Won't Fall (Book Five: Teen Wolf Fanfic)

Ch. 2: Parasomnia

I walked into the Animal Clinic, into the back, to see that Scott was about to inject a dog with some form of medicine.

Deaton was instructing him. "Remember, for intramuscular injections in the hind leg..."

"Stay clear of the of the sciatic nerve," Scott finished.

"Excellent," Deaton told him. "Aspirate back to make sure you haven't hit a vein." Scott did as told. "Then just keep the needle still."

Scott injected the needle into the dog's hind leg.

The dog yelped in pain, nipping at Scott's hand, growling.

Scott pulled his hand away. "Ow."

Scott smiled, petting the dog.

Deaton smiled. "He's a little one, but his teeth are still sharp."

Scott continued to pet the dog. "Sorry, buddy. Come on." He picked the dog up. "Good boy." He carried the dog toward a little girl, kneeling in front of her, putting the dog down. "Here you go, Stephanie."

Stephanie attached a leash to the dog. "Thank you, Dr. McCall."

Scott smiled. "I'm not a doctor yet." Stephanie led the dog out past me, walking out, leaving. I walked closer to Scott, smiling a small smile. Scott looked surprised, standing. "Tara. Hey. Didn't expect you so soon."

"Clearly," I told him.

Deaton turned to face us, looking at me. "Did you bring them?"

"Yeah," I answered, walking closer, handing a small plastic bag with the creature's talons to Deaton.

Deaton took the bag, opening it, pouring them onto the table. He used a tweezer to pick one of them up, looking at it through a magnifying glass. "Find anything?"

"Maybe," I answered.

"Are you sure this guy was a werewolf?" Deaton asked.

"No, I'm not sure," I answered. "As far as I can tell, those claws are actually talons. In fact, they're the talons of a harpy eagle, one of the largest known birds of prey."

"How does a werewolf get talons?" Scott asked.

"Personally, I'm more interested in how these talons somehow were able to absorb your power," Deaton told him. "The only one who should be able to do that is a Beta of your own making."

"Someone like Liam?" Scott asked.

"Exactly," I answered.

"And what if I let someone into my pack?" Scott asked. "Like another Beta?"

"I would normally say no," Deaton told us. "But I'm starting to wonder if the rules to our supernatural world aren't as rigid as I once thought."

"Or maybe someone's trying to change those rules," I told them.

None of us liked the sound of that.

*****

The next day, after dark, I was in the living room of the loft, using a pipe in the wall as a pull up bar, wearing a black sports bra and black leggings, hair pulled back into a ponytail with a few strands of stray hair in my face, letting myself fall to the floor, doing push ups. I stopped when I sensed someone behind me, sitting down on the floor, one knee raised in front of me, leaning my arm against it. "How was the first day of senior year?"

I stood, turning to face Scott.

"Good," Scott answered. "Last first day ever. Until college comes around."

"And what college will you be going to, Dr. McCall?" I asked.

Scott smiled nervously. "UC Davis. it's a really good school. Not too far from the Bay Area. It also has the best program for biological and physical sciences. Perfect for someone who wants to be a veterinarian."

I crossed my arms over my chest. "Doesn't sound too bad."

"I'm actually worried I'm not smart enough to make it," Scott told me.

I chuckled, stepping closer. "You'll make it."

Scott smiled, kissing me for a moment, pulling away, looking at me curiously. "You know, it's weird. I never really noticed it before, because we weren't really..."

"Together?" I finished.

Scott nodded. "Yeah. But I actually don't see you as much as I see the others because you don't go to school."

"Yeah, well, I was home schooled," I told him. "By Laura." I looked down. "Before she died." I took a deep breath, looking up, pacing away from Scott. "We were always moving around, but she taught me everything she knew." Scott turned to face me. "And it's a good thing she did, too, 'cause I could barely get used to Derek trying to make a pack with Isaac, Boyd and Erica." I turned to face Scott. "And I'm barely used in being in this pack instead of just with Laura or Derek. I don't know what I would have done if I had actually gone to school."

Scott smiled. "You're anti-social, you know that?"

I looked away, smiling a small smile. "Yeah, whatever." Scott stepped closer. We chuckled. I looked at Scott in amusement. "You made me go soft."

Scott stopped merely inches in front of me in amusement. "This is you being soft? I don't know many things, Tara Hale, but I sure know some things. And one of them for sure is that you have not gone soft. You've just learned to control it." I smiled, looking away. Scott looked at me thoughtfully. I looked at him in slight confusion. "What?"

"Nothing," Scott told me. I raised my eyebrows. "It's just..." Scott barely shook his head. "I'll never get used to that."

"Never get used to what?" I asked.

Scott smiled a small smile. "I'll never get used to seeing you smile."

I couldn't help a smile, looking away. "Shut up."

We chuckled.

Scott looked at me for a moment, pushing back a piece of stray hair. I smiled a small smile, kissing him. Scott put a hand on my cheek, deepening the kiss, making it more passionate.

I might have been right.

I might have gone soft.

Or I was wrong, and maybe Scott was right.

Maybe I hadn't gone soft.

Maybe I had just learned to control it.

And that also meant I could go back to that old Tara.

But I thought we could all find something we could all agree on.

I would not have ever gotten to this point if it hadn't been for Scott.

I would have still been the same way now the way I was back then.

And I thought we could all agree that this way, this Tara Hale... was better for everyone.

It was especially better for me.