Teen Wolf: The Alternate Path

Chapter Twelve: The Unseen Forces

The drive home was stifling, the silence thick with unspoken words and simmering tension. My father's stoic expression was a mask, hiding the turmoil I knew he felt, while Allison's silence was a scream of betrayal that echoed in my ears. I sat in the back; torn between the crushing weight of my family's legacy and the secret knowledge I held about Scott. Every bump in the road seemed to jar loose another piece of my resolve, and I couldn't help but wonder if my silence was doing more harm than good. The weight of the truth pressed heavily on my chest, but I couldn't bring myself to speak, not when so much was at stake.

Back home, the atmosphere was charged with conflict. I eavesdropped on a heated argument between my dad and Aunt Kate, with my mom interjecting more sharply than I had ever heard her. As mom hurriedly packed our belongings, Kate was to take us as far away from the danger of Beacon Hills, yet a deep sense of foreboding washed over me, particularly concerning Stiles.

Kate's words were like poison, seeping into Allison's mind and twisting the truth to suit her own agenda. I could see the doubt and confusion in Allison's eyes, and it tore at me to watch her being manipulated like this. Every time I tried to intervene, to steer Allison away from Kate's deceptive narratives, I was met with a cold dismissal that only fuelled my frustration. But I knew I had to bide my time, to wait for the right moment to reveal the truth. The stakes were too high to risk a confrontation now, but the need to protect Allison gnawed at me, a constant reminder of the thin line I walked between loyalty and betrayal.

As the car ride dragged on, I drifted into a drowsy state, the world around me seemed to blur and shift, pulling me into a dreamlike vision that felt all too real. I was no longer in the car with Kate and Allison—instead, I found myself floating above a scene I couldn't quite place. Stiles stood before his father, his expression a mix of frustration and fear as they argued about the Hale House Fire. The sheriff's voice echoed in my ears, 'A pendant, Stiles, it's a necklace,' before he turned away, leaving Stiles standing there, bewildered and alone. In that moment I reached for him, my voice was no more than a whisper in his ear: 'Allison's necklace.' The vision shifted abruptly, and I was watching my father confront Stiles, their faces inches apart as tension crackled between them. 'What if someone did break the code?' Stiles challenged; his voice laced with defiance. 'Like who?' my father pressed, and once more, I whispered, 'Kate.' The vision faded, leaving me with a sense of foreboding that clung to me like a shadow.

I awoke abruptly to Allison's voice, "What about my necklace?" I mumbled, "Just a weird dream." Kate interjected, "You mentioned my name too." I shrugged off her probing, my unease growing yet I remained tight-lipped about the insights from my dream. It had felt real, had I just told Stiles exactly what he needed to know? Like a Jedi mind trick?

The car jerked to a stop at the Hale house ruins, setting the stage for an unavoidable confrontation. Tensions escalated quickly as Kate raised her weapon against Scott, who was already there. My heart pounded with the imminent threat to my friends.

The chaos intensified with the sudden arrival of my father and the fearsome appearance of the alpha. As the situation spiralled, fear rooted me to the spot while something else surged within me. The danger to Allison and the menacing presence of the alpha converged into a critical moment.

Frozen in place, I heard the horrifying sound of flesh tearing—Kate's flesh. My lack of sympathy for her was overshadowed by relief as Scott and Derek rushed inside to help Allison. When the fight between the alpha and the betas spilled back outside, I watched, transfixed, aware of Stiles' arrival. His presence sparked a mix of fear and anger within me for his safety.

Caught up in my emotions, I almost missed the alpha catching a dangerous home made concoction Stiles had thrown with the purpose of incapacitating it, now poised to throw it at Allison, who had her bow in hand almost ready to strike. She wasn't going to make it in time, the Alpha was going to burn her alive.

As the chaos of the night reached its peak, I felt a surge of something deep within me—an energy I had never known I possessed. The sight of the alpha poised to attack Allison, flames licking at its claws, snapped something inside me. Without thinking, I raised my arm and shouted a single word: 'Halt!' To my astonishment, the alpha froze, its eyes locked onto mine, if only for a brief moment. The invisible power I had unleashed was terrifying and exhilarating all at once, a force that felt both foreign and familiar. But as quickly as it came, the moment passed, and Allison's arrow found its mark. The energy drained from me, leaving me weak and trembling, and I collapsed into darkness, the revelation of what I had done lingering in the recesses of my mind.

---

When I awoke, the first thing I heard was the steady beat of a heart—Stiles' heart, close, so close it felt like it was echoing in my own chest. I shot up in bed, my head spinning, only to find him standing there, casually perusing my video game collection as if it were the most normal thing in the world. His presence was a balm to the chaos of the night before, a touch of normalcy that I desperately needed. When he turned to me with that familiar smirk, all the tension and fear melted away, leaving only the warmth of our connection. His comment about my Star Wars collection was so simple, yet it held the weight of everything we hadn't said. 'You had me worried for a moment,' he said, his voice soft and sincere. The words struck a chord deep within me, and I realized just how much his presence meant to me. 'I did?' I asked, trying to keep my voice steady. 'You did,' he replied, his gaze meeting mine with an intensity that made my heart skip a beat. In that moment, all the complexities of the night before, all the revelations and fears, faded into the background. All that mattered was this—Stiles and I, here, together. "Sorry about that." I sighed, relaxing back into the bed, not quite fully recovered it appeared.

"I don't know what you did, but you did something." He complimented, at least it sounded like a compliment.

"You noticed that? I didn't think anyone would, let's be honest, I pointed at a wolf and told him to stop, I'm not exactly Gandalf."

"You're better than Gandalf," he beamed "Master Yoda, you are."

Legit the nicest compliment anyone has ever given me, I thought to myself.

"And yes..." Stiles paused, meeting my eyes "I noticed, I notice a lot of the things you do."

I froze, my heart threatening to implode in my chest. In that moment, the complexities of the night before, the revelations of power, the fear for my family and friends, all faded into the background. Stiles' presence, the ease of our interaction, offered a glimpse of normalcy in the tumultuous world we inhabited.

My mom coughed from my bedroom doorway, breaking our eyes connection, unsubtly making her presence known; and that it was time for Stiles to leave.

"Get better soon, bro," he beamed with his one-sided smile, pointing a thumbs up in my direction, "need my lab partner back, I do."

As Stiles left, his one-sided smile lingering in the air like a promise, I felt a strange mix of emotions. The night's events had left me shaken, my newfound power both a gift and a burden, and the path ahead was filled with uncertainty. But as I lay back in bed, the memory of Stiles's presence beside me brought a sense of calm, a flicker of hope amidst the chaos. The unseen forces that had shaped our destinies were still at play, but for the first time, I felt like I had the strength to face them. Whatever the future held, I knew that I wasn't alone—and that made all the difference.