It was so fun having Peter back, I remember I got so excited when I saw him in the episode.
So, it's back to Riley now. I didn't complete Stiles' POV from the episode, because you can tell what happened from Riley's POV back in Beacon Hills
——————————
✧･ﾟ:*Riley*:･ﾟ✧
Lydia was at my door the next morning before school. She was one of the only ones who still believed that Stiles was real. She had remembered what I had said about maybe having a lead, and wanted to see what I'd been talking about.
I led her straight to my room and showed her my wall of photos. Her eyes scanned over the sticky notes, pins and string.
She pointed to the wall, "What does the red string mean?"
"The red?" I echoed. "Uh, that means unsolved."
Lydia turned to me with a confused look, "There's only red."
"Yeah, I know," I sighed. "I mean, I know where the majority were taken, but I just can't remember the stories behind them. That's why I've left them red."
"Okay," she nodded. "And what about the lead you mentioned you might have?"
I approached the wall and pointed to the section of photos I had been referring to. "These here. I'm in a car, but I don't recognise the interior. It's not mine or Charlotte's or Iris', and it's no one from the Pack either. So whose car is it?"
"You think it might have been Stiles' car," Lydia concluded.
Hearing someone else say it made me feel slightly less insane for still believing that Stiles was out there. "Yeah, I do. But the only photos I have are from the inside of the car, so I have no idea what sort've car it is. Not much of a lead."
"It's better than nothing," Lydia assured me. "Come on, we should get going or we're going to be late for biology."
"What about the car?"
Lydia gave me a sympathetic frown, "It's like you said, there's not much we can do unless we can figure out what sort've car it is."
"Alright, just let me get my stuff."
The girl smiled, heading out to her car to wait for me. I got shoes and a jacket on and grabbed my bag, ready to leave. I was about to walk out the door when I went back to my wall once more instead.
I stared at the photos of myself in the car. I was in the passenger seat, leaning and taking a photo of myself with the empty driver's seat. I was smiling in all of them - I looked so happy in all of them, and it broke my heart that I couldn't remember who made me smile like that.
Unpinning all the photos with the car in them, I put them in an envelope to keep them safe and slipped them into my bag. I had to be on the lookout if I ever wanted to find that car.
Zipping my bag shut, I left my room and went to meet Lydia in her car. "Thanks for the ride," I smiled as I buckled myself into the seat.
Lydia grinned, starting the car, "Any time, you know that."
♧♤♢♡
"I can't believe we're just going to come to school and act like everything's normal," I whispered to Lydia
The girl sat beside me in biology, taking notes as Mrs Finch spoke. "We still need to graduate."
Scott sat at the desk behind us, tapping his pen against his book. He wasn't saying anything, but I knew he was listening to us talk.
"The corpus callosum is not only the largest white matter structure in the brain but also the bridge connecting all parts of the brain to each other," Mrs Finch said from the front of the classroom. "That ability for all parts of the brain to communicate, and to work together, help us make leaps in cognitive leaps."
Taking what Lydia had said into consideration, I proceeded to take notes on what was being said. Apparently, though, the girl beside me had zoned out.
"Any questions, thoughts, insights, Lydia?" Mrs Finch asked as she approached.
When Lydia didn't respond, I gave her a little nudge to get her attention. She looked from the window to me and then finally to Mrs Finch before answering. "Uh, I completely agree."
"Is there something outside that's more fascinating than the structure of the human mind?"
"No," Lydia said quietly. "I don't think so. No."
"Okay. Good."
I leaned back so I could see past the girl to where she had been looking. Out in the carpark, a man was hooking a powder blue Jeep up to his tow truck. I don't see why Lydia thought it was so interesting, it wasn't like she'd never seen a car towed before.
Mrs Finch headed back to the front of the classroom. "Now, many people credit the corpus callosum, uh, for giving us a sense of intuition, gut instinct, even we ourselves aren't aware-"
"I'm sorry, I'll be right back," Lydia announced as she got up from her chair and walked out of the classroom, apparently following her own gut instinct.
I didn't hesitate for a moment before grabbing my bag, getting up from my chair and following after her, apologising to our teacher on the way out.
I called Lydia's name, but she didn't stop until she was in the carpark in front of the man who was planning to tow the Jeep.
"Hey! You can't tow this Jeep."
"Paperwork says I can," the man smirked, leaning against it. "It's reported as abandoned."
Not thinking, just having faith in Lydia, I placed a hand on the vehicle. "Well, now, it's not."
"Oh, this is your vehicle?"
"Does it matter?" Lydia asked.
The man scoffed loudly as he looked at her, "Sounds like a no."
"So what?" I scoffed.
"Look-"
"It's mine," Scott said breathlessly as he ran up behind us. Apparently, he had chosen to leave biology also. "Uh, my Jeep. Thank you. I'll move it. Once I get the keys. From my locker. After you leave."
"I'm sorry, once it's on the hook-"
"Please don't say, 'you're on the hook'," Lydia sighed.
The man frowned, "Well, I can't now."
"And we're all glad for it," I pointed out.
"Okay. Look, there's gotta be something that we can do," Scott stated, trying to help us. "Sign something? Call someone?"
"Pay someone?" Lydia added, rolling her eyes, knowing it was going to be the only option that actually spoke to the man.
The driver smiled, "Drop fee's a hundred and fifty. Cash."
Lydia and I both immediately went into our bags to retrieve our purses. As we gathered what we had, Scott leaned in to talk to us both, "A hundred and fifty? This thing isn't even worth that much."
"How much you got?" Lydia asked.
"Uh, how much have you guys got?"
"Just give me your money."
Scott blinked, jaw set with a sigh before he finally reached into his back pocket. Holding out a small wad of notes, he looked at us. "All I have is fifty dollars. And when I say 'all', I mean all-"
"For God sakes," I mumbled, reaching over and snatching it from his fingers. "I'll pay you back later."
Lydia handed me her money also, and then I gave it to the driver. He grinned happily as he accepted the cash, before going over to unhook the Jeep.
As Lydia began to walk away, Scott called after her. "Hey. You know I don't actually have the keys to this thing, right?"
Lydia shrugged, lips pursed. "But now we have a Jeep."
"Why though, Lydia? Why did you run out here?" I asked, looking at the banged-up vehicle.
She thought for a moment as she looked at it also. "Intuition, I guess."
Scott looked between the two of us, sighing, "Let's just go back to class before we get in even more trouble."
♧♤♢♡
Throughout the day, I kept finding myself staring out the window towards the Jeep. Something about it, about how Lydia had gone to it. It had to mean something.
After my second class, that was it. Gathering all my things, I went out to the Jeep. I pressed against the glass trying to see inside. There was nothing revealing sitting on any of the seats that I could see.
I wanted to get inside the vehicle, but unfortunately, I didn't exactly have the keys. Moving to walk to the other side of the car, I almost had a heart attack when I nearly ran directly into Isaac.
"Isaac? What are you doing out here?" I asked the curly-haired beta.
"You didn't show up to class," he said simply. "I asked Lydia, and she took a guess that you'd be out here. Whose car is it?"
"We're not sure. Lydia got one of her Banshee vibes, but ever since I saw it. . . there's just something I can't shake."
Isaac walked over to the Jeep, placing a hand on the roof as he leaned to look through the window. "I don't think I've ever seen this car before."
"Me neither," I replied, not bothering to hide my disappointment.
"But you think it's his, I'm guessing. The relic?"
Part of me hesitated. "I mean, part of me thought so, but. . . I didn't want to give myself that sort've hope, just to be shut down again."
Reaching into my bag I grabbed out the envelope containing some of the pictures from my wall. Opening it, I compared the photo to what I could see.
It certainly looked like the car. I needed more solid evidence if I was going to convince Scott, though.
The boy did a quick lap around the vehicle to get a better look, but when he arrived back in front of me, he frowned. "What's that?"
"Some of the photos from my wall. They were all taken in a car, and I didn't know whose it was," I explained, handing him a couple of them.
He looked from the photos to the Jeep, and then back again. "It definitely looks like it could be. Have you heard that voice again?"
"No," I sighed. "I just wish I would though. I need to know that he's real. That I'm not crazy."
"They never said you were crazy, Ri."
"They might as well have," I bit. "We've all lost so many people in our lives, Isaac. If there was a chance we could get one of them back, why aren't we trying?"
Isaac didn't say anything as he looked at me, probably thinking of how to reply. He hadn't said much at the hospital the previous night because he was seeing Scott's side, but he still wanted to have my back.
I appreciated the support, but I didn't want the sympathy stares if he didn't believe me.
"You're right," he nodded. "And I think Scott and the others will realise that. We just need to find something more."
I was going to ask what he thought there could be, when Lydia walked up, staring at the Jeep. Isaac and I looked at each other for a moment, before both turning to Lydia. She didn't move at all, it was almost spooky.
"Hey, are you okay?" Isaac asked her.
Lydia didn't move, continuing to stare blankly at the Jeep. I was about to ask her something when a loud static sound started coming from the Jeep. My breath hitched as I approached it slowly. Looking through the window again, I found the sound to be coming from the police-grade radio that was set up in the car.
Scott and Malia had run up as well, most likely having heard the radio from within the school. Scott looked at the three of us, searching for an answer.
"It's coming from inside," Lydia told him, not looking away from the Jeep.
Scott went to the door of the Jeep, looking through the window as he tried to open the door. Unfortunately, it was still locked.
"Did somebody just lock the keys inside?" Malia asked.
We couldn't let this moment slip by. This was the relic, it had to be. The way Lydia had gotten a Banshee vibe from it, I couldn't stop thinking about it, and it looked an awful lot like the car in the picture.
"Break it open," I told Scott.
Scott looked to all of us to make sure everyone was in agreement before he grabbed the handle and jerked it upwards. The lock gave way and Scott opened the door.
Not waiting for another second, I stepped past Scott and Malia and slid into the driver's seat. The noise was coming from the police-grade radio scanner installed between the seats.
Malia and Scott got into the backseat, Isaac was searching the boot, and Lydia had climbed into the passenger seat beside me. Grabbing the photos out of my bag again, I compared them from an inside perspective.
And after seeing them, I knew. There was no doubt in my mind that this was the car in the photos.
Breathing a sigh of relief, I let the pictures fall into my lap, my hands grabbing the steering wheel.
I tightened my fingers around it until my knuckles were white, feeling tears welling in my eyes.
This was his relic; this was what Stiles had left behind. He was real.
Suddenly, the radio stopped. Everyone paused what they were doing to turn and look down at it.
"Why'd it stop?" Malia asked from the backseat.
"I'm not sure," I told her, flicking a few of the switches on the radio. "But there has to be a reason that it turned on."
"What?" Scott mumbled from the backseat.
"You caught a scent?" Lydia asked.
"Yeah. Uh, ours. Mine, yours, all five of us."
"How?" Isaac questioned, now standing at the window. "I've never seen this Jeep before today."
"Neither have I."
I grabbed the wheel again, feeling more hopeful. "Don't you see? We have, we just don't remember it because of the Ghost Riders."
"I thought we were done with that," my sister sighed from the backseat.
"Yeah," Scott agreed. "Parrish checked the VIN number. There's no record of owner."
I picked the photos up from my lap, holding them out to them. "Look at these. These were taken in this car. You can't tell me I'm imagining this."
When Scott seemed to be believing what I was saying, Malia's brows pulled together. "Whose side are you on?"
"I'm on everyone's side," Scott sighed.
I rolled my eyes, "Don't be that person, Scott. For God's sake, just make a decision for once."
Scott didn't say anything as he went back to searching. Malia reached across the chairs and took my hands in her own. "He's not real. Trust me. I've lost a lot of people in my life, Ri. It's a long list and I don't feel like adding to it."
"Then we'd better get him back," I said, pulling my hands away from her. The sound of a shocked gasp caught my attention, turning to Lydia to see her holding some papers.
Skim reading the cover, I realised it was the registration papers.
Scott took them from her, trying to see if there was any useful information. "This is from '96. And there's no name."
"There's an address," I pointed out. "129 Woodbine Lane. And even better, we know where it is."
"We do?"
Lydia smiled at me, nodding. "The Stilinskis."
Snatching the paper from Scott, I got out of the Jeep. "I'll speak to you guys later."
"Riley, wait," Scott said, getting out of the car.
"Why? So you guys can keep telling me how he's not real?" I scoffed, continuing to walk. "Like I said, if you don't believe me, I don't care."
♧♤♢♡
"I don't know what to tell you," Claudia Stilinski stuttered as she stared down at the Jeep's registration papers. "I haven't seen that Jeep in. . . almost eighteen years."
I had gone over there alone, sitting across from Clausia and Noah. Lydia had offered to come with me, but I wanted to talk to them alone.
Plus, last time Lydia was here, things hadn't exactly ended well with Claudia.
"But, Mrs Stilinski," I said slowly, trying to keep things civil with her. "The car is in your name."
"But it was stolen."
Squeezing my hands in my lap, I kept eye contact with the woman. "And now it's at the school. How did it get there?"
The couple looked at each other, both of them lost for answers. Mr Stilinski shrugged, "Beats the hell out of me. I mean, that thing was a junker back in the day. God only knows who'd want it now."
"Maybe somebody dumped it there?" Claudia suggested.
I felt myself growing frustrated. Why couldn't anyone just believe me?
"Sheriff, you're able to trace a car's history at the station, right? Well, what about the Jeep? Can't you figure out what happened after it was stolen? Finger prints, fibres, anything?"
"No," the Sheriff replied simply.
"There has to be something," I tried, feeling tears welling in my eyes. I finally had the relic, but I still wasn't getting any closer.
"Riley, is this about Stiles?"
Claudia looked from her husband to me, giving me a look of pity as she handed back the registration papers. "Sweetheart, don't you think you've taken this far enough?"
They were both looking at me just like how my friends had at the hospital. Everyone thought I was crazy. The tears I had been trying to hold back spilled over, gently cascading down my cheeks.
Sniffling, I wiped my cheeks, placing the papers in my lap.
Claudia, seeing my tears, sighed gently. "I'm not sure what's going on with you and your friends at the moment, but honey, I think you may want to go and see the school counsellor."
Biting my lip, I wiped away my tears again, before nodding. "Yeah. Yeah, you're probably right," I chuckled. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have come here."
I stood up, getting ready to leave when the Sheriff raised a hand. "Hey, Riley, wait. Are you okay?"
I attempted to smile as I looked over at him, nodding a bit. "Yeah. I think so, I just. . . I'm sorry can I. . ." I pointed down the hall, referring to their bathroom.
Claudia gave a sympathetic smile, lolling her head to the side. "Please. Take your time, I'll put the kettle on."
I gave half a smile, before moving down the corridor, trying not to cry again. No one believed me, not even his parents.
The medical records Lydia found meant nothing, I knew he was their son. All the clues lead to that answer, and I was clinging to it.
Walking down the halls quickly, I turned the corner and headed towards the bathroom. Just as I was about to approach the door, I found myself stopping.
My breath hitched as I turned to face the wall. My eyes focussed in on the wallpaper which Lydia had began to tear free. Stepping closer to the wall, I ran my fingers over the loose piece of wallpaper.
There was something behind this wall; something they were trying to hide. Something to do with Stiles.
Part of me wanted to tear it further and find out, but if I kept going, they would probably consider sending me back to Eichen House.
I felt myself beginning to cry softly again as my hand dropped by my side. I just wanted him back.
Turning around, I pressed my back to the wall and slid down it slowly until I was on the floor with my knees at my chest.
"Stiles," I whispered through tears. "Where are you?"
♧♤♢♡
After an awkward ten minutes of sitting quietly with the Stilinskis drinking coffee, I left and went back to the Jeep.
When I got there Scott, Isaac and Lydia were all talking to the man with the tow truck, who had apparently returned to take the Jeep.
"What the hell?" I exclaimed as I approached. "You said it was ours. It's not on the hook anymore."
"I don't have that control anymore," he explained. "They want it out of here, it's not up to me."
The man moved towards the car, and I gave Scott a pleading look. The boy stepped up immediately, jaw set and fists clenched as he stared the man down.
The tow truck driver scowled, "Don't make me move you, kid, okay? I'm hookin' this thing up and I am towing it away."
Feeling my anger bubble over, the air around us all began to thicken, a harsh wind starting up. Isaac grabbed onto my hand to try and get me to calm down, but it didn't work.
There was a sudden creaking sound, and we all looked over to see that Malia had arrived. The girl had picked up the hook of the tow truck and ripped it from its chain. Holding the now separated hook out to the man, she smiled, "Your truck's broke."
The man looked pissed, but realised he didn't have much of a choice other than to leave. Throwing the hook into the back seat of his truck, he got in his car and drove away.
♧♤♢♡
We didn't really know what to do after that, so we had just been sitting in the Jeep, hoping something would happen. We had all heard a growl echo through Beacon Hills, and see Scott, Malia and Isaac to investiage.
They could move faster than Lydia and me. Besides, I didn't want to leave the Jeep.
When Scott returned he informed us that it was a werewolf. Someone named Peter, who Malia and Isaac were taking to the hospital. Lydia had wanted to stay also, but her mum had called her home and no matter how much she wanted to stay, she didn't want to continue to worry the woman.
"Peter?" I repeated from the front seat. "Do we know a Peter?"
Scott's looked worried for a moment, a frown forming. "Peter Hale. He was the Alpha, he bit me and Lydia, and. . . and he's your dad, Riley. Your biological dad, at least."
"My dad?" I laughed. "No. No, my dad is-"
My words fell short as memories began to flood back to me. Everything from when he'd attacked us in the woods and the hospital, to him trying to help, to the Mexico incident, to trying to find him after Eichen and to my memory of meeting him as a child.
"My dad is Peter Hale," I said beneath my breath. "How did I forget something like that?"
"He was erased by the Ghost Riders," Scott explained.
Scott reached over from the passenger seat, placing something in my hand. I looked down to see a set of keys with a green bottle opener.
"You think that this key. . ." I trailed off, looking at my best friend.
Scott gave me an unsure look, "It's worth a shot, right?"
Slowly, I slid the key into the ignition and turned it. It revved, before sputtering, failing to start. Taking a breath, I tried again, pressing down on the accelerator in hopes of it making kickstarting it or something.
"Don't flood it," Scott told me.
I gave him a look, before focussing back on the task at hand. Trying again, the Jeep came alive, headlights turning on as it did so.
I began to laugh, tears of joy in my eyes as I ran my hands through my hair. It was his car.
After our small celebration, the Jeep lulled into silence. We didn't exactly had a plan for if we had gotten the Jeep started, so we just sat there.
Almost ten minutes passed and still nothing. I was about to ask them if we should move the Jeep to my house, when the static from earlier started up again.
The radio lit up as it turned on, continuing to buzz. Scott reached down, preparing to turn it down, when I heard something amongst all the static.
"Hello?"
"Stop!" I said quickly, removing his hands from the radio. "Just- just wait a second. I heard something."
"Hello? Is anyone there?" the voice said. "Can anyone hear me?"
I looked up to Scott, my mouth falling agape. It was the voice I had been hearing when nobody was around.
Picking up the receiver, I held it to my mouth, my hand shaking. "Stiles?
When there was no response, Scott leaned forward. "Stiles, are you there?"
"Riley? Scott? Is that you?" the voice said.
"Oh, my God," I gasped, my eyes beginning to well up again. "Stiles. Stiles, I can hear you. I can hear your voice."
A relieved sigh escaped through the radio, "Oh, my God, you know me? You remember me?"
I had dreamt of this moment, but part of me kept saying it wasn't real. That no matter how much I wanted it, it wasn't going to be him.
"Stiles. . . I- I need you to tell me that this is you. Please, is this really you?"
"Yeah, it's me," he confirmed. "Do you remember what the last thing I said to you?"
My eyes drifted to Scott, before I looked back down at the receiver. "You- you mentioned that time we almost kissed for the first time, when my mum interrupted," I laughed through overjoyed tears.
"You told me I was the first girl you'd ever loved. That you wanted to- to give me the world. That you loved me. Completely, totally, desperately."
I heard his relieved sigh through the receiver, and I knew he remembered it, too.
"Where are you?" Scott asked. "We're coming to get you."
"No, no, no," Stiles said quickly. "You can't. You won't be able to find me."
"No," I replied firmly. "No, Stiles, I can't just sit by now that I finally know I'm not crazy. That you're out there. Tell me what I can do, please."
"I know, and I'm sorry," he said sincerely. "Just remember this. Canann, okay? You have to find Canaan. Just find Canaan. I love you, Riley."
I pressed down to reply, "I lo-" but the static cut out as I spoke. "No," I said quietly. hitting the buttons and flicking switches. "Stiles!"