Cardinals{Theo Raeken/Teen Wolf}

Tweleve

Song: Cardinals by The Wonder Years

~Theo

"Here, you can wear this. You're probably freezing." I hand Ryder a pair of sweatpants and a hoodie. I brought her back to my place since she said she didn't want to be alone.

"Thanks." She gets up and goes to change. I run downstairs to the kitchen and make her some tea, and when I get back, she's sitting on the bed on her phone.

"Drink this, it'll help with your throat in the morning." I say, handing her the mug. She raises an eyebrow at me. "It's herbal tea. And it'll help you sleep."

She gladly accepts it, and drinks.

"So, tell me about this Dread Doctor book." I say as I change too. I keep y shirt off and just put on a shirt. I turn my TV on for background noise.

"I didn't understand of it. This Judy chick went crazy."

"Maybe you should read it backwards?" I say, more of a question then a statement. She again, raises her eyebrow at me. "Okay so I was doing research, about Kitsunes-" "Why?" She cuts me off.

"Because I met one? Anyways, do you know why the Japanese say 'Moshi Moshi' when they answer the phone?"

"I'm fluent in French, not Japanese." She chuckles.

"It's means Hello. The Japanese say Moshi Moshi because it confuses Kitsunes-like it's a language barrier."

"Theo, I'm not a Kitsune." She frowns.

"I know," I say, getting a notebook and a pen. "You're a leftie, right?" She nods yes. "Okay, so left handed people are better at mirror writing/reading than right handed people. We know you aren't a Kitsune, and that's what threw me off. So I went for another approach. Japanese scientist proposed that the origin of mirror writing comes from damage caused through accidental brain damage or neurological diseases, such as Parkinson's Disease or Spino Cerebellar Degeneration. It goes back to the Ottoman Empire during the 18th and 19th Century. Leonardo Devinci  was well know for it too.

"What are you saying?

I write on a piece of paper, "Can you read this?" Then take a picture of it and mirror it.

"It says, Can you read this."

"Now write it backwards."

And just as I thought, she was able to do it with ease. "Either you have a photographic memory, or you're able to do mirror writing/reading." I pick up the book and make her read a paragraph. Again, she does it with no trouble.

"Okay, this is getting late and I'm tired." She says, closing the book.  "I guess that tea really does work." We both climb under the comforter, and she lays her head on my chest. Soon her breathing gets lighter and I start hearing little shores.

Kissing her head before falling asleep, I whisper, "If you call me back or let me in, I swear, I'll never let you down again."

***

"So we're basically looking for anyone with abnormal behavior?"

"Anyone acting a little off or weird." Scott confirms.

"Isn't everyone a little weird in high school?" Ryder says out loud. Scott and I both look at her. I just smirk and shake my head.

"Good point."

"Have you guys finished the book?"  Ryder asks.

"We haven't started. Too much has been going on." Scott says, shaking his head.

"Scott, I came here looking for a pack, not watch one fall apart. You guys need each other."

"And the book is where you all should start first."

"You all? Ry-" "Then I'll read it too." I interject before he can comment on what she just said.

"Okay, good. I have to go." Ryder says, awkwardly leaving.

"Why is she wearing your SnapBack and hoodie?" Scott asks.

"We were studying last night, and she slept over." I shrug.

"Studying the book?"

"No-well yes. Okay so I found out some information, and it turns out to be true."

"Like something in the Beastiary?" He raises an eyebrow.

"No, nothing supernatural," I begin. "She has the ability to read and wrote backwards. She said she couldn't understand the book, so I told her to read a paragraph backwards, and she did it with ease. She understood it better."

Scott doesn't say anything.

"What? Am I missing something?" I ask, confused.

"Ryder has Dyslexia. I couldn't figure out how she was able to read so fast, and you just confirmed my theory...."

*Did any of this make sense? I can re-write the part explaining her ability to read/write backwards if it doesn't*