"Are we ready to go?" Stiles had pulled Scott's attention away from his phone with that question.

Scott took a few seconds to wrap his mind around things before responding, "Wh... Yeah, I just received a message from Satomi, her and her team are on the way,"

"What about the others?" Stiles asked again.

"It's done. They all designated a leader and came out with plans for their teams. Oh! Speaking of plans, Derek sent me the overall plan of the mansion,"

Scott's screen lit up just as he finished speaking. He directed it towards Stiles in order to let him get a look at said plan, "I see five entry points in total," said Stiles.

"If we ignore the windows on the ground floor, that is,"

"Which one are we taking?"

"This might sound crazy but... I was thinking our team should go straight from the front. I mean one of the windows at the front of the place," Scott sounded apprehensive, thinking his idea wouldn't land well through Stiles' lenses.

Against all odds however, Stiles wasn't repelled by the thought, "This might sound crazy but... I don't think your idea is completely crazy. You're thinking we could serve as bait, so that the others can get a higher chance of going in. Is that the big idea?"

Relieved upon hearing his friend's words, Scott allowed a small smile to appear on his face, at the very least he didn't have the burden of convincing his best friend, "Basically, yes. I just think that if the enemies catch wind of our plan, they will probably go after me first. That could give our allies the time to react accordingly,"

"I see where you're coming from, but don't you think that if our enemies uncover our plan, this is exactly what they'd expect us to do? Not to mention, we don't even know if the apprentice is here already,"

"Honestly Stiles? it feels like they're already a hundred steps ahead. According to Maylee, the apprentice has been operating in the shadows for over a century, waiting for his moment to strike. If it took him this long to be ready, I'd like to think that he had long enough to think about mishaps and potential obstacles, especially ones like us,"

"I was afraid you'd say that," Stiles exhaled and pressed his back against the wall.

"And I was afraid you'd say what you just said," Scott copied his friend's actions.

They both stood there, facing the same way, without a word. Scott couldn't admit it at that moment, but he'd hoped for a better plan idea from his friend. Stiles was always the one to go to for a better plan, but it seemed it wasn't the case for that time. Then perhaps that silence was his cue to dig some other subjects up from the dirt where he'd left them for lack of time. There were so many conversations left unfinished. He had so many questions to ask his friend, and it wasn't just a feeling he had, they truly were racing against time. One after the other, the recent events had all lined up and backed them into a corner. He had his objective clear in mind and yet... And yet, he couldn't help but feel like he'd already lost it all, like his time with his friends was limited. All he wanted at that moment, was for his mouth to just open and spill it all out in front of Stiles, all the thoughts and questions he'd kept from him for the past few days but...

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"What are you thinking about?" Stiles was never late to notice when something was up with his friends.

"I just... I don't know, it feels like nothing is stacked in our favor," said Scott.

"Scott, I hate to say this buddy but, it's not just a feeling," Stiles was also never one to sugar coat things, especially not to his best friend.

"So, when do we go?" a third voice entered their conversation. Rosalie stood in front of them waiting for an answer that... They took their time to give.

"I... Yeah, we're just waiting for Lydia and we're good to go," Scott managed to speak after a few seconds in trance.

"Lydia isn't coming with us, that's why she sent me," said Rosalie.

"Why not?" asked Stiles.

"She said she needs to stay here with Maylee, she says she has to keep on trying to bring her back," Rosalie retorted.

"Can't she try after we come back? This doesn't make any sense, we need her for this to work," Stiles was losing patience with every word he was uttering.

"Believe it or not, I've already tried telling her that. She insists on staying until she manages to wake Maylee up. And besides you have me," explained Rosalie.

"Don't get us wrong, Rosalie. It's just... Not the same, we still need Lydia even if we have you," Seeing as things seemed to escalate, Scott tried to lay things out for Rosalie the best way he could as the two of them were speedwalking through the hospital hallways after Stiles, who was heading towards Maylee's room in order to talk to Lydia.

Without giving it much thought, Stiles exposed what was going through his mind at that moment and for once, Scott wished his friend could filter situations out where he'd needed to sugar coat things a little, "You can't even heal," he said.

"Neither can Lydia. Actually, scratch that, neither can you! And neither can your father! Both of your fathers!" her eyes flicked between both Scott and Stiles as she spoke.

"That's not the point... It's just...," Stiles tried.

"Then what the hell is the point?" Rosalie sounded calm, but it was clear to Scott that she was beyond irritated, and even he couldn't deny the fact that she had a good point. What the hell was his point?

Stiles finally opened the door to Maylee's room. Lydia was sat by her side, facing the opposite wall to the door. She was completely silent, holding Maylee's hand between hers. She did not react whatsoever to their arrival in the room, she did not turn to face them, she did not say a thing to them.

"Lydia...," Stiles began but Melissa, who they hadn't even noticed upon entering the room, came to stand in his way.

"I wouldn't do that," she said before adding, "She asked me to keep an eye on her while she tries to enter in contact with Maylee's consciousness. She said she didn't want to be disturbed while trying,"

"Well, this is just great...," Stiles exhaled again.