badassbetaerica:

iamthefirechild:

“I’m a girl and it didn’t make a damn bit of difference for me.” Summer’s tone was very dry. She stretched her arms, overhead, bending to touch her toes, behind her back, flicking her fingers. “What happens when you aren’t here to protect me?”

“Yeah but I’m a girl and a wolf, one of the most feared creatures to exist,” Erica teased softly. Even though she could tell how annoyed Summer was, she wasn’t very good at being more serious. “I won’t need to protect you all the time, I’ve proved that you’re not a nogitsune so they shouldn’t bother you anymore.”

“After being in a cage for days I’m not inclined to trust my freedom to ‘shouldn’t’.” Her tone snapped. “What do werewolves have to do with a dark fox, anyway?” Finding the wall, she leaned against it, eyes sliding shut.

badassbetaerica:

iamthefirechild:

Both men seemed to be reduced to simply gaping as Erica bustled Summer across the room and up the stairs. She could feel the faint tremors of both lack of food and too much emotional intake starting in her bones. “How did you do that?” she asked, finally. “You just ran right over them … “

Erica laughed softly at Summer’s questions as she took her upstairs and towards the kitchen. “I’m always the one in charge. I may not be an alpha but I am a girl and they know what happens when they piss me off.” She grinned self righteously and began searching through the cupboards to find something for Summer to eat.

“I’m a girl and it didn’t make a damn bit of difference for me.” Summer’s tone was very dry. She stretched her arms, overhead, bending to touch her toes, behind her back, flicking her fingers. “What happens when you aren’t here to protect me?”

badassbetaerica:

iamthefirechild:

badassbetaerica:

Erica wanted to hug the girl and tell her that everything was going to be okay. She had no idea why but she felt like she needed to protect her. It wasn’t like Erica to be that nurturing but seeing her in the cage had sparked something inside of her. She looked over to Derek as Summer explained what being an empath meant but then turned back when she mentioned controlling emotions. Did that mean..?

She took a step back from her as Derek voiced the concern that she was just thinking “But if we decide to trust you, how do we know that you aren’t making us do so? How do we know that Erica isn’t being controlled by you right now because being friendly isn’t exactly in her nature.”

Summer swallowed hard. Their fear reached out and tapped at all the aching places inside of her, familiar and hurtful; the same reaction that everyone had when they knew what she was. Staring at the floor, she closed her eyes and said, voice raw, “If you still feel the same way when I’m asleep it’s yours. Even if you don’t believe me now. I promise — I swear. I don’t do those things.”

Erica spun around to Derek. “I believe her. I don’t need to sleep on it to know that she isn’t controlling me. Derek, you know that locking her up wasn’t right and I am disappointed that you let Peter talk you into doing this.” She was ‘mom’-ing him right now because she felt like it would be the best way for him to realise what he did. “Now Summer, we should get you upstairs for some water or food.”

Both men seemed to be reduced to simply gaping as Erica bustled Summer across the room and up the stairs. She could feel the faint tremors of both lack of food and too much emotional intake starting in her bones. “How did you do that?” she asked, finally. “You just ran right over them … “

badassbetaerica:

iamthefirechild:

badassbetaerica:

“I won’t let them hurt you, okay? They may act like they’re in charge but I can really call the shots around here.” Erica laughed softly, opening the cage and letting Summer out. She waited for her to emerge and looked over to the wolves, whispering at them so Summer wouldn’t hear. “Be nice.”

She crawled out on hands and knees, wishing desperately she could wash, or eat, or clean clothes, or /anything/ really to make her feel more confident. A hairbrush. /Something/. She brushed her hands down her clothes, swallowing hard, then looked up at Derek. He was the one she would have to convince, because Peter had clearly given up.

He was the one that frightened her. Peter used words; he manipulated and probed and slid into the mind. She understood that. But Derek — Derek seemed to operate on his own rules, his own honor, and she didn’t comprehend it. Just that she had somehow to prove she wasn’t the threat they thought she was.

“I’m an empath,” she began, and immediately felt foolish for repeating herself. “I can sense what you feel. It’s like hearing; I can’t really turn it off with just myself, only reduce the input, like covering your ears. I can disregard some input, the way you, um, you overlook familiar sounds. And, um, I can sense from a lot of different people around me.”

She breathed hard, and locked her hands together, trying not to tremble. “And, uh, I can impose emotions on people. I can make them feel what I want, or not feel something. Take it away. I, I — I could have make you feel friendly to me. But I didn’t! I didn’t do that. It’s not … right.”

Erica wanted to hug the girl and tell her that everything was going to be okay. She had no idea why but she felt like she needed to protect her. It wasn’t like Erica to be that nurturing but seeing her in the cage had sparked something inside of her. She looked over to Derek as Summer explained what being an empath meant but then turned back when she mentioned controlling emotions. Did that mean..?

She took a step back from her as Derek voiced the concern that she was just thinking “But if we decide to trust you, how do we know that you aren’t making us do so? How do we know that Erica isn’t being controlled by you right now because being friendly isn’t exactly in her nature.

Summer swallowed hard. Their fear reached out and tapped at all the aching places inside of her, familiar and hurtful; the same reaction that everyone had when they knew what she was. Staring at the floor, she closed her eyes and said, voice raw, “If you still feel the same way when I’m asleep it’s yours. Even if you don’t believe me now. I promise — I swear. I don’t do those things.”

badassbetaerica:

iamthefirechild:

badassbetaerica:

“You saw her feeding? How did you see her feeding? She’s an empath! She feels emotions. Derek. You need to trust me for once in your god damn life. We are equals now and please, trust me, Derek.” She looked at him with pleading eyes. She wanted to convince him to let the girl out. If Erica asked her to then she wouldn’t run. She would stay and explain what being an empath meant.

If Peter had been the sort of person to throw up his hands in defeat when he realised he’d lost an argument, he probably would have done it then. Instead he folded his arms and leaned against the wall, fully prepared to watch as everything fell apart.

Derek, on the other hand, stepped back from the cage. “Go on.”

Summer wished she knew some way to persuade them without just making things worse. But if she had been capable of bending her morality far enough to let her simply make them into her friends, she would have done it days ago. All she could do was let Erica speak for her, and it was terrifying.

Erica smiled as Derek stepped back and she knelt in front of the cage looking over to Summer. “I’m going to open it now, and I know that we’ve been complete assholes to you by keeping you in here, but will you promise to stick around to explain what being an empath means? The two wolves over there will be a lot nicer when they know exactly what you are. Well, one of them will be.” She corrected as she turned around to glare at Peter.

Peter just lifted his eyebrows. Summer glanced between him and Derek, her breathing ragged, before she looked back to Erica. “I — if they try to hurt me again, I don’t know what will happen,” she whispered. “I’ll try, though.”

badassbetaerica:

iamthefirechild:

badassbetaerica:

“Are you serious right now, Derek? I expect this kind of behaviour from him but you? You’re supposed to have morals. Can’t you see how wrong it is to keep her here? She is an innocent girl. Why did you think she might be a nogitsune anyway? What overwhelming evidence did you have to justify locking up a teenage girl?” With every question she grew increasingly irritated and her expression darkened. This was wrong and Derek had to know that.

Derek merely put on that expression that meant he didn’t like what he had to do, but he was going to do it anyway because he was so convinced he /had/ to do it. “It feeds off pain and chaos,” Peter interposed. “Feeds. I saw her feeding, Erica.”

Instantly Summer protested. “I wasn’t!” 

“You saw her feeding? How did you see her feeding? She’s an empath! She feels emotions. Derek. You need to trust me for once in your god damn life. We are equals now and please, trust me, Derek.” She looked at him with pleading eyes. She wanted to convince him to let the girl out. If Erica asked her to then she wouldn’t run. She would stay and explain what being an empath meant.

If Peter had been the sort of person to throw up his hands in defeat when he realised he’d lost an argument, he probably would have done it then. Instead he folded his arms and leaned against the wall, fully prepared to watch as everything fell apart.

Derek, on the other hand, stepped back from the cage. “Go on.”

Summer wished she knew some way to persuade them without just making things worse. But if she had been capable of bending her morality far enough to let her simply make them into her friends, she would have done it days ago. All she could do was let Erica speak for her, and it was terrifying.