RETURN || SCOTT MCCALL [1]

7.1

It started with Alec.

A call from Chris Argent took our small vacation to Santa Monica on a little detour to downtown LA where Monroe was apparently active. 

We found a young boy, no older than 17, with an arrow wound and a haunted past with no one left alive in his story, but no Monroe. 

After Alec came Luna, a born wolf from northern Oregon with the most shiny jet black hair I'd ever seen and a fierce attitude to accompany it. We found her and her younger sister Ivory fleeing their adoptive parents who were shooting wolfsbane filled bullets at their "two little miracles." 

Then we met Justin, a fourteen year old attacked by a rouge alpha whose pack was completely wiped by none other than Monroes lackeys, and later lost him when the bite didn't take. The alpha, Maria Santos, unfortunately didn't make it back with us either and Monroes lackeys didn't make it back to Monroe. 

Over the next year we met and saved countless others, and some stayed, some parted, some lived, some died, some cried, some mourned, some lost, some hurt, some bled, some bruised, and some even fought too, but the one thing we all did was accept. Now that our secret is out, and Monroes ranks are growing, we all had to accept that this was the way of life now and we won't live normally because we aren't normal. 

It took Alec mere minutes to accept that there was a fight instead of flight.

It took Luna and Ivory a few days to accept that Monroe's manipulation not only left them without a home, but also left them with a passion to ensure it didn't happen to others.

It took Justin a quick second to accept that he was going to die, and it took Maria that same second to return human and accept the carnage she wrought from the deaths of her entire pack. She would have accepted the need for revenge if she could have. 

It took Scott a few months to accept that he'd never become a vet or go to college or do anything other than fight until the fight was over and protect until there was never a need to.

It took me a while to accept that Scott and I were the unwilling leaders of a rebellion we had to accept was the new normal. 

I can accept it, but that doesn't mean I'll surrender to it. 

"You should really get that arm checked out."

I startled from my inner monologue to find Scott's eyes on my left bicep, where a lackey's knife had sliced through my last clean shirt. I held in my growl of annoyance at the revelation, but I suppose I thought having an intact heart was worth more than a shirt when I had used the arm to block the incoming attack. 

"It's fine," I muttered, turning my attention back out the window of the caravan, watching the trees blur past without really looking at them. 

Scott narrowed his eyes at my dismissive tone, but didn't let it go. "It's still bleeding, it could be poisoned." I fought the urge to roll my eyes. 

"I said it's fine," I snapped, leaving no room for argument, and Scott opened his mouth again as if he was going to argue, but didn't comment, jaw snapping shut again as he adverted his eyes to his own window. 

A few moments of tense silence passed before his head snapped back to my arm. "I really wish you'd just visit-"

"Oh my god, Scott, can you just-!" I felt my voice rise into a shout as I was then interrupted from the chimera in the passenger seat.

"Both of you, play the silent game and shut the hell up, I'd like to go one car ride without the hostility-!" 

"Shut up, Theo!" Scott and I yelled in unison, and the man grumbled a bit but evidently did.