& ETERNAL //

something  eases  in  jack’s  posture  as  hayley  seems  to  take  to  his  idea,  somehow  he’d  been  worried  she  wouldn’t  want  to  go.  that  the  mikaelson’s  and  all  their  drama  would  hinder  them  getting  some  time  away  from  the  french  quarter  and  everything  that  went  with  it.   ❝ i  know  a  place  —  some  friends  that  live  up  in  the  blue  ridge  mountains.  they  have  snow  this  time  o’  year. ❞  

he  takes  a  step  closer  to  his  wife  and  trails  a  light  touch  down  her  arm  and  over  her  wrist,  finally  entwining  his  fingers  with  hers.  ❝ not  sure  what  hope  would  make  of  it,  but  it  would  be  a nice  break.  a  few  days,  maybe  a  week? ❞  it  sounded  nearly  too  good  to  be  true.

❝ you really know how to win a girl over, ❞ she says easily, the idea of them leaving with hope for a few days and going to the mountains sounding too good to be true.  she wanted nothing more than to leave the french quarter & be alone with jack and hope.  more than anything, she needed a break.  she wanted a week of happiness without thinking about the mikaelson’s and their drama.  the drama that she was always wrapped up in.  

❝ can  you  just  stop  with  the  attitude  for  a moment?  i’m  trying  to  save  both  our  lives,  and  a  little  cooperation  wouldn’t  be  unwarranted. ❞

the  name  klaus  bristles  unease  up  jack’s  spine  and  it  takes  a  concentrated  effort  not  to  push  the  subject.  his  own  curiosity  gnawing  at  him. ❝ i’ve  been  thinking  about  us,  maybe  getting  out  of  here  for  a  few  days? ❞

her  words  spark  something  in  his  chest,  a  sort  of  love  and  adoration  that  he  always  remembered  feeling  for  her.  it  seems  even  11  years  later  he  can’t  help  the  way  allison  makes  him  feel,  can’t  help  how  he  just  wants  to  hand  his  heart  over  to  her  on  a  platter  and  tell  her  its  hers  for  however  long  she’ll  have  him.  it  makes  him  wonder  if  she’s  seeing  anyone,  if  she’s  married,  if  she  found  someone  to  make  her  happy  and  part  of  him  hopes  she  hasn’t,  but  another  part  knows  he’d  be  happy  for  her  regardless.  its  not  like  they  can  fall  back  into  what  they  had  before,  too  much  has  changed. 

when  she  walks  away,  he  turns  to  his  mom  who  only  smiles  at  him,  ruffling  the  curls  he’s  grown  out  over  the  years,  actually  started  taking  care  of  them  right,  finds  out  he  likes  them  that  way.  she  has  other  things  she’d  probably  like  to  say,  he  can  see  it  on  her  face,  but  she  doesn’t,  just  kisses  his  cheek  and  hugs  him  before  thanking  him  for  bringing  her  lunch  and  heading  to  her  break. 

it  takes  him  a  bit  to  get  to  the  cafe,  mostly  because  he  spends  a  good  few  minutes  psyching  himself  up  in  the  car  to  meet  her,  and  its  a  good  thing  he  does  because when  he  makes  his  way  to  the  table  after  grabbing  is  own  coffee,   his  knees  feel  weak  again,  but  he’s  able  to  hold  himself  up.  sitting  across  from  her,  he  can’t  help  but  take  her  in  all  over  again.  he  didn’t  know  someone  could  get  more  beautiful,  but  she  had. 

❝  i’d  never  ditch  you,  ❞   a  laugh  leaves  him,  settling  back  in  his  chair,   ❝   oh,  i  don’t  drink  coffee  actually.   doesn’t  really  do  much  for  me,  with  the  whole  you  know.   i  do  drink  tea  though,  they  have  a  really  good  blueberry  one  here,  it’s  sweet.  ❞   the  small  amount  of  rambling  stops,  clearing  his  throat,    ❝   so  uh,  where  you  staying?  now  that  you’re  back?   ❞

❝ right, ❞ she replies, feeling a bit dumb that she forgot about things like caffeine and alcohol not doing anything to him.  ❝ the tea sounds good. ❞ she smiles softly at him, and she’s still taken back by how much he reminds her of the teenage boy she fell in love with.  it’s amazing to her that he’s still held on to so much of his youth despite everything he’s been through.  he looks different now, sure, but she can see that he’s still the same person buried underneath curlier hair and an aged face.  

his question of where she’s staying makes her sip her coffee for a second, debating how to explain her feelings.  ❝ right now? i’m in the hotel in town.  i didn’t know i was staying. ❞ she pauses for a second, lost in the fact that she’s calling beacon hills home again.  years in different countries, different cultures, and she’s still never been able to shake this place.  it reminds her of something deacon said once about them being drawn here, but she can’t remember the exact words.  ❝ i talked to my dad, and he’s fine with me staying in the house.  it’s just — ❞ she stops for a second, tapping her fingers against her coffee cup. ❝ it’s a big house, and it has a lot of memories. ❞ her mom, memories of scott, memories of her childhood that she never really got over.  ❝ and it’s just me out here. so i may look for a different place.  even if i’m not in the position to be turning down a beautiful house. ❞

           “MY BED with my wife. I don’t want her best friend in it. I want mine.” the blonde can’t help but laugh as she nudges her best friend in question playfully. Even though she had literally only just found out she was pregnant a few weeks ago, she was thankful to have the redhead in her life, to be able to talk to the other about her issues. It was making her feel better. To know she could talk about whatever issues she had with her. She nodded her head in agreement, there really was everything and anything they could possibly need at the hospital. Helped she was the Head of Peds so pretty much knew everything. The blonde snorts slightly before continuing “Still issues with walking THOUGH APRIL.”

holding  hayley  in  his  arms  was  the  easiest  thing  jack  ever  had  to  do  in  his  life.  she  and  hope  and  their  family  were  the  cornerstones  of  his  existence  now,  the  bond  of  their  love  and  commitment  was  the  unshakable  foundation  they  were  going  to  build  the  rest  of  their  lives  on.  ❝ shh,  i  know  ya  didn’t  mean  anythin’  by  it.  i  love  you  too,  more  than  my  own  life. ❞  reassurances  of  are  offered  on  a  whisper  as  he  presses  a  kiss  to  her  hair. 

❝ you  and  i  are  going  to  do  everything  in  our  power  to  make  sure  that  little  girl  has  the  life  she  deserves.  with  parents  who  will  love  her  and  protect  her. ❞  jack’s  words  are  soft  and  sentimental  and  weighted  with  honesty.  not  the  kind  that  promised  a  set  outcome,  he  couldn’t  predict  the  future,  but  the  type  of  honesty  that  came  from  the  faith  in  his  heart.  

everything about jack was calming to her, and she wondered if it was ever going to fade.  if she was ever going to feel differently toward him, or if he was going to stop being a bright light in a sea of dark.  she doubted it, but still.  the kiss to her hair and the promise of love makes her feel warm inside, and she lets out a sigh.  her comfort level around him was growing by the minute, and she hoped every day she wouldn’t lose him.   ❝ — more than your life, huh? ❞ she jokes, hoping to lighten the mood between them some.  

there’s  a  part  of  him  that  will  always  associate  her  with  good  things,  with  happiness,  with  joy.  she  was  an  anchor  for  a  long  time,  sometimes  she  still  is  in  certain  ways.  things  she  said,  wisdom  she’s  passed  onto  him  still  lives  and  thrives  in  his  pack,  each  of  his  betas  knows  the  story  about  the  argents,  about  how  they  are  the  only  hunters  to  trust.  which  even  then,  for  one  of  his  betas,  trusting  hunters  will  never  be  easy,  not  with  the  things  that  monroe  put  them  through  for  years.   

❝  listen,  that’s  not  a  big  deal  at  all.  you’re  here  now.  and  frankly,  i’ve  been  busy,  taking  over  the  practice  for  deaton  hasn’t  left  a  lot  of  free  time.  ❞    not  that  he  isn’t  incredibly  happy  to  be  doing  it,  basically  having  his  own  practice  right  out  of  vet  school,  most  of  the  clients  still  remember  him  from  when  he  worked  there  in  high  school,  so  its  not  like  he’d  have  to  go  very  far  to  get  patients  anyway.  

and  her  dad,  he  hasn’t  talked  to  chris  in  years,  not  since  he  helped  scott  get  his  feet  under  him,  helped  him  learn  how  to  find  and  help  other  weres,  and  he  did  once  the  older  man  left.  he  helped  countless,  made  connections  with  several  other  packs.  sure,  his  status  as  a  true  alpha  helped,  but  he  likes  to  think  it  has  more  to  do  with  who  he  is,  how  much  they  like  him.   ❝   that’s  good,  he  deserves  the  break.  i  mean,  i’m  sure  retirement  hasn’t  made  him  any  less  grumpy.  ❞   a  laugh  moves  out  of  his  chest,  catching  his  mom’s  eye  before  stepping  back  a  couple  paces,   ❝  i’m  good,  yeah.  mostly  busy  with  the…  ❞   he  glances  around  them,  careful,   ❝ kids,  the  ‘pups’,  and  then  the  vet’s  office. ❞

for  a  moment  he  isn’t  sure  what  to  say,  too  caught  up  in  surprise,  but  he  doesn’t  think  that’ll  ever  go  away,  ❝  but  uh,  congratulations  on  the  job!  the  department  will  be  lucky  to  have  you.  between  you  and  parrish  they’ll  have  all  their  supernatural  areas  covered.  ❞   a  pause  before  he  nods,   ❝  yeah!  i  mean,  if  mom’s  okay  eating  lunch  by… ❞   and  she  is,  by  the  nod  of  her  head  and  the  shooing  motion  of  her  hand,   ❝   i’ve  only  got  a  couple  of  hours  before  i  gotta  pick  up  micah  from  saturday  practice  though.   but  yeah,  the  cafe  on  main?  i  can  meet  you  there?  ❞

she finds herself lost in the way that scott has grown, and the ways he’s still so himself that it’s jarring.  he’s still the same kid she fell in love with underneath the aging and the chaos of his life.  all of it makes her feel like being at home again.  that isn’t to say scott is her home, but she won’t deny the way she still feels while she’s around him.  he makes being back in beacon feel more like home and less like she’s trying to fill shoes she can’t fill.  

❝ i’m so proud of you, ❞ she says easily, voice filled with emotion.  despite her anxiety at seeing him again and her wonder if they’ll be able to move past everything that happened between them, it’s easy for her to admit to being proud.  it’s obvious in the way she’s looking at him.  they’re both adults who have struggled to get where they are, but especially him.  even if she wasn’t around for everything he went through, she heard about it.  she’s not naïve enough to think he’s exactly the same person she fell in love with, but she can’t deny how being around him feels.  

she nods when he mentions the cafe on main, and gives him and melissa a semi-awkward wave before she leaves the hospital.  she employs a lot of the coping skills her therapist told her about on her drive over, and refuses to let her brain think about how easy it would be to fall for him again.  she doesn’t want to think of this as a date, but she also wishes she looked better.  less frazzled, maybe.  her dark curls aren’t as uniform as she wishes they were and she wishes she had picked a better outfit.  it’s ridiculous and she feels sixteen again.  maybe being around scott will always make her feel sixteen.  

patroclus

the  hug  startles  him  a  little  and  he  can  feel  his  mom’s  eyeroll  even  with  his  back  turned  to  her,  but  it  doesn’t  matter  because  he’s  hugging  her,  arms  wrapping  around  her  smaller  frame  and  he  can’t  help  the  way  he’s  smelling  her  hair,  drawing  her  scent  in  because  its  been  years  since  he’s  been  around  it.   it  pulls  him  into  a  place  in  his  head,  every  memory  of  being  around  her  slices  through  his  vision,  some  of  it’s  good,  joyful  and  others  are  bad,  HURT  like  a  wolfsbane  bullet  to  the  heart.  

when  he  pulls  back,  he  notices  the  changes.  she’s  older,  but  no  less  breathtaking,  hair  still  long  and  soft,  her  smile  doesn’t  seem  as  filled  with  tension  as  it  had  before,  but  she  smells  nervous,  he’s  picking  that  up  now  from  the  chemo  signals,   and  he’s  glad  she  can  smell  his  own  anxiety.  which  she  knows  him,  she  can  probably  see  it.  and  all  he  can  see  is  her,  the  confidence  she  had  when  they  were  teenagers  radiating  off  of  her  ten  times  stronger  then  its  ever  been.  she  seems  comfortable,  more  comfortable  in  her  skin  then  she’s  ever  been.   god,  he  wasn’t  sure  anyone  would  ever  make  him  feel  this  way  again,  but  here  is  his;  basically  only  a  step  away  from  falling  back  in  love  with  here. 

❝ that’s  okay!  you  didn’t  have  to  tell  me,  you’re  welcome  here.  it’s  not  like  i  run  beacon  hills  or  anything.  ❞   which  he  guesses  he  kind  of  does,  on  the  supernatural  front,  he’s  the  local  alpha,  packs  and  other  creatures  have  to  let  him  know  before  they  pass  through,  before  they  settle  here.  that  doesn’t  always  go  according  to  plan.       ❝    i  haven’t  been  back  long  anyway.   how,  uh,  how  long  have  you  been  back?   ❞    he  hopes  it  doesn’t  sound  accusatory,  just  a  general  question  and  he  knows  how  it  might  sound.  hunter  in  his  packs  territory,   and  if  it  was  anyone  else,  he’d  be  worried. 

it  takes  him  a  second  to  realize  his  hands  are  still  touching  her  and  he  pulls  back,  still  watching  her,  smiling  brightly,   ❝   thanks,   you  look…   ❞   his  eyes  take  time  to  wash  over  her,  flashing  just  the  tiniest  bit  red  before  back  at  her  face,    ❝ beautiful.    I  MEAN,  yeah,  you  look,  really  good.   ❞     his  mom’s  groan  from  behind  him  is  enough  to  snap  him  out of  it,    ❝    how  have  you  been?   how’s  your  dad?   ❞

she finds herself grinning at everything he says, just like when they were young, and she’s reminded of everything they’ve been through.  not all of it was good, but all of it was worth it.  it was worth it to see him standing here.  ❝ i just meant that i should have found you when i came back in town or something, ❞ she replies, nerves running through her.  the truth is that she was nervous to see him.  nervous to be reminded of everything she felt for him years ago.  it’s still too easy for her to see them together.  especially now, as adults.  as people that don’t hold on to the hard parts of the past.  she can tell that he’s just as anxious as she is for this reunion, and she can practically feel melissa staring at the two of them.  she wonders if melissa can tell how she’s feeling.  she knows scott can, but is it written on her face? 

a blush finds her cheeks when he says she looks beautiful, and she tucks it away to analyze later.  is he just being nice? does she look exactly the same to him? the more she looks at him, the more she can see the age in his face.  he doesn’t look bad by any means, just more grown up.  allison doesn’t know enough about him to know if he’s married, the only thing she knows is that he’s the alpha for beacon hills.  that she can put together just by seeing him in the area and talking to sheriff stilinski.  

❝ dad’s good.  older, retired, and definitely mad that i even came back. ❞ she says with a laugh, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.  there’s a scar on her chest that reminds both of them why she shouldn’t be back, but she’s an adult who can make her own choices.  even if it ends up being a bad one.  though, when she’s looking at scott, she can’t remember why she didn’t come back sooner.  all of her reasons for staying away have faded to the background at the sight of him.  ❝ and i’m good, too.  better now.  just took a job here, actually.  they finished up my physical a few minutes ago. ❞ 

                                                                                     @musedtm​    for   alison. 

it’s  not  like  he  expected  much  of  the  town  to  change,  and  it  hadn’t,  not  really.  it  still  smelled  the  same,  most  of  the  people  he  saw  were  the  same,  the  police  uniforms  still  looked  out  dated,  he’s  pretty  sure  the  sheriff  STILL  wears  the  same  ones  from  eight  years  ago.   not  that  he  should  be  paying  that  much  attention,  but  it’s  stiles’s  dad  and  he  just  knows. 

of  course  the  hospital’s  gotten  some  upgrades,  one  they  couldn’t  get  because  the  budget  was  too  devoted  to  repairing  EVERYTHING  bad  guys  seem  to  break.  not  just  the  bad  guys  either,  scott’s  broken  enough  stuff  in  his  teenage  years  to  probably  owe  the  hospital  millions,  but  that’s  not  something  he  likes  to  think  about.  it’s  bad  enough  thinking  about  his  student  loan  debt  and  the  new  mortgage  for  house  big  enough  for  four  beta’s,  three  humans,  and  his  mom,  not  to  mention  stiles  and  the  occasional  stray  that  passes  through.  to  say  people  are  bunking  up  would  be  an  understatement.   it’s  enough  to  make  his  chest  hurt  JUST  thinking  about  it. 

but  now’s  not  the  time  for  the  brain  clutter,  right  now’s  about  bringing  his  mom  lunch  because  he  gets  to  do  that  again,  gets  to  see  her  everyday,  and  he’s  more  excited  about  that  then  he  SHOULD  BE  at  almost  twenty-seven,  but  what  he  can  he  say  he’s  a  mamí’s    chico  through  and  through. 

a  smile  pulls  at  his  features,  setting  the  bag  of  food  at  the  reception  desk  while  they  page  his  mom,  but  the  second  he  turns  around  all  thoughts  of  lunches  and  pack  members  are  thrown  out  the  window,  the  smile  turning  into  more  of  a  confused  and  surprised  look.   he  has  to  look  like  an   ABSOLUTE  IDIOT.

he’d  recognize  her  anywhere,  just  the  slightest  flower  scent  covered  with   honey  that  he  can’t  get  enough  of,  and  god,  she’s  still  so  BEAUTIFUL  it  makes  his  palms  sweat.  he  might  even  be  a  little  weak  in  the  knees.  it’s  like  being  back  in  high  school,  where  his  brain  doesn’t  work  and  he’s  got  no  control  over  the  words  that  seem  to  topple  out  of  his  mouth.  which  MAYBE  he  should  keep  it  closed,  but  he  doesn’t.  

  ❝     UM—    Ali… Alison,  hi !     ❞     why  is  his  voice  so  loud ?  why  isn’t  he  moving?  should  he  shake  her  hand,  go  in  for  a  hug?   he  doesn’t  do  ANY  of  that. 

being back in beacon hills makes her palms sweat in a way she hasn’t felt in years.  after years spent in france, and a million other places far away from beacon hills thanks to her dad, beacon hills feels like a completely foreign place. she was only here to visit, to see her mom’s grave, and then leave.  but of course, she was sucked back into the place.  she had only been back in town for a few days before sheriff stilinski recognized her & talked to her about how they needed someone like her on the force.  it isn’t the job she wanted, per se, but she despite beacon hills feeling foreign — it also feels like home.  it feels like a part of her childhood that she didn’t get to finish.  like an itch she didn’t get to scratch.

she’s had years of therapy to reconcile what happened to her here.  almost dying, losing connections with everyone in town ( minus lydia, who forced her into semi-regular facetime calls ), losing her mom.  all of it left scars, and all of them have been healed over.  she still gets the occasional nightmare about what happened, but she solves it with a day of archery & solace found in the woods.  the truth is that she found solace in leaving, despite her initial ambivalence toward the subject.  she knows that leaving was the best thing she could have done. it forced her to grow.  to become the allison argent that she is now.  

she sees him before he sees her, and it takes her a second to regulate her breathing the way her therapist taught her.  he still looks good, still sounds good, and is still attached to his mother the way he was when they were teenagers.  all of it makes her smile to herself.  she knew, eventually, she would run into scott mccall.  it wasn’t her plan at all, but once she accepted the job — she knew she’d see him around.  none of it prepared her for actually seeing him.  none of it prepared her for the onslaught of feelings she would have at seeing his grown face.  there was a point in time where she was sure she would never see him at this age, or see herself at this age, and she’s so grateful that he still looks and sounds like himself.