Season of the Witch

It had only been three weeks since the attack. October's body never healed right. Her left side had a long jagged scar. It was so deep. Luckily, though, the inside healed correctly - no need to physical therapy. On her face, starting from her right temple and ending just under her right cheek bone was yet another scar. Stitches lined her face - scratches covered her whole body. There was no use in trying to forget. Her body just showed her how much mental damage that night will always give her.

"You could look the least bit excited," James sighed, covering her hand with his warm one.

Her dull green eyes looked him in the eyes. "Why should I be excited for school? I don't know anyone, James."

"Just smile a bit."

"When I smile, my stitches tighten against my face," She looked away. "It hurts."

James huffed. "Try to have a good time. You might meet some new friends. Now get out, I have to get to work. Don't want to be late on my first day."

October reluctantly stepped out of the truck. She didn't want to be here. She wanted to take online classes and be as far away from as many people as she possibly could. But James wanted to give her a normal life. What kind of teenage witch had a normal life? The damn hunters took that all away from her. She wasn’t even supposed to be out of bed. Sure her body healed by how much it possibly could without draining too much energy, but if anything happened…

A honk from a crap Jeep took her from out of her thoughts. She looked at the driver, taking immediate distaste to him. October began walking to the school building, dread filling her stomach. She felt eyes on her as she made her way to the front office. All she wanted to do was go home - no, not the home that James bought in the forest of Beacon Hills. She wanted to go back to the home that was burned to the ground. She wanted to find those damn hunters and kill them.

But, she knew she couldn't. She didn't have the will to do so. No matter how many times those people hurt her, she would never be able to stoop so low as to kill someone. Not even through the worst of situations. October wouldn't be able to live with herself. She couldn't even live with herself now.

"Uh, can I help you, ma'am?"

October shook her head and sighed. "Yeah. I'm the new student, October Hallowell."

The older woman smiled brightly, causing October to give her a painful smile. The woman began talking to her about nothing of importance. She nodded when she felt the need to and even let out a laugh. She really couldn't care about how sick her dog was or how much she missed her son that went to college. She just wanted the map and the damn schedule.

"So," The woman gave another cheery smile. "Have a great day, Miss Hallowell. I hope all goes well."

October nodded stiffly before turning on her heels. She didn't even care about looking for her locker yet. Hitching her backpack higher on her shoulder, she ignored all the looks she was given while walking to her first class. She couldn't blame them, though. Not with the black skinny jeans, leather jacket, and scars. If she saw someone dressed in her garb, she'd stare as well. And that was exactly what she was doing. When she walked into the Algebra 2 class, she noticed a boy with dirty blond curls wearing a leather jacket. She felt her eyes narrow at him. There was something about him she didn't like. October nearly jumped out of her skin when the bell rang.

Taking a deep breath in, she made her way to the teacher. She felt eyes on her back before turning to face the class.

"Everyone," Mr. Acker started. "This is October Hallowell. Treat her with kindness. Mr. Lahey, raise your hand and October, sit behind him."

"Toby," She looked at him. "The name's Toby."

The dark-haired girl heard snickers, but paid them no mind as she walked to her seat. She placed her backpack on her desk loudly and rose her brow, asking for anyone to say something. No one did. No one ever did. October took out a blank notebook and tried not to sigh deeply. Her cheek was stinging. The fact that it wasn't healing the way it should have by now was bothering her badly. The poison that the hunters used still surrounded the open wounds causing them to heal as slow as possible - even with her enchanted ring. She gave it another two weeks before they closed.

October found herself quickly writing notes, not really paying attention to what was happening around her. She wanted to pass the rest of the semester without a hitch. She couldn't afford leaving yet another place because she was being careless. At the thought of that, she felt her pulse rise and her hands began to get clammy. Trying to lower her heart rate, she realized that she couldn't. Of course she'd end up having a panic attack.

While Mr. Acker droned on and on about math, the pencil in October's hand snapped in half and the light above her shattered. Everyone but her let out a surprised shriek. October stopped moving, her entire body was tense when the whole class turned to look at her. She blinked a few times before dropping her broken pencil. Slowly, her heartbeat returned to normal.

"Uh," The Lahey kid had his brows up. "Let me get those."

He began to pick away the pieces of glass that landed in her hair. And he was quick about it, too. October's eyes stuck to her desk. She was thankful that he had decided to help her, but she was upset that she let herself freak out as much as she did. She had to be careful. When he finished, he gave her an awkward smile.

"Thanks," She muttered, hoping he wouldn't hear her.

But, of course, he had. "No problem. The name's Isaac."

She looked up - guarded green eyes meeting cool blue eyes. The boy was literally all cheekbones. You could cut a diamond with those things. He offered a warm smile, but it didn't reach his eyes. She looked him straight in the eyes - she could see pain (lots of it), abandonment, and something new… mischief. October gave him a sickly sweet smile, causing her cheek to tear a bit. She felt a small amount of blood drip from her wound. Isaac's brows knitted together.

"You're bleeding," He went to brush the blood away.

She moved back a bit. "I'll be fine. Thanks again."

From her bag, October took out a tissue and dabbed her cheek. Isaac turned around slowly, not before giving her another concerned look. Really? A pity party already? No one knew why she was hurt and she was going to keep it that way. Even if it meant lying to everyone. She didn't really mind lying. She was good at it. There was a spell she used to mask her beating heart with a steady pulse. But she had a feeling she wouldn’t have to use it here in Beacon Hills.

Class ended literally ended five minutes later, making October feel ill. She had to walk through the busy halls while trying not to bump into anyone. This was definitely going to be hell. October looked down at her map while trying to navigate through the hallway. Everyone seemed to be trying their best to avoid her which was fine by her. Then she heard the whispers.

"Isn't that the new girl?"

"I heard she was crazy."

"I heard her family burned in a fire."

"She's kind of cute."

October walked faster. She didn't want to hear any of that. She wanted to forget about her parents and her younger sister that was caught in the crossfire. She was just a normal three year old girl. And they killed her. Those sick sadistic people killed her. And for what? Because they were different?



The next two periods were slow and agonizing. October felt the need to rip her hair out on many occasions. Especially when a young man named Matt thought it would be okay to talk to her. At first, she hadn't minded. But after the next half hour he spent talking about things she couldn't gave a rat's ass about, she wanted to tear out his eyes. She finally gave him a look, where her green eyes seemed brighter and a bit more frenzied.

After that, she was alone for the most part. The stares were wearing down, so that made her a bit happy. The whispers had listened, but there was a few every now and again. It wasn't like they meant to be rude. Sort of. They just figured she couldn't hear them, considering the people who had talked were usually down the hallway.

"I… uh," A boy with a buzz-cut cleared his throat and started walking with October, making her raise a brow. "Soooo, I'm Stiles… And, you're just going to keep walking. Okay then. See ya."

He waved awkwardly before cursing to himself. October snorted and made her way to Chemistry. What she really needed right now was a coffee with a few extra shots of espresso. The thought of coffee afterschool made her mouth water. October quickly went to the teacher, Mr. Harris. The man looked like a rat or some type of rodent. She couldn't quite place her finger on it.

"Ah, Miss Hallowell," He had a sick smirk on his lips. "I see you've returned with Beacon Hills after quite a long hiatus. I went to school with your parents. Where are your parents? Oh… wait."

October's eyes narrowed, her voice going down an octave so no one could hear her. "You think it's funny that they burned to death? That I heard their screams when I couldn't help them? Do you, Mr. Harris?"

He shifted uncomfortably under her gaze. "No. I don't. Now, please take your seat."

She shook her head and scoffed, muttering a 'whatever.' He might not have meant to sound like a jackass, but October couldn't help it. She didn't want anyone to talk about her parents. Not even James could talk about them without making the air become choking. Before making it to her seat, the Stiles kid had bumped into her causing her bag to fall.

"Oh, god," He scratched his head. "I got that! I'm so sorry! I didn't see you there. Not saying you're invisible or anything. I was just rushing. I didn't want to be late."

And he kept rambling. Even when October told him it was fine. She grabbed her bag from his grip and gave him a small smile. It might not have reached her eyes, but it was sincere. Stiles had honked at her in the morning, but she was guessing he didn't enjoy being late? It didn't matter anymore. She enjoyed his awkwardness. It made him seem real. He stopped speaking when he saw her smile. October left to take her seat near the window. She could feel a few eyes on her back.

"Dude," she heard Stiles hitting on his friend's arm. "She smiled at me. She smiled at me."

"Yeah," A female spoke instead. "She was smiling because she didn't know what to do about a creep talking non-stop."

The bell rung and no one spoke after that. The eyes on her back hadn't seem to give up, so she turned. The Lahey boy was looking at her, Jackson was trying to inconspicuously look, the girl Erica was also staring at her. She rose a brow when she realized even Scott was looking. They all had the same look on their faces - confusion. October looked away when Mr. Harris began speaking.

"Einstein once said, 'Two things are infinite: The universe and human stupidity; And I'm not sure about the universe.' I myself have encountered infinite stupidity. So to combat the plague of ignorance in my class, you're going to combine efforts through a round of group experiments. Let's see if two heads are indeed better than one. Or in Mr. Stilinski's case, less than one," He patted Stiles arm.

October looked at Stiles. Stiles Stilinski… What kind of name was that?

"Erica, you take the first station. You'll start with–" Mr. Harris paused, seeing as nearly every male and a few females raised their hand. "I didn't ask for volunteers. Put your hormonal little hands down. Start with Mr. McCall. All right, next."

October ended up staying in her seat with a few others like Lydia, Stiles, Erica, and some boy named Martin. She looked at the glass beaker and then the paper with the instructions. It seemed simple enough. She glanced around the class and soon realized it wouldn't be simple with these people.

Her first partner was Jackson. He had a thin sheet of sweat over his exposed skin. October felt the need to ask, but thought against it. It wasn't her business.

"What happened to you?" He asked. "You look like someone ate you then threw you back up."

Well, damn. This boy had no lines.

She let out a bitter laugh. "It doesn't really concern you, now does it?"

His lips formed a thin line. It seemed he didn't like to be called out - especially by a girl. October rolled her eyes and they kept silent while reading the instructions and adding the certain ingredients the first go was supposed to be put in. Jackson finally cleared his throat.

"I didn't mean to offend," His voice sounded strained, like he didn't want to apologize. "You just look like you've been through hell."

October looked at him - wanting to find out what he was pulling. But, she couldn't really see anything to suspect. The bell rang before she could say anything. She nodded and looked away as he went to the next partner. A Hawaiian boy sat down next to her - his eyes were wide and seemed innocent. She overheard a few girls earlier in the day saying how they'd love to have sex with him, but couldn't because he was gay.

"Do you even know what we're supposed to do?" He asked.

October nodded. "I remember doing this at my other school. It should turn out to be a crystal or something. It's easy."

"Sucks that you have to do it again."

"It's whatever," She shrugged. "It's been happening all day."

He gave her a sweet smile. "You don't have to lie. You hate it."

"Yeah, I actually do."

The rest of the few minutes they had, they added the ingredients and chatted. Him mostly about his ex-boyfriend. He was still hurting, apparently. October nodded when she felt the need to. Yes, she was listening, but it was a private part of his life and she didn't want to intrude by asking questions. So, she mostly stayed quiet.

"You know," Danny laughed a bit. "You might be quiet, but I like you. I hope to see more of you around."

"Nah, I was thinking I'd channel it into killing her. I'm not very good at writing." She overheard Isaac say to Stiles.

The bell rang and everyone switched. She looked at the two boys, brows raised. What the hell do you even say about that? She found herself not really taking the last of the ingredients seriously. She allowed some girl to finish the rest of it. October just watched as everything unfolded in front of her, not quite understanding a thing.

"Time," Harris looked at the entire class. "If you've catalyzed the reaction correctly, you should now be looking at a crystal. Now for the part of that last experiment I'm sure you'll all enjoy– You can eat it."

"Lydia!" Scott yelled as he stood up.

Everyone's eyes widened at that. Even Lydia looked confused as hell - well more shocked than anything. A few snickers were heard from the silence. October couldn't help but shake her head. This school was actually beginning to rub off on her.

"What?" Lydia stared at Scott, daring him to say something.

"Nothing."

His eyes were looking out the window. October turned her head to see what he was staring at - more like whom at this point. A man was standing in the tree line with a brooding face. To be honest, it was extremely unsettling. They should definitely buff up the security at Beacon Hills High School.



"I'm coming home late," James voice come from the other line. "There's this Chinese place in town, Toby. Check it out. They don’t deliver, sadly. But they do take cards!"

October snorted. "Are you actually going to let me drive my Impala?"

She heard him sigh. "Why the hell not. Don’t get pulled over, though."

October smirked as she hung up her phone. She was finally going to drive around without James complaining the whole time. She grabbed the keys to her car on the hook near the door to the garage. Patting the hood of her car, she let out a laugh. It was finally going to happen.

She got into the Impala, smelling the old scent in the air. She loved the car more than anything. All she wished for was her license. Then, she'd be able to drive up to the mountains and have hikes on her own. But until then, she'd just drive illegally. Checking her glove compartment for her safety charm. It still hummed with magic.

"Well, time for Chinese then," She muttered as she drove away from her home.

October felt something pull at her and she began driving down a random street. Her body shook as she tried to turn the other way. Something felt off. There was so much tension in the cool night air. It was absolutely suffocating. A fine sheet of sweat covered her forehead when she parked the car. A few houses down there was a Chevy Camaro parked near Stiles' blue Jeep. She immediately felt unsafe.

Without meaning to, she quickly muttered a chant to hide herself from unwanted eyes. She took slow breathes, trying to slow her heart beat. She nearly jumped out of her seat when she saw Scott throwing two bodies over to the man she saw at the tree lines. She heightened her hearing, trying to see what was being said.

"I think I'm finally getting why you keep refusing me, Scott. You're not an omega, you're already an Alpha of your own pack. But you know you can't beat me," It was the new man speaking.

"I can hold you off until the cops get here." Scott sounded extremely cocky.

There was a short pause before the sounds of sirens ran in the air. October cringed, her hearing still on high. But, she didn't reverse her spell. She wanted to know what was happening. Scott ran onto the yard to take a view of his roof, as did Allison and Stiles. October moved her eyes to his roof, but she couldn't see clearly. All she could see was a shadowy figure with a long tail.

"Would someone please tell me what the hell is going on?" Lydia had burst through the front door.

Scott spoke quietly, causing October to strain her ears some more. "It's Jackson."

There was definitely more than meets the eye.