𝙳𝙾𝙻𝙻 𝙿𝙰𝚁𝚃𝚂⠀⠀⠀⠀¹¹
𝗩𝗢𝗟𝗨𝗠𝗘 𝗜. Cry Wolf

Without an anchor, we can
be drifted to any shore.

Lailah Gifty Akita

CHAPTER ELEVEN⠀⠀۵⠀⠀Bloodlust

❛ JUST...COME BACK
TO ME IN ONE PIECE. ❜

BRIETTA'S MIND WAS STILL ON THE FACT THAT THE ALPHA HAD LET HER GO.

⠀⠀⠀"But we are alive," Scott points out, his eyes slightly wide. "It could've killed us already. It's like it's cornering us or something."

⠀⠀⠀That stays on her mind as she runs with her friends around the hall, everyone trying to open a classroom door to find a safe haven.

⠀⠀⠀Stiles and Brietta break away from the rest of the group to try the Chemistry classroom, and they let out twin sighs of relief as the knob twists.

⠀⠀⠀Stiles runs inside while Brietta frantically motions for everyone to come into the classroom. Everyone eventually sees her rapid movements and runs over, entering the classroom one by one.

⠀⠀⠀As soon as everyone is inside, Scott grabs a chair and props it underneath the doorknob.

⠀⠀⠀Through the windows in the classroom, moonlight and streetlights peek through, allowing Brietta to see everyone with fearful and shocked looks.

⠀⠀⠀As everyone catches their breath, Scott suddenly freezes. He clenches his eyes shut and lowers his head, heightening the worry that Brietta and Stiles both feel.

⠀⠀⠀A second later, heavy footsteps sound from the hall, and everyone holds their breath.

⠀⠀⠀When a low growl sounds from outside the door, Brietta looks over and sees a shadow cast over the small window in the door.

⠀⠀⠀She inhales sharply and staggers back slowly until she slightly bumps into Scott and Stiles.

⠀⠀⠀They both steady her, and, a second later, the shadow passes from the window.

⠀⠀⠀Everyone lets out the breath they've been holding, and Brietta feels Stiles and Scott let go of her.

⠀⠀⠀Scott stays quiet for a moment, using his heightened hearing to make sure that the Alpha is gone. After a second, he nods to Brietta and Stiles before looking over at Jackson, "Jackson, how many people can fit in your car?"

⠀⠀⠀"Seven, if people squeeze on each other's laps," Jackson shrugs, and a strangled sound leaves Ellington, who speaks behind Allison, "Seven? Allison sat on my lap just so she wouldn't get cramped."

⠀⠀⠀"It doesn't matter," Stiles sighs, stepping up to stand beside Brietta. The dejection in his voice makes Brietta's heart twist—she's only heard him sound like that a few times, but it never gets easier and it always makes her feel crestfallen. "There's no getting out without drawing attention," Stiles' fact looms in the air, and everyone takes a beat to think of how they'd get out of the high school safely.

⠀⠀⠀Scott looks around for a moment before his eyes catch on something in the corner of the room, "What about this?" Without another word, he pulls Stiles and Brietta toward the emergency exit in the corner of the classroom. "This leads to the roof. We can do down the fire escape to the parking lot in, like, seconds."

⠀⠀⠀Stiles' eyes catch on the knob on the door and he shakes his head, "That's a deadbolt."

⠀⠀⠀After a second of silence, Brietta cringes at her newest idea. She peers over her shoulder, seeing that Allison, Jackson, Lydia, and Ellington were all looking at the trio, but they were far enough that, if Brietta whispered, they wouldn't hear.

⠀⠀⠀She leans in closer to Scott and Stiles, "The janitor will have the keys to every door in the building."

⠀⠀⠀Stiles gives Brietta a deadpan look, "You mean his body has it."

⠀⠀⠀"Well, do you have a better idea?" Brietta hisses quietly, and Stiles narrows his eyes at Brietta, though they lack any real venom, "Yeah, like not going into the halls that the Alpha with super senses just walked through."

⠀⠀⠀"I can get it," Scott blurts out, stopping Brietta and Stiles' small bickering. They both turn to Scott, and he looks over their shoulders at everyone else before stepping closer, his voice quiet, "I can find him by scent, by blood."

⠀⠀⠀"Well, gee," Stiles ridicules, "that sounds like an incredibly terrible idea. What else you got?"

⠀⠀⠀Scott pauses for a moment before shrugging and raising his voice so that everyone in the room will hear him, "I'm getting the key."

⠀⠀⠀"Okay, just—." Ellington starts, but then he pauses and walks over to the trio huddled in the corner, motioning them to move more into the corner. "Ettie," Ellington pauses once again to look over his shoulder before looking back at his younger sister, "tell me the truth. Is Derek Hale really the one who's attacking us?"

⠀⠀⠀Brietta chews her bottom lip anxiously and looks over at her two best friends, who gave her small encouraging looks. "No," Brietta answers, and adds on before Ellington can say anything, "but Derek is dead and the others can't know who really is attacking us."

⠀⠀⠀"Who's really attacking us?" Ellington asks, and Brietta's mouth opens and closes as she tries to figure out the best way to explain.

⠀⠀⠀"An Alpha," Stiles answers, saving Brietta from answering, "Or the Alpha, but we don't know who he is when he's not moonlighting as a furry animal."

⠀⠀⠀Ellington looks at Stiles in disbelief before looking over at Scott with growing disbelief, "So, what, your brilliant plan is to go out there with no defense?"

⠀⠀⠀"Uhm," Brietta hums before lowering her voice, "Scott's a Werewolf, so he'd have some defense."

⠀⠀⠀Ellington gapes at her, "When the hell did he become a Werewolf?"

⠀⠀⠀Brietta scoffs slightly, waving off her brother, "I'll give you the SparkNotes if we live."

⠀⠀⠀"Guys," Scott interrupts, raising his voice, "it's the best plan. Someone has to get the key if we wanna get out of here."

⠀⠀⠀Everyone looks over at Allison as she shakes her head wildly, "You can't go out there unarmed."

⠀⠀⠀Scott looks around the room before grabbing Mr. Harris' pointing stick, causing everyone to roll their eyes at the ridiculous weapon. "Well, it's better than nothing," Scott huffs, taking in everyone's looks of judgment and irritation.

⠀⠀⠀"There's gotta be something else..." Stiles mutters under his breath, looking around the room.

⠀⠀⠀"There is," Lydia speaks up, and everyone turns to her. She nods her head toward a glass cabinet filled with chemicals and other substances.

⠀⠀⠀"What are we gonna do, throw acid on him?" Stiles scoffs, but Brietta shakes her head, putting a hand on Stiles' shoulder, "We can make something better than acid."

⠀⠀⠀Lydia smiles at her best friend and nods, "Like a fire bomb," Lydia then gives Stiles a look as if to say 'how stupid do you feel now?' Before looking at the cabinet, "In there is everything you need to make a self-igniting Molotov cocktail."

⠀⠀⠀"Self...igniting...?" Stiles repeats dumbfoundingly.

⠀⠀⠀"...Molotov cocktail," Lydia finishes snidely, glaring a bit at Stiles. Everyone in the room except Brietta gapes at her, and Lydia notices after a while. "What?" She shrugs, her eyes fixed on her boyfriend, "I read it somewhere."

⠀⠀⠀Stiles motions to the lock on the cabinet, "We don't have a key for that, either."

⠀⠀⠀Jackson rolls his eyes with an incredulous sigh before slamming his elbow into the glass, effectively shattering it.

⠀⠀⠀Brietta quickly grabs a glass conical beaker, handing it to Lydia before grabbing phosphorus pentoxide, sulfuric acid, and carbon disulfide. Suddenly, Brietta feels thankful that she stopped zoning out during Mr. Harris' random rambles about "the joys of science."

⠀⠀⠀She places all the ingredients on Harris' desk before stepping back to let Lydia do what she is best at. Lydia pours carbon disulfide into the beaker, phosphorus pentoxide coming next before she gently shakes the beaker, mixing the two substances. "Jackson, hand me the sulfuric acid," Lydia instructs the star athlete.

⠀⠀⠀Jackson heads over to the cabinet and his eyes dart between two bottles. His hand hovers over one, but he hesitates and ends up picking the second and handing it to Lydia.

⠀⠀⠀Lydia pours the liquid in, checking to see if she has the right measurements before shaking the beaker again and putting the cork in place to seal the substance.

⠀⠀⠀Lydia passes the beaker to Scott as Brietta walks over to Stiles, who whispers, "I need to learn how to make one of those." Brietta lightly snorts out a small laugh, praying that the cocktail will work.

⠀⠀⠀Just as Scott starts to walk toward the door, Brietta feels a heavy sense of dread and she pulls away from Stiles to stop Scott. "Hey," She whispers as Scott turns around to face her, "If he catches you, and if he tries to hurt you, don't try to be a hero," When Scott furrows his eyebrows and frowns at her words, Brietta doesn't hesitate to rise to her feet and press a chaste kiss on his cheek.

⠀⠀⠀She leans back onto her feet and blinks slowly at his wide-eyed look. Brietta clears her throat and staggers back a few steps, "Just...come back to me in one piece. Promise?"

⠀⠀⠀Scott, looking a bit dazed, simply nods. After a second, he shakes his head like he's just gotten out of a trance, "Yeah. Promise," He smiles for a second and turns around to face the door, his voice echoing through the room, "Lock it behind me."

⋅ ─── ･ ｡ﾟ⟡ ⚔ ⟡ ˚｡ ･ ─── ⋅

BRIETTA AND STILES LEAN ON THE WALL NEXT TO THE DOOR THAT SCOTT HAD LEFT, the former appearing more anxious than the boy beside her. She picks at the skin around her fingers, silently praying to a deity that she didn't believe in that Scott would be okay.

⠀⠀⠀Feeling a pair of hands cup hers, Brietta breaks out of her train of thought and looks over at Stiles. He gently squeezes her hands, and she lets out a heavy breath before letting her hands fall at her sides.

⠀⠀⠀When she does so, Stiles opens his arms, and Brietta looks at them for a moment before sliding into his side, letting him hold her.

⠀⠀⠀As Brietta nuzzles her head into the crook in Stiles' neck, she catches Lydia glancing at the bottles they had used to make the cocktail. Brietta watches Lydia go from nonchalant to slightly anxious, making the former's apprehension grow.

⠀⠀⠀"Jackson," Lydia hums, her eyes trained on the bottles, "you handed me the sulfuric acid, right? It has to be sulfuric acid. It won't ignite if it's not." Lydia turns to her boyfriend, who glares at her slightly, "I gave you exactly what you asked for tonight."

⠀⠀⠀"Yeah," Lydia mutters, however, she doesn't sound confident, "Yeah, I'm sure you did."

⠀⠀⠀Brietta lifts her head from Stiles' shoulder and takes a step toward the bottles. Before she can take another, a thunderous roar shakes the entire building. Jackson lets out small grunts just as Brietta feels a certain magnetic pull to the door.

⠀⠀⠀She looks around the room, but nobody seems to look anything other than shock. That is until her eyes land on her brother, who's looking at the door as if he's trying to stop himself from walking through it.

⠀⠀⠀Ellington turns to Brietta, and his eyes widen slightly when he sees a similar expression on her face. Just as he opens his mouth, Jackson's knees buckle beneath him and he falls to the ground, holding the back of his neck.

⠀⠀⠀Everyone's eyes widen when Jackson lets out pained screams, his hands pulling away from his neck to claw at the floor instead. Brietta and Stiles both pale when they see marks on Jackson's neck. Marks that look like they came from claws.

⠀⠀⠀As the roar ends, Lydia and Allison grab Jackson's arms, helping him onto his feet. "No," Jackson grits out, "I'm fine." When they keep holding him, he pushes them away, his voice steadier, "Seriously, I'm okay."

⠀⠀⠀"That didn't sound okay at all," Allison scoffs, but the worry in her voice was clear.

⠀⠀⠀"What's on the back of your neck?" Stiles reaches over to touch the wounds but Jackson slaps away his arm before Stiles can get too close. "I said I'm fine." Jackson scoffs, backing away from the group.

⠀⠀⠀"It's been there for days," Lydia blurts out, crossing her arms as she stares at her boyfriend with a hint of irritation, "He won't tell me what happened."

⠀⠀⠀"As if you actually care," Jackson scoffs, and Brietta feels the overwhelming urge to slap him. Before she can say anything, Ellington does—much to her surprise. "Don't talk to her like that, man," Ellington scoffs, stepping in front of Lydia.

⠀⠀⠀Jackson's eyebrows shoot up in shock and he takes a step toward Ellington, his chest puffing out slightly. Stiles gets in between them before anything can get violent, "All right, can we not argue for half a second here?"

⠀⠀⠀Brietta crosses her arms, her eyes trained on the door. For a second, she swears she can see a shadow come into the small window, but there is barely any light to confirm her suspicions. Besides, if Scott were on the other side, he'd come in, wouldn't he?

⠀⠀⠀Unbeknownst to them, Scott was just on the other side of the door, his chest rising and falling with inexplicable anger. Just a few minutes ago, he ran into the Alpha. The cocktail didn't work, but the Alpha didn't attack Scott like he thought it would.

⠀⠀⠀Instead, the Alpha just roared loudly, and Scott couldn't stop himself from shifting. He couldn't stop the bloodlust either. With the key to the Chemistry classroom, Scott shoves it into the keyhole, twisting the key carefully.

⠀⠀⠀Inside the classroom, Brietta's right leg shakes uncontrollably, "Scott should be back by now," She mutters to the group, her words filled with worry as she frowns.

⠀⠀⠀At the sound of Brietta's voice, Scott feels his anger ebb a bit.

⠀⠀⠀He pauses for a moment before shaking his head, refocusing on the matter at hand. "Look, back in the classroom, when she was holding your hand, that was different, okay? I don't think she makes you weak. I—. I think she actually gives you control," Stiles says with a determined expression.

⠀⠀⠀Stiles stops walking, his head tilted thoughtfully. "She's kind of like an anchor."

⠀⠀⠀Scott lets out a low growl, his hand rising to rest on the door.

⠀⠀⠀Brietta scans the field, and her eyes lock onto Scott's and she gives him a thumbs-up, her lips curling up. "You've got this," She whispers, knowing that he would hear her, and, when his face lights up, she knows that he does.

⠀⠀⠀Scott's rapid heartbeats begin to slow and his hand balls into a fist.

⠀⠀⠀She leans back onto her feet, and blinks slowly at his wide-eyed look. Brietta clears her throat and staggers back a few steps, "Just...come back to me in one piece. Promise?"

⠀⠀⠀Scott inhales a deep breath, and his heart beats slow. His grip on the key tightens, but, instead of opening it, he snaps the key in half, trapping everyone in the classroom.

⠀⠀⠀At the sound of a sharp crack, Brietta walks closer to the classroom door and her eyes finally adjust to the darkness. Her eyes widen when she spots Scott through the window, and she tries to open the door, but the knob doesn't budge.

⠀⠀⠀"Scott!" She calls out, banging on the door and jiggling the knob to no avail. "Scott!"

⠀⠀⠀"Where is he going?" Lydia asks just as Stiles slides in beside Brietta to see a figure stagger away from the door, but it's clear that it's Scott. They both call out to Scott, and they bang on the door despite knowing that it could draw the Alpha to them.

⠀⠀⠀"Stop," Lydia instructs Stiles and Brietta, but they don't listen. "Stop!" Lydia screams, and everyone finally turns to face her. "Do you hear that?"

⠀⠀⠀When Brietta focuses on her surroundings, she hears the faint wails of a police car.

⠀⠀⠀They're safe...for now.

⋅ ─── ･ ｡ﾟ⟡ ⚔ ⟡ ˚｡ ･ ─── ⋅

"YOU SURE IT WAS DEREK HALE?" Noah questions the trio as they leave the school building, Brietta in between Stiles and Scott.

⠀⠀⠀"Yes," Scott answers after sharing a look with his best friends.

⠀⠀⠀"We saw him, too," Brietta confirms, motioning to the wound on her cheek as Noah looks back at them, "He gave me this."

⠀⠀⠀"What about the janitor?" Scott asks Noah; Scott had found the janitor's dead body when he went out looking for the Alpha, but none of the police officers can find it.

⠀⠀⠀"We're still looking," Noah reveals, jogging down the steps of the school's front courtyard.

⠀⠀⠀"Did you check under the bleachers? Under them?" Scott urges, frustration clouding him.

⠀⠀⠀"Yeah, Scott, we looked," Noah lets out a frustrated sigh, "We pulled them out, just like you asked. There's nothing."

⠀⠀⠀"I'm not making this up," Scott barks out, prompting Noah to stop walking in favor of turning to face the trio. "I know," Noah assures, his eyes softening, "I believe you, I do."

⠀⠀⠀"No, you don't," Scott insists sadly, "You have this look like you feel bad for me. Like you wanna believe me, but I know you don't." Scott scoffs slightly as Stiles and Brietta both lean against the metal stair railing, watching Scott and Noah.

⠀⠀⠀"Listen to me," Noah sighs, glancing at the school for a moment before pointing to it, "we're gonna search this whole school. We're gonna find him. Okay? I promise." As the words come out, a deputy calls for him. "Stay," Noah orders, his eyes darting between the trio, "All of you."

⠀⠀⠀"Well, we survived, guys," Stiles lets out a sigh of relief as soon as his father is a safe distance away from them, "You know? We outlasted the Alpha. It's still good, right? Being alive?"

⠀⠀⠀Scott stares at Stiles with disbelief and narrows his eyes slightly, "When we were in the chemistry room, he walked right by us. You don't think that it heard us? You don't think it knew exactly where we were?"

⠀⠀⠀Brietta and Stiles absorb this, knowing that Scott was right. Scott frowns, letting out a frustrated grunt, "It wants me in its pack. But, I think, first...I have to get rid of my old pack."

⠀⠀⠀"What do you mean?" Stiles asks, crossing his arms, "What old pack?"

⠀⠀⠀Scott frowns, "Allison. Ellington. Jackson. Lydia," His frown deepens, "You two."

⠀⠀⠀"The Alpha wants you to kill us," Brietta mutters, understanding the situation.

⠀⠀⠀Scott nods, turning away from his friends, "And that's not even the worst part."

⠀⠀⠀Stiles holds out his arms, his words louder than before, "How in holy hell is that not the worst part, Scott?"

⠀⠀⠀"Because when he made me shift..." Scott grumbles, pausing to turn back to his friends, "I wanted to do it. I wanted to kill you all of you."

⠀⠀⠀"Oh," Brietta mutters because what else can she say? We won't let it happen. She didn't want to make false promises to Scott.

⠀⠀⠀Suddenly, Scott's face pales and he walks past Brietta and Stiles wordlessly. Brietta and Stiles share a look before they follow behind Scott, seeing that he is headed to an ambulance.

⠀⠀⠀"Jesus," Brietta whispers, seeing that Deaton was in the back of the ambulance, alive and well.

⠀⠀⠀"How...? How did you...?" Scott could barely get his words out, but Deaton just kept smiling as he shrugs, "Get out? Not easily."

⠀⠀⠀Brietta eyes Deaton suspiciously, but he keeps talking with an easygoing smile, "And, from what they tell me, I'm alive because of you. I think I owe you a raise."

⠀⠀⠀Before any of them can say anything, Noah comes up behind them, "Guys, come on," Noah begins to pull Stiles away from the ambulance, and Brietta and Scott follow the Stilinskis, "Let's let the EMTs do their job. You can talk to him later."

⠀⠀⠀In the parking lot, Brietta catches her grandmother holding Ellington tightly, and she smiles softly.

⠀⠀⠀Before she heads over to her family, she spares a look over at Deaton.

⠀⠀⠀How much of a coincidence was it that the Alpha is nowhere to be found, and that Deaton is suddenly okay after disappearing?.

⋅ ─── ･ ｡ﾟ⟡ ⚔ ⟡ ˚｡ ･ ─── ⋅

BRIETTA STARES AT THE DOORS TO THE RESIDENTIAL HOME FOR A LONG MOMENT. She's beginning to regret her idea to go see Peter Hale, but something in her gut needs to.

⠀⠀⠀She crosses her arms, pulling her jacket closer to her body before walking up to the big automatic doors that part in her wake. Without hesitation, she goes over to the front desk.

⠀⠀⠀Brietta couldn't waste anymore time hesitating; she had to beg her grandmother just to come, and Vera only gave her thirty minutes to go out.

⠀⠀⠀When the receptionist spots Brietta in front of him, he flashes her a bright smile. Brietta gives the older man a soft smile and digs through her back pocket, grabbing out her student ID.

⠀⠀⠀The man—whose name is David Doyle based on his name card—takes the ID from Brietta and looks down at it. David's eyebrows draw down at something on her ID, and Brietta pauses for a moment.

⠀⠀⠀She's sure that she still looks like her ID picture. Sure, she's grown a bit and her hair doesn't have pink streaks in it anymore, but she still looks the same.

⠀⠀⠀"Chastener?" Mr. Doyle asks, and Brietta nods, her lips still pursed. He looks up at her, and he tilts his head, his eyes scanning over her face, "Like Celeste Chastener?"

⠀⠀⠀Brietta tenses. How the hell does he know her mother's name?

⠀⠀⠀"Y-Yeah, she's my mom," Brietta's voice is barely above a whisper, but the man hears her. Mr. Doyle nods and hands the ID back to Brietta before turning to a file cabinet. Brietta blinks slowly as Mr. Doyle grabs a sheet from the cabinet. "Wait," Brietta speaks up, bringing herself back to reality while Mr. Doyle hands her the paper with a pen, "how did you know my mom?"

⠀⠀⠀"Well," Mr. Doyle starts, a small smile growing on his lips, "when I started working here, she started coming. She always came on Fridays like clockwork to visit—."

⠀⠀⠀"Peter Hale?" Brietta guesses, not knowing entirely how she came to that assumption, but Mr. Doyle nods.

⠀⠀⠀"Yes, Peter Hale," Mr. Doyle confirms, "Poor guy. Your mother was the only person to visit him until Derek Hale," With a thoughtful look, Mr. Doyle frowns, "Why did she stop visiting?"

⠀⠀⠀"She, uh..." Brietta swallows the lump in her throat, her voice hoarse, "She died six years ago."

⠀⠀⠀Brietta sees when the pity crosses over Mr. Doyle's face, and she cringes. She hates seeing people's reactions to her mother being dead.

⠀⠀⠀Clearing her throat, Brietta leans on the front desk to scribble her name onto the visitor log and doesn't look at Mr. Doyle as he hands her a tag with the words 'VISITOR' on it.

⠀⠀⠀She rounds the desk and heads over to Peter Hale's room down the hall. Even though it's futile, she knocks on the door anyway. After a second, she turns the knob and walks into his room, spotting him in the same chair that he was last time she had come with Derek and Scott.

⠀⠀⠀Peter's facing the windows, and Brietta walks into his eyeliner, grabbing the stool beside his bed on the way there. She props the stool in front of him and sits down, placing her hands on her lap.

⠀⠀⠀She looks him in the eyes, but, with the way his head is tilted, he looks at the wall behind her. Brietta decides that it might be better this way—she won't have to look at him when she tells him.

⠀⠀⠀"Uh," Brietta starts, patting her lap, "I read somewhere that some comatose patients can hear." Brietta pauses, and she winces when she realizes that Peter won't respond, so she continues, "I..." She stammers over her words before inhaling deeply, composing herself, "I don't think Derek's going to visit you for a while."

⠀⠀⠀Peter doesn't respond, looking as lethargic as ever, and Brietta frowns.

⠀⠀⠀Peter is all alone, and Brietta can't help but feel guilt over the fact that he's been dealt a bad hand.

⠀⠀⠀"I'll try to visit you," Brietta offers, giving him a small smile, "just so you know that you're not alone."

⠀⠀⠀A honk sounds outside, and Brietta sighs, knowing that it's Ellington signaling that the thirty minutes are running out.

⠀⠀⠀Brietta wipes her hands on her pants and stands up, "I have to go, but I'll come back soon."

⠀⠀⠀Just as Brietta walks past Peter, she swears she sees a flicker of movement in her peripheral vision. However, when she snaps her head toward Peter, he's in the same position he always is.

⠀⠀⠀Brietta eyes him for a second before walking away and leaving.

𝐀𝐔𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐑'𝐒 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄

This is unedited. I can't be bothered today, or this chapter wouldn't come out.

Also, I've scrapped writing Brietta's POV. I might make a book where you can get all of the trio's POV, we'll see.

▍PUBLISHED . . 12/01/23 — ♡︎ ୫
© POETICLULLS, 2023