"Shh." My father smiles at me as we walk up the stairs, "It won't be a surprise if she hears you."
"She's human." I say to him, "She can't hear us."
"Humans can hear more than you think." He whispers, and we reach the top of the stairs. I quickly run to the door to my parents room and open it.
"Mommy!"
My mother, already awake, smiles when I jump into her arms. "Happy birthday, mom!"
"Thank you, sweetie." She answers, hugging me back before looking up at her husband, "Oh, Peter..."
He just grins at her as an answer, holding the birthday cake in his hands.
"We have cake for breakfast!" I yell, probably waking up the other werewolves in the house.
And I was right, because a sleepy Cora walks into the room, "Was someone talking about cake?"
My mother laughs, a beautiful sound that echoes through the house.
--
The grass is cold underneath my body as I stare at the ground.
"I knew I would find you here." A voice says, and I don't have to look up to know it's my father.
"It's her birthday." I whisper, "Of course I'm here."
He places a few flowers in front of the stone that says 'Grace Hale. A beloved daughter, mother, aunt and friend.'
"You know, she used to hate her birthday." He tells me, "Until you came and made her special birthday drawings."
"I made one every year after the fire." I admit, "Of course I was never able to give them to her, they're somewhere in a sketch book." I stand up from where I was sitting on the grass, there's probably green stains on the back of my pants, but I don't care.
"She kept them in her drawer." He tells me, "And when she was upset she looked at them."
"I sometimes wonder, what would've happened if she was still alive?"
He sighs, "I probably wouldn't be as crazy as I am now. Or as I was, I'm better now. She was my anchor, she kept me sane."
"Do you think she would..."
"Be proud of you? Yes." He answers and places his hand on my shoulder, "And, I hate to admit it, she would've loved Stiles."
"Yeah, if she were here they probably would've had long conversations about which Star Wars movie was the best. And whether the Lord of the Rings movies were as good as the books."
"You've got her love for those movies from her, huh?" He jokes, but his voice is soft and sad. He glances at his watch, "I hate to break this mood, but you've got school in a few minutes."
I groan, "I'm not looking forwards to those stupid tests."
"Those stupid tests will get you out of this stupid town." He tells me, "Now, go to school, Princess."
"Please stop calling me that, dad. I'm not a 5 year old."
"You'll always be my princess."
--
"Where's Lydia?" Kira asks.
"She took it her freshman year." Stiles answers.
"Does that mean I could have taken it some other time?" Malia asks us.
"Malia, you studied harder for this than any of us." Scott tells her. I roll my eyes, I studied hard too, but nobody cares about that.
"Doesn't mean I'm gonna do good." She answers.
"Well." I tell her.
"Well, what?" She asks.
"It's do well, not good." Stiles answers her.
"Oh, God!" She groans.
"Okay, okay, You're doing this, because while we're trying not to die, we still need to live." Scott tells her.
"Damn, you should really look into poetry." I mutter to him and sigh, "Seriously, why is this crap on Saturdays? I've got better things to do."
"Like what?" Malia asks.
"I don't know, staring at my mom's grave hoping she'll come back to live so I can sing 'Happy birthday' to her? Maybe try not to get killed by assassins on the way home."
"Why would you sing happy birthday?" She asks me.
"Why do you think, dumbass?"
"Okay, okay. Calm down." Stiles places his hands on my shoulders before turning to the others, "Silver's a little grumpy today. Don't take anything she says personal."
"It's only three hours. We can survive three hours." Kira says.
We wait until we can walk into the classroom. We put our phones in a envelope and get our tests before sitting down on a table.
"Please do not open the test booklet until you are instructed to do so." The teacher says, and Stiles quickly closes it. "This test is two hours and 10 minutes. There will be two 25-minute critical reading sections, two 25-minute math sections and an essay writing portion that will last 30 minutes. There are supposed to be two teachers monitoring this exam." He turns to Ms. Martin.
"I know, it's Coach. He's not exactly punctual. Um, let me just try him again." She grabs her phone and leaves the classroom. A few minutes later she gets back into the classroom. "I can't find him, but Mr. Yukimura is upstairs grading papers. Do you want me to try him?"
"We have to start. We can ask for assistance during the first break." The teacher says. He sits down, "You may now open your test booklets and begin."
I've studied hard for this. I skipped Derek's training to study for this, not that he minded, he was glad I was finally focusing on school. I rejected a few offers to hang out with people or go on a date with Stiles to study for this.
And for the first time in years, the stress doesn't block my brain and I quickly answer the first few questions. I let out a relieved sigh, I'll be okay.
I suddenly hear a thud. I look up and see that a classmate, I think her name was Sydney, fainted.
"Sydney!" Ms. Martin quickly runs towards her. "Are you alright?" She helps her up.
"I'm okay. I just got kind of dizzy." She answers.
"Sydney, how long have you had this?" Mrs Martin asks and looks at her wrist.
"I don't know."
"Ms. Martin, do I need to stop the test?" The teacher, I forgot his name, asks her.
"No, um, it's fine." She answers. "Everybody stay in your seats. I'll, um, be back in a minute." She grabs her phone and whispers to the other teacher, "Nobody leaves the room."
I feel someone look at me and look up. Scott is giving me a confused glance. I shrug at him, how the hell am I supposed to know what's happening?
It's silent for a few minutes before we hear Ms. Martin screaming, "Get back! No! Do not come in here! Get back outside!"
Of course that ends with everyone being curious and leaving the classroom to see what's going on. I'm seriously one of the only ones staying in my seat.
"Back to your seats. Now." I hear her say. "Please."
The students listen to her and get back in the class.
"I need the number of the CDC." I hear her say, using my werewolf hearing. "Yes, the Center for Disease Control."
--
We watch people in yellow suits walk into the school and set up stuff. I turn to Ms. Martin, "Can I text my cousin that I'm okay? I don't want him to worry when he hears about this... He's got enough on his mind."
She shakes her head softly, "There's no service here."
--
Stiles, Kira and Malia are talking with the teacher, but I'm just staring at the ground. This day just keeps getting worse. I wish I could just be alone, doing everything I always do on my mom's birthday. Watch her favorite movie, eat her favorite ice cream and cry.
I look back at the paper in front of me. I don't know why I put my old sketchbook in my bag, maybe because it's become a tradition to make a drawing on my mother's birthday.
I'm not even thinking when the pencil in my hand moves and draws. And soon I recognize my mother's face. Her beautiful smile and perfect hair.
"Hey, Silver." Stiles sits down next to me. "I didn't know you could draw."
"I don't draw."
"You're drawing now."
"Yes, now. But other days I don't."
"Wow, you're even more mysterious than Derek." He says with a soft chuckle. "Who are you drawing?"
"My mom." I answer and sigh, "I need to get out of here. All this panic and fear, it's making me lose control."
He sighs too, "I'm afraid we can't get out. But I'm here for you, okay. I won't leave you. We'll get through this, and after this we can do something to take your mind off of everything happening right now."
"I'm just... I'm scared." I whisper to him.
"You're a werewolf, you can't get sick." He whispers back.
"Not that." I tell him, "With everything going on. All of us on that list... Derek's name being the third key..."
"You're scared you're going to lose him." He says softly.
"Yes. And I'm scared he won't be the only one who's going to die. I don't want to lose everyone again." I tell him.
He sighs and wraps his arm around my shoulder. "I can't promise you we'll all be okay. But we will all do our best to protect everyone and ourselves."
--
I'm in line behind Malia, they're taking our blood to see if we're sick.
"Kira." Malia gets her attention, "Do you ever get the feeling that Scott and Stiles aren't telling you everything?"
Kira looks panicked and glances at me. "What do you mean?"
"Like they hide stuff."
"I think if they did, they probably have a pretty good reason." Kira answers.
Malia sighs, "Do you know what they're hiding in the bag under Scott's bed?"
That gets my attention, "They're hiding something under Scott's bed?"
"Yeah." Malia answers.
"What? No, I've never been under Scott's bed. Or in it. Just on it... Wearing clothes." Kira stutters.
"You're adorable." I tell her.
"Kira Yukimura." Kira's next in line. "You feeling all right, Kira?"
Kira nods and stares at the needle.
"I don't like needles either. I promise, it'll be fast." The woman tells her. As soon as the needle touched Kira's skin, the woman gets a shock.
"Kira. Kira!" Malia pulls her away, but not before grabbing my arm too.
--
Scott's eyes keep glowing, and then stop glowing just to start glowing again. "It's still happening." Mr. Yukimura says.
"I can't make them go away." Malia says, holding up her claws.
"I can't get them out. And my fang won't go away." I tell them, "I've bitten my lip ten times already."
"Obviously the virus is affecting the three of you in a way it won't hit any human being."
"You guys have to stay out of sight. We have to quarantine you from the quarantine." Stiles says to us.
"Yeah, but where? I mean, what if they get violent?" Kira asks, "Like on a full moon."
"We shouldn't stay here. Not in the locker room." Scott says.
"A classroom is not going to hold us." Malia adds.
"What about the basement?" Kira asks.
"Too many ways out." Scott says, "We need something secure. Somewhere nobody can find us."
"What about the vault?" I suggest. "The Hale vault. We always have an escape route, like in our house... Well, old house. There's another way in. I know where it is."
"Okay, let's go." Stiles says.
--
They follow me to the basement. "It has to be here somewhere." I tell them and look at the walls.
"Hey, guys. Over here." Stiles points at the wall behind and pushes everything that'sin front of it away. I can see the lock that can only be opened by Hale claws.
Oh, shit, my claws won't go out.
"Look at the cracks in the wall. It's like the entrance outside, it only opens with claws. Anyone's claws, right?" Stiles turns to me, and I shake my head 'no'.
Scott looks at me, and I try my best but my claws just won't appear.
"Um, Malia, can you try?" Scott asks her.
"Why me?" She asks him.
"I don't have control, neither does Silver." He answers.
"Okay, I'll do it." She says, "But first tell me what you've been hiding from me. I know you think you're trying to protect me, but I can handle it."
Scott and Stiles stay silent.
"I know I'm on the list."
"Yes.." Stiles glances at Scott.
"So how much?"
"How much what?" Stiles asks her confused.
"How much am I worth?"
"Four million." Scott answers.
"Are you okay?" Stiles asks her.
"Yeah, Scott's worth 25, Silver, 11, Kira, 6. They'll take you guys out way before me." She says before walking to the wall.
"It's progress. It's progress." Stiles mumbles. Malia puts in her claws and opens the entrance. We walk into the vault and everyone looks around.
I walk around too, I never had the change to look around the last time I was here. And before that I don't even remember what's in here. I see a book and grab it. When I open it I see old pictures.
I though I had no pictures of my past because they burned in the fire. But they were always here.
"Hey, you okay?" Kira asks me and puts her hand softly on my arm. I nod and glance at the book. "Is that your mom? You look just like her." She points at the picture of my mom on her wedding day. Her smile so big, it makes me smile too.
"Happy birthday, mom." I whisper softly to the picture before closing the book. "I need to look through it when I'm not such an emotional mess."
I walk away and sit down against a wall, Stiles sits next to me. "You look really pale." He whispers.
"I'm sick." I tell him and lean my head against his shoulder, "And I wanna sleep."
"You know, this is where it all started." Stiles says to everyone. "That's where the money was. 117 million bearer bonds."
"How do you even change bearer bonds into cash?" Kira asks.
"The bank, I guess. They just let it sit here the whole time collecting dust." Stiles answers.
"Hey, that's my college money you're talking about." I say and my voice cracks a little, "My mom spend all her life working for it."
"You know, bearer bonds are basically extinct?"
"Why does it matter?" Kira asks him.
"You know how many problems that money could solve?" He answers.
"For you?"
"Me. My dad... The Eichen House and MRI bills are crushing him."
"Mom does this thing, she writes down all the items in our budget, and how much they cost, then she adds them all up and figures out how long we have until... We lose the house." Scott says.
--
Malia is getting worse. She's shivering and breathing heavily. Kira's next to her, trying to comfort her.
Scott an Stiles are at the door talking about something, but I can't get my hearing in control, so I have no idea what anyone is saying. It's like I'm totally deaf, and it's scary.
I see Stiles give Malia his jacket because she's shivering before he walks to me. I see his lips move, but I can't hear a thing. I try to speak, but my voice is gone. He wipes away blood from my ears, it's black.
I can see him sigh before pressing his lips on my forehead. I can't help but close my eyes. When I open them again, he's walking to the door. I look at him before the door closes and I feel tears running down my cheek.
The world is getting dizzy, and I feel like I'm falling asleep. Time is going by so fast and slow at the same time, and I have no idea what's happening around me. I see shadows, but besides that my sight is gone.
I hear faint voices, I recognize them as the others, but I can't understand what they're saying. I feel weak.
--
"Silver, hey, SIlver, baby, wake up." I can hear Stiles voice and feel someone shaking me.
I open my eyes and my sight is back. "What...?"
"Hey, you're okay." Stiles says and pulls me in a hug.
"Did you just call me baby?"'
He laughs softly but doesn't answer.
--
A/N: Not edited, sorry for mistakes.