Hope you all are having a beautiful day, whether you celebrate the holiday or not, and many thanks to you beautiful people for reading this far and sticking with me!
(I won't say much as far as where the story is going/what will be done differently than the show but you'll notice some changes in the mirroring canon scenes for sure so keep your eyes open ;) I do try to have reasons for what I do)
I do not own Teen Wolf. Also, a line Lydia says is stolen from Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
When Lydia had first woken up at the hospital, it hadn't been the beeping of monitors and the sting of fluorescent lights that alerted her that something was off. There was a dread coating her skin, like a figurative cold sweat, that was telling her that something wasn't right.
Her parents' faces swam into view, and she remembered thinking how odd it was that they were together. The fact that they were divorced didn't kick in until later on, but she could sense that that was off. Even if it took her some time to realize exactly why.
There was a dull pain on her side, noticeable even more when she wrapped her arms around her mother and the adhesive of the bandage tugged at her skin in protest.
They were talking to her, saying how glad they were that she was awake, and asking her things like how she was feeling and if she was in pain anywhere.
"My side." she mumbled, coming out raspier than expected, and she plucked off the oxygen mask covering her face.
She moved to remove more of the devices but the medical staff rushed forward.
"Let's leave those there until we do a full assessment, okay?"
Lydia nodded robotically, feeling exhausted and like arguing wasn't worth it. She just wanted to get the hell out of there. They were all watching her with such strange looks on their faces.
"What happened to me?"
Everything was foggy, muddled, like she hadn't cleaned off her windshield from the bad weather and she was trying to decipher shapes through spots in the glass.
Her father grimaced. "You were attacked by an animal."
Her mind was flooded with images all at once—her approaching the bushes slowly, Stiles running towards her at break-neck speed, screaming at her to run, and the flash of fur and claws and glowing eyes as a huge weight hit her and then the searing pain in her side.
Lydia startled, gasping, at the memory. That hadn't been a nightmare.
"Stiles. Where's Stiles? What happened to him?"
The monitor next to her started beeping like crazy, probably because her pulse just skyrocketed, and the doctor stepped in before her parents could say anything.
She moved forward and placed a reassuring hand on her arm. "Your friend is fine. He wasn't hurt. The animal scared off and he helped you until the paramedics arrived."
Lydia nodded, relaxing back into the pillows slightly.
"Your recovery hasn't been easy. We had a hard time getting you stable, but it looks as though you're going to be okay. We are going to keep you here for another couple days, to monitor you and see how your wounds are healing, but now that you're awake, in a couple hours we'll hopefully be able to move you to your own private room. Don't worry, Lydia. Beacon Hills Hospital has some of the best medical staff in the state. You'll be in great hands."
"Beacon Hills?" Lydia replied in disbelief. Of all the places, she was back here again.
"What do you say we try to get your assessment done before we answer any more questions?"
Eventually, Lydia was moved to her own room, where her parents flitted around her like useless insects.
It wasn't that she didn't appreciate their presence. But she really wanted to see Stiles, and she was sure he was nearby, and frankly she didn't want witnesses for their reunion. She wanted to have him crawl up in bed beside her and hold her and reassure her that he was fine.
But she honestly looked like hell reincarnated.
Her dad left the room to answer a business call and Lydia's mom scooted closer to the bed.
"Stiles has been here all weekend. I wouldn't think he even left, except that he seems to have changed out of his blood-stained clothes finally."
Of course he hadn't left. Of course he had been there all weekend. Never mind that they had classes to get to tomorrow.
Lydia tried to keep her face neutral, but she had a feeling her mother sensed the change in emotions since she forced an awkward smile, letting Lydia know that what came next was either a warning, a lecture or worse.
"I think it's really great that you've made such a good friend up at school. But I think we need to talk about that arrangement."
"Arrangement?"
Natalie took her daughter's hand. "Lydia, you may not be ready to hear this but you nearly died. That animal attack happened at school, on campus near the dorms, and your father and I have discussed it and we feel it's best for you if you consider attending somewhere else."
"You want me to transfer schools?"
She tried not to panic. Be away from Stiles? Be stuck living with her mom and her mom's boyfriend? Or worse, her dad? Having to make all new friends, somewhere else, or worse, back in San Diego? No. She wouldn't do it.
"We don't like the thought of you going to school out there, practically in the wild…"
Lydia rolled her eyes. Parents were so dramatic. There was a shopping mall four blocks from campus and about three Starbucks.
"I was talking to one of the nurses here, and she said that they are desperate for teachers at the high school here. There's a good college nearby, and there is a pretty good turnover in real estate. We should be able to find a place quickly. And, if nothing else, the hospital here is clearly better and if anything like this happens again, I want you to be able to receive the best care possible."
"You want me to move here?"
"It's still California, honey. And it's not that far from your other school. Your friends can come down and visit."
She didn't care about seeing her other friends every day, but Stiles…
"Do I get a say in this?"
Mrs. Martin squeezed her hand. "We're trying to do what's best for you. You can finish the semester at your other school, it's only a couple weeks, which will give me time to get our situation down here sorted out."
"Wait, what about Brian?"
Her mom smiled. "You've always been my priority, Lydia. We will work it out. I can drive up to see him on weekends and such. He travels a lot with work as it is, so he might be able to come down here plenty too. I'd rather have you under my roof, safe, away from the dorms, than have to spend my nights worrying about you."
Lydia smiled softly and leaned forward to hug her mom. She hated that her mom felt the need to uproot her life, but if she was this serious about it, who was she to say no? It would mean no dorms, and at least Allison and Scott would be down here.
She wondered if Stiles would transfer too, it's not as though being away from everything had helped much, but she remembered that he had more than one reason for leaving in the first place. Maybe he couldn't come home.
"I've got to go make a few calls. Your father should be back any minute."
Lydia nodded, forcing a grateful smile before settling back into the bed.
She really needed to talk to Stiles.
Remembering how she looked, she figured maybe she could at least shower first.
Her dad returned, looking nervous when he noticed that her mother wasn't present.
"Mom went to make some phone calls." Lydia slid to the edge of her bed and got to her feet. "I'm going to take a shower."
"Do you, uh, want help?"
Her father really had no idea what to do with her. He looked more afraid of her than concerned, which only made her roll her eyes irritably.
"If I was four." she quipped in annoyance, shuffling to the bathroom on her own.
"Don't forget about your bandages." Her dad added quickly, nervously, and she stopped to flash him a faux-grateful smile.
"I got attacked by an animal—I didn't get amnesia."
She really didn't have patience for him today, even if deep down she was grateful that he actually made it down to see her.
There were towels already laid out, and a fresh hospital shirt for her to tie on after she got clean. She could not wait to put on real clothes again, but while they were checking her wounds and such, it didn't make any sense to bother.
Lydia started the water and undressed carefully, wincing slightly at the pain in her side.
"Bye, bye bikinis." she sighed as she glanced down at it, stepping into the tub and letting the water wash over her.
As she washed her hair and cleaned herself, she knew she should be feeling better by the second. Improved hygiene after lacking it for so long was guaranteed to improve her well-being, yet she felt off, like something was missing or wasn't right.
She opened her eyes and caught glimpse of the water at her feet, seeing how it was collecting despite there being no plug in.
The water became murkier, darker, so she couldn't even see her feet.
She gagged a little. What the hell kind of 'advanced hospital' was this when they didn't even have decent plumbing?
Breathing hard through her nose, Lydia squatted down to feel around for the plug. Instead, her fingers met a wad of hair.
Trying not to vomit, she lifted it up, only to see it was her own hair. Long, stained dark from the moisture. It was a lot of hair to just lose in one go. What the hell kind of meds had they been pumping her with? Was hair loss a side effect? She hadn't really looked herself in the mirror properly…
She dug around some more, but only found more of her hair.
She could feel herself starting to panic, whimpering as she found huge gobs of hair in the disgusting water. She had to be missing half of her hair. What the hell did she look like now? Some sort of half-bald monster? Tears were stinging her eyes. Her beautiful, long hair that she took such pride in was falling out.
Lydia felt like a ball had formed at the base of her throat, waiting to burst through. It could've been vomit, or a sob, but it was something else.
As Lydia searched desperately for the plug so that she could drain the stupid tub from the nasty liquid encasing it, something that looked remarkably like a tree root shot up and wrapped around her wrist, pulling her downwards.
And that's when that ball of pressure burst out of her mouth in the form of a chilling scream.
Stiles put his head in his hands after he read the text from Scott.
Still no luck, Stiles. I'm sorry. We've got everybody looking. We'll find her.
The last time someone had been missing like this and Scott hadn't been able to find her, it had been Heather, and it was because she was dead.
It wasn't right. How could Lydia have finally been okay, and then this happened? Where was she? What made her run off?
She had left two nights ago, in the cold, with no clothes on. It didn't take a medical professional to remind him how unlikely it was that she was okay.
The front door opened and Stiles shot to his feet, but his father simply shook his head desolately when he met his eyes.
"I'm sorry, Stiles. Nothing yet."
Stiles blew out a long breath.
There were too many supernatural horrors in Beacon Hills, especially after what they did a few months ago, that any number of nightmarish beings could have found her by now.
"Stiles, we need to talk about something else."
He looked at his dad in confusion. "Like what?"
"The fact that you're supposed to be at school, and instead you're here—"
"Dad, I'm not going back to school to await a text telling me Lydia was found dead in the woods! I want to be here! I want to help!"
The Sheriff waved his hands in a quieting gesture. "I know. That's why I think you should transfer to a school down here."
Stiles absorbed that in surprise, not really sure what to say.
"This time, it's Lydia. But what happens when the next big bad comes to town? Are you going to be okay studying for finals and attending frat parties while Scott and your friends fight off the next supernatural killer? I want you to have the best education possible and a normal life, but since Scott got bitten, you haven't had a normal life. And now that you know all about the supernatural, I don't think that ever will happen. It scares the hell out of me, you guys running off into danger like you have some sort of… obligation to save the city because you know what's attacking it, but I can't stop you. And I don't think you can either. Going to school away was fine when things were calm, but things never stay quiet for long. As much as I hate it, when Lydia was attacked, it made me realize how little protection you have up there. The supernatural is everywhere, and I'd feel better knowing you have Scott and Allison and the others to work with you than having you off by yourself."
Stiles nodded slowly, understanding. Frankly, since it had happened, he had been thinking about it too. He didn't want to leave Lydia, but he also knew that he was going to continue to be drawn back to Beacon Hills. There was something pulling him back, whether it was his connection with the Nemeton or what, but it was strong and he didn't think there was a point in fighting it anymore.
Going home at Thanksgiving also reminded him how much he missed his family and friends. Being away from them all again was hard. He missed his best friend, his bed, making dinner for his dad, all of it. It was the only thing that made him feel normal. He had gone away in the hopes of finding himself, finding a normal life, but his normal was the supernatural chaos that he left behind. It was about time to accept it.
"I'll have to finish the semester, I only have a couple weeks until finals, and I'll try to see if there are any openings in the classes I'll need down here."
The Sheriff smiled, nodding, and Stiles could tell he was more excited than he let on. Even with him dating Melissa, it was clear he had missed having his son around. The house did seem much emptier.
"You should get some sleep, Stiles. You've missed two days of classes. You might want to think about taking a drive up to get your books so you can complete your assignments down here."
Stiles tried not to smile at the fact that he wasn't telling him to go to school and go to classes. His dad knew full well that there was no point in arguing with him. He wasn't leaving until Lydia was going back with him.
"All right. Let me just take the trash bins to the curb."
The Sheriff closed his mouth in surprise, furrowing his brow, clearly caught off guard by the idea. Maybe he had forgotten the small part of what it was like to have Stiles living at home, having him take care of the unspoken stuff without needing to be reminded or asked.
Stiles patted him reassuringly on the shoulder before throwing a coat on and heading out the front door. It was chillier as they were in December now.
He dragged the bins to the curb, parking them so they wouldn't tip even if it got windy, and headed back up the driveway.
A noise from the side of the house made him slow his pace.
"What the hell was that?" Stiles murmured to himself, fishing out his keys and unlocking the jeep's door to pull out his aluminum baseball bat.
He advanced into the shadowed area cautiously, bat in hand, really hoping it was just a cat and not something supernatural.
When he saw who it was, the bat slipped out of his hand and clanged against the pavement.
"Lydia?"
Her hair was full of leaves and twigs, as if she had run through the woods, and she was covered in dirt and scratches. She was shaking all over, her arms covering her torso protectively as her hands quivered against her collarbones.
Her eyes weren't focused on him at all, and she didn't appear to have heard him.
"LYDIA!" Stiles shouted, needing her to look at him. Needing to know that this wasn't some trick.
Her eyes snapped up in his direction, going round when she saw who it was.
Stiles was running before she could get a word out.
He coiled his arms around her instantly, clutching her to him and exhaling shakily.
"Thank god, Lydia. Thank god you're okay." he managed to get out, kissing her forehead before pulling back to shake out of his jacket and wrap it tight around her. "I'm so sorry. You must be freezing. Here. Come on. Let's get you inside."
She didn't say anything, just quivered in his arms, and Stiles shouted for his dad as he closed the door behind him.
"Lydia!"
Just like with Stiles, Lydia didn't make any sort of verbal response. She just looked in his direction, fear present on her features.
"We need to get her to the hospital."
Lydia shook her head violently.
Stiles pulled her closer protectively. "We'll get her cleaned up first. Get her in fresh clothes."
The Sheriff looked reluctant, but caved when he saw the way Lydia burrowed into Stiles' hold. "Fine. I'll call her parents. Let them know she's here."
Stiles flashed his dad a grateful smile and lead Lydia upstairs.
He grabbed towels and started the water for her, not too hot since her body was a low temperature and would be sensitive.
Before he could excuse himself to let her shower alone, she suddenly grabbed his arm.
"Don't." she whispered, tears in her eyes, and he understood.
"I'll stay right here, okay?"
He helped her climb over into the tub and pulled the curtain across, accepting the jacket she passed through the space when she was done.
He had a feeling why she didn't want him to leave—she must have been scared off by something that happened while she was in the shower. He had no idea what could have possibly happened, but it was enough for her to go missing for two days over so it obviously was significant.
While she showered, he texted Scott and Allison and Melissa, letting them all know she was safe.
The shower turned off, and Stiles got to his feet, grabbing a towel and slipping it through the space for her.
He took her hand and helped her step out. She was still a little unsteady on her feet.
Lydia looked into the mirror above the sink and moved the hair around on her head, as if checking for something hiding underneath the wet locks.
She eventually gave up, following him back into his room where he grabbed some stuff out of his drawers and closet.
"I'm sorry I don't have something better to offer you." he said sheepishly, over the sweatpants, socks and t-shirt he handed her.
She shook her head dismissively. "It's fine."
Her voice seemed to be getting stronger.
Stiles' phone beeped but he ignored it.
"I'll let you get changed."
She nodded, a small grateful smile gracing her face, before she placed the clothes on the bed.
Stiles was just leaving the room when his dad came up the stairs.
"Lydia's mom is on her way over. She wants to take her to the hospital, but I told her that Lydia hadn't been keen on that idea and that she was cleaning up. I don't know how much pressure she'll put on her to go, but I think Lydia should at least go to get quickly checked, make sure her previously dressed wounds aren't infected or anything. Who knows what she came across out there." He watched his son carefully. "Has she said anything about where she's been?"
Stiles shook his head. "Something about the way she is… I don't think she really remembers right now. But she didn't want to shower alone, so she at least remembers the fear she felt before she ran away."
"Well, what matters is that she's back safe now. I called the station and the hospital to let them know she's been found."
"Scott and Allison are on their way over." Stiles confirmed, slipping his phone back in his pocket.
Lydia exited the bedroom and forced a smile at the Stilinski pair.
Stiles reached a hand out and she gladly took it, giving his a squeeze in return.
"Your mom's coming by. Same with Allison and Scott. They're really glad you're okay."
"We all are." the Sheriff inputted with a smile before turning to head downstairs.
Lydia coiled her arm around Stiles' so she could be closer, her other arm crossing his body so she could hug him from the side. She followed him down the stairs, not releasing him at all.
They had so much to talk about, but right now, this was all she needed. And based on the way Stiles rubbed his hand along her arm comfortingly, she figured he was good with just this for now too.
They got comfortable on the couch, Lydia tucking her feet underneath her as she snuggled into Stiles' form, and he kept his arms wrapped around her protectively. No way was he letting her go anytime soon.
He couldn't help himself from placing an affectionate kiss to her temple.
Stiles was warm and familiar and smelled good, and she felt clean and safe and at peace. It was so strange, since merely an hour ago she had been wandering around god knows where. She didn't really know why her brain was short-circuiting, only seeming to comprehend reality once she had seen Stiles, but maybe it wasn't something that could be explained. After all, something must have drawn her to him in the first place. It couldn't be a coincidence that she showed up at his house after being unfindable for two days.
Lydia closed her eyes, cluing in to how exhausted her body was now that she was a normal temperature and sitting comfortably. She clutched Stiles' hoodie tighter in her fists as she nuzzled closer, feeling her breathing begin to even out. She wasn't even going to try fighting to stay awake.
Stiles hadn't slept in days—half a week, really, since he hadn't slept since before Lydia was attacked. He had spent the last two nights running around with Scott or Allison or his dad. The nights before that were spent at the hospital, barely sleeping in the cheap chairs lining the halls. The first night he wasn't even sure she was going to survive so he couldn't have gotten more than a couple hours.
But now, having Lydia safe in his arms, her steady breathing soothing, Stiles couldn't help but feel sleep beginning to weigh down his body. He was so tired.
He fell into a deep enough sleep that he didn't hear Scott and Allison come to the door.
They walked in to see the pair practically cuddling on the couch, Lydia all tucked into Stiles while his face nestled in her damp hair.
Scott sighed. "One positive thing that came out of this whole ordeal is that hopefully these two will finally stop beating around the bush and get together already."
Allison giggled and pressed a kiss to his cheek, sneaking her phone out to snap a picture of the adorable pair, knowing that it really was only a matter of time.
