"I can't believe we're spying on him," Neriah whispered, hiding behind a bush in the woods, under the moonlight as she watched Theo walk away from his car.
"I told you he was up to something," Stiles whispered back from beside her.
"We just spent three hours watching this dude play video games in his bedroom," Liam whispered with an annoyed look from Neriah's other side. "He better be out here covering up a mass murder."
"Let's find out," Stiles said and then grabbed Neriah's hand, pulling her away. "Track his scent."
"I did not come out here to be a sniffer dog," Neriah grumbled, pulling her hand out of his.
Liam groaned, walking past the both of them. "I'll do it, but you owe me for this, Stiles."
"I'll get you two babies a milkshake on the way home," Stiles muttered.
Neriah shared a smile with Liam. "Chocolate and vanilla like last time?" she asked.
"Yeah, yeah," Stiles repeated, waving her off as he looked at Liam. "You still got his scent?"
"Don't need it," Liam said, pointing at the footprints on the muddy ground.
But then the Beta slowed down, making Neriah furrow her brows at him as she came to a stop with Stiles.
"What?" Stiles asked. "What's wrong?"
"I forgot, I was supposed to meet Mason at the school gym," Liam admitted.
"Okay, why didn't you just tell him?"
"Tell him what?" Liam asked.
"Anything," Neriah said.
"I can't just tell him anything," Liam protested.
"And why not?"
"Because I haven't..." Liam sighed, tucking his hands into his pockets. "I haven't told him everything."
"Still? I thought we talked about this," Neriah gently said. "I even wrote you some flashcards like you asked."
"Yeah, I know, but it's not that easy," Liam mumbled. "It's a lot to accept."
"He watched my dad blow up a Berserker with a land mine," Stiles deadpanned. "I think the groundwork's been pretty thoroughly laid for acceptance. Scott, Riah, and I have been through this, okay? More than once. It's always been better when they know."
"Trust him on that," Neriah added when Stiles turned around and started walking away. "You need your best friend."
"But what if he freaks out?" Liam asked, following after Stiles with her. "What if he doesn't want to talk to me? What if he tries to stab me with something silver?"
Neriah sent him an annoyed look. "You're a werewolf, Liam. You could stop him before he—" She got cut off, walking straight into a hole in the ground with Liam. "What the fuck?" she groaned, blinking up at the sky as Liam groaned from under her.
"Get off me, Riah," Liam muttered, pushing on her back.
Neriah slapped his arm but got up, bracing a hand on the wall as she wiped dirt off her clothes.
"What the hell are you two doing?" Stiles asked, looking down at them from the edge of the hole.
Neriah sent him an annoyed look with Liam. "We're having a fucking picnic," she sarcastically snapped.
Stiles inhaled deeply. "I swear—" but he cut himself off when he saw something in the distance. "There he is," he whispered and then looked back at them. "Hurry up. Stop screwing around." He rushed away, leaving the pair.
"Stop screwing around?" Neriah scoffed and then turned to Liam as he picked up his phone. "Can you get up on your own?"
"Yeah," Liam muttered, wiping mud off his phone.
Neriah nodded and then easily jumped out of the pit, waiting for Liam who joined her a minute later before they ran off, being quiet as they followed Stiles' scent and then found him behind a tree.
"What is he doing?" Neriah quietly asked as she stopped beside Stiles, looking at Theo who was standing in the middle of an old bridge with his back to them.
"Try and get his scent," Stiles whispered and the two supernaturals nodded. "Get anything?"
"Flowers."
"Soap"
They answered at the same time and Stiles rolled his eyes.
"It's nice," Liam added. "It smells good."
"Not his soap," Stiles gritted out, "his emotional state. Chemo signals, remember?"
"Oh, I remember," Neriah quietly snapped, sending him a look. "But I'm still pissed that you left us behind in that hole."
"Seriously?" Stiles monotoned and then quickly took a step back when she flashed him her fangs. "Noted. Don't leave you in a hole again."
"He's sad," Liam cut in.
"He's sad?" Stiles asked, looking at Liam.
"He's grieving," Neriah corrected Liam.
"Grief?"
Neriah thinned her lips, tempted to drag Stiles back to the Jeep when Theo lifted up a lily flower and then dropped it into the small creek.
"Oh, my God!" Stiles quietly gasped and then grabbed them both and turned around. "Go! We have to go!"
"What?" Liam raised a brow. "Why?"
"Just go," Neriah quietly ordered, pushing them in front of her as they hurried away. "We should've never come here."
"That's the bridge where they found his sister," Stiles said, rubbing a hand down his face.
"What sister?" Liam asked.
"The one that got lost and died from exposure," Neriah informed him and then sent Stiles a pointed look. "He's leaving a flower for her, and we just spied on him doing that!"
"That doesn't sound evil," Liam pointed out.
"I know!" Stiles groaned and then came to a stop, throwing an arm out in front of Neriah who grabbed the back of Liam's hoodie—the three of them looking at Theo standing on a tree branch. "Well, that's not creepy."
"Shut up," Neriah whispered, pushing Liam behind her when Theo jumped down, staring at them.
"What you guys doing?" Theo asked with a small smile, walking toward them.
Liam grabbed Neriah's arm, pulling her behind him as he growled at Theo, stepping up to Stiles' side.
"You know I'm stronger than you, right?" Neriah muttered with a roll of her eyes.
Theo stopped in place, putting his hands up. "Whoa. Why do I get the feeling this kid's tougher than he looks?"
"Only when we let him off his leash," Stiles said, putting a hand on Liam's shoulder. "Fun fact, he's got raging anger issues."
"Stiles, we were in Little League together," Theo said, tilting his head. "Why are you so suspicious of me?"
Stiles hesitated but pulled the papers out of his pocket. "Because of these." Theo took the papers from him. "One's a speeding ticket signed by your dad eight years ago. The other one's a signature on a transfer form to Beacon High. They're different."
"Huh," Theo said with a nod. "Yeah, they do look a little different."
"No, they're totally different," Stiles argued. "Signed by two different people."
"So my dad's not my dad? Like he's an imposter?" Theo asked and then looked behind Liam to Neriah. "Do you think so too?"
Neriah shrugged her shoulders. "Stiles thinks so and I trust what he thinks."
Theo shook his head, folding up the papers. "Who do you think I am?"
"We don't know yet," Stiles said.
"Want me to give you a DNA sample or something?" Theo mused.
"No...I don't have anything from fourth grade to match it to."
Theo's face fell and he looked away from them. "You know, Stiles, I came back here for Scott and Neriah...but I also came back for you," he said, looking back at Stiles who looked surprised while Liam and Neriah shared a confused look. "Someone like you. Someone who's willing to walk into the woods in the middle of the night to protect his friends. I don't have anyone like that, but Scott and Neriah do. You all do," he added, looking at Liam who put his head down while Neriah narrowed her eyes on Theo. "I know I'm in the right place. I'm meant to be here. I'm meant to be part of this pack."
Neriah cleared her throat, grabbing Stiles' arm and Liam's as she faked a smile to Theo. "Lovely chat and catch up, but we should go," she said, starting to pull the boys past. "Sorry about invading your privacy with your sister, by the way."
Stiles waited until they got further away from Theo who was watching them as he asked, "Why did you pull us away like that?"
Neriah let go of them both, tucking her hands into her pockets as they walked toward the Jeep. "Because he's manipulating the hell out of us."
"Wait really?" Liam raised a brow at her. "How do you know?"
"My father is Peter Hale," she deadpanned, spotting the Jeep. "I know manipulation when I see it."
"She's got a point there," Stiles hummed but they came to a quick stop in front of the Jeep at the sight of Scott leaning against his motorbike. "Ah, shit."
"Find anything?" Scott asked, raising a brow.
"Nope," Stiles quickly said, unlocking his Jeep.
"I gotta buy new clothes," Neriah sighed, opening the passenger door.
"I fell in a hole with Riah," Liam added, staying standing near the front of the Jeep.
Stiles closed his door, running a hand through his hair as Scott stopped near him. "It was the bridge where his sister died, wasn't it?" Scott asked.
"Yes, it was," Stiles sighed. "Very embarrassing. So we're gonna leave now." He turned the keys in the ignition, but the engine sputtered before stopping completely. "Son of a bitch," he mumbled. "Liam, just do me a favor, get in the car and turn the ignition when I say."
"Can this night get any worse?" Neriah mumbled, walking around to the front of the Jeep before she pushed the hood up with Stiles' help. "I can do it."
"No, no, I've got it," Stiles said, swatting her hands away from the engine as Scott stopped on his other side.
"Okay," Neriah mumbled, taking a step back and sending Scott a worried look.
"Stiles?" Scott quietly said.
"Be with you in a sec," Stiles muttered, tweaking something on the engine. "Try it!"
Liam turned the key in the ignition, but the engine sputtered again before it stopped.
"Stiles," Scott firmly said.
Stiles braced his forearms on the front of the Jeep with an annoyed look. "Yes. Okay, we followed him out here. What do you want me to say? That I'm a stalker, huh? That I'm crazy, totally paranoid? None of this is new information," he ranted, fixing the engine.
"Now you're gonna try to at least give him the benefit of the doubt?" Scott asked.
Stiles sent him a look, narrowing his eyes to slits. "I give people the benefit of the doubt. I've given a lot of benefit to a lot of people."
"Like Derek? Kira? Liam?"
"I was right about Peter," Stiles pointed out. "Try it again!"
Once again, the engine sputtered and didn't turn on.
Neriah gently grabbed Stiles' shoulder, pulling him back. "I've got it, okay? Just let me do it."
Stiles nodded, exhaling sharply as Neriah started working on the engine and he turned to Scott. "You know, I bet you still think that there's something about him that can be saved."
"Maybe," Scott admitted.
"Some people are lost causes," Neriah said as Stiles scoffed at Scott. "Look at my father. I wish he could be saved but he can't, Scott. You can't save everyone."
"And I know that," Scott sighed and then looked at Stiles who was watching Neriah as she pushed her hair out of her face, continuing on the Jeep. "Why can't you trust anyone, Stiles?"
"Because you trust everyone!" Stiles shouted and then punched his Jeep with a shout.
Neriah's eyes widened as she turned around, grabbing Stiles' arms as he looked down to the ground with broken eyes. "Are you okay?" she quietly asked him.
"I'm fine," he muttered, allowing her to grab his hand and look at his bleeding knuckles.
"You could've broken it," Scott said, taking a step closer to them.
"It's not broken," Stiles said.
"I don't know about that," Neriah quietly said, looking up at Stiles with concern.
"Let me see it," Scott said, glancing between him and Neriah.
"I'm fine," Stiles repeated.
"No, you're not," Neriah whispered, holding his hand in both of hers as she took away his pain, keeping her eyes locked with his. "Next time, punch something softer."
"I wasn't exactly thinking before I punched the Jeep," he grumbled as she pulled her hands away and he clenched and unclenched his hand with no pain.
The Jeep turned on, its headlights glowing and Neriah smiled to herself as she closed the hood. "This is why we let me fix the Jeep." She turned back around, looking at Stiles who was quiet, and Scott who was watching him. "Uh, Scott, I'm gonna stay with Stiles tonight."
Both the boys snapped their heads to her with surprise. "Really?" they both asked.
Neriah shrugged her shoulders with a smile. "I mean, if it's okay with Stiles."
"Definitely," Stiles blurted with a sheepish smile. "You can always stay whenever."
Scott raised a brow, looking between them. "Guess that means I can have Kira over tonight."
"It works perfectly!" Neriah mused, walking toward the passenger door. "I'll see you tomorrow, Scotty."
♤♡♤♡
"So, you can have my room and I'll take the couch," Stiles said, walking into his house with Neriah after they dropped Liam off at school to meet with Mason and they stopped by the McCall's to get her some clothes.
"Stiles, we've shared a bed before," Neriah laughed, walking up his stairs. "But if you're uncom—"
"No! Not at all," he quickly said, following her into his room.
Neriah smiled to herself, smelling his flustered state without even having to look at him.
"You wanna have a Star Wars night?" he asked as she pushed open his bedroom door.
His room was different from the last time she had been there. On his walls were countless photos and newspaper articles, and her eyes traveled along all of them until they landed on a clear board with writing on it and more photos with red string connecting them.
"Riah?" he quietly said, stopping beside her in the center of his room.
Neriah snapped out of her gaze and sent him a small smile. "Sorry, what was that?"
Stiles smiled, walking over to his closet. "I asked if you wanted to watch Star Wars?"
"Oh." She nodded, throwing her bag on his bed. "Yeah, I missed my boyfriend."
Stiles rolled his eyes as he looked over his shoulder at her. "Hayden Christensen has cursed all men."
"And blessed all women," Neriah laughed.
♤♡♤♡
A few hours later, Neriah quietly sat up on the couch, looking beside her to see Stiles snoring with drool running down his chin, making her quietly laugh.
The pair had eaten three bowls of popcorn during the first movie and Stiles managed to fall asleep three minutes into the second movie. She had tried to fall asleep after him but failed and ended up watching the second and third movies before her stomach growled.
With Mr. Stilinski at work, Neriah knew the house would stay silent, which made her feel uneasy as she got off the couch and walked into the kitchen.
After the last two years, silence felt odd and nerve-wracking to her, so normally she would play music until she fell asleep. But she couldn't do that at the Stilinski's without waking Stiles up.
"Hopefully they have blood," Neriah whispered to herself as she grabbed the handle of the fridge.
But when she opened it, horror filled her body and a scream ripped her throat at the sight of Ryker in the fridge, his body grey and covered in thick veins as he stared at her with lifeless eyes.
"You should've died!" Ryker roared as she fell back, tears instantly streaming down her face. "You killed me!"
"W-What?" Neriah stuttered, scrambling away from the fridge until her back hit the cold wall.
Ryker lifted an arm, his eyes glowing orange and his fangs on full gleam as she started shaking, not understanding how he was there—how he was alive.
"Riah?" Stiles shouted in panic, running into the kitchen to see her shaking on the floor with tears streaming down her face. "What is it? What happened?" he asked, crouching down in front of her and gently grabbing her face.
"B-Behind you," she whispered, her eyes full of such fear as she looked at him, sending a rush of horror down his spine.
Ever so slowly, he looked over his shoulder and at the fridge. But confusion filled his body as he saw nothing but groceries on the shelves.
"Riah, it's just food," he softly said, looking back at her.
Neriah's brows furrowed and when she looked over his shoulder, Ryker was gone. Not a thing of him left behind.
"What did you see?"
"I—" she cut herself off, utterly confused and distraught. "I-I don't know," she whispered, shaking her head.
It didn't make any sense to her. Why would she see Ryker's corpse in the fridge in the first place? He was dead and nothing could've changed that. Perhaps her mind was playing tricks on her...
"I'm tired," Neriah said, wiping away the tears on her face as she looked away from him. "Can we just go to bed?"
Stiles hesitated but nodded, helping her up. He couldn't figure out why she had screamed and looked so shaken up and he wanted to push her more on what happened, but he knew these last few months had been hard on her. So he didn't.
Instead, they silently laid down in bed and just when he thought she'd gone to sleep, she rolled over and laid her head on his chest, making him faintly smile as he wrapped an arm around her waist.