Scott POV
Samantha is sitting in my lap on a sofa in my living room and she wraps her arms around my neck. "I know I've been saying this a lot, but I am so glad that you're okay." Samantha smiles at me. I smile back. I've decided not to tell Samantha that I know what really happened with the antidote. I know that she had good intentions, even if they were misguided. "Me too." I agree before I kiss Samantha gently on the lips.
"I'm so glad that you're part of the pack now. I hope you're getting along with everyone." I comment.
"I am." Samantha nods. She rests her head on my chest and huddles up to me. I hug her tightly and protectively.
"So, how are you enjoying Beacon Hills?" I ask curiously.
"It's a lovely town, but I admit, I think the main reason I like it is because you're in it." Samantha smiles.
"Yeah, well, I guess I'm a pretty good attraction." I smirk after I kiss Samantha. As I pull away, I look at her curiously.
"What was your life like before you came to Beacon Hills?" I ask.
"Well, it was quite dull, really. My parents died when I was young, so I was placed into a foster home. My foster parents were nice enough and they gave me everything I needed, but... They weren't around much, especially as I got older. They were working what seemed like all the time. Even when they were at home, they would go into their offices to do even more work. I felt really lonely. I didn't have many friends because I was always shy in school. That's why I wanted to move from Los Angeles. I wanted a fresh start and I definitely got one." Samantha replies.
"Wow, I'm really sorry. It must've been hard, losing your real parents and then having distant foster parents. I have no idea what that's like." I apologize sadly.
"It's okay, Scott. It just took me a while to learn what real love is." Samantha laughs. She then looks at me with her beautiful sea green eyes. "Thanks for teaching me. I love you, Scott. I know it's still an early stage in our relationship, but it feels like I've known you for years." Samantha admits with a smile. I grin back.
"I think I love you too, Sam." I reply. Samantha leans forwards and kisses me. I kiss back, enjoying the taste of the ocean on her lips. My tongue asks for entrance, and Samantha willingly accepts it. My tongue explores Samantha's mouth. I grip her back more firmly as Samantha plays with my hair. After another minute of making out, we finally pull apart, feeling breathless. "So, you obviously didn't live underwater for a while?" I ask her.
"No, I've been on land basically my whole life. I don't remember my home underwater at all. I only began to swim when I was 18 because I was able to drink a new potion. Before my parents died, they obviously told me what I really was and when to take the potion. My foster parents also knew the real me. I'm glad that they weren't shocked and decided not to tell the whole world that merfolk exist." Samantha replies.
"Have you thought about going back to live underwater?"
"I've thought about it, but I've decided that I don't think I would want to live there forever. I wouldn't know anything about the underwater kingdoms or their customs. I only know how to live life on land. Sure, I'll visit the ocean, possibly for a while, but I wouldn't permanently live there. Besides, you're on land, so that's another big reason for me to stay." She grins. I smile back. "Well, I feel honoured." I say. Samantha giggles.
"But I'm sure Kara or Stiles would be able to help you to adapt to life underwater. I know that Stiles hasn't lived there for a long time either, but he will know a thing or two." I suggest. I see Samantha's face fall slightly.
"Yeah, maybe. Or I could just figure it out on my own or just stay here for the rest of my life." She shrugs. I frown slightly for a moment, but I quickly erase it. I don't know why Stiles and Samantha have such a hard time getting along, but neither of them are telling me anything about it. I know that Stiles did express his thoughts a while ago and we fought over it but... Even though we made up, I still don't think that he is right. He can't be. I guess sometimes personalities just clash too much, no matter how hard you try for them to get along. Besides, Stiles hasn't said a word about it since. He must've realized that he was wrong. Although, I will never forget how I lost my temper so easily. I've been hurting Stiles a lot lately. I'm genuinely surprised that Stiles keeps forgiving me for yelling at him or accusing him. "Only if you're happy with that decision." I reply.
"I think I am." Samantha smiles before she gently kisses me on the cheek. I feel myself blush. Samantha chuckles. Suddenly, I hear my phone ring. The two of us jump in surprise. I grab the phone out of my pocket to see who is calling. "Derek? What's going on?" I ask into the phone.
"Stiles wants to hold an emergency pack meeting at my loft. Try to be here in 10 minutes." Derek instructs.
"Why? What's wrong?" I frown worriedly.
"Just hurry. This situation especially concerns you." Derek says before hanging up the phone. I stare at it in shock.
"Scott, what did Derek want?" Samantha asks, placing a hand on my shoulder.
"We have to get to Derek's loft. Now. Stiles has called a pack meeting." I answer as I get off the couch. I take Samantha's hand and we run out of the house to my motorbike. "I don't understand what is going on," Samantha says as we get on the motorbike. "Nor do I." My hand turns the key in the ignition, starting the motorbike and we drive towards Derek's loft.
Stiles POV
I'm pacing up and down the loft, trying not to freak out. We are all in danger. Probably Scott and I more than most. I don't care that I am in danger, but I am really worried about Scott being Theo's target. What is Theo planning on doing to him? How is he going to do it? Is there any chance that Scott could survive? Will it be painful? Then what about the Dread Doctors? What is their plan for us? "Stiles, calm down, please. Stressing won't do you any good." Kara pleads.
"How can I calm down, Kara? There's a psychopath on the loose with his so called Dread Doctor friends! Theo wants to kill us and the Dread Doctors want to experiment on Scott and myself!" I shout, running a hand through my hair.
"Shouting about it won't make the situation any better." Derek tells me.
"I don't care!" I shake my head. I let my hands drop to my side.
"Scott should be here by now. What if Theo has already gotten to him? What if the Dread Doctors found him? What if he's dying? What if he's being experimented on? What if he's already dead?" I whisper, my hands violently shaking. "Stiles, I don't think that is the case." Kira says, placing a hand on my shoulder. I look at her.
"How can you be so sure?" I frown.
"Because he is standing at the door." Liam answers for the kitsune. I spin around quickly to see Scott and Samantha standing at the entrance, looking worried and confused. "Scott!" I cry out in relief as I run over to him and pull him into a hug.
"Thank goodness you're okay." I whisper into his jacket. Slowly, I pull away. I notice Samantha glaring at me, but I choose to ignore it. "Stiles, what is going on? Why did Derek say that this has to do with me?" Scott asks in a serious voice. The three of us walk back over to the rest of the pack. "Well, Lydia and I went to Eichen House to find out what was going on." I begin to explains.
"Why didn't you tell us? You could've gotten into trouble!" Scott exclaims in disbelief.
"We didn't get into trouble. Don't worry about that now. We need to focus on the problem at hand." I explain.
"And what's that?" Samantha asks.
"Theo... He was the one that escaped. He killed all of the guards to do so. He's coming for us. He will be coming for you, Scott. He still wants to take your powers." I reply. Everyone in the room turns to look at Scott, who gulps nervously.
"Anything else?" Scott asks.
"Y-yes. Theo is allied with these... Things called the Dread Doctors, but I have a feeling that they have their own plan." I respond. "What's their plan?" Samantha frowns, grabbing onto Scott's hand.
"They want to experiment on me. They want to experiment on you too, Scott. The Dread Doctors want to change who we are, twisting us to become evil monsters." I answer, my voice starting to speed up as I begin to panic again.
"Stiles, calm down." Scott says, placing his free hand on my shoulder. My breathing starts to slowly even out, my heart beat slowing down. "We won't let that happen. We won't let these Dread Doctors find us. We won't let Theo hurt any of us." Scott assures me calmly. After another moment, I feel a lot better. I breathe a sigh of relief, thankful that I didn't have a full blown panic attack. Scott was able to help me focus on what's important rather than the negatives or the what if's. I don't know what it is about him, but he can bring me back even from the darkest of times, including the Nogitsune. I think Scott is my anchor. "Okay," I finally reply. Scott lets go of my shoulder and looks over at Derek. I turn around to look at the sour wolf as well. "What's the plan?" Scott asks.
"We find Theo and take him down before he harms any innocent people in this town. I'm sure he has already caused more than enough damage." Derek says.
"Are we going to split up into groups?" Malia asks.
"Yeah, that way we can cover more ground." Derek nods.
"Alright then. Samantha, Stiles and Kira can come with me. Derek, Liam and Malia can go together. Then Kara, Lydia and Isaac can be a group." Scott decides. We all nod in agreement.
"If we can't find anything, we can meet up at the lake and decide our next move from there." Lydia suggests. Derek nods. "Alright, lets get started." He agrees. We rush out of the building, split up into our groups and then run into the forest. After a while, I start to slow down. We are making too much noise. If Theo is here, he will have the advantage of knowing where we are, but we don't know where he is. "Everybody stop." I whisper. They turn to look at me with worry.
"Let's just take it slow," I suggest. Scott, Kira and even Samantha nod in agreement. The four of us continue to walk through the forest, keeping an ear out for any sounds at all. It is eerily quiet in the forest. The main sound I can hear is the rapid beating of my heart. "How will we know if the others have found Theo?" Kira whispers.
"I'm sure they will howl." I reply quietly. We walk forwards for a few more minutes. Without warning, I hear a low and agressive growl coming from my left. I turn around just in time to see Kira being thrown into a tree. "Kira!" I shout in dismay as I run over to her. A shadowy figure appears out of the shrubbery and runs past me. I watch as it bowls Samantha over and knocks her out. "Are you okay?" I ask Kira as I help her to her feet. She nods quickly. We turn to look as Scott tries to fend off the monster. I run forwards, wanting to help. I hear Kira unsheathing her katana. As the shadowed figure swipes down across Scott's chest, I pull him off, resulting in the two of us falling to the floor. I quickly get back up and hold my ground. I watch as the creature stands up and I am finally able to see their face. "Theo." I grumble, allowing my eyes to glow their pale green. I watch as Kira helps the injured Scott up. Theo starts circling me. Scott and Kira both try to attack, but Theo easily throws them back. "I can see that you're stronger." I point out. Theo smirks. "Thanks, my friends gave me a little extra boost." He explains.
"You mean the Dread Doctors? Yeah, real nice friends you have, transforming innocent people into monsters." I snap.
"You've met them?" Theo raises an eyebrow.
"I saw them at Eichen House when I came to see who had escaped. Turns out it was you." I reply.
"Do you remember everything about them?"
"Yes, I do. I remember how they looked, how they talked, how they walked and even how they vanished." I answer. Theo nods slowly.
"Interesting, not many people have been able to remember them. Then again, you're not an ordinary person, are you? Hell, you're not even an ordinary supernatural creature." Theo comments, stepping forward. I focus my energy on Theo and in the next moment, Theo is flung into the air. I smirk as I watch him hit the ground hard. I swear I hear a couple of his bones crack. Theo growls and stands up, eyes glowing yellow and full of rage. His ears are pointed, fangs showing, claws elongated and hair growing on his face. Kira tries to attack once more but Theo blocks it and scratches her throat. Kira gasps and falls to the ground. "Kira!" Scott and I shout in horror. Scott kneels down and holds onto Kira, trying to cover her wound. I try to run over to the two of them, but Theo blocks me. Theo shoves me onto the ground. I groan in pain, but I scramble to my feet. I look around me for a moment, getting my bearings. Scott is trying to help Kira, who is still bleeding out. Meanwhile, Samantha is nowhere to be seen. I guess she must have run off somewhere. "You have nowhere to run, Stiles. This is just between you and I. Once I have finished with you, I will focus on Scott and take his powers." Theo says menacingly. I shake my head.
"No. I won't let you get that far." I state firmly. Theo growls and charges towards me. I throw my hand forward and a wave of ice hits Theo. He hisses in pain and stumbles backwards as a layer of ice coats his right arm. I run away from him, hoping to lead Theo away from Scott and Kira. My plan works. Theo runs after me, quickly gaining ground. I turn around quickly and find that he's right behind me. I have enough time to stick my leg out and kick Theo square in the chest. I watch in satisfaction as the guy falls to the ground. I use my telekinesis powers to keep him on the ground. I walk over to Theo and sit on his chest, using my arms and legs to pin him down completely. "Oh my, I didn't know that you were the sort of person to go straight to this stage." Theo teases with a smirk.
"Shut up!" I shout angrily.
"Leave me and my friends alone!" I hiss in Theo's face.
"I'm sorry Stiles, I can't do that. I need Scott's powers." He replies.
"Why? You seem like a capable werewolf to me." I ask in a quiet voice.
"Because I want to be the most powerful creature on land." Theo smiles evilly. I roll my eyes.
"Of course you want to be drunk in power." I sigh in annoyance.
"Who wouldn't?" Theo raises his eyebrows.
"Me!" I spit.
"Well, that's your loss." Theo shrugs.
"I won't let you touch Scott." I tell him with a threatening tone.
"Oh yeah?" Theo asks. Suddenly, Theo manages to throw me off him. I slam onto the cold, hard ground face first. I roll over to see Theo looming over me now. "How can you protect your precious little alpha if you're dead?" Theo whispers in a crazed voice. Theo now pins me down to the ground. I try to move away, but I can't. Theo's hand squeezes my wrist so tightly to the point were I hear horrible cracking noises. I scream in pain as I try to pull my now broken arm away from Theo, but I have no luck. Theo punches me in the face. "Don't cry like a baby!" He hisses. Then he proceeds to place a foot on my chest and push down, easily breaking a couple of ribs and restricting my airway. I gasp in pain as well as trying to suck in any oxygen that I can. My vision blurs slightly as I see Theo raise his claws above me, ready to rip my throat out. "Farewell, Stilinski. I would say it has been nice knowing you, but it hasn't. You can't escape death now." Theo says gleefully. I watch hopelessly as he swipes his hand towards my throat.
Just as I think it is all over, I hear a gunshot ring from behind me. I watch as Theo's face slackens and blood starts forming on his head. In the next moment, he falls backwards onto the ground, completely motionless. I quickly scramble out from beneath him and stare at his body in shock. I can't believe he's dead. Who shot him? I turn around to see Samantha standing there, starting to lower a gun. There's a small smile on her face. "He's dead, right?" She asks me. Even though I'm in pain, I crawl over to Theo and check for a pulse. "Yeah..." I respond after a moment, still in shock at the change of events. "Good, he should be. I used a special bullet that my emissary showed me how to make. it is supposed to kill any creature instantly, even if the bullet doesn't go to the heart or brain." Samantha replies. Suddenly, Scott and Kira rush towards me from behind the bushes. "Stiles, are you okay?" Kira asks worriedly. I notice that the scratch on her throat is already healing. The fresh blood is gone and the scratch doesn't look deep. "I-I'm fine. I think my right wrist and a couple of ribs are broken, but I can heal them in no time at all with water, so I will probably go to the lake." I answer, trying not to sound shaken. Kira and I watch as Scott stands up and walks away from me and over to Samantha. "I'm so proud of you honey." Scott says just before he kisses his girlfriend passionately. I frown in annoyance. "Proud? Scott, don't you see what Samantha just did? She murdered Theo! She used a bullet that can kill any creature instantly! She didn't even hesitate! You're both acting like it is normal to kill someone just like that!" I shout as I quickly get to my feet, staring between the two in shock and disbelief. Scott and Samantha pull apart and look at me in surprise. Suddenly, the rest of the pack run into view. They stare at Theo's body and gasp. The pain in my chest increases as I breathe in, but I don't care. I also ignore the pain in my wrist, which I can't even move. Scott walks forward, Samantha following right behind.
"I saved your life, Stiles. Did you want me to let you die?" Samantha frowns in confusion.
"You could've knocked him off me, you didn't need to kill him. We don't do that." I retort.
"But you were thinking of killing Vanessa the other day, so why are the rules different now?" Liam asks. Great, that is so helpful right now, Liam. "That was completely different! Vanessa was leading a war against my people, kidnapped my father and murdered my mother! Besides, I didn't kill her, did I? I knew it was wrong. I knew it wouldn't give justice to my family or my kingdom. I knew I had to be better than her." I protest.
"And guess what? Scott got hurt because of your decision! Besides, I bet you will have to kill her at some point, whether you like it or not." Samantha points out.
"No, I wont! And besides, even if I did kill her, at least I would feel regret. Pain. Guilt. It would haunt me for a long time, if not for the rest of my life. But look at you, oh no, you don't feel a thing for what you did to Theo." I shout.
"Stiles, it was out of self defence and she saved your life!" Scott shouts back.
"I know what self defence is, Scott. I know what defending your friends and family means. I can understand those situations. I feel sorry for anyone that has to be put in those situations, but what Samantha did wasn't self defence. You weren't here when she killed him. You didn't see the evil glint in her eyes as she lowered the gun, satisfied with her work. If I didn't know any better, I would say that she has killed people before. Perhaps quite a few people." I say. Everyone looks at me in surprise.
"You know, if Samantha hadn't killed Theo, I probably would have anyway. He has messed with us one too many times. I was so close to killing him the last time we met. If I had the chance today, I would have killed him, especially if it meant saving my friends, including you." Scott replies.
"Scott, you know that we can't kill people. We have to be better than that. I thought that was what you wanted to teach people. Even though Theo was a horrible person, he didn't deserve to die. The people at Eichen House should have just locked him up better." I point out.
"What, so it's not okay for Samantha to kill someone, out of defence, but it's okay for you to murder someone and enjoy it?" Scott raises an eyebrow. I stare at the True Alpha in shock. There is a deadly silence in the air. My wrist continues to throb. There is a sharp pain where I assume my lungs are, making me feel like my broken ribs are digging directly into my lungs. Tears well up in my eyes. Everyone except Samantha looks at Scott in horror and disbelief. "Scott!" Kira shouts in anger. Lydia puts a hand over her mouth. Derek frowns. Isaac and Liam exchange surprised looks. Kara grabs onto Isaac's hand and squeezes it. She looks between Scott and I sadly. "Did you really just say that to me?" I whisper, my voice breaking a little. A single tear rolls down my cheek. Scott's expression softens. "Stiles-"
"Did you really just say that what I did as the Nogitsune was really me? That I wanted to murder all of those innocent people? That I wanted to kill Aiden? That I wanted to kill Allison?" I ask, looking at Scott with a shattered expression. I take a small step back. Using my good hand, I grip onto my locket tightly, hoping that it will give me strength. "Have you been lying to me whenever you have said that it wasn't my fault? Are you afraid of me? Are you disappointed in me? Do you wish that I had died that day instead of Allison? Do you think that I'm a monster?" I ask shakily as I begin to sob quietly. Scott looks horrified at what he's just done. He tries to walk towards me, but I keep taking steps back. "Stiles, I'm so sorry, I-I didn't mean it-" Scott tries to apologize, but I cut him off.
"I need to go heal. I don't want any of you to follow me!" I shout before I run into the canopy of trees, tears streaming down my face. When I finally come to the lake, I run up the jetty and dive into the water without hesitation. As soon as my body touches the water, I can feel myself start to heal. After a few moments, my legs disappear and my brilliant red tail replaces it as well as my gills forming on my neck. I swim down to the bottom of the lake. I grab onto a rock and lean my head against it, starting to cry and sob again, my whole body shaking. After a few more moments, I realize that my wrist and ribs have fully healed, but I don't care. The emotional pain I feel right now is way worse.