Of course Stiles knew that things wouldn't be that easy; there were too many variables to take into consideration. First, they could be torturing Lydia for all he knows and yes, Stiles may or may not be pondering killing someone if that's the case and he's not even joking about it - Scott had just side-eyed him at that idea. Second, Lydia might not be at Eichen House at all though Stiles is 98% sure that she is, if his gut is anything to go by. At least it hasn't failed him that much until now.
There's also another thing to worry about. Lydia might not even know that Stiles is alive - the last image she had had of him was a bloodied Stiles lying in his wreck of a Jeep after the accident, almost a week ago; Lydia had been taken away from him then. And lastly, and much like Lydia, Stiles doesn't know if the banshee is alive either but he doesn't want to think about that. He knows she is, she has to be.
It's like Scott had told him in the beginning of senior year, about the regression to the mean. Things were going really bad with the Dread Doctors; in fact, Stiles is still not sure how they are all still alive at this point but the thing is that even in all the bad, things evened out. Malia was out of the picture, has been ever since they found the Desert Wolf and Lydia might have unwillingly let out in frustration that "Finally. It wasn't soon enough."
She hadn't meant for it to sound so bitter, not on purpose, but Stiles had finally told her that he and Malia were finished for good and Lydia hadn't be able to stop herself from making that comment. Of course it led to some long overdue - and not so innocent - bickering between Stiles and Lydia. It was good though; things were put in perspective in between the two and even if neither admitted to their feelings for the other, they had agreed on spending more time together again for old time's sake, thus why they were in the Jeep together when it happened. Stiles had just wanted to take Lydia out for some ice cream; instead, he ended up in a car crash with the banshee, the accident caused by the Dread Doctors who ended up taking Lydia from the scene. Why Stiles thought that things would finally get better for everyone is beyond him; it's not like they ever do.
Since he got to Eichen though, Stiles has been keeping her smile in his mind, the smile that Lydia gave him just before they were hit, a grin she had given into after he told her a really bad joke. He remembers how her eyes seemed to glow when she gave him that genuine smile; it's what's keeping him alive now, it's what's been keeping him focused through all of this. His priority is Lydia, and nothing is going to get in his way.
He's been waiting for the right moment to make a move and it'll have to be now; if not, Stiles is not sure how long he'll be able to keep this up. He hasn't been able to form many words since he got there; at first he had been quiet while snooping around looking for Lydia, but when he got caught his attacker made sure that Stiles' jaw wasn't of much help to the boy in letting out sounds. He's been gathering his strength since then, only whispering in the night when he's left alone and locked up to test it, to make sure that his voice will not falter him in his time of need, and it has to be now!
The orderly leaves him, done with the beating for the moment and only for long enough to come back with a ridiculously large syringe - one that Stiles dreads -, the same way he's been doing up until now, which gives Stiles about a minute by himself. As soon as the door is closed behind the man and Stiles is completely alone, he tries his best to get up to his feet, looking for support in the nearest wall.
Stiles takes a very deep breath, his thoughts about Lydia and Lydia alone, his mind picturing his end result: that Lydia will be able to hear him. It's only in his favor that he's in Echo house after all. If she's there and if she needs any reassurance that he's alive, she'll get it now. Stiles opens his mouth and screams, his voice echoing throughout the building.
"LYDIAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
He's left breathless and tries his best to stand upright and not fall on his face, worn-out as he feels. He wonders if this is how it works for Lydia when she's the one screaming.
A knight in shining armor
Start from the beginning
