Ten

EXCITEMENT BUZZED through the growing crowd, the lights to the field flicking on as the sun started to set. Both teams were in the middle of getting ready, checking their gear and throwing on their jerseys over their shoulder pads.

"You know, remind me to thank Coach for getting you all new uniforms," Sierra commented, smiling brightly up at Stiles. "Nike looks way better on you than Adidas."

He chuckled, adjusting one of his gloves before he grinned, "I'll definitely keep that in mind." His whiskey eyes caught sight of her outfit, making him smirk. "You love wearing my clothes, don't you?"

Sierra glanced down at her maroon Beacon Hills track shirt, noticing he was referencing the dark red and black flannel that covered her arms. Her cheeks flushed. "Sorry," she apologized but Stiles just waved his hand.

"Don't ever apologize for that," he told her, grabbing her hand and pulling her body closer to his. Once their faces were centimeters apart, Stiles whispered, "You look beautiful."

"And you look like you're ready to go kick some ass," she replied cheekily and he laughed, shrugging his shoulders.

"I'm definitely going to try." He bumped their noses together, "Good luck kiss?"

Sierra raised to her tiptoes, closing the distance between them without another word. Feeling the familiar electricity spread through his body, Stiles smiled at the way she kissed him. She tried to pull away but he was quick to keep her close, pecking her lips multiple times till she started to giggle.

"Okay, okay," she leaned back to get a good look at him, admiring the way his eyes lit up. "You're going to do great," Sierra assured, moving her arms away from his neck to rest over his jersey number.

"Thanks, string bean." Stiles glanced around, noticing Kira and Scott conversing on the bench. "You gonna sit on the bench or in the bleachers with my dad when he comes?"

"I'm not really sure," Sierra pursed her lips. "Because of Liam, I might sit on the bench, but I don't know if Coach will let me."

"Page!"

"Speaking of the devil," Stiles muttered, spotting his coach stalking over. Sierra completely stepped back from him, chuckling as she turned to face Coach Finstock.

"Where have you been?!" the man exclaimed, throwing the hand that wasn't holding a clipboard up in the air. "I need my assistant coach!"

"Assistant coach?" Sierra echoed, exchanging a confused look with Stiles. "You never asked me to be your assistant coach."

"I didn't?"

Sierra shook her head.

"Well, it's too late to ask you now," Coach Finstock remarked, handing her what he held in his hand. "Here's your clipboard and I'll get you a whistle, don't worry about that. I need you on the bench when the game starts, okay? You've been to all of our practices and even though it's just a scrimmage, we're going to run through some plays. You can take notes on how we execute."

Whirling on his heel to go talk with the referees, he yelled over his shoulder, "Don't forget! Buzzer sounds, be on the bench!"

Sierra stood there, stunned, while Stiles started to laugh. She snapped out of it, scrunching her nose in confusion. "What just happened?"

"I think I just developed a crush on the new assistant coach," Stiles teased, making her cheeks burn red.

Rolling her eyes, she playfully shoved him away from her. "Oh, shut up, you."

"Hey, at least now you know where you're sitting!"

*^*^*^*^*

"Tell me again why we decided to come here?"

Jemma stood uncomfortably in the middle of the Hale vault, watching Derek search the shelves while Argent remained beside her. Finding what he needed, Derek closed a box and turned around to face them. Holding up the triskelion medallion, he spoke, "This is what she was after."

Argent took it from him, squinting to observe more closely. He twisted it in his hands as Derek continued, "We use it to teach young betas how to control the shifts on the full moon."

"Control was never one of Kate's strengths," Chris remarked, handing the medallion back over.

Jemma studied the way he cast his eyes to the floor, she commented, "You knew she was alive...didn't you?"

"Not for certain," he sighed heavily. "But I'd been searching ever since Derek handed me the shotgun shell." He pulled it out of his pocket, glancing at the familiar crest etched into the end.

"What're you going to do when you find her?" Derek asked, after he placed the triskelion back in its rightful place and stepped up beside them.

"There's a place I can take her."

Jemma looked at Derek and raised her eyebrows in curiosity. "Are you saying you have some kind of werewolf jail?" she questioned Chris.

He shrugged. "Something like that."

"She won't go quietly," Derek pointed out.

The former hunter barely shook his head, replying, "I don't expect her to. And I'll do what's necessary."

Jemma frowned at the negative energy surrounded Chris, realizing how hard this must be for him. After all, Kate was his younger sister. The rest of his family had been obliterated.

One glance from her to Derek made the werewolf sigh, speaking up. "What if I asked you not to?"

Confused, Argent turned around, waiting for Derek to explain. "She took something from me," Derek stated, flickering his golden eyes. "At first, I thought it was a part of my past. But I'm starting to lose something else."

"Your sense of smell," Jemma realized, it hitting her like a ton of bricks. That's why he couldn't tell them that the Mute was hiding in the school. Derek couldn't catch his scent.

Argent looked between the pair, still not completely understanding until Derek nodded his head, agreeing with Jemma.

"I'm losing my power."

*^*^*^*^*

"There you go, Liam! Stilinski! McCall! Yukimura!"

Coach mocked Scott as all the starting players ran onto the field, clapping his hands together loudly.

Sierra sat on the bench, her leg bouncing and her eyes consistently darting between all of her friends to make sure they were okay. Scott had tried to convince Coach to sit Liam out, but the man just laughed in his face. Especially after Liam caught a ball Brett threw at his face, Coach wanted Liam to play.

The scrimmage didn't start well for Beacon Hills, Devenford Prep scoring their first goal in a matter of seconds.

"Why do I feel like this is going to end badly?" Kira asked Scott and Stiles, dressed in jersey number fifteen.

"Because it usually does," Stiles replied honestly.

Scott kept them focused; he couldn't care less about the score. They just needed to keep Garrett away from Liam. And with Sierra not being a player, he had to step up and call the shots. "Kira, you keep an eye on Garrett," Scott instructed. "I'll watch out for Liam."

The trio separated, getting into their starting positions while Stiles mumbled, "Yeah, I'm just gonna try to play lacrosse."

Sierra watched Scott squat down in front of Brett, tuning out the crowd so she could hear what he was saying. "Brett, I know you guys feel like you owe Liam some payback for what he did, but could you just hold off?" Scott asked, desperate at this point. "For one night?"

"Yeah," Brett replied, Scott widening his eyes. "I can do that."

"Really?"

"No."

The whistle blew, Brett taking advantage over Scott's surprise to snatch the ball with his stick and take off. Scott groaned, breaking into a sprint to catch him. Though as he spotted two Devenford Prep players heading towards his beta, he shouted, "Liam!"

But it was too late.

They roughly blocked him from stopping Brett, pushing him down against the grass to give their captain an open shot with the goal.

Sierra shot up from her seat as Liam landed on his back, instantly scrambling back on his feet and throwing off his gloves. He narrowed his eyes at the players, ready to tackle them if Scott and Stiles hadn't held him back.

"Are you sure he should still play?" Sierra walked up to Coach, who had his arms folded across his chest. "He almost attacked those guys."

He glanced at her before focusing on his team setting up for the next play. "Lacrosse is a rough sport, kiddo," he shrugged. "Liam's fine."

"You guys know that anabolic steroids are illegal in the United States?" Stiles questioned his opponent, crouching to rest the end of his stick next to the ball. The topic clearly made the guy uncomfortable, so Stiles continued. "You have a lot of facial hair for a teenager. What're you on? Seriously, dude. HGH? Gamma radiation?"

His rambling distracted the player, allowing Stiles to pick the ball up into his net and sprint past him. Following the play, he launched a perfect pass across the field to Kira, who froze. "Go Kira!" Stiles encouraged her. "You gotta run, go!"

Before he knew it, Kira was dodging players left and right as she headed towards the goal. Sierra started to cheer, jumping up and down in celebration while Coach yelled, "Pass it! Kira, pass the ball!"

But she didn't.

Seeing an opportunity, Kira shot the ball, the white sphere zooming past the goalie into the net. The crowd went wild at her victory, watching her run over to Scott with a giant grin on her face.

"Yukimura!"

Kira raised her head at her name, realizing Coach had been trying to call her over. Once she looked at him, he motioned to her with his finger. "Get over here!"

As she ran over to him and Sierra, she took of her helmet and smiled widely. But it quickly fell once Coach told her she was benched for the rest of the game. "What, why?" she demanded.

"You didn't pass," Coach told her seriously.

"I had an open shot!"

He didn't care. "The play was for you to pass and since this is a scrimmage, we're focusing on teamwork. So, you're benched."

Casting a worried look to Sierra, Kira wondered how she was supposed to help protect Liam now. Her shoulders slouched as she walked to the bench, disappointed as she took a seat.

"Coach, aren't you kind of being harsh?" Sierra asked him, knowing Kira needed to be on the field. "We're down and she gave us a chance to come back. It's a good thing that she recognized an open shot."

"I don't want selfish players," Coach Finstock disagreed. "She's not playing."

"But Coach--"

"End of discussion, Page," he warned her, turning his back to the field.

Sierra met Scott's eyes in a panic, throwing her hands up helplessly. It was clear the man wasn't going to change his mind.

The game had to go on without her.

Scott and Stiles did what they could, keeping Liam separated from Garrett as much as possible. But in doing so, the Devenford Prep players were able to hit the freshman when he least expected it. More than once. A loose ball sent everyone into a frenzy, Liam spotting it at the same time as Brett and another player.

They collided, Liam getting thrown off of Brett's back and into the air. Everyone in the crowd gasped in shock, holding their breaths as he landed with a harsh thud. Whistles blew as the players screamed from the pain, Scott and Stiles rushing over to help Liam get back on his feet. Brett was in as much, or more pain, as his teammates surrounded him, the coaches and referees sprinting over to make sure they were alright.

"How hard did you hit him?" Scott asked with a slight laugh, not realizing how much pain Liam was in.

"I didn't," Liam told him truthfully. "He hit me." He held up his forearm, the swelling showing a clear break in his bone. Scott quickly took off his gloves, knowing it had to be reset so it could heal properly.

"Close your eyes," he instructed.

Liam did as he was told, bracing himself. Without hesitating, Scott used his strength to snap the bone back into place, making Liam wince. After checking that he was alright, the three turned to see Brett still on the ground.

His cries filled the air and the EMT on sight, along with a referee, had to assure him he was going to be alright. They helped him stand, walking slowly off the field as Brett's right leg dragged across the ground.

But that isn't what made Scott panic.

His head snapped up at the sheer sound of metal, his eyes quickly finding Garrett among the other players, clutching his stick.

Instantly, Scott searched Liam for any trace of a wound. "Are you cut?" he rushed out in concern. "Did Garrett cut you anywhere?"

"No," Liam shook his head. "No, I'm okay."

"Then he missed?" Scott didn't believe it, not with the way Garrett was proudly holding himself up.

Not understanding, Liam asked, "What do you mean?"

Exchanging a look with Stiles, Scott hesitated to tell him the truth. But he had to. "It's you, Liam," Scott sighed. "You're the one he's after."

*^*^*^*^*

Referees calling a mandatory timeout before halftime was unusual, but considering how the scrimmage had started, neither coach had the guts to argue. Coach Finstock informed Liam he couldn't play the rest of the game, much to Sierra's relief.

"What're you going to do?" Kira asked Scott worriedly, after Sierra and Stiles excused themselves so she could answer her phone.

"I don't know," Scott replied honestly, glancing between her and the field. "Something's still not right; we're missing something."

"Guys," Sierra and Stiles came back at the perfect moment, but they didn't bring good news. "Lydia just broke a third of the list."

Stiles held up his phone that held the picture but Liam didn't want to wait, quickly asking, "Am I on it?"

"No," Sierra assured him, resting a comforting hand on his shoulder as she glanced up at Scott. "But someone else is."

"Who?"

"Brett."

Scott scanned the field for the lacrosse player, unable to find him. "He's not here, guys."

"Then he must be in the school," Sierra deducted reasonably. "The EMT probably took him to the locker room to further examine his leg after he fell." She moved her eyes to the bench, where Coach had started to argue with the refs. "You guys need to stay here for the game; I'll go get him."

"Absolutely not," Stiles grabbed hold of her wrist before she could leave, pulling her back over to their group.

"What, why?"

"It's obviously a trap," Stiles told her, looking at Scott so he'd back him up. "Think about it. You are the highest on the list, Sierra, and Scott is right behind you. What if they hurt Brett to lure you all in?"

"If he's hurt, we have to help," Sierra disagreed. "We can't just leave him to die."

"We're not going to," Scott spoke up sternly. "But I'm going to go get him, not you." She opened her mouth but he cut her off, "There's no time to argue, otherwise we're wasting time. I'll go get Brett and you stay here to watch over Liam."

"But--"

Sierra huffed, perching her hands on her hips as Scott jogged off towards the school, not allowing her to say another word. Kira and Liam exchanged worried glances, but stayed silent as Stiles tilted his head at his girlfriend. He knew what was running through her head. "How long are you going to wait before you go after him?"

"Exactly two minutes."

"And I take it you're not going to let me stop you?"

"Damn straight."

*^*^*^*^*

Scott walked down the dimly lit hallway, staying on high alert from the suspicious silence. Once his eyes landed on an unconscious EMT, he sprinted towards the locker room, hoping that he hadn't arrived too late.

When he made it past the doorway, he freaked out at the sight of Brett laying face down on the concrete. But before he could even take a step, he jumped from the beta's eyes popping wide open in fear.

And then, he couldn't breathe.

Violet appeared behind him, her signature thermo-cut wire cutting off his air circulation instantly. His hands pulled desperately at it, his palms burning from the heat as she cackled. "He said we shouldn't try!" she referred to Garret, grinning victoriously. "But now I've got you, I've got an alpha!"

Violet tried to pull on the wire, but she had completely underestimated Scott's strength.

He growled darkly, his seering red eyes narrowing into a glare as he held onto the wire, pulling it from her grasp.

Violet looked at him in disbelief, all of her hope decimating as her weapon snapped. Scott's hand sprung out to grab her throat, the freshman gasping for air until Scott swiftly slammed her into the cement wall. She crumbled into a heap, Sierra and Stiles arriving just as Scott threw down the wire.

"What the hell?!" Sierra exclaimed with wide eyes, stepping over Violet to see Brett sputtering on the floor. "We need to get him to Deaton. Now."

"You also need to call your dad," Scott advised Stiles.

And absolutely no one disagreed.

*^*^*^*^*

Once the police arrived, the school became a war zone. The lacrosse players were throwing a fit about not being able to have their gear, Coach yelling over them to calm down and to keep an eye out for Garrett. Photos of the locker room had been snapped, while the sheriff and Deputy Parrish handcuffed Violet and started to escort her out of the building.

"Jordan Parrish," Violet mumbled under her breath, her eyes lighting up in recognition at his name tag.

"Deputy Parrish," he corrected her sternly, moving her down the hallway.

Sierra and Scott stood side by side, Sierra glaring at Violet once they made eye-contact. The young assassin smirked but continued on, keeping her mouth shut.

Sheriff Stilinski joined the pair, as well as Raphael, who seemed intrigued by the evidence bag Noah held onto. "Is that the weapon?"

"Yeah," Noah sighed, looking down at it. "It's a, a thermo-cut wire."

Raphael's face hardened, his suspicions being confirmed. Scott and Sierra exchanged glances as his dad turned away, calling after Parrish, but stayed put at the sight of Liam appearing around the corner. "Are you okay?" Sierra asked him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

Liam nodded his head. "Yeah, I'm fine. But Kira took off."

"What, why?" Scott demanded, concerned for his girlfriend.

"Stiles showed her the rest of the second part of the dead pool," Liam explained. "Her mom was on it."

Sierra eyelids fluttered shut as she exhaled, knowing how worried Kira must be right now.

"Everyone is on it," Scott replied, making her open her eyes.

"Not Liam," Sierra pointed out, offering the boy a small smile. "I know there's still another third but at least you're safe right now."

Scott held up his hand, signaling for them to stay silent as his ears perked. Sierra and Liam looked at him curiously, and Sierra turned her head to try and hear what he was listening to. "A thermo-cut wire is a pretty unusual weapon," she caught Raphael's voice, talking with Violet, Parrish, and Noah. "You know, we've got a file about something similar. Used in over a dozen murders."

Violet scoffed, "I don't know what you're talking about. I just go to school here."

"Maybe we should call your parents then," Raphael suggested, raising a finger as a thought dawned on him. "Oh no, that's right. You don't have any parents. That's why they call you the Orphans."

Violet's face fell, panic flashing through her eyes. Raphael nodded to the deputy, allowing him to take her away without another word. The FBI agent turned to Noah, stating, "We need to find her boyfriend, Garrett."

The sheriff agreed, turning to grab Coach Finstock's attention. "Coach, I'm going to need both of their locker numbers. And someone find me a set of bolt cutters."

Those words sprung the three into action. As soon as the locker room was cleared, Liam stood guard at the door while Scott and Sierra rummaged through Garrett's belongings. They were trying to find any hints as to where he could've run off to.

"This is dumb," Sierra whispered to him, checking the top shelf. "There's only deodorant, some gum and...wait, what is that?" Sierra gagged once she read the label on the box, Scott glancing up at her.

"What?"

"I'm going to throw up," she declared, shoving it out of her sight. "This freshman has a box of condoms! And they're open!"

Scott chuckled, rolling his eyes at her antics. Sometimes it scared him how much her and Stiles acted alike. But as his gaze fell onto Garrett's lacrosse bag, he froze. "Sierra?"

"Yea, buddy?"

"Look."

Sierra's blue eyes drifted to what he was referring to, her pupils dilating in surprise. She couldn't say anything, at a loss for words from seeing multiple stacks of hundred dollar bills. Scott didn't know how to react either, his jaw dropped open.

"Guys, I think someone's coming!" Liam's voice snapped them out of it. "Did you find anything?"

Scott hesitated, glancing at his best friend for an answer. But she didn't know how to respond. "No," he decided, shoving the bag away. "We didn't find anything."

*^*^*^*^*

"What the hell is happening to this kid?!"

Stiles demanded, wrestling to keep Brett on the observation table. His limbs flailed, his body spazzing uncontrollably while his mouth sputtered yellow foam. Derek stayed on the other side, pressing down on Brett's shoulder to keep him still.

"He was poisoned by a rare wolfsbane," Deaton responded, moving back over to them quickly with a small blade. "I have to make an incision, but you have to hold him down."

Stiles struggled; fighting against werewolf never ended well for him. "Hey, Derek," he called him out in annoyance. "How about a little werewolf strength?"

"You know, I'm not the only one here with werewolf strength," Derek spat back, referring to Brett.

"Hold him still," Deaton ordered, cutting off their bickering. "The incision could kill him."

The vet moved closer to Brett's torso, Derek and Stiles doing what they could to keep the kid at bay. "He's slipping!" Stiles noticed, his own feet sliding on the tile floor. "I don't think I can hold him!"

Brett's eyes shot open, gleaming amber yellow. He could barely see, the wolfsbane affecting his senses as it moved towards his heart. He shoved the three men off of him in fear, Stiles falling back into the sink. Brett scrambled to get down from the table, his gaze darting around the room to find an exit. But just as he turned his head, a fist collided with his jaw.

Brett collapsed on the floor, completely unconscious.

Stiles's mouth dropped open in disbelief, quickly raising his head to see who hit him.

Jemma stood there with her hand in the air, her eyes gleaming red. "I know I said I'd guard the door," she started, blowing her bangs out of her face, "but you guys sounded like you were struggling."

"That was... awesome!" Stiles exclaimed with a laugh, before remembering Brett. "Oh, god! Doc, I don't think he's breathing."

Deaton rushed over, kneeling down beside Stiles in front of Brett. Derek exchanged a concerned look with Jemma, even though he wanted to send her a proud smile at her impeccable timing. But the cut on his forearm, from when Brett shot up, kept his lips pursed. Jemma followed his gaze, her breath hitching when she saw the scratch taking longer to heal.

Brett gasping caught their attention, Deaton making a clean incision right down the center of his stomach. A yellow powder escaped from his body into the air, dissolving instantly.

"Is he okay?" Stiles asked Deaton, unsure.

"He'll be fine," Deaton nodded his head, "but I think he'll be out of it for awhile."

Stiles furrowed his eyebrows at the sound of Brett mumbling, unable to decipher his words. "Do you guys hear that? I think he's trying to say something."

Deaton leaned his ear closer to Brett's mouth, recognizing the phrase. He sat back, glancing up at Jemma and Derek. "Three things cannot long be hidden," he revealed. "The sun, the moon, the truth. It's Buddhist."

"I know that mantra," Jemma recalled seriously, and Derek nodded in agreement.

"Satomi."

*^*^*^*^*

Sierra never liked skipping school, even if it was just for one class. Her reasons were valid, I mean, she was fighting to protect people. But she did wonder if teachers noticed that when one person in the pack was gone, everyone else disappeared from the building within an hour. Then there was the issue regarding their absences; Sierra knew they were all way above the six day limit. Yet, no one ever received a truancy note in the mail.

Sierra liked to believe it was because of the sheriff. Having Noah informed about the supernatural really eased her conscience, and she was on her way to the station right then with Lydia and Stiles.

"Do you think Parrish believe us?" Lydia spoke up, interrupting the mere sound of the radio from the back seat.

"He doesn't really have a choice," Sierra remarked with her eyes focused out the window.

Stiles pulled into the parking lot, turning off the ignition before he faced the girls. "We just have to ease him into it, alright?" he told them. "He'll get it, even if we don't know what kind of creature he is."

"Does he even know what he is?" Sierra asked a validated question. "We've never seen any kind of suspicious behavior from Parrish, not ever."

"Well, one way we can find out is by actually going inside," Lydia pointed out. "Are we going or not?"

The trio ignored the hustle of the station when they walked in, heading straight for Parrish's desk. He greeted them with a kind smile, raising to his feet. "Your dad should be back within the hour," he informed Stiles. "But you guys are free to hang out in here if you want."

"Actually, we're here because we want to talk to you," Stiles responded, twisting his fingers together out of a nervous habit.

Sierra added, "Privately."

Parrish looked puzzled, but led them into the sheriff's office. Once the door was shut and Parrish stood in front of them, Lydia handed him a folded piece of paper.

Scanning it, Parrish took notice of the names and the numbers printed beside them. "Is this a hit list?"

Stiles shrugged, "We call it a dead pool, but yeah. Do you recognize any of the names?"

"Yeah," Parrish nodded his head, glancing back down at it. "The sheriff had me run a bunch of these names through the system last night. But we couldn't find any of them."

Not wanting to be a bearer of bad news, Stiles motioned to Lydia. "You can, um, show him the other thing."

Lydia hesitated, sending Stiles a glare that made Sierra chuckle under her breath, but flipped the paper. On the very top, near the crease, was Parrish's name. His eyes widened at the sight, his back straightening up. "Well, that's kind of terrifying." He squinted his eyes at the single digit. "What's the number mean?"

Sierra pursed her lips, forcing herself to tell him, "That's how much your worth."

Parrish whirled around. "I'm worth five dollars?!"

"Five million," Stiles corrected, holding up his hand.

The deputy couldn't believe his ears. "I only make forty thousand a year," he announced, lowering his voice to a mutter. "Maybe I should kill myself."

Sierra laughed roughly, though to be fair she didn't his humor funny while Stiles and Lydia exchanged alarmed looks. "Let's not, um, let's not joke about your death, okay? We all kind of want you alive."

"I don't understand, why am I on this?" Parrish inquired but the teenagers didn't really know what to tell him.

"Honestly, that seems like a question for another day," Stiles answered. "There's still another third of the list we gotta crack."

"We need a third cipher key, but we need help getting it," Lydia agreed, looking at Parrish hopefully.

Parrish squinted. "From who?"

"Meredith."

"The girl from Eichen?" Parrish raised his eyebrows, not liking the idea in the slightest. "The last time you saw her you almost gave her a nervous break down."

This was news to Sierra, who widened her eyes as she turned to her friend. "You did what?"

"Hey, hey," Lydia waved her hand, stating in defense, "Almost. I almost gave her a nervous break down, but she's fine. She was the one who helped me get Aiden's name for the second third."

The strawberry blonde turned to Parrish expectantly. "So are you on our side or what?"