Poison and Wine

By Monday morning, Jackson and Lydia were both officially registered as missing people by Lydia’s parents. Stiles and Derek showed up at Hailey’s house at 7:30 sharp to take her and Aaron to school. Both Alyssa and Jason were apprehensive of any of them leaving, themselves included, but they had to go about their every day lives.

“Okay so after school Allison is going to bring me over to your school so I can sit with you during practice then she and her Dad are going to make some more bullets,” Hailey said, putting her hands on Aaron’s shoulders outside of Derek’s car and he nodded his head.

“And then the three of us are going to the animal hospital to talk to Deaton,” Derek said.

“Why me?” Aaron asked.

“Because Mom and Dad won’t be home yet,” Hailey said and he groaned. “No complaining. You should go or you’ll be late.”

“See you later,” he said, opening the passenger’s door of the Camaro and tossing his backpack in.

“Watch him like a hawk,” Hailey said, grabbing onto Derek’s coat.

“I will,” he said, placing his hands on her waist and nodding his head.

“These next few weeks are going to be hell, aren’t they?” she asked and Derek hesitated.

“Probably,” he said, shrugging his shoulders.

“Derek, come on! We’ve gotta go! My friends are going to be so jealous when they see you’re bringing me to school,” Aaron said excitedly, sticking his head out the passenger side window. Derek, Hailey, and Stiles laughed.

“I guess I should go,” Derek said, letting go of Hailey. “Be careful. You too, Stiles.”

“Will do,” Stiles said, giving a wave as he picked up his and Hailey’s backpacks. Hailey waited until Derek and Aaron drove off before climbing into the Jeep with Stiles.

As they drove through town they saw posters plastered everywhere with Jackson and Lydia’s pictures and identifying information on them. Hailey rolled her eyes and slouched in her seat. When they got to school, girls were in groups crying over the posters while the guys just hung around solemnly. There weren’t any of the usual shouts and no laughter as Hailey climbed out of the car and she sighed.

“What’s up?” Stiles asked.

“This is pathetic,” she spat, looking around at all of their peers. “If only they knew what was really going on, there’s no way they’d be acting like this.”

“Tell me about it,” Stiles said, shaking his head.

“Look,” Hailey said, nodding down the hallway as they walked to their lockers. “Danny.”

“Do you think he knows where they are?” Stiles asked.

“He doesn’t,” Scott said with a sigh as he and Allison walked up to them. “His heart would be racing if he knew and he’s actually pretty calm.”

“Does anyone else find that weird after what happened Friday night or is that just me?” Allison asked and the others nodded their heads.

“Should we talk to him?” Hailey asked.

“And say what? Sorry your best friend threatened to kill you if you didn’t kill us, want to be friends?” Stiles asked with a scoff.

“Who knows,” Hailey said, shrugging her shoulders. “Maybe he’ll want to help. Besides… he might need protection now, too.”

“It’s worth a shot,” Scott said.

****

They decided to wait until lunch where they could easily corner Danny. They spotted him sitting at the table he used to sit at with Lydia and Jackson and quickly made their way over, Stiles hip checking Greenberg out of the way as he set his tray down. Danny looked up and instantly his eyes widened and he went to shove away from the table.

“It’s alright Danny, we just want to talk,” Scott said calmly. Danny looked between them and Hailey gave him an encouraging smile, trying to show she wasn’t mad at him.

“Okay,” he said slowly, pulling his chair back in.

“So,” Stiles said and Danny turned his attention to him. “Sorry your best friend,”

“Stiles!” Hailey hissed, whacking his arm with her cast.

“Ow!” he shouted and she glared at him.

“Danny,” Hailey said with a sigh, turning to him. He avoided her gaze and was intent on pushing his food around on his plate. “I’m not mad at you, you know.”

“You’re not?” he asked, his eyebrows furrowing together.

“No,” she said, shaking her head. “I was at first but it was the heat of the moment. You were just doing what you had to in order to protect yourself and I get that.”

“Danny, you know Lydia and Jackson aren’t really missing, right?” Allison asked and he nodded.

“Yeah but I have no idea where they are, honestly.”

“We know,” Scott said.

“The past few nights have been hell for me,” he said, shaking his head and shoving his tray away. "I’ve barely been eating. I haven’t been able to sleep at all. My parents have been asking questions. I just… I’m scared.”

“Do you think Jackson would try to come after you after what happened?” Hailey asked sympathetically.

“Maybe, I don’t know,” he said, shrugging his shoulders.

“If it came down to it… and you had the chance… would you kill him?” Stiles asked and Hailey turned to him ready to whack him again.

“Yes,” Danny said, catching Hailey off guard. She slowly turned to him and softened her facial features.

“You would?” she asked quietly and he nodded, running a hand over his face.

“I really thought he was my best friend,” he said, strain in his voice. “But then Friday before the dance he came to my house and said if I didn’t do what he asked he’d kill me and my family and then he… changed. I didn’t know what else to do.”

“You did the right thing,” Scott said but Danny shook his head.

“I should have tried shooting him instead. I was too much of a coward.”

“It wouldn’t have done much anyway,” Allison said.

“Why not?” he asked, cocking his head to the side.

“He would have just healed,” Scott said and Danny’s eyes widened. “So how are we supposed to kill him?”

“So you’ll help us?” Stiles asked and Danny nodded his head.

“Yes. Absolutely.”

“Well uh my Dad and I are actually hunters of… guys like Jackson and Scott,” Allison said and Danny nodded in understanding. “And we have special bullets that will be able to kill him. We’re working on making three times as many as we normally have so we’ll get you some.”

“Do you guys have any sort of plan?”

“Basically right now it’s just get prepared and we’re betting on something going down on the next full moon in a few weeks,” Scott said.

“And my Dad and the rest of the department are all involved. Like, really involved.”

“Wow,” Danny said, letting out a low whistle.

“We have a way to keep you safe while you’re at home, too,” Hailey said and Danny raised an eyebrow.

“How?”

“There’s this stuff called mountain ash. If we circle around your house with it then Jackson won’t be able to cross it to get to you. You’ll be able to sleep again,” Stiles said. “I’ll get some after practice and bring it over for you.”

“Thanks man,” Danny said, nodding his head. The bell rang signaling the end of lunch and they all stood up to leave.

“Danny,” Hailey said, nodding to the others to go ahead so she could talk to him. “I know we’re nowhere near in the same situation but we are both new to this whole…. lifestyle. So if you ever need to talk, you can always talk to me.”

“Thanks Hailey,” he said with a smile. They left the cafeteria to catch up with the others and Danny kept glancing at her cast. “So, your arm… did Jackson do that?”

“Yeah,” she said, nodding her head. “However he would have done much worse if Scott and Stiles hadn’t showed up.”

“How is it that you can date Derek then… if you know what he’s capable of?” he asked and Hailey bit her lip. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have asked."

“No it’s okay,” she said, putting her hand on his arm. “I was just trying to figure out how to answer. I guess the only way to really explain it is that I’m his mate… in every sense of the word.”

“Like soul mate?” he asked.

“Well yes and no. Just more of in an… animalistic sensei guess,” she said, shrugging her shoulders. “Even though that sounds really weird. We’ve only been dating a few weeks but we’re not some teenage love story. This is real and he’d rather die than harm me.”

“That’s… intense.”

“Yeah just a little bit,” she said with a laugh as they entered their next classroom.

“Well thanks Hailey,” he said, heading towards his regular seat.

“Sit with us,” she said and he stopped to turn around. She was standing with a smile on her face and gesturing over to where Scott, Stiles, and Allison sat talking. Danny nodded his head and followed her over, taking the seat behind Scott.

****

After school, Allison dropped Hailey off at the elementary school for Aaron’s soccer practice. Hailey was attempting to drag her backpack over to the bleachers when out of nowhere Derek appeared by her side and picked it up. He gave her a reassuring nod and led her over to the bleachers. She sat with her back resting against his knees and looked for Aaron on the field.

“So your day was alright?” Derek asked, leaning forward and draping his arms over her shoulders.

“We talked to Danny,” she said and he shifted slightly. “He’s alright, don’t worry.”

“What did you talk about?”

“Well Scott figured he doesn’t know where Jackson and Lydia are just by sensing it and he really seemed like he didn’t. And the poor guy’s a wreck,” she said, shaking her head.

“His best friend did threaten to tear him apart,” Derek said, shrugging his shoulders.

“Yeah and he said he hasn’t been able to eat or sleep and his parents have been worried. So we kind of… drafted him.”

“What?” Derek asked and Hailey turned to look up at him.

“He wants to help Derek. And we should take all the help we can get,” she said and he closed his eyes and sighed.

“I know. He knows what the plan is right?” he asked and Hailey nodded.

“Stiles asked if it came down to it if he’d be okay with killing Jackson and he said yes without even hesitating. And Stiles is going to lay an ash line down around his house when they’re done with lacrosse practice. He's all in,” she said and Derek nodded.

“Speaking about the ash line, I was thinking about something today,” he said and Hailey raised an eyebrow. “I think maybe Aaron should learn how to lay it too.”

“Why?” Hailey asked.

“In the off chance that he and your parents are home and you aren’t and they need one of us there.”

“That’s actually a good idea. What made you think of that?” she asked.

“I was thinking about what he said last night, about how he wanted to help too. I figured this would be the best way,” he said, shrugging his shoulders.

“I agree,” she said with a smile. “Did you tell him about it?”

“I wanted to run it by you first,” he said and Hailey nodded.

“Thank you,” she said, turning back around and resting her head against his chest as he held her a little tighter against his legs.

****

“Hi Hailey, Derek,” Dr. Deaton said as they walked into the animal clinic having explained everything to Aaron in the car. “And you must be Aaron.”

“Yes sir,” Aaron said, shaking Deaton’s hand.

“Come on in back,” he said, walking over to the front door and locking it, flipping the sign over to say closed.

Hailey and the others walked into the examination room and there was a large jar sitting on the metal table. The lid was off revealing the black powder inside. They stood off to the side as Deaton came on and placed his hands on the table.

“Okay, in order to lay a line down you need to really concentrate. You have to believe you can do it. Everything else needs to be blocked out,” Deaton said. “It’s not so simple as just pouring it on the ground and hoping it will work. So… Hailey do you want to try?”

“I guess so,” she said, shrugging her shoulders. “What should I do?”

“Make a circle around Derek,” he said, nodding towards Derek and placing the jar in Hailey’s hands.

Aaron stepped away and stood next to Deaton as Hailey stepped forward, supporting the jar between her cast and her chest. She picked up a handful of the ash and took a deep breath, closing her eyes before drawing a circle around Derek.

“Take your time,” Deaton said. Hailey made no movement as she continued to concentrate. Finally she got to the start of the circle and spread the last bit in her hand down making sure it was all connected.

“Now what?” she asked, standing up straight.

“Try to cross it Derek,” Deaton said. Hailey stepped back and Derek waited a moment before stepping forward, his toes stopping up against the line. He tried to step over but couldn’t.

“You did it,” Derek said, pride evident in his voice as he looked up at Hailey, a smile on his face.

“Very good. Now, try to part it,” Deaton said. Hailey walked over to the table and set the jar down. She walked over to the circle and crouched down, just how Stiles did at her house.

She took a deep breath again and held her hands over the line. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on parting the line. One last deep breath and she opened her eyes to see a clean part in the line. She stood up and stepped back to see if Derek could step out of the circle now. He lifted his foot and stepped over the line and went over to stand next to Aaron.

“Nice job Hails,” Aaron said excitedly. “Can I try now?”

“Of course just try to re-connect the line that Hailey already put down,” Deaton said. Derek stepped forward and put his hand on Aaron’s back, leading him over to the circle. Derek stepped inside and Aaron crouched down.

“Really concentrate, Aaron,” Derek said and Aaron nodded his head. Hailey watched as closed his eyes, holding his hands over the line. His tongue was sticking out of his mouth in concentration. Hailey let out a slight laugh and covered her mouth.

“Shhhh,” Aaron said and Derek looked up at Hailey, pressing his lips together. She held a finger to her lips and he nodded his head.

“Just ignore them Aaron, I know you can do it,” Deaton said softly and Hailey saw Aaron squeeze his eyes shut tighter. Hailey’s eyes widened when she saw the ash come together. Aaron’s hands relaxed and he stood up.

“Did it work?” he asked.

“Only one way to find out,” Derek said. Aaron backed up and Hailey wrapped her arms around his shoulders pulling him into her. Aaron’s eyes were wide as he watched Derek step forward and attempt to cross the line. He threw his fist up in the air when Derek couldn’t cross the line.

“Okay just try to part it now and I think we’re all set here,” Deaton said, an accomplished smile on his face.

“Parting it’s a little harder,” Hailey said, patting Aaron’s shoulders as he stepped forward, squaring his jaw.

Derek stepped back from the line as Aaron crouched down again. It took him longer to attempt to part the line than it did to re-connect it. Finally he stood up and there was a part in the line. He stepped back again and Derek stepped forward before lifting his foot and crossing the line.

“Yes!” Aaron shouted as Hailey hugged him.

“I know it’s exciting but it’s important that you only do this when absolutely necessary. You must make sure that the line is fully connected when one of the guys enters or leaves,” Deaton said, making eye contact with Hailey and Aaron. Both nodded their heads in understanding.

“Don’t worry,” Hailey said and he put a hand on each of their shoulders.

“Be safe out there,” he said as they all walked to the front door.

“You too,” Hailey said, smiling at him as they left.

“That was so cool!” Aaron exclaimed as they climbed into the car.

“I can’t believe we both got it on the first try,” Hailey said, buckling her seatbelt.

“I can,” Derek said as he started the car.

“I can’t wait to show Mom and Dad,” Aaron said excitedly and Hailey laughed.

“That reminds me,” she said causing Derek to glance at her as he drove. “Is Deaton going to be able to liquefy the wolfsbane into a serum for Mom and Mrs. McCall to carry around?”

“Yeah he is. I called him earlier today. He just has to figure out which one will keep it’s potency once liquefied,” he said and Hailey furrowed her eyebrows.

“And how’s he supposed to figure that out?” she asked.

“Well,” Derek said slowly and her eyes widened.

“No. Absolutely not!” she exclaimed and he sighed.

“What?” Aaron asked.

“Derek’s voluntarily going to let Deaton inject him with poison,” Hailey said through her teeth and Derek shook his head.

“He has a way to reverse it,” Derek said.

“Can’t he just use that Indian Aconite? I feel if that’s the most potent form of it, it should hold it when liquefied,” she said and Derek nodded his head.

“He just wants to be sure, Hailey,” he said and she shook her head.

“I don’t care. I’m not letting you risk your life over something so stupid,” she said, crossing her arms. Derek looked over at her and she kept her face steady, eyes narrowed, lips pursed and Derek groaned and threw his head back.

“Fine,” he said and Hailey couldn’t help but grin. “I’ll tell him to use the Indian Aconite since nothing else will satisfy you.”

“Thank you,” she said, relaxing her arms and settling in her seat. Derek grunted and shook his head.

****

When they arrived home, Aaron excitedly ran to the sidewalk and immediately parted the line so Derek could come into the house then bent down to re-connect it. Hailey set aside her homework in order to help Aaron with his while she also cooked dinner to surprise her parents. Derek stood leaning up against the kitchen counter, arms and ankles crossed. Aaron sat on one of the stools, his books in front of him as Hailey pre-heated the oven. Derek was in the middle of helping Aaron with a question and Hailey was putting vegetables on the stove when Alyssa got home.

“Derek, how’d you get in here?” she asked, surprised to see him. “I didn’t see Stiles’ Jeep outside.”

“I let him in Mom,” Aaron said proudly and Alyssa raised an eyebrow.

“Derek figured that’s how Aaron could help out,” Hailey said and Alyssa smiled.

“We went over to see Deaton and he helped Hailey and Aaron both figure out how to concentrate enough to do it,” Derek said. She mouthed a thank you to him and he nodded his head.

“And what are you doing missy?” she asked, walking over to Hailey and wrapping an arm around her waist.

“I don’t have much homework tonight so I thought I’d cook dinner,” Hailey said, shrugging her shoulders.

“Well it smells amazing,” Alyssa said, opening the cabinet to grab a wine glass.

“Thanks,” Hailey said with a smile. “So Derek talked to Deaton about turning the wolfbane into a serum for you and Mrs. McCall.”

“And?” she asked, reaching into the fridge for a bottle of wine.

“He can do it,” Hailey said and Alyssa let out a sigh of relief.

“I think once I have it on me and know I have a definite way of being safe I’ll breathe a lot easier,” Alyssa said, grabbing a beer from the fridge and bringing it over to Derek.

“Oh, thank you,” he said, taking it from her and look at Hailey who shrugged her shoulders.

“We really should be the ones saying that to you,” Alyssa said, leaning up against the counter facing Derek and Aaron. “It means a lot to me. Jason too.”

“I’d do anything to make sure you all stay safe,” he said and Alyssa nodded reaching out to put her hand on top of his.

“I know,” she said softly and Hailey noticed as Derek refrained from flinching away at the contact again and she smiled.

“It smells amazing in here!” Jason exclaimed as he opened the door.

He made his way into the kitchen and didn’t even flinch at the fact that Derek was in there. To Hailey’s surprise he walked over and put one hand on Aaron’s shoulder, the other on Derek’s. Derek looked at her over the lip of his beer bottle as he took a sip and in that moment she felt content. This is how she hoped every day could be once this hell with Jackson and Lydia was over. Only time would tell.