Of Fire And Shadow [completed]

Chapter 10

As soon as Parrish left the apartment, Lydia began to sway on her feet. It had been a long day of almost nonstop revelations and she was tired.

Stiles was the first to notice that she was a little unsteady and allowed her to lean on him as they made their way into the bedroom so she could get cleaned up. Scott decided to remain in the living room to keep an eye on Thanatos.

"Are you going to be okay?" Stiles asked as Lydia sat on the bed staring at the rolled up scroll in her hands.

She looked up at him slowly but didn't say anything. He moved to sit beside her and took one of her hands in his to show that he was there for her.

Lydia was grateful for the gesture but she really just wanted to be alone with her thoughts. She needed time to process everything.

Stiles retreated back to the living room, leaving Lydia to rest by herself in the bedroom. Nothing bad could happen to her in there, he thought.

Lydia changed into some pajamas and crawled underneath the covers of the bed after turning off the light. She placed the scroll on the bedside table, refusing to worry too much about it until the morning, and drifted off to a much-needed sleep.

As the night wore on, Scott and Stiles eventually fell asleep as well. The apartment was dark and quiet, and nobody would suspect anything was wrong.

But something was wrong. Parrish felt it. He couldn't focus on his work and kept glancing at the clock on the wall of the station, anxious to get back and check on Lydia.

The sheriff saw his uneasiness and after an hour or so, finally said Parrish could go home. Parrish thanked him and rushed out the door, climbing into his cruiser and taking off toward his apartment. He just hoped he could get there fast enough to prevent whatever thing he felt was going to happen.

***

Lydia was startled awake by a cold draft blowing through the room. She opened her eyes and sat up slowly, peering through the dark. Faint light from the moon filtered in through the window, casting long shadows across the floor and onto the walls.

She was about to dismiss her feeling of dread when the shadows began to shift. They gathered together and condensed in one space, forming three hazy humanoid silhouettes.

Lydia was frozen in shock and fear as the shadows grew darker and moved toward her. She began to shiver, and couldn't think straight.

The shadow figures continued to advance, reaching out to grab her, but Lydia scrambled backward before they could touch her and let out an ear-piercing scream.

The shadows staggered back as the force of the scream hit them, clutching the sides of their heads. The scream reverberated throughout the apartment and the town beyond, catching the attention of supernatural creatures everywhere.

Parrish nearly swerved off the road when he heard it. He began to breathe faster as he sped home, anxious to get to Lydia. His hands became clammy and he gripped the steering wheel with white knuckles, beads of sweat forming on his forehead. Flames started to dance across his fingertips, licking up his arms and threatening to engulf his uniform. Luckily, he was close to his apartment at this point, and was able to keep control enough to save his clothes and car.

Lydia was slightly weakened after her scream, and unfortunately the shadows recovered quickly. They lunged toward her, arms outstretched, but just then Scott barged in.

He looked around wildly, confused at why Lydia had screamed. Stiles rushed in behind him, and went to Lydia's side, but also looked a little confused. Since neither of them were like Lydia or Parrish, they couldn't see the shadows.