Through the years

43.

Coming to this awful realisation, Stiles' body became rigid. His every sense was on high alert and yet, he couldn't bring himself to move. He could hear the panicked shouts of the pack, his pack, but his feet were glued to the floor. The harsh smell of burning wood wasn't making it any better for the brunette and he started to feel his hands tremble. 

He was panicking too.

But he couldn't afford to have a panic attack right now. 

No, his family needed him. 

They needed to be saved. 

Because sometimes, even the supernatural world needed the help of the humans, of the ones weaker than them. But how could he be of any help if he wasn't even able to move his damn body? 

Stiles felt frustrated. 

Because he knew he had to do something, anything, to help them. He knew what he had to do but he was terrified. 

The mere thought of losing them was terrifying him, shaking him to the core. 

It wasn't until the voice of Mia sobbing reached his ears that Stiles was able to move. His feet weren't stuck to the carpet anymore and his legs took their first step. The brunette didn't know what had happened between the moment he entered Derek's room and the moment he got out. He didn't know anybody's whereabouts anymore and that was why his first instincts were to check every single bedroom to make sure no one would be caught by surprise like he had. 

The bedrooms were quickly checked one by one. 

Fortunately, nobody had been there, unaware of the situation at hand. Stiles felt extremely relieved and so, without wasting any more time, he rushed downstairs. With each step he took, Stiles could feel the heavy smoke gathering in his lungs, painting them in a thick black layer and making him struggle to breath properly. 

He could barely see anything at this point. 

Between the flames burning too brightly for him to look at them directly and the thick smoke hanging in the air, everything became vague shadows of figures, barely recognisable by the brunette. It was as if he was losing his marks around the house and with the panic added to it, Stiles was nearly lost. 

Following his instincts, the brunette decided to be guided by ear and so, he listened carefully to the sounds and made his way towards it. His fingers were glued to the walls, making sure to never part from it for too long as even though he could still see, it became blurry at a metre radius. Coughing a few times, he took his flannel off, gathering the fabric in a ball and placed it over his nose and mouth to inhale as less smoke as possible. Walking by a window, the brunette's eyes caught sight of the shadow of a person retreating from the house and it hit him. 

Kate.

Kate Argent had been there. 

Right there and he could've had her. 

He could've made her pay right then and there for what she had done but he had missed her. And now she was already long gone. While they were all left behind to die. In his entire life, Stiles had rarely seen people as twisted as that. There were children in this house for god's sake. How could she do something like this and still live her life as if she hadn't murdered an entire family of innocent people? But as much as Stiles was furious and wanted to catch up to the woman and make her pay the price of her actions, the brunette knew now wasn't the time for it. 

So, he shook his outrage off and started walking again.

Soon enough, Stiles was finally able to reach his pack. And what he saw made his heart drop down to the floor in an instant. History was repeating itself and only now did Stiles truly understand to what extent was that statement accurate. Because he was now staring at the hale family stuck in the cage they often used when one of them was out of control.