From Ashes ✗ Stiles Stilinski - Chapter 29: Chapter 29

The cracking sound her shoulder made when she rolled it made Buffy grimace for a second. She knew she should've stretched before heading out for patrol.
Her heels clicked rhythmically as she descended the stairs, passing a few younger girls on the way. They smiled brightly and greeted her, which she replied with a quick, chaste smile of her own. Tonight was definitely not a stellar night to begin with and it showed clearly on the blonde's face; the last thing she was up for was small talk with the mini slayers.
Not really mini, actually. Lots of them were taller than her. She exhaled loudly and set her scythe down on the metal table by the stairs.
The room was darker than usual as the only source of light came from the other side, which was only the soft blue glow of computer monitors. At the largest computer was a girl with loosely tied up hair whose head was propped up in her hand. A few seats away, leaning far too much in the chair he was in, was a man whose head was slumped over to the side. Buffy rolled her eyes and felt around on the cool, off-white wall until she found the light switch, flicking it on.
"Rise and..." This didn't seem to stir either of them as the blonde thirty-something strolled over to the monitors. As she thought, there was Dawn passed out on one side and Xander with the very same issue on the other. It wasn't even that late at night. Of course, this was the price of pulling an all-nighter on research so she couldn't fault them for it. Buffy's lips pursed for a mildly annoyed moment and she grumbled out, "...shine."
The slayer's equally tired green eyes passed from the two slumbering scoobies to Dawn's computer screen. Usually, she liked to keep away from unnecessary research – and, honestly, that's why she had a whole team of watchers, right? In her fatigue, though, she found herself a bit curious.
The black background of the page that looked like it had been scanned right out of the watcher's diaries had only three things: a picture that took up half the screen, tiny, white (and blurry at the moment) text, and a title. Kanima.
"Hm. Never heard of you before..." she muttered before getting a good look at the creature drawn on the side and making an audible "ugh!" in disgust. The creature was crouched over a corpse, looking up. It appeared to be humanoid, but covered in tiny scales. Its claws were long and curved as one hand was digging deep into the victim's throat and a long tail stretched out behind it. Its pupils were long, thin slits and its teeth – which she put an emphasis on in her head, as there were multiple rows of them – were short and extremely sharp. I'd hate to be the other guy.
Her curiosity on the matter was brief and she found her need for sleep overpowering. She sighed and was about to back away when the phone by the keyboard buzzed. It was none of her business though. Obviously. After all, it was her sister's phone. There was a moment of hesitation where she was about to leave but found herself picking up the thin brick all the same. Besides, there was nothing wrong with a little harmless snooping.
Buffy pushed the button on the side and the phone illuminated her face entirely. Her curiosity ebbed and the corner of her lip twitched downward. Not in an angry or upset way – not really. More like...she had been caught off guard, like the icy hand of reality slapped her across the face.
3 MESSAGES
-          Maddie
Her thumb hovered over the notification for what seemed like ages before she tapped the screen.
Maddie 『Anything yet?』Fri 9:51 pm
Maddie 『Dawn?』Fri 10:13 pm
Maddie 『We have a situation. Get back to me with that info as soon as you can. Please.』Fri 10:17 pm
The slayer reread the messages again and then a third time. Her eyes darted over to Dawn, who was snoring lightly. Buffy lifted a hand to set on her sister's shoulder and shake her awake but it paused half way there. She looked back at the phone and groaned quietly.
Maddie cracked her neck as she stood there, beside Stiles. If she wasn't so apprehensive what with being outnumbered, she might've actually been bored.
"All right, the thing was pretty slick looking. Um, skin was dark. Kind of patterned. Uh, I think I actually saw scales." Maddie felt her pocket vibrate but just as she was about to reach for it, she stopped. Any sudden movement might not bode well for her or Stiles, who seemed nervous but even more annoyed. " Is that enough? Okay, because I've somebody I really need to talk to –"
The request seemed to be shut down with one annoyed glance from Derek. In the meantime, Maddie found herself daring to grab her phone out of her pocket in her anxious curiosity. At the very top of the screen Dawn's name had appeared along with the tiny bold text of '1 NEW MESSAGE'. She tapped on the notification and the new message popped onto his screen.
Dawn 『Okay, big ugly lizard demon? Shapeshifter? We're thinking it's called a kanima and emphasis on the ugly』
Maddie raised an eyebrow at the message until it began to sink into her brain. "Kanima..." she whispered under her breath, calling both Derek and Erica's attention. She shoved the phone back into her pocket quickly, cursing quietly at the attention she gained.
"Hrr. All right, fine, eyes. Eyes are, um, yellowish. And slitted. Um, has a lot of teeth," Stiles went on. Shuffling. There was shuffling above Maddie's head. Her eyes float up back to Derek and Erica who were already looking above over her and Stiles. "Oh. And it's got a tail, too. Are we good?" Stiles looked between Derek and Erica, his eyes brightening slightly at their reactions. "What? Wait, have you seen it? You have this look on your faces like you know exactly what I am talking about."
Maddie's eyes were also directed at the stairs above her where the 'kanima' perched, moving slowly and staring at them through slitted pupils. She grabbed the arm of the boy next to her. "...Stiles."
Stiles finally looked up as well and the creature screeched. Both he and Maddie turned to face it and the petite slayer shoved Stiles behind her as she pulled out her crossbow. The reptilian monster shot down from the banister above them to the floor.
Derek roared at the beast just as it whipped Erica into the wall. It was like a jolt to Maddie's brain to something primal as she impulsively shouted, "No!" In the very next moment, she aimed at the kanima and fired a bolt at it which immediately bounced off of its scales. Her dark stare widened in horror.
Before she knew what was happening, she was yanked back by the sleeve of her leather jacket. She felt a bit offended and shocked when she saw it was Derek that had pulled her behind him and edged in front of her and Stiles. He shoved Stiles away as well. "Run!"
Before she could protest, she felt a hand grab hers and tug her away. In the same instant, the kanima had bolted in the blink of an eye over to Derek, scratching him. Stiles seemed to catch this as he spoke up. "Derek, your neck."
The alpha wolf reached for the wound as he stumbled. Without hesitation, Stiles ran forward and caught Derek just before he fell over. Maddie, on the other hand did hesitate but dropped her crossbow anyway and carefully held the werewolf up on his other side. Her heart racing as she looked around for the monster, she spotted the unconscious form of Erica in the distance. Her eyes shot over to Stiles. "You think you can support his weight?"
Stiles was still looking around frantically but answered nonetheless. "Sort of. Barely. Why?"
"Because only one of us is fast enough to get over to Erica without getting caught."
The boy looked over at Maddie with a worried stare but nodded. "Go."
Maddie took a breath before ducking under Derek's arm and sprinting over to the beta. Without a second though, she scooped up the girl and spun around to follow Stiles and Derek out. As she did so, she heard Derek shout to call Scott. As the smaller boy attempted to do so, he dropped both his phone and Derek, who flopped into one of the pools. With one last look at his phone, Stiles dove into the pool after Derek. Maddie found herself rushing over to where he had been standing and looking around the room. The creature had disappeared but let out a eardrum-shattering screech. Erica's form was still limp in her arms as Maddie watched Stiles reach the water's surface with Derek.
"Stay there!" she shouted at the two as the kanima shrieked again, this time closer. Too close. She felt her heart stop for a moment as she turned around to meet the monster face to face,  its form crouched down low. She swallowed as fear and rage gripped her bones tightly. "You go after the wolf?" she snarled, her eyes narrowing on the creature. "He's nothing!"
Its head tilted slightly and she felt an air of familiarity.
She inched back a bit, ready to run. Hoping it would follow and not allowing any of her almost overbearing fear into her thoughts. "You know which one of us is the real threat."
I'll come back, she kept repeating in her head, not wanting to say it out loud. Her eyes shot back over to Stiles and Derek, who were barely above water. Both stares she received were etched with shock. As soon as I find a safe place to put Erica, I'll come back. It was only a moment that she exchanged glances with them before she spun back around and began sprinting. She rushed out the door as she heard the monster scream again.
She could hear it behind her on the walls and the ceiling, always a step behind her. Her breathing ragged, she pushed her legs to move faster. Just a little bit faster. She turned so many sharp corners, she had no idea where in the school she was until she saw an open door ahead. A sign beside the threshold was simply labeled 'stairs'. The basement. The sounds behind her were a fraction further back than before. It would have to be enough. Pushing her pace as much as she possible could, she entered through the dark passage, nearly tumbling down the stairs, and kicked the door shut with all of the force she could muster.
Out of breath and constantly adjusting the unconscious girl in her arms, she leaned with all of her strength against the door.  The kanima's shrill cry echoed through the halls as it scratched on the other side of the door and shoved with all of its weight. The heavy metal door shook thunderously and Maddie squeezed her eyes shut and swallowed, although her throat was painfully dry. She wished desperately that Erica would wake up; she could use the back up. The pounding on the door continued as it dented slightly from the force.
Time passed slowly and suddenly Maddie wished she could reach her phone. Had it been an hour? Maybe longer? She would hear pacing and claws drumming on the linoleum tiles outside the door every so often and even the sound of them fading only momentarily but it would never last and the forced behind the door would return again, each time more and more. It the kanima tried the door again, she probably wouldn't have the strength to hold the door shut.
Her eyes had adjusted to the darkness around her, but not enough to navigate past the landing at the bottom of the steps. She looked down at Erica and took a breath. If she set her down at the bottom of the stairs, she may have enough time before the door opened to charge at the monster and – if she's lucky – get past it and back to Stiles and Derek. There was no time to prep herself mentally for this at all and she felt her fear surge through her. She exhaled loudly and nodded to herself.
"Fear is good. Fear's motivation." She shut her eyes again for a second before opening them and letting out another shaky breath. "I got this. Totally got this."
Without another thought, she rushed down the steps and set Erica down in the darkness, just past the landing. It was then she heard the door loudly hit the wall behind her. She whirled around and, upon seeing the shadowed form of the monster, sprinted back up the stairs at full speed. As the snake-like demon attempted to rush her as well, she jumped up and did a sloppy flip over it, narrowly missing its claws. It wasn't a good landing as she tumbled to the ground at the top of the stairs and scrambled back to her feet, off and running again. The kanima shrieked once more and she could already hear its claws against the tile behind her. She was relieved for only a second as she found herself lost in the dark halls.
Focus. Listen. She knew there was no way to hone her skills though, not while she was frantically running from something that could easily kill her. She didn't even have her weapon which she silently chastised herself for when she was stuck in the basement. Still, she managed to shake the thought away. As long as she got back to the pools and to her crossbow, she'd be fine. Trust your instincts.
Faintly, in the distance, she her splashing and voices. Part of her was beginning recognize the halls from her last time in the school at night and she pushed herself to remember more clearly. It was almost by miracle that she saw the dim light from the pools flood the hallway through the open door and she made a sharp turn into the room. She saw the two figures still moving in the water. She ran right past them, even as she heard Stiles attempt to get her attention and over to the loose bolt on the ground. "The water! It won't go in the water!"
That was when something flew under her feet, tripping her. She landed front first on the tile, inches away from the sharpened crossbow bolt and crawling towards it. Just as she felt a hand around her ankle, she had gripped the bolt. The kanima yanked her towards it and as it did, she slashed the point of the bolt at its face with all of her strength. It let her go immediately as it screeched in pain and she kicked it in the side of the head.
In that moment, a roar bellowed from somewhere in the room. Maddie looked up as she scrambled to her feet and found Scott perched on a diving board as Stiles and Derek laid on their backs outside of the pool. Using this as a distraction, she ran over to the two. The creature shook off the attack and looked over at the beta, charging forward and tackling him. Scott rolled out of its grasp and to an attack position mere feet away from the monster. The kanima's tail curled around Scott's ankle and threw him into a mirror set on the wall. Glass shattered everywhere and Maddie was about to head back over to help when the most curious thing happened.
Scott stood there, crouched, with a sliver of glass in his hand like a weapon, but the creature had stopped cold. It was looking at the shard of mirror for several seconds, which seemed to catch Scott off guard as well, and darted away. They all watched as the monster crawled up the walls and through the glass ceiling. Maddie exhaled again, only this time a long, drawn out one in relief.
It had been two days since the night at the school and she still felt like she needed to catch her breath. She recalled the conversation with Derek and Erica after, thankful that he had said the name of the shape-shifter first, as she was unsure of the pronunciation. That was what she was worried about, the pronunciation. Not the throttling fear of being close to dying. Not the idea of the people she cared about dying. Nope. It was how to say 'kanima'. She shook her head now, as she strolled among the gravestones in the fenced off cemetery.
She had asked Stiles if he was okay, which seemed to baffle both of them. What confused her further was that she actually cared about the answer. He had asked the same of her and she had only given a slight nod. She seriously needed to work on saying thank you, even if it was only to Stiles. She wanted to ask Erica as well but figured it would be better if she didn't know what happened. It would be easier if she didn't know Maddie probably saved her life. She didn't want Erica to feel like she owed her for something; it would make things difficult if they ever came to blows again.
Of course, then there was Derek, who still managed to irritated the hell of Maddie. He continued to question Scott's allegiance and repeat the same sentiment Isaac had earlier that night. "They'll come after you, too. A slayer's just another monster to them."
Like she didn't know that already.
The one thing they seemed to agree on was the endgame for the kanima. It would have to die. Whether it was Derek or Maddie that had to do it, it would have to be done before it killed again.
She sighed and sat down on a headstone while she fiddled with the wooden stake in her hands. For a fleeting moment, wondered if this is what Buffy used to go through. Before all the slayers were awoken and before the first's army, did she just use patrolling as a way to get away from things? From people? Did she ever feel so unbelievably stressed out? So alone?
That was a stupid question. She had to have. She lived on a freaking hellmouth and there was only one chosen back then. For most of that, she probably didn't even have a cellphone. That'd be utterly terrifying.
She watched as her phone screen flicked back to life in her hand. Something had been troubling her about Dawn's texts the other night. The last one she received — while she was running away from a homicidal lizard, no less — said 'be careful'. It wasn't that Dawn wouldn't say that; Dawn's always been nice and cared about each girl that was trained under the tutelage of her sister. What was strange was that she had already texted that earlier that night. Maybe she was just tired. Yeah, that had to be it.
It was nice to know someone cared though.
Suddenly, she heard the sound of a car pulling up and the lights starting to illuminate her back, casting a long shadow ahead of her. She whipped around and squinted in the light before they were shut off. Once her eyesight adjusted again, her shoulders slumped down. On the other side of the fence, she saw the familiar blue jeep running once again. She wanted to be irritated with the boy behind the windshield that waved and half-smiled at her, but she felt the corner of her lips twitch upward as she stood and walked over. Attempting to look at least a little intimidating, she folded her arms and raised a single eyebrow. He waved her over and she rolled her eyes but jumped the fence and headed to the passenger side door anyway. Once again, she hated feeling so agreeable.
Especially when it came to this idiot.
She opened the door. "What do you want?"
He opened his mouth but clamped it shut again shortly after and grinned at her, shrugging.
"I, ah...Well, obviously, I was making sure..." He paused again, gesturing to the road behind them. "...Do you need a ride home?"
Yes, home. To San Francisco. To the stupid room that I share with five other girls — sorry, three other girls. Please and thank you.
She shook her head. "I can walk. That's kind of how I got here."
It almost looked like he was going to argue that answer. His eyebrows furrow as he looked at her and he sighed. "Sure, yeah. Makes sense." His eyes had immediately shifted downward to the car floor and he turned the lights back on as the engine continued to sputter on. "I'll just..."
There it was. Guilt. She swore this was the same look Xander had had every time he failed at cheering her up. Years of crappy jokes and sort-of-okay advice that never even cracked a smile on her face.
I'm doing that thing again, aren't I? Her head echoed, remembering a time that felt like years ago when it was only months.
"It's okay, Maddie."
He always said that. And it never was.
She frowned and rolled her eyes before hopping into the passenger seat. Stiles' head shot up and he sent her a curious stare. She responded with a guarded, undaunted look as she closed the door. "Well? Are you driving me back to the Argents' or what?"
His already light brown eyes brightened and the grin returned to his lips before he put the car in reverse and began driving out of the parking lot.
There was a short silence between them that seemed almost expected by now. As always, Maddie found herself staring out the window and Stiles fiddled with the radio. This time though, the slayer had the strange urge to fill the silence. "How did you know where I was?"
"Well, you said you patrolled in cemeteries and this is the furthest one from the Argents, so..." Stiles began to ramble, glancing over at her briefly to see her send him another unimpressed look. "And I might've texted Allison."
She rolled her eyes again. She felt like she didn't that a lot around Stiles. "Why do you always show up to give me a ride home?"
"Obviously, because you always need a ride home," came his quick retort. "You and Scott do the superpower thing? Well, this is my super power. I'm Jeep Man."
She snorted a laugh. "...Jeep Man?"
"Yep, even if my superpower's trashed most of the time." His small grin widened slightly. "...wait, did I just make Madeline Hayes, super calm and collected vampire slayer laugh?"
She frowned again, her eyes narrowing. "No. Shut up."
She cleared her throat and looked down at her nails as she picked at them. It can't hurt to be friendly just this once, right? The thought entered and its very presence terrified her for a second. What did friendly ever get her aside from a pile of dead bodies? There were so many horrors she could've prevented by ignoring that one thought, but it was already burrowing into her head so deep, it was beginning to make her wonder if the outcome could ever be anything different.
She thought about watching dumb movies with Xander and late night trips to the corner store with Marie. She thought about how god damn happy they made her before they started to hurt.
The next question that left her mouth she had to will herself to say out loud, a heavy gate in her brain creaking open only slightly. "So...what kind of powers does Jeep Man have?"
There was a pause, as if he didn't believe what he was hearing. "Uh...driving, mostly. The smoke screen's not an actual feature. It's just the engine crapping out, but the high beams? They're the real super power. I use them to see things other people can't. It's actually very high-tech."
"I guess that explains the cleverness," she said, immediately realizing how it sounded and unable to think of where it came from out of shock.
"It comes in handy when I need to blind the bad guys, too." He stopped at a red light and she knew that stupid smile wouldn't leave his face after that one. "Did you just compliment me?"
She refused to look over at him this time, everything coming out in a rush. "No, I didn't. I said cleverness because... smartass-ness isn't a word."
"Still a compliment. Clever is a compliment, Mads."
Her fist clenched tighter for a moment but she didn't yell at him or hit him this time. Maybe because he sounded happy and that wasn't a sound she heard a whole lot in the last year. "Fine. It was a compliment. You're clever. Moving on."
"You know, it's not bad to give compliments. It denotes two people getting along — as in you and me. We're getting along." He made it sound like it was a god damn miracle. It probably was, in his defense.
Her stare fell to the road and then to the dashboard. She could see him glancing over at her ever so often, but there was no way to meet his eyes right now. She knew she'd regret it; she knew it, even if she really didn't. "I...guess we are."
This time, the silence wasn't so comfortable. The gate in her head was more than a little open and she would've given anything to be able to close it again, to shut herself up. Instead, she was damn near agreeable. She almost wanted him to say something stupid or ask her about random slayer things. Something. Anything.
And, like he read her mind, she heard him speak again. "So, is this like an alternate universe where people named Stiles can actually, you know, hold civil conversations people named Maddie without getting punched? Because I personally prefer this timeline. Better for my overall health."
It sounded so dumb and cheesy, which made it all the more endearing. Hers wasn't the only shell chipping away and, while it did panic her a little, it added an ease she forgot she could have. The corners of her mouth twitched again and, for only a moment, she allowed her lips to stretch into a small smile. "Yeah. This universe is good."
"Any reason for the sudden change? I mean, are you sick? Dying?" He was gesturing more emphatically now and she wondered how he could do that without crashing. "Did your life pass before your eyes?"
The urge to punch him wasn't strong but it certainly wasn't going away. Her smile disappeared and was replaced with an indignant frown. "No! Gods, Stiles! I didn't think I was that bad."
"You aren't, it's just that —" Stiles shrugged as he turned onto the same block as Allison's house. Just after he parked, once again, she could feel his eyes on her. "...I mean, you're just...you. Madeline. Tough as nails slayer extraordinaire. Certified licensed badass, complete with medieval weaponry. That comes with a certain level of mean."
In any other situation in her whole life, she would've taken that as a compliment. Hell, a few days before, she was trying to stab a lizard monster in the face with a crossbow bolt. Now? It was all wrong and nothing could convince her otherwise. Buffy and Faith were tough. Marie was tough. Maddie couldn't imagine them as anything else. When she thought of herself though, she thought of sugar glass — only made to look solid and tough for show. Looking tough and being mean were the easy parts — and liking to fight didn't help anything. "Being a Slayer doesn't make me a badass. It just...I dunno, gives me an excuse to be a jerk."
"You're not —"
"Yes, I am. You know I am. There's a line between being tough and being an asshole. Way too many people cross it, especially me — even when I know better." Anger flared in her stomach and she finally turned to look at him, his eyes wide and curious despite being on the road. She shrank down a bit when his stare traveled back to her for more than a brief glance and she was sure there was pity in it. He needed to stop that. Immediately. "I keep thinking I need to get away from that line and get back to being...I don't know, whatever I was before I was this, but I don't know what that is. Human teenage girl, maybe."
He finally looked forward again slumping his shoulders. "Can't you be both?"
"Both what?"
"Y'know, a badass slayer and a human teenage girl?" He started gesturing with his hands a lot again. "It's just, I mean, I've seen you decapitate vampires. I repeat, VAMPIRES. You beat up werewolves. And, in case it escaped your notice, you keep saving our asses on a daily basis."
"I have no clue what normal teenage girls are like." Why was she so irritated?
"I mean, I'm probably not an expert either."
"But you seem to have all the answers right now. What are teenage girls normally like, Stiles?"
"I don't know! They like The Notebook unironically. They wear trendy clothes. And giggle. And somehow have perfect hair everyday."
"Like Lydia." Where the hell did that come from? She turned back to the window and looked at the house before her, knowing her cheeks had become a little warmer. There was no way she'd let him see her this embarrassed.
"Like Lydia!" It was an automatic response and he probably looked horrified when it spilled out. Still, it felt like someone dropped a weight in her stomach. Lydia was amazing, pretty, and smart without superpowers. She didn't need them. Maddie did. "Wait. No. Definitely not what I meant. I mean, yeah, okay, Lydia's feminine, looks pretty much flawless every day, is confident to the point of egomania..."
"I get it, Stiles," she cut him off, still focusing on the dark windows of the house.
"I don't think you do."
Her eyebrows furrowed and she fought the urge to look back at him.
"Look, you're a hero. Like a legit comic book type super hero — and a human teenage girl. It doesn't have to be an either/or situation."
"Why? Because you say so?"
"Because you say so. Trendy clothes and giggling and perfect hair isn't you. Maybe you don't want it to be. Or maybe you will eventually. Who cares? Either way, you're freaking Wonder Woman. And you don't even know who that is, do you?"
She turned back only slightly. Of course she knew. She grew up around Xander Harris, professional nerd. She could never escape comic book references. "I know the name. Sort of."
"Diana Prince, or Wonder Woman, is a badass warrior from a whole island of badass female warriors. She doesn't let anyone define her girliness or hero status but her. On top of that, she's brave, and selfless, and all about truth..." The look on his face was unreadable as his eyes darted from the windshield to her face several times. He shrugged. "Okay, so you overshare. From what I can tell, you don't get the whole social interaction thing. I'm also pretty sure you don't trust anyone. And you're kind of violent when you can't win an argument..."
She held up a hand a signal to stop, trying her best to muster up an annoyed glare. "Not helping."
"But does any of that really matter? You fight real-life monsters, save lives, and somehow keep up with school like it's no big deal. Not everyone can do all of that and not lose their minds."
She swallowed. Maybe she was tired. Maybe she missed having her best friend to talk to about whatever she was thinking. Or maybe, just maybe it was something else entirely. She shook the thought out but went on. "...So?"
He grinned again, meeting her eyes. "So, if you can do all of that, then nothing's stopping you from being whoever or whatever you want. You want to be girly? Be girly. You want to go all Tarantino on some monsters? I'll bring the popcorn. It's not like Gerard's watching you twenty-four-seven. You're free to do literally anything — as long as it doesn't involve beating up scrawny, sarcastic humans."
A smile tugged at her lips and she let it. "I will if they deserve it."
His smile fell. "That— ...that's not comforting."
And the most amazing thing happened – she laughed. It was a genuine laugh too, complete with a smile that hurt the muscles in her cheeks. "It was a joke!"
He stopped for a few seconds to study her – like he thought she didn't know how to laugh — and blinked a few times before he shook his head.
"Not funny, Mads." Which contradicted the fact that he was smiling slightly again.
Her fist didn't clench this time.
"Not to you, maybe. Isn't that what friends do? Joke around?" Something about the statement felt wrong, like she was going in with information she didn't have. She cleared her throat and shrunk in on herself a little. "Or, I guess...sort of friends."
"Hey, we're friends!" He nudged her with his elbow lightly. "You and me - we're best buds! BFF's even."
She was sure she cringed through the entire statement. "Could you please not say that? Besides, isn't Scott your BFF?"
"Duh, yes. Obviously. And you're my girl- female friend." He looked almost horrified and began speaking much quicker than before. "Girl BFF. There's no limits on BFFs, I'll have you know."
The look she gave him a flat stare, regardless of her curiosity toward his minor slip up. "I didn't know we were so close."
His smile was so big and bright, it was almost infectious. "Are you kidding me? Surrounded by vampires, running from a crazy alpha werewolf, fighting off homicidal lizard monsters? These are things two people cannot go through without becoming the best of friends."
He was over-embellishing clearly, caught up in the surprisingly nice moment they were having. They may not have been best friends – and they definitely weren't – but were at least friends. It was, of course, with the last person she'd thought she'd want to stick that label on but, in a way, seemed fitting. Of course it was Stiles. It made the most sense. Who else could it have been?
She glanced at her phone quickly and her smile disappeared. So much for six hours of sleep. "I gotta go. It's almost one."
Before he could protest – and he looked like he was about to – she had already opened the door. It was a little on purpose, she supposed. If he'd argued, there was a good chance she might've stayed longer.
"Right! Yeah." He nodded, his head bouncing slightly like it was on a spring. When he smiled this time, it was softer and he watched her for a moment. "Night, Mads."
Maddie gave a small nod of her own and seemed to mimic his expression. Maybe 'Mads' didn't sound so bad if only one other person was saying it. Marie didn't have ownership of her nicknames, anyway. "Night, Stiles."
He let himself watch her go into the house, a shadow in the faint moonlight. He leaned back in his seat, thinking about the last half hour and trying his best to commit it all to memory. For the first time ever, he didn't talk to the Slayer; he talked to his friend, Maddie — and she smiled. She laughed without it involving him in pain. He was even sure he made her feel better, or helped her out of something, which might've been the best part of his night.
She was right there next to him, laughing and smiling and talking about things he could've never found out otherwise, and she was beautiful. No, that didn't sound right. It wasn't the right word. It had to be something more elaborate that he was having trouble understanding. Kinder but still with a sharp edge. Softer and more chaotic. The sort of peace that only happens in the eye of a tornado. Something that matched her.
It was then that he sat straight up, eyes wide in horror at his own thoughts — at all the things he told her and everything she told him. His brain kept coming back to the fact that he was half a second from asking her to stay just before she left. All of it stirred in the pit of his stomach, all the way through to every nerve ending and back to his chest cavity. The beginnings of a new hurt and a surprising warmth creating something both familiar and completely unexpected.
He wasn't an idiot; he knew this too well already, even if this time felt different. Scary, even. Maybe a good kind of scary.
"Ah, crap."
He was right.
He was a goner.