From Ashes ✗ Stiles Stilinski - Chapter 28: Chapter 28

Back and forth they went, for the rest of the free period, while Maddie vaguely realized something peculiar. For the first since she set foot in that god forsaken town, she didn't completely hate having to talk to Stiles – in fact, it was strangely...nice. She shook her head violently; nice was not a word she wanted to associate with, of all headaches, Stiles Stilinski. It was weird enough referring to Allison and Lydia as her friends; she couldn't quite imagine adding more names to that list. Or even the possibility of accepting that people like Stiles and Scott had already reached friend status without her permission. It was absolutely infuriating.
Even when they decided how to split up during the game that night, she had opted to team up with Stiles. Opted to. Of her own free will.
"Wha- Really?" Stiles cleared his throat and scratched the back of his head. "I mean why?"
Certainly, there was a great, completely straightforward, and undeniably logical answer for this. She just couldn't think of it. Especially when Allison, Scott, and Stiles had all been giving her such expectant looks.
"Because you're a magnet for trouble."
Yeah, that was why. Exactly.
Now, Maddie found herself kicking the grass behind the bleachers and keeping out of sight from Gerard. She could still hear him though as he used that deceiving, kindly old man tone. She had done her best to keep away from him at all costs since he came to town; she even locked her door at night. Well, she did when she was awake to do so.
That was when she thought back to the night prior and how little she remembered of it. She recalled her confrontation with Erica and the incident at the Auto Shop. She even vaguely remembered Scott picking her and Stiles up – but that's where it ended. Allison and Stiles carried her in last night and she didn't wake up at all? Exactly how tired had she been?
That was an easy question to answer though. She'd been exhausted from the moment Peter Hale was killed. That's when she started having trouble sleeping. Guilt she had buried down deep from another time had surfaced the moment she saw Lydia lying there in the grass, motionless. Of course, it only got worse from there when Gerard got to town and killed that omega. Then Derek turning Isaac, Erica, and Boyd? It was too much; there were already too many lives that had been given a death sentence.
All it took was another death to realize just how useless she was without rest. She even risked her friend's life doing so. She was lucky she got there before...
There she went again – calling Stiles her friend. She frowned and kicked the grass harder this time. In the very next moment, she caught sight of something large out of the corner of her eye – although it was unnaturally quick enough that she almost didn't. In one swift and fluid movement, she landed a sharp kick to whatever it was, sending it flying. It landed with a hard thud and a grunt from the creature.
No, not a creature – well, sort of not a creature. A boy. In a severe turn, rage began to boil under her skin as she slipped her compact crossbow out of the inside of her jacket and its sides sprung outward to full size. She marched directly over to the boy on the ground and placed a firm boot on his collarbone as he tried to sit up. She stomped him back into the dirt and grass, pointing the bolt at his throat. He looked just about as shocked as the last time she him – at the Sherriff's station. "Isaac."
Isaac swallowed and stayed still, breathing heavily. "Maddie. Mind letting me up?"
"Actually..." She pressed the sole of her boot harder into his chest. "I really do."
There was a tinge of malice in her voice as she glared down at the boy who, weeks earlier, she had held an amiable conversation with in the middle of a cemetery. She tightened her grip on her crossbow as he choked out a quiet laugh. "He...he warned us about you."
"No, he warned you about the Slayer," she growled, leaning towards him. She thought back to the skittish boy in the cemetery and the frail girl surrounded by bullies...and then the wolves that attacked Scott and Stiles. She had just made up with Allison but the war was still coming and she was still an Argent. She would be a target. Her eyes narrowed on him, a blaze of anger behind her dark irises as they met his blue ones. "You touch any of my people – any one of them – and you'll find out what I can do. And I swear to you..."
She sneered and ground her shoe down a little more, venom coating her voice as it rolled out from the darkest reaches of her mind.
"You'll beg for prison."
She promptly removed her foot and kept the bolt of the crossbow steadily aimed on Isaac as he backed up quickly and stood. He was probably bruised pretty badly or worse, as she hadn't bothered to listen for a 'crack'. His breathing was ragged and his face was pained as he held the spot on his chest where her foot had been. "You know...we're not on different sides. The hunters will turn on you, too."
Maddie knew that already. Of course she knew; she had known it from the moment she sat at the Argents' table and every day since. Her jaw clenched tightly as her dark stare remained fixed on the werewolf. "This is your only warning. Leave. Now."
He backed away just in time for Maddie to hear the footsteps behind her, causing her to spin on her heel and instinctively point her crossbow at the stranger. There stood Stiles, hands raised in defense and a shocked look on his face as he spoke in a hushed tone. "Whoa, okay! I don't know what I did but-"
Maddie looked just about as shocked and quickly looked behind her again. Isaac disappeared into thin air in a matter of seconds, leaving only the backdrop of the shadowed woods in the distance. She sighed and ran the fingers of her free hand through her hair as she lowered the weapon. "...Sorry."
The word seemed almost forced but the boy's eyes widened in surprise nonetheless.
"...It's okay." He blinked a few more times and shook his head slightly, as if snapping out of a trance. He raised his hand and a ring of keys dangled from it. "Come on, let's go."
As Stiles led them away from the field, Maddie kept her weapon low but her finger on the trigger. She didn't trust Erica or Isaac to simply leave with no fuss – they weren't exactly the people they used to be. She especially didn't trust Derek to be far behind; for all she knew, he could've been watching. She would've liked to think that that was because he knew he couldn't take her but, after their first confrontation, she knew that was a lie. Sure, she was more prepared for him this time around, but he had a lot longer than eight years to hone his power.
The dimly lit parking lot was only partially full, regardless of the game going on, although it did make it much easier to see their destination from where they were. The two walked side by side in a strangely comfortable silence, a short distance between them. Maddie decided that Stiles was much easier to deal with when he wasn't talking and her temper was much simpler to control when she didn't have to reply. One thing that was beginning to irk her though was the side glances. Perhaps it was her complacent attitude or the fact that she still had her crossbow out as they walked in a public place, but she had caught him glancing over at her every few minutes.
The one thing that irritated her more was the fact that she noticed only because she was guilty of the same.
of her must've been worried that if she didn't, something would happen. She was beginning to believe her own hype, clearly; if she took her attention off of the utterly defenseless boy, he'd find trouble. It was almost a guarantee.
In fact, when he stopped, she was sure it was because he found something dangerous. He held up just his index finger to Maddie before rushing over to the only car in the parking lot with its lights still on. Not just any car, though. Perfectly coiffed, pale red tresses could just barely be seen in the window. The slayer found herself fighting to stay over where she was as she heard the choked sobs and sniffling. No, she scolded herself. Focus.
"Hey, Lydia, what's wrong? Lydia, come on –"
"Just go away."
"What's wrong?"
Suddenly, she wished Stiles had handed her the keys as it dawned upon her that she was stuck standing there, listening. Too afraid to walk over. She was never good with other people's emotions anyway. Stiles was, though, as much as she didn't want to admit it; he seemed to have a knack for helping people on a level that she couldn't. He even knew something was wrong just before the insomnia really started to show on her face – and before anyone else noticed either.  He was the first to ask if she was okay. He could barely stand her and he asked if she was alright – who the hell does that? She was almost envious of him.
"Look, I don't need anyone seeing my cry."
"Ah, come on, Lydia. Look, you shouldn't care if people see you cry, all right? Especially you."
In the back of her head, she was suddenly reminded of exactly why he rushed over when Maddie herself hadn't even noticed it was Lydia's car until he was already over there. 'He's had this massive crush on Lydia since they were kids.' Those had been Allison's exact words. Allison, the girl who had been with her werewolf boyfriend for god  knows how long. Then there were Stiles and Lydia – or Lydia and Jackson. Either way, it was a bitter reminder that she had not allowed herself the time to entertain trivial thoughts of boys or liking someone, not since... She didn't want to think about that though. Honestly, she was still getting used to freeing up space in her head for 'friends'; anything beyond that led her back to miserable thoughts of duty and fate. Even now, thinking about it made her insides twist up ever so slightly.
"Why?"
"Because I think you look really beautiful when you cry."
It was a bit endearing still, regardless of Maddie's own screwed up circumstances. Even as uncomfortable as she felt – and, oh boy, did she ever – she was grateful someone like Lydia had someone like Stiles to care about her. If Maddie's life had gone differently, she'd wish for that – or something like it. At least, she thought she would.
She shook her head violently. Now wasn't the time for this.
She wasn't expecting the hesitation when Lydia spoke – or what she said at or that matter. "You- ...no. You don't have the time. Maddie needs you."
The color drained from the Slayer's face for two reasons. One – the statement in lieu of her thoughts only moment ago left her horrified. 'Maddie needs you.' Pfft. Like hell. Two – how did Lydia even know she was there?
Maddie took a step forward and gave Lydia a slight wave with one hand while hiding her crossbow behind her back with the other. "Uh, actually, I really don't."
Lydia's red, glassy eyes reflected in the driver's side mirror. Hers, though, were not the only set of eyes that were now on Maddie. At Lydia's words, Stiles' head had turned back to her in an instant as his face looked just about horrified.
Wait, no.
Not horrified.
Shocked, sure. She could definitely identify shock. Shock, as if he had momentarily forgotten she was there. There was what seemed like an extended moment where he seemed to be trying decipher something – almost the same look he had given her the night in the school. Less accusatory, though. Maybe more confused.
In fact, increasingly confused as he looked back and forth between her and Lydia. He paused for a moment and cursed quietly, although Maddie heard it clearly. "Ah, crap."
Lydia's face, while still left with streaks of tears, bore a mild amount of annoyance as she looked away slightly. Maddie's eyes shot downward, a mixture of frustration and guilt behind them.
"I'll be back-"
No, he wouldn't.
"-I, er, I just have this thing-"
This was painful to watch.
"- five minutes, that's it. I'll be back and we can talk, I swear."
If he had given Maddie the keys he could've just stayed. Like he'd agree to that.
"...Actually, we'll both be back."
Maddie's head snapped back up and glared at Stiles. She discovered he was looking her way and giving her a pleading stare. She opened her mouth to argue – obviously to argue – but what came out was certainly not an argument.
"...Sure, yeah." Suddenly, she was irritated with herself but she wasn't sure if it was because she had been enlisted to help or because she acted like it was a chore. "What are friends for?"
Lydia didn't respond and Maddie couldn't blame her. She'd been so consumed with her own problems, she felt like she hadn't spent even a moment with Lydia in weeks. Stiles gave her an appreciative nod and fast walked away from the car and right past her. She jogged to close the distance before walking at the same pace and into the school.
This was terrible; she felt like an entirely different person. She hated being so...agreeable. Something about Lydia, though, made her fold each time. Maybe it was the other girl's no nonsense attitude. Hell, maybe it was just pity. Of course, that was the hope and would most likely be the lie she would tell herself to rationalize things.
They entered the school while an awkward silence settled thickly between the two and continued as they reached the principal's office. Stiles quickly unlocked the door and pushed it open. Maddie swerved past him as she checked her phone. She had described the creature to Dawn, Buffy's sister and their resident book expert, in as much detail as possible but hadn't heard a word from her all day. Of course not, she reasoned with herself. There are thousands of demons in the world with that same description.  A wave of relief washed over her when she found Dawn's name under new messages but she frowned again when she found it was only another question.
Dawn 『your friend said he recognized its eyes? like it might be a shape shifter?』
Exactly! Is there something like that? Her thumbs raced across the tiny keyboard, completely bypassing the fact that Dawn had actually called Stiles her friend. There was no use fighting it, she supposed. She probably spent more time with Stiles than anyone else in that town anyway, even if it wasn't by choice. Not at first at least, the bitter thought entered her head without permission. Maybe she owed him that much. Not that he'd want to be her friend either.
"What are you doing?!" he whispered in a harsh tone.
Her head flew up again and she shoved her phone back into her pocket. "Nothing! Just...getting info on my side."
"Anything yet?" He sounded almost hopeful.
She sighed and shook her head. Without another word, he went back to rummaging through drawers, as did she. After ten minutes of absolutely nothing that either of them could describe as a leather bound book, they both took a step back, defeated. Stiles pulled out his phone and began typing. That was when the slayer heard the distinct sound of heels clicking in the hallway and narrowed her eyes on the door. She instinctively raised the crossbow again as the sides sprung back out.
In the very next moment, Erica came striding into view, looking rather pleased with herself. The smile on her painted lips grew. "I was really hoping Isaac was right."
Stiles looked up the moment Erica spoke and took a step back as Maddie placed herself in front of him, aiming the bolt at Erica's throat.
"Hey, Maddie? Do you remember the last time we talked? Like, really talked?" Erica asked like they were friends reminiscing but she could hear the venom under it.
Maddie's thoughts strained for the memory, so unimportant at the time that it felt like a blip. There and gone. A blissfully average talk between classmates, despite the hurt written on Erica's face when she looked back and forth between Maddie and Stiles that day.
"It's not that big of a stretch. You guys spend tons of time together."
Maddie's mouth remained a thin line as she stayed perfectly still, debating whether or not to pull the trigger on the crossbow.
"Because the thing is, here you are. Both of you." She tilted her head slightly. "Always Stiles and Maddie. Every...single...time."
Maddie raised an eyebrow. "Your point?"
"My point is I just heard an uptick in someone's heartbeat the moment I said that." Erica seemed pause, listening  again, before letting out a soft chuckle, her eyes still dead set on Maddie. "What's interesting is whose it was."
It was enough of a comment to confuse Maddie for just a moment - to lose her concentration and her grip to loosen just enough. In that second, Erica sped past her at break-neck speed and grabbed Stiles by the neck.
Maddie spun around immediately, facing the girl whose eyes now viciously gleamed yellow and whose claws now dug slightly into the boy's neck.
"But what's even more interesting is that he'll be dead before you make that shot."
A moment. It was only a moment. Her jaw tightened and her finger twitched on the trigger before she took a breath and lowered the crossbow completely.
The bright yellow of Erica's eyes dimmed and she nodded toward the door. "C'mon. Derek's waiting."
It was a short, tense walk as they entered a room cast in a soft, blue glow. Maddie almost forgot about the large room they stood in, seeing as she hadn't been by the pools since her last late night school adventure. Her hand almost went into her jacket to grab her weapon at the sight of a mildly smug Derek but instead kept her arms folded in front of her. She remembered the last time she faced off with him, before he was an Alpha at that. Now, she knew he would be much stronger and had back up to boot. She wasn't fool enough to think she could win – but, gods, she wanted to hurt him.
Erica finally let Stiles go, shoving him nearly into Maddie. He rubbed the red marks on his neck as the Alpha began to speak.
"Stiles." Holding a basketball in one hand, Derek's eyes traveled from the defenseless boy to the girl next to him. "And...Maddie, right?"
Stiles nodded while still holding his neck. "Derek."
Maddie continued to glare silently.
"What'd you see at the mechanic's garage?" Derek asked.
"Ah...several alarming EPA violations that I'm seriously considering reporting," Stiles answered.
Derek didn't seem to react all that much at first until the claws on his other hand were revealed to them and proceeded into the side of the basketball, draining all of the air entirely out.
"...Holy god," Stiles muttered as Maddie fought against reaching for the crossbow for the second time.
Derek watched them both calmly. "Let's try that again."
"You're overreacting, my son," the thickly bearded man began, his deep, scratchy Southern drawl melting over his tone. "For weeks you've been ravin'! Gettin' our people riled up with a bed time story!"
A slightly younger man with long black hair stood at the head of a larger group, his grotesque deformed brow sloping over her sickly yellow eyes like those behind him.
"I swear on the most holy herself, Father. A slayer came from the beacon and slaughtered three of your children." He spun around to face the murmuring crowd. "Part of our family! They were dead in mere minutes!"
"That certainly is a bold accusation, what with hunters now at our borders." The bearded man paced slowly back and forth. "Slayers have had the good sense to keep out of these parts for some time now. Which means..." He stopped pacing and took a few measured steps toward the black haired young man, causing the crowd to take several steps backward. "You. Are. Lying."
"I'm not! ...I...I would never...not to you..."
The pale, rounder man grinned. "You know what happens to liars, Bartholomew."
Bartholomew shrank back and shook his head fervently. "No! No, please! She...she brought others with her! From the beacon! Two humans and..."
The bearded man was humming as he got closer and reached into his pocket.
"No! You have to believe me, she-" He kept begging and begging as the older man stood merely a foot away, still grinning and humming. The dark haired man threw something small on the ground. "She brought a wolf!"
There was a collective gasp that sounded from those behind him and the man looking him in the eye had stopped. The grin was gone as he looked down. He bent down and picked up what had fallen, holding in his hand a lone claw. There was a long, tense silence that throttled them all. The man closed his fist around the claw and looked up at the other man. "...You did well, my son."
The black haired monster nodded.
"While I have my doubts about the Slayer returnin', we have something far better." He took a step back, threw his head back and laughed a boisterous laugh. "We have a breach of contract! A family of dogs cast us from the garden to wallow in dead fields!" He began to pace again. "They have starved us! Taken away the one thing that could make us strong!"
The murmurs rose again.
"And now, on the eve of the end times...Now they may have aligned themselves the beast that seeks the destruction of our kind! That destroyed our holy land! The true hunters!" His balled fist grew tighter as blood trickled from it. "WE REFUSE! We will not abide these trespasses! We will plague their fields and poison their hounds! We...will burn their beacon of light to the ground and tear their world asunder."
A roar of cheers and applause erupted from the crowd.
"We will build our kingdom on their bones and BRING OUR MOTHER HOME TO FEAST ON THEIR KIN! AS THE WORLD DIES, WE WILL PROSPER!"
The raucous crowd got louder and louder.
"But first!" With these words, the crowd's energy ebbed in seconds. The man, gripped the black haired man's shoulder tightly. "Bartholomew did not warn us of the wolf in our midst for weeks! For that, my son, you must be punished."
The man's yellow eyes widened in horror as the older man in front of him smiled widely, his face transforming into the same ridged forehead and yellow eyes. Fangs poked out from his grin as he held up a large vile that read Holy Water on the front. Bartholomew's head shook vigorously. "No... No! PLEASE!"
"Drink...and be cleansed, child." He calmly handed the vile to the young man who had been reduced to tears but shakily obliged all the same. The crowd watched smoke escape from their brother's throat and listened to the sound of organs searing. The entire vile was even empty before a pile of ash fell at their feet. The older man ran a hand through his long locks before stretching his arms out wide, dropping to his knees, and looking to the sky. "Know that brother Bartholomew's sacrifice is not in vain! He has shown us the way to salvation! And we will honor him as we enter a new age!"
The crowd began to fall to their knees as well, clasping their hands together and bowing their heads. A rail-thin girl at his right hand and a massive beast of a man more gnarled than any other demon among them at his left.
The man's arms fell limp and his chuckled again to the heavens. "The age...of the vampire."
Murmurs and whispers got louder among the large group of demons.
"In the mother's name...AMEN!"