✧☾ ATONEMENT ☽✧

━━━━ act one. full moon

zero. prologue ━━━━

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THE ANIMAL CLINIC SMELLED OF DISINFECTANT AND DEATH. Even at ten years old Nola recognised the distinct penetrating smell of the dying. It was like a heavy fog, clouding her senses and making her eyes tear up. She supposed the veterinarian standing in front of her should be glad he was human, unable to smell when the animals he was supposed to save were close to death.

But the biting smell wasn't the only heavy pressure in the air. There was something else. It made her bones feel heavy and sluggish, as if she was slowly being poisoned. It was only when the vet opened the little gate that led to the back of the building, that the pressure disappeared. Mountain ash.

"It's nice to meet you Nola," he said with a warm smile. "My name is Alan Deaton. You're going to be staying with me for a while."

She shifted uncomfortably on her feet. "Nice to meet you too," she mumbled but almost as soon as the words were out of her mouth did she turn to her parents, who were standing behind her. "Why can't I come with you?"

Sofie Newcrest sighed softly as she kneeled in front of her daughter. "We're gonna talk like boring grown-ups, little Lala," she said, playfully rolling her eyes at the prospect.

"I'm not little anymore," she protested. "You can tell me what's going on."

For a moment Sofie's eyes darkened, as if an unpleasant memory had taken hold of her but then she shook her head and her bright smile returned. "Your dad just wants to make sure no one gets hurt. Okay?"

"But won't you get hurt?"

Sofie shook her head. "We won't. I promise you, Lala."

Her father walked forward, joining the two of them as he kneeled down in front of his daughter. He tried to smile but Nola noticed the way his shoulders were tensed, and the way he took her mother's hand, as if wanting to reassure both himself and his wife. "We'll be back before you know it."

His heartbeat didn't falter as he spoke and still she didn't believe him. There was something very wrong about all of this.

"I promise when we get back, we'll have a movie night, okay?" Sofie smiled brightly, hoping to wipe away the worried frown from her daughter's face.

Nola raised her chin, ready to bargain. "Only if we get milkshakes."

Sofie laughed, then leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Of course."

Deucalion had watched his wife and daughter with a small smile on his face. And as Sofie got to her feet he pulled his daughter into a hug, holding her tightly. "You gotta be brave now, little wolf," he muttered into her hair.

"I will dad," she promised.

She tried to swallow the lump in her throat as she watched both her parents make their way out of the door. The sunlight illuminated them both as her mother turned to look back, smiling one last time at her daughter before disappearing from her view.

With a sigh she turned away from the door, following the Doctor into the backroom. In the middle of the room stood a table and Nola pushed herself up to sit on it, watching as the veterinarian got to work on mixing several herbs in a bowl.

"Are all Druids doctors?" She asked, curiosity getting the best of her.

He smiled at her. "No, but most of us do help others, in many ways."

She shifted nervously as she considered her next words. "Like you help Talia Hale. You're her emissary, right?"

Slowly he put the bowl down and leaned against the desk. "You know a lot for a girl your age," he said, but his tone was kind.

Nola shrugged. "I have good ears."

Deaton chuckled. "That you do."

"I've also heard what my father wants to do," she said, nervously playing with her fingers.

The smile was wiped from Deaton's face, making way for a frown. He took a deep breath, waiting for her to continue.

She was the youngest of the pack, which meant she wasn't told everything but she wasn't lying when she said she had great ears. For a born wolf of her age, she'd developed her senses pretty well. And so she'd heard many things she wasn't supposed to know. Like the many discussions her parents had when they thought she was asleep. Always about the same thing, talking in circles and never coming to a real solution.

A little while ago a Beta of Ennis' pack was killed. Many of the Alphas wanted to fight but not her father. He wanted to make peace instead. Peace with the greatest family of hunters the supernatural world knew of now and throughout history, The Argents.

She knew there were many wolves who disagreed with her father, who thought he was a fool for even trying, her mother included. But her father refused to listen and so her mother had eventually conceded and promised to help him. They tried to pretend Nola didn't have anything to worry about, but she knew more than she should. And she was terrified.

"Do you think he can truly make peace with Gerard?" She whispered.

The name of the hunter was enough to make her shiver. He was feared amongst all wolves, the bad guy of many stories. She couldn't possibly believe that her father could make peace with such a man.

"You're a smart girl, Nola," Deaton said. "So let me tell you the same thing I told your father. Have you heard the tale of the scorpion and the frog?"

She shook her head.

"When the scorpion asked the frog to carry him across the river, the frog said: 'How do I know you won't sting me?' The scorpion replied: 'Why would I do that, then we both drown.' So the frog agreed. Halfway across the river, the scorpion stung the frog. And when the frog asked him why he did it, since now they would both die, the scorpion replied: 'It's my nature."

Her thoughts were hurrying to catch up with what the veterinarian was trying to tell her. And as she slowly let the words sink in, she suddenly felt cold. "So you're saying Gerard is going to kill my father?"

Deaton took a step forward and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "I"m saying your father has to consider Gerard's nature if he wants to make peace. Your father's a smart man, he knows the risk."

She sighed and wrapped her arms around herself, hoping it would calm her down. But her heart was racing in her chest and she knew she wouldn't be able to rest until her parents would walk into the clinic, both of them alive and well. "I wish he wasn't an Alpha."

The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them and she winced. She'd thought about it many times. What life would be like if her father didn't have so many responsibilities. He'd have more time for her and her mother but most importantly, more time for himself. On the other hand she knew he liked it, he liked helping people, providing them with advice and helping them be the best version of himself. He'd never want to give up being an Alpha.

"I'm sure there are times your father wishes the very same thing," Deaton said, his voice calming her racing thoughts. "But he has a responsibility, to his pack, to you and you should be proud of him for taking that responsibility seriously."

He was right, of course he was, but Nola didn't feel like admitting it so she remained quiet.

"And should he die one day, that responsibility will be yours."

She looked up at the doctor, a frown on her face. "What do you mean?"

For a moment he considered his words. "When an Alpha has a child and they die, not killed by the hands of another werewolf trying to steal that power, the spark that makes them an Alpha will be given to the child, ensuring the line of succession. Killing an Alpha is not the only way Alphas come to be."

Nola thought she knew all there was to know about being a werewolf, but apparently she'd been wrong. It was a scary thought, the fact that one day she might be gifted the weight of her father's power. She hoped it would be a long time before that would happen.

And if some sort of higher power had heard her thoughts, a familiar roar cut through the sky. It came from miles away and yet Nola heard it as clearly as if it was coming from beside her. She jumped up from the table, eyes wide with fear. Never before had she heard her father roar with such heartbreak and pain. The loss echoing through the sound could only mean one thing. Tears were streaming down her cheeks before she'd even realized she was crying at all. She fell on her knees, shaking all over as she sobbed.

"M-my mom," she muttered as she looked up at Deaton with tears in her eyes.

He knelt down beside her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders as she cried.

It turns out her father's fate in humanity had been disproved after all, because her mother was dead, killed at the hands of the greatest hunter of all time.

But as she sat there, sobbing, another roar followed...

She gasped, feeling his pain as if it were her own, setting her bones on fire with agony. Whatever had been done to him, he wasn't dead but Nola almost wished he was...Because the pain she felt would not even be half as bad as what he was feeling.

And no matter how young she was, Nola understood perfectly that the war between wolves and humans would be a never ending one. A war that had now taken her family from her as well and turned those who remained into hollow shells of who they once used to be.

✧☾ NOTE ☽✧

The prologue is finally up! I gotta be honest, I struggled a lot with this chapter. At first it was set in a completely different setting but I decided to change it to what it is now. I'm pretty happy with the end result now though and I hope you guys like it as well!

As I've said in the introduction chapter I'm adding a little bit of my own lore and ideas to the world of Teen Wolf. Recently I was discussing with my little sister if there were any other ways for a Beta to become an Alpha and we figured there had to be some kind of line of succession proces. So I decided to add that in this fic!

I'm very excited to get started with this fic but I have a lot of other works as well. Which means this story will probably be updated every two weeks! So, I hope to see you guys next time :)

xx Nelly

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