wonderland / teen wolf

III. Hypothermia

Alice Hale stood complacently in the middle of Beacon Hills high school's courtyard, a soft smile on her face as she drank in her surroundings.

The skirt of her pastel pink dress flowed softly in the breeze and her hair fell in loose curls around her face, framing the cream peter pan collar on the garment nicely.

A pair of well-built twins eyed her suspiciously as they walked past, but made no move to communicate with her.

She clutched the straps of her backpack tightly, letting out a content sigh, disregarding the people staring at her and the not-so-subtle whispers about her.

"Alice?"

The familiar, soothing voice of Scott McCall sounded from close by, and soon he and Stiles Stilinski made their way on either side of the girl.

"Oh," she beamed, grabbing on to each of their hands, "it's so lovely to see the both of you again."

"What are you doing here?" Scott spoke softly, as most seemed inclined to do in Alice's delicate presence, and gently placed a hand on the small of her back and guided her to the side of the courtyard, Stiles in tow.

"Derek told me that if I was staying, I had to attend school," Alice explained absent-mindedly, swinging her hand with Stiles', "and I thought it was a fantastic idea. I love to learn."

"Yeah," Stiles scoffed, "I'd hardly call the standardized fallacies they teach us 'learning'."

"Oh," Alice frowned, "what a dreadful perspective. Even if you aren't learning from your teachers, at least you're learning from your surroundings. There is no other place that forces such different people with different passions to coexist in such a harrowing environment. It's quite fascinating, really."

"Damn," Stiles raised a brow, "you could make a house fire sound positive."

All three teens froze as they registered his words, Alice immediately disassociating from the situation to escape the ashen memories plaguing her subconscious.

"Uh" Scott cleared his throat awkwardly, Stiles hitting himself repeatedly in the forehead beside the werewolf, "what, uh, what class do you have for first period?"

"Oh," Alice's lashes fluttered daintily as she returned to reality, the absent-minded smile returning to her face, "Economics with Robert Finstock."

"Us too," Stiles tried to smooth over his insensitive comment, "unfortunately."

"Chin up, Stiles Stilinski," she poked the grumpy boy on the nose, "even if we have a terrible time, we can always step outside and hear the birds chirping and know that the world is full of life and love and puppies."

"You sure are something else, Alice Hale," Stiles spoke with a fond smile as the girl began leading the way to class with a bounce in her step.

❉

"The stock market is based on two principles," Coach Finstock barked out, "What are they?"

Scott raised his with an excited smile on his face.

"Yes, McCall," Coach waved him off, "you can go to the bathroom. Anyone else?"