Chapter 21

Walking into the Avengers Compound after her trip, Natasha had hoped to have some time to herself, but she had barely gotten in the door when Stark's AI reached out to her. "Ms. Romanoff? Mr. Stark and Agent Coulson would like you to join them in Conference Room 4."

"Tell them I will be there in thirty minutes" she says in a resigned voice, knowing they would only wait so long.

"What the hell Romanoff?" Tony's voice suddenly comes over the speakers. "Get up here!" She can hear Phil in the background arguing to give her some time.

"I need a shower. You can wait." She ignores the rest of his complaining. She takes the stairs because she knows better than to use the elevator. She doesn't trust that he wouldn't override it and have it skip her floor and deliver her immediately. The man was like a toddler most times and since the dust up with Rogers, he had gotten even worse. Steve had definitely tempered Tony's eccentricities, but the whole thing over Barnes had only made things worse.

The other issue, even after all of that, was that Rogers, Wanda, and Falcon had all disappeared and neither Tony, nor the government was having any luck finding them. She had originally thought that perhaps Fury was involved in helping them stay under the radar, but Coulson had been certain it wasn't due to the actions of any current or former member of SHIELD. But the fact was that someone or some group, with resources that were significant, had to be behind their disappearance.

And after his speech at the UN, if Natasha was one to gamble, she would put her money on T'challa. The fact that what every major spy agency on the planet had been certain that Wakanda was a poor, third world country for the last hundred years despite the fact that it was, in actuality, the most advanced nation on Earth, meant that they could definitely pull it off. Of course the question was whether or not he would especially with how determined he was to get Barnes. Then again, the evidence proving his innocence was also pretty convincing, at least for some.

Of course, Stark wasn't about to admit that anybody was better than he was with computers or tech, so he had gone the other direction. Instead he decided that Cap and his team had gone no-tech and were pretty much underground. Natasha had listened to him muttering about hiding out in caves or something while he was upgrading his armor to the latest generation of tech. After he destroyed all his armor rescuing Pepper and the President, Stark had lasted almost two weeks before he began working on a new version that was nano-tech based.

She had to give him credit. He never made the same mistake twice. After Lang had gotten inside his suit in Germany, he had designed next one to prevent that from ever happening again. And he added a parachute to avoid what happened to Rhodes. No, Stark learned from his mistakes but until he and Steve managed to actually talk all this out, the Avengers were fractured and broken. Of course the fact that Steve was as stubborn and bullheaded didn't help either.

Toweling off after her shower, she contemplated taking a little extra time to make both men squirm but decided that the momentary pleasure of torturing them wasn't worth it and quickly dressed and headed for the conference room.

"Finally!" Stark yells when she walks in.

"Twenty-seven minutes" Phil says with a smirk that he hides when Stark nearly snaps at the man.

"Well? Was the wizard right?" Stark asks as he sits down. "What did you find out?"

"It would seem that magic is, in fact, real. And it seems that druids and ghosts and faeries are too."

Phil Coulson had spent many years working with Shield. He had followed Nick Fury from Aliens and Captain Marvel, all the way through the Avengers. Had met several Norse gods, his hero from WWII, and more things than he ever would have dreamed possible. But all of that…the surprise, the wonder, and the excitement utterly paled beside how much he enjoyed the look on Tony Stark's face at Natasha's statement. Phil thought he could actually see the veins in his head throbbing as he listened to a KGB trained assassin, a world-renowned spy, a woman who fought to turn back an alien invasion, say something like that.

"Oh, and centaurs too. Unfortunately, I can neither confirm or deny Santa though."

Oh lord, it just got better, Phil thought as he coughed into his hand. He wondered what it would take to hack into Stark's system and get a video of this meeting to show others.

"You're drugged" Stark finally managed to say.

"Did you want to hear about the werewolves?"

"OH, COME ON!!!" he yells, and Phil literally bites his tongue to not laugh. The best part is Natasha's absolutely dead-pan delivery. She might as well be telling them that you can buy sliced bread at the store.

"Tony, you saw the tape of the hospital."

Stark paused; mouth open for a second before closing it. "I saw something, obviously. Those guys did appear to have make-up or maybe some kind of prothesis going on. But that's different from werewolves. Maybe they're like Wanda, Hydra experiments, the result of science.

"Unless Hyrda was doing experiments during the Roman Empire…probably not. The wolves said that their family have been werewolves for centuries."

"Or so they said. Friday" Stark calls out. "What do you have on…what's the guy's name again?" he asks Nat.

"Derek Hale."

"Derek Hale. Just give me the important stuff" he orders the AI and looks back at Natasha with a superior smirk. He loves using his tech to find out things.

"Derek Hale" Friday's voice calls out. "Age 23, Born in Beacon Hills California to Talia and Robert Hale. On of apparently four survivors of a house fire that killed eleven family members. Received GED in New York after leaving California. Attended three semesters at NYU before dropping out. Sister, Laura Hale, killed seven years after the fire by wild animals. Mr. Hale was initially arrested in conjunction with Laura Hale's death, but released after evidence of the animal attack was found. Wanted as a suspect in second murder at Beacon Hills High School of one Walter Jenkins, janitor, but later he was again exonerated. Known relatives: Peter Hale, uncle, and Cora Hale, sister. Peter Hale survived the fire with 3rd degree burns over 60% of his body and was comatose for over six years. Awoke and underwent unknown medical treatment for injuries. Cora Hale has no information from the time of the fire until recently when she was registered for classes at Beacon Hills High School."

"Trace Hale family. Ancestors of note."

Friday pauses for a second. "Talia Hale was the daughter of Abigail Hale and Martin Schriver. The Hale family name appears to be adopted by both male and female individuals marrying into the family. California records show Hale family members living in Beacon Hills in every existing US Census of California. I am unable to access any documents prior to that time in California."

"Okay that's impressive" Tony admits. "Any records outside of California?"

"There are records of a Hale family living in Scotland in the 16th and 17th century that are likely ancestors. The adoption of the Hale name by new family members appears to predate the family's arrival in California." Friday pauses. "No other information is available. I did find in US and California records that there are a significant number of individuals with connections to the Hale family in Beacon Hills and surrounding areas. Two Governors of California, one of Oregon, four US Senators, eleven US Congressmen, over twenty members of the state legislature, and numerous Mayors and other public officials." She pauses for a moment, "According to the records I can access, I find direct ownership of significant amounts of property; industrial, agricultural, and residential that appears to belong to a series of trusts and companies that connect to past members of the Hale family and most likely now belong to the current three members."

"Define substantial" Stark says looking impressed but also surprised. His family had money, lots of it, and they had been in California a long time, but he can say he never met or even heard of the Hales.

"Along with multiple bank accounts and holdings in various businesses that are more than likely associated with the family, current value of all properties I was able to identify with at least 90% probability is between 6.2 and 9 billion dollars."

The three all look shocked at Friday's estimate. Stark's AI could and did pull data that probably no one else could manage and he had the AI looking into the Hales since Natasha's initial report several days ago. Yes he knew the guy's name but he wasn't about to admit that. But this didn't line up, I mean the guy lived in a loft in a nearly abandoned building!

"Think he can spin straw into gold?" Phil asks looking over at Natasha.

Natasha didn't have to do anything but the look on her face was congratulations enough as Stark had another mini-aneurysm at that suggestion.

Stiles pulls out of his driveway to head to Deaton's and check out this new wolf that Scott and Isaac found. Apparently, the kid had it rough and Deaton had basically drugged the kid to sleep off the exhaustion. It had been a total nightmare when Scott and Isaac had come to tell them what happened. He had been very proud of their rescue of the guy, but what they did afterwards had resulted in a rather heated argument that didn't end with any satisfaction.

Derek had been furious that Scott had decided unilaterally to give the hunters to Chris to 'handle' without consulting Derek or Stiles.

"They were hunters!" Scott had argued. "Mr. Argent is supposed to deal with them!"

"No Scott" Derek had growled. "This is not Argent territory. He doesn't get to make those decisions."

"Oh, and you do?" Scott had demanded.

Derek had glared, both wolves eyes flashing crimson as they stared at each other. "No, I do."

Scott had spun and stared at Stiles in shock, not to mention the reactions of the other wolves. "What?" Scott looked thoroughly confused. Derek, while slightly unhappy, looked less angry at the teen's claim.

"Scott, I am the Arcanist and they came into my territory and sought to kill someone. That means that they violated my rules and when anyone does that, they need to answer to me" Stiles never raised his voice, but Derek had later admitted that the betas had all were weirded out by Stiles' behavior.

"But…Stiles, they were human" he had said as justification.

"And if they were simply human criminals then my dad would have dealt with them. But they chose to be a part of the magical world by becoming hunters and that means that they answer for their actions to magical authority. Hunters may police their own, by my territory is not now, nor will it ever be, hunter territory."

Scott had looked at Derek, almost as if he was seeking support, forgetting their argument mere moments before. "But…I mean, Stiles, we are still kids" he said. "This is bigger than us. What would you or Derek had done?" he finally managed to ask.

"I don't know Scott, but it would not have been a slap on the wrist with a promise to not do it again. Do you even know what they had done? Did they kill the kid's family? Was it another pack like the Hales, innocent? Do you even know what Argent was going to do to them?" Stiles had asked.

Scott hadn't known, and it seems that Chris didn't waste time. He had both hunters on a plane to the Hunter's Council before Stiles and Derek even knew what had happened. He had included a report and promised to share anything that happened. Chris had also admitted that he hadn't realized that Derek and Stiles didn't know that Scott had handed them over though both Stiles and Derek could tell he wasn't really upset about it.

"No. Scott, you may be an Alpha, a True Alpha as well, but this is not your territory and you don't get to make those decisions. Derek is High Alpha as am I. If you cannot accept our authority, then this isn't going to work" Stiles had told him and had seen the shock on all of the pack's faces, especially Scott's.

"What are you saying?" Scott had asked looking gutted and disbelieving.

Stiles sighed. He stared at his brother for a moment before he finally closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. Opening his eyes, the pack had startled at the white light pouring out of his eyes. "Fulgur, venerunt ad me!" There was a pause for a second and then the loft goes white and the crash of thunder literally shakes the entire building. The wolves screeched and ducked as the blue white lightning shattered one of the windows and came to Stiles hand like a tame animal, dancing across his body.

Derek stared in shock as he watched the lightning dance across Stiles body and the whole loft was filled with the smell of ozone, rain, and power. The hair on all of their bodies was standing on end and Stiles looked like something beyond words. He reminded all of them of when they almost lost him. The Queens had said he had given up much of his power to stay human but right then it didn't look like he was lacking power.

It lasted for a second and then with a gesture the lightning leapt from Stiles, out the window, and back into the sky. And then he was just Stiles again, eyes normal, but looking at his best friend with a sad expression. "Scott. I am not the same person I was before. I can't let other people make decisions that are my responsibility to make. I need to trust that you all understand that. I am still trying to figure this out, but there are going to be some things that only I can decide."

Scott stared in confusion. "I don't understand." And to be fair, Derek was fairly certain that was probably the same for most of the pack. Only Peter, Lydia, and Derek had talked about what it all really meant. Derek had talked with Allison and he thought she might understand as well, but she hadn't actually said anything about it. The other wolves hadn't given any sign that they really understood.

"Is it safe to come in?" Peter had asked from the door, Cora and Yvette standing behind him looking more than a little wary and uncertain.

Stiles had nodded and Peter had entered and after a brief explanation, it surprised everyone when Yvette had managed to explain it all.

"I do not understand, are you not aware of his status?" she had asked. The pack had mostly looked confused and she had sighed and signaled them to sit. "As you know I am a Necromancer. My magic is that of death and the spirits. Like all necromancers, I ultimately answer to the Night Lord, the one who stands above all Necromancers, everywhere, in power. He has powers that I cannot even begin to truly understand." They all nodded. That made sense. "For those that use Sorcery, the most powerful user, the one that most sorcerers all honor is the Sorcerer Supreme."

"That's Steven" Stiles reminded them.

Yvette nodded. "Those that practice druidic magic, they answer to the Merlin and the Morgaine, the male and female aspects of Druidic Magic."

"Lizzie" Erica said and everyone agreed.

"The High Enchanter is the most gifted practitioner of Magecraft. The High Witch is the most powerful Witch and the Lord Alchemist is the most gifted Alchemist. You see for each of the six domains of magic, there is one, or two for the druids, who is the most gifted in that art who bears the responsibility of managing all those who practice it. Some are very controlling like the Druids who swear oaths to obey the Merlin and Morgaine in their efforts. Others don't even know who they are like the Alchemists and Enchanters."

"Okay but what does that have to do with Stiles?" Scott asked.

"My master, the Night Lord, who I only heard of and never met before, came to me the night Peter Hale arrived to give me a message to deliver to Mr. Stilinski."

"What message?" Peter had asked not looking particularly happy about it.

"He sent his greetings and asked permission to visit and meet him."

Everyone had sat there for a second. Peter had blanched but the rest looked confused. "Okay? So what?" Isaac finally asked.

Yvette looked at the beta with profound disappointment. "Mr. Lahey. The most powerful Necromancer in the world sent a messenger to ask permission to visit your Mr. Stilinski. Think about that for a second."

The pack had all suddenly looked a lot less certain. Finally, it was Boyd who had spoken. "He needs Stiles' permission to come here?"

Yvette nodded. "None of the seven greater powers will trespass in the Arcanist's territory. I do not fully understand what it means, but I know that the Night Lord sees Mr. Stilinski as his peer, deserving of both respect and honor. I had to have permission to remain."

That caused almost all of them to look stunned. Peter and Derek had known, but not even Cora had. "Stiles!? You needed his permission to stay?" she had demanded.

Yvette simply nodded at her before looking back at the pack. "Your packmate is not like other magic users. He is a Power. You can't feel it here, but I do. This land, this territory? It teems with magic, like nowhere I have ever been before. I feel the spirits of the dead finding rest, drawn here to find peace and release. There are beings of magic desperate to take refuge and each of them needs his permission." She looked at Scott and her eyes were kind. "Your friend is both a friend and an Authority. You must learn to distinguish when you need to show him deference he is due."

All of them had been caught off guard by that, but before they could get any farther they were interrupted. A clap of thunder rang out that was even louder than the one Stiles had summoned, but it seemed much more spread out. They looked out the broken window and saw lightning flashing across the clouds that were covering all of Beacon Hills. Seconds later the clouds opened up and sheets of rain came pouring down, constantly lit up by the lightning that flashed every few seconds, thunder roaring alongside it.

"Damn Stilinski" Erica had muttered looking out at the storm raging over the town.

"Stiles?" Scott had asked sounding both confused and a bit irritated.

Stiles had stared for a second before he turned back to the pack. "This isn't me. I'm not doing this."

Everyone stared for a second and of course that was just when a particularly loud thunderclap and lightning blast seemed to go off right over the building causing everyone to jump and more than one to yelp.

"STILES!" Isaac had yelled.

"It's not me!" Stiles yelled back but he had sensed something. Concentrating he had stretched out his senses and he knew this storm was not natural! It was magic! "Derek! This is magic!" he had yelled.

Derek had roared but it was almost drowned out by the thunder and rain. "What do we do?" he finally yelled.

Stiles had thought, trying to figure it out. Whatever was causing this was near, but not close. It was nearer to the preserve, near the…the circle! "Come on!" Stiles had yelled and quickly created a portal from the loft to the stone circle, his place of power.

Derek was the first one through, but not by much. The rest had followed, even Cora and Yvette had come and spread out when they arrived. The storm was still raging here, but the wind and rain was significantly less than it was over town. "Why are we here?" Scott had yelled to be heard over the noise of the storm.

Stiles had been trying to orient himself when he felt it. Like lightning and power and the fury of nature all concentrated in a tiny ball. It was coming right for them! "Hold on!" Stiles yelled and he concentrated and created a dome of air around the pack, cutting into the wind and rain, but they could still see the trees bending, almost breaking, as the wind outside Stiles' protection jumped to hurricane force levels.

"There!" Isaac yelled and they all turned to look.

It was stunning. There was no missing the creature as it was lit up like Stiles had been earlier with lightning dancing across its body and all four of its huge wings. The head of the thing looked like an eagle, but the things feathers were midnight blue with white streaks running through its feathers. The claws on all four legs looked almost metallic in the light of the electricity dancing around it. The creature flew past and as it turned; they could see the storm winds shift to follow. This thing was the storm itself!

"What is that!?!" Erica yelled out as they watched it circle them. Now close enough, they could see that it was nearly three times the size of one of the centaurs, so it was huge.

Stiles however had almost frozen. He had watched it approach, the thunder roaring and lightning crashing, but there was something else. Something mournful in the wind. He could hear sounds of crying, of pain, of anguish that reminded him of his mother.

"Stiles! What do we do?" Scott had yelled at his friend but when the teen didn't answer he looked at Derek. "Derek?!"

Derek watched the creature, something familiar about it and turned to his uncle. "Peter! What is that thing!?"

Peter shook his head. "It's not possible! They don't exist!"

"What is it?!" Derek yelled.

But it was Cora who answered with reverence. "It's a Thunderbird!"

Derek looked back up and realized he remembered! His grandmother's stories! She told them about the Thunderbird, the mystical birds that were the living embodiment of the storms in this part of the world. They were protectors and guardians of nature and punishers of those of low morals or integrity. His grandmother loved telling all the Hale children stories from their pack, but also about all supernatural creatures and this was one of her favorites. How they brought life giving rains, shook the heavens with their power, drove away evil spirits, and punished those deserving it.

The pack watched as the Thunderbird landed on one of the large stones, balancing on the stone pillar, its wings open wide, lightning dancing off them and jumping into the clouds over the preserve as it stared down at them with electric white eyes.

"Stiles!" Scott, Erica, and Isaac had all called out, but the teen's focus was on the bird and the sounds that echoed behind it.

It all changed from one second to the next as the Thunderbird closed two of its wings in and with that snap the clearing was suddenly, almost deafeningly, silent. The wind dropped to nothing, the thunder a distant rumble, and the being was staring directly at Stiles.

"Derek" Cora's voice was cautious. The alpha glanced over at his sister who had moved closer. "Thunderbirds judge people remember? I think it may be trying to determine if Stiles is good or bad."

Derek nodded. He had figure that part out himself but was glad that she confirmed his thinking. The others of the pack were all nervous, as was the necromancer, but everyone was waiting for orders and that caused a rush of pleasure. They were learning!

"Stiles?" Peter had gentled prodded the teen who was still in that staring contest with the Thunderbird. "Derek? What do you want us to do?"

Derek watched his mate and the being both staring at each other, but he hadn't felt fear or danger, well danger but not directed at any of them. "We wait" he finally said.

The others had looked startled and ready to argue but he cut them off. "We don't know what it wants, and they are not supposed to be a danger except to those who deserve it."

"You speak truth Wolf-brother." Derek would never forget the Thunderbird's voice and doubted anyone else would either. If a storm could talk, that's what it sounded like. Like words within the thunder and lightning and wind. "I have felt the earth and sky here changing. Becoming clean again, magic flowing like it did long ago. And I have been drawn here. Possibility and Hope calling me. And tonight, the lightning itself sang to me."

The pack was pretty much speechless. None of the Hale stories had even suggested that the Thunderbirds were intelligent, let alone that they could talk in a language that people could understand. Abigail's stories had heavily implied that the ability to see the evil doer was more instinct than thoughtful consideration.

"That was me. Sorry" Stiles had confessed. The Thunderbird looked amused. "I mean the lightning tonight. I didn't know it would affect you."

"You are the source of the magic in this place. The lines of life all flow here and to you. The land, water, and air all are being renewed and flowing with life not seen in many, many years. I sense others here, those driven out by man."

Stiles nodded. "I am the Arcanist" he had told the being but it seemed that that title was less impressive when no one actually knew what it actually meant.

"I know not that word bright one, but I see the magic of ages within you. You have made this place a refuge, protected from corruption. I have looked into your heart and seen your trials and your hopes. You may do much good."

Stiles had felt humbled by the being. "I am trying to" he had said simply.

"Then I wish you success. This place is flowing with power and energy. It will be a good place to nest."

"Nest? You want to stay?" Cora asked in shocked surprise.

The Thunderbird didn't respond immediately but looked at Stiles who looked nervous for a few seconds before he straightened up and addressed the being. "This is my territory and all that stay here must abide by my rules. This place is to be a safe place for all people, both men and magic."

Head titled, the Thunderbird almost seemed to laugh. "Men and magic rarely live together well."

"Didn't the first peoples here live well with you?"

Conceding the point he nodded. "They did. But the men of today are not those men. But your terms are not a burden. I want clear air to fly and bring my storms. To replenish the earth and keep the dark ones from spoiling things."

"I'm Stiles and this is my mate Derek" Stiles introduced him. "He is the Alpha of our pack and rules by my side."

"I am Keneun."

And that is how Beacon Hills had gotten its first Thunderbird. Stiles and Keneun had spoken for a bit more, and after assurances that he wouldn't be storming every day over the town, he had flown away. It seemed that he was going to be flying all over Stiles' territory and would most likely nest in the mountains to the East of town which was good.

"So does this mean the drought is over?" Erica had asked at the end and that had broke the tension. They all had went back to the loft and split up. Scott had apologized about the hunters and not asking what to do first. Meeting Keneun had suddenly made the young alpha realize that things were way more complicated than he realized. Derek had also realized that Scott's own alpha status was pushing him to make decisions and be a leader and they had forgotten that. As a result, Scott now had lessons with Lydia, Peter, and Derek every day on being a leader, being an alpha, and pack politics. The look of despair almost made Stiles laugh but he loved his bro too much to do that. He just offered him a ride home afterwards and they left after getting a kiss from his mate. He had went home for the night and crashed.

Philippe Argent entered the room and headed for the small desk situated behind the Argent's family official seat in the formal meeting room of the Hunter's Council. He had accompanied his Matriarch, Clarissant, on this trip and was rather proud of getting to attend and actually see his first official meeting of the Council, something very few of his family got to do.

Philippe was distantly related to her, but for a long time he had doubts about whether he fit in with the family at all. The youngest of three children, he had learned of his family's true nature when he was 8 years old by accident. Both his brother, who was 16, and his sister, who was 14, had begun their formal training and he didn't understand what was going on, so he did what he normally did, he hid and eavesdropped. Overhearing his siblings talking for several days before he was caught, he was then taken before his mother and father.

After being impressed with the need to keep the family secret, they had begun his training as a hunter and it was, at the most generous description, abject failure. He was uncoordinated, physically challenged, and almost completed uninterested in what they were trying to teach him. He tried, for nearly four years he tried, but he could easily tell that he was a severe disappointment to his entire family. After four years, he missed more than he hit with a gun, and despite two years of attempts, his skill with a bow had actually gotten worse somehow. His sister had refused to even try to teach him anymore. Add in to that several minor physical limitations and the family had despaired of him ever accomplishing anything. His mother had decided that once he went through puberty, his Argent genetics would catch up and he would be able to become competent but Philippe saw the doubt and dismissal in both of his siblings' eyes at that statement.

But shortly before his thirteenth birthday, the family got some exciting news. His mother was summoned to the home of the Argent Matriarch to serve the family directly and everyone got to go. Jean Paul and Marie were ecstatic about the move and started training with the family there almost immediately and took to it like ducks to water. Philippe had tried, but he quickly noticed that the trainers were much less willing to tolerate his mistakes.

After two weeks of trying, and failing, he had finally had enough. Instead of accompanying his siblings to training, he had slipped away almost immediately after leaving the family's rooms on morning. He had thought he would be caught, but instead his brother and sister were almost relieved. And the trainers, if they even noticed, appeared to consider the lack of concern for a missing brother by the siblings and apparently assumed that he had other duties and proceeded without him. Philippe was also rather certain that his absence was a relief for them.

Instead, Philippe had decided to explore the great house and do his best to avoid his entire family. It took nearly an hour, but when he opened the door to the library, he was overwhelmed. Philippe loved books. Like his brother loved guns and his sister loved knives, he was never happier than when he could be left alone to read. And here was the largest library he had ever seen, and no one was around.

That whole first day he had explored the place, figuring out how it was arranged and found shelves of family histories, bestiaries in dozens of languages, books on magic and the occult, myths, legends, and diaries of hunters. There were herbals with hand drawn illustrations of plants that were centuries old and books on geology, astronomy, chemistry, alchemy, and so much more. Philippe had struggled to make friends in real life, but in books, he found his kindred soul.

It was the third day of escaping his unconcerned siblings that he met his distant cousin Genevieve in the library. She was three years older than him and, like Philippe, was never going to be a hunter. Her wheelchair made sure of that. She was deemed unable to fight, let alone lead, and instead had been left to her own devices when her family had come to the house like his had.

It didn't take long before the two had begun exploring the books once Philippe had discovered that she shared his love of reading. They managed to spend nearly three weeks in pure bliss before they had been caught by Philippe's mother. She had finally gone to check on her children's progress and after discovering her youngest son's absence, she began investigating and when she realized he had been gone from training for nearly a month and no one had informed her, she was furious. She tore through the house until she finally found her son and Genevieve behind a large pile of books.

"Philippe!" she yelled as she spotted her truant son. "What are you doing here? Your brother and sister say you haven't been training with them for weeks and the training masters tell me they thought you had been removed altogether! What do you think you are doing?!" She was furious and her voice carried, a lot.

"Mother!" Philippe had stammered, trying to explain himself. Telling her how he was wasting their time.

She wasn't having it though. Elayne Argent was not about to have one of her children failing the family. She wasn't foolish enough to damage family books, but she was furious enough that it crossed her mind. "You will return to training immediately! Everyday. Without fail. And you will not return here! EVER!" she had decreed.

Philippe. Not even thirteen years of age. The least coordinated, the weakest physically, the one who never dared to raise his voice to his parents or siblings finally snapped. "NO!" he yelled, louder than his mother had. "I WON'T!"

Elayne had frozen in shock and disbelief, but it quickly faded. "What did you say?" she said, her voice cold and controlled.

"I believe he said no, at least that is what I heard from across the house" an amused voice said behind them from the library's doors accompanied by a gasp from Genevieve.

Both Philippe and Elayne had spun around at the speaker, about to reprimand the interruption but both froze. Standing in the door was Clarissant Argent, Grand Matriarch of the Argent Family, and in whose house they were currently in. She looked rather unhappy at the screaming going on because it was one, undignified, and two, suggested that her family was not in control of themselves.

"My apologies Matriarch" Elayne said instantly. "My son has" she paused to look at her son "forgotten his responsibilities."

"Something he is not alone in" she replied causing three sets of confused eyes. "Your other son and daughter did not seem to mind his absence. In fact they seemed to prefer it" she clarified.

Elayne didn't know how to respond to that and stammered while the Matriarch moved to take her seat. Just then one of the staff came in with a trolley with tea and sandwiches.

"Why don't we all sit" Clarissant indicated as the young girl began pouring four cups of tea and setting out plates and snacks at the small table as Elayne and Philippe nervously sat down as instructed.

"You too my dear" the Matriarch said to Genevieve who gave up on sneaking out and moved her chair over. "Now, first we are going to have a bit of tea and take some time to regain our senses. Then we are going to discuss several things about this situation." Elayne opened her mouth to respond but quickly shut it when she saw the woman's eyes watching her and instead, she nodded. Philippe and Genevieve both were too scared to do anything.

After several excruciating minutes of silence briefly broken by absolutely meaningless commentary, Clarrisant finally put down her cup and looked at the two children. "Now, I know that the two of you have been here, every day, without fail, for the last three weeks or so."

Both had looked mortified and Elayne had been furious. "I also know that no one, not your families, nor the people who were to be training you, cared or even bothered to pursue your absence." She turned to Elayne "I am curious how you discovered this. The last few weeks didn't seem to concern you. What changed?"

Elayne Argent was a proud woman, but she was not stupid. She knew her position in the family. She was never destined to hold the title of Matriarch. No, but she was trained to lead and command and one part of that was honesty, especially to those above you. Wrong information kills and she was fairly certain that her Matriarch knew more than she would ever reveal.

"I had a break in my schedule. I went to the firing range and found Jean Paul practicing with several others. I observed, without interrupting, and was proud of his progress. I had the chance to ask speak to the range manager who had significant praise for both Jean Paul and Marie, but he didn't say anything about Philippe. I assumed he was not doing as well and was trying to avoid upsetting me." She acknowledged that it was probably a smart decision.

Clarissant nodded and motioned for her to continue. "So, I went to the classroom. Marie was working with several of the other cousins discussing command, leadership, and other skills that would be needed. As the group was all female, I didn't concern myself with Philippe's absence and went to find Aaron to ask for updates on all of the children."

"And what did he tell you?" Clarissant asked innocently, but all three could tell she knew exactly what Aaron told her.

Elayne swallowed down her anger. "He gave me objective summary of Jean Paul and that he was ready to join a team formally and felt working with a number of different teams would be beneficial. He was concerned that Marie was too bold, she didn't think things through, but she was learning and that her fighting skills were far above almost all the girls her age."

"And Philippe?"

She looked furious when she glanced at her youngest. "He told me that Philippe had quit and not returned to any training with anyone. His efforts when he first came were far below what he would have expected and felt that he was unsuited to be a hunter." Elayne was gritting her teeth at that. Furious that anyone would dare say such a thing about one of her children. Philippe had tried her, she knew he pushed her patience beyond the limits, but he was still her son and an Argent!

"And what does Hector say?" she asked.

Elayne deflated. She loved her husband, he had joined the family and taken the Argent name after they married as he was a third generation hunter from an unknown family and marrying an Argent was an unexpected opportunity, but Elayne was young and headstrong and she truly loved the man. However, he didn't have the sense of family and tradition of the Argents. His own sister had refused to do anything with hunting and had become a rather successful chef. His father's brother had joined the French military and had a rather enviable career as an officer, one that also refused any involvement with the supernatural. The fact was, Hector's family had a very 'take it or leave it' attitude and he was perfectly fine with his children choosing another path. She shared as much.

"Hector's family is young but perhaps they are not wrong. Not everyone is cut out for our life and from what Aaron shared, your youngest is supremely unqualified, unfit, and unable to be a hunter." She turned to look at the boy, whose head was bowed in shame "and from what I can tell, entirely uninterested as well."

Philippe had looked up to argue but he couldn't not looking at those eyes that seemed to strip him bare. She knew he hated every bit of it.

"Philippe. Can you tell me what happened with the family in 1812?" Clarissant asked.

Philippe was surprised at the question, but then nodded happily. He had read about the family during that time on his second day in the library "The family was dealing with an extremely dangerous alpha that was planning on turning a large part of the Russian army to create an army of werewolves. Arturo Argent convinced the Emperor to invade Russia, using other pretexts, and while the French army focused on the Russians, he used the invasion to attack and kill the Alpha and his growing pack. They were successful, but Napoleon's invasion was not."

Clarissant nodded. "And what is a woodwose?"

Another lucky break, he read about them in a bestiary last week! "A wild man. Similar to a Greek Satyr or Roman Faun. A nature spirit."

"I see. And what in Alchemical, what is the association with Antimony?"

"It represents man's animal nature or free spirit. Often represented as a wolf." Philippe frowned as he answered. He read that book two days ago! Does she know what he has been reading?

Clarissant smiled and turned to his mother. "The best leader is one who chooses the correct tool for the purpose. You do not use a sword to filet a fish. You do not use a hammer to shape glass. And not all are fit to be hunter warriors. Some are meant to be Hunter-Scholars."

Elayne looks stunned. "Matriarch?"

"There was a time when we didn't recognize that not all of our children are fit for this life. Dealing with the beasts, like our most ancient foe, requires a commitment and determination that we have sought to instill in every generation, but despite our best efforts. Some are not fit to lead" she looks at Genevieve "and some are not fit to fight" she looks at Philippe. "But we also need the wise and learned among us to teach, to guide, and to help us understand."

Elayne nods slowly. She had heard of the Hunter-Scholars, but never really thought much about them as she had never met one before.

"This is why all families are brought here to evaluate their children, especially if they have a promising candidate."

Elayne looks confused. "You mean me?" Philippe asked in disbelief. No one noticed him! Not with Jean Paul and Marie around.

"Yes, you. Your brother and sister are true hunters. They would have been brought here eventually to finish their training, but you, and Genevieve" she adds looking at the stunned girl "were both identified early as having great potential. We ordered your families here to see what would happen."

All three were stunned. "I was assigned here simply as a test for my son?" Elayne asked sounding defeated.

Clarissant barked a laugh. "Girl I lead the family! Do you think my actions are so simple and plain? Yes, I brought you here because of him! I also brought you here for your other two children. I also brought you here to test your own mettle for a possible assignment in Orleans, leading the family living there. And be certain that are several other reasons that I do not plan to share with you. Very rarely do I do something for a single purpose."

"To wisely guide the team, the driver must see the road, the reins, and the horizon. Only then can you move safely. To lead your family, know all, share little, and keep them guessing as to your purpose and motives. What a soldier doesn't know, he can't reveal" Philippe quoted.

Clarissant laughed at the expressions on Elayne and Genevieve's faces. "Oh child, you did very well. That quote from Yolanthe Argent, daughter of Marie-Jeanne, has guided many a Matriarch."

Far from being upset, Clarissant was excited about both her potential scholars. Elayne quickly agreed to the new course of training, not that she would ever challenge the Grand Matriarch, so that when Elayne and Hector left for Orleans five months later with Jean-Paul, both Marie and Philippe stayed.

Marie had married four years later to another Hunter and was happily dealing with things in the traditional way. His mother and father still lived in Orleans as one of the Argent bases and Jean Paul had become the world traveler, mostly in Africa and Asia. Philippe had trained and studied with Genevieve as Scholars and both quickly excelled. Genevieve rarely left the great house, she preferred the grounds and gardens with the library nearby, but she also had her own sanctum. A computer system that rivaled some governments and that connected her to the entire Argent family and she loved it.

Philippe was now the personal secretary to the Grand Matriarch. At least that was his official title. Unofficially he was the Argent Librarian in training. He was learning to manage all of the histories, literature, and resources of the family. When the current Librarian retired, he would take over. For now, he recorded Clarissant's actions for the family histories, served as her aide de camp, and sometimes spy.

Which is how he got here. Sitting in the official meeting room of the Hunter's Council.

"Are you ready?" Clarissant asks as she takes her seat, done with talking to the others. She had been working with moving her motion about Beacon Hills to a formal vote but there were still several holdouts. The Calaveras were leading that resistance, but she felt she could manage it eventually. Now it would be days of arguments, negotiation, and trades. In her old age, she found the politics of the families much more exciting than dealing with rogue wolves.

"If we are ready to begin?" Rolph Silberer said calling the families together. A man leading a family? How sad she thought of the German hunter but smiled pleasantly. He at least was smart enough to agree with her.

"Sheriff?" the voice on the line was familiar and Noah only needed a moment before he recognized it.

"Agent Jones?" he asks.

"I am really sorry but I wanted to give you a heads up. Agent McCall just came back and found out about Barrows and is furious. He is saying some really nasty things about you" she tells him. "He's acting like he knew the guy."

"Didn't your office get the report and video?" Noah asks holding off the headache he knows is coming.

"We did and it was very clear. Not to mention the damage he did in his attempted escape. That man should never have been allowed out. Or at least we should have been there to help" she sounds embarrassed but also angry.

"Thank you Agent Jones. I don't suppose you know what he might be planning to do?" Noah asks her and feels his headache increasing at the silence.

"He's already on his way there. I'm sorry. He was yelling about incompetence and demanding a review. Our office was not very supportive, but the field director gave him permission to go 'review the evidence' to make his own determination. I would guess he will be there in a few hours."

Noah thanked the woman and called Melissa first. She deserved it and he wouldn't put it past McCall to show up there and try something. He told her that she had permission to kick him to the curb. He didn't have official jurisdiction here on this and Noah would deal with him. She was grateful but definitely unhappy. After that, he called in Tara and Jordan. They would be ready when he got here!