one ✚ arrival

[affectioning]

[ If anyone is hanging out in the square, they'll see a very confused looking teenager slowly bringing what is not his cell phone closer to his face. And if anybody is looking at the network, they see the adorable can't be mad at that face moving closer to the screen. He tilts his head, perplexed. He looks around. Nobody else looks completely confused.

But, wait. He hears other people on this thing. He squints. Could this be some kind of mass communication device? Give a gold star to Scott McCall as he looks around him and then back down. ]

Can anybody hear me? Or, see me? Anyone know how far away I am from Beacon Hills? [ Or how he even got here? ] It's in California. [ This doesn't look like California. He'd ask for help but it's not exactly something he wants to do. He can handle this. It reminds him of those times he woke up miles from home. But, that was a wolf thing. Could this be true alpha related? Is this something he has to look forward to? ] Or, if anybody near me has a cell, I need to reach some people. [ Or, at least his mother. Hi Mom. I'm all right. I just woke up in a strange place. ] Thanks.

[ But, he pauses. His nose picks something up. Yes. He distinctly smells something familiar. Or, mouth-watering. It's not clear. And that's all the network gets as he brings it back down to his side. But, the video continues as he's walking in some nondescript direction. ]

Comments

[studmuffin]

Because everyone freaks out.

[affectioning]

[ His mouth curls, slightly into the closest thing to a smile. ]

Would it help?

[studmuffin]

Maybe.

[ Another sly smile. ] I should probably tell you about the curses.

[affectioning]

I was told about them. And the rebellion. And how it might be connected to people getting sick. [ Which is why he turns to face Stiles now. ] You were coughing. [ You also don't smell well. ]

[studmuffin]

They've got totally darker lately.

[ Shh Scott, he's not feverish. ]

[affectioning]

Who is they? Anonymous?

[studmuffin]

No, the curses. Once I was an actual puppy, now we're fighting ghouls and being put in prisons.

[affectioning]

Oh. Jimmy said they'd stopped. Because the deities were overthrown. Are they still happening? [ Wut. ] You were a puppy?

[studmuffin]

The sickness is totally a curse, I'm calling it right now.

[ Flailing. ] Derek left me to run into traffic.

[affectioning]

Or, maybe you just got out and ran into traffic. [ Human Stiles? King of ADD. Puppy Stiles? Dude. ] You think this sickness? It's just another curse? How long do curses last?

[studmuffin]

[ Punching him lightly in the arm. ] I did not. I was following him. And he did his whole wolf thing and ran and left me.

A day. [ That makes him sound dubious, unconvinced. ] The ghoul thing lasted forever.

[affectioning]

He did his whole wolf thing?

[ Maybe he wanted to go running. He doesn't know. But, everything sounds so absurd here. Everything. ]

This has lasted a few weeks. One girl is in the hospital. And her roommate a year ago was Claire Bennett. [ He gives Stiles a moment. ]

[studmuffin]

Oh hey, Ginny. She's awesome.

[ He can almost sense Scott's vague judge-y worry. But he doesn't want it to settle in. He wants to focus on the here and now. ] It'll be over before we know it.

[affectioning]

Claire Bennett. [ FROM HEROES. ]

What was the ghoul thing?

[studmuffin]

Oh my god, fine. If I acknowledge your crush on Claire Bennett will you stop? But it is a shame that she's not here. You could follow her around.

We got ghouls of people we know back home. I didn't though. Derek did.

[affectioning]

I didn't have a crush on her. [ God, Stiles! ] And she ended up liking girls, anyway, right? [ You're the follower, Lydia Martin's #1 Fan. Oh yeah. The brackets went there. ]

Who'd he get?

[studmuffin]

I don't know, I blocked Heroes from my memory after it turned to shit.

[ He's quiet for a moment, then he shakes his head. ] Not my story to tell. It was kind of awful though.

[affectioning]

[ He caught up one weekend he was sick. Sue him.

Everything is sinking in. Being stuck here. Stiles living with Derek. People being sick. Magic. Another dimension. He stays silent. Thinking. ]

[studmuffin]

[ Watching him for a looooooong moment. ]

You gonna be okay?

[affectioning]

Yeah. Course. It's just a lot. [ No Allison. No mom. ]

[studmuffin]

I know.

[ He does, he gets it. Sometimes he misses his dad so much it's like a physical ache. ] I get it, I do. [ He should feel bad for wanting Scott here this much. But he can't stop himself. This is is his best friend. The one person who makes everything better. ]

[affectioning]

Are we never going to see them again? My mom. Your dad. [ Allison. They may not be together but he still cares. ]

[studmuffin]

Sometimes people show up. [ It's not exactly a lie, they do and Stiles is hopeful. ] My dad hasn't made it but hey - he might sense a disturbance in the force sooner rather than later.

[affectioning]

[ For Stiles' sake, he hopes he does. But, then he wonders if that's selfish. If he can't leave and Stiles and Derek can't leave then his dad, Scott's mom - anybody else who shows up can't as well. He puts a hand on Stiles' shoulder. ]

[studmuffin]

I'm okay.

[ He knows what that hand on his shoulder means anyway. ] I mean it's not great, actually it's pretty fucking awful most of the time. But I'm doing fine. There are plenty of people here to rely on.