"How is he?" Y/n asks as soon as she bursts through the door that leads to the back room of the clinic. Alan hadn't been home last night, and normally that doesn't worry her, but when he called her and told her about Scott she rushed over.
"He'll be all right. He's just resting." Alan assures her as she stands next to Scott as he rests on the metal table. Alan messes with his tools at the table above Scott's head and the boy stirs at the sound of the metal tools. He starts to sit up.
"Take it easy." Y/n says but he still goes to stand. She helped steady him when his legs almost gave out and Alan rushed to helped.
"Welcome back to the land of the conscious. You doing okay?" Scott blinks and gives a shaky breath. "Maybe you should sit down, huh?" He pats Scott on the chest and the teen looks down at his bandaged wound. The sound of the bell jingling above the clinic door catches their attention. Y/n narrows her eyes towards the sound. The clinic was closed, no one should be coming in. "Hello?" Y/n glances at Alan, the man giving her a subtle nod that she can follow. Scott stops them as they go to move, giving Alan an anxious look. Alan gives him a reasurring smile before him and Y/n go to the front. "I'm sorry but we're-" He pauses slightly at the sight of Peter standing by the door. "We're closed."
Y/n clenches her teeth at the sight of the man. "Hi there." Peter greets politely. "I'm here to pick up."
"I'm not sure I remember you dropping off."
"This one wandered in on it's own." He takes a few steps closer the the barrier gate seperating him from the two.
"Even if he did, I'm afraid I can't help you. We're closed." Alan keeps the friendly façade on his face while Y/n remains looking uninterested.
"Well, I think you can make an exception this one time... Don't you?"
"I'm sorry. That's not going to be possible. Maybe you could come back during regular hours."
Peter takes a breath and glances around towards the back room. "You have something of mine. I'm here to collect it."
"Like I said..." Alan takes a step foward, Y/n staying just a hair behind him. "We're closed."
Peter reaches to open the small gate but hesitates, his hand not being able to cross over the wood. He looks down at it and slowly reaches forward again, his fingertips grazing the top of it before he scraped his nails off of it. Y/n and Alan glance down at the action before looking at the man again. "Mountain ash. That's an old one." He smiles a bit and lunges for one of the waiting chairs and throws it towards the wall over the barrier. But before it can make contact it freezes, a slight purple shimmer now covers it, the same purple that now blazes in Y/n's eyes. She keeps her gaze on Peter as she moves the chair back to it's original place, her eyes dimming and the shimmer fading once she's done.
"In case he wasn't clear enough I'll say it again." Y/n says in a calm voice. "We. Are. Closed." In the school she was scared and caught unawares, but she's not going to be scared of him anymore. If he wants Scott he'll have to go through her.
Peter straightens his jacket and gives an almost indecernible nod of respect to the witch, turning and walking to the door, but stoping before he opens it. Y/n could hear him quietly talking to Scott. "There are others who can help me get what I want, Scott. More innocent... And far more vulnerable." And then he leaves.
...
"Call it again." Scott asks as he searches his room for his phone. Stiles sits backwards in a chair by the door while Y/n leans against the doorjamb.
"It's not here." Stiles sighs. Scott looks under things as he crosses the room. "Okay, so you lost your phone. Why don't you just get a new one?"
"I can't afford a new one." Scott drops to his stomach and looks under his bed. "And I can't do this alone. We have to find Derek."
"Well, A) you're not alone. You have me and Y/n. And B) didn't you say Derek walked into gunfire? Sounds pretty dead."
"He survived claws through his back." Y/n commented. "Sounded pretty dead then too but he still made it."
"Argent's plan was to use him to get the Alpha- they're not gonna kill him." Scott added.
"All right, so then just let them do what they're planning, you know? They use Derek to get Peter- problem solved." Stiles said.
"Not if Peter's going after Allison to find Derek! I can't protect her on my own. Which means we either find Derek first... Just- just help me!"
"You know, you probably lost it when you two were fighting. You remember that, when he was trying to kill you? After you interrupted him trying to kill Jackson? Are you starting to see a pattern of violent behavior here?"
"I'm starting to see a Hale character trait of stubborn boldness." Y/n lightly joked.
"He wasn't going to kill anyone." Scott insisted. "And I'm not letting him die."
"Could you at least think about letting him die? For me?" Stiles whined.
"Stiles." Y/n said disapprovingly. "I know he's mean but I'm sure he's a good person deep down inside. Deep down. Deep deep down."
Stiles makes a face and looks at Scott as he perks up. "What?"
"My mom just got home for work." Stiles watched Scott lean against his desk and Y/n listened to Melissa as she left an awkward and sad voicemail. She frowned when she heard sniffles.
"Is she okay?" Scott shakes his head. "What's she doing?"
"Crying." Y/n folded her arms and looked away. She couldn't help but feel a bit guilty. Yeah, Peter is a homicidal Alpha werewolf who was planning to bite Melissa, but Melissa didn't know that. All she knew was a handsome guy showed some interest in her, but when their date was ruined she hadn't heard from him since. Something like that would hurt anyone. Scott sighs and sits on his bed across from his friends.
"Scott, you can't protect everyone."
"I have to."
...
"What do you mean, I can't go to the formal?" Scott asks Coach as he follows him through the locker room.
"McCall, you're failing my class and two others." Coach replies. "They told me to cut you from the team. I told them I'd sooner cut off my last remaining testicle than cut my best player."
"Ssso the compromise is I can't go to the dance?"
"Yeah."
"Then I quit the team."
Coach laughs. "No, you don't. And if you show up at the dance and I see you there... I'm gonna drag you out by your teeth." With that Coach goes into his office and closes the door.
Stiles closes Jackson's locker as him, Scott and Y/n stand there to convince Jackson to take Allison to the formal. Normally Y/n wouldn't be in there but this was too important, plus the locker room was almost empty so she was fine, and honestly she didn't care what people thought even if she wasn't. "You want me to take her to the formal." Jackson clarifies.
"I don't want you to. I need you to." Scott says.
"Screw you. You know what? Screw you too." He points to Y/n and Stiles. "In fact, screw each other."
Y/n dramatically rolls her eyes. "It's not gonna kill you to go with her." She said.
"Hey, you know he saved your life, right?" Stiles pointed out.
"He left me for dead."
"I got shot for you."
"Oh, yeah? Show me the bullet wound."
"You know it healed."
"Mm. Convenient."
"Just do it for Allison, okay? She's in serious danger. I'm talking around-the-clock danger. She needs someone to keep an eye on her at the dance."
"Have her dad do it, okay? He's the one actually equipped to handle this."
"How am I supposed to do that and keep him from finding out about me?"
"Not my problem." He goes to leave but Scott slams a hand on the locker to stop him.
"You're her friend too. You are. All that time that you spent with her to get to me- you can't tell me that you didn't get to know her and like her. It's Allison. It's impossible not to like her. You can't tell me that you don't care if she gets hurt."
"What if I get hurt?"
"Then it's worth it."
"Not to me." Jackson shoves past the three and Y/n glares after him.
"He seriously did not just." She was pissed.
Stiles sighs. "Well, I shouldn't say I told you so.... 'Cause it's not strong enough. How about I'm always right, and you should listen to whatever I have to say and never disagree ever, ever, for the sake of your wolflihood?"
"I'm not done." Scott says.
"He's not done."
Scott goes to move but Y/n stops him with a raise of her hand. "Wait. Let me." There's a dangerous edge to her tone and the two boys unconsciously take a step back from her. They know her voice only sounds like that when she's being fiercly protective, they've heard it in favor of them a few times before. She strides off to catch up with the blonde, seeing him before he leaves the locker room. "Jackson, wait! There's one more thing I wanna say." He turns with an exasperated eyeroll but then they widen when he sees her barrel into him, her fingers tangling themselves into the collar of his shirt, using it as leverage to shove him against the door.
"W-what the-" He's startled by her actions because she's never done anything physical to him.
"Listen here. I was polite and didn't punch you in the face every time you made a stupid comment because you were with Lydia and she's one of my best friends, but now that you're 'no longer dating' politeness is over. I could twist your fingers to see how far they can bend backwards before breaking. I could pull your teeth one by one to examine closely how white they are. I could do many various things that will hurt you very, very, much, but I'm not. Why? Because I'm gonna give you one chance to take Allison to the formal or I'm going to slam your pretty face into every single one of these locker doors and see how far those cheekbones can go before they shatter. Do we have an understanding?"
"Hey, what time should I pick you up for the dance tomorrow?" Jackson leans against the locker next to Allison's just as she closes hers. He pants slightly and his face shines with sweat.
"Are you okay?" She smiles bemused at his demeanor.
"Yeah, I-I'm great." Y/n, Scott, and Stiles peek around a corner behind Allison to watch the exchange. "I'm just excited to go to the formal. With you. As friends. Just friends. Just- just friends." They both chuckled and he glances at the three down the hall.
"Thanks again, Y/n." Scott says.
Y/n shrugs it off. "It's nothing really. I've been waiting for a chance to have a talk with him since Lydia told me what he said to her after he broke up with her. Him saying that about Allison was just the icing on the cake."
Scott lapses into silence as he watches the two. "Hey, don't worry. We'll still be there." Stiles tries to make Scott feel better.
"I'm still going."
"Is that such a good idea? Do you even have a date?"
"Not yet."
"Do you have a suit?" Y/n asks curious.
"Not yet."
"Do you have a ticket to the formal?" Stiles adds. "A ride there?"
Scott sighs as he faces his friends. "No. And no."
"So you're gonna ride your bike to a dance that you're not even allowed to go to without a date, a suit, or a way in with werewolves and werewolf Hunters all out to kick your little werewolf ass."
"Yeah." Scott laughs. "You gonna help me?"
"Hell, yeah." Y/n and Stiles both agree, both of them putting an arm around Scott and walking away.
...
Y/n walks with Lydia and Allison through Macy's, the strawberry blonde having insisted on buying them dresses for the formal. Y/n had tried to refuse but Lydia persisted and honestly Y/n couldn't really say no to those green puppy eyes, so she relented. Allison wasn't as cheery as normal and Lydia asked her about it. "Nothing's wrong, I just... I have a lot on my mind." The brunette explained as they rode the escelator up.
"You could smile, at least. Ever heard of the saying, 'never frown, someone could be falling in love with your smile'? Smile, Allison. I'm buying you a dress."
"You really don't have to."
"Of course I do. If I'm going to look amazing for my date I'm going to make sure my friends do for theirs too." She smiled.
"I don't have a date." Y/n admitted. "I was just gonna go by myself."
"There is no way I'm going to let you go alone." Lydia shook her head in a disappointed way.
"I'm not gonna be alone alone. You guys will be there."
"That's not the same."
"Yeah, she's right." Allison agreed as they stepped off the ever-ascending stairs. "I'm going with Jackson as friends, Lydia is going with some roided-up jock, and you are gonna go with-"
"-him." Lydia smirked over Y/n's shoulder making the h/c turn around only to spot Stiles sneezing from some sort of perfume that he accidentaly sprayed towards his face that had offended his nostrils. Stiles notices the girls and casually leans against the counter, sending them a small wave and a smile. Y/n smiled and waved back. "Go over there and ask him to the dance. It's obvious you like each other."
"Is it?" Y/n tilted her head a bit at her friend.
"Painfully. Even before you realized it yourselves." Lydia sighed like it was the saddest thing but Y/n couldn't help the amused smile.
"Fine. I'll go ask him." She turned from her friends and walked over to Stiles who was now examining another perfume bottle. "What are you doing?" She asked as she stood next to him.
"Uh, nothing. Just- just browsing." He clumsily sat the bottle down making a loud clattering sound.
"Mmm." She hummed and then leaned her hip on the counter fairly close to him. "Do you have a date to the formal?" He shakes his head, his brain trying to catch up with what she's saying. "Do you wanna go with me?"
He choked on air. "W-with you?" She nodded with a smile. "As friends?"
"Well, I was kinda thinking of, like, a date."
"Date? With me? You want me to go with you as a date?" Her smile widened as she nodded again. He huffs a nervous laugh and looks around but he can't stop the huge smile come to his face. When he faces her again he corrects himself, making an effort to look cool and collected. "Uh, yeah. Yeah, that sounds great."
"Great." She straightens up and links her arm with his and starts leading him over to her waiting friends. "Now, I need you to help me help Lydia with dress picking."
"Wait, what?" He does a double take at her. Pretty soon Lydia has dragged Stiles away and used his arms as holding racks, laying dress after dress on them. "Oh- okay, so are you just gonna... Try these all on right now? All of them?" Lydia adds another dress and walks off, Stiles following right behind her. "Is this a 24-hour Macy's?" Y/n chuckles at that before looking at the dress Lydia had shoved into her arms saying that it was perfect for her. Sighing she heads to a dressing room to try it on. Once it's on she faces the mirror and raises her brows at the reflection in surprise. It looks amazing and she actually likes it. Lydia was like some sort of wizard when it came to clothes.
Her admiration of the dress was cut short when she felt something, or rather someone, that was in the store. Peter was here. She quickly changes back into her normal clothes and rushes out of the dressing room. She stopped though when she heard an announcement over the speakers about a blue Mazda being towed and Allison rushed away. Peter's presence lingered a moment before leaving and Y/n sighed. She had a bad feeling about the formal but she pushed it to the back of her mind. She didn't want to think something bad would happen, she just wanted to be able to have fun with her friends and date.
...
Y/n stands in her room having just finished getting ready. She wears the dress Lydia had bought for her and she paired it with a pair of earings and a necklace that she had had. She styled her hair and did her makeup how she liked and found a pair of shoes that seemed to go really well with the dress. (Again, if you don't like any clothes I describe or show, please feel free to imagine something else:)) A knock on her open door drew her attention to find Alan smiling at her.
"You look amazing." He complimented.
"Thanks. Lydia picked the dress for me and I actually really love it."
"Well, it suits you perfectly. You know, when she was your age, your mother wore a similar dress to her own formal."
"Really?"
"Yes. She looked as amazing as you did. She had all the boys falling over her. I wouldn't be surprised if the same happened to you."
She rolled her eyes. "Please." She scoffed. "I don't care what all the other guys think."
"All but one." He gives a knowing smirk as she smiles. "That's another thing you have in common with her. She only had eyes for one boy back then."
Her smile faded to a look of cautious curiosity. "You mean... My father?" She hesitantly asked. Alan nodded after a moment. She had never met her father, never knew who he was or where he was. All she ever heard was a few stories from her mother. M/n had told her that her father didn't even know she was expecting and that she had left before he found out. When Y/n asked her why she did that M/n sighed a bit and thought carefully about her words.
"I had a dream. Your father was going to get himself into trouble. So much so that it would affect those closest to him. I didn't know what, or where, or when it would happen but I knew I had to keep you away from it. I loved him, but when I found out I was having you, you became my top priority. My little blessing." She had hugged Y/n close to her and Y/n giggled at the affections.
When she pulled away she looked at her mother with eyes bright with curiosity. "Why would he get in trouble? Was he a bad man?"
This time M/n gave her a sad smile, but the little girl didn't understand why her mama would be sad. "Your father is a complicated man and sometimes a difficult man to love. He can be blinded by his ambition and self preservation and make the wrong decisions. But sometimes he'll see the light and do good. It's those moments I fell in love with and it's those moments I want you to keep an open mind for. Promise me, Y/n, that if you ever meet him, no matter what bad thing he might have done, if you see even a sliver of hope l want you to give him a second chance, okay?"
"Yes, mama. I promise."
And Y/n has kept that promise close to her heart. She has doubts that she'll ever meet him but if she does, she'll keep her eyes open for those moments her mother talked about. Y/n's attention was drawn to the window at the sound of a car pulling up and she smiled. "Stiles is here."
Alan smiled at her. "Go have fun." She gave him a quick hug before rushing downstairs, reaching the door just as the bell rung. She waited in front of it for a moment before she finally opened it, beaming at the boy standing at her doorstep. Stiles' eyes widened at her appearance, his jaw dropping slightly.
"Hey there." She greeted.
"H-hey, Y/n. You, uh, you look great. Amazing, actually! Beautiful really."
"Thank you. You look very handsome yourself." He smiled bashfully at the compliment, straightening his jacket. "Um, shall we go?"
"We shall." She smiles and shuts the door behind her. He rushes to open the passenger door of the Jeep for her and helps her in like a gentleman. When they arrive at the school he practically falls out of the car in his rush to open her door again, fixing his jacket and straightening his tie as he makes his way around the front. He opens her door and helps her out and she smiles in thanks.
"Y/n!" She turns her head at the shout of her name, spotting Lydia excitedly rushing to her, a boy Y/n didn't recognize chasing at her heels. "You look amazing! I told you that dress was perfect."
"It is." She admits. "Thank you again for it."
"It's no problem." Movement to the side draws their attention to Allison and Jackson walking up to them. "Jackson. You look handsome." Lydia kindly compliments her ex.
"Obviously. It's Hugo Boss." He smiles smugly.
"Oh, what she meant was the suit was handsome. It's just a shame that it's being ruined by the body inside it." Y/n fake pouts. Jackson rolls his eyes and continues walking with Allison into the party.
Lydia clicks her teeth. "I don't care. I don't want compliments. I will not fall prey to society's desire to turn girls into emotional, insecure neurotics who pull up their dresses at the first flattering remark." Lydia sighs in annoyance.
"Well, I think you look beautiful." Lydia's date compliments and she looks at him in mild surprise.
"Really?" The boy offers his arm and she takes it, the pair heading inside. Y/n shakes her head with a fond smile towards her friend. Stiles offers his own arm to her and she takes it and lets him lead her in, the pair instantly being surrounded by loud music and bright light.
A live band performs their songs as students dance to the beat. Y/n happily sips on her punch, content for the moment to just sit at a table and people watch. Stiles sits next to her and Lydia is slumped in a seat on her other side, propping her chin on her hand with a dissatisfied pout. The boy Lydia came with was dancing with another girl, him having gotten tired of Lydia just sitting there. Y/n furrows her brows a bit when she senses him again but she shakes her head a little. He's not here. He wouldn't come here, would he? No. It's just her being paranoid and that feeling of dread she has is just that. Just a feeling.
Y/n instead focues on the crowd and notices that Allison had gotten Jackson to dance and she sets her cup down, turning her determined gaze onto her friend. "Lydia, wanna dance?" She asked.
"I'm gonna pass."
"Let me rephrase." She playfully glares at her. "Lydia, get off your cute little ass and come dance with me."
Lydia smiled a bit but continued to play along. "Interesting tactic. I'm gonna stick with no."
Y/n sighs and stands, suddenly serious. "Lydia, get up. I'm not gonna let you sit here all night moping because a guy, who's a complete ass by the way, broke up with you and isn't here with you. If he wants to let you go to chase whatever stupid changes he wants to make then that's his loss, all right? Because underneath your cold and seemingly heartless exterior, I know you are a beautiful and incredibly smart young woman who one day, when you decide to stop playing dumb for boys attention, will go off and write some insane mathematical theorem that wins you that- that one medal."
Lydia is quiet for a moment as she glances away. "A Fields Medal."
"Right! That one! A Fields Medal. So? What do you say?" She holds her hand out to Lydia who finally takes it with a barely hidden grin. Y/n smiles at her and loops their arms then suddenly grabs Stiles' hand, startling the boy into a small flail as she pulls him out of his seat. "What? You thought I'd leave my date all alone?" She gave him a teasing smile and started to walk with Lydia, Stiles doing a silent cheer behind the girls at being included.
Scott watches from the bleacher with a smile at his friends finally getting together. Of course nothing official has been said or done yet but it's fairly obvious by now that Y/n likes Stiles and vise versa. His eyes widen and smile fades when they pass in front of Coach and the man suddenly spots Scott. "McCall! I see you!" Coach yells and points at the teen across the room. "Come here, buddy. Come here." He starts to make his way across the gym and Scott rushes down the bleachers. "McCall! Get out of my way!" Coach pushes past a dancing teen. "McCall!" He looks around the students as he loses sight of Scott. "It's a small gym, buddy. I'm gonna find you." Scott hides behind the fabric hangings for a moment as he searches for a way to get away. "I gotcha, McCall! Come here, come here. Get outta my way! McCall!"
Scott rushes to some tables and spots someone who could help. "Danny, Danny, dance with me." He rushes out as he gets to the boy.
"What?" Danny sets his drink down confused.
"Dance with me."
"No."
"Please! Right now! Right now!" He pulls Danny from his seat and onto the dance floor, quickly putting his arms over Danny's shoulders and linking his hands. Just in time too as Coach had finally managed to catch up with Scott.
"McCall! You're not supposed to-" He cuts himself off as he sees Danny 'dancing' with Scott. "What the hell are you do-" The music cuts and there's a bit of feedback as everyone stops dancing to look at the commotion. Y/n, Stiles, and Lydia all smiling at the scene. "What the hell are you doing?" Coach asks Scott confused.
Scott glances around and all the stares and tightens his hands behind Danny's neck, getting a bit closer to him. "Yes, Coach?" Y/n had to bite her bottom lip to keep from laughing.
Coach quickly realizes what that all looked like to everyone. "Okay, ho-ho-ho-ha ha." He breaks into nervous laughter and holds his hands up. "Hold on, you- I was just saying he's not supposed to- I mean, I wasn't saying that he shouldn't- you guys don't think- you don't- I-I was-" He can't form a coherent sentence as he tries to explain himself. "Just dance, everybody. Just dance! Dance! It's a party!" More nervous laughter follows him as the band starts up again, a soft ballad flowing out of the speakers.
"Thanks, dude, I owe you!" Scott quickly thanks Danny, rushing off to find Allison as Danny is left confused, giving his date a relieved look when he comes up with more drink.
Y/n had kept in her laughs until now but when she heard Coach yell, "what are you looking at, Greenberg?" She couldn't hold it in anymore and doubled over with laughter. Lydia and Stiles joining in a bit as she straightened up.
"That is the best thing to happen tonight so far." Y/n sighed, wiping an imaginary tear from her eye.
"Well, I'm sure that won't be the last of great things to happen tonight." Lydia smiled between Y/n and Stiles. "I'm gonna go get a drink. You guys dance." She strutted off before anyone could say anything and Y/n looked after her with a fond smile before she looked at Stiles who was already looking at her.
"Dance with me?" She held a hand to him and he took it with a nod of his head. She led him to a less crowded spot of the dance floor, gently laying her hands on his shoulders. He gulped nervously, his hands not quite sure where they're allowed to go. "You can touch me, Stiles. I'm not gonna bite. Well, not unless you ask me to." She smirked at his flustered state. Deciding to take a bit of pity on him she let her hands trail down his arms to his hands where she guided them to rest on her waist before putting hers back to their original spot. They were quiet as they swayed together, staring into each other's eyes with warmth in their gaze, and she wondered if his eyes had always had those gold flecks or if they were just extra noticeable because this time she was actually looking at him instead of looking at him.
As she looked at him and took in how soft his expression was she suddenly felt guilty. Very, very guilty. She's been lying to him ever since Scott was bitten. Lying about what she was and what she knew. Before Scott was changed there was no reason to tell them, they didn't know about the supernatural, but now they do and she let fear rule her. She finally decided no more. She was gonna tell him the truth.
"Stiles-"
"Y/n-"
They both called each other at the same time, both pausing and giving a quick chuckle at the timing. "Stiles, there's something I have to tell you." She went to start but he quickly jumped in.
"Wait. I have to tell you something too and if I don't do it now I might not be able to later." He sounded so earnest and so all she could do was swallow her words and nod for him to continue. He took a deep breath to steady his nerves. "I don't know when it happened and I don't know how to explain it, but for a while now I've been seeing you different. I've been actually seeing you and how beautiful you are. And not just that, but you're also strong and brave and just amazing. You could have asked anyone else or said yes to anyone else to be here but you asked me and I'm blown away by that. You could have literally anyone you want and you chose me. I'm not very good at this obviously. I fell over my feet when I had a crush on Lydia. I can't imagine how much of an idiot I'll end up making of myself now that I... now that I think I'm falling for you." The last words were spoken so quietly, almost as if he was afraid of breaking their relationship just by saying them.
Her heart thumped heavily in her chest. She had a feeling that he had felt this way but it was different actually hearing him say it. Screw it. I can tell him later. She thought as she smiled at him. Now was not the time for secrets like that. Now was the time for secrets like, "I asked you to be my date because I think I'm falling for you, too." His breath hitched a bit and he blinked for a moment, seemingly surprised that she felt the same. But the shock wore off as his gaze flicked to her lips. She leaned in as if to give him permission and then he was kissing her. Call it clichè, but she swore she felt lighting on her finger tips. Or maybe that was her magic reacting to her emotions. Either way it was, well, magical.
His hands went up to gently hold her face between them as her fingertips traced random shapes on the nape of his neck, the affects of it leaving his skin tingling. When the call for air was too much they pulled away, both slightly panting from the kiss. "Wow. That was... Wow." Stiles breathed, blinking slowly in a daze. Y/n chuckled a bit at his reaction but her humor soon faded when she spotted Lydia over his shoulder looking around for someone. She furrows her brows and steps away from Stiles a bit. "Y/n?" He asks in confusion and follows her gaze.
"I'm sorry, Stiles, but I need to check on Lydia."
"Yeah, that's fine." She takes his hand with a thankful smile and the two go over to the girl.
"Lydia? Are you okay?"
Lydia looks at them with a slightly worried expression. "I'm fine, but... Have you seen Jackson?"
"Lydia." Y/n says in slight exasperation.
"I know, I know. But I'm kind of worried about him. Can you please just help me look for him?" She pleads.
Y/n sighs but agreed to look, albeit with reluctance. "Fine."
"Thank you." Lydia smiles and Y/n can't help but smile back.
They make their way out of the gym and into the halls, looking down both ways. "Okay, me and Lydia will go this way and you go that way." She instructed Stiles. He frowned a bit and her lips twitched in a half smile. "Don't worry, Stiles. Nothing will change from now to when we meet up again. I meant what I said and I don't plan on letting you forget." She gave him a quick peck on the cheek and then lightly pushed him the opposite direction. "Go." She gently coaxed and he nodded. And then the two girls walked together down the halls in search of the blonde lacrosse boy.
Their search led them outside, Lydia insitant on searching everywhere for him. "Jackson?" She called out.
"Lydia, I don't think-" Y/n tried before she cut herself off. Her head quickly turned to the left. She could have sworn she saw someone walking into school, but she couldn't think about it as Lydia started to walk off again and Y/n followed like the loyal friend she is.
Stiles had walked out of the gym, having looped back around and looking inside for Jackson, when he spots said boy coming down the hall. "Where the hell have you been?" Stiles asks. "Did Y/n and Lydia ever find you?" Jackson doesn't answer and Stiles realizes something is off with him. "What? What's wrong?"
He's quiet for a moment but finally forces words from his mouth. "I-I was out behind the school, and I... I was... Out..." But he can't say it.
Stiles narrows his eyes a bit. "What happened?" Jackson doesn't answer. "Jackson. What did you do?"
"Jackson!" Lydia calls as the two start walking through the lacrosse field. "Jackson!"
Y/n feels a sudden pull in her gut telling her that they shouldn't be there. Something was going to happen. "Lydia! Jackson wouldn't be way out here. It's freezing. Let's go back in-" She tried to get Lydia to go, but is cut off when the flood lights above the stands started to turn on one by one.
Lydia breathes heavily, looking around as they turn on, squinting in the sudden brightness.
"Jackson!" She calls again and focuses on a silouhetted figure making their way towards them. "Jackson, is that you?" But it's not. Y/n knows it's not. She's felt him all night but ignored it. Oh, how stupid it was to do that. She's never ignored her feelings before. Why tonight, of all nights, did she finally decide to do so?
Because she wanted to be a normal teenage girl for just one night.
"Lydia, get back." Y/n grabbed Lydia and pulled her away.
"Y/N! LYDIA!" The girls turned their heads for just a moment at Stiles' frantic yells. "RUN!" Y/n turned back to Peter, ready to defend them with everything, but Peter was just a hair too fast. He opened his mouth as his fangs elongated, lunging for Y/n first with his claws. He slashed at her with his right hand, carving deep cuts from her shoulder to her hip, impaling her with the other for good measure. Y/n gasped, her eyes meeting his for a moment before he pulled out his claws and she crumpled to the ground, falling to her back unconscious. Lydia screamed and Peter attacked her next, slashing at her and biting into her side. She fell unconscious a bit away from Y/n on her side. Stiles slid the last few inches on his knees, but stopped short of them as Peter hovered over Y/n in a threatening manner, growling at Stiles. Stiles took shaky breathes, he couldn't take his eyes off of her, only giving the werewolf a couple of glances. "Don't kill her. Please."
"Hmm." Peter hummed, a sympathetic look on his face, but how sympathetic can you look with blood running down your chin? "Of course not. Just tell me how to find Derek."
"W-what?"
"Tell me how to find Derek Hale." He said again, trailing a claw down Y/n's cheek.
"I don't know that. How would I know that?" His voice raises in panic.
"Because you're the clever one, aren't you? And because deception has a particularly acrid scent, Stiles. One that can't be masked by the natural floral that she rubbed off on you." He gently nodded to Y/n, Stiles confused by what he meant by that. "Tell me the truth... Or I will rip her apart."
"Look-" He starts to hyperventilate. "Look, I don't know, okay? I sw- I swear to God, I have no idea."
There's a beat of silence. "TELL ME!!!" Peter roars in his Alpha voice, Stiles flinching a little at the sound so close.
Y/n gasps a bit, her back arching slightly as her eyelids flutter revealing her irises glowing brightly. "Stiles... Don't..." Her voice is a faint whisper. She's too weak and she falls back again, her head lolling to the side. Her eyes close, hiding the glow, but Stiles saw it. He furrows his brows at it but he's more worried about keeping her alive than what he saw.
"Okay, okay, okay, look, I-" He breathes heavily as he tries to get the words out. "I think he knew-"
"Knew what?"
"Derek, I think he- I think he knew he was gonna be caught."
"By the Argents?"
"Yeah."
"And?"
"When- when they were shot, he and Scott I... I think he took Scott's phone."
"Why?"
"They all have GPS now. So if he still has it and if it's still on... You can find him."
~~~
Published: 1/13/21
Edited: 4/12/22