Do You Fear Me?

“She’ll be fine…though she’ll be in pain, she’ll live. She’s lucky she had her jacket to try and stop the blood flow.” Deaton stood straight again and looked at her.

When Scott and Stiles had gotten to Allison and I, Stiles was quick to assume that I could help her and take away pain. Scott assured him that I’d never actually done it before.
Scott did it, though, took her pain from her. We quickly learned that her pain was crippling, even to a werewolf. Scott nearly collapsed.
We rushed her to Deaton, who for some reason was still at the vet’s office, and he’d put her out to stitch the wounds.

“But like, will it take longer to heal? Because-”
“No. It will heal with normal due time, Stiles. She’s not a wolf. The rank of the wolf doesn’t matter to humans. This cut was meant to be a threat, not to kill.”
“He wouldn’t have killed her unless I was there anyway.” I cut in.
“Why not?” Stiles looked up at me.
“It won’t kill her until it has me to watch. It told me.”
“It told you?”
“It-it gets into your head. Like you can hear it.”
“But I heard it too.” Allison said.
“Then it meant for you to.” Scott said.
“Or it was still in the woods.” Derek added.
“Derek has a point. But for now, she needs to go home, wake up, and rest.”
“Shouldn’t we take her to a hospital?”
“No. They’ll want to know what cut her and in her panic she’ll say a werewolf did it. It wouldn’t be safe.” Deaton replied. “She just needs to sleep it off, a few days.”
“More missed school?” I asked.
“No. She can’t miss anymore school. Dad is wondering as it is. She can’t miss more school.”
“Stiles, if you want her to heal properly, she’s going to have to.” Deaton replied.
“Is there a way to speed it up? Like some wolfy thing one of you can do?” Stiles asked, slamming his hands on the table.
“The only thing they can do is take her pain away.”
“And what if she goes to school and, and she feels the pain so Scott takes it away?”
“It could help.”
“So she’ll go to school.”
“You’re going to get her hurt, again, Stiles.” Allison said. “And maybe next time it won’t be a threat cut, it’ll be a death cut.” Stiles looked down at his sister.
“She has to go to school.”

The alpha had cut her from under her arm to the highest point on her hip. It cut deep, nearly an inch. The only way to pick her up without hurting her further was to lift her by her arms and legs. Even then, someone had to hold her body perfectly horizontal. Stiles was worried she was going to die, but with Scott taking her pain away, she assured him she wasn’t.
It’s terrifying.
The alpha had her in his hands. He could have killed her then and there. He could have taken her and then went looking for me. But he cut her and let her go.
Why?
That thought lingered in my head for the rest of the night, and the next day.

♒♋♊

Rosemary
It would scar.
It would leave behind a nasty scar that anyone who knew could identify me by.
Deaton, who was more than just a vet to Beacon Hills, had told me. He had also told me that if I was feeling pain, I needed to tell whatever wolf I was with so that I wouldn’t suffer.
This mark was going to leave me with excruciating pain.
The only problem is is that I only have two classes with wolves.
And the more and more shit that keeps happening to me is causing my trust in those wolves to decrease at a steady rate of ten percent a day.

“Ms. Stilinski, you might find it helpful to take your head from your desk in order to pay attention.”
“I’m sorry, Mrs. Carner, my side hurts.”
“I’m sure whatever pain you’re in will subside in due time. Pay attention.” I lifted my head and glanced up at the board.
There was a tap to my back and a note landed on my desk. I opened it.
Are you okay?
I looked behind me and Boyd was staring back. I shook my head. He nodded at me, then to the front.
“You may work with a partner on this assignment.” Boyd quickly got up and came to me, sitting in front of me.
“How bad is it?”
“To be honest, I want to scream.” My hands gripped the sides of my desk, but Boyd took a hand in his and the pain began to dull. His body stiffened and he froze for a moment before returning to normal.
Ever since meeting him, Boyd had been the one kid in my class that I was friends with. He was also the only wolf in this class. That I knew of.
“Say, Boyd, why don’t I work with Rosie today?” I glanced to the side and up.
Jackson Whittlemore smiled at me, but the smile was crooked.
“I think Rosie would rather work with friends.” Boyd said back, his voice tight and obviously knowing something I didn’t.
“I’m sure she’s got better friends in this class than you.”
“Jackson, are you doing your work?” He looked up, over at our teacher.
“I’m trying, Mrs. Carner.”
“Not very hard, sit.” He flashed me another smile.
“You’re a cute one, Rosie. Very cute.” Boyd began growling, but I grabbed his hand. Jackson smirked at Boyd before going back to his seat.
“Boyd, it’s fine.
“He’s trying-”
“I know what he’s trying to do. But it’s not gonna happen. I don’t know if you’ve heard, but I love Isaac.” Boyd looked at me shocked. “Yeah. So that will never happen.”

♒♋♊

I was sitting on the bench, watching the boys practice, but I was in pain. Major pain. I was biting my lip so hard it had started bleeding. Finstock didn’t seem to notice, but each wolf on the field did.
They were all watching me, even Stiles was. My heart was pounding, I’m sure they could all tell something was terribly wrong. And it wasn’t until Scott sat beside me, pulling his helmet off, that there was something really wrong.
“Do you know you’re bleeding?” I looked down at my side and, in fact, I was bleeding.
“N-no.” I gasped out. It was the first word I’d said all practice and it was almost a scream.
“Why didn’t you tell us, Rosie?” Scott took my hand, after taking off his glove and the pain began to subside.
“Because you’re practicing.”
“Well, I think Finstock will understand if you’re in pain that you need one of us to sit with you for a second.”
“Finstock isn’t really understanding.”
“Well, it’s a little obvious that you’re in pain.”
“Stilinski!” Stiles came trotting up to Coach and he began mumbling to Stiles.
“Yes, sir.” Stiles came over to me and Scott. “Come on, Rosie.”
“What?”
“I’m taking you to the hospital.”
“What about Deaton?” Scott whispered.
“I’m not taking her to the hospital.” Stiles whispered back. I slowly got up, fighting the pain.
“McCall… go with them.”
“Thanks, Coach.” Scott followed us to the locker room, holding my hand to relieve the pain.

♒♋♊

Isaac
“How was she during class?”
“In pain. I almost screamed.” Boyd mumbled through his mouth guard.
“Lahey, what’re you doing!?”
“Sorry, Coach.” I took off running.
A while after practice, I made my way to Rosie’s house. I knocked and stood back. When the door opened, I knew I was in trouble.
“Isaac Lahey.”
“Sheriff Stilinski…is-uh-?”
“Rosie is still grounded, Isaac.”
“I know, sir, but-”
“Go home, Isaac. Now.” He closed the door and I sighed.
“Mr. Stilinski, please, I just need to see her!”
“If you have anything to do with why my daughter has a large gash in her side, stay the hell away from her.”
“I can help her, Sheriff!” He threw the door open.
“You can help her by leaving her alone, Isaac. Now go home.” I stepped down, back from the step, to control my anger.
“Yes, sir.”
I stepped back again, as he closed the door, but tuned in to hear Rosie whimper and Stiles tell her it’ll be okay. I need to get up there.
I moved around to the back of the house and easily came to Rosie’s window. I ducked back when I saw her dad but listened closely.
“She needs to go to a hospital, Stiles.”
“Dad, she’ll-she’ll be fine…”
“Stiles. Take her to Melissa.”
“Can’t I just take her to Scott’s?”
“No. The hospital, Stiles.” It was quiet for a second before Sheriff spoke again. “And tell that boy to stay away from her.”
I waited another moment and then looked in the window.
Rosie looked sick. Very sick. No amount of wolf help could stop how sick she feels. I tapped the window, trying to get Stiles’s attention. And I kept tapping until he looked over at me.
He ran over and threw the window open.
“What the hell are you doing here?”
“She needs to go to a hospital. There’s no way we can help her now.”
“Are you all really that weak?”
“No,” I growled. “She’s sick. That cut is making her sick.”
“And what do I tell Scott’s mom? A bear attacked her?”
“I thought she knew.”
“Well, yeah, but she doesn’t know that Rosie knows…”
“Tell her then, I don’t care what you do, but get her to the damn hospital.” I growled at him.
“I am not your bitch.”
“Stiles, do it or I’ll leave a similar mark on you.” I grabbed him and nearly pulled him out of the window.
“Okay, let go of me. I’ll take her to the hospital.” I let him go and slipped down, back into the woods.

♒♋♊

Rosemary
“You’ll be fine, Rosie. Just a little infection with the gash. How long were you in the woods with this?” Ms. McCall was kind. A lot kinder than most people that I’d met was. She smiled as she stitched the wounds again.
“I-uh-I don’t know. It was a while, though. And all I had was my sweatshirt.”
“I think the sweatshirt filaments and natural bacteria of the woods got in it and no one cleaned it correctly.”
“Yeah-sorry.” Stiles stood in the corner with Scott. Both were watching Ms. McCall as she took care of me.
“The doctor will probably give you some antibiotics and instructions on how to take care of it. He’ll be in soon.” I nodded at her, sitting up finally. “Take care of yourself, Rosie. I’ll see you later.” I nodded again and she left.
“I’m sorry, Rosie, I didn’t know it was that bad.” Stiles rushed out, also rushing to my side.
“I’m fine…kind of.” There was a dull ache in my side and I could almost feel where each of the stitches was embedded in my skin.
“How do you really feel?” Scott asked.
“Like shit. I feel sick and my side hurts and my heart hurts-”
“What?”
“I haven’t seen Isaac all day, Stiles.”
“So Isaac makes everything better?” He asked, stepping back.
“Stiles, how many times am I going to tell you I’m sorry? Over him?”
“Probably a thousand more times.”
“Wow-I…you know I’m done saying sorry to you. Jesus Christ, ever since I met you, any of you, my life went from bad to worse. My family was killed, I got cut by some psychopathic werewolf, the kid I love is a werewolf, my brother runs with werewolves, and there’s some lizard thing running around Beacon Hills probably killing people.”
“It has killed people.”
“Perfect. It’s perfect.”
“You really think that about us?”
“Not about you, Stiles, about this. About coming to live with you and your dad. I could have been better off in a foster home.”
“You could be dead in a foster home.” Stiles deadpanned.
“I could have been dead in the woods just a day ago.” Both their eyes fell, along with their heads.
“I’ve never felt myself in so much danger before. Ever.”
“Ms. Tulin?” I looked up at the doctor.