Burn Amongst Humanity [D. Hale ]

|LXVI|

"117"
________

~ Beacon Hills High School,

Six Years Ago ~

Casey was already silently now leaning against the side of the school when she spotted Peter walking over. "So, Branson, you obviously heard that he was going to be playing with the team?" Peter asked as he stopped in front of her and casually, Casey was pushing off from the wall and she was looking at him.

"Derek told me himself. I'm here to make sure that my father doesn't get any ideas. My mother is at home, my father is here. I am here to make sure that neither you, or Derek gets hurt. I called you because I stupidly thought that you could help." Casey said as he scoffed, looking at her.

"How is he?" Peter asked as Casey was shrugging at the words and she was looking up at him.

"Struggling. He is still in the locker room. I tried to help him, but as usual with you Hale family boys, he said no and as you know. You boys, are just as prideful as lions and with that, comes your personalities of just being as stubborn as mules." Casey explained and Peter nodded.

"You know, you're not really that bad. For a hunting prodigy, at any rate." Peter noted and Casey shrugged a little bit. "You coming or what?" He asked and Casey looked at the area around them, as Peter looked at her. "Your father, he can't hurt you in a public place. Especially not with Derek and I, both around."

"You sure about that?" Casey asked quietly and she stuck her hands into her pockets and swiftly, she followed Peter into the school and they swiftly went into the locker rooms. "I shouldn't be here, Pete." She said and he caught onto her arm, even before she could leave and she looked at him.

"Stay. He is always calmer when you're around him, you know that just as well as I do. Stay and I will let go." Casey said nothing and now, she was nodding and Peter let her go at the agreement. "Your wrist okay?"

"Yeah." Casey said and she quickly flexed her hand and they advanced towards Derek in the showers, in his basketball uniform, who was growling loudly.

The growling got even that much louder, when he saw Casey and when Casey looked at Peter, her fear and nerves must have been written all over her face, judging by the look on his. "He can smell it, Casey, he can already smell your fear. Stay calm and he won't keep it up." Peter said quietly and Casey nodded a little and while minutes ago, her heart had been beating so fast that she thought that it was going to, just swiftly burst out of her chest, Casey calmed down and her heartbeat slowed. "Nicely done." Casey shrugged. "You okay now?"

"Yeah." Casey murmured quietly under her breath, knowing full-well that both of them, they could both hear her at the moment.

Peter shut off the shower and he picked up Derek, who was shaking his head and he was swiftly now just only trying to keep his human side, firmly in control. "I thought... I thought I could control it." Derek was instantly protesting the look on Peter's face, as Casey had now moved around to get a different angle in case, things got violent between the uncle and his nephew.

"All this risk? Just for a basketball game?" Peter asked and Casey looked at the two, watching carefully for any signs of aggression. Casey, she definitely knew that Peter was in control, she had, already seen him at his worst on full moons, he was the first werewolf that she had actually seen at age six years old by her father's choice.

"It's the finals. They need me." Derek said.

"They need you? Really Derek? Do they really need you to, I don't know, kill someone on the court Derek?" She asked and Derek looked over at her. "I am here to watch the game, but my father is here to kill any werewolves that he can find. Age be damned, code be damned, he won't care." Casey said and he looked at her, before he looked at Peter, who was advancing on his nephew.

"Even born wolves like us, we all still have to learn control on a full moon, Derek." Peter said and Derek was leaning against the lockers, as he looked like he was now legitimately in pain and then swiftly he was resisting the moon's pull, as best as he could.

"Yeah, but it's supposed to be easier for us, why does it hurt like this?" The sheer pain in Derek's voice, it caught Casey off-guard and she looked over at Peter, who nodded a little.

"Did you bring it with you?" Peter sounded as if he was accusing Derek of something.

"It's not working..."

"Did you bring it?" Peter repeated the question and Derek unlocked his locker as he swiftly pulled out the triskelion-stamped object, and he held it in his hand and Casey narrowed her eyes at it.

Casey looked down at the triskelion amulet around her neck, a miniature version of the object, that Derek was holding. "Go ahead." Peter said and by the sense of urgency in his voice, Casey had a rising sense that she might be needed soon enough.

"Alpha, Beta, Omega..."

"Again."

"Alpha, Beta, Omega..."

"Again!"

Casey stepped back and with a loud and earthshaking roar of a howl, the triskelion had gone flying. Casey caught it, barely and she looked at Peter. "You're up." Peter said and Casey looked over at him like he was insane, as she nodded and she handed the triskelion over to him.

Casey walked over to Derek, whose eyes were locked on the floor and she worked to control her heartbeat, to put away her emotions for another night, anything but tonight and she had a feeling that he could sense it. Casey crouched down silently just in front of him as Derek, he was looking at the floor.

"Derek?" A low growl came in response to his name and she shut her eyes for a moment, before she was now sitting next to him. Casey looked up at Peter, as she nodded slightly and Peter walked toward the door. "If you need a person to talk to, whenever you feel like your control is slipping away, I'm here."

"Why aren't you angry? Why aren't you killing or, torturing me?" Derek's words were broken up by persistent growling and she looked over at him, as she reached out and she rested one of her hands on top of his. "I killed her, I killed Paige." He whispered.

"Because she asked you to." Casey pointed out quietly and he looked at her, as his fangs were bared and she could see it. "You only did it for her that night, Derek, to stop the pain. So, just... St-stop blaming yourself." She said and the icy blue of his eyes, the glow had faded. Casey looked down at their hands, seeing that Derek's claws were gone and that they were normal human fingernails again. "Are you okay now?" Casey asked and now, he looked at her and he silently nodded, as she was nodding. "If you need someone, I'm here." She said and he was looking at his hands, looking for the claws that had been there only a minute before.

"How?" Derek asked and she was shaking her head, just as stunned as he was.

"Hell if I know." Casey muttered as she got up and she looked over at the door. "I know you're listening." She said and Peter came back into the line of sight. "I think you can handle it now." She remarked and Peter, he was nodding. "Now, I'll try to make sure that my father doesn't get to kill anyone tonight." Casey remarked and she walked out of the locker room.