Chapter 3: Fitting In

Softly, Scott nudged Stiles as he watched how his friend stared at Catori from the other side of the corridor. Scott struggled between the amusement that wanted to put a grin on his face and the annoyance that made him want to sigh in exasperation.

"Can you tell me what your problem with her is?" Since Stiles was pigheaded and wouldn't change his mind about her, Scott insisted.

"I don't know..." The boy replied absently, narrowing his eyes as he still watched her. Curiosity and suspicion still washed over him.

The girl was just leaning against the wall next to her locker, calmly listening to the music in her headphones. Nothing suspicious about her whatsoever.

"You don't know?" Scott repeated, surprised by that statement.

Seeing as Catori hadn't moved for around fifteen minutes and all she would do was stay there and focus on her music, he looked away.

"No" Stiles sent his friend a mildly preoccupied glance. "But she bugs me"

"Why?" Scott couldn't understand why his friend disliked her, since the first found her to be a really nice girl despite her slight rudeness at first.

"There's something off about her. She's.... weird. Don't tell me it's not suspicious that you found her in the middle of the night, on a deserted road by herself, Scott!"

Scott couldn't conceal a sigh that time, rolling his eyes as well.

"Not that again..."

"She's... something!" Stiles genuinely wanted him to see his point of view. "Something strange. Maybe something that we haven't even seen yet"

"Look" Scott calmly started, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I know you're worried. And I'm not saying I entirely trust her, but she looks nice, Stiles"

"Scott..."

"Even Lydia likes her" His friend defended himself. "And Liam chats with her too, she doesn't look bad at all so I see no reason to be worried..."

"What if she turns out to be a homicidal supernatural freak?"

Scott gave him a tired look and then glanced towards Catori. From their point of view she actually looked a little awkward, which made Scott's point of her harmless nature more believable.

Catori was still listening to her music, looking around as she obviously waited impatiently for classes to start, which didn't look like something that usually happened to her.

"Fine, I'll show you" Stiles distanced himself from his best friend, showing him a sulky pouty face. "I'll show you all"

"Stiles..." Scott tried to stop him tiredly, but he was already going into the classroom despite it being empty.

*

Catori didn't normally sit down on the chair when she arrived at the cafeteria for lunch. She plopped down feebly, wincing in pain when her sores muscles complained at the sudden movement.

And the previous day she thought she was tired...

She hadn't managed to get much sleep and when the alarm clock woke her up, she seriously considered staying home and ditching school because she was still so tired and sleepy. And when she stood up from her bed, she discovered her jujitsu lessons were starting to take its toll on her since every fiber of her body was sore.

So walking around the high school for the entirety of the morning, sitting down and standing up from chairs and basically moving the slightest was torture. Not to mention the weight of the backpack.

At least, Catori was thankful that they had no PE or that she didn't sign up for Lacrosse. Because the coach seemed to be heartless when it came to practice, and she secretly thought he enjoyed watching them suffer.

She ignored the pain as she picked up the fork and started eating the meatballs the cafeteria served that day. Even lifting the light fork to her mouth made her sore, not to mention carrying the tray to the table.

As she ate, Catori noticed a friendly face smiling at her.

Lydia approached her, greeting her with a little wave as she sat down. She behaved as though they had been close friends for a long time: openly and extroverted.

But Catori didn't mind at all, because that way she could chat to someone. And besides, she liked Lydia.

"Girl, you look terrible" Was the first thing she told her.

"Thanks" Catori replied sarcastically, heaving a sigh. "Didn't sleep so well"

"Which explains why you can barely lift that heavy fork" Lydia observed, watching her new friend's struggles to shove some food in her mouth.

"I'm sore everywhere"

"What have you been doing?" Lydia's voice acquired an amused tone, suggestive.

"Jujitsu" She replied, staring at the redhead with a grin.

"Is that what they call it nowadays?" Lydia tilted her head slightly and observed her, making her chuckle.

"I'm serious" Catori mumbled, dropping the fork after she had eaten something.

Lydia just grinned, and the both of them stood up because they knew more classes were up.

"Hey, Lydia" The new girl called her as she picked up her stuff.

"Yeah?"

"Do you think we can go for that manicure someday?"

During the first day, Catori had been very negative and pessimistic about making new friends. Because why bother if she may move out again?

But then she had felt like a freak as everyone observed the new girl and she had to suffer to grow accustomed to that new place. And even though on her third day she was still getting used to it, things didn't look so dark anymore. So she told herself 'screw it, why not?' and gave those friendships a chance.

Lydia huffed, outraged, and picked her wrist.

"Of course, honey" She put Catori's hand in front of her own face so she could see her terrible nails. "I'll give you a call this afternoon"

Catori smiled and followed the girl as they headed outside of the cafeteria.

*

When the lunch break was over, Catori walked to the next classroom.

She took her time to arrive, though, knowing that if she hurried it too much it would be worse for her sore legs.

On her way, the girl noticed someone familiar that seemed to intend on getting in the same classroom behind her. To be honest, he looked sneaky and she had the feeling like he had been following her around.

"Are you following me, Stilinski?" She stopped right at the door and turned around to watch him, fed up.

"No..." The boy replied with a scowl, mumbling something under his breath that she didn't catch. "Yes... So?"

"Have I done something suspicious then?" Catori was positive that was the reason he had followed her, watching her to have any proof of his distrust.

"Yes, why are you walking like that? Are you hurt?"

"Well, I-" Catori was about to actually explain that if she walked like a penguin it was because of her martial arts lessons. But he interrupted her rudely, rushing her in an accusative tone.

"Were you in a fight?"

"It's none of your business, Stiles" She said in a mocking tone as she had always found his name to be silly.

"You're mocking my name? What kind of a stupid name is Catori?" He huffed at her in annoyance.

To be honest, getting on his nerves was truly entertaining for Catori. So watching how he stuck up his bottom lip in an angry pout made her want to burst out laughing.

Truth to be told, he was just looking for excuses to pick on the girl. He would have told her the exact same thing even if her name was Mary.

"Hey, Catori is really cool" For one, she really liked it. Her parents had heard it somewhere and loved it so much that they chose it for her. "It means spirit. And it's not stupider than Stiles, that's for sure"

She repressed the urge to stick her tongue out at him like a child and instead sulkily crossed her arms over her chest.

"It's not even my real name" Stiles replied, still acting a bit immature.

"Then what is it? Moron Stilinski?"

"It's..."

"Stiles!" Scott's voice interrupted him, causing the boy to look over his shoulder to his friend.

He walked closer to them as Liam accompanied him.

The older boy smiled to the both of them and Catori couldn't help but to think again that he was like a puppy. Because he was!

"We have class..." Stiles muttered tiredly, slowly turning around as his glance was still fixed on her.

"You're leaving already? Are you afraid that I can outsmart you, Stilinski?"

"Yes" He dryly replied. "In fact, I'm so scared that I'm leaving before I start crying in front of everyone"

That boy didn't breathe oxygen, he breathed sarcasm!

"I don't think it would come out as a surprise" Catori wittily said, with an innocent voice that obviously bothered Stiles.

For everyone's surprise, Liam laughed at that. Stiles sent him a death glare that shut him up.

"It was funny..." Liam complained, looking down to avoid that harsh stare.

"Oh, yeah?" As Stiles looked back at her, it seemed like for a moment he had run out of smart things to say, because he wasn't expecting that one. "Well, you're weird"

"Ouch" Catori said emotionless, calmly walking into the class.

"You" Stiles quickly ambushed Liam as he put an arm over his shoulders, obviously telling him off for being a bit of a traitor.

The both of them stood in the corridor as Scott and Catori still didn't move from the threshold.

"I'm sorry on his behalf" The boy frowned, his voice dripping kindness and apology.

"I actually enjoy having someone to pick on" Catori replied with a grin, which made him smile as well.

He was glad that she took his accusations that way. Instead of being offended and letting him win, she would just throw it back at him.

And even though Stiles wouldn't stop suspecting her, he never said she was 'evil'. Because he didn't think she was, she just... bugged him because he noticed something strange on her... different.

And around Beacon Hills, different usually meant nothing good. He just wanted to keep an eye on her.

"He's not a bad guy, you know?" Scott insisted as he decided to come in and sat down at the back row of the classroom.

Catori briefly looked at Stiles' direction and analyzed him as she watched him walk into the class once Liam left. He was chatting now with that girl, Malia, who was sitting next to him. Stiles was smiling, chuckling and apparently being a really nice guy. Just like Scott was implying.

That was the worst part, Catori genuinely thought Stiles had to be a fun person to be around despite all the hate she got from him. Or he would be if he didn't suspect her.

*

A sigh escaped her lips as she waited for the class break to be over. Who would have known that she would be looking forward to walking into class again? Just like she had been all morning.

She didn't feel like talking anymore because of her restlessness.

For the entirety of the day, a gnawing feeling had settled on her stomach. At first she ignored it and managed to get through most of the morning forgetting about it. But then it became too intense to just pretend it wasn't there.

It was a strange bad feeling. An intuition that told her something was not completely right that day.

Ironically, despite her reticence to be chatty and extroverted anymore, Scott, Lydia and Liam got along with her better than ever. And Stiles' behavior didn't bother her in the least, on the contrary, it amused her to have some short of an enemy who she could have wits battles with.

"See you later, Catori" A female voice said to her, so Catori looked up from the floor and forced herself back to reality.

"Bye!" The girl couldn't disguise her surprise as Kira, Scott's girlfriend, smiled and waved at her, so she did the same thing.

Such simple gesture made her grin. Kira apparently agreed with her boyfriend about Catori, it seemed.

Still, she had that unsettling feeling that wouldn't leave her alone.

As she tried to analyze it and find out what it was about, she found a possible theory about. To Catori it didn't feel like she fitted in completely. Despite the kindness of those who surrounded her, she felt out of place.

After all, she recently arrived to Beacon Hills. She probably just needed more time to get used to it and feel like she found herself a place in there.

And talking about fitting in...

The substitute teacher, Vanessa, briefly glanced at Catori as she passed her by. Still, no words were said. But the girl couldn't help but to feel like Vanessa was a teacher out of the ordinary. Just looking at her, you could tell.

Her eyes were dark and deep, almost hypnotizing. Her hair was black, with a single blue tuft on the side of her head. And her skin was fair and looked delicate and beautiful like porcelain.

Her clothes also were too unfitting for a teacher, too... casual and trendy. She wore a brown leather jacket with a black tank top under it –she obviously liked dark colors –and boots that matched the long stockings that went up almost to her shorts.

Vanessa passed by calmly, with the dignity and class of a queen. She was an interesting person for sure.

Catori felt a little silly as she had been examining a teacher. But for some reason, she felt like she related to her. Like Vanessa, Catori was a little annoyed at that place and obviously stood out amongst the crowd.

She crossed her arms over her chest as she watched other people walk by. Her Literature classmate George, with his glasses, jeans and a cute haircut. He had asked her for a pen on her first day, and to her he seemed an ordinary boy. Marina, the girl from her Math class, with her long blond hair and her extroverted smile. They all looked like they belonged in there.

But Catori? Her image screamt 'new girl' wherever she went.

The bell rang, announcing another boring hour of class.

With a sigh, she braced for a lesson of History that would put her to sleep as she walked into the classroom. At least Mr. Yukimura was nice.

Catori sat down in one of the chairs and put her bag on the floor, picking all the materials needed for the subject on the table.

"I'll keep you awake if you keep me awake" A voice told her as she felt someone sitting behind her.

Catori looked over her shoulder when she recognized the voice.

"Easier said than done, Scott" She mumbled tiredly, and smiled in spite of herself when she heard him chuckling.

Curious as to where his best friend in the world was, Catori searched for Stiles.

"Where's the devil over your shoulder?"

Amused by that description, the boy grinned.

"He had to leave" He made a short pause. "But he asked me to tell you 'I'm watching you'"

Scott was probably just kidding, but she went along with him anyway.

"Sounds like him"

The teacher finally walked in just as they looked at each other and chuckled. Catori was glad that she could be joking around with him already, and more about Stiles.

"Good morning" Mr. Yukimura said, leaving the briefcase over his desk.

Immediately, Catori took her attention off the teacher. She would make an effort when he started writing stuff on the board, not a second before. Until then, she chatted with Scott casually and lowly.

Interrupting their chat, the door to the classroom was opened. Everyone turned their heads in that direction.

Natalie Martin, Lydia's mom, walked into the classroom and looked around. It looked like she was searching for someone.

"Um... Catori Hudson?"

"Here" The girl raised her hand hesitantly, feeling like she wouldn't receive good news exactly. She had been having a bad feeling after all.

"I have been asked to deliver the news to you" The woman was obviously upset for what she had to tell her, Catori could read it on her expression.

"What is it?" The girl asked apprehensively.

She felt everyone's eyes on her. And Scott's stare burning in the back of her head as he worriedly stirred behind her.

Natalie sighed and frowned as she spluttered it out.

"The museum where your mother works has been robbed"

Catori froze from the shock. She wanted to scream, to cry or to at least blink, but she couldn't move.

That intuition was not about her stupid status on the high school. It was about her mom.

The museum had been robbed. She had to be terrified. She may be wounded. Or something even worse...