Creatures from the Ocean (Sciles)

11: Stilinski Reunion

Stiles POV

The next few days seem to fly by. On Friday after school, I headed over to Deaton's. He taught me how to create ice either in midair or on an object. I learned that really fast, so he started teaching me about controlling the weather. This was a bit tougher for me and I still haven't quite got the hang of it. I find wind and thunder the hardest. Other things like rain, clouds, lightning and sunshine are fairly easy. Still, it took me a couple of hours to learn them. Deaton and I will have to keep working on wind and thunder over the next week. All too soon, Saturday has arrived. A heap of energy buzzes though me, keeping up my excitement. I run down to my jeep and jump in. I quickly drive away from the house and towards the beach. The drive doesn't feel like it takes that long, but maybe it's because I keep thinking about my dad. Once I park near the beach, I grab the towel that I brought along with me and jump out of the car, almost falling over my own feet. The locket still dangles around my neck, reflecting the sunlight. Once I regain my balance, I run as fast as I can down to the sand.  I quickly make my way to the cave on the beach. I enter the cave excitedly. I climb up onto one of the rocks, making sure I don't get wet. After about half an hour of waiting, I see a figure float upwards towards the surface. As the head breaks the surface, I see that it's my dad. He quickly swims to the ledge and pulls himself up. "Dad!" I exclaim in relief and excitement. When Dad rolls onto his back, he looks towards me and smiles. "Hey Stiles. It's good to see you again." He greets me. I laugh with joy. I really missed him and I can't wait to hear what he has to say about Atlantia. Dad shuffles away from the water and waits to dry off. "Here. Use this." I say, tossing the towel down to my dad.

"Thanks." He says appreciatively as he dries himself off. About 10 minutes later, Dad transforms back into his human form, wearing the same clothes he had on when he left. He stands up and I jump off the rock. We give each other a long embrace before we walk out of the cave together. As we walk along the beach, I turn to my dad excitedly. "So, how is everybody? What's going on?" I ask, feeling a little nervous about the answer. What if things were absolutely horrible?

"Well, Atlantia isn't in the same condition as we left it, let's just say that. Everyone has to stay indoors a lot of the time to escape the raging battles outside. Thankfully, there are a lot of underground tunnels that everyone can hide in." Dad explains. I raise my eyebrows. "Underground tunnels? Underwater?" I ask skeptically.  Dad just laughs.

"Yes, Stiles. They were built just in case anything like this happened." He explains.

"Oh." I nod.

"Are we... Winning?" I ask hopefully.

"No. Vanessa and her army is the toughest thing we have faced in a very long time. At the moment, she has the upper hand. However, we aren't being slaughtered either. We haven't let Vanessa take total control of the kingdom, and we hope to keep it that way." Dad answers. My hope burns out.

"So, I still can't return home?" I ask sadly. I leave out the horrible thought of Mom dying for nothing. I don't want to think about that and I'm sure Dad doesn't want to either. Dad shakes his head. "No, son, I'm afraid you can't. It's still too dangerous for you." He says. I sigh in disappointment.

"Well, have you been hurt?" I ask, suddenly worried for my father.

"A few scratches here and there, but generally, I've been unscathed." Dad shrugs. I shake my head. I look out at the ocean. "Nope. I still don't like this. Not one bit. Please don't leave again." I say.

"You know I have to." Dad replies sadly. I groan in dismay.

"Don't worry, Stiles. I'll always come back for you. I will bring you home again." He promises me.