UNFINISHED Stydia AU - Room Mates - Teen Wolf.

Hell and Night.

For Yasmin. I will go down with this ship.

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Hell and night must bring this monstrous birth to the world's light.

- Iago, Othello.

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The nine flights of stairs seemed to be going by in slow motion. Every step was like twenty, and every second felt like an hour. Kira was beside her, clutching the handle of her katana in a white-knuckled fist.

"They'll be fine, Lyd," Kira reminded her, even though she looked as terrified as Lydia felt. "They've been dealing with this sort of thing for a long time."

Lydia kept running, ignoring the way her legs felt like they were about to dissolve.

"They've never dealt with Jackson," she said shortly. "They have no idea how ruthless he is."

Kira didn't respond to that.

The ninth floor finally came, and their heavy steps turned to soft, catlike padding to the door of the apartment. It opened as if by itself, and Jackson Whittemore grinned in delight, leaning against the frame.

It was the first time Lydia had seen him in years. He was taller, bigger in general, but he still had that lethal glint in his eyes. Eyes that ran up and down her once, twice, flicked to Kira, then to the empty space on the other side of Lydia. The space that used to be Allison's.

"Oh," he chuckled quietly. "That's right. Your little hunter bitch. She died, didn't she?"

"Don't act like you don't know her name, Jackson," Kira said. His eyes were cold, but hers were bulletproof glass. She wasn't afraid. Lydia wondered how that was possible. Kira's chin came up arrogantly, and she added, "After all, you don't just forget the name of the girl who constantly rejected you."

Lydia took a breath. Number one rule with Jackson: Don't get him angry. She had discovered that years ago. Kira didn't seem to care, though. She waited for his reaction with her lips twisted up into a cruel smile. Lydia suddenly realized what she was trying to do.

Kira knew Jackson. She was the one who used to sober him up when he got too drunk and handsy with Allison at parties, the one who practiced lacrosse with him on weekends while Lydia and Allison did their homework in the stands, the one who had been his friend.

It had been a brief friendship, cut off abruptly when he had been bitten, but a strong one. And Kira had been so upset when he left, she didn't talk to Allison or Lydia for weeks. Now it was different. He was a killer, and she was a Kitsune with full control over her once-temperamental powers. And he had broken her best friend's heart. And he was a danger to Scott. So she didn't care about that old friendship, the same way Lydia didn't care about their old relationship. He wasn't the same person anymore.

And Kira knew about Jackson's obsession with Allison. He had been dating Lydia at the time, but he hadn't cared a bit. It might have been because she was Lydia's, and he wanted to take her away, or because he saw Allison as a challenge. He never left her alone. Kira had been the only one who would call him out on it.

Jackson's icy smile deepened, and he chuckled lightly, glaring down at Kira like she was a bug he wanted to crush. "Well. I guess the little kitten finally learned how to bite. I missed you too, Sparky."

Kira flinched at the old nickname, inciting another laugh from Jackson. Lydia grabbed her hand, almost scorching herself on Kira's glowing fingertips. She held on, and Kira's shoulders squared as she looked back up at Jackson. "Where's my boyfriend?"