Pure × Isaac Lahey

35.

x x x

Despite the night that had fallen over Beacon Hills, everyone was still wide awake.

Dr. Deaton was prepping to close the vet clinic, doing a once over on all of the animals residing overnight. The dark skinned man grabbed his jacket, starting to slip it on as he heard the overhead bell ring to signal a new arrival.

However, he had locked the door not 20 minutes before.

Elora stood in the lobby of the clinic with a light smile, holding her hands up almost jokingly. "Sorry if I startled you, Doc."

Deaton let go of a relieved sign, "Elora, it's just you."

"Got a sec for a little old witch?" she asked as she was let behind the mountain ash gate.

"Of course," replied Alan with a laugh as he leaned back against a metal exam table. "So what's going on?"

"It's the three of them." Elora crossed her arms absently as she spoke. "It's beginning to backfire, to show signs at an extent I haven't heard of."

Deaton nodded softly, "I imagine that had something to do with your visit."

"Hallucinations, sleep paralysis and uncontrolled shifting." The witch was lightly pacing the room, clearly bothered by all that was happening. "Each of them gained a different outcome despite bearing the same fate."

"They're all very different people," Deaton offered. "But you're right, it's not common for multiple surrogate sacrifices to experience different outcomes. They always - almost always - are linked."

"They are linked."

Deaton's eyebrows furrowed slightly, "But you just said -"

"They're not linked to each other, no." Elora stopped her pacing, instead turning to Alan. "They're linked to me."

The vet hesitated, "To you."

"I'm experiencing what they are," Elora told him. "First it was only Allison, but then I ended up in a nightmare of Stiles' - and quite possibly appearing in ones he's not telling me about."

"And with Scott?" questioned Deaton curiously.

"That came more subtly, and only within the past two hours." She sighed, leaning back against the wall. "It was...odd, to say the least. I'm not to the extent of Scott, but I felt it. There was a...quake in my power. I've been a witch much longer than Scott's been a werewolf so I will never be out of control, but it's," El had to take a moment to say it, "scaring me."

Deaton thought as he kept his eyes on Elora, "I won't plague you with the 'You knew what you were getting into' lecture. I know that's not going to change anything."

"Then what will?" the brunette asked softly. "How can I make them safe again?"

Alan didn't comment on how she hadn't included herself in the safe aspect, instead trying to help. "You said you might have appeared in Stiles' nightmares. How so?"

"Scott told me that Stiles had an...episode in class and Stiles happened to text me immediately after. Dream association as well as the fact he weirdly asked me if I knew sign language when I got to school and then disbanded when I said no."

"Sign language?"

Elora nodded, standing up straight as her phone vibrated. "I convinced him to come, maybe he'll explain what he saw."

"What happened in the dream of his you were aware of?" Deaton asked her as he absently put his hands in his pockets.

"Uh, it travelled. First it was Jennifer's classroom where the Nemeton was. Then he woke in his room, but Lydia was there. His room door was open and he was dead set on closing it. I remember him saying that someone would get in if he didn't close it. He showed up at school the next morning, telling Scott about it and I woke up screaming when he pulled from the dream."