A/N: Hey, guys. I just wanted to say thank you for all of the reviews/favorites/follows and all of the support I've gotten for this story. I want to give a special thank you to WildRecklessYouthInMe, thewailingwolf25, thechosenpen, and yourpalmoony for reviewing and being awesome, supportive friends. Feel free to check out my tumblr (rhaenystargaryen411) for Adeline edits and story info/sneak peeks or just to talk. Please let me know what you thought about this chapter and follow or favorite if you want to keep reading because that does help keep me motivated. Thank you for reading!

HOME

"Damaged people are dangerous. They know how to make hell feel like home."

- Unknown -

ADELINE (last name: UNKNOWN) 14 yrs. old. Prev. Hosp: NONE
INITIAL DIAG: SCHIZOPHENRIA

-Family History: Born New Orleans, LA. 1997. Parents (DECEASED). 7 siblings (DECEASED). 1 sibling (LIVING). No familial history of mental illness.

-Testing: Test showed high (145-150) intelligence, but patterns disturbed by illness. Some questions misinterpreted. Entire detached reaction to testing. Personality show typically schizophrenic pattern with compulsive component.

-Interview: NONE. (Intake conducted by: Dr. Morrell)

The counselor turned the page and glanced at the various statistical measurements of personality factors and test scores. Adeline's folder was lacking the personal details that were typically found in someone's patient file, but Marin Morrell worked hard to keep it that way. She purposefully left out any information that could lead someone to discovering the girl's true identity. The druid had a desperate hope that this decision would help people believe that Adelaide Adair no longer existed. The death certificate they filed under Adeline's birth name certainly helped some, but the one person they meant to deceive was too clever to fall for a trick like that. He hadn't stopped hunting Addie since the day he killed her family and they knew he wouldn't stop until one of them was dead.

Marin wanted to do everything in her power to help Adeline, but there was still so much about the girl that she couldn't understand, even after months and months of studying her abilities. Throughout history the shapeshifters had been recognized as one of the oldest and strongest supernatural species in existence. Addie had inherited that strength from her ancestors, but the aerona and biokinesis gift that she was born with turned out to be her downfall. She simply wanted to help people, to cure them of their pain and illnesses. Yet, with every bit of pain and negative energy she absorbed, the weaker she became and the stronger the Voices got.

The druid had studied Adeline's case for hours on end, spent hours talking to her, and researched every bit of information she could find on the subject. Yet, nothing she read mentioned a way to help the girl. There was no salvation in sight and Marin knew if she couldn't find a viable solution, Adeline's compassion would eventually lead her to an early grave.

"Gah," Adeline grunted when she was slammed backwards against one of the white walls of the sunroom. Malia's grip on her arms tightened as she held the younger girl in place, her expression fixed into a ferocious snarl. Adeline tried to lift her arms to push the were-coyote off her, but Malia's vice-like grip prevented any resistance.

"You're insane!" Malia shouted at her angrily.

"You're just figuring that out now?!" Adeline retorted. She hissed when Malia jostled her lightly, bouncing her head off the wall. "Why don't you go back to living with the animals? You certainly still act like one."

Malia pulled her head back and whipped it towards Adeline, her forehead making contact with the younger girl's nose. The crack that followed could be heard from the far corners of the room and Adeline dropped to the floor the moment Malia released her.

"Jesus Christ!" The shifter exclaimed as she held a hand over her nose. She could feel the blood streaming down her face, but she was lucky that the throbbing pain wasn't too severe. Malia dropped down on top of Adeline and pinned her to floor before she could recover from the injury.

"How do you know about that?!" Malia asked, her voice close to shouting volume.

Adeline smiled, flashing her bloody teeth at the older girl. "I have my ways."

"Tell me!"

"What are you gonna do? Kill me?" Adeline asked. She gave a faint quirk of her head as she scrunched her nose. "Once a murderer, always a murderer, I guess."

Malia cocked her arm, but someone caught her by the wrist before she could bring her fist down on Adeline. She was yanked off the younger girl by Brunski and another orderly and dragged backwards out of the room. She was still thrashing as she was pulled around the corner and out of sight. Adeline let out a heavy sigh and lifted one hand to massage the bridge of her nose. It was definitely broken, but if she could set it properly then it would heal completely on it's own over time.

"Adeline."

She lifted her brown eyes to see Stiles standing over her, his hand extended in her direction. The girl took it and he pulled her to her feet effortlessly. Adeline used her sleeve to wipe some of the blood off her upper lip and teeth before she met Stiles' gaze.

"The headbutt was a little overkill, don't you think?" He asked as he placed a hand under Adeline's chin and lifted her face towards the ceiling lights. Stiles pursed his lips while he surveyed her injury. The blood that was dripping down her face certainly added an extra intimidation factor to her appearance.

The younger girl shrugged. "It helped sell it to the orderlies. Everyone here knows that if I had actually said those things to her then she would have done a lot worse to me than a headbutt. "

Stiles dropped his hand and sighed. "Did you get the keys?"

Adeline smiled as she gave a faint quirk of her head. She lifted one hand and unclenched her fist for the first time since Malia had been taken away. Situated in her palm was the set of keys that had once been clipped to Brunski's belt. The shifter smirked even wider when Stiles lifted his gaze from her hand. "Never doubt my ability to show how insane I really am."

"I've known people who are insane and you're nothing like them, Adeline," Stiles told her quietly. She could see that he believed he was right and she didn't have the energy to prove him wrong.

"Don't worry…"

"We know he's lying…"

"So do you…"

"Call me Addie," she responded quietly after suppressing the Voices and pushed the keys into his hand. Stiles narrowed his eyes slightly when she lifted her hands to her face and pressed her fingers firmly against both sides of her nose.

"What are you doing?" Stiles questioned while he watched her.

"I have to set my nose or it won't heal right," Adeline said as if it was obvious. Stiles eyes widened slightly in response.

"You're going to set it by yourself?"

"Unless you want to do it for me," she replied with a wink and smiled when the older boy shook his head in disbelief.

Adeline took a deep breath once her fingers were in the right place. She gave the cartilage a quick, deliberate jerk to the right and groaned through her clenched teeth at the sharp pain that radiated from her nose. The cartilage had been forced back into place, but it had caused her nose to start to bleed again.

"You're insane," Stiles sighed as Adeline held a hand under her nose to curb the blood flow.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you," Adeline joked and rolled her eyes exaggeratedly.

Stiles gave a faint shake of his head as a smile crept onto his lips. He turned around and grabbed a tissue box sitting on one of the tables scattered throughout the room. Adeline smiled when he faced her again. He held up a tissue and stepped towards her. "Let me."

Adeline gave him a weak nod of approval, holding still as he rested one hand under her chin while using the other to clean the remaining blood off her face. Stiles noticed how her eyes seemed to land anywhere except his face, but eventually she did meet his gaze. An unfamiliar emotion flashed across her face when her brown eyes landed on his, causing his heart to quicken momentarily. It was the first time since they'd met that he was able to notice her soft facial features and kind eyes. Suddenly, the space between them felt strangely intimate. Stiles swallowed the lump that had formed in the back of his throat and dropped his hands from her face.

"You should find out which key opens the basement door," Adeline said once he stepped away from her. She was attempting to remain calm about the fact that she had just been within kissing distance of an attractive boy for the first time in years. She only hoped that Stiles hadn't noticed the way she blushed whenever he got too close.

"You like him…"

"What about you?"

"But he will never like you…"

"I have to go bribe an orderly," Adeline revealed as she tried to tune out the rarely quiet one-sided conversation going on inside her head. She was just happy that this was one of the times that it was even possible to ignore them.

"Only we can love you…"

Stiles raised an eyebrow. "What? Why?"

"So they'll let Malia go without forcing a handful drugs down her throat," she answered. Stiles fell into step beside her as she started out of the sunroom. She looked up at him and shrugged when she felt his gaze on her. "She did this for me. I'm not going to let them punish her for something that was my idea in the first place."

"You two are friends?" Stiles asked, slightly surprised. Malia didn't seem like the kind of person to make friends easily, but Adeline was obviously a caring and empathetic girl. It would make sense that someone who had been living on their own for so long would gravitate towards a person like her.

"You don't have friends…"

"You only have us…"

"Friend might not be the right word to define it, but we don't dislike each other and we hang out sometimes," Adeline explained. She paused after they stepped foot into the hallway that led further into the house. Stiles looked down at her when she faced him. "I'll catch up with you as soon as I make sure Malia is okay."

"Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?"

Adeline shook her head. "I can handle this. You should get down to the basement and start searching for those answers you need."

"Okay," Stiles sighed, but he hesitated to leave. "Just… be careful."

"You, too," Adeline responded with a soft smirk. She turned on her heels and strode down the hall towards Malia's room. The sooner she found the were-coyote, the sooner she could get back to helping Stiles.

"I'm sorry I headbutted you."

Adeline lifted her eyes to Malia and smiled. "I asked you to do it. There's no need to apologize for doing exactly what I wanted you to do."

"But isn't it bad to headbutt people?" Malia asked as she faced forward again. Adeline pressed her lips into a taught line and quirked her head to the side while she tried to think of the simplest way to explain the situation. The older girl wasn't good at detecting sarcasm or social cues, but Adeline hadn't stopped trying to help her develop those skills.

"Um. Normally, yes," Adeline said. She paused as she tried to collect her thoughts. "But if you're in imminent danger and you need to protect yourself then it's okay to use violence to neutralize the threat."

"You mean kill them?" Malia questioned, her expression completely serious.

"God, no," Adeline told her quickly and sighed. "When I said neutralize, I meant hurt them just enough to stop them from hurting you or someone else. For example, punching them in the face… or headbutting them… or, for guys, kicking them where the sun don't shine. That'll usually stun them long enough for you to get away."

Malia peered over at Adeline, her eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "Where doesn't the sun shine on guys?"

The younger teen hesitated for a moment, once again trying to find the best way to answer Malia's question. "Uh, their—their private areas… between the legs."

The were-coyote gasped quietly once she realized what Adeline had meant. "Oh…"

"Yeah," Adeline whispered.

Adeline slowed to a stop when Malia paused in the middle of the hallway suddenly. She hooked a thumb over her shoulder and narrowed her eyes. "Aren't we going the wrong way? The sun room is behind us."

"We're not going to the sun room, Malia," Adeline revealed. She started walking again, but waited to finish her thought until Malia fell into step beside her. "Stiles needs as much help as he can get and you're one of the only people in this place sane enough to do that."

"That's probably true," Malia agreed without missing a beat and the two teens continued down the hall at a swift pace. "Have you ever hurt someone before?"

Adeline glanced up at the older girl, her eyebrows pinching together slightly. "What?"

"Have you ever hurt someone before?" She repeated a little slower. "Like, to stop them from hurting you or someone else… or maybe because you were angry."

Adeline didn't respond. The door in her mind that she kept locked at all times had been cracked open by the question, and now she tried frantically to close it, but it was too late. Seeing his face, seeing him so near to her . . . The door shut and she turned the key.

The shapeshifter took a quiet, deep breath and let it out slowly as her feet carried her towards the basement. "Yes, I have."

"Who?"

"It doesn't matter," Adeline responded quickly, pushing her hair behind her ears. "It happened a long time ago."

"Your heartbeat," Malia said, causing Adeline to meet her gaze for a moment.

"What?"

"Your heartbeat. I've noticed that I can tell when people are lying or telling the truth by listening to their heartbeat."

"Yeah, most people who are supernatural can do that. What's your point?"

"Yours is always steady," Malia explained. "And I mean always. Even when it's obvious that you're lying or when you're having one of your… episodes. How is that even possible?"

Adeline sighed. "It's hard to explain, Malia, and right now we just don't have the time."

"And when we do? Will you tell me then?"

"Probably not."

"Well, why not?" Malia asked, sounding slightly impatient.

Adeline stopped abruptly in the middle of the hall and turned to face Malia. "Why do you suddenly care, Malia? We've known each other for a while now and you have never expressed any desire to get to know me. Not to mention the fact that you barely ever talk about yourself, but I don't pry. I don't try to force it out of you. Why are you trying to do that to me?"

"Because I think you can help me," Malia answered truthfully. "And I need help."

"You talking about your shifts," Adeline said and Malia nodded. The younger girl shook her head. "I wish I could help you, I really do. But it's not possible. I am literally the last person on earth you'd want to help you. You just don't know it yet."

"And why's that?"

"I'm like a broken piece of glass right now and whenever people try to get close to me, I hurt them. I make them bleed. I don't want that to happen to you or anyone else. So, I am asking you to leave it alone. Leave me alone."

Malia held Adeline's gaze for a few seconds before forcing a nod. "Okay. Fine."

Adeline dropped her gaze after a couple moments and continued down the hall. She knew that Malia wasn't trying to pry, but there was something about her questions that had threatened to unleash everything that she was trying to avoid. Her past wasn't a subject that Adeline usually brought up while talking with people, even with those she could consider friends. She rarely brought it up ever, with anyone. It was too risky. Too dangerous.

She sighed quietly when Malia cleared her throat, knowing that she was about to get hit with another round of questions. "Do you know anyone who could help me?"

"Uh, if you would have asked me five years ago I would have said yes, but now… let's just say they're no longer able to provide assistance," Adeline said. She didn't want to go into details, but Malia deserved more than a bunch vague, confusing answers.

"They're dead?" Adeline shrugged her shoulders and slid her hair behind her ears.

"Most of them." She paused for a moment when her thoughts went to Stiles and his friends. Marin had told her enough about the pack of supernatural creatures in Beacon Hills to know that they might be exactly what Malia needed. Adeline faced Malia again. "Actually, I think I know of someone that can help you."

"Tell me," Malia demanded as she stepped towards Adeline, towering over her slightly.

"I think St—" Adeline's sentence cut off suddenly when two distinct voices reached her ears. It wasn't the Voices, though. Her ever-present companions were always right over her shoulder, but these new voices were coming from a distance. It was like she was hearing them through a funnel. She tilted her head to the side slightly and closed her eyes as she tried to focus on whoever had subconsciously caught her attention. She released a puff of air when she recognized Stiles's voice and then Brunski's. "Damn it."

"What?" Malia asked quietly, her expression etched into a state of confusion.

"Do you hear that?" When Malia shook her head slowly Adeline continued. "Stiles just got caught by Brunski. He's taking him to a private room."

"You're going to go get him, aren't you?" Malia questioned as she folded her arms over her chest.

"Yes," Adeline answered and met Malia's gaze again. "And you are going to scope out the entrance to the closed ward. That's our new way into the basement."

"But I—"

"You do this, and I will tell you everything you need to know about this person who can help you," Adeline assured her. "I promise you, Malia."

It didn't take longer than a couple seconds for Malia to respond with a nod. "Fine. See you in five."

"See you in five," Adeline repeated as the older teen turned on her heels and started down the hall towards the closed ward. The entirety of Eichen House had a serial-killer-lurking-in-every-corner vibe, but for reasons that were meant to kept secret the closed ward was even worse. She hated going down there so unless it was absolutely necessary, she avoided it completely. Unfortunately, this time was necessary. She only hoped they wouldn't have to be down there too long.

Adeline took one last deep breath before she pivoted around and strode towards the hallway that was lined with the private room doors. If luck was on her side, she'd find Stiles and get him out of there before the drugs took effect, but knowing her history, she would most likely get there too late.

"You're compassion is a gift…"

"A gift that is slowly killing you..."

"You would like that, wouldn't you?"

"You're so desperate to make friends..."

"Remember that you're in this place for a reason, child..."

"Go to hell," Adeline mumbled to herself. The voices had been relatively quiet so far, but the moment she needed to focus was the moment they decided to try to overwhelm her.

"We're already there…"

"We are hell…"

"Your hell…"

After the last statement echoed through her head, the others stopped. But even though her mind was quiet once again, her friends were still there lingering in the shadows. They were simply waiting. Always waiting.

The silence lasted longer than she expected, but not as long as she had hoped for. The Voices started off quiet and, as usual, slowly escalated until they reached the deafening roar that Adeline could never grow accustomed to. Eventually, she reached the row of rooms that had been deemed for private use.

The dark hallway was silent as she dropped her gaze and slowed her breathing. She listened momentarily for the signs of life in one of the rooms and quickly identified which one housed Stiles. Adeline checked the hall one last time before she crept towards the right door. She pursed her lips and reached her hand forward, letting it hover above the door handle for a few seconds before she gripped it tightly in her palm. She gave the circular knob a firm twist, her enhanced strength forcing the locking mechanism to break after a burst of exertion.

Adeline put a hand on the wall when her knees buckled suddenly, catching herself before she fell. She lifted her other hand and placed it against the wall for the extra support and let her head drop. It felt like someone was deliberately pushing down on her shoulders in an attempt to make her collapse. With her eyes screwed shut tightly, she forced herself to take a few deep, shaky breaths. Her thoughts kept going to Stiles as her strength slowly returned to her. Despite how weak and broken she was, Adeline wanted to prove that she could still be useful. She wanted to show herself and the Voices that she was able to help Stiles fight whatever darkness that was threatening to consume him. So, the moment her legs were strong enough to carry her, she stood up as straight as she could and pushed all of her fears and doubts aside. No matter what, she would keep her promise to help Stiles.

Adeline focused her attention on the quiet room as she stepped inside. She froze for a split second when she saw that Stiles was lying unconscious on the floor. He was sweating lightly and she could hear his racing heartbeat from where she stood. She rushed into the room and dropped to her knees, grabbing onto the older boy's shoulders tightly.

"Stiles!" Adeline exclaimed quietly as she shook him. He woke with a jolt and instantly went into a panic. His breathing was quick and shallow, his eyes wide in terror. Adeline grabbed one of his hands while resting her other hand against his cheek.

"Take deep breaths," Adeline instructed as they held each other's gaze. She breathed in and out evenly to give him a rhythm to match. Stiles forced a nod as his breath started to slow.

"You're okay, Stiles." She paused and pressed a hand over her chest to emphasize how it rose and fell slowly. "Just breath. In… and out. In… and out."

"In… and out," Stiles repeated. Adeline smiled once his heartrate had evened out.

"There you go," she murmured as she dropped her hand from his face. She sat back and ran a hand through her hair.

"What happened?" Stiles looked her in the eye and Adeline could see the fear woven into his expression.

"You got caught and Brunski did exactly what I said he would," she told him.

"Haldol." Stiles took a few steady breaths as his gaze wandered to the floor for a moment. It flickered back to Adeline a moment later. "The marks."

Adeline swallowed nervously as she bit her lip. "Let me see."

Stiles spun around on the floor and pulled up his shirt. Adeline fought the urge to touch the dark lines stretching across his back. Her breath hitched quietly when she realized they had begun to retreat off his neck.

"They're fading," Adeline croaked. She cleared her throat to gain volume. "Could whatever you're looking for be used to fix all of this—whatever this is?"

"Maybe." Stiles lowered his shirt and faced the younger girl again. "I don't really know yet. That's why I have to get down there."

"We should go then. We don't have a lot of time to waste."

Stiles stood slowly and pulled Adeline up with him. He glanced towards the door. "How are we going to get down to the basement?"

"I have my ways," Adeline responded before walking past him and out into the hallway.

"You have ways?" Stiles asked quietly as he fell into step beside her. He met her gaze and raised an eyebrow. "I thought you couldn't use your abilities."

"I can, but it's never a good idea… for anyone," the younger girl sighed as her hand went to the cross hanging around her neck. "But I was talking about Malia this time. She's scoping out the closed ward for us to go through."

"Why can't you just use them—your abilities?" Stiles questioned.

"It's complicated," was all Adeline could manage.

"You can tell me," Stiles said. "You can trust me."

"I know that, but I still can't tell you." Adeline turned her head away. Stiles had given her no reason to mistrust him. This wasn't about trust, though. This was about keeping the people around her safe, keeping them away from the ghosts of her past. After everything that had happened over the past couple years, she had learned that it was just better to be alone. Safer.

"Well, I'm here if you ever need to talk about it, Adeline."

"Thank you, Stiles," Adeline murmured and gave him a soft nod. She appreciated how accepting he was of her and how understanding he had been, but she had to shut down any hopeful thoughts. She knew it was for the best to break all ties with Stiles once she had finished helping him.

The two teens ventured deeper into Eichen House, making their way towards the floor that was believed to be where the dangerous patients were kept locked up. Adeline had learned the truth behind the special unit from Marin, but she agreed to keep that a secret from the rest of the patients. The shapeshifter had found reasons to go down there before except she never found a reason to stay once she got what she needed. When they finally reached the ward, Malia was leaning against the door which would lead them straight into the supernatural prison.

"I'm sure there's no need for introductions for you two," Adeline said as she gestured between the older teens.

"Nope," Malia responded quickly and folded her arms over her chest, putting her guard up.

"No need at all," Stiles agreed. Adeline pursed her lips when he and Malia started a short staring contest.

"Great," she sighed and clapped her hands together quietly. She gestured towards the door weakly and forced a smile onto her lips. "Now, how about we get this over with and then we can all move on with our lives."

Stiles and Malia agreed reluctantly before the three of them slipped through the door, closing it behind them. Adeline took the lead as they journeyed down the long hallway past the locked cells that separated them from the supernatural creatures. Stiles seemed to know what he was looking for since the moment they entered the basement he went straight to the wall at the back of room. Adeline could only offer Malia a shrug when the older girl threw her a questioning look. She walked over to where Stiles was standing and followed his gaze to the backwards 5 etched into the wall.

"What is that?" Adeline asked as she knelt in front of the mysterious symbol. She carefully ran her fingers over it before looking up at Stiles for his answer.

"It means self," he told her quietly, but his gaze remained on the marking. Adeline could tell that he was distracted by it.

"Is there anything else you can tell us?" Malia asked from behind them. Adeline looked over her shoulder and stood up slowly, turning around to face her. Stiles had revealed a few things about the Nogitsune and what had happened after the dark spirit forced itself into his life, but she hadn't pushed him to tell her everything. It was easy to see that it was painful for him to even think about the experience.

Adeline looked to Stiles and the older boy met her gaze hesitantly. "You might not like me if you know anymore."

"Stiles, I'm a schizophrenic with dark enough secrets to put Charles Manson to shame and Malia here…" Adeline paused as she turned her head to look at the were-coyote. She offered the girl a reassuring smile and returned her attention to Stiles. "Well, we've all done things we regret. We're not going to judge you, I promise. We're the non-judgmental breakfast club."

Stiles met her gaze again and laughed to himself. Adeline breathed a quiet sigh of relief when he eventually nodded. "What do you want to know?"

Adeline folded her arms over her chest as her gaze flickered back the symbol on the wall. Stiles was already watching her when she looked up at him again. "Everything."