Stiles POV
The day passes by slowly. It doesn't help that my body will go into a world of pain every so often. It's almost unbearable. Scott, Isaac, Malia and Liam all try to take my pain whenever a huge wave of it hits me. It works for a while. I don't even have to say anything for them to know that I'm in pain. My friends notice my pain because of my facial expressions and my pounding heart. I'm trying to act brave, but it's tough. I feel broken and helpless. Theo was able to overpower me so quickly. Maybe if I had more warning, I could have taken him. However, as it so happens, I didn't have a warning. I guess it's a valuable lesson for me. I need to be more ready to fight back. Have faster reaction times. If I trained with the pack, I'm sure that the problem would disappear quickly. As the day goes on, I realize how stupid my "falling in a ditch" excuse sounded. Especially to a group of supernatural teenagers who know more than well that there is usually a lot more to a story. I'm almost certain that they'll call me up on it when I'm healed. Speaking of healing, how can I heal fast now since the pack knows that I'm injured? It would seem suspicious. I guess they don't know the extent of my injuries. All they know is that I'm bleeding, bruised and my nose is broken. They don't know if my ribs are broken. How could they? Maybe I could get Deaton to come up with an excuse? I'll ask him tonight.
The last lesson of the day is biology. I don't hate biology, but I don't love it either. I know Lydia loves it and is amazing at it. She's even decided to take two biology classes. Then again, she's brilliant at any subject. Kira likes biology, but not as much as Lydia. Scott doesn't mind biology, but he needs the subject if he wants to become a vet. Malia has no interest. She hates biology. So does Isaac. Neither of them see why school is important. However, as we are about to walk out of class, the teacher hands us a slip of paper. "Get these signed by a parent or guardian and hand them back to me by next lesson." She instructs.
"Can my mom sign for Stiles?" I hear Scott ask as I gather up all of my books and stuff them into my bag.
"Of course. She's his guardian now, correct?"
"I guess so." Scott shrugs. The two of us walk out of biology.
"Cool, a field trip to the aquarium. I guess that'll be an interesting part of our marine biology topic." Scott says as he reads the note. I hold back my laughter. At least marine biology is something that I can pass with flying colors. I'll probably even do better than Lydia. Nothing beats life experience. "When is it?" I ask, not bothering to look down at my note.
"Three weeks from today." Scott answers.
"Okay, I'll need to remember that." I comment. Scott hums in agreement. We reach the school entrance.
"I'll meet you back at your house." I tell Scott. He looks uncertain for a moment, but he eventually agrees.
"Okay, fine. Don't be too long." Scott says as he walks to his motorbike. I make my way to my jeep. I jump into the car and relax into the seat. I let my face contort with pain since no one is around. I throw my sunglasses into the backseat. I don't need them now. I lower my hood and take my beanie off. My head has been getting very warm. I start the jeep and pull out of the school parking lot. I drive along the road, not sure where I'm going. After a minute of contemplation, I decide to head to Deaton's animal clinic. Once I park the car, I get out and walk into the clinic. Thankfully, no one is there. I tap the bell on the counter. Moments later, Deaton walks out of his office. I watch as his face falls when he sees the sight of me. He leads me through to our usual room. I sit on the bench. "What happened?" Deaton asks, getting straight to the point. "Um..." I say, unsure of what I should do. I couldn't tell Deaton about Theo and his plans.
"There were these guys at school, they cornered me. There was nothing I could do, if I didn't want to reveal myself. So, I let them take a hit at me." I shrug.
"Looks like they got more than a hit to me." Deaton comments. I pull off the jumper and tear off the jacket. My t-shirt is almost completely stained red. I'll need to throw it out after today. Deaton raises his eyebrows. "They scratched you?" He asks as I take off my shirt, revealing the bloody scratch marks all over my torso. "Maybe. I think they had knives though." I reply.
"What should I do? I mean, if I dove into water, I would heal, but what happens when the others see me? They already know I'm hurt." I ask Deaton. The veterinarian looks deep in thought for a moment.
"I could probably make up some healing ointment that I can say that I used on you. It's not like the others will ever need to use it if they got hurt, so we don't need to prove it. Well, besides Lydia, that is. However, I think that it's unlikely that she would ever need it either." Deaton says.
"I guess you could do that. So, does that mean I should go jump into the lake or something?" I ask hopefully.
"Sure. I don't think it's a good idea walking around in that much pain." Deaton frowns.
"Are you sure that there isn't more to this story?" Deaton asks in concern. I shake my head quickly.
"Nope, I'm fine. It was just a normal beat up." I answer casually. Deaton doesn't look convinced, but he lets it slide anyway. "Is there even a potion out there that could magically heal wounds, supernatural or not?" I ask Deaton curiously. "Yes, there is one. It's ingredients are rare and the potion is hard to make, but it can heal almost any wound." Deaton sighs. "Why are you making it sound like a bad thing?"
"Because one of the ingredients are the scales of merperson's tail." Deaton replies.
"Oh..." I mumble.
"Generally people aren't very nice when they take the scales. They generally leave the merman or mermaid lying on the ground, dying or already dead." Deaton adds. I clench my fists slightly.
"That's what Daniel wants to do to me." I exclaim. Deaton nods.
"Exactly. We have to be very careful with him. He's very dangerous and won't stop until he gets what he wants. I've also heard that he likes to play with his targets." Deaton warns me.
"Yeah, I've experienced that first hand." I mutter.
"I promise that you won't be captured by him again." Deaton assures me. I smile sadly at him.
"It's okay. You don't need to make promises that you can't keep." I answer. Deaton shakes his head.
"The pack and myself will pull out every stop to make sure that Daniel or his hunter friends don't kill you. Scott and the others won't even need to know what you are to want to stop Daniel." He continues.
"Well, thank you for the support." I smile. Deaton nods in acknowledgement.
"You don't happen to have the potion with you, do you?" I ask the veterinarian.
"No, I don't. The way they make the potion is inhumane. I don't want to ever use it. I don't think it's right, swapping someone's life for another." Deaton tells me truthfully.
"Good answer." I grin. I start to walk out of the room.
"I'll see you later. I'll let the others know that you 'had a potion that could heal me'." I say as I reach the door. Deaton nods. "Alright, that sounds good. I'll back you up when I need to." He replies. As I turn to leave, Deaton speaks up again.
"It would be a lot easier if you just told them, Stiles. They can be trusted. You know that." He says. I stop for a moment before continuing to walk again. "I know, Deaton. I just don't know how I would tell them." I sigh as I make my way out of the animal clinic. I jump into my jeep and drive towards the Beacon Hills Preserve. Once I park next to the sign, I jump out of my car and race towards the lake. It takes a little while to get there and I do fall over a couple of times, but I know it'll be worth it. Due to all the running, the wounds that have started to slowly heal at a human pace, split open again, causing waves of pain to course through me. I wince as I continue to run through the woods. I do slow down as time goes on though. As I limp through a clearing, I finally spot the lake just up ahead of me. I smile in relief. I rush forwards onto the old jetty. I make my way to the edge. I look around me, making sure no one is looking. When I'm sure that the coast is clear, I dive into the water. As soon as I go under, my body already feels a hundred times better. A few seconds later, I transform. I smile to myself. I swim further out into the lake. I feel my nose mend itself, my eye reducing its swelling, my cuts disappearing from my chest. My ribs are no longer in pain. I sigh in relief.
I flick my tail, speeding up a bit. I swim through the water, bubbles swirling around me. I really love this. Who wouldn't? I laugh in joy as I speed towards the surface, jump out of the water and dive back in again. If I ever need to go for a swim, but don't have the time to make it to the ocean, I can come here. I swim towards the bottom of the lake. Small, shiny, scaly fish swim around me. I race with them around the lake. It feels good to let my tail stretch, considering it had been gone completely for about eight years. I start to slow down a little, allowing the fish to swim ahead. Life on land was totally different to life underwater. I miss Atlantia. I really wish I could go back. I want to take the pack with me as well so I can show them a whole new world. I can only imagine their amazed faces. I smile. Even Derek would be impressed with the bright corals, colorful schools of fish, the grand buildings and the general bustle of life. I sigh as I come to a stop and float in the water. Maybe one day, the kingdom will be safe and I can go back with my friends. Maybe one day. The fish start to nibble on my arms. "Stop, that tickles." I chuckle. The fish swim around, without a worry in their life. Sometimes I wish that could be me. Oh well, we can't have everything. Sometimes we have to be brave and push through tough situations.
Feeling refreshed, I swim up to the surface. As my head pops up above the water, I look around. The wind is cold and crisp as it brushes past my face. I really like the feeling. I listen to the birds in the surrounding trees. I smile to myself, thinking how awesome this place was. If I ever feel down, I should come out here to feel better. Knowing that I should head back to Scott's house, I swim back to the jetty. I manage to hoist myself up and wait for myself to dry. Once my tail vanishes and my legs take its place, I stand up and walk back through the Beacon Hills Preserve to my jeep. Once I reach the car, I jump in and drive back to Scott's house. As I pull up, I notice the green motorbike there. I sigh. Scott is definitely going to question me. I get out of the jeep and walk into the house, bag slung over one shoulder. Scott is waiting for me in the living room. He gets up when he sees me. As he walks over, his eyes widen as he takes in my appearance. Suddenly, he frowns. "You healed." Scott states bluntly. I put the bag down on the ground.
"Thanks for pointing that out, Captain Obvious." I reply. Scott rolls his eyes.
"I went to the animal clinic, hoping Deaton might have something." I add.
"Why Deaton? He can only help with animals or the supernatural." Scott asks skeptically.
"Not always. He helped me when I was poisoned, remember?" I counter.
"That plant must have had supernatural properties." Scott mutters, not realizing that I had heard him. I don't bring it up. "Anyway, continue." Scott says to me.
"Okay, so, as I was saying. I went to see Deaton and asked whether he had anything that could speed up the healing process. I don't particularly like going to the hospital." I begin. Scott nods in understanding.
"Turns out he did have something. It was rare and he didn't like using it much, but he still gave me some of it. Clearly, it worked." I finish, gesturing to myself, bruise and cut free. Scott frowns.
"Why doesn't he like using it?"
"All he said was that he didn't agree with how they got some of the ingredients." I shrug.
"So, Deaton didn't make it himself?"
"No, I guess not. Maybe some former colleague of his gave it to him as a gift." I suggest. Again, I'm surprised at how easy I am at lying recently. It makes me feel guilty, but I can't think about that right now. It's Scott's turn to shrug.
"Okay, well, I'm glad you're better." He smiles.
"Me too." I agree.
"Hey, could you help me with the biology homework? You seem to get it more than me." Scott asks hopefully.
"Sure." I answer, picking up my bag and walking over to the sofa. Scott sits down next to me. The two of us get out our biology stuff. I take a look at Scott's notes and the work he has already done. I begin to explain everything to him the best that I can. It really helps that our topic at the moment just so happens to be marine biology. Obviously, this topic comes naturally to me.
~~~
A week has passed since Theo's arrival. He has already made friends with the pack. He has also told them that he's a werewolf. In front of them, he acts nice around me. Scott and Theo have gotten surprisingly close. I'd be surprised if Scott remembered the old Theo from 4th grade, because I can tell that there are some differences. Perhaps it's my biased thinking getting in the way, but how couldn't I be biased? Every day after school, he'll corner me before I can leave. He'll drag me into the woods and beat me up. I don't know why, but he does. It hurts a lot and I feel so defenceless. Theo seems to be able to know my moves before I try them, so he always blocks them and gets the advantage. Theo hasn't talked any more about his past or his motives. It takes all my willpower to not tell Scott or the others. The only thing keeping me from telling them is Theo's threat. I know he'll make me look like the bad guy. After each punch up, I'll limp towards the lake and dive in. I heal within seconds, so when I return back to Scott's house, I look unscathed. I swear Theo has broken my nose and ribs multiple times and I'm surprised that I'm still healing as fast as usual. Scott or Melissa sometimes are curious as to why I return so late, but I just say I got caught up with talking to a teacher. Every day feels like torture. Whenever we are alone at school, Theo will take the chance to taunt me. The only reason he doesn't attack me is because we are still in a public place. However, I honestly think his taunts are worse. They cut me really deep. After my daily attack in the woods and my healing in the lake, I make my way back to Scott's house. The only reason why I haven't left his house yet is because I'm honestly scared Theo will break into my house and attack me there too. I don't want that to happen, so I've decided to stay at Scott's for a little while longer, hoping that Theo will eventually calm down and stop attacking. That seems like it'll never happen, but I have to have some hope.
I walk through the door gloomily. I hear laughter from the living room. I peer my head around the corner to see Scott, Lydia and Kira sitting on the sofa talking happily amongst themselves. They all turn around when they hear me coming. "Oh, hey Stiles! Come join us! We're talking about what Derek could have been like as a kid." Kira motions for me to sit next to her on the sofa. As much as I would love to stay for the conversation, I just don't think I can. Not with the constant fear of Theo doing something horrible to my friends. I don't care as much about how he attacks me, but I do care about his taunts. Theo's words keep me awake at night. I've been as strong as I can for the last few days, but I can't hold on much longer. I put on a smile in front of my friends. "No thanks, I'm just really tired. I'm going to go have a rest." I say, trying to sound happy, not letting my fear and sadness through. Scott frowns for a second, but seems to let it go. "Alright. If you change your mind, we'll be down here." Scott tells me. I nod before turning away and walking upstairs. I quickly make my way to my room. I shut the door behind me. I lean against the door and slide down. I hug my knees against my chest, resting my head on my knees. Theo's words ring in my head. You're pathetic. You're weak. You're useless. Scott and the others are only friends with you because they feel sorry for you. It's your fault that your parents are dead. Before I know it, I find myself quietly sobbing, tears running down my cheeks. At some point, I must have fallen asleep, tears still staining my face.