"Can I ask why I'm in the middle of the woods?" Claire asked sleepily as she trudged behind Scott, almost tripping over a tree root in the process.

"Because." He dropped the duffel bag he had been carrying and bent down to unzip it, pulling out a dagger and tossing it at her. She caught it with ease, spinning on her middle finger before grasping it firmly in her hand. Claire blinked rapidly when she realized what she just did, looking up at Scott with wide eyes.

"I-I have no idea how I just did that." She stuttered, shaking her head. "It's like my hands know what they're doing before my brain can even process the dagger is in my hand."

"Like muscle memory." Scott offered, reaching into the bag. "Which brings us to our next experiment."

"No, I-I can't." She shook her head frantically with wide eyes. "I can't even shoot a Nerf gun. What makes you think I can handle a bow and arrow?"

"Muscle memory." He repeated, walking closer to her. "I think that what you are, is connecting yourself to Allison in some way, like with the daggers. Let's see if it's the same with a bow and arrow."

"If I accidentally kill a bunny, I will never forgive you." She sighed, taking it from him. He grabbed her shoulders and turned her around to see a target taped to one of the trees.

"Square your feet like this, shoulders back." He whispered, his lips next to her ear as he shifted her body, pulling her arms up. "Put the arrow here, pull back, breathe, and then release."

He took a step back, watching her carefully as she took a deep breath, loading the arrow. Keeping her eyes on the target she pulled back, letting out a long exhale before releasing it. Her eyes squeezed shut imeadietly after letting it go, afraid to look.

"Claire." Scott spoke, his hand on her shoulder. The brunette opened her eyes slowly, letting out a short laugh of surprise.

Bullseye.

● ● ●

"So basically we're looking for abnormal behavior?" Theo asked as the three of them stood looking over the front of the school.

"Anyone acting a little off or a little wierd." Scott nodded, glancing at him.

"Isn't everyone a little wierd?" Claire laughed slightly, watching some freshman sniff his armpits descreetly. "I mean, it is highschool."

"Good point." Scott said, watching her smile. He hadn't seen a lot of smiling from her the past few days, but today he had caught a few grins.

"You remember Tracy went on a killing spree after reading that." Theo pointed out as they walked down the stairs, looking at the alpha's copy of The Dread Doctors.

"You think it's a bad idea?" Scott asked, a worried expression on his face.

"I think Malia almost getting ran down by a car could be bad." He said. "Is that why you guys haven't finished it yet?"

"We're going to." She spoke up, chewing on her lip nervously.

"Scott, I came here to find a pack." He frowned, his eyes flitting between them with his next words. "I wasn't planning on watching one fall apart."

"The books all we got." He sighed, holding it up.

"Then I'll read it too."

● ● ●

Claire chewed on her thumbnail as they stood around the coffee table, looking down at the different copies of the book warily.

"My mom's book club usually has more wine." Lydia said slowly, pursing her lips.

"Well, they also didn't read books that cause violent hallucinations." Stiles pointed out.

"That's why Malia's here." Scott looked over at the werecoyote who nodded in response.

"So none of us go running into traffic?" Claire muttered, crossing her arms.

"Or worse."

"Like what happened to Judy." Everyone looked up at Malia with puzzled expressions. "Chapter fourteen."

"Maybe I should have my mother read it." The strawberry blonde said sarcastically, picking up the book. "She won't remember a girl with a tail leaping off the ceiling and attacking everyone."

"Well, if it works." Stiles pointed out, giving everyone the opposite of reassurance.

"It has too." Claire shook her head, picking up a copy of her own.

"What's that mean?" Scott looked at the girl next to him carefully.

"At Eichen, I swear one of them looked at me like they knew me." She looked up, swallowing hard. "I wanna know how."

"When I look at the book it's like..." Lydia trailed off, clenching her jaw.

"A memory trying to surface." Theo finished, gaining everyone's attention.

"Yeah." She agreed, taking her eyes off the cover.

"Isn't that what Vallack wanted when he wrote it?" Kira asked, looking around nervously.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Scott murmured, his hand on the small of Claire's back, she cleared her throat and nodded.

"If they did something to me, I wanna know what it is." She said simply, walking back to the couch as everyone else grabbed a copy, following suit.

They had been reading about twenty minutes when Claire's head started to hurt, the girl shifting in her uncomfortable spot on the floor against the couch, wedged between Scott and Kira's legs.

"Anyone feel anything yet?" Scott asked, looking around.

"Tired." Kira replied, her voice raspy.

"Hungry."

"Headache." Claire sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"I think he meant the book." Theo stated, slightly annoyed with the three girls. The doppelgänger rolled her eyes and looked back down, trying to focus on the tiny print. Kira let out a frustrated sigh and folded down the corner of her page, closing her eyes.

"You're not giving up are you?" Claire craned her neck back to look at her as she laid her head on a pillow.

"Just resting my eyes." She muttered, her tone irritated as she clicked off the lamp.

● ● ●

After a few more hours of reading the pack had passed out, Lydia in an arm chair, Stiles and Malia together on the floor. Claire laid across the couch curled up in a blanket with her head in Scott's lap, his arm draped over her as they slept. She shifted around, eyebrows furrowed as her eyes darted around under her lids. Scott stirred slightly, his arm tightening around her and causing the girl to relax imeadietly.

Theo watched Scott and Claire with a slight smirk, knowing it wouldn't be long until he had fallen for her completely.

That is, if he hadn't already.

________________________

Not edited.

So, Claire knows how to shoot an arrow? What?

Any guesses to what Claire's repressed memory is? One of my wonderfully devoted readers gave me a little spark and I thought up the whole scene while doing the dishes.

Claire wants to find out what the hell those doctors want with her--I mean, I would too.

Btw, sleepy Claire/Sclaire will be your fave. Promise.

Vote, comment, and choke me because I have like 1,001 assignments over the weekend.

Xx