...

Scott, Y/n, Lydia, and Malia had hurried to the bunker, sealing every entrance that they could think of as they gathered in the main room. "The tunnel gate's locked." Lydia called as she jogged down the hall, Scott closing the door behind her and bolting it. "Everything's locked."

"Think it'll hold them off?" Malia asked.

"Probably not." Scott answered.

"Definitely not." Lydia said.

"You guys aren't hoping I'm gonna be the optimist, are you?"

"We don't need optimism," Y/n intervened, "we just need to get moving."

"So, how cold does this thing get?" Scott asked as they moved to stand in front of the large human sized freezer Chris Argent had.

"Cold enough for a hellhound." Lydia said. "It's not the same as the ice bath you guys gave Isaac, but it can lower your core temperature past anything a human can survive."

"So what does freezing our asses off have to do with our memories?" Malia wondered.

"It'll slow your heart rate," Y/n started, "putting you in a trance-like state and letting you access your subconscious. That's where you'll be able to go through your memories."

"Like hypnosis." Scott added.

"Hypnotic regression. If we can figure out how to work it." Lydia commented

Malia looked over the contraption and found a green button and a red button. "This says 'start', so, maybe it's not that complicated." She pointed to them.

Scott looked over the various gauges and dials. "It's complicated."

"The Sheriff's memories were strong, but obviously one person's memories aren't enough." Y/n said. "We're all gonna have to remember everything about Stiles as fast as we can, that way the rift will stay open long enough for him to get through, and so we don't die from hypothermia."

"So, optimistically, how much time do you think we need to do this?" Malia asked.

"As much time as Liam and Stilinski can buy us." Scott pulled one of the latches keeping the door closed so he could open it. Scott volunteered himself to be the first one to go into the machine, taking off his hoodie to prepare to get cold.

Malia pushed the start button and looked up as the machine powered up and hissed. "Okay, it's doing something. You ready?" Scott hesitantly stepped into the machine, watching through the window as Lydia closed the latches, sealing the werewolf inside. Malia gave Scott an encouraging nod.

"Remember, this will get cold enough to kill you. So if something feels wrong or like it's not working-"

"It's going to work." Scott cut Lydia off with his positivity.

"I hope you're not saying that because you think I know what I'm doing."

"I'm saying that because I know you can figure it out." Lydia's lips drew into a line as she reached over, turned all of the dials to ten. Scott gasped in shock as the temperature dropped rapidly. "Oh, okay, all right, yeah, that's cold. Really cold." Condensation began to fog up the small space.

"So what are we supposed to do? Talk to him? Help him remember? Wait till he turns into a werewolf freezy pop?" Malia asked.

"We're gonna have to guide him, try to keep him focused." Y/n answered.

"You can do that, can't you? You were able to look through that kid's memory before."

She shook her head. "It's more complicated than that. That was a recent memory and he was already focusing on it. This is years worth that we're talking about, and they've been buried. All we can do is talk him through it." They looked back at Scott as he shivered, hissing at the cold surrounding him. "Scott, you need to think about Stiles. Concentrate on him. Picture him in your mind, what he looks like, what he's said." Scott nodded as she spoke, eyes closing as he tried to do as she asked, but it was really hard when he was literally freezing,

The machine suddenly made a whirring sound and Scott groaned. "I don't like this. Something's wrong." Malia said.

"Wait. Give it a few more seconds." Lydia urged.

Scott's hand smacked onto the glass as he cried out. "I'm getting him out of there."

Malia grabbed one of the latches, but Y/n held her hand to stop her. "Hold on." Scott slowly relaxed, hand coming back down to his side as Y/n watched him. "Scott... Can you hear me?" He picked his head up, and when his eyes opened they were shining Alpha red in the fog.

Inside his head, Scott began to explore his memories, but outside his eyes were starting to droop. "Scott, don't fall asleep. You have to keep your eyes open." Lydia called.

"Trying..." He mumbled.

"It's not sleep." She realized. "I think you're losing consciousness. And if you do that, I think we're gonna lose you."

"Scott, stay awake! Scott!" Malia yelled.

Fighting against the blackness that wanted to swallow his mind, Scott watched a memory play before him, but it was soon followed by others, many voices echoing around. His head and eyes moved around as if he was looking for the owners. "Scott, you need to look for him." Y/n continued to guide. "You need to find him in your memories. Any memory, good, bad, happy, sad. Any of them."

His movements became more rapid, tears gathered in his eyes and his expression showed just how overwhelmed he was becoming which worried Malia. "What's happening to him?"

"I don't know."

"He doesn't look good. He looks... Lost."

"I think he is." Lydia said. "I think maybe it's too much information. Like, he's getting buried under all the memories. Being overloaded by them."

"So what do we do to help him?"

"Scott? Can you hear me, Scott? Scott! You have to focus!" Y/n's voice was just a faint muffle compared to the voices grappling for his attention.

Malia's head turned towards the tunnel door. "You hear that?" She asked as she went over to listen closer.

"Thunder?" Lydia asked.

"Maybe." Lydia sighed in frustration.

Scott had clamped his hands over his ears, trying to block the overwhelming sounds. "I don't think this is going to work." Y/n admitted.

"Then we have to figure something else out." Malia walked over to them.

"I know, I know. I just-" She cut herself off as her hand ran through her hair, stressing over the situation.

"Is he gonna freeze to death in there?"

"If his memories don't kill him first."

"There has to be another way to do this. Isn't there?"

"I don't know." She snapped. "I've never tried to open a supernatural rift before. I have no idea what I'm doing, I'm just, like, groping around in the dark here."

"I'm getting him out." Malia reached for the latches again.

"Wait." Lydia caught her wrist as she thought of something. "You're not the only one." She looked at Y/n, who just furrowed her brows at her.

"What?"

"You're not the only one groping around in the dark."

"What does that mean?" Malia asked.

"I think we have to treat this more like actual hypnosis. They use images to guide you through memories. Like, a stairwell. The steps take you down through one year of your life to the next. That's how they regress you back."

"I get it. So he needs to imagine something. Wh- what do we tell him?"

Lydia looked to Y/n. "It's your idea, go ahead." She gave an encouraging nod, so Lydia turned to the machine and spoke to Scott.

"Scott? Can you hear me? Scott, listen. Imagine this. Imagine you're in the high school. Visualize yourself in the high school, in the corridor where all the lockers are. Just try to imagine standing there. That's where your memories are. They're all in the lockers. They're locked away behind each one. Every memory of Stiles is in a seperate locker. Scott, you're there. In the high school. You're standing there now."

Scott opened his eyes, and in his mind he found himself exactly where Lydia told him he'd be. He went to a locker and opened it. He found a memory of Stiles, but it didn't feel like the right one he needed to find. There were so many lockers, how was he supposed to find the right one?

"Lydia, I need your help. I don't think I can do this. I can't figure it out." Scott spoke.

"Keep looking."

"There are memories, but I don't know which one's the right one. What am I supposed to do?"

"Find another memory. Just find another memory." She urged.

Frost started to gather along the edges of the window. "Lydia, look." Y/n pointed out.

Lydia glanced over the gauges. "It's getting too cold. He's getting too cold." She turned to warn Malia who was looking at one of the bars of silver Chris had down in the bunker.

"What if it's not enough to remember him?" Malia said. "What if it's some kind of connection he's supposed to make because of a memory?"

"Like an emotional connection?"

"That could be why it worked for Stilinski, right?"

"But he wasn't remembering just anyone. He was remembering his son." Y/n reminded.

Malia went over to the machine and looked at Scott through the frosting window. "Scott? Scott, can you hear me? Listen, I remember something. At the start of the year, Stiles was trying to find a place for you guys to live after graduation." When he made no sign of recognition she looked to the other two, and they gave her little nods to continue. "He said you were getting an apartment together? And I remember saying something to Stiles. Something like it's not always a good idea to live with your friends. Even your best friend. But Stiles said it wouldn't matter because you weren't just friends. You guys were more like brothers." That last word seemed to echo in Scott's head, and the next locker he opened held the correct memory.

Alarms blared and the girls were quick to open the latches, catching Scott as he fell to his knees. His eyes had shifted back to their natural brown as they darted frantically between the three. "What- what's wrong? Why'd you bring me out?"

"Your heart rate dropped. You were gonna die." Lydia informed.

"We had to." Malia added.

"But then, nothing happened, did it? It didn't work."

"It did." Y/n assured him. "I felt something. It wasn't a lot, but it was a start."

Encouraged by this Scott jumped up again. "I'm going back in."

"No, you're not!" Lydia blocked the machine while Y/n and Malia held Scott back by his arms.

"It was working. Something was happening. Y/n could feel it. I could feel it."

"But nothing was happening out here. Nothing, Scott. All we saw was you freezing to death."

"You're still too cold." Malia said.

Scott looked down at his hands that were still numb from the cold. "We can't give up now."

Y/n gave Scott's shoulder a little squeeze. "We're not. But it doesn't have to be all on you. We all have to remember if this is going to work."

"It's my turn now." Malia took her shirts off, leaving herself in jean shorts and a sports bra. "I have plenty of memories of Stiles, too."

"It's too dangerous." Lydia denied.

"Not as dangerous as doing nothing." Scott countered. "She'll probably handle the cold better than me."

"If it's all about connection, then Stiles was one of the first people I connected with in a long time."

"She'll need a visual."

"You've got an idea in mind, Miss Hypnotist?" Y/n asked.

Lydia glanced between the three before reluctantly relenting. "I think I have an idea. But Malia, if your heart rate goes down like Scott's, if we think you're going to freeze to death-"

"Then get me the hell out of there." Lydia moved out of the way and Malia stepped into the chamber. They closed the latches and Scott put his hoodie back on as they waited for the cold to settle over her. She didn't react as harshly as Scott had, but she did shiver a lot. Moments passed before she relaxed, and her eyes shown blue through the glass.

Lydia began to give Malia the visual of the high school's library. "Can you see yourself there? Are you in the library now?"

"I'm here. I'm in the library." In her mind Malia stepped over the books strewn all about the floor.

"Can you see the books?"

"I see them."

"Concentrate on them. The books on the shelves are your memories. Everything that's ever happened to you. Find the shelf that has all of your memories of Stiles. Try to find a memory where you made some kind of connection with him." Malia had stopped at a shelf and picked up a book. As she flipped through it she found a memory of when she saw Stiles at Eichen and then punched him. She slammed the book shut. "Did you find something?"

"I definitely connected." She dropped that book to the floor and flipped through more, tossing each one down when it wasn't the right one. Finally it seemed she found the correct memory. She muttered something with Stiles' name, closing her eyes as the memory played for her.

"Malia?" Lydia called.

"Malia, open your eyes." Scott said.

"Malia, can you hear us?"

"Open your eyes, Malia."

"Malia, you need to open your eyes!" Y/n shouted. Malia's eyes shot open, her hand smacking against the window as she started to have trouble breathing.

Scott and Y/n were starting to open the latches when Lydia noticed something. "Guys, look. Something's happening." A bright light came in from the slats high up in the walls and the room trembled slightly.

The alarms on the chamber started to go off as the window began to frost over. "We have to get her out." Y/n hurriedly pulled at the latches. Scott and Y/n caught Malia as she stumbled out, eyes shifting back to normal as she tried to catch her breath. They helped her over to one of the tables and Scott put a blanket over her. Y/n looked over when she heard the machine powering down, finding Lydia had turned off all of the dials. "What are you doing?"

"It's too dangerous. We're not going to save anyone by freezing you guys to death."

"But it was working, wasn't it?" Malia asked.

"There was a light and a strange noise. No Stiles."

"But I remember him now." Scott said. "I can see him in my head."

"So can I." Malia agreed.

"He's more real now than he's ever been. If we can bring Stiles back, we can bring everyone back."

"There's a huge difference in being a vivid memory and an actual corporeal human being." Lydia denied.

"The rift is opening." Y/n spoke up. "I can feel it. I have to go in next."

"I'm not letting you in there."

"Lydia, we don't have time to argue about this."

"Which is why we're not." Y/n huffed in annoyance. "It's way too dangerous. I wouldn't last two minutes in there, and we don't know if you'd be able to handle it either."

"I've done the ice bath before."

"But that was when Ophelia was with you and you had double the magic to keep you alive. It's just you now, and there's no guarantee that you'll be able to handle it on your own."

"I'm willing to risk it if it gets Stiles back."

"I'm not!" Lydia shouted, eyes slightly widened with desperation before she took a breath to calm herself. "Just... Let me try actual hypnosis on us. If it doesn't work with you then I will let you get into the chamber. But, please, just let me try. I can't risk losing you, too."

Y/n was silent for a moment as she looked at her friend's pleading expression. She sighed as she finally relented. "All right, fine. Let's do it. You first, we've wasted enough time and we need to move fast to keep the rift opening."

Lydia nodded with a grateful smile before she went to find a notepad and a pen, writing down some lines to help with the process. She directed the others to find something like a candle, Malia donning her shirts again as they started to search. "My mother had a hypnotist who helped her quit smoking. She had me see the same one when I was 10."

"You smoked when you were 10?"

Lydia turned to give Scott a strange look. "No. I bit my fingernails. Just find a lighter or a candle, please."

Malia surfaced with a blow torch. "Too much?"

Y/n nodded. "Too much."

"I got one." Scott declared, going over with a thick white candle. He set it on the table and Malia used the torch to light it. Lydia went over and sat down with her pad and pen. "What's that?"

"An induction script." She answered. "One of you is going to talk me through this." She handed the paper to Malia first.

Malia looked at it as if it might bite her. "So I just read?"

"Well, you have to soften your voice. Keep it relaxed but not monotone. Go for clarity, not volume. Try it." Lydia encouraged before she faced forward, took a calming breath and closed her eyes.

"Take a deep breath and look at the candle." Malia had started off awkwardly and ended in a whisper as Lydia took the pad and handed it to Y/n instead, realising she probably should have started with the slightly older sister first.

"It was a great try." Y/n gave Malia a small pat on the shoulder. She glanced over the words and looked to Lydia, making sure she was ready before she started to read. "Take a deep breath and look at the candle." Lydia did as told, breathing deeply as she gazed down at the small flame. "Feel the muscles in your body begin to relax. Your hands relaxing. Your eyelids relaxing." Lydia's eyes drifted closed. Y/n was mildly surprised at how simple this was. It was similar to when she used her magic to compel someone to follow her suggestions, but with no magic. "As you relax, imagine you're sitting in front of a TV. When you turn the TV on, it's going to play memories from your life. The remote gives you total control. You can play any memory you want. All you have to do, is hit the button. Try to find a memory of Stiles. A memory where you felt a connection with him." Lydia had found herself in a classroom, sitting at one of the desks and facing the TV the teachers sometimes use for lessons. The remote sat on the desk in front of her, so she picked it up, pressed the power button, and watched her memories play out. The three watched as her brows drew together, muttering bits of sentences she had spoken before as she kept flipping through the memories in her mind. "Find another memory. Keep looking for Stiles. Find another memory."

Lydia lightly gasped when she finally found her special memory, and her eyes opened when the room rumbled again, the light glowing a bit brighter. The four looked around as the sound settled and nothing else happened. "What happened? Did it work?" Scott asked no one in particular.

"No, no, no, no." Y/n muttered in frustration.

"What? What's wrong?"

"It's not enough. I don't think our memories will be enough. We're gonna lose it!" Her chest tightened at the idea, a painful ache drilling into her ribcage from the possibility of losing him forever.

"No, we won't. Remember, it's all about connections." Lydia said as she stood up from the table, coming around to stand in front of her best friend and taking her hands in her own. "Y/n, you're a witch. You make some of the strongest connections you can have. It'll be more than enough for you to remember him."

"She's right." Scott agreed. "I mean, you probably could've done it on your own from the beginning."

"What do you mean?" Y/n looked at him in slight confusion.

"When I was remembering him, I was also remembering the two of you together. I don't think anyone had a connection like you two did."

"I saw it, too." Malia said while Lydia nodded in agreement. "You feel it, don't you? You have to try, Y/n. You can't give up now."

Y/n glanced between the three, their eyes full of conviction and that familiar pull in her gut was enough to convince her to keep trying. "Alright," she gave a short nod, "let's do this."

Lydia led Y/n to her prievious spot, the witch sitting down while Lydia stood with the other two. Lydia spoke in a calm tone as she led Y/n into a relaxed state. Using the same induction script she told Y/n to take a deep breath, look at the candle, and let her body relax. Y/n let her eyes close as she breathed deeply, letting it out slowly as she let herself drift into her mind. The visual Lydia gave her was the Art room in the high school, telling her there were paintings stacked around and hanging on the walls. "Each painting depicts a memory of Stiles. Every one spread on canvas. Look through them, find your connections to Stiles." Y/n's eyes open, violet gaze fixed on the candle before her.

Y/n opens her eyes and finds herself in the dimly lit Art room. She starts to walk around, eyes skimming over the art work spread around the room. Canvases of various sizes and shapes lay stacked in piles on tables, lined along the walls, some even propped on easels. She stepped over to a stack of smaller ones, the scenes painted on them playing before her eyes as she slowly flipped through them.

Y/n quickly pulls open her window, sticking her head out and startling the brunette boy currently scaling the trellis on the side of the house. "What are you doing, Stiles?" She asked once he regained his hold on the structure.

"God! Y/n! You nearly scared me to death!"

...

Just as two players were rushing Scott, he hurled the ball and scored the winning point. The crowd went wild once again. Y/n held her hands in the air and screamed happily. "Yes! Ha!" Stiles exclaimed as he turned to Y/n and hugged her, she laughed when he spun her around in celebration.

...

"That's sarcasm. You familiar with the term 'sarcasm,' McCall?" Coach asked.

He nods and glances at Y/n and Stiles. "Very." Stiles smiles and Y/n smirks, the two discreetly high-fiving.

She set them aside and moved to another stack that had slightly bigger pictures.

"Hey." She smiles at him.

"Hey. What's up?" He smiles back, a touch of nerves in his tone.

"I never got the chance to thank you for the other day." He gave her a confused frown. "When we were in the Chem lab. You comforted me and I really appreciate it."

"It's, uh, it's no problem."

"I mean it." She gently grabbed his hand and smiled at him. "Thank you." After a moment of thought she gave him a quick peck on the cheek. When she pulled away to see his eyes as wide as saucers she smirked and winked, turning on her heel and striding into class. Stiles gaped after her even after she had left his line of sight.

...

"Can you guys save your cutesy heart eyed moments for later?" Derek grumbled from the backseat of the Jeep and Y/n shot him an annoyed look.

"We didn't- we weren't-" Stiles sputtered. "That-that wasn't a moment."

"It wasn't?" Y/n asked him but honestly she just wanted to tease him.

"I mean, was it? Did you want it to be?"

"I wouldn't be opposed to it." Her lips quirked up in a half smile and he couldn't help the slightly hopeful one come to him.

...

Y/n turned from her friends and walked over to Stiles who was now examining another perfume bottle. "What are you doing?" She asked as she stood next to him.

"Uh, nothing. Just- just browsing." He clumsily sat the bottle down making a loud clattering sound.

"Mmm." She hummed and then leaned her hip on the counter fairly close to him. "Do you have a date to the formal?" He shakes his head, his brain trying to catch up with what she's saying. "Do you wanna go with me?"

He choked on air. "W- with you?" She nodded with a smile. "As friends?"

"Well, I was kinda thinking of, like, a date."

"Date? With me? You want me to go with you as a date?" Her smile widened as she nodded again. He huffs a nervous laugh and looks around but he can't stop the huge smile come to his face. When he faces her again he corrects himself, making an effort to look cool and collected. "Uh, yeah. Yeah, that sounds great."

"Great."

...

"Are you sure you still want to be with me even though I'm not like you?" She asks, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Y/n, you don't have to be like me for me to fall for you. Honestly, if you suddnely came out and told me you were, like, a three headed bird lady, I'd still want to be with you." Y/n suddenly laughed. He furrowed his brows at her but still smiled.

"Good." She finally said and sat up, propping herself up on an elbow to look down at him. "Because you're stuck with me now, Stilinski."

"I think I can live with that." They smiled at each other and he reached a hand up to cup her cheek, moving it to the back of her head to bring her down for a kiss.

"Stuck with me..." Y/n mutters and the three glance at each other.

"Keep looking. Find another memory." Lydia urged.

Y/n moves on to the bigger canvases, going up to the ones propped against the walls. More memories play for her as her eyes focus on each piece.

"You love me?"

He nodded. "And you don't have to say it back, I know it's a big thing and-"

"Stiles."

"Yes?"

"Shut up." She leaned forward then and kissed him. He instantly reciprocated. She pulled away for a moment and rested her forehead on his. "I love you." She breathed. His smile was brighter than the sun before he went in to kiss her again.

...

Y/n sobs. "I can't take it. I can't take it!" She shoves her tear stained face into her hands, roughly scraping against her eyes and then covering her ears, clenching her hair so hard some of the strands break from the roots in her fingers. "Make it stop!"

"Y/n. Look at me." She doesn't answer, just digs the heels of her hands into her eyes again with a strangled sound. "Look at me!" He grabs her wrists and her head snaps up to him, burning amythest gazing into soft umber. "Focus on me, on my voice, okay? I'm right here. I'm right here with you. And I'm not going anywhere."

Her eyes dart between his. "Stiles?" She mutters.

He nods. "Yeah. Yeah, it's me."

She sobs in relief this time. "There's so much. They haven't been able to tell their story in so long. I couldn't make them stop." Her hands find his shirt and hold on for dear life.

He pulls her into him and holds her against him. "It's okay. You're gonna be okay. I'm right here." He murmers comforting words to her and runs his hand over her hair. She practically slumps in exhaustion against him, finally able to relax as the voices stop and she feels her eyes finally shift back.

...

Y/n kneeled down in front of Stiles and spoke in soft tones to help him. "Stiles. Honey, I need you to try and calm your breathing."

"I can't. I can't." He gasped with a shake of his head. He was still hyperventilating.

She gently held the sides of his face and made him look at her. "Shh, it's okay. Just look at me, okay?" His eyes did meet hers, but they looked so lost and scared. She quickly debated in her head what to do to help him, coming up with an idea that wasn't the best, but it could just work. She kissed him.

His body reacted faster than his mind did, the muscle memory of loving her working to relax him faster by letting him melt into her touch. When she pulled away he looked at her in wonder. "Ooh." He breathed out. He could suddenly breath normally. "How'd you do that?"

She lightly shrugged. "Sometimes holding your breath can stop a panic attack. When I kissed you, you held your breath."

"I did?"

She nodded. "Yeah. You did."

...

"Hey." He called, taking her arm to pull her closer and her gaze fell to the fabric of the hospital gown. "Why won't you look at me?" Her brows furrowed with a shrug. "I need you to look at me. Please." When he spoke like that she couldn't deny him anymore and she finally met his eyes. Just like she thought, he could read her like a book. He pulled her closer and put his arms around her, hers automatically encircling him as well.

"I'll do anything I can to help you." She muttered.

"I know." He pulled back a little and put a hand on her cheek, leaning forward to leave a lingering kiss on her lips, filled with desperation and the need for everything to be okay.

They leaned their forheads togther when they separated. "I love you."

He nodded against her head. "I love you." She gave him one more hug before regretably she had to leave the room.

...

The figure felt it's bandaged face, and then lunged forward. Scott and Peter were quick to grab him and force him into a chair.

"Hold him!" Peter yelled at Scott.

"I'm trying."

Y/n was watching with wide eyes, but then something happened. She felt him. "Wait, wait!" She rushed forward and forced the two wolves away. He paused in his attempts to rip the bandages off as he heard her and then felt her hands lightly grip the side of his face. Peter and Scott stood protectively over her, just in case something went wrong. "Stiles?" She breathed. His hands found hers and gently squeezed. She moved one of her hands and started to pull at the bindings, finally revealing his face and letting him see again.

His eyes scanned over every feature of her face, almost afraid this was a dream. "Y/n?" Her breath hitched and she smiled, relieved that he was okay.

...

"You have no idea how relieved I am that you're back." She huffed a laugh.

"Am I?" He wondered.

"What do you mean?"

"Tell me what you feel. You were able to sense... Him when he was around, even from the beginning." He took her hand and placed it on the side of his face, holding her there with his own.

She closed her eyes for a moment before she opened them again and they glowed softly. After a moment her eyes dimmed and she gently rubbed his cheek with her thumb. "I just feel you."

A tear landed on the table in front of Y/n, her breath catching in her throat as her cheeks become stained with salty pain. "I can't feel you." She lightly gasped.

Scott perked up a little. "Feel who?"

"Y/n, I gotta leave for a few, okay?"

She put her hand over his to hold it to her face. "Where are you going?"

"Whatever's happening, it's worse for you guys. That means it's not just people getting sick, it's another assassin."

"Ah, and here I was thinking it was just a head cold." She smiled when he huffed a laugh. She felt Malia shiver from chills and then heard the rustle of Stiles' jacket as he laid it on her. Y/n reached out for him and he readily grabbed her hand. "Be careful out there."

"Of course. I've got something too important to come back for." Her lips turned up into a watery smile. "I love you."

"I love you." She felt him press a kiss to her forehead. And then he was moving away and she let her hands fall back down as soon as she couldn't feel him anymore.

"Y/n, who can't you feel?"

"Stiles. I can't feel him anymore." Her hand came up to hold her necklace.

Y/n's eyes dart rapidly between the paintings, all of them seeming to be jumping in her face as the memories gradually flood her mind.

"How do you accidentally lock a door?"

"Well, maybe she wasn't thinking, exactly." His hands moved as he talked and she couldn't help but follow the movement. "Or wasn't thinking it through. You know, sometimes people do things without thinking them through."

"She's so smart, but that was kind of stupid."

"No, even smart people can do stupid things. You know, 'cause they think that it's the right. And I don't think we should hold it against her, you know, for the rest of her life! Especially because she's tried apologizing hundreds of times through texts and voicemails."

"Will she keep apologizing?" She unconciously took a step closer to him.

"Yes, for the rest of her life, if she has to." His tone softened as he also took a step closer, just a foot apart from her now.

"I don't want that." She lightly shook her head as she glanced down for a moment before meeting his eyes again. "I get why you did what you did. You wanted to protect me, make sure I didn't get hurt by him again. But I don't want you to shield me from things. I want to face them with you, because that's what you do when you love someone. You face the bad things together. And I love you, Stiles. So much. So, please, don't hide anything from me again, okay?"

He gently took her hand and pressed his lips to the ring he gave her a while back. "I promise." He spoke against her skin.

The corners of her lips twitched up into a sly smile. "I think you can seal it with a better kiss than that." He also smiled as he pulled her closer by her waist and brought her lips to his own. Her hands trailed up his arms and across his shoulders, one of them lightly raking through his hair.

...

"Well, that's the plan isn't it? The dream?"

"The vision. And don't mock the vision."

"I love the vision." She assured as she stepped closer to him, moving her arms to circle around his waist. "Especially since I'm in it." She smiled.

"There wasn't even a question about it." His arms also went around her.

"So that's why you were so adament that everyone was here tonight. Because you don't want to lose all your friends after senior year."

"And I hope they don't want to lose me either."

"Stiles, you and Scott are more than just best friends, you know? You're practically brothers at this point, especially with everything we've been through. But for what it's worth, I never want to lose you." She looked at him with such affection.

"You'll never lose me." He promised as one of his hands trailed upwards to hold the back of her neck as he pulled her in for a kiss.

...

Y/n gently put a hand on his arm. When he finally noticed her, his expression seemed to crumble and he practically fell into her waiting arms. She lowered them to the ground and held him while he clung to her. "It's gonna be okay." She quietly promised. "You're not alone in this. I'm right here, and I'm not going anywhere. We'll get through this together."

...

"You don't understand, I don't know what's going to happen." She almost sobbed. "I could hurt everyone! I could hurt you!"

"You could never hurt me." He looked at her with the softest gaze as he moved a hand up to hold the side of her face. "It's gonna be okay. You're not alone in this. I'm right here, and I'm not going anywhere. We'll get through this together." He pulled her into his chest, holding her close as she closed her eyes again.

...

"Y/n, I'm going to be erased, okay? You're going to forget me."

"No." She shook her head, vision blurring slightly from new tears. "No, I won't. I won't. I can't."

"Y/n, you will."

"Please, don't leave me." She quietly begged.

"I was- I was there. I was the last one to see him." Y/n's voice was thick as she tried to speak around the tightness in her chest.

"Where? When did you see him?"

"When they took him. I saw them take him and I- I couldn't do anything about it."

"Just try to find some way to remember me, okay?" He took her hand in his, and she held on tight as if that might be enough to keep him with her. "Remember how you said I was etched into you?" She nodded. "Then remember how I feel." He layed her hand on his chest, splaying her fingers over his heart. "Remember how you hold my heart in your hands."

She smiled. "You hold mine too."

"Just remember... Remember I love you." He whispered. Lightning illuminates his face one last time as a rider opens his door and pulls him out. Y/n's hand reaches for empty air as the door slams closed.

Y/n's watery eyes dim back to e/c as the candle is blown out. "I promised I wouldn't forget." She quietly spoke, looking up at Scott. "How could I forget?" The boy's own eyes were glassy as he watched one of his best friends cry, his heart aching for her as if her pain were is own. The light outside brightened almost blindingly, the artillery scattered around the room and on the walls shook haphazardly. Y/n let out a quiet, surprised gasp when she felt a sudden spark ignite within her, something she hadn't felt in months and had become cold without. She looked towards the door as she got up from the table. Scott, Lydia, and Malia watched her and followed as she moved over to the door, following an invisible line that had suddenly begun to tug on her. She carefully opened it, the heavy metal lightly squeaking on it's hinges as it revealed a bright light at the end of the tunnel. Y/n squinted against the brightness of the new rift, anticipation welling inside her as she spotted a figure within the light. "Stiles?"

~~~
Published: 4/26/23

Yeah, I know what I did, and I'm not sorry :)

Also, just a heads up, there is a slim chance I might be late with next week's chapter. I've been very busy lately and I've had a HUGE struggle with writers block. But I think I'm past it (hopefully, knock on wood) and I'm gonna do my best to have it done by next week.

A quick reminder that the Q&A will be published the week after the last chapter, so if you have any questions, share them before then!

Also, I made a thing, I hope you enjoy :)

☽︎𝑰 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖...☾︎