia - join.
scott groaned, trying to stand up, but the strength of the hand still in his chest and pushing him down kept him from doing so.
kira was standing with her katana in her hands, tears falling silently. the guy was standing, up, still in his wolf form.
tay couldn't move. she couldn't take her eyes off of scott.
scott suddenly gripped the dude's wrist, standing back up slowly. then he broke the dude's arm, now the dude falling to his knees.
tay smiled proudly, letting out quick breaths.
then scott pulled out the claws that were in his chest, throwing them behind him.
"i don't know who you are, or what you thought you were going to do, but i'll give you a choice," scott decided, still in his werewolf form. "you can stay and i'll break something else. or you can run."
the dude looked at the group on the side then tay.
"i'd run," stiles advised.
"before i fucking ki-" tay started.
scott interrupted her, "tay."
she sighed, nodding at his look.
no killing.
the dude listened, running off in the other direction.
liam quickly ran over to tay, helping her stand up. he wrapped her arm around his neck and put his around her, helping her keep her balance. "you ok?"
tay nodded, not convincing him at all. "mhm. fine."
liam pressed a small and comforting kiss to her forehead, rubbing his thumb on her hand. he closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. black lines started appearing on his arm before disappearing. "liar," he joked, making her feel better.
tay laughed. "you finally know how to do it."
liam chuckled in reply.
tay detached herself from liam after giving him a kiss on the cheek and limped over to scott, pulling him into a hug. "you scared me shitless, asshole."
scott hugged the girl back. "you scared me too. i thought you were gonna get even more hurt."
"says the one who just had a hand in his chest like elijah mikaelson was doing it."
scott laughed, both of them pulling away from each other. as tay was going back next to iam, kira went over to scott, kissing his forehead.
"thank god you're ok," she muttered.
he moved his head to kiss her lips. "you too."
then the pack members that were currently there all moved toward each other.
then they looked to their left, seeing the guy.
liam stepped in front of tay not-so discreetly, making tay's face heat up.
the guy had a smile, chuckling. tay could tell that it was a bit forced. "you don't remember, do you? i mean, i know you don't." he was looking at tay at the last part. "it's pretty clear."
"should i remember you?" she asked.
the guy shrugged. "once you realize who i am, you might not want to." he looked at the others. "i guess i look a little different since the fourth grade." his eyes went to tay again. "maybe this'll help." he lifted his hands behind his neck before tossing something toward her, tay moving forward to catch it.
her eyebrows were pulled together as she looked it over. it was a locket. she opened it, her body tensing at the picture inside. it was her, tara, and her brother. theo.
tay slowly lifted her head. she was about to ask where he got it but then it clicked.
he was theo.
her face dropped and her whole demeanor changed. her hands shook with them clenched, her nails digging into the flesh of her palm. she glared at theo and stepped back, tears prickling her eyes.
"the fuck are you doing here?" her voice was harsh and raspy.
she had a reason to not be nice and respectful to him now that she knew who he was.
"theo?" scott asked, finally recognizing him.
he nodded. then he looked at tay. "nice to see you too, sis."
tay had her teeth gritted together. she didn't reply.
stiles stepped toward her. "'sis'?" he echoed. "that's theo? the theo? your brother? you know, the one that you said left you-"
"yes, stiles," she spat, not taking her eyes off of theo. "that's theo."
stiles stepped away in fear.
theo winced. tay could tell it was genuine but she didn't give a single fuck.
malia looked between the three before looking at scott. "you know him? i get how tay does, because... yeah. but you?"
"they used to," theo answered for him. he shook his head, a smile on his face. "trust me, i never thought i'd see you guys again."
"what about me?" tay cut in. "you ever think of that? ever fucking think of me?"
"of course i did," he promised. "i just couldn't find you."
she scoffed. she was keeping quiet, though, not wanting everyone else knowing what happened. she'd talk to theo after they were all gone.
theo started explaining to the pack - not including lydia, "couple of months ago, i heard of an alpha in beacon hills. when i found out his name was scott mccall, i just couldn't believe it."
"yeah?" tay raised her eyebrows. "what about the sister of yours that lived here? the living one? you know, taylor serina raeken?"
theo looked down, the others watching awkwardly.
liam grabbed her hand, squeezing comfortingly to calm her down.
"could we talk about this later and in private?" theo suggested.
tay rolled her eyes, crossing her arms in a defensive manner.
theo continued, looking at scott, "not just an alpha, but a true one."
scott licked his lips before asking, "what do you want?"
"i came back to beacon hills. back home with my family. because i want to be a part of your pack."
"are you fucking serious?" tay breathed out. "you-you came back... for a pack? for the true alpha? for scott?!" she laughed in disbelief.
theo looked down, trying to keep himself looking how he did when he was explaining.
scott nudged stiles as he shared a look with everyone, backing away to give them their needed space.
stiles was hesitant, not trusting theo, but went with scott anyway.
"liam, come on," kira said when she noticed he only moved to the opening of the bridge.
the boy licked his lips and shook his head. "i'm-i'm gonna wait here, for her. she might be while, though, so, can you tell lydia?"
kira sighed, nodding. "yeah, ok." then she was walking away with the others.
tay blinked quickly, scoffing at theo. "did you forget that i'm still alive and here?"
"i thought you left..." he told her.
"i didn't!" she exclaimed. "i didn't leave! i was at uncle rick's but i came back!"
"you were gone for weeks!" he defended. "mom and dad couldn't find you, i didn't know where you went, and they wanted to leave beacon hills."
"i was at uncle rick's!" she gaped. "i stayed there. for two months because i couldn't handle it. but none of you came looking for me. not even when uncle rick called mom!"
"we were grieving over tara, we didn't exactly think about anything else or focus on it."
tay gaped. "a year later?! so you just fucking left after there was an APB out on me? mom and dad called the cops and shit and said i was missing! when i went back to the house, which was a day after i was 'missing', everything was gone! and so you you guys! you fucking vanished and took almost everything with you! all that was there was my stuff and tara's things!"
"we looked for you after moving," theo swore. "we did, we really did. we couldn't find you."
"cause i was at uncle rick's!" tay scowled. "then he died and i was being set up to go into foster care and put in a foster home!"
theo's jaw was opening and closing, not knowing what to say. "i didn't think you'd be here... mom didn't say anything about uncle rick calling."
tay glared. she limped over to him and uncrossed her arms. then she pulled her fist back and swung, knocking theo over.
he groaned, his hand holding his cheek. he stared up at tay, a guilty look on his face.
"i was gone for a two months but came back and he called to tell you guys." she nodded to herself. "i came back, you all were gone. there's something you're not telling me. i'm gonna find out what." then she walked away, stopping when she saw liam staring at the ground like a lost puppy. "liam," she got his attention, making his head snap up.
he stood up, pulling her to his side as he started to walk away with her. "are you staying here or do you wanna come over?"
tay frowned as she thought. "um... i don't want lydia to be mad at me."
"she'll understand if you don't wanna go," liam stated. "but if you do, that's ok with me. whatever you want, tay."
she nodded, curling into liam's side as they continued to walk. "yeah, i, uh, wanna go to yours."
"ok." liam gave her a smile to lift her spirits. he pulled away and got in front of her, crouching down a bit. "hop on."
tay chuckled. "piggy back ride?"
"piggy back ride."
once she was on his back and he was walking toward his house, he stopped. "we should get you to deaton first. or miss mccall."
tay sighed at the reminder of her leg. "melissa's probably busy. let's go to deaton."
alex speaking,.
i know it was highly suggested but not said, so i just wanna make this clear. tay doesn't have the healing ability thing like werewolves. she heals kind of like a human. it's not as fast as a werewolf and isn't as slow as a human, so it's like in the middle. it takes about a day for her body to heal completely, depending on the injury.
also, in this, basically, when theo was 9, tara died and all that shit, a year passed, tay snapped and ran away to their uncle rick's, and her parents and theo moves after she was titled as missing, and yada yada. at least, that's what tay thinks