Beacon Hills 1983

Chapter 6: Hunters

(Teen wolf)

It's quiet. A bit too quiet. I stop walking, and breathe in the air around me.

The crumbly, dry leaves beneath me send a dull, sandy smell to my nose. I can almost taste the old tree barks through their woody fragrance.
An erratic heartbeat pounds in my ears, right before I catch a familiar, homely scent.
Immediately, I feel stronger, braver, faster. More instinctive. My senses enhance.
I know he is near.

Something fast and stealthy flashes by, pulling me with it- I fall, landing inside a bush, beside my brother, Taylan Hale.
He puts a shaky finger on his lip, as if to warn me not to speak, and mouths the word "Hunters".
I hold his hand tightly, and he squeezes back.
Beads of sweat travel across my forehead and drip down my back. I hear their heartbeats... seven of them.

"Split up!" The one in charge shouts.
Heartbeats spread out in all directions. It's too hard to keep track of all of them.
"We have to go!" I whisper with a trembling voice. Taylan is scared...making me scared.
The bond of our pack is so strong, sometimes we're able to feel each other's emotions.
"No! It's too dangerous!" He whispers back frantically.
I try to ignore the feeling of Taylan's fear, and gather up all my courage.
"We don't know how long they'll be here. And we need to get home where it's safe. With the pack."

My emotions override his, and Taylan begins to feel more confident. His hands loosen their grip on mine, but still hold on firmly.
I look at him, turning on my glowing wolf-eyes. He nods back, and turns his on.
"Now."
We spring up, and run.

The sky is getting darker, the stars are nearly visible. We can make it home before nightfall- although, mom is still probably going to kill us for coming home this late. She doesn't like us going out at night because of the risk of ending up in situations like the one we're in right now.

Taylan and I pick up speed- our hands lose each other, and flail in the air.
Twigs scratch my face, creating fresh, bleeding cuts in my skin- which will heal within the next few minutes.
My feet slide in the dirt as I skid to a stop, and lose my balance. I hide behind a thin tree so that I can catch my breath. Taylan can't be seen anywhere- but his presence still lingers in the atmosphere.

After catching my brother's scent, I move away from the tree to run after him.
As I run, I am surprisingly hit by a sharp, pointy object, that pierces through my back, and comes out through my front, missing my heart by inches. I wail out in pain as I fall to my knees, with the arrow still in my chest.
The world swirls around me, and my head hits the ground. It feels as if the life is being drawn out of me. My brain is confused, and I can't tell if this is happening due to the arrow through me, or something else in the air.
Minutes before I pass out, a blurry figure looms over me.

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I wake up hanging by my arms. Taylan is awake beside me, in the same postion.
He looks as drowsy as I feel. An intoxicating fragrance stings my nose.
Sweat pastes my hair to my neck, and  goosebumps rise up on my skin.
Movements and sounds seem to be occurring in slow motion...
Suddenly I fall onto the cold, stone floor. Pain shoots through each and every bone in my shivering body. Somebody must've cut the ropes that were holding me.
A huge thump behind me indicates Taylan's fall.
I would turn to see if he's okay, but that would take so... much... energy.

The intense throbbing in my gums indicate the protrusion of wolf canines; and my claws leave a ticklish sensation on my fingertips.
The gold covers my eyes.
I drag my claws on the rough, stone floor, and try to move... but I'm stuck. Paralysed, more like.

A tall, lean figure looms over Taylan.      
"And what do we have here?" It says with a gruff voice.
Taylan and I are wheezing. My chest is closing in. I'm weak.
"Ar..." I try to get out the name. "gent..."
The man kneels down in front of me, holding a small purple flower between his fingers, and waves it in my face, causing the intoxication to become more strong and vivid. Wolfsbane.
I attempt lifting my hand up to move it away, but it feels as if it's magnetically attracted to the ground. I fail, pathetically.
He laughs a coughy laugh. "That's right, I am an Argent. And you two... are Hale's."
The Argent's are a well-reputated family of werewolf hunters, and have been one of our most dangerous threats for nearly a hundred years. Although they've a code, and have made alliances with my bloodline in the past, they're still hunters... still our enemies.

Behind the Argent, I notice, through my blurry vision, a vase full of fresh, purple wolfsbane sitting on a small table, a little distance away.
Air is thick, and cannot find its way to my lungs. It feels as if I'm drowning in my own sweat, and although my super-hearing is slightly blocked, Taylan's weak heartbeat finds it's way to my ears. He's still alive; but won't be for long. Tears puddle my already unclear sight.

"Now I don't want to kill either of you kids, but, if one of you doesn't own up, I'm gonna be left with no choice."
Own up? Own up to what?
"What...?" I wheeze.
"Now don't play dumb with me." He warns, pointing the small purple flower in our direction. "I know it was one of you- you little-."
"Gerard! You don't have any proof these kids had anything to do with it. Just let them go." A woman's voice comes in from behind the hunter.
"Don't get involved in this, Marielle." He turns around and walks to her. "You're always soft when it comes to the young ones."
"Because they're teenagers." She says, and from my blurry vision I see her grab the flower from his hand.
"And I follow the code."
Her silhouette walks to the wolfsbane flowers in the vase, she picks them up leaves, instantly returning oxygen to my lungs.