It haunted him, that look that had been on Stiles' face. Danny saw it in his dreams that night, even. He almost forgot about it the next morning until he was at school and realized that Stiles was not there. Danny spotted Scott looking somber next to Isaac at the curly-haired boy's locker, and he went over to the two of them. "How's Stiles?" he found himself asking before he could stop himself. Scott seemed confused as to why Danny was asking, making the goalie roll his eyes. "Stiles was at my place when he passed out last night." Danny figured that by that point Scott had learned of his best friend's trip to the ER.
Scott seemed more relaxed once he realized that Danny had an actual reason for being curious about how Stiles was. Danny was more concerned than curious, but Scott did not need to know that. "Oh, yeah. He's fine now. Blood sugar just dropped too low. Linden wanted to give him the day off, though," Scott explained with a nod that Isaac mirrored, as if both of them insisting it made it more of the truth.
Danny honestly just did not buy the whole blood sugar thing. Stiles had consumed an energy drink, Capri-Suns, and some cookies. There was no way the other boy's loss of consciousness was related to food intake; especially when Allison and Scott did not look too much better than Stiles did. "Okay," was the only response Danny gave, however, before he walked away from the duo. As he went, Danny pulled out his phone and sent another text to Jackson. Things are so messed up here, dude. Dunno what to do.
He was almost to the classroom he needed to be at when the incessant vibrating of his phone (indicating a call), made him duck into an empty room along the way. "What d'you mean?" Jackson asked in a gruff, slightly slurred voice, as if he had just woken up, when Danny answered the call.
Danny let out a heavy breath and sat on top of a desk as he told Jackson everything. He told Jackson about the odd deaths, about Ethan and Aiden's disappearance, Erica and Boyd's accidental deaths (which no one seemed to have any real information on), the others' odd behaviors. Jackson remained quiet the entire time that Danny spoke. After a minute of silence when Danny finished speaking, Jackson sighed heavily, and Danny could hear the sounds of him moving around whatever room he was in. "So, the Scooby gang's weirder than ever," replied Jackson, trying not to show much emotion at the shock he felt for the news of Boyd and Erica's deaths. Last he had heard from Derek, Boyd was back. He seemed to not want to talk about that part of what Danny had said, however. "There's not much I can do from here, dude."
"Scooby gang?" Danny's brow lifted slightly at the term, trying to figure out just why Jackson would choose that specific term to call Stilinski, McCall, and the others.
"Yeah, it's... never mind. I've gotta go. Get to class, you're late."
As Jackson hung up without waiting for a response, the tardy bell rang, making Danny jump a little. How had Jackson known that the bell was about to ring? Was he that in tune to the school's schedule and the time difference? Danny did not think his best friend was that aware of things, but it was the only explanation he could think off. Shrugging it off, Danny sighed but headed to his class.
Stiles was given some low-dose, non-habit forming sleep aids from Melissa after his trip to the hospital. With them, he slept through the night without many intense nightmares, as had become the norm. There were still nightmares, but not ones that woke him up or had him crying out in his sleep. When he finally woke up that day, it was almost noon, and Stiles felt as though he were nursing a hangover.
The teen stumbled down to the kitchen, where he found a note on the coffee pot from his father. 'No coffee. Just hot chocolate or tea. See you at 7. -Dad' Stiles was sure he would be able to manage to make a pot of coffee without his dad finding out, but at the same time, he really did not want to push his luck. He was feeling better that day, though still a little drowsy. With a sigh, Stiles decided to make himself some tea, and afterward he sat curled up on the couch watching one of the random comedy movies that he had recorded to watch when he got the time in order to have something to do besides research.
Stiles figured he probably have been on the computer, learning as much as he could about the nemeton and emissaries, and possible foes they may face due to Beacon Hills becoming a beacon once again. At the same time, though, he finally felt calm for the first time since it had happened, and he really did not want to disrupt that by research. It was just a good, calm day where he could rest and recharge a bit. He would return to school the next day, prepare for finals, and continue on with his life as if nothing had happened. It was not like anyone would really have noticed his absence outside of the people who already knew why he was not there.
He was so intently focused on the movie that was playing on the television that he had not heard someone pull up into the drive or realized that he was not alone until there was someone knocking on the door, making Stiles jump and nearly fall off of the couch in surprise. The teen took a few steadying breaths as he sat there, closing his eyes for a moment before he stood up and went to answer the door. He had no idea who it could have been (Scott was at work, and Allison was training with Isaac and her father, and Lydia would have let him know she was coming over and to leave the door unlocked), so his brow furrowed a little as he actually opened the door.
The expression on his face changed to one that was nothing short of complete surprise and confusion when he found Danny standing on his front porch. "Oh, uh, hi," Stiles said awkwardly, reaching up to ruffle the hair on the back of his head. "Is, uh... Can I help you?"
"Are you okay?" Danny asked after a moment, and when Stiles opened his mouth to respond, the goalie continued on to say, "And don't spurt that low blood sugar crap at me again, because we both know that was not an issue last night."
"I... It's... I'm fine." Stiles stumbled over his words, though he did step aside to let Danny into the house. He shut the door and absently bit at the thumbnail of one hand as he walked back over toward the couch. "Just... Don't worry. I'm fine."
Danny's brow lifted in disbelief as he dropped his bag onto the floor near the couch, sitting down next to where Stiles had settled down without even realizing it. "You look like death, Stiles," replied Danny as he rested his elbows on his knees and studied the other teen. "Weird shit has been going on in this town, and now this... You passed out in my arms, dude. I just... I really don't think you're as okay as you're saying, and I want to make sure you will be."
"Why?" Stiles' brow furrowed as he idly toyed with one of the strings on his hoodie's hood, glancing over at Danny out of the corner of his eye. They weren't friends by any means. They were partners on a school assignment and gone to the same school in the same grade since kindergarten. That did not mean they were friends, nor had they ever really been. Stiles had always been too loud, too hard to keep up with.
"You were suddenly dropping to the floor in my living room, pretty sure that justifies a reason." Okay, so Danny was not entirely sure why he was so worried about Stiles' well being, but he was. He did not want to see the other teen just fall like that ever again. It was probably one of the scariest things that he had ever witnessed, and he did not think he could handle that another time.
Stiles worried at his lower lip, which looked as though it was nearly split (probably from Stiles doing just that to it), keeping his eyes trained on his hands where they were resting on his legs. "My dad said you rode with me to the hospital," replied Stiles in a small voice. Honestly, he had been completely unaware. He only vaguely remembered waking up in the hospital, too. He was pretty sure he had seen Danny, but that could have just been because his father had mentioned that Danny had not left until after he had woken. Everything about that night (even before he finally collapsed) was a major blur to him.
Danny nodded a little, and it was only then that Stiles realized that the other teen had been watching him closely the entire time. It was a little unnerving. "I wanted to make sure you would be okay. I had to see for myself." Danny shrugged as though it was not a big deal, as though it did not mean anything. Of course, Stiles was not sure it really did mean anything; it just felt like it did. What it meant, though, was something that Stiles was unsure of.
"I can't tell you," Stiles said quietly after a couple more moments, shaking his head a little before fully looking over at Danny. "I'll be okay, though; back at school tomorrow. S'all you need to know."
The other teen sighed heavily, as though he did not believe Stiles; but, after a moment, Danny nodded, absentmindedly wetting his lips. "Yeah, alright." He did not like it, wanted to know what was happening, but he knew that continuing to press the issue was not going to get him anyway. Stiles was more stubborn than Jackson on a bad day. "I brought your homework."
Stiles' eyes widened slightly in surprise at that statement as he watched Danny pull a few notebooks and textbooks out of his backpack that Stiles recognized as his own. He placed them on the coffee table. "The new English teacher wants you to pick a novel to read and do an essay on. No requirements past the book has to be over 10,000 words."
The usually talkative teen nodded a little and remained quiet through most of Danny explaining the different assignments he had brought with him. The two of them talked about their history project some as well, until the sheriff came home at seven like he had told Stiles in the note. Linden's brow rose ever so slightly as he hung his jacket up on the rack in the entrance hall when he spotted Stiles and Danny sitting on the living room couch. "Hello, boys," he stated, crossing his arms while walking into the living room. "Homework?"
"Mm-hmm," replied Stiles with a nod, writing down a quick note on something for them to do for their project before looking up at his father. "Danny brought me me assignments from the day."
"I figured Scott would..."
Stiles waved a hand dismissively and grabbed his tea again to take the final few dregs of the drink before explaining, "He's at work."
"Right." The sheriff then nodded and started to walk toward the kitchen. "Danny, are you joining us for dinner?"
The man called the words over his shoulder as he went, not really looking back any. Danny seemed to be stuck on exactly how to answer as he looked toward Stiles, who shrugged in response. He did not care whether Danny stayed or not. It was not like Danny was terrible company when he wasn't pressuring Stiles for answers he could not give. What surprised him the most was the fact that Danny seemed to be contemplating it. Surely Danny had better things to do with his evening than spend it with the class weirdo and his father. "If that's okay," Danny answered after another moment.
Linden stated that it was more than okay as he started to gather things from the fridge to actually make dinner, something that had grown more common in the Stilinski household since the sheriff had gotten in the know. He tried harder to make sure he and Stiles had at least one night a week where they sat down and had a meal together like they used to. It seemed to be the best thing, as none of them had any idea what could happen the next day with their lives so entangled into the supernatural.
The two teens continued to work on homework (Danny even helped Stiles with his calculus and chemistry homework) while Linden was in the kitchen. He had changed into street clothes sometime after starting to cook dinner, and before he went into the living room to tell the teens that dinner was finished. It was odd to see Stiles sitting on the couch next to someone that was not Scott, but at the same time, the man was glad that his son seemed to at least be getting along with someone who was not the teen he was attached at the hip to. "Dinner's done," Linden stated from the doorway, his sudden voice causing Stiles to start and nearly fall off the couch for the second time that day. It was more common than Linden would like to admit.
"Thanks, dad," replied Stiles with a smile before taking a deep breath to steady himself. Then, he smiled at Danny in a way that reminded the goalie of Stiles before he started to get all worn down by...something. It was nice. "C'mon. Let's get food, then you can help me finish this last equation."
"Yeah, alright," said Danny as he stood up with the other teen and the two of them headed toward the kitchen with Linden, whom Danny thanked for letting him stay there for dinner.
Linden waved a hand dismissively in a manner that reminded Danny instantly of Stiles. "It's no problem," he replied, sounding a lot more casual about it than he felt. As much as he was thankfully that his son had Scott as a friend, it did his heart good to see Stiles at least trying to make other friends at the same time. At least, Linden hoped that Stiles was trying to make a new friend.
The three of them talked as they ate, mostly about different sports games and the upcoming lacrosse season, until Stiles and Danny returned to their homework so Stiles could get that last equation done. Stiles was yawning every few moments as they worked, ruffling his hair and stretching his back while seemingly trying to keep himself awake enough to follow what Danny was attempting to explain. Danny found it a bit distracting, to be honest.
In what felt like no time at all, though, Danny was heading back out to his car while telling Stiles that he would see him tomorrow. Stiles had simply nodded in response with a slight smile as Danny walked off the front porch before shutting and locking the front door.
The next morning, Danny was talking to one of the guys on the lacrosse team when Stiles, Scott, Isaac, Allison, and Lydia came into the school. Isaac and Stiles were talking quietly amongst themselves, Isaac's hand on Stiles' shoulder, while Lydia walked with a purpose, as if there was something she needed to go fix. "I dunno," Danny heard Stiles say quietly as they passed. "Just something's wrong. It wasn't a normal nightmare."
"I agree with Stiles," Allison said a little louder than she probably needed to, making Danny wonder if she could hear herself at the moment. "I had the same dream."
"Wait, what?" questioned Isaac, and then they were gone around a corner, leaving Danny with a furrowed brow as he leaned slightly to one side in an futile attempt to try and hear what they continued to say.
After that, Danny did his best to forget what little, uninformative things that he had heard from the other teens and he focused on school. It was not until lunch that he remembered it, as he sat down at his table and watched Stiles practically dozing off on Scott's shoulder where they sat across the room. Scott looked as though he was about to drop, as well, while Allison sipped on a coffee that Danny was not sure how she had gotten. He was startled out of his thoughts when suddenly Lydia was sitting down in front of him. "You don't want to know, Danny," Lydia stated, crossing her arms so that her elbows were on the table as she leaned forward. "Stiles told me about you asking him what's going on." Which, of course he had; everyone had noticed that Stiles and Lydia were actually friends by that point, after Stilinski had stopped worshiping the ground she walked on. "Just trust me, you don't want to know. You're better off not knowing. Focus on school, your friends, your social life; but, just stop trying to figure this out."
The goalie could not keep from lifting his brow a little, leaning forward enough to mirror Lydia's stance as he said, "If you haven't noticed, Lydia, I don't really have any actual friends since this weirdness all started and Jackson left, and then Ethan up and disappeared." Sure, Danny was popular, and he could have anybody he wanted to hang out with whenever he wanted. That did not make any of those people his actual friend, however. He had never had anyone that actually knew him outside of Jackson, and Ethan was starting to, but that did not last, obviously.
Lydia's face pinched slightly at the mention of Ethan, probably remembering her little fling with Aiden, who had left with his twin, supposedly. "The twins were bad news, anyway." Lydia appreciated their heroics there toward the end, but when it really came down to it. They killed Boyd, they had forced Derek to kill Boyd when the person responsible for Ennis' death was Deucalion. That was not something she could really look past, though she had honestly tried there for a while. It wasn't until Stiles had finally snapped and called the twins out on their behavior that Lydia really came to her senses about the whole thing. The twins had not so much just up and left as they were given no other options.
They had enough to worry about with Peter lurking around to have to keep track of murderous twins. "What do you mean by that, Lydia? Ethan was nice," replied Danny with a faint frown as he picked up the apple on his tray to toy with, mostly as a way to slightly distract him from the conversation at hand.
"Yeah, a nice guy who locked Isaac in a closet after figuring out he's claustrophobic and setting him up for a fight he had not taken place in. Which, of course, did not warrant Isaac actually beating him up on that cross country trip. Then again, at that point, we had thought that the twins had seriously injured a... well, almost friend. More of a reluctant ally, really." Lydia tilted her head to one side slightly as she spoke, thinking over the words as she said them. They revealed just enough, she thought, without telling too much.
Danny dropped the apple in his hand back onto the tray and looked over to the other table, where it seemed like Isaac was trying his hardest not to look in their direction and focus on his conversation with Scott and Allison. "He wouldn't do that," replied Danny in a small voice.
"Oh, but he did. Aiden helped, and I tried to do the whole blind eye to it thing; but, I'm glad he's gone." Lydia waved her hand dismissively before smiling softly at Danny, reaching over to gently squeeze his arm. "All you need to know, Danny, is that things are... rough now, but they'll get better. We're handling it."
"You're 'handling it'. Lydia, it sounds like some sort of gang." Danny's brow rose as Lydia simply chuckled in response and flashed a brilliant grin.
Without another word, Lydia got up and went over to the table where Stiles and the others were sitting. Isaac immediately looked to her and started to ask quiet questions that Danny could not hear over the din of the cafeteria. Lydia simply squeezed Isaac's shoulder before taking a seat at the table next to Stiles, who immediately shifted to rest his head on her shoulder instead of Scott's. Danny watched as Lydia absentmindedly lifted a hand to shift her fingers through Stiles' hair. They were an odd bunch, Danny realized not for the first time, and he only had more questions than he had answers. It was frustrating.
He wanted to know. His thoughts were slightly derailed when after a moment, Stiles' eyes landed on him from across the room, that completely haunted expression on his face again as his friends continued to talk around them. It took all of Danny's self-restraint to not cross the room and pull Stiles into a fierce hug, even as Stiles turned his eyes away. With a heavy sigh and a shake of his head, Danny ran a hand through his hair and pulled out his cell phone to send a text to Jackson. Wish you were here.