the wild one.

— ❝ william temple. You seem somewhat familiar. Have I threatend you before?

[williamstemple-blog]

noahthealpha:

“You don’t mean that.” Noah said it gently. It was strange, the more that Will spat at him, the more Noah was calming down. This part he could handle, Will lashing out because he was angry. He knew this Will. He watched as Will paced and he couldn’t help the small smile that was rising onto his lips. It seemed that Will was intent on surprising the shit out of him this night. Because that was the whole point of the pack, it had been for a long time but he hadn’t realised that the younger wolf had truly understood that until now. Will had always been fighting any injustice that he would see, but this was different. It wasn’t a little thing he was picking up, it was a responsibility and he was willing to take it.

Noah glanced at Nadia on the couch, his lips pursed together. “That still remains to be seen. But yes, I do understand. I mean… you’ve met Quinn.” Noah said it wryly. Quinn was always the rebellious one, the one that cause him trouble on par with Will on some days. She had no filter and her temper would get the better of her most of the time. She was a risk and they molded her into a fighter for their pack, loyal beyond belief. Perhaps it wasn’t much different. He did tilt his head before he smiled at Will. “You fought well, young wolf.” It was an old nickname but Noah was feeling nostalgic for the little boy that Will used to be. A bundle of laughs and troublemaking, always a cheeky smile in his wake. Maybe he wasn’t doing such a bad job, if this was how he turned out. “Good arguments… Who taught you how to do that?”

Will did mean it, at least in that moment he did. Screw Quinn, screw Tristan and screw Cara too. They were supposed to be family, they were supposed to be pack. They should have had his back on this but instead they turned against him. They all but laughed his concerns for this werewolf girl off. If it had been any one of them who came home with Nadia this would have gone completely differently, it wouldn’t just be Will and Noah left too hash it out while Nadia remained unconscious on their sofa. It only made his blood boil more, anger burning brighter and hotter inside of him despite his best efforts to stop the flames from burning anybody he loved. Noah’s serene and calm demeanour only added fuel to the fire, his jaw clenched with a burning rage as he walked towards the opposite side of the room, a tightly clenched fist tapping against the wall in frustration. He wanted so badly to punch the wall, to feel his fist connect and break something. Anything. Will was an expert at bottling up his emotions, burying them so deep that even he wasn’t sure he was capable of feeling. Anger, however. That was never an emotion he could hide. Not when his father died, abandoning him. Not when Rosalie betrayed them and abandoned them, and not when he realised the people that were supposed to protect this town were just as corrupt and evil as the villains in the comic books he read growing up.

“Stop.” Will breathed, pressing his forehead against the cold, brick wall. “Stop calling me that and stop doing that.” He hated when Noah remained calm and collected, it was patronising when he was younger and it was even more so now. “Do you trust me?” He lifted his head from the brick wall, turning to face Noah again and steeling himself. “You say I fought well. You say I made a good argument,” He walked towards Noah now, the fire inside of him beginning to flicker out, slowly. It wasn’t gone, not completely but the flames weren’t ablaze now. “So, do you trust me enough to let me make this call?” 

[williamstemple-blog]

littlenadia:

Nadia chuckled. “I’m sure you don’t.” The way his brow raised, Nadia almost wanted to reassure him that she wasn’t interested but they were having a pleasant conversation and that could be taken the wrong way. At least it was pleasant until Will asked his question. She had been expecting something else, anything else except that. 

Nadia stared, stuttering. “I… You…” Many thoughts were going through her head, trying to work out where she had slipped up. Nadia had thought that she had been so good, so normal. Now there was only one thought going through her mind. Hunter. Hunter. Hunter. She stood up, placing her glass down with shaky hands. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, I have to go. You sound insane.” She tipped over her chair in the hurry to get away. This had to be a trap. They were in the middle of no where. She was alone. It was the perfect trap. Her hands were almost vibrating in her urgency to get away, to change and run as a wolf but that would be a dumb idea. She could hear Will’s footsteps behind her and she rounded on him. 

“Get away from me.” She hissed. “Otherwise, I’ll hurt you.”

Okay, even Will could admit that asking her point blank if she was a werewolf had been a mistake. Maybe there was some truth after all, he thought, to needing to be more careful with what he said and actually thinking before he spoke. Will was famous for speaking and reacting without thinking, his reckless and impulsive nature often the root source of his and the Pack’s problems. It always seemed to be Will who threw the first punch in a fight, who pushed somebody’s buttons too hard. 

He really would need to learn impulse control someday. 

Will shook his head with regret, wishing he had taken another approach to asking Nadia about the suspicions he had about her. “Wait,” He pleaded with her as she backed out of the kitchen, knocking her chair over on the way out. He knew he should let her walk away, he didn’t know her after all. She didn’t owe him any answers, not really. He also knew that if she left, if she stormed out of here then she’d be leaving the sanctuary of the house. He wouldn’t be able to keep her safe out there, not for long, not like he could inside these walls. He rushed after her, pleading with her some more to wait for a just a second and to give him a chance to explain. She whirled on him them, hissing a warning. Will came to a sudden halt, holding his hands up as if to surrender. He wanted to show her he wasn’t going to harm he, he wanted her to know she was safe with him. 

“I’m just like you.” He said, slowly lowering his hands and taking a step backwards as a sign of good favour. Maybe if he listened to her, gave her what she wanted then she wouldn’t run.

[williamstemple-blog]

noahthealpha:

It mattered because this is all the pack knew. Will wasn’t someone they trusted to make the right choices. Not yet anyhow. But perhaps this was the first step. Noah hadn’t meant to be doubting every step that Will took but that was just how he thought. Trust wasn’t born overnight and considering that trouble seemed to find Will, Noah was struggling. He missed his father for a split second. He could have used some guidance, just for a moment. How was he meant to play this. “The pack doesn’t know you like I know you, Will.” He admitted. “They’re looking at this as a rash choice. That’s why it matters.”

He was right. But Noah was having trouble admitting that. This girl, Nadia, she needed help. She needed a home, a pack, she needed nurturing. But he was still hesitating. The last feral wolf near them had torn their pack to shreds and Will still didn’t know who that had been to this day. “She gets a choice in this. If she doesn’t want our help, then we can’t force her to stay. However, I’m ruling that she can stay as long as she needs to. But she’s your responsibility, Will. Whatever mess she makes, you’re the one cleaning it up. I’d say the same to Cara, Quinn and Tristan if it was one of them that brought her in. She’s not pack right now, she’s a tourist. Do you understand?” He clapped his hand on Will’s shoulder. “It’s enough for me. Now you need to do some reading. See if there is something in the history books about feral wolves. Something tells me you have no idea what you’ve gotten yourself into and I need you educated before we talk to her about this arrangement.”

“Screw the pack.” Will spat the words like venom, though he didn’t mean them. He was just angry and hurt. The Pack was his family, all of them. Noah, Cara, Tristan even Quinn. They all meant the world to Will, they were the only family he had left. After losing his father and then Rosalie, he couldn’t bear to lose anybody else he cared about. Which is why he wanted to help Nadia so badly, despite not knowing the first thing about her. Will ran a hand through his hair as he began to pace up and down, a sigh of frustration escaping his lips. “Who cares about the consequences when somebody needs our help? The Pack should be on board with this. You should be on board with this. I don’t think she has anybody else, I don’t think she has a Pack who can look out for her.” We can be that Pack. We can look out for her, His eyes seemed to say, as he pleaded with Noah to give him the benefit of the doubt. 

Will couldn’t quite believe what he was hearing, was Noah agreeing to this? His brows furrowed together, green eyes glancing at his brothers hand clamped on his shoulder. He nodded in understanding, allow his eyes to drift upwards and meet Noah’s gaze. “I understand,” He said, the tension and anger he had been carrying in his shoulders suddenly dropping, his shoulders sagging in return, “She’s not a risk to us, I don’t know how I know it. I just do. You understand that, right? You trusted Cara, Quinn and Tristan enough to let them into the Pack. I just need you to extend Nadia the same courtesy.”

[williamstemple-blog]

littlenadia:

“Wow.” Nadia said with a blink. The cockiness that came off Will was almost off putting. Almost. She couldn’t help wanting to knock it down a peg but she also didn’t know why she cared. Will was nothing more than a stranger, a means to an end. But she found herself smiling, amused, chuckling even. Perhaps it was because there was no malice. It was all a game, a front, a show. And Nadia liked winning. The answer to her question did make her stop for a moment, mad her think about what she was about to say. Because it seemed that getting Will’s attention wasn’t hard but keeping it was a battle. Otherwise he wouldn’t have been single. “Follow up question. How drunk are people when they first see you? I mean, the beer goggles must be good.” She said it in a flat tone but her eyes were sparkling with mischief. He didn’t have any reason to lie and Nadia got it. The fire in Will’s eyes, the butt that she might have accidentally checked out as he led her further into the house. The guy was attractive and he knew it. She also knew that Will wouldn’t have even looked at her twice a few years ago. “Makes sense. You don’t take anything at face value except women. Got it. Anyhow, it’s your turn. I’ve asked one of my questions, you’re up. What do you want to know? Fair’s fair.” Nadia took the glass of vodka and drank the shot down easily. 

Nadia was nervous, she only put on this much of a front when she was scared. It was liquid bravery, warmth that made her feel like she could take on the world. The vodka was cheap but it had an alcohol content. Her babushka was probably rolling in her grave that such cheap alcohol was touching her lips but the situation had called for it. She waited, pouring another shot and looking at Will expectantly.

Will swirled the clear liquid around the glass, a faint smile of amusement passing across his lips at her question. “One question at a time.” He replied, drinking the contents of the glass with a look of mild disgust. Will preferred beer over plain vodka, it didn’t burn and remind him of his partying days from school that made him wish he was dead. “But to answer your question I don’t need a girl to be drunk to get her to go home with me.” He placed the empty glass back on the dusty counter, raising his brow suggestively at the blonde haired werewolf girl. Will would be lying if he said he wasn’t interested in her, she was strikingly beautiful and under any other circumstances he might have tried making a move on her. Okay, he definitely would have tried making a move on her.  

“Okay, I’ve got an easy one for you. How long have you been a werewolf?” He narrowed his eyes inquisitively, arching his brow. The question rolled off of his tongue as blunt and straight to the point as always. Will didn’t sugar coat things, he didn’t tip-toe around sore topics. If he had something to say, he said it and if he wanted to know something he wouldn’t stop until he found the answers. 

[williamstemple-blog]

noahthealpha:

Noah felt the air in the room change and his own eyes flashed a sharp red. He was used to seeing Will this angry but never about a girl and never about another wolf. Not since Rosalie. “When have you proven me any different? Your bedroom door revolves, Will!” Noah snapped back, the tension in the room was so high, it was making the hair on the back of Noah’s neck stand. However, he had better control than this and Noah took a deep breath, steadying himself. What Will was saying was something he should have been proud of. The young wolf was growing, changing, proving that he was more than a slight liability. He was going to make a stunning Beta one day. 

“Okay, Will. Okay.” He held up his hand. “But can we please address what we saw? That was a feral wolf, one that can’t differentiate between wolf and human. It’s dangerous. It can destroy a pack. She could turn and kill us all. Her wolf isn’t one that can be apart of something, they are loners. I don’t know how to help her, I don’t know if we can. And you can’t deny what is happening here. I haven’t seen you look like this before, Will.” He looked down at the girl. “Do you like her? It won’t change anything, I’ve made my decision. But you need to make yours. Can you separate what you feel and what you’re about to take on?” Noah stared at Will intently. 

“What does that matter?” Will demanded, almost wincing at the anger in his own voice. His voice sounded strange and unfamiliar to him, like he was hearing himself in a dream. A vivid, angry dream. Will didn’t understand why everybody kept questioning his motives behind wanting to help Nadia. Wasn’t this what they always wanted from him? Hadn’t they all said that one day he would need to start caring more about getting a girl into his bed? Here he was now, wanting to help somebody for the sake of helping them and they still doubted him. Everybody always doubted him. 

“You want to know what I see?” Will asked, looking between Noah and Nadia who still lay unconscious on their sofa. “A girl who needs help. Isn’t that that we do? We help other werewolves who need our help.” That was what his father had always told him. They weren’t like the rest of the werewolf community who only cared about power, conquering and territory. Their packed helped other werewolves and other packs if necessary. They were guardians, protectors. Rosalie never understood that. Will couldn’t help but wonder if Noah had lost sight of that since her betrayal. Will sighed, why did it always have to come back to his feelings? “I don’t know.” He answered honestly, shrugging his shoulders. “There’s something about her that makes me want to help her.” She’s special. “I can’t explain it.” He said with a shake of his head, wishing he had the answers that Noah was looking for. “All I know for sure is that I want to help her. Isn’t that enough?”

[williamstemple-blog]

littlenadia:

Brave. That was a word she had heard too often and yet it still rang so empty. She wasn’t brave. She was scared and when she was scared, she became a frightened wolf with only a fight instinct. “Of course you don’t.” She said, a little sarcastic. “Given you’re tall, dark and mysterious personified.” The handsome part was omitted but a little part of Nadia knew that was true too. Years ago, before she was what she was, Nadia probably wouldn’t have been able to look him in the eye, might have stammered a few words out, embarrassed herself and just told herself that she was stupid. 

She followed him deeper into the house, her fingertips swiping through a layer of dust as she touched the counter. Of course he had questions but what followed made her laugh. It was a short, soft little chuckle but it changed her whole face. She looked less haunted and more like a girl. “Is that a question you get asked often or do you just assume that everyone is attracted to you? I had a different one in mind actually. Like why exactly do the police of the town seem to hate you instantaneously.”

Her Russian heritage showed as she replied. “Vodka if you have any. Neat is fine. Preferable actually.”

“You forgot handsome, sexy, chiselled..” Will trailed off, the corner of his mouth curving up into a smirk as Quinn appeared in his head, rolling her eyes at him and telling him to check his ego at the door before he made this poor girl vomit. Pushing the thoughts of Quinn and her exasperated face with him out of his mind, he began searching the cupboards for glasses and any alcohol that might have been left behind in the move just in case the water wasn’t running. “Both.” He said, matter-of-factually. Most of the time it was Will who was being flirted with by girls at the bar, he very rarely had time to make the first move before he would feel a hand on his, tugging him towards the dance floor and feeling the warmth of lips kissing the skin on his neck.

“I may be a charmer with the ladies but the police in this town aren’t exactly falling at my feet.” Will explained, placing two glasses and a bottle of vodka he had found on the dusty counter. “I’m trouble for them. I question them, challenge their authority because I know they’re abusing their position of power.” He twisted the faucet for cold water, the pipes made a strange, loud, guttural growling sound but nothing else happened. 

There was no running water. 

“Vodka it is.” Will sighed, pouring them both a glass. “Neat, just like the lady asked.” He pushed the glass towards her, frowning slightly at the path it made in the layer of dust. 

[williamstemple-blog]

noahthealpha:

Noah looked at Will, the frustration on his face before he looked at the rest of the pack. He was going to keep to his word and suddenly he knew this wasn’t a pack discussion, it was a brother one. “You can’t be seriously-” Quinn snapped but Noah held his hand up, his face dark and stern. “Out. Please.” He said it with such finality that the pack moved, Quinn still muttering under her breath. He looked at Tristan and gave him a nod, which meant the shut the door behind them.

He looked at Nadia once more, a curled up girl who had no idea what these people said about her. “They’re not here now.” He said softly. “Now talk to me. Tell me why you’re defending this girl, who you’ve only just met by the way, so passionately. Cause I have to take what Quinn said into account. What happens if you lose interest, Will? I’m not saying you will. But what if it doesn’t end well? What’s the plan? Because you may not have seen this before but I have and I can’t guarantee she’ll pull through.”

Will adverted his gaze from Noah, allowing his emerald green eyes to follow the rest of the pack across the room as they followed Noah’s order one by one. Cara looked hesitant, like there was something else she wanted to say but was too afraid to say it. Quinn was shaking her head, saying something to Tristan that he couldn’t quite understand. He wasn’t sure he wanted to either, it was probably about him or Nadia. Will wasn’t in the mood to hear Quinn’s two cents on the matter. Tristan was the last one out, hesitant at first but once he got the all clear from Noah he closed the door behind him and silence fell between the two werewolf brothers.

Will narrowed his eyes at Noah’s question and clenched his jaw, screwing his fists together at his side to stop himself from launching across the room at Noah and swinging for his older brother. “How the hell can you even ask me that?” Will demanded, green eyes blazing brighter until they changed into a molten gold colour like the flames in a fire. “Do you really think I’m that fucking shallow?” He spat, the words hurt more coming from Noah than they did when Quinn had accused him of the same thing. “I’m not some fucking sleaze bag who only cares about getting in her pants, Noah. This is about helping somebody who needs our help. Somebody who can’t help herself but for some reason you’re all ready to toss her aside because you all think I can’t possibly have any other interest in a girl other than wanting to make her another conquest.” Will wanted to hit something, someone, anything. It was how he dealt with his danger, he lashed out and dealt with the consequences later. “This was my plan, Noah. Things already got bad for this girl so I bought her to you because I promised her we would help her.” Noah was who Will turned to when things went bad, when things spiralled out of control and he could no longer handle things alone.

[williamstemple-blog]

noahthealpha:

Will was carrying the young girl in and Noah wasn’t sure how he could even begin this discussion. He knew what had happened, he had seen this with Will’s father and yet, Will didn’t know anything about it. They wasn’t something they would ever talk about, it was a taboo topic across the supernatural world because it had no cause, no cure, no science explaining why it happened. All they knew was that it was in the blood, it was a cancer that snuck under the surface and could be triggered at any moment, just like the werewolf gene. This was exactly why he watched Will’s temper as much as he did, why he told the boy to calm, to stop fighting the good fight. He couldn’t lose Will as well, not that way. Not when he was the only one that could put him down.

He watched as Will set the girl down softly onto their moth eaten couch and he let out a quiet sound. “I’ve never seen someone talk themselves out of that state before. It’s supposed to be impossible.” He started, staring down at the brown haired, spit of a girl on his couch. She looked… small, like she was unable to do what she just did. “Who is this girl?”

“Nadia,” Will told Noah, spitting his words like a crackling fire, “Her name is Nadia and she needs our help.” Not our judgement. Not to be turned away from our sanctuary because she has a problem. Will was furious, his anger seeping into every drop of blood and every bone in his body. It didn’t surprise him that Quinn had wanted to turn Nadia out on her own the first sign of trouble. Cara came as a surprise to him, it felt like being punched in the gut. Cara was the compassionate one, she always wanted to help others, yet she had sided with Quinn. Ready to cast Nadia out because they thought she posed a threat to their pack.

They were wrong. 

Will knew that Nadia wasn’t a threat to them, only to herself. She needed their help and he was going to make sure she got it. One way or another. Standing up straight, Will glared at the rest of his pack and snarled. A warning. He wanted to be left alone with Noah and Nadia, to talk to his older brother about what they were going to do to help her without the rest of them constantly butting in and trying to undermine him. “I’ll talk once they’re gone. They’ve made their minds up about her already.”

[williamstemple-blog]

littlenadia:

“I can imagine.” Nadia could imagine better than anyone. She didn’t want to think about her home anymore. She couldn’t think about it being in this state, broken down and no longer filled with people or light. Nadia didn’t want to see the places where Dimitri and Nadia grew up falling apart. The memories must have been the same for him and her sympathy suddenly grew.

Nadia sighed, running her fingers through her hair. “Corrupt. Fantastic.” Her sarcasm seeped through her tone. “Shouldn’t ignore corruption. Otherwise it seeps into every crack of the town.” She said quietly, finally looking Will in the eye. 

They were a shocking blue, the blue you only read about in stories and there was something behind them, a fire that she could recognise long before what happened to her. They reminded her of Theon and her heart broke for a moment. So she was honest.

“I’ve… experienced this before.” She started. “My home before this one experienced a certain kind of corruption that destroyed most of everything I love- loved.” She corrected herself mid sentence. There was nothing there for her anymore. “People who believe that their beliefs and power is worth more than a life. That their cause is the noble one and you cannot talk them out of it. You can only stand up to them, pray that your actions give them a moment of doubt. There is no other option.” Her eyes glazed over and she was no longer looking at Will but looking through him, lost in her memories. 

She shook her head out of them and looked back at Will. “I’m sorry, that was… depressing. God, you must think I’m mad. I just thought I owed you… something. I’m assuming you have questions?”

Will turned his head slightly, his blue eyes regarding her with a deep sense of curiosity and concern. There was a hidden depth to her, something lying just underneath the mask she wore for the world. He could hear it in her voice, in the way her eyes glazed over like she was haunted by something turbulent and traumatic from her past. Something that had laid its seed in her, determined to grow roots and build a forest inside of her. Will couldn’t help but wonder what it was that happened to her home, what corruption exactly had destroyed it and force her to flee. Will was naturally inquisitive, always asking questions even when he shouldn’t. Always determined to learn the truth, no matter the cost or how painful it might be. Something held him back now, stopping him from pressing any further into her dark history. 

“Not at all,” He said with a shake of his head, “I actually think you’re kind of brave. Albeit a little reckless and mysterious, but if you ask me those aren’t bad qualities to have.” Will was always being told he was reckless by others. Noah’s lectures always began with notes and tips on how he should use his brain before his fist. 

Think first, act later. 

Will had never been good at thinking; he was always better at acting. No matter what trouble or danger his actions might lead him towards. 

“I do have questions,” Will admitted, gesturing for her to follow him as he turned and made his way deeper into the manor, “Just as I’m sure you do, and let me answer one straight away for you.” He glanced over his shoulder, a cocky grin dancing along his lips as he spoke, “Yes, I am single.” He turned his head forward again, leading her through a narrow hallway that lead into their old kitchen. It was just as dirty and dusty as the rest of the manor, but he was hoping that Noah had still been paying the water and electricity bills.

“Can I get you something to drink? The water should be drinkable still but if not then I’m sure I can find an old bottle of scotch or vodka lying around.”

[williamstemple-blog]

littlenadia:

The place was old, dilapidated, gutters rusting. It was a home once, it had all the looks of being a place of safety. But Will’s explanation, while not needed, made sense. No one came here anymore, if they did, it would look and smell different. At the moment, it was scents of stale air and mould. No one had lived there for a very long time. It made Nadia hesitate as she got out of the car.  Yet Will picked up on that quickly, soothing any worry in the only way he knew. “As long as you’re not dragging me to my death. I’ll give you a heads up, I’m very hard to kill.” Nadia turned her head to look at Will over the car, a tense smile on her lips that just couldn’t pass for joking. This could be the start of another horror film had she not already been through one and survived. Their gaze held for a moment before she looked away with a sigh. She had trusted him this far and it hadn’t bitten her in the ass. Sometimes Nadia had to remember that there were good humans in the world. “Yeah. Got it. Hiding from the DD.” 

Will took the point and Nadia followed, glancing around curiously. A basketball hoop sat in the yard, covered in vines that wound around it’s base, garden boxes sat there but they were over grown and almost hidden. The door swung open under Will’s touch and Nadia noted the names Noah, Rosalie, William carved into the door’s panelling. It seemed he hadn’t lied, this had been his place at one point. There was a story behind those carvings and Nadia knew she would never be around long enough to find out what it was. 

“You said this was your brother’s place?” Nadia piped up, breaking the tense silence that seem to come with the door opening. “He might need a maid… or a steam roller.” She trailed off, glancing at the cobwebs covering the ceiling. There was no light except the streams that were coming through the window, lighting up only sections of the place. It was still kind of beautiful in the house, it reminded Nadia of her own before… She tensed up, taking a deep breath in and letting it out slowly. It wasn’t the time, nor was it the place to begin falling apart. “So the cops around here? Are they all that creepy or is it just that one?” She looked down to glance at Will, intentionally avoiding the talk she knew they were going to have.

“That’s right,” Will nodded, casting his eyes around his familiar surroundings. They were standing inside of the old foyer, it was exactly how Will remembered it but with more dust, dirt and grime. Where Nadia stood was the exact spot that Will had landed after sliding down the rail of the stair case too fast when he was fourteen years old. Noah had warned him against it at the time but Will only listened to Noah then as much as he listened to him now. Will’s bone cracking when he landed on the floor seemed to have echoed through the whole manor, as well as his screams of agony. It took only days for his arm to heal afterwards, which Noah made sure to remind him constantly just how lucky he was to have his regenerative healing. 

Will smiled now, a deep chuckle escaping his lips as he trailed a finger through the dust that coated the rail of the staircase. “I know it doesn’t look like people ever lived here but this place used to be home. It wasn’t always as bad as it is now.”

“Creepy? No. Corrupted? Yeah, pretty much.” It was no secret to anybody who was a local in their town that their police force wasn’t a crack team of reliable and trustworthy detectives and deputies, there had always been something dark and dangerous about them. As Will grew up he became less afraid of the dirty cops and more angry and disgusted at them. They abused their position of power. Will hated them because of that. “Most people here pretend like they don’t know anything about how dirty they are but they do, they’re just too afraid to do anything about it.” Will stared at her with a new level of intensity and curiosity, green eyes narrowing in on her like a target, “Except for you.” His brows creased together with intrigue.

 Who was this brave, werewolf girl? 

[williamstemple-blog]

littlenadia:

His touch had lingered, there was no mistaking it and Nadia didn’t bloody know what that meant, nor did she want to find out. They had been thrust together due to circumstance, that was it. It was a relationship that would be over soon, she kept repeating that to herself. She wouldn’t mention this in her weekly call to Dim, he didn’t have to know about this adventure. Nadia was happy to let this fade from her memory, it would be over run by her nightmares by the end of the night. Nadia only had eyes for the road now, there would be no thinking about the swooping sensation in her stomach.

He was yelling and Nadia didn’t care. “Because your plan is idiotic.” Nadia snapped. She wasn’t going to move until a better plan came up, she was hoping the pressure on him would make him think of something better. But her fury faded quickly as Will began to explain why he was going to his brother’s house, it blending into a feeling of embarrassment and ever so slight shame. “You better be sure.” She muttered now, her cheeks flaring a deep red and a prayer that he didn’t ask any questions about her reaction. Somehow she knew that God wouldn’t grant her that wish. He never really did pay attention to her, she knew that now. 

She didn’t look at him anymore. She only waited for his directions, only wanted to see the safe haven that he promised. Her shoulders were finally starting to drop, the adrenalin of the escape plus their brief argument slash Will reassuring her fading quickly. Nadia was holding on by the threads of her survival instinct, she wanted to curl in her sheets that smelt of home and coffee and yet that wasn’t an option at the moment.

“Should I park anywhere in particular?” Nadia said it quietly as they pulled up into a driveway. There was more fear in her eyes now that there was when she was facing the possibility of arrest. She had promised Will a conversation and even before what happened, this would cause her anxiety. No one liked what they saw when they spoke to her. Not before, not now. She couldn’t see how this would end. 

Will remained silent for the rest of the drive up to Noah’s old family house; the only time he spoke to Nadia was when he was giving her directions on which roads to take, he spent the rest of his time giving too much thought towards what ever the hell that sensation was when he had touched her hand. Will knew nothing about this girl, yet she seemed to spark something inside of him. Will didn’t know what that was exactly, which scared the hell out of him.

“Anywhere here is just fine.” Will told her, his eyes beginning to shine a little brighter at the sight of the familiar house in front of them. This wasn’t just Noah’s families old house, it was his house too. It was the house he had came to live in when his father had been killed when he was seven years old, it was the house that had a chart of his height marked into the door frame of his old bedroom. “Nobody comes up here anymore. They haven’t in years. This is the safest place for us to hide out right now.” Will hoped he was right about that last part, but he couldn’t let Nadia know that he was beginning to have doubts.

As soon as Nadia had killed the engine, Will was unbuckling his seat belt and climbing out of the car they had hijacked. The house had an eerie sort of feeling towards it now; the over grown grass, dead flowers and chipped paint reminded Will of the houses from the really old, crappy horror movies he would watch with his father on Halloween. “I know it doesn’t look like much,” Will glanced at Nadia over the roof of the car, already sensing her doubt and fears about the place, “but we don’t need a fortress, just some place we can lay low for a couple of hours before Deputy Dickhead gets tired and goes back to the precinct.”

[williamstemple-blog]

littlenadia:

Nadia gritted her teeth as Will questioned her. It took all she had not to tell him to shut up. She could already feel the pressure crushing her and yet, for some reason, she wasn’t scared. There was something there, this comfortable feeling that she was protected. It was a foreign feeling, especially now. He wouldn’t let her get hurt, that much was certain, given what they had just been through together.

“Thanks for the vote of confidence.” Nadia muttered under her breath. They were on the main road now, their problems were behind them for now. But Nadia was planning on laying low for a good long while as soon as she got Will off her tail. It was no offence to him but she was so used to working alone now, so used to being alone with her thoughts. It was strange to have someone at such a close proximity. It made her chest ache slightly when she thought about the last time she ever spoke to someone that wasn’t a cashier or a waitress. Yet banter trade between them like they were actually friends, Nadia didn’t feel judged by anything that came out of her mouth.

“Charming. I’m currently in a stolen car with the town drunk it seems.” His fingers were tapping along the dashboard and her hand shot out to still them. Her small palm held onto his for a moment, Nadia shooting a quick look. “You mind? Trying to focus on driving in a place that I really don’t know well enough yet.” The touch lingered for a moment before she let go, letting out a deep breath.

Nadia slammed on the breaks, pulling over to the side of the road. “Brother’s house? Еб твою мать! You’re joking, right? You don’t have a place where you lay low from the cops? One where they can’t track you through family? I’m not going there, Will. Not if they can find you that easily. I’d be a sitting duck and I’m sorry but that’s not an animal I like to be.” It was funny that the idea of splitting up didn’t cross her mind straight away, it was funny that she was giving him time to ask her questions in the first place. It felt like she… owed him something. And Nadia didn’t like being in debt to anyone.

“Not just any town drunk,” Will said, “The charming and handsome town drunk. Trust me, you could have been stuck with worse.” He grinned at her, it was a devilish and cheeky grin. “You haven’t met Al. Now he’s a town drunk you wouldn't want to be stuck in a high speed car chase with.” Will could still remember the time he had drove Al home from the bar one night in Tristan’s car— and had then vomited inside of it. Tristan had been furious for days after that, Will thought he might never forgive him. Tristan only had two rules when it came to people driving his car; Will wasn't allowed and if you were drunk then you didn’t get inside.

Will mutters something close to sounding like sorry, or at least he thinks he does, he’s not really sure if the words ever left his mouth. His attention is elsewhere; it’s on Nadia’s fingers, it’s on the shape of her hand and how soft and gentle her hand feels against the rough, callouses of his own. Nadia let go of his hand, and he let it linger on the dashboard, briefly, before dropping his hands into his lap, nervously. He hadn't even realised Nadia had been holding her breath until she exhaled, it was strange. What ever that was that just happened, that lingering touch between the two of them, was strange. Will knitted his brows together, he didn’t say another word or let his raggedy breaths betray him, he just sat in silence for a few seconds, tearing his eyes painfully away from her to pay attention to something, anything else. 

“What the fu—” Will exclaimed as he was ripped away from the quiet, ravine of his own thoughts he had been in. “Why are we stopping?” He demanded, blue eyes burning like the heart of a flame. He glanced outside of the windows, a troubled look crossing his face. Was there something up ahead? Had the police officers called for back up and predicted what roads they might take and had them blocked off? He couldn’t see anything in the distance, even in the dark with his werewolf abilities. “Nobody lives there. Not officially, anyway. Everyone thinks my family cleared out of there after—” He paused, pain flickering in his eyes, and then it was gone. “Trust me, okay? It’s like a safe house. They won’t think to come looking for us there.”

[williamstemple-blog]

littlenadia:

Nadia stared straight back at Will, she understood his curiousity. That didn’t mean she had to tell him anything. She only sighed, a frown tugging at her lips. “Oh joy, I’m looking forward to it.” She muttered, her brown hair flicked over her face as she looked at the car. It was an old chevvy, easy to hot wire, easy to drive. 

She couldn’t help grinning back, her eyes sparkling slightly. It changed her face, that smile. It was one that promised adventure, it was rare that it came out. It was even rarer that someone other than her brother brought it out in her. It faltered slightly when she realized who it was aimed at. “Seems like I’m driving then.” Nadia straightened up, stretching her neck. “I actually passed mine with flying colours. Emphasis on flying.”

Her footsteps were quiet, muffled as she crept towards the car, not bothering to look back for Will. She knew he would follow, this was all his idea anyway. Thankfully the door was open, it gave a loud creak. Nadia wasn’t focused on that anyway, she was more focused on the wire box under the steering wheel. “Alright, sweetie, be nice to me.” She heard Will open the passenger door, could feel his eyes watching her. It made her nervous but she ignored him, focusing on the red and blue wire. She yanked them, stripping the casing with her nails before she began to spark them together.

“Come on, sweetie. Come on.” She muttered, she could hear the car groaning, whirling, trying to start. Just like Eddie had taught her, she knew this. Nadia had this. She sparked them together again, the car rumbling finally and Nadia beamed, looking up at Will with that smile again. “You might want a seat belt.” Her door slammed shut and her foot was like lead on the accelerator. Dust flew out behind the car as they sped off through the back exit, one with only a few police on it. They barely had time to blink before the two of them were gone, onto the main road and away from any danger.

“So… you have a place in mind for that little chat of yours?”

Nadia didn’t need to tell Will to follow her, he was already doing so the second she crept towards the car; Nadia was his responsibility, he wasn't going to let her out of his sight until he knew she was safe and sound. The Pack were protective of their territory, they served as guardians to anybody who wanted it and anybody that needed it. Will’s father had always taught him that protecting their home was one of the most important parts of being a member of The Pack. 

A wolf was nothing without a sense of loyalty and nobility.

Will remains crouched when he reaches the car; pulling open the door to the passenger side, only wincing slightly when the door makes an identical creaking sound to Nadia’s. All he can do is hope it wasn't loud enough for their pursuers to hear them, and if they did then he really, really hopes that Nadia can hot wire the car. Will can protect her from one, maybe even three police officers but he doesn't know how many have responded to their comrades distress call. Maybe it’s only one, maybe it’s only three, but he can’t be certain. The whole police department could be raining down on them but he has to have faith that Nadia wasn't just implying she already had a criminal record to try and impress him and further his image of her as a bad ass.

“Do you even know what you’re doing?” Will asked, hastily, focusing his blue, intense eyes on her. He feels his heart pounding inside of his chest, he hasn't felt excitement like this in a while; it makes the hairs on the back of his neck stand on edge and his palms clammy. The car finally came to life and Will’s face lit up with astonishment and pride for a girl he barely knew, he couldn't explain it, but he had never been good at understanding and explaining his feelings.

“You did it!” He cheered, fastening his seatbelt, just as she ordered. He hadn’t forgotten that she had said she passed her driving test with flying colours, emphasis on the flying. If Nadia’s driving was anything like his then he was in for one hell of a ride.

“I know a bar we could grab a drink, but everyone in this town knows that’s where to find me.” He leans forward in his seat, his seat belt restricting his movement slightly, and taps his fingers along the dashboard. Everyone knows where to look for Will, he spends most of his nights when he’s alone at Tristan’s bar when he’s not making another mistake and calling up one of several girls who are always willing to welcome him into their homes and their bed.

“I got it.” He says, knowing probably won’t like where he’s planning on taking Nadia, but if he’s right about her and she is a werewolf then he has nothing to worry about. “We’re going to go to my brothers house.”

[williamstemple-blog]

littlenadia:

“Bad ass?” The word felt funny in Nadia’s mouth, that wasn’t something people normally used to describe her back in Redwell. It used to be meek or shy or quiet. Never bad ass. “You could. But mystery and intrigue don’t look so good on a girl.”

The hairs on the back of Nadia’s neck were standing on end and her nails were digging into her palms, almost cutting through when the car door slammed. Nadia took a deep breath, it shaking slightly as she exhaled slowly, cooling herself off. Will gave the orders and Nadia’s eyes narrowed, her mouth open to argue when she snapped it shut. He knew these cops better than she did, he knew the hiding place better than she did and right now, Nadia could use all the help she could get.

She nodded once, light on her feet as she crept to another row of cars. Glancing back at Will, she saw his eyes light up and the young wolf rolled hers. She had known the guy all of 15 minutes and she already knew that the look on his face didn’t mean good things for her. It was boyish, filled with mischief. Nadia was willing to bet that there were women in the town who wished on every star that he would look at them like that just once. Yet Nadia wasn’t going weak at the knees. If anything, it was… bothering her. She couldn’t put her finger on it, there was a sensation in her stomach that she couldn’t place. “How do you know it’s not already on my record?” Nadia whispered back before looking back out at the car yard. She could hear footsteps, they were walking farther away rather than closer, her instincts honed in from experiences that she’d rather not think about. Days of high pitched noises and ‘can you hear that?’ left the Omega with better hearing than she might have previously had before the hunters got a hold of her. The cops were losing interest but they were still there and Nadia wanted to put as much room between her and them as possible.

“It’s clear. Got a car to steal in mind? Wait, do you even drive?”

Nadia might not have thought she was bad ass, but Will couldn't think of another word to describe someone who had stood up to that corrupted police officer, defended herself and almost snapped the guys wrist. Will might have only known the girl a very short amount of time, but it was enough for him to get a sense of what a kind of person she was; brave, strong, mysterious (no matter how much she didn’t like it) and a warrior. 

Will crept after Nadia, his suspicions about her growing as he observed just how swiftly and quietly she moved through the night. It wasn't like any other human, it was like a werewolf. It was like him. Will desperately wanted to ask her if she was a werewolf, but they didn’t have time for those kind of questions right now. An interrogation could wait until after the had successfully escaped from their pursuers and grabbed a bite to eat. That was what Will had been doing when he had stumble upon Nadia; on his way to grab himself and the pack some food upon Noah’s order.

“You’re going to have to answer some of my questions once we get out of here,” Will told her, curiosity replacing the suspicion in his voice, “Like how you already have a grand theft auto charge on your record.” 

Brave, strong, mysterious and a criminal. Will would have to remember to go to Church this Sunday and thank God him or herself for sending a girl like Nadia his way. 

“In matter of fact, I do.” He crept in front of her, peering his head around the corner of the cars trunk and jerking his thumb towards and old, chevvy impala. “That pretty little thing over there belongs to a friend of mine and I just so happen to know that he wouldn't mind me taking it for a ride before it got squashed or ripped apart for spare parts.” Will turned back to Nadia, smiling, “Well that depends on who you ask. I believe the words my instructor used were ‘like a bat out of hell’.”

[williamstemple-blog]

littlenadia:

Nadia couldn’t help snorting at the idea of self defence classes, it was a minor slip. Tugging at her sleeves so they fell over her hands, she looked down at the ground. “Nah. Just done this before. I thought…” She almost blurted it out, how she thought a different small town might be better, might be safer. That she might be okay there. The world liked to prove her wrong. “I’ve just done this. It’s better to fight back now than let it get too far. Now they know who they’re dealing with.” She finally finished, avoiding looking directly at Will.

His tone changed, she wondered if he knew how much it did. It was a voice she had once heard in her pack back home, the tone that they would always fight, that they would never lose themselves. Her gaze moved up slowly, her head tilting in wonder.

“Well. Aren’t you just the right amount of a mystery and intrigue?” She smiled, humour sparkling in her eyes for a moment until she stood up. She turned her head suddenly, her eyes sparking a bright gold when she heard a car door slam shut. To any human, it might have looked like a trick of the light. 

“You coming?” She stood up in a flash, not caring if that was the cop or not, she was getting the hell out of there. Her survival instinct didn’t give her the comfort of brushing something like that off. She needed to get back to her apartment. 

Will regarded her with curious green eyes; something in Nadia’s voice told him that when she said she had done this before, she didn’t just mean the one time and he believed her. Will’s stomach sank and he felt a pang of sympathy for Nadia; she didn’t look much younger than him and she sounded like she had learned first hand just how cruel and harsh the world could be, how it could swallow somebody and spit them back out, leaving them to feel like they had lost a piece of them. There was something else though, a fierceness that Will could admire about her. 

“You’re pretty bad ass, aren't you?” Will laughed, his green eyes lit up with amusement. “I could say the same thing about you.” His eyes darkened when she turned her head suddenly, his heart sinking inside of his chest. Had he missed something? Had the cops managed to sneak around the junk yard quietly enough to avoid being heard by his enhanced hearing. It wasn’t entirely impossible, Will was only an Omega amongst the pack and he hadn’t completely honed his enhanced senses yet. Tristan Gerard, a Beta in his pack was a better tracker than he was. Will was a fighter; he relied on his bare knuckles and his gut instincts most of the time.

It happened so quickly that Will thought he had imagined it, or thought that maybe it had been something reflecting in her eyes, but he was fairly certain that Nadia’s eyes had just flashed a molten gold. The colour of his eyes. The colour of a werewolves eyes.

While Will still struggled to believe he had seen what he had thought he had seen, there was no doubt that the two of them had just heard a car door being slammed shut. “Shit!” Will exclaimed, he hadn't expected the cops to find them this quickly, or at all. “Stick to the maze of cars. They’ll have people waiting at the main entrance so we’re going to have to get creative again.” His eyes lit up again and he smirked at Nadia before asking, “How do you feel about adding Grand Theft Auto to your record tonight?”

[williamstemple-blog]

noahthealpha:

Noah shoved Will with a slight chuckle. “And yet no one taught me how to put up with you.” Rosalie was a sore  topic for all of them, especially Quinn but Noah needed them to talk about it, he needed them to know that she may be gone but she was not forgotten. They needed to know that if they moved on, it didn’t mean he wouldn’t still be loyal to them. He didn’t want to be that type of pack, the ride-or-die kind that meant people were unhappy.

“I don’t watch as much tv as you and Quinn.” Noah rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “But I’m not going to IKEA. Not happening. I’ll make the furniture myself if I have to.”

“You know, we’re not all content in life when we’re chasing rabbits. Unlike someone.” Noah looked at Will pointedly with a smirk, a memory from Will’s childhood making him laugh internally. He was a cute kid, it was hard for Noah to stop seeing the little boy who didn’t know how to growl till he was 6. “All I’m saying is you’re still learning, don’t get cocky. You’ll be a good beta one day.” He clapped Will on the shoulder before heading to what was left of their fridge. The card was sitting precariously on the top and Noah sighed, passing the card to Will.

“Shut up and go get food. Don’t piss off any police while you’re gone, your bail money jar is awfully low at the moment and I don’t want to have to take a loan from the bank of Tristan.” Noah shoved him in the direction of the door. “Remember the vegetables.”

Malcolm Temple, Will’s late father, could have taught Noah how to put up with him, he thought. Malcolm had been great at dealing with Will when he was younger. Admittedly Will had not been as much of a handful when he was younger and human as he was now. Losing his father had awakened his werewolf abilities, as well as enhancing his emotions. Will had always thought that finally unlocking that part of him would be a happy occasion, it was something he had been waiting for all of his life, something he believed he was fated to become.

Fate had a cruel way of giving him what he always wanted. 

It was the pain, anger and grief that threatened to destroy him that awoke the beast inside of him. The same pain and anger that rose inside of his chest when ever he thought about his father’s death and the cloud of mystery that surrounded it. Three years later and Will still had no answers to how or why his father had been killed. The only thing Will knew was that Noah’s father had returned the morning after one full moon—his had not.

Suspicions, blame and distrust had fell upon many people after the death of his father, but he had never once pointed the finger at Noah’s father. The two had been brothers in arms, closer than even Will and Noah were. Will never doubted that Noah’s father was ever capable of murdering his father, it was a thought that he never deemed worthy of entertaining and never would.

“Is that because you don’t know how to work one?” Will arched his brow, “I’m not judging. I’m just pretty sure you were around way before the television was even invented.” Will pushed away the swirling anger inside of him; it had become as easy as that for him. “It beats chasing after your tail.” His usual teasing and sarcastic demeanour returning to his features. “I’m not cocky. I’m confident and I have the skills to back it.” It was just the discipline that everyone said he was always missing.

An exaggerated gasp slipped past his lips as he was shoved towards the door. Will clasped his hand over his heart, speaking with mock disgust as he went on his way, “I would never piss off our competent and trustworthy police department! I am deeply offended you would say such a thing!”

[williamstemple-blog]

nadia-koschei:

She kept up with Will, step for step without fail. The sirens were getting louder and this all felt too familiar. She focused on her heart beat, on her breathing, keeping the panic down by focusing on everything else but what was happening. 

She would have completed missed the wire fence if Will hadn’t pointed it out. It was the perfect hiding spot, a car junk yard. A lot of places to hide behind and in. The police wouldn’t be able to track them here. Hell, even she wasn’t sure she would be able to do it in a swapped situation.

Nadia raised an eyebrow at Will before sitting across from him, neatly folding her legs, her back up straight and her eyes flicking around for the exits. “Good to know.” She couldn’t help the slight sarcasm that made it’s way into her tone. He was probably telling the truth, she knew his type. Spoil a girl for one night and then move on when they get bored. “Look, I should say thank you. But I could handle it, you know. I’m not completely defenceless.” In reality, Nadia wasn’t defenceless at all. As much as she hesitated, she could have hit and run just like Will…

Almost exactly like Will.

Nadia glanced back at Will, looking him up and down.

“So why’d you step in? Glory? Or love a damsel in distress?”

“I know. I saw what you did to that cop back there.” Will couldn't resist the smile that crept onto his face as he thought back to how the girl had handled herself so surprisingly well. Nobody in this town stood up against the police force, at least not any of the humans. Will found it refreshing to see somebody other than himself fighting back—quite literally. 

Everybody else was too afraid to step out of like. Too afraid of what punishment would be handed down to them by all of the corrupt sons of bitches that made up their police force. Not all of them were dirty and corrupt but the majority had become corrupted and the ones that hadn't were just as scared as the other civilians. 

“You take some self-defence classes or something?” He inquired, scanning the junk yard every now and then in case his super secret hiding place had been discovered and the police officers had slipped through the fence like they had. Will didn't believe they would have been found, not really. The police officers in this town were as dumb as they were corrupted. They would probably give up on searching for the two of them soon and return to their police station to pig out of jelly doughnuts. 

“Neither.” He said, his voice taking on a more serious tone for once. “I just don’t like people who abuse positions of power to bully people.”