𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬, i. lahey

𝟎𝟎𝟖. emotional baggage

SIDELINES

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OVER THE PAST three days, Scott and Stiles somehow managed to end up with Jackson filing a restraining order against them after they kidnapped and locked him inside a prison transport van (which Stiles had stolen from the sheriff's station) for twenty-four hours in the Beacon Hills Preserve.

Emery struggles to comprehend the boys' thought process during these events as she stands beside Allison, who slides her tablet to the other side of the bookshelf that separates them for Scott and Stiles to read. The security cameras by the doors shouldn't be able to see them.

"It's everything Lydia could translate," Allison says in a quiet voice. "And trust me, she was very confused."

"Yeah, what'd you tell her?" Scott asks.

Allison cringes slightly, a grin forming on her lips as well. "That we were part of an online gaming community that battles mythical creatures."

While Scott and Emery smile in amusement, Stiles stares blankly at her. "I am part of an online gaming community that battles mythical creatures," he states.

"O—Oh... great."

Emery presses her palm over her mouth, muffling the laugh that rolls off her tongue. Stiles shoots her a glare.

"Okay, does it say how to find out who's controlling him?" Scott puts forth, interrupting his friends' silent bickering.

"Not really, but Stiles was right about the murderers." The boy pumps his fist proudly, and Allison goes on. "It calls the kanima a weapon of vengeance. There's a story in there about this South American priest who uses the kanima to execute murderers in his village—"

"All right, see? So, maybe it's not all that bad," Stiles suggests, only to be proven wrong a moment later.

"—until the bond grows strong enough that it killed whoever he wanted it to."

Stiles gapes. "All bad. All very, very bad."

Allison grabs two books from the shelf above her head, passing one to Emery as they both flip through the pages. "Here's the thing, though. The kanima's actually supposed to be a werewolf but it can't be—"

Emery nudges the girl with her elbow, glancing at the librarian who walks into their aisle. They wait for the woman to leave before Scott finishes Allison's sentence for her.

"Until it resolves that in its past which manifested it."

"Emotional baggage," Emery sighs, tilting her head to the side slightly. Allison nods in confirmation. "Not surprised."

"Okay, if that means that Jackson could use a few thousand hours of therapy, I could've told you that myself," Stiles remarks in a matter-of-fact tone.

Allison blinks, hesitating slightly. Her voice lowers an octave. "What if... it has something to do with his parents? His real parents?"

"Because he was adopted?" Emery clarifies.

"Yeah, does anybody actually know what happened to them?" Scott's gaze flickers between the three, and Stiles shrugs in response.