19.

[voluntaryapnea]

[Audio -- Open]

[The comm clicks onto audio and there's a moment of silence before a familiar voice -- albeit more tired than usual -- makes an announcement that it's clear he'd rather not be making. Because he'd rather not be making it.]

Dean's in a coma.

[He pauses, rubs a hand over his eyes tiredly as he looks down at his inmate, unconscious in bed and purses his lips.]

I'll let everyone know when he's awake again unless he does it first.

[He shuts the comm back off and sinks into a chair beside Dean's bed, closing his eyes.]

[Spam -- Open]

[He's exhausted. His body aches. He wants to crawl into bed and sleep for the next week. He won't, of course, because he has things to do. People to check on. But he's in dire need of his Adderall because he's been without it for a month. On the list of things that he'd needed, that they'd all needed on the other barge, Adderall hadn't even made the list. His mind is racing with thoughts and he can't seem to be able to focus on any one thought for another.

He's back on the regular barge, and he needs to find Scott and make sure he's okay. He needs to find Lydia and make sure she's been okay. Allison, Kira, Isaac, Erica, Needy, Bucky, Steve. Hell, even Jackson. He needs to check on all of them and see for himself they're all right. Rest isn't going to happen until he's made the rounds.

But medication first. He makes his way down the steps toward the seventh floor and his room. He can be encountered in any of the stairwells, or the seventh floor corridor.]

[Spam -- Closed to Lydia]

[He slips his key into the door and unlocks it, pushes it open even as he rubs the back of his neck. He freezes instantly, gaze locking on Lydia's form as she sits on the edge of his bed. He lets out a shaky breath and closes the door behind him, letting his hands drop to his sides.]

Hi.

Comments

[spam]

[lydiascreams]

[It's still dark when he opens the door. Or dark again, since she's no longer on her communicator. But she doesn't need any source of light to tell it's him.

She can hear it in the way he unlocks the door, she can tell from the way he holds himself, not quite as tall as his counterpart. And most of all, in the way he feels. This connection they have, suddenly overwhelmingly strong again.

Which is why she gets on her feet, setting the communicator on his bed.]

Hi.

[spam]

[voluntaryapnea]

[It's the first time the reason he's been feeling so empty for the last month dawns on him. There was another Lydia on the other barge, and yes, they'd spent time together and he cared about her and wanted to keep her safe and he wanted to help her.

But it wasn't his Lydia. It wasn't the Lydia that he's tethered to. He feels it all at once as it returns full force.

It works both ways.

He shakes his head a little and moves toward her quickly, wrapping his arms around her and burying his face against her shoulder, one hand sliding up into her hair.]

[spam]

[lydiascreams]

[For a second, she doesn't hug him back. Not because she doesn't want to but what if he's hurt? What if she makes it worse by hugging him? But it doesn't last long once his arms are around her. She wraps her arms around him back and pulls him closer, turning her face against his neck when her eyes tear up.

It's like all of the sudden, someone took a weight off her shoulders.]

I've missed you. So much.

[She knows she doesn't have to say it, but she does so unconsciously. Stiles somehow became her safe place and even with the other one there, it wasn't the same. Their connection wasn't the same. The strength he gives her wasn't the same. He couldn't make everything right again just by wrapping his arms around her the way her Stiles does.]

[spam]

[voluntaryapnea]

[He is hurt. Not badly, and not nearly as badly as he could have been. Not the way that Scott had been hurt. He hadn't died. At the thought, his arms tighten around her a little more and he lets out a shuddering breath, warmth flooding his eyes and it takes him a moment to realize he's crying.]

Me too. [His voice is kind of choked, and he manages to pull away enough to look at her in the darkness of the room.]

You're okay right? You're not hurt?

[spam]

[lydiascreams]

[She's crying. It's a mix of relief to have him back and just being overwhelmed by having him back. Not having spent any real time apart since-- since they became closer. Only a few days while the Nogitsune had him. A whole month is a lot.

And then it gets worse when he speaks up and she realizes he's crying, too.]

I'm okay. Are you? Are you hurt? [Between her conversation with Allison and the fact that he's crying, she's more than a little worried now, so she pulls back to look at him, too. Even though she can't see much in the darkness, she reaches to cup his cheek and blindly brush his tears away.]

Video

[whatthefoxsay]

[Here's one of your people Stiles; one kitsune, now fully recovered from her ordeal on the Mirror Barge and looking better for it. She is, however, looking concerned.]

Is there anything I can do for Dean? I mean, you too but you know what I mean.

Video -- Private

[voluntaryapnea]

[He lets out a breath at the sight of Kira's familiar face on the screen. He offers her a tired smile.]

Yeah, I know what you mean. No, I don't think so. You're okay, right? I mean you're -- healed and everything now?

Video -- Private

[whatthefoxsay]

[Her smile begins to grow briefly, and then as she realizes that things still pretty much suck, she lets it falter a bit.] I'm fine. So's the katana. Not that you're torn up about an inanimate object, but I didn't have it on the other barge and you know the most bizarre thing I kept thinking was how Mom was gonna kill me for losing the ancestral sword and -

[- and she realizes she's babbling.]

Sorry.

Video -- Private

[voluntaryapnea]

[Things still pretty much suck, but at least they're back on the right barge, which is a big step up from where they had been. He can't help but smile a bit more at the mention of her katana, though.]

It's okay. I'll be back to babbling as soon as I've slept for about a week, I'm sure. I'm glad you and the sword are both okay.

[bigkanimaoncampus]

[ He'd felt stronger. Stronger than he'd felt in over a month. He'd wrecked a swath of damage through the ship. But then it was all ripped away. And everything went dark. It was only the gift of his glowing eyes that he'd been able to see anything. Standing alone in one of the corridors, in the pitch dark, feeling weakened again, he slammed his fist into the nearest wall. Pounding until his hand went numb.

It was the wrong barge. He was supposed to be on the other one.

He stormed down toward his room, furious. Fuming. He'd left his communicator there. He intended to reach out to the Admiral to make a demand or two. As he approached his room, the stairwell door nearest to him opened, his attention snapping to it. His glowing blue eyes visible in the dark. Anger seized him before he even processed why. A burning fury that consumed him and sent him charging at the human, a wordless roar erupting from him. ]

[spam]

[voluntaryapnea]

[It's been awhile now since Stiles has felt strong. He's wore down. Tired. Even with werewolf Stiles' memories still fairly in tact in his head, he's aware of how out of control and helpless the other him feels all the time. He wonders if it's how Scott feels despite having power that most people don't.

He's so out of it he literally doesn't even notice Jackson storming in his direction until the other teen is roaring at him and he stumbles backwards, startled, hitting the wall.

Great. Welcome home, Stiles, he thinks tiredly, making no move to run or evade the werewolf. There isn't really a point. Jackson has super speed and super strength and he looks super pissed off.]

[spam]

[bigkanimaoncampus]

[ Hands slammed into Stiles chest, gripping his shirt, shoving him harder against the wall. He was right in the other's face, all fangs and glowing eyes. Each breath was huffed out with the force of his absolute fury. But he didn't attack further than that. Something held him back. Lydia. Something she'd said, half remembered now, halting him from tearing the kid apart. ]

Give me one good reason I shouldn't kill you right here?!

[spam]

[voluntaryapnea]

[Yeah. That hurts, but it also kinda barely registers with all the other pain he's collected in the last month. He winces a little but doesn't struggle or try to get away. He exhales, closing his eyes at the feel of Jackson's angry breath against his face. There are so many ways he could respond to that demand. Part of him is tempted to tell Jackson to go ahead. He doesn't.]

Because you're not a monster.

[Spam]

[americasdirtiest]

[Mickey feels an odd pang of guilt when he hears Stiles' announcement, even though he's pretty sure that the coma isn't actually his fault -- after all, Dean's death was weeks ago. Still, as if the murder wasn't already hovering around the edges of his very crowded mind, the coma brings it briefly to the forefront.

Of course, he has no idea what to do about it, so he... well, doesn't. He continues along what is fast already becoming something of a routine: avoiding talking to pretty much anyone or doing pretty much anything and enjoying a life of inmate hermitude. He takes the stairs because he figures it will be less crowded than the elevator, and imagine his surprise when he looks up the next flight and sees Stiles coming down it.]

[Spam]

[voluntaryapnea]

[Stiles makes it a practice to take the stairs as often as possible because he's not terribly fond of small spaces, and even less fond of the possibility of getting trapped in one. Plus the short time it takes him to move from one floor to the other helps him get his thoughts in order.

He isn't anticipating running into Mickey and he pauses on the stair, hand resting on the railing as his expression shifts into something that's more neutral than before. As neutral as it can be.]

Mickey.

[Spam]

[americasdirtiest]

Hey.

[His own reply is neutral, too, but he doesn't quite meet Stiles' eyes. He has no excuses, and he isn't planning on making any. He has nothing to say for himself. Before the Mirror Barge, Stiles had been someone he'd been starting to think of as a friend, but now...

No, he has nothing to say, and better he not try. He looks away and starts to move up the stairs towards him. Past him, he intends.]

[Spam]

[voluntaryapnea]

That's it? Hey?

[He's not sure what he was expecting, really. Maybe some kind of explanation for what the hell had happened.]

[Spam]

[semifreakingnormal]

[It doesn't take a lot of looking to find Stiles. Scott runs into him in the hall, almost literally as he rounds the corner from the stairs. Steadying them both, Scott manages a small smile, tired and relieved and very brief.]

Hey. Have you been back to your room yet?

[Has he had his Adderall, has he taken a minute to sit down and take care of himself before running around looking for everyone. That's what he really means. Hypocritically.]

[Spam]

[voluntaryapnea]

[Stiles reaches out and rests his hands on Scott's shoulders instinctively before they collide. He nods briefly at the question.]

Yeah. I just came from there. Lydia's still there.

[He takes a deep breath, searches his best friend's face.]

You wanna come with me? I'm sure she'd love to see you.

[Spam]

[semifreakingnormal]

Did you get some Adderall?

[He squeezes Stiles' elbow quietly, reassuringly: they're back. They're okay. They'll make sure everyone else is, too.]

Yeah. Yeah, definitely, I need to see her.

[He needs to pretend he didn't die. He needs to pretend things are closer to normal than they were.]

[Spam]

[voluntaryapnea]

[Some of his tension eases at the reassuring squeeze, the same way some of it eased when he hugged Lydia earlier. He lets out a breath.]

No, I got kinda -- distracted. [One corner of his mouth quirks up and he shrugs a shoulder.]

Okay, come on.

[He doesn't push. It's soon; too soon. He knows Scott hasn't dealt with it. Dying. Every time Stiles thinks the word in relation to his best friend, his stomach starts feeling queasy. He isn't ready to deal with it either. So for now, he shifts, drapes his arm around Scott's shoulders and guides him down the corridor toward his room.]

[spam] (SORRY IT'S SO LATE)

[punched_hitler]

[Steve's in the seventh floor corridor, just making a quick stop by his room (actually, putting most of his stuff back in his room) before he heads out on another patrol. When he spots Stiles, he looks concerned - then relieved - then hopeful as he offers a smile, but he won't stop Stiles if he's doing something important.] Hey. It's good to see you again.

[You know - you you.]

You manage to get ahold of all your friends okay? [Because he knows they'll be worried - and he knows most of them were stuck on the other Barge for the month.]

[spam] (IT'S NEVER TOO LATE)

[voluntaryapnea]

[Stiles offers him a small grin in return, and though it's kind of tired, it's also sincere. He lifts his hand in a wave as he approaches.]

Good to see you too.

{Because very few people's doubles are better than the original, apparently. At least when it comes to doubles of the wardens on this barge.]

Yeah. Yeah I've checked in with the Beacon Hills crew, at least. How are you? How's Bucky?

[spam] (<3333)

[punched_hitler]

[Yeah, Steve can't blame you for being tired. As bad as things were over here, he's got this idea that it must have been ten times worse - or more - over there. So he definitely looks pleased to see Stiles - and to see Stiles smile.]

Good - because if you hadn't, I'm sure someone would be hunting you down right about now. Maybe literally.

Good - I'm good. [Tired, yeah, but who isn't? He'll be fine, now that everything's back the way it should be.] And he's good - I ran into him right after things, uh, realigned. [Or whatever they did.] Getting him to get some rest is another story, though.

[But what can you do? He gives Stiles a look that says as much.] I'd ask how things were over there, but... probably not so great.

[spam] (<3333)

[voluntaryapnea]

[It definitely isn't an experience he's hoping to repeat. Ever.]

Yeah. Yeah, probably so.

[And he has a feeling everyone's tired, because everyone's been dealing with a lot of stuff they're not used to dealing with, regardless of which barge they've been on. He relaxes at the knowledge that Steve and Bucky are both okay, though. That's most of the people he cares about that have now been accounted for.]

No, it...wasn't a good time. For anyone from here. [He shrugs and looks away, the image of Scott's tear-stained face immediately flashing through his mind.]