( open + some closed prompts )

[figureitout]

CHARACTERS: stiles and YOU, stiles and a bunch of ppl
DATE: between march 17 and march 23
WARNINGS: injuries, panic attacks, more or less zombies, idk man i'll update
SUMMARY: peter's infection finally reaches the more serious symptoms, and like any well-adjusted individual, he runs away after lashing out unintentionally. stiles deals with the injuries and tries to mobilize a search for him (mostly by doing the searching all by himself, good job??)

i. i'm frozen to the bones — university

[ it isn't a common sight, to see Stiles out and about so early in the morning it can barely be called morning — sure, he makes a point to be at the station early enough, but never without complaining about the time and increasingly desperate attempts to drown himself in coffee. now, though, he looks wide awake, despite the heavy circles around his eyes.

no, the sight isn't a common one, but it certainly is alarming, especially when one pays careful attention to the way each step he takes is somehow less steady than the one before it, the way he cradles his arm at an awkward angle and winces when moving forward jostles it slightly. still, he isn't stopping — he makes his way across the university grounds, then to where the cars are parked...

... yep, you guessed it, he's totally going to drive his car like this, with one arm out of commission and looking like he might actually clock out any minute now.

someone.

should probably stop him. ]

ii. i'm a million miles from home — random city location of your choosing

[ he's no longer sure how long he's been walking around. hours, days — he's trying not to count how long it's been since his ill-adviced decision to try and tranquilize a sleeping super-powered individual, seriously, just how did he think that was a good plan?

(he didn't, that's what. he didn't think, because he had no plan. none... just like he doesn't have a plan now. for someone whose strength tends to be coming up with plans, he sure seems to be lacking in that department lately.)

the magitek is of no help, because what good is a locating system built in when you can just leave your magical jewelry in a lab, right? right. quietly, he mutters, ] You just had to remember that too, didn't you? Great.

[ as if talking to himself in the place of the one he actually wants to talk to, making dry comments about the situation, made it all somehow easier to deal with. (spoilers: it doesn't.)

after another block, Stiles finally has to sit down, finding the nearest bench that's empty. it's cold, but he doesn't care, curling in on himself as he leans his head in his hands. this... isn't working. he has no plan, no idea where to look for Peter, no clues to follow. nothing. it's like he's disappeared into thin air and all he can do is walk around the city until his legs give out under him, until the curfew once again forces him back inside — back to the dorms, to his room, in the faint hope that maybe, maybe this time it won't be empty.

breathe, he reminds himself. it'll be fine. it's fine. it's — ]

Fine. It's fine. I'm fine, [ he whispers out loud, his voice brittle, barely there.

(spoilers: he's not.) ]

iii. wildcard!!

[ feel free to wildcard me with whatever strikes your fancy!! or poke me over at celen for a closed starter! all closed starters will be their own comments, just bear with me as i write them up...

also, the explanation (and plotting post) for "how not to deal with being infected: a guide by peter parker" is here in case none of this is making any sense! ]

Comments

[secondnature]

We've been sedating people the entire time. Personally, I'd be relieved if someone did that to me.

[This is where Keith both shines and fails: he can't see where Stiles' guilt is coming into play. It means he struggles to empathize with it, but he can, at least, cut through the lack of reason associated with it.

For someone as temperamental as he is, he likes calling other people on their illogical bullcrap.]

[figureitout]

Yeah, well. Trust me, he wasn't.

[ but that's just it — maybe, if he'd asked instead, if he hadn't tried to sedate him out of the blue like that, surprising him and triggering his senses into action... they might not be here right now. it might all be alright. ]

... but you're right. [ it is stupid, to sit here and dwell on what could have happened, what didn't. all that matters is what will. ] We just have to find him, and I have to do a better job of it this time.

[secondnature]

That sounds like his problem. [Keith isn't the best at sympathy ... or parsing out the reality of a situation. He assumes that Peter was acting like an infected. Stiles wouldn't have stabbed him with a tranquilizer otherwise.

Right?

With Keith, he has a hard time thinking outside of the box once he's drawn a conclusion.]

Look, how are you planning to do it better? There's a reason why it failed before, right?

[figureitout]

[ he swallows a harsh laugh — it's amazing how Keith can be so close to the truth and yet so far at the same time. he's trying his best to help, though, and he's not far enough gone not to appreciate that. ]

I'm going to talk to him. [ yes, that's his plan. not all of it, no, but the gist of it: the reason why it failed before... is exactly because he didn't. ]

[secondnature]

Just do me a favor, okay? Wait until he's better. [Keith wants that to be clear. He's hanging his hopes on everyone "getting better." That's likely because he has no other choice, what with the state of Shiro and Lance right now.]

[figureitout]

Keith —

[ his mouth nothing but a thin line, Stiles turns to look at him, breathing out. at least he can still do that — breathe. ]

You don't get it. I'm going to talk to him, and he's going to listen long enough for me to sedate him and not mess it up this time. He's not... he won't be better, not without a cure, and I can't let him run free while waiting for that to happen.

[secondnature]

How do you plan on getting him to listen? If you've tried sedating him once and it failed, how are you going to do it again? Can you even do that?

[If Peter is this difficult to find, Keith figures that it has to be for a reason.]

[figureitout]

It's worked once before. It'll work again. It's what I should've done, instead of —

[ again, he pauses, inhales. exhales. no need to get into the details. all he needs... is the certainty that it will work. it will. ]

Look, trust me. You can do that, right? I know what I'm doing. [ he hopes he does, anyway. ]

[secondnature]

I trust you, I do, it's just—[He sighs out after a moment, not sure where to go from there.]

I don't want you to do a thing that's gonna hurt you, too.

[figureitout]

I won't. I'll have someone with me who'll make sure nothing bad happens.

[ someone who can heal him if it does, too. with a quiet, tired smile that he only barely musters up, he turns and reaches out, placing his hand on Keith's shoulder for a moment. ] Thanks, Keith. You're a good friend. [ and he means it, too. ]