Who: Anna Latham and Stiles Stilinski What: Comfort in each other When: After most everyone they care about has left Warnings: Angst Status: Closed, Complete GDoc
Anna went looking for Stiles. It wasn’t hard to find him, his panic and anxiety could be smelled floors away. She moved quickly, because she knew how unstable he was without Malia around, and burst in to find him. “Stiles, I’m here.” She swept forward, pushing peace and calm with her as she moved to where he was. “Hey, look at me.” She said softly as she settled in front of him. “I’m still here.” She said, firmly, reminding him he wasn’t alone.
She wasn’t holding up well - everything that had happened and now this? It was tearing her to shreds. She had no idea how to handle it. She never felt such loss in her life. Not in a very, very long time and she didn’t like the feeling. She was trembling herself, too much. She couldn’t find anyone - not Scorpius, not Dorian, Tristan or anything. She couldn’t handle this right now. But she was trying. For his sake.
~~~
His eyes were unfocused, but he managed to turn his face toward her. He blinked several times, then reached for her hand. The peace she sent out to him helped calm him somewhat. It would take a lot to settle him completely. With Malia gone, that might not even be possible.
“They’re gone. They’re all gone.” Lydia and Parrish were still there, judging by the strength of their scents, but...but Malia was gone, and that was enough to send Stiles’ mind into a tailspin. He choked on his breath, and looked down at his hands. How could he ever keep going, without Malia?
*** Anna was the caring sort of wolf, she couldn’t help but pull him into her and hug him tight. “So many, it’s not fair.” She said softly as she wrapped her arms around him tightly and refused to let go for the moment. She did her best to give him her calm, but she didn’t have tons to share herself. She lifted a hand to smooth through his hair, fingers light and careful.
“I can’t smell half the people we need here.” She said quietly, then she spoke with a firmer tone of voice, still kind and gentle but strong. “We have this. We’ll be okay. I promise. I’m still here. Lydia’s here. Parrish too. We’ll figure it out.” She said as if she believed it. She might to some degree but confidence came with time. Right? ***
Stiles nodded. What else could he do? He didn’t know that they would be okay. He was pretty sure he wouldn’t be okay. Not without Malia, without Scott. He was grateful Lydia was still around, but how could he trust that she would stay when so many others had disappeared?
He was grateful for Anna too. Lydia must not realise Malia and Scott were gone, Stiles knew she would be looking out for him if she did. But Anna knew, and Anna was here. He wasn’t alone. And because Anna was there, he latched on to her.
“Will you stay? Stay with me. I can’t...don’t leave me alone.” He was a wolf now, but he was still Stiles, and he didn’t handle grief well.
***
Anna held him tightly, fingers trying to find a comforting grasp. She rested her head against him, eyes closed, she calmed her heart, trying to use that to help calm him down.
“Shhh I'll stay. Don't you fret, I'm here for you. Shhh, it'll be okay, I promise.” She ran her fingers through his hair. “Do you want to stay here or get food?”
***
“I don’t,” Stiles shook his head. “I don’t think I can eat.” He felt sick. It was a heart sickness, but still. He wanted to throw up. He wanted to wake up from this nightmare. “I know I should, but...not now. Not yet.”
Maybe he’d never eat again. He wondered how long it would take him to die that way. It would be a slow, agonizingly painful death, but how could he live without Malia?
*** Anna held him tightly and laid her head against his. “You’ll have to, sooner than you think, don’t worry I’ll be here when you do.” She kissed his forehead in as comforting a fashion as she could manage. Anna was worried about him, more so than she had ever been before. It wasn’t much she could do, though.
She bit her lip and focused, sending a wave of calm at him. It would hit him harder than it did before he was Wolf. Wolves calmed faster in her presence, because she soothed the beast inside, but she wasn’t sure how much she could help him right now.
***
The calm she sent to him hit him and he slumped over a little with it. He sighed and pulled his arms in close to his body. He leaned against Anna, taking comfort in her presence beside him. He knew what she was, he had felt her calming power before, had seen it work on Tristan. He accepted it, didn’t fight it, and simply allowed it to wash over him and calm him somewhat.
“Don’t leave me, Anna…” he murmured. He may be calm now, but that didn’t change the fact of what was happening. Malia was gone. Scott, Allison, Tristan, Argent, they were all gone. He needed to see Lydia, but with Anna’s calm affecting him that could wait.
He sighed softly. “Just hold me, please.”
*** Anna nestled in for the long haul. “Don’t worry, I’ve got you.” She said softly as she just sat there and held him. What else could she do? She closed her eyes and sighed softly, letting him relax in her arms and knowing well enough that it was her fault and he couldn’t function without that right now.
“Rest. I’ll be right here.” She said softly as she smoothed her hand down his back as soothingly as possible, knowing just how much stress he was under.