Season of the Witch

The cremation was short. October had stayed outside when they burned the bodies. James was in the front office of the mortuary. He was perfectly fine with the idea of being in a building that held dead bodies. October couldn't stand it. It was cold and it all felt dark. It wasn't like she was able to see or talk to the dead. She just didn't like being around dead bodies.

"Earth to Toby," James waved an urn in front of her face. "Let's go to the old house."

October stared at the urns, dread filling her stomach. Everything was beginning to feel real. She knew that her uncle and cousin were dead, but seeing their ashes in an urn made things too real. On the ride to the house, October had to hold the urns. It was disgusting to say the least. Some people would disagree, but all October could think about was the fact that it was filled with dead people.

It was easy to tell the difference of which urn was who's. The smallest was Rosemary's. Her urn was bronze and the bottom half had a floral design. Her uncle's urn was bigger and it was a plain gold. October tried her best to keep her gaze off the things in her hands, but every time they stopped at a light, she felt the need to look at them. The ride to their old home took way too long and October nearly pulled her hair out at how many red lights they had to stop at.

"Finally," October groaned as she got out of the car. "Let's get this shit over with, please."

James snorted, shaking his head. The siblings looked at the burned down house. The Hale home had no competition. The Hallowell house literally burned to the ground. Nothing stood anymore. The fire even burned down to the basement - the stairs weren't usable, the wood was ruined. October sighed and turned away. She began walking down the path to the willow tree that stood behind their old house. James soon followed after her.

The leaves of the willow tree hung low, some were able to brush against October's head. James had to duck every now and again unless he wanted to be a face full of leaves. October handed her brother an urn before placing a hand on the rough bark. The tree was as cold as the urn she held. It wasn't a pleasant feeling. This place used to bring her such joy. Now, it was just a pain to be at.

James sighed heavily. "Well, I guess this is it, Toby."

"Yeah," October nodded. "This is it… It's all over after this. Isn't it?"

"What do you mean?"

October shrugged. "We have no reason to come back to this place anymore. Our life here is over. It's been over since we moved to Beacon Hills. There's absolutely nothing for us here."

"Huh. I guess you're right. Our last visit to Walnut Creek."

October looked at her surroundings. It was a bright day, surprisingly. The last time they spread ashes, it began to rain. Overhead, in the distance, thunder rolled. October rolled her eyes. Of course after she thought about it, it would start to rain. Idiot, she thought. She took a few paces back from the tree and looked up to her brother, waiting for him to start.



At first the rain was a slight drizzle, but as the siblings stood in the open for a while longer in silence, the rain got heavier. They quickly said their goodbyes and spread the ashes around the base of the tree. Uncle Darren and Rosemary were with family now. October and James raced back the car, nearly slipping on mud multiple times. The car wasn't any warmer than it was outside. She pushed her hair back and shivered in her seat.

"Damn," James turned the car on and looked out the windshield. "I haven't seen it rain this hard in a long time."

October turned on the heater, blowing into her hands. "It looks like it's going to be a big storm. We should hurry and grab our things."

James didn't say anything as he drove away from the house. October's phone vibrated in her back pocket. She quickly pulled the phone out and looked at the screen. Stiles' photo popped up - it was of him stuffing his face with food. She slid the answer feature and brought the phone to her ear.

"Good timing," October said. "We just got finished - "

"Dennis is dead," Stiles didn't wait for her to complete what she was saying. "Dad was called in about a possible homicide. His parents found him. I'm gonna take a peek at the report. Get back soon."

The phone call ended. October stared at her blank screen, mouth agape. James looked over, brows raised. He didn't say anything, though, allowing October to think things through. Dennis was dead. Was it Isaac? October ruled that out. It couldn't have been him. Isaac didn't have the heart to do that. It must have been another psycho with an agenda.

"James," October put her phone away. "I don't think we can do lunch."

"What happened?" He asked.

October pulled at her bottom lip before answering. "Someone died."

James nodded. "Okay. We can just grab something at the gas station."

She was glad he didn't ask her questions about it. She didn't know what she would have said if he had. October ran a hand through her wet hair. What was so important about Dennis' death? Murders happen all the time. Okay so, not so much in Beacon Hills. But, lately that has been the case. Did the pack think October did it because of what happened? If that was what they thought, then she didn’t know who to trust anymore.



"Does your dad know about this?" October asked when Stiles passed her a folder.

Stiles rolled his eyes. "What he doesn't know won't hurt him."

The teenage witch dead panned. This was totally illegal. Stiles had photocopied the report and is not making October look through the files. The fact that this was all okay in his mind worried her. But, she was curious as to why this murder was so important. The first page showed personal information. Nothing really caught her eye until she saw that he was originally from Walnut Creek. October eyed Stiles who had a goofy smile plastered on his face.

October continued looking through. She turned the page and looked at the medical report. Apparently, whoever killed him clawed his eyes out, leaving two hollow bloody holes. His fingers weren't bloody either. It was strange. The medics said it was a clean kill - the murderer used their own hands, but the medics weren't able to find any DNA or where the eyes went. Another thing that made no sense was that Dennis' ears and nose were bleeding. There was no cause behind it. October was about to turn the page when Stiles' hand shot out his hand.

"Uh, the pictures are next," He said slowly. "I don’t know if you want to look at them."

Sure, it sounded gruesome, but October wanted to know how severe the whole thing was. The first picture was a big pool of blood. Who knew that eye sockets could let out that much? Then, again, his ears and nose were bleeding as well. The next was of Dennis on the ground, in the blood. His mouth was wide open, like he was trying to let out a scream. His eyelids were droopy, the cause of not having eyeballs in them. October made a disgusted sound when the next picture was a close up of his face. They were definitely clawed out. And, it didn't seem to spell out supernatural.

"His parents were home when that happened," Stiles added. "They didn't hear or see anyone come in and go. There house has security cameras - "

"Is there any way we can see the footage?" October asked as she shut the folder. "Maybe we'll find something the cops missed."

Stiles' face broke out into a huge smile. "Oh, my god. You are perfect. I kind of… borrowed the tape and made a copy."

"Of course you did. All in a few hours?" October shook her head. "Well, batman, let's see it."

"See what?" Sheriff Stilinski walked into the room, arms crossed.

"Uh," Stiles stuttered. "Well, uh, you see Dad, we were… gonna do it. Yeah. We were gonna have sex."

He rose a brow. "Really? October?"

October felt heat rise in her cheeks. Couldn't Stiles have thought of a better idea? Looking at him, she nearly rolled her eyes. Of course he couldn’t.

She cleared her throat. "Yeah. I mean, we didn't know you were coming home so early. And, role play, you know… Get's kind of crazy."

"Batman? And, what, you'd be Wonder Woman? You know what, don't answer that. Next time, close the damn door," The sheriff left the room, shaking his head.

When he was out the door, October swatted the back of Stiles' head. He glared at her with his nostrils flared. October sighed and went to take a seat on the bed. Stiles quickly shut the door and turned to her.

"Really, Stiles? October looked at him incredulously. "Your dad is going to think we're fucking!"

"Shush," Stiles pointed a finger at her. "And, is it really that bad?"

October didn't say anything. She looked out of his window from her seat on the bed. It was dark out. Nearly eleven at night. Stiles sat on his desk chair and turned him computer on. He moved around on the seat and looked at her.

"You made the seat warm."

October scoffed and got off the bed. "Well, I'm so sorry, Stiles."

He shrugged and patted the other chair. October sat and laid her head on his shoulder. She was certain they weren't going to find anything. Stiles played the video to about a few hours before they found the body. October scooted closer to the screen, trying to find something out of the ordinary. If she blinked, she would have missed it.

"There," She pointed to the corner of the screen. "You see that? Something is walking there."

"I don't see it," Stiles moved his face closer.

October pointed again. "It's like this person is invisible, but not really. Look again. It's shimmering. Something like a glamour to keep away unwanted eyes."

"So, a witch?"

"I don't think so," October said honestly. "Faery, maybe?"

"Faery?" Stiles looked unsure. "Do they really exist?"

October rolled her eyes, fighting the urge to swat him again. "You're sitting next to a witch, Stiles. Your best friend is a werewolf. And, you don't think Faeries could be real? It probably isn't even a Faery. It might be a glitch on the camera."

They continued watching the video. Nothing seemed out of place until another ten minutes past and the shimmering came back on the screen. Stiles looked at October, who looked at him in turn. They had a new problem on their hands.

"Maybe it won't happen again," October suggested. "Just a onetime murder."

"Maybe," Stiles bit the side of his cheek. "We'll just have to look out for this again."

She nodded and pursed her lips. "I should probably go home now."

Stiles' eyes went wide. "What? No! I mean, it’s dark and it isn't safe outside. Not anymore. Stay the night. I'll take the floor.

"I can't do that to you."

"The floor isn't even that bad, Toby. It's fine. You can leave in the morning. I think I have some clothes that'll fit you."

October opened her mouth to say something, but shut it. He was already digging through his clothes. There was no stopping him now. She smiled when he threw her old gym shorts and plain black shirt.

"Shower is right down the hall," He said before going back to his computer.

She nodded and left the room. It was weird walking through the Stilinski halls without Stiles with her. October found the bathroom without any trouble. She looked at herself in the mirror. Her eyes had dark circles underneath them from not enough sleep and added stress. She was hoping that she'll be able to sleep better within the next few days. Things were better now. There weren't any problems she had to deal with. She still had to talk to Isaac about the kiss, though.

October rolled her eyes at herself. She sounded like a lovesick teenager. It was stupid to think about that of all times. So, she undressed and stepped into the shower. When she finished her shoulder, October quickly dressed. She was worried Stiles was going to overhear something from his dad's walkie talkie and leave her without an explanation. But, when she reached his bedroom, she heard the sheriff talking to his son.

"So, you and Toby?" Sheriff Stilinski asked.

Stiles groaned. "Dad, there's nothing between us, I swear. She's a great friend."

"Yeah, I bet she is a great friend."

"Oh, god, Dad! She - oh my god. She's spending the night and I don't want to think about that right now."

The sheriff chuckled. "Sure, sure. And, keep it down in here if you two, you know…"

October snorted and walked into the room. Both males looked like a deer caught in headlights. She tried not to laugh as she placed her clothes in a neat pile near her purse. October turned around just in time to see the sheriff give Stiles a thumbs up and walk out the door. Stiles' head dropped to his hands. He shook his head before looking at October, cheeks red from embarrassment.

"I'm an idiot," He said, leaning back on his chair. "Now, he's going to think that we're together. Why did I say that?"

"Is it really that bad?" She teased, using his exact words from earlier. "Anyway, your bed looks big enough for the both of us. You don't have to sleep on the floor. Just keep your hands off me and we're good."

Stiles' cheeks went a shade darker. "Uh, I, hm, nah. I th-think I'm good with the, uh, floor situation."

"Don't be an idiot," She said as she climbed under the covers. "I'm not going to steal your bed for the night when there's enough room for us both. I won't try any funny business."

Stiles chuckled at that. He ran a hand through his hair, which he was letting grow out. October liked it a lot better than his buzz cut. Stiles excused himself, saying he had to take a shower. She shrugged and snuggled into the pillows. She was half asleep when she heard Stiles come back into the room. He was shuffling around, muttering under his breath. He sighed deeply before climbing into bed, as far as he could get from October.



October awoke to Stiles thrashing in bed. She sat up quickly. Stiles whimpered and curled into a ball. October ran a hand through her hair, looking at the time. It was only five in the morning. She placed her hand on the small of his back before rubbing giant circles, trying to calm him down. It didn't work. Stiles cowered away and clutched the pillow tighter against his chest.

"Stiles," October whispered, moving closer to his shivering body. "Hey, shh. Stiles, it's just a dream. Wake up."

She pressed down on his shoulder, gently shaking him awake. Nothing seemed to be working. Just when she was about to give up, Stiles gasped for air. He quickly sat up, bumping heads with October. The teens clutched their heads in pain. When the pain receded , Stiles attacked October with a huge hug - his face against her chest. October rose a brow. She held him as he shook, sweat covered his whole body. October ran her fingers through his hair as she whispered that it was all going to be okay.

"No, no," Stiles shook his head when he pulled away. "I'm sorry. I should have known this was going to happen."

"You couldn’t have known, Stiles." October said.

He looked at her, pain evident in his eyes. "I know. I had a bad dream, Toby. It was a horrible dream."

"I bet," She looked at him sadly. "What happened?"

"You died. You died in my arms, Toby. I don’t know why I dreamt that. It hasn't happened in a long time. It's normally just my mom that I dream about dying. And, after you died, you came back and told me that it was my fault. There was so much blood. For a minute, I would think it was my fault."

October licked at her dry lips. "It's okay, Stiles. I'm still alive. I'm not going to die any time soon."

"I wish that were true," He stared her straight in the eye. "But, since Scott became a werewolf, it's all that's been happening lately. Everyone is dying."

"I won't be next. I promise."