Chasing Shadows

Season 1, Episode 1: Wolf Moon

For a house that was one good storm from completely crumbling to the ground, it was surprisingly comfortable where I slept. Of course, the fact that I practically had a guard dog sitting beside me was definitely boosting the feeling of security.

I can handle myself though, I have always been able to. But, I guess I understand Dereks view on this. I was the last Hale -- the youngest, the baby. After me, there hasn't been another, and there probably won't be for years.

Derek was just doing what my mother taught him to do, protect his sisters at all cost.

I was peacefully sleeping, dreaming about our family being together again, when my dream came to an abrupt end and something else took over. It was a boy, looked to be about my age, running through the woods from some sort of creature. Well, he wasn't running for long, whatever creature was chasing after him swept him from his feet and dragged him away.

"Liz," Dereks voice echoed, although it sounded distant.

I was focused on the boy and the creature. it was like I was there, following alongside the attack. a pack of deer leaped over the boy who was now curled up in a ball covering his head. then, the creature appeared again, biting the boy in the side. I caught a glimpse of the creatures face. more importantly, his eyes.

Red.

"Liz, what's wrong?" Derek's voice sounded again, taking me further away from the scene.

It was like those red eyes saw me, looking directly into my own purple ones.

"Elizabeth!" Derek shook me awake this time, tearing me away completely from the dream. "Hey, talk to me, what did you see?"

I sat up, pushing the damp hair from my sweaty face and taking a deep breath. "Whatever got Laura is out there," I mumbled, swinging my legs so that I was sitting on the edge of the bed. "And I think it just claimed another victim."

Derek stood up, looking down at me. "I thought you were staying hopeful that she was alive?"

"Unless Laura becomes a big ugly creature when she transforms--"

"What do you mean?"

I sighed. "It had red eyes, Der," I mumbled, "The eyes stolen from an Alpha."

Derek paced around for a moment before stopping and looking at me. "Did you see where it was?"

I shrugged, unsure if I could pinpoint the exact location. But, it was worth a shot. "I mean-- I can try."

+

As we moved through the woods, the dense trees and underbrush tangled in the shadows, I felt the cold night air sink into my skin. Every sound-the crack of a branch, the rustle of leaves-seemed amplified. Derek was a few feet behind, his footsteps silent, his body tense, every muscle ready for what might come next. I followed, my eyes scanning the forest, looking for signs-anything that could match what I'd seen in my dream.

My mind was still racing. The image of those red eyes burned in my memory. The way they had stared at me-directly into my own-wasn't something I could easily shake. I wasn't sure what disturbed me more: the vision itself or the fact that the Alpha seemed aware of me, as if I was somehow part of what it was doing.

"We're getting close," I whispered, the sensation of being drawn back to the spot in my dream almost overwhelming. "It was somewhere around here."

Derek stopped, turning his head slightly as if he could hear something I couldn't. His face was set in that stony expression, the one that made him seem older than he was, burdened with responsibilities he never asked for. Protecting me had always been one of them, ever since the fire. I felt a twinge of guilt-he shouldn't have to do this alone.