March 20, 2014

The Dark Side of The Moon 8/14


Title: The Dark Side of The Moon
Rating: R
Authors: Sxymami0909 and Xtremeroswellia
Fandom: Teen Wolf
Pairing: Stiles/Lydia, Isaac/Allison, Scott/Kira, Derek, Deaton, Sheriff Stilinski,
Wordcount: 99,326
Timeline: Season 3B
Banner: By Sxymami0909
Parts: 8/12
Summary: The ritual is done, but the consequences aren't over. The door inside Stiles' head is still open and they're running out of time to get it closed. Lydia's powers are growing and Derek might hold the key to a link in her past. With Stiles slowly losing his mind and Lydia being the only person who can help him keep it together, the pack is in a race against time to help their friend. Will they be able to close the door in time or will Stiles be lost to them forever?
Previous Chapters: | One | Two | Three | Four |Five | Six | Seven |

Chapter 8

Scott rested his hands on top of Kira’s as he stood behind her the pink bowling ball clasped in both their hands as music blared around them. “Okay, now you’re just going to take a few steps forward, keep your fingers in the holes, pull back your arm, and release in a straight arch right down the middle.” He said as he leaned into her, but kept a respectable amount of distance between their bodies not wanting to make her uncomfortable.

He could see Stiles out of the corner of his eye sitting in one of the seats and glancing at his phone, but Scott kept most of his attention on Kira. They had picked her up on the way to the bowling alley. According to Stiles, Allison and Lydia were meeting them there and they had invited Isaac. Scott was glad. He didn’t want things to be awkward with all of them and he knew how much they all needed a night off from their crazy lives so they could just be teenagers.

“How does that feel?” He asked bringing his attention back to his impromptu bowling lesson.
Kira was more than a little nervous to be this close to Scott McCall. It felt like every other day her dad was doing or saying something horrifically embarrassing about her right in front of the guy. She was amazed that he was even agreeable to still hanging out with her. It wasn’t like she was a social butterfly. Not by any means. But he’d invited her to go bowling with him and his friends and now he was actually giving her a bowling lesson and she felt almost light-headed.

“A little weird, but I’ve never actually done this before,” she admitted, releasing the bowling ball a moment later and watching with embarrassment as it made it halfway down the lane and...went straight into the gutter.

Scott chuckled softly. “It’s okay, you should have seen me the first time I went bowling,” he said softly as he stepped back from her. “It’s takes a little practice, but you’ll get better.” He said matter-of-factly. He grinned as he walked over to Stiles to check in on his friend. Scott was really glad Kira agreed to go with them. Honestly he hadn’t been sure she would. He finally looked away from her and arched a brow at Stiles. “Who are you texting? You’re not gonna bowl?”

“I’m gonna bowl, Dude. I was just...texting with Lydia,” Stiles confessed with a faint smile. He checked his phone once more and then tucked it into his pocket as he stood up. He wasn’t great at bowling, but he wasn’t terrible either. He and his dad used to occasionally go bowling as a father-son bonding experience. He picked up one of the bowling balls, stepped up to the lane and rolled the ball, knocking down six of the pins.

Scott grinned, “Nice,” he said patting Stiles on the back as he walked over to Kira who had just picked up her ball from the belt. He met her gaze, “This is nice, I’m glad you were able to come out tonight. The other’s should be here soon I’m sure.” He said glancing over his shoulder knowing Stiles had one more turn before he was supposed to go.

Kira smiled at him almost shyly. “Thank you for inviting me.” She hesitated. “It’s not really a big secret that I’m pretty much...not good with people.”

Scott’s brows drew together, “No, you’re great.” He paused his cheeks warming. God, he was an idiot, “I mean you’re great with people...you’re good with me.” He reached back and rubbed the back of his neck. “Do you want me to show you how to hold the ball again or do you want to try yourself? You can have my turn if you want.” He offered. Scott wasn’t sure why he couldn’t seem to make his mouth work tonight.

Her cheeks colored at the compliment, even if he hadn’t really meant to say it that way. She wasn’t really used to people paying any attention to her at all. She’d had friends at her last school, but none of the guys had ever expressed an interest and Scott...there was just something about him that she really liked. He was sweet and adorable, and he’d seen her controlling electricity which really wasn’t at all normal, and he was still willing to hang out with her. “Thanks,” she said softly, tucking some hair behind her ear. “Um, yeah, if you want to show me again, that’d be great.”

Scott’s smile was warm. “Sure,” he glanced over at Stiles, “What’d you score man?” He asked as he guided Kira back over to the lane so they were standing beside Stiles.

“Seven,” he said with a shrug, glancing over at his best friend and Kira and doing his best not to grin at how relaxed Scott actually looked for once. “Don’t worry. Scott’ll have you throwing strikes before the night’s over.”

Kira smiled and shook her head. “I don’t know about that. If I could just hit one or two I think I’ll be doing good.”

Stiles chuckled.

Scott’s face brightened, “Kira is going to take my turn. Come on,” he said placing his arms on her shoulders and steering her a few feet over so she was standing directly in front of the lane. “Take a deep breath and let it out slowly. Good,” he said when she followed his directions. “Now grip the ball the way I showed you and I’ll help you pull your arm back.” He told her softly. Scott was getting distracted. Her hair smelled like fruit. Why did girls always smell like fruit? He didn’t know, but it was nice.

Kira’s heart was beating a little faster than usual in her chest as she let Scott guide her through the motions. This time when she released the ball, it rolled down the aisle and knocked over four pins. She let out a delighted squeal, then clapped her hand over her mouth, eyes widening. She was such a dork.

Scott grinned, “See, I knew you could do it.” He said with a short laugh. “Nice job.” A new song started playing as the sound of pins being knocked down filled the area around them.

“Well, I had a little help,” Kira pointed out, cheeks pink as she turned to look at him.

Scott caught a whiff of hot dogs from the concession stand at the other end of the bowling alley. His stomach grumbled and he sent Kira a sheepish grin. “I think I’m going to grab some soda and something to eat, can I get you anything?” He asked. Kira was incredibly pretty when she smiled, Scott thought.

“Um, soda? Soda would be good. Any kind. I’m not picky.”

Stiles grinned as he watched the interaction from a few feet away, shaking his head and turning to look at the entrance of the alley where he spotted Lydia and Allison. He rose to his feet and lifted his hand in a wave, looking a little awkward.

Lydia spotted Stiles and she smiled, “He’s so awkward sometimes,” it’s cute, she added silently. The ride there hadn’t taken long, but Lydia insisted on changing before they came. If they were going out she wanted to look nice. She wore a short black skirt and a beige sweater with heels, which Allison reminded her were not appropriate for bowling.

Lydia didn’t care though. They made their way across the bowling alley to the lane Stiles was standing in. “Hey,” she said her voice light. “Where are they going?” She asked nodding toward Scott and Kira who were talking as they walked in the opposite direction.

If Allison hadn’t been standing there, he would have made a joke about Scott and Kira hopefully getting a room, but he didn’t want to hurt the brunette’s feelings. “I think they went to get some incredibly terrible for you food to eat.” He smiled back at Lydia. “You guys hungry?”

Allison shook her head, glancing toward the entrance. “No, I’m not. I could hold the lanes if you guys wanted to get something though.”

Lydia studied Allison for a minute to make sure her friend was okay and when the brunette's eyes stayed on the doorway she knew she was at least for the moment. So, Lydia turned to Stiles and looped her arm through his. “Buy me a pretzel?” She asked while turning him in the direction of the food.

Like he could say no to that. He smiled at her, nodding. “You got it.” They walked together in the direction of the food stand and Stiles glanced at her sideways. “How’s your day been so far?” he asked, raising his eyebrows.

Lydia shrugged, “It’s been okay,” she had missed Stiles. It was the first day in a while that they’d spent apart. She hadn’t seen him since earlier that morning at breakfast. It sounded ridiculous even to her that she’d miss him after only part of a day. But apparently that was happening now. “I got a bag together with my stuff, it’s in the car,” she told him as she glanced at him. “How was your day with Scott?”

“It’s been good. I mean, it’s been awhile since it was just the two of us hanging out at his place.” Read: Isaac was around. All. The. Time. He rubbed the back of his neck. “We didn’t get a lot of work done, though. Just talked a lot. And I think he’s pretty into Kira.” He couldn’t help but grin, glancing over to where Scott and Kira were talking quietly in the corner. He refocused on Lydia when his brain caught up with the fact that she’d brought a bag. “Okay, cool.”

Lydia glanced over at Scott and Kira and made a noise in the back of her throat before sighing. “I don’t know why everyone thinks the new girl is so great,” she said, her gaze jumping back to Stiles. “So she’s a little smart and kind of pretty...Big deal.” Lydia didn’t know why Kira rubbed her the wrong way.

She seemed like a nice girl and yet Lydia couldn’t bring herself to stop being mildly rude whenever she spoke to or about her. It was ridiculous and petty and that so wasn’t her anymore and yet...Lydia sighed and glanced at Stiles when he didn’t say anything. “What?”

Stiles was silent for a moment, then he glanced at her, chewing his lower lip and detouring them away from the concession stand and toward the exit wordlessly. He kept his arm wrapped around hers, though. He pushed the door open, pausing when he spotted Isaac and Derek climbing out of Derek’s car. “Well, I didn’t see that coming.”

Lydia’s eyes widened, “Is that Derek with Isaac?” She didn’t even know he knew where the bowling alley was

“Looks like,” Stiles confirmed, watching as the two werewolves approached. He wasn’t sure what to think about Derek’s sudden return to town. When he and Cora had left, Stiles had been sure that was the last they’d ever see or hear from either Hale, and he’d always had mixed feelings about that. It wasn’t like he and Derek were actually friends. Half the time their relationship was about as antagonistic as it got. The other half they were saving each other’s lives.

Something occurred to Lydia as she glanced around, “Why are we outside?” She asked turning to Stiles as Isaac and Derek continued walking in their direction.

“I’ll explain later.” He gave Lydia’s arm a squeeze.

Derek arched an eyebrow at their words. “You know we can hear you, right?” He asked as he came to a stop in front of Stiles and Lydia. Derek knew this was probably a bad idea. How had he let Isaac talk him into this?

“Yeah, been in the whole werewolf circle of knowledge for awhile now. I know about the super hearing and the super smelling and the whole nine yards,” Stiles responded automatically.

Derek sighed before speaking calmly. “Stiles, Lydia.”

Lydia tilted her head to the side. “Hi,” she said not sure what else to say. She didn’t have a problem with Derek, mostly just his Uncle. He’d never been mean to her, but he also wasn’t exactly that nice to Stiles and she’d been feeling more than a little protective toward him lately.

Isaac offered Lydia a small smile, then fell silent, tense as they waited for Stiles to react. The guy tended to be a wild card.

He stared at Derek for a moment, assessing. Then he cracked a smile. “Welcome back.”

Derek’s lip twitched, “Thanks,” his body let go of some of the tension it had been holding onto. He hadn’t really realized he’d been worried about their reactions until now. But he was glad Stiles was as accepting as Scott. Their opinions mattered even if Derek didn’t want to admit that.

Lydia arched an eyebrow a smile pulling at her lips now that she knew Stiles was fine with things. She let her fingers curl around his arm as she glanced between Derek and Isaac. “We’re going to need another lane. Derek do you bowl?” Before he could answer she waved him off. “Who am talking to, even if you can’t you’ve got the whole werewolf thing.” She said lowering her voice.

“You can be on mine and Stiles team.” She told him matter-of-factly as she glanced at Stiles out of the corner of her eye. “We can use the advantage.” She said a hint of humor on her face. Stiles wasn’t the best bowler, but honestly Lydia didn’t care. She just wanted to include everyone and she didn’t think Allison would want to be with Derek.

Stiles watched as Derek almost smiled and he considered making a crack about how that had never happened before, but he decided to save it for the time being. The guy just got back and it was kind of apparent that he was tense, even if Stiles’ welcome back made him appear a little more relaxed. “Okay point. I don’t have werewolf super powers and neither do you, so Derek can help us kick the rest of their little werewolf asses.” He smirked. “Scott and Kira are getting something to eat before we start.”

Isaac looked between the three of them, finding himself relaxing a little too. It was all kind of weird, the thought that maybe they were all going to get along, but it would be a nice change.

Lydia glanced at Isaac then. “Allison is inside,” she commented, “She’s been looking for you even though she probably won’t admit it,” Lydia added under her breath.

At the mention of Allison, his eyes lit up. “Right, okay. I should go find her.” He headed for the door.

Stiles shook his head a little, keeping his mouth shut for the time being.

Lydia smirked, “Those two are taking their sweet time getting together, though I have a feeling it’s going to happen soon.” She said mostly talking to Stiles before glancing at Derek. “If you want to go in we’ll be right there. You should be able to spot Scott; he’s the one drooling over the new girl.” She said with an eyeroll.

Derek arched a brow. “That’s exactly what this town needs...A new girl.” He said his tone light, no malice behind his words.

Lydia’s gaze darted to Derek. “Exactly what I’ve been saying.” She said still not sure why Kira annoyed her so much.

Derek nodded as he rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, I guess I’ll go find Isaac and Scott.” He said giving them one last nod before moving around them and walking into the bowling alley still trying to figure out how he let himself get conned into coming.

Lydia watched him go and when he disappeared she turned to Stiles, “What’s wrong?” She asked figuring it had to be something since he’d taken her outside to talk.

He drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly, watching as Isaac and Derek both vanished inside the bowling alley. Then he turned his focus to Lydia once more. “Okay, so...that night at the warehouse. When Kira was kidnapped. So she’s not exactly...uh…” He reached up and rubbed the back of his neck. “There’s more to her than meets the eye.” He quickly explained what he’d seen, how Kira had literally wielded electricity like her own personal weapon.

Lydia’s eyes widened. “So she’s something...like what a human power outlet?” She asked her voice low. “That’s why the power outage happened. Whatever she is affected the grid.” She said mostly to herself. “Why didn’t you tell me that night?” She asked meeting Stiles gaze finally. “And why tell me now?” Not that she wanted him to keep it a secret from her...they didn’t do that.

“I don’t know. I don’t think she knows either,” he admitted. “But I’m betting that’s why you’re getting a weird feeling about her.” He winced at her question. “I should have. I think I was just, I don’t know. My mind hasn’t exactly…” He shrugged, looking down. “I don’t know if this will mean anything to you, but I don’t have a bad feeling about her, and every time -- I don’t know, it’s like I sense it, Lydia. Not the way you do, but…” Stiles blew out a breath. “I don’t think she’s evil.”

Lydia ran a hand down Stiles’ arm. “I guess that could be it.” She said with a sigh. “Well I guess being normal is overrated.” She told him lightly. “Is that your way of asking me to give her a chance?” She asked with an arched eyebrow while unconsciously moving into Stiles’ personal space.

“Yeah, kind of,” he admitted softly, meeting her eyes and trying to ignore the way his heart skipped a beat as she moved closer to him. “She helped me out the other day in school when I fell asleep and...Scott really likes her. I think she’s okay, Lyds.”

Lydia’s expression softened as she watched him for a full minute before speaking. “For you.” She told him softly. “For you I’ll give her a chance.” It was uncanny the things she was willing to do for Stiles, if she was smart she’d never let him know how much power he had over her decision making at least lately anyway.

A smile touched his mouth and without thinking about it, he reached up and tucked some hair behind her ear. “Lydia Martin, you are one awesome woman.” He took her hand again. “Come on. Let’s go kick ass in bowling.”

Lydia’s cheeks warmed, something that didn’t happen often and she let him gently tug her back into the bowling alley. “I need shoes,” she said lightly, “I think I left my purse by Allison. Let me go grab it. Will you wait on line for me?” Lydia gave him a bright smile as she released his hand, “I’ll only be a minute.”

“Yeah, I’ll wait.” He smiled at her, watching her go and exhaling, letting his shoulders drop as he turned to look around and see where everyone else was.

Lydia made her way over to their lanes quickly and spotted Allison, Isaac, and Derek. She arched an eyebrow, “Scott and Kira still aren’t back yet?” She asked and Isaac shook his head. Lydia reached for her purse that was sitting on the chair where she dropped it when they first came in. “I’m never going to get that pretzel,” She said with a shake of her head.

“I’ll grab one for you.” Said Derek.

Lydia turned slowly and arched an inquisitive eyebrow in his direction. “You will?” She asked confused.

Derek nodded. He already needed a break from all the people and while waiting on a line to get food wasn’t exactly away from people, it was away from Allison who had shot more than one glare in his direction since he’d been there. In her defense it was his fault her Mother was no longer alive, at least indirectly.

She could have stayed a werewolf to be with her daughter, but it wasn’t the Argent way. Derek didn’t really feel all that bad though because her Mother was a terrible person who didn’t follow the code that they were supposed to live by, just like Kate.

Derek realized Lydia was still watching him skeptically and he nodded. “I’ll get it and see where Scott is.” He said before shrugging off his leather coat, setting it on the back of one of the chairs, and heading off in the direction of the food stands.

Lydia glanced at Isaac and Allison, “Huh, a few weeks away from Beacon Hills has tamed him. He’s like an adorable overgrown puppy now. Interesting.” She commented while pressing her lips together.

Isaac smirked at her comment, his gaze following Derek as he headed away. “He does seem like he’s sort of a different person now. I mean, he’s still broody, but...he’s actually fixing up his loft. And I don’t know. I think he might be trying.”

Allison pursed her lips, falling silent as she listened to them. Derek was by far not her favorite person on the planet, but she knew he had just as many reasons to dislike her as she had to dislike him. And she didn’t want to make waves. “We’ll see,” she murmured, taking a sip of her drink and moving to go and find a bowling ball.

Lydia bit her lower lip and glanced at Isaac, “You should go make sure she’s okay, I need to get back over to the line.” She lifted her purse and Isaac watched as she walked up the two steps and toward the shoe counter where Stiles was waiting online.

Isaac sighed hesitating for a minute before walking over to Allison. He paused beside her and watched as she looked through the balls. “Hey, you okay?” He asked softly.

She sighed. “Yeah. I’m fine. I just...the history. It’s just hard.” She shut her eyes for a minute, then opened them again, looking at the bowling ball selection and finally choosing a bright blue one.

Isaac placed a hand on the small of her back, “I know,” he said quietly. “No one is asking you to forgive him,” he told her not wanting her to think that because he invited Derek he expected her to be his friend or even be nice really. “I just...I thought it would be a nice gesture. Derek’s far from innocent and he hasn’t always been nice. He handles things erratically at best, but he’s genuinely trying.” He explained.

“So I wanted to include him and show him that everyone deserves a second chance. I mean look at us,” he said with a small grin, “I’m pretty sure we wouldn’t be this close without a second chance?”

That earned him a small smile as she looked up at him from beneath her eyelashes. He did have a point there. And it wasn’t like she was innocent in the whole situation either. She couldn’t hold Derek entirely responsible. “Yeah, you’re right. We wouldn’t,” she said softly. “And it is a nice gesture, Isaac. It was really nice of you. You’re a good guy.”

Isaac beamed at her, “You are too,” he paused, “Uh a good girl.” He made a face and scratched the back of his neck. “That sounds weird even though I didn’t mean it in an awkward way. It just doesn’t come out the same as good guy, you know?” He asked flustered. “What I mean is I like the woman you are…” his voice trailed off, “I should probably pick a ball too. Want to be on my team?” He asked as he cleared his throat.

She laughed softly, reaching out and giving his arm a gentle squeeze. He was kind of adorable when he was being awkward. Actually he was always kind of adorable. “Of course I do.”

“Good,” he said as he picked up a plain black ball, “Are you any good?” He asked curiously, “Because I’m not. I’ve never really bowled,” he said in a whispered voice as he spotted Lydia and Stiles making their way toward them. “But uh, maybe we shouldn’t mention that to anyone, you know.” He said as he rocked the ball back and forth between his hands. “These things are light.” He commented.

“That’ because you’re holding a six pound bowling ball,” Lydia said as she sat down and slipped off her heels. “Try one of the ten or twelve pound ones, they might feel better,” she suggested as she pulled on a pair of socks and went about slipping her feet into the bowling shoes before tying the laces up.

Isaac looked down, “Oh, there are different weights?”

Allison grinned. “If you’ve never played, you don’t know if you’re good or not,” she pointed out. “I’m not bad. I’m not the best, but I’m not bad either. And your secret is safe with me.” She winked at him and moved to set the ball down before sitting beside Lydia and slipping her sneakers off and reaching for her own pair of bowling shoes. “You can try different ones until you’ve found one that feels right.” She glanced sideways at her best free and smiled at her.

Lydia returned the smile and glanced over at Stiles. She noticed he already had his shoes on, “Do you want to put the names in the computer?” She asked nodding towards the little table as Isaac continued palming all of the balls on the belt until he found one he liked.

“Sure.” He smiled faintly. “Maybe we can all just...do a practice round before it gets serious.” He scratched the back of his head, glancing at Isaac and then back to Lydia. Even though he was probably the only one who actually needed the practice aside from Kira. But Scott would no doubt pick up the slack for their two-person team.

Lydia arched a brow, “Are you calling me competitive?” She asked as she finished with her shoes and got up walking over to stand beside him. “Because you’d be right.” She said with a smile as she reached out and rested her fingers against his forearm. “But , we’re here to have fun. Besides, I can show you how to throw the ball if you want.” She told him with a smile.

He smirked at her question. “Yeah. And I’m pretty sure you’re not the only one, so.” He swallowed hard at the thought of Lydia showing him how to bowl. He knew how to bowl. He wasn’t great at it, but he wasn’t terrible like Scott used to be. Stiles also wasn’t stupid. He knew what showing him how to bowl entailed and he wasn’t about to turn down that kind of offer. “That’d...yeah that’d be great.”

Lydia grinned, “I like a guy secure enough in his manhood to let me show him how to bowl.” She said squeezing his arm gently before moving around him. “Where is wolf man with my pretzel?” Lydia mumbled.

“Shit. I forgot about the pretzel. Sorry.” Stiles frowned.

“I’m here,” Derek said standing on one side of Scott with Kira on the other side of Scott. “The line was long.” He commented briskly.

Stiles turned when Derek spoke. He was holding a wrapped pretzel and he arched his eyebrows. Somehow he wasn’t entirely surprised that Lydia could talk even Derek Hale into doing her bidding.

Scott chuckled at Derek’s words. “Yeah, so Derek decided to hurry it along.” He held a Soda in one hand and Kira’s hand in the other.

Derek held the wrapped pretzel out to Lydia.

She took it with a smile. “Thank you, Derek.”

He grunted and sat in one of the seats resting his arms on his knees. There had already been more interaction with everyone than he was comfortable with, but Scott had seemed genuinely pleased to see him when he caught up with him in the line. So, Derek figured hanging around for one round of bowling wouldn’t kill him and then he could spend the rest of the night alone.

Stiles glanced at Derek at Scott’s statement. “How’d you move the line along? Did you growl?” He glanced at Lydia. “I bet he growled.” He was grinning.

Lydia glanced at Derek and Derek glared at Stiles. “I didn’t growl in public.” He grumbled sourly.

Scott chuckled, “No it was better than that. A very rare occurrence.” He said as he motioned to an empty seat to see if Kira wanted it.

Kira smiled shyly and sat down in the seat that Scott motioned to, falling silent as she observed all the interactions.

Stiles’ grin brightened at Derek’s glare. As much as he hadn’t realized it until now, he’d missed bantering with the guy. “What’d he do?” he asked, turning to Scott.

Scott looked from Derek to Stiles, “You ready for this? He flirted. Derek Hale flirted. I don’t think I’ve ever seen it before.” He said thoughtfully, his tone teasing.

“Oh, I have,” Isaac chimed in. “He does it when he’s trying to get his way discretely.” He added.

“Yep, I’ve seen him work the charm like that, too.” Stiles glanced back at Derek and grinned at him. “We broke into the sheriff’s station one time.”

Allison rolled her eyes, shaking her head good-naturedly as they tormented the werewolf, knowing they were trying to get him to relax.

Derek huffed, “I flirt okay. I just do it in my own personal time.” Okay so he didn’t turn on the charm that often, but that was because he didn’t always need it. “Flirting is strategical.” He said as he shifted in his seat uncomfortably.

Lydia snorted, “Then you’re doing it wrong.” She said with a smile, “Flirting is an art; a honed skill.” Lydia glanced at Kira, “What do you think?” She asked while unwrapping her pretzel, trying to include the other girl in the conversation. She was quiet and Lydia promised Stiles she’d give her a chance.

Kira looked up, caught off guard by the question, eyes wide. “Um.” She looked between Derek and Lydia.

Allison leaned over to the new girl. “It’s probably best to agree with Lydia on this kind of thing. She’s definitely perfected the art of flirting.”

Kira smiled a little and looked at Lydia again. “Yeah. Sounds...right.” She sounded uncertain.

Scott cleared his throat, “Okay, okay I thought we were bowling here. Do we have teams?” He asked as he glanced around counting everyone. “We’ve got an uneven number.” He said as he shifted towards Kira as he glanced at Stiles, “What do you think dude?”

“Derek’s on our team because we need the extra advantage.” He raised his eyebrows, looking at Scott knowingly. “You and Kira and Allison and Isaac, I assume are the other teams.”

Scott let his gaze travel to Isaac and Allison briefly, his friend’s hand brushing against the skin of Allison’s arm. He forced himself not to tense. Things between him and Allison were over. They were friends and that was it. He was moving on hopefully with Kira. So, Scott couldn’t understand why the thought of Isaac touching Allison made him want to mark his territory.

Scott shook his thoughts away and nodded. “The teams sound good, who’s up first?” He asked as he sat beside Kira.

Despite the fact that Scott said it was okay, Stiles knew his friend well enough to know that he was upset, even if he was trying really hard not to be. And that made him tense involuntarily, eying Isaac warily for a moment.

“Us,” Lydia said as she got up and walked over to pick a ball. She glanced at the screen and smirked, “I don’t think Derek is going to appreciate that.” She said as she read the names on the screen.

Stiles heard Lydia’s comment and stifled a smirk, not about to turn and look at Derek. He moved and sat down next to Scott, patting his shoulder before watching Lydia take her turn.

Scott sent Stiles a grateful look before his eyes also went to the redhead knowing she was good from the last time they all bowled together.

Lydia slid her fingers into the ball, took a few steps forward, and got into position. She bent her knees slightly and pulled her arm back before thrusting it forward and releasing the ball in a perfect arch. It hit the alley and slid down the middle ramming smack into the middle pin knocking all of them down at once.

Lydia grin and bounced as she turned her eyes seeking out Stiles, “Did you see?” She asked brightly.

Stiles gaped, then shook his head. “I don’t know why that surprises me. Of course she’s good at bowling. She’s good at everything,” he mumbled, glancing over at Derek. “You’re up, SW.” He stifled a grin.

“SW?” Isaac asked curiously.

“Sour Wolf,” he responded evenly.

Derek glared at both of them and got up after Lydia stepped back. He glanced at the balls and picked a black one. He moved it around in his hands as he stepped forward. Truth be told Derek hadn’t been bowling since he was a teenager and he had no idea what he was doing. He could feel eyes on his back and he sighed slipping his fingers into the holes before heaving the ball forward.

The ball slammed onto the lane hard, rolled in the middle for a few seconds before sliding to the left until it hit the gutter fell in and rolled in back. He closed his eyes, pursed his lips and let out a short breath before turning around.

Lydia stood there, her mouth opened slightly. “Oh no,” she said, “We severely miscalculated things.” She said.

Stiles hadn’t seen that coming, either. He willed himself not to laugh because that would be mean, and when Scott had told him that Jackson had teased him about sucking at bowling, Stiles had wanted to punch Jackson in the face. Of course, Stiles had almost always wanted to punch Jackson in the face, so he supposed that was part for the course.

He watched as Derek moved to retrieve the ball from the machine a moment later. “Come on, Big Guy. You can do it.” He gave him the thumbs up and a bright smile.

Kira leaned back in the seat. “I’m not good at this either,” she said helpfully. “I’ve never played before today.”

Derek lifted his ball and glanced over his shoulder at the small girl near Scott. He sent her half a smile for her encouragement before once again glaring Stiles.

Lydia cleared her throat, “Bend your legs a little and don’t pull your arm back so far. You’re throwing with too much force,” she offered.

Derek turned flashing his eyes at her.

Lydia arched an eyebrow. “You better not flash those baby blues at me or you’re going to be in trouble.” She said matter-of-factly.

Derek blinked and turned back around looking properly chastised.

Stiles brought his hand to his mouth and coughed to cover up a chuckle at the chastised look on Derek’s face. He looked up at Lydia, grinning.

Derek huffed and followed Lydia’s direction. The ball sailed down the lane and knocked into the pins on the right side knocking several down, but not all of them.

Stiles looked away from Derek and rose to his feet moving over to Lydia. “You really are something,” he said lightly. He was fairly sure that was going to earn him another glare from Derek, but he didn’t really care. The guy’s default expression was a glare. It wasn’t like Stiles was scared of him anymore. Mostly.

“See? You’re getting better already,” Kira encouraged, smiling shyly and looking at Scott.

Scott smiled, “Derek has a pretty impressive learning curve, like all of us. I think you’re after Stiles, do you remember what I showed you?” He asked noticing Derek watching them out of the corner of his eye.

She nodded, twisting a silver ring on her finger as she met his eyes. “I remember. I think.” At least she hoped she did.

Stiles picked up the ball he’d selected and sent it sailing down the lane. It knocked down four pins and he grimaced. Awesome. Way to impress Lydia, he thought, sighing inwardly. Not that he’d been expecting to get a strike, but six would have been a better number to knock down.

Lydia watched Stiles for a minute before getting up and walking over to where he was waiting for his ball. She ran a hand down his arm, “You’re tense,” she said softly, “You need to relax.” Lydia moved around him so she was standing in front of him. “Just focus on me and pretend I’m the only one here. She reached out and rested her hand against his stomach, “You’re doing good.” Lydia said as she met his gaze.

He let out a breath, then swallowed hard as her hand dropped to his stomach. He nodded wordlessly, heart beating faster, the way it always did when she touched him. He tried not to think about the three werewolves nearby who had super hearing, who were undoubtedly listening in to that fact, as well as their conversation. Awkward. “Thanks.”

Lydia stepped back and went back to her seat. She sat down and gnawed on her bottom lip. The feel of eyes on her made her glance to her left and when she spotted Derek watching her she arched an eyebrow at him. “What?”

Derek shook his head. “You seem different. Closer with Stiles.” He observed.

Lydia felt her cheeks warm and she tried not to huff. She wished her face would stop doing that to her. She wasn’t the blushing kind of girl. It was strange. She shrugged. “He’s been helping me adjust to the whole Banshee thing,” she offered without much detail.

Derek nodded and hesitated, “If you ever want to know more Peter and I both know a bit about your kind. We’ve got written books just like the Argents.” He explained.

Lydia glanced at him surprised, “I’ll think about it,” she said as Scott called out to Stiles telling him he could do it. Even Isaac awkwardly joined in.

Stiles shook his head slightly, vaguely amused and glanced over his shoulder at Scott, grinning wryly and then stepping forward to roll the ball down the lane, an excited, “YES!” escaping him when he polished off the remaining pins. He turned around to face the others, beaming.

Kira laughed softly at his excitement and rose to her feet, walking nervously to the ball return and picking up hers. She forced herself to focus on the aisle, trying to remember exactly the way Scott had instructed her and watched as all but one of the pins fell. She stared, stunned. “Oh.”

Allison raised her eyebrows and looked at Scott. “I thought she said she was bad at this.” Her voice was light, teasing.

Lydia titled her head to the side. “Next time Scott and Kira are on our team,” she said making Isaac laugh. Even Derek cracked half a smile.

Scott grinned proud that she’d done so well. He got up to get his ball ready as Kira went to throw her next ball.

Stiles moved over and dropped down on the seat between Lydia and Allison. He glanced at the brunette beside him and offered her a small smile. “How are you at bowling, Argent?” he teased.

“Not bad,” she assured him with a smirk. “We’ll definitely kick your butts. Right Isaac?” She nudged Isaac lightly.

Isaac glanced over at Allison and his brows drew together, “Uh, yeah,” he said but the uncertainty was clear in his voice. He wanted to impress Allison, but he had no clue how to bowl. Hopefully he wasn’t as bad as the rest of the guys.

Lydia leaned forward and grinned. “I smell fear,” she teased in a sing-song voice.

Isaac froze and glanced around his eyes darting between Allison, Stiles, Lydia and Derek. “Is that a Banshee thing?” He asked his brows in his hairline.

Allison patted his knee lightly. “It’s a Lydia thing,” she assured him.

Kira returned to her seat a moment later, watching intently as Scott stepped up to the aisle and holding her breath. “Come on, Scott,” she whispered under her breath.

Lydia’s gaze shifted to Kira as she watched the other girl watch Scott intensely.

A grin pulled at Scott’s lips as he heard Kira’s whispered words. He liked that she was rooting for him. He took a step toward the lane and focused his energy on the lane. His eyes turned red momentarily as he threw the ball and went back to normal as he released it. The ball traveled down the lane and crashed into the pins knocking them all down.

He turned and grinned his gaze meeting Kira’s briefly before he went to grab his ball.

Kira smiled at him brightly, eyes shining. “Good job!”

“Show off,” Stiles said with a teasing smirk, obvious pride in his eyes that contradicted his words.

Isaac pursed his lips. “It figures I’d be after him,” he said with a sigh, “This isn’t doing anything for that self-esteem of mine.” He commented under his breath as Scott threw yet another strike. He really was all around second best.

Scott came over and sat next to Kira, “You guys are up.” He said to Allison and Isaac with a good-natured smile.

“Come on, Isaac.” Allison sat forward in her seat, glancing sideways at Scott and looking nervous.

Isaac stood and walked over to grab a ball remembering what Lydia had said earlier about them. He picked a green one and walked up to the lane. He had watched Scott and Stiles, even Derek so he could try and get the hang of things before going up there. Hopefully it worked.

Isaac pulled back his arm and let go of the ball. It knocked down five pins and he grinned. He was just glad it knocked down something. “Not bad for a non-bowler,” he said with a smile as he walked over to get his ball.

Allison smiled at him, clapping her hands in approval. “Good job!”

“Try just a little to the left this time. Not a lot, just a little. You can probably take the rest out that way,” Stiles advised.

Lydia was surprised Stiles spoke up to Isaac, but glad. There was obviously a weird tension between the two of them and she was glad Stiles was trying to work it out.

Isaac lifted his ball back up and walked to the lane again. He took Stiles’ advice, the only kind he’d ever offered, and rolled it this time a little towards the left. Lo and behold it slammed into the rest of the pins knocking them all down. Isaac grinned, “Nice,” he said as he made his way back over to the group. He glanced at Stiles, “Thanks,” he said with a hesitant smile.

Stiles grinned when Isaac knocked over the rest of the pins, because Scott grinned when he made the spare. “Good job, Man,” he told Isaac, looking up at him when Isaac walked back over.

Allison raised her eyebrows, also surprised by Stiles’ sudden change in demeanor toward Isaac. She looked at Lydia curiously.

Lydia caught Allison’s gaze and smiled. “This is nice, we don’t get to do stuff like this a lot.” She said lightly because it was true. They didn’t get to be teenagers often. She leaned into Allison, “Stiles and I talked.” She said with half a smile. Lydia wanted her friend to be happy and she didn’t want Isaac to feel like an outsider for Allison’s sake.

At that, the brunette smiled a genuine smile. “Thank you,” she whispered.

“I’m gonna go get a soda. Anyone want anything while I’m up?” Stiles asked, glancing around.

Scott glanced over, “Can you get me a hot dog man?” For some reason he was starving. They’d been at the bowling alley for a while and he’d been hungry since he’d gone up for the soda earlier.

Lydia lifted her half eaten pretzel and took another bite. She chewed and swallowed, “I’m good.” She said with a smile.

Isaac looked up, “I’ll take a soda if you don’t mind,” he told Stiles keeping his tone casual. Things seemed to be going okay with him and Stiles and he didn’t want to ruin it.

“One hot dog and one soda. Regular or …?” Stiles arched his eyebrows, not sure what kind of soda Isaac liked to drink. Everyone else he already knew, but truth be told, he hadn’t paid that much attention to the things that Isaac liked and disliked.

Isaac shrugged, “Regular’s fine. I’m not picky.” He told Stiles as he nudged Allison with his leg.

Allison smiled softly, pleased the two finally seemed to be getting along in a civil, almost friendly kind of way. She nudged Isaac back, watching as Stiles headed away to the concession stand. “That seems to be going better today,” she murmured to him.

Isaac nodded, “It does,” he let his fingers brushed gently against hers, “I didn’t think he was ever going to come around. I’m glad I was wrong though.” He lifted an arm around the back of Allison’s chair and glanced over at Scott and Kira talking softly. “They seem friendly,” he commented quietly.

“She seems nice,” Allison remarked, watching the two of them even as a faint pang tugged at her. Momentary regret, no doubt. But it was for the best. She was moving on and so was Scott, and that’s how it was supposed to be.

Lydia watched Scott go for Stiles since he was still at the concession stand. When SW popped up she reached over and tapped Derek to get his attention. He got up and she leaned back her seat watching as everyone egged him on. She smiled and she was pretty sure she caught a crack of a smile on Derek’s face too, which was surprising, but not unwelcome. Everyone seemed to be having a good time and she was glad that their little group was finally getting along.

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