☾

"Call it again," Scott says as he searches his mess of a room, trying to find his lost phone. When he went to go save Jackson from being killed by Derek, the Argents showed up and started shooting at them with wolfsbane bullets, and Derek was caught. Scott was saved by Dr. Deaton, who, apparently, knows about the supernatural. And during the process, he lost his phone. So here we are, helping him find his phone with Stiles sitting backward in Scott's desk chair and with me leaning against the door frame behind him.

Stiles sighs, "It's not here. So you lost your phone. Why'd don't you just get a new one?"

"I can't afford a new one," Scott objects from beneath his bed. "And I can't do this alone. We have to find Derek."

"Well, A, you're not alone. You have us," Stiles points out. "And B, didn't you say Derek walked into gunfire? He sounds pretty dead."

"Yeah, that's what we said when he was 'killed' by the Alpha the night he trapped us in the school," I point out, dryly.

"Argent's plan was to use him to get the Alpha," Scott states. "They're not gonna kill him."

"All right, so then just let them do what they're planning, you know? They use Derek to get Peter, problem solved," Stiles says simply.

"Not if Peter's going after Allison to find Derek!" Scott protests loudly. "I can't protect her on my own. Which means we need to find Derek first."

"Scott, you have me to do that with you," I point out. "You know that I'm almost as strong as you now."

He ignores me, instead he continues to freak out. "Just... Just help me!"

I let out a giggle as an orange ball hits Stiles head, shaking my head at his reaction I know he had. "You know," Stiles starts, "you probably lost it when you two were fighting. You remember that, when he was trying to kill you? After you interrupted him trying to kill Jackson? Are you starting to see a pattern of violent behavior here?"

"He wasn't going to kill anyone," Scott says firmly. "And I'm not letting him die."

"Could you at least think about letting him die? For me?" Stiles asks just as I hear tires squeaking and a car stopping outside. "What?"

"My mom just got home from work," Scott answers.

For once, I'm not going to listen in, trying not to invade her privacy. But by the looks of Scott's face, it isn't good.

"Is she okay?" Stiles asks, getting a shake from Scott's head. "What's she doing?"

"Crying," Scott murmurs, crestfallen. He moves from his desk to his bed in front of Stiles, face awash in sadness and remorse.

"Scott, you can't protect everyone," I say sadly.

He looks up at us, determination in his voice as he says, "I have to."

☾

Walking down the hall towards my locker, head down as I try to read a page from my book, I feel a hand on my elbow that yanks me towards the stairs. A tiny scream leaves my lips at the suddenness, seeing Stiles was the one who pulled me to him and Scott.

"Stiles, what the hell?" I ask, only getting a "shh" from him and a jerk of his head towards my locker.

I decide to play along and stand a little behind Stiles, looking to see Jackson talking to Allison, and he looks like he saw a ghost. Or maybe a werewolf. Go Scott for scaring Jackson.

"Yeah, I'm great," Jackson lies, their voices loud enough for us to hear. "I'm just excited to go to the formal. With you. As friends. Just friends. Just... Just friends." It's hilarious to see him this flustered and scared.

They both chuckle, Scott's jealousy very strong at the sight. "Hey, don't worry," Stiles consoles him. "I'll still be there."

Stiles is going to the dance and he hasn't asked me yet? Does he not want to go with me? If so, this just sucks.

"I'm still going," Scott says stubbornly as we watch the two walk down the hall together.

"Is that such a good idea?" Stiles asks. "Do you even have a date?"

"Not yet," Scott answers.

Same here, buddy, same here.

"Do you have a suit?" Stiles asks.

"Not yet," Scott repeats.

"Do you have a ticket to the formal? A ride there?" Stiles presses.

"No. And no," Scott answers as he turns around to face us.

"So, you're gonna ride your bike to a dance that you're not even allowed to go to without a date, a suit, or a way in with werewolves and werewolf hunters all out to kick your little werewolf ass," Stiles says, amused.

"Yeah," Scott chuckles, his smile widening. "You gonna help me?"

"Hell, yeah," we respond at the same time, Stiles wrapping an arm around both of our necks as we walk away.

☾

"Nothing's wrong, I just... I have a lot on my mind," Allison tells us as we go up the escalator at Macy's. We're shopping for dresses to a dance I don't have a ticket or a date to. I'm just hoping Stiles asks me in time to go.

And I'm here because Scott asked me to keep an eye on Allison and I'm happy to if it means my best friend will be safe from that psychotic Alpha.

"You could smile, at least," Lydia says. "Ever heard of the saying, 'Never frown. Someone could be falling in love with your smile'? Smile, Allison. I'm buying you a dress." Nessa already gave me money for a dress, so I'm all set for that. And to apologize to Allison for the Scott thing, even though I didn't kiss him, I'm paying for half of the dress.

"And I'm paying for half of it," I add.

"Have to admit as far as apologies go, that's more than I expected," Allison admits.

"Excellent," Lydia and I say in unison.

"But not as much as I'm going to ask," Allison says.

"What?" I ask, confused. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means you're going to ask Stiles out if he hasn't asked yet," Allison smirks.

"I'm not used to being so straightforward when it comes to these kinds of things," I protest as we step off the escalator and stop.

Her head turns to the side, my eyes following her gaze to see my boyfriend at the perfume station. What the hell is he doing? I purse my lips to suppress a giggle as he sprays the perfume in his face and spastically sneezes.

"Oh... Don't frown, Mary Anne," Allison teases. "Someone could be falling in love with your smile."

Turning to her, I give her a tiny smile before turning my eyes back to Stiles. He catches sight of us and awkwardly waves, reminding me of the first time I saw him on the first day back.

"Okay, fine," I sigh, slowly going over to Stiles, wringing my hands together. "Hey, babe, what are you doing here?"

He shrugs, "Ah..." He trails off, eyes narrowed. "Just shopping."

Instantly, I understand his intentions. "You're here to keep an eye on Allison, aren't you?" I ask flatly.

He sighs, "Yeah, that's it." Smiling a little, he rocks back on the balls of his feet. "I actually have something to ask you." A little flicker of hope burns in me as he pulls two dance tickets out of his back pocket. "I want to know if you, my beautiful girlfriend, will do me the honor of letting me accompanying you to the Winter Formal?" He asks.

I can't help but smile brightly at the flowery question, nodding eagerly. "I've been waiting for you to ask," I tease, leaning up on my toes to kiss him quickly. "Now, shoo, you're not seeing my dress until you pick me up. See you later."

He pulls me in for one last kiss, smiling brightly, giving me one of the tickets before I turn to walk towards the racks of dresses, hoping to find the perfect one.

I just want tomorrow night to be perfect.

☾

When I had told Nessa about getting a dress and the way Stiles asked me out, she demanded to help me get ready for tonight. Now, I'm standing in front of my full-length mirror in my dress, my hair done already. My dress is perfect; red, strapless, A-line, made of tulle, going down to my knees. To top it all off, black high heels with a little platform and thick heels to keep me from falling. Nessa helped me with my hair, curling it and pulling back pieces from my temples to twist it in a little loose bun at the back of my head.

"Do you think Stiles will like it?" I ask as she stands behind me, hands on my shoulders.

"He'd be crazy not to," she says with a large smile. "Now, come on, time for the makeup."

She gently leads me to sit on my bed, pulling the makeup out of her own makeup bag and held out some eyeliner, mascara, and gold and brown eye shadow. "Now, close your eyes," she instructs, making me roll them but I do it anyway.

"Why are you so nervous if Stiles finds you beautiful or not?" She asks as she brushes on the eye shadow on my left eye. I shrug, biting my bottom lip as I think about telling her the truth.

"I plan on telling Stiles I'm in love with him tonight."

She stops moving the brush across my eyelid as she gasps. "Wait, you love him?"

Opening my eyes, I look into the darker blue eyes of my sister, wide with surprise and her jaw slack. "I felt an instant connection with him, Ness," I explain, serious and earnest. "I knew he was different from other boys, and when we touched hands the first time we met, I felt electricity going up my arm. It was like that when we danced at the party, and every time I'm with him I just feel... Complete. I can't explain it properly, or with enough words, but, I've fallen irrevocably in love with him."

Tears well in her eyes, a smile stretching across her face. "Irrevocably? As in you know you're not going to fall out of love with him?" She asks.

"I have never felt like this before, not even with Aurora. I couldn't fall in love with her because she wasn't the one. What I feel only happens once in a lifetime, just like Mama described it with Papa. I just hope Stiles feels the same."

"Like I said," she chuckles. "He'd be crazy not to."

"But what if he doesn't?" I ask, hesitant and scared. I've always been afraid of truly saying "I love you," since the last time I told my parents that, it was the day they died. And when I thought I was in love with Aurora, confessing it through a song and actually saying it after, a few weeks later I caught her in bed with the captain of our school's football team, Jared Williams. The same guy she made a bet on about me. "Nessa, every time I told someone, other than you and Nik, things always went wrong."

Nik, or Nikolai, is my older brother who is up in Oregon, and they're really the only immediate family I have left. Even with them, I still hesitate to tell them I love them.

Nessa pauses, sighing and looking at me sympathetically. "Want some advice from someone who's been alive a bit longer than you?" She asks, encouraging me and I nod once. "The first rule of truly living: do the thing you're most afraid of."

She continues to apply the makeup on my eyes after that, and I think about that as she does it. Lately, I've been doing things I would normally be afraid of doing; admitting to myself that I'm in love with someone, kissing someone who I had no way of knowing if he reciprocated my feelings, and being ready to take on an Alpha werewolf who can kill me.

How the hell has this become my life?

Continuing to brush on some light blush, she hands me a red lipstick tube. "Red to match the dress," she explains. I nod and move to my mirror, removing the cap and just as I'm raising it to my lips, the doorbell rings.

Looks like Stiles is here.

"Nessa, please go get that, it's Stiles and I'm not ready yet," I panic slightly. She laughs at my nervousness and nods, her footsteps echoing down the hall. Inhaling deeply, I run the lipstick over my bottom lip and then my top lip, surprisingly with steady hands and no mess. "There," I sigh in relief, still feeling anxious about tonight. "You have nothing to be worried about. Don't let your anxiety ruin this night," I say to myself through the mirror, closing my eyes for a moment. "Please, let me get through this night without any problems, and please, Gods, don't let my heart get broken by the end of the night."

"Mary Anne! Stiles is here!" Nessa yells up the stairs, despite already knowing that I'm aware of him being here.

Grabbing my clutch with my ticket, phone, and keys, I walk out of my room and slowly down the stairs, trying not to break my ankles. When my sister and boyfriend come into my line of sight, both of their eyes going to me as my heels click against the wood, giving me away. Stiles' eyes widen and his jaw drops, frozen to the spot. I rake my eyes over him, seeing his white and blue pin-stripe button down, black tie and jacket. He looks handsome, and it's a mystery how he's never had a girlfriend before. Just makes me even more lucky to be with him.

Finally, he breaks out of his stupor and grins at me. "You look stunning, Mary Anne, and every synonym of the word," he breathes out.

My cheeks grow dark, smiling bashfully but I don't break eye contact until he holds something out. I look down to see him holding a plastic container holding a red rose corsage. "I love it," I murmur, taking it from his hands gingerly and opened it, sliding it onto my wrist. "Thank you. And you look dashing as well."

His cheeks hold a light pink tint, smiling bashfully like me.

"You two aren't leaving until I get at least two pictures," Nessa playfully threatens, holding her camera that I didn't notice was in her hands. I guess I was too taken aback by Stiles.

"Really?" I pretend to whine, but Stiles pulls me into his side, arm around my waist. I do the same to him, smiling at the camera as she holds it up.

"You two better show some love for the second," Nessa informs us as she takes the first photo, the click audible. Chuckling, my cheeks grow even darker as Stiles leans down to press a kiss to my temple, my eyes still on the camera as she takes the photo. "Alrighty then, you two head on out," she says, smiling. "Take good care of her, Stiles."

"Will do, Ms. Archer," he says as he opens the door, holding out his arm for me. "Shall we?"

I smile and take his arm. "We shall."

☾

The ride to the school is quiet, my anxiety running high. So many different things could go wrong tonight, like Peter running in and killing everyone or Stiles rejecting me when I confess my love to him. Hopefully, neither of those options doesn't happen.

When we park outside the school, everyone piling into the school, Stiles gets out and I can hear him mutter, "Ow!" I chuckle at his clumsiness, smiling widely as he comes over to my side and opens the door. "Thank you," I say as I carefully step out, brushing down the skirt of my dress while holding my clutch in my other hand.

"Mary Anne!" Lydia calls out from behind, turning around to see her walking quickly over to me and leaving her date, who I guess is a lacrosse player, on the sidewalk waiting for her. She makes it to me and wraps me up in a tight hug which I return enthusiastically. "Oh my God, I knew you picked the right dress."

I smile and let go of her, feeling Stiles' hand on my waist as he steps next to me. "I love your dress, too," I say, my smile fading when I notice Jackson and Allison walking towards us.

"Jackson, you look handsome," Lydia compliments, obviously tense.

I smile sadly at Allison, noticing her discomfort around Jackson. She should be here with the guy she likes, Scott, even if they aren't together. She likes him too much.

"Obviously," Jackson says arrogantly. "It's Hugo Boss."

I glare at him venomously, him returning it as he walks away. "I don't care," Lydia mutters. "I don't want compliments. I will not fall prey to society's desire to turn girls into emotionally insecure neurotics who pull up their dresses at the first flattering remark."

"Well, I think you look beautiful," I admit.

"Really?" Lydia asks softly, smiling at me. I nod and she gives me one last hug, whispering a thank you before walking back off to her date.

"Ready?" Stiles asks, holding out his arm like he did before. I nod and take his arm, heading towards the entrance.

☾

The dance committee really outdid themselves for this dance, the lights and the pieces of hanging fabric from the ceiling. And the band is pretty good, too. I don't bother getting a drink, in fear of it being spiked and I do something I regret. Like dancing.

Stiles and I are sitting at a table, him sans jacket as we sit there. My nerves are preventing me from dancing, something I want to do with Stiles like we did at the party where we first met... Or rather met for the second time, since I don't remember our very first meeting. Geez, that's complicated.

"You wanna dance?" Stiles asks after seeing Allison start dancing with Jackson.

"I don't know..." I trail off meekly. "Maybe not."

"You know what? Let me try that again," he says with newfound conviction, standing up looking down at me, right into my eyes. "Mary Anne, get off your cute little ass and dance with me now."

I raise my eyebrows in mild amusement but I don't budge. "Interesting tactic. I'm gonna stick with no."

"Mary Anne, get up, okay? You're gonna dance with me. I don't care that my best friend kissed you for some unknown reason but... Mary Anne, I've had a crush on you since the third grade, but I've known you since nursery school. And I know that somewhere inside that cold, sardonic exterior there's an actual human soul. The girl I knew when we were kids. And I'm also pretty sure that I'm only one who knows how smart you are. Uh-huh. And that once you're done pretending to be a nitwit, you'll eventually go off and discover something new about the human body or some new medicine that wins you the Nobel Prize."

I look down and smile, processing all of that before correcting him, "Excellence in Anthropology Award."

"What?" He asks, confused.

I stand and move in front of him, my smile turning into a little smirk. "Nobel doesn't have a prize for anthropology. The Excellence in Anthropology Award is the one I'll be winning, if I go that path. If not, then I'd win the the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine." Taking his hand, I lead him towards the mass of dancing students, noticing him doing a fist-pump and mouthing yes! when I turn my head to look at him.

Gods, he's a dork.

But he's my dork.

I stop and spin around to face him, his body starting to move weirdly in a way I guess is his way of dancing to the upbeat music. Smiling, I start jumping a little, spinning around, moving my arms and hips so he isn't alone in his weird but cute way of dancing, ignoring some of the stares from the people around us from our wild dancing.

"McCall! I see you!" Coach yells, making me stop and look over to the bleachers, seeing Scott there and he starts to scramble away. Oh, bloody hell. "Come here, buddy. McCall! Get out of my way! McCall! It's a small gym, buddy. I'm gonna find you. I got you, McCall! Come here, come here! Get outta my way. McCall!"

Stiles and I watch as Scott pulls Danny up to dance with him and wraps his arms around his neck, warranting a boisterous laugh from me.

"McCall! You're not supposed to..." Everyone looks at Coach weirdly when he says, "What the hell are you..." Even the band stops playing! Oh, this is gold. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Yes, Coach?" Scott says innocently, moving a bit closer to Danny who looks so confused right now. Poor Danny.

"Okay..." Coach laughs awkwardly, seeing how nearly everyone is looking at him judgmentally. "Hold on, you... I was just saying he's not supposed to... I mean, I wasn't saying that he shouldn't... You guys don't think... You don't...I-I was... Just dance, everybody. Just dance! It's a dance! It's a party!"

I turn to Stiles. "Why are we friends with him again?" I ask playfully.

"I don't know," he muses, playing along.

A little giggle leaves my lips, and I smile at him warmly. I pull him close to my body, wrapping one arm loosely around his neck and holding his bicep with my other hand, his hands respectfully going to my waist as we sway to the now slower music, his temple pressing into mine, bodies brushing. Like always with him, I feel... Complete. For years I've felt like a piece of me was missing and when I'm around Stiles, I feel complete. Like I've found the missing puzzle piece. I can't keep this from him, it's killing me. If I don't do it now I'll regret it later. And I can't always be afraid of everything.

"Stiles?" I ask quietly after a few minutes of dancing.

"Yeah?" He replies, just as quietly.

I move my head to look up at him, inhaling deeply as I let the words slip out my mouth. "For years, I have felt as though I've been missing something. Like I've felt incomplete. When I met you, it all changed. I came here to move on from someone, but I didn't anticipate moving on so fast. It was you who made me move on so quickly. When I met you, I knew you were different from other guys. With you, I feel complete. Like I found the missing puzzle piece. Stiles, you're a guy I've always imagined myself to be with. You're the nerd of my dreams." He laughs a bit at that but looks a little confused by my speech. "What I'm trying to say is that you, Stiles Stilinski, have made me fall irrevocably in love with you." His mouth parts in surprise, the corners tugging up a bit as joy fills his whiskey eyes. The weight of keeping that in eases off my chest and my anxiety of him not reciprocating my feelings fades. "I love you, Stiles."

He smiles widely and leans his forehead against mine, bumping the tips of our noses together. "I love you, Mary Anne Talia Archer. So frickin' much."

I giggle at the use of my full name, knowing I must've told him when we were kids, and the confession makes my heart swell with love and joy. There's no feeling that I can compare to the feeling of finding out the guy I love loves me as well.

My train of thoughts is interrupted when he presses his lips to mine in a deep and adoring kiss, cupping my face. I kiss him back fully, heart threatening to burst. His lips move along mine gently yet deeply, my hand clenching around his bicep. Love and happiness surge through me, crashing over me like a wave, over and over.

Eventually, we break apart, my lungs burning for oxygen and I rest my head back on his shoulder, continuing to dance.

However, after a minute or two I notice that Lydia isn't with her date anymore at their table, making me curious yet scared. "You okay?" Stiles asks, my head moving to look up at him.

I shake my head, looking around the room. "I can't find Lydia," I whisper, worry seeping into my tone. Dread fills my stomach, my blood running cold. "I'm gonna go look for her."

He nods, kissing my forehead before reluctantly letting me go. I turn and weave my way through the crowd, heading out the gym and down the dark hallway. When I walk through the doors, I slam into a hard chest.

"Sorry," I mutter, not bothering to look at the person.

"You should be careful," a familiar voice says, making me flicker my eyes up to the blue eyes of Peter Hale, his lips curled into a sinister smirk and a line of blood stains his chin. "You never know what could be out here."

I try to move away from him but he grabs my biceps roughly, pushing me up against the wall near the doors, and I instantly struggle against his hold. "Let go of me," I snarl, glaring daggers up at him. If looks could kill, he'd be six feet under already.

His smirk deepens. "So defiant," he raises one clawed finger to trace my jaw lightly and I jerk away from his touch. "So much like your mother."

I freeze, blood going cold. He knew my mother?

"Don't you dare talk about her like you knew her!" I growl, much like an animal, hands curling into shaking fists.

"Oh, but I did know her."

"You're lying."

"Am I? Use that little gift you've always had."

How does he know about that? Only my family, Lydia and Stiles know about that.

"So what? You knew my mother, congratulations," I snark, trying to hide my fear, even if he can smell it. Some voice in my head is telling me to keep my mouth shut, especially when a psychotic Alpha can kill me at any second, but I ignore it.

"I just didn't know your mother. I know what she was."

Wait, what?

He jerks me away from the wall and starts pulling me away from the school, towards the direction of the lacrosse field, roughly, and to keep my ankles from breaking, I comply but try to jerk from his hold a few times. The field lights are on and my eyes fall onto a body lying in the middle of the field. The strawberry blonde hair is easily recognizable, my heart and stomach dropping.

"No," I whisper, tears filling my eyes as we get closer to the body and I see the blood covering her silver dress and pale skin, the fact that Peter knew my mother being pushed aside for the moment. "Lydia!"

Peter roughly lets me go, falling to my knees by the side of my best friend. My sister. I can't lose another person I love, I won't.

I move the hair out of her face and cup her cheek, straining to hear a pulse. A little sigh of relief leaves my lips as I find it, weak, but there. "Why did you do this?" I shout, voice breaking, tears leaving my eyes as I stand and turn to the smirking man. I don't care if I'm crying in front of a homicidal Alpha werewolf, my best friend who I've known since kindergarten can die and he's the one responsible for it.

"I need more Betas," he says, like it's so obvious. "And now, I'm going to get one more."

My body freezes, more tears leaking from my eyes as my heart stops for a second. "Why me?" I ask, my voice cracking again.

"Well, Mary Anne, I not only knew your mother, but I knew you when you were a kid. And I know not only what your mother was, but what you are. A hybrid that is bound to become extremely powerful. Sure, your powers trigger when you turn sixteen, but I'm just speeding up the process even more," he says, yanking me up and forward by my bicep and running his other hand down my cheek, looking down at me with a sinister smirk.

"Mary Anne!" The voice catches my attention, my eyes shift to my boyfriend running towards us. "Run!"

"This is gonna hurt," he states quietly, the hand on my cheek falling to my neck to brush my hair back, almost gently.

"No, no, no! Please don't!" I plead, jerking in his hold, but it's no use. A scream of pain leaves my lips by the end of the sentence as his teeth sink into my left shoulder, deep enough to puncture an artery. Searing, white-hot pain courses through my entire being, a pain I have never felt before. My vision goes blurry, feeling lightheaded as I lose blood rapidly.

As I fall to the ground next to Lydia, the last thing I hear is Stiles calling out my name before the world goes dark.

☾

Mary Anne and Lydia got bit! We all know what happens to Lydia, but what do you think is gonna happen to Mary Anne? And we're one episode away from being done with season 1 and I can move onto season 2.

And yes, I changed the title from "Winter Formal" to what it is now, "The Words" from the song, The Words by Christina Perri, as the line "let the words slip out my mouth" is a slightly different version of the actual song lyrics.

Void_Stiles_is_Life xx