inhuman [2] // teen wolf

37. storm

The storm that Jennifer was causing had become even more deadly with Stiles and Riley driving up to the Beacon Hills Preserve with the rain pounding onto the car and the wind going crazy. Riley was really starting to get as anxious as Stiles was, and that was saying a lot. Riley was used to not having her parents around as much, but Stiles was not. His dad was all he had left, and he couldn't bear to lose him after he lost his mother. It made sense that Stiles was speeding, but that wasn't an excuse for dying.

"Stiles, please, at least go a little slower. We can't help your dad if we're dead." Riley warned, gripping the dashboard tightly as she watched the road sharply. It was hard to see and the headlights hardly cut through the fog that was forming because of the rain, but Stiles did not slow down. Riley hoped nothing bad happened.

But of course, nothing ever goes right, so she shouldn't even have hope anymore. A tree branch broke off a tree from the wind and it smacked the windscreen, luckily not causing it to crack. Stiles jumped in fear, watching it fall over the car and onto the road behind him, not watching the road in front.

"Stiles, watch out!" Riley yelled, seeing the tree in front of them approaching at a very rapid speed. He yelled and slammed on the brakes, but it was too late; Riley had instinctively put her hand across Stiles' chest as they smashed into the tree, giving the Jeep a nice dent to add to the collection. The car smoked from the front, as the two teens were knocked out cold. Thankfully, Riley's seatbelt had stopped her from smashing into the dashboard, but upon impact, the back of her head was slammed into the headrest, giving her a concussion and fuzzy eyesight for an hour.

She woke up before Stiles did, seeing that he took the impact a lot harder than she did. His forehead had blood all over it and so did the top of the steering wheel. He hit his head on it which knocked him unconscious. Riley's head had a blistering headache coming from the back, as she winced in pain every time she moved. She unplugged her seat belt and Stiles', trying to gently shake him awake.

"Stiles, wake up. Stiles, we have to save your dad." Riley mumbled, her words muffled by the pain in her head. She blinked hard a few times to try and get her vision back, and it worked a little bit. She looked around, the darkness completely engulfing her, the only light source coming from the full moon. Stiles stirred a little bit, and Riley leaned over, grabbed his face and shook it. "Stiles, come on, please..."

He jumped awake, eyes widening at his surroundings as he quickly winced and touched his head, seeing the blood running down his fingertips. He looked at Riley, seeing no serious cuts on her. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, but we need to find your dad, Stiles. Show me where they are. Save them." Riley urged again, and he nodded, opening the car door and shielding his eyes from the dusty wind. Riley followed his actions, and something silver caught her eye in the backseat; a baseball bat. Maybe they would come across Jennifer or even Deaucalion there, so it wouldn't hurt (them) to bring it along. She snatched it up and followed Stiles into the forest hurriedly, taking his hand and interlocking their fingers so they wouldn't be separated. He ran into the middle of the preserve, not really knowing where he was going until he found the large stump that was once the Nemeton. As soon as Riley saw it, she was washed with nostalgia as she stared it down, walking over to the stump and staying there as she studied the lines and grooves of the tree.

"Riley, come on! I see it!" Stiles yelled, but she didn't reply. She let go of his hand, and he had no choice but to run over to the various holes in the ground made from the storm and jump into the cellar, ultimately saving the day by using the baseball bat to hold up the collapsing beam. Riley crouched down and slowly put her hand onto the tree's various roots, immediately feeling the power that ran through it and herself. She closed her eyes, ignoring her throbbing head and wind whipping her hair around and biting at her skin.

The Nemeton brought back a memory that was in broad daylight. A group was camping near it, who seemed to be the Beacons and the Argents, while Emma was leaned against the stump of the nemeton, watching from the sidelines as the two conversed happily. She wasn't wearing any wolf skin, and she seemed a lot younger; maybe around Riley's age. Tents were perched all around the place and laughter was heard around the burnt out fire in the centre. All of a sudden, a loud shout was heard from inside one of the tents and a man, an Argent, was thrown out of the entry and onto the ground. The man who threw him, a Beacon, came charging out and grabbed the man by his shirt, pulling him to his feet as he watched him menacingly. Emma did not react, she simply watched with the rest of the silent crowd.

"You! How dare you steal from us, your allies? We give you food, shelter and warmth, and you repay us by stealing our most prized possession? The Bestiary? How dare you!" The man shouted, and uproar was immediately caused by the others watching. The Beacons and Argents all quickly separated and grabbed their spears and knives, standing on each side of the Nemeton, glaring each other down. Emma remained in her spot next to the nemeton, knowing that this was just for show and nothing actually happened the way the man was saying.

"We did not steal from you! Someone planted it inside my bag, I did not know of its location until I found it there! You are mistaken!" The man begged, trying to wriggle out of his grip. Beacon dropped him to the ground, where he scrambled to his side of the tree stump. But all was not well, as the Argent man had lied to Emma's grandfather. Whilst he was not looking, Argent took Emma by the hair and raised her, putting a knife to her neck as she screamed in fear. "You dare to follow us and we will slit her throat and feed her to the werewolf scum. If you take back what we stole, you will not hear the last of us."

They all slowly walked backwards, Emma's grandfather ordering his men not to take action. Once they were all out of sight, Emma had come sprinting back with blood dripping down her cheek and neck, into her grandfather's arms, and she knew on that day that she would never trust an Argent again. They were her sworn enemies, and will always be 'till the day she died.