Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Liam, for the love of all that is holy, stop. You’re doing it again,” Mason sighs, looking at his best friend with exasperation as he gently sets the Xbox controller on the coffee table. Liam, unfortunately, was all too familiar with that specific look lately and searches his mind for a stealthy escape plan.

“What?” Liam asks, widening his eyes in an attempt to look innocent. He thinks he knows what this is about, as Mason is too fucking smart for his own good, but decides to play dumb in hopes that his friends would drop the one subject he wholeheartedly did not want to talk about.

Liam had invited Corey and Mason to his house after the latest pack meeting to hangout for a bit, the three of them embracing the rare moment of calm in their lives. His parents were spending a week in Boston with his mom’s sister while she was finalizing her divorce and needed some company to take her mind off it. He had pretended to be upset when they both agreed he couldn’t afford to miss school for an entire week, but really, he was glad to have the house to himself. It was stressful to keep his werewolfness hidden from his two parents even when things in Beacon Hills were quiet. Liam knew he should tell them. He knew his mom would still love him, and Dr. Geyer would stand behind him entirely, but he couldn’t bare to bring them into the hot mess that his life had become. It was safer for everyone if they were kept in the dark.

Besides, in Liam’s defense, he wasn’t actually doing anything. Corey and Mason were playing a new Call of Duty game, and Liam was aimlessly scrolling through his Instagram feed, silently debating how weird it would be if he followed Theo on the social media app. It’s not as if he purposefully searched for the older boy; his profile randomly popped up in his “People You May Know” section. The chimera had a few dozen followers, all students from their high school (not that Liam had painstakingly gone through every single person’s page to figure out who they were or anything) but had only posted a few scenic shots of the forest and that one douchebag shirtless gym selfie Liam thought was trashy. God, Theo was such a...tool...with his ripped muscles and flawless, soft looking hair, and there’s seriously no way he didn’t use a filter to get the V-line of his abdomen to show so clearly.

Christ, get a grip, Liam thought ruefully to himself, shaking his head back and forth as if he could rid himself of the unexpected thoughts. Where had they come from? Normally, his Theo-centric thinking focused on what the boy was actually doing, not what he looked like. Did he find Theo attractive? And if he did, since when?

And, most importantly, could Mason read minds?

Liam chuckles at the idea, knowing mind reading would be a thousand times worse for Mason that it would be for him. Liam was traumatized by his own thoughts at times (like right now for instance)...no doubt Mason would be scarred for life if he was privy to Liam’s musings.   

Knowing he wasn’t going to find the answers to his own questions anytime soon, Liam stands up from the couch, heading towards the kitchen to refill his glass of water. He holds the glass towards his body in an unrealistic hope his friends hadn’t noticed there was, at most, one sip of water missing from it. It was easier to pretend he had no idea what Mason was hinting at if he was too far away to look his friend in the eye.

“Do you guys want anything while I’m up?” Liam asks, back facing the living room as he pretends to fill his glass from the water spout on the refrigerator.

“You always have a faraway look on your face when you’re daydreaming,” Corey responds, ignoring Liam’s question while giving Mason a small smile in support.

“About Theo,” Mason mumbles, too low for a human to pick up but not an issue for Liam with his werewolf abilities.

Liam feels his mouth forming a slight pout while his heart rate speeds up. He needed new friends...preferably less observant ones. He had high hopes of avoiding this conversation for, well honestly, for eternity, but at least until he figured out why he suddenly cared so much about what Theo was doing.

Corey, who had been on the receiving end of Mason’s post pack-meeting rants about Liam and Theo several times, knew his boyfriend was 100% done with Liam’s shit. Even from his vantage point in the living room, Corey noticed the back of Liam’s neck was already beginning to turn a bright red, and he hoped he could help keep the peace between the two.

Mason was always grumpy for days after a disagreement with Liam, and Corey dreaded the idea of seeing Liam go through one of his IED outbursts. The things Liam could say during an episode...they were truly cruel and cutting, designed to make his target feel like absolute shit afterwards. Corey had only seen a few, small fights between Liam and other pack members, but Mason had told him some of the things Liam had said before he began to gain control over his anger issues. He certainly did not envy the young beta, especially because Liam tended to have minimal recollection of what was said afterwards.

“That’s ridiculous,” Liam scoffs, rolling his eyes even though he knew his friends couldn’t see him. “Why would I be thinking about Theo?”

“I don’t know, Liam, why are you thinking about Theo...again?” Mason slyly asks, sliding his fingers through Corey’s, seeking comfort in the warmth of his boyfriend’s touch.

“Are you actually going to explain to me what you’re talking about, or is this going to be another situation where you two have some sort of inside joke going and don’t intend to enlighten the rest of us?” Liam snaps, roughly setting his glass onto the kitchen counter as he heatedly glanced between the two of his friends.

If playing dumb isn’t going to work, his next tactic never failed. Get angry, get defensive, and get his friends to change the subject. He mentally pats himself on the back for his genius thinking and acting skills, thoughts shifting to weighing the pros and cons of dropping AP Biology for Advanced Theater. Was it too late in the semester to switch? Dropping fourth period AP Bio for Advanced Theater would mean he’s in the same class as Theo...which would suck of course, because Theo is an asshole, but he relishes the idea of beating Theo for the lead in one of the school plays. And if he picks up seventh period AP Bio in place of his Computer Literacy class, he could have another class with Theo, and if he sits by the chimera, maybe he can subtly copy off him so he doesn't end up failing. Liam files the debate away in his “To-Be-Thought-About-Later-When-Mason-Wasn’t-Busy- Ruining-His-Life” folder, returning his attention back to the situation at hand.

Liam should have known his friend wasn’t going to drop the subject.

Not when he had Liam cornered.

Mason rolls his eyes at his best friends dramatics, looking up briefly to the ceiling like it held all the answers to his problems.

“What we mean,” Corey calmly explains to the beta, “Is that lately you seem a bit...too invested in what Theo’s doing.”

“Umm...what? You guys are crazy, I didn’t say a word about Theo, and I don’t care at all what he’s doing,” Liam laughs, ignoring the skip in his heartbeat. Thankfully, his best friend was human with normal human hearing, and his chameleon chimera boyfriend did not have the same abilities that his werewolf/coyote hybrid counterpart did. Liam was never good at lying to Theo, a fact that severely irked him. Maybe he’d work on that skill later so he could add it to his acting resume.

“No, Liam, we aren’t crazy. You are crazy. Crazily obsessed. Don’t act like you don’t know what we’re talking about, either, because I know you well enough to know when you’re bullshitting me,” Mason says, holding up a hand to stop Liam from interrupting.

Liam lets out a small huff, because like, how rude. He crosses his arms and pretends to listen as Mason continues his rant, already beginning to formulate a counter argument in return.

“How many times have you looked at his Instagram today?” Mason starts.

Liam opens his mouth to deny knowing Theo had an Instagram, but the human keeps talking without letting him get a word in edgewise, and Liam huffs in frustration, thinning his lips into a straight line as Mason’s voice increases during his rant.

“You stare at him during every pack meeting, which alone is disturbing since I’m pretty sure you did not hear a thing Scott said earlier about the remaining hunters,” Mason continues, using his fingers from his free hand to tick off each point. “You always insist on partnering with Theo when we’re doing surveillance missions. You practically growled at Nolan when Theo held the door open for him today at school. You always complain about how annoying Theo is, which is odd since you always seek him out when he’s around...”

Mason pauses, wiggling his pinky finger around while he tries to remember his fifth point. “What am I forgetting, Corey?”

“He’s my responsibility-” Liam interjects, the rebuttal quick to escape his lips and preventing Corey from speaking.

If he was honest with himself, Theo being his responsibility was pretty much the only argument he could come up with to explain his preoccupation with the bad boy chimera (he was not obsessed, okay, thank you very much, Mason, just…curious). He knows his friends weren’t wrong, per se, about his fixation...he was just NOT going to admit that thinking about Theo occupied about 90% of his thoughts. Liam would literally ask Parrish to set him on fire and shoot him with wolfsbane arrow while throwing him out of a moving car before he ever admitted that to anyone.

“Don’t even try that ‘he’s my responsibility shit,'" Mason interrupts, causing Liam to stamp his foot in agitation, because once again, how rude. Corey looks away from the two with a small sigh as he and Mason refrain from pointing out Liam’s childish act.

“I’ve known you since we were toddlers, Li,” Mason continues, leaning his head back against the couch while he stares Liam down in the kitchen. “You’re terrible at being responsible. You’re always late, you’re always forgetting something, and you are seriously the worst at taking care of pets. And plants.”

“That’s not true! I’ve always been pretty responsible!” Liam exclaims, giving his friend a betrayed look. Because, really, Liam was totally responsible. Totally. He was Scott’s first beta and the Alpha in charge... while Scott was away at college. He was the lacrosse captain... okay co-captain. He was late to school only once... this week. He even made dinner for himself last night! Granted, it was cereal but like... he was trying at least.  Whatever happened to ‘A’ for effort?

“Oh, always? Is that so? What about Mrs. Johnson’s hamster from sixth grade?” Mason questions, crossing his arms and raising his eyebrow at Liam. And really... it was such a Theo look that Liam had to consciously stop himself from smiling because he was so done with thinking about the stupid chimera and his stupidly perfect face with his stupidly perfect muscles and... ugh. Focus, Liam.

“MASON!” Liam gasps, returning to the living room to throw himself face-first onto the couch as he remembers what his friend was referring to, his glass of water long forgotten on the kitchen counter. “You promised you would never bring that up again.”

“Uh...do I even want to know?” Corey asks, glancing wearily between his boyfriend and his friend as if they were an intense tennis match. Mason heaves (yet another) sigh, deciding that telling his boyfriend the Forbidden Story right now would be counterproductive to eliminating the situation at hand... aka Liam’s Awkward Theo Obsession (or LATO for short).

“NO!” Liam shouts, sound muffled by the pillow his face is currently pressed against.

Mason gives Corey a look Liam is unable to see, indicating that yes, Corey does want to know because it’s fucking hilarious, but sadly not relevant right now, so he will tell him later. Corey nods discreetly in understanding of the unspoken communication.

“Aren’t you curious, though?" Liam asks, deciding that, yes, this conversation was regrettably not going away, so he might as well just take control of it before Mason divulges some other embarrassing secrets. Flipping over so he’s laying on his back, Liam presses on before his friends can say no. “What does he do when he’s not in school? Where is he living? Why is he suddenly wearing designer clothes, and who is he texting all the time during pack meetings?”

Why does he always seem to avoid me? The thought hangs in the air, unspoken but clear.

Liam sits up when he finishes talking to see Mason and Corey both staring blankly at him. Huh...guess they didn't care. But for Liam, the unanswered questions burn at his brain. He just needed to know, okay? Was that so wrong?

“You know, Liam, Theo is kind of like the Draco Malfoy to your Harry Potter,” Corey notes, proud he was able to include a “nerdy” reference after Mason made him marathon all eight movies over one single weekend. He turns to Mason, expecting to see a look of pride on his handsome face, but his face scrunches in confusion when he’s instead met with a look of horror.

“Oh, no Corey, it’s not quite the same-”

Liam, who had taken a brief minute to think over what Corey could possibly mean, realizes the chameleon chimera had given him an easy out.

“Yes!” Liam exclaims, harnessing his werewolf reflexes to fling himself off the couch, landing on his feet (okay...not quite. He might have had to tuck his body into a roll, but whatever, he’s not a fucking werecat. Or graceful like Theo who never did anything embarrassing in his life... shit he was losing focus again).

Pulling himself from his thoughts, Liam surveys his friends. Mason had his head in his hands and was shaking it back in forth in a silent “no”. Poor Corey continued to look between Mason and him, confused and now slightly concerned. Liam silently thanked the boy for his ingenious comparison and mentally maneuvers his name to the top of his Christmas list while aggressively scratching Mason’s name out with a bright red marker.

“You are exactly right, Corey,” Liam starts, pacing up and down in front of the television, their video game long forgotten. “Theo is clearly Draco Malfoy, and like Draco Malfoy, he is obviously plotting something. And, like Harry Potter, I have realized this before anyone else because my observation skills are astounding.”

Liam ignores Mason’s snort as he accidentally stumbles over someone’s shoe in the middle of the room, catching himself before he falls. He was sure Corey had gone invisible at some point during his speech and planted the offending object there; Liam moves Corey’s name back down to the bottom of his Christmas list, stopping himself just shy of crossing it off until he has irrefutable proof of Corey’s crime.

See, he could be mature and responsible.

“And, like in Harry Potter,” Liam continues, stopping his pacing to stand in front of Mason, slightly smirking at the resigned look on his face, “if Harry’s friends had listened to him the FIRST time he said Draco was up to something, hundreds of lives could have been saved.”

“That-”

“I’ll prove he’s up to something!”

“Or you could just talk to him?” Masons asks, already knowing the answer. "Like a normal person?"

“He won’t tell me the truth. I’ll have to follow him and do some detective work.”

Corey gives Mason a guilty look.

“Sorry, Mase,” Corey whispers, gently patting their entwined hands with his free hand. Mason smiles at this boyfriend.

“It’s not your fault our dearest werewolf friend is an idiot, love.”

“Hey!” Liam exclaims, throwing himself back onto the couch to begin his plotting. He hears the sounds of the video game once more, a clear indication their conversation is over.

"Can I have your Xbox when Theo murders you?" Masons asks after a moment.

Liam feels disappointed when Corey catches the pillow he flings towards Mason's head.

Whatever, he'll show them. 

Liam tucks himself into bed later that night, mind full of ideas on how to get closer to Theo.

First things first, he thinks, as he rolls over to pick his phone up from his nightstand. Liam opens his Instagram app, easily finding Theo’s page again, and hits the “Follow” button.

Liam smiles into the darkness, before rolling over and closing his eyes.

Yes, this was a good first start to his Master Plan.

Chapter Text

Theo’s eyes scan swiftly across the cafeteria, skin prickling with the undeniable sensation that he was being watched. Taking a small bite of his burger while searching for the perpetrator, he finds himself grateful he was lucky enough to grab a table close to the wall - he loathes putting his back to other people, and the spot provides him a perfect view of everyone in the cafeteria.

It was hard to resist rolling his eyes when he found the culprit; Liam fucking Dunbar. Of course.

Lately, Liam’s behavior since the night at the hospital had been... confusing, to say the least.

Mind-addled by the pain he took from Gabe, Theo hadn’t even noticed he was shaking until Liam removed his jacket, sliding Theo’s arms into the sleeves before standing in front of him to button it up. Liam grabbed one of his sleeves and guided him through the hospital, first making sure Melissa removed all the bullets from their battered bodies. As she fussed over Liam, Theo excused himself to the restroom so no one could see him take a few deep breaths, letting Liam’s smell momentarily bring his world back into focus.

Theo was fairly confident Liam drove his truck to the Alpha’s house, but he refuses to dwell on the thoughts of what could have happened to his baby in the hands of the beta… did Liam even have a license? Theo repressed a shudder.

After Scott saved the day yet again (seriously, was there anything this guy couldn’t do?), everyone gathered at the Alpha’s house in some sort of impromptu fucked up celebration of survival. Mostly, the pack and their allies draped themselves over the McCall’s furniture and traded stories back and forth, catching each other up on what had occurred at the hospital and the school. Theo zoned out of the conversation, only truly focusing on what was being said when Scott described how Deucalion inspired him to claw his own eyes out. Stomach churning at the mere idea of his claws going anywhere his eyes, Theo tuned out the rest of the story. Instead, he trained his enhanced hearing on the steady thumpthumpthump of Liam’s heart, allowing the sound to once again center him and gain back the control he so desperately needed.  

Needless to say, Theo doesn’t remember much after Scott finished his story. He knows he woke up at Scott’s house the next morning with his head on one arm of the couch, for once, too exhausted to dream of Tara ripping his heart out over and over again. He was tangled on the couch with Liam, whose head was using the other arm of the couch as a pillow, his bare feet tucked under Theo’s shoulder. Trying not to feel like a stalker, Theo took a brief moment to admire how peaceful the normally energetic boy looked while he slept, allowing a small smile to form on his lips.

Hearing noises in the kitchen, Theo carefully adjusted the sleeping beta in an effort to not wake him, removed the borrowed jacket and tucked it around Liam like a blanket. He slipped his shoes on and gave a small nod to Melissa when he passed her on his way out.

In the weeks following, he barely saw Liam at all. They’d occasionally pass each other in the halls after Theo re-enrolled, Liam seemingly going out of his way to avoid eye contact with him. Confused and slightly hurt by the brush off, Theo allowed himself twenty-four hours to wallow in self pity, before accepting that Liam was too embarrassed to be seen with him.

He understood, he truly did. Theo knew the importance of social standing to a high school student perhaps better than most. He attended more high schools than he could count on one hand during his time with the Dread Doctors. Sure, every school featured small differences among the student population, but all in all it was the same - social standing was the key to survival.

And Theo was more of an outsider than ever.

He knew other students whispered about him in the halls, rumors flying across campus about why he suddenly disappeared from school, only to come back months later like nothing happened. A few students recognized him after their brief time as hunters. Theo made it a rule to smile brightly when he passed them in the halls, mouth widening even more as their smell of fear tickled his nose. No student was brave enough to say anything to his face, so Theo just let the rumors circulate without his input.

He didn’t understand, however, why Liam broke his habit of avoiding Theo to growl at him yesterday morning when he entered the library behind Liam’s little Wannabe Murderer friend. He found the whole situation ironic, considering Theo had risked his life for Liam multiple times, but the beta gets defensive over the kid who beat the shit out of him in front of their peers? Some things were meant to be a mystery it seemed.

Besides, it’s not like Theo ever had a choice in coming back.

Mrs. Martin, a staunch supporter of continuing education even whilst the world was ending, all but bullied him into returning to Beacon Hills High to finish his senior year after Scott “accidentally” mentioned Theo had dropped out following “an unfortunate incident”. Theo, not familiar with human adults bossing him around, protested heavily, assuring the woman he would obtain his GED as fast as possible. When that didn’t work, he pulled the 'homeless' card, insisting to the woman it was impossible to return to school when he couldn’t even get a solid night of interrupted sleep each night. Like her daughter, Lydia, Theo should have known Principal Martin did not take “no” for an answer.  

Theo didn’t give a damn what anyone said, Lydia’s mom had some sort of supernatural ability, because she turned up everywhere he went; the public library, the grocery store, the preserve, and even the laundromat. Fuck, he’s like 99% sure he saw Mrs. Martin’s car in his rearview mirror on his “Weak Day" (also known as the day Theo drove to the Beacon Hills city line but was too fucking weak to abandon He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named to the next horror that would undoubtedly strike). Theo could be bitter all he wanted, but he knew he would always protect the beta.

A day after he (wrongly) assumed he’d heard the last from the nagging woman, Theo was lounging in the back of his truck, parked at the edge of the preserve in darkness under a grove of trees, playing the stupid game on his phone Liam introduced him to on their trip to the zoo. His guard down, Theo didn’t hear someone approach the vehicle until it was too late.

Startled by the loud, angry roar behind him, Theo jumped up from the back of the truck, landing in a crouch as his fangs lengthened past his lips, claws elongated, and his eyes glowed golden in the darkness. Acting like his heart wasn’t about to beat out of his chest, Theo growled at the intruder, stopping midway when he realized the person in front of him was none other than Derek Hale… who was suddenly bent over, hands on his knees, laughing his ass off.

Theo growled again, confused.

“What the fuck, Hale?” he bit out after getting his heart rate under control.

“Sorry, couldn’t resist the opportunity,” Derek chuckled, finally standing up straight as his laughter subsided.

“Yes, ha ha, very funny. You’re such a laugh,” Theo growled, mostly angry at himself for not maintaining control of his senses. Parking on the edge of the preserve, at the dead of night, and not knowing what was going on around him?...It was such a Liam move, Theo almost kicked himself. “To what do I owe the pleasure, Derek?”

“I have a proposition for you, Theo,” Derek said, suddenly looking around like he felt uncomfortable.

Theo found that interesting. Derek never looked ruffled. Sensing he could grab the upperhand in the conversation, Theo smirked at the older werewolf.

“I’m not sure what you’ve heard about me, Derek, but I’m not that kind of guy.”

He slowly took a step forward, leering at the man in front of him. Theo trailed his eyes up and down Derek’s body, tongue peaking out just slightly to wet his lips.

“But I suppose,” he purred, tilting his head to the side, “I could be persuaded. As long as we keep it our little secret.”

He added a wink for good measure.

It was hard maintaining a straight face as Derek’s face shifted from confusion to outright horror, mouth dropping in shock as he recoiled away. Theo managed, though, quirking an eyebrow in response while internally smirking at his comeback. He’d changed since Hell, definitely, but parts of Old Theo would always be with him.

“No, no, what?!!” Derek stammered, raising his hands up in defense as if he could somehow protect himself from the awkward situation he stumbled into.

Theo’s mask cracked, just ever so slightly, but enough for Derek to notice.

“You’re not my type,” Derek grumbled, glaring at the younger boy in front of him.

 

“What, not tall and scrawny enough for you?” Theo quipped, hopping up into the back of his truck, patting the seat next to him.

Theo hadn’t spent much time around the older pack member, but after Derek broke his collarbone with a swift, unexpected punch after one pack meeting (revenge for killing Scott and manipulating Stiles, apparently), Theo found he enjoyed the man’s company. Mostly because he didn’t talk. Or ask questions.

“That is not the point,” Derek replied, taking a seat next to the chimera, breaking Theo out of his thoughts.

“I seem to have missed the point, Derek.”

“I can tell,” Derek snorted. “What I was referring to, Theo, was how I own an entire empty apartment building, and you need a place to stay.”

Theo, a master of manipulation, knew a trap when he saw one.

“The catch?” he asked, immediately squashing the hope building in his chest. The price would be high, he was sure.

“You go back to high school and finish your senior year,” Derek answered, head turning towards Theo to look him in the eye, expression completely serious.

Theo scoffed at the offer - Mrs. Martin was even more persistent than he originally thought. He had to give her credit, even if it was fucking annoying.

“Seriously, man?” he snorted. “Didn’t take you for the type to do someone’s dirty work.”

Derek lifted his right arm, slowly bringing it up to Theo’s shoulder in what Theo assumed must be some type of awkward Cave Wolfman gesture of comfort.

He, of course, did not expect to be pushed off the truck.

“Why is Scott McCall an angel, but his pack members are demons in disguise?” Theo complained, picking himself up off the ground and dusting the dirt off his clothes.

“Someone has to do the dirty work,” Derek laughed, jumping down from the truck and walking towards Theo.

Theo stood up straighter, shoulders back, and refused to let Derek intimate him.

“I see where I went wrong as an Alpha, then,” Theo replied, senses on high alert, but Derek seemed relaxed as he moved his hands into the pockets of his leather jacket.

“You and me both,” Derek said. “If you accept the offer, Principal Martin will hand you the keys next Monday when you start. The twenty-eighth floor is yours, rent free, and all you have to do is furnish it.”

“And what about you?” Theo asked, genuinely curious. Could he handle seeing Derek Hale all the time? Would they make awkward small talk while they checked the mail? Jesus, the whole thing seemed... awkward. At least Derek seemed like someone who would mind his own business.

“Just make sure no one trashes the building, and you’ll only see me when I come back into town to bring updates on what’s going around at the other Nemetons.”

So, a week after the war ended, Theo found himself standing in front of his second version of hell; high school.

While they were in school, Theo barely existed. At least to Liam.

Weekly pack meetings were a different story.

At pack meetings, Liam would, without fail, situate himself near Theo, never quite touching but always a little closer than what could be considered normal. Liam never asked or said he wanted to be partnered with him on scouting missions, but it was some sort of unspoken truce they developed since the Ghost Riders. They worked well together.

It was known.

But last night, something changed.

Buried deep in the nest of his blankets and pillows, Theo almost missed the bright light of his screen illuminating the darkness of his bedroom. He debated for less than a second on ignoring the notification, concern outweighing his need for sleep. Reaching for the phone to see what new terror roamed the streets of Beacon Hills, Theo barely caught his phone in time before it dropped painfully onto his face.

It wasn’t a text or a notification for a missed call. It was an alert from Instagram that he had a new follower… Liam. Intrigued, Theo unlocked his phone and navigated to the beta’s personal page. Most of the pictures were lacrosse related or posts of what music he was currently listening to, except the newest one. The latest picture was uploaded two hours ago with the caption, “ #tbt to summer skate sessions.”

Theo threw his phone across the room, unable to handle the site of a shirtless Liam in a pair of tight sweatpants, performing a trick on his skateboard. Knowing he was being ridiculous, but still unable to resist, Theo shifted to his golden werewolf eyes, scanning around the room to confirm he was alone.

Satisfied no pack members were lurking in the shadows and his phone made a safe landing somewhere in the pile of clothes he hadn’t put away yet, Theo snuggled back into the nest his bed had turned it to, deciding the issue was best handled tomorrow with a clear head.

Theo wasn’t sure if he should be proud at his self restraint or embarrassed because he only lasted six hours before following Liam back.

At least he didn’t like the picture.

He had some amount of dignity, after all. 

The beta stares him down from where he sat a few tables down with his friends, the Human, The Other Chimera, the Ex-Hunter, and Scott 2.0, the latter who was some orphaned werewolf Scott was trying to raise while still going to college. Theo never bothered to learn his name.

Theo absolutely refuses to be intimidated by the younger boy’s stare, raising his eyebrow in a silent challenge while taking another bite of his burger to show the little beta he was unaffected by him. Liam drew his eyebrows together, a scowl forming on his face, but the stubborn boy remains silent.

“What?” Theo growls, looking down at his tray while internally berating himself for breaking the staring contest; he is getting weak in his old age, it seems.

Lost in his thoughts, Theo barely refrains from jumping when a pile of books was slammed onto his table; he didn't need his werewolf senses to know Liam was the one who sat down. 

“I’m honored you’ve decided to grace me with your presence, Dunbar, but I’m not exactly in the mood to chit-chat,” Theo drawls, using his best 'Go-The-Fuck-Away' voice.

Liam could fuck right off with his erratic behavior and confusing signals. Theo was too good for that.

Sort of.

Yeah... not really.

He was high-end trash at least. Designer. He might be a cheap, knock-off of a werewolf, but he had some class.

Liam couldn't afford his level of trash.

“Okay,” Liam says, opening the textbook on the top of the pile, beginning to read as if nothing unusual was going on.

Theo finishes eating in silence, annoyed the beta still hasn’t spoken. He debates how to play this new turn of events... break the silence and suffer the wound to his pride? Or refuse to break and stew in thoughts of what Liam's game was?

“What the fuck do you want?” Theo asks, unable to stand the silence, pride be damned.

“No need to catch an attitude,” Liam snaps, and Theo smirks, satisfied to finally get a reaction out of the boy. “Maybe I just want to eat lunch with you.”


“You’ve ignored me at school for two months now, Dunbar, I’m not buying that bullshit. What. Do. You. Want?”

Liam glares at him, eyes moving down to read the sides of the books piled next to Theo’s lunch tray while he thinks about his answer. Theo checks the time, noticing he has five minutes before he needs to leave for his next class. Impatient, he gives Liam’s left shin a good kick under the table.

“What the fuck, Theo?” Liam cries, reaching his hand under the table to soothe his aching shin. “I need your help, okay, damn, did you have to kick me?”

Theo smiles. “Yes, since it got me an answer. And, Little Wolf, my answer is... no.”

“You don’t even know what I need help with,” Liam pouts, and Theo feels his eyes trailing to the pursed lips. He needs to stay strong, he’s not some boy toy Liam can only talk to when he needs something. Focusing his eyes on a random spot on Liam’s forehead to help keep his thoughts clear, Theo stands up from the table, gathering his books into his backpack.

“Doesn’t matter, I don’t want to help.” Theo answers. “Go ask one of your actual friends for help.”

“I thought I was,” Liam replies, softly, looking away as he spoke. “Mrs. Finch expects me to be as good as Scott, and Mason isn’t as good at biology as you are.” Liam cringes slightly at the end, as if bad mouthing his friend physically hurts him.

“I’m not your friend only when it’s convenient for you, Liam.”

Chapter Text

Liam wakes the next morning to his alarm blaring from his phone, the sound of Kesha’s 'Tik Tok'  echoing through the silent house. Liam always meant to change the tune back to something less... embarrassing, but the song pumped him up in the morning (not that he’d ever admit that to Mason, of course, who one night last week asked to use his phone to call Corey and ended up changing random shit on his phone. Liam was still trying to figure out if Kira was Xena Warrior Princess or Brienne of Tarth).

Groaning as he rolls over to quiet the offensive noise, he cracks an eye open to check his messages, unwilling to leave the comfort of his bed just yet. Momentarily forgetting the night before, Liam smiles when he saw that Theo had followed him back on Instagram.

Step 1 in his Master Plan was complete, he thinks giddily, choosing to ignore the fact he only had figured out one step so far. Getting close to Theo would be a challenge, but Liam is both stubborn as fuck and committed to solving the mystery.

Locking his phone and setting it back down on his nightstand, Liam left the safety of his bed and began getting ready for school, slipping into a pair of basketball shorts and a tight gym tank top.

As Beacon Hills finally returned to some semblance of normal, Liam started each school day with a 30 minute weight lifting session with the lacrosse team. Coach insisted they were at the prime time in their lives to add muscle to their “pathetically, scrawny, weak frames,” so he enforced an early morning training session. Although he hated getting up early, Liam loved the feeling of his muscles burning, the pain reducing the anger constantly humming beneath his skin.

And if he asked one of his teammates to take a picture of his post-workout arm pump today... well... they had no room to judge him.

After posting the picture, Liam rushes through the locker room, showering in a record 2.5 minutes, dressing, and sprinting down the hall to his first period, crashing through the door just as the bell rang.

“He followed me back,” he says smugly to Mason, plopping down in the seat next to him.

“Oh wow, congrats man,” Mason laughs. “You’re practically best friends now.”

Liam glares at him, turning his attention back to the front of the classroom.

With the first part of the morning passing uneventfully with no Theo sightings, Liam starts to feel antsy. He lacks patience to begin with, and he needs to actually interact with Theo if he had any hope of figuring out what the older boy was up to. Knowing the chimera had study hall third period, Liam grabs a hall pass from his history teacher and heads towards the library, occasionally glancing over his shoulder to make sure there weren’t any faculty members following him. Apparently having a shitty attendance record meant school officials did not give you the benefit of the doubt when you claimed there was a basilisk in the closest bathroom (which was excessively unfair since this was Beacon Hills after all).

When a quick search through the library garnered no results, Liam kicks the wall in frustration.

How dare Theo skip school on Day 1 of his Master Plan, Liam thinks bitterly to himself, beginning the long trek back to his classroom despite the pain in his left foot. Had Corey given the other chimera a heads up? Like, “Hey, Liam is going to start stalking you to figure out what heinous crime you’re about to commit, might wanna lay low for a bit.”

Liam scoffs - he would have to keep an extra eye on Corey.  

Loyalty is so rare these days.

Steps away from turning the last corner to reach his classroom, Liam stops short as he recognizes a familiar voice saying a different, but even more familiar, name.

“You and I both know you don’t need the extra credit, Theo,” Mrs. Finch says. “Why have you been spending your study hall in here for the last few months instead of the library with your peers?”

Grateful for his enhanced werewolf senses, Liam ducks into a nearby storage closet to avoid being seen by anyone roaming the halls or glancing out the small windows in the classroom door.

“Aw, Mrs. Finch, I’m wounded,” he hears Theo reply. Liam can practically hear the charm oozing from his voice, but also detects a hint of confusion. “It sounds like you don’t enjoy my company anymore.”

It’s a testament to Liam's level of control that he can resist rolling his eyes. What a smug asshole.

“Did Scott put you up to this?” Mrs. Finch softly asks.

For such a smart lady, Liam wonders why she’d even ask such a dumb question. As if Theo would take orders from Scott?

“Do you really think I’d do anything Scott asked?” Theo snorts, and Liam finds himself nodding his head in agreement. What a preposterous thought.

“Don’t you, though?” Mrs. Finch retorts, and whoa, what? What does Scott ask Theo to do?

Liam knows eavesdropping is wrong, but who would pass up this opportunity? Liam flips over a nearby bucket and lowers himself onto it, astonished at his luck. What are the chances he’s in the hallway at the same time this (weird) conversation is occurring?

He wishes he brought a snack with him.

“That’s different,” Theo answers, surprising Liam by not denying it. Since when did Theo actually give straight answers? “But I do it because I want to, not because someone tells me to.”

“Ok, that’s fair. But you still haven’t answered my original question,” Mrs. Finch notes.

Liam hears what sounds like a rustling of papers and then a marker making a few quick strokes. He cringes, knowing she’s most likely grading their tests from the day before. Gee, something to look forward to next period.  

“I seem to have forgotten what that was,” Theo replies, jostling Liam from his thoughts. “Probably because it isn’t relevant.”

Ah, yes, a classic Theo answer. What a fucking douche.

“Theodore.”

Liam smirks at her tone, curious to see how Theo is going to react to an authority figure. He wiggles a bit on his bucket seat to get more comfortable, leaning his head back against the wall.


“Jesus, woman, don’t call me that. Maybe I just really like science. And hate libraries. Shouldn’t you be encouraging me to embrace my intellect and all that new age teacher bullshit instead of questioning my motives?”

Liam can barely contain his gasp. He would never talk to a teacher like that! Even Mrs. Finch, who he had mixed feelings towards. Liam took a deep breath in an attempt to lower his heart rate. He’d be pissed if he got caught spying because he couldn’t contain his excitement at the idea of witnessing Theo getting a wicked scolding from a teacher.

“Are you being bullied?” Mrs. Finch asks, pushing her chair back, and Liam assumes she's moving closer to Theo.

What the fuck... that certainly was not what he was expecting.

Theo’s bark of laughter startles him, apparently also not prepared for Mrs. Finch’s line of questioning.

When was the last time Liam heard the boy laugh? And why the fuck does Mrs. Finch sound so concerned about Theo getting picked on? Where was she when he was getting his own ass beat? Oh yeah...watching.

Liam has to bite back a growl, but his anger at the injustice he faced wasn’t worth giving away his position, though, so he closes his eyes in an attempt to refocus.

The sun. The moon. The truth. The sun. The moon. The truth.

“I don’t think my peers have the balls to say anything to my face, period, let alone attempt to pick on me.”

And yeah, that was probably fair, Liam thinks. Theo wasn’t disliked, per se, but other students were still wary of anyone supernatural since the Anuk-itae. Liam was exceptionally grateful for Mason, Corey, Alec, and even Nolan.

“Are you lonely, then?” Mrs. Finch questions, and like, Jesus, since when was she close enough to Theo to ask him these kinds of questions?

He hears the sound of a stool scraping against the floor and guesses she’s taken a seat next to him.

Liam feels something hot rise in his chest, something he hasn't felt in a long time.

Jealousy.

“Aren’t you?” Theo retorts, and though he can’t see into the classroom, Liam can clearly picture Theo sitting at his lab station, one eyebrow raised in a challenge as he glares at their teacher.

“This isn’t about me, Theo, it’s about you. Have you made any new friends recently?”

Liam frowns. Did Theo have friends? He had been texting a lot at pack meetings. Was it to Mrs. Finch or someone else?

Liam feels the heat rise in his chest again, causing his frown to deepen. Could werewolves get heartburn? He’ll have to ask Deaton.

“I don’t need friends,” Theo sneers. Liam’s too lazy to open his eyes, so he just rolls them internally.

“Everyone needs friends, Theo,” Mrs. Finch firmly states. “Companionship. Someone to share their life with. Someone to talk to when things get bad. It’s human nature.”

Yes, Liam finds himself nodding to what Mrs. Finch was saying. Theo needs friends just like everyone else, and Liam can be his friend. Friends tell each other things… like what evil scheme they’re plotting.

Liam mentally added “Step 2: Befriend Theo in person” to his Master Plan.

“I’m not a human, Mrs. Finch,” Theo mumbles. “I’m a science experiment. A monster. My entire purpose in life is to take life away from others. I am not made for friendship.”

Liam's mouth drops open in shock. Did Theo truly think that about himself or is he putting on a show? Liam really wishes he could see the chimera’s face at the moment.  

“No, Theo, you’re a human who has made monstrous mistakes. But life isn’t black and white. Just because you did something terrible, doesn’t mean you can’t ever do anything good. And just because someone has done something good, it doesn’t mean they’re incapable of doing something evil.”

“So you’ve known all along why I’m here, then.” Liam has to strain his werewolf senses to pick up on the whisper, Theo’s flat tone taking the sentence from a question to a statement.

“Yes, Theo, but I want to hear you say it.”

And Liam can’t help but hope he does say it because he’s really fucking confused about what is happening right now.

“Do we really have to do this?” Theo challenges, and Liam hears the taptaptap of a pencil hitting the desk, a sign Theo is nervous.

Liam didn’t know Theo could get nervous. Liam also doesn’t know how he knows that’s a sign Theo is nervous. He feels a headache forming.

“Talk about feelings? Yes, Theo, we do.”

And wow, does she have a death wish? Everyone knows Theo doesn’t do feelings. It’s just... known.

He can’t help but feel bitter, though, that Mrs. Finch has suddenly grown a backbone when it comes to student/teacher interactions. If only she had that same relentlessness when Liam needed her.

“Why?” Theo asks, drawing Liam back to their conversation.

God damnit, Theo! He needs answers and wishes Theo would stop being so obstinate. He also wishes Mason were here, because he’d know what was going on.

“You know,” Mrs. Finch sighs, “if you put as much effort into being social as you do being stubborn, I think you’d have a legitimate shot at being the most popular student at Beacon Hills.”

Liam wholeheartedly agrees with this statement.

The pencil tapping stops, indicating to Liam that Theo feels like he’s in control again.

“Someone new followed me on Instagram, and I have more followers than people I follow. Isn’t that the new version of being popular?”

Liam will have to somehow discreetly inform Theo that you don’t talk about social media with teachers. It's just... wrong.

He quickly pulls his phone out of his pocket, fingers navigating to Theo’s Instagram page like they have a million times before... which they haven’t. His muscle memory is just that good, okay?

He’s slightly ashamed of his social media stalking skills, not noticing until now that Theo only follows a handful of people; two professional skateboarders, Bill Nye (wow, what a fucking nerd), and… Liam.

“And I have a job,” Theo smugly adds as Liam slides his phone back into his pocket, ignoring the fluttery feeling in his stomach. Maybe he shouldn’t have eaten that fourth serving of Chinese food last night.

Wait, what, did Theo say he had a job? Since when?! That would explain the new clothes and fancy ass phone, Liam thinks to himself. Interesting...

“Being social on the internet doesn’t count if you don’t interact with people face to face, and you know how I feel about your line of work.”

Jesus, what does Theo do for work that could warrant that tone?!

“You told me to join it!” Theo cries, outraged. “If I remember correctly, your exact words were, ‘People who don’t use at least one form of social media seem like they’re hiding something.’ Besides, you’re just jealous because I make more money in one week than you do in a month.”

Liam can only think of one job that does not require at least a high school degree, makes thousands of dollars, and warrants that “I’m Very Disappointed in You, I Know You Can Do Better” tone.

There’s no way Theo would do that, though, right?

“Yes, well, Quinn liked using it a lot. It helped her connect with other young people who shared her infatuation with reading,” Mrs. Finch answers, footsteps echoing as she seemingly ignores Theo’s jab at her job and returns to her desk. “Maybe you need a hobby. But one that involves interacting with other people.”

Liam pictures Theo knitting with a bunch of old ladies, and he has to hold his hand over his mouth to keep from busting out laughing.

“I will find a hobby if it means we can stop having this conversation,” Theo snarks back, the sound of the pencil tapping starting again.

“You better find one in a hurry, then,” Mrs. Finch says. “I’ll expect a status report the next time I see you in my classroom.”

“You’ll see me seventh period…” Theo trails off, for once sounding concerned.

“Better get a move on it, then. I’m sure Coach Finstock would love to have you on the -”

“No. Literally, anything but lacrosse,” Theo answers quickly before Mrs. Finch can finish her sentence.

Liam actually feels a bit hurt by that. What was wrong with lacrosse?

He pictures Theo participating in scrimmages with the team, shirtless because he’s always the captain for the Skins team in Skins vs Shirts. He pictures Theo meeting them at the gym in the morning, spotting Liam as he tries to break his own squat PR. He pictures Theo hugging him after Liam scores the winning shot in the championship, effortlessly hoisting him onto his shoulders as the team chants, “Dunbar Is Our King”…

Yeah, no, he can’t really see Theo and lacrosse as a thing.

“There’s the Science Club?” Mrs. Finch says, making the idea sound like a question as if she’s unsure how Theo would react.

“Too many people, plus they’re all idiots,” Theo scoffs. “And what kind of science club doesn’t allow you to blow things up?”

Liam didn’t know they had a science club, but he agrees with Theo’s consensus. The best part of science was making things explode.

“Okay, one-on-one tutoring?”

“Good luck finding someone who will willingly tutor with me,” Theo replies, and Liam frowns, hearing some bitterness in his tone.

“I can think of one person, Theo. But you’re a smart boy, I’m sure you’ll figure it out.”

“Or what?” Theo challenges, and Liam holds his breath in anticipation. What would she do if he refused? And...why does she care to begin with?

“I’ll be sure the library has an open seat for you during study hall Monday.”

And wow. Liam blinks in confusion. He didn’t know what he was expecting but that just seems anticlimactic.

“Seriously?” Theo asks, and Liam recoils at the amount of anger lacing his voice. “You’re not my mom, Mrs. Finch, you can’t force me to be a ‘real boy’.”

“And you’re not my son, Theodore.” She says it calmly, but with a sense of sadness, like she wishes Theo could be her son.

Liam genuinely feels like he’s missing something here. Are investigations supposed to just raise more questions? He wonders if he could ask the Sheriff about it.

They sit in silence for several moments, Theo’s anger practically wafting through the floorboards, suffocating him from his perch on the bucket. Liam’s all but holding his breath to hear what Theo would say next.

But Mrs. Finch speaks before he can.

“But that doesn’t mean I don’t want what’s best for you, Theo. You deserve happiness. You deserve to have friends. To feel loved, to experience life’s greatest joys and heartbreaks.”



“I’ve experienced some heartbreak already. Literally. I don’t deserve-”

“Stop,” Mrs. Finch commands, the intensity of her tone causing Theo to audibly snap his mouth shut. “Yes, you’ve made mistakes. But I know you’ve begun atoning for them, too. From the second you walked in here asking for extra credit, I knew it wasn’t just because you were lonely. Or seeking refuge from the library that constantly reminds you of your crimes. You knew I needed company, and it takes someone with a heart to not only see that in another person, but to do something about it.”

The bell rings, startling Liam so badly he falls off his seat and cutting off any reply from Theo. Liam bolts from the storage closet before either Theo or Mrs. Finch could catch him eavesdropping. He hides in the boy’s locker room for a few minutes, thoughts whirling through his head about what he overheard as his heart pounds through his chest.

His phone vibrates in his pocket, and he unlocks it to see a text from Mason asking him if he’s okay and informing him that he grabbed his backpack for him.

“Thanks, yes i’m good, just had a stomach ache. See you in Bio in just a min,” he types back.

“And I think Theo is a prostitute,” he adds, returning his phone to his pocket and heading back down the hall.

Chapter Text

Liam glides through Mrs. Finch’s classroom door, careful to avoid eye contact with the teacher, afraid she would see his face and immediately know he eavesdropped on her private conversation with Theo. Although their class did not have assigned lab stations, Mason and Liam tended to choose a table in the middle of the room, but upon receiving Liam’s outlandish text, Mason had claimed the back table as their own for the day.

“Explain,” Mason demands, as Liam scoots his stool back.

Tossing his backpack under the table, Liam folds his arms onto the table, laying his head down as he takes a deep breath, trying to refocus.

“I can’t, not here,” Liam moans, sound muffled by the tabletop.

“Liam Andrew Dunbar, you cannot claim Theo is a prostitute without any sort of further explanation!” Mason yell whispers, placing his hand on Liam’s shoulder and shaking it.

“Shhhh!” Liam cries, immediately lifting his head to see if Mrs. Finch was paying attention to them. She had her back to them as she wrote today’s assignment on the board, but paused as a strong cough wracked her body. Liam frowns, wondering if the wolfsbane powder he laced the erasers with could still be effective several months later.

“I promise I’ll tell you the story,” Liam swears, turning to face his best friend so he could see the seriousness in his expression. “Just not while we’re at school.”

Mason rolls his eyes.

“Then the next time you have some insane half- gossip, I’m going to ask you to refrain from telling me about it until you can tell me the full story,” Mason says, digging through his backpack to find a pen.

“Deal,” Liam smiles, turning his head towards the front of the room. He stares at the board, pen in hand over his notebook, creating the illusion of the perfect student ready to take notes. Reality… much different.

Would Theo really sell his body for money? Was that how he was affording his new, name brand wardrobe and newly released electronics? It made sense, if Liam was being honest with himself. Theo was still in high school, and Beacon Hills was well known for hiring students in an effort to “build a better community” (also code for “We hire young students so we can pay them minimum wage and refuse to give them benefits, because money). Most other high school kids who worked, however, didn’t need the kind of money the chimera would. They had parents to buy their clothes, food, and other desires, and they didn't need to pay for rent or utilities. Liam scowls as he senses an unfamiliar feeling blossoming up... shame.

Did Scott know? Would he help Theo if he did?

Liam refocuses his attention on the lecture, smiling internally when he sees Mrs. Finch is once again writing on the board, this time drawing a diagram of... oh god, what the fuck is that? He squints a bit, head turning towards the side as he peeks at the notes of the girl in front of him. She titled the lecture, “Meiosis and Mitosis”. Liam swiftly jots the same information down onto his paper, satisfied by his amount of participation for the present moment, and once again removes his phone from his pocket.

“Where does Theo work?” he texts Scott, glancing up briefly to confirm Mrs. Finch is still writing on the board.

“No idea, bud, sorry. Is something wrong?” Scott writes back almost instantly, causing Liam to smile. He loves his Alpha and misses him fiercely.

“Phones away, Liam,” Mrs. Finch directs, and Liam drops his phone in surprise, leaning off his stool to catch the device an inch before it hits the ground. As he rights himself, Liam’s notices she’s still facing away from him, chalk in hand as she adds more to her diagram of fuckery. Liam glares, knowing any other teacher would be unaware of his rule breaking.

“Sorry, family issue,” Liam replies, knowing his heart rate won’t increase, because technically it wasn’t a lie. They may not be blood related, but any issue involving Scott or his pack was considered a family issue in his mind.

Mrs. Finch resumes her lecture, and Liam doesn’t bother to listen since he’s been lost since oh like... months ago when the semester started. He’s unsure what possessed him to enroll in the class in the first place, but the look of pride his mother gave him when he showed her his schedule was the only thing keeping him there.

After what seemed like eternity, the bell finally rang, and Liam scoops his books into his backpack, shouldering the bag as he moved into the hall to wait for Mason, who of course, had a question for their teacher.

Watching his peers walk by as he leans unnoticed against the wall, Liam spots Theo (or more accurately, the top of his black beanie) entering the lunchroom alone. Liam knows automatically it’s Theo, because every other student gets yelled at for breaking dress code by wearing any type of hat, but for some curious reason, Theo gets left alone. Liam vaguely wonders if the staff is fearful of the chimera, too.

Deciding now would be the perfect time to enact Step 2 of his Master Plan, Liam all but saunters to the cafeteria, accidentally forgetting he was waiting for Mason.

By the time he exits the lunchline, tray laden with greasy, unappetizing food, Mason, Corey, Nolan, and Alec are seated at their usual table. Liam scans the crowded cafeteria, eyes sweeping back and forth as he makes his way to their table, lips turning downwards as he’s unable to locate Theo. He takes his seat next to Mason, shutting his eyes briefly as he listens for the familiar thumpthumpthump of Theo’s heartbeat. Pinpointing the sound almost directly in front of him but a few tables away, Liam locates Theo at one of the tables along the wall, the boy staring down at a book as he eats his burger, all but blending into his surroundings.

Within seconds, Theo’s glancing up as if he can sense eyes on him. He surveys the room, and Liam knows he should look away before he gets caught. Before he can make a decision, Theo’s eyes lock with Liam’s, and wow, have they always been so green? Liam mentally kicks himself, because what the fuck kind of thought is that?

They just remind me of Harry Potter’s eyes, Liam nods to himself, content with his conclusion.

Lost in his thoughts, Liam doesn’t realize until over a minute has passed that he’s still staring at Theo, and wow, why is he so awkward today? Corey was in the seat next to Mason, and if Liam leans back and stretches just a bit, maybe Corey will take a hint and make them disappear? Or like... lend him his powers for the day? Liam would be cool with a powers swap, feeling guilty for making Corey ever doubt he was useful in the pack. Liam would sell a kidney for invisibility right now.

Theo raises an eyebrow in what look like a challenge, immediately causing the anger beneath his skin to hum louder as it attempts to make its way to the surface. Previous embarrassment forgotten, Liam remains silent as a scowl crosses his face.

“What?” Theo growls, eyes moving back down to his tray as he breaks the eye contact. Liam initially feels smug, because everyone knows it’s a sign of weakness to be the first one to look away, and Theo loathes showing weakness.

But that tone of voice he just used? Fuck, no.

“I’ll be right back,” Liam says to his friends, ignoring their questions as he throws his backpack over one shoulder, grabbing his textbooks with one hand and lunch tray in the other. Dodging other students as they head to their own tables, Liam plows his way through the cafeteria, coming to a stop at Theo’s table.

The older chimera doesn’t acknowledge Liam’s presence, which, how fucking rude, so Liam “accidentally” slams his books down on the table, outwardly smirking at Theo’s slight jump.

Theo still doesn’t look up from his tray, and Liam’s smirk drops as he remembers he actually has no idea what to do next. They’ve never really interacted outside of pack business, and he’s unsure how to “break the ice” so to speak. He opens his mouth to say something, anything, really, but Theo speaks first.

“I’m honored you’ve decided to grace me with your presence, Dunbar, but I’m not exactly in the mood to chit-chat,” Theo drawls, and Liam recognizes he’s using his 'Go-The-Fuck-Away' voice.

Liam snaps his mouth shut, relieved Theo’s sassy comment prevented his own word vomit from spilling forth.

Liam sits down anyways, because he didn’t come this far just to go back to his own table, metaphorical tail between his legs.

Besides, since when has he let himself be intimidated by Theo?

“Okay,” he answers, idly opening his history textbook, pretending to review the chapter reading from the night before as their silence lengthens.

“What the fuck do you want?” Theo snaps, igniting a small fire of rage within Liam. He can’t help but find it upsetting to be on the other side of their arguments. Usually it’s Liam doing the angry, hostile sassing, and Theo is the smug, pretentious asshole who just laughs about it all.

What did he do to deserve this version of Theo?

Oh my god, does Theo know Liam overheard him talking to Mrs. Finch? Liam shudders at the idea, starting to wonder if Mason’s prediction of him getting murdered was going to come true.

Should he write a will?

Nah, Liam decides moments later. Too much effort. He’d be more concerned if the comment came from their resident Queen of Death, Lydia, instead of Mason. He vows to text her later to see how she’s doing... and possibly see if she has any inclination of his impending doom.

“No need to catch an attitude,” Liam snaps back, and Theo has the audacity to smirk back, pissing the beta off even more. “Maybe I just want to eat lunch with you.”

Good answer, Dunbar, he mentally congratulates himself. He’d like to see Theo try arguing with that!

“You’ve ignored me at school for two months now, Dunbar, I’m not buying that bullshit. What. Do. You. Want?”

Holy shit, is that what this sudden animosity is about? Because they don’t talk at school? Theo’s always been... well, a douche towards him, but it was always more in a teasing sense. It was just their thing. They were assholes to each other, they punched each other, but at the end of the day, they still had each other’s backs.

He bites back his initial reaction; denial. He wasn’t ignoring Theo, because ignoring someone meant you cared enough about them to want to decisively ignore them. And Liam didn’t give a rats ass about Theo.

You’re a liar, his conscious claims, and damn, why did it always have to sound like Mason?  Remember his first day back?

Liam inwardly cringes, eyes staring unfocused at Theo’s pile of textbooks, reliving the memory as if he fell into a Pensieve.

On Theo’s first day, Liam was having the Monday-est of Mondays, like 10/10, worst day ever  As he was getting ready for bed the night before, he suddenly remembered that he had an AP Biology test the next day and stayed up until 4am, cramming. Too tired to even move from his desk chair to the bed, Liam had forgotten to plug his phone into the charger, waking up two hours later than usual because his phone died overnight, taking his alarm with it.

Liam skipped breakfast, showering, and brushing his teeth, foregoing personal hygiene in an attempt to avoid the wrath of Principal Martin. Coach Finstock had told him last week he’d be unable to play in the next lacrosse game if he was late to first period again.

Liam ran the entire distance to school, legs and lungs burning as he pushed himself to the limit. By the time he was skidding to a stop in front of his first period, he was hunched over, hands on his knees as he tried to suck as much oxygen into his poor lungs, sweat dripping from his hair onto the floor.

Opening the door as quietly as possible,  he stumbled into the class, avoiding the eyes of his disapproving teacher, and made his way to his seat, only stopping upon realizing somebody was in it.

“Nice of you to finally join us, Mr. Dunbar, oh, about an hour or so late,” his teacher remarked, sarcasm evident in her voice. As he turned to face her, Liam noticed he didn’t recognize most of the people in the class. Stomach dropping in horror at his mistake, he bolted from the room, heading across campus in the direction of his second period class.

Turning the corner, Liam almost tripped over his own feet as his brain caught up with his eyes. Because there in front of him was the lady he was attempting to evade, and the one person he never thought he’d see again at Beacon Hills High; Theo. The two were facing each other, giving Liam a side view of their profiles. Mrs. Martin was talking animatedly, using her hands to convey her point, as Theo appeared to listen, arms crossed, face remaining a blank mask.

Frozen in place, Liam could do nothing but gawk at his (former?) enemy. Theo was wearing form-fitting jeans, paired with a soft looking blue shirt and his usual leather jacket, hair slightly gelled to give it a fluffy, but styled appearance.

He can’t see me like this, Liam thought to himself, panicking, knowing he looked (and probably smelled) like he’s a homeless trainwreck who lives in the sewers and only eats onions for breakfast. Theo would never let him live it down.

Just as he’s about to hightail it out of there, second period be damned, Mrs. Martin turns towards him, disapproval clear on her face as she catches sight of him.

“What are you doing out of class, Liam?” she asks, causing Theo to turn and face him, a step behind the principal.

This is what a deer caught in headlights must feel like, he thought to himself, a small squeak escaping his lips.

At the time, all he could think was runrunrun, but as he relives the memory, Liam notices some other details he previously missed. Like how when Theo spotted him, his lips turned upwards in a small, genuine smile meant only for the two of them. Or how he raised his hand slightly, as if to wave. Or the hurt, crestfallen look that flashed across his wave for a brief second as Liam continued to silently gape at him.  

And what did Liam do? He ran away, like the coward he was, using Coach’s office as his hiding spot until AP Biology. The worst part? His test was on Tuesday, giving him an extra day to study.

He’s forcefully broken out of his reverie by a sharp kick to his shin, pain radiating through his body.

“What the fuck, Theo?” Liam cries, reaching his hand under the table to soothe his aching shin. “I need your help, okay, damn, did you have to kick me?”

He’s going to talk to Mason before he writes Step 3 of his Master Plan, because clearly he doesn’t know what he’s doing.

Theo smiles. “Yes, since it got me an answer. And, Little Wolf, my answer is... no.”

Liam wonders where the nickname suddenly came from. He wants to be annoyed by it, but even though Theo’s being a brat, he said Little Wolf so… fondly, that it gave Liam butterflies.

Or maybe he just has gas? Ugh, he’s never eating Chinese food again.


“You don’t even know what I need help with,” Liam pouts, but laughs inside because he has no idea what he needs help with, either. But then Liam recognizes one of the books in Theo’s pile as their AP Biology text, and a plan begins to form.

“Doesn’t matter, I don’t want to help.” Theo answers. “Go ask one of your actual friends for help.”

Okay, that stings a bit, Liam acknowledges to himself, plowing on despite the adversity. He's strong willed, okay? If Theo wanted to play the emotionally manipulative game, well, so could he.

The older boy stands up, gathering his books into his bag, and Liam knows he isn’t about to win this conversation if he doesn’t do something drastic.

“I thought I was,” Liam replies, softly, looking away as he spoke, surprising himself as he hears his heartbeat remain steady. Since when has he considered Theo to be a friend? “Mrs. Finch expects me to be as good as Scott, and Mason isn’t as good at biology as you are.” Liam cringes slightly at the end, because Mason would be so offended if he heard those words come from Liam’s lips.


“I’m not your friend only when it’s convenient for you, Liam,” Theo snaps, grabbing his tray off the table, roughly dumping the items into the trashcan and slamming the empty tray onto the shelf above the bin.

Liam sits rooted to the spot for several breaths, eyes blinking dazedly as he wonders what the fuck he’s gotten himself into. He reflects back to the conversation he overheard between Mrs. Finch and Theo. Theo seem to ostracize himself from his peers, always eating alone and apparently spending his study hall (aka social hour) with his teacher. And the latter would end if Theo was unable to find a hobby to satisfy their teacher’s requirements.

The only person he’s ever remotely sociable towards is… Liam.  

Liam frowns at the realization.

Did Liam unintentionally reject his hand in friendship on Theo’s first day back? He knows Theo’s biggest weakness is his pride, and he’s sure his ego took a big hit that day, even if Theo never pointed it out until now.    

Before he can think too much about it and chicken out, he gathers his own belongings, sprinting down the hall as he follows Theo’s woodsy scent through the school.

Chapter Text

Theo smirks as he leaves a stunned, speechless Liam in the cafeteria, making sure to push the doors open harder than necessary so they crash behind him as he leaves the lunchroom. No clear destination in mind, Theo’s feet guide him to the one safe place in this godforsaken shit show school; the gym.

Growing up with the Dread Doctors may not have been the most loving and warm childhood a kid could have, but it was very useful. As a chimera, Theo was aware his special abilities were weaker than that of a normal werewolf or werecoyote; his sense of smell, healing, hearing, sight, speed... all inferior. Theo knew it, and he hated it, but the Dread Doctors helped him compensate for his perceived failures.

He’d bet his truck that he utilizes his talents more fully than any member of the McCall pack (except possibly Derek), Scott included.

Scott’s little beta couldn’t tell the difference between anger, guilt, sadness, or shame if it hit him square in the face. Reading chemosignals, the Geneticist said, was the easiest way to manipulate people. He can recognize an individual's emotions long before most people had the barest idea of what they were feeling.

Malia was a solid fighter. Aggressive and strong, the werecoyote could take down someone twice her size, but her moves were utterly predictable to anyone who saw her in an altercation more than once. Theo was ruthless, but he adjusted his fighting style with each person he faced. Combining his enhanced hearing and eyesight, Theo knew where his opponent would attack, thus allowing him to counter the movement or find a weak point in their defense. Malia’s style was less... refined.    

Scott, the True Alpha himself, couldn’t hide his scent or his tracks any better than a human could. But Theo? Theo could disappear off the face of the Earth if he so chose to, and not a single person would be able to find him.

He begins to mask his scent about halfway to his destination on the unlikely chance that Liam decides to follow him. He figures he’s probably being paranoid, but Liam’s behavior was increasingly erratic, so he reasons it’s better to be safe than sorry.

Theo’s fifth period is English, but he strongly believes his skittish teacher would prefer for him not to show up to her class. Normally, her overwhelming scent of fear bothered him, all but choking him if he moves too close to her or making him want to sneeze from his seat in the back. But on days like today where he just needs to escape, he was grateful for her uneasiness.

Dressing quickly into a pair of form fitting sweatpants and a new gray beanie, Theo decides to forgo a shirt, because why would he want to hide his chest pump? Theo loses himself in his workout, focusing only on his rep counts, his breathing, and his thoughts of squeezesqueezesqueeze as he activates his muscle fibers.

Theo hears the gym door opening, and he glances up from his spot on the bench in bewilderment. Did Liam successfully track him, or was it just a lucky guess?

“Dude,” an unfamiliar voice says in pure amazement. “You look fucking shredded, bro, don’t move.”

Theo doesn’t look up as the newcomer snaps a quick picture of him, trying to ignore the sinking feeling in his stomach as he realizes it’s not Liam who finds him.

“Want me to send it to you?” the dark-haired kid asks as he shows him the snap.

Theo faintly recognizes the guy as a lacrosse player, probably one of the younger ones seeing as how he was, at most, a centimeter taller than Liam. The kid is muscular, too, maybe more so than Liam, but he can tell the kid’s extra weight slows him down on the field. Unlike Liam, who is lean and quick, this kid appears too bulky to play lacrosse with same skill the beta has.   

“Sure,” he says, plucking the phone from the kid’s hand as he types his number in and hits the send button. Theo feels his own phone vibrate in his pocket.

“Thanks,” he adds, handing the kid his phone back as he turns around, hoping to avoid further conversation with the pint-sized jock.

“No problem, man!” the kid says as he continues to stare open mouthed at Theo, ignoring the chimera’s body language screaming for him to go away. He fleetingly wonders if this is what Harry Potter felt like as Colin Creevey fawned over him.

Theo slides his hand into his pocket, grabbing his phone and promptly typing in his passcode to unlock the device. He immediately opens up Instagram, pausing as Liam’s workout post from this morning pops up on his feed. He hates admitting it to himself, but Liam was starting to put on a good amount of muscle, and he was kind of impressed.

Theo taps the picture to make it bigger, frowning when the image stays the same size. He double taps it, heart sinking in dismay as a little white heart appears on the picture before disappearing.

Fuck, did he just like Liam’s gym picture? Fuck. He did. Fuck! He needed to fix this, like right this second. Could he unlike it? Would Liam still get a notification that Theo liked it?... and then he’d look for the like and Theo’s name wouldn’t be there, and that would probably be even more embarrassing than liking it to begin with, and Theo isn’t sure what to do right now, and fuck, can chimera’s have panic attacks? He didn’t survive Hell just to die in shame and embarrassment over an Instagram picture.

Theo clicks to leave a comment.

“Aw, that’s cute, Little Wolf. I remember my first day at the gym.”

That didn’t seem good enough, though. He didn’t want Liam to get the wrong idea.

Theo’s eyes drift over to the freshman who’s still creepily staring up at him in awe, and he gets an idea.

Theo uploads the picture Fanboy took, taking a second to edit the image lighting so his muscles popped even more. He bites his bottom lip as he thinks about a caption, smirking to himself when he conceives the perfect one.

“What a real pump looks like,” he writes, adding the arm flex emoji and a winky face for good measure.

Theo’s not really sure how Instagram works or how often Liam looks through his feed, so he decides to tag the beta in the image to guarantee that he sees it.

“You should totally try out for lacrosse,” Fanboy is rambling on, arms spazzing as he speaks in such a way that he’s briefly reminded of Stiles.

Theo sighs, audibly, because why is everyone trying to sell him out to the lacrosse team?

“We could use someone who’s ya know...athletic…”

“Dunbar is athletic,” Theo angrily interrupts, instantly mortified as he repeats the words in his head. He wants to bash his head into the wall, but he needs to determine if he needs to first bash this kid’s head into a wall to protect his image.

The kid holds his hands up defensively, but a small smile lingers around the corners of his lips.

“Trust me, I’m well aware of how good Liam is. We all are, but he can’t carry the team by himself,” the kid calmly answers, eyes pleading as an exaggerated pout forms on his lips. “But with someone as fit as you on the team to help Liam? We’d be unstoppable! And we’d all feel a lot safer on the field next to someone as strong as you, even Liam.”

Theo rolls his eyes, because, really? He invented emotional manipulation.

He pauses, though, actually weighing the merits of the idea. If he wants to continue spending his study hall experimenting in Mrs. Finch’s lab, and in turn, avoid the library and the idiocy of his peers, he needs to find some sort of “hobby.”

While lacrosse wouldn’t be his first choice of a sport, he’d be able to keep an eye on Liam and make sure the beta doesn’t lose control without Scott there to baby him. And he’d be able to spend more time with the younger boy... to piss him off, of course, which counts as a second hobby. He’d have to miss a few practices because of work, but if the team is as shitty as this kid is making it out to be, he’s sure Coach wouldn’t mind.

“I’ll tell you what, kid,” Theo starts, speaking over his shoulder as he moves towards the locker room. “I’ll consider joining the team, as long as you promise never to interrupt my workout again.”

“Yes, I promise! My name is Parker by the way.”

“Theo.”

He waits for Parker’s reaction to his name. The younger boy may not have recognized Theo, but surely he’s heard the rumor surrounding him.

The kid’s heart rate stays steady, and he’s practically beaming at him. There’s no scent of fear or distress at all.

Theo is stunned by the realization this kid doesn’t seem petrified of him.

And although it’s nice to be near someone who isn’t afraid of him, because even Liam has moments when he remembers just how truly fucked up Theo is, Theo’s mind automatically categorizes this pint-sized annoyance as a threat

His senses flare on high alert, mind screaming TRAP!

In Theo’s experience, the only people who aren’t scared of monsters are also monsters, usually more dangerous and darker than him.

He steps closer to the shorter boy, claws slowly lengthening and nose inhaling deeply as he tries to sort through the smells accosting his senses. The kid smells a bit spicy and sweaty, like most teenage boys, but there’s a third smell he can’t determine, something more natural or woodsy. Nothing to indicate he’s supernatural, but Theo’s been taught to never rely solely on information gathered from just one of his senses.

“What are you?” Theo growls, green eyes boring into brown as he searches the kid’s face for a clue.

“Uh, Irish and Italian mostly with a little bit of Native American,” the kid answers languidly, eyes blinking confusedly. “But I don’t see why that matters? Unless you have a problem with that?”

“You know what I mean,” he says, stepping closer in a bid to intimidate the boy, ghosting the tips of his claws down the side of the boy’s arm. “And I’ll know if you lie.”

Theo’s expecting for him to at least step back, ya know, a normal response to when someone bigger than you and with claws gets in your face, but the brat doesn’t move a muscle.

In fact, the freshman smiles. Theo’s mouth parts in shock.  

“No, not really, bro,” the kid laughs back, and Theo finally recognize the third, unidentifiable natural smell; marijuana.

“Are you high?” Theo questions, stepping back to get a better look at the boy as he shifts his claws back to human fingernails. The boy’s heart rate had been steady, but after Theo’s question, the heart rate skips a beat, informing Theo his guess was right.

“Shhh!” the kid cries, looking around the empty gym as if he expects Coach Finstock to be hiding beneath one of the weight benches. “My parents don’t want me taking medicine for my ADHD, but smoking helps me focus, and the munchies help me bulk up.”

Fucking figures that the one kid who isn’t afraid of him is stoned off his ass. Theo rolls his eyes as he turns on his heel to head back to the locker room.

“Being high has nothing to do with me not being scared of you,” the dark-haired boy whispers, and Theo freezes in a mixture of humiliation and horror, mentally berating himself for speaking his last thought aloud. “I know what you’re capable of.”

Theo closes his eyes and grits his teeth, assaulted by the memories of everything he’s done.

Watching from the bridge as his sister dies, doing nothing because she has something he needs. The Dread Doctors ripping Tara’s heart out of her cold, lifeless body, empty promises of power and greatness emitting from their masked mouths. Trapping an enraged Liam in the library with his Alpha, using the beta in his power hungry rampage. Gutting Scott with his claws because Liam was too human to finish the job.  Electricity coursing through his body as he kills Josh, again, because killing him once wasn’t enough, not when it comes to power. Kissing Tracy so he can get close enough to kill her, too, the most loyal member of his “pack”, dead, because of him. The feel of his power increasing with each murder, his control strengthening, one step closer in his effort to becoming a real werewolf; the apex predator. The Alpha. To be safe.   

He thinks of the lies. The manipulation. For power. For a pack. Because he was lonely. And afraid. Always so fucking afraid. Never good enough. Weak. Failure failure FAILURE.

“Anyone with a brain who knows who I am would be afraid,” he grits, eyes still closed. Breathe in, breathe out. Calming his heart rate. Regaining control. Focus, Theo.

“I know that part. But Nolan told me about how you took Gabe’s pain before he died even though he did horrible things to you. And to Liam. I wouldn’t have been able to do that.”

“Okay, and all of this matters, how?” Theo grunts, because really, he didn’t need this confusing, Deaton-esque vagueness. His shoulders are tense, drawn tightly in as he subconsciously tries to make himself smaller. To be overlooked and left alone. His left hand is clenched tightly to his side, as the fingers of his right hand are alternatingly tapping a pattern on his right thigh. The desire to flee courses rapidly through his veins, but Theo’s curiosity wins out,

“Gabe was my brother.”

Ah, awkward. And not what he was expecting. Theo releases the breath he didn’t know he was holding.

“I’m sorry,” he says uncomfortably, turning around to take a look at the kid once more. They don’t look too much alike, Gabe and Parker, but they have the same dark and intense features. Parker’s head is down, black curls falling in his face, but Theo can smell the saltiness of the tears rolling down his cheeks. “For your loss.”

He supposes he means it sincerely, because he imagines it must suck to lose a member of your family. Theo knows, to an extent, what it feels like, but he was also responsible for her death, so he isn’t sure if his feelings truly count on the matter.

“It’s fucked up,” Gabe’s brother says, eyes still downcast as he scuffs his foot across the floor. “I was happy when Nolan stopped by and told me what happened. We weren’t ever that close, me and Gabe, but I hated everything he had become in the last sixth months or so. I only cried when I saw Nolan crying because at that moment, I realized how fucking relieved I felt at the news. How fucked up is it that you’re happy your brother is dead?”

At the question, the boy raises his head, eyes hopeful like he wants Theo to confirm he’s fucked up.

“I’m not really the person you should take advice from when it comes to right or wrong,” he answers honestly, sitting down on the bench and glancing to the other end in silent invitation. Gabe’s brother shuffles down next to him, entirely too close for comfort.

Unsure what to do or say, Theo hesitantly drapes his right arm over the boy’s shoulders. The kid scoots impossibly closer, burrowing his damp face on Theo’s bare chest as he weaves his arm around Theo’s waist, curling his body into Theo’s. Cringing as he feels tears dripping down his abdomen, Theo moves his left arm to cover Parker’s right arm, securing him in place, because apparently, yes, this was happening. Why did everyone want to talk about feelings today?

He seriously regrets not wearing a shirt, though.

Before he can say anything, the sound of the gym door being thrown open echoes through the room, and Gabe’s brother grips him harder, the side of his face still hidden by his curls.

“THEO?” Liam’s panicked voice calls, and Theo closes his eyes, now finding himself gripping the boy in his arms harder, hoping they could somehow disappear before Liam turns the corner.

“Theo?” Liam calls again from much closer, this time questioningly. “Are you... okay?”

Theo opens his eyes, resigning himself to the awkwardness, as he slides his normal mask back onto his face.

“We’re having a moment,” Theo plainly states, left hand gently patting Parker’s head. “Do you need something?”

Liam doesn’t say anything for a moment, but Theo smells the jealousy leaking from every pore of his body, making the chimera clench his teeth. Of course, Scott’s perfect beta would be upset he wasn’t the one comforting the little brother of his deceased enemy. The McCall pack was so disgustingly good, so pure, Theo’s not sure why he ever wanted to be a part of it.

Gradually, the smell lessens and is replaced by embarrassment.

“Uh, no, I guess not.” Liam pauses, tongue nervously sweeping across his lips. “I just smelled... fear.”

“Well, yeah,” Theo nods, because although he didn’t really smell Gabe’s brother’s fear, he could have missed it. “Like I said, we’re having a moment.”

“It wasn’t his,” Liam notes, blue eyes looking everywhere but at Theo.

Theo momentarily frowns before he remembers that moment.

“Your senses are weak, Dunbar,” he lashes out, hoping to distract Liam so he drops the issue. “You wouldn’t know the difference between fear or surprise if your life depended on it.”

Theo smirks as Liam takes the bait. His whole body fills with rage as he clenches his jaw, skin flushing a dark red and a growl rumbles low in his chest..  

“What are you pansies doing in my gym?” Coach Finstock interrupts, seemingly coming out of nowhere. Theo wonders if maybe he really was hiding under a bench. “Although, I always applaud spending more time in the gym, most of my colleagues would disagree and say you need to get to class.”

Coach looks down at Theo, clearly trying to decide if he knows him or not.

“Are you also one of mine?” he asks, eyes squinting as he assesses Theo’s athletic figure.

“Yes!” Parker answers, sitting up for the first time since Liam entered the gym. “He agreed to take Gabe’s place.”

Fuck, did Theo say that? He briefly marvels at how the freshman successfully manipulated him.

“What’s your name, son?” Coach asks, looking between the three of them like they’re pulling his leg.

“Theo Raeken.”

Theo looks off to the side, waiting once again for the smell of fear to assault his nose. When nothing comes, Theo risks a glance over, confused by the smile spreading across the man’s face.

“The same kid who escaped jail and took four inmates with him?”

Theo raises an eyebrow at Coach’s hopeful expression.

“Yep,” Theo answers, adding a “pop” to the end of the word.

Liam scoffs, and Theo rolls his eyes at the beta. Technically, it was true. He escaped the Dread Doctors’ jail, and he took Hayden, Corey, Josh, and Tracy with him.

“The same kid whose had so many physical enhancements, he’s barely considered human anymore?”

“The very same,” Theo bitterly laughs, because yeah, that was true, too, in a way.

Coach is pacing in front of them back and forth, arms flying as his excitement increases. Liam is standing, arms crossed, leaning back against a locker as he surveys the scene. Parker, who is still loosely tucked under Theo’s arm, is smirking at the proceedings. Theo doesn’t need heightened senses to see his smugness.

“The same kid who’s said to be so ridiculously good looking that he can distract even the straightest of straight boys without saying a word?”

“Yes?” he answers hesitantly, because where the fuck did that rumor come from? His eyes shift to a glowering Liam, smiling slightly at the light blush blooming over his cheeks.  

“Welcome to the team, Raeken. We could use that kind of distraction, I mean talent, on our squad.”  

“Cool,” Theo says, already regretting this choice. “Thanks. I might have to miss a few practices because of work.”

Liam stands up straighter, shooting a questioning look towards Theo that he decides to ignore.

“Oh, don’t thank me yet, son. I have one condition. Our lovely co-captain over there,” he nods in Liam’s direction, “has decided to live up to his name, ‘Dumbar,’ and is failing his AP Bio class. Mrs. Finch informs me you’re some sort of Biology prodigy, something to do with you being just one giant walking/talking science experiment. Whatever. I don’t care if you’re a test tube baby, just make sure you can pass a drug test. I need you to use your freaky science powers and change Dumbar to Smartbar, so Principal Martin lets him continue playing on this team.”

Chapter Text

On an average day, Liam would confidently tell any pack member who would listen (so basically only Mason because he was the BEST best friend) about how he’s improving his tracking skills, having come a long way in his capabilities since being turned. Today, or any day when Theo was involved, was not an average day.

After leaving the cafeteria, Liam tracked Theo’s scent down the hallway, through a few winding corridors, and then suddenly lost it. Like, Theo just disappeared from that very spot as if he could suddenly Apparate. Growling in frustration, Liam glared at the freshman staring at him until they screeched and looked away.

Liam shamelessly searched for the chimera for forty minutes, stopping in his 5th period class to claim a terrible stomach ache and asked to see the nurse. His Spanish teacher gave him a skeptical look, but when Liam repeated the question in Spanish, she gave him a thumbs up and a, “Si.”

Liam then checked Mrs. Finch’s room, discreetly peeking in the classroom door, ducking to avoid her sight as she turned around from the board. He darted down the hall, sweeping the library, the parking lot, and even circled around into the theater building, but he was unable to find a trace of the chimera.

Liam leans against his locker, frustration mounting. Where else could he be? His truck was still in the parking lot, and Theo would bite his right arm off with his own teeth before abandoning his 'baby'.

He pulls his phone out of his pocket, toying with the idea of texting the other boy... or calling him and tracking the sounds of the vibrations. Liam abandons that thought process after his enhanced hearing picks up ten different devices vibrating at the current moment - it’d be impossible to hone in on one specific device.

Liam was about to give up and actually go see the nurse for a pass back into class when his phone dings with a new notification; he is alarmed to see that Theo had commented on his photo and tagged him in a new picture. Filled with trepidation, Liam launches the app, first seeing that Theo had liked his gym picture. A giddy smile flashes across his face for the briefest of moments, before it was replaced by an indignant pout at the comment the chimera left.

“Aw, that’s cute, Little Wolf. I remember my first day at the gym.”

Liam mentally snarls at the comment, deeming it unworthy of a response. He decides the best course of action would be to leave an even ruder comment on one of Theo’s pictures.

Remembering Theo had also tagged him in a picture, Liam navigates to his tagged pictures page, wary of what it could be. Jaw dropping, Liam is fucking stunned at the image he sees when the image loads. He unwillingly feels himself blushing heavily at the image of a shirtless Theo performing a chest exercise on the cable tower, veins bulging on rock-hard muscles. Liam frantically looks around to make sure no one has snuck up on him while he was looking at the picture, scrolling down to read the caption once he confirms the coast is clear.

“What a real pump looks like,” it reads, following by a flex emoji and a winky face.

Liam is split, warring between impressed and pissed off at the diss.

Before he can make a decision, the beta is struck with the overpowering scent of fear, the emotion laced with a familiar, woodsy smell that Liam immediately knew had manifested from the chimera.

Liam breaks into a run, not even needing to follow the scent as he realizes Theo is in the one place he didn’t even think to check; the gym. He doesn’t even bother beating himself up over how stupid he is for not going there first, heart gripped by its own fear over what could be happening to Theo at the current moment.

Heart pounding in his chest, Liam throws his body against the metal door, wincing at the cracking sound of the wall it slammed against.

“THEO?” he cries, panicked, when he doesn’t immediately see the chimera or the impending threat.

Claws out and snarl building in his chest, he stops abruptly as he scents another familiar person with Theo, both smelling of a slight sadness and discomfort.

“Theo?” he calls again, slowly approaching the area he senses the two boys are in. “Are you... okay?”

Liam trails off as he finally sees Theo and Gabe’s brother, Parker, sitting together on one of the benches in the attached locker room. Theo is shirtless, arm draped loosely over Parker’s shoulders. The other boy is tucked comfortably into Theo’s body so Liam can’t see his face, but he can smell the sadness and guilt emitting from Parker.

“We’re having a moment,” Theo plainly states, left hand gently patting Parker’s head. “Do you need something?”

Liam clenches his jaw but refrains from saying anything. He can’t help the crushing feeling of jealousy as he watches the two, primarily because Theo never shows any sort of emotions with him, never moves to comfort him, and certainly never touches him like that. For a split second, Liam imagines himself in place of Parker, Theo’s arm wrapped around his shoulders, strong arm holding him in place as Liam snuggles into the heat of the chimera’s bare chest.

He instantly feels embarrassed because one, why is he thinking about cuddling up to a guy, and two, why is he thinking about cuddling up with Theo of all people?

“Uh, no, I guess not,” Liam stammers after he realizes he never answered Theo’s question. He pauses, tongue nervously sweeping across his lips. Should he tell Theo why he barged in here like a psycho? Or just play it off?

“I just smelled... fear,” he says, his mouth apparently making the decision for him. Liam watches Theo, waiting for a reaction, but the chimera just nods like he expected an answer like that.

“Well, yeah,” Theo says. “Like I said, we’re having a moment.”

And oh god, why was Theo going to make him say it? Was he just stubborn? Or dumb? Liam wasn’t sure which at this point.

“It wasn’t his,” Liam states, blue eyes looking everywhere but at the chimera. He briefly glares at Parker, though, knowing the boy won’t see it. The boy still hadn’t moved from his spot on Theo’s fucking chest, and it was starting to grate on his nerves. They were having a civil conversation, and the least he could do was participate. Why were freshman just so… rude?  

Liam notices Theo’s slight frown, as if he’s remembered the moment Liam is referring to. Liam waits with bated breath to hear what Theo says next. How could Parker cause Theo to lose control of his chemosignals like that? Or did something else happen? Liam was dying of curiosity.

“Your senses are weak, Dunbar,” Theo spits out, shocking Liam with the sheer amount venom in his voice. “You wouldn’t know the difference between fear or surprise if your life depended on it.”

Liam’s whole body fills with rage when he sees Theo’s corresponding smirk; his jaw clenches, and he feels his skin heat as a growl rumbles in his chest.

Before he can defend himself from the offensive and untrue remarks, Coach Finstock appears out of nowhere (Liam seriously wonders if he's the one who can Apparate), and somehow, five minutes later, Liam has a new AP Bio tutor and a new lacrosse teammate. (Apparently the ‘D’ he received on his last AP Bio test did not do wonders for his ‘C’ average, what a scam).

Coach shoos the three of them out of the locker room back into the gym, demanding Theo and Liam work out their remedial biology lessons on their own time. He gives them until midterms, which were two weeks away, or he threatened to bench Liam for the Devenford game.

“I’ll text you later,” is all Liam has a chance to say to Theo, nodding at Parker as Coach literally pushes them out of the gym door.

“Now, scram!” Coach shouts, locking the door behind them.

Coach positions himself in front of the door as he watches the three head to their sixth period classes, Liam walking on his own as Theo and Parker head in the other direction.

Liam trudges through the halls, ignoring the stares of his classmates who still whisper about him after the situation with the hunters. The scrutiny isn’t as bad as what Theo faces, but it makes him feel uncomfortable, a constant prickle in the back of his mind that reminds him he’s different from his peers. A freak.

Liam’s sixth period is study hall, so he wanders through the halls, head down to avoid any confrontation, until he’s entering the familiar double-doors, the smell of books enveloping his senses. He drifts through the shelves, passing students who decided to forgo dragging their heavy books back to their table and have instead just seated themselves on the floor in between the shelves.    

He comes to a stop in the Latin Language section, an area only used only by students who take Latin... and Mason. Fortunately, Latin was only offered sixth period, so Liam is confident he’d be able to hide back here undetected.

Flipping his phone out, he scrolls through his contacts until his finger hovers over “TheoDouche.” Liam can’t claim ownership of the nickname, but Stiles gave him permission to use it, stating, “I’ll come up with something better for my own phone.”

“We have lacrosse practice Mon and Wed afternoon, and games are on Thur,” he texts, leaning back against the bookshelf as he tries to calm his rising heartbeat.

He has no idea what just happened in the last thirty minutes. First, there was Parker, cuddling up to Theo like they were best friends... or something more (which, ew, why would Theo be interested in a lowly freshman?). And Liam knew he felt jealous... not due to any exceptional introspective insight, but because Scott was working with him when he was home from school to scent emotions better. He could smell his own envy, which was awkward as hell but a useful skill. Scott said it would help him become more “self aware”, but mostly he’s confused the shit out of himself.

Then, there was the ordeal with Theo playing lacrosse with them. Could he handle seeing a shirtless Theo at the gym in the morning every day? Remembering the workout picture the chimera posted earlier, he represses a shiver at the memory. Liam anticipates a lot of competition between the two in the weight room.    

He mentioned his job, saying he wouldn’t be able to attend all their practices, but he still didn’t mention what he did. Did prostitutes have schedules? Unions? Or maybe on weekdays, there was less competition from other hookers? Or did Theo do like... nude modeling for art classes? Liam’s mind reeled at the possibilities - he really needs to talk to Mason.

Lastly, how was he going to survive tutoring with Theo? The chimera was like the Hermione Granger of AP Bio and he was like… Neville Longbottom in Potions.

Hopeless.

Liam’s phone vibrates, pulling him from the sinking feeling of despair he was currently working himself in to.     

“Okay,” is all the text said.

Liam glares down at the device like it personally offended him.

“We also have a 30 min mandatory workout each morning in the gym. Starts at 7:30,” he angrily types out, vehemently hitting the send button.

He sees the little dots move across his screen. Liam holds his breath in anticipation.

“Okay.”

Seriously?!

“THEODORE!” he rage types, sending the message before he can think too much about it. The dots don’t appear right away this time, so Liam sets the device down on his thigh.

He unzips his backpack, rifling through it until he finds his math book. He has zero intentions of completing any work, but it was best to feign busyness incase any faculty walked by.

He takes a minute...or five... to close his eyes, head resting against the cool metal of the bookshelf.

“Don’t call me that,” a voice says, startling Liam enough that he smacks his forehead on the shelf above, a small scratch already knitting itself back together as Liam notices the blood trickling down the side of his face.

“Sorry,” Theo says softly, clearly trying to maintain a straight face. He walks back toward the main area of the library, Liam grumbling to himself about stupid ninja chimeras in his wake. He tries to stop the blood from getting on his shirt with his hand, but then his hand is covered in blood, and now he’s annoyed.

Theo returns, tissue box in hand but face expressionless. Liam eyes him skeptically as he approaches, soft footsteps almost impossible to hear.

The chimera grabs a tissue and folds it in half, lightly wetting it with his tongue. Liam sits, motionless, as Theo rubs the tissue across his face, removing all traces of dried blood from his skin.

“Thanks?” Liam says, making the word sound more like a question. Theo’s lip curls up slightly in response, but all he does is nod before handing him another tissue, glancing down at Liam’s blood covered fingers.

“Are you broken?” Liam blurts, and oh god, he feels the word vomit coming, and there’s nothing he can to do stop it. He should run, he knows, but Theo lifts a questioning eyebrow at him, green eyes sparkling with confusion, and Liam just needs to get this all off his chest.  “Like, you were mean in the cafeteria, and you've barely said two words to me since lunch except when you were being all weird in the locker room. And then-”

Liam isn’t ashamed to admit he starts pacing, blood-free hands flying around his head as he describes his concerns (he also doesn’t bother to look at Theo while he talks, knowing from prior experience that watching people's reactions while he vents is super fucking distracting). Instead, he focuses his attention on the gross, dingy carpet beneath his feet as he moves purposefully up and down a section of the aisle.

“You can only text one word? Like, ‘okay’? Is that code for you’re mad at me? But then if that's the case, you should just text, ‘k' because it’s a clearer sign of displeasure. But then you can’t be too mad, considering you just mom’d the shit out of me, and you’re also here in the library with me, which I’m not sure how you found me here, and I know you hate the library, so that’s confusing. And now you’re staring at me all wide-eyed, and, dude, fucking say a full sentence, I’m sorry if I pissed you off, but I can’t deal. Please?!”

He is, however, very ashamed to admit his voice squeaked at the last word.

Theo’s mouth has dropped into a little ‘o’ shape.

“Uh...sorry?” Theo says, rattling on as he sees Liam’s ferocious scowl. “I was in class, dude, you know, the place where you go to learn?”

“This isn’t class,” Liam huffs, arms crossed as he glares at the chimera, embarrassment from his previous diatribe subsiding.   

“Good observation, Liam,” Theo bites back, rolling his eyes but a grin overtakes his mouth, making Liam feel a bit soothed.

Theo wraps his hand around Liam’s wrist, roughly pulling the beta down to sit cross-legged next to him on the ground, backs against the bookshelf. “I could smell your rage from two buildings down.”

“Impressive,” Liam spits, sarcasm lacing the word. He knows Theo is a great liar, but at this moment, he thinks the chimera is being sincere. He’s not sure if it makes him feel better that Theo’s concerned enough about him to check on him, or worse, because he lets the older boy affect his emotions so much.

“Okay, give me a moment,” Theo says, eyes facing forward as he taps a rhythm onto his thigh with his fingers. His mouth is in a slight pout as he mulls over his answer.

Momentarily distracted as he listens to the sound, Liam recognizes Theo’s beat is in tune with the beta’s own heartbeat. Just to be sure, he takes a few deep breaths to lower his heart rate, and the chimera’s tapping slows down too.

“I’ll be honest,” Theo says, snapping Liam out of his thoughts. “I heard about half of your rant, so forgive me if I miss something. But no, I’m not mad at you. My texts were short because Mrs. Perez is a stickler for no phones being out during class. No, I’m not broken. Yes, I do hate the library because no one actually comes here for books, they just come to gossip.” Liam hears the skip in Theo’s heartbeat but lets it slide. “Like I said earlier, your anger was so extensive, the smell travelled down to my classroom. I’m pretty sure every supernatural in this school will avoid you for the rest of the day.”

Liam rolls his eyes as Theo laughs, smacking him in the shoulder with his left hand.

“Do you even know how to play lacrosse?" Liam asks, trying to envision a young Theo playing the sport. It was hard... but kinda cute.

“Nope, which is why you’re going to teach me, and then I’ll be 'mom-drying' your tears when you realize I’m ten times the lacrosse player you could ever dream to be.”

Liam hears the laughter in Theo’s words, and the chimera bumps his shoulder against his to take some of the heat away from the words. But Liam is competitive, and nothing would ever diminish the fire raging under his skin when he senses a challenge.

“Why don’t you ask Parker to teach you?” Liam sneers, crossing his arms over his chest in defiance.

“Why, Dunbar, are you jealous? I can’t say I’m sure why, though,” Theo taunts.

Yeah, that makes two of us

“Besides, why would I ask a freshman for help with something?”

“I’m not jealous,” Liam spits, deciding sounding angry was better than sounding awkward. “And I don’t know, you two seemed buddy buddy even though he’s a freshman.”

“You can be his friend, too,” Theo mockingly pats Liam’s shoulder. “I’ll put in a good word.”

“I don’t want to be his friend! Besides, I’m pretty sure he’s enamored with you.”

“Big word, Dunbar, I’m impressed. Nice to know your English grades are better than your AP Bio ones.”

“Fuck off, Theodore.” Liam begins stuffing his books back into his bag. “What are you doing tonight?”

“It’s Friday…” Theo points out.

“Good observation, Theo,” Liam mocks, lowering his voice in a poor imitation of Theo’s. The chimera's responding glare makes Liam feel smug. “We should start the AP Bio stuff as soon as possible.”

“How about Sunday and Tuesdays?” Theo asks, standing up and then offering his hand to the beta. Liam reluctantly accepts, feeling a slight shock as their hands touch.

“K,” is all Liam replies.

“Why are you mad?” Theo sighs, the two walking side by side down the aisle, headed towards the doors of the library. He doesn’t comment on it, but Theo seems to be standing closer than normal to him.

“I don’t think you understand how much help I need if I’m going to pass midterms,” Liam mutters, eyes locked on his feet to avoid seeing Theo’s expression.

“Hey,” Theo places a hand on his shoulder, stopping him from walking any further. Liam turns to face Theo, and the chimera gives him a reassuring smile. “Dude, I’m a fucking genius. Give me a few days to go over everything, and I’ll have you back on track.”

“Yeah?” Liam says with a laugh. “I guess I’ll be the one ‘mom-drying' your tears as I steal your number one spot at the top of the class."

Theo snorts and shakes his head.

“In your fucking dreams, Dunbar.”

Chapter Text

Theo sits in the front row of his Latin class, dutifully filling out the conjugations worksheet Mrs. Perez handed out to their class. He spots the girl next to him, Sophie, trying to slyly peek at his answers, and with a roll of his eyes, he drops his right arm to his lap to allow the girl to cross-check her work with his. She gives him a small smile in return, and he answers with a minute nod. The girl always appeared less afraid of him than the rest of their peers, but she startled easily if he made any sudden movements… which sometimes he did just for a laugh. But the girl was pretty cool, mostly because she didn’t bother him and seemed to actually care about her studies, which was not something that could be said for the most of the student body.

His phone vibrates in his pocket, and after checking to make sure his teacher is occupied helping another classmate, he slips the device out, hiding it under his desk. Out of his peripheral, Sophie raises her eyebrow at him, eyes fearful. Their entire class knew getting caught on their phones by Mrs. Perez was social suicide. She believed the best way to punish an offender was to also punish the class… peer pressure was the token for conforming in her eyes. Extra worksheets or reading was the typical punishment, but if she was in a particular mood, she’d either do a pop quiz or bring each student to the board to write out difficult verb conjugations while their classmates watched in abject horror.

“We have lacrosse practice Mon and Wed afternoon, and games are on Thur,” the text from Baby Beta Wolf says.

Theo glares at his phone - just because Liam didn’t take school seriously doesn’t mean other people don’t.

“Okay,” he responds, hitting the send button and letting the device rest on this thigh. Mrs. Perez was quite busy comforting a crying student in the back row who had become increasingly more stressed as midterms approached. Theo is grateful his seat was under the AC vent so he didn’t have to smell most of the angst.

His phone vibrates almost immediately.

“We also have a 30 min mandatory workout each morning in the gym. Starts at 7:30,” Liam answers.

Like, couldn’t this wait? It’s Friday, so he shouldn't have obligations with either lacrosse or tutoring to attend to since the weekend was about to start. Theo rolls his eyes, typing back another, “Okay.”

The little dots appear across his screen, so Theo didn't bother putting his phone away. The student in the back sounds like she was hyperventilating, causing the students around him to increasingly smell anxious. It makes his skin itch.

He sneaks a glance down at his screen, audibly sighing as he reads the clearly agitated, “THEODORE!” the beta had typed out.

Liam didn’t even need to use all caps, since the scent of his rage permeated the entire classroom. Theo is pretty sure the beta had study hall at the moment, which means he is posted up somewhere in the library, and the scent had travelled all the way into Theo's classroom to mix wonderfully with the anxiety of the other Latin students.

Ugh... now he needs to sneeze.

“I’ll take her to the nurse,” Theo announces to Mrs. Perez, shoveling his books into his backpack and dropping the completed worksheet off at her desk.

“Oh, thank you, Theo.” The relief is palpable on the young teacher’s face. “Can you wait with her, too?”

“Sure,” he lies, a small smile crossing his face. “Can you stand?” he asks the girl. He has no clue what her name is, but he can see the resemblance to Sydney, a girl who graduated last year with Scott and Others, and assumes this is her younger sister.

“Don’t you mean walk?” she sniffles, shakily standing as she swings her backpack onto her back.

“I meant what I said,” he smirks, effortlessly picking up the petite girl and resting her on his hip like a toddler. He figures if she’s going to act like a child, then he’ll treat her like one, too.

Sydney was a drama queen as well, but there was something more charming about the older girl - she grated less on his nerves than her little sister.

He ignores the gasps from his classmates and the breathless sighs from a few of the girls (and one of the guys), smoothly navigating the halls to drop the girl off at the nurse’s station.

“I’ll be right back,” he informs the girl, giving her a quick wink when she offers him an embarrassed ‘thanks,’ apparently too freaked out by failing Latin to be scared of him.

Theo determinedly strolls through the halls, all faculty swiftly looking away to avoid catching his eye as they pass each other. He stalls as he approaches the library doors, hand hovering over the handle as he takes a calming breath, avoiding the onslaught of memories of killing Scott as he instead focuses on Liam’s heightened heartbeat.

He briskly walks through the maze of shelves, stopping short as he sees Liam, head back and eyes closed, leaning against one of the shelves.

Theo’s heart stammers, and he takes in the breathtaking sight of the boy in front of him. His brown hair is falling away from his face, and Theo can see the slight stubble forming along his jawline and the pink plumpness of his lips. Liam’s neck is tantalizingly exposed, and Theo takes a shaky breath, reminding himself why he was ditching class to seek the boy out in one of his least favorite places.

“Don’t call me that,” he says to the relaxed boy, frowning at the thought of two people calling him Theodore today. He (wrongly) assumed Liam had either heard him approach, scented him, or heard his heartbeat and was just ignoring him. So when the other boy jumps at his words, Theo has to try really hard not to laugh until he see the blood dripping down Liam’s face.

“Sorry,” he whispers, keeping a smile off his face. Theo remembers passing a box of tissues on his way into the library, but as he retraces his steps to find the item, the smile he was holding in consumes his entire face as Liam refers to him as a ‘stupid ninja chimera.’

Theo finds it odd that he has no problem punching Liam in the face when he’s being a little shit. Granted, Liam tends to hit him first, but he can’t help but feeling... bad? Sad? Like a worthless piece of shit?... for accidentally causing harm to the boy.

Theo returns to Liam’s library hideout spot with tissues in hand. He frowns, internally, as the beta eyes him warily, but Theo doesn’t blame him per se. Why would Liam trust him in any way? Has he done anything to prove himself worthy to the beta? Sure, he helped him out a few times after Liam rescued him from Hell... but Theo was also the one who manipulated him into almost killing his Alpha. Helping him in a few fights is nothing in comparison to Liam rescuing him from the depths of his own personal Hell.

Theo wets the tissue with his tongue and wipes the remaining blood off Liam’s forehead, trying to be as gentle as possible to show Liam that he didn’t mean to harm him.

“Thanks?” Liam says, more confused than anything. Theo nods, smiling just slightly, but his thoughts are still focused on his inner turmoil. He hands him another tissue after noticing some blood on Liam’s fingers, the blood that was spilled because of Theo’s arrogance. He knows Liam isn’t as in tune with his senses as Theo is, because Liam doesn’t need to rely on them to survive like -

“Are you broken?” Liam blurts, ripping Theo from his thoughts. Theo lifts a questioning eyebrow at him, because duh? Everyone knows Theo’s pretty fucked up. He’s aware Liam is fairly innocent when it comes to things but like… really?

"Like, you were mean in the cafeteria, and you've barely said two words to me since lunch except when you were being all weird in the locker room. And then-”

Okay, well, that is significantly less deep than what Theo is expecting. But Liam stands up and has started pacing down the aisle, and Theo’s having a hard time focusing on what he’s saying because he just looks so cute when he’s all flustered. His hands are moving all over the place as he talks, and Theo is really fucking glad the beta is looking at the floor as he rants, because Theo knows he’s looking at him like a love sick fool.

He’s so pathetic, but he’s too far gone to care.

Theo’s normally a great listener, but he’s currently somewhat distracted. He gets the gist, though, and isn't that what's important? Liam thinks he’s mad at him because of his shitty text responses, but not mad enough to avoid him completely in the library... and how does the beta know he hates the library? Is he finally using his senses? Or just weirdly perceptive? And he can’t deal with Theo being pissed at him? Which he wasn’t... but since when did Liam care if Theo was mad at him? Or was it just because he wants everyone to like him?

He’s trying to process the onslaught of dialogue, but he smells Liam’s anger returning.

“Uhh...sorry?” he mutters, rushing to continue after Liam scowls fiercely at him. “I was in class, dude, you know, the place where you go to learn?”

And okay, he knows that’s not the nicest thing to say after Liam admits he cares... to a degree... about Theo being mad at him. But this is the THIRD conversation about feelings today, and he’s not typically equipped to deal with one. Plus... he’s here to learn. Yeah, sure, call him a nerd, but anyone who does can cash him oussside, cuz he will beat the living shit out of them. In a heartbeat... unless it was Liam. He’ll make an exception for him.

Fuck, he needs help.

“This isn’t class,” Liam huffs, arms crossed as he glares at the chimera. It irks Theo, partially because he doesn’t appreciate the undeserved sass, and also because he hates himself for thinking an angry Liam was his favorite. He loves having Liam’s full attention, even if it was in a negative way.

“Good observation, Liam,” Theo bites back, rolling his eyes but smiling a bit at how easy it was to fall into their usual banter.

Theo wraps his hand around Liam’s wrist, roughly pulling the beta down to sit cross-legged next to him on the ground, backs against the bookshelf. “I could smell your rage from two buildings down,” he admits honestly.

“Impressive,” Liam spits, sarcasm lacing the word. Theo resists rolling his eyes, because he’s being sassed for smelling Liam’s rage that permeated the entire school grounds for a solid twenty minutes, but Liam, who is terrible at chemosignals, smells maybe a minute of his fear from across campus, and that’s no big deal?

The hypocrisy was real today.

“Okay, give me a moment,” Theo says, eyes facing forward as he mimics Liam’s heartbeat rhythm onto his thigh with his fingers. The motion calms him, helping him gather his thoughts together.

“I’ll be honest,” Theo says, finally deciding on the most concise way to answer Liam’s rapid fire questioning. “I heard about half of your rant, so forgive me if I miss something. But no, I’m not mad at you.” Even though he tried to be mad… it didn’t really happen.

“My texts were short because Mrs. Perez is a stickler for no phones being out during class.” One hundred percent true.

“No, I’m not broken.” Not technically a lie because he wasn’t broken in the way Liam meant.

“Yes, I do hate the library because no one actually comes here for books, they just come to gossip.” Ehh...half truth? He definitely hates that very few students give a damn about their education. There was more to life that mindless gossip and rumors. And for the other half? Well... only Mrs. Finch seemed to realize that truth. And possibly Liam somehow?

“Like I said earlier, your anger was so extensive, the smell travelled down to my classroom. I’m pretty sure every supernatural in this school will avoid you for the rest of the day.” Most likely 100% true, but he’s not sure how well trained the other supernaturals are in their school.

Liam accepts his answers, and they joke about lacrosse. Theo admits he’s never played the sport and needs Liam to teach him (okay, need is a strong word, because Theo could easily research it. But where’s the fun in that?). He likes being active, lifting weights and pushing his body to the limit with dynamic training courses, occasionally going on a run at the end of a session. But he HATES organized sports. He thinks some of it is because he had asthma as a kid, so any sport demanding a high level of oxygen was a no-go. But he also hates having to rely on other people; he could play amazing, but if his teammates couldn’t pull their weight, than they could still lose. And Theo loathes losing.  

But, Liam brings up Parker, Gabe’s overly touchy little brother, and Theo smells Liam’s increasing jealousy... again. So he decides to call him out on it to see if he can get to the bottom of this mystery.

“Why, Dunbar, are you jealous?” he taunts. “I can’t say I’m sure why, though.”

Which was the honest to god truth.

“Besides, why would I ask a freshman for help with something?” he adds, hoping he can make Liam realize he’s being even more of an idiot than usual. Were freshman good for anything besides scaring and washing his truck for a low price because “fundraising” was important to them?

“I’m not jealous,” Liam spits angrily. Theo barely has to strain his ears to hear the skip in his heartbeat. “And I don’t know, you two seemed buddy-buddy even though he’s a freshman.”

“You can be his friend, too,” Theo mockingly pats Liam’s shoulder, because, seriously? He’s jealous that Parker likes Theo more? It’s not like Liam has any other friends to talk to. “I’ll put in a good word.” He makes sure the sarcasm is palpable.  

“I don’t want to be his friend!” Theo is surprised when the beta’s heartbeat doesn’t skip... which extensively confuses him. And Theo doesn’t like not knowing things. It makes him vulnerable, no longer in control. Knowledge is power, and he may be less bloodthirsty these days, but he still didn’t want anyone to have power over him. “Besides, I’m pretty sure he’s enamored with you.”

Enamored as in super impressed with his gains and wants to be like him? Highly likely, he is fucking shredded lately, so he can’t blame the little dude. Theo would want to look like Theo, too, if he was anyone else. Was Liam jealous that Parker didn’t hero worship his athletic prowess?

Or enamored as in had a crush on him? Probably less likely, but why would Liam be jealous of that? He felt it unlikely that Liam had a crush on Parker. He wanted to laugh at the idea of Liam having a crush on him, though. Literally, only in his dreams would that be possible.

Theo was starting to get a tension headache from all the back and forth of his thought process, so he decides deflection is the best route to end this befuddling conversation.

“Big word, Dunbar, I’m impressed. Nice to know your English grades are better than your AP Bio ones.”

“Fuck off, Theodore.” Liam begins stuffing his books back into his bag, not noticing Theo’s wince at the use of his full name. Not even the Dread Doctors called him that. “What are you doing tonight?”

“It’s Friday…” Theo points out, but internally starts panicking at why Liam would want to know. Was he going to ask him to hang out? Theo couldn’t, he had a shift tonight. Should he cancel? Feign illness? His boss would know he’s lying, though, and he needed the money.

“Good observation, Theo,” Liam mocks, lowering his voice in a poor imitation of Theo’s. The chimera glares in response, because his voice definitely did not sound like that. “We should start the AP Bio stuff as soon as possible.”

He thinks it over, knowing he works primarily on Friday and Saturday, and he needs some time to sleep if he was going to be playing a fucking sport on top of his weight training. He might have genetic modifications, but sleeping was still the most effective way to heal his body and optimize his muscle growth.

“How about Sunday and Tuesdays?” Theo asks, standing up and then offering his hand to the beta.

“K,” is all Liam replies as they begin walking towards the library doors. Theo frowns, remembering something about saying ‘k’ when you’re mad at someone. Personally, he thinks that’s dumb, because it’s such much clearer to say, “I’m fucking mad at you.” But what did he know about positive social interaction?

“Why are you mad?” Theo sighs, walking closer than strictly necessary to enjoy what would likely be his last interaction with Liam until Sunday. He glares at a girl staring at Liam, smirking slightly as she jumps and looks away, blush painting her cheeks.  

“I don’t think you understand how much help I need if I’m going to pass midterms,” Liam mutters, eyes locked on his feet. Theo’s expression softens, and he places his hand on Liam’s shoulder to get the boy to turn to face him. He give him what he hopes is an encouraging smile.

“Dude, I’m a fucking genius. Give me a few days to go over everything, and I’ll have you back on track.”

There was no fucking way he would agree to tutor Liam and simply watch as the boy failed. If Theo needed to sneak into Mrs. Finch’s office and change the gradebook? He had no shame. Fuck, he’d bribe her, too, if he thought she’d go for it.

They part ways, giving each other matching smirks after Liam teases him that he’ll overtake Theo’s top spot as head of their AP Bio classes. Theo swings by the nurse’s office to escort Lil Drama Queen back to their Latin classroom, walking next to her through the empty halls since she seemed to finally have her shit under control. Thank goodness, Theo had enough with overly emotional moments today.

He didn't bother going back in since he already has his stuff, instead heading back through the halls to Mrs. Finch’s classroom where he would finish out his day in her seventh period class. Theo drops his backpack in the hall and sits down, leaning his back against the cool, metal locker as he hears her wrapping up the rest of her lecture.

On his first day back after re-enrolling in school, Theo had been anxious when he noticed his schedule had study hall third period. Most teens loved study hall because it meant they had a whole fifty minutes or so to either catch up on the homework they didn’t do the previous night or had time to fuck around with their friends/on their phones. In theory, Theo liked the idea of a free period to get ahead on his work, but he wasn’t looking forward to spending even two seconds in the library where he killed Scott and hurt Lydia.

Dragging his feet down the halls as he headed towards the dreaded building, he stopped short when a wave of sadness wafted from the classroom door he was passing. Checking to make sure no one was watching, he sneakily peered through the classroom window and saw Mrs. Finch with her head down, pen in hand as if she was grading papers. Her long hair covered her face, but he could smell the saltiness from her tears even from here.

Remembering how her daughter, Quinn, was killed by the Anuk-ite, along with a large portion of her pack, Theo felt a foreign, uncomfortable feeling in his chest as he observed the woman. It was a similar emotion that he felt watching Gabe die alone in the hospital. Sympathy? No, that wasn’t right. Empathy? Maybe.

Hand reaching for the door handle before he could fully formulate a plan, he slowly opened the door to allow her a moment to collect herself. He had stood in the doorway, eyes downcast as he mumbled something about wondering if he could use his study hall time in here to do an extra credit project for her instead of making up all the work he missed. To his surprise, she agreed, and told him he could catch up on some reading while she thought of a suitable project for someone of his intellectual caliber.

They ended up talking often over the next few months, Theo mostly listening whenever she reminisced about Quinn, her pack members, and her life growing up as a born werewolf. She occasionally asked Theo questions about his own life, but mostly their conversations revolved around science or other intellectual pursuits. Theo found himself fond of the woman, even if lately she decided she was over him evading her questions about his personal life.

 
The shrill sound of the bell startles him from his thoughts, and Theo skirts around the students exiting the room, coming to a stop at her desk. Her back was to him as she erases her directions off the board, but Theo knew she was aware of his presence.

“Status report?” she asks when she finishes, referring to her ridiculous demand that he find a social hobby in the span of a few hours.

“I believe I deserve extra credit,” he retorts smugly, smirk sliding onto his face at her doubtful eyebrow raise.

“And why’s that, Theo?” she asks, hand resting on her hip as she stares him down.

Theo rolls his eyes at her skepticism.

“You’re looking at the newest lacrosse member and science tutor to one Liam Dunbar.”

Theo squints as she suddenly smirks at him, leaving the chimera dramatically confused. She never smirked at him. Ever. He knew he was missing a vital component here.

“What happened to ‘anything but lacrosse’?” She adds air quotes around his earlier statement.

He sighs.

“I think I got manipulated by an overzealous freshman,” he answers honestly.

“Rough being on the other side, isn't it?” she sniggers, walking around her cluttered desk to stand next to him. He sticks his tongue out at her, uncaring if anyone saw the childish gesture.

“I’m proud of you, though.” Mrs. Finch rests her hand on his shoulder. “And I wish you the best of luck.” She lowers her voice to barely above a whisper so none of the incoming students hear her, but his enhanced hearing easily picks it up. “You have your work cut out with you with Mr. Dunbar. I’ll collect some extra worksheets for you to work with him on.”

“Thanks,” he nods, any further reply cut off as the bell rings, signaling the start of class. Theo takes his seat in the back, half listening to Mrs. Finch’s lecture. He unzips his backpack, pulling out his Slytherin themed planner and begins restructuring his calendar to accommodate his sudden excess of afterschool activities. 

Chapter Text

“Dude, you’re coming over tonight,” Mason commands the second Liam arrives at their lockers. The hallway is packed with students, everyone jostling one another to escape their weekday prison for a few days.

“Ehh, I think I might just chill at home tonight,” Liam says casually, smirking inwardly to himself. Truthfully, he’s dying to tell Mason about all the crazy shit that happened today, but he won’t pass up an opportunity to mess with him.

“Alright, that’s cool,” Mason nods, practically vibrating with excitement. “Corey and I will just come over to your place.”

“I don’t know, man,” Liam frowns, staring at a point just above Mason’s eyes to keep from laughing out loud at the pinched face Mason was giving him at the realization he was going to be denied juicy gossip over their resident bad boy chimera.

Before Mason can respond, a sharp impact in his back jostles him, sending him careening into his surprised friend who keeps him upright. He turns around, annoyed, to see a giant football player walking by with a heavy duffle bag of gear.

“Watch where you’re going, freak,” the kid sneers at him. He’s at least a foot taller than Liam, easily two hundred and fifty pounds, and probably one of the starters on the offensive line of their football team.

The anger constantly flowing beneath his skin starts to pulse, rising quickly to the surface as a low growl rumbles in his chest. He takes a shaky breath, knowing he’s overreacting, knowing it’s not a big deal, but the noise surrounding him has ceased. All he can hear is the slow, rhythmic pounding of the kid’s heartbeat. All he can see is the kid whose face he was going to beat in.

His prey.  

Liam senses Mason’s hand on his shoulder, hears the mantra spilling urgently from his friend’s mouth.

The sun. The moon. The truth. The sun. The moon. The tru-

Theo?

The kid who ran into him stops abruptly in his tracks as a significantly shorter person blocks his path, the latter seemingly dissolving out of the shadows.

“Bumping into someone and not apologizing is very rude,” Liam hears Theo calmly say, voice low but audible to everyone in the hall.

The remaining students who haven’t left for the weekend have stopped to watch the scene, the building almost completely devoid of sound as if everyone were holding their collective breaths. The chimera’s face is void of emotion, but his arms are crossed over his chest, giving him an intimidating presence despite his shorter stature. Theo’s standing a few feet away from the much taller kid, meaning he doesn’t have to tilt his head back to look up at him.

“He should apologize to me, he was in my way,” the other kid stiffly replies, standing up straight in an effort to stare down his crooked nose at Theo. Liam can smell the anxiety coming from him, which he’s sure Theo can as well.

“That’s a pretty self absorbed statement,” Theo notes, furrowing his eyebrows in disappointment. “Especially for the star offensive lineman of our football team. I thought you’d have a more team-centered mindset.”

Theo doesn’t give the football player time to react before he’s turning around and heading towards a small group of guys watching the incident unfold a few feet away. Theo roughly grabs one, wrapping his hand around the guy’s wrist, dragging him back towards the lineman. The newcomer is a guy named Blaise from Liam’s English class and also the talented senior starting quarterback of the football team. Liam heard from a few of his classmates that scouts were coming to each game this season to recruit Blaise to their colleges.

“Dude,” Blaise mutters under his breath, but doesn’t overly protest as Theo stops in front of the lineman, this time standing much closer.

“It’d be a shame, ya know,” Theo says, positioning himself behind the quarterback. His right hand has a hold on the boy’s shirt, keeping him in place, and his other hand grabs the quarterback’s left hand, lacing their fingers together as if they were holding hands. “If our highly skilled quarterback here, were to break his hand in the middle of his final season.”

Liam can see Theo’s hand tightening around Blaise’s, can see the anguish on the quarterback’s face as he sucks in a pained gasp of air.

“Especially since football is a team sport,” Theo continues, eyes locked on the lineman’s. Liam can’t see the other football player’s face, but he can smell his anger mixing with anxiety as he stubbornly remains silent. “And without your star quarterback, what hopes do you have of going to college?”

Theo squeezes harder, causing Blaise to moan in pain.

“Fucking apologize to the dude, Hartford,” the quarterback groans, eyes fearful as he pleads with his teammate.

“Oh my god, Raeken, I’m going to beat your face in when the season is over,” Hartford growls, spinning on his heel to walk towards Liam. Anger under control at this point as Liam tries not to freak out over the idea of Theo getting expelled for breaking their championship winning quarterback, he stares blankly at the lineman standing in front of him.

“I’m sorry,” he says gruffly, turning towards Theo with his hands out like, ‘There are you happy now?’

“Sorry for what?” Theo goads, dropping Blaise’s hand but still keep his other bunched up in the boy’s shirt.

“Sorry for bumping into you,” Hartford mumbles, still facing Theo.

“You aren’t apologizing to me,” Theo smirks, using his free hand to make a little spinning motion with his finger. With an exaggerated huff, Hartford turns back around to Liam.

“Sorry for bumping into you, Liam.” He spits out Liam’s name like it’s the nastiest word he’s ever said.

Liam nods, scared if he opens his mouth he’ll laugh in the face of the pissed off football player. Hartford glares at him, but turns around, snatching Blaise from Theo’s grasp as he goes.

“You good, man?” Liam hears Hartford ask Blaise as they quickly retreat down the hall.

“I fucking hate you right now,” Blaise retorts, slamming the door open with both hands. Liam finds that interesting, but Theo has approached him before he can mention it to Mason.

“Dude,” Mason says breathlessly to Theo. Liam’s not surprised to see the smug smirk on the chimera’s face.

“You didn’t have to do that,” Liam says, the embarrassment catching up to him. “Blaise didn’t deserve that.”

Theo snorts.

“You obviously don’t know Blaise-”

“No, I don’t, but you didn’t have to hurt him just to make a point!” Liam feels his previous anger returning as he processes what just happened. On one hand, he’s mad Theo hurt someone who didn’t deserve it. On the other hand, Liam feels slightly... excited? Special? That Theo would go out of his way to publicly humiliate a popular kid who bullied him.

“You obviously don’t know Blaise is a fantastic actor,” Theo continues, glaring at Liam for interrupting.

“What?”

“Use your senses, Dunbar, for the love of god,” Theo chides, one hand on his hip as he looks disappointingly down at Liam.

“Um...it’s a bit late now, he’s gone-” Liam says sarcastically, deciding to not add the ‘fucking duh’ to the end. “And you’re an atheist.”

“Did you smell fear?” Theo asks, rapidly firing additional questions at the confused beta.

“No-”

“Did you hear any bones break?”

“Well, no-”

“What did you smell?”

“I’m not sure!” Liam hisses, tired of being interrupted.

“Arousal,” Theo flatly states, carefully watching for Liam’s reaction.

“What?” Liam asks again, feeling dumb but so very lost.

“He thinks I’m hot,” Theo boastfully replies, a smirk once again claiming his lips. Mason’s nodding along next to him, like he could totally see their star straight quarterback having a crush on the mysterious bad boy.

“Oh, did he tell you that?” Liam asks doubtfully, rolling his eyes but inwardly attempting to quell the flares of jealousy in the pit of his stomach. Why did he care if Blaise had a crush on Theo?

“No, Liam,” Theo sighs, actually rolling his eyes at the beta. And, wow, rude. “I use my nose.” He taps his nose with his pointer finger to accentuate his point.

“Well you know what, Theo some-”

“So this has been fun!” Mason interjects, placing his hand on Liam’s shoulder as he starts pushing him towards the doors. “We’ll catch you later, Theo, thanks for standing up for my best friend here.” Mason uses his own shoulder to nudge him harder when Liam refuses to move. “But we gotta go, ya know, it’s Friday, much to do and discuss, right Liam?”

Liam sighs, looking over his shoulder at Theo one more time. The chimera has a small smile on his face as he observes the proceedings. “See you Sunday?” Liam mouths, not ready for Mason’s thirty million impending questions. Theo nods, giving him a quick wink.

They exit the school and head across campus towards the parking lot, the sun rays blinding as it begins to set. Liam wrinkles his nose at the smell of the exhaust from the school buses, wordlessly trailing behind Mason as they walk to his car.

“You have so much to catch me up on, man,” Mason whines, slowing down so they can walk side by side. “And don’t you dare leave anything out!”

“As if I’d ever dream of denying you any juicy gossip?” Liam cries, raising his hand to his mouth in mock offense.

“Don’t forget about me!” Corey laughs, literally showing up out of nowhere.

“God damnit, Corey!” Liam jumps, this time moving his hand to his heart as he tries to control his pounding heart beat. “How long have you been there?”

“The whole time, dude,” Mason laughs, hugging his boyfriend quickly and planting a kiss on his cheek. “Since Theo started talking to that Hartford guy.”

“Surprised you didn’t hear my heartbeat,” Corey says, concern in his tone. “I was standing like two feet away from you.”

“Well, I was pretty busy trying to not rip that guys head off,” Liam retorts angrily. And if he was a bit distracted by Theo standing up for him? Well, no one needed to know that.

“Do you still have that bottle Scott gave you?” Mason asks the beta, referring to the bottle of wolfsbane laced tequila that Scott got from Derek and gave to Liam as a “Congrats on Surviving to Senior Year” gift.

“Sure do,” Liam nods, liking where this was going. He hadn’t been really drunk since becoming a werewolf, and he was looking forward to trying the wolfsbane laced alcohol.

He opens the car door, sliding into the back seat as Corey sits in the passenger seat.

“How about we have a few drinks tonight, you spill all this new tea, and we just hang and play video games since my parents are gone this weekend?” Mason asks, starting the car and reversing out of his parking space.

Liam and Corey both agree, and they swing by both of their houses to grab an overnight bag, and for Liam, the large bottle of special alcohol. They pick-up Mexican on the way to Mason’s, because nothing goes better with tequila shots and margaritas than tacos, tortilla chips, and salsa.

After devouring their delicious meal, Mason breaks into his mom’s liquor cabinet and grabs a bottle of regular tequila for himself and some margarita mix. His parents wouldn’t care if he drank some of it, as long as he was “responsible and didn’t break anything.” Grabbing the blender from one of the cabinets, Mason starts making margaritas first for Corey and Liam, handing his best friend a particularly strong one. Once he finishes all three, he leads the small group back into the living room, where him and Corey crash on the couch, and Liam heads to Mason’s dad’s favorite navy blue recliner.

“Now, spill,” Mason directs, tossing his feet into his boyfriend’s lap as they both stare Liam down, Corey nodding supportively alongside him. Liam would bet his favorite lacrosse stick, signed by the legendary Gary Gait, that Mason told Corey about Liam’s suspicions of Theo’s workplace.

“Okay, it’s been a fucking crazy day, so hear me out,” Liam starts, pausing to take a sip of his margarita. He cringes at the strong taste of the alcohol, wincing as it burns his enhanced taste buds. Liam mixes the drink a bit better with his straw before deciding to hell with it all and downs the margarita in a few quick gulps. He needed the liquid courage anyways to confess some of his latest sins to his friends.

He explains about accidentally stumbling upon Theo’s conversation with Mrs. Finch, ignoring Corey’s shocked gasp and whisper of “that was a private conversation, Liam.” Mason hushes his boyfriend, listening intently as Liam describes how close the two seem. The beta stands up to reenact the two person conversation for his audience, skimming over the emotional part about Theo’s feelings towards himself - he feels like that was a bit too private to share.

Liam mentions Theo’s job, telling his rapt audience about how Mrs. Finch was very dismissive and disapproving of it even though Theo claims to make thousands in a week. Which is clearly what led to his conclusion that Theo’s a prostitute. Corey opens his mouth to object, but Liam raises an eyebrow in his direction, and Mason reaches over to place his hand over his boyfriend’s mouth.

“Wait until Liam’s done,” Mason urges, knowing that Liam will get distracted if he doesn’t get it all off his chest now.

He recounts his awkward lunch interaction with the chimera who later stormed out on him, their Instagram “argument”, and the incident in the gym with Parker and Coach Finstock.

“Oh my god,” Mason says after Liam mentions Theo will now be his AP Bio tutor, snapping his mouth shut at Liam’s, “I’m not done!”

“What have I started?” Corey sighs, hanging his head. Mason reaches over to comfortingly pat his boyfriend’s shoulder, but the gesture was ruined by the shit-eating grin on Mason’s face.

He lastly touches on the library incident, how Theo mom’d him when he bumped his head and bled a little, and then Liam word vomited all over him like a lunatic. He even talked about the Parker/Theo part of their conversation, the alcohol coursing through his system allowing him to mention his jealousy at their closeness and how Theo called him on it.

“So basically I have to teach him how to play lacrosse, and he’s going to tutor me in AP Bio,” Liam groans, heading back into the kitchen to craft another drink for himself. He needs it after that giant long winded speech.

After finishing making his drink, using the same amount of tequila that Mason did, foregoing the blender, and adding more sugar into the mix, he returns to the living room, concerned when neither of his friends have said anything since he finished.

Mason’s mouth is parted like a fish, closing and opening as he thinks over how to respond. Corey is chewing worriedly on his straw, clearly waiting for Mason to say something first.

“That’s uh…” Mason pauses, searching for the proper word. “Intense.”

“Yes,” Corey nods, “Not really sure where to start with all of that. But I guess first and foremost, I really don’t think Theo is a prostitute.”

“It would kind of make sense, though,” Mason disagrees, standing up and heading back to the kitchen with his and Corey’s empty glasses. “How else would he get that kind of money? He doesn’t have a high school degree, he has no legitimate work experience, no references, no family to bank off, nothing.”

In moments like these, Liam really loves his best friend. He could take anything Liam says and find facts to prove their point. Mostly, Liam just came to conclusions based on emotional decisions. Mason? Not so much. He was more logical than Liam, and had a better way with words when describing how he came to a conclusion.

“You don’t know him like I do,” Corey awkwardly answers. The other chimera always avoided talking about his time in Theo’s pack, not that Mason or Liam held it against him or anything... w ell, okay, Liam did at one point, but he’s cool with it now. “He hates people touching him. Last I heard he was a virgin, sooo…don’t really see him doing anything like that even for money. Maybe he robs banks or sells overpriced stuff online? Or models?”

“What?!” Liam coughs, having just taken a sip of his drink during Corey’s unexpected statement. The alcohol burns his entire body, from his sinuses to his stomach, but he can’t already be drunk enough to be hallucinating? There’s no fucking way Theo Raeken is a virgin.

“Yeah, you’re going to have to explain that one a bit more,” Mason adds, coming over to sit on the side of the recliner to beat Liam on the back.

“I’m good, man, thanks,” he gasps, taking a sip of water from a random cup on the coffee table.

“I don’t think I’m really supposed to say anything,” Corey huffs, clearly regretting saying it in the first place. At the heated glares from his boyfriend and Liam, he holds his hands up defensively. “Okay, okay. Jesus. Basically one night before Deucalion came to stay at our little hideout, we were having some kind of pack night, and Theo had swiped laced marijuana and a handle of rum... no Liam, I didn’t ask where he got it. But we all got high as fuck, and Tracy wanted to play Never Have I Ever with the rum. Josh pulled the ‘Never have I ever had sex with someone,’ and Theo didn’t drink.”

“Couldn’t he be lying?” Liam immediately questions, still having trouble coming to terms with Theo being a virgin. He was just so… confident, and good looking, if you were into dudes and all that.

“No, I don’t think so,” Corey shakes his head before sipping thoughtfully from his drink. “Tracy tried to grill him on it, but he got so angry and defensive about it, no one ever brought it up again.”    

“Damn,” Mason sighs. “I mean, it’s probably hard to get laid when you live with the Dread Doctors.”

“Yeah,” Corey agrees. “That’s what we figured. Plus, he’s kind of emotionally stunted and not really good with people. Except Liam.”

“Theo is great with people,” Liam defensively retorts, mouth moving before he can really think it through.

“Theo is great at charming and manipulating people,” Corey disagrees, tone calm but firm. “He knows what people want to hear. It’s a defensive mechanism at this point. He’s better since coming back from Hell, but I can’t say many people know the real Theo. I’m not sure if Theo knows the real Theo.”

Liam frowns, thinking it over. For some reason he could not explain to himself, he wanted to be the one who knew the real Theo.

“So how do you feel about it all, Liam?” Mason asks.

“I think we need shots,” he answers, downing the rest of his drink and licking the little pieces of salt off his lips. “Your mom have limes?”

“Yup!” Mason excitedly replies, following Liam back into the kitchen. “You down, Corey?”

“I guess,” the chimera agrees, knowing the evening was going to get sloppy very quickly.

They swipe their tongues in a line on the side of their hand, adding a dash of salt onto it. Then, they lick the salt off their hand, down the shots from Mason’s mom’s extra large shot glasses, and squeeze a slice of lime into their mouths as a chaser.

“Gross,” Corey groans, following the shot with a glass of water to cool the burning sensation.

“I just think it’s bullshit,” Liam loudly announces, slamming his shot glass back onto the counter where it fortunately did not break. His two friends jump at the unexpected declaration, Mason delving into giggles at the shocked expression on Corey’s face. “Why can’t Theo just tell me what he’s up to?”

“Because maybe he isn’t up to anything?” Mason answers evenly, brows creasing in confusion.

“Or because you haven’t asked?” Corey adds.

They stand around the rectangular kitchen island, Liam on one end, and Cory and Mason across from each other on the sides like there’s an important pack meeting going on.

“But he is,” Liam whines, starting to feel fuzzy all over from the tequila. “He makes me feel... weird.” He looks around, suspiciously, like he’s waiting for Theo to jump out at any moment with a camera and say “Got ya!”

“Oh?” Mason inquires, raising an eyebrow in concern. “That’s got to be... confusing.”

“Yes! Like why do I care if he’s hugging Parker? Why do I feel jealous that he’s been telling Mrs. Finch all these super personal things?” Liam pauses, mixing some more tequila into his glass before searching for some orange juice in the fridge.

“Maybe because you have a crush on him?" Corey answers warily, eyes trained on the beta to watch for any signs of impending anger. Instead, the beta laughs loudly, almost spilling the orange juice he was adding over his tequila.

“That’s funny, Corey,” Liam giggles, wiping a few stray tears from his eyes. Mason laughs too, but more awkwardly than anything. “Why would I have a crush on Theo?”

“Because he likes you?!” Mason yells, grabbing his bottle of tequila from the counter and the bottle of orange juice from a shell-shocked Liam.

“Maybe you should chill on the alcohol, because that is crazy talk,” Liam stammers, drunkenly making his way back into the living room. He sets his drink on the table before flinging himself into the comfort of the recliner. “Let’s play a game.”

“You tried,” Liam hears Corey say supportively to Mason, the two returning to the couch to turn the TV on.

“Mario Kart?” Masons asks the two, stumbling slightly as he passes out the controllers.

“Nah, I’m good for now,” Liam quickly changes his mind, instead pulling his phone out to check his messages. He types a quick one back to his mom telling him he’s okay and at Mason’s for the night, handing it over to Corey to proofread to make sure he didn’t say anything incorrectly. Corey types a few adjustments, hitting the send button, before handing the phone back to the beta.

“You are thee absolute best,” Liam slurs a bit, giving the chimera a huge smile. “Seriously, I am so glad you and Mason are dating, even though at first I was all, ‘He’s a chimera. You’re fraternizing with the enemy.’’

“It’s funny how things change,” Corey laughs good-naturedly, smiling back at Liam.

Liam nods distractedly, attention now focused on the new Instagram picture that popped up on his feed.        

It showed a smiling Theo with a bag of Chipotle. Simple. Plain. Nothing life changing, but for Liam’s drunk mind, it was the most amazing piece of art he had ever witnessed.

“Sooooo cute,” he types, adding a heart eyes emoji and hitting the “post” button after he was satisfied he got his point across.

He smiles to himself. Yes, this was a good first day in befriending Theo.

His phone dings immediately with a text, and he grins wider when he sees it’s from the chimera in question.

Chapter Text

Theo’s last class of the day finishes smoothly. He has the entire month organized in his planner, blending his non-school related activities in with his newest commitments. Theo’s not used to being so busy, but he likes the change of pace. Even with the Dread Doctors, there was a lot of “down” time. They mostly homeschooled him, preferring the idea of personally molding him into their perfect soldier as opposed to allowing the public education system to get its claws into him.

Only when new recruits were needed for experiments, Theo would temporarily enroll in school, converging in with the students as if he were one of them. He spent most of his time outside of school reading, immersing himself in the thousands of books the Dread Doctors collected throughout the years. He taught himself everything there was to know about the supernatural world, but he also studied books on “human” subjects, like engineering, biology, and psychology.

And, of course, he occasionally took a break from his academic pursuits and splurged on fiction stories, once dragging a disguised Geneticist with him to the midnight release of one of the Harry Potter books. He smirks at the memory, effortlessly manipulating her into going or he would reveal her guilty pleasure collection of trashy romance novels to the rest of the Doctors.

That was one of the rare times she told Theo he impressed her.  

The bell rings, signaling the end of class for the day and tearing Theo away from his daydreams.

“Please see me before you leave, Mr. Raeken,” Mrs. Finch calls over the sound of the students shoving their belongings into their bags as quickly as possible, eager to escape the school for the weekend.

He outwardly rolls his eyes at the “ooohs” whispered by his peers, glaring at a particularly brave boy who decided to make eye contact with him. The boy lets out an undignified screech, practically toppling over his stool to escape the classroom. Theo smirks to himself despite the glare Mrs. Finch is currently leveling at him.

“Was that necessary, Theodore?” she asks, hand once again on her hip as she uses her sternest Mom Voice.

“Yep,” he answers, popping the ‘p’ at the end of the word because he knows she hates it. “I have a reputation to uphold.”

She laughs in his face.

“Yeah, if only they knew the real you, they probably wouldn’t be so scared.”

He pouts at the disrespect, crossing his arms over his chest in a petty act of defiance. How dare she discredit his reputation! He might be soft for Liam, but nobody needed to know that. To everyone else, he was still the fearsome chimera.

Or at least the mysterious supernatural something or other, depending on who you asked.

“Nobody knows the real me,” he says firmly.   

She snorts. “Spare me the melodrama, you’re not as mysterious as you like to think, dear. But I have something for you before you go.”

She hands him a small packet of papers, having printed them out earlier from her computer while the class was working independently on their lab.

Theo looks down at the headline of one of them, “Fun with Mitosis and Meiosis.”

He arches an eyebrow in disbelief, skimming through the rest of the papers. “Are these for elementary schoolers?”

“It’s important to know your audience,” she smiles, shrugging as if it wasn’t a big deal. He respected the woman more than she’d ever know, but this was kind of offensive. Was Liam really that bad at biology? Or was it more of a Neville/Snape situation where the beta would benefit with a different, less domineering teacher?

“Thanks... but no thanks.” He hands the worksheets back to her. “I’ve got this on my own.”

“If anyone can do it, I believe it’s you, Theo. But remember, not every person is as passionate about science as you are,” she warns. “I’m sure Liam is an intelligent young man, or else he wouldn’t have captured your interest, but don’t beat yourself up if he doesn’t score as high as you expect.”

She turns her back to him, shuffling papers around on her desk as she prepares to leave for the weekend.

Theo blinks behind her, mouth gaping as his brain struggles to process what she just said. He never admitted his conflicted feelings for Liam to her. Shit, he’s never really admitted them to himself until recently.

“Close your mouth, it’s unbecoming,” she commands when she turns back to him, but the comment is lightened by the smile crossing her lips.

He snaps his mouth shut before realizing he hasn’t responded, feeling a sense of deja vu.

“I don’t-”

She holds a hand up to stop him from continuing.

“Don’t even bother denying it. I’m an adult born werewolf, I have eyes. And a nose. And deductive reasoning skills. I can put two and two together.”

Theo feels the panic rising in his chest. If she knew, then who else did? Derek? Oh my god, he’d probably fling himself back into Hell if Scott found out he had a crush on his first beta. It’d be simpler and less painful than dealing with him. Or fucking Stiles.

“Jesus, Theo, breathe,” Mrs. Finch says, placing a hand on his arm. He sucks in a deep breath, apparently forgetting the importance of bringing air into one’s lungs while thinking. “I can one hundred percent guarantee Mr. Dunbar does not know about your feelings. He’s kind of terrible at being a werewolf sometimes.”

Theo opens his mouth to object, but when he sees her, “Are You Really Going To Argue That With Me?” expression, he nods, still speechless. But he knew she was right. Liam was not the best at using his senses.

Seriously though, what the fuck was going on today? It was one insane moment after another. Were witches involved?

He just wanted to go home, nap, and then binge eat some Chipotle before work.

“I’ll see you Monday, Theo.” She hesitates, indecisively biting her bottom like she has something else to say. “Have a good weekend.”

He hopes she just changed her mind about what she wanted to say, otherwise he’d want to know why she was so against wishing him a good weekend.

Theo mentally chuckles to himself, pausing at the door as a fleeting thought crosses his mind.

“My first lacrosse game is Thursday,” he trails off, biting his lip awkwardly, unsure how to finish his sentence without sounding like a fucking loser.

She gives him a soft smile, “I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

Relief washes over him, and he gives her a small nod before waving goodbye over his shoulder, exiting the room. He stops at his locker, switching out the books in his bag with the ones he’d need for his weekend homework. As he zips his backpack closed, he looks up in time to see a burly football player purposefully ram Liam with his duffle bag of gear. Theo pushes down the growl building in his throat, impatiently waiting to see what happens next.

The football player turns around and insults the beta, telling him to watch where he’s going, even though Theo knows the asshole did it on purpose.  

As the familiar scent of Liam’s rage reaches his nose, Theo decides this is the perfect opportunity to reaffirm his dangerous reputation, all while defending the honor of the boy he might have a feeling or two for.

“Bumping into someone and not apologizing is very rude,” he calmly says, crossing his arms over his chest while keeping his face void of emotion. He’s grateful he made the choice to stand a few feet away from the giant football player, because this kid easily was a foot taller than him. Even as a chimera, it was kind of hard to appear intimidating when you have to crane your neck back to look someone in the eyes.

“He should apologize to me, he was in my way,” the other kid stiffly replies, and Theo internally smirks at the guy’s attempt to look down at him, especially when the sour scent of his anxiety was overwhelming his sensitive nose. If this kid had any inkling of their excessive discrepancies in strength, he would have hightailed it out of there by now.

Theo keeps his eyes trained on the kid but uses his senses to catalog what was going on around him. The students remaining in the halls are absolutely silent, not even bothering to whisper among one another incase they missed a second of action. He can hear Corey’s heartbeat somewhere near Liam and Mason, and Theo thinks he may be invisible at the moment, ready to intervene if need be.

He has a harder time sorting through the smells because the kid’s anxiety is clogging his nose, but he’s able to pinpoint Liam’s surprise and the arousal of one of his classmates. An idea begins to form in his head, and he hopes his theater classmate will follow along with his plan.

“That’s a pretty self absorbed statement,” Theo notes, shifting his expression to one of disappointment. Which was unexpectedly challenging right now, because he’s genuinely thankful this kid decided to be a dick. It would work well in his favor, and it honestly just felt good to actively terrify someone again. And it was for a selfless cause, no less!  

“Especially for the star offensive lineman of our football team. I thought you’d have a more team-centered mindset.”

Theo didn't give the idiot a chance to respond, heading towards the group of guys where he smelled the arousal coming from. He grabs the wrist of his classmate, Blaise, dragging the confused boy back with him to the middle of the hall and positioning him in front of his teammate. Theo wraps one hand in the back of Blaise’s shirt, pressing him close. His breath ghosts across the boy’s ear, whispering the word “act” while barely moving his lips.

Blaise had been his partner earlier in the day for an acting exercise where they practiced an array of facial expressions with one another. Theo struggled on “pained” whereas Blaise had it down pat. He figured it had something to do with the insane amount of sports this kid played, from football, to basketball, to track, and apparently even tennis if someone needed a doubles partner. And Theo usually just laughed when he got hurt.

Theo threatens to break the star quarterback’s hand, successfully manipulating the offensive lineman into apologizing to Liam. At one point, Blaise convincingly moans in pain, but the scent of his arousal tickles Theo’s nose once again, and he has to wonder just how much acting the boy actually had to do. He gives the quarterback props for his impromptu performance, though, because despite Theo being unable to see his face, he can smell the shock, disbelief, horror, and rage from the students around him, meaning they were convinced Blaise was actually in pain.

After Blaise and the Idiot leave, Theo approaches Liam and Mason, unable to keep the smug expression off his face. He realizes in that moment that Mrs. Finch was fairly accurate in her analysis of Liam’s werewolf abilities, because the poor boy really had no idea what truly transpired.

He’s aware he should probably teach the beta more about chemosignals and the importance of constant vigilance, since his hapless “True” Alpha had skipped this important lesson. Which was a shame, because you never knew what your senses could tell you, from catching someone in a lie to accurately noting their true emotions on an issue. But, then again, if he did teach the beta more about categorizing chemosignals, he’d be at risk of Liam finding out his true feelings for the boy, especially if he ever let his guard down accidentally. Theo isn't sure he was ready to travel down that path quite yet.

They part ways, Liam wordlessly asking him if they were still on for Sunday. He nods, giving the beta a brazen wink as Mason drags him away.

Theo follows behind them at a distance, heading to the parking lot so he can fucking finally go home and take a nap. His shift isn’t until later at night, and he all but collapses in his bed the second he gets home and slides his shoes off.

Too exhausted to dream, Theo wakes well rested from his two hour long nap, taking a quick shower before heading to Chipotle. In an effort to be a more normal teenager, he takes a shameless picture with the bag of food, posting the image on Instagram before he can think too much about how lame and basic he feels.

He spends the rest of the evening researching effective ways to tutor, determining that Liam would benefit from some color coded flash cards. He didn’t have time to work on them now, but he’d get a good start on them tomorrow morning after the gym.

His phone vibrates in his pocket, and he pulls the device out to see Liam commented on his picture. Theo smirks, remembering his earlier comment on Liam’s picture about remembering his first time at the gym. The beta hadn’t commented back or brought it up in person, but he knows Liam well enough to confidently say the remark pissed the boy off.

“Soooo cute,” the comment says, with the little heart eyes emoji.

Theo squints at the screen, confused. Was this his retaliation for Theo’s previous comment? Because if so, it was kind lame. Instead of having a public war on Instagram, he swipes open his text messages and clicks on Baby Beta Wolf.

[Theo]: Are you drunk?

Theo doesn’t have to wait for a reply, the little bubbles moving across his screen instantly.

[Liam]: NO who told you that?

Hm...suspiciously intense denial.

[Theo]: Your lame Instagram comment did. If you’re trying to get back at me for my last comment, I’m not impressed

[Liam]: Sorry for thinking you’re cute, my fucking bad  >__<

Theo's stolen heart stops beating in his chest, and before he could reply, Liam sends a second text.

[Liam]: Guess u only care if blaze and parker think u look good

What the fuck was that supposed to mean?!

[Theo]: ????

[Theo]: Are you serious right now?

[Liam]: Um, duh, aren’t you sppsed to be smart?

[Theo]: Um, duh, but you don’t make sense

[Liam]: I am the most sense making person there is to ever make sense

Theo reads the sentence four times before replying.

[Theo]: See. I don’t even know what that means. I don’t think you know what that means either.

[Liam]: Wutever.

[Liam]: I take it back. Ur ugly

[Theo]: HAHA we both know you don’t think that’s true. I use my nose, remember?

Theo definitely might have made that up, but he was anxious to see how the beta responded.

Whereas Liam’s replies had been almost instant, he has to wait a few minutes for the next one.

[Liam]: Ur nose is terrible. And ugly

[Theo]: Fuck you Dunbar, you’re ugly

Theo’s heart skips a few beats, first at the blatant lie, and then again when the next message comes through with an image attached.

He clicks it, seeing a frowning Liam with the caption “Not as ugly as u.”

Alone in his apartment, he takes a minute to appreciate the plumpness of the beta’s lips, wondering what they’d feel like across his skin.

Not that he’ll ever get to experience that, obviously, but sometimes he’ll allow himself the luxury of daydreaming about being with Liam as more than just... frenemies? Or were they actually friends? Or just classmates?

He notices the time on his phone, jumping up to rush to his closet to get changed for work. His phone vibrates again, and he pulls it out to see Liam double texted him after he forgot to reply.

[Liam]: So ugly you broke the camera?

He rolls his eyes, smiling at the weirdness of the boy. Theo isn’t sure was brought on this sudden change in their relationship, going from barely talking for months to interacting multiple times in and outside of school, but he is going to enjoy it while it lasts.

Theo takes his second selfie of the day, using his closet of new clothes as a backdrop.

Not ugly at all, he writes, attaching the image with it.

[Liam]: Yeah, guess not  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

[Liam]: Wyd?

Theo smiles as Liam sort of agrees he’s attractive, but he’s confused by the next text. Wyd? What the fuck does that mean? He types it into urbandictionary.com, assuming it’d be simpler to research it rather than get mocked for his lack of Internet lingo knowledge.

He reads that it commonly means “what you doing” or the less common version, “want your dick.” He goes with the former.

[Theo]: Getting ready for work, you?

Theo furrows his eyebrows at the perplexing response he receives.

[Liam]: Streets must be busy and dangerous this time of night

What did that mean? Did he mean driving, since it was a Friday night, and there was a larger risk of drunk drivers on the road? Or was he hinting at something supernatural going down?

[Theo]: Yeah, but I’m always careful. Don’t want to ruin my baby

Which was true. He may have a legitimate place to call home, but his truck would always mean the world to him, and he’d rip apart anyone who even looked at it suspiciously.

[Liam]: I kno some1 whos good at cleaning them if u need a rec

Literally...what? Cleaning what? Cars? Why would his truck be dirty? Did Liam know he once lived out of his truck? He’s pretty sure Derek was mature enough to keep that information to himself. Unless Stiles somehow found up from his illegal snooping around the Sheriff’s Station...

[Theo]: I’m lost.

Because that was 100% true.

[Liam]: Im just sayin, if u cant get stains out of ur car, i know a guy

[Theo]: Are you trying to insinuate my truck is dirty? Because that’s making me feel some type of way

And by some type of way, he means angry. Because insulting a guy’s truck was an unnecessarily low blow. Especially since Liam didn’t even have a car to begin with!

[Liam]: I mean, it might be. Idk. i havet been in it since u started working  

[Theo]: What’s that supposed to mean Dunbar?

At this point, he figures it’s safer to ask rather than assume.

He finishes dressing, brushing his teeth at lightning speed, racing around the loft to finish getting ready. Theo turns the lights off, locking the door behind him. As he’s heading down the stairs into the basement garage, taking them three at a time, he feels his phone vibrate once more.

[Liam]: Nuthing, nvm. Gotta go, corey says no phones. Be safe, ttyl

[Liam]: Gorgeous ;)

Theo doesn’t understand most of what just transpired, but the last message makes him blush, launching a rush of butterflies in his stomach as his heart warms at the term of endearment. His fingers type a swift response, and he hits the send button before he can chicken out.

[Theo]: Goodnight beautiful.   

Chapter Text

Flashback 

After finishing what would hopefully be his last first day of school ever, Theo returned to the administration office, Principal Martin placing a small black square box in his outstretched hand.

He took it, hesitantly, unexpectedly nervous all of a sudden that the whole thing had been an elaborate prank to get back at him for the monumental amount of shit he’d done to the pack before he went to Hell. Or Derek lied just to get him into re-enroll in school. Or maybe the older werewolf changed his mind, deciding to stay in Beacon Hills and needed the loft as a place to live. It wouldn’t be fair for Derek to go look for a new apartment when he had a perfectly good one in a building he owned.

Theo berated himself for getting his hopes up, so desperate to have a real home that he never once questioned the legitimacy of the offer.

“Theo?” Principal Martin startled him out of his musings, and he realized he’s rigidly standing in her office, shaky hands clasped around the box like it’s the most precious thing he’s ever held.

Her voice is kind, as if she knows what Theo’s thinking. And fuck, she probably does. His insecurity and anxiety were likely visible to even the most unobservant people, Liam included.

Theo moved to slide the box into his pocket, but stopped when she’s directed him to open it, a small smile on her face. Pulling the lid carefully off, he slowly unwrapped the white tissue paper, relieved to find a golden key at the bottom. Under the key is a folded slip of paper containing the loft’s address and the key code to the garage.

“There’s more,” Principal Martin excitedly added, reaching behind her office chair and setting an oversized gift bag on the oak desk. The bag was blue with silver writing, and Theo’s eyes widened when he saw the “Congrats On Your New Baby!” written on the front of the bag.

Noticing his shock, Principal Martin leaned forward to get a better look at the bag, frowning when she read the words.

“Ahh…” she remarked uncomfortably. “I probably should have put my glasses on before heading to the checkout counter. No matter, this is for you!”

He quickly slipped the key into the pocket of his jeans, and she none-too-gently shoved the present into his arms. Theo arched a questioning eyebrow, utterly speechless she would get him a gift.

“It’s a housewarming gift!”

He resisted rolling his eyes at her exasperated tone, because, yes, he knew what a housewarming gift was, he wasn't raised in a barn.

“I just don’t get why you’re giving me a housewarming gift,” he admitted quietly, and now she’s the one actually rolling her eyes at him. “And please don’t say it’s because I’m moving into a new place.” His voice was firmer now, losing some of the vulnerability he had before.

Taking a seat, she nodded towards the open chair in front of the desk. Pulling the chair out, he gracefully sat down, keeping his back straight and feet firmly on the floor, maintaining eye contact with the principal. He crossed his hands over his lap, the unopened housewarming gift positioned in between his legs on the ground.  

“There’s never an excuse for poor posture,”  the Geneticist drilled into his head from the very beginning of his time with them, and it was one of the few habits he couldn’t break.

“Well, it was Lydia’s idea,” Principal Martin started, and Theo immediately glared at the woman. She raised a hand to stop him from speaking, and he nodded, silently agreeing to let her finish speaking before he bitched about how he’d prefer the Beacon Hills Gossip Queen to not know his business.

“Before she left for college, she made me promise to look after all the supernatural children in the school. So every Sunday, we have a weekly Skype date to update each other on everything.”

Theo tried to squash the jealousy burning in the pit of his stomach at the reminder of another experience he’ll never have like a normal teenager. If he ever went to college, he’ll never have a parent back home in Beacon Hills worrying about his safety. He’ll never have anyone sending him care packages, or to call and ask how to do random tasks he should have learned before he left for school. And while the idea seemed kind of freeing, it also highlighted his incredible loneliness. And his insignificance. If he just disappeared, who would notice?

“When I mentioned I was having a hard time getting you to come back to school, she came up with the idea of asking Derek to rent his unused apartment to you-”

“Why would she want to help me?” Theo suspiciously asked, earning an annoyed glare from the woman.

“Lydia believes in second chances,” Principal Martin stated blandly, like it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “And, while I don’t approve of what you did to my daughter, it ended up bringing us a lot closer together. Now, may I continue, or is there anything else you want to ask first so you don’t interrupt me again?”

“I’m good,” he mumbled, lowering his gaze to the desk to avoid her disapproving stare.

“Anyways, so when I told her everything worked out, she insisted we get you a housewarming gift, which is really such a great idea, I’m mad at myself for not thinking of it first. And, for the record, I’m giving this to you as a pack ally, not as your principal.”

Theo nodded in understanding, still skeptical, but lifted the heavy bag onto his lap. Gingerly removing five items wrapped individually in pink tissue paper, he pushed the wrappings to the side to reveal a set of canvas paintings.

“Here, push your chair back and set them on the floor to see the image,” Mrs. Martin directed, and Theo followed her instructions, awestruck at the painting in front of him.

“Did she make this?” Theo wondered, taking in the bright colors and intricate designs, his enhanced vision seeing a humble “LM” etched into the bottom right corner of the middle panel. The five-piece painting was constructed on a wooden canvas, depicting a human head surrounded by DNA molecules and atomic particles. Theo’s not normally fond of art, but he couldn’t wait to hang it up in the loft.

“Oh, she’s been practicing,” Mrs. Martin answered modestly, but Theo observed the pride etched into her features “There’s a card in there, as well.”

Still speechless at the thoughtful gift, Theo removed a green envelope from the mess of wrappings. Dazedly opening the envelope, he pulled out an all white card, the front reading “congrats on your new home.” As he opened it, a small plastic object slid to the floor, but he’s aghast when he deciphered the barely legible cursive writing at the bottom of the card.

“Hope it’s comfier than Hell.”

Curious at his lack of response, Mrs. Martin peeked over his shoulder to see what was written on the card.

She gasps, horrified, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. “That’s from Peter. Clearly, Lydia did not proofread before adding that to the gift.”

Theo laughed loudly, relieved. For some reason, the diss was acceptable when coming from Peter, the older werewolf having a unique sense of humor that Theo appreciated. Bending down to pick up the plastic card that slid out, his mouth dropped as he saw it was a giftcard for $2,000 to a local mattress store.

“Lydia pulled the ‘I brought you back to life card,’” Mrs. Martin explained, smiling. “It’s terribly manipulative, of course, but Peter falls for it every time.” She didn’t sound disapproving at all, but Theo understood where Peter was coming from. There’s a lot he’d do for Liam to show his thanks for bringing him back. “But she figured you’d want a new bed that didn’t smell like anyone.”

Mrs. Martin assured Theo that the only people who knew about his situation were Lydia, Derek, Peter, and her, so unless he revealed the information to anyone else, the information would stay a secret. After awkwardly thanking the woman, not used to kind gestures like that, he headed to the now empty parking lot, deciding he’d text Lydia a picture once he hung the painting up.

With his gift placed securely in the passenger seat with the seat belt strapped around it, Theo followed the GPS instructions from his phone to the location of the loft. When Derek told Theo all he needed to do was furnish the loft, he wasn’t kidding. All that was left in the apartment was a fully stocked tool kit, which Theo used to hang the art piece in the main living area. He spent the entire gift card on a plush, king size bed, with navy blue silk sheets and a matching luscious down comforter.

Texting Lydia a picture of the painting felt strange since he’d barely spoken to the girl since the Anuk-ite, but he typed a short ‘thank you, it’s perfect’ underneath the attached image. She responded promptly, thanking him for his praise and asked him if he’d be interested in any other pieces if she had spare time to paint. Theo agreed, figuring he’d be an idiot to turn down free artwork.

After living in his truck for so long, he presumed he’d be satisfied with a nice bed and a few decorative pieces. But upon standing in the doorway as the delivery men finished putting together his new bed upstairs, he longed for more. He wanted a few couches, a big screen television, maybe a gaming system. Theo’s kitchen lacked dishes of any sort… or food. It wasn’t that everything needed to be brand new or designer, either. His apartment just lacked necessary stuff, and the large, empty open space bothered him. Theo craved making his new home, well, homey.

The problem? He literally had a few hundred dollars left in his bank account from his allowance during his time with the Dread Doctors.

He never asked how they got the money, but every week the Geneticist placed $50 into a checking account for him, giving him a debit card when he was fifteen and deemed responsible enough to have one. Spending most of that on his truck, Theo never considered what he’d do when that money ran out. Unfortunately, that was ill advised of him, because they were dead and no longer funding him.

He was realistic enough to know a “real” teenage job would be hard to get, considering he had no verifiable work experience to put on a resume and had yet to graduate high school despite his superior intelligence. Plus, the money he’d earn working after school and on the weekends would cover food and gas at most, leaving him with little other disposable income.

Overlooking his initial reservations at the idea, he concluded the best way to make easy money was to sell his greatest asset; himself. 

Theo regretted his choice the minute he parked his truck at Ben Dover Park, located on the sketchier outskirts of Beacon Hills. Shutting the lights of the vehicle off, he attempted to block out the sounds of his new "colleagues" hard at work around him and tried to psych himself up for his first night on the job.

He was an excellent actor, he told himself. He could do this. He was gorgeous, a fact he based off people’s reactions to him, their arousal permeating his senses everywhere he went. And it happened with both girls and guys, so that would give him a larger customer base to choose from.

And if they tried to skip paying him, well, then it would be their own fault he beat the shit out of them. And there would be no way they could report him to the police, because they would be admitting to a crime as well.

Sadly, as he soon found out, he couldn't do it.

In spite of Theo Raeken's unparalleled beauty and superior acting abilities, he just wasn’t cut out to be a prostitute.

He made a few hundred bucks from some lonely closeted rich guy who felt sorry for him, but the idea of allowing some random stranger to intimately touch him made his skin crawl with disgust.

Though heavily embarrassed, Theo found himself secretly grateful when Parrish busted him that same night, thankfully fully clothed, in the middle of undressing some relatively attractive older guy.

His client bolted, terrified, after Parrish agreed to let him off with a warning, leaving a nervous and ashamed Theo in his wake.

“Well…” he stammered, avoiding the Hellhound’s hazel eyes. “I’ll just be going, too.” He moved to side-step the deputy, but the older man blocked his path.

“Not so fast, Theo,” Parrish sighed, wiping a hand across his face as he searched for the words he was looking for. “What are you doing out here?”

“You know what I’m doing out here,” he petulantly replied, glaring at the slightly older man in front of him. “Do you want me to spell it out for you?”

He really hoped Parrish wouldn’t say yes, because Theo could barely admit the words to himself.

“You’re better than this,” the other man claimed, eyes steadily locked with Theo’s, despite his previous discomfort at the confrontation.

“I’m really not,” Theo scoffed, heart rate steady on its own accord because he wasn’t lying. Sure, what he was doing was demeaning, but did he really deserve anything better?   

“Okay, look I get it.” Theo lifted a condescending eyebrow at the deputy, arms crossed over his chest. “Okay, I don’t really get it because I’ve never gone through what you’re going through, but I know a better way-”

“I can’t get a real job, and you know this,” Theo sneered, resisting the urge to bolt. At least his anger towards Parrish’s self righteousness was taking his mind off his usual self hatred.

“No, that’s not what I was going to say,” Parrish said, voice firmer as he stood up straighter, shoulders tense as if he expected a fight. “I know someone who needs a bodyguard for his business, and a normal human won’t cut it for him. He needs someone more... discrete.”

“Oh?” Theo asked, intrigued. “What kind of business?”

“I didn’t ask.”

Theo frowned at the lie, wondering what kind of business it could be if Parrish didn’t want to tell him about it. He sniffed the air, catching a whiff of embarrassment that Parrish couldn’t contain.

“What kind of business?” he asked again, determinedly staring the Hellhound down.

Parrish fidgeted uncomfortably, gaze roaming around the surrounding area as he avoided eye contact with the chimera. “Just let him explain everything to you. It’s a good paying gig.”

Theo nodded, easily sold by the mention of a high salary. Parrish removed two cards from the wallet in his back pocket.

“Write your number down.”

Parrish handed him the man’s business card and a pen, Theo tucking the first business card in his pocket and jotting his number down on the back of the Hellhound’s police business card.

Theo insolently winked at the Hellhound. “Feel free to call me, too, handsome.”

“Don’t let me catch you out here again, Theo,” Parrish warned, rolling his eyes at Theo’s antics. “I’ll have him call you tomorrow.”

Theo truthfully promised the deputy he wouldn’t catch him out there again. Partially, if it came down to it, Theo would just utilize his senses better and dip out if he caught wind of Parrish or another cop coming. Mostly, he hoped the new job would pan out, because he couldn’t see himself doing this again. He earned a new found respect for any man or woman who worked in the (legal and illegal) sex industry.

And that’s how Theo found himself as the mysterious bodyguard for Midnyght Memories, an upscale locally-owned business that provided legal escort services for men (and women, Theo supposed, though he’s never seen any female clients before). Their clientele were typically rich individuals in town on business, but some of their customers were locals, using the service for a wide array of reasons.

After the Nemeton was reactivated by Scott, Stiles, and Allison, business boomed for the company with the increased population, between more supernatural residents and then the hunters that followed.

Unfortunately, the girls became distressed after some terrifying incidents with the shadier humans and supernaturals who moved in, and they refused to take on new clients despite an effort to increase security, with some girls quitting entirely.

The business managed to stay afloat with the loyal returning customers, but the owner was desperate for a solution to his problem. He paid Theo a large sum for his abilities, his chimera powers giving him a huge advantage over human security guards. Before he was hired, Theo was called to a group interview where he demonstrated his enhanced hearing, eyesight, reflexes, strength, and ability to detect lies in front of the girls and the owner. The five girls readily agreed he’d be a perfect asset to the family (their word, not his), and they once again began accepting new clients.

Puzzled by how the company could meet the diverse needs of its client base with only five girls, Theo was stunned when the petite girl Faye instantly changed forms in front of him, turning her dark, straight black hair into succulent red curls.

“It’s a glamor,” she giggled at his dumbfounded expression, snapping her fingers and changing back to her previous look.

“You’re a fairy?” he asked, remembering the Dread Doctors talking about how fairies could use their magic to take on various features of human’s they encountered. It was rare to see them among human populations, though, as most preferred to live in colonies in dense forests. He supposed between the Nemeton and the forest surrounding the town, Beacon Hills could be a suitable habitat for the fair folk.

Theo’s job was pretty simple, but few days were ever the same.     

Sometimes, Theo would sit alone in a café while the owner interviewed a potential client a few tables over. Listening in on the conversation, Theo would give the owner his readings of the discussion when they were back at headquarters, determining if the client was truthful or lying with his answers. Other times, Theo would moonlight as the driver for the girls (who were called companions while working) and chauffeur the dates, providing extra security as needed.

While many dates were exactly that, just dates, Theo occasionally would drive the girls to elegant hotel rooms where they’d partake in explicit activities he preferred not to think about. Theo advised the girls in front of their clients that he’d wait in the car, but as part of his contract, he’d be stationed in the room next to theirs in case he was needed. Regrettably, that meant he’d have to listen in on what they were doing, but he tried to focus his enhanced hearing on the heartbeats of his colleagues, only tuning in completely if her heart rate went inexplicably high.

All in all, he couldn't complain. Theo accompanied the girls to a variety of events, from sports games to extravagant balls in nearby cities. His boss paid him handsomely for saving his business, and all five girls adored him, splitting some of their exorbitant tips with him at the end of the night. So far, he only had to rough up a few guys who didn’t understand the concept of no, which was great because he got to release some pent up aggression, and it made his new “sisters” (again, their word, not his…he didn’t have the heart to tell them what happened to his last sister), love him even more.  

He should have expected it when everything blew up in his face.

Chapter Text

Midnyght Memories headquarters was located on the outskirts of Beacon Hills (thankfully on the northern border, so nowhere near Ben Dover Park, a fact Theo was immensely grateful for) inside a compound surrounded by a ten foot white wall. The archway entrance was gated, and you either needed the passcode to get in or request the security guard buzz you in from a little intercom secured to a post near the gate.

Clients were allowed in the building, but most business meetings were conducted online or “off-campus.” The owner, Blake Weston, wanted to give the girls a safe place where they could be themselves and spend time together as a “family.” Any time they were in the building, they referred to it as being “on campus,” or “at the Mansion” (even though it wasn’t as big as a Mansion...it confused Theo at first, but he understood now how much cooler it sounded that way).

The actual family members of the girls were allowed on campus, as well, but only one of the girls, Charlotte, had children of her own who would come by frequently. The other four girls occasionally brought family from out-of-town to hangout, but every girl had a room of their own on the second floor where they lived. Charlotte, because of her child, was the only one who rented an apartment nearby, but Blake paid her rent for her to make it fair. Theo thought there would be a lot of jealousy among the girls, but besides occasional petty arguments about “borrowed” clothes and using each other’s makeup without asking, the girls got along amazingly.

Emma was the oldest at 35, a tall blonde from Maine who moved to California to start a new life with her four year old daughter, Eva. Theo had been confused when Faye told him only Charlotte had a kid but Eva kept going on and on about her ‘baby girl.’ When he met Eva, it dawned on him that she was in fact, a large Maine Coon, and not an actual human child. Suddenly, Emma’s previous comments about how proud she was when Eva finally caught the little red dot made a lot more sense.

Faye was the youngest at 21 and the only supernatural at the moment, with straight black hair and large grey eyes (though Theo never garnered the courage to ask if this was what she “really” looked like). The fairy was tiny, even compared to Theo, and always managed to put a smile on his face even when he was in one of his “moods.” A California native, her family currently lived in the depths of the forest surrounding the Nemeton after moving there once the supernatural beacon was reactivated.

Charlotte was slightly younger than Emma at 33, and the “mom” of the group, both literally and figuratively. She was from Tennessee and branded herself as the Queen of Southern Belles, with long flowing curly blonde hair and a southern twang to her voice.

Blair was the “alternative” girl. She was 24 years old with forever changing hair colors and styles (though done by regular dye, not magic), complimented perfectly by her spunky personality.

Shea was 28 and from Ireland, amassing a prominent following of returning customers due to her Irish accent and charm.

Once on the property, the two-story building  was modern yet classy. The walls were predominately made of frosted glass (so they weren’t see-through), held together by thick white columns. The standalone garage held up to eight flashy cars and was Theo’s favorite aspect of the job. His mouth watered every time he got to drive one of the beautiful machines, favoring the Audi S5 Sportback the most. When running errands for his boss, Blake let him drive the Ferrari 488 Spider, but he couldn’t use it often because it only had two seats which was a bit uncomfortable when you were driving two additional people. But at the end of the day, his truck would always own the top spot in his heart no matter which luxury car he was able to drive.

The central feature of the property, however, was the pool surrounding about three-fourths of the Mansion. In various parts of the pool, floating slabs of marble were anchored to the bottom, giving it a contemporary look and granting the girls a unique place to tan in the middle of the water. A few of the slabs were also home to baby palm trees, completing the overall beach paradise theme.

On the backside of the property, there was a mesmerizing cascading waterfall that ran into the pool where the water was sometimes dyed different colors in celebration of events. Whenever he had a chance, Theo enjoyed laying on one of the marble pieces a few feet away from the waterfall and allowed the sounds of the rushing water to soothe him into a peaceful sleep.

Upon entering the front door, the lobby occupied most of the first floor which was the only place clients would ever see. The second story contained Blake’s office, a spare office for the girls to keep any work related stuff, and seven bedrooms with en-suite bathrooms. Four of the bedrooms were occupied on a daily basis, and the fifth bedroom was reserved for Charlotte if she ever chose to stay there. The other two bedrooms were allotted for guests, but there was a strict no sex rule in the house. The sanction was severely enforced with clients, though if anyone brought a boyfriend over (which was rare), the rule may be overlooked as long as everything was done discreetly and quietly.  

How he went from homeless and living in his truck to having two perfect homes, he’ll never know, but he forbid himself to ever take it for granted. The girls begged Theo to move in with them, but he politely declined, contending he already had a perfectly good home which was much closer to school. Faye teased him about needing to spend time in his mancave and away from girls, and he heartily agreed.

Between all five girls, Faye was the one Theo was closest to, both in and outside of work. Because of her glamor ability, she was the one who took on the most new clients, keeping an intricate portfolio in an office upstairs of everyone who hired her, her looks (with pictures), and her names/backstory. She printed out a copy for Theo as well, which he kept in his loft and studied intently over the first week. He perused it from time to time in order to preserve his cover as their driver because it would be suspicious if he were to call her the wrong name or not recognize her in one of her disguises.

Faye was only three years older than Theo and was the type of girl who wasn’t afraid to text first... or double text when she didn’t get a response fast enough. She basically forced Theo to be her friend, a fact he always teased her about, but deep down, he appreciated that about her. For a while, he’d been concerned she developed a crush on him, but she never smelled aroused or stared at him like his peers sometimes did, so he could never get a good read on it.

The first time they hung out outside of work, Faye invited him to this new coffee shop in town owned by some singer named Drake. He did not have a clue who the guy was, but apparently he was the only one in the world who didn’t, because the shop was packed to the brim with people, some travelling from several states over to attend.

When he arrived, she paid for him, claiming it was her treat for tripling her salary since he started working there. He thanked her and tried to decline, but she insisted, and it hit him then that he may currently be on a date. Could it be a date if the second person was unaware of the romantic intentions when they agreed to go? His uneasiness grew after she profoundly praised him for scaring off some middle schoolers from a corner table with just a look, lightly resting her hand on his forearm as she led him to the table.

The entire time she talked, he stared miserably at his overpriced latte and went back and forth in his head about whether this was a date or not. It got so bad that at one point during the middle of her story about the staff Christmas Party last year and how Charlotte got so drunk she set half their Christmas tree on fire, Theo blurted out, “Is this a date?”

She paused, mouth opened in shock, but didn’t say anything right away, probably because he shouted it so loudly half the shop heard.

“Because like, if this is, I’m sorry, but I can’t be here anymore.” Faye seemed offended, so he tried to clarify what he meant.

“It’s not you. It’s me. And oh my god, wow I’m that douchebag aren’t I?” He ran a hand frustratingly through his hair, regretting he opened his mouth in the first place. “I’m sorry. It really kind of is you.” She arched a condescending eyebrow at him, but it seemed like there was a smile tugging at her lips.

“But like, wow, I’m sorry, it’s not who you are a person. But I guess how you look?” Oh god now she was definitely glaring at him, and there was no possible smile at all. Yep, definitely a frown

“You’re pretty! For a girl. But I don’t like girls?” He wondered why he made that sound like a question. He’s known since he was five years old he didn’t like girls.

“So yeah, I guess I’m gay. But, I don’t really like boys, either.” Her eyes squinted in confusion, and after repeating it to himself, he agreed it didn’t make sense, and he should definitely just keep talking to clarify, because that was working out so well already.

“See, I only like one boy. He’s perfect. And you’re great, I swear! But you aren’t him, and he doesn’t even like me, so I’m just going to stop talking now, because we work together, and I really need this job, so let’s just forget this happened. Please continue about Charlotte’s drunken escapades.” At least now she was laughing at him.

Embarrassed by his loss of control and tactlessness, he brought his coffee cup to his lips to take a sip, forgetting he cracked the lid when he sat down to let it cool off. Because his life was one cosmic joke, the coffee had not cooled in the slightest, and he ended up spilling a $7 scalding hot cinnamon latte down the front of his new Atticus “Punk, Rock, Metal, & Coffee” shirt he ordered off Instagram, burning his lips and the remains of his dignity in the process.

“Oh my,” she giggled before bringing her hand up to cover her lips upon remembering it was rude to laugh at someone who spilled burning liquid on themselves after word vomiting all over the place in a panicked coming out confession.

Fortunately, his enhanced healing kicked in and the burns were gone in seconds, but sadly, his special powers didn’t include disappearing at will. He really envied Corey at times like this.

He moved to stand up, but he accidentally bumped the table, knocking over the mostly-empty cup he previously placed back on the table. The remaining liquid spilled onto the table, and he plopped disparagingly back into his chair, groaning at the unfairness of... well, everything.

“Sit, darling, let me take care of it all while you… recompose. Hand me your keys. And before you give yourself a heart attack, this is not, and never was, a date.”

Relieved, Theo nodded in understanding, passing his car keys over, not caring if she stole his truck at this point as long as she proceeded to run him over with it in the process. Unable to face plant on the table because he’d further cover his body in coffee, he glared around at the speechless onlookers his freak-out had amassed, flooded with immense relief when he didn’t recognize any of them.

Faye bustled around him, first bringing him a handful of napkins to dry himself and the table off with, and then, bless her, coming back with a change of clothes for him. He took a moment to gaze down in astonishment at the spare pair of sweatpants and muscle tank in his hands before darting off to the nearest bathroom, shouldering his way to the front of the line to change. It didn’t occur to him until he was leaving the bathroom in his clean clothes, dirty ones folded neatly in his arms, that Faye had no way of knowing he kept extra clothes in his car.

“How’d you know I had these in my truck?” he asked confusedly, sitting down in his coffee-free seat.

“You always keep a black duffle bag stocked with essentials in the backseat,” she shrugged like this was just known, and Theo narrowed his eyes in suspicion.  

“You’ve never been in my truck,” he tentatively pointed out, alarm bells going off in his head. He knew his current job was too good to be true, and deep down, he’d been waiting for the shoe to drop. Nothing good ever lasted long in his world, and ultimately, he couldn’t be upset about it, because he didn’t deserve any better.

Sensing his anxious mood, she smirked at him, grey eyes dancing with laughter. Her sincerity settled some of the nerves in his stomach. “Remember when you had to wait a week for your background check to go through before you got hired?”

“Yes…”

“I was the background check,” Faye laughed, giving him a sly wink.

“Excuse me?” he demanded, voice potentially sounding a bit squeakier than intended. He was having an off day, so sue him.

“So I’m a fairy, right? This,” she moves her hand up and down, indicating her entire body. “Is not my normal body. When we’re in our regular forms, we’re tiny and have wings.”

“That’s so cute,” he whispered, wincing when she kicked him in the shin. “I wasn’t being sarcastic!”

“Uh huh,” she said doubtfully. “So I followed you around for a few days to make sure everything you said checked out.” Faye placed her hands on the table, leaning forward in interest. Her gray eyes continued to sparkle with amusement, and her entire body seemed to glow. “Who’s the boy? I’m going to say it’s the baby one who glues himself to your side during your little werewolf hoorahs. He couldn’t keep his eyes off you. But it could also be that ridiculously tall one with the eight-pack. He seems a bit mysterious and also douchey enough to go toe to toe with you when you’re in one of your moods.”

Theo rolled his eyes, refusing to blush under her scrutiny or think about all the cringeworthy things she could have witnessed. “Okay, first of all, that is a egregious breach of privacy to which I find utterly appalling. Secondly, if you breathe a word of this to anyone else, I will kill you.” She raised a judgmental eyebrow. “Painfully.” She rolled her eyes. “I’ll quit! I swear. If you repeat any of this to anyone, I swear I will quit this job and make it known to the other girls that you are the reason I’m leaving.”

Faye pouted at him. “You’re no fun. I’m just trying to get to know you better.”

Oh god, what was that unfamiliar feeling gripping his chest? Was that guilt? Was he letting himself be manipulated by a girl half his size into admitting his feelings in a public place for a boy who didn’t give two fucks about him?

Before he could respond, the chair to his left slid out with a screeching noise across the wooden floor. He didn’t need to turn his head to recognize who joined their table, the scent of her fruity perfume ticking his nose.

“Bunch of girls outside were complaining about how the hottest guy in the shop just came out as liking some dude,” Charlotte stated, her light southern drawl making his lips quirk up slightly. “After looking around at a room full of chicks and old yuppies, I figured they had to have meant you, darlin’.”

“Is Theo finally confessing his love for that one kid? It’s the short one right?” another voice asks, and the chair to his right is pulled out as Blair, her blonde hair dyed a bubble gum pink, takes a seat. "This is even better than my news that the second 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them' movie is coming out in November!"

Faye cackled at his blush, catching the other two girls up on everything that happened and then the three of them worked hand in hand to get him to spill the story on his pathetic love life.

He sighed, wondering where he went wrong in life to get to the point where he was hanging out in coffee shops and gossiping with girls… about boys. That he liked.

Friday nights were always an interesting time to work, because Faye’s clients tended to ask she accompany them to bars and clubs as their date. The problem for Theo, of course, occurred when the establishment in question demanded all patrons be 21 years or over.  

The issue never occurred to Theo until a female bouncer tried to ID him in a club in LA, but fortunately, he successfully sweet-talked his way into being allowed in. Afterwards, Blake swiftly solved this dilemma by crafting Theo a believable fake-ID. His boss knew the owners of the few clubs in Beacon Hills that were 21+, so they let Theo in without an ID, especially since as a chimera, alcohol didn’t really affect him unless it was laced with wolfsbane. Theo only needed the ID on the rare occasions the club the client wanted to go to was a few towns over.

This evening he was chaperoning Faye and her date at Sinema, except tonight she was Olivia, a Brazilian bombshell who was saving money to get a nursing degree. She explained to him once that male clients of any age or background always tipped exceedingly higher when they found out their escort was trying to earn money to go to university. After conducting some experiments and comparing notes with the other girls, she determined guys tip more when they declared their desired degree was in nursing or teaching, but if she mentioned she was studying engineering or business, her tips were significantly lower.

Theo found it interesting how the girls utilized different psychological tactics to maximize their profits. Sometimes he debated on trying his hand at it, because he was a great actor and loved the notion of trying different mind tricks to get people to pay him more money or buy him extravagant gifts. Plus, his enhanced senses as a chimera would give him an upper hand on creating the perfect persona for each client. But, on the nights when he was staked out in a hotel room trying to not think about what was going on in the room next door, he decided he was a better driver/bodyguard despite it being less lucrative.

Any time they went to local venues, Theo attempted to disguise his look as much as possible in case he ran into someone he knew from school. Or worse, the pack. He usually slicked his hair back and dressed in designer clothes, sometimes going as far as to use color contacts. Though, theoretically, his physical disguise wouldn’t do much to eliminate his scent from the more observant werewolf pack members, so he always concealed his tracks as well. He felt paranoid doing it, but you just never knew who’d you run into in Beacon Hills.

Theo sat at the bar a few seats down from Faye and her middle-aged date, sipping idly through a skinny straw at his rum and coke... minus the rum. One of the underrated aspects of the job was how much time he got to spend people watching. It utterly fascinated him the way people behaved, especially when alcohol was involved.

Theo observes one man make eye contact with a much younger pretty brunette, and before he goes over to talk to her, he discreetly slides his wedding ring off and slips it into his pocket. Theo suddenly drafts his own 'Declaration to Become a Better Person', and the first commandment on his list was to call out people who cheated in relationships, especially marriages. What was the point of marriage if you were just going to discard your vows whenever you fancied?

When the man went to the bathroom, Theo waves the bartender over to borrow a pen, scratches a little note on a napkin, and drops it in front of the girl as he follows the man into the bathroom. In a terrible accident he most certainly did not plan, Theo spills his coke down the man’s khaki pants. In absolute horror at his embarrassing clumsiness, Theo grabs a handful of paper towels and attempts to help the angry man dry his pants off, ‘unintentionally’ removing the wedding ring from his small, tight pockets in the process. He hands the piece of jewelry back to the glaring man, clapping him on the shoulder, and pointing out that his pants should be dry by the time he makes it home to his lovely wife, so all in all, it isn’t a big deal.

Smirking to himself, he exits the bathroom, focusing one ear on the cheating asshole still in the bathroom in case he decides to sneak up on Theo, and the other one on Faye’s fake giggle at a lame as fuck joke her date just told. So, it comes as quite the surprise to him when he runs into a significantly taller body with a somewhat familiar bare chest.

Looking up, apology half formed on his lips, his mouth drops in shock when his green eyes meet the gleeful hazel eyes of one Brett Talbot. And around Brett’s middle are a pair of arms belonging to a much shorter boy that Theo instantly recognizes despite not being able to see his face.

“Why’d we stop?” the voice whines. “Brett, I gotta pee!”

“Someone’s blocking our way, Little Bomb,” Brett laughs, gently patting Liam’s hand in comfort. Something twists painfully in Theo’s heart, either from the underhand comment about Liam’s IED diagnosis or from the casual touching between the two boys.

“Make him move,” Liam grumbles, voice garbled like his face is pressed up against Brett’s back.

Theo’s too stunned by the sudden change of events to say anything, but he stares pleadingly at Brett, silently trying to communicate his desire to pass by them unnoticed. Was this karma for ratting the married guy out? Weren’t good things supposed to happen to people who did good deeds? What the fuck was this shit?

The taller boy gives him a sly grin and a wink, and Theo knows right then he’s fucked.

“Why don’t you tell him for yourself, Li?” Brett goads, entwining one of his hands with Liam’s and leading the boy out from behind him.

Liam’s face is set into a glare, eyes slightly unfocused due to the wolfsbane laced alcohol coursing through his veins, a pungent scent that Theo immediately smells. It makes his nose scrunch up in distaste, but at least the beta’s earlier texts make more sense now. Of course Liam had to be drunk in order to flirt with him like that. And it clearly didn’t mean anything since now he was here draping himself over another handsome werewolf. Granted, Theo was way better looking and would have a ten pack if he was as skinny as Brett, but he preferred larger muscles over lankiness. But to each his own, and all that, he guesses.

The beta stares at him a moment, blinking confusedly until he realizes who the familiar smelling person is.

“Theo!!” Liam squeals, launching himself into Theo’s arms. “Oh my god, Brett, it’s Theo.”

“Yes, Liam, I see that,” Brett sighs, apparently significantly more sober that the beta if Theo were to trust his senses. On Brett, there was a minimal scent of alcohol surrounding the taller boy, but Liam reeked of it.

“I thought you were working?” Liam asks, nose nuzzling Theo’s neck. And that was a bit awkward... but felt nice... and oh fuck, what is he supposed to say in response?

He stays mostly silent, making a noncommittal noise, mentally panicking when he couldn’t locate Faye’s voice in the crowd. Not only did he need to create a lie about why he was at Sinema when a few hours ago he said he was going to work, but now he was going to need to find new work, because something tragic happened to Faye and he was going to get fired. Fuck everything, why was his life so complicated?

“He’s off now,” her voice says from his left side, and he jumps slightly in surprise, jostling Liam who removes himself from Theo’s arms. With a frown on his handsome face, Liam returns to Brett’s side, giving Faye a critical once over. Theo tries to suppress a growl as Brett easily tosses an arm over Liam’s shoulders, reminding himself that just because he wanted Liam to be his, it doesn’t mean he actually was.  

Theo glances down and sees Faye is back to Faye, no longer glamored as her Brazilian counterpart Olivia but still clothed in the same little black dress.

“Are you his friend Liam? Theo’s told me all about you,” Faye smiles with a shit-eating grin, over stressing the word ‘friend’ to the point of obviousness.

Theo mentally groans at the terribly awkward situation. They have no cover story planned, and Faye seems to have a game plan already in place on how to play this. He has no idea what the fuck was happening, a fact that drives his stress levels through the roof. Aware of his feelings for Liam, Theo trusts Faye enough to know she isn’t going to do anything to destroy his chances with the beta (not that there were any to begin with), but he isn’t sure what she was trying to do at the moment.

“That’s funny, he’s never once mentioned you,” Liam bites back, nose pretentiously raised in the air, and Faye smirks cutely in response.

“I’m kind of his little secret, I guess,” she giggles, entwining her arm through Theo’s and gazing innocently up at Liam through her long eyelashes.

“Yeah, I get it. Sometimes when we’re ashamed of things, we don’t like to talk about them often,” Liam shrugs, shouldering passed them to get into the bathroom. Faye cackles gleefully, especially when she sees Theo’s wide-eyed look at Liam’s savagery and Brett’s wince. The other boy pats Theo on the shoulder as he follows the beta.

“What the fuck just happened?” Theo remarks, looking helplessly down at his “sister.”

“Don’t worry, dear, I’ve got you,” she coos, giving him a small side hug.

“Or we can just leave?” he asks hopefully, knowing it’s futile because his adopted sisters LOVE to meddle. Seriously. One time Theo nonchalantly mentioned he’s only seen one Disney movie, and for the next three weeks, every time he checked his mail, he received a new DVD. The first movie came with a handwritten letter signed by each girl, basically demanding he watch every movie they sent him because they would quiz him on it afterwards. And if he failed to answer properly, the letter ended with a heart stopping threat of, “We know who you like, and we aren’t scared to tell him.” Needless to say, he watched every movie at least once and browsed the Wikipedia page after to make sure he understood everything correctly.

Faye’s amused snort brings him back to the present. “Don’t be silly, Theo, the night is young, and the fun is about to begin.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of,” he mumbles under his breath. Louder he asks, “What happened to Gustavo?”

“Esteban unfortunately drank too much and believes he had an argument with his ex-wife,” she shrugs as if it wasn’t a big deal.

“Damn?” He makes it sound like a question because he senses he’s missing something.

“Yeah,” she smiles devilishly. “But, fortunately, he left me a generous tip and because he felt so bad, he left his bar tab open, insisting I have fun tonight. Isn’t that nice?”

Theo rolls his eyes when he realizes what she did. “How did you know what she looked like?”

Faye gives him an “Are You Fucking Serious” look. “Facebook stalking. Duh.”

“And he didn’t wonder why his ex-wife and current date were wearing the same dress?”

She sighs in fake sadness. “He’s got a drinking problem, obviously, Theo. Speaking of-”

Faye gives the two boys who were exiting the bathroom a friendly grin. “Want to do shots?”

“Only if you’re paying,” Liam glares, arching an eyebrow in a challenge.

Her smile gets impossibly wider, and she rolls her eyes. “Of course. Any friend of Theo is a friend of mine.”

“Great,” Liam sarcastically replies, seeming slightly more sober after his time in the bathroom. But Brett’s hand is firmly placed on Liam’s shoulder, and Theo aches to remove the appendage from Brett’s body and then hit him with it so he learns his lesson.

“And I’ve got this little vial of purple stuff somewhere here in my purse to make it really more fun.”

“Excellent,” Liam says, grinning for the first time since Faye arrived.

Chapter Text

Tuning out the noise of Mason destroying Corey in Mario Kart (again), Liam swipes his phone open to read the message from Theo. He almost drops the device, however, when he sees the text message the chimera sent him in response to his Instagram comment.

[Theo]: Are you drunk?

Shit, shit, shit! Had Corey told Theo they were drinking? Was Corey a werechameleon or a weremole? Or, worse, is Theo secretly descended from a line of seers like Professor Trelawney? Did he have premonitions like Lydia but less death-like? Either way, Theo thinking he was drunk just would not do. He needs to deny this accusation instantly!

[Liam]: NO who told you that?

Hm, maybe that was too intense. Probably should have added an ‘lol’ in there to make it less aggressive. Oh well, Theo will just have to deal with it. It’s not like they were strangers to violence and aggression, especially when it was coming from Liam and directed at Theo.

[Theo]: Your lame Instagram comment did. If you’re trying to get back at me for my last comment, I’m not impressed

Okay, wow, fuck you too, Theodore, nobody asked for all this extra sass.

Liam has to strain his memory to recall what comment Theo is referring to. After some extensive thinking that starts to give his drunk brain a headache, he remembers the comment the chimera left on his Instagram gym picture about how he “remembers his first day at the gym, Little Wolf.” Then, the fucker had the audacity to go and tag him in his own shirtless Thot picture that was probably taken by the little douche Parker just to ensure Liam saw the photo. It grated on Liam’s nerves knowing that Parker got to watch Theo workout, shirtless no less, and probably fawned over the chimera the entire time since Theo is a walking thirst trap.

But, seriously though, a guy who’s secure in his own sexuality can’t compliment his good-looking male friend about their looks without getting a rude comment in return? Why is it so wrong for Liam to tell Theo he was cute? Society doesn’t care if females compliment each other! In fact, many people encourage women to compliment one another in order to help promote female empowerment! Why can’t dudes be the same? That is some sexist bullshit this werewolf will not stand for!

[Liam]: Sorry for thinking you’re cute, my fucking bad  >__<

Liam sends the first message in a fit of anger before the little voice in the back of his head begins to speak. He frowns when he realizes it sounds suspiciously like Peter Hale.

Maybe it’s just you, Liam. Maybe Theo doesn’t think you’re attractive enough to think he’s attractive. Like Blaise is. Or Parker. Theo didn’t seem to care when they flirted with him. They’re clearly more worthy of his attention. You’re just inferior, plain and simple.

Glowering at his phone as the words spin through his head, Liam’s fingers fly across the touchscreen keyboard, hitting the ‘send’ button before his brain catches up with what he was actually saying.

[Liam]: Guess u only care if blaze and parker think u look good

He cringes slightly, knowing he sounds petty and bitter, but the wolfsbane laced alcohol provides him the courage he needs to speak his mind and not give too many fucks about it all. And, if Drunk Liam deletes this conversation before Sober Liam can see it, then, what’s the harm?!

Thankfully, Theo responds quickly, putting an end to Liam’s inner turmoil.

[Theo]: ????
[Theo]: Are you serious right now?

Liam let’s out a frustrated sigh, ignoring the curious looks his friends are giving him. Yes, he was serious! He’s never been so serious about anything else, like ever. Theo typically is good at picking up on Liam’s genuine thoughts and emotions, but right now, he is being one giant dummy. Maybe the chimera just forgot he is smart, and he needs Liam to remind him?

Liam could do that.

[Liam]: Um, duh, aren’t you sppsed to be smart?

“I’m gonna get another shot!” he announces to Mason and Corey, only stumbling slightly as he enters the kitchen.

Liam hears a groan from Corey and an evil laugh from Mason back in the living room, and the beta isn’t surprised when the werechameleon requests another shot as well. Losing to Mason in Mario Kart is much easier to handle after a few (or ten) tequila shots.

Liam takes his shot without the salt and lime, instead devouring a handful of tortilla chips after to wash it down. He pours Corey a shot of the wolfsbane laced tequila and makes Mason a delicious mixed drink with some orange juice, tequila, and apple juice because why the fuck not? Everything tastes good when you’re drunk!

After delivering the drinks to his friends, Liam returns his attention back to the issue at hand; Operation Woo Theo Raeken.

Wait, woo? Shit.

He meant ‘Befriend.” Totally, 100% meant befriend.

Or like woo him into becoming his friend. Yes. Exactly. That is acceptable.

“Liam!” Mason calls, startling the beta who was lost in his thoughts. “Liiiiaaaaaam. Are you okay?”

Whipping his head up, Liam takes a moment to allow his eyes to focus on his best friend, the look of concern on his face marred by the smile tugging on the boy’s lips.

“Yep,” the beta nods feverently. “I am great. Totes great. Sooooo great. The greatest of them all.”

Fake it til you make it, aye?

“Okay, cool.” Mason nods his head just as intensely as Liam had. “Cuz you’re kind of glaring down at your phone like it just told you it was glad when Cedric died during the third task.”

Liam gasps, scowling angrily down at the accused device, tears burning in the corner of his eyes at the thought of his favorite Hufflepuff’s unjust and unexpected demise. “CEDRIC DESERVED BETTER!”

“He did,” Corey notes sadly, frowning as he notices the despondent shift in the room’s mood. Liam turns his attention back to his phone, speedily typing out a message and hitting send without proofreading “Want to play now, Liam?”

The other boy hands the controller to the beta, practically shoving it under his nose in his haste to rid himself of having to lose to Mason. Again. For like... the fifth time that night.

“No thanks,” Liam smirks at the werechameleon, waving his phone in the air. “I’m texting Theo.”

His smirk grows wider at Mason’s squeal of excitement and Corey’s expression of shock.

“Oh my god, what he’s saying? Did you invite him over? Probably not because it’s not your house, but you should invite him over!” Mason literally smacks Corey’s arm in his excitement. “Isn’t this great, Corey?!?”

Corey rubs the spot where Mason hit him. “Yes, good for you, Liam. We’ll leave you to your conversation and not pry, won’t we, Mason?”

Corey raises an expectant eyebrow at his boyfriend.

“We most certainly will pry!” Mason scoffs, shooting Corey a wholly unimpressed look. “Our baby beta needs a wingman before he goes and chases off his first boy crush.”

“Besides sending Theo back to his sister, do you think there’s anything Liam could legitimately do that would scare Theo Fucking Raeken off?” Corey laughs, and Mason pauses in thought before shaking his head ‘no.’

“It doesn’t matter because I most certainly do not have a crush on Theo!” Liam claims weakly. “That is just...blasphemous.” Both Mason and Corey stop bickering for a minute to laugh loudly in his face before turning back to one another to continue their argument about whether or not they needed to know everything Theo and Liam were currently texting about.

“You need all the information to formulate a viable theory,” is the last thing Liam hears from Mason when he decides to tune them out.

Liam sighs, for once grateful to be ignored by his friends. He opens the newest message from Theo, heart pounding in his ears in anticipation.

[Theo]: See. I don’t even know what that means. I don’t think you know what that means either.

Not remembering what he first wrote, Liam squints in his confusion as he rereads his last text. He internally chuckles to himself, willing to admit only in his head that he has no idea what the fuck he tried to say, either.

Theo didn’t need to know that, though.

Time for a distraction.

[Liam]: Wutever.
[Liam]: I take it back. Ur ugly

Liam nods slightly at his response, pleased with his well thought out diversion tactic. The chimera always got defensive if people insulted his looks. He watches the bubbles appear on the screen, disappear, and then reappear as Theo goes back and forth on how to respond.

[Theo]: HAHA we both know you don’t think that’s true. I use my nose, remember?

Liam’s heart skips several beats at the implications of what Theo could mean. Oh god, he needs to learn how to control his chemosignals! Has he been broadcasting that he’s attracted to the other boy this whole time without even realizing it? Like... not even realizing in his own head that he thinks Theo is kinda sort of okay looking? Was that possible? Oh god, his chest hurts. Was this what a panic attack feels like? He thinks he might be on the verge of dying right now.

How was he going to respond?

Deny it until your last dying breath, the Peter-like voice in his head purrs.

Yes. Denial was always a great option. Why didn’t he think of that sooner?

[Liam]: Ur nose is terrible. And ugly

Liam mentally pats himself on the back for his witty reply, sending a solid “thank you” to the voice for his wisdom. He decides to name the voice Lil Pete.

[Theo]: Fuck you Dunbar, you’re ugly

Liam almost gasps aloud at the rudeness. Liam Dunbar is a lot of things, but ugly is not one of them!

But oh my gosh, wait, was he? Is that why Hayden left him? Is this why he’s been single for so long? Oh fuck, why didn’t anyone tell him? He silently glares at his two friends for failing to inform him he was the Ugly Friend.

He hits the back button on his phone, exiting the conversation with Theo and scrolls to “Alpha Daddy” (another gift from Mason when he last borrowed his phone...Melissa, of course, was Alpha Mommy and Stiles was listed as Pack Momma).

[BabyBeta]: Why didnt u tell me i was the ugly friend?!

He sends the message to Scott just as the voice in his head begins to speak again.

You’re not ugly, he’s forgotten what you look like, obviously. Send him a picture to remind him.

Glancing up from his phone, Liam sees that Mason and Corey are still distracted, the couple leaning over each other as they type some stuff on Mason’s phone. Using their lack of attentiveness to his advantage, Liam opens up Snapchat and discreetly takes a picture. Should he add an insult to the image? Or just send the picture? Or maybe a cute filter?

Always add an insult, but don’t use a filter. You’re too handsome for that.

Liam agrees with Lil Peete and swiftly types out, “Not as ugly as u,” and saves the picture, sending it to the chimera through text message.

After several minutes without a response, Liam begins to feel antsy. Why wasn’t Theo responding? Should he double text? Did the picture turn him off? Did he want Theo to be turned on to begin with? What the fuck was happening?

Come up with a better insult. There’s nothing wrong with double texting. Or triple texting. You deserve the attention! How dare he ignore you!

Liam nods along in agreement with the voice. It was only fair the chimera paid attention to him. Granted... he’s ignored the chimera in school for the past several months up until today…

Doesn’t matter, Lil Pete scoffs. You’re worth waiting for.

Liam preens at the compliment.

[Liam]: So ugly you broke the camera?

Liam smiles smugly as he sees the little dots appear on the screen, and before he can blink, there’s an image popping up on his phone.

[Theo]: Not ugly at all

He gasps in awe at the picture attached, accidentally dropping his phone into his lap in his surprise.

“What happened?!” Mason cries, getting up from the couch and sitting on Liam’s right leg as he bends over to retrieve the phone from its awkward location in Liam’s crotch.

“What’d he say? Did he ask you out? Is he coming over here?” Corey asks, taking a seat on the arm of the recliner on Liam’s left side, apparently no longer on the path of, ‘Let’s not harass Liam about his conversation with their former enemy.’

For some reason he can’t explain, Liam wants to keep the image private and to himself, but he knows after his previous dramatic reaction, it’ll be impossible to shake Mason off, especially with Corey supporting him in his quest for gossip.

Mason hands the device back to him, and Liam unlocks it before scrolling back to the picture. “He sent me this.”

“Oh wow, I never thought I’d see the day Theo Raeken took a selfie,” Corey laughs lightly, his smile completely brightening his face. “At least one that wasn’t in the gym or half naked.”

They’ve clearly never seen Theo’s Instagram, Liam giggles to himself. The chimera was all about selfies lately, though, of course he had some standard Fuckboy gym pictures. But hey, who was Liam to judge? Not only did he (very secretly) appreciate them, but he even posted a few of his own.

“Look at that closet,” Mason moans, snatching the phone right from Liam’s hands. Liam peers around his friend to see him zooming in on the clothes in the background. “These are some nice threads.”

The beta shrugs. “He’s decent looking. I’m sure people like... pay well for that.”

Liam trails off, an uncomfortable and unfamiliar sour feeling curling in his stomach at the thought of the boy having to sell his body to afford the items behind him. It just seemed wrong. Not that there was anything wrong with prostitution, of course! Minus the whole illegal aspect of it. And, if Theo wanted to make money that way, than more power to him, because Liam didn’t think he’d have the balls to sleep with strangers for money. It just shouldn’t be his only option for work.

“Did you text him first?” Corey asks, bringing Liam back into reality.

“Ask him what he’s doing,” Mason excitedly directs. “You should invite him out with us.”

“We’re going out?”

They both ignore him. “Tell him you liked his picture, though, or else you’ll hurt his ego.”

Mason nods in agreement. “Yes, stroke his ego a bit and maybe you’ll get to stroke something else later.”

Liam’s mouth drops open at the vulgar implication, and he hates himself when he feels his face heat with embarrassment... and possibly some arousal. Thankfully, his two friends couldn’t detect chemosignals, or else he’d have to go throw himself into traffic. “Mason!”

Corey cackles at his offended expression.

“I meant his beard!” Mason claims, patting his knee in apology, but Liam’s not completely convinced of his friend’s innocence. “Get your mind out of the gutter, Dunbar.”

Liam ignores his friends and decides praising the chimera’s picture outright would be weird (especially considering Theo’s previous reaction to Liam calling him ‘cute’), so he gets a bit creative with it.

[Liam]: Yeah, guess not  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

“Nice use of the Lenny Face,” Corey compliments, and out of the corner of his eye, Liam sees Mason rolling his eyes, muttering something about, “That’s not creepy at all or anything.”

“Find out what he’s doing!” Mason urges, and Liam sends a speedy follow-up text.

[Liam]: Wyd?

“You really couldn’t type out three words?” Mason sighs, disappointment and judgment evident on his face even to Liam’s drunken mind.

“Theo is pretty particular with words, I can’t imagine him not writing in full sentences,” Corey notes, and Liam finds himself agreeing. “And he’s probably not familiar with texting slang.”

Liam debates the pros and cons of triple texting, but before he can make a decision, his phone vibrates with an incoming message.

[Theo]: Getting ready for work, you?

“Ha! He knows what it means!” Liam triumphantly waves his phone in the air, almost punching Corey in the face as he does so, only missing the boy because he deems falling off the chair to be less painful than getting a left hook from Liam.

Probably a wise decision on his part.

“Sorry,” he mumbles, offering the werechameleon a hand to help pull him back up onto the side of the armchair.

“Liam!” Mason smacks the beta’s shoulder a few times in excitement after making sure Corey is unscathed from his best friend’s abuse. “This is your chance to find out what he does!”

“DO NOT ASK HIM IF HE’S A PROSTITUTE!” Corey suddenly screeches. The piercing noise right next to his ear startles Liam, and now it’s his turn to fall off the chair in his haste to get away from it. His phone somehow manages to stay firmly on the cushion of the recliner while the boy lands painfully on his back.

Perhaps planning such a reaction (‘weremole ’ crosses Liam’s mind again), Corey darts for the phone at the same time Mason moves to grab it. Somehow, his best friend comes up victorious, and the device is tossed onto Liam’s stomach where he’s yet to drag himself up into a sitting position. Why would he when the floor is so comfortable? And if his head is spinning slightly, well, all the more reason to stay down here!

“We can’t interfere,” Mason chides his boyfriend, and Corey squawks in indignation at the boy’s 180 degree change in stance on the issue. “But, Liam, seriously, Corey’s right. Please be more subtle.”

“Liam doesn’t do subtle,” Corey grumbles. Liam chooses to ignore him, because, rude. Liam was great at subtleness. He was like a ninja with words.

“You got it, dude,” Liam exclaims, briefly giving the other two boys a thumbs up. Gingerly holding the phone up in front of his face, Liam types out his version of subtle, hitting send before reading it out loud to his friends.

[Liam]: Streets must be busy and dangerous this time of night

When Liam doesn’t get a response after a few moments, he grueling lifts himself up onto his elbows.

“What’s wrong with what I said?” Liam cries upon seeing Mason face palming him, and Corey’s smug expression, the words, “I told you so,” all but stamped on his forehead.

“I mean...if he is a hooker, you weren’t really subtle at all,” Mason trails off.

Corey finishes the thought. “And if he isn’t, he’s going to be confused as fuck about what you mean.”

“I’m hopeless,” Liam whines, flopping back down onto the floor in despair.

“But that’s why we love you,” Mason coos, joining the beta on the floor.  

“Not helpful,” Liam groans, eliciting a sympathetic sound from Corey who seems to have readily made himself comfortable on the beta’s vacated recliner.

Mason sits cross-legged behind the werewolf, and Liam carefully lays his head in his friend’s lap, sighing contently as Mason begins carding his fingers through his hair.

[Theo]: Yeah, but I’m always careful. Don’t want to ruin my baby

Liam reads the text aloud, slightly disappointed by the lack of outright confession. Why couldn’t Theo just admit he had sex for money? Why did he have to be so elusive and secretive, and just so... Theo, about it all.

“He definitely has no idea what you’re talking about,” Corey snickers, and Liam wishes there was something nearby that he could throw at the boy. For some weird reason, he was fairly confident Mrs. Hewitt would not appreciate Liam throwing her coffee table at her son’s boyfriend.

Pity.

“Or he’s playing dumb,” Mason helpfully supplies, and Liam likes this reasoning better. He forgets sometimes how much he loves his best friend.

“I love you too, man” Mason chuckles, and Liam’s taken aback when he realizes he must have spoken his thoughts out loud. Awkward. Though, it could definitely have been worse. Much, much worse.

He’s careful about not getting stains in his truck, Lil Pete’s voice returns, and Liam frowns, turning over a few possible ways he can direct the conversation in his head.

[Liam]: I kno some1 whos good at cleaning them if u need a rec

Yes, that’s good. He’s informing Theo he understands and accepts that the chimera does dirty things in his car to make money, and Liam’s willing to help him find ways to make his work place cleanlier and safer. He was being supportive and nonjudgmental. Seriously. Theo could tell him anything and everything. And by could, he means should, before his thoughts run away with him again, and he starts imagining various terrible scenarios of what the chimera could be doing each night he goes to work. Was that even safe to do here in a town where hunters just roamed the streets? Liam just NEEDS TO KNOW FOR SURE, DAMNIT THEO.

“Who do you know that cleans car?” Mason snorts, reading the text aloud so Corey can stay up to date.

"I never told you about that one guy I met last summer?” Liam asks curiously. The beta looks up from his phone to see Mason frowning as he tries to recall what the fuck his friend his referring to. “He’s super smart, knows everything, kind of rude in the way he will finish sentences for you while you’re midway through them. Ring any bells?”

“Sounds kind of like Stiles,” Corey laughs after Mason fails to come up with an answer.

Liam laughs, too, at the comparison. “Yeah, his name is Google.”

“Oh my god, I hate you,” Mason groans at Liam’s super fucking hilarious joke. The vibration of his phone cuts Liam off mid reply.

[Theo]: I’m lost.

“Ugh, why is he being so difficult?!” Liam whines, closing his eyes in frustration. He’s tempted to ignore Corey’s and Mason’s advice and either just outright ask Theo if he’s a sex worker, or straight up tell the older boy he knows what’s up.

“Because it’s Theo,” Corey states, and the unspoken ‘duh’ hangs in the air.

Just say the same thing in a different way. Theo’s a smart boy, he’ll figure it out.

When his friends don’t offer any additional suggestions, Liam begins to craft his reply based off Lil Pete’s wisdom.

[Liam]: Im just sayin, if u cant get stains out of ur car, i know a guy

Theo responds almost instantly, and Liam can practically hear the growl in the boy’s voice as Liam repeats the words out loud for Mason and Corey.

[Theo]: Are you trying to insinuate my truck is dirty? Because that’s making me feel some type of way

“You’re both hopeless,” Corey sighs, and Liam glances up to see Mason nodding in agreement. Ugh, such betrayal. Was anyone loyal these days?

Remind him you haven’t spent time with him since he started working , Lil Pete whispers, and Liam jumps on the advice. Maybe Theo will get the hint and invite Liam to hang out tomorrow, instead of Sunday?

[Liam]: I mean, it might be. Idk. i havet been in it since u started working

[Theo]: What’s that supposed to mean Dunbar?

“WHY IS EVERYTHING SO DIFFICULT WITH THIS BOY?!” Liam complains again, taking a leaf out of Mason’s book and face palming, even though the chimera certainly couldn’t see him.

“Because if I know you, Dunbar,” a new voice sneers, and in his drunken state, Liam’s unable to place it. “You’re the one making it difficult, and you’re precious boyfriend is just confused as he tries to keep up with whatever weird shit goes on in your head.”

Within a blink of an eye, Liam is on his feet, growl low in his throat as he squints at the blurry form of the intruder.

“Brett?” Liam asks once he remembers he only knows one person who towers above everyone in the pack. And possibly the whole town.

“Is that a question, Dunbar? Just how drunk are you?” Brett goads, but there’s a small playful smile on his lips.

“Pretty drunk,” Corey answers for him. “No more phones, Liam, we’re going out.”

Liam frowns in confusion, but does as the werechameleon instructs.

[Liam]: Nuthing, nvm. Gotta go, corey says no phones. Be safe, ttyl

Say something memorable, Lil Pete encourages but offers no further direction on what was considered memorable.

[Liam]: Gorgeous ;)

Satisfied, Liam switches his ringer to silent, sliding the device back into his back pocket without reading Theo’s reply.

“Out?” Liam parrots, looking to Mason for clarification. He vaguely remembers Corey and Mason texting rapidly together earlier in the night and mentioning something about going out, but they didn’t provide any additional information when he asked.

“Yes, Liam, out,” Mason nods, coming to stand beside Liam. “We’re going to fix you up, take another shot for good luck and so Brett can catch up, and then we’re going dancing at Sinema.”

“I think I’d need to chug half a bottle to catch up to Dunbar,” Brett teases, ruffling Liam’s hair like he was a child. The beta attempts to swat his hands away, but ends up somehow tripping over his own feet and toppling over. Strong arms catch him before he hits the floor, and Brett hugs him to his chest (well... stomach, but Liam hates admitting he’s so much shorter than his former teammate, so chest will do).

Alarmed by the growing army of hunters in Beacon Hills during the Anuk-ite’s reign of terror, Satomi warned Brett and Lori of the impending danger, encouraging both of the young werewolves to play dead if they were attacked. With Deaton’s help, she provided her charges with a pill hidden in a locket to take in the event hunters had them cornered and unable to escape. The drug lowered their heart rate and smoothed out their breathing to the point of undetectability for twenty-four hours, allowing them to easily pass as deceased to anyone with normal human senses.

After being hit by the SUV driven by one of Gerard’s hunters, Lori was able to get close enough to the poisoned Brett to shove his pill down his throat before taking her own. Scott alerted Deaton of Brett and Lori’s death despite being unaware of Satomi’s contingency plan. The vet then alerted Melissa at the hospital who was able to stealthily move the two teenage werewolves to a safe location in the basement of the hospital. Unfortunately, Satomi didn’t have the same plan set up for herself, and with the loss of their Alpha, the two siblings were accepted into Scott’s pack before he left for college.  

Liam inhales the comforting scent of his packmate, remembering the moment he found out his sort-of-friend survived. He remembers the monumental shame and guilt melting off him for not being able to protect the two. He remembers finally being able to breathe again, the knife piercing in his heart dissolving for the first time since the accident. He remembers Theo at his side, offering his silent support as Liam first panicked because he thought Brett and Lori were ghosts, and then bawled his face off when Scott assured him they were alive.

Since his near death experience, Brett became more withdrawn and introspective and to Liam’s concern, decided to forgo playing lacrosse this season to instead “focus on his studies.” He was still sassy at times, but their friendship grew stronger and (somewhat) less antagonistic, especially after becoming packmates. Liam didn’t see Brett often at school, but they sometimes hung out on the weekends, Lori usually close behind after becoming friendlier with Corey and Mason.    

The boy’s scent didn’t calm him quite like... a certain someone’s did, but it smelled like home and made him feel safe with his Alpha so far away.

“I have no clothes,” Liam mutters, voice muffled as he was still pressed face-first against Brett’s rock hard abs... which was super awkward now that he thinks about it, so he moves his face to the side to give himself some breathing room. And like, seriously, those abs aren't natural. Or even supernatural. Could werewolves get cosmetic surgery? Cuz if so… Liam’s firmly putting his money on Brett being faker than a Ken doll.

“I believe Brett solved that on his way here?” Corey responds, and Liam assumes Brett nods because moments later the strong arms holding him in place leave his back, and Liam whines at the loss of contact.

“Come here you big baby,” Mason giggles, and Liam snuggles into his best friend’s chest as he snakes an arm around the boy’s waist. “I forgot how much of a cuddly drunk you were.”

“Don’t tell Theo,” Liam mumbles, cheeks burning red once he realizes what he said. Fortunately, no one comments on it, and Liam glances up to watch as Brett removes his backpack and unzips it before tossing a mound of clothes at Liam. Mason, bless his soul, catches the items for him when Liam makes no move to do so on his own. So much for werewolf reflexes, aye?

Mason hands him the black skinny jeans and dark green short-sleeved shirt.

“Where’d you get these?”

“Your closet, obviously.” Brett rolls his eyes like Liam wondering why the other werewolf suddenly has Liam’s clothes is a dumb question.

“You broke into my room?!” Liam squeaks, wondering what else the boy might have seen while he was in there. Ugh, hopefully he didn’t go through his Internet history. He’s not sure if he could live down his friends knowing he reads Draco and Harry fanfiction before bed every night.

“Don’t be silly, Liam, that’s illegal,” Brett mockingly laughs, starting to sound like his former asshole self. Liam’s not sure which Brett he prefers, if he was being honest. “Your mom let me in after I explained you dropped salsa all over yourself while we were at dinner and you were too embarrassed to come with me to get new clothes.”

“And she bought that?” Liam asks skeptically, glaring at the taller boy.

“She didn’t seem surprised, actually,” Brett shrugs, and Liam visibly deflates at the boy’s honesty. Ugh! Not even his own mom was loyal.

“Sooo… are we going to go get shit-faced and dance, or what?” Corey asks, and the other three boys jump into action at the question.

Liam was soooo ready to drink and dance with his friends and forget about his weird as fuck Theo centered day.

Chapter Text

Theo trails behind the group, internally debating the pros and cons of ditching the whole escapade. Normally, he’s not allowed to drink on the job (not that he’d want to anyways) but he’s pretty sure his shift is considered over since the client left. Blake wouldn’t expect the car to be returned until tomorrow if Faye and her companion decided to have a nighttime rendezvous, so there’s no worries about drinking and driving. They could Uber home or use Liam’s DD if he had one. 

But on the other hand…

This whole adventure screamed “terrible fucking idea.” Did he want to get drunk with Liam? Not something he’s thought about before, but he’s open to it. Did he want to get drunk with Faye and Liam together? Not really, especially considering Liam’s unexpected attitude towards his friend. Did he want to get drunk at this disgusting club filled with intoxicated sweaty teenagers? Nope, not one fucking bit. 

But if he left, he knew there was no way Faye would follow him, and he REALLY didn’t want to leave a Drunk Faye with a Drunk Liam. Would she flirt with him? Definitely not, she was loyal and respected his feelings. But the kinds of secrets she could reveal…Theo shuddered at the thought. 

Reaching the bar, he makes the painful decision to stay at the club and participate in whatever madness was about to ensue.

“Can we have four Patron shots, please, on Esteban’s tab?” Faye sweetly asks the bartender. The younger man looks confused for a moment after taking in her appearance, most likely remembering the same black dress and accessories on a different woman with the same man. 

Shaking his head, he turns around to prepare their order. “Salt and limes as well?”

Theo moves to shake his head no, but unsurprisingly, Faye answers for him. “Yes, to both!”

Faye leans against the bar, happily chatting with Brett about some shit Theo was too lazy to listen to. Liam’s left shoulder is pressed against Brett’s left shoulder, facing the opposite way of the other boy so he wouldn’t have to participate in their conversation. Theo wasn’t sure why the beta seemed to dislike Faye so much, but it made him uncomfortable knowing the boy he maybe-kinda-sorta-totally had a crush on didn’t like his ‘sister.’

“So…” Liam trails off uncomfortably, eyes focused on the darkened floor as he scuffs the top of his shoe across it. “I can’t imagine you drunk.”

“Well,” Theo says, shrugging uneasily even though Liam wasn’t looking at him. “Me neither.”

“What?” Liam asks, glancing up in confusion, Theo’s stolen heart skipping a beat at the adorable look. “Have you… never been drunk?”

“Little Wolf, think about it for a second,” Theo taunts, Liam’s face hardening automatically at the mocking tone. “When would I be able to get drunk with the Dread Doctors?”

“Theo doesn’t like to give up control,” Brett responds, cutting into their conversation, which, fucking rude. He tosses an arm casually over Liam’s shoulders, and seriously, didn’t he know anything about personal space? “Obviously, Li.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” Faye giggles, coming to stand beside Theo and wrapping an arm around his waist. “Can you go grab us a seat, Theo? I snagged a VIP booth, but I want to make sure we get the good one we usually use.”

“Uh sure,” Theo agrees, desperate to get away from the annoying giant werewolf before he tore his arm off, an action Scott would probably disapprove of. He didn’t know which booth Faye was talking about, but he figures worst case scenario, he can chase out the occupants of the booth she meant if he guessed wrong.

“Thanks, love. How about you take your friend with you? Brett and I will meet you up there with the drinks,” Faye suggests with a bright smile, and wow, she was really pushing this ‘friend’ agenda, wasn’t she? Too bad Theo couldn’t figure out what her end game was.

Liam growls low in his throat, but Brett just rolls his eyes and pushes him towards Theo. “He’s your problem now…try and get some water in him, will you?”

Theo easily catches Liam when he’s flung towards him, the drunk boy too surprised by the unexpected shove to prevent himself from crashing face first into the chimera.

“Wow,” Liam murmurs, his face smack in the middle of Theo’s chest. His hand runs up Theo’s pec, and Theo’s heart pounds unnaturally at the outrageous situation he’s suddenly found himself in. “You do have great boobs. I think I broke my nose.”

“Let me see,” Theo orders while trying to stay calm in the face of Faye and Brett’s matching smirks. He figures it’s best not to discuss his physique right now, especially if Liam brings up their Instagram comment exchanges, knowing Faye will immediately tell the other girls before they even leave the club, and then he’d be teased for years . (He refuses to think about how they may have already seen the exchange… he’s never paid attention to who followed him until he received Liam’s request, a glaring oversight on his part he needs to rectify ASAP.)

Liam tilts his face up, his nose wiggling like a rabbit. “Ow.”

“Looks fine to me,” Theo declares, relief coursing through him. How embarrassing would it be for the both of them if Liam had actually broken his nose on Theo’s chest? And then Brett would have to be slain for hurting Liam, and gosh, that would be too much blood for one night. “Come on, let’s go sit down.”

“Okie,” Liam cheerfully agrees, holding a hand expectantly to Theo.

Theo nervously laces their fingers together and foolishly finds himself stunned by Liam’s strength when the beta starts dragging him through the crowd with a single-minded determinedness only a drunk person can have.

“We have arrived!” Liam declares, turning proudly towards Theo and swinging their intertwined hands back and forth.

“Hooray,” Theo sarcastically responds, hoping Liam’s too drunk to notice he brought them to the VIP table the locals dubbed ‘The Kissing Booth’ since it’s the only one hidden completely from view of the rest of the club. It’s primarily surrounded by one-way glass, so to outsiders, it looks like a mirror, but the people at the table can see the other patrons.

Liam’s eyes narrow at the lack of enthusiasm, but something has him tilting his head to the side (maybe he heard something?), and Theo’s concerned by how tense his body goes.

“Sit,” Liam demands, corralling Theo into the booth and then sitting next to him, an action that sadly has him letting go of Theo’s hand (which is probably for the best, because if Faye saw that they were still holding hands? Teased for centuries) . The beta crosses his arms over his chest, and adopts a stubborn expression that baffles Theo. Why was everyone so confusing today? Maybe getting drunk would actually help him make sense of things.

“Drink,” Theo counters, knowing from experience the wall his left shoulder is touching is actually a mini fridge that contains water and some sports drinks. He assumes since Liam is remaining quiet on whatever just happened that it's not a threat they need to worry about.

“Ooh, you can do magic?” Liam chatters when the chimera opens the wooden panel, his eyes wide and excited as he stares in awe at Theo.

“Yep,” Theo lies, handing Liam the bottle of water. “And this is magic water.”

“Wow!” Liam breathes, and to Theo’s astonishment, the beta trustingly chugs the entire bottle. “What does it do?”

“Allows you to sober up for a bit so we can keep drinking,” Brett answers for him, holding a tray loaded with way more than just four shots. “You should have another.”

Liam glances towards Theo, and the chimera is once again left stunned by how much his Little Beta trusts him. “Brett’s right, Liam. You should drink another one.”

“Okie,” Liam agrees, drinking the second bottle of water Theo hands him just as quickly as the first. "Yum." 

Brett eyes them wearily but sits down across from Liam with a sigh.

“Aw, I wanted to sit by Theo,” Faye fake-pouts, taking a seat across from the chimera instead.

“Aw, too damn bad,” Liam sings, and Theo's extra confused by the vicious smirk on his face. Did he steal that look from pre-Hell Theo? He's pretty sure that was one of his patented looks after his master plan was revealed to... and then thwarted by... the McCall pack.

“Liam,” Brett chides, raising an eyebrow at the other beta.

“Brett,” Liam mocks, his expression turning innocent.

The two stare each other down, and Theo sends Faye a bewildered look, feeling like he’s missing something - Theo hates missing things. She grins, unbothered, like she knows things, and the only thing Theo hates more than missing something is when other people know things he doesn't.

“Shots!” Mason cheers, appearing out of nowhere behind Faye and Brett with Corey in tow.

“Mason!” Liam cries, turning towards Theo and tugging on his sleeve. “Look, Theo, it’s Mason and Corey!”

“I see,” Theo laughs, fondly rolling his eyes. He accepts the spiked shot Faye hands him, wrinkling his nose at the smell. Fuck, how did he end up here again?

Mason piles into the booth next to Liam, and Corey sits across from his boyfriend in the last open seat next to the obnoxiously tall werewolf. (To be fair, Theo usually likes Brett, but when he was being a dick to Liam?… or letting him cling all over him?… not so much.)

Corey glances over towards Faye, shooting Mason and Liam a look of confusion.

“Hi, I’m Mason, and this is my boyfriend, Corey.” Mason waves warmly at Faye, who smiles brightly in response and introduces herself to the couple, mentioning she was with their group because she knew Theo.

“How exactly do you know Theo?” Liam asks Faye with a pointed look.

“We work together, he’s practically family,” she answers cheerfully, and Theo’s glad he recently told the girls he never mentioned where exactly he worked to any of his friends (so…Liam, since Liam’s really his only friend, and were they even friends? Fuck, he should figure that out, too) so hopefully she remains quiet on that aspect. Theo’s not ashamed per se, but it’s also not something he’s ready to be open about yet.

Liam opens his mouth to ask for more information, but after a subtle (panicked) look from Theo, Faye continues before the beta has a chance. “How do you know Theo?”

And, well, there’s a lot Liam could say to a question like that considering their tumultuous history, and Theo’s really really regretting this entire endeavor.

“From school,” Liam smoothly retorts, his eyes narrowing. “He’s pack , which is closer than family.”

And wow, Theo’s stolen heart sure had a lot to feel about a statement like that . How can Liam be so blasé about saying Theo's... he can't even think the word to himself... while Theo’s over here having an internal breakdown? He said it so easily, his heartbeat remaining steady so it wasn't a lie (at least in Liam's mind); he said it like it was common knowledge, like it was as simple as breathing, like it was known , but was it? Sure, Theo attended almost every pack meeting, but he was always on the outskirts until Liam either dragged him into the middle or stood with him so others would gravitate around them. 

“Don’t look so surprised, Theo,” Brett jeers, rolling his eyes, but Theo’s still cognizant enough to see the teasing grin. “Even Stiles agrees.” (Scott may be the Alpha, but everyone knew Stiles had the most input on new members being accepted because of what happened last time… which Theo had a starring role in, surprise surprise.)

Theo glances around to see the reactions around him; it’s evident Liam’s unaware of the shift since he’s staring at the ceiling with vacant eyes, but Mason and Corey are all nodding like this wasn’t news, and Faye is smiling softly at Theo, and fuck, just how much did she know about him and his past? And how is Theo the last to know something so Earth shattering?! He’s smart enough to know better than to accept the drunken words of teenagers as fact, so he files this information away to subtly investigate later (basically, he adds it to the ever-growing list of puzzling things he needs to figure out ASAP, because the world suddenly decided to be confusing as fuck).

“Theo’s never been drunk before,” Liam conspiringly whispers to the group, jerking Theo out of his spiraling thoughts. 

He playfully smirks at the chimera’s disapproving glare.

Ugh. Why was this his life?

Mason audibly gasps, his hand covering his mouth, and Liam nods like this is the appropriate reaction to such a statement.

“We should have a toast!” Mason suggests, eagerly shaking Liam’s shoulder.

“It’s not that serious,” Theo grumbles, wishing he had sucked it up and called in sick tonight despite the previous revelation. Seriously. He did NOT have a good feeling about this.

“Yes!” Liam agrees, ignoring Theo and holding his wolfsbane laced shot up. “To Theo’s first drunken adventure!”

“To Theo!” the group cheers, each of them tapping their glasses together (Theo sighs internally when he notices how Liam doesn’t bump glasses with Faye).

“Well, I’m excited to pop your cherry, Theo,” Faye trills, flipping her hair over her shoulder after she downs the alcohol. Thankfully, Theo has already finished his disgusting shot (what was the appeal of this? It seems like some shit the Dread Doctors would make for shits and giggles), because seriously, who the fuck says something like that?!

“Fuck,” Liam hisses, and Theo frowns when he smells the blood before seeing the cut, Liam somehow accidentally crushing the empty shot glass in his grip. 

“Oh dear,” Corey sighs, exchanging a worried look with Mason.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” Theo soothes when he sees the beta’s golden eyes. He gently grabs Liam’s bleeding hand and carefully starts taking the glass out of the wound to allow it to heal, dropping the bloodied shards onto the half-empty drink tray. “You’re okay, Liam, it’s just a small cut, nothing to worry about.”

“It hurts!” Liam whines, trying to yank his hand out of Theo's grasp. The beta's frown causes Theo to experience physical pains in his chest, but at least his golden eyes seem to be fading away into their usual human shade of blue. “Make it stop.”

“I’m trying, but you need to stop wiggling! There’s a lot of small pieces in here I gotta get out,” Theo assures the beta, using the light on his phone to get a better look.

“Well, glass isn’t meant to go in your skin, Li,” Brett scoffs, sipping on some other wolfsbane laced drink. “Guess your two brain cells aren’t smart enough to figure that out.”

“Hey!” Liam growls, shifting his full attention towards their asshole packmate (Theo’s brain stutters at the thought that he might have packmates ), and wow, was Theo going to have to beat Brett’s ass behind the club before they left?

Faye riffles through her purse, and with Liam distracted, discreetly slides a pair of tweezers across the table.

Theo accepts them with a small smile of thanks, absolutely baffled by how many pieces of glass were embedded in Liam’s skin. Just how hard did Liam squeeze the shot glass?!

“What?” Brett casually shrugs, downing the rest of the drink. “Oh, I’m sorry, do you only have one now? Too many hits to the head since you’re a shit lacrosse player?”

“He’s still really good?” Mason says, though his confused tone over the sudden conversation shift makes it sound more like a question.

“Liam is awesome at lacrosse,” Corey adds, though Liam ignores his friends, too busy having another heated staredown with Brett.

“Yeah! And I’m going to teach Theo lacrosse, too!” Liam growls, and Theo swears the beta stomps his foot. “And we’ll both be better than you.”

“Really?” Brett asks, and Theo can hear his honest surprise. “I legitimately cannot wait to see your little friend play lacrosse.”

“Is that so?” Theo raises an eyebrow at the smug werewolf who shoots him a quick wink across the table… the chimera is too invested in removing the last few pieces of glass from Liam’s palm to figure out the meaning behind said action (he adds it to his list of shit to figure out with an internal sigh). “I’d kick your ass any day, Talbot.”

“Me too!” Liam boasts with his head held high, yet easily accepts the two drinks Brett nudges towards him before sliding the extra one to Theo (he seriously hopes this once isn’t as god awful, otherwise he’s switching to water for the rest of the night). Theo would admit only to himself that he didn’t understand Liam and Brett’s friendship, if it could even be called that.

“Sure,” Brett agrees, but even a drunk Liam can hear his skepticism.

“Guess we won’t ever know for sure because you’re too scared to be on the team anymore,” Liam casually remarks, glancing down at the (thankfully human) nails on his free hand.

“All done!” Theo loudly declares over Mason's sharp inhale, quickly wiping the dried blood off Liam’s hand - he knew why Brett quit lacrosse, and he knew Liam knew, too. “Shots?”

“I’m good.” Brett smoothly stands up, his jaw clenched tightly, and Liam’s either not that drunk anymore or still has some semblance of control, because he looks sad and dejected all of a sudden. “Gonna hit the dance floor.”

“We’ll come, too!” Liam offers, his eyes wide and hopeful as they stare pleadingly at Brett.

“No, thanks, Little Bomb,” Brett brushes off, turning his back on Liam and not seeing his broken expression, and fuck, Theo was going to do something drastic if Liam didn’t look better in the next few minutes. He was NOT equipped to deal with sadness, especially drunk sadness.

“I’ll be right back,” Liam says after Brett leaves, trying but failing to climb over Mason to exit the booth. Theo doesn't need to strain his senses to hear his heart pounding or the way he's starting to gasp for air.

“You should give him some space,” Mason hesitantly whispers, but dutifully helps Liam exit the booth in one piece.

“I GOTTA PEE!” Liam growls, his voice cracking at the last word. “I gotta pee, Mason, okay? Alone.”

“Liam -” Theo tries, not expecting much.

“I. Have. To. Pee.” Liam snaps, his eyes flashing golden for a second. He blinks a few times, and they fade back to normal. “Be right back.”

Theo watches the beta go with a sigh, offering Faye an embarrassed grin as he slides the tweezers back to her. 

“What’s the deal between them?” Faye curiously asks Mason and Corey with a nonjudgmental smile, sliding another shot towards Theo. He downs it quickly under the foolish assumption that the faster he drinks it, the less shitty it will taste.

“Childhood rivals,” Mason answers with a shrug, his eyes tracking Liam as he stumbles towards the VIP bathrooms. 

“Unresolved sexual tension,” Corey remarks at the same time, finishing his drink with a pleased sigh. 

“What?” Theo hisses, feeling his own claws start to lengthen at the unexpected implication that Brett has interest in Liam… and Liam has interest in Brett. Not that it was any of Theo’s business, but still .

“Unresolved - ow! Um, never mind, just rivals I guess?” Corey awkwardly laughs, leaning down to rub his shin while shooting Mason a fierce glare.

“That’s Corey’s uneducated personal opinion, but to someone with insider knowledge and who’s known them both since FOREVER,” Mason rambles, waving his hands as he talks. “They’re definitely just rivals, in sports and academics since elementary school, back when Liam had more time to focus on each. They’re actually less antagonistic lately, but no one can piss Liam off quite like Brett and vice versa.”

Theo listens to Mason’s explanation with half an ear, his mind already analyzing this unforeseen development. He can see Brett through the one-way glass dancing all over some random guy, a sight Theo’s not overly surprised by - someone with abs like that who went out of his way to show them off definitely wasn’t interested in only girls (the Geneticist would say he has no proof to support this claim, meaning it was not fact merely opinion , and thus useless. But she fucking died and left Theo to figure out life on his own, so fuck her, and wow, Theo realizes with a jolt that he’s never allowed himself a single second to be bitter about how she abandoned him… by dying, because she was evil, but fuck, Theo was evil too, so can he really be upset that she was a bad person and died because of that? Why is his life so confusing… and what the fuck did they put in his drink?)

He decides right then and there that he absolutely does not like drinking. It makes his thoughts even harder to control, and loss of control was something Theo could not let himself experience (and fuck, Brett was right about him, damnit). Liam’s mantra to maintain control over his shift asks what three things cannot be hidden, but for Theo, his deepest, darkest thoughts NEEDED to remain hidden, even from himself. 

“Theo?” Faye tentatively asks, glancing down at his clenched fists. 

“I’m fine,” he quickly assures her, forcing his muscles to relax. 

He checks his phone in an effort to appear normal but to also legitimately see if he has any new messages, surprised and concerned when he sees one from Scott. 

[Scott]: hey, I know this is random but… is Liam getting bullied? At school? Again…?

Theo bites his lip, wondering who told Scott about the football player. Surely not Liam if the Alpha is texting him?

[Theo]: I took care of it. Why?

[Scott]: he texted me a few hours ago asking why I didn’t tell him he was the ugly friend

Fuck. What?! Who the hell called Liam ugly? Theo’s never heard of a lie so ridiculous in his life. Or maybe that was a strange drunken Liam thought? Theo is starting to realize with ironically growing clarity how weird drunk brains could be. 

[Theo]: I’ll investigate. 

[Scott]: thanks! How are you though? Haven’t heard from you much

Theo’s fingers fly across the keyboard, and he hits send before he allows a single rational thought to cross his mind. 

[Theo]: Liam mentioned I was pack

Fuck. FUCK. He didn’t mean to say that, and now Scott is going to kindly deny Liam’s drunken statement, which will make Theo feel even more awful than usual, but the Geneticist always said speculation alone is the downfall to science, and a hypothesis must be investigated before it can become a theory so -

[Scott]: ok?

Yep, here it comes.

Theo watches the bubbles on his screen with a resigned sigh. He could smash his phone before the rejection comes, but the Geneticist would say that’s wasteful, and he is too accustomed to following her rules to allow himself to do something he knew she would disapprove of, even though she is DEAD, and couldn’t judge or punish him for disobeying (not that she really disciplined him to begin with, the Surgeon and the Pathologist usually dealt out the punishment, the two always complaining that the Geneticist spoiled him).

[Scott]: you are!

Wait… WHAT!?

[Scott]: at least I thought you were

[Scott]: I’m not good at subtext Theo

[Scott]: you’re pack. Boom. Done. No take backs as stiles would say

[Theo]: ok. 

[Theo]: Thanks

[Scott]: :)

Theo can’t sit here any longer, not with these strange undefinable emotions coursing through him. He foolishly finds himself wishing he could tell the Geneticist about his acceptance into the pack... he’s also smart enough to understand he wouldn’t actually be IN said pack if any of the Dread Doctors were still alive. Would she say she's proud of him? Would she even care? None of the Doctors ever understood his overwhelming desire to be a “real” werewolf, to have a pack. But they had each other, so how could they? Theo had no one - fuck, his own family hardly paid attention to him when he was a kid.

And where the fuck was Liam?

Shit, did Theo lose him? Scott will kick him out in a heartbeat if something happens to his first beta under Theo’s watch. 

He has a pack. Holy fuck. 

“I’m going to check on Liam, will you be okay?” he asks Faye, accidentally interrupting her passionate conversation with Mason on fairies and nemetons. 

“Wanna dance with us?” Mason excitedly offers, holding his hand out to the small girl, his other one already laced with Corey’s.

When she accepts, Theo begins his quest. 

“Momma Stiles?” Liam cries into his phone, carefully sitting down on the disgusting bathroom floor of the club, his legs too shaky to hold him up. He’s grateful that girl Theo worked with got them a VIP booth, so he’s allowed to use the VIP bathrooms which are thankfully empty (and cleaner than the other bathrooms he usually uses here, bless). 

“What’s wrong with my little summer swan?” Stiles asks, and Liam appreciates his worried tone. Not that Liam deserves to have anyone worried about him. Because he is awful, and terrible, and not a good person. Not like Scott. 

Scott is perfect.

“I fucked up,” he whispers, the burning shame coursing through him. “Everything is awful, and I just make it worse, and I’m not like Scott, and I… I can’t. I just can’t.”

“I know exactly what that’s like!” Stiles cheerfully admits, and Liam smiles at the response. God, he loves Stiles. “Lay it on me, son, I’m sure between Derek and I, we’ve done worse.”

“Hi, Step Mom Derek,” Liam mumbles dejectedly into the phone. “It’s Theo. And Brett.”

“What’s wrong with Theo?” Derek asks, and hmm, since when was Derek concerned over Theo? Maybe Derek knew what Theo was up to?

But why didn’t Liam know?

Probably because you’re a ticking time bomb, Little Bomb, Lil Pete whispers into his thoughts, and Liam hates how the voice is right. He wouldn’t tell him secrets either if he was someone else.

Liam sighs loudly and explains to his Pack Moms what happened with Brett just now, feeling pitiful and small after the look of disgust Brett gave him for his cavalier attitude over him dropping lacrosse. Liam KNEW it was a sensitive topic for the (slightly) older werewolf, and he wouldn’t be surprised if Brett never talks to him again.

“And now he hates me,” Liam weeps into the phone, wiping his tears and snot on the sleeve of his jacket. “And I didn’t mean to say that, I didn’t, I swear.”

“Aww, baby,” Stile coos, and Liam sheds a few more tears. He didn’t deserve Stiles’s loving tone, he didn’t deserve his understanding, he didn’t deserve any of it because Liam was a monster long before he became a werewolf. “You just need to apologize, and I’m sure Brett will forgive you. Just wait til tomorrow when you both are sober.”

“Not drunk!” Liam denies, and damn, he didn’t mean to sound so intense again. Ugh. “Do you think he’ll hate me forever?”

“Of course not,” Stiles assures him. “I tried, and trust me, I put a lot of effort into it, but you’re just too sweet and adorable to hate, Liam. And I’m very good at hating people.”

“Didn’t you hate Derek?” Liam asks, biting his lip.

“Well…” Stiles sighs, and Liam expects a full-blown detailed account of his feelings towards the older werewolf he is currently dating, but Derek quickly cuts in.

“What’s wrong with Theo?” Derek firmly repeats, and fuck, Liam mentally adds Derek to the long list of people who currently hate him right now.

“Um…” Liam sniffs, feeling like he was betraying the chimera by telling his Pack Moms Theo’s secret. But they could help, right? Stiles always has good ideas. “I think he’s umm…selling things. For money.”

“Like drugs?” Stiles gasps, and Liam almost flings his phone into the wall in his attempt to correct the miscommunication.

“No, no!” Liam shouts, panicked. “Not drugs. Just his body.”

“WHAT?!” Stiles shrieks, and Liam hears a bunch of things being knocked over on the other end of the phone, Derek even gasping in shock, which, same, Liam completely understands their surprise and horror. Poor Theo, he’s done bad things, sure, but he deserves a better life than this.

“Don’t tell anyone I told you!” Liam hurriedly whispers, and his hysteria increases when a familiar smell crosses his senses. “He doesn’t know I know, but fuck, I gotta go, he’s coming, I’ll text you later, love you, bye!”

“Liam, no, don’t hang -”

Chapter Text

“Liam?” Theo calls when the bathroom door opens - the unexpected return of the blaring music causes Liam to flinch in surprise and quickly cover his ears until the door shuts behind Theo, the bathroom returning to its previous blissful silence… he didn’t even notice how it was was practically soundproof until now. Fucking VIPs get all the good shit.

Theo strides down the rows of stalls, stopping in front of the one Liam barricaded himself in (he picked the handicap stall so he could have space to sit on the floor, another terrible sin to add to his list of atrocities committed).

“Go away!” Liam growls, hurriedly blotting his tears on one of his sleeves again while sliding his phone back into his pocket, too upset and stressed out to check his unopened messages - Theo could not see him like this! He can’t even begin to imagine how pathetic and gross he looks right now.

“No.”

Liam hears the sound of someone jumping over the stall door and landing in front of him, and he crosses his fingers, silently praying he’s about to get mauled by some unknown creature or something . Anything would be better than Theo fucking Raeken being in front of him right now.

“Liam ,” Theo calls again, his voice softer and closer, and FUCK, Liam wants to melt into the floor to escape. Why couldn’t he be like Alex Mack and able to dissolve into a movable pile of water? That would be cool, but noooo, instead of something handy and useful, Liam gets claws and fangs to reflect the monster he is inside. Such bullshit.

“I said go away,” Liam mutters, keeping his head down and playing a game with himself where he guesses what each weird stain on the floor is from.

“And I said no,” Theo gently teases, and Liam hears the sink turn on. 

“Do you want to talk about it?” Theo calmly asks, sitting beside Liam. The chimera lightly grabs Liam’s chin, forcing his head up. Before Liam can complain, Theo ‘mom’s’ him again, carefully cleaning his tears and snot away with the surprisingly soft paper towels… apparently VIP bathrooms have more benefits than just silence. He pretends this entire situation is normal (and hell, maybe it's starting to become their new normal?... Liam's not sure how he feels about that), and hopes Theo’s too focused on his task to hear his pounding heart.

“Um…” Liam doesn’t even know where to begin to answer that loaded statement. A lot of things bothered him right now, like how he is an awful, terrible, no good, very bad friend. And then there's Theo himself who is actually becoming a really good friend but still sufferers endlessly for his past. 

Evade the question with a question of your own, Lil Pete helpfully suggests. 

Yes, Liam can do that. He is excellent at spy tactics. 

“Did the Dread Doctors ever perform regular plastic surgery?” he asks, internally smirking at Theo’s surprised expression. Yes, this was a good topic change. 

“No?” Theo answers, but it sounds more like a question. “Why?”

‘Because your face is too perfect to be natural!’ is what he wants to say. Instead, he goes with his earlier thought. “Brett’s ridiculous abs aren’t natural or supernatural.”

He misses the way Theo’s face hardens at the comment, but Liam isn’t drunk enough to not hear his quiet huff that sounded suspiciously like a growl. “I guess he’s just a freak.”

Liam nods. That is something he understands considering he is also a freak. Minus the eight-pack. 

Life is so unfair.

“Who said you’re a freak?” Theo demands, and fuck, Liam needs to get control over his filter before he says something truly embarrassing… like how Theo’s ‘angry face’ was kind of hot, which is totally a weird thought, and wow, Liam did not realize how drunk he was until this precise moment. Because he OBVIOUSLY must be drunk as fuck if he’s thinking about how hot Theo is; sober Liam would never.

“Everyone,” he shamefully admits, staring down at the ugly tile to avoid seeing Theo’s pitying expression. 

“Everyone?” Theo challenges, and Liam can practically see him shaking his head. “Even Mason? Corey? Scott? Stiles?”

“Fine,” Liam huffs, bumping his shoulder against Theo’s. “Almost everyone. Since I was a kid.”

“Well, they’re wrong,” Theo remarks firmly, and something swells in Liam’s chest at the comment, and he's almost giddy at the thought of Theo defending him when there's no one around to witness his kind gesture. “And considering I’m a literal science experiment, I actually know what a freak looks like. And it’s not you.”

“Thanks,” Liam whispers, feeling something shift in the air, something he can’t quite define. “You’re not a freak, either. The Dread Doctors were. But not you.”

“Thanks,” Theo echoes, before mumbling the next part after a few moments of contemplative silence. “Scott said I was pack, too.”

Liam peers over at Theo in surprise, watching silently as the chimera nervously taps a rhythm on his thigh. 

“You… you didn’t know?” Liam questions, confused about why Theo seemed so unsure all of a sudden. Theo is RARELY unsure about anything, a trait Liam is exceptionally jealous of… the beta never knew what the fuck was going on, but Theo usually does, except now he doesn’t, and it’s making Liam’s brain hurt to figure out the reason why.

“No one said anything!” Theo growls quietly, but Liam knows Theo well enough to know he’s not actually mad. “And it’s not like I did anything to deserve -“

Liam places his hand over Theo’s mouth, smirking outwardly at Theo’s look of disgust. He also knew Theo well enough to realize he’s kind of a germ freak even though their kind can’t get sick. He supposes growing up with the Dread Doctors and their icky experiments could do that to a person, so he doesn’t judge.

“So, saving the True Alpha’s first beta multiple times isn’t an achievement?” Liam asks with a raised eyebrow. “Fighting alongside the pack against three terrifying enemies isn’t good enough? Showing up to every pack meeting and going on every scouting mission doesn’t count for anything?”

Liam removes his hand to allow Theo a chance to respond. 

“Okay, but -“

Liam quickly places his hand back over Theo’s mouth, ignoring the chimera’s annoyed growl. 

“Well, I'm sorry no one said it definitively, because you deserved to know. And now you do! Yay." 

A sudden idea hits Liam's brain like a semi truck speeding on an icy mountain road, and he quickly continues before Theo can throw a fit about not being able to speak. "But pack members usually tell each other all kinds of things,” he casually mentions, steering the conversation to what he truly needs to know. “Like when they’re struggling. Or when they’re not! Just ya know… things.”

Theo cocks an eyebrow, and Liam drops his hand down when he realizes Theo’s probably going to bite him if he keeps it there much longer. 

“Okay…” Theo trails off, and fuck, Liam’s not good at probing for information it seems. “Do you have ‘things’ to tell me right now?”

Gosh darn, he forgets how FRUSTRATING this boy can be, like... nine times out of ten, simply the worst. 

“I’m hungry,” he sighs, realizing he isn’t gonna get anywhere with Theo on an empty stomach. Thoughts are fueled by carbs! And one thing Liam hasn’t had recently is... carbs! (carbs that aren’t liquids at least).

Theo laughs, shaking his head. He offers Liam a hand to help him up (what a gentleman, he wistfully sighs on the inside), and the beta dusts his pants off and goes to splash some water on his face in a futile attempt to appear like he has his shit together. “We can walk down the street and hit up that new burger place if you want?”

“Oh my gosh, YES!” Liam shamelessly moans, delighted by the idea of burgers. He’s never heard of anything so delicious sounding in his LIFE. "You're such a genius, Theo."

“Umm, great, ok, yes, uh thanks, let’s do that then.” 

Theo holds the door for Liam as they exit the bathroom, and the beta distractedly notices how unusually red the chimera’s cheeks are all of a sudden. Is Theo actually drunk, and the wolfsbane-laced alcohol is just hitting slower cuz his chimera metabolism isn’t the same as Liam’s werewolf metabolism? Ugh, wait, that reminded him - Liam had been sooo excited earlier in the night about this unanticipated opportunity to drink with Theo! He would finally get the chimera to loosen up so he can enact his master plan of figuring out what the fuck he’s up to these days (or at least confirm that he actually works as… that-occupation-he-cannot-bring-himself-to-think-of-at-the-present-moment), but then that girl kept distracting him. And now they’re leaving the club… will Liam ever get another chance like this? 

Maybe they should stay…

A hand lightly touches his shoulder, pulling him out of his internal dilemma, and when he turns around to see who dares to interrupt his plotting, he sees Theo standing close to him with a contemplative expression.

“I think we should say goodbye to everyone first,” Theo suggests because he’s polite and not a savage like Liam apparently is, but ugh! Brett is dancing with Mason, Corey, and her, and Liam can’t face the taller beta right now without bursting into tears, and Theo’s already seen the aftermath of his breakdown to Momma Stiles, and he CANNOT see Liam in actual tears, especially since Brett will likely make fun of him for the rest of his supernatural life… that is if he even bothers to speak to Liam again considering he is a fucking awful person and that girl is also there, too, and -

“Liam?”

“Oh!” Liam jumps in surprise… guess he forgot to respond to Theo, oops. “Um… can I wait for you out front? I can’t go over there.”

Theo frowns, looking as if he’s going to say ‘no’, and Liam mentally resigns himself to another breakdown. Joy.

“He’ll forgive you,” Theo quietly mutters, glancing away from Liam to watch a group of drunk college-looking girls hug their friend who is sobbing in the middle of the dance floor, and Liam feels like he’s having a Lydia-esque moment (minus the death) because that is definitely going to be him in a few minutes if he has to go over and say bye.

“He shouldn’t!” Liam growls, crossing his arms over his chest. He leans against the wall, grateful the club isn’t too packed so they can actually stand here and talk without getting jabbed by flailing limbs. “He almost died last time he played, like the real, gone forever type death, and he was only there to begin with to help me train the freshman players of a school he didn’t even go to. And a year or so before that, some crazy orphan teen assassins tried to kill him for profit at oh guess where!... a lacrosse game. So, I was an asshole for bringing it up.”

“Maybe,” Theo agrees with a nod, and tears form in the corners of Liam’s eyes at the confirmation he’s the worst person ever. “But you two are weirdly shitty to each other sober and don’t hold it against the other, so I can’t imagine him doing the same when everyone knows you’re drunk.”

“Not drunk!” Liam glares at the chimera, growling low in his throat when Theo simply rolls his eyes.

“You won’t leave without me, will you?” Theo asks, playfully narrowing his eyes at Liam. “I’ll make your goodbyes for you this once, but I also can’t promise they won’t wanna come, too.”

Liam gasps in offense, because how RUDE did he think Liam was?! Liam would never leave without the chimera… he has a very strict No-Theo-Left-Behind rule. (But Theo might end up finding out how rude Liam could be if she decides to come with them, though.)

“I would NEVER!” he solemnly avows, resting his right hand over his heart, bowing his head.

“Yeah, yeah,” Theo shakes his head, offering him a small grin that does things to Liam’s brain. Weird things.

“It’ll be nicer if it’s just us,” Liam nervously whispers, hoping Theo gets the hint (not that Liam really knew what he was trying to hint, but Theo is smart, so Liam’s confident he’ll catch on). He keeps his eyes trained on the ground, and ooh, look, a five dollar bill, awesome!

“Yeah?” Theo murmurs, and when the beta finally does look up, the chimera’s eyes are wide with surprise and something else Liam can’t pinpoint. He swallows roughly and clears his throat. “Okay, yeah, I think so, too.”

“Cool… um, here,” Liam says, handing Theo the five dollar bill with a shy smile. “For your troubles.”

“It’s no trouble, Little Wolf,” Theo softly assures him, slipping the money into his back pocket, and Liam’s brain begins to feel odd again. 

The beta watches Theo walk off while internally struggling to get his thoughts to function properly again; how can his BRAIN feel tingly?! Was that safe? Did he need to go to Deaton? Is this what a stroke feels like? Or maybe it's the first sign of a brain tumor? He should probably google it… Just as he’s about to turn around to head outside to the parking lot (where he'll begin a thorough WebMD search right away), he sees her pull Theo into a tight hug, and then she has the AUDACITY to wink at him over Theo’s shoulder!

You need to do something drastic to regain his attention!, Lil Pete fervently whispers. You deserve to have ALL his focus on you. Make him forget she even existed to begin with.

Liam frowns as he meanders his way through the club to the parking lot out front, considering the idea - the last time he did something drastic that got him lots and lots of attention was vandalizing his old lacrosse coach’s car.

That’s perfect, Lil Pete says, and Liam looks up just in time to see Theo’s truck parked towards the back of the lot.

But wouldn’t damaging Theo’s truck make him upset?’… Liam doesn’t want the chimera to be mad at him! Lord knows he was on enough people’s shit list as it is. And he remembers Theo saying something about the vehicle being his ‘baby; Liam’s not someone who hurts babies no matter what the circumstances are, no way, not him!

No, no, chimeras can’t have babies, he’s just pretending like the truck is his child because he’ll never have kids of his own, Lil Pete assures him. Just damage it a little bit, run off, and then come back like you chased the bad guy away! You’ll be a hero. A hero like Scott.

Liam will never be as amazing and perfect as Scott, but Lil Pete makes a good point (although it makes him sad to learn that Theo will never have children and is using an inanimate object to fill the void his infertility has left in his heart).

Fake it til you make it!, Lil Pete cheers.

He approaches Theo’s truck, which looks a bit lighter in color than he remembers, but perhaps his memory is foggy. Maybe it WAS gray instead of blue… or he got it painted? Liam isn’t sure, but he DOES know the vehicle smells a bit like Theo’s usual woodsy scent… it’s fairly light, so Theo has probably been driving with the windows down a lot lately.

Liam peers around the area, looking for something to use to smash a window or four in. He spots a glass bottle in the grass and picks it up, pulling his arm back in preparation of lobbing it at the truck. Just as he’s about to let the bottle fly, something clamps around his wrist, and he twists in frustration to see who’s preventing him from regaining the attention he rightfully deserves.

“LIAM?!” Stiles shrilly screeches, and Liam would cover his ears if he had two hands available at the moment. Instead, he squeezes his eyes shut until the ringing in his ears subsides. “WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!”

“Momma!” Liam crows. He moves towards his Pack Mom for a one-armed side hug, his wrist still held captive in Derek’s tight grip. “What chya doin here?”

“Preventing a crime apparently,” Derek snorts, shaking his head but dropping Liam’s arm (after removing the bottle from his grip and tossing it back into the grass as if that wasn’t littering or anything). “Do you even know who this truck belongs to?”

“It’s Theo’s,” Liam proclaims, hoping Derek can hear his silent ‘duh.’

“Uh, wait, but aren’t you two cool?” Stiles asks, dragging Liam into a proper two-armed hug that makes Liam forget every worry he’s ever had. Ugh. He loves his pack. “Do I need to get my baseball bat?”

“We’re great!” Liam confirms, rubbing his nose against the side of Stiles’s neck with a content sigh. "Like so great, it's awesome."

Stiles makes a displeased humming sound. "Ok, wait, are you guys like 'so great' or 'so great,' because those are two VERY different things, and only one of them is acceptable -"

“SO… why were you going to smash a bottle through ‘his’ window?” Derek interrupts with judgment (as if the reason for the window smashing wasn’t obvious), using finger quotes on the word ‘his.’

Liam opens his mouth to answer, but a familiar smell tugs on his senses, and he instantly forgets what he was going to say.

“Theo!” Liam exclaims even though the chimera is just stepping out of the club. 

Theo instantly spots Liam despite the dozens of people lingering outside the club’s doors and quickly crosses the parking lot to join them. When he gets closer, Liam unwraps himself from Stiles to launch himself at the chimera.

Theo (thankfully) catches him after he misjudges the distance, blessedly preventing him from smashing face first into the pavement. God… how embarrassing would THAT be? The chimera keeps a secure grip around his middle, and Liam turns to face the two unexpected newcomers.

“Look who I found!” he cheers in an attempt to distract Theo from the humiliation of his almost failure. “It’s Stiles and Derek!”

“I see,” Theo chuckles, and Liam rests his head on the chimera’s shoulder because now he’s hungry AND tired. But he has Theo’s attention again AND his arm is around Liam's waist (which hasn’t happened before but should happen more often, especially cuz Theo smells really good and makes Liam feel safe), and Liam can’t see her anywhere, so it’s shaping up to be a better night already. “What are you guys doing back in Beacon Hills? And why are we gathered around this random truck?”

“Uh,” Stiles says, glancing at Derek who shrugs and seems to try to communicate something with his eyes. “That’s a great question, DEREK, so why don’t you answer it?”

Liam’s pretty sure Derek’s expression doesn’t change, but even the beta can sense the awkwardness and oh god, were they here to tell everyone they’re breaking up? He’s already been a child of divorce once, he can’t experience something like that again! 

“We’re not breaking up,” Derek firmly assures them. And oops, he did it again. 

“It’s Spring Break!” Stiles abruptly shouts, glancing proudly towards Derek. “We’re here for my Spring Break, and Derek’s taking a break from whatever the fuck he does all day. And we were just admiring this super cool truck that absolutely DOES NOT belong to anyone we know.”

Stiles stares at Liam like he should understand something in his speech; Liam’s too busy debating if he should put his own arm around Theo to bother deciphering Stiles’s hidden message. Stiles should just say outright what he really means, because Liam’s apparently not very good at detective work even when he's not distracted. 

“Spring Break in February? And for an internship?” Theo challenges, his eyes narrowing as he glances between the two like he’s a detective attempting to solve a crime. (Liam takes this moment to snake his own arm around Theo's waist and just... wow... maybe he should put his hand in Theo's back pocket now? Hayden used to do that with him all the time when they were dating... Wait, no, no, he shouldn't do that, the chimera would probably think Liam's trying to rob him or cop a feel, which is totally... mostly... NOT the case.)

“Yes, Theo, Spring Break in February, because global warming is REAL, and even interns need a break!” Stiles whisper-shouts, and Liam knows an argument is about to break out, because Theo’s a nerd who has a lot of feelings about sciencey things like global warming. 

“This is your last warning, Mr. Walker!” a voice says from behind them, and Liam twists his head around to see Deputy Parrish walking towards their group, escorting a relatively handsome middle-aged man out of the club who was glaring at the ground. “You’re lucky that guy you tried to solicit wasn’t actually a minor, but I know him personally, and he’s barely over age.”

When they’re only a handful of feet away, the Mr. Walker dude lifts his head, and his eyes go wide when he sees them.

“Why are you all standing around my truck?... Oh, wait, I know you!” he exclaims, and Liam thinks the guy is pointing at him until he feels Theo stiffen at his side. “From the park! Do you remember - oof!”

“Theo!” Stiles and Parrish gasp as the chimera steps forward and punches the man square in the face, knocking him out. Even Derek seems mildly surprised at the turn of events. 

“He solicited Liam for sex in the bathroom,” Theo shrugs, and wait, oh my god, how could Liam not remember something like that? Maybe that guy was pointing at him after all!? “Who, may I remind you all, is still seventeen.”

Stiles once again tries to communicate wordlessly with Derek, if the persistent looks and flailing of his arms is anything to go by. Derek somehow understands, though, nodding his head and promising his boyfriend that he’ll “take care of it,” and wow, that sounds kind of ominous? But should Liam care what happens to this dude if he had tried to prey on him? 

“Is this true, Liam?” Parrish kindly asks, looking down at the unconscious man on the ground in disgust. 

“Yeah,” he admits, tears accumulating in his eyes once more. Was this guy the kind of people Theo has to deal with regularly? Or did the chimera only sell to women? Did women pay for that type of thing? He assumes so. Because equality. 

Liam hears more people approaching them, and oh no, are they going to try to solicit him, too? Or maybe Theo because Theo is kind of beautiful, especially under the lowlights of the parking lot? He takes the opportunity to smush his face into Theo’s shoulder with a soft whine, unable to face either possibility. (He screams internally when Theo tightens his hold on him, the chimera briefly resting his chin on the top of Liam's head while murmuring how 'everything will be okay, you're safe with me.')

“WE'RE NOT FOR SALE!” Liam growls loudly into Theo’s shirt… though, that probably makes it difficult for the new group of people to hear him, but alas - Theo would handle it, because Theo makes all of Liam’s problems go away. 

He's kinda perfect in that regard. 

“Uh, is everything okay?” Mason asks nervously, probably concerned by the body on the ground at Parrish’s feet and the random appearance of Stiles and Derek (and maybe a little unnerved by how intertwined Liam and Theo are... literally. Even Liam himself is thrown off by it, but it's nice, so he's gonna roll with it).

“Jesus, what is Beacon Hills turning into with us gone?” Stiles mumbles, a sentiment Liam wholeheartedly agrees with. They should all come back!

“Why would anyone want to buy you, Li?” Brett sniggers, and Liam lifts his head to squint a bit over Theo’s shoulder to see Mason, Corey, and Brett in various states of disarray, but Brett finally has his shirt back on, and thankfully she wasn’t anywhere to be seen, but oh god, now Brett is going to tell everyone how fucking awful Liam is, and Liam’s going to lose everyone and have to live in a cave -

“Isn’t that the guy that just tried to pay you to do unspeakable things with him in the bathroom, Brett?” Corey questions, and fuck, did Brett sell himself for money, too? How could Liam not have known any of this before now? He thought Argent was helping Brett and Lori out, but maybe the hunter (ex-hunter?) was poor all of a sudden? 

“Breathe,” Theo whispers, using his free hand to soothingly brush some of Liam's long hair back - you probably didn’t need supernatural senses to hear how fast his heart was beating, and the beta feels like his lungs might be a little drunk too since they can’t seem to take in enough air.

And Liam tries to do what Theo says! He does. But there are too many emotions swirling around in his, admittedly, intoxicated brain, and instead of inhaling oxygen like Theo told him to, he instead releases a flood of emotions, sobs wracking his entire frame. 

“Liam?!” Mason and Corey both gasp, moving closer. 

“Oh dear, my poor baby!” Stiles sniffs, and he hears Derek sigh loudly.

Someone is rubbing circles onto his back and someone else is carding their fingers through his hair, but he’s too far gone to figure out who. 

“Jesus, Liam, what the fuck happened?!” Brett asks with genuine concern, and Liam only cries harder, because Liam happened, and wasn’t that the crux of the problem?

“I’m sorry!” he wails, realizing a few minutes too late that his tears have soaked through the chimera’s shirt, and now he was gonna be mad at Liam, too, and why was he like this?!

“For what, Liam?” Parrish calmly asks, and Liam mentally salutes him for trying to smooth the situation out. “If this guy bothered you -“

“No!” Liam whines, lifting his head up and resting his chin on Theo’s shoulder so it was easier for him to speak, his eyes too clouded from tears and alcohol to see anything clearly. “I am the botherer… the one who bothers. Me. M’ the problem, sir.”

“You are NOT a problem, Liam,” Mason firmly states, but he is biased so Liam doesn’t pay too much attention. 

“BUT I AM!” Liam yells, accidentally right next to Theo’s ear who flinches at the piercing sound. “I am a mean person. I cause nothing but problems, and I should be… I should be locked away for FOREVER.”

“I have never heard anything so untrue in all my life!” Stile shrieks. “My son is not mean, nor is he a problematic person. Tell him, Derek!”

“You’re not mean or problematic, Liam,” Derek faithfully parrots, but both of them were also biased, so Liam ignores their (untrue) claims.

“You’re neither of those things,” Theo affirms, but Liam doesn’t bother listening to him either because what does Theo know about being mean or problematic? He is nice and makes problems disappear. Like magic! Theo is magical, he said so himself. “You only said something kinda mean.”

“Is this about earlier, Liam?” Corey timidly asks. “Before you went to the bathroom?”

And Liam’s brain is awesome (not) and flashes an image in front of his eyes of the sheer look of disgust Brett gave him after Liam’s awful comment, and oh boy, now he’s crying again. 

“Liam, please, it’s not that serious,” Brett tries, and Liam can feel the low growl building in Theo’s chest, which wow, what a strange sensation, like rumblerumblerumble .

“Is that the best you can do, Talbot?” Theo hisses, and Liam belatedly realizes the chimera’s hand is the one rubbing his back, and hm, that feels kinda nice. 

“I only understand how to handle mad-Liam!” Brett snaps. “I don’t understand sad-Liam, because Liam doesn’t get sad, he gets angry.”

“I’m always sad,” Liam meekly admits. “Because I am awful.”

“MY SON IS NOT AWFUL !” Stiles shouts, and Liam mentally pictures a lot of arm waving that ends with Derek grabbing Stiles’s arms after he barely dodges a hit to the face, and the image almost makes him smile until he remembers that he IS awful, and Stiles wasn’t there to see the look of burning hatred Brett gave him after his disgraceful comment about the taller werewolf being too scared to play. “Oh my god, I need to call Scott. We need an intervention. Our poor son has so many feelings, and we had no clue, we are the worst parents ever, holy fuck, Derek, do something!”

“What do you expect me to do, Stiles?” Derek bluntly asks. “Call Scott myself? And then what is Scott supposed to do? Call Lydia?”

“Don’t call Scott!” Liam cries harder, not wanting his Alpha to know just how terrible his first beta is. At this point, Scott probably wishes he let Liam fall off that hospital roof instead of biting him. "Or Lydia!" She would be so disappointed in him, and oh god, now he can't stop thinking about the shame and dishonor he's brought on his family.

“Maybe Scott saying the truth... that you aren’t awful, would help you feel better?” Parrish tentatively suggests.

“No, he’s just being fucking dramatic, it'll be fine,” Brett snorts. “Come here, Li.”

“Are you going to stab me?” Liam dejectedly whispers as he slowly unwraps himself from Theo, because that would be fair, albeit unpleasant. 

He shifts to stand in front of Brett (at least he thinks it’s Brett), and the taller beta does something Liam can't comprehend; he holds his arms wide.

“Why would I stab the second best player on my lacrosse team?” Brett questions, dragging Liam firmly into his embrace when the shorter boy doesn’t move. Liam hesitantly wraps his arms around Brett’s middle to return the hug, wary of an impending attack - maybe Brett was gonna use his claws? “Especially when everyone else is trash?”

Liam jerks his head up in surprise, narrowing his puffy eyes as his brain finally processes the bizarre comment. “Who’s the first best player?”

Brett rolls his eyes, but he squeezes Liam tighter, and oof, okay, suffocation not stabbing. Got it. “Me, stupid.”

Liam looks around at the others, struggling to make sense of this nonsensical statement… no one else seems to understand either (except Mason and Corey, who both refuse to explain what Brett’s talking about, which, rude).

“What?” Liam breathes, unwrapping his arms and taking a step back. 

“You were shitty earlier, it’s true… no, oh god, please stop crying,” Brett begins, and Liam sniffs, trying to push his tears back. “But, Li, I LOVE lacrosse. And yeah, I was too scared to play because of everything that happened, but why should I allow the hunters to take one of the few things I have left from me?”

“You shouldn’t!” Liam agrees, resigned to the wave of tears cascading down his cheeks again, sorry Brett. “And I SWEAR, Brett, I swear, I will protect you this time if something happens. I’ll drive my claws all the way through her face and into her brain if I have to, but she won’t touch you and your plastic eight-pack abs ever again.”

(Theo covers his amused snort with a well timed cough that fools no one.)

“I’ll help you hide the body,” Theo promises, because Theo was awesome and supportive of all Liam’s endeavors, including the murdery ones. "And eliminate any witnesses and dispose of the evidence."

“No death threats in front of the cops, please,” Derek quietly orders.

“My ears are closed,” Parrish swears, because he’s a cool dude. Liam mentally makes a note to tell him this more often. “Aw, thanks Liam, I think you’re a cool dude, too.”

Damn. Liam swears he is never drinking again.

“Still doing it!” Stiles sings, bumping his shoulder into Derek’s. “He’s such a little cutie, I’m so endeared right now, my goodness.”

“One. What happened to me wasn’t your fault, Liam. And two. I’d be offended about that comment regarding my amazing abs if I knew it wasn’t just cuz you’re jealous,” Brett smirks, and Liam’s about to deny the accusation when someone else interrupts. Again. So rude.

“What’s going on?” He-Who-Solicits asks while rubbing at his swollen face (which Liam knows must hurt, considering he’s been on the receiving end of one of Theo’s punches only like… dozens of times). The guy carefully picks himself up off the ground as they all take a cautious step back. 

“You fell and hit your head,” Parrish easily lies like a champ. “You should stop drinking so much.”

The guy glances around at them until his eyes land on Liam and Brett standing close together, and his confused expression turns predatory. “What are two handsome fellas such as yourselves doin out here all alone at this time of night? You need me to give you a lift?” His voice drops lower. "I've got plenty of horsepower, so you'll be able to ride all night long."

Liam reels back with a gasp, placing his hand over his heart, angling his body to completely block Brett from view (while ignoring how Brett is literally twice as tall as him, but he tried, okay?).

"Um, excuse me, you BITCH!" Stiles hisses, glaring at the man. "That is my SON and his best frenemy you're talking to, and they are both children how dare you speak to them in such a way?!"

“Theo, no,” Parrish begins, stepping forward to prevent Theo from hitting the man again.

But to everyone’s surprise, the man suddenly crumbles to the ground with a pained groan.

“What?” Derek shrugs, holding his hands up placatingly but looking pleased with himself at everyone’s gawking expressions. “It’s my job as the eldest to protect the pups from ALL kinds of threats, including creepy old men.”

“My hero!” Liam praises with a beaming smile, clapping quietly because he was polite.

“Well, guess I won’t feel too bad now about letting him go, again,” Parrish admits with a sigh. “Karma’s a bitch.”

“Why do you let him go?” Stiles interrogates, crossing his arms over his chest and staring down at Parrish. “He’s clearly a hazard to the community. I feel like I need to take thirty burning hot showers to get rid of that grease, and he wasn't even looking at me!”

“He’s important and rich, so we can never get a charge to stick.”

Stiles’s anger suddenly deflates. “Ugh, figures, but I had to ask.”

"That's ridiculous," Mason sighs, and Corey nods in agreement.

“Can we get burgers now?” Liam groans, holding a hand to his stomach. “I’m gonna die otherwise.”

“Let’s go, Little Wolf,” Theo grins, holding his hand out, and Liam happily laces their fingers together, excited to touch Theo again (in a PG manner!... not like how that icky guy was insinuating, he would definitely not want to touch Theo like that... right?). “Can’t have you dying on my watch.”

"Oh, that reminds me, Theo!" Liam says as they begin their trek to the burger place, the pair assuming the others will follow if they're hungry. He lightly swings their clasped hands back and forth as they walk - he's honestly fucking thrilled to be spending more time with Theo tonight and can't bring himself to be embarrassed about the slight spring in his step. "Can you have children?"

"THIS IS YOUR FUCKING FAULT, DEREK, I KNOW WHERE SCOTT GOT THAT ALCOHOL FROM, NO, YOU CAN'T BLAME SCOTT FOR REGIFTING IT TO LIAM, IT STARTED WITH YOU, MR. SOURWOLF, I DON'T CARE IF PETER WAS THE ONE WHO BREWED IT, YOU DISTRIBUTED IT, AND NOW LOOK AT THIS MESS WE'RE IN!" Stiles whisper-shouts from behind them, and Liam tunes out the rest of everyone's drama to focus on the lovely man next to him, and hmm, Theo's turning red again. Maybe he's having an allergic reaction?

Liam adds Theo's condition to his mental list of things to research on WebMD later tonight.

Chapter Text

Theo’s self aware enough to recognize that his life post-Hell (where he tries to be a good… or at least mostly decent person) is significantly better than the life of pre-Hell Theo (where he gave zero fucks about anyone or anything except himself and his own ambitions). He NEVER would have believed anyone if they told him being a good person would land him a place in a pack whereas being conniving and self-centered would only amount to pain and suffering… HIS pain and suffering, no less. 

Post-Hell-Good-Guy-Theo has a pack. He has friends. He has coworkers who are ‘practically family.’ He’s doing amazing in school. He lives on his own. He has a job. He’s on an organized sports team. He hasn’t killed anyone in months!

So yeah, being ‘good’ wasn’t so bad after all…

But sometimes, especially in moments like these, Theo misses being selfish. 

Because if he had left Sinema right when Liam wanted to, well… the beta probably wouldn’t have run into Stiles and Derek in the parking lot. And then he could have had a nice meal with just Liam at the burger place, and Theo might have prolonged their alone time together by being a gentleman and walking the younger boy home afterwards. And who knows, maybe then they could have watched a movie together and cuddled on the couch since Semi-DrunkLiam seemed to be just as overly clingy as DrunkLiam, a trait Theo secretly found adorable. (Theo was pretty much sober after they finished eating since he barely drank anything, but he would have chosen to walk home instead of driving primarily so he didn’t have to explain why he suddenly had a brand new sports car; Liam was pretty unobservant most days, but the beta would definitely question something as noticeable as THAT… especially since it was super shiny, and Liam loves shiny things). 

But nooo, Theo couldn’t experience any of that because he decided to be a fucking decent person for once in his stupid life, and low and behold, it backfired on him. Instead of having a pleasant late-night dinner with only Liam for company, he ended up eating with Liam, plus Corey, Mason, Brett, Stiles, Derek, AND Parrish who had just finished his shift (Faye had found some of her fairy friends in the club and decided to stay with them, assuring Theo she had a DD to drive the company car back to the mansion later while also warning Theo she would be grilling him later on how the rest of his night went, and she expected ALL the details). 

And while selfish-Theo may have had the opportunity to hold hands with Liam on the way home and listen to the beta’s random but amusing stories, unselfish-but-stupid-Theo gets to sit in the tense silence of Derek’s parked car, wondering what horrible crimes he must have committed in a past life to be thwarted at every turn in his quest to spend quality alone time with Liam (the elder werewolf INSISTED on driving him back to the loft… Brett had passed Parrish’s breathalyzer test after they ate, so he took Liam, Mason, and Corey home while Parrish himself drove Stiles for reasons Theo’s sure he’s about to soon find out). 

“So, this has been fun,” Theo remarks, making sure the sarcasm drips heavily off each word. “Thanks for the lift.”

He places his hand on the door handle and is zero percent surprised when Derek suddenly begins to speak. 

“Do you mind if I come up for a bit? We need to talk,” Derek asks, his customary frown more prominent than usual. 

And, on a normal day, Theo would assume a statement like that was in regards to some new supernatural threat to Beacon Hills or a resurgence of Monroe and the hunters. Or the childish/immature part of him would think maybe he did something wrong and was being called out on it (but he hadn’t done anything ‘wrong’ or ‘bad’, at least to his knowledge, so he was fairly confident it wasn’t that). Yet the older werewolf seemed off… like he was anxious or nervous or embarrassed about something that had to do with Theo himself (or perhaps that was Theo’s insecurities talking? He has no clue, and his brain feels like mush because he's TIRED).

He has no clue what to expect from Derek, seeing as how today is evidently NOT a normal day considering all the bizarre shit that happened (such as Liam holding his hand multiple times throughout the day... like not just grabbing his arm or anything, but full on lacing their fingers together - how fucking weird is that?! It took every ounce of his self-control each time it happened to keep his internal screaming from projecting outward… ugh, fuckkk, why is he is so pathetic?! He needs to get it together before somebody catches on).

Wait wait wait, oh FUCK, did Derek pick up on his feelings for Liam?! Was this the “you better stay away from my little brother” talk? Or worse , the “you better stay away from my son ” talk (because everyone knew Liam was Stiles’s son and everyone ALSO knew Stiles and Derek were practically married).

Theo takes a deep breath, reminding himself that jumping to conclusions with minimal evidence was preposterous and a waste of time - the Geneticist would be up in arms if she could hear him right now!

“Sure,” he answers, finally opening the car door and stepping out into the chilly early morning air. “Can’t stop you anyways, it’s your building.”

“Theo,” Derek sighs, walking side by side with him as they enter the building. “I’m not going to enter your apartment without your permission unless I think you’re in danger.”

“Or being a danger to someone else?” Theo petulantly adds, crossing his arms over his chest while they ride the elevator to the top floor. 

Derek shrugs, his lips pulling up into a slight smile. “I assume if you’re being a danger to someone else, they probably deserve it.”

Theo laughs loudly at the unexpected remark (he forgets sometimes, until moments like this, that he genuinely likes Derek as a person) and jokingly shakes his finger at the elder. “Tsk, tsk, Derek, what would Scott say to something like that?”

“Probably something ridiculously altruistic that I’ll pretend to listen to but ultimately ignore,” Derek answers truthfully as they walk into the apartment, and Theo finds himself once again appreciating the man’s dark yet honest humor. Sure, Theo has a better life since becoming ‘good,’ but he’ll never be the wholesome do-gooder type like Scott.

Theo’s grateful he tidied up the loft a bit before he left for work, because although he’s not sure what exactly Derek is looking to find, the older werewolf is DEFINITELY scoping out the parts he could see.

“Can I get you anything to drink?” Theo asks politely, because he has manners (unlike Derek apparently… he isn’t even trying to be subtle with his staring!). 

“No, thanks,” Derek shakes his head, “I won’t be long.”

Thank god, Theo thinks to himself. This entire day had been so fucking long and confusing, and Theo is so, so done.

Derek sits in the fancy recliner Theo had delivered last week, and after placing his phone on the coffee table, the chimera takes a seat on the couch, eyeing the older werewolf with trepidation.

“So…” Theo leads when Derek’s still peering around the apartment, which Theo will proudly admit, is almost fully furnished and decorated to his meticulous standards (he’s particularly proud of his 70” flat screen TV, sound bar, and multiple gaming consoles).

“I like what you’ve done with the place,” Derek casually remarks, appearing truthful, but still not getting to the point of why the fuck he is in Theo’s apartment at 1:00am on what is now a Saturday morning (and Theo knew the born-werewolf is skilled enough to control his heartbeat and chemosignals when he wanted to).

“Thanks,” Theo nods, trying to keep his voice even - he really wants today to be over, damnit, he has stuff to do later, not to mention, he needs at least a full day to mentally process all the shit that happened in the last five hours alone. “But I’m sure you didn’t come all the way out here just to compliment my interior decorating skills, so can you just get to the point, please? I’m tired, man.”

Derek sighs, crossing his arms over his chest. “I’m happy you’re doing well, honestly. But I’m also concerned, Theo. Where did you get all this money?”

And, okay, Theo would begrudgingly admit (only to himself, of course) he did not anticipate this line of questioning… is this better than the “stay away from Liam” conversation he had been expecting? Theo isn’t too sure, because he at least could understand the reasoning behind THAT conversation. This one? Not so much.

“From the bank I robbed last month, obviously,” Theo scoffs, rolling his eyes. If Derek isn’t going to tell him the real reason he’s back in Beacon Hills with Stiles, then he’s going to get a fuck ton of attitude from Theo until he admits the truth.

“I forgot how difficult you can be,” Derek snorts, rolling his eyes.

Before Theo can answer with another delightfully smartass response, his phone suddenly lights up with a message, and the two werewolves watch stoically as Liam’s name pops up on the screen, the beta sending several messages back to back.

Theo’s eyes slowly trail up from the phone to meet Derek’s contemplative gaze; they stare at one another for several seconds in the suffocating silence of the room, before, lightning quick, they each lunge for the device - to Theo’s immense frustration, the older werewolf is victorious in the unspoken competition (and Theo’s so very pissed because Derek ending up using his foot to yank the table closer to himself and out of Theo’s reach... Theo should have thought of that, damnit, this is his house…and his phone!)

“Ha!” Derek smugly grins, seeming to completely shake off his previous awkwardness. “Alright, here’s how we’re going to play this, kid. You’re going to answer my one question, truthfully and to my specifications, and in return, I’m going to leave your apartment peacefully while NOT interrogating you on how close you and Liam have become all of a sudden. And yes, Theo, I saw him holding your hand for most of the time we were at the burger place, and I'm dying to know yet also scared to ask why he's so concerned about your ability to have children.” His voice turns mocking. “What would Scott say to something like that?”

Theo’s blood runs cold in his veins, but paradoxically, he feels his cheeks heating in embarrassment, unable to prevent his blush from showing. Derek’s smirk grows wider, and Theo barely manages to keep his claws from popping out.

“Probably something overly altruistic that I’ll pretend to listen to but ultimately ignore,” Theo spits, itching to rip his phone out of Derek’s loose grip, but still refusing to give in to the older werewolf right away - he has SOME dignity, okay? He can definitely pretend to be unbothered for a few minutes at least. "And I don't know why he cares about whether I can procreate or not." (Which is honestly true, but he's not overly concerned by it; Theo figures DrunkLiam's brain will never make sense to anyone, not even DrunkLiam himself which is why he told Liam that yes, he can still have children. He assumes it's true but doesn't fucking care either way... it felt like the safest answer, though).

“Hmm, I wonder what Liam has to say now?” Derek muses, tapping his chin. “Especially at this time of night. Maybe I should check? It could be an emergency, you know. Or maybe I'll get to find out why he's so randomly interested in your ability to increase the population of the world." The older man gasps, bringing his hand up to cover his mouth. "Are you two planning to start a family together? I hate to be the one to give you 'the talk' for the first time, especially at your age,  but unless you plan to adopt or bring in a woman to act as a surrogate, it's not gonna happen with just the two of you."

Theo’s fists clench, but he won’t give in to the man's taunting, he won’t… except Derek’s now typing on his screen, but no, it’s fine, Theo has nothing to worry about. There’s NO way he’ll guess Theo’s very creative passcode.

“Your passcode is so predictable, I am genuinely disappointed in you, Theo,” Derek chastises, and Theo must make a disbelieving noise, because Derek’s showing him his home screen, and holy fuck. He’s pretty sure Liam has not texted him something salacious out of the blue, but Theo doesn’t want Derek to see anything on his phone.

“Funny how you won’t come into my apartment… that you own… without permission, but you’ll go through my phone with no problem?” Theo asks, cocking an eyebrow. Maybe pointing out the hypocrisy of it all will get the older man to back down and return the device to him; Theo’s not completely confident he could beat Derek in a fight, but he really DOES NOT want to make a mess in his apartment. Werewolves and chimeras can quickly heal from wounds, but his expensive, brand new furniture has no such abilities - he knows from experience how difficult it is to get blood out of fabric. 

“Welcome to being in a pack,” Derek loudly laughs, shrugging his shoulders. “Boundaries are weird. Now, are you going to answer my question, or should I be mentally preparing to scar myself for life when I open Liam’s messages? Looks like he’s already texted you five times, now… he must really have something important to say.”

“I got a job, okay!” Theo hisses, throwing his hands in the air. “Now, give me my phone back.”

“Uh uh uh,” Derek shakes his finger at him, and it takes every ounce of Theo’s impeccable self-control not to lunge across the coffee table and tackle him to the ground… or throw him out the large window, broken glass be damned. Theo’s not too picky at this point. “That’s not to my specification - where do you work?”

He debates with himself the pros and cons of lying. On one hand, he’s not sure why Derek’s so keen to find out where he works, and since he doesn’t have a single clue as to what Derek gains by learning this information, it automatically makes Theo want to lie. On the other hand, he wants to give Derek the information he so desperately desires so he’ll get the fuck out of Theo’s apartment and leave him alone.

He chooses the latter with an internal scream.

“I’m a bodyguard for a LEGAL escort service,” Theo resentfully explains, staring somewhere over Derek’s left shoulder.

“Midnyght Memories?” Derek presses, leaning forward with interest.

“Yes,” Theo answers, surprised Derek knew the company. “You’ve used them before?”

“They don’t cater to my particular interests,” Derek points out, and shit, that’s right… there weren’t any male escorts. That seems like something Theo should bring up to Blake at some point considering it was an easily remedied but a huge missed opportunity for expanding the business. “Peter actually provided the start-up money to the owner when he first opened the business because the bank wouldn’t allow him to take out a loan. They were friends in high school.”

“Peter had friends?” Theo gasps, only half joking.

“One friend, who I guess must be your boss,” Derek shrugs. “Small world.”

It was definitely weird to think that he owed his current employment to Peter Hale in a roundabout type of way. But, still, Derek’s questions didn’t make sense, and it stresses Theo out that he STILL doesn’t understand Derek’s angle. Did he think Theo HAD robbed banks? Or people? Or he’s like… selling drugs or something equally plebeian?

“Why do you care so much?” Theo blurts, unable to stop the words from pouring out of his mouth. He cringes at how whiny he sounds. “About what I’m doing.”

“Because you’re pack,” Derek simply states. He tosses Theo his phone back, much to his relief. “And we look out for each other.”

“You don’t wanna see a pay stub or anything?” Theo asks with disbelief, pocketing the device - trust is dangerous and not something he really expects other people to have in him. 

“Nah,” Derek smirks widely, standing up. “Parrish already told me where you worked on the walk to the burger place. Just wanted to hear you confirm it.”

“Unbelievable,” Theo mutters. He stands as well, glaring at the older werewolf to keep up appearances; he’s actually relieved Derek didn’t simply take his word for it… that would be foolish and reckless, and it would have been Theo’s turn to be disappointed. “Are there any secrets allowed in this godforsaken place?”

Derek moves towards him and places a hand on his shoulder, and a small part of Theo wonders if he’s about to get tossed out of his own window for his insolence. “I won’t say anything to anyone about where you work, and neither will Parrish. And I promise to not say anything to anyone about your puppy crush on a certain beta, even to Stiles." Derek pauses, tilting his head. "In fact, if god forbid Stiles noticed how close you two were, I will even deny having seen anything untoward.” Theo opens his mouth to deny such accusations, but Derek places his other hand over his mouth, which, eww, no, it was bad enough when Liam did it, but Derek? Gross. “But Theo, you’re not alone anymore. You don’t have to tell everyone your business if you don’t want to, but a friendly reminder… Liam IS the child of Stiles and Scott in all the ways that count, but he doesn’t have the same, uh, resources as they do.”

“I don’t have a crush,” Theo huffs when Derek drops his hand, because that’s the only part of his little speech that made sense. ‘Liam is the child of Stiles and Scott in all the ways that count?’ What the fuck did that mean? Because that is definitely genetically impossible, even if the Dread Doctors were involved. It didn’t sound like a threat, as Theo would expect… more like a warning. 

Derek suddenly looks uncomfortable again. “Just think about telling your friends, okay? You have a good, reputable, well-paying job. There’s nothing wrong with that.” 

“I’m not used to telling people about my business… the Dread Doctors either knew already or didn’t give a single fuck when I told them something inconsequential like that,” Theo snaps, hating himself for getting overly sensitive about his past. He hopes Derek’s too polite to point out the skip in his heartbeat… because one of them used to care, at least in her own strange way. 

“Believe me, I understand what it’s like to not share things with people for one reason or another. But certain people, like Stiles, have a good way of bulldozing through boundaries.”

The chimera easily heard the ‘and Liam’ part Derek didn’t say aloud.

Theo’s eyes narrow. “So you two came all the way back to Beacon Hills to grill me on my employment status?” 

“Not exactly,” Derek remarks, shifting uneasily.

Something clicks in Theo’s brain; between Derek’s current edgy manner and Stiles’s earlier pitiful excuse that he is on Spring Break, Theo finds himself honestly shocked by his epiphany.

“You’ve been in Beacon Hills this whole time,” Theo accuses, pointing a finger at the older werewolf. “Or at least nearby. With Stiles.”

“A secret for a secret, then, since I can tell you don’t trust that I won’t go home and spill your business,” Derek offers with a sigh. 

“Deal,” Theo agrees, and they shake hands because Derek is definitely a dork under that gruff exterior. 

“But if I find out you told someone, anyone at all, and that includes Liam -“

“You’ll kill me?” Theo scoffs, rolling his eyes - at least threats were territory Theo is familiar with. They were oddly comforting in a way. 

“There are things worse than death,” Derek growls, taking a step forward to loom over Theo as if he would somehow be intimidated by that. “And you’ll do well to remember that.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Theo brushes off. (Internally, he knows Derek’s right considering all the time he spent in the ground with his sister, alive, but stuck in an endless cycle of torture… and also because he’d rather gouge his own eyes out with a spoon than live in a world where Derek’s even alluded to Scott that he has a crush on Liam. No thanks.) “Spare me the melodrama, please.”

Derek mutters something vaguely threatening sounding under his breath but then drops a bomb on Theo. “Stiles dropped out of his FBI internship right after they returned from their Christmas/New Years break. Said it was because he got homesick, but he was too nervous to tell his dad. He’s been training with Deaton and his sister to become an emissary.”

Theo’s mouth drops open at the long term implications of such an action. “Derek. The Sheriff is going to KILL you. Literally, and probably with his bare hands. Even I remember how proud he was to tell anyone and everyone about Stiles’s acceptance to the FBI internship program. He even told me … TWICE!”

“It’s not my fault!” Derek growls darkly, except it sounds more like a childish whine than anything else.

Theo raises a judgmental eyebrow, because, really? Stiles HATES being away from Derek for more than a day or two and is very good at making sure EVERYONE knows how unhappy he is when the older werewolf is away. And, honestly, Derek is even grumpier than usual when he’s been separated from Stiles for too long.

Derek lowers his head. “Ugh, I know. Trust me. I tried to tell Stiles that his dad would understand he’s uncomfortable being so far away from home, but he’s stubborn and instead concocted this elaborate scheme to pretend like he’s still there. Not even Scott knows.”

Theo squints at Derek, not completely buying his story. Something is off about his entire explanation, so he decides to take a risk.

“You’re lying,” Theo brazenly proclaims, not knowing exactly how he knew because none of his five senses detected anything unusual, but his sixth sense (aka his instincts) screaming at him that Derek wasn’t being entirely truthful. “Something in your story is a lie. I’m guessing the part about Stiles dropping out on his own accord?”

Derek narrows his eyes, sizing Theo up, the chimera barely resisting the urge to fidget under the intense scrutiny. “I did lie. How did you know?”

“Common sense and a gut feeling,” Theo shrugs, his brain in a whirlwind to figure out the missing pieces to the puzzle. “He helped you escape, right? Someone must have seen you two together during the operation, even if it was on camera later on.”

“I’m impressed, Theo. Good job on trusting your instincts,” Derek remarks, and Theo feels a strange rush of pride at the unexpected praise from someone he respects. “They didn’t prosecute him because I was proven innocent, largely due to Argent’s testimony, but they revoked his internship after an internal hearing process since he went against policy and all that bullshit. It didn’t help that he disappeared literally right after the Op to help Scott, and then showed back up weeks later with a half-baked explanation.” Derek's shoulders slump. “He didn’t even get a chance to testify on his own behalf… which was probably for the best because I’m not sure how he’d be able to explain that whole mess, but it still pisses me off.”

“Damn,” Theo whistles, actually feeling bad for his former-friend. He knew how excited Stiles was about that opportunity, and he’s completely sure that he could have talked his way into being allowed to stay if he had a chance to defend himself. “How upset is Stiles?”

Derek rolls his eyes. “Honestly… he vented for a day about it solely on principle, and then the next day he packed his shit, made me rent a SUV to come pick him up, and then forced me on a two week sight-seeing road trip on our way back to California. I think I’m more enraged about the whole thing than he is.”

“And now you are harboring him in some nearby city,” Theo gleefully speculates; being on the other side of the secret sharing was FAR more fun, “like a fugitive from parental disappointment.”

“It’s ironic since I’m usually the fugitive,” Derek bitterly snorts, but some tension releases from his shoulders. “I wake up every day expecting this will be the day it all blows up. Because, yes, his father is going to literally put my head on a spike when he finds out.”

“Well, at least Deaton, Morrell, and myself are the best secret keepers in Beacon Hills,” Theo notes with a shrug. “And I’ll have your back if he comes for you, I’m sure I’m a permanent fixture on his shit list so it can't get any worse for me.”

Derek groans loudly, hanging his head. “Thanks, kid. But unfortunately, Peter knows as well. We’re using one of his spare apartments, and he showed up once out of the blue because he’s got his own sixth sense for shady shit.”

“Dude, you’re so fucked,” Theo concludes, taking this opportunity to return the favor and place a consoling hand on Derek’s shoulder. “I’ll say some nice words at your funeral.”

“Yep, thanks, you might want to start thinking ahead because I’m sure it will happen soon.”

After seeing Derek (finally) out, Theo quickly changes into something comfortable and shuts all the lights off. He grabs his phone and throws himself onto his bed, forgoing his 30 minute bedtime/self-care routine just this once (which is stupid and irresponsible of him considering Liam might not even be awake anymore).

[Liam]: Theooooo

[Liam]: Hi

[Liam]: wyd

[Liam]: Theooooooooooooo

[Liam]: hellllllllo

[Liam]: oh no, r u mad at me, too?

[Liam]: i’m sry! Idk what i did but it was prolly

[Liam]: like being super annoying at school today. Or being a hot drunk mess

[Liam]: Or both

[Liam]: :(

Cute, is Theo’s first thought when he sees the messages until he begins to wonder… is Liam still drunk? It’s been HOURS since their last drink at the club, he should definitely be sober by now, though Theo’s not exactly sure how much the werewolf drank earlier in the night considering he smelled like a distillery when they first bumped into each other. He seriously doubts Liam continued drinking when he got home, but it’s still a slight possibility, and one that would explain his endearing, but strange, text messages. 

[Theo]: Hey, sorry, was hanging with Derek for a bit

[Theo]: And no, I’m not mad at you, and I wasn’t mad at you at school either

[Theo]: Can’t ever stay angry at you for more than a few minutes, dummy

[Theo]: (Unless you purposefully did something to my truck, then I’d make an exception)  :(

[Theo]: But I’m getting ready for bed now, Little Wolf, which you should be doing too. It’s late.

Damn, is Theo still drunk, too? That was a little bit too straightforward to be considered friendly, wasn’t it? Yikes, hopefully Liam won’t read too much into it. What was with him and texting shit he’d never say aloud today?! This could become a huge problem if it keeps occurring…

[Liam]: I would NEVER do anything to your truck, and whoever says I would is a LIAR!!

[Liam]: And I’m in bed already, cuz I’m a good boy!

[Liam]: Just can’t go to sleep yet til Brett finishes getting ready

[Liam]: he’s slow cuz he’s got like 50 steps to his skin care routine, it’s cray cray

Wait, what the fuck? The first two messages were…odd, and slightly unnerving, but that third message is appalling - why is Liam still with Brett? 

Theo thinks back on their last conversation before they parted ways, and he vividly remembers Liam discussing (loudly) about how he couldn’t wait to go home and crash face first onto his bed. Did he end up inviting Brett to spend the night? Or did Brett invite Liam to his place? 

Either scenario makes Theo feel… exceptionally uneasy. 

[Theo]: Oh, you’re not home?

He mentally applauds himself for how tactful he was in his reply. Because internally? He wants to leave the comfort of his own bed and use his superb tracking skills to hunt down Liam and remove him from Brett’s unnecessary presence (and possibly remove a few of Brett’s fingers in the process). But Theo knew everyone, even Derek, would frown on him handling the situation in such a manner, so with tremendous difficulty, he restrains himself (for now), and returns his attention back to his phone.

[Liam]: nooo, we all agreed to crash at brett’s cuz we were sleepy and he lived the closest

[Liam]: corey and mason are on the living room couches, so im in brett’s room to avoid their canoodling

[Liam]: but I think he’s gonna smother me in my sleep tbh.

[Liam]: Revengeeeeee

Theo frowns, remembering Corey’s comment about the long term ‘UST’ between Brett and Liam; was this going to be the night it finally became resolved sexual tension?! Fuck, and the shorter beta is somehow still drunk even after he ate three huge burgers, four servings of fries, and also drank two large milkshakes and three pitchers of water… He regrets not insisting that Liam ride with Derek and him so he would know for sure his the little beta was okay - Theo trusts Derek, at least with Liam’s safety (and virtue). But Brett? Not one fucking bit. 

Maybe he should text Brett a friendly warning reminder about the importance of consent? And how drunk people can definitely not consent to do…the kinds of things that Brett (likely) has a reputation for doing with others. 

But ugh, no, then Brett will definitely become suspicious over Theo’s motives, and he has a feeling Brett’s a lot more aware of things than he lets on (he remembers all those ‘meaningful’ looks Brett kept shooting him in the club when he was picking the glass out of Liam’s hand, but he doesn’t have time to analyze them now).

There is one thing Theo knows for sure - it's in his best interest to stay off Brett’s radar. 

[Theo]: don’t worry little one

[Theo]: I’ll beat him up for you

Yes, a subtle reminder that Theo could crush Brett’s skull with one hand if he wanted…hopefully Liam passes the message along to the freakishly tall beta. 

[Liam]: my hero ^_^

(Theo’s heart does a weird unhealthy feeling thing at having such a high title bestowed upon him).

[Liam]: but i’m not little! 

[Liam]: friendly reminder, mister, I am less than an inch or two shorter than you

Theo's fingers fly across the keyboard, and he presses send several seconds before his brain processes what he just typed.

[Theo]: size matters ;)

Fuck, fuckkk, why would he say something so cringey?! No wonder why the Dread Doctors (all three of them!) were always so concerned over his “dreadful” (their word, not his) social skills. 

His last school before returning to Beacon Hills was in some random Ohio city; his ‘job’ in each location was to observe (and befriend if possible) the teenagers who were genetic chimeras (according to the list the Doctors provided him) and help them determine who would be best suited for their procedure (so basically anyone who was even the slightest bit nice). After terminating the last failed chimera, they were packing up the operating theater when the Surgeon straight up said to his face that he was genuinely surprised by how, in every school Theo attended, he made multiple 'friends' and convinced people to like him; the Geneticist quickly clarified that it wasn’t because he was “unlikeable” but because he was “a little odd around the edges”; the Pathologist then loudly proclaimed Theo only succeeded because of the copious amount of acting classes they forced him to attend…for pretty much his entire time with them.

At the time, he’d been offended by their comments and thought they were just jealous he could make friends anywhere he went; Theo now realizes with increasing clarity he only made aforementioned friends because he was pretending to be normal based on what he's seen other 'popular' kids do over the years; they were right to be worried over his ability to interact with others in the real world when he was ‘being himself’ (and you KNOW your social skills are pretty bad when three mad scientists think YOU’RE the weird one).

[Liam]: i’m big where it counts!!

Theo chokes on his spit - what the fuck has he started!

[Liam]: that’s what scott says!

[Liam]: and he’s the alpha so he doesn’t lie

WHAT?! Why has Scott seen… nope, nope, not going there, this has gone too far already, and Theo is NOT crossing that line.

[Theo]: … good to know?

Theo has so many questions right now, but he’s also not sure he wants to know the answer.

[Liam]: wait

[Liam]: omg !!!!!!!!!!!

[Liam]: I MEANT A BIG HEART

[Liam]: I *swear* that's what I meant

[Liam]: cuz scott says i have a big heart

[Liam]: not the other thing

[Liam]: not because it isn’t big either!

[Liam]: he just hasn’t seen it

[Liam]: uhhh

[Liam]: i should probably just stop talking at this point

[Liam]: :’(

Theo’s pretty sure he just lost ten years off his life, but he’s NEVER felt so relieved before either… well, okay, maybe when Liam rescued him from the ground he was slightly more relieved, but this moment is top three for sure.

[Liam]: but hey um, can I ask you a weird question?

[Theo]: you’re a dork for all that by the way

[Theo]: but yes, you can ask me a weird question

Theo braces himself for the worst at this point.

[Liam]: i just saw your last text from way earlier in the night a bit ago and uh

[Liam]: do u really think i’m beautiful or were you just saying that?

[Liam]: to like… not hurt my feelings or for something

[Liam]: cuz I said u were gorgeous ya know?

Ok, that isn’t the worst thing Liam could have asked, thankfully.

Theo bites his lip, squinting at the screen in the darkness of his room, weighing his options.

He can use this opportunity to casually mention he does indeed find Liam attractive (‘attractive’ was a bit of an understatement, but he didn’t want to overwhelm the poor guy), and maybe that will open doors to future situations where he gets to spend time with Liam more closely. Like… in romantic ways. And even if Liam isn’t interested in Theo at the current moment, it might be beneficial to put the idea into his head that Theo, a male, found Liam good looking. And just maybe that will then lead Liam to questioning if he found Theo, a male, attractive (drunk Liam DID say Theo was ‘gorgeous’ which had to count for something, right?)

But if he goes down that road, then it can just as easily lead to super fucking awkward rejection because Liam is STRAIGHT, and how the fuck does Theo keep forgetting this glaringly obvious fact?! Liam has never ONCE showed interest in a guy (except maybe Brett?), and yes, even pre-Hell Theo had been paying attention to such a thing (for totally evil reasons, of course, and not because he developed a giant slight crush on the beta the moment he first spotted him in the halls at school - that would be cliché as fuck, and Theo is a lot of things, but he is NOT a cliché).

And if it becomes awkward and intolerable to be around each other, then Theo’s place in the pack would quickly be revoked; Scott would 100% choose Liam’s comfort over Theo (which he should, but that would still suck), and then he’d be back to square one. 

To lie or not to lie, that is the question.

He debates on texting Faye for advice, but before he can make a decision, his phone lights up again.

[Liam]: ugh never mind, i’m just being stupid

[Liam]: sorry for keeping u up, i’ll talk to u later?

[Liam]: night night

Well…fuck it.

[Theo]: Yes, I did just say it in response to what you called me

[Theo]: But i ALSO said it because I think it’s something you should know

[Theo]: you’re very beautiful, Liam

[Theo]: honestly

Oh god, that all hurt to type, but it was true. It was so fucking true, but now Theo feels like he’s seconds away from a panic attack as he watches the bubbles start and stop on his screen for several minutes before his phone finally lights up with multiple messages back to back.

[Liam]: oh wow holy shit

[Liam]: Um I mean, thank you!

[Liam]: i also think you are gorgeous

[Liam]: like for real. Wow. 

[Liam]: not to be weird or anything!!!!

[Liam]: UwU

[Liam]: but also good night for real, lori’s giving me death threats now :(

[Liam]: <3

[Theo]: good night little wolf

[Theo]: sleep well

[Theo]: <3

Theo grabs a spare pillow and places it over his face, allowing it to smother his (embarrassing) giddy screaming, because what the entire fuck was that conversation?! Were they... flirting? Or is Theo reading way too much into it? Will Liam act similarly on Sunday, or will he go back to 'normal' (whatever the fuck that meant for them)?

Fuck it, he'll just have to ask his sisters tomorrow what they think; he's 1000% sure Faye will have told them everything that she witnessed by now... hell, they probably knew most of what was going on while Theo was still in the club with her. And then he can have her explain what her angle was about the whole "Theo's friend Liam" because that was weird, too.

He closes his eyes with a sigh, resigning himself to the fact that the next few weeks will probably be just as confusing as today was. But if he gets to spend more time with Liam, then maybe it's okay that he doesn't have a plan for once.

Chapter Text

Liam squeals, clutching his phone to his chest while rolling across Brett’s obnoxiously large (and comfortable) bed. Holy shit holy shit HOLY SHIT - Theo just said he, as in Liam Dunbar himself, is beautiful. And Theo knew a lot about beauty considering he’s the most gorgeous man Liam’s ever set eyes on.

“Dude, what the fuck is happening to you right now?” Brett asks in alarm, staring at him with wide eyes while running a washcloth over his face. (Liam is surprised to learn that Brett wears makeup... interesting. He briefly wonders if Theo wears makeup but quickly dismisses the thought - Theo is just that pretty all on his own.)

“I took your advice,” Liam explains in between muffled screams into the pillow he claimed as his own for the night. “And I asked Theo to clarify his earlier text.”

“LIAM, SHUT THE FUCK UP WITH YOUR GIRLY SCREAMING OR I WILL COME IN THERE AND STAB YOU REPEATEDLY WITH YOUR OWN CLAWS AND THEN STEAL YOUR PHONE TO SEND EMBARRASSING PHOTOS OF YOU TO THEO!!” Lori yells from the bedroom down the hall, and oh shit, Liam forgot she was home… and has the same enhanced hearing as him. “AND I HAVE PLENTY OF MATERIAL TO CHOOSE FROM, LIKE THE TIME YOU DRESSED AS MISTY FROM POKÉMON FOR HALLOWEEN OR THE TIME WE WERE ON THE BEACH IN THE BAHAMAS AND THE BIRDS SHIT ALL OVER YOU WHILE YOU WERE NAPPING!”

His eyes go wide, and despite making a fabulous Misty and winning first place in their town’s Youth Costume Competition (he dressed their black lab as Starmie and his bunny as Togepi), he still didn’t want Theo to see those pictures ever (he blocked the Bahamas memory from his mind long ago…that NEVER happened). Liam quickly types a response to Theo while carefully maneuvering through the mess on Brett’s floor to firmly shut the bedroom door - he did NOT want to test if she was bluffing with such a heinous threat or not.

Brett hangs the washcloth on the towel holder and shuts the bathroom light off, dropping the entire room into darkness. 

“Uh, are you still drunk?” Brett questions, rudely shoving Liam onto the left side of the bed before he has a chance to sprawl out again, claiming the right side for himself. “We’ve never talked about whatever you and Theo have going on.”

Liam pauses in his internal breakdown to look at Brett in confusion… oh shit, maybe he took Lil Pete’s advice? Huh. Guess he has some explaining to do.

“Weird, whatever, never mind,” Liam shrugs, mentally applauding himself for that excellent explanation.

“Um, no, it’s not ‘whatever, never mind,’” Brett scoffs, kicking Liam’s shin. “Aww, Li, is this your first boy crush?”

“Yeah,” he admits, rubbing his aching shin until his brain eventually processes what he just said. “Fuck, I mean, NO! I don’t have a crush on Theo?”

“Are you sure?” Brett laughs, ruffling Liam’s hair like he was a child (Brett is exactly three months older than him but Liam swears he acts as if they were three years apart). “You don’t sound sure.”

“Um, I think I would know if I had a crush on Theo.” Liam rolls his eyes, because like, seriously? If he’s gonna have a boy crush, it’s going to be on someone hunky like Chris Evans or someone mysterious yet charming like Sebastian Stan... not Theo fucking Raeken who is admittedly hunky, charming, and mysterious. 

Damn.

“Believe me, you’d be surprised,” Brett mutters, and Liam’s stunned to smell his friend’s embarrassment before he tampers it down.

“Explain!” Liam forcefully demands, turning to face the older boy who was laying on his back, staring emotionlessly at the ceiling; all the girls at Devenford were obsessed with Brett (like… seriously obsessed. Even the senior girls fawned all over him when he was a freshman which is actually hella creepy now that he thinks about it). Liam often forgets that Brett is bisexual (and now finds himself wondering if the boys fawned over him, too. Did Liam somehow miss that?!). 

“I will,” Brett agrees easily, glancing over at him with an amicable smile; Liam’s not naïve enough to know there won’t be a catch. “But only after you tell me what’s going on with you and Theo and then explain this little breakdown you’re having.”

Liam sighs, because yep, he saw that coming.

“Umm,” Liam hesitates, anxious to discuss something he barely understands himself. But Brett is less involved with Theo than Mason and Corey are, and he doesn’t have the same grudge against the chimera, so maybe he’ll have a better understanding… and then he can explain it to Liam? Cuz he has no clue what he’s feeling. “I dunno, I guess I keep noticing him a lot lately? Especially at school or pack meetings. But he’s always soo mysterious!! And I started thinking maybe he’s up to something, ya know?”

Brett sighs, and Liam can hear the unspoken judgment. “Like, evil stuff?”

Liam frowns, because ‘evil’ didn’t feel right. “No, not evil. More like… sketchy, but not like BAD, ya know?”

“That makes no sense, but please, continue.”

“Like, where does he get his money? How can he afford to dress like a high end model when he's still in high school and has no adult support?” Liam continues, building up into his usual rant since now he has a new listener. “Who’s he always texting at pack meetings? Where is he living? What does he do in his free time?”

“And why do you care about all these things?” Brett remarks as if he’s adding to Liam’s list, and ugh, that's unfortunately a good addition.

“And does he have a girlfriend?” Liam spits, feeling his claws lengthen at the thought of her.

“Nope, no claws,” Brett growls, yanking Liam’s arm until the shorter beta is pressed against his side. Brett wraps his arms around Liam, and his claws retract at the blissful feeling of a cuddle with his packmate. “We’re gonna snuggle until you can get control over yourself, because I just bought these sheets, and you’re not going to ruin them with your unfounded jealousy.”

“Not jealous,” Liam grumbles, resting his heated cheek on Brett’s chest. “But sorry.”

“I don’t think she’s his girlfriend,” Brett confides, carding his hand absentmindedly through Liam’s long hair which felt awesome; if he was a werekitty instead of a werewolf, he would totally be purring right meow. “I do think she was trying to make you jealous, though, and oh what a shocker, it worked.”

“But why?” Liam whines at the unfairness of it all. Ugh, emotions suck. And so do girls. Why did he ever like girls to begin with? Maybe liking boys (or at least a certain boy) would lead to less heartache? 

“There are many possible reasons,” Brett notes dismissively. “But you’ve finally realized after months of cluelessness that you have a crush on Theo because of it, so maybe that was her intention.”

“We haven’t established if I actually have a crush, though!” Liam complains with a pout, throwing an arm across Brett’s middle; he’s glad they wore tank tops and basketball shorts to bed, otherwise this might be a little bit awkward. “Maybe I’m just having a midlife crisis.”

“Do you like spending time with Theo?” Brett asks without preamble. “Just you two.”

Theo and Liam hadn’t spent much time alone together, like ever, but when it was just the two of them fighting the Ghost Riders or the hunters, it was kind of nice… if you ignore the life or death shit going on in the background. And when they went out on patrols, Theo usually shifted into his full coyote form, and in most cases, Liam HATES silence. But they had built up a sort of companionable silence that was actually kind of peaceful (though Liam’s head was usually in a civil war screaming match against itself the entire time like - Pet the soft fur; Wait, no don’t pet, don’t pet; Maybe some nice pets, good doggy, just a little feel; No no, bad pets, no touch; Just do it; No, nope that would be creepy, Liam, sooo creepy, no pets of the human chimeras without consent, it’s the law; TOUCH THE FUR, LIAM; No!!!)

“Yes, but -”

“Do you want Theo to willingly talk to you first and tell you about himself and his life?”

Liam's life would most certainly be simpler if Theo did these things!

“Yes, but -”

“Do you find him attractive?” 

Liam swallows, his eyes widening in alarm when he suddenly remembers Brett can hear if he lies. “Um, yes.”

“Do you always find yourself seeking out his attention?”

Why would he seek out Theo’s attention? That would be ridiculous. 

“No.”

Brett scoffs. “That was a lie. Let’s try again. Do you always find yourself seeking out Theo’s attention?”

“Yes,” Liam huffs. Stupid werewolves and their lie detecting abilities.

“Do you get upset when he doesn't give you attention?”

“...yes.”

He remembers Lil Pete saying Liam deserves to have all of Theo’s focus on him, and the strange voice inside his head was pretty spot on with his claim.

“And did you not like Theo’s female friend, simply because you thought they might be dating?”

How dare Brett bring up HER. She ruined his entire night! Liam can feel his rage building when he thinks of how she hugged Theo and fucking WINKED at him over the chimera’s shoulder. Like, what was her angle? And why did she have wolfsbane on her? It didn’t seem like she was a werewolf or werecoyote, but Liam was too preoccupied being offended by her mere presence to ask… he will need to do some investigating later.

“Liam?” Brett asks, poking him in the side. “We’re almost done - did you not like Theo’s female friend, simply because you thought they might be dating?

“... yeah.”

“All other things aside, are you upset about potentially liking Theo because he’s a guy?”

“No.”

Liam’s never had a boy crush before (at least to his knowledge), so he’s kind of surprised Brett didn’t call him on it being a lie. 

Wait, if he’s not upset about ‘potentially liking’ Theo because he was a guy, does that mean he DOES have a crush on Theo? Because he apparently likes hanging out with Theo and wants Theo to always pay attention to him and doesn’t like the idea of Theo dating her … wait, no, that’s not really a crush. He’s just a needy friend who gets jealous that his friend has other friends. That’s all.

Nothing to worry about here! Liam’s just lacking in friends since Scott’s away at college and Mason is always wrapped up with his relationship with Corey, and Brett’s busy being… Brett. And if Theo was dating someone, like Parker or her, then he too wouldn’t have time for Liam, and Liam would once again need to find someone else to hang out with.

Liam’s just lonely! 

It’s not a crush.

Nope.

“Have you thought about what it would be like to kiss him?” Brett finishes, and Liam’s brain does a full 180, slowly slipping into a full blown freak-out at this unexpected revelation. 

He has a crush on Theo?! What the fuck?! Since WHEN?!

“No… but I might be now,” he chokes, trying to remove the images from his brain of all the times he easily could have shared a sweet, soft, or passionate kiss with Theo tonight. He scoots up a little and shoves his face into the side of Brett’s neck with a whine. “Holy shit, I have a crush on Theo. Brett, help me! He’s STRAIGHT. What am I supposed to do?” 

“Uh, first things first, congrats you have a boy crush! But dude, Theo is DEFINITELY not straight. Or bisexual,” Brett firmly states. “Trust me, I know these things.”

Liam’s eyes narrow in suspicion. “And just how do you know these things, Brett?”

Brett flicks him on the forehead, and Liam would get annoyed, but he’s too amused by the thought of their cuddles being violent to really be bothered by it; that seems typical of their friendship at this point. 

“I have eyes. And common sense,” Brett explains with a huff. “You should look into getting some for yourself.”

“I actually walked in on him basically cuddling some freshman kid named Parker in the locker room today at school,” Liam hisses, at least now understanding why he felt jealous of the stupid younger boy. “And he was half naked!”

“Yeah, I know, Mason texted me ALL the drama before we went to Sinema,” Brett softly laughs, squeezing Liam tighter, and wow, so much betrayal over here, damn. “But Theo’s a good looking dude, Li, so you could do worse in terms of your first boy crush. And for what it’s worth, I think he’s into you, too. Definitely not some stupid freshman.”

“He called me ‘beautiful,’” Liam quietly mutters, struggling to prevent another scream from escaping his lips at receiving such a profound compliment from Theo. “That’s what I was freaking about earlier.” He quickly explains the whole text exchange to an increasingly amused Brett.

“Good to know you still have no game,” Brett scoffs, rolling his eyes.

“Rude,” Liam haughtily sniffs, lightly pinching Brett’s side. “How did you know you were bi?”

Brett tenses, and Liam takes a leaf out of Brett’s book to reach up, gently running his fingers through the older werewolf’s hair.

“Um, honestly…”

“You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to,” Liam offers, carefully scratching his nails across Brett’s scalp. He smiles internally when he can practically feel the older boy melt below him.

“Satomi had to tell me,” he mumbles, and Liam can feel Brett’s skin heating from his full-body blush.

Liam lifts his head to look Brett in the eye. “And you make fun of me for being clueless?!”

“Always,” Brett smirks, leaning up to rest his forehead against Liam’s for a moment. 

“This is kinda like when we were kids,” Liam observes, offering Brett an easy out if he didn’t want to talk about his deceased Alpha at the moment. “Remember our sleepovers when we first started school?”

“Before my parents died, and then we became mortal enemies?” Brett whispers, and fuck, Liam is awful (once again) and did not think his comment through.

“Enemies is a bit strong of a word, don’t ya think?” Liam mutters, pretending like he definitely did not vent to Mason for almost a decade about how much he loathed Brett with his entire being. 

Most people at their elementary school never realized how close Liam and Brett actually were in the beginning of their school careers. Liam’s mom and Brett’s mom were best friends since college, and while the two boys may not have interacted in school together that often (their moms stressed the importance of having a diverse group of friends, likely since their own duo used to be a trio until ‘reasons’ of which Liam is still not privy to), they were neighbors who always played together outside of school, practically splitting residencies between each others’ houses. And when they were together, they were attached at the hip, always embracing or climbing all over one another (Liam tended to be a little more aggressive than his other friends were comfortable with, but Brett took it in stride, something younger Liam didn’t realize was so cathartic for him until he lost it).

But Brett’s mother and father died in a fire when the two boys were 8 years old, and the trauma from the loss of his parents combined with the abrupt change in living situation caused Brett’s temperament to shift from easygoing and calm to progressively more snappish and rude. And while older Liam completely understands the change and realizes he should have worked harder to be there for his closest friend, younger Liam took it personally. Like… so personally. 

Before the fire, Brett was one of the few people that helped him retain control over his anger, but after the loss of his parents (and Liam now believes they were likely instrumental in helping Brett control his werewolf abilities), he struggled to cope with Liam’s IED mood swings, and eventually became one of the prime instigators in setting Liam off. Liam’s mom tried so hard to help to two work out their differences, upset by the knowledge that Brett lost another important person in his life, especially when he didn’t need to; she literally sobbed when Liam brought Brett home out of the blue one night after a pack meeting, and Liam’s never felt so guilty in his life when he saw for himself how distraught his mom was over his broken friendship with the older boy. Poor Dr. Geyer was so confused when he came home from his shift at the hospital to find his wife on the couch bawling on some random muscular teenage boy (though he quickly put the pieces together because he was way smarter than all of them combined).

“Mmm, I think it’s quite fitting,” Brett snorts, sounding amused. “I’m sorry for being a dick, though.”

“Are you actually sorry for being a dick?” Liam can’t stop himself from asking, his tone hopefully conveying his honest disbelief over such a statement; even after their years apart, he knew Brett way too well to believe that.

Brett makes a soft contemplative sound. “Okay, I’m sorry for those times I overstepped… like the zoo incident. That was so fucked, Liam, you didn’t deserve that.”

“Well, I’m really fucking sorry I didn’t understand what you were going through after the fire and wasn’t there for you when I should have been. Instead, I made everything about me.” Liam sighs despondently. “Like usual.”

A sudden thought suddenly strikes Liam’s brain.

“Wait, dude!” he whispers urgently, sitting up slightly to stare Brett in the eyes. “Do you think my mom knew that your mom was a werewolf? They were friends for ten years at LEAST.”

Brett frowns, thinking over Liam’s realization. “Uh, maybe? Mom was always insistent on not telling others about us, including you, so possibly not.”

“Huh.” Liam bites his lip, ashamed he was still keeping something so large from his parents (he’s pretty sure his step dad suspects something, but he hasn’t said anything yet, so Liam is resolutely NOT bringing it up).

“You should tell her, for the record,” Brett says, jolting Liam from his thoughts. “But anyways, back to me. I knew guys can like guys, obviously. And girls could like girls. What I did not realize at the age of 11 was that you can like both boys and girls.”

“Understandable,” Liam remarks, because he did not know such a thing was possible until he was fourteen despite being best friends with Mason who knew he was gay since.. well, almost forever it feels like and was very knowledgeable about all LGBTQ+ things.

“I kept getting in fights with this one kid,” Brett continues with a nostalgic smile, “and Satomi was so fed up after the fifth time within a month and yelled at me about how I was too old to ‘pull the pigtails of your crush to get his attention.’ Of course, I said I didn’t have a crush on a boy because I liked girls. Which was true! But then she told me that you can like guys while also liking girls and then explained all about bisexuality… the crush itself wasn’t a big deal, but the whole situation made me understand I wasn’t actually straight.”

“Wait,” Liam growls, unable to stop his eyes from flashing golden, “you got into fights with other people besides me?”

Was it wrong of him to kinda feel betrayed by that?! Because he does. 

Brett suddenly roughly pinches Liam’s cheek, and he flinches violently because what the fuck what was the reason and how did that hurt so bad?! “Of course, Li. Did you think you were special?” 

“I am special,” he huffs, rubbing his cheek, but quickly continues when he sees Brett’s growing smirk. “What happened between you and your boy crush?”

“Nothing, he was straight,” Brett admits with a sigh. “And we are friendly now, but I knew even back then that a romantic relationship between us would be toxic. Like sometimes we’re really good together, but when we have issues, which it often, it’s fucking awful.”

“Like that Eminem and Rhianna song?” Liam asks curiously. At Brett’s look of confusion, Liam sings one of the parts that stuck with him. “It's so insane, 'cause when it's goin' good, it's goin' great. But when it's bad, it's awful, I feel so ashamed. I snapped, who's that dude I don't even know his name. ”

Brett laughs loudly, but Liam hurriedly throws his hand over the taller boy’s mouth - he’s not getting stabbed by Lori because Brett can’t be quiet! (He’s also unsurprised when Brett bite’s him, but he’s appeased by the boy’s soft growl of warning when Liam rubs his now-wet hand on Brett’s cheek.)

“Know that no matter how many knives we put in each other's backs that we'll have each other's backs,” Brett whispers lyrics from the other version of the song.

“Hey, that’s kind of like us, too,” Liam notes with a small smile - even at the school they went to prior to Devenford, long before Liam and Brett reconciled, the student population learned quickly that only Brett could bother Liam without repercussions. 

Liam remembers one time some idiots in seventh grade stole his science project (that was worth thirty percent of his final grade), and sensing he was about to have an IED episode, he sequestered himself away from everyone by hiding out on the roof of the administration building, too ashamed and outraged to tell his friends what had happened. Lori somehow tracked him down (they weren’t friends anymore, but he didn’t hate her like he hated Brett), claiming Mason was in a panic trying to find him, and she remembered he always climbed trees or buildings to get away from people when he was upset. Liam eventually admitted to her what happened, and she sat with him for an hour while helping him calm his emotions, finally convincing him to climb down when the loud speaker turned on, requesting his presence at the principal’s office. Lori accompanied him the short way there and seemed completely unsurprised to find the three boys sitting in the office with black eyes and split lips, the trio confessing to stealing his science project but refusing to give the name of the person who beat them up (and Lori’s testimony of being with him the entire time cleared him of the crime in the eyes of the skeptical principal who was painstakingly familiar with how short Liam’s temper was). He was shocked when his teacher gave him full credit on his project since the bullies destroyed the one he made, deciding it wouldn’t be fair to force him to redo it when he already completed it the first time.

Liam never knew for sure if Brett was involved, but Lori had been on her phone at one point after he told her what happened, and it was the only thing that made sense (Mason admitted he was in a panic trying to find Liam, but he never spoke to Lori about it).

“I guess I should stay away from angry boys.” Brett muses with a frown.

“Might wanna stay away from boys in general,” Liam adds with a laugh. He pauses, thinking over their conversion so far. “What am I supposed to do now?”

“Talk to him?” Brett suggests with faux wide-eyed innocence.

“Um, I don’t know if you realized, but I’m not very good at communicating - “

“Believe me, I noticed,” Brett mutters under his breath.

“And just because you say he’s into guys doesn’t mean he’s into me … hey, that’s mean!” Liam whines when he processes what Brett said. 

He pinches Brett’s side in retaliation, harder this time, and the two quickly fall into a silent but aggressive wrestling match that ends when Brett ‘accidentally’ knees Liam in the chest.

“Oops, sorry Li Li,” Brett apologizes with a wince, gently patting Liam’s chest in a semblance of an attempt to soothe the burning pain.

“Any more realistic suggestions?” Liam coughs, letting the use of his childhood nickname go by this one time (only Brett and his mom ever regularly called him that growing up, but when his friendship with the older boy fell apart, he banned anyone from ever using it again, claiming he hated it to begin with… which wasn’t entirely true, but oh well).

“Make him jealous instead?” Brett sarcastically offers, but Liam’s mind begins to reel with the possibilities.

“Yes, yes, that’s good,” he chuckles darkly, remembering how Brett, Theo, and himself will all be spending many afternoons together on the lacrosse field for the next several months. 

“Liam, no, I was just joking -”

“And you’re going to help me!” he proclaims, crawling on top of the older boy to stare him directly in the eye. “It’ll be the perfect next step to my Master Plan.”

“Should have kept my mouth shut,” Brett groans, rolling his eyes. “You know what, whatever, fine, we’ll work on it tomorrow. I’m tired as fuck, though, so good night.”

Liam is slightly disappointed he can’t continue his plotting, but after thinking about it for 0.2 seconds, he concludes he’s also tired as fuck.

“Wait, last thing!” he says urgently, staring wide-eyed at Brett. “Do you have a job?”

Brett sighs loudly at the question. “No, and also no, Liam, despite my amazing looks, I am not a prostitute. Go to sleep, or I’ll wake up Lori, and then blame it on you.”

“No need for threats, jeez! Night night, love you,” he yawns, closing his eyes but refuses to move - turns out, Brett makes a fantastic pillow, and his werewolf side was appeased by the close snuggle with his packmate.

“Love you, too, Liam,” Brett whispers as Liam slowly drifts off.

Chapter Text

Theo spends Saturday morning running errands, meal prepping, doing laundry, and cleaning the loft - he usually completes these types of tasks on Sunday, but since he’ll be spending at least part of the day tomorrow helping Liam study for AP Bio, he decides it would be in his best interest to finish them today before work. Thankfully, after yesterday’s chaotic events, he fell into a dreamless sleep, and although he only slept for about six hours, Theo’s in a pretty decent mood overall.

He’s about to begin creating flashcards for Liam that cover the first few chapters of their textbook when his phone lights up with several messages from said boy in question. The chimera grins stupidly at his phone before quickly schooling his expression into something more neutral; it’s always good practice to keep your emotions hidden, even in private - in Beacon Hills, you never know who or what is lurking in the shadows (which he’s learned from experience, having been the shadow lurker and all).

[Liam]: theo omg

[Liam]: i had the weirdest dream

[Liam]: but it also made so much sense

[Liam]: wait wait wait

[Liam]: you’ve seen/read harry potter right?

[Liam]: like i assume you have

[Liam]: but you also grew up in an underground lair so idk, maybe not?

[Liam]: also, oops, good morning <3

Theo gasps at the offensive question - has Liam not seen his Slytherin themed planner? Or the little Slytherin snake sticker on the inside of his locker? Or the Slytherin shirt Theo’s fairly certain he wore to school last week… no, wait, it was cold that day so he kept his jacket on the entire time. Damn. Well, Theo at least knows what he’s wearing to school on Monday.

[Theo]: liam omg

[Theo]: of course I’ve fucking read/seen Harry Potter, who HASN’T at this point?!

[Theo]: Even the Geneticist read all the books… and saw all the movies

[Theo]: also good afternoon, it’s 2pm, how’s the hangover?  <3

He remembers how smug he felt when he finally convinced her to read the entire series once the seventh installment was released; he made a significant effort to drop as many possible Harry Potter references into casual conversation as he could, to the point where she was constantly annoyed by not understanding what he was saying. While the other Doctors just ignored him (clearly not giving a fuck about what he had to say in the first place), she finally read the first book with great reluctance and then devoured the other six within a week. Theo would never admit it to her, but he loved being able to share something silly and inconsequential that he enjoyed with her, especially when the Surgeon and the Pathologist started getting frustrated by their constant chatter about various aspects of the series (which was made worse when the Geneticist watched the movies with him; of course, he then received multiple lectures at the most random times about the inaccuracies depicted in the story, especially in regards to witches and magic…she didn’t want him to reach any ‘false conclusions’ about how things worked in the real world. But that was also extremely fascinating and eye opening, so all in all, Theo loved every second of it).

[Liam]: no hangover because I am *awesome*

[Liam]: also, that’s a complete mind fuck about the dread doctors we will revisit later

[Liam]: but anywho

[Liam]: you know in the sixth book when harry finds snape’s old potions textbook

[Liam]: and it has all those annotations in the margins and he suddenly becomes a fucking rockstar at potions?

[Liam]: in my dream, the Dread Doctors had our AP bio book with all these awesome notes added in

[Liam]: and between that book and you tutoring me, i got an A on my midterm

[Liam]: and mrs. finch called Scott and told him she was proud of me :’(

Theo hasn’t really experienced the same academic stresses his peers complain about since the Dread Doctors primarily ‘homeschooled’ him, plus he’s always been intrinsically motivated to learn things on his own. But if Liam is this stressed about the AP Bio midterm to the point where it’s influencing his dreams, then Theo will do anything to make sure Liam passes this godforsaken test. And when the beta aces it, he’ll casually suggest to Mrs. Finch that she should give Scott a call to check up on him to see how he’s doing in college, so then when the alpha asks how Liam is fairing in her class (which he’s sure Scott will do because him and Stiles are borderline helicopter parents when it comes to Liam, at least as much as they can be from long distance), she can truthfully report that Liam not only passed his midterm exam with flying colors, but he’s improved drastically since the start of term, and she’s so exceptionally proud of the great strides he’s made to become a better student.

[Theo]: Well, I don’t about the Dread Doctors having any notated AP Bio books

[Theo]: But the Geneticist kept all my biology textbooks and notebooks

[Theo]: and this is my seventh time taking AP Bio sooo

When Theo rereads his message, he frowns, realizing it makes him sound like he’s failed AP Bio six times prior… he’ll need to clear the air as soon as possible. 

He’d rather crash his truck into the fiery inferno of a thousand suns (with himself in it) than have Liam think he’s dumb.

[Liam]: wait a damned minute

[Liam]: I remember you mentioning you’ve been to several schools

[Liam]: but how is that possible?!

Theo’s beyond fucking grateful Liam allotted him the perfect opportunity to very subtly mention he’s actually somewhat smart.

[Theo]: When I was 14 and about to start high school

[Theo]: The Doctors gave me multiple assessments in every core subject for all four grade levels

[Theo]: I aced them all, so they let me enroll in whatever classes I wanted to take

[Theo]: They forged my age and transcripts when needed which is why I could be in AP Bio as a 14 year old pretending to be 17 year old

[Theo]: I always took the most challenging biology classes available, hence 7 times in AP Bio

[Theo]: Some schools didn’t have AP classes, though, so I also took IB Bio a handful of times… and some schools didn’t have either, but we left those areas  quickly

[Theo]: We never stayed in one town longer than a handful of months... I was mostly homeschooled

The Doctors did have one inflexible condition on his class schedule - he always had to take whatever Theater class was available (if any… some schools really had a pitiful selection of electives when it came to the arts), but Liam didn’t need to know that.

[Liam]: 1. You’re a nerd holy shit

[Liam]: 2. You have a baby face, who believed you were 17 when you were actually 14?! You STILL look 14, and you’re like what, 19?

[Liam]: 3. Do you think your notes would help me?! I need literally ALL the help I can get :(

[Liam]: 4. Do the Dread Doctors have a memory enhancing potion you could brew for me? <3

[Liam]: 5. … who’s your favorite harry potter character

Theo wants to be offended by that comment that he still looks 14, but he figures his excellent skin care regime is partially to blame for that… perhaps he should grow a full beard, though? Liam might give him a second glance if he actually looks like a man instead of a teenager whose barely started puberty.

Fuck, this is why he didn’t bother having crushes before now… he has enough self-esteem issues without the additional desire to make himself appealing to someone else, thank you very much. (Though to be fair, no one has ever caught his eye before now. He genuinely thought he was asexual, which he completely accepted about himself, but it was a HUGE mind fuck when he first saw Liam and realized, nope, he is definitely 100% gay.)

He’d be mortified discussing the issue with her, but Theo never wished the Geneticist was still alive more than ever before - she’d tease him endlessly, sure, but she had the skills and knowledge to actually help him. Even after THREE months without shaving, he only has a pitiful amount of facial hair. (He’d have to lie about why he wanted to grow a beard, though - she would absolutely refuse to assist him if he told her it was to impress a boy, and then she’d lecture him for HOURS about how if he wanted to improve something about his appearance or physiology then that was fine, but if he’s only changing himself to appeal to someone else then they didn’t deserve him and yada yada yada, then Liam would probably end up dead in a very painful manner because she’d go through weird protective phases, and yeah, no. Lying could be good! Save lives, tell a lie was an excellent motto to live by in his personal opinion.)

The Surgeon and the Pathologist would have helped him with minimal explanation on why he wanted to grow a beard, but as it was, they were banned from experimenting on him after ‘accidentally’ turning his skin silver when he asked for gray eyes (he might have been inspired by Draco Malfoy having gray eyes, but no one needed to know that either). He had been so angry when he first saw his reflection, especially when he heard them snickering behind him, and immediately began silently mulling over his plot for revenge; when the Geneticist walked out of her office, he ran to her and promptly burst into tears, wailing about how he’ll never be able to go out in public again looking like an alien. He admittedly underestimated her level of fury, and it was one of the few times he ever heard her yell (at them, not him - she only yelled at him once in their years together, but that was enough for a lifetime). After screaming at them to fix him back to the way he’s supposed to be, she promptly banned them from ever conducting another procedure on him without her explicit approval AND supervision (and while the Surgeon generally was the leader of the Dread Doctors, the Geneticist was the one who ‘wore the pants’ when it came to Theo, and Theo’s pretty sure they were slightly terrified by her unanticipated level of rage). He never did get his gray eyes either.

Fuck it, maybe he should just take steroids.

[Theo]: 1. I prefer ‘genius’  

[Theo]: 2. I was jacked and smarter than the entire class, people overlooked everything else

[Theo]: 3. Yes… but I don’t have them. Are you up for a trip to the tunnels tomorrow?

[Theo]: 4. Yes, it’s called “coffee”

[Theo]: 5. Draco, obviously. And then Snape. You?

(Okay, ‘humble’ is a quality he doesn’t really possess at the moment, but he’s working on it!)

To most people, it appeared as if the Dread Doctors completely abandoned their original Operating Theater that was adjacent to the Beacon Hills Water Treatment Plant, which made it perfect for Theo and his dysfunctional chimera pack to take over as their own secret hideout. But Theo knew it wasn’t the complete truth; while they continued their experiments (both on the Beast and the remaining chimeras) elsewhere, the Dread Doctors left behind most of the books, scrolls, and data they acquired over their extended lifespan (he isn’t entirely sure if it’s because they didn’t want to move their stuff again, especially without Theo around to help, or if they no longer cared as much since the finally completed their intended goal).

Theo’s already cleared out the hidden offices of the Surgeon and the Pathologist, his old ‘childhood’ room, and disposed of anything Josh, Tracy, or Hayden left behind (he did drop off a box of Corey’s stuff on his front porch because he isn’t a total asshole… just awkward and bad at social interactions). But there were two rooms he couldn’t bring himself to enter yet - the Stasis Room (which he literally couldn’t enter because the Doctor’s changed the access code after their ‘falling out’) and the Geneticist's office. Naturally, because his life is one giant cosmic joke, all his saved academic work is located in her office, primarily because she had the largest work space, but also because he preferred to fill his room with things he was currently reading/working on (and he’s kind of a snob about keeping his space clean and organized... he LOATHES clutter).

Theo could go there on his own before meeting up with Liam later on to tutor him, but he just… he couldn’t. And he KNEW that he’s being weak; he KNEW he’s letting his emotions control him; he KNEW she would be disappointed in him. But he couldn’t help it, it hurt too much.

But with Liam there, he’ll have to put on a brave face, he can’t let anyone know how broken he is on the inside over the death of a mad scientist, of someone who hurt the entire pack in one way or another. And besides, he has to be the strong one between the two of them, he can’t afford to be weak when Liam’s safety is potentially at risk, not when Theo’s only purpose in the pack is to protect the Alpha’s first beta and to help him maintain control over his anger (he isn’t anticipating anything happening down in the tunnels, but it’s fucking Beacon Hills after all, and Liam seems to attract trouble like a magnet). 

[Liam]: I am always down for an adventure, even to the creepy Tunnels of Doom if it’ll bring me closer to passing AP Bio

[Liam]: … wow. You would love them the most, why am I not surprised?

[Liam]: you’re a slytherin aren’t you?

[Liam]: And Harry Potter, obviously!!! Follow by Ginny (book Ginny, not movie Ginny)

Theo squints at his phone in confusion, convinced he read the message wrong. But after the fifth reread, and it still says the same thing, he figures he’ll just confirm with Liam because that has to be a typo.

[Theo]: Liam

[Theo]: You’re joking, right?

[Theo]: NO ONE’S favorite character in Harry Potter is Harry Potter

[Theo]: That’s unheard of!!

[Theo]: And yes, I’m a Slytherin, though Ravenclaw was pretty close. And you’re a Hufflepuff who also scores close to a Gryffindor

[Liam]: uhhh, you’re wrong on both accounts

[Liam]: Please hold while I take a quick consensus

Theo shakes his head, wondering who Liam is going to ask and what they will actually say. Obviously, Theo knows he’s right in his assessment, but he’s curious if other people have a similar perspective as him (he’s not expecting much, though, considering how the only intelligent person Liam hangs out with is Theo himself… okay, fine, and Mason).

He sees the time on his phone and jumps from his bed in alarm, rushing into the bathroom. Fuck, he needs to leave for work in thirty minutes, and he’s not even close to being ready.

By the time he finishes showering and getting dressed, his phone starts beeping back to back; Theo switches his toothbrush to his left hand, using his right to unlock the device to read his messages.

[Liam]: So according to the consensus

[Liam]: *insert drum roll here*

[Liam]: there’s a conspiracy against me

[Liam]: … and everyone agrees with you on both parts

[Liam]: Except Malia!!!!!! Because she isn’t a traitor

Theo rolls his eyes, quickly sending a response even though Liam is still typing

[Theo]: Has she even seen or read Harry Potter?

[Liam]: Well, Theodore…

[Liam]: That is beside the point

[Liam]: Side note, what’s your middle name?

[Liam]: For science

He winces at the use of his first name but has a full-body shiver at the thought of Liam being able to use his entire ‘government name’ the next time he’s pissed off or upset at Theo. The Geneticist full-named him only a few times, and it was a terrible god-awful feeling Theo NEVER wants to experience again.

[Theo]: Mmmm, yeah, not telling

[Theo]: Sorry Little Wolf

[Liam]: No worries!

Well… that went surprisingly well

[Liam]: I’ll ask Stiles

Ah, fuck. A part of him wanted to say there is no way Stiles will remember his full name (if he ever knew it to begin with), but he can easily figure it out with minimal effort considering his dad is the Sheriff and all.

[Theo]: Good luck with that

(Theo crosses his fingers and fervently prays to anyone who listens that Liam has bad luck with that.)

[Theo]: But hey, I gotta go to work

[Theo]: If I pick you up at 11 tomorrow morning, does that work?

[Theo]: We can figure out what to do next after we get my books

[Liam]: Oh, okay :(

[Liam]: That works!

[Liam]: Have a good night!

[Liam]: Be safe <3

[Theo]: <3

Theo arrives at the Mansion exactly one minute before he’s supposed to pick up Emma for her date with some business guy. They’ve secured tickets to a fundraiser at the newly opened Beacon Hill's Science Center, which he has been secretly STOKED about for weeks now.

He waves at the security guard he passes, entering the Mansion in a hurry - the faster he can pick Emma and then her date up, the faster he gets to explore the museum (while keeping Emma in his sights, of course).

“Hey, kid,” Blake greets him in the lobby, dressed in a fancy suit that probably costs as much as Theo’s truck. He offers the chimera a strained smile. “Good luck tonight, you will definitely need it. I tried to call them off, but you know… they’re like a pack of hyenas when they smell a fresh kill. If you need me, uh, don’t, I’ve got my own date and will be far away from here. Cool, okay, you’ll wanna head up to Charlotte’s room by the way.” Blake pats him on the shoulder but refuses to make eye contact. “Please don’t die, and ya know what, if you survive, I’ll pay you time and a half for the entire night, sound good? Neat, right on, what a good deal, see ya next weekend, bye!”

And before Theo can get a word out, Blake’s already out the front doors, leaving a stunned chimera in his wake.

What the fuck did that mean?!

Body tense, he creeps up the stairs, straining his hearing for any out-of-place sounds; he hears six heartbeats including his own, four in front of him, and one -

“BOO!” a deep voice screams from behind him, and Theo jumps a mile in the air, twisting around and landing in a crouch at the top of the stairs, a growl building in his throat when he sees… nothing. Why does he see nothing, what the fuck?

Something catches his eye at the bottom of the staircase, and a normal-sized Faye suddenly appears on all fours. Theo’s worried for a second that she’s hurt until he realizes she’s… laughing. But not just regular laughing, no, she’s laughing so hard not a single sound comes out of her mouth, and Theo can see tears streaming down her face.

“She’s been waiting for an hour to get ya,” Shea giggles from behind him, and Theo turns to see the rest of his sisters smirking at him, including Emma, who’s wearing -

“Why aren’t you dressed?” Theo whines when he sees Emma in her pajamas along with the other girls, their faces free of makeup and their hair piled either into a bun, ponytail, or hidden behind a large headband. “We’re gonna be late!”

“I told you he’d be upset,” Blair mutters to Emma, crossing her arms over her chest.

“We were all worried he wouldn’t show if she told him in advance,” Charlotte fiercely whispers back, and did they forget Theo has enhanced hearing?

Wait, tell him what?! No, no, no, Theo has been DYING to go to this event for ages, why is his life so unfair? They had an entire two floors dedicated to biology alone!

“I’m sorry, Theo,” Emma murmurs, grabbing Theo’s hands and gently squeezing them. “He bailed last minute, and he’s the one with the tickets. And since no one else is working tonight -”

“We decided to have a girls’ night!” Faye exclaims, appearing out of nowhere next to his right shoulder (he does NOT jump this time… but it was close). “Your face was priceless, by the way, love the wolfie look on you. So cute!”

For all his evil plotting, scheming, and enhancements over the years, his final result is ‘cute.’

Lovely.

“But Blake’s working on getting the whole squad tickets for another time,” Shea adds cheerfully, linking her arm with Blair’s. “We wanna see you get all nerdy over science stuff.”

“Oh… um, cool. So, I can leave now?” he asks hopefully, glancing pleadingly between the girls; internally he’s alternating between sheer panic and berating himself for not having expected this. Faye did say she was going to grill him on what happened with Liam, and he already guessed she told the others long before the night was even close to being over.

“Well,” Emma hesitates, her blue eyes darting over to the others. “We can’t force you to stay -”

“But we’re hoping you will,” Shea whispers with a small frown on her pale face.

Charlotte timidly holds up a pile of folded clothes he didn’t notice before. “We found some comfy clothes for you.”

“And we got all your favorite snacks,” Blair mentions softly, “including a bunch of ice cream and different toppings.”

Fuck, they are really going all out on this guilt trip thing, aren’t they?

It is NOT going to work, damnit, he’s been to Hell, he can resist a few pouty looks from his coworkers, he is NOT going to fall into this blatant trap so they can poke and prod at him to spill all his secrets to feed their burning need for scandal and gossip -

“We miss you and just wanna spend some time together,” Faye adds pitifully, and Theo swears he hears her sniff like she’s about to cry, “as a family.”

Well. Fuck. That really drove the knife into his chest, didn’t it?

Theo’s shoulders slump, and wow, it’s amazing how fast their despondent mood lifts when it becomes obvious they're getting their way.

“Yay!” Faye cheers, and Shea claps excitedly.

“We’re going to have so much fun!” Blair exclaims, and Theo’s pretty sure they will indeed have fun… at his expense.

Charlotte shoves the pile of clothes into his arms, and Emma corrals him into the bathroom attached to Charlotte’s unused bedroom (which they’ve apparently comforted into a lounge room of sorts, oh joy).

In minutes he’s dressed in surprisingly comfy sweatpants and a baggy short-sleeved plain green shirt;  Blair’s placing a pint of Cookie Dough ice cream into his hands (Theo’s mildly concerned about how she knows all his favorite toppings); Emma’s guiding him to the middle seat on the plush couch; Charlotte’s placing a warm cup of coffee on the table in front of him; five girls are now staring expectantly at him.

“So,” he trails off, staring down at his hands. What is he even expected to say at this point? 

“Faye told us what she saw last night,” Shea leads, and Theo’s fairly certain neither of the five girls have blinked in the last three minutes, and it’s beyond unnerving.

“Which is how you bumped into your little friend, Liam -”

“Wait, what was with the whole ‘Theo’s friend Liam’ thing?” Theo interrupts, glaring at a now-smirking Faye.

“Well, darling,” she grins widely, like a shark swimming up to its next meal, “from the minute he first saw me, I could tell he was assessing me like I was competition. And every time I mentioned he was your friend, he looked like he was about to murder me on the spot.”

Theo scoffs at the explanation. How ridiculous! Liam might have not liked Faye for one reason or another, but it wasn’t because he was jealous of her. “He definitely did not.”

“He sounded beyond jealous,” Blair disagrees, raising a pierced eyebrow at Theo. “We’ve heard about how sassy he is on a normal day from you, but it sounded like new levels last night.”

“Did he really say, ‘Sometimes when we’re ashamed of things, we don’t like to talk about them often ?’” Emma asks in between bouts of laughter. “Jesus, Theo, who says something like that if they aren’t jealous?”

Theo frowns, remembering how extreme Liam’s attitude was at times. “I guess…”

“Oh, my favorite was how he crushed the shot glass after Faye said she was excited to pop Theo’s cherry,” Shea cackles, throwing her head back, a few of her red curls escaping from her bun.

“Jesus, Faye, who says shit like that?”! Theo groans, remembering how mortified he felt right after her comment.

“Faye does,” Emma shrugs, unconcerned.

“Wait, pause,” Charlotte says, holding her hands up. “Isn’t this the same kid who avoided Theo like the plague at school until literally yesterday? But would always seek him out at their little wolfie hangouts?”

Theo bites his lip, somehow forgetting that Liam’s behavior in the last day or two has been a complete shift from how he was treating Theo previously, at least when it came to their time together at school.

“That is very shady,” Blair frowns, and the girls all seem to direct their attention to Faye since she’s apparently the expert on #TheoAndLiam over Theo himself.

“I honestly don’t understand that part,” Faye admits, offering Theo an apologetic look. “It doesn’t add up.”

“Dude, you need to call him out on it!” Shea insists, and the other girls nod firmly in agreement. Theo’s not sure how he’ll bring that conversation topic up with the younger boy, and he knows his sisters are correct that he should say something, but damn… that’s gonna be awkward.

“I also followed you outside last night when you left,” Faye casually mentions, glancing down at her nails.

Theo’s mouth drops open, and Emma takes the opportunity to grab a spoonful of ice cream and shove it in his mouth. He quickly swallows, too horrified by Faye’s comment to allow himself to be distracted by the delicious dessert. “What! That is so invasive! What happened to your other fairy friends?”

She laughs, seeming pleased at her own wit. “Literally met them for the first time about a minute before you came out of the bathroom with Liam, but they definitely were regular humans.”

“I feel so lied to,” he pouts, begrudgingly allowing Emma to feed him another spoonful of ice cream; he glares heatedly at Shea when she coos, somehow missing Blair snapping a picture until it was too late.

Yeah, Liam is definitely never meeting any of his other sisters. Ever.

Like, over his dead body.

Even just one was too much.

“Okay, to be fair, I was honestly going to go home, but I lied so you wouldn’t feel bad leaving with Liam,” she states, holding her hands up defensively, while the other girls giggle, and ugh, he remembers nostalgically how people used to fear him. “But I heard Brett telling Corey and Mason about the guy who solicited him in the bathroom, and dude, I don’t know. I’ve seen that guy around a few times over the last couple of weeks, and he gave me hella bad vibes. So, I followed them out just to make sure everything was chill, but then I saw you and Liam all cuddled together, the creepy dude knocked out at your feet, and then your cuddle buddy started yelling about how you two weren’t for sale, so I stuck around because I’m nosy.”

Charlotte snaps her fingers, her eyes widening in recognition. “Wait, didn’t you say that was the same dude from Theo’s two-hour stint as a prostitute?”

“I said I thought it might be,” Faye corrects, and all five girls are once again staring unblinkingly at Theo. Good lord, maybe he should make a mental note of these tactics to use on other people, because he is feeling exceptionally uneasy, and they are hardly being threatening!

With a resigned huff, Theo confirms their theory.

“You sure know how to pick ‘em,” Shea whistles, offering Theo a sympathetic look. “Never a good time when Faye gets bad vibes about something or someone.”

The other three girls nod at Shea’s statement, and Faye smiles comfortingly at Theo. “Hopefully, that’s the last time you run into Mr. Walker.”

“At least you got a good hit in,” Charlotte reckons, miming a punch, the other four girls nodding in agreement.

“Doubt it’ll be the last time,” Theo sighs, shaking his head - not with his luck. “And I had to punch him before he started saying shit that would drag up a lot of awkward questions!”

“Have you really not told any of your friends where you actually work?” Shea asks, the judgment evident in her tone.

“Are you ashamed of us?” Blair whispers sadly, and low and behold, all of the girls are now looking dejected.

“One hundred percent,” Theo shrugs, not falling into this guilt trap again. “Sorry, not sorry.”

“Boo,” Charlotte scoffs, throwing a pretzel at him which he catches in his mouth because he’s fucking awesome.

“So anyways,” Faye continues as if she wasn’t hopelessly sad two seconds ago, tucking a lock of black hair behind her ear. “Little Liam has an adorable drunk breakdown thinking he’s offended the tall hottie werewolf for life, and everyone is in a panic to soothe him. It was very wholesome, until Mr. Creepy woke up and tried to hit on Little Wolf and Eight-Pack Wolf, but Grumpy Wolf clocked him good out of nowhere, which was satisfying, truthfully. And then THEO grabs Liam’s hand, and they all agree to go walk somewhere to eat, and the last thing I hear is Liam asking Theo if he can have children.”

“Oh my,” Emma gasps, her and the other girls besides Faye all bent over their chairs, laughing at the fairy’s dramatic recounting and Theo’s humiliated expression. 

Faye slaps a hand on her thigh. “OH! I can't believe I forgot! Theo’s gonna be Liam’s new AP Bio tutor, and Liam is teaching Theo the great sport of lacrosse.”

“Oooh,” the other girls taunt, and hmm, does Theo really need a job? Maybe he should quit and sell drugs, that seems like a better route than whatever the fuck he is experiencing now.

“Do you have to say his name like that?” Theo grumbles around a spoonful of the only good thing left in this cruel, cruel world.

“Yep,” Faye chirps, loudly crunching on a handful of pita chips, and Theo kinda sorta hopes she cracks a tooth and has to spend all of tomorrow fixing it with her mystical fairy magic.

“I would just like to add,” Theo hisses, glaring at each girl in turn. “Liam is STRAIGHT, he was in love with a girl when we first met, and therefore, nothing is going to happen except my endless torment as I watch him fall in love with the next pretty but slightly bitchy girl that crosses his path, and then he’ll slowly forget I ever existed.”

“Oh, darlin’, we won’t let that happen, will we girls?” Charlotte attempts to soothe, though, truthfully, that sounds kind of ominous to Theo, especially when the others passionately agree.

Emma links her arm with his, dropping her head onto his shoulder. “You’ll get your man in the end, trust us, hun.”

“Cuz Liam was straight,” Blair begins with a teasing smirk.

“Until he met our lovely little bro, Theo,” Shea finishes, the two high-fiving at their ‘twinning.’

“He’s definitely a bit gay,” Faye concludes with a shrug.

“Ok, fine, maybe he is, but you were there when Corey mentioned the unresolved sexual tension between Brett and him,” Theo irritably retorts, though he relaxes somewhat when Charlotte starts running her fingers through his hair on his right side, Emma still a calming weight against his left.

Faye frowns, appearing uneasy for the first time. “If there is UST, and I’m not saying there is! But if it’s there, I think Liam doesn’t even know it exists.”

“What do you mean?” Shea asks, tilting her head in confusion.

“Mason said he thought they were just rivals,” Faye explains, carefully considering her words, “but I don’t know, there seems like a deeper connection there, like some shared history. Despite how they appear like frenemies at first glance, they know each other really well. Way better than you’d know some dude on your school’s lacrosse team who is your main competition for MVP.”

“Mmm,” Theo contemplates, his brows furrowing as the wheels of his brain turn over this new perspective. It's an interesting idea Theo hasn’t really thought about before, but he's not sure he can buy into it yet. “What makes you think that?”

“Theo, honestly,” Faye scoffs, rolling her eyes. “When you were pulling the glass out of Liam’s hand, Brett was distracting him by pissing him off so you could finish. How would he know to do that unless he was familiar with Liam's temperament and knew ways to successfully redirect his attention?”

Oh, damnit, that’s what all those secretive looks Brett kept giving him meant? Theo would have figured that out, of course, but he’s just been too fucking busy to pay it any mind.

“And from your accounts, he seemed extremely distraught over how upset he made his frenemy,” Blair notes, glancing between Faye and Theo.

“Exactly!” Faye excitedly nods, which is nice and all for her, but Theo’s not really following her thought process here. Faye seems to pick up on his lack of comprehension. “All I’m saying is that I don’t think Liam views Brett as anything except a friend, nor do I believe he thinks Brett views him in any other way except platonic.”

“So, if there’s something there,” Theo riddles out, “then it comes from Brett.”

“Most likely, yes,” Faye agrees, less enthusiastically than before. 

“Should I get the body bags?” Blair quips, hissing in pain when Shea smacks her arm.

“He spent the night at Brett’s yesterday,” Theo mumbles, shoveling the spoon back into his mouth so he could focus on something besides their pitying looks. “In his bed. He told me.”

“What were his exact words?” Emma cautiously asks.

“That they were at Brett’s because they were all tired, and he lived the closest to the restaurant,” Theo recounts. “And Mason and Corey were on the living room couches, Liam was in Brett’s room to ‘avoid their canoodling’, and he was unable to go to sleep until Brett finished getting ready.”

Faye squints at him, the other girls all talking over each other as they try to explain how Liam sleeping in Brett’s bed (okay, Theo assumed that part) didn’t necessarily mean anything.

“You’re holding back something,” Faye accuses, and the other girls instantly stop talking, and Theo knows they’re all staring at him, but he’s keeping his eyes glued to his ice cream bowl this time to keep from feeling creeped out.

He sighs, not bothering to lie because they’d figure out a way to get it out of him at some point regardless. “He drunkenly said I was gorgeous earlier in the night so I called him beautiful, and then later on when he was at Brett’s, he asked me if I meant what I said or if I was only saying it, so I told the truth, and then he once again said I was gorgeous.”

“Awwww,” Shea squeals, turning to face Blair and dragging her into a crushing hug. “They’re so cute! I love Love!”

(Theo's not going to bother acknowledging that insane statement, because LOVE?! As if Theo was built for something so inane as love, what nonsense.)

“I was about to make fun of him by saying I remember my first high school crush,” Emma chuckles, reaching over to pinch Theo’s cheek. “Then, I remembered who we are dealing with.”

“Yes, ha ha, you’re all old, and I’m the baby,” he gripes, holding the cold half-empty ice cream container to his burning cheek, because owww.

“So, ladies, where do we go from here?” Charlotte asks, successfully leading the group back on topic.

“Theo needs to flirt with Liam!” Shea petitions, Blair nodding excitedly next to her.

“And how am I supposed to do that?” he naively asks, not thinking his comment through for a single fucking second.

“Well, baby bro,” Faye beams, the others perking up as well, Theo’s entire brain screaming that he is very much in danger right now. “So happy you asked!”

And that’s how Theo ends up spending the next 2.5 hours of his life as the only student in Midnyght Memories’ first ever ‘Flirting 101 Master Class.’

The worst part?

He actually learns some things.

Chapter Text

Liam paces across his porch, taking a moment to glance down at his phone for the 19th time in 5 minutes - Theo agreed to pick him up at 11am, and it is currently 10:53am, and he’s starting to stress. Sure, Theo’s never bailed on him before, but there also haven’t been many opportunities for him to actually bail on Liam prior to today. Maybe Theo is the flakey sort, maybe he overslept, maybe he only agreed to tutor Liam to appease Coach and/or Mrs. Finch but had no intentions of actually following through with his offer to help him with AP Bio, maybe he secretly hates Liam and is currently sitting in his bed laughing at how dumb he must be to be failing a class the chimera took for the first time at the age of 14, maybe he’s hanging out with her, who knows! Liam’s admittedly not the best at arriving places on time, and he’s accidentally ditched people over the years for one reason or another (even before becoming a werewolf), so Liam can’t be too upset if something like that happens, because what goes around comes around and all that karma nonsense.

To make matters worse, his mom seems to have picked up on Liam’s nervousness; he begrudgingly divulged that he was studying with a friend from school, otherwise, she’d expect Mason or Brett to come to the door and chat for a bit if either of them were picking Liam up because they got along like two (three?) peas in a pod, and if one of them picked him up without coming in to say hi, his mom would make it into this whole big thing, and then she’d be sad which is not something Liam can handle right now or ever (unless it was raining, then his friends would be excused from coming into the house… but of fucking course, the sun was shining brightly today without a single cloud in the sky, so Liam couldn’t avoid telling the truth).

He told her his friends name is Theo, no she doesn’t know him, no she can’t meet him now because they have a lot of work to do, no he isn’t sketchy or a bad influence (he cackled internally at that), yes he’s a bit older than him, yes he did fail a grade but it was because of family issues (since Theo should have graduated with Scott and Stiles, but he missed so much school that Principal Martin wouldn’t let him… though she voluntarily choose to let Liam, Mason, Brett, and Corey skip a grade which was a mind fuck). He understands his mom’s curiosity because Liam’s not even sure why he’s so edgy today, but if he sees her peek out the blinds one more time, he’s going to smash his fist through the window, and then his mom will be mad at him for damaging the house (again), and Theo will be forced to pick glass out of his hand (again), and THEN his mom will be horrified as his cuts start to heal impossibly fast, and THEN he’ll have to confess to being a werewolf, and it would all just get so… messy.

He can’t handle all that extra stress when he’s supposed to be flirting with Theo today.

Liam talked a bit more with Brett when they woke up Saturday morning (afternoon), and the taller werewolf reluctantly agreed to help Liam with OMTJTSIHLLON - Operation Make Theo Jealous To See If He Likes Liam Or Not. But Brett stressed that they shouldn’t begin their plan until Monday (basically so Brett could supervise, because Liam was ‘so fucking awkward and helpless that it physically hurt’ which… accurate, but still rude and unnecessary). He suggested that Liam use this time to subtly flirt with Theo, which was easier said than done, especially since he’s two seconds away from having a full blown panic attack at the thought of flirting with the chimera. He tells himself to channel DrunkLiam - he was great at flirting! At least… SoberLiam THINKS DrunkLiam was great at flirting; most of the night was kinda blurry, but DrunkLiam did hold Theo’s hand multiple times, which Mason (who is the BEST best friend a guy could have) confirmed, while also filling Liam in on as many details as he could remember, details in which Liam soon erased from his brain to save himself from the secondhand embarrassment of DrunkLiam’s actions. 

Hm, maybe he shouldn’t channel DrunkLiam after all.

He isn’t even sure how he managed to get Hayden to date him if he is being honest with himself. Any attempt of flirting failed HORRIBLY, usually backfiring on him. Liam’s fairly certain she only liked him because he was consistent, persistent, and attempted to save her life multiple times (with limited success). Does Liam need to save Theo from some terrible supernatural threat in order to get the chimera to notice him? They were (thankfully) short on those lately, but that means Liam will need to find some other way to rescue Theo.

One thing he can do, though, is be consistent and persistent - he is EXCELLENT at forcing people to pay attention to him! It’s one of his greatest skills. Liam will be seeing a lot of Theo in the next few weeks between AP Bio tutoring, lacrosse practice/morning gym workouts/games, and pack meetings which means plenty of time for him to work on his flirting game. And they are actually texting now, too, so the beta has an additional way to seduce Theo using his wit, charms, and selfies (plus, as much as it saddens Liam to admit, most of the time it was easier to flirt from behind a screen - he didn’t want to rely on that too often, though, but he can use it to lay the groundwork for his in-person courting).

Yes, he said it; he, Liam Dunbar, is going to court thee Theo Raeken.

Fuck, fuck! He forgot one glaring fact - is Brett’s ‘gaydar’ accurate? Is Theo actually gay or bisexual? Because if not, then Liam’s about to waste a whole fuckload of time and possibly lose a close friend if (when) he catches onto Liam’s intentions. 

Fortunately, for Liam’s downward spiraling thoughts, Theo pulls into his driveway at exactly 10:58am. The beta bolts from the porch to Theo's truck, and by the time the older boy finishes putting the vehicle in park, Liam has already climbed into the passenger seat.

“Hi,” he says breathlessly, tossing his backpack into the backseat. Liam turns to offer Theo a small smile until he realizes how fucking GOOD the chimera looks today in his dark-washed jeans and long-sleeved red Henley (that makes him look fucking jacked, good god), and is his hair styled? Why is his skin glowing? Is he wearing makeup?! Liam’s pretty sure Theo’s lips don’t usually look that red, he swears he would have noticed by now, but wait, no maybe Liam’s new enlightenment is changing his perspective on these sorts of things. The beta jerks his head to the side to hide his burning cheeks, and how fantastic, he’s just in time to wave goodbye to his mom who just so happened to fully open the blinds at this current moment so she can open the window for some ‘fresh air’ despite her terrible outdoor allergies - what a coincidence . “Ready?”

“You in a rush?” Theo laughs, but obligingly reverses the truck.

“My mom wants to meet you,” Liam mutters, feeling his phone vibrate in his pocket.

“Ah, gotcha,” Theo calmly remarks, but Liam has that strange sixth sense that he unintentionally said something offensive.

“She’s super embarrassing,” he rushes to explain, not wanting Theo to think it had anything to do with him. “Like, totally mortifying. She will grill you for the next hour, minimum, on anything and everything, and we’re on a time crunch.”

“Moms can be like that from what I hear,” Theo replies quietly, stopping at a red light but keeping his eyes on the road.

Liam takes a second to read the message on his phone and groans loudly at its contents. “She literally just texted me, ‘You didn’t tell me he was such a cutie!’... Like, do you see what I mean?”

To his mom’s knowledge, Liam is still 100% straight, so he’s not completely sure why she would expect him to be like, “Ah, yes Mother, I am being tutored by my friend, Theo, who is 11/10 the hottest guy I’ve ever seen and always looks as if he’s stepped off a photoshoot for a magazine cover, no you can’t meet him, you’ll have to take my word for it, okay love you, kiss kiss, bye!”

Damn, maybe Brett’s been gossiping with her again since he and Liam are friends once more. Or Mason. Or fuck, maybe she somehow roped that weremole, Corey, into her little clique… he seems like he’d enjoy spilling all of Liam’s deepest darkest secrets in return for his mom’s famous Snickerdoodle Cookies. Liam adds it to his internal list of things to investigate with the long suffering sigh of someone who knows he will likely never figure out the answer.

Theo smirks widely in response, and Liam’s relieved that the tense atmosphere dissipates as quickly as it formed. “Well, personally, I think she has superb taste.”

“You would,” Liam scoffs, praying Theo’s too focused on his driving to see the pinkness of Liam’s cheeks. Just to be sure, he adds, “Has anyone ever told you that you drive like a grandma?”

Because, seriously, who actually stops at a stop sign for a full three seconds, and who drives only four miles faster than the speed limit, and who doesn’t honk at people when they get cut off?! (This might also be the reason Liam’s mom won’t let him get a car, hmm… maybe he should ask Theo to teach him how to drive after his AP Bio test? Theo doesn’t need to know he already has his license, but if he can prove to his mom that he’s a responsible driver like Theo, then maybe she’ll give in and buy him that Audi he's always wanted. The extra one-on-one alone time with the older boy will just be an added benefit and is definitely not the primary motivator for wanting to be a better driver).

“Why yes, Liam,” Theo replies, and he can already hear the sarcasm in those three words alone. “The Dread Doctors regularly remarked that my driving skills reminded them of their centuries old dead grandparents.”

“Did the Dread Doctors actually drive cars?” Liam asks, insanely curious over what Theo’s life prior to coming back to Beacon Hills was like; he always tries to keep his questions at bay because he doesn’t want to be rude or offend Theo or drag up memories he would rather forget, but he is DYING to know certain things.

Theo snorts and glances over at him for the first time since he got in the car. “Why would they drive when they could teleport?”

That’s a good question, and Liam has many follow-up questions to ask, but first he takes a second to sit on his hands, because the urge to touch Theo’s glowing cheeks is almost impossible to resist - that HAD to be makeup… right? People didn’t just glow naturally. Or did they? Maybe that was a chimera thing? Corey definitely doesn’t glow, though, Liam’s sure Mason would have commented on it by now. “Did you ever ask them to teach you how to teleport? Wait, shit, dude, can you already teleport along the currents or whatever?”

Liam would without a doubt have asked to learn to teleport because seriously, what could be cooler?! He’d rather be able to teleport places whenever he wanted than be a werewolf, come on, how fucking convenient was that?!

“Of course I asked them to teach me how to teleport!” Theo shouts, shooting Liam an ‘are you fucking serious’ look. “But they hid all of the relevant books from me and said they wouldn’t teach me until I turned 30… and then after an unfortunate incident, they changed it to 130.”

Liam’s incredibly curious to know what the incident was, but even his unobservant brain can pick up on how tight Theo’s hands are gripping the steering wheel.

“Maybe they left instructions on how to do it in their secret lair, but we just need to uncover their extra secret hiding place with a little snooping,” Liam ponders, tapping his chin. 

He watches Theo’s hand relax on the steering wheel when the chimera laughs softly in response to Liam’s statement. He's relieved to have smoothed out the tension (again), but right as he's about to turn to look out the window, the beta suddenly notices something jarringly different about the older boy.

“Are your… uh, did you get a manicure?” Liam stammers, baffled by how nice and well kept Theo’s hands and nails look, even without a colored nail polish (he’s pretty sure they didn’t look like that on Friday, otherwise he would have noticed before now…not that he spends a lot of time staring at Theo’s hands or anything, that would be weird! Liam’s just observant, okay, it’s important to pay attention to your surroundings, and his eyes are always drawn to shiny/glossy things...especially if they're on Theo).

Theo curls his hands tighter around the wheel, hiding them from view. “I mean…I guess? My coworker likes doing manicures, and she asked if she could do mine.”

Liam’s so confused…how many other prostitutes does Theo know? Do they pass each other on the street while they’re working and decide to strike up a conversation? Is there some sort of Facebook Group page, like Hookers and Hustlers of Beacon Hills, where they can swap stories and give each other tips? He assumes the chimera would have said her name if she was the one who did his nails, unless maybe he’s picked up on Liam’s animosity towards her, oops.

“Huh, weird,” he mumbles when the silence has stretched on too long.

“Wow, Liam, really ?” Theo scowls, glaring heatedly at the beta, and jeez, what did Liam do to deserve this level of scorn?!

“What?” Liam nervously asks, trying to recall the last few minutes…was he not supposed to point out that Theo’s nails are done? Was that a faux pas he somehow didn’t know?

Theo rolls his eyes and slams on the gas pedal when the light they were stopped at turns green. “Just didn’t take you for the kind of guy who judges another guy for wanting to take care of his appearance, that’s all.”

Wait, when did Liam say that?! He didn’t, Liam knows he didn’t, because he’s definitely gone with Mason to get pedicures before because they’re awesome, and his mom has ‘forced’ him several times to get his eyebrows done when she makes an appointment for herself (aka he tags along and whines at her until she asks the esthetician if she has time to do his, too).

“I NEVER said that!” Liam shrieks, glaring right back at the boy. He tugs his seatbelt more snuggly around him since apparently Theo’s decided to ditch his grandma driving and audition for the next Fast and Furious movie (he’d rather not go flying through the windshield today if possible, thanks, picking tiny shards of glass out of his hair and clothes is a bitch).

“You said it was weird that I got my nails done, sorry if I expanded onto that with a full thought,” Theo snaps, swerving around someone slowing down to turn. “Personally, I think more guys should put an effort in their appearance, there’s nothing ‘feminine’ about self-care, nor does it say anything about your sexuality. Assumptions like that are stupid.” (Theo side-eyes him, and Liam easily reads the 'you're fucking stupid if you think that' from the slant of his eyebrows.)

Oh shit, he did say ‘weird’, didn't he? But that wasn’t what he meant, he just didn’t know what else to say!

Liam frowns, feeling guilty for offending the older boy. “I didn’t mean to sound rude, I just didn’t know that was a thing you cared about.” He sees Theo’s jaw clench, and he rushes to clarify. “It’s not bad that you do! I was just surprised, that’s all, and I agree with you that self-care is gender neutral.”

The beta shamefully peers down at his own chipped and bitten nails…is Theo silently judging him for having shitty nails?! Shit, he needs to hint to Mason that they need to make an appointment ASAP.

Theo cuts in front of a fancy convertible and smirks widely when the driver honks angrily at them, the man shouting obscenities so vulgar it makes Liam want to cover his ears until it's over (the driver turns down a side street soon after, so Liam is saved from embarrassing himself...for now). “It’s not something I prioritize, but I like having them done when I can. Stuff like that is relaxing.”

“Did the Dread Doctors do them for you?” Liam giggles at the image his brain supplies, laughing louder when Theo smacks his arm (though the chimera is definitely trying to hide a smile,  and he stops driving like they’re moonlighting as Nascar drivers, so that’s nice). After a few minutes of silence, Liam’s hit with a sudden realization. “Wait. Actually, I’m confused. Scott said their hideout in the tunnels was pretty much empty of anything useful, was he not including your notes in that?”

Theo smirks, smoothly parking the truck near the entrance to the tunnels. “What would the point of a secret lair be if it didn’t include secret rooms?”

“Cool ,” he whispers in awe, exiting the truck (and now that he isn’t focusing on Theo, he notices how the interior of the vehicle is sparkling so brightly it forces him to look away before he ends up temporarily blinded from the shine).

Theo grabs a few huge empty duffel bags from the back seat, and Liam raises an eyebrow in question. “Are these all for your AP Bio books?”

The chimera shrugs, and Liam takes the remaining duffel bags out from the truck, because being a gentleman is a good way to flirt, right? “There might be other useful stuff in there, and I don’t really want to come back again.”

“Like ever?” Liam stupidly asks, following behind Theo who is walking so fucking fast, jesus, doesn’t he know Liam has short legs?!

“If I can avoid it,” Theo answers, his tone clipped, and Liam belatedly remembers how these tunnels must hold a fuck ton of bad memories for the chimera.

“I’m sorry,” Liam softly apologizes, frowning down at the ground as he trails a few steps behind. “That was uh, insensitive of me.”

Theo makes a noncommittal sound, and they walk along in silence for several minutes (the chimera thankfully slowing his pace, probably noticing how Liam was struggling to keep up. Ugh, how embarrassing, how dare he not be born with long giraffe-esque legs like Brett!)

“Liam,” Theo glances over at the beta for a moment before his eyes return to stare straight ahead. “Can I ask you a weird question?”

“Sure,” he answers after an awkward pause, too distracted by how Theo’s green eyes sparkle in the dim lighting. “Seems only fair. Uh, and also, you look nice today, by the way!”

Yes, compliments are a good way to flirt, great job, Liam!, he mentally applauds himself. 

He’s so smooth, damn, he’ll be wooing Theo in no time!

Theo’s lips part in surprise, but the chimera quickly closes his mouth when he notices Liam looking at him. “Uh, thanks, so do you.” He pauses, probably trying to remember what he was going to say before Liam blew him away with his well thought out compliment. “Why did you avoid me at school for months until Friday?”

Well, fuck, Liam did not expect this line of questioning and has no idea what to say. He’s smart enough to realize he needs to clear the air or he risks pushing away Theo, potentially for good.

“Uh,” Liam hesitates, his mind warring with itself on how much to admit. “I was having a horrible morning, and I was already in a panic because Coach said if Principal Martin found out I was late to first period one more time, she’d ban me from playing in the next game. And when I saw you in the hallway with her looking all put together, I was embarrassed as fuck, and I didn’t want you to see me looking like 11/10 the hottest mess ever, seriously it was so bad, dude, I’m not even kidding.”

“So… “ Theo trails off with a frown, giving him a skeptical look that Liam is 12/10 offended by.

How dare Theo doubt Liam! His heart didn’t even skip a beat during the explanation, and yes, he listened just to make sure.

“So, I kind of just ran away, and I think that gave you the wrong idea, and then it spiraled into a giant misunderstanding where you also avoided me in school. Except on Friday, I decided enough is enough, and you will pay me the attention I rightfully deserve.”

Okay… yikes, he didn’t mean to say that last part. He needs to stop accidentally channeling DrunkLiam before Theo decides he’s just one giant lame weirdo.

“And now we’re here,” Liam adds with jazz hands when the silence drags on for longer than three seconds.

“Except I didn’t avoid you!” Theo heatedly disagrees, waving his hand as he speaks and blessedly ignoring Liam’s bizarre comment in all its creepiness.

“You definitely did avoid me!” Liam fiercely counters, poking the older boy several times in the arm to drive his point home. Because seriously, Theo is also to blame for this! “And YOU never spoke to me in school either.”

Ha, take that! There's no way Theo can argue with that genius statement.

“Why would I speak to you when you stared at me like seeing me in the hallway at school was the worst thing you could ever imagine happening to you in your entire life?!” Theo snaps, coming to an abrupt stop. He draws his shoulders back, pulling himself up to his full height.

Well, to be fair, seeing Theo in the hallway during that particular moment was the worst thing Liam could ever imagine happening to him in his entire life. If he had caught Liam on a better day when he at least looked normal, everything would have been fine!

“What, did you think I was embarrassed to be seen with you or something?” Liam scoffs, glaring at the chimera and squaring his own shoulders. He will not take the full blame for this misunderstanding, he fucking refuses.

“Yes!” Theo shouts, throwing his hands up in the air in frustration.

“Well, Theo, for someone so smart, you’re pretty fucking stupid,” Liam retorts, rolling his eyes in exasperation. This fucking guy.

Theo bares his teeth, a low growl coming from deep within his throat. “I think it’s quite clear who the stupid one between us is, and it’s definitely not me."

Liam sees red at the reminder of why they’re trudging through these tunnels in the first place.

“TAKE IT BACK!” he yells, roughly shoving Theo into the wall behind him.

“Make me!” Theo childishly responds, pushing Liam back just as hard.

And the beta knows from multiple prior experiences how this is going to play out; they’re going to throw punches back and forth until they tire out, and then they’ll bitch at each other for a bit until they calm down and completely heal, and then they’ll go about their business like nothing ever happened.

So Liam decides to change it up.

Instead of punching Theo in the face like he’s expected to, he cocks his hand back, keeping his fingers close together, and slaps the older boy painfully across the cheek, the chimera’s head jerking to the side from the force of the blow as the piercing sound echoes eerily through the tunnels.

Theo slowly lifts a hand to his reddened cheek, his eyes wide with shock at the atypical action. Liam tries to stay mad, he does! But the chimera’s expression is so exceptionally offended that Liam can’t help but burst into giggles. 

“Dude, your face right now, oh my god!” Liam cries, placing a hand on the wall behind him to maintain his balance. “Holy shit, that was perfect.”

“How does that hurt worse than a punch?” Theo whines, rubbing his hand across the ‘wound'. "Oww, what the fuck."

“At least there’s no blood!” the beta points out when he finally regains his balance, bumping his shoulder playfully against Theo’s as they continue their trek through the never ending tunnels.

“Seriously, just punch me next time,” Theo complains with a huff.

“Aww, poor baby,” Liam coos, making exaggerated kissy faces at the chimera. “Do you want me to kiss your ouchie better for you, Theo?”

Without warning, Theo stops and twists to face Liam, lifting his nose in the air and crossing his arms over his chest. “Why, yes, Liam, in fact I do want you to kiss my ouchie better.”

Okay, and truthfully, Liam did NOT expect Theo to say yes to his request, especially since he clearly meant it as a joke. But Liam can also sense that Theo doesn’t think Liam will actually kiss his cheek, and he’s just trying to one-up the beta.

But what Theo doesn’t seem to understand is that Liam will literally die before he backs down from a challenge, especially if it is issued by one Theo Raeken.

He steps forward slowly, maintaining eye contact with the chimera who quickly seems to have realized he’s completely underestimated Liam and unconsciously takes a step back, his body now pressed against the wall. Liam lightly places his left hand on Theo’s waist, using his right hand to gently grab the boy's chin. He hesitates, not wanting to do something Theo doesn’t consent to, but the chimera makes the decision for him by silently turning his head to the side. 

Liam leans forward, placing his lips firmly on Theo’s cheek for one, two, three, seconds, making sure to make a ‘mwah’ sound when he pulls back (and Theo’s cheeks are definitely glowing without the help of makeup, Liam is completely sure of this now). He startles slightly when Theo grabs a fistful of Liam’s shirt before he can move away, the chimera resolutely turning his face to the other side.

“My other cheek hurts because it feels left out,” the chimera whispers, and Liam’s astonished to see Theo’s un-slapped cheek is red, too.

There’s no way Theo can be blushing, is there?

“Can’t have that now, can we?” Liam teases, repeating the kiss exactly the same way on the other side. “See, ouchies are all better now. You’re not the only one who is magical.”

“I hate you,” Theo grumbles, letting go of the beta’s shirt; Liam screams internally when he hears the chimera’s heart skip a beat at the lie.

“Come on, you giant dork, let’s get a move on,” Liam laughs, unable to resist nuzzling against the side of Theo’s neck for a moment, basking in the thought that the chimera now smells like him. 

“You don’t even know where you’re going,” Theo complains when Liam grabs his hand, dragging the chimera along with him.

“Maybe you should catch up, then, slowpoke,” Liam taunts, turning to offer Theo a playful smirk.

Theo lets out an audible sigh and uses their linked hands to tug Liam backwards so that they’re walking side by side. But he doesn’t drop Liam’s hand, and Liam doesn’t drop Theo’s hand, except now the beta’s slightly panicking that his hand is going to get sweaty from nerves, and it’s going to gross the chimera out, and then they’ll never hold hands again.

And that would be TRAGIC; Theo has great hands that are meant to be held (by Liam only, Parker and that girl can fuck right off).

“I’m sorry, though,” Liam apologizes after a minute of silence, humiliated by his past actions.

“You should be!” Theo cries. “It still hurts, so I guess you aren’t as magical as you seem to think.”

“I meant I’m sorry for avoiding you at school, asshole,” Liam clarifies with a huff, not really all that sorry for slapping Theo. He didn’t even need to heal from anything, he’s just being a baby! “I should have made an effort the next day to clear the air.”

“It’s fine,” Theo responds, offering the beta a small smile. “I could have actually confronted you about it before now.”

They walk comfortably in silence for a little bit longer, until Liam starts to get bored.

“Dude, are we there yet?” he groans in frustration.

Seriously, they've been walking for ages, how is there not a shortcut?! Theo must have lost so much weight when he lived down here from all the walking back and forth (he shudders thinking how early the older boy would have had to get up for school when he was living down here with his chimera pack...probably missed the convenience of his fake house, that's for sure).

“Dude, does it look like we’re there yet?” Theo snarks back, and Liam’s about to say something rude in return when they finally turn the last corner and come face to face with the ouroboros on the wall to the not-so-secret lair of the Dread Doctors.

“Now we’re there,” Theo unnecessarily states, but Liam’s confused when the chimera doesn’t move to open the door. He sullenly lets Theo’s hand go, thinking maybe that's the reason Theo isn’t moving, but then the older boy still doesn’t do anything except stare at the door, so now Liam’s regretting his hasty decision. Would it be weird to grab his hand again since that apparently isn’t the problem?

Wait, does he expect Liam to open the door? Should Liam do it? Holding doors open for someone is a good way to flirt, right? Hm, maybe he should Google flirting tips the next time Theo’s back is turned.

“I need to tell you something,” Theo declares after they awkwardly ogle the decorative mythological snake for what feels like eternity, his shoulders tense and his fists clenched at his side.

“Okay,” Liam answers nervously. Oh god, were the Dread Doctors somehow still alive? That would be a major mind fuck.

Theo gazes over Liam's head as he talks. “I feel like since we defeated the hunters, you guys have slowly begun to pity me to an extent, thinking I had this terrible life with the Dread Doctors, and they fed me all these bullshit evil ideas but otherwise neglected me. Or worse, experimented on me and overall mistreated me. And I never corrected anyone, because they wouldn’t have really believed me anyways.” He takes a deep breath, slowly letting it out. “And that’s not true at all.”

“Okay,” Liam echoes, not completely sure where Theo is going with all of this.

Theo sighs, his shoulders slumping. “You’ll see.”

The chimera opens the door, and they walk into the dreary, empty Operating Theater, which is a whole lot less scary now that the ominous metal tables and pointy stabby instruments were gone, along with the green tank of nastiness that Liam now knows held the evil Mr. Douglas. He also makes a concerted effort to keep his eyes away from the area of the floor where he watched helplessly as they operated on Hayden.

Liam wonders if Theo always lived down here in these tunnels (or similar tunnels in other cities), or if the Dread Doctors allowed him to live in a ‘real’ house near their lair that was above ground (or did he only get to live above ground when he was trying to manipulate his way into Scott’s pack by pretending to be a real boy?). Because, seriously, it is so drafty and dank down here, Liam’s not sure how Theo didn’t develop lung problems from the long term exposure. This place must be crawling with mold, good god. And don't even get him started on how inconvenient coming down here all the time must have been, ugh, poor Theo. His life would have been a thousand times easier if they taught him how to teleport!

Theo heads to the opposite side of the room, but Liam’s confused (again) when he stops to kneel on a random spot of the floor. Wordlessly, a claw on his right finger unsheathes, and the beta stares in morbid fascination as Theo cuts a deep line across his left palm, placing his bleeding hand on the floor. Liam jumps in alarm when he hears a strange scraping sound, twisting around in time to see a patch of the seamless stone sliding away a few feet behind them to reveal a hole in the floor.

“What. The. Fuck!” Liam shrieks, pointing an accusing finger in the face of the smug chimera. “You could have warned me! I thought the tunnels were starting to collapse because they were boobytrapped by the Dread Doctors or you activated some curse they left behind!”

“Nah,” Theo laughs, tossing the empty duffel bags into the hole, and after ten seconds, Liam hears them hit the ground. “Where’s the fun in giving you a heads up, Little Wolf?”

“I feel like we’re going to look for a Horcrux,” Liam mutters as he carefully follows Theo down the ladder, grateful his werewolf eyes could help him see in the dark, especially when the stone closes above them. “Fuck, Theo, are we gonna be stuck down here?!”

“No, Liam, we are not going to be stuck down here,” Theo calmly replies in the face of Liam’s growing panic. “There are actually a few different exits in case of emergencies, but the stone will open again when we’re ready to leave.”

“But only if we cut our hand and bleed on it?” Liam scoffs with disbelief; that was definitely in Harry Potter, and Liam wonders if the Dread Doctors got the idea from the sixth book or if JK Rowling somehow got it from the Doctors.

“Nope,” Theo confides, and Liam’s relieved to hear his feet land on the ground, because seriously, how fucking deep did this secret room go down? “It’ll only open for me.”

“You’re lying,” Liam accuses, finally reaching the bottom of the ladder.

“You can go first when we leave,” Theo smugly offers, walking away from Liam to fiddle with something on the wall. The beta pictures himself climbing up the ladder first but being unable to open the stone, so rather than climb all the way back down and switch the order, Theo climbs up practically on top of him to reach the stone, and yeah, nope, Liam will take Theo’s word for it just this once. “Change your eyes back.”

Liam switches back to his human eyes, and before his unease can grow in the pitch black darkness, Theo flips the lights on (which are fairly dim but still provide enough brightness to see clearly).

And what Liam sees has his jaw dropping in surprise.

The secret room seems to be as large as the Operating Theater above it, almost all of the space on the walls covered from floor to ceiling with bookcases stuffed to the brim. In the center of the room were two huge wooden desks facing one another; in front of one desk was a giant ornate wingback chair and in front of the other was one of those fancy gaming chairs professional video game players use.

“Welcome to the office of the Geneticist,” Theo proclaims, leaving a stunned Liam behind to move towards one of the bookcases. “Don’t touch anything.”

Unfortunately, Theo’s instructions are given right after Liam had already grasped a tarp covering something only a few feet away from the ladder. He yanks the covering off and screams when he reveals what’s hidden underneath.

“Is that a cage made from bones?” Liam squawks in horror. Oh, poor Theo, was he locked in here when the Doctor’s decided to punish him, like their own twisted version of Harry Potter's cupboard under the stairs?!

“Yes,” Theo laughs, and okay, not a normal reaction for someone who’s been locked in a cage against their will throughout their life. “After I learned to fully shift, I tried to do it as often as possible, but my coyote form went through a teething phase. I gained more control over it as I aged, but as a young coyote, I had no qualms about what I gnawed on, including expensive scientific instruments… and uh, might have also ingested some things I shouldn’t have. Hence, the cage.”

And now that Liam’s calmed down a bit, he can see that the floor of the cage looks comfortable, littered with a plethora of plush blankets, fluffy pillows, and even a few books strewn about (apparently even coyote-Theo is a nerd, good to know). The cage itself could easily hold three full grown coyotes with plenty of extra space, so Liam’s confident Theo had plenty of room to move about. The bones are filled with teeth marks, though, and it looks like Theo almost chewed completely through some of the bars. (Liam’s not brave enough to ask who or what these bones came from.)

“Weird,” he mutters, mildly amused by the idea of a baby coyote-Theo running around the lab and being one tiny little giant menace to the Dread Doctors.

The wall farthest from the ladder is dominated by a huge, gorgeous fireplace, and Liam’s feet automatically move towards it when he sees items lined across the mantle. There's a shaggy maroon rug on the hearth where two comfortable looking recliners are placed, the chairs separated by a coffee table of sorts. The part of the carpet directly in front of the fireplace seems worn, and Liam wonders if Theo ever shifted into his coyote form to sit in front of the fire; based on the size of the faded area, it seems like it.

Most of the item objects on the mantle are actually trophies, specifically Theo’s trophies; many are science related, but there are a few math ones, several athletic ones, a handful of story-winning contents, and even first place in a poetry contest. Liam’s becoming painfully aware that Theo is much smarter and high-achieving than he lets on (and he doesn’t believe for a second that Theo tricked his way into any of these, and even if he did, that took a lot more smarts than Liam had).

Strewn in between the trophies are several framed pictures, and Liam’s not surprised to see that once again, they’re all of Theo; a close-up of little coyote-Theo held in the arm of one of the Dread Doctors; a much younger Theo in the lab holding up his first place Youth National Science League award; a slightly larger coyote-Theo napping peacefully on his back in the bone cage, his tongue lolling out the side of his mouth; A slightly younger Theo growling at the camera, flashing his golden eyes and fangs with a black cat on his shoulder, the cat’s piercing gray eyes and alarmingly large fangs evident despite the smallness of the photo; a teenaged Theo dressed almost identical to the Winter Soldier, which Liam assumes is for Halloween unless the chimera likes to cosplay; a Theo that looks pretty similar to the boy that Liam first met a year or so ago standing proudly in front of his gleaming blue truck.

Even with Theo’s warning, Liam’s slowly beginning to understand how little he actually knows about the chimera and his life before coming to Beacon Hills; the fireplace is basically a shrine to him!

Hanging above the fireplace is a huge beautifully painted picture of an adult coyote encased in a golden frame that probably costs more than both Liam’s parents make in a year… combined.

Wait… that coyote looks familiar.

“Is that you?” Liam gasps, twisting his head to look at Theo who had already finished stuffing his first duffel bag with books.

“Yeah,” Theo answers distractedly, staring contemplatively down at two similar looking books. He tosses one into the duffel and places the other back on the shelf. “Kind of. Painted that when I was 13. The Doctors took a picture of me to use for reference.”

Liam moves as close to the painting as he can and sees a little polaroid of a baby Coyote-Theo staring haughtily at the camera.

“Dude, I didn’t know you could paint,” Liam remarks, blown away by how professional the painting looked. It’s evident that Theo has a lot of talent, especially if he painted the picture so realistically despite using the younger coyote version of himself as reference. “This is awesome.”

“Dude, there’s a lot you don’t know about me,” Theo replies, struggling to zip the second filled duffel bag.

“I’d like to know,” Liam quietly mumbles, yanking himself away from the painting that sadly wouldn’t fit in Theo’s truck.

He walks back towards the center of the room, rolling his eyes at how neat and organized Theo’s desk is compared to literally any teenager ever. He’s about to sit in the prestigious looking chair of the Geneticist when something on the desk catches his eye.

“Hey, this has your name on it,” Liam calls, reaching for the large manila envelope.

“What?” Theo asks in alarm, striding quickly across the room to snatch it off the desk before Liam can grab it. “Huh, weird, I’ll look at it later.”

“You should open it now,” Liam suggests, internally burning with the intense desire to know what was in that envelope for reasons he’s not entirely sure about. “I’ve seen this in movies all the time, Theo! Something terrible will happen to us if you don’t open it, and the knowledge contained within that letter would have saved us from what will become a lifetime of pain and suffering.”

And Liam expects the chimera to make a smart ass remark in response, but when he glances up, Theo’s silently tracing the letters of his name, his expression pinched.

“Or not, no worries, man,” Liam meekly adds. He reaches up and places a hand on Theo’s arm, realizing the chimera’s hands were shaking. “It’s probably just your report card from last year or something.”

“No, you’re right,” Theo mutters, looking as if he’s having an internal war with himself. “I should open it.”

He makes no move to do anything besides stare vacantly at the envelope.

“Do you want me to open it?” Liam softly offers, standing up. He carefully pushes the frozen chimera into the surprisingly comfy chair, but doesn’t remove the envelope from his hands.

Theo stays quiet for several minutes before handing the envelope to Liam who had seated himself on the corner of the desk to wait for the chimera’s decision.

“It’s probably nothing,” Theo whispers, staring emotionlessly down at the dark wood of the desk. “But it’s better to be safe than sorry.”

“True.” 

Liam carefully tears open the envelope, pulling out a chunk of folded papers. After blinking in surprise for several seconds, he looks up to Theo in confusion.

“It’s a letter,” Liam warily says. “To you.”

“Well, obviously it’s to me,” Theo scoffs, rolling his eyes, but Liam sees the small smile pulling across his lips. “Just read it, I’m sure it’ll be all about how I’ve failed them and brought great shame upon their name.”

Chapter Text

Liam sees the first three words of the letter and finds himself exceptionally doubtful of Theo’s theory.

“Uh,” Liam hesitates, weighing the pros and cons of saying something until he can no longer resist the impulse and asks regardless of the consequences. “Did they really call you, ‘my darling Theo’?”

Theo blanches and his fingers begin tapping a restless beat against his thigh. “She used to… the Geneticist. Not often, but when I was having a rough time over something she would say it. But she stopped after a few years because I yelled at her that she was embarrassing me, and I wasn’t a baby. I wanted the other Doctors to take me seriously, and I thought she wasn’t helping by coddling me.”

Liam can’t even begin to imagine one of the terrifying figures that haunted his nightmares coddling Theo, but perhaps the chimera was correct, and Liam and the other members of the pack genuinely had no idea of what Theo’s life with them was really like.

The beta reaches out and squeezes Theo’s hand before beginning his reading.

My Darling Theo,

Something has shifted recently in the air, the Doctors and I can feel it. Success is imminent; La Bête du Gévaudan has been reborn and will soon reclaim its identity.

As the conclusion of centuries of work draws near, I feel as if something else looms in the horizon, a sort of finality the other two do not sense or wish not to acknowledge - I fear our remaining days in this world are numbered. The Doctors and I have never discussed what we would do once we reached the ultimate success, too focused on what sometimes seemed like an impossible endeavor to plan ahead to future projects; perhaps this lack of direction may explain my descent into maudlinism (I can feel you rolling your eyes already, but bare with me, Theo, as if these are to be my last words to you, then I confess I have a lot to say).

We’ve always claimed that resurrecting the Beast would be our greatest accomplishment as scientists, but as I reflect upon my many past experiments, discoveries, and yes, even my failures, I’ve come to understand my greatest triumph has been right in front of me all along; the crowning moment of my illustrious career is in fact our first success - you. (Ah, yes, Theo, I am sure you’re scoffing at this point, but I implore you to hear me out.)

Liam briefly glances up to see Theo's reaction, and he almost giggles when he sees how adorably confused Theo looks. The chimera's eyes have narrowed, his head tilted to the side, like he's trying to decide if he heard Liam correctly.

Over the years, you periodically shared your assumptions with us on what we were like in the past and how we became the Doctors you know us as today. For the most part, we never corrected you, too amused by your wild imagination to alter your inaccurate, yet harmless beliefs. Your theories changed as you aged and spent more time with us, but one ‘fact’ you stuck with is that I took pity on you when we failed to resurrect the Beast in you and convinced the others to allow you to live (both in general and with us) because I could not conceive a child of my own. To this day, I am unsure what caused you to cling so adamantly to this particular (slightly offensive) theory - I am a renowned scientist and doctor after all - but perhaps our failures in resurrecting La Bête over the years led you to have little faith in my abilities.

I never could bring myself to tell you that the truth was actually the complete opposite; I never wanted children and found them to be exceptionally intolerable. But there was something about you that I couldn’t quite put my finger on, something that altered my lifelong disinterest in raising a child. From the moment I saw your little fangs and golden eyes, I knew you were special, Theo. And while we may not have told you directly, you’ve continuously surpassed our expectations with your relentless hard work, commitment to learning, and dedicated efforts to improve yourself.

The first time you fully shifted into a coyote (which I will admit, we did not think you would ever be able to accomplish such a feat, but we learned early on to never allow our assumptions to hinder your goals), the sudden transformation shocked you so extensively that you ran in circles around the lab in a panic until you collapsed in an exhausted heap at my feet. You were such a tiny thing back then, easily carried in one arm; I remember being bewildered by your success, as even natural born werewolves and werecoyotes rarely achieved a full shift before adulthood. A few months later, we took you out to the woods in Wales with us on a full moon, do you remember that? We turned our backs for only a few minutes to deal with a hiccup with one of our experiments, and by the time we finished, you’d taken down a fully grown deer and two human werewolf hunters who thought they could sneak up on us. I’ve never seen an animal look so proud of itself before, but you’ve always had such a vainglorious personality, I should not have been surprised that it would show through in your coyote form as well.

Your cunning and ability to twist any situation to your benefit has always impressed us. I confess, every time we sent you off to a new school, we were concerned you would be teased or harassed for being different than your peers -

Liam pauses and just stares at Theo, completely baffled by the last sentence he read.

“What?” Theo asks, his eyes darting around the room as if searching for the reason why Liam suddenly stopped reading.

“Why would they think you would be bullied?” he manages to ask, his mind unable to comprehend such a ridiculous claim. 

Even before Theo gained his mysterious, dangerous bad boy reputation, Liam couldn't imagine someone daring to pick on the older boy. There’s always been something about him, maybe in the way he speaks so intelligently, or the confidence he exudes when he walks into a room, or his overall ‘I know something you don’t know’ aura that screams ‘don’t fuck with me unless you want to end up in a body bag.’

“Because… I am weird?” Theo hesitantly responds, though it sounds more like a question, like he’s not sure if Liam’s skepticism is legitimate.

“But you’re not weird,” Liam argues, glaring over the letter at the chimera. Theo isn’t weird, what the fuck! Liam will NEVER say it aloud, but Theo's actually kind of cool (for a nerd).

“Except I am,” Theo contends, glaring back.

“BUT YOU’RE NOT!” Liam shouts, surprising himself with his own vehemence, especially when Theo startles at the volume of his voice.

“You hardly know me at all, Liam,” Theo calmly reminds the beta, and he doesn’t say it to be mean or to make the younger boy feel bad; he says it like it’s a simple fact. And it makes Liam want to crumble the letter up in a fit of rage and then steal the chimera away to somewhere less eerie so Liam can prove he in fact does know a LOT about Theo.

But he remembers what Corey said a few days ago, how he doesn’t think many people know the real Theo, how Theo himself may not even know the real Theo, and it soothes some of the fury burning inside him.

“I want to,” Liam quietly confesses again, staring down at the letter so he doesn’t have to see how Theo reacts now that the chimera's attention is focused on Liam and not his AP Bio books. “I want to know the real Theo.”

The older boy doesn’t say anything or move or even breathe (or so it seems), but just as Liam’s about to start reading again, Theo places a gentle hand on his knee.

“Okay,” Theo whispers back, his face open and vulnerable, and it pains Liam to see how stunned the chimera is by his declaration, like he’s not sure the beta really knows what he’s asking for. 

But Liam does, he does, he wants to know the good and the bad and all the things in-between. Because there’s more to Theo than everyone thinks, Liam KNOWS that. He’s not the same narcissistic, selfish, murderous douchebag they first met last year. He’s changed, and Liam likes him. A lot.

The beta laces their fingers together once more, dropping a gentle kiss on their linked hands. 

He wants to lean down and kiss Theo smack on the lips, but he feels like this isn’t the appropriate time; besides, Theo deserves to be properly wooed, and making out with him in the middle of one of the (dead) Dread Doctor’s offices isn’t very romantic.

Liam nervously clears his throat and begins reading again.

Teenagers in particular have a low tolerance for seeing their own shortcomings reflected back in the perfection of others. But when you attended high school for the first time, within a single week and even though the semester started two months prior, you convinced most of the student body to vote for you as Homecoming King, an important distinction to high school students I admittedly do not understand the purpose of. And then there was that time we went to Canada for two months, and you stole the lead for the school play right out from under the nose of the senior incumbent (who was absolutely dreadful, you honestly did them all a favor). We never told you, but the three of us watched your opening night performance, and Theo, you were nothing short of marvelous. Even the Pathologist was impressed, and you know he has no patience for anything fun and zero appreciation for the arts. And recently, you attempted to convince me to allow you to purchase that death-trap you insisted you needed, and despite your perilous driving record and my better judgment, I found myself acquiescing (don’t make me regret it, Theo, or you will face consequences this time, I don’t care if the accident is your fault or not).

As you were growing up, we raised you under the principle that too much of the typical ‘love and nurturing’ type of modern child rearing would make you into a meek and helpless adult, unable to think and fend for yourself. We routinely pushed you to your limits, understanding from the very beginning how exceptionally intelligent and ambitious you are. We made it our mission to help you reach your full potential, no matter the cost. Anytime your confidence got too noticeable, we reminded you that you were our first failure because conceit is the quicksand of success, as I have told you many times before. 

But, Theo. While you may be a failure in terms of resurrecting the Beast, you have always been a success. I fear that despite our best intentions to raise you to become strong and resilient, we’ve done nothing but blind you to your own value and merit. Yes, it’s true you’re not a “real” werewolf - you’re BETTER. You are not influenced by the pull of the moon, you are not bound by the same laws of the supernatural, you are not restricted by the same weakness to mountain ash, nor driven by the same instincts. You may not heal as quickly or move as fast, but you’re exponentially smarter, and your perceived deficiencies motivate you to become stronger, to not take for granted the things “real” supernatural creatures do. But you do not seem to understand any of this, instead concocting that harebrained scheme of yours to become the Alpha of the McCall pack the second we returned to your birthplace. (And how we let you manage to persuade us to return to Beacon Hills AND allow you to partake in your asinine plot to begin with, I will never know. Sure, we will soon accomplish our final goal, but at what cost? Would we have succeeded elsewhere, maybe in a year or two, but kept you with us, where you belong?!)

Since arriving back in Beacon Hills, every passing week the Doctors and I have come closer and closer to reaching our final success, yet at the same time, you push further and further away from me us as you strive to accomplish your own goals. It is true, we have never comprehended your desire to become a “real” werewolf, to join a pack, nor have we needed to understand as this always seemed like a passing dream of yours, something you have never focused much of your attention on until now. What seemed like a fleeting thought less than a year ago has now become ALL you think about, something you’ve thrown aside all common sense and intelligence to achieve.

The other Doctors informed me a few weeks ago you were knocked unconscious by a Hellhound and left for dead next to a burning vehicle while trying to uncover who is taking the bodies of the dead experiments (and after all that, you still didn’t learn who was taking them, good riddance, Theodore! I’m sure you know the answer by now, but do you understand what that little stunt could have cost you? You should have left it alone when we told you it was inconsequential). What will it take for you to come back where we can protect you? Will we be forced to find out, again, you’re an inch from death in some hospital after being scraped off the road after a reckless stunt that you should have known better to partake in? Who will stitch you back together the next time you’re that injured? Do you understand how close we were to losing you completely? Our serum can only do so much, Theo, it would not have helped you at that point if we weren’t able to mend you on our own. We have worked endlessly to improve the body and mind you were born with, but will you throw all our efforts away in this petty rebellion you seem so hellbent on?

“What’s she talking about?” Liam halts his reading to ask, his mind completely blown by the information he is learning.

The Dread Doctors, or at least the Geneticist, appeared to have really cared about Theo and seemed EXTREMELY upset that he wasn’t with them anymore.

Theo’s sitting rigidly in the chair, his darkened eyes staring dazedly across the room, and Liam’s mildly concerned he’s not listening. But he’s holding tightly onto Liam’s hand, and that has to mean something, right?

“Do you remember when you told me I drive like a grandma?” Theo emotionlessly questions, not looking at Liam.

“Yes,” he cautiously answers.

“They allowed me to start learning how to drive on my 14th birthday,” Theo explains, his voice toneless. “But they required I have an instructor since they couldn’t teach me on their own, so they consulted their followers who found this college-aged guy who didn’t care that I was technically too young to be learning -”

“Wait, what, they had followers?” Liam interrupts, unable to focus on the story if he didn’t understand all the parts.

“Yes, Liam,” Theo glowers, finally looking at Liam to glare at him, which hey, progress! Sassy Theo is much better than dull, stoic Theo. “Made up of people in the depths of the occult and paranormal communities who practically worshiped the Dread Doctors. That’s where my ‘fake’ parents would come from when I was in school, they were the ones who took care of any human things I needed, like grocery shopping, clothes shopping, enrolling me in school, driving me places to keep up appearances, all that shit.”

“Ah, that makes sense,” Liam remarks, somewhat truthfully. It did make sense, but also who would worship the Dread Doctors and how did they even find out about them?! The Dark Web is a place Liam will not be going anytime soon.

Though he kind of wonders what else he might find there…

“Anyways,” Theo continues with a huff, “We were in Colorado at the time, and I was finally allowed to practice on the highway after a few weeks of boring parking lot and side street driving. And things were fine until this asshole cut in front of me and then flicked me off, shouting all kinds of fucked up things he probably didn’t think I could hear. And we ended up basically racing down this highway, going back and forth cutting one another off, and I didn’t realize how sharp this upcoming turn was, and while he braked, I didn’t, and I crashed through the barrier. We flew down a mountainside, the car flipped over dozens of times, and we eventually landed overturned in a lake.”

“Holy fucking shit, dude,” Liam whistles, his eyes wide at the picture Theo’s words were painting for him - he didn’t think his werewolf abilities would be able to heal him fast enough to prevent him from dying from something like that. And considering Theo’s chimera abilities were supposedly weaker, Liam’s honestly not sure how the older boy survived.

“And I got really fucking lucky,” Theo admits with a bitter laugh, “because it turns out my instructor had his own latent supernatural abilities that never emerged until that moment, and he pulled us from the car and swam to the bank of the lake where eventually emergency services found us.”

“What was he?” the beta asks, leaning forward in interest.

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” Theo snorts, shaking his head. “Truthfully, I was unconscious the entire time, so I didn’t know most of this until later. But we were airlifted to the hospital, and the Dread Doctors basically stole me back once they realized something had happened to me. My healing was struggling to overcome the extent of the damage, probably had no idea where to start, and they spent a solid week stitching me back together.”

“I’m glad you’re okay, though,” Liam whispers, running his thumb soothingly over Theo’s knuckles. The chimera smiles softly at him in return, and the beta’s heart skips several beats at how fucking beautiful Theo looks in this moment.

“I hardly remember the accident,” Theo adds with a wince, “Almost killed me, but it didn’t even leave a scar. I do, however, remember the epic verbal beatdown I received when I recovered enough to the point where they knew I’d survive. And that’s also why they refused to teach me how to teleport until I turned 130...they said hopefully by then, I'd be mature enough to handle the responsibility.”

“I feel like you might have deserved the verbal beatdown,” Liam shrugs, because seriously, he’s got plenty of road-rage himself (which is partially why his mom won’t let him get a car), but even he wouldn’t race someone on a fucking mountainside road, dear god! Young-Theo was kind of an idiot. “Anyways, back to my reading.”

You have never been insolent and contemptuous until now -  what changed when we came back to Beacon Hills, Theo? Why are you so angry at us? Why do you keep going against our express wishes in regards to the other experiments? I have thought nonstop about this uncharacteristic attitude of yours over the course of the last few weeks and have reached the only logical conclusion - you think once we resurrect the Beast we will no longer have a place for you here. If that is the case, then I honestly do not know where you garnered such a ridiculous notion from. We may have had our differences over the years, but Theo, you will always have a home here. And if you think I am the only one who believes this, then once more, you are wrong; the Surgeon has mentioned several times how he actually misses you “pestering” him about what he was working on since none of us appreciate his discoveries; the Pathologist complains frequently about how unnervingly quiet the lab is with you gone and how none of the help is any good compared to you (we don’t have any help, so I’m not sure who he’s referring to… perhaps it is his own strange way of saying he misses you assisting him).

Theo makes a pained sound, and Liam glances over at the chimera in concern.

“Are you okay?” he tentatively asks, noticing how unnaturally pale Theo’s become.

“She was right,” Theo breathes, chewing on his lip. He’s silent for a few minutes, lost in his thoughts, and Liam gives him the time to process what he’s hearing. Theo deserves that at the very least, so Liam will make sure he has it. “I was scared. I’ve always been scared they would randomly decide one day I wasn’t good enough or worth the trouble, and they’d get rid of me.”

“I obviously will never know how they acted when it was just you and them, but between seeing this room and the parts of the letter we’ve read so far, I think your perspective may have been a lot different from theirs,” Liam whispers, trying not to offend the chimera. “Or hers, at least.”

But his words were true; from Liam’s point of view, the Dread Doctors had wholeheartedly adopted Theo into their fucked-up family.

“I never thought they would succeed,” Theo admits, his voice barely above a whisper, his eyes scanning the room like he assumes someone will suddenly appear to smite or stab him for daring to speak such a blasphemous statement.

“I don’t blame you!” Liam hotly agrees, because seriously, he couldn’t even begin to comprehend how the Dread Doctors resurrected a centuries old dead werewolf in the body of a random teenager who could then be split into the human side of the Beast and the original teenager. Like literally, what the fuck. “It’s insane.”

Theo nods but doesn’t appear as if he has anything more to say, so Liam finds his current place in the letter and continues.

Our followers, the other Doctors, and even our esteemed guest Mr. Goodwin have repeatedly advised me that you are of the age where it is natural for individuals to push away from their guardians, to abandon the ‘nest’ in order to learn to fly on their own. They say you don’t need an underlying reason for leaving, that it’s normal, but I am skeptical. You’re not a bird or some pathetic human, Theo, you are a werewolf-werecoyote hybrid. Wolves and coyotes do not leave the pack until they’re searching for a mate, and I find myself unable to believe this is the reason you’ve forsaken us, but alas, maybe I am wrong for once.

As I am writing this, it’s been several days since you failed in your plan to kill Scott McCall (and while you likely do not wish to hear it, I am beyond pleased you did not succeed. Sure, your plan to infiltrate the pack was good if you disregard one key aspect; what makes you think your betas will listen to you after you killed their Alpha, their close friend? Where is the logic in this? I’ll tell you, Theo, there is none, and if you’re not thinking logically, then you’re thinking emotionally, and I want to know what has caused you to suddenly forgo everything we’ve ever taught you. It must be fear, that is the only thing that makes sense, and if you would actually speak to us like the intelligent adult I thought we raised you to be, I could inform you of your erroneous conclusion). The Pathologist has discovered that you’ve somehow resurrected a few of the dead experiments to form your own little pack. And while I am frustrated you are still engaging in your childish rebellions, I am begrudgingly impressed by your ingenuity, though now it is my turn to be afraid; will you finally give up on your desire to be a "real" werewolf now that you have a pack, or will instead contrive another moronic plan to become a "real" werewolf that will backfire on you because it lacks a shred of common sense whatsoever?

“Have you never been the victim of parental disapproval before?” Liam blurts out when he can practically feel Theo’s distress without looking up. “With the Dread Doctors, I mean.”

“What?” Theo asks, his brows furrowed in confusion. “Of course I have.”

“I mean… no offense, Theo, but you look like you’re about to barf.”

“I guess I’m surprised by how well she knew what I would do,” Theo snorts, rolling his eyes. He pulls their entwined hands apart, much to Liam’s disappointment, clasping his own hands together and dropping them into his lap. “She pretty much nailed it on the head.”

“Maybe you’re not as mysterious as you want people to believe?” Liam teases, playfully sticking his tongue out to help make it clear that he’s joking.

Remember Theo, while frustrating, failure can teach us many things. The difference between failing and being a failure is the ability to learn from one’s mistakes.

Do not be a failure.

“Gee, guess I’m a failure after all, what a surprise,” Theo mocks, and Liam’s alarmed to see blood dripping onto the ground from where the chimera has dug his claws into the palm of his right hand.

“Stop,” Liam growls, reaching out and forcing Theo to remove his claws from his skin; the beta reaches over to grab an empty cup off Theo’s desk (secretly thrilled that they drink out of goblets, how cool), shoves it in Theo’s left hand, and then holds Theo’s right hand once more, squeezing tightly for a moment in an attempt to wordlessly tell the chimera he can do the same if he needs to.

He ignores the uncomfortable feeling of the blood now coating his hand, and continues.

Prior to becoming the Doctors as you know us today, the three of us lived full lives. We had families, friends, some of us had enemies (I’m sure you can guess who); we fell in love, we fell out of love, the Pathologist even had children (his oldest son tried to kill him at one point, and if THAT surprises you, then perhaps you’re not as clever as I once believed). My greatest hope, whether it be as an Alpha werewolf in a pack of your own or as you currently are today, you too will be able to have these experiences; my greatest regret is that I will not be around to see it. 

Hopefully by now, you’ve finally garnered the courage to court that boy you always drone on and on about (yes, Theo, all three of us caught onto that little crush of yours, did you take us for fools?). The Surgeon and the Pathologist even made a conscientious effort to remove that cumbersome female companion of his from the picture to allot you an ideal opportunity to insert yourself into his life by taking her place, though you clearly did not appreciate their efforts which they found to be quite rude. I would also like it to be known, especially if these are my final words to you, that I convinced the Pathologist multiple times over the years to NOT interrogate you about your love life, or lack thereof; I’m sure that would have been a traumatic conversation for all parties involved.

“They thought I had a crush on Scott,” Theo hurriedly explains before Liam can ask, his cheeks burning brightly even in the dim light; he won’t make eye contact with Liam, something the beta finds beyond irritating.

“That’s weird,” Liam mumbles, trying to remember when they ever tried to remove Kira from the picture. They did something to her on the night of Senior Scribe during the storm that made the fox spirit inside her more powerful, but he thought that was so she could help them get into Eichen House. Maybe they assumed her mom would take her away from Beacon Hills to help her learn to control it? But why would they encourage Theo to court his crush if he was planning to kill him for his power and pack? The Dread Doctors were evil, sure, but they weren't stupid, and there’s no logic in that idea. “Did you?”

Theo gives the beta a look of disgust, which Liam will assume means ‘no.’

And now the others have realized I am writing my final thoughts to you and have nagged me into including a message from each. The Surgeon would like to remind you of the importance of flossing behind your fangs and has kindly compiled several different pictures of supernatural creatures we have encountered over the years who never received this advice to help drive the lesson home to you (I burned the pictures because I know I have already drilled this message into your head, you’re welcome, they were quite horrid to look at). The Pathologist has included the recipes of the nutritional supplements we’ve given you over the years in case you’ve forgotten them and encourages you to continue ingesting them so you don’t become “tiny and weak again, ruining our decade of hard work to transform you into something mildly tolerable.” Please remember that as you age, your unique nutritional needs will change, so I’ve also provided a list of guidelines to follow as you get older. 

My darling Theo (it’s been dozens of moons since I’ve called you that before writing this letter, and as this likely will be the last time I ever do, I have allowed myself to say it again since you are unable to gripe at me for doing so), if you take nothing else from this letter, let it be this; you are enough.

With love,
The Geneticist // Emmeline Montgomery

Chapter Text

“Emmeline,” Theo mouths, carefully taking the letter from Liam’s hand. He glances up, his jaw clenched tightly. “I never knew her real name before now.”

Liam places his free hand on the chimera’s shoulder, unsure how to help or what to say in this difficult moment. He’s also completely and totally terrified of saying the wrong thing to the visibly shaken boy. “I’m sorry, Theo. I can tell you really meant a lot to her.”

“Did I though?” Theo growls, wrenching his hand out of Liam’s grasp.

Oh god, yep, he should have kept his mouth shut, fuck.

To the beta’s shock, Theo slams his hands on the desk, and in the blink of an eye, sweeps his arms across the wood, sending all the books and random objects littering the workspace flying across the room.

“Where was this sentimentality when she was alive?” he barks, his eyes a fiery golden Liam’s never seen before. 

Liam leaps off the edge of the desk in surprise, quickly picks the letter up off the ground and clutches it safely to his chest along with the remaining contents of the envelope.

“Poor. Gullible. Little. Theo.” The sentence is slurred, Theo’s fangs making a sudden appearance. Each word brings a furious swipe of his claws to the wood. “He. Will. Believe. Anything. A. Guardian. Figure. Tells. Him. Considering. Not. Even. His. Own. Parents. Wanted. Him.”

“Theo,” Liam tries, his heart breaking for the boy in front of him. He’s not sure how much of it is accurate, if maybe the Dread Doctors did feed him lies to ensure his cooperation, or if Theo incorrectly assumed for one reason or another he wasn’t wanted by his real parents. Liam won’t ask; he’s doubtful Theo will ever know the truth.

The chimera doesn’t respond; he glares down at the wood shavings covering his claws and forcibly shakes them out before proceeding to lift the heavy desk, flipping it high in the air over his own former workspace, the projectile crashing into the chairs surrounding the hearth with a resounding boom.

“She left me!”

The beta backs away from the fuming chimera, not particularly afraid for himself, but mostly wary of accidentally getting hit by something. He hopes this destructive mood will be cathartic for Theo in the end.

“Killed immediately by their greatest accomplishment shifting on its own for the first time, ISN’T THAT IRONIC, LIAM?!”

Liam steps into a little alcove in between two bookshelves without responding (he’s sure the question was rhetorical anyways) and sifts through the rest of the contents of the envelope, giving Theo space to tear apart whatever he desires; there’s a page titled the history of the Surgeon and the Beast, which Liam truthfully isn’t too interested in; there’s multiple pages regarding Theo’s nutritional needs and a few recipes, also boring; there’s a page titled ‘The Things We, the Surgeon and the Pathologist, Purposely Mislead You On’ that piques Liam’s curiosity until he sees the top three (of 38 bullet points) include -

1. We, the Dread Doctors, do not get our abilities from a ceremony conducted in the Bermuda Triangle, nor is the Bermuda Triangle a portal to a different dimension (there’s also a very angry note from the Geneticist demanding Theo to abstain from going anywhere near the mysterious area, for they have never actually studied it and they don’t know why it acts the way it does). 

 2. Drowning a Banshee will NOT create a Siren (followed by a note from the Geneticist claiming that while mermaids do exist, sirens are a myth). 

3. We informed you that any child you conceive will be fully human and will not inherit any of your enhanced abilities… truthfully, as you are our only surviving experiment, we do not actually know what your offspring will inherit or if you are able to reproduce to begin with… we thought it best to discourage you from deciding to procreate with strangers in order to build your own pack (with a note from the Geneticist stating that they’re fairly confident Theo will be able to reproduce if he so chooses, but given his ‘current proclivities’, it did not seem to matter).

 

And THAT makes Liam want to know more. The Geneticist mentioned in her letter that Theo had a crush on a boy, and even if it WAS Scott, Liam’s fairly confident his Alpha would not date a man, especially Theo in particular (he might go for Stiles, but Stiles is pretty dead set on Derek, so if anything, Scott missed his chance).

He’s trying not to be delusional, but the beta’s also pretty confident Theo did not have a crush on Scott. But it begs the question; who did Theo have a crush on? Or did the Dread Doctors somehow read him wrong? (though based on Theo’s responses to the contents of the original letter, Liam feels like they had a pretty solid read on their ward).

Regardless, Liam’s feeling pretty fucking great right now that Theo never once mentioned he wouldn’t have a crush on a guy.

He glances up from the papers, only to find himself hastily backing up further into the alcove; Theo’s apparently moved on to destroying the bone cage (it sounds like he’s saying something along the lines of ‘you fucking left me alone’ each time he snaps a bar off the cage), and a torn-off piece almost smacks Liam upside the head. He finds it HILARIOUS, though, that despite his anger, Theo hasn’t ripped apart or damaged a single book. What a nerd.

But because Liam is well, Liam, he trips over nothing and quickly reaches out with his right hand to steady himself on the wall and… lets out a piercing scream when it fucking moves. Holy shit, he KNEW this place had to be cursed and/or boobytrapped.

Theo’s at his side in an instant, and despite the giant gaping hole where a wall used to be, Liam can’t focus on anything besides how stunning Theo looks standing in front of him, his cheeks flushed a tantalizing red, his hair pushed back off his forehead, his skin glistening from sweat.

“Are you okay?” Theo asks, his voice laced with concern. His attention is entirely on Liam, only briefly glancing at where the wall used to be, likely to make sure they were safe and some terrible creature isn’t rushing out to eat them. Or perhaps to ensure the beta hadn’t just found access to a new dimension, who even knows when it comes to Theo? He’s a mystery. “Liam? Your heart is going crazy.”

Hm, Theo, why do you think my heart is going crazy right now?! Liam wants to shout, but that would sound sarcastic more so than anything else, so he tempers the urge down.

“All good,” Liam practically meeps in reply, internally face palming, because wow, Liam, that was super convincing. 

“I’m sorry if I scared you, Liam,” Theo apologizes softly. He puts his hands in his pockets and stares at the ground while he speaks, looking distraught over the idea of Liam being afraid of him. “I don’t know what came over me.”

“Dude, no,” Liam scoffs, lightly shoving Theo in the shoulder. “I am NOT the person to judge someone else for having a rage fest.”

Theo seems skeptical… has he suddenly forgotten who he’s talking to?!

“Seriously, Theo, I am way scarier than you when angry,” Liam adds determinedly, a hand on his hip. “Do NOT fight me on this.”

“Okay, Little Wolf, if you say so,” Theo laughs, shaking his head.

But something about Theo’s rage-induced rant bothers him, and instead of dropping the issue like he kind of wants to, he decides to speak up - Theo deserves to know the truth.

“Theo.” Liam gently places his (blood-free) hand on the chimera’s cheek, ensuring their eyes remain connected for the rest of his words. “It might not seem like it all the time, but you're NOT alone, not anymore. You have me. And the pack. And Mrs. Finch." Ugh, and this should show Theo how committed he is to wooing him for allowing this next name to come out of his mouth. "And Faye."

Theo’s eyes seem kind of glassy, and Liam nervously drops his hand from Theo’s cheek, SCREAMING in a frenzied panic on the inside because if he made the chimera cry, he’s seriously going to just…Nope.

But Theo blinks rapidly, and the watery sheen is gone, and wait, wait, why does he seem so suspicious all of a sudden?

“Why Mrs. Finch?” Theo inquires, raising an eyebrow, and shit, shit, SHIT! The chimera’s NEVER once talked about his closeness with their AP Bio teacher, something Liam only knows because he uh… spied, oopsie.

He flails on the inside for a bit, and Theo’s muscles are becoming tenser by the second as if he knows Liam is keeping something from him.

But by the grace of all that is holy and magical, he’s hit with a divine explanation.

“Coach said Mrs. Finch told him that you’re some sort of biology prodigy,” Liam shrugs, struggling to appear calm and collected, a state he pretty much never finds himself in, even before Theo came into the picture. “Obviously, she must know you somewhat well since if you just completed your work and left, she wouldn’t realize just how smart you are, nor would she boast about it in the teacher’s lounge. Does she seem like the boasting type to you unless you REALLY deserve it?”

Buy it, buy it, buy it, he chants in his head.

He almost becomes the one who cries when Theo’s face clears of its previous skepticism.

“Good deductive reasoning, Liam, I’m impressed,” Theo smiles, and Liam should find it condescending, but he’s too busy weeping internally from relief. “And, um, thanks.”

“Anytime, dude.” (Fuck, he really needs to lay off the ‘dude’... he’s kind of tempted to see what would happen if he randomly tosses in a ‘babe’ but he also values his life and would spontaneously combust the second he said a term of endearment like that to Theo.)

Theo turns his attention to the mystifying secret passageway “I didn’t know this was here.” 

Theo seems sad, and Liam is 100% NOT okay with that.

“ALL guardians need a place to hide stuff from their charges, even centuries old paranormal scientists,” Liam smirks. “It is known.”

“I’ll check it out, I guess,” Theo remarks glumly, not looking at Liam. “You wait here.”

Uh, absolutely not.

“Yeah, how about I don’t do that, because this place gives me the creeps, and splitting up always leads to drama, and we don’t have time for drama, because we have SCIENCE to learn.”

“No, you have science to learn,” Theo smirks, and Liam is forced to remind himself that Sassy Theo is much better than Sad Theo. “I already know it.”

“Yeah, yeah, you’re a genius,” Liam snaps, tugging Theo into the passageway a little bit harder than necessary. “We know.”

“Also, this entire adventure has been nothing but drama,” Theo points out, angling his body so he’s in front of Liam as they walk down the corridor.

“True,” Liam agrees, using his werewolf eyes to see in the dark passageway, too lazy to pull his phone out to use as a flashlight. “But at least now it’s like we’re sneaking around Hogwarts. That’s fun!”

“And you say I’m the nerd?” Theo sends Liam a super bitchy judgmental look he definitely does not deserve, because the chimera is WAY nerdier, what the fuck.

Liam opens his mouth to reaffirm this notion to Theo, but they’ve already reached the end (fucking Dread Doctors ruining all the excitement with their short, pointless hallways), the corridor opening up to a relatively small room that appears to be more like a storage closet than anything else.

On the right side there’s a bunch of metal shelves stocked with jars of nightmarish floating things, but Liam values his sanity and won’t look any closer at them.

To the left is, surprise! More books (though he wonders if they’ll find the teleporting books among the stash).

But straight ahead is -

“No!” Liam squeals, grabbing Theo’s shoulder and shaking him excitedly. “Oh my god, THEO!!”

“You should leave,” Theo declares, trying to force Liam to turn around, but nope, nope, he’s already seen it! “Bye, Liam.”

“They made you take family photos?” the beta gasps, ignoring Theo shoving at his shoulder to walk further into the room. He gapes at the pictures lining the walls.

There are ‘family’ photos for every year the chimera was with the Dread Doctors. It seems like after the first two years, they took two separate ‘family’ pictures; one with regular human-Theo in the middle, and the second picture with coyote-Theo in the middle (in the first couple of years after learning to shift, Theo was held by the same Dread Doctor, and Liam truthfully doesn’t know who is who, but he assumes it’s the Geneticist).

Obviously, the Dread Doctors all look the same in each one, only the background and Theo himself changing over the years (and the background barely changed; Liam assumes they moved around between different spooky underground lairs each time they switched cities). The chimera clearly has aged between each picture, but his expression remains smug in all of them, like he knows a secret you don’t.

“They forced me to take these, but I’ve never actually seen them,” Theo admits, his head tilted slightly as he looks at each picture. His face is blank, so Liam can't really tell how he feels about them. “Never gave me a good reason for doing it either other than it’s important to properly document the progress of your experiments.”

Liam hums in understanding, his attention shifting to an item on the table below the pictures.

“Another envelope with your name on it,” Liam points out, tugging impatiently on Theo’s sleeve.

“And I thought Deaton liked theatrics the most out of anyone I’d ever met.” Theo sighs, but he picks up the envelope, holding it away from him as if it was going to explode like a Howler.

The chimera’s eyes dart to Liam, and the beta holds a hand out, feeling weirdly giddy when Theo places it in his palm.

There’s only one page, and it’s more like a note rather than a full letter like the last one.

Theo,

I debated on whether to leave these items with my previous letter, but the Doctors and I both agreed we shouldn’t put your inheritance directly in your hands - you must earn it using your intelligence, if you are to be truly deserving of it.

The alcove concealing this room has always troubled you. How many times have you accused me of designing my office this way simply for aesthetic purposes? Because I am ‘dramatic’ as you say? (as if the dramatic one in these labs has ever been anyone but you, darling, please). 

Everything the Doctors and I have done ALWAYS has a purpose. You will do well to remember that.

But I know you, Theo, and I have complete confidence you will find this letter. Perhaps not right away, but you will, for you have always had such an inquisitive mind.

Everything we have left behind, naturally, is yours, including the books we deemed too dangerous for you to read as a child, those of which you will find to your left. We have also allocated a monetary inheritance for you, as unfortunately, science can only take one so far in a world that thrives on capitalism and greed.

“Wait,” Theo orders, holding a hand up, his eyes glued to the shelf on the left. “I want to look at these first.”

The chimera is practically fluttering with excitement, and yep, Theo’s definitely the bookworm here.

Liam shifts restlessly on his feet, glancing down at the enclosed bank information, his eyes sliding over to the chimera engrossed in scanning the titles on the bookshelf.

“Can I look at the bank stuff?” Liam squeaks, quickly covering his mouth afterwards; it’s NOT his business how much money they left Theo, and he should NOT have asked that!

“Knock yourself out,” Theo waves a hand dismissively, skimming the table of contents of a large, untitled tome he pulled off the shelf.

“Did you actually hear what I said?” Liam skeptically asks, his hand already ghosting towards his pocket to pull his phone out.

“You want to see how much money I have.” Theo looks over at him while he speaks, his expression amused. “Because you’re nosy. And Liam… go for it. I honestly do not give a shit about their money.”

That is… weird, but Liam’s too busy typing away to devote anymore thought to it.

And what he ends up seeing has his entire body freezing in complete and utter shock.

“Did they leave me a dollar?” Theo snorts once he notices Liam standing rigidly in place. “They would so fucking do that.”

When Liam doesn’t respond, his mind literally blanking out from the bombshell amount, the chimera worriedly sets the book back where it was and moves to stand behind him.

“Liam?” Theo places a hand on his shoulder, gently shaking him. “What is it?” 

Wordlessly, Liam hands the device to the chimera, feeling vindicated when his mouth drops open in surprise, too.

“What the fuck?” he gasps, staring wide-eyed at Liam as if he would somehow be able to comprehend how Theo is suddenly five million dollars richer.

“What the fuck?” Liam echoes, because NOPE. He cannot comprehend that.

He even checked the account, and everything is 100% in Theo’s name, and there’s a debit card in the envelope; he checked everything, and it’s (most likely) NOT a shitty prank.

Liam snaps his fingers as another thought crosses his mind. “You can quit your job!”

And he expects Theo to seem at least somewhat happy by that, but since the chimera LIVES to be difficult, he instead frowns. “No, I like my job.”

Theo likes having sex with strangers? So much for the shy ‘no-don't-touch-me’ virgin Corey made Theo out to be. Stupid weremole is nothing but a liar.

But because Liam is stubborn, he tries one more time. “But you’re RICH rich. You could live off this for the rest of your life if you invest.”

“But I like my job,” Theo repeats, and he must sense Liam’s growing rage because he quickly adds, “and people depend on me. I don’t want to quit.”

“Fine,” Liam growls, not even wanting to think about how people ‘depend’ on him. 

The beta struggles to let the issue go, but it’s Theo’s choice, and he should respect that!

….maybe once Theo confirms he’s legitimately RICH rich, he’ll be more amiable to quitting.

Yes, Theo’s just being cautious right now, likely doesn’t want to go too ahead of himself in case it is somehow an elaborate ruse. He’s definitely the smart one between the two of them, because Liam’s already making all kinds of plans for the chimera, and it’s not even Liam’s money!

“We should finish reading,” Liam suggests, trying to ease the tension, because Theo seems somewhat anxious over their little dispute, and that low key (but actually more high key) makes Liam feel like a really shitty person.

“Okay,” Theo agrees, standing shoulder to shoulder with him.

‘And I have also written the new access code to the Stasis Room on the bottom of this letter. Why? It’s simple.

Because if you are reading this, then the Doctors and I have departed permanently from this world, leaving you with no one left to look after you; as much as I have valued the support of our followers over the years, I admittedly do not trust them to properly ensure your safety and continued growth (the other Doctors continue to claim you are old enough to take care of yourself, and while I fervently disagree, I am left with no choice but to trust that they are correct and put my faith in the knowledge that we have raised you properly). 

What you will find in the Stasis Room is something you have always found comfort in - Chaos.

Yes, Theo, it’s an excellent time for another rebirth, don’t you think? You will find the necessary serum in a vial contained within this envelope and what you seek is waiting for you behind our Esteemed Guest.

With Love,

Emmeline

 

And, okay, that last part definitely gives Liam some bad, bad vibes. Chaos is the opposite of what they need right now, or ya know, like ever.

“What -” Liam starts to ask, but Theo suddenly snatches the note from his hands, practically pressing the paper to his nose to read it again.

“No!” he breathes, staring at the note as if it provided him with all the secrets of the world. Or like… told him how to teleport, but Liam’s pretty sure it in fact did not. 

“What -“ Liam tries again.

“We need to leave,” Theo urgently states, pocketing the note and heading back the way they came. “Now!” the chimera adds testily when he’s halfway down the corridor and realizes Liam hasn’t moved.

“Aren’t you forgetting something?” Liam crosses his arms, staring haughtily at the chimera.

Theo strides forward, grabs one of Liam’s hands, and tries to tug the beta out of the room.

“Liam!” Theo growls, but it sounds more like a whine than anything else.

“Hello? Don’t you need the rest of the envelope,” Liam taunts, grabbing it off the desk, and waving it in the air (carefully, though, so as not to send the contents flying).

“Great, lovely. Now, can we go?” Theo huffs, and Liam wants answers to his questions, damnit, but he’s never seen Theo look this anxious/excited before and fuck, it’s cute. 

“Fine… oof!” 

Ugh, Theo walks so fast, good god. At least he keeps a firm grip on Liam’s hand, likely so he doesn’t accidentally leave him behind. 

Naturally, the blood door (as Liam has decided to call it) has shut, and Theo has the nerve to try to let Liam’s hand go to reopen it.

Liam finds himself in a dilemma when several things quickly become clear; Theo’s blood on Liam’s hand is too dry to use as a ‘key’ again; Theo can only cut his own palm with the same hand by digging his claws into it, a solution that is unnecessarily bloody and painful.

But before he can think too much about it, the chimera holds his hand out with a glare. 

“You do it, unless you want to be stuck in here for eternity.”

And Liam personally wouldn’t mind spending a little more alone time with Theo in this hallway, where there’s exactly enough room for them to stand shoulder to shoulder and nothing more. But he’s pretty sure Theo will throw an epic temper tantrum if he refuses to leave, so he unsheathes the claws of his left hand with a sigh.

The older boy holds perfectly still as Liam slices a precise line down Theo’s palm, and as quickly as the blood starts to seep out, the chimera jams his hand against the door. 

And as much as Liam would enjoy spending some quality time with Theo together in close quarters, he sighs with relief when the door opens, somewhat afraid they would end up trapped in that room. 

“Wait,” Liam calls once the door has shut quietly behind them. 

Theo irritably turns to face him, and Liam grabs the chimera’s right hand again, using his own thumb to clear away as much of the blood as possible. He brings it to his lips, placing a firm kiss on the older boy’s palm.

“So it doesn’t hurt anymore,” Liam timidly explains when Theo does nothing but stare wide-eyed at him. Was this going too far with his ‘subtle’ flirting? Was he encroaching into ‘creeper’ territory?

“Oh, thanks, Liam,” Theo mumbles with a shy smile that he quickly schools into something more neutral. “Slaps are still worse. Like way worse.”

“I’ll remember that,” Liam cheerfully answers. 

“So you’ll never do it again?” Theo asks hopefully.

“Are we planning to come back down here after you do the thing you refuse to tell me about, or should we bring the books with us?” Liam asks instead, because Theo, really? 

The chimera glances up, his face paling at the destruction he left in the wake of his fury (it isn’t even that bad in Liam’s expert opinion; he’s done WAY worse). 

“Let’s grab only the AP Bio books for now,” Theo decides after a moment. “We can come back some other time and sort out the rest.” He turns to look at Liam with a raised eyebrow. “If you can handle another trip down here?”

Liam shrugs, because despite the drama, he’s actually loved this entire adventure so far.

“Sounds good. Lead the way, oh King of the Tunnels.”

Chapter Text

“Do you have a photographic memory or something?” Theo questions, glancing incredulously over at Liam after the beta typed the access code into the keypad without looking at the letter again.

The Stasis Room is hidden behind another nondescript wall in the Operating Theater which required Theo to place his bleeding hand on again (thank goodness they healed quickly!). It then opened to, super exciting, another random wall, except that one had a keypad, thank god. Before Liam could punch the code into the device, Theo had wordlessly held his healed hand out to him, keeping his gaze trained on the wall in front of them. It took Liam a second to understand what Theo was doing, but he all but cried on the inside when he realized the chimera was expecting a kiss on his palm again (Liam, naturally, obliged).

“Nah, I wish,” Liam laughs, running a hand through his hair to get it off his face. “My grades would be a lot better if I did. The code was just easy to remember.”

“You easily remember eight random numbers you barely looked at once?” Theo asks with disbelief, dropping the first duffel bag of books into a corner of the mostly empty room and nodding at Liam to do the same. Climbing the ladder back up had been a bitch, but it was made slightly easier by dividing the goods between them, though Liam had tried to protest not being allowed to carry them all on his own… Theo shot him down with a quick ‘don’t be stupid, Liam.’ (It also helped that during the journey back to the Operating Theater, he had a fantastic view since Theo went first up the ladder, Liam following closely behind because he was beyond paranoid he’d end up stuck down there; it’s obvious that the chimera never skips leg day, dear lord). 

Liam shrugs, peering curiously around the unexpectedly chilly room. “I do when they’re the same as my birthday.”

“Ah,” Theo hums after an uncomfortable moment, and Liam’s dying to know more about that little tidbit. The Dread Doctors themselves said they never did anything without a purpose, so is their reasoning nefarious or something simpler? Or is Liam just being delusional, and it’s nothing more than a coincidence?

The Stasis Room holds several large cylindrical glass tanks that rise up from the floor and stop just below the ceiling, and each tank is outfitted with several different tubes that disappear into the wall behind them. Six of them were empty, but the seventh contains a huge, burly figure Liam can hardly make out due to the condensation in the tank. Whereas Mr. Douglass was stuck floating in green liquid, this guy’s tank seems to be obnoxiously cold, like he's not quite frozen solid but chilled to a low temperature.

“What’s this room?” Liam stands in front of the only occupied tank, trying to determine if he recognizes the person contained within. “Is this dude alive?”

“It’s where they stored the supernatural creatures they were studying,” Theo distractedly explains, fiddling with something behind what Liam has decided to call the Cryo Tank since it reminds him of what the Winter Soldier was held in for decades in the Captain America movies. “Alive, or at least for as long as they survived the experiments…they used their DNA to make the chimeras. And he WAS alive last time I was allowed in this room, but there’s no way he is now. He’s been in here too long on his own.”

“We should bury him,” Liam mutters, unable to prevent his hand from pressing the giant red button next to the tank. It was just so enticing and shiny - it practically screamed ‘touch the button, Liam!’ (unfortunately, Liam can’t really figure out what the purpose of the button was, because nothing seemed to happen after he pressed it. Maybe it was there for aesthetics?)

“Where? How ?” Theo gives the beta a disparaging look. “It took two Doctors to get him out of there, all three after they started experimenting on him.”

“Steroids?” Liam ponders aloud, gazing hopefully around the room as if he would somehow be able to recognize the drug at first glance. “You think they left some lying around?”

“No, Liam,” Theo sighs, shaking his head - the beta has a strange sense that the chimera already searched this place high and low many times before.

“So, now can you tell me what ‘Chaos’ is, please?” Liam nags after he’s finished scoping out the room and finds nothing of interest… besides Theo himself, but that was to be expected.

Theo watches silently for a moment as Liam paces back and forth across the room. “Do you trust me?”

“Yes,” Liam immediately answers, not needing to think about it, but Theo appears genuinely astounded by the easy admission. “I am just nosy and bored, and honestly Theo, that’s a terrible combination for me.”

Theo rolls his eyes, but Liam catches a fond smile on his face before he turns back around. “Fair enough. Come here.”

Liam cautiously peers over the older boy’s shoulder to finally see what ‘Chaos’ is; he is shocked to find not a terrible monster as he feared, but the frozen remains of a tiny black kitten that Theo is attempting to defrost. 

“Is this the cat from that picture in the office?” Liam probes, beyond relieved that Theo’s only “rebirthing” a cat… and not like a dragon or something equally destructive (a dragon might actually be kind of cool depending on its temperament).

“No, that was Nemesis,” Theo reveals with an aggrieved sigh, blessedly not scolding Liam for his constant questions. “She was the first chimera pet I made but, um.” He frowns, clearly embarrassed over something. “I did something wrong, and she uh… preferred to eat people rather than regular food.”

Liam’s really fucking glad Nemesis isn’t getting a second chance at life (and he’s too scared to ask for clarification on her methods for eating people. Nemesis was larger than Chaos, but she was still a housecat, and he can’t even imagine a hefty cat like Crookshanks being able to eat a person, let alone one half that size), but the explanation suddenly triggers something within his brain.

“There’s another piece of paper in the envelope where the Surgeon and the Pathologist wrote down things they purposefully misled you on, and one of those was essentially that they fed Nemesis the heart of a failed human chimera, and that’s what they assume led to her rather interesting diet preference, and uh, basically don’t leave your experiments unattended.”

Theo twists to face the beta, looking PISSED, and Liam’s a little alarmed considering he’s NEVER seen the other boy this upset, even when his evil plans were thwarted left and right by the McCall pack. “THEY MADE ME GO TO SCHOOL, WHAT WAS I SUPPOSED TO DO?! BRING HER WITH ME?” Liam opens his mouth to respond, but the chimera isn’t finished. “WHICH, YES, I TRIED TO DO AND THEY SAID NO EXPERIMENTS OUTSIDE THE LAB UNTIL THEY WERE COMPLETE AND CLEARED BY ALL THREE DOCTORS.”

“I’m sorry?” Liam pouts, regretting being the bearer of bad news.

“Jokes on them!” Theo growls, clutching the thawing kitten protectively to his chest. “Nemesis was a resounding success and actually saved me from some very uncomfortable situations.”

The chimera glances over at him, and Liam’s face must have done something weird, because he quickly adds to his previous statement. “One of their followers was literally the vilest person on the planet. He managed to get me alone while the Doctors were away, but before he could do anything untoward, she came out of nowhere and ate him.” He shrugs like this is not something extremely abnormal, but it’s hard to be bothered when Theo’s now delicately wrapping the kitten in a towel he found at some point. “She also consumed a hunter, a wendigo who was trying to eat me, and one of Dr. Valack’s followers who wanted to use me to get to the Dread Doctors.”

“So… what happened to her?” Liam asks with trepidation; Nemesis sounds like Theo’s personal (gruesome/unforgiving) guard cat, and based on the first letter from the Geneticist, it seemed like the Dread Doctors would prefer Theo have extra protection from people trying to bring harm to him.

“She ate someone who wasn’t bothering me,” Theo mumbles, and Liam can’t see over his hunched form to figure out what he is doing now. “So they terminated her. Later found out the teacher she devoured was a serial killer, nothing supernatural, just literally abducted kids and killed them.”

He wonders if the Dread Doctors somehow knew, at least to an extent, what they were doing when they fed Nemesis that human-chimera heart.

Liam sees the syringe of green serum out of the corner of his eye and has to quickly turn around to avoid possibly barfing all over the older boy…he never had a fear of needless until the Dread Doctors showed up, but holy fuck does he have one now.

“The void is the beginning from which life and order emerge,” Theo mutters under his breath, and Liam hears him pressing the plunger of the syringe. “Tip the scales of balance and let Chaos reign.”

“Nice poem,” Liam teases, briefly glancing over to Theo to see him staring at the cat with a look of intense concentration, as if somehow the feline will start moving based on the force of his thoughts alone. “Did you win one of those trophies with it?”

“No,” Theo admits with a huff. “I literally just made that up right now. Seemed fitting, I guess.”

(Liam has to bite the insides of his cheeks to keep from squealing at how fucking ADORABLE Theo is).

“What happened to Chaos originally?” He turns back around, raising an eyebrow at Theo. “And why do you name your cats such weird things?”

Theo lifts a hand to his heart and scowls at him. “First of all, how fucking dare you. Secondly, Chaos is the mythological void state preceding the creation of the universe in Greek creation myths, sometimes called the first god depending on the interpretation you’re reading. And Nemesis is the goddess of divine retribution and revenge.”

“I know that already, Theo,” Liam snaps, glaring hotly at the chimera. “I’m very well versed in Ancient Greek and Roman mythology, thank you. What I don’t know is why you would name your cats after those two when there are literally hundreds of better options to choose from.”

“Because they sound cool,” Theo sneers in response. “Obviously, Liam. And before you ask again, Chaos lived up to the modern definition of her name and was terminated for being a nuisance in the lab when I was at school, and then they fed her remains to one of their other experiments. Or so I was told.”

“That’s SUPER fucked up,” Liam gasps, his anger deflating as fast as it arrived. “I’m so sorry, Theo.”

Theo shrugs as if it wasn’t a big deal, but considering his reaction to finding out the tiny cat was still (maybe?) alive, Liam’s not buying it. “Starting to realize I should have skipped class more often.”

“What’s the deal with this guy?” Liam inclines his head towards the other supernatural creature in the room, trying to distract Theo from basically staring unblinkingly at the lifeless feline (which reminds Liam of when Mrs. Norris was petrified by the basilisk… he wants to share this observation, but he doesn’t think Theo will appreciate his comparison at the current moment).

“That’s actually my old driving teacher,” Theo chuckles, not noticing how tense Liam has become at this new piece of information.

“You mean… he saved your life and then got captured for his efforts to be experimented on by the Dread Doctors for years and forced to live in a giant fancy fish tank?” Liam growls - fucking Dread Doctors double crossed everyone left and right it seemed (Liam will admit only to himself that he would have also double crossed Mr. Douglas because that guy was an epic douche AND a Nazi, ew).

“We saved his life, too,” Theo bites back, matching the same peevish tone. “It took the Doctors a few months to find him, surprisingly, but when we finally located him, he had been captured by a group of hunters who heard the story on the news and concluded he must be a supernatural creature to have pulled off such a miracle rescue. Except they couldn’t figure out what he was, so they kept him alive while they tortured him in hopes of forcing him to shift or somehow reveal himself. One of those hunters ended up being eaten by Nemesis actually.”

“Okay, but he was still captured and experimented on after you guys ‘saved’ him,” Liam scowls. “That’s shitty.”

“Do you know how long most supernaturals survived down here?” Theo raises his head to glare at Liam, and the beta finds himself oddly glad that Theo’s getting defensive over the Dread Doctors instead of pretending like they never existed to avoid ruffling anyone’s feathers like he does when the pack is around. “The record was two months. The last time I saw Mr. Goodwin, he’d reached four YEARS.”

“He’s the ‘Esteemed Guest’ she referred to?” Liam asks, remembering how he was mentioned in both notes from the Geneticist.

“Yeah,” Theo snorts, running a hand through his hair. “He was treated differently than the others by a long shot. I accused her once of having a crush on him, and uh, let’s just say I never mentioned it again. After their work with him, he became unimaginably stronger than before.” Theo pauses, his lips curling down. “Okay, well, he was stronger than before, at least until the Dread Doctors died, and he ended up here all alone. That part is shitty, I’ll give you that.”

Liam’s about to respond, when suddenly another voice speaks.

“Ah, yes young Theodore,” the deep voice purrs, and Liam now has five sharp claws digging into his neck and a very pale muscular arm securely wrapped around his upper torso, and oh god, wait, if this is somehow the guy from the tank, isn’t he naked?! Can he at least put some clothes on before he decides to touch Liam? Gross. “They did make me stronger than I once was. Would you like to see a brief demonstration? Maybe something like…me ripping this tiny boy in half?”

Liam gasps in outrage at the diss…how DARE this giant oaf look down on him?! He didn’t get fed the bougie steroids created by the Dread Doctors for years, that’s not his fucking fault!

“Let him go!” Theo shouts angrily, quickly standing up after shifting the unmoving kitten safely to the side. “He didn’t have anything to do with what happened to you.”

Liam assumes the person restraining him is indeed the Mr. Goodwin from the previously occupied tank, but he’s annoyed that he and Theo were so wrapped up in their bickering that they didn’t notice the glass of the tank disappearing into the floor, nor did they notice this guy was in fact very much alive until he had Liam clasped in his evil clutches.

“And after I’m through with him, it will be your turn,” the guy darkly laughs, pressing his claws into Liam’s neck deep enough to draw blood. “Do not fear, Theo, I have not forgotten how I ended up here.”

Wait a damned minute, this is Liam’s perfect opportunity to save Theo from some strange unknown supernatural force!

Nothing says, ‘hey I like you, please go out with me,’ quite like a heroic rescue.

And this guy’s naked which means…

“Urgh!” the guy grunts when Liam’s foot kicks back to hit him roughly in the groin.

But he doesn’t release Liam (which is super fucking weird, because Liam hit the guy so hard that just the thought alone of how much that would hurt had Liam shuddering on the inside), so the beta unsheathes his claws and reaches back to jam them into the guy’s torso.

“You attempt to fight me, and you don’t even know what I am,” the man murmurs with disbelief, still not letting go, which is starting to irritate Liam. He pulls his claws out of the man after trying to move them in different directions, but the guy barely reacts.

Theo makes a confused sound. 

“I don’t care what you are!” Liam angrily spits, squirming in the guy’s increasingly tighter hold, “because I’m going to rip you apart regardless!”

“You know, the funny thing about the Stasis Chamber,” the guy drawls, completely ignoring Liam which is rude as fuck, “is that one is not fully unconscious as you would expect. And with all other senses blocked or underused, it makes one’s hearing exceptionally good.”

Theo seems really concerned all of a sudden which probably does not bode well for Liam.

“Ah, yes Theo, you have always been remarkably bright. You see, Liam, your precious companion simply LOVES to hear the sound of his own voice.”

Well… the chimera has a nice voice, so Liam wholeheartedly understands - he loves listening to Theo talk as well. But he’s not sure why that matters?

“And since he had no friends, until you apparently, he frequently would come in and vent to whatever poor souls were trapped down here about every and any woe of his.”

Unfortunately, ‘evil’ Theo’s woes were not of any interest to Liam. Today’s Theo? Fuck, Liam would PAY this dude to spill the tea if he had it.

“Damnit, Liam, this is why I told you not to touch anything!” Theo unexpectedly yells, his eyes turning golden as his fangs elongate, the chimera never once taking his gaze off his former driving instructor.

“I was TRYING to be a good person, I’m sorry you aren’t familiar with that concept!” Liam yells back, still struggling in this guy’s crushing grip, like good lord, what did they feed him all these years, and where the fuck can Liam get some?! “And you said that in the other room, not this one!”

How DARE Theo try to blame this on him!! The Dread Doctors should never have captured this guy to begin with - Liam was simply trying to right one of their many wrongs, and that made him the bad guy in this? Not on his watch!

“And here I thought you had enough common sense to realize it applied to this entire escapade,” Theo chastises, shaking his head like he’s disappointed in the beta despite the chimera clearly being at fault due to the obvious lack of clarity with his instructions, and holy hell, there’s not a single action that pisses Liam off more than an unwarranted ‘I expected better of you’ headshake. “Guess I put too much faith in your intelligence, huh?”

If Liam wrote a Harry Potter style book about this moment, he would definitely title it - ‘Liam Dunbar and The Audacity of This Bitch.’ Or more aptly, the ‘Audacity of These Bitches’, because between Theo's unnecessary rudeness and the guy attempting to strangle Liam for saving his life, the beta is so fucking done with their bullshit.

“FUCK YOU, THEO!” Liam shrieks, his own fangs appearing in his mouth. Without a second thought, he leans down, biting the arm restraining him as hard as he can while driving his claws into the middle of the man’s thighs at the same time.

The man howls and roughly shoves Liam into Theo’s arms. Fortunately, despite his surprise, the chimera easily catches Liam before he can fall to the ground (and thankfully, Liam’s face doesn’t smack into Theo’s muscular frame this time, because they definitely don’t have time for Liam to have a broken nose right now). Theo gently wipes the blood off Liam’s neck with the sleeve of his shirt even though the cuts have already healed, and the beta’s grateful when the older boy keeps a steadying arm around his waist.

“Good?” Theo softly asks, his now green human eyes glued to the agitated man in front of them.

“Yeah,” he answers, quickly understanding that Theo pissed him off on purpose, knowing Liam’s always at his strongest when he’s enraged. “Thanks.”

Liam turns his attention to the strange man. He’s easily a foot taller than Liam, probably even taller than Brett, and looks like he could win a bodybuilding competition despite having lived in a glass container for four plus years. His shoulder length blonde hair and light blue eyes do nothing to smooth out the threat that Liam can somehow sense underneath despite the man appearing completely human currently. Perhaps the strangest part, though, is how this man only appeared to be about a year or so older than Theo; Liam remembers him saying his instructor was in college when the chimera was learning to drive at 14, which would make him four to five years older, if not more. He’s not sure how often this guy was removed from the Stasis Chamber, but it either slowed his aging or the Dread Doctors ‘science’ includes anti-aging treatments (and considering how youthful Theo looks, Liam’s thinking he might be on the right track with that one).

He reminds Liam of a pale, younger Thor. Minus the alluring accent, unfortunately.

“I know things about Theo that would make your toes curl,” the man hisses, and Liam’s glad he’s so fucking tall because it’s a lot harder to accidentally look at his junk. “Do you know how many people your little boyfriend has killed?”

“I don’t care!” Liam heatedly yells back, not bothering to correct the boyfriend part (because one day Theo will be Liam’s boyfriend, he swears it). “He’s different now.”

“Is he?” the man questions, and he doesn’t sound sarcastic, just curious. “He has been gone awhile. It’s been so terribly drab without his dramatics to entertain me. Last I heard, he killed that girl in his pack who was obsessed with him to steal her power, and then it’s been crickets down here ever since.”

Wait, wait, wait… Tracy had a crush on Theo?! Liam’s ‘sad’ she's dead, but he’s not too upset that she’s out of the picture. One less person for Liam to fight for Theo’s affections.

“Excuse you, I am not dramatic!” Theo snaps, looking at Liam imploringly.

“I mean… you are kind of dramatic, even the Geneticist said so,” Liam mutters, and Theo looks so betrayed that it takes significant effort for the beta to keep his mirth contained.

“How are you even alive?” Theo eyes the man with intense suspicion. “It’s been at least a year since they abandoned this location, and I know your feeding and breathing mechanisms need to be changed every few weeks.”

The man grins sinisterly, the foreboding look sending shivers down Liam’s spine. “Oh dear, Theo, you have no idea do you?”

“I guess not. Do enlighten me, then,” Theo glowers, crossing his arms over his chest.

“She regularly checked up on you while you were here with your little ragtag pack.”

Theo scoffs. “You’re lying. I would have known if they were here.”

It saddens Liam that Theo says ‘they’ instead of ‘she.’

“You think she couldn’t hide from you if she wanted to?” The man appears genuinely surprised by Theo’s belief that he was always able to sense the Dread Doctors. “She overhauled all the parts of the tank so they’d last longer and created a new supplement that was ten times more effective than the previous one, all while you were outside these walls concocting another ridiculous scheme that, given the color of your eyes, evidently failed.”

Theo’s jaw is clenched so hard that Liam can hear his teeth grinding, so he hurriedly changes the subject to avoid a physical fight. “What are you, then, some sort of Legendary creature? Something along the lines of Articuno, Moltres, or Zapados? Or are you more like Mewtwo after spending so much time with the Dread Doctors?”

Theo lets out a surprised bark of laughter that makes Liam feeling all tingly inside, pleased that he can instantly soothe the chimera’s anger with a silly comment or two.

The strange man rolls his eyes and doesn’t respond (which is disappointing, because Liam legitimately wants to know what kind of creature this guy is… it’s gotta be something he’s never seen before, otherwise Theo would have told him from the beginning). His body visibly relaxes, and Liam’s left speechless by how unthreatening he appears now despite his bulk. The guy walks back towards the tank he previously occupied, and Liam curiously watches him rummage through a cabinet off to the side he hadn’t noticed before now.

“You know, Liam,” the guy begins, and Liam’s relieved to see him pulling on some loose sweatpants and a plain black T-Shirt. “Theo had this grand scheme to steal Scott McCall’s Alpha status and his pack, but do you know what part of the plan he struggled to come to terms with?”

“What are you -”

“The part where he had to kill you in order to do it,” the guy nonchalantly continues without waiting for a response from the beta. He reaches above his tank to pull some things out of a storage bin Liam also didn’t notice before now (to be fair to himself, he’s nowhere near as tall as this guy, so his eyes don’t usually drift that high when searching strange areas, that’s all). 

“Okay?” Liam responds, worried by how tense and uneasy Theo is becoming next to him. “So?”

“So,” the man mocks, tearing open a protein bar he found in the bin (without checking for an expiration date, ew), “don’t you find that intriguing?”

“Not really,” he sniffs, crossing his arms over his chest and silently praying no one questions the skip of his heart.

“Oh, you do, don’t you?” the blonde grins widely, and damn, no such luck. “What if I told you -”

“SHUT UP!” Theo shouts, and Liam jumps in surprise at the unexpected sound so close to his ear. “No one cares what you have to say.”

“Now, now, Theo, no need to catch an attitude,” the man cheerfully replies, staring at their reflection in the mirror while he brushes his teeth in the far corner of the room (and Liam’s so fucking confused by all the ‘normal’ stuff this dude has access to…his own experience in the tunnels with the Dread Doctors had zero amenities and nothing but pain and suffering). “It’s weird to finally meet the young beta I’ve heard so much about. A bit shorter than expected, I must confess.”

Liam glances over at Theo in confusion (how fucking often did Theo talk about him, and what exactly has he unknowingly told this dude?!). The chimera refuses to look at him.

“What do you want, Eddie?” Theo growls. “Money? I can give you some if you’ll shut the fuck up and leave Beacon Hills for good.”

“I’m just trying to catch up on current events, there’s no reason to get testy,” Eddie frowns innocently, and Theo looks like he’s about to have another rage fest if the pulsing vein in his forehead is anything to go by. “How’s your girlfriend, Liam?”

“We broke up when she moved away,” Liam responds quickly, seizing the opportunity to acknowledge he’s 100% single. “I’ve moved on. Like totally.”

“So happy you -”

His ears suddenly pick up an unusual sound.

“Shut up!” the beta interrupts, and when Eddie irritably opens his mouth to keep talking (and Liam doesn’t need heightened senses to discern Theo’s smugness), he hastily adds, “I hear something.”

The man’s mouth snaps closed, and he tilts his head to the side, all three of them straining their hearing to figure out what’s happening outside the room they were occupying.

“Hunters,” Liam and Eddie conclude at the same time, but Theo’s distracted by a second strange noise coming from somewhere much closer to them.

“Chaos?” Theo gasps, moving to kneel on the ground, his voice filled with so much hope that even Eddie pauses to observe the proceedings.

“Mew?”

“Oh my god!” Liam softly squeals, pressing his hands against his own cheeks as he looks down at the precious reborn kitten. “I LOVE her already, she’s so cute!”

“That one isn’t the people-eater, though, right?” Eddie warily asks, taking a step back.

“Interested in finding out?” Theo sarcastically replies, raising an eyebrow at the other man… any intent to appear threatening is crushed by how protectively the chimera holds the little ball of fluff to his chest.

“Yes, actually,” Eddie nods, appearing completely serious. “Because we have visitors who apparently aren’t going anywhere anytime soon, and a people-eating cat would solve the problem right away.”

“What’d you hear?” Liam questions, not liking how much unease was radiating off Eddie all of a sudden, the man shooting concerned looks at the expanse of wall that Liam knows is actually the door out to the Operating Theater.

“That there’s nothing down here, but no, there must be, and one said they won’t return to ‘the boss’ empty handed, so he hopes they packed enough snacks because it’s going to be a long night.” 

“I think there’s five,” Liam responds, struggling to stay focused when Theo is literally cuddling a kitten so tiny that it would fit perfectly in one of Lydia’s petite hands. “What if they get desperate and decide to start knocking down walls and find us?”

“They can’t,” Theo calmly assures the beta. “The Dread Doctors reinforced their secret rooms to ensure they wouldn’t accidentally be found, so it’s almost impossible unless they bring in dynamite or something along those lines. But then they risk collapsing the tunnels instead.” Liam’s about to remind the chimera that the pack found the Operating Theater when the boy seems to read his mind. “They didn’t care if someone found the Operating Theater because they never left any information out that someone else could take… and who would steal Mr. Douglas? Even if they somehow knew what he was used for, they still wouldn’t be able to transport him somewhere else before the Doctors returned.”

“Theo knows all this from personal experience,” Eddie smirks, raising an eyebrow at the chimera. “You were always so obnoxious when someone told you ‘no’ or denied you something you wanted, weren’t you?”

“What should we do?” Liam swiftly redirects when he hears Theo’s growling low in his throat, though his eyes are on the kitten nibbling his finger.

“We can wait them out,” Theo decides, glancing up at the other two. “Unless anyone’s in a hurry to leave? If so, I can have it handled it in a matter of minutes… what’s a few more bodies to add to my murder tally, right?”

Liam rolls his eyes skyward. “And you say you aren’t dramatic.”

“Well, I certainly have nowhere to be tonight,” Eddie shrugs, taking a seat on the ground and resting his back against one of the empty tanks. “And now you can fill me in on everything that’s happened lately.”

Liam glances over to Theo who sighs loudly but nods his head. “Thirty minutes for story time, and then we’re studying AP Bio, Liam. And you get to tell everything that’s happened while I find some food for Chaos.”

Chapter Text

“Theo,” Liam whines, dropping his forehead onto the chimera’s shoulder. “I’m hungry, my brain hurts, and my ass is numb from sitting on this stupid floor.”

“Wow, thanks for sharing,” Theo laughs, though he understands where the younger boy is coming from. 

It’s been three and a half fucking hours since they first heard the hunters, and there’s no sign of them leaving yet.

Liam mutters something rude under his breath, and the room drops into a heavy silence, each of them lost in their own thoughts.

“What’s wrong?” Theo eventually whispers, the smell of Liam’s distress becoming impossible to ignore. “We’re gonna be fine, Liam, I won’t let anything happen to you. This is my turf, not theirs, and a handful of hunters is a cakewalk.”

“It’s not that,” Liam mumbles, adjusting so his cheek rests on Theo’s shoulder, allowing him to speak more clearly. “I’m never gonna pass this midterm, Theo, and then Coach will bench me for the Devenford game and probably the rest of the season if Mrs. Martin gets her wish, and then Brett will steal my spot as Co-Captain, and then I won’t get into college because I’m banking on a lacrosse scholarship since my grades are trash, and then my step dad will somehow find out I’m a werewolf, probably when I fall into a fit of sad rage at my hopeless predicament and lose all semblance of control, and then he’ll divorce my mom because I’m a monster who hurts people and he’s a doctor who saves people, total opposites, and then my mom won’t be able to afford to send me to college, and Scott will be so fucking disappointed in me, and he’ll be forced to kick me out of the pack because I’ve brought great shame upon both my birth family and my supernatural family, and then Mason will go to UCLA with Corey and forget I ever existed, and you’ll go off to some fancy college on the east coast and also forget I ever existed, and Brett won’t want to associate with me anymore because I’m fucking pathetic, and he’ll make Alec his new werewolf bestie which is just…offensive, no disrespect to Alec, but then Alec will consider me a total loser and no longer look up to me even though we’re the closest in age. And I can’t handle all that, ya know?”

Theo blinks owlishly at the sheer amount of words Liam just spoke in one breath; he sees Eddie grinning broadly in front of him, sprawled out on the floor next to the tank he spent the last few years in. Thankfully, though, he keeps silent, probably sensing that if Liam catches onto his amusement, he’ll likely burst into tears. And that’s not something Theo can handle.

“Liam, I won’t let you fail,” Theo firmly reassures the boy, entwining their fingers together and squeezing it comfortingly. “I promise. And if somehow you do, then I’ll talk to Mrs. Finch. And Coach. And Mrs. Martin. And if none of that works, I’ll talk to Peter.”

“Oh god, not Peter,” Liam groans.

“Peter gets shit done,” Theo acknowledges with a half-shrug. He remembers something Liam did earlier that helped calm him down and returns the gesture, lightly kissing each knuckle on their joint hands while internally struggling to understand how this is something he can now do with the beta. “I’ll take care of it, Liam. Just do your best.”

Liam responds with three words that leave the chimera stunned. “I trust you.”

Theo remains silent; what words could he ever say that would encompass the sheer amazement and disbelief that such a statement makes him feel? 

Simple - there are none.

“What do you think they’re looking for?” Liam asks, nuzzling his face into the side of Theo’s neck again.

He’s not even sure if Liam realizes he’s doing it, but pretty much all day he’s been clinging onto Theo, combining their scents together in such an intoxicating way that Theo sometimes feels like he’s getting a contact high from it.

“Something to find other supernatural creatures with?” Eddie theorizes, his eyes closed as if he’s attempting to sleep (and how anyone could be tired after spending over a year straight stuck in a glass tank in a state of semi-slumber, Theo has no idea).

Aside from his antagonism in the beginning, Eddie’s been pretty cool about everything so far, a fact that has Theo fully keeping his guard up (he, personally, would have ZERO chill if he’d been stuck in a glass tank for half a decade, regardless of the awesome enhancements he got out of it in the end).

“Ooh, maybe,” Liam yawns, scooting impossibly closer to Theo. “Wake me when they leave.”

They’ve been sitting shoulder to shoulder with their legs extended in front of them and backs against the wall for hours - Theo’s been quizzing Liam for the last hour with a set of flashcards he found stuffed in one of his AP Bio books after reviewing several chapters in the book for the previous two hours. Liam didn’t do as poorly as he seems to think, but Theo is starting to understand the work he has cut out for him to ensure the beta passes… except now, Liam’s decided he’s done with studying and appears as if he’s attempting to climb onto Theo’s lap for a power nap.

Theo tentatively wraps his arm around Liam’s shoulder, and the beta takes that as permission to crawl fully onto the chimera with a sleepy sigh. He manages to wrap his legs around Theo’s waist, tucking his face into the chimera’s neck. Chaos stares unblinkingly at Liam for a minute on Theo’s other shoulder before yawning widely and settling in for a nap as well. 

He can still smell Liam’s worry, can feel his heart racing in his chest, his anxiety for the upcoming test evident even when Liam isn’t talking. Unsure of what to do now, the chimera randomly recalls witnessing a mother in a park lull her fussy child to sleep by running her hands through the child’s hair. Theo mimics the action, gently gliding his fingers through the long strands of Liam’s locks; he’s amazed by how fast the beta’s breathing evens out as he drifts off to sleep.

Theo leans his head back against the wall, allowing himself a few minutes to gather his thoughts. Truthfully, he’s torn over what to feel about everything that’s happened so far today.

On one hand, he told himself yesterday that having Liam down here in the tunnels with him would be better overall because he’d be forced to keep his emotions hidden, too ashamed to have a breakdown in front of the younger boy. And…that completely did not go his way at all (he’s unfortunately reminded of the DJ Khaled meme some kid showed him a few years ago that was like, ‘Congratulations, You Played Yourself’ because that is exactly what Theo ended up doing). 

Liam not only heard how the Geneticist scolded him for abandoning the Dread Doctors on his power quest against Scott McCall, but he watched Theo have a literal meltdown over her words by smashing her office to pieces. He’s never had that kind of temper tantrum, at least not since he came to live with the Dread Doctors. He’s horrified and humiliated that the one time he does, Liam’s there to witness every single second of it. It’s probably fucking karma for not going to the tunnels on his own, like he knew he should. Weakness has a price, and it’s one that even he cannot avoid paying.

But on the other hand… Liam didn’t seem to be bothered by his emotional whirlwind, something Theo can hardly comprehend. When Theo seemed upset during the initial letter reading, Liam paused to comfort him or ask questions so he could understand how the chimera was feeling. When Theo blew through the office like a scorned child, Liam stepped back to avoid getting in the way, but otherwise occupied himself until Theo finished his petty fit of anger (and somehow discovered another secret room in the process). And in that moment, Theo honestly thought the beta was scared of him because of his breakdown which is why his heart was beating so fast, but Liam vehemently denied that was the case, his heart rate slowing during the explanation, never once doing anything that would indicate he was lying.

And speaking of lying, if ANYONE else besides Liam had told Theo they didn’t talk to him in school for months because on his first day back they looked like a mess and didn’t want him to see them, the chimera would absolutely never buy such a flimsy excuse. But Liam appeared genuinely sincere throughout his bizarre confession, and though he refused to admit it outright, Theo had taken that incident as a personal diss and proceeded to avoid the beta in the halls whenever he could. He’s not sure why Liam cares if Theo sees him looking like a ‘mess’, but the chimera’s not one to judge people for their own personal hang ups.

But naturally, as they are known to do, their argument over whether or not Theo also avoided him turned physical, except Liam shocked Theo to the core by slapping his cheek instead of throwing the usual punch. And how the fuck that hurt more than a fist to the face, Theo will NEVER understand. 

He’s barely started to think about the incident that happened right after the slap before his heart rate starts to rise; Theo takes a slow, deep breath, trying to calm his elevated pulse before it accidentally wakes Liam up.

Theo still can't figure out why the younger boy started acting differently towards him over the last several days, though. Liam did mention on the way to the Operating Theater that on Friday he decided Theo will pay him ‘the attention he rightfully deserves.’ Where the fuck does Theo even begin to analyze such a baffling statement? Liam avoided him in school, yes, but in pack meetings or while out on patrol, the beta is usually glued to his side, so that part isn’t too much of a change. The casual touching, however, the hand holding, and the…fuck, the Liam’s lips connecting with Theo’s skin (his cheeks and the bleeding palms of his hands count, okay?) are totally out of nowhere. And Liam passionately declaring he wants to know the ‘real Theo’?... fuck, that had almost made him lean forward to kiss him right then and there (not that he EVER would cross that line with Liam - he knows better, though he still wishes he could). The other more rational part of himself had half a mind at the time to be like ‘Well, get in line, because I’d like to know the real Theo, too, whoever the fuck that guy is.’

Theo likes these changes, sure, but they make him nervous, too; what’s Liam’s angle? What is he hoping to gain from this change of the status quo? The chimera’s not narcissistic enough to think Liam has something so ridiculous as a crush on him… was this a rebellion against Scott? Or is he just lonely and has been single for too long? And, obviously, Theo’s easier to flirt with than a stranger since Liam’s familiar with him, and it’s clear Theo’s single and not talking to anyone either. Theo’s sisters think Liam was jealous of Faye’s closeness with him, but the chimera has a hard time accepting that to be the case. If Liam’s going to have a crush on a guy all of a sudden, why would he pick Theo of all people? As much as he loathes to admit it, Brett made way more sense.

Liam’s a decent person, so Theo’s pretty confident the beta’s change in behavior isn’t malicious, but he doesn’t discount this possibility either… just puts it to the bottom of the list.

But the fucking Dread Doctors almost threw him under the proverbial bus by ‘vaguely’ mentioning his crush on Liam in their goodbye letter, or whatever the fuck that long message was. He thinks he was quick enough to attribute their words to Scott, and even though Liam seemed a little skeptical, he’s pretty sure the beta won’t question it further…except they had to go the extra mile to make the Stasis Room keypad code Liam’s fucking birthday, god damn, why must he suffer such embarrassing teenage dramas? At their hands, no less!

Fuck, Theo will cross that bridge if it ever comes up…he’s got too much other shit to worry about at the moment.

Like the letter…just another mind fuck about today that Theo’s not sure how he feels about. He’s always been closer to the Geneticist than the other Doctors, but he can’t believe how her last words addressed so many of the things he obsessed and worried over while growing up. He’d seen how easily they could get rid of other experiments, basically in the blink of an eye with minimal work on their part, and he pushed and pushed himself over the years to avoid suffering the same fate. Had she truly cared about him? Or was this one last manipulation on their part? Sure, he’d usually see them manipulate other people, but wasn’t it the whole point of successful manipulation that the person being manipulated had no idea? Theo always found it strange that for all his insolence since returning to Beacon Hills, they never moved to terminate him. Yeah, they said some harsh things, and they defended themselves if he got in their way, but Theo knows they could have killed him if they wanted to. He’s not stupid or naïve, he’s well aware what they’re capable of. But they didn’t…did that mean something? Theo has assumed until now that it just meant they didn’t think he was a match for them, that he’d never succeed in disrupting their work in any meaningful way, but now he’s not sure. (He knows he needs to read the other papers in the envelope to see what things the Surgeon and the Pathologist purposefully misled him on, but he’s not stupid enough to do it here. Just from the one part Liam has already told him, Theo KNOWS he’s going to be livid as fuck when he finishes the entire document.)

And it’s nice that they left him a lot of money, he does appreciate it (but also feels like a fucking idiot for not coming down here earlier, but hell, would he had found that room on his own? Who knows). But the fact that the Geneticist preserved Chaos for him after all these years and left him the green serum to revive her? He probably would have sobbed if he stopped for a moment to consider the gesture, his excitement pushing him to get to the Stasis Room as fast as possible, with no time to think about how insane it is that she could be reborn after all these years (okay, to be fair, he created her when he was 16, and she was alive around four months before she caused one too many lab accidents and was ‘terminated’).

After the events of the last few days, he feels like he’s living in an alternate dimension. Is this how Liam feels when he’s in AP Bio? Because Theo understands nothing that’s going on lately, and he fucking hates it.

“You know…he’s right,” Eddie whispers, jerking Theo out of his thoughts. The older boy (man?) shifts onto his stomach, pillows his chin on his crossed arms, his eyes focused solely on Liam and Theo sitting together.

Theo silently tilts his head to the side, hoping Eddie properly interprets it as ‘what the fuck are you talking about?’

“You are different.”

“Okay, and?” Theo scathingly responds, because it’s been five years since Eddie’s last spent time with him; of course he’s changed, it’s called growing up.

It physically pains him to think about all the things Eddie must know about him, though… younger-Theo liked to work through his problems by pacing and talking aloud, and it (illogically) helped to have an audience…especially an audience that he knew would never see the outside of the tanks again, except when the Dread Doctors were poking and prodding at them. He never counted on anyone surviving, an egregious oversight on his part. Though, seriously, it freaks Theo out that the man did survive without the Dread Doctors around. How fucking strong was this guy now? The chimera, regrettably, does believe the man is telling the truth about the overhaul on his Stasis Tank, but still, he shouldn’t have been able to last so long in there without the Doctors around to do maintenance. And what exactly is Eddie planning to do now that he’s free?

“You truly care for him… I did not think you capable of such emotions,” Eddie admits with a half-shrug.

Theo rolls his eyes, struggling to keep his heart rate under control. “He saved me, remember? What do you expect?”

Eddie blinks at him. “Technically, you've each saved me, and I do not care about either of you.”

“Maybe you’re a shitty person," he huffs.

Eddie laughs loudly, and Theo scowls at the man when Liam shifts in his sleep. “Perhaps that is why I agreed to teach a cocky, pretentious 14 year old how to drive a car when I knew he was way too young to handle such a responsibility. Did you ever pass an official driving test?”

Theo winces at the reminder of the brutal accident he endured due to his own stupidity. “I have passed the driving test of every state we’ve lived in or visited since I legally turned 16.”

Eddie cocks an eyebrow. “So, what, two different tests?”

“Try twenty-two different state driving tests,” Theo scoffs, lifting his nose in the air. The Geneticist was NEVER going to allow him on the road without putting him through a litany of different experiments to ‘ensure his competence had increased', an endeavor the other two Doctors fully supported, most likely because they weren’t foolish enough to incur her wrath by disagreeing with her methods. She could give Scott and Stiles a run for their money when it came to being the most ridiculous helicopter faux-parent in the world. 

Eddie’s mouth drops open in surprise. “I do not know why that shocks me when I know quite well how she fussed over you.” Theo’s face must show his doubt. “Please, Theo, you are not the only one who vents to work out your issues. And I am a great listener and superb advice giver. Did you know I was going for my Bachelor’s in Psychology before everything happened?”

Oh god, so Eddie knows shit about Theo from his own idiotic rambles AND from the Geneticist herself?

Fuck.

Theo’s going to have to kill this dude, there’s no way around it.

(Besides, it’s weird as fuck that Eddie is probably 25 years old on paper, but with excessive amount of time he spent in the Stasis Room, he barely looks older than when Theo first met him, meaning he looks marginally older than Theo himself does now. He’s not sure why something so trivial unsettles him as much as it does, but ick.)

The chimera searches for a topic change; he’ll plan the murder later when he has some space to truly think without interruption. Considering the guy immediately tried to rip Liam’s throat out when Liam himself pushed the red button to free him, Theo’s hopeful the beta won’t give a damn about the extremely necessary killing. Or maybe he’ll believe Theo when he says Eddie left Beacon Hills to start a new life elsewhere, and then he won’t have to worry about how Liam will react knowing Theo killed someone…again, ugh. “We can’t stay here all night, we need to figure something out.”

“It’s been too long since I’ve gotten to stretch my wings,” Eddie decides, raising himself into a seated position. “I’ll take them out, and then we can dump their bodies somewhere else.”

Theo raises an eyebrow at the man. “And you say I’m the murderer?!”

Fucking hypocrites everywhere.

Eddie shakes his head, an amused smile crossing his, admittedly, handsome face (Theo’s somewhat surprised younger-Theo didn’t have a crush on him… especially when he learned what type of supernatural creature he was… but then again, younger-Theo never had eyes for anyone until Liam came into the picture). “I meant knock them out and take them somewhere else to wake up.”

“Sure you did," Theo grumbles. He takes a moment to consider the proposed idea; he’s sure Liam and himself could easily handle the hunters without much trouble (and the idea of hunters lurking down here has huge red flags going up in his brain), but he selfishly wants to see Eddie in action. The Dread Doctors never let him observe the other man shift as part of his punishment for his recklessness, one of the rare times they denied him knowledge. “And fine, you have fun with that. But they can’t see any of us coming out of one of these hidden rooms. I don’t know what they’re hoping to find, but we CANNOT let them think there’s still stuff here.”

Eddie glances towards Theo and then back to the part of the wall where the ‘door’ was. “Sure, sounds good, except for the part where I can’t walk through walls, Theo.”

Theo bites his lip, and his eyes sweep the room in search of a viable solution.

“The vent.”

Eddie turns his head to follow the path of Theo’s eyes. 

“Not a bad idea,” Eddie nods, and Theo’s mildly offended by the note of surprise in his voice, like he didn’t think it was possible for Theo to have good ideas. Theo has GREAT ideas, okay?! They just don’t always work out due to the actions of other people, which Theo has no control over, so it’s not his fault. He’s a genius.

Wait, he’s missed an important consideration.

Theo narrows his eyes. “Do you have control after you shift? Can you even shift on your own? Hell, do you have the energy to shift, all things considered?”

“Yes, yes, and yes,” Eddie boasts, standing up and working himself through several light stretches. 

To be fair, Theo’s just watched Eddie demolish a dozen high protein bars specifically designed by the Dread Doctors for quick pick-me-ups when food wasn’t an option for whatever reason, so he should be okay in that regard. But the control part made Theo cautious; he remembers several different instances where he came home after the Doctors gave him permission to return to find the Operating Theater in shambles after their experiments on Eddie. Theo assumed it was because the man was pissed about being captured, but the Geneticist would occasionally update him on their progress when she was in a good mood; she informed him Eddie wasn’t lured by the pull of the moon like most supernatural creatures, but when he shifted, the animal part of him overtook his human side, and they struggled to get him to learn control. Theo wants to balk at the older man not knowing how to control his shift by this point, but a small part of his brain acknowledges that Eddie had no fucking clue he was anything other than fully human before Theo’s car accident, but even then, he never partially shifted again (let alone fully shifted) until the Dread Doctors started working with him.

Well, if this guy gets himself killed in the process of taking down the hunters, then it sure saves Theo a fuck ton of work.

“You’re going to have to wake up sleeping beauty.” Eddie nods towards Liam who is still soundly asleep on Theo’s chest.

Ugh, Theo hates the idea of disrupting the snoozing boy, but his back is killing him from sitting in the same position for so long, and he also doesn’t want to allow Eddie to rampage across the Operating Theater without supervision.

“Hey, Liam, wake up.” Theo lightly shakes the boy. “We have a plan.”

“Woo,” Liam sleepily cheers, nestling his face further into Theo’s neck. “Go team.”

“You’re on the team.” Theo runs his hands down Liam’s back, hoping maybe the added contact will wake the younger boy up.

When Liam lets out a content sigh, Theo realizes he’s fucked.

“Holy shit, is that a dragon?” Eddie whisper-yells, which is fucking stupid in Theo’s educated opinion, because these ‘secret rooms’ were fully soundproof (for humans at least), and where the hell would they fit a dragon in such close quarters?

Liam jerks awake, his eyes scanning the room excitedly. “Where?!”

“God, that was easy,” Eddie laughs, brushing a hand through his tangled hair (Theo’s morbidly curious to know how long it’s been since the man’s had a shower). “Theo was having such a hard time waking you up that I thought I’d help out.”

“Telling a guy there’s a dragon around when there isn’t is fucking wrong!” Liam hisses, twisting his head to glare at Eddie but making no move to get off Theo. “I hope you’re ashamed of yourself.”

“Devastated,” Eddie sarcastically agrees with a nod.

“So, what’s this ingenious plan?” Liam mumbles, placing his cheek back on Theo’s shoulder, an action that is not helping motivate him to get this shit over with.

“Eddie wants to shift and go out there to knock the hunters out, then we drag their unconscious bodies somewhere else,” Theo succinctly explains.

“Basically, the usual fuck shit up plan and then figure the rest out later?” Liam sighs, his warm breath ghosting across Theo’s neck, and the chimera forces down a shiver at the feeling.

“Exactly,” Eddie shrugs, though Liam can’t see.

Liam finally climbs off Theo and stands up; he holds a hand out, tugs Theo to his feet, and then keeps their fingers loosely locked together.

“So, I finally get to see what mysterious being you are?” Liam tries to appear casual, but Theo knows him well enough to see the eager anticipation underneath. “I’m leaning towards something like Zapados, but damn…Mewtwo is the only logical conclusion.”

Eddie stares blankly at him. “You think there’s logic in that statement?”

“You get the reference, though, yes?” Liam huffs, dropping Theo’s hand to defensively cross his arms over his chest.

“Sadly,” Eddie sighs, shaking his head.

“We ready?” Theo glances expectantly between the two, trying to get this ‘adventure’ back on track.

“How is he supposed to crawl through the vent and drop down along the edge of the Operating Theater without catching the hunters’ attention?” Liam asks, a solid point neither Theo nor Eddie thought of. “They’ve had at least two people poking around right outside this whole time.”

“We need a distraction,” Eddie notes, his eyes darting around the room searching for an idea. “Unless someone fancies being the bait?”

“No.” A vicious grin forms on Theo’s face at his sudden epiphany. “We need Chaos.”

Liam groans loudly, placing a hand on his hip. “Okay, but even if we can get her in the vent, how is she supposed to open the grate on the other side and survive the ten foot drop to the ground? Is she like Spider-Cat and can stick to walls?”

“Don’t worry about it, she can do it,” Theo answers dismissively. He turns proudly to his baby. “Can’t you, girl?”

“Mrow!” Chaos chirps back, shaking out her silky fur in preparation for battle.

“Oh my god,” Liam squeals, his irritable mood crumbling under the weight of four pounds of pure cuteness. He gently picks up the kitten and uses a finger to tickle under her chin. “I love her, we can’t put her in danger. I’ll be the bait, I’m sure I can fit in the vent with no problem.”

(Theo bites the inside of his cheek, and he sees Eddie turn on his heel at the statement so his face isn’t visible; neither of them wanted to point out that if they were 100% sure that the much larger Eddie could fit, then probably two or three Liam’s could just as easily squeeze in there.)

“Liam,” Theo sighs, “trust me, she can take care of herself.”

“Mew!” Chaos lifts her tiny nose haughtily in the air, because if nothing else, she is definitely Theo’s child.

Liam frowns, his torn feelings clearly displayed across his face. But Theo gets it, he truly does. Chaos is adorable and tiny, so why wouldn’t he have doubts? 

Theo’s sure that once Liam sees her in action, though, he’ll understand the chimera’s confidence.

“Ugh, fine,” Liam relents with a huff. “But ya know, she’s going to need two parents if you want her to grow up strong, healthy, and well-rounded.”

“Are you volunteering?” Theo laughs, rolling his eyes at the beta’s ridiculousness.

“Yes!” Liam beams, holding Chaos lovingly to his chest, letting the kitten nibble on his finger (a habit Theo didn’t really want Chaos picking up, but considering Theo allowed it himself, he’s going to have to squash that firmly pretty soon). “I volunteer as tribute!”

“Okay, relax, Katniss Everdeen, we’ll figure it out later.” Liam opens his mouth to argue, so Theo quickly continues on. “And, no, we are not splitting custody - she stays with me.”

“But, Theo.” Liam’s whine is so pathetic that it causes physical pains in Theo’s chest, fuck. “I love her!”

The chimera’s actually grateful when Eddie interrupts because he doesn’t know how to respond other than give Liam exactly what he wants…but Theo also doesn’t want Liam to be used as bait nor does he want Chaos to stay at Liam’s house without him, so he would have faced quite the conundrum otherwise.

“When you two are done with your custody dispute, can we get this show on the road?”

Theo rolls his eyes but holds an expectant hand out to Liam.

“Good luck, Little Miss, Daddy Liam believes in you.” Liam rubs his nose against the kitten’s nose, the feline purring happily in response…Theo’s forced to watch the cute display from out of his peripheral vision, because, fuck, he cannot look that head on without suffering from heart failure in the process. “Let Chaos Reign!”

“Jesus Christ, you two… no three, are perfect for each other,” Eddie groans, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Of course we are,” Liam sniffs pretentiously. But he finally holds the kitten out for Theo to take, so the chimera calls it a win. “Jealousy is a disease, get well soon.”

“You got the grate handled?” Theo interrupts, staring pointedly at Eddie.

Eddie shakes his head at them but grabs an empty wooden box of god knows what from the back of the room, using it as a stepping stool to quietly remove the screws from the vent grate on their side of the room - now is not the time to make noise.

“Remember, no killing people,” Theo firmly reminds the chimera kitten, making sure his voice is loud enough so Eddie can clearly hear it. “Got it?”

“Shocked, but yes,” Eddie laughs, and Chaos excitedly meows her understanding.

“Alright, Chaos, you know what to do.” Theo allows Eddie to take the kitten from him, the other man carefully hoisting himself into the vent to follow after her.

Chapter Text

“What are we supposed to do?” Liam turns towards Theo expectantly. “Sit here and hope for the best?”

“Fuck no,” Theo scoffs, holding a hand out to Liam; he smiles when the beta entwines their fingers without question. “We’re gonna watch.”

Theo keeps their hands locked as Liam steps onto the box Eddie positioned below the vent. “You need a lift up?”

Liam frowns, glancing between the vent high above their heads and the ground below. “If I push off against this box to jump, I’m worried it’ll break.”

Theo eyes the shorter boy up and down, unable to prevent his lips from lifting into a smirk. “No worries, I can toss you up there if you’d prefer? The cheerleaders do it all the time.”

The beta roughly shoves his shoulder. “That will probably be worse.”

“I can make it from the ground to the vent,” Theo assures the shorter boy. “It’ll be fine if the box breaks.”

After going back and forth a few more times, Liam jumps and successfully shimmies into the vent without crushing the box, and Theo smoothly follows after. It’s a tight squeeze, but there’s space for the two of them to fit shoulder-to-shoulder on their stomachs with enough wiggle room for them to crawl forward somewhat easily.

Eddie is positioned a few yards ahead of them in the vent, blocking their view of the Operating Theater while he waits for Chaos’s distraction. Theo makes the mistake of looking at the bottom of the man’s bare feet, and holy shit, Theo’s throwing him into any body of water they come across the second they’re done with this shit show - he wants to barf looking at the sheer amount of dirt and who knows what else stuck to his feet.

“What’s wrong?” Theo asks when he realizes Liam’s body has gone rigid next to him, the beta’s head cocked slightly to the side.

“Huh?” Liam flinches when the chimera impatiently taps him on the shoulder after not receiving a response for over a minute.

Theo frowns, wondering if Liam is having second thoughts about this plan. “What’s your deal?”

“Nothing,” Liam dismissively claims, staring straight ahead.

“Liam.”

“There might be rats in here!” Liam squawks, still not looking at Theo when he speaks. The chimera notices how the beta's human nails are digging into his palm, a pulsing vein visible in his neck. “They’re gross and unsanitary, and my whole experience with them last semester was slightly traumatizing, but no worries, I’m fine… unless I suddenly see a rat, and then I will NOT be fine at all… so, uh, yeah, you’ve been warned, say no to rats.”

Eddie glances back towards them with a raised eyebrow, and Theo doesn’t miss the way Liam minutely inclines his head to the man, their eyes locked firmly together, unblinking.

“Uh huh, whatever… Okay, both of you plug your ears and count to ten… slowly,” Theo advises the pair. He’s not sure why they’re acting weird all of a sudden, but he doesn’t have time to worry about it now. “When you reach ten, then you can stop.” He waits until they each do as they're instructed before letting out a long, sharp whistle that's inaudible to the human ears, something the Geneticist taught him 'just in case'.

Within seconds, there’s a thunderous, enraged roar outside the Operating Theater doors that shakes the enter place.

“What the fuck was that?!” Liam hisses, the sour scent of his fear making Theo want to sneeze.

“Uh, Chaos?” he responds slowly, confused by the question. What else would it be?

“You’re telling me a four pound kitten I can hold with like, three fingers, can roar that loudly?” Liam challenges, shaking his head. They watch Eddie exit the vent with a little wave behind him. “I don’t think Scott can roar that loudly!” 

“Scott isn’t a chimera I created,” Theo huffs, feeling defensive. Did Liam really think Chaos was nothing more than a tiny, adorable kitten? He’s pretty sure he doesn’t even know all that the chimera cat is capable of, and Theo made her himself!

Liam flashes his golden eyes in response to Theo’s prickly tone. “Dude, what the fuck did you mix her with?”

Theo shrugs as much as he can in the tight space. “A little bit of this, a little bit of that.”

“And a little bit of Chemical X, right, Professor Utonium?” Liam grumbles. “You’re the fucking worst, I swear.”

Theo blinks at the beta. “Did you just make…a Powerpuff Girls reference?”

“And if I did?” Liam tilts his nose in the air, and Theo rolls his eyes, because, seriously?

They army crawl the rest of the way through the vent, and Theo ‘accidentally’ elbows Liam in the side when he gets slightly ahead of him (the retaliating jab was probably not worth the fleeting satisfaction Theo felt from his original petty action, because holy shit, Liam has some pointy elbows).

“Uh, is he going to scare them away by streaking across the Operating Theater?” Liam inquires, his tone dripping with a mixture of uncertainty and disbelief at Eddie quickly removing his clothes. He’s the only occupant in the room, as the hunters ran off to locate the source of the roar. “I suppose that would be frightening in general, but especially if they’re homophobes.”

“No,” Theo quietly responds, unable to hide his amusement. “He doesn’t want to rip his clothes when he shifts.”

“But I thought your clothes shifted with you?” Liam tilts his head, and Theo’s enamored by how adorable the beta looks while he’s trying to solve a puzzle.

“That’s actually a hard skill to learn after you manage to shift -”

Liam narrows his eyes at the chimera. “You can do it, though, I’ve seen you.” He blinks after a moment and then shakes his head. “You know what, never mind, you would be super extra and learn the additional shit that comes with it. Forgot how much of an overachieving showoff you are.”

The chimera smirks, pleased by how Liam bragged about Theo’s exceptional abilities all on his own. “Now, now, Liam, resentment is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die.”

“Isn’t that a Carrie Fisher quote?”

Theo’s about to respond when another roar rocks the vent they’re hiding in.

“HOLY SHIT!” Liam gasps when he sees what made the sound this time, the boy clutching Theo’s arm like a lifeline. “That’s… that’s a fucking griffin?!”

Eddie’s supernatural form is honestly one of the coolest fucking things Theo’s ever seen in his entire life; his body is that of a lion, with the same back clawed paws and tail. His head, beak, and wings are the same as an eagle, along with his two taloned front legs. The griffin is even bigger than Eddie’s human form, easily the same size as a fully grown elephant. On paper, an eagle and a lion sound like a bizarre combination, but the being in front of him is simply…majestic.

“I was going to throw you down into the pit if you called him a Hippogriff,” Theo teases, glancing away from the griffin beginning his quest to fight the hunters, four of them running back into the room after Eddie’s roar. He’s surprised when the vent fills with the acrid scent of Liam’s anger.

Liam juts his chin out, his blue eyes simmering. “I fucking told you I know my mythology, Theo!”

“I know!” Theo rushes to clarify, sensing the danger he’s foolishly put himself in. He anxiously bites his lip, hoping he hasn’t offended the beta too badly. “I know you’re smart, Liam. I’m just joking, I promise.”

“Oh,” Liam breathes. In the close distance, Theo can see flecks of gray in the blue of Liam’s irises, and he almost laughs at the absurdity - Liam has everything, is everything, that Theo could ever dream of. “I see.”

The beta’s eyes trail down Theo’s face, coming to an abrupt halt when they reach his mouth.

“Yeah,” Theo whispers, his own tongue unconsciously peeking out to wet his bottom lip. "Sorry."

Liam’s eyes drift back up to meet his gaze, but within seconds, they’re gliding down again, and holy shit, when did they both start moving their heads closer, holy shit, holy shit is this really happening, but, wait, maybe Theo should let Liam close the distance to play it safe in case he’s somehow read this horribly wrong, except Liam’s now tilting his head to the side so maybe he will lean forward the rest of the way…Theo inhales a quick breath in anticipation for something to happen when a pained roar has them jerking apart, Liam accidentally smacking his head on the side of the vent.

“Uh, since when do griffins have a horn like a unicorn?” Liam’s mouth drops open at the havoc Eddie is reeking below in the Operating Theater. 

“Hmm, that’s new,” Theo hums, returning his attention to the chaotic scene below. He struggles to ignore the sound of his own heart pounding in his ears and prays Liam doesn’t notice how hot Theo’s face is getting after that. “Well, I think it’s new, I honestly have never seen him shift before.”

There’s still only four hunters in the Operating Theater with Eddie… well, three living hunters are with him, because it looks like the fourth has a gaping hole in his neck as if an abnormally large bird jabbed him with their beak. The river of blood coating the ground is a clear indicator that Eddie doesn't have as much control as he led Theo to believe. Or maybe he lied about not wanting to kill the hunters?

Either way, one of the five hunters is not making it out of the tunnels alive.

“Ooh…and that’s definitely a kill shot,” Liam winces as the next hunter goes down. He eyes Theo with trepidation, and the chimera braces himself, ready for the beta to blame him for the deaths (as if a horned-griffin stabbing a man in the head with the retractable appendage the Dread Doctors likely added to him was somehow Theo’s fault, but whatever). “Is it… um, I don’t really feel bad about it?”

Okay, well, Theo didn’t expect that…

Theo considers the beta’s uncharacteristically harsh sentiment, smells the scent of his satisfaction clouding the entire vent, and his eyes narrow. “Why?”

“What do you mean, why ?” Liam scowls, glaring at the chimera.

“I mean,” Theo huffs, glaring right back and ignoring the sounds of gunshots below, “why are you glad two of the five random hunters we have never seen before today are dead?”

Liam gives Theo a scathing look. “They’re hunters…what more reason do I need?”

“One that makes sense!” Theo hisses, waving his hand as he talks.

Seriously, this is not normal Liam behavior, and Theo wants to know why he’s acting like this.

“Well, YOU don’t make sense, so take that!” Liam childishly argues back as the third hunter slams head first into a wall after a vicious kick from Eddie’s hind legs.

“You’re not murderous until someone threatens or hurts your friends. So, I’ll ask again. What did they do to upset you?”

Liam refuses to make eye contact and doesn’t respond, and Theo’s about to repeat his question when his ears suddenly pick up a pulsing hum of electricity. Seconds later, Eddie’s agonizing scream freezes the blood in Theo’s veins.

The griffin collapses in a pained heap in the center of the room, and the last hunter watches emotionlessly as the enormous creature convulses at his feet. Theo can’t even begin to fathom how many volts the taser wand hit Eddie with if one strike could cause such a strong creature like that to crumble completely to the ground. 

A small part of Theo’s brain whispers that this is the perfect scenario for him; Eddie will die once the hunter hits him with a second shock, so Theo doesn’t have to worry about him causing any issues moving forward, the chimera can effortlessly take down the two remaining hunters (assuming the other living one hasn’t fled), and then he can be on his merry way with Liam at his side, putting this entire incident behind them. Nice and simple, every loose end tied up.

“Should we-“

Theo’s already dropped from the vent and crossed the room before Liam makes it halfway through his sentence.

He grabs the hunter’s arm in a vice grip before he can land a second shock onto the now-human Eddie. The hunter twists towards him, his eyes instantly lighting up with recognition. 

“Well, look who we have here,” the gray-haired hunter drawls, a wicked smile forming on his scarred face. “The man of the hour. Or boy, I guess...bit hard to tell with you abominations.”

…what? Are they down here looking for him? Ah, no, wait, if they haven’t found anything yet, they probably assume Theo will tell them all he knows if they torture him a bit. A logical conclusion, except Theo would rather die than hand any of the information gathered by the Dread Doctors over the last few centuries to hunters. Yeah, no fucking way.

The man fiddles with something on the device, and Theo’s bewildered when the jarring hum of electricity lowers to the more typical level he’s familiar with hearing. He face-palms on the inside, because, duh, he can’t tell them anything if he’s dead, and there’s no way Theo would survive a single hit at that high of a voltage.

“Drop it!” Theo growls around his fangs, shoving the older man into the wall (seriously, do hunters ever retire? He looks maybe five years younger than Gerard did, and both of them would be retired from the general workforce at their age). “Drop it, and just maybe I’ll let you live.”

“Yeah, how about…no,” the hunter chuckles darkly, his eyes fixated on Theo like a starving animal would stare at its next meal. “The boss wants to meet ya, so I’m afraid you’re comin’ with me, sweetheart. And if you cooperate, I’m sure you’ll get treated real nice.”

He’s pretty sure he won’t, but Theo knows pointing that fact out will only be a waste of his time.

Theo and the man begin struggling back and forth, the chimera begrudgingly impressed by the man’s strength even though he’s currently trying to zap Theo with the taser wand, something he’d rather not experience again if he can avoid it, thanks.

The chimera is about to unsheathe his claws into the man’s wrist when suddenly the hunter’s arm gives way, and Theo watches in horror as the wand connects with the hunter's body directly over his heart. The man convulses for a few seconds before collapsing onto the ground at Theo’s feet.

Theo listens intently for a heartbeat, strains his hearing to its limits in search of one, stares unblinkingly at the man’s chest in hopes of seeing it rise and fall, prays to any deity that exists that he finds an indication that this man is still alive, screams and shouts and cries in his head when he doesn’t get one. Wait, no, something must be wrong, no human should die that easily from one electric shock, it is not Theo’s fault, it’s not, he didn’t mean to kill him, so how can he be dead?

It’s not Theo’s fault. It was self-defense. He was saving someone in the process, someone supernatural. How many of their kind will now get to live because there’s one less hunter in the world?

It’s not his fault.

He knows it, he does.

But he also knows he’ll still be the one to pay the price. 

Doesn’t matter that Eddie killed three people, he doesn’t have a body count working against him.

But Theo does. He’s got a closet full of them. And he’s never felt bad about a single death until now… not because of the life he took, no, he’s still too selfish for that, but because of what it means he’s going to lose as a result.

He can hear the sound of Liam rushing over to them, but Theo can’t manage the energy to move. Or say something. Or really do much of anything.

Everything he has achieved over the last few months, everything he has somehow been granted, everything he was starting to hope he could have is about to be…gone. 

Just like that. 

He’ll be lucky if he keeps his own life after Scott finds out what he did. And if he does somehow decide to spare Theo’s life, he’s pretty much guaranteed to be spending the rest of his years behind bars… or in fucking Eichen House.

“Do you think he’s dead?” Liam anxiously asks, biting his lip. He glances between the unmoving hunter, a naked Eddie dragging himself into a seated position after tearing his talons out of the hunter’s leg, and the shell-shocked chimera. “Theo?”

Theo’s not sure why Liam is asking him…there’s clearly no fourth heart beat in the room with them.

And it’s not… it’s not FAIR that Theo’s about to lose everything because of this one stupid hunter.

All because someone Theo hardly knows can’t control himself after shifting.

He should have let Eddie die.

…he couldn’t let him die, god damnit, and that pisses him off more than anything.

“YOU SAID YOU HAD CONTROL!” Theo roars, twisting his body away from the dead man to glare down at Eddie.

“I did.” Eddie raises his head, staring impassively at Theo. His entire body is covered in bloody wounds, though he’s lucky as the bullets don’t seem to contain wolfsbane. “And I do.”

Theo’s eye twitches. “So… you… that means… it means you murdered these hunters on purpose?!” 

“Theo, calm down.” Liam places a hand on Theo’s shoulder. “He did what he had to do.”

The chimera gapes at the younger boy. “How can you defend this?! We had a plan. It was a good one, if he STUCK TO IT. And nowhere in that plan did it say anything about killing people!”

Why can no one ever go along with Theo’s plans? It’s one thing when they don’t know about his own personal schemes, but this one was known.

“Plans change,” Eddie unapologetically remarks, wincing slightly after trying to move his shoulders in some semblance of a shrug.

“They were going to Plan B,” Liam hurriedly explains. He steps in front of Theo to block his view of the injured griffin, probably noticing Theo’s claws sliding out…damn, when did that happen? With a shake of his hand, the chimera’s human fingernails return. “The hunters. They wanted to capture you.”

“That’s logical, they want me to spill the beans on all the secrets of the Dread Doctors’ secret lair because they couldn’t find anything.” Theo shrugs, still unable to understand why Liam of all people is defending Eddie’s actions. “Don’t think that’s a MURDERABLE offense, though, Liam, WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?”

“They were going to torture you!” Liam screams, his nostrils flaring. “That is NOT okay, Theo!”

“Assuming they could actually capture me!” Theo indignantly points out, stepping to the side so he can see both Eddie and Liam when he speaks. 

“You didn’t hear them,” Eddie mumbles, sharing an uneasy look with Liam. “It was…”

“They said their ‘boss’ would keep you as his own personal pet after they got information out of you, because, and I quote, ‘the boss can’t let something that delectable go to waste, not when he has several excellent uses for it.’”

And, okay, that is a creepy statement, he’ll give them that. But it’s still not something to lose his place in the pack over! 

They think they’re protecting him, and yet all they’ve managed to accomplish is ruining everything he has worked for.

Neither of them will pay for what happened down here, Theo’s sure of it.

But he will. He will pay for all of it with everything he has.

Fuck, he needs to do something before he snaps.

“Help Eddie,” Theo commands hollowly, already walking away. “Go into the Stasis Room, you can use the vent, and you’ll find a first aid kit in the cubby above his tank.”

“Where are you going, Theo?” Liam shakily asks. “Theo?”

“I need to find Chaos,” he discloses just before the door to the Operating Theater shuts behind him, putting a physical barrier between him and the product of his failure. He shouldn’t have let Eddie handle the hunters on his own, Theo knew better than to trust him. And then to have Liam supporting the griffin’s rash actions because the hunters made a few disturbing comments about Theo?!…

Fuck, fuck, FUCK, he can’t do this.

He needs to do this.

He’s not sure what to do.

He’s great at lying, he can figure it out.

Theo inhales deeply, struggling to calm his frenzied mind. He should stop to think, not let his emotions control him. He should, he tries, but he still can’t...fucking…think!

Instead, he walks aimlessly through the tunnels, his mind adrift, searching for the only thing he’ll have left after this - Chaos.

The Geneticist was right about one thing; he’s not like the average supernatural creature who’s influenced by the pull of the moon, who needs to learn control to keep from accidentally shifting. Very rarely does he partially shift without meaning to… before today, he can’t remember the last time that happened to him (not counting the other night when alcohol was involved). So, Theo’s never needed an anchor, not like a “real” werewolf.

But somehow, he found himself with one anyways, a person he can think of when his emotions get the better of him. Not to prevent him from accidentally shifting, but someone who unknowingly reminds him of what it means to be good. Not perfect, because they definitely have their flaws and Theo’s not blind to them, but someone who shows him that life can be more than just power and status.

Liam. He’s going to lose Liam on top of everything, and that hurts more than losing his place in the pack, something he’s wanted almost his entire life.

An image flashes to the forefront of his mind; the first time Theo saw Liam in the hallway at school when he was scouting out the pack, prior to revealing himself to Scott. He’d been completely taken away by how beautiful he was, the boy mid-laugh standing next to Mason, so bright and carefree with an immense sense of strength underneath his relaxed posture. Theo had never seen someone so enigmatic before, and for the first time in his life, he yearned for another person, craved their attention, desired their affection, wanted to spend time with them simply to spend time with them, no malicious agendas or ill intentions shadowing their interactions. It had taken a full minute of outright staring for his brain to suddenly recognize who this boy was; Liam Dunbar, Scott's first and only bitten beta, the boy he would need to manipulate into killing the True Alpha if Theo wanted to finally become an Alpha himself, a feat only possible if Theo then turned around and killed the beta-turned-alpha.

Funny how life works sometimes - the one person Theo's ever felt anything towards, and he needed to kill him in order to achieve his life long goal of becoming a real werewolf and an Alpha.

By some miracle, he failed, yet this magnetic, ethereal boy still wants to know the real Theo.

Except now, he’ll never get the chance to.

Theo's not an Alpha, not a real werewolf, and now he won't even have Liam anymore, not as a pack member, not as a friend, definitely not as something more.

Fuck, he can figure this out, right? This is what he does, he plots and he schemes and he gets away with murder. Literally.

They can all devise a logical explanation together, one that means Theo can get away with one more death, just this one, please.

No one comes in the tunnels anyways, Scott doesn’t ever have to find out.

He can make it all go away if he could only fucking think.

But fuck, how many other people know these five hunters were coming into the tunnels today? Is there already back up on the way? Did the three of them just unintentionally start a new war between the hunters and the supernatural creatures of Beacon Hills? Will Scott find out when Monroe or one of her top lackeys show up at Scott’s door demanding answers? And then he’ll kick Theo out of the pack immediately because clearly he was involved if something went down in the tunnels, fuck, and he’ll probably he pissed at Liam for not telling him what was going on, because now he’s blindsided by this new war.

Scott needs to know.

Theo can’t live the rest of his life waiting for the day Scott finds out, either, god, that sounds fucking awful, just waiting for the moment where everything comes crashing down around him.

But does Scott need to know everything? 

He can hear the sound of Chaos’s heartbeat further down the tunnels, calm, with no accompanying heartbeat from a hunter. So either the man got away or he’s dead, but regardless, Chaos is okay for now, which is a small relief for his spiraling thoughts.

He takes his phone out of his pocket, dialing a number without thinking too much about what this will mean for him in the long run.

“Well, if it isn’t my favorite little hell raiser,” Peter chuckles when the line connects. “What can I do for you on this holy evening?”

Fuck. What does he need? He doesn’t even know.

He needs a plan, but he can’t think. Everything is wrong, and his lungs hurt, and should his heart be pounding this fast when there’s no current threat to his safety?

“Theo?” Peter sounds concerned. “What’s wrong?”

“Something happened,” he shamefully admits. He keeps his voice low, not wanting to risk Liam somehow overhearing.

“Okay,” Peter says, and Theo hears the sound of a chair scraping backwards. “Can you tell me where you are?”

“Operating Theater.”

“Are you hurt?” Peter calmly asks, a door slamming behind him in the background. The chimera is surprised by how easy this is, a large part of him expecting he’d need to beg the older werewolf or explain what happened first. “Or in any immediate danger? Are you with anyone?”

“No, no, Liam,” Theo whispers. He unsheathes the claws on his free hand and digs them into his palm… he can’t lose it now, he needs to stay in control. He needs to think, he needs to plan. “Can you bring body bags, too? Five. Five body bags.”

“Alright,” Peter agrees without hesitation, without judgment. A car is starting in the background. “I’m on my way, Theo, stay where you are, okay?”

Theo doesn’t respond. Just slowly sinks down on shaky legs until he’s on the ground, his back pressed against the wall, the cold of the stone a relief to his heated skin.

“Theo?” Peter repeats worriedly. “I’ll be there in ten, okay, kid? Stay where you are.”

“Okay,” Theo manages to get out before his thumb jabs the red ‘end’ button.

He tilts his head back, resting it on the wall. He’s rich now he suddenly remembers, maybe he can afford a great lawyer. Or he can run away before they can arrest him. He won’t be able to say goodbye to his sisters which is shitty. But it’s probably for the best, he’s sure he’ll be sibling-less once they learn what he did.

He thinks he might have blacked out for a bit, because next thing he knows, Peter and Derek are in front of him.

Wait, Derek isn’t part of the plan, what is he doing here?

Never mind, Theo didn’t have a plan. It doesn’t matter. Everyone will know eventually.

Derek squats down in front of him, Peter standing tensely behind his nephew, holding a duffle bag across his shoulder (which Theo assumes contains the body bags he requested. Peter gets shit done, and Theo appreciates that).

“Theo?” Derek’s voice is soft and concerned. Theo’s not sure what he’s concerned over, probably wondering where Liam is, and if he’s okay. “Are you hurt?”

Why do people keep asking him that? He’s the one who hurts people, not the one who gets hurt. And if he does get hurt, he heals.

“Liam’s okay,” Theo says, hoping to soothe some of their worry.

“That’s good,” Derek answers, but now he’s frowning like he’s still concerned over something. Ah, he probably thinks Liam might have killed someone. “Are you hurt?”

“I.. um, I killed him,” he weakly confesses to the two men, unable to meet their gazes. “It was me.”

Fuck, he didn’t mean to say that. Or did he? What was the plan again?

Ah, that’s right, he didn’t have one.

Which is fine… no one ever sticks to them anyways.

They should know all the facts. They won’t judge, they’ve killed people, too, and Peter’s done way worse things than Theo ever has. They can help. Maybe. But he wants them to know it was him who killed that hunter. Not Liam. Never Liam, because Liam is good, unlike Theo. Even if it was an accident, Theo is still not a good person. Not like Scott, never like Scott.

“Okay,” Derek patiently responds, sharing a wordless look with Peter. “Who?”

The claws digging into his palm no longer offer a brief reprieve from the chaos in his mind, no longer give the ability to focus, to think.

Fuck, why can’t he think?!

“Who did you kill, Theo?” Peter asks when Theo forgets to answer, his brain a mess of warring thoughts.

“The hunter.”

He removes his claws from his palm and tries to dig them into his arm instead, but Derek wraps his hand firmly around his wrist, preventing him from doing so.

“No, Theo,” Derek quietly reprimands with a shake of his head.

How does he expect Theo to think, then?!

“You mean that man we passed on the way in here?” Peter questions, his eyes wide with disbelief. “Who had yellow puss oozing out of giant claw marks over his face?”

“Oh, no, that was Chaos, probably.” Theo nods towards the tiny cat on his shoulder…when did she show up? He honestly has no idea. “Her claws release a poison when she feels threatened.”

“Lovely.” Peter takes a step backwards. “Well, let’s hope there are no more poisonous cats roaming around. Derek, help him up.”

Derek rolls his eyes, but holds a hand out to Theo, lifting him easily to his feet.

“Good?” Derek asks, his brows furrowed when Theo sways unsteadily for a moment.

He nods in response, and then regrets the action immediately when spots dance across his vision.

It’s been a long time since he’s last eaten. Or at least he thinks it has? That would probably explain the strange feeling of nausea. 

He leads the pair of werewolves around the corner towards the hidden entrance of the Operating Theater, Derek’s hand firmly on his shoulder the entire time, probably to prevent him from running away now that he’s confessed to what he did. Peter steps in front of him and opens the heavy door before Theo can even lift his arms.

That’s nice of him. Peter gets shit done, just like he told Liam earlier.

“Theo! What are you -” Liam stops short, his eyes widening in alarm when he sees the people Theo brought back with him. “Oh, hello, uh, what are you guys doing here? Let’s all go outside to talk, yeah?”

“I called them,” Theo flatly explains, ignoring the beta’s look of outrage. “We need help.”

“We don’t need anything,” Liam angrily spits, but Theo can smell his nervousness. “We have everything under control.”

Chaos meows softly in response to Liam’s words from her spot on Theo’s other shoulder, like she agrees with the beta as well.

“Is this a Sunday Massacre?” Peter waves a hand towards the four dead bodies, three of which were drenched in blood. Someone, well, Liam most likely, dragged all of the bodies into a single pile in the far corner of the room. “And why wasn’t I invited?”

“It was self-defense.” Liam defiantly crosses his arms over his chest, eyeing the two older werewolves like he’s considering fighting them, too. Theo hopes he doesn’t. That would probably make things worse.

“Who’s he?” Derek points towards Eddie, the bulky man leaning against a wall, his skin pale and clammy even from a distance (Theo’s glad Liam helped the man to put his pants back on at least).

“I’m Eddie,” he introduces himself with a wave, his voice hoarse. He swallows painfully. “I was Theo’s driving teacher.”

Derek blinks at the strange response and turns towards Theo for clarification.

“The Dread Doctors captured him years ago. Liam freed him,” Theo explains wearily.

Peter raises an eyebrow. “And why are you two down here in the first place?”

“We were studying, if that’s okay with you?” Liam irritably responds.

“Ah, yes, I see,” Peter grins broadly after sharing another look with Derek that involved a lot of eyebrows. “The ambiance of the abandoned Operating Theater of three mad paranormal scientists is so incredibly conducive to learning, I condone you for finding such an ideal location to ‘study’ in. And Theo is such an intelligent, dashing young man, is he not? I’m sure he was helping you learn an array of important things in preparation for your next examination. What was it on again? Human Anatomy?”

“Okay!” Derek cuts in when Liam’s growl echoes across the room, the sound of his claws sliding out impossible to miss. “That is not helping, Peter.” He turns towards Liam, stares at him for a second, before turning to Theo. He hesitates, and then looks at Eddie. “Can you walk us through what happened?”

Eddie looks over to Theo first… he can only nod in response.

What did it matter what he said anyways? It will all come down to one simple fact; Theo killed someone. Scott won’t care that it was an accident, not when it comes to Theo.

“No, wait.” Peter holds a hand up. “Is there somewhere nearby that’s less out in the open where we can have this discussion? We’re sitting ducks out here if their friends show up, and the pile of bodies in the corner is not a good aesthetic for story time.”

Theo silently walks over to the entrance to the Stasis Room, cuts his palm, and then places it on the wall. He pauses at the keypad, but, fuck. Who cares if Liam learns that Theo knows his birthday? Nothing matters anymore.

He punches the code in and stands in the doorway so it doesn’t shut.

Liam and Derek carefully help Eddie to his feet and follow behind Peter into the hidden room.

“Excellent.” Peter sniffs delicately and then makes a beeline for Eddie’s personal stash of protein bars and tosses them into a pile in the center of the room. He inhales again, and Theo watches as the elder werewolf flutters around the room, pulling more of the protein bars out of different nooks and crannies. “You three need to eat while we talk.” He claps his hands together when none of them move. “Chop chop, I’m sure these were designed to never expire, you’ll be fine, and if not, Derek has Deaton on speed dial.”

Liam grabs a few out of the pile and approaches Theo slowly as if he’s afraid to startle him. The beta gently wraps a hand around Theo’s wrist and leads him back to the spot where they sat when they were studying AP Bio. God, that was only a few hours ago…it’s funny how fast things can change.

Right as they finish getting settled as comfortably as possible on the unforgiving concrete, Peter makes a triumphant noise.

“Aha!” He proudly holds up several bottles of water from the side pockets of Theo’s two duffle bags. “The nose never lies, gentleman, always remember that.”

“You can’t smell water,” Liam scoffs, tearing open one of the protein bars and holding it out to the chimera. Theo opens his mouth and takes a bite, chewing without really thinking about what he’s doing. Liam offers a small piece to Chaos, giving her a pat on the head after she eats it.

“But you can smell plastic,” Peter counters, tossing two bottles at Liam in quick concession, the beta barely managing to catch them before they smack him in the face. “Seriously, what are they teaching kids these days?”

Liam looks ready to argue, but Derek swiftly cuts in.

“Liam.” Derek waits until the beta’s eyes are focused on him, though he’s across the room, tending to Eddie. “Can you walk us through what happened, please?”

“The truth, if you will,” Peter adds, leaning against the wall across from the empty tanks. “Save us all some time.”

Liam hesitates, his eyes shifting over to Theo next to him. The chimera briefly makes eye contact with the boy and nods.

The beta recounts the entire tale, taking a few liberties with the truth - how he made plans with Theo yesterday to come down to the tunnels to find some of his old AP Bio textbooks and notes to help Liam study, how they found the green vial of serum in the Dread Doctors’ hidden office along with the Stasis Room access code, how Liam unknowingly freed Eddie, how Eddie knew Theo from years ago, briefly touching on the car accident and how the Dread Doctors and Theo rescued Eddie from hunters but then they turned around and captured him for their own experiments, how Theo found the frozen remains of his chimera cat…how they then heard the hunters outside, how they tried to wait them out, how they came up with a plan for Eddie to shift and knock them out, then they’d move their bodies away from the Operating Theater.

Until…

“I killed them on purpose,” Eddie brazenly confesses, his skin regaining some color after a protein bar, a few sips of water, and Derek digging out the remaining bullets that were lodged in his body (at least Theo thinks he regained some color… hard to tell considering the man was already exceptionally pale from being stuck in a glass tank underground for years). “They…they were a threat that needed to be eliminated.”

“I mean, I certainly don’t disagree or judge, but what made them worse than any other human with a gun?” Peter inquires, his eyes moving calculatingly between Eddie on one side of the room and Liam sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with Theo on the other.

“They wanted to torture Theo for information about the Dread Doctors and then keep him like a pet for their sick and twisted fantasies!” Liam growls before Eddie can answer. Chaos puffs up angrily on Theo’s shoulder, letting out a sharp hiss at the beta’s words.

“Liam,” Theo mutters, because that definitely is an exaggeration.

“It gave us both very bad vibes!” Liam hotly argues, his body tense next to Theo’s. Chaos jumps from Theo’s shoulder to Liam’s and rubs her head against his cheek with a deep purr. “Like no good, very bad, cannot-be-allowed-to-complete-their-evil-scheme vibes.”

The chimera rests his hand on his knee, palm up, and can’t help feeling relieved when Liam immediately entwines their hands, squeezing tightly.

“Okay,” Derek says, expertly wrapping Eddie’s shoulder with a bandage (Theo assumes the griffin either doesn’t know how to work his supernatural healing very well, or his body is struggling to piece itself back together due to long term lack of real nutrition). “So, he shifted into something, and then rampaged across the hunters?”

“A griffin!” Liam answers, unable to hide the awe from his voice. “He’s a griffin. And the Dread Doctors gave him a horn like a unicorn, it’s fucking bad ass.”

Both werewolves appear impressed by the revelation, though Peter seems to have realized something.

“In mythology, griffins are generally regarded as intensely loyal creatures,” Peter cryptically notes, staring at Theo as if he’s supposed to understand some secret meaning.

“And they’re also strong, so he took down three of the five hunters in minutes,” Liam breezily continues, ignoring Peter. “But then the fourth one shocked him with this insanely powerful taser wand and was about to kill him when Theo intervened. And they struggled for a bit because that guy was obnoxiously strong for an old dude, probably on steroids, and then Eddie managed to dig his talons into the guy’s legs, and it hurt really bad so his arm went slack, and Theo ended up accidentally pressing the taser into the guy's chest, and he died instantly even though it barely touched him. Self-defense.”

“He saved my life,” Eddie fiercely remarks when Liam’s finished. “And it’s my fault he was put into that position in the first place.”

“I see,” Peter finally responds after a heavy silence.

“Did Theo get injured during any of this?” Derek questions Liam, as if Theo isn’t even there.

“No,” Liam softly admits, and Theo can smell his anxiety, but he can’t think of why the beta would feel so anxious all of a sudden. Maybe he’s worried Scott’s going to be mad at him, too, and not just Theo?

“Well…I think we should call Scott,” Derek declares after a few minutes of tense silence.

Theo’s heart sinks, but he knows it’s the next logical step.

Scott needs to know.

At least he’ll have a little more time with Liam before everything crashes and burns around him.

Chapter Text

“What? No! Why? Scott doesn’t need to know!” Liam squawks, accidentally crushing Theo’s hand in his hysteria, a feat he doesn’t notice until the chimera indifferently resets the bones with his free hand. The beta loosens his grip and sends the older boy a sheepish smile. “They’re dead, all of them, so no more problems.”

“They have a ‘boss’ as you mentioned, who will be looking for them,” Derek steadfastly points out, his arms crossed over his chest. He leans back against the wall next to a seated Eddie, the griffin's eyes following the argument like he's watching an intense tennis match.

“So?” Liam scoffs, barely resisting the urge to roll his eyes at the older werewolf. “We’ll burn the bodies, and he can keep right on looking all he wants. Fuck, maybe we can set a trap for him here if he’s so keen on getting his greasy little hands on Theo.” (He’s satisfied when Chaos meows loudly in response like she’s agreeing with this plan).

Liam remembers laying in the vent, shoulder-to-shoulder with Theo while waiting for Chaos to distract the hunters, remembers hearing the vile words coming from the men’s mouths below. He’s glad Theo wasn’t paying attention to what the hunters were saying, though perhaps he would take the threat more seriously if he had heard them, heard their tone, heard their sniggering at the idea of their boss getting to own Theo, like he was property, not a living, breathing, person. He remembers sharing a long, troubled look with Eddie, remembers seeing the way Eddie’s body stiffened when he discerned what the hunters were discussing. He remembers the satisfaction he felt when he glanced down into the Operating Theater and saw that the griffin had stabbed his beak into the first hunter’s neck, remembers the overwhelming amount of relief he felt when he realized Eddie understood those men could not walk free, not when Theo’s safety was on the line. 

“Are you sure they called their boss a ‘he’?” Peter interrupts, startling Liam from his thoughts.

“Yes,” Eddie confidently answers, and Liam nods. That had been a red flag for him as well (because his first honest to god thought had been ‘I don’t think Theo is Monroe’s type’ until he replayed the words in his head and heard ‘he’).

“So, the hunters are either branching off from Monroe, or her support is so large that they’ve been separated into smaller groups with their own leaders,” Derek explains gruffly. “Either way, Scott needs to know. This incident, although it may not seem like it, is BIGGER than the three of you. Do you understand that?”

Liam understands, but he doesn’t like it.

“Yes,” Theo solemnly answers for them. “We understand. Scott needs to know.”

Ugh, Liam’s clearly not winning this battle, but he’s not sure what’s wrong with Theo, and he doesn’t want to talk to Scott while he’s busy freaking out over what’s happening with the chimera. Since when did Theo care about random people dying, especially when they’re threatening him directly? Does this have anything to do with Gabe? He’s the last hunter Theo had an interaction with, and he clearly cared enough to take the dying boy’s pain (his first time ever doing so), but why would that make him sympathetic to all hunters? 

Liam is missing something here, he knows it. But he cannot for the life of him figure it out.

Derek pulls out his phone, and Liam feels Theo becoming even more rigid next to him, like he’s trying to emulate a statue. Eddie keeps glancing worriedly over at them, and even Chaos seems concerned. The tiny cat leaps onto Theo’s shoulder where she adopts a protective stance, keeping a watchful eye trained on Derek and Peter.

“Derek, hey,” Scott warmly greets, though Liam can hear the concern in his voice. “What’s up?”

“We have a situation.” Derek sighs, staring at the ground as he talks. “Everyone is okay, but a few hunters were killed down in the Dread Doctors’ Operating Theater.”

“Okay,” Scott says, his tone becoming more serious. “Who is involved?”

“Liam, Theo, and this other supernatural creature they stumbled upon down here and rescued. The hunters were searching for something and wouldn't leave until they found it, but the kids aren’t sure what they were looking for. Except the guy, Eddie, hadn’t shifted in so long and lost control after hearing the hunters discuss what their male boss would do after capturing Theo for information. And Theo accidentally killed one who was about to kill Eddie.”

Liam’s fairly certain Theo isn’t even breathing at this point, but his heart is racing like he’s sprinted ten miles in record time. The beta drops his head onto the older boy’s shoulder, struggling to figure out how to comfort the chimera when he’s not sure what’s wrong.

“Theo accidentally killed someone?” Malia loudly scoffs in the background. “Yeah, okay, I’m sure that’s how it went down.”

“Malia, stop,” Peter scolds, and Liam’s kind of shocked by the obvious disapproval in his tone.

“I’m just saying, considering everything he’s done to us in the past, which is a lot in case anyone's forgotten, I’m a bit skeptical, that’s all!” she resolutely finishes.

Liam frowns when he realizes Theo’s trembling next to him.

Wait.

Waitwaitwaitwaitwait.

Theo knows what self-defense is, Liam is sure of it. He knows he didn’t kill that guy on purpose. But Malia is clearly doubting their story, so does he presume Scott will blame him, too?

And if Scott blames him…

“Malia,” Scott lightly reprimands. “Let’s hear them out. Can I talk to Liam?”

“Sure,” Derek agrees, striding across the room and handing the phone to him.

“IT’S NOT THEO’S FAULT!” Liam piercingly shrieks into the device, finally understanding the problem. Theo’s scared he’s going to be blamed for the hunter’s death and kicked out of the pack, something Liam is NOT okay with happening, and holy fuck, now he’s panicking. “IT WAS SELF-DEFENSE, SCOTT, I SAW THE WHOLE THING, IT IS NOT HIS FAULT, you cannot listen to Malia, I’m sorry, but she’s WRONG, it was an accident, and he saved Eddie’s life, he’s a griffin, by the way, which is awesome, but he was going to die if the hunter hit him a second time with this epically leveled up taser wand, except he DIDN’T die because Theo rescued him, and the hunter guy died after barely being touched by the wand when Theo was trying to make him let it go, so you can’t kick him out of the pack! If you do, Scott, um… I’LL LEAVE IF YOU DO, I swear to fucking god, I love you, but I’ll go find another pack somewhere else, you cannot kick Theo out, it’s not his fault, okay?”

He knows his heart didn’t skip a beat at all during his word vomit, he can feel the others gaping incredulously at him (except for Eddie, he’s definitely trying to hide his laughter). But Liam fucking means it, every word. Sure, he doesn’t want to go off and find a new pack, but if Scott thinks he can punish Theo for his very justifiable actions, then he’s gonna be losing more than just the chimera from his pack. He’s also pretty certain Mason, Corey, Brett, and hell, even Nolan would follow him elsewhere if he were to leave (eh, okay, Mason would likely follow him out of loyalty because he’s a great BFF, regardless if he agreed with Liam’s decision or not, and wherever Mason is, that’s where Corey will be. Brett pretty much worships Scott, so that one is iffy, and Liam’s mildly certain Nolan holds a healthy amount of fear towards him, so that one isn’t a guarantee either…although, when Liam growled at Nolan the other day when Theo held the door open for him at school, his co-captain turned around with a concerned frown and offered Liam a lozenge for his sore throat, so who knows where he would end up).

Derek yanks the phone out of Liam’s grasp. “Okay, new plan, how about we discuss this on speaker, assuming you didn’t permanently deafen Scott. Or anyone else here.”

“Sorry,” Liam meekly mumbles, knowing Scott can still hear him even if he isn’t holding the phone anymore. “It’s not his fault, though, Scott. Please believe me.”

“I do,” Scott calmly replies to the beta’s relief, and they all ignore Malia’s snort of disbelief. “I believe you, Liam.” He hesitates for a moment, and the pessimistic part of Liam is expecting something like ‘but too bad, so sad, Theo’s out of the pack,’ to come from the Alpha. “And I’d believe Theo, too…is he there?”

“Yeah.” The chimera clears his throat. “Yeah, I’m here.”

“Okay. Can one of you walk me through what happened?” Scott asks.

Liam hurriedly starts talking, retelling the exact same tale to their Alpha as he told Derek and Peter so there are no holes in their story. He tells the truth on the main parts while skimping on some of the other, less important details - he’s pretty sure Theo doesn’t want the pack asking to go through the Dread Doctors’ stuff either. He makes it a point to stress how creepy this particular group of hunters were and adds their exact words in regards to Theo (including parts Eddie and Liam didn’t relay to Theo earlier), and how the chimera not only saved Eddie, but had no intention of killing the hunter either.

Fortunately, Derek takes over after Liam finishes, reiterating what this incident means as a whole for the pack.

“Alright, Malia’s talking to Argent now,” Scott advises prudently. “He’s going to come down with the Sheriff and take a look at the bodies first, see if they know any of them or can discreetly find out who they are, and then we’ll figure out what to do with them from there. Once they get down there, can you or Peter take Liam, Theo, and Eddie home, please? They have class tomorrow.”

“Uh, I don’t think Eddie has a home,” Liam tactlessly responds. He winces once he realizes what he’s said, but it earned him an amused snort from Theo, so that’s something at least. “Sorry! He’s just been down here for years, ya know?”

“He can stay with me for now,” Theo quietly offers, and Liam sees Eddie’s obvious surprise at the invitation. “Part of the reason I called Peter is because he’s going to need documents, regardless of what happens next.”

“And you assume I, of all other members in the pack, can either forge them myself or acquire some through less-than-legal means?” Peter challenges, cocking an eyebrow at the chimera.

“Did I overestimate your abilities?” Theo frowns, his eyes wide with fake sincerity.

“Of course you didn’t,” Peter chuckles with a smug grin. “That’s why you’re my favorite.”

“Excuse me!” Malia’s voice screeches from the phone. “Theo is not allowed to be your favorite, what the fuck!”

Peter sighs dejectedly. “I’ve always wanted both a son and a daughter.”

“And you can have one, it just can’t be Theo!” Malia whines petulantly. “Peter, come on, seriously?”

“Moving on!” Derek growls, rolling his eyes. “Yes, we’ll make sure they get home.”

“Okay,” Scott replies, sounding amused. “Our Friday class is canceled, so we’ll be coming home Thursday night for the weekend, alright? We’re trying to make it in time for the game, but after that, we’ll all be able to figure this situation out together.”

God, fuck, why is he still on the lacrosse team? Liam’s got enough shit to worry about…though he’s excited for another excuse to spend time with Theo.

Unless…

“You’re not kicking Theo out, right?” Liam blurts, needing reassurance. Fuck, for all he knew, Scott could be coming home Thursday night because he wanted to kick Theo out in person.

“Yes, Liam,” Scott starts, and Liam gasps in outrage, clutching a hand over his pounding heart. How dare he! Theo makes a pained noise next to him. “No! I mean, Theo’s not getting kicked out!” the Alpha rushes to correct. “Theo is NOT being kicked out, he did nothing wrong, okay?”

“Promise?” Liam whispers, heart in his throat.

“I understand self-defense, why does no one ever believe that!” Scott whines pathetically, and Liam kinda feels bad about doubting his Alpha, but communication is important, so he NEEDS to hear his words, not assumptions on what people think Scott will do/say.

“Because you’re so wholesome and good,” Peter scoffs irritably, and Derek grins widely at the exchange. “It’s disgusting.”

“Promise?!” Liam frantically repeats, ignoring Peter.

“I promise Theo is not getting kicked out,” Scott confirms, his voice firm. “Okay, you two?”

“Um, y-yes, okay,” Theo stammers, looking helplessly at Liam, and fuck, he seems so fucking shocked that he’s not being kicked out, and it shatters every part of Liam’s heart into tiny pieces that will now blow across the decrepit tunnels below Beacon Hills for eternity. The chimera takes a deep breath, and Liam can literally see his typical mask (calm, collected, with a hint of smugness) falling back into place. “Thanks.”

“Thank you, Theo,” Scott responds, surprising the room. “I look forward to meeting Eddie in a few days, but I appreciate you looking out for Liam as always. It’s truly a huge relief knowing he has someone as skilled and knowledgeable as you by his side, especially with a lot of us away from Beacon Hills.” 

The beta blinks, tilting his head to the side…huh, Theo really does look out for him a lot, doesn’t he? It kind of makes him feel all warm and fuzzy inside knowing the chimera cares enough about him to make sure he doesn’t randomly die (which is NOT an overly dramatic statement considering they live in a city that’s also a beacon for the supernatural). He’s especially pleased to hear their Alpha acknowledging and thanking Theo for his contributions. Liam sadly knows he has a tendency to drag Theo into a lot of shit the chimera would otherwise avoid, but the beta will definitely be returning the back-watching favor now! These hunters will NOT be getting their hands on Theo, not if Liam has a say in it.

“Yeah, thanks for the free babysitting,” Malia sarcastically grumbles in the background. "You're so helpful."

“HEY!” Liam bristles, feeling his face heat in embarrassment; he is not a child Theo needs to look after! They’re equals, partners in crime, friends. Liam can look after himself, it’s just nice having Theo around as extra back-up if he runs into a huge issue he can’t solve on his own…and for the eye candy, not that Liam would ever admit that to anyone.

“Malia,” Peter huffs, rolling his eyes.

Liam feels somewhat better when Theo shakes his head at the girl’s words and then squeezes Liam’s hand comfortingly.

“And we’ll figure out the hunter thing,” Scott continues, ignoring Malia, “but I want you to be careful until we do, okay? I’ve heard reports of Monroe being more active lately, though no one has seen her in California in a while, so I’m not sure what the deal is with these guys yet. Stay in contact with people in the pack, keep an eye out when you’re around town, and try not to go out alone if you can avoid it, especially at night.”