spamalot } { of darachs and visionaries

[littlebitscary]

Peter: [pulling up in the car and steps out, confused at everyone outside on the lawn] Did I miss a picnic invitation?

Talia: [spent the longest in the house, so she's looking the worst off, leaning on Laura a bit as she turns to her brother] Someone put wolfsbane in our vents.

Laura: We think it was the darach. [she swallows hard] She took Argent.

Peter: [looks at the house in fear, then kneels before his sister and looks in her eyes and takes her hand] Are you okay?

Isaac: I don't think he's the only one missing. I don't see Malia anywhere?

Peter: [turns to look at the boy, then the group, doing a headcount of the wolves.] Was Derek here?

Fiona: He was. [comes stumbling out of the house, hand to her head] I'm gonna freaking shotgun that bitch in the face. [she's ninety-nine percent sure she's female]

Talia: I'll be fine. We have bigger things to worry about. [she just needs some fresh air and time will take care of the rest] We're just lucky Stiles figured it out when he did.

Peter: [nod and stands up, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath of the air. He can smell the hint of the wolfsbane around his family so he moves past them. He's trying to keep his calm - his daughter is missing! - because he needs to step up while Talia recovers] I can't smell a trail on any of them. The Darach is doing something to cover their scents.

Fiona: Not surprising. [she takes a breath as she pushes away from the door] Do you think she might have still covered her tracks visually? Because that I know how to do.

Peter: If she's covering by scent, a human's eyes are going to be better here. [looks at Allison] Your father teach you to track yet?

Stiles: I can help. I know some things about it from my dad. [who is missing and he needs to help beyond holding Cora's hand right now]

Allison: [looks up at Peter and nods numbly for a moment] A little. Fiona might be better at this, though.

Fiona: Fiona has a migraine the size of Montana, but I'll help however I can. [yeah. seriously shotguning the darach in the face] You're going to want humans though. If she's covering her tracks for wolves, she's probably using mountain ash.

Peter: [he's been second in command long enough and looks at Talia] Isaac, stay with the family until they feel better. Laura, text Jason and get him here. Just in case. [looks at Fiona, Allison and Stiles] You three start looking... [and he stops as a scent hits him and he looks at the house, and then starts for the porch without a word]

Fiona: [which means he's coming right at her and she's at half capacity at best, but she's going to wedge herself in front of him and try to stop him from entering the house] We don't know if it's all out yet. One of you needs to be one hundred percent here.

Talia: Peter, she's right. What's going on?

Peter: [looks at Fiona and gets a wiff of her scent, then back at the house before turning to his sister, nervous] Talia, was Jennifer here in the last day to see you about the kids schoolwork?

Talia: [her eyes narrow a bit at that before shaking her head] No.

Peter: [he closes his eyes a moment and when he opens them, they are full of anger and burning yellow] I think I know who the Darach is. [growling]

Talia: [is woozy, but still sharp enough to follow that train of thought] Peter, I need you to keep your head on straight about this.

Peter: [nods, not sure if he can calm himself down all the way, but he gets control of his shift] Malia, Derek and the parents’ safety is first. But I will deal with Jennifer when we find her. [sorry, Fiona, get in line] Let's go. [to the humans as he heads towards the preserve]

Fiona: [disappears back into the house for a moment to grab her gun, before nodding to where Argent's car is still parked] Get what you need. We may need it sooner rather than later.

Allison: [follows her line of thinking and nods before heading to the car to get her bow]

Talia: [grabs Fiona's wrist before she can get to far, bringing her attention back to the woman in front of her] Keep an eye on him.

Fiona: [takes a breath and nods] I will.

Stiles: [follows and sees the lightsaber taser and may have a maniacal glee as he expands it out] Oh, I need to get me one of these.

Scott: No, no you really don't need one [from his spot on the ground next to Cora]

Peter: [Is trying to find a trace of footprints or scent from any of the missing]

Allison: [takes it in her hand for a moment, before turning to Stiles. It may be the one thing in the Argent arsenal he can use] The switch is here. [she points] Don't turn it on unless you need to use it. It warms up pretty quickly.

Stiles: Right, got it. [no, he is looking way too happy with a lightsaber.]

Peter: [there's a hint of wolfsbane in the air in one spot. No tracks, no scent of his family, but the wolfsbane is there] This way.

Fiona: [cocks the shotgun and follows him]

Allison: [grabs her bow out the back and follows their lead, trying not to let the panic sink in that she might not be able to get her dad out the other side. She's still so new at this.]

Peter: [would offer comfort, but he's trying to play at alpha for the moment and too focused on not thinking the things in the back of his head]

Stiles: [puts a hand on her shoulder] We'll find them. We can totally do this. Plus those two are pretty bad ass.

Allison: [exhales slowly and nods, just following Peter's lead and trying to keep her eyes out for anything odd]

Peter: [so following the trail, working with Fiona and making sure to actually take a second to show the kids what they are doing so they can learn in case something happens while they are on this path, and then Jennifer's scent just hits him and his head snaps] I smell her.

Fiona: [and there's the dry slide of her shotgun because yes, in the face, she doesn't care about your dibs, Peter] Where?

Peter: [nods with his head and leads them towards the spot]

Stiles: Do I turn the switch on now?

Allison: [is drawing her bow, and shakes her head] I'll tell you when.

Fiona: [follows closely on Peter's heels, checking for any sign of the darach untiiiiiiiil ...]

Jennifer: [she's standing in the edge of the clearing, arms crossed in front of her chest. She eyes the weapons in their hands and her eyes drag back to Peter again] I take it from the armory this isn't really a social call.

Peter: Where's my daughter and nephew, Jennifer? [his eyes flash, but he keeps himself from rushing forward and wrapping his fist around her throat]

Stiles: Yeah, and our dads. And Scott's Mom.

Jennifer: [a thin smirk crosses her face] Safe. For now. That could change, depending on whether or not I get what I want.

Stiles: And just what do you want, huh? I mean, beyond murder and chaos?

Peter: [rolls his eyes and gives Stiles a look, then back at Jennifer, silent as stone]

Jennifer: I want Deucalion and his pack of abominations dead. But I need power to do it.

Fiona: So you activated the nematon. Do you know how much shit that is going to rain down on our heads?

Jennifer: [tips her head to the side] You know you have been in the way from the beginning of this mess. [she turns and starts to stride towards her, but stops when Fiona brings the barrel of the shotgun up to keep between them] Kali wasted an opportunity not killing you.

Fiona: Kali didn't really have a choice in the matter. Now give me back my boyfriend before you get a round of buckshot in your face.

Stiles: [whispers to Allison] Now?

Peter: [reaches over to grab the barrel of the shotgun and push it down because a dead Jennifer won't help them] We have a truce with Deucalion. You know we won't help you with that, and right now I'm almost tempted to side with him. Where is my daughter?

Jennifer: [clucks her tongue softly] That's not how it works, Peter. You need to keep me alive. I'm the only one who knows where your little girl is, and if you want to even have a body to bury you need to keep me alive.

Allison: [is about to shake him off when a round of howls splits the air, and Jennifer's face flickers, just for a second] Now, Stiles. Now.

Peter: You hurt a single hair on my child, and I'll make sure you learn a new definition of the word "pain".... [and his head turns as he hears the howls and growls. No, not now]

Stiles: [fumbles with the switch to get it on just as the twins break the treeline near him and Allison. Ennis is near Fiona, snarling just a bit]

Fiona: [yeah, okay, Ennis is the bigger threat at the moment and she trains the shotgun back on him again, making a face] Great. Now it's a party.

Allison: [turns her bow towards the twins, knowing she is so, so out of her depth already] Peter?

Jennifer: [her lips curl in an almost sinister smirk] I'm not the one hurting her right now, Peter, you are. Because for every moment you waste time not helping me is another moment she spends in a dark hole, unable to claw her way to the surface. You know what being buried alive is like, Peter? Because if you don't help me she sure will.

Peter: [snarls, his claws and fangs coming out] Allison, help Stiles get close enough to shock those two apart. [sees Kali sneaking up behind Jennifer] You three disable them and regroup back at the house. [and he lets out a howl before grabbed Jennifer and putting her behind him with himself between her and Kali. If anyone is healed from the pack, he's going to need them]

Allison: [nods, before drawing and firing directly into the twin's shoulder] Move fast. I'll cover you. [to Stiles]

Fiona: [she can handle that. she takes the already cocked shotgun and fires it right into Ennis's face]

Stiles: [and he's going to take advantage of their distraction and just dig the saber into the giant stomach, shocking the twins and forcing them apart]

Peter: [He's not strong enough to take on an alpha like Kali, but he's more cunning than people give him credit for and that gives him an advantage so he's going after her, but trying to back her up at Stiles and the saber]

Allison: [after the twins are forced apart, Allison turns to cover Fiona who is just repeatedly shotgunning Ennis until she needs to reload, before tipping her head towards Kali at Stiles.]

Stiles: [goes and helps stun Kali before she can aim a lethal strike at Peter, all proud of himself. Peter nods at Stiles, then takes the saber from him, turns it off] Fiona! [he tosses it to her across the clearing to keep Stiles away from Ennis]

Fiona: [catches it easily and then her arm is swinging around to catch Ennis right in the chest, holding him there until he was a twitching mess on the ground.] That is for ruining my apartment.

Peter: There, they're down. Now tell me where Malia is.

Jennifer: [she shakes her head] Not until they're dead. All of them. Including Deucalion.

Peter: [looks at the others, then her] My pack will not have theirs on our hands. You want them dead, you do it.

Jennifer: [she holds out one hand towards Ennis, who had been struggling to get back up to get towards Fiona, and his neck does a 180 degree twist so that his face is now positioned over his back. The arrow that Allison had been knocking flies out of her hands, straight into Kali's eye and lodging in her skull and then she turns back to the twins, who have managed to pull themselves together and reform. She takes one hand, extending her fingers out like a claw before curling it slowly into a fist until the monster wolf's head pops like a cherry tomato]

Fiona: [as soon as Ennis's neck snaps in front of her, Fiona is turning back towards Allison and Stiles, pulling them in to try and shield them from the rest of the gore. Allison takes the cue easily, burying her face in the other woman's shoulder]

Jennifer: [turns back to Peter with an even look, not even really caring about the four lives that just ended around her] Now, I can't take Deucalion. Not alone, unless I take those last three sacrifices. So it's your choice, Peter. Be my guardian and save them and your daughter, or I finish the job I started.

Peter: [he looks over his shoulder at the two humans, having watched the others alphas die. He can see the fear in Stiles in Allison. smell it in the air. Then he looks up at Fiona and nods. There is no choice - his daughter's life will always come first, even over his own] Take care of the kids. [and he turns back to Jennifer, his face devoid of all emotion] I come with you, and you let them all go. Now.

Fiona: [ nods in agreement. She knows Jennifer won't let them go, and she needs to get Stiles and Allison back to the house anyway, away from all of this, she turns back to the two of them before nudging them ahead of her, back on the path towards the house] Go. I'm right behind you.

Allison: [nods, and trying not to look at the bodies, takes Stiles's hand and pulls him back through the woods]

Jennifer: [her lips curve in a sinuous smile, before letting her hand brush over Peter's shoulder] Fine.

Fiona: [by the time she turns back to demand answers, Peter and Jennifer are already gone from view. She exhales slowly, and then to no one in particular] I sure hope you know what you're doing, Peter. [and with that, she turns to head back to the house]

- - - - -

Malia: [it's a hazy, fuzzy feeling as she starts to come to. Her head feels like it's swimming and she feels weak, ineffectual. She can feel that she's tied to something, but as she shifts, the ropes dig into her skin and hold her fast. The scents are like nothing she's known before, but parts of it are familiar] Ow. [that's the most intelligible thing she has right now]

Sheriff: Malia. Malia, honey, look over here at me. [has been worried sick]

Malia: [her eyes come up slowly and focus on him] Hey, I found you. [there's a beat] Wait. This isn't good.

Sheriff: No, but you're awake, so that's good.

Argent: Do you have your strength back yet, Malia?

Malia: [she feels dizzy and woozy] No. No, something's wrong. [she shifts a bit and can feel the ropes burn a little against her skin] I ... I think she put something in the ropes. Or something in me, I'm not really sure.

Melissa: [frowns from where she's tied] I can't check her like this, but she doesn't look good.

Argent: [goes to feel the ropes, trying to crane his neck around. His fingers find hers] The ropes are damp. Probably wolfsbane. She took all my weapons.

Malia: I can't shift like this. [she shifts against his back a bit, pushing her fingers lower in his hand] You have to break my wrist.

Melissa: What? Malia, no -

Malia: It'll trigger my healing. Poisons don't heal on their own they need something to jumpstart it.

Argent: Will it work if you're still exposed to it?

Sheriff: If she thinks it'll work, it's better than doing nothing with the sun setting.

Malia: [she nods a bit] You have to do it before the eclipse or I won't be able to do anything at all. It'll at least ... clear my head if nothing else. If I can clear my head enough to shift, then I can howl and if I howl my dad will come. [she keeps hearing it, over and over again in her head, for the number of times he said it to her when she was a kid. she knows it's true. It has to be true. if she signals her location to the pack, the pack will come]

Argent: Okay. On the count of three. One.... Two... Three [and he pulls to snap her wrist regretfully]

Malia: [her eyes flash gold, giving a small cry at the pain, but for a moment it works. The disorientation clears, her eyes focus, and she feels more herself. The threat of the wolfsbane actually makes it easier to shift, her fangs descending and she throws her head back before she loses her focus, letting off as long a howl as she can manage. It ends in a cough, her body slumping back against Argents as she does, but after a couple moments of silence, there's one howl in response, followed by another] That's Cora and Laura. They're coming.

Argent: Good.

Sheriff: [looks at Melissa. Peter wasn't in the list of names and there are no more howls]

Malia: [no, Peter wasn't but she can't focus on that right now. She's busy trying to keep the wooziness from creeping in again.] I might pass out again.

Argent: Do it and gather your strength, Malia. We'll wake you if something happens. [not that they can do much more]

Malia: [she nods a bit before letting her eyes close] Okay. [annnnnnnnd she's out]

Derek: [has heard the howls from his spot nailed to the nematon, but he is too weak. The gag in his mouth is soaked in wolfsbane water and he can barely turn his head to look at where his hands were nailed into the wood. He can't move, and his healing wasn't catching up enough to let the wounds heal and he was slowly bleeding out into a fivefold knot carved into the tree's top.]

Laura: [gets there first. She's the oldest and the fastest and the first thing she sees is Derek, and she can't think about anything else. She makes a run for the stump and is blown back hard when she hits the wall of mountain ash. She hits the ground with a groan, back arching in response.]

Cora: [catches up to her, eyes wide with worry] Laura ...

Laura: I'm fine! It's just mountain ash.

Fiona: [is coming up on their heels, gun out, and when she catches the tail end, she diverts to Derek] I've got him. You check on the people downstairs.

Laura: [nods as she starts to get to her feet, guiding Cora towards the door of the root cellar]

Derek: [he sees them and whimpers, then looks up as the eclipse starts and any healing he had dies and the bleeding gets worse, filling in the symbol completely under him]

- - - - -

Peter: [heard the howls and is watching the moon while waiting at the refinery, knowing Deucalion was close] So do you have a plan?

Jennifer: When the eclipse happens he'll be powerless. Kali is dead, so he has no second. Between the two of us, we'll be able to finish the job easily.

Peter: I'll also be powerless, you realize. [stare]

Jennifer: But I won't be. [raises an eyebrow] Don't think you can handle a blind man, Peter?

Peter: Well, you obviously feel you need help if you can't handle him with all your power.

Jennifer: I need to stall until the eclipse starts.

Peter: Hence the wolf.

Jennifer: Exactly. Now are you ready to do this or not?

Deucalion: He better be... and he will regret not having killed any of them himself to gain the power of an alpha to face me. [he takes his glasses off, eyes red]

Peter: [growls, shifting] I have no choice in this, you realize.

Deucalion: Neither do I. [and look, wolf fight!]

Jennifer: [does her best to get her own licks in, but given all of Deucalion's demonwolf-ness it's still a struggle. They are struggling.]

Deucalion: [tosses Peter around like a rag doll and then slaps Jennifer down, grabbing her by the hair and looking at Peter] You have a choice, Peter. Come here, and kill her. You know she isn't going to let your nephew live. You daughter. The three guardians trapped with her?

Jennifer: [she struggles against the hand in her hair, teeth gritting in frustration]

Peter: [looks up, actually considering it when the ground goes to an orange color and he involuntarily shifts back]

Deucalion: [does as well, then growls] The eclipse has started.

Jennifer: [her lips curl into a sinister grin, and the illusion flickers for a moment, a glimpse of her real face showing through, before she reaches up for Deucalion's arm as she pushed to her feet, before turning and throwing him across the warehouse]

Deucalion: [ lands hard, stunned]

Peter: [Saw that glimpse, and watches he keep going after Deucalion, trying to think of a stall tactic] Jennifer, wait. He doesn't know what you really look like. He doesn't know the price you paid for whatever he did to you to make you this angry.

Jennifer: [she glances to him uncertainly, eyes narrowing in response] What do you mean?

Peter: Your face. [he took a step forward] Just now, I saw it. What you feel you have to hide from everyone. You should make him see it so he knows what he did to you.

Jennifer: [that ... is not a bad argument. She nods once before stalking forward, placing her hand over Deucalion's eyes so that she can heal them]

Deucalion: [screams, and then blinks as... he... he can see and he looks up at the two of them]

Peter: Show him.

Jennifer: [The illusion drops, her true face there for all the world to see, but before she can strike again, she stumbles backwards, the energy suddenly leaving her]

Peter: [catches her, holding onto her carefully. There is a sadness in his eyes] Healing makes you weak for a few minutes. Always does to me when I heal my family.

Jennifer: [blank empty eyes convey confusion for a moment, before her eyes go to the sky] You ... you do it then. It needs to end.

Peter: No. I'm a Hale, Jennifer. We may be predators, but we are not killers. Not to ones who have done no wrong to us. [His face hardens and his hand goes to her throat, going to choke her as he hopes that his family has found Malia and the others by now]

Jennifer: [her hand scrambles against the hand on her throat] Peter ... Peter please ...

Peter: You took my daughter. My nephew. I trusted you, but you used me. Why me? Why?!

Jennifer: It was supposed to be Derek. His sacrifice is what saved my life all those years ago, but by the time I got here that emissary had already latched on to him. [her voice turns up with a sneer. She should have killed Fiona when she had the chance] You, on the other hand, lonely, single, easy. The only real obstacle was your daughter, and in the end she turned out to be an asset anyway.

Peter: Paige. [his face just hardens as he squeezes, hoping he can do the job with his own strength before she regains hers] Well, I guess you underestimated me.

Jennifer: [chuckles softly, ending on a choke as his hand tightened] And what you said about Deucalion not having wronged you. Didn't he send the twins to attack your niece?

Peter: [hesitates a moment, looking at Deucalion a moment, his grip loosening just a bit in that moment]

Jennifer: [she grins a bit seeing the words sinking in] There isn't much time left in the eclipse, Peter. Let me finish this.

Peter: [closes his eyes, because he remembered his sister's deals and she was his alpha. And Deucalion had been a good man once took. He looked back up at her] No.

Jennifer: [her face contorts into sneer and she grips his arm tightly, ready to force it away as she feels her strength coming back] I tried to play nice. [and with that she forces him to the side before going back to Deucalion]

Peter: [gets back up, going to grab her, turning her to him and weaving his hands to grab her shirt and the bra straps so that he had a firm hold of her] I can't let you.

Jennifer: You can't stop me. [hand comes up and she focuses her power on Deucalion, trying the same trick that she did with the twins where she basically makes their head explode]

Peter: [grabs her and pulls her away, throwing her against the broiler] I said No. [he needs just a bit longer and he tries to pull her away and Deucalion moves to disappear into the refinery]

Jennifer: [anger surges through her as she hits the broiler] You're wasting my time. [and that last word comes with her directing the magic at him instead, an invisible hand closing around his throat] I really didn't want to do this, Peter, but you're not exactly giving me a choice.

Peter: [he chokes, unable to breathe. but he grits his teeth, holding on just a bit longer with what strength he has, determination in his eyes. And then he feels his power return and his eyes glow yellow, and he gives her a snarl with fangs] Times up [ and he goes to throw her across the room]

Jennifer: [damnit. She hits the ground hard before scrambling to her feet. Her hands scramble over her pockets, looking for her mountain ash and before Peter can charge her she's tossing a ring up into the air to surround herself]

Peter: [looks at the ring, knowing the substance, put pushing his hand against it for a moment before looking up at her, sizing up the situation silently]

Deucalion: [watching from his hiding spot behind as he moves around where they can't see him]

Jennifer: [her focus is entirely on Peter so if someone has a projectile weapon that they might want to toss at her in order to force him out of it, now would be the tiiiiiiiiime] Guess this won't end the way either of us want.

Peter: [licks his lips a moment, walking around the circle of the ash a moment] You think I'm easy, but you apparently didn't pay that much attention to me when we were together. There's a reason my sister chose me as her second when she became alpha that no one seems to remember. You see, it was a joke when I was little that I was too smart for my own good. You've even complimented me on how educated I seem. But I pride myself on that, and while I may never be an alpha, Those who have gone against my sister know better than to underestimate me. [he sees what he's looking for and picks up Deucalion's stick, snapping it out] Talia told me she was surprised that I didn't have the ability to shift into a coyote for how cunning I can be. [he looked at her, then held up the stick with his eyebrows raised] You should have learned that about me before you decided to make me your target or go after my family. [standing at the line, he lowered the stick inside of it, his hand not going over the border and without breaking eye contact with her, he drew it back slowly... breaking the line of ash. And then he growls and shifts, knowing there is a chance Malia is still in danger if he doesn't do it, and slashes out her throat before he can think twice]

Jennifer: [still looks stunned in the middle of it all, and when his claws slash her throat, she just gurgles over the blood and drops to the ground. She looks as though she's trying to say something, but it doesn't last before she eventually goes still on the ground]

Peter: [stays still and listens, waiting to hear her heart stop, looking down at the blood on his hand without emotion]

Deucalion: [makes his way closer, moving one hand to gently take the stick from him.] You should go find out about your daughter. [no thank you, because he's aware that Peter could have very easily let Jennifer finish him, and he's not taking it as a sign of forgiveness, but Deucalion owes him this much] I'll make sure what's dead stays dead.

Peter: She killed the rest of your pack. [he looks up at the man] You were a good man once, Deucalion. You had hopes for peace. Hopefully with your sight back, you'll regain that vision. [and he goes to walk to his house, hoping his family has gathered there since the Hale House needs a good cleaning of the HVAC system]

Malia: [yep. They're all camped out there. Talia made Malia shower to get the wolfsbane off her skin and proceeded to bundle her up on the couch with Isaac, telling her what happened with her dad. She tried to get her to go to bed, but Malia refused until her dad got home. She's just lying on the couch, face buried in Isaac's shoulder, when she hears the familiar footfalls coming up the porch and forces herself to her feet]

Laura: [reaching for her shoulder] Malia ...

Malia: [she shakes her off and keeps moving. Her legs are shaky under her, but she pushes through it, making it out the door and essentially throwing herself into her father's arms]

Peter: [hears her a moment before the door opens and catches her carefully, his clean hand going up to hold her close, closing his eyes and just taking in her scent. She's fine. Alive. That was all that mattered and he kept her close in his one armed hug as he pressed a kiss against the top of her head]

Malia: [her legs give out a bit under her, because she really shouldn't be standing, but that's okay because her dad is here and he's got her. She buries her face in his shoulder and hangs on for dear life, not wanting to let him go for anything]

Peter: [he feels the fall and just grips her a bit tighter. He refuses to touch her with his bloody arm.] Come on, baby. It's past your bedtime. [and he will pull her up a bit more so she wasn't standing at all and made to carry her upstairs to his room, not hers]

Malia: [she lets him, and none of the rest of the family says anything as they make their way past them, and she doesn't say anything until he's put her in bed and she's curled into a ball under the covers] I did what you said. [she called for her family and her family came, even if it wasn't him]

Peter: That's my good girl. [he pets her hair gently, giving her a small smile] You saved them doing that. You should be very proud. I am.

Malia: [she smiles a bit at that, her eyes closing at the touch briefly before she forces them open again] Are you okay?

Peter: Not even a scratch. Get some sleep, and I'll be up after I talk to your aunt. [leans down and kisses her cheek] I love you.

Malia: [she hums softly before closing her eyes again] Love you too. [and she gives in to the need to pass out she's been fighting since she got home]

Peter: [sits there, petting her hair until he's sure she's asleep, then gets up and goes back downstairs, diverting his family in the living room and going into the kitchen to finally wash his hands. He's emotionless and methodical in his movement]

Talia: [Laura looks over at her, and she gives her daughter's hand a squeeze before getting up and moving over to stand next to her brother] What happened?

Peter: She wanted to kill Deucalion. I stopped her. [there was so much more than that, but it was the basic answer. He was just washing his hands, trying to get the blood off. The skin out from under his nails. Trying not to shake or letting his sister touch him so she wouldn't feel the pain he was in that he was barely holding back]

Talia: [too bad. She's going to do it anyway. Her hand wanders to his shoulder because she knows there's pain there. And she's not going to let him do this alone.]

Peter: [like a hurting wolf, he snarled and pulled back, even from his alpha] No.

Talia: [there's a gentle look at that, because she's not being his alpha right now. She's being his sister. And his sister knows him well enough to know that he's not taking this as well as he's showing]

Peter: She wanted Derek. It was all supposed to be Derek, but his being with Fiona ruined her plans. [which means Peter was plan B. His hands looked clean, even if he didn't feel clean, and he turned off the water and grabbed a rag, inching away from Talia] Is he okay?

Talia: [she nods] Fiona got to him in time. The eclipse made things complicated, but he'll recover. [there's a pause, before he can ask] Malia's going to need some as well. She had her restrained with wolfsbane rope.

Peter: I'll keep her home from school tomorrow. Not like they're going to have English class. [closes his eyes, his back leaning against the counter as he just dries his fingers one by one]

Talia: [she nods] Otherwise, everyone else is fine. [she looks up at him] I'm sorry, Peter.

Peter: [he just shakes his head, balling up the rag a moment in his hands, breathing steadily and trying to keep from breaking] I did what I had to, to protect my pack. I'm not sorry.

Talia: That's not what I'm sorry about. [she would have done the same thing, but she knows the toll this has on him. And she's going to try and reach out and touch him again because see how much she doesn't care. Letting out emotion is healthy. She places a hand on his arm gently]

Peter: [snarls again, but he's backed himself into a corner of the kitchen and can't move out of her touch. Talia would feel that he wasn't in any physical pain at all - he had healed on his walk back and was the one Hale not having wolfsbane exposure that day. But the emotional pain rippled beneath his surface to the point of breaking. Feelings of betrayal, fear, agony, anger, loneliness, worthlessness and despair rolled off him in waves to her touch and his eyes flashed yellow in response]

Talia: [she doesn't say anything. She takes all of that emotion, and the look she gives him isn't pity, more empathy than anything else. She takes another step forward, one hand brushing against his face gently, before pulling him into a hug. It won't make it better, but at least it might help with him being alone.]

Peter: [wants to fight against it, to push himself free by he can't and after a moment the shell just breaks and the sound he makes is of a broken man who thought he finally had found love again and it hadn't even been real at all. It was worse than losing Virigina - she left because of learning what he was. This was knowing that it had all been a lie from the start, and he was ashamed at himself for falling for it. He just started to shake, pressing his face to his sister's shoulder as the tears forced their way out unable to hold back any longer now]

Talia: [holds him for as long as it takes, one hand smoothing over his back and closing her eyes into his hold. There's a part of her that wishes that Jennifer was still alive so that she could kill her again for what she did to his brother, but she doesn't think about that now. She just focuses on comforting Peter, giving him whatever support she can]

Peter: [his strength gives after a moment and he slides to the floor, pulling his sister down with him as he can't stop now that the wall has broken until he's panting, his throat soar and his eyes red, his whole body shaking in the emotional pain]

Talia: [she goes, grateful for the kitchen door so they have some semblance of privacy. She hushes him softly, her fingers running through his hair gently, whispering soft platitudes about how it will be alright, even though she knows it'll take time.]

Peter: [just clings to her, trying to find comfort but it's hard to listen when his own mind plays against him. His family was safe though. She couldn't hurt them, but here he was, still being hurt.] It will never be alright again. I killed her. I killed her and I listened to her heart slow and she tried to kill my baby. She only got close because I let her. I put everyone at risk.

Talia: You didn't know. She was very talented at deception, none of us suspected anything. We were all fooled, Peter. [and while she knows Peter was closer, he had feelings for her. That clouds judgment] And she didn't succeed. Malia's alive. So are we.

Peter: I can't let it happen again. [shakes his head. It was more of a "can't do it again" but it meant the same thing]

Talia: [yes, she hears that, and she won't dissuade that from him right now. Not when the pain is so fresh. But she's not going to let you die alone, Peter, you should know this by now.] We won't. We'll be more careful with who we let near the pack.

Peter: [shakes his head, his eyes yellow with anger] Never again.

Talia: It won't. I promise you. Look at me. [she tips his head up to face her more, looking him in the eye] I will not let your daughter get hurt like this again. [or him for that matter]