[ start of pack mentality part two ]

Derek and an awkward car ride with Scott and Stiles, Eleanor and the two boys had arrived at the high school. It was nightfall and the blue jeep's headlights were shining towards the damaged bus in which previously held the injured civilian.

The way Eleanor saw it, Derek had sent her with them to simply babysit and make sure that they didn't mess up or get caught, nonetheless she was bored senseless.

She definitely did not want to be in their presence. Of course, she was unbelievably angry at the two for the arrest of her elder brother, however she was even more upset about how they hadn't been there for her at a time when everything seemed to be falling apart. Of course, she understood that Scott was having trouble adapting to the new lifestyle, and she had no intention of sounding selfish, but her sister had just died, and she had no one that she could confide in.

The jeep came to a halt and the three teenagers immediately clambered out of the vehicle, greeting the sharp air with a heavy sigh. Eleanor crossed her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes at her two best friends as they skipped toward the gate surrounding their school.

Scott turned around and his eyebrow flickered at the sight of Stiles behind him. "No, just me. Somebody needs to keep watch."

"That's what Nora is for!" Stiles scoffed, pointing behind him toward the girl as she rolled her eyes.

"Just go and keep watch."

He huffed. "Why is it starting to feel like your Batman and I'm Robin? I don't want to be Robin all the time."

"Nobody's Batman or Robin any of the time." Scott growled, latching a hand to the fence as Stiles tapped him on the back, contemplating his answer.

"Not even some of the time?"

Eleanor rushed a hand through her hair out of pure annoyance for the pair and grabbed a fistful of Stiles' top, yanking him back softly as she stared at Scott. "Scott, go. I'll stay here with Stiles."

Scott nodded instantly and climbed over the railing, proceeding toward the school bus cautiously as Stiles groaned in frustration, pulling himself out of Eleanor's grasp and into the jeep, where the pair sat in silence, waiting for their friend to return with more information.

Stiles craned his neck to look at her awkwardly. "So, Eleanor."

"Mhm?"

"Well I was, sort of wondering if-"

Eleanor widened her eyes as a bright glow shone through the windscreen mirror. "Oh god, no."

Stiles scrunched his eyebrows and his face contorted with rejection, his shoulders deflating as he leant back in his seat. "How did you even know what I was going to say?"

"No, Stiles, look! It's one of the deputies cars, we need to get Scott."

With a glance behind him and a strangled yelp flooding his throat, Stiles slammed his hand down on his steering wheel, emitting a screech of a horn that would surely catch the newly bitten werewolf's attention.

In a matter of seconds, Scott had elbowed his way back into the jeep, squishing Eleanor between the two boys in the process. Stiles immediately drove away from the scene, careful to avoid the police car behind him. For a second, silence filled the anxious air.

Stiles looked at his best friend expectantly. "Well, did it work? Did you remember?"

"Yeah, I was there last night." He confirmed, sullenly. "And the blood - a lot of it was mine."

"So, did you attack him?"

He shook his head. "No, I saw glowing eyes in the back of the bus, but they weren't mine."

The brown eyed boy glanced at Eleanor nervously and she instantly caught on to what he was suggesting, crossing her arms over her chest as he muttered. "It was Derek."

"But why would Derek help you remember that he attacked the driver?"

Scott scratched the back of his neck, trying to avoid Eleanor's angry glare. "That's what I don't get."

"He helped you remember, because it wasn't him." She snapped. "Last time, you got him thrown in prison and I restrained from castrating the both of you; don't let it happen again."

Stiles ignored her and continued the conversation. "It's got to be a pack thing. Like an initiation, you do the kill together."

"Yeah, because ripping someone's throats out is a real bonding experience?" Eleanor snarled spitefully, sinking further into her seat as they continued to ignore her.

"Well, whatever happened, it means that your not the killer. Which also means that you-"

"Can go out with Allison!" Scott finished, smiling delightfully as both of his friends rolled their eyes.

Stiles stared at him. "Well, I was going to say that it means you won't kill me."

Scott glanced at his best friend and widened his eyes, nodding his head quickly. "Yeah, of course, that too."

"How thoughtful. As much as I have loved every second of babysitting the two of you for Derek, can you drop me off at Allison's? Her and Lydia want some help with their outfits."

Scott smirked at the mention of Allison, and glanced past Eleanor to look at Stiles. "So, what are you and Stiles doing tonight while we're bowling?"

Eleanor's eyes widened into saucers and she caught herself before she choked on the oxygen she consumed, her eyes fixated on the digital clock on the jeep's radio. She bit her lip and tried to think of a plausible lie.

"Uh, movie night?"

The boy squinted his eyes at the pair. "But you guys do that anyway?"

Stiles and Eleanor stared at each other awkwardly and she nudged him to reply. "Uh, yeah but it's the way we like it."

The car came to a halt outside of the Argent household and Scott merely rolled his eyes, for he knew that this 'date' between his two best friends was most likely non-existent. However, that did not mean he planned on keeping it that way. He let Eleanor climb over him and out of the vehicle, shutting the door behind her before he spoke once again.

"Cool, I asked Stiles to drop me and Ali off at the bowling alley so you can come with and then you guys can just go back to one of yours. Bro, you still alright with picking me up as well?"

Eleanor widened her eyes and her and Stiles made eye contact once again. Stiles nodded awkwardly at his best friends question and gave a small smile. "See you tonight?"

She merely nodded, waving at the two half heartedly as she turned on her heel, walking toward the house with pace. She arrived at the front door just as Allison opened it, inviting her into the house with a warm greeting.

Eleanor gently slipped her shoes off, said a quick hello to her parents - though trying her best to ignore the werewolf hunters - and followed her friend up the staircase and into her room, where Lydia stood, a disgusted frown melted upon her lips.

"Allison, your closet is a disaster! My respect for your taste is dwindling by the second." Lydia complained, huffing as she took a step back, dropping herself onto the bed behind her.

She looked up in annoyance, however smiled at Eleanor as she entered "Hey Ella."

Eleanor replied with a warmhearted smile, stepping towards the closet immediately for she felt that she could help Allison and Lydia with the situation. In addition, they had asked for her help when they suggested she hang about with them until their own respective dates, and so she was merely trying to fulfil her need.

"This?" She pulled out a black sequinned top that Eleanor knew would pair well with slim fit jeans she had seen Allison wearing before, and that it would compliment her figure.

Allison smiled at the item of clothing and took it from the girl's hand, holding the article in front of Lydia for a reaction. The strawberry blonde smiled in approval and her eyes glimmered happily as she stood up from her slumped position on Allison's duvet.

She rested an hand on Eleanor's shoulders and her grin widened. "You, just might be my new favourite person."

Eleanor laughed at the serious statement and the three girls fell back on the mattress in canon, glancing between one another as they sighed in delight. Eleanor liked hanging around the two, it brought a level of simplicity to her life that she could not find anywhere else.

Lydia and Allison smirked at one another, a knowing look shared between them as they glanced at their friend. "So, you and Stiles?"

Eleanor groaned in frustration, rolling her eyes as she buried her face into the duvet. The other two girls contorted their faces in confusion, shifting closer to Eleanor as she moaned.

"Did something happen?"

She snorted. "You have no idea."

Allison rested a hand on her leg comfortingly. "Tell us about it. I'm sure it's nothing you can't fix, besides, you're supposed to have your date tonight!"

She picked her face up from the duvet and proceeded to tell the girls about her rocky friendship with Stiles, minus a few relevant but unneeded details. "He and Scott have just, they've done a few things lately that have kind of pushed me away? And as much as I can see where they're coming from, they act upon things that they know will upset me. And lately, I feel like the things he's been doing, have lead me to believe I can't always talk to Stiles. I don't know, it's just been a strange few days."

"Well, Scott and Stiles have a certain level of stupidity that nobody can understand." Allison and Eleanor pursed their lips at Lydia's reply. "But I suppose that they have reasons. No doubt they're not plausible or realistic, but it makes sense to them. They'll apologise eventually."

Allison rolled her eyes at Lydia's vague response and rubbed Eleanor's shoulder, smiling optimistically. "I bet he'll apologise tonight! You have to talk to him."

"I don't even want to go tonight." She whined as the two girls both turned to glare at her.

"Oh, you're going."

The youngest Hale laughed at the two adamant teenagers and sat up, pushing their shoulders as she wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. "Enough about me. So, excited for your group date?"

Before the strawberry blonde or the brunette could respond, an awkward cough sounded from near the doorway, and the three looked up to find Chris stood idly, glancing around as Allison narrowed her gaze.

"Uh, dad?"

He looked up and widened his eyes, gazing back at the door. "Right. I'm sorry! I completely forgot to knock."

He glanced at Lydia and Eleanor, his gaze turning firm upon the werewolf, however smiled politely as they spoke to him. "Hi, Mr Argent."

"Do you need something?" You could tell that Allison was becoming agitated, however her agitation fuelled even more with her father's next words.

"Oh right. I wanted to tell you that you'll be staying in tonight."

The younger Argent rose to her feet and frowned, walking closer to him as she argued. "What? I'm going out with my friends tonight."

Their gazes trailed toward Lydia and Eleanor, and Argent managed to make quick eye contact with the Hale as he chuckled dryly. "Not when some animal out there is attacking people." It seemed obvious to Eleanor that he had aimed the statement toward her, but she chose to ignore it.

"Dad!"

He shrugged. "It's out of my hands, there's a curfew. No one's allowed out past half nine." His daughter opened her mouth to protest but he shook his head. "Hey, no more arguing."

With that, he turned on his foot and walked out of the room swiftly, leaving Allison in misery. However, as soon as the door closed, her expression washed over with determination and she turned to look at her two best friends whom were still sat on the bed behind her.

"Someone's daddy's little girl." Lydia noted teasingly, standing up from the comfort of the mattress as she took a hold of her bag.

Allison shrugged, tugging on her jacket as she smirked, causing her two friends' eyebrows to raise in suspicion. "Sometimes, but not tonight."

Lydia froze in her footsteps as she watched Allison push a pair of shoes on to her feet, a hat and a scarf and climb through her window, standing on the edge of the roof. "Allison, what the hell are you doing?"

Eleanor merely laughed, following her body as it flew through the air and landed firmly on the ground on it's two feet, not before somersaulting of course. The hidden werewolf ruffled her hair and smiled at the brunette standing below them and Lydia shot her a questioning look to which she replied wittily about taking eight years of gymnastics.

The three stood in silence for a few seconds before Allison landed her hands on her hips and looked up expectantly at the two. "Well, are you coming?"

"We'll take the stairs."

The hunters daughter laughed and waited patiently in the shadows as the two teenage girls left her house, meeting her on the pavement a few houses down. They said a quick goodbye to Lydia as she hopped into the familiar Porsche Jackson owned that had been waiting for a fair few minutes, and enjoyed the cool night air as the time passed waiting for Stiles' jeep to show up.

Not even two minutes later, the familiar blue vehicle pulled up in front of the two girls, and Scott pulled Allison into the back seats, letting Eleanor take the front seat for once. She slipped in and shut the door behind her, smiling at how spacey it seemed without Scott crammed in beside them too.

Throughout the ride to the bowling alley, Stiles and Eleanor carried minimal conversation, instead deciding on focusing more on their surroundings. Scott and Allison shared a knowing look, having already spoken over the phone about how they should nudge the pair toward one another.

Allison leant forward. "So, El, what movie are you planning on watching tonight?"

Eleanor furrowed her eyebrows, shrugging as she turned to look at Stiles for an answer. When he didn't speak, she mentioned the first movie that crossed her mind. "Oh, probably something like infinity war."

Allison smirked, she had watched the movie before and so she could tell if they had actually watched it.

"Such a great movie!" She commented, leaning into Scott as he smiled down at her.

The jeep took a few more left's and came to a slow stop in front of the Beacon Bowling building, creating a small but welcomed silence to envelop the four as they climbed out of the jeep. Eleanor and Stiles leant against the vehicle, centimetres apart as Allison and Scott turned to face the entrance, grim smiles resting upon their lips.

Scott pushed a hand into his pocket. "See you two tonight? We'll try not to interrupt your movie."

The awkward pair glanced at one another and nodded, watching as their two friends climbed the steps to the alley, shuffling into the car once they could no longer see them. The air became thick with uncomfortable silence and Eleanor leant forward, turning on the radio to cut the tension as they drove back to Stiles' house.

Five minutes of unbearable suspense and a song and a half later, Stiles parked and jumped out of the vehicle, letting Eleanor follow his actions before locking the door, waiting for her to catch up to him before they made their way indoors. Noah was already home, flicking through papers on the kitchen counter, looking up to see the pair together.

Sheriff smiled lightly. "Hey sweetheart."

"Hey Noah, police reports?" She nodded toward the stack of papers and he sighed, nodding his head as she laughed.

"What are you kids doing tonight?"

They glanced between one another and Stiles pointed behind him, to the television that was currently not in use. "We were thinking of downloading a movie and ordering takeaway."

"I'll take these upstairs and finish them. No horror movies, Nora gets scared."

Stiles smirked in agreement. "I've known that for years dad, I'm not the one that wants to watch them. She does it to herself!"

With a hearty laugh and the sound of footsteps echoing up the stairs, the teenagers were left alone. It became silent once again as they stepped into the living room and Stiles sighed, turning to face Eleanor as she sat down on the sofa quietly.

"Can we talk?"

Her head shot up and her eyes met with Stiles, whom seemed desperate for conversation, and felt herself nod at his question. With a half hearted smile, he sat down next to his best friend and immediately grabbed her hand.

Eleanor's eyes cast over his grip on her as he spoke. "I'm sorry, Nora. I've been so stupid lately."

"You could say that." She tried to joke, but Stiles shook his head.

"You could definitely say that. I'm sorry, about Derek, about everything. I'm your best friend, your my best friend and I should be there for you. I know it's been a rough time, and I'm sorry that I haven't been there for you, the way you were for me when mom died."

The very mention of Claudia caused the water to build up in her eyes, things that she had been keeping to herself for days were ready to come tumbling out in the form of waves from her blue eyes.

Her eyes caught Stiles' and the connection between one another was enough for a few tears to roll down Eleanor's cheeks, creating streaks as several others followed. His gaze softened and he immediately pulled her closer to him as she cried.

She clung to his grip on her hand. "I miss her so much. And every time I look at myself, I see her and I see everything we use to do together and I see her smiling and laughing. And so many things are going on right now and, and-"

"Hey, hey, I understand." He soothed, pushing a stray hair behind her ear as he tried his best to wipe her tears away, however they just kept falling. Instead of continuing, he let the tear drops run their course and instead, pulled her into his chest.

"Let go, I've got you." And she collapsed into him, fits of sobs shaking her body as she gripped into his shirt tightly.

...

After three hours of deep talk and cuddling with one another, Eleanor received a phone call from Derek. Stiles, obviously weary about the brother, kept himself uninvolved until he heard the news of the bus driver's death.

They departed from the Stilinski household almost ten minutes afterward, Stiles heading to pick Scott and Allison up as he dropped Eleanor home beforehand, giving her a chance to talk to Derek on her own.

Jaden, Eleanor and Derek had just finished their conversation about the unfortunate ending of the bus driver's life when an engine was heard outside the remains of their house, and all three siblings knew of the argument they were about to face. They knew who Scott would blame.