Disclaimer: I do not own Teen Wolf; only Cassidy and the world surrounding her.
Hold Onto Me - Mayday Parade
Outfit on Profile
Holy Season 5A is over!
Despite whatever everyone else thinks, I very much enjoyed the first half of this season.
So here is the Finale, I will not be writing anything that will be considered 'next' past this finale since 5X11 will be happening on the same night.
HOWEVER...I think I'm actually going to go back and write some stuff from season 2, because I like to work backwards, obviously lol.
Thanks to everyone who read/reviewed/liked and all that stuff for Turn It Off!
So this story is based on 5X09-10 so SPOILERS AHEAD IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE NEW EPISODES!
Welcome Back to Cassidy Snyder's World!
Hold Onto Me
I know I've got my problems and it starts with me
She saw something inside that I can't see
And late at night, yeah she'll comfort me
Hold onto me, hold onto me
Come rescue me, Come rescue me
Don't you ever leave, Don't you ever leave
I know we got our problems and it's probably me
So hold onto me, hold onto me
She felt numb. Completely and utterly numb. Ever since Liam and Hayden went missing a week ago everything had changed. It was like they were all happy that they found the two, well Theo actually found them, but then Kira went away to figure out what the hell was going on with her, and then they all just stopped talking. And it wasn't just her. Everyone had been distant. Sadly, for the most part it had been easier. Each of them were keeping secrets from one another. Cassidy included.
Ever since the night she imagined Travis, her mood cycles have been dangerous. She had been taking her pills regularly like every day, but it wasn't helping. Her anxiety was on an all-time high. She couldn't tell if she was having manic episodes or just her mind overworking. But on top of that she kept seeing Travis.
Everywhere she turned, Cassidy saw him. In the hallways at school, standing outside her window, in random faces walking by, he was everywhere. She knew it was all in her head but it just wouldn't stop. She should have never read that book. She should have never pushed her mental state with it. It was all her fault. She knew what the consequences were and now they were coming on stronger than before.
On top of her own denial, she was dealing with the overwhelming guilt that Stiles was putting on himself. She was trying so hard to be his support beam, but she felt like she was starting to cave in on herself. All she wanted was to be able be strong enough to support him the same way he has always done for her. Why couldn't she do that?
Cassidy laid in her bed, curled up on her right side, staring out the window. She felt so alone. She wasn't use to sleeping alone since her and Stiles have been taking turns on whose house they would sleep at. Not wanting to be alone. But now that they were it was weighing down on her mind. She was ultimately scared of what he would do by himself, the same way she was scared of herself at the moment.
She looked over at the clock on her bedside table, seeing the bright 1:08 AM staring back at her. She did the math in her head, counting ahead 9 hours. Agreeing that it was early enough in France for Isaac to be awake, Cassidy pulled herself out of the bed. She walked over to her desk and fumbled around in the dark looking for her international minute's phone card. She grabbed her phone and entered in the number before she was instructed to dial the additional number.
As she held the phone to her ear listening to the ringing, she turned up the music that was playing from her stereo so her conversation wouldn't wake up the rest of the house. The last thing she needed was her parents to hear her upset.
"Cassidy Snyder, as I live and breathe." Isaac's voice rang through the phone like her favorite song.
"Hey, Is." She couldn't help but smile at the sound of his voice. He was always her comfort zone and still had that affect from a continent away.
"What's going on, my wonderful best friend? Because if I'm correct, which I'm positive I am it's like 1 AM over there." Isaac walked down one of the streets in France, maneuvering around some café tables.
"Can't a girl just call her best friend because she misses him?" She sat down the window seat, looking up at the almost full moon that sat in the sky. "Stop complaining about me actually enjoying talking to you."
Isaac chuckled deeply. "Never complain about that."
"How's France? Still as beautiful as ever?"
"Ehh, it's alright." He shrugged, stepping inside his usual coffee shop.
"Don't be so modest. I know for a fact it's probably amazing and I'm completely jealous." Her head rested against the glass pain. She was just envisioning what it would be like walking the streets right now instead of dealing with Dread Doctors on the daily.
"Well I didn't want to rub it in too much. Hold on a sec, Cassi." He quickly ordered his beverage at the front counter and moved on to wait in line.
She listened intently as he said something in French and could hear bustling in the background. "What did you say?"
"I was getting some coffee." He leaned against the back table, waiting.
She sighed out of jealousy. "You're drinking coffee in France and I'm sitting in Beacon Hills at 1 A.M. watching the moon. Not fair?"
"Merci." Isaac smiled at the girl who handed him his drink before giving his attention back to Cassidy. "You're always welcome here. Always have a place to stay."
"Don't tempt me. That sounds far too good at the moment."
"How are things going?" He walked outside and took a seat at one of the tables.
"Do you want the short or long version?" She pulled her legs up so they rested against her chest.
"I want the version that tells me what's going on with you. I've got all the time in the world."
She decided to start from the beginning. "Do you remember a Theo Raeken growing up?"
"Theo Raeken? Not particularly." He racked his mind trying to place the name. "Did we go to school with him?"
"No, he went to the same elementary school as Stiles and Scott, but he supposedly lived right down the street from you."
"Wait, was he the kid whose sister died in the woods or something?"
She nodded her head even though she knew he couldn't see her. "Yeah that's him. Anyways, I guess he left a while ago or something, but now is back in town. And to top it all off he's a werewolf wanting to become part of Scott's pack." Her voice grew in annoyance at just thinking about it.
"Let me guess," Isaac swallowed some coffee, "Scott wants him to become part of the pack but Stiles is uneasy about it?"
She couldn't help but chuckle at the correct scenario. "How'd you know?"
"Because that's how the two of them are. What do you think of him?"
"I don't trust him either. Something's off about him. I don't know, maybe I'm just being paranoid." Cassidy's voice became low and gravely, her sure tell sign that she was thinking bad thoughts.
And Isaac heard it immediately, he knew her better than he knew himself. "Tell me what's wrong, Cas."
She started explaining to him about these Dread Doctors and the chimeras. How Valack wrote a book that they all read and the visions that came with it. Everything. "I had a memory come back to me about my parent's fighting as a kid. And then I…" Her voice gave out at the thought of Travis. She knew he was going to freak out at just the name being brought up.
"Then what, Cassi?" Isaac stood up, throwing his cup away, wanting to get away from a majority of people depending on how this conversation was going to go.
She felt tears start to fill her eyes out of pure terror. "I had a vision about Travis." She heard a deep intake of breath but no words. "It wasn't a memory, but it was like a nightmare coming to life."
"What happen in it?" He felt anger rise through his body at the thought of the boy who attempted to kill his best friend.
"He cornered me in the school and tried to kill me. But none of it was real." She ran a hand through her hair. "And now I just keep seeing him everywhere. He's just plagued in my mind. I shouldn't have ever read this book." She felt her breathing start to become shaky. Panic spreading throughout her body. She doubled over on her seat the tears pouring down her cheeks and chest feeling like it was going to explode.
"Cassidy, sweetie, you got calm down." Isaac tried to stay as calm as possible through the phone but he was honestly freaking out. "Cassidy, breathe. You got to breathe." He listened at the heavy breathing. "Do your countdown, Cassi. Come on, count with me. 10."
Cassidy stuttered out the numbers as she breathed them out with him, slowly, all the way down to one. At the thought of her breakdown, she felt herself cry harder. "What's wrong with me? I've been doing so well. Isaac, why am I such a fuck up?"
Isaac leaned against one of the brick buildings down the alleyway. These were the moments where Isaac wished more than anything he was back in Beacon Hills. "Cassidy, you are not a fuck up. Do you hear me? This is all in your head. Have you been taking care of yourself?"
"Yes." She cried out desperately. "I've stepped back when I need to, I've taken my pills on a regular schedule daily, and I go to my therapy appointments. I've been putting myself first with everything. The only time I step away from myself is helping Stiles deal with this whole Donovan thing." Her eyes widened at what she said. It was like word vomit, she couldn't even hold it back.
"What whole Donovan thing?" Isaac straighten up, walking slowly down the alley. His eyebrows scrunched up in confusion. "Cassidy, who's Donovan?"
The curly haired girl closed her eyes, trying to figure out what to say. How to even say it. She knew she couldn't lie to him, he would hear it. "Something happen. Something horrible happen, but it wasn't Stiles fault. You have to believe me, he didn't mean to!"
"Woah, woah. Cas, calm down, you're going to panic again. Just explain to me what happen?"
"This kid, Donovan. He-he was a chimera and he was threatening the Sheriff. He attacked Stiles one night and was going to kill him. But something happen and a pole fell down and impaled Donovan through the chest. Stiles was going to take it out but it was too late." Cassidy felt herself defending her boyfriend before she even let him talk about it. "He didn't mean to Isaac. It was self-defense, I swear."
"Cas-"
"I was there Isaac. He was going to kill Stiles. He didn't do it on purpose." She pushed away the tears on her cheeks. She listened closely but didn't hear anything from her best friend, which scared her more. What if he thought the worst now of Stiles? Of her? "You think he's a killer, don't you?"
"No, Cassidy. No not at all." Isaac sighed, running a hand through his hair trying to swallow everything.
"Then what? Tell me what you're thinking, because I can't handle you being upset with me." She spoke in a whisper, feeling ridiculously vulnerable.
"Honestly? I'm just worried about the two of you." Isaac spoke so simply like it should have been common knowledge. "The both of you are types to keep everything inside until it bursts. Does anyone else know?"
"No. We've been keeping quiet about it. Stiles is freaked out enough just thinking what Scott would think about it."
"Yeah, but it was self-defense. He should understand that."
The two kept quiet, the only sound of Cassidy taking shaky breaths. She almost felt a weight off of her shoulders at letting someone else know. Someone who believed them. But she was still stuck in one place. "I don't know what to do, Isaac." Her tears finally stopped.
"Maybe…" Isaac sighed, running his fingers through his curly hair. "Maybe it's not your fight to handle. Just be there when Stiles needs you and just…make sure you stay healthy."
3 hours of sleep. That's all she really got that night before the alarm went off that morning. Isaac refused to hang up until he knew she was stable enough and just about to fall asleep. Her dreams were plagued with images of Travis. And now here she was in the back of Lydia's car with her and Stiles in the front seat doing the same thing they have been doing for the past week.
Ever since they found out that Parrish is the one taking the bodies they had been attempting to find the Nemeton. Who knew that even though they had found it before it was still going to be a pain in the ass to them. It was like the damn tree stump just picked up and moved to wherever it wanted to be planted that day.
"Have we been here before?" Cassidy asked as they got out of the car, looking around at the trees that all looked the same.
"Probably." Lydia nodded her head but walked forward anyways.
"Who knows, maybe the damn thing will just pop out and smack us in the face this time. Or burn us to death." Stiles said, always the pessimistic.
"Buzz kill." The strawberry blonde rolled her eyes and walked to her left.
Cassidy walked forward grabbing his hand to pull him along, following their friend over dead leaves.
Eventually the three kind of walked in their own paths but still close enough that they knew where each other was. For Cassidy it was kind of soothing, she stuck an ear bud in her ear and played her music as she walked over tree logs and branches. They were probably going to be late for class but honestly none of them cared about grades at the moment.
That's when something black caught out of the corner of her eye. She turned to it quickly to her right but found nothing, just more trees. She pulled her headphones off and quickly stuffed them into her bag. Her eyes continued to scan her surroundings while her hand stayed in her bag, fingers tightly gripping the handle of her gun.
The black shadow moved again, making her body spin around. That's when she saw him. Travis stood there in between the trees. Her body went into shock. He began walking towards her, his hands stuffed into his pockets. Cassidy shuffled backwards, the gun in her hand totally forgotten about. He stalked fast towards her, which made her turn back around and start running through the trees.
All she could hear was her heavy breathing and the leaves crunching under her feet. Every time she looked back behind her he was gaining speed. She tripped over a branch, but just before she fell to the ground a pair of arms caught her around her stomach. She looked up at Stiles as he brought her up to a standing position.
"Cas, what's wrong?" His hands held her shoulders, her face holding pure terror.
She looked behind her, but Travis was no longer there. It was all in her head; again.
"Cassidy!" He shook her shoulders, gaining her attention back towards him again. She looked up at him, shaking her head, her hands gripping his hoodie tightly in her hands. "You saw him again didn't you?"
She nodded, not wanting to actually say the words out loud.
"He's not real. He can't get you." Stiles pulled her close to his chest, a hand on her back while the other ran through her hair, holding her close. "He won't ever get you again, I promise. You're safe."
"What happen?" Lydia jogged over, her voice full of worry.
"Nothing." Cassidy pushed away from Stiles and gave her best friend a light smile. She pushed her emotions away and started walking ahead of both of them.
Lydia looked at Stiles confused but he merely shrugged and followed after his girlfriend. They found themselves in another clearing, and yet still nothing.
"It's almost like this thing doesn't want to be found." Stiles looked through a couple of tree gatherings, but nothing.
"Maybe it knows we're late for class." Lydia shrugged, her attention looking far off. "Because we've been here twice." The two followed her eyes over to the tree that had two X's in chalk on it.
"Crap." Cassidy looked around trying to see if she remembered the place but everything looked so similar.
"Can we talk to Parrish now?" Lydia was utterly done.
"Wait, hang on," Stiles walked over to the two girls, "if the Nemeton's covered in bodies shouldn't you be able to find them?"
"Me?"
"Yes, you. That's what you do. You're the Banshee, you find the bodies." He waved his hands around sporadically.
"Well the Banshee's having an off day, so how 'bout we talk to Parrish?"
"We can't." Cassidy sighed.
"Fine, let's chat instead." Lydia clasped her hands together and turned to the other girl. "What the hell was that back there?"
"Nothing." She looked down at her boots.
"Stop lying!" She was annoyed, completely annoyed. "The both of you." She pointed back and forth between the couple. "You both have been hiding something for weeks. Now tell me what the hell is going on or I swear…" She didn't need to finish her sentence.
Cassidy and Stiles gave shifty glances towards each other. Lydia wanted an answer, so she would give her one. "I've been having problems again."
"What?" Lydia's entire demeanor changed from anger to worry.
Cassidy finally looked back up at her. "Ever since we read that book…everything that I've been working for the past few months have been going backwards. It's like I'm trying to run up an icy hill but keep slipping back down."
Stiles took his spot next to her, knowing that everything she was saying was true, but she was still taking the heat off of him.
"And now, I'm starting to see Travis everywhere I go."
"Why didn't you tell me?" Lydia asked softly.
The curly haired girl shrugged. "I didn't want to worry you with everything else that has been going on. I'm just trying to get a handle back on it."
"You know I'm here for you. Anything you need, I will help you with. You're more important to me." Lydia let her hand rest lightly on her best friend's arm. "No more secrets?"
She nodded, knowing she was lying, but technically it wasn't her secret. The two girls hugged quickly, finally some peace between them.
"Now let's go talk to Parrish." She tried to walk back around to the subject.
"Lydia, we can't." Stiles shook his head.
"Why not?"
"Because one of the bodies…" Stiles began but drifted off. Cassidy looked up at him, actually expecting him to maybe tell Lydia the truth. "One of them…one of them could be…"
"Could be what?"
"One of them could be a clue."
And there it was. And Lydia was done with this conversation. "I'm leaving now Stiles. I'm going to talk to Parrish and tell him that he's the one taking the bodies." Lydia grabbed Cassidy's hand and drug her along with her. "It's always better when they know. Point just proved."
"Well then he should know that he owes me a Jeep!" Stiles yelled from behind the two, hurrying along to catch up with them.
"Cassidy." Stiles sat on the edge of his bed, running his fingers through her curly locks. "Pretty girl, you got to get up."
Her eyes fluttered open. Her body was in a warm haze, the type you get when you fall asleep at the beach and you wake up and just feel so at ease. After their long hell of a school day, they came back to Stiles' house, where Cassidy passed out and Stiles tried to get any work done he could to keep his mind off of everything.
"What's going on?" Her voice was rough with sleep and took her a lot of energy to stay awake and not fall right back to sleep. His covers felt like a warm cocoon around her body and his pillow smelled heavenly of him.
"Scott called. Something's happening with Hayden. We have to get to the animal clinic." He spoke in a hushed voice down to her. "I would have let you keep sleeping but I know you would want to be there for Liam."
"Thanks." Cassidy traced her fingers up his arm in appreciation.
He leaned down and gently gave her a kiss on her forehead. "Let's go." He pushed himself back up into a standing position.
She groaned but threw the covers off of herself nonetheless. "Did Scott say anything else?" She pulled her boots back on and tying them tight.
"Nope." Stiles stuffed his wallet and phone in his pocket. "Let's try to get ahold of Lyd and Malia on our way."
"Okay." She nodded and pulled back on the zip-up she had been wearing all day.
"So…you stole my hoodie?" He smirked at her.
"I don't know why you even ask anymore, you know it happens."
"I know." He laughed at her, but still enjoyed her wearing his clothes. Just a guy thing. "You finish getting ready I'm going to go get the Jeep started."
She nodded, watching him leave the room. She grabbed her bag off the floor, setting it on his bed and grabbed her pill case out of it. She shook out her one pill that was needed in the evening, hoping that maybe it would start working again today. She shook the thoughts away and swallowed it down.
She grabbed her things and turned the light out as she made her way out of the room. She waited in the door way, watching him try to get the Jeep started again in the rain. She could see his shoulders tensing in annoyance that it wasn't working. Finally the engine roared to life. He closed the hood shut and got himself into the driver's seat as she closed and locked the door behind her, running around to get in the passenger seat.
It took them no time to actually get to there, just trying to make sure that the Jeep stayed alive. Stiles pulled up to the front of the Animal Clinic just as Scott got off of his bike.
"Perfect timing." Cassidy smirked at Stiles one last time before the two jumped out of the Jeep into the heavy raindrops.
"Hey, Sorry!" Stiles yelled over the storm, shutting the door so it would actually close properly. "I had trouble starting the Jeep again. The things barely hanging on."
The two walked over to Scott. "Couldn't get in touch with Lydia or Malia." Cassidy crossed her arms across her chest tightly, already getting cold from the drops. The couple stood there waiting for some kind of response from Scott on why they were rushed there in the first place. But he just stood there, like a fish out of water. Pun definitely intended. Cassidy decided to break the silence. "So can we do this whole no talking staring thing inside out of the rain?"
That finally got a response from the Alpha. He ever so slowly putting his hand in the side of his jacket and pulled out a wrench. From an outside perspective of that moment you could have probably seen both Stiles and Cassidy's bodies deflate. It wasn't just any random wrench. It was the one Stiles had hit Donovan with to get away.
"Where'd you get that?" Stiles spoke up, his eyes barely leaving the metal tool.
"This is yours?" Scott asked him, almost not wanting to believe it.
Cassidy looked over at Stiles, not knowing how he was going to react. All she knew was that she couldn't step forward this time and hide the issue at hand. Stiles very cautiously grabbed the tool, staring at the dried blood on the end of it.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Scott sounded more hurt than anything.
"I was going to." Stiles couldn't tear his eyes away from it. They had tried so damn hard to hide all the evidence and it was finally catching up with them.
"Why didn't you tell me when it happen?"
Stiles shook his head finally looking back up to his best friend. "I couldn't."
"You killed him? You killed Donovan?" His words came out in somewhat of a hope that it wasn't true, but he knew deep down that it was. "And you helped cover it up?" Scott's eyes moved finally over to the girl standing on the outside.
"Okay, he was going to kill my dad." Stiles finally regained some courage back up in him. "What, was I supposed to just let him?"
"You weren't supposed to do this. Neither of you. None of us are." Scott shook his head.
"You think I had a choice?" Cassidy could hear it in Stiles' voice that he was getting angry.
"There's always a choice-"
"Yeah, well I can't do what you can Scott!" Stiles cut him off. "I know you wouldn't have done it. You probably would have just figured something out right?"
Scott nodded his head, his whole demeanor wasn't up to par though. "I'd try."
"Yeah, cause you're Scott McCall! You're the true Alpha." Stiles couldn't even take the guilt anymore of what he had been walking around with the past few weeks. It was more than that though. There was something deep down inside of him that had been boiling for so long the steam was releasing. "Guess what? All of us can't be true Alphas! Some of us have to make mistakes. Some of us have to get our hands a little bloody sometimes. Some of us are human!"
"You had to kill him?" Scott questioned again. It was like he wasn't even listening to anything Stiles was saying.
"Scott, he was going to kill him." Cassidy cried out, enough with hearing such ridiculousness that was coming from him.
"You helped him, Cassidy. You should have said-"
"Leave her out of this!" Stiles yelled, his arm going up in front of her as he moved his body to block her from direct sight. "Scott, he was going to kill my dad."
"The way that it happen…" Scott didn't even know how to finish his sentence. "There's a point where it's just not self-defense anymore."
"What are you even talking about?" Stiles asked in confusion. "I didn't have a choice, Scott!" But he just stood there with his head down, basically ashamed by the two of them standing there. "You don't even believe me do you?"
"I want to." Scott said, but refused to make eye contact.
"Okay, alright, so believe me then." He wouldn't though. He just kept quiet, thinking over things in his head. "Scott, say you believe me." Still nothing. "Say it. Say you believe me."
"Stiles, we can't kill people we're trying to save." Scott shrugged his shoulders. It was just a constant tennis match between the two and Cassidy didn't know how to help.
She watched as Stiles tensed up in front of her. She wanted to hold him back but it wasn't her call.
"Say you believe me." Stiles stalked towards Scott.
Scott backed up, eyes wide at what his best friend was doing. That's when Stiles noticed the wrench in his hand that was raised. He didn't even realize he had done it. Cassidy clamped her hands over her mouth at the whole scene in front of her. Scott didn't believe him.
"We can't kill people!" Scott finally regained his voice. "Do you believe that?"
All of Stiles courage was lost. He needed his best friend to believe him. "What do I do about this? What do you want me to do, okay, just…" His voice was crumbling. "Scott, just tell me how to fix this, alright? Please, just tell me. What do you want me to do?" Stiles cried, but it was washed away by the storm.
Scott could honestly say, he didn't know what to do. "Don't worry about Malia or Lydia, I'll find them. Maybe, ugh…maybe he should talk to your dad." And that was that. With one last glace he turned away.
Cassidy couldn't handle it. She watched with so much anger when Scott started to walk away. All she felt was rage. "Scott!" She yelled his name through the rain but the werewolf didn't stop. She felt her body moving before her brain caught up with it. She ripped the door open, seeing him standing just inside the door. "Scott!" He didn't do anything but shake his head. "Look at me!" She grabbed a tight grip of his jacket and pulled him around harshly.
"Go home, Cassidy." He voice was low and held some type of resentment.
"What the fuck is your problem?" Her body was shaking with just how angry she was, tears building up in her eyes. She had kept quiet, letting Stiles attempt to make his peace with Scott, but this was her turn. "He's done nothing but support you through everything. Everything!"
"He killed Donovan." He finally looked up at her. Scott's eyes stared hard into her own. "And you helped cover it up."
"Scott, he had no choice! None. Do you really not get that?" Cassidy's tears started mixing with the rain that was still on her face.
"There's always a choice-"
"NO THERE'S NOT!" Her voice was so loud, she could hear herself echoing through the room. "What, Kira gets a free pass because she's your girlfriend but your best friend gets thrown under the bus, who you've known forever? What kind of bullshit is that!"
She could finally see some life in his eyes, but not a good burning. "Don't talk about relationships like you're not doing the same thing!" He pointed an accusing finger at her. "Wake up Cassidy! People are dying and we shouldn't be the ones with their blood on our hands!"
She shook her head, not believing what he was saying. "He needs you right now, more than anything and you're walking away from him. No wonder he was so fucking scared of telling you." He didn't say anything and that just got her more livid. She got up close to him, making sure he could hear every word that she was about to say perfectly. "You're not a God, Scott. Stop picking and choosing who's worthy enough to stand by your side." She glared at him again before walking back towards the door, turning around one last time. "Now excuse me while I go stand by his side. Not in front or behind him."
Cassidy pushed the door open and slammed it close behind her. She screamed at the top of her lungs at the closed door before slamming her hand hard against it. She could feel the old Cassidy clawing up her spine, just ready to spiral out of control. She took a deep breath, counting down in her head before turning around.
She was expecting to see Stiles still standing there in the rain, but no. He sat in the driver's seat, jeep started with the lights shining brightly into her eyes. She calmed her composure and walked towards the passenger side of the jeep. She pulled herself up into the cab and closed the door swiftly. He didn't say anything just put the gear into reverse and backed out. He held no emotion on his face, she wouldn't even call it stoic. It was just the fact that he had nothing left to give.
Cassidy looked down between the seats to find the wrench laying there between them. A symbol of their downfall. She didn't understand how Scott got the wrench or what story he was even told because none of it made sense. And all that kept playing in the back of her mind was that Theo was somehow apart of all of this.
The rain had finally come to a stop, which made looking out of the burned front windshield somewhat easier. They should have just taken her car, but Stiles was just by far too desperate to act as if it was still going to pull through. A clanking type of noise suddenly began coming from the engine along with smoke.
"Not now." Stiles grumbled out.
She looked over at him to see what he was going to do before she started to breath in heavy smoke that was now filling up the cab. "Stiles!" She coughed out harshly.
His eyes widened at the smoke that started to flow into his side. He quickly pulled over as the Jeep died, the two throwing themselves out of each side coughing up the black smoke that just coated their lungs. Cassidy threw her bag over her shoulder and stood on the side away in front of the Jeep as she watched him go to the trunk to get his tools. All of his movement were in anger. He slammed his trunk shut and then threw his tool kit on the ground once he made his way to the hood. Stiles opened it and then grabbed the kit again, propping it up on the front to get what he needed.
He didn't do anything though. He just stood there his head down, looking at the wrenches. Most importantly the empty space of the one that was sitting in the Jeep still. Stiles grabbed the entire case, turned around and chucked it down the street.
Cassidy flinched at the loud clambering of the tools hitting the pavement. "Stiles, It's o-"
"-Don't say it's going to be okay, Cassidy! Because it's not fucking okay!" He yelled at her while slamming the hood closed.
She coward back at his tone and just kept watching him. That's all she could do. He ripped the passenger side door open, grabbing the wrench before slamming the door shut again. He went to hurdle that one down the street as well but something stopped him. His movements slowed and he turned around to look back at the Jeep. His eyes fell back and forth from the Jeep to the wrench. He wound up and launched it straight at the car. Cassidy covered her face with her hands as she watched the tool connect with the windshield, shattering the glass, afraid of getting hit.
He looked over at her as she folded in on herself then back to the Jeep. It all becoming quite clear of what he just did.
Stiles walked to the other side of the jeep and collapsed onto the ground, resting his body back against the tire. She took light steps towards the other side, trying to be as cautious around him as possible. She hated to admit it, but she had been waiting for this moment since the whole thing started.
Cassidy kneeled down on the pavement in front of him, pulling her bag off her shoulder. She didn't say anything, just gently placed her hand on his shin. She wanted to comfort him, but just went one step at a time. He stared down at his shaky hands, tears welling up in his eyes.
"Stiles…"
"I don't know, Cas. I don't know how to make any of this right." Stiles whispered, shaking his head slowly. "I can't…I can't take it away and it hurts. It hurts so fucking much." He beat against his chest, tears slowly rolling down his cheeks.
She sucked her lips in, attempting to hold back her own tears. She knew that feeling, she knew it so well. "I'm not going to tell you it's going to be okay. I can't promise something like that." She crawled further up so she was kneeling right next to him. "But I will be here. I will not let you go through this alone."
He didn't want to look at her, just kept his head down. The tears weren't even stopping. "Scott doesn't want me around, my dad doesn't even want to look at me. Why do you stay with me? I'm not healthy for you."
"The same reason you stay with me." A tear fell down her own cheek. She grabbed his hand and held it close to her chest. "You never think you're good enough for me and I will fight that doubt until the end of time the same way you do for me." She kissed his palm. "I meant everything I said when I came back to Beacon Hills."
"You've gone through more than I have. So I sometimes wonder how you still put up with me?"
She cradled his head in her hands and gently pulled it so she could see his face. "We've both been through a lot. I have given you my heart. When you fall, I fall. We are in this together." She pushed his tears away with her thumbs, letting her forehead fall against his. "I love you Stiles Stilinski. Forever."
After sitting there for some time, the two crawled back into the Jeep into the back seat. The two spent the night there, holding each other, both knowing this might be the last time being in the Jeep. When morning hit, Cassidy called up her parents asking them to bring her car while Stiles called for a tow truck.
"Do you think it'll be an easy fix?" Carl asked his daughter as they stood back, watching the Jeep get hooked up to the truck.
"Probably not." Cassidy looked over to see her boyfriend sitting on the curb, watching the towing company.
"Is there anything we can do, sweetie?" Teresa smooth her daughter's curls.
"No." She shook her head, looking back over to her parents. "It's just a big thing for him right now."
"That's understandable." Carl nodded, remembering how he felt when he had to say goodbye to his first car.
"I think I'm going to stay with him for most of the day. He's going through some stuff right now."
"No problem." Teresa gave her a soft smile. "We're going to take your brother and sister up to your grandparents for the day, probably going to stay the night. You going to be okay by yourself?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine." Cassidy nodded and gave them a reassuring smile. "Thanks for bring my car."
"No problem, baby." Teresa gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Call us if you need anything."
"Will do." She gave her father a kiss on the cheek.
She watched the two drive away before walking over to where Stiles sat. She sat down beside him, having him immediately laid his head against her shoulder. She rested her hand against the inside of his knee, gently pressing a kiss onto his head. The couple sat in silence as they watched the truck drive away.
"You want to go home?" Cassidy rubbed small circles into his knee with her thumb.
"No." He sat up, looking at her. "I need to go to the station. I need to talk to my dad."
"You going to tell him?"
"Yeah, I have to."
She nodded, leaning in and gave him a soft kiss. The two got into the car and started their way to the station. Something was on the back of her mind that she needed to tell him. This probably wasn't the best time since his best friend doesn't believe him while hers does, but he needed to know.
"I need to tell you something." Her hands held the steering wheel tightly. "I told Isaac."
He looked over at her confused. "About what?"
"The whole Donovan thing." She kept glancing from him to the road to see if he was angry. "I was just talking to him the other night about everything that was happening and it just slipped out. I'm so sorry, Stiles. I know I should have asked you first."
"It's okay." He reached over and gently peeled one of her hands off of the wheel so he could hold it. "You've been keeping this secret for me for far too long, and he's your best friend. He deserves to know what's going on with you."
"You're not mad?"
"No. Not at all." He intertwined their fingers. "What did he say?"
"He's just worried…about the both of us. Wants to know that we are going to be okay."
Stiles nodded, looking out the passenger side window. Was he annoyed? Yes. But not with her, it was the fact that her best friend believed over his. If anything he was jealous.
Cassidy pulled into the station's parking lot, coming to a stop in one of the front spots. "You want me to go in with you?"
"No, no. I need to do this by myself." His knee was starting too shake quickly out of nerves and his hand was sweating in her own.
"I was there, yeah know. I can act as a witness."
"I don't want you to get taken down with this. You've helped me more than enough with this. This is my guilt that I need to take care of." He leaned in closer to her.
She came closer herself, letting her hand that wasn't attached to his to gently push his bangs back and run her fingers down his face. "You'll call me if you need anything?"
"You'll be the first one." Brown and blue didn't leave each other. Something about this moment felt all too surreal. "I love you. I love you for everything you are."
Her words betrayed her. All she could do was lean in and kiss him. She wished she could kiss away all the pain that was building up inside him. All she wanted to do was save him from himself before something horrible happen. They gently pulled away from each other. Stiles kissed her forehead one last time and then finally pulled himself out of the car. No looking back.
Her constant state of worry had actually put her to sleep. She hadn't heard from Stiles, Lydia or anyone. With her family being gone she stationed herself on her couch, exhaustion finally taking over. With the super moon approaching and her emotions low, maybe it was a good thing she was staying out of line right now.
She was awoken by the sound of her doorbell. Rubbing the sleep out of her eyes, she quickly pulled herself up and over to the door. She didn't think anything about it, just opened the door hurriedly. That's when she regretted everything.
Travis stood on the other side of the door. His smirk highlighting his face. "I'm looking for Alice. I heard she was no longer in Wonderland."
She tried to close to the door in his face, but he pushed it right back, making her jump away from the entrance. Travis walked into the house and closed the door behind him.
"You're not real. This is all in my head. You're not real!" She kept saying it over and over again to prove to her. To wake up from this nightmare.
He walked forward as she walked backwards, knocking into items on the way. "You would have to be half mad to dream me up." He once again quoted Alice in Wonderland to her.
Her back suddenly connected with the kitchen counter, trapping her as he was now right in front of her with his hands on either side of the granite. "Did you miss me beautiful?" He loomed over her, his breath dancing across her face.
"You're not real. You're not real." That's all she could say. She was in complete shock.
"Oh, I'm real sweetheart. I'll show you just how real I am." His body pressed full into hers now.
She regained her senses and managed to punch him straight in the throat, backing him up a few inches enough for her to kick out his shin. As he fell one knee to the ground and held on to his throat, her heel jabbed into his shoulder sending him backwards onto the tile floor. All that was in her mind was her gun that was sitting upstairs. She made a break for it out of the kitchen and ran through the house towards the stairs. Cassidy took two at a time getting to her room quickly, but as she looked around she released she never brought her bag into the house. It was still sitting in her car outside.
As she looked around for anything to you she could hear him start to move downstairs. She needed to get out of her room because that would be the first place he would look for her. She ran into her parent's room looking around to see where she could hide. She dropped to the ground, seeing the boxes of items her mother kept under the bed. She pushed a few aside with enough room that she could slip under it and then quickly pushed them back so that she was hidden.
Cassidy closed her eyes tight and clapped a hand over her mouth to silent her heavy breathing. She listened as hard as she could for him coming for her. She needed to somehow calm down and think rationally how she was going to get out of the house. That's when she heard his heavy footsteps against the carpet.
"Cassidy, oh Cassidy. Where could you be my little, Cassidy?" He sang out as he slowly walked around the room.
She could just make out his movement between the boxes. His dark boots present against the starch white carpet. She could see that he walked into the adjoined bathroom. This was her moment to get out if she had any. She silently as possible pushed the box away from her head and crawled out from under the bed. There was no time to look back, she needed to get out. She crawled across the floor, just about to push herself up when his hands grabbed a hold of her leg.
"Where do you think you're going!" His voice rang loud in her ears.
She scraped her hands against the carpet to try to get away but he pulled her further into the room. She turned quickly over onto her back, pulled the leg he had a hold of towards her and then used her other leg to kick his body back. It worked and she pulled herself up off the floor. She immediately started running out of the room and down the hallway with him right on her heels.
Just before she made a break for it down the stairs, he pushed her body against the wall. Cassidy couldn't help but scream in pain as her face connected hard with plaster. He didn't care though. He turned her around and wrapped his hands tight around her throat. He was going to kill her. This was it. She scratched at his hands but he wouldn't give up, and she was losing oxygen by the second.
"Hey!" The two looked over, the hands easing up on her neck at the sight of Theo standing there. "Let her go."
Travis hands dropped from her neck and he backed up a few steps away from her.
Cassidy's own hands quickly found their way to her already bruising neck, the tears that were in her eyes leaving trails down her cheeks. "Theo, he…I need to-"
"You're going to be okay, Cassidy." He walked over to stand next to Travis the two looking down at her. His eyes taking in how red her throat really was. "Travis, I told you to get her, not try to kill her."
"Sorry, she attacked me first. It was only fair." Travis stood back with his arms crossed across his chest.
Cassidy watched with wide eyes looking back and forth between the two boys in front of her. They knew each other. She felt like she was going to be sick. "What's going on?"
Theo laughed and leaned against the wall next to her. "Well, you see Cassidy, things are going to change in Beacon Hills. Pack wise that is."
"I don't understand."
"I came for a pack, Cassidy. I came for the darkest of them all. That doesn't include Scott."
She felt so ridiculously trapped between the two. "What do you want with me?"
"See it's different. You're not anything supernatural nor have you ever been possessed by anything. You just have so much rage that's sitting inside of you. The rage that could make you the toughest of them all. But you've been harboring that anger." Theo dug through his pocket and pulled out a pill bottle. "I wanted to change that."
It was her bottle of pills that helped her control her bipolar disorder. "You replaced them?" She put two and two together.
"That is correct." He shook the bottle and threw it to Travis to hold. "Those hallucinations you've been having, the mood swings, everything I've been setting up. I exchanged the lithium with a hint of wolfsbane. I thought you were nearly going to rip Scott's head off the other night at the clinic."
"What does he have to do with anything?" She nodded towards Travis.
"Well I heard about all that petty little drama that happen this summer and I couldn't help but think, who has wanted to kill Scott more than most but didn't get the result he wanted? So I broke Travis out."
"I thought you were against anything supernatural?" She looked up at her former confidant.
"Things change, Cassidy." He smiled at her. That sick smile that he always pulled on her.
All of the sudden the sound of her phone ringing down stairs broke the tension between the three. She knew the ringtone was Stiles.
"That wouldn't be your boyfriend now would it?" Theo rose an eyebrow at her, but he already knew the answer. As her phone stopped ringing Theo's began. "Well well well, I wonder if he's worrying about where you are? Travis." That's all he needed to say before Travis pulled out a roll of duct tape from his coat pocket and ripped off a piece for her mouth. She fought against him but Travis still was able to push it across her lips, holding her tightly from behind. "You make one noise," Theo got right up in her face, "even a small sigh, I swear to God I will kill him next. You understand?"
Cassidy simply nodded. She listened as Theo acted out in his good ways, agreeing to meet Stiles somewhere or something. Her mind was just on overload about everything, especially the boy that was holding her from behind.
"Okay, so here's the deal." Theo hung up the phone and stuffed it back into his pocket. He talked with Travis as if she wasn't even between them. "I've got to go meet with Stiles. You take her and I'll meet you when we figure out how we're going to find it. Just park by the preserve and then we'll go."
"Sounds like a plan." Travis agreed. "Hold tight, sweetheart." He whispered in her ear. The two began taping her wrists and legs together. She tried fighting but it was too much with Theo's strength added. The two picked her up and threw her in the back of Travis' car.
She didn't know how long she had waited, but she couldn't do much of anything. She tried to break free but there was no such luck. She didn't have many thoughts running through her head either. She didn't know what to think. There was just too much going on. Finally after hours of no talking or anything, Travis began driving again. He finally parked deeper into the woods.
"Game time, Cassidy." Travis pulled himself out of the driver's seat and opened the back door. He cut the tape on her feet and pulled her out of the car. Her eyes looked around noticing Theo pulling something out of his truck. Not just something, but Lydia.
Cassidy began screaming through the tape, thrashing her arms around trying to get out to help her best friend.
"Now's not the time to be dramatic, Cassidy!" Travis yelled and got a better grip on her.
She could tell something was wrong with Lydia by the way she had no sense of walking or even looking around. The two boys drug the girls through the woods until they found themselves at the Nemeton that was surrounded by dead chimeras. They threw the two girls on the ground, Travis slicing a cut of the duct tape so Cassidy could break free.
She quickly undid her wrists and pulled the tape of her mouth before immediately grabbing for Lydia. She pulled her best friend in her lap, automatically seeing the claw marks on the back of her neck.
"What the fuck did you do to her!" Cassidy screamed at Theo was anger boiling under her skin.
"Shut the fuck up!" Theo yelled right back while Travis slapped her hard across the face.
Cassidy flinched back, tears gathering in her eyes, but she still held tight to her best friend was catatonic.
"Just wait until you watch this!" Theo yelled. A giant syringe was in his hand filled with some sort of liquid. He went to the first body, which just happen to be Tracy. "You think you've lost your mind? Well watch this!" He pushed the needle into her and injected some of the serum.
All of the sudden Tracy sprang to life, taking in a deep breath. Theo kept going down the line to Corey, Josh, and finally Hayden. The four slowly began to stand up, each looking around confused.
"What's happen?" Hayden asked.
"Who are you?" Tracy looked at Theo confused.
"I'm your Alpha. And all of you belong to me." Theo looked over each of them. He finally turned to Travis, the two nodded at each other and started walked back out of the woods. The risen chimeras followed behind him, completely ignoring the two girls on the ground.
Cassidy couldn't say anything. She sat holding Lydia, her eyes wide in surprise.
There was a war in town.
Welp...that happen.
TRAVIS IS BACK! I know you all hate Travis, but goddamn I love his character and it's a big issue with Cassidy so this will be fun to play out in the next half of the season!
Thanks for everything everybody! Make sure you are following my Tumblr for more Styder!
And if you could review that would be swell!