On Death's Door
I can barely breathe as I walk up the path to the front door, my heart hammering away within my chest like some tiny creature is trying to escape the fate it knows awaits me if I get caught in my plan. Steve depends on this going well, so I will not fail. I can't. It will mean more than just his death if I'm found out.
My breath is shaky on the exhale as I steel myself to knock on the door, using so much of my energy to just be normal and smile, for fuck's sake. My mission will fail before I even start it if I look suspicious from the moment the door even opens to what is essentially the belly of the beast... Can I call it that, if technically I'm the beast and they're the Hunters?
I don't get long to spiral down that panic fueled path of thoughts, the mahogany wood door before me creaking open.
"Did you plan on just standing at my door all night, McCall?" Yelena says with a wry smile, leaning against the door jam. The smile comes a bit easier. "Sorry, got a bit lost in thought there." My head dips sheepishly, a hand coming up to tuck some of my dark curls behind my ear. Just breathe, I remind myself. This is Yelena, she's a friend, and I can do this without that simple fact being changed.
"You good?" The blonde asks in that raspy voice of hers, accent thick with concern as she looks me over. When she sees me nod, she smiles wide. "Good. Now get in here!"
A breathy laugh escapes me as Yelena grasps my arm and all but drags me across the threshold before closing the door behind us. I try to keep the sound of it clicking shut from sending me into another spiral, choosing to ignore the sense of finality that came with it. Rhythmic tip taps can be heard from across the large house, coming from another room, before Fanny comes to see what's going on. "Oh, she looks like she's doing so well!" I coo, dropping to my knees to pet the fluffy Akita. I snort when I see the neon pink collar on her, sending a sideways glance to my friend who just gives me a shit-eating grin.
"She's settled in great these past few weeks. I love her so much!" The blonde says as she bends down to ruffle the fur between the large dog's ears. "I still can't believe that Natasha was able to convince Mama and Papa to let me keep her."
The mention of her older sister sends a chill down my spine. My smile falters for half a second before I manage to keep it up, though it's no longer authentic.
"I'm glad they said yes. Fanny deserves a nice home, and you seem really happy. Are your parents in town yet?" I'm proud of how I manage to keep my voice from wavering, giving myself a mental pat on the back. "No, they won't be here until next week. I'm stuck with Natasha until then."
Chuckling at the face Yelena makes, I stand up as she moves further into her house. "Speaking of Natasha..." I start, swallowing thickly as I try to get the words out, following her towards what is presumably where her dining room is. "Is she here?" I have to know. If she's here, it will make my mission damn near impossible. My only hope to save Steve is if Natasha isn't here, and if Yelena isn't a Hunter like her sister is.
Of course, nothing in my life lately can be easy. All hopes are dashed as I step into the dining room slightly behind Yelena, and a raspy voice belonging to a certain redhead that is simultaneously sexy and terrifying sounds out.
"She is." Natasha says lowly, stepping into the dining room from the nearby kitchen with a glass of water in hand, her signature smirk in place. My heart practically stops.
Flashback, the night before:
Running. Why am I ALWAYS running?!
Steve groans as he leans against a nearby tree, careful to keep his blood from tagging it. We really don't need to give any more indications to those hunting us as to which direction we went in. "This isn't good..." He pants out, eyes flickering between glacial blue and human.
"No shit, this isn't good!" I whisper yell at him. My head swivels from side to side as I try to see if we're still being followed, but I don't see anything. In fact, there's no sign they even gave chase, which makes me frown. "I don't see, hear, or smell anything..." I whisper, glancing over to Steve.
He's sweating. That's... odd. I don't think I've seen him sweat, ever. I'm not even sweating after that mad dash we just did. Then again, I'm not injured.
"Are you okay?" Mild concern laces my voice as I step closer to the tall man. I'm still not over our conversation from earlier, bullet wound or not. "You'll heal, right?"
"I should have already healed." He groans, most of his weight supported by the thick oak tree he's up against. "It's laced with wolfsbane."
I take a giant step back at that, not eager to relive my previous encounter with the poisonous plant. He notices, rolling his eyes before wincing in pain. "What do we do?"
"I need to find out what kind of wolfsbane was in it-"
"There's different kinds?!" I interrupt, then immediately flinch back at the growl he emits. "Yes, there's different kinds. If I don't find out which one was used with this bullet, I'm dead."
My weight shifts from foot to foot in the tense silence after that revelation. As much as I don't really like the man, I don't want him dead. He's quite possibly the only one who can teach me about what I am, too, so... I gulp, knowing I'll have to help him. The idea forming in my head is definitely not my favorite, nor is it my brightest. In fact, it will probably end with both of us dead instead of just him, if I attempt it.
"If I can get you another bullet, could you identify the wolfsbane in it?" Fuck. Am I really even contemplating this? Do I have a choice? "Yes." Steve grunts in pain. He's pale and sweaty... Fuck, yeah, I don't have a choice. I guess I really do have a death wish.
A hand waving in front of my face snaps me back into the present, my lips pressing together into a thin pink line as I try to stay calm.
"Hellooooo? Earth to Dianna? I asked if you wanted to eat with us tonight since you're here?" Yelena drawls, and it's her hand in front of my face. "Uhh, no I should probably get home soon, actually. I just wanted-"
"Nonsense." Natasha cuts me off with a wave of her free hand, then pulls out her phone. "We're having pizza, and you're staying. Have to make up for hitting you with my car somehow, right?" The slightly older woman smirks, emerald eyes sparkling with humor and what I'd like to say is predatory intent. I swallow thickly as Yelena grins, making various suggestions for toppings that I don't pay attention to. How can I care about what she's saying when her sister is still staring at me? Our eyes are locked, and I just know that she knows. She has to. There's no way I could be so lucky as to run into her multiple times now and her not catch a glimpse of my face or something. "Why don't you two kids head upstairs to your room, 'Lena? I'll go ahead and order." The redhead suggests, cutting off her sister's comments about getting a pizza she can have hot sauce with (seriously, Yelena?).
"I'm not a kid, you're only a couple of years older than me, Natasha." The blonde grumbles, accent thick, but she concedes to her sister's suggestion and grasps my arm to pull me with her as she heads upstairs to her room.
Immediately once we're out of sight of the Hunter that plagues my nightmares, I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. Both relief and anxiety come crashing over me: relief because I'm no longer under her piercing gaze but anxiety because of the danger I'm not stupid enough to believe I've avoided. I still have to find the bullet she shot Steve with, somehow, without getting shot myself. And now she wants me to stay for dinner? Yeah, I think, definitely have a death wish.
Following Yelena down the hall and into her room, I see that she's still got some boxes that haven't been completely unpacked yet. "Wow. Nice room." The statement gets me a playful glare from the blonde before I have to dodge a pillow being chucked at me, a laugh bubbling up despite the strenuous circumstances surrounding me. "Just for that, you get to help me unpack some more."
Pouting at my friend, I get to work on helping with an already opened box on her bed that she must have been working on before my arrival. The box contains a few knick knacks, a couple of vests - shocker - and some pictures from what looks like a photo booth. A frown works its way to my face as I pick up the strip of photos, seeing the two sisters wrapped around each other or making funny faces at the camera. It must have been a few years ago, because Natasha and Yelena both look so much younger.
"I was fifteen in those pictures, Natasha had just turned seventeen." The blonde smiles softly, gently plucking the photo strip from my grasp. "We used to be a lot closer, back then."
"What happened?" I can't help but ask, curious about more than just the emotions I can clearly see on Yelena's face. She hasn't said anything about it, but I know her and her sister aren't quite as close as she'd like them to be anymore. I can't help but wonder if it has something to do with how Yelena doesn't seem to be a Hunter like her sister, at least that I know of. I can't help but wonder if there was ever more to Natasha, as well - that she wasn't always just this terrifyingly efficient Hunter hellbent on killing things like me. "I don't know... We grew up, I guess." Yelena shrugs.
Silence follows, and I gently bump my shoulder against my friend's, hoping to cheer her up or at least let her know I'm here for her. A grateful smile blossoms on her face, but it only lasts a second before it's gone, replaced by a stoic mask. Sighing, she moves to place the strip on her dresser mirror, sliding it into the crevice between the glass and the wood frame where it stays in place.
"Umm... Can I use your bathroom?" My voice is quiet, awkward. I want to give her the space it seems she may need, but it also may be the perfect chance to look for the bullet. I can't forget why I came here in the first place. "Yeah, down the hall and to the left."
Nodding, I make my escape and let the door swing almost shut behind me before quietly walking down the hall. I spot the bathroom but finding it doubtful the bullet I need would be in there; I glance around the hall before poking my head into a door on the right.
Empty. Except for some boxes stacked against the far wall, this room is empty.
Sighing, I back out and move a bit further down the hall. Forever grateful that the carpet muffles any slight creaks from the floor beneath me, I reach another door and crack it open to peer inside. This room isn't empty, and it looks entirely unpacked. I open the door a bit wider, stepping in before quickly pushing it shut, though I don't hear it click. This is definitely Natasha's room, the air heavily laden with the cinnamon perfume I always pick up from her as well as something just uniquely her. Fuck. Why does the crazy lady trying to kill me have to smell so good?! Next to Wanda's scent, Natasha's scent is the best thing I've ever smelled.
Shaking my head clear of those thoughts, I quickly move further into the room and start rummaging as carefully as I can through her things. Nothing. Damn it! Okay, I need to calm down and breathe. She obviously wouldn't have it out in plain sight, especially if Yelena is ignorant to all of this, so if I were a bullet laced with werewolf poison where would I be...
My eyes slide to under her large bed, the black comforter big enough to drape over the opening. It's worth a shot.
Dropping to my knees, I lift up the blanket - wow, that's soft - and I reach under the bed. It takes a second for me to find a duffel bag, and I quickly pull it out so I can unzip it. Whoa. Ropes, chains, and weird little poles with a switch on them are all that's in the bag. No bullets. I pick up one of the short poles, my hands gliding across the smooth surface towards the switch, wondering what it's supposed to do, when I hear a click behind me and cold fear goes through me as my head snaps around.
"Well, what do we have here? Sneaking around and going through my things, Dianna?" Natasha says lowly from her position leaning back against her closed door. Those emerald eyes, so beautiful, pin me in place as she tsks and takes a couple of steps towards me. I can feel the color draining from my face, but I have to say something to try and get out of this. "I-I was looking for the bathroom-"
"Cut the shit, little wolf. We both know you weren't looking for the bathroom." The redhead steps closer, eyes roaming over me intensely as she confirms that she does know I'm one of the ones she's been hunting. Swallowing thickly, I quickly stand to my feet so I can defend myself better - definitely not because kneeling before her felt funny. "N-No I'm sorry, please don't-"
"Shh, little one." She cuts me off again, and I back up as she continues moving forward. I stumble back until my back hits the wall next to her dresser, panic clawing its way up my throat as she steps ever closer, placing a hand on one side of my head against the wall to trap me in as she pulls a blade from behind her back with the other. The whimper that escapes me is undignified when that same blade is put to my throat, just hard enough for me to feel the cold bite of steel but enough to draw blood.
My eyes flutter as I mentally prepare myself for what I know is about to happen. I'm about to die, and Steve will die, too, because I've failed. I'm never going to finish school. Never going to go to college with Kate. Never going to have a chance with Wanda... It's all over. Right here, right now. A fly caught in a spider's web.
Until I hear a chuckle, and the blade retreats to glide threateningly down the column of my neck.
The tip drags over my collarbone and my eyes snap open to meet the sparkling emerald orbs mere inches from me, my breath hitching. The redhead looks... amused. One of her perfectly manicured eyebrows raised as she looks me over like I'm a brand-new toy. Which... I suppose I kind of am. "Not very smart of you to come here. You have a death wish, or something?" She remarks, echoing my previous sentiments about this kamikaze mission, digging the tip of her knife in ever so slightly at the dip between my collarbones in emphasis.
"I j-just wanted to try to save him..." I whisper, stuttering under her piercing gaze. This woman is absolutely terrifying, although I can't deny that a very small part of me is into this. Death wish, indeed.
"Oh, sweetie. That's what I was hoping for." Natasha says quietly, dragging her blade back up the column of my throat like a lover's caress. "And now you're going to answer some questions for me." She continues in that same quiet, calm voice. The calm emanating from her chills my blood further. Physically, I should be the greater threat. And yet she's perfectly calm, and I'm the one backed against the wall with a knife to my throat. "First question: does Yelena know?"
My eyebrows furrow so fast. That is not what I expected the first question to be. "Answer me!" She hisses, pressing the knife against me a bit harder, and I can feel a hot trickle of blood where it's nicked me. "No! No, she doesn't know." I blurt out quickly, eyes wide with fear. The older girl releases a breath in what I dare say is relief, relaxing her grip on her blade. "Good. It's going to stay that way." I go to nod but quickly think better of it when the blade nicks me again - thankfully I healed almost instantly from the miniscule cuts. But will that matter?
"Next question. How many of you are there?" The redhead tilts her head predatorily, leaning just a bit further into my space. "I don't know..." I whisper, but judging by her reaction, that's not a good enough answer. "No, please! I really don't know! All I know is Steve!" I rush out, hoping to appease her as the blade scrapes against my throat with my next gulp.
She seems to think for a second, a slight hum escaping her as she looks me over. "You're new, aren't you?"
When I don't say anything, she pulls the knife back just far enough to allow me to communicate nonverbally. "Nod yes or no, mutt. Are you new?" I quickly give a short nod. "Do you know who bit you?" I shake my head to indicate 'no'. "Hmm... Well that's no good." She pulls back ever so slightly. "It seems I've got myself a little dumb puppy... I'll tell you what, you're going to do exactly as I say, understand?"
The scrape of her blade up from my neck to across my cheek has me nodding slowly. "Good. Because I'm going to take advantage of this, and you're going to help me sniff out the rest of you dumb mutts left here in Beacon Hills. Don't worry, I'll be sure to train you well, pup." The smile growing on her face is nothing less than sinister as she leans closer. She stops with her face next to my ear, and I can feel her breath puffing hotly against my neck, sending a shiver down my spine in a mixture of feelings I am definitely not about to examine. "You're mine now, got it, pet? You're going to help me flush out the rest of my prey, and in exchange I'll help you find the one that bit you and turned you into this monster." Her hand that was against the wall moves, but I don't dare try to look and see what she's doing as she reaches towards her dresser.
"Don't worry, I'll train you and help you control yourself during the full moons. Because I expect nothing less than perfect, pet, and you will not keep us from our goal." The redhead pulls back, putting a step of space between us as she holds out her hand. When she uncurls her fingers, there's a bullet there, one that reeks terribly but I take hesitantly anyways. That must have been what she was doing with her dresser. "Here. For your friend." She smirks, looking me over before walking towards her nightstand, allowing me to catch my breath for what feels like the first time since she caught me in here. That breather doesn't last long when I practically choke as she comes back over, a familiar pendant swaying from her fingers.
"I think this belonged to you?" That signature smirk is still in place, and she sets her blade down beside me on her dresser as she gestures for me to step forward and turn around. Swallowing thickly, I obey and take the few steps that get me in between her and her dresser, then turn to look into the attached mirror as she stands behind me. Soft hands gently brush my long hair to one side before she brings my jade frog pendant around and then secures it. Our eyes lock in the reflection as she makes sure it rests perfectly just below my collarbones, fixing my hair for me after she's just fastened the metaphorical collar around my neck. Then she does something a little shocking and actually pets me. She brings a hand up to stroke my hair and the back of my head, nails lightly scratching as she does so, and her chin finds its way to the junction where my shoulder meets my neck as she watches me in the mirror. The bitch is actually petting me like I really am just some mutt to her.
Before I can move even an inch or protest, her hand grips my hair and her gaze hardens. "Remember the deal, pup. And Yelena finds out nothing." I nod slowly.
We're interrupted when we hear quick feet making their way down the stairs, and hear Yelena calling out. "Natasha, the pizza is here!"
"Just a minute, 'Lena! My wallet is on the dining room table, go ahead and pay for it!" The Hunter yells back to her sister. I wince at the volume when she's still right beside my ear, and her lips quirk upwards again.
Staring into the emerald orbs of my would be killer in the mirror, I can't help but reflect on just how fucked I am.