Wow, so I totally intended to post something way sooner. Obviously that didn't happen and I feel super bad about it. Sorry! My son, now eleven months old, takes up most of my free time. But, I have time now!

Summary: I wanted to write a little something for the season finale (5x20) so please, if you have not watched season 5 in its entirety, consider this your spoiler warning! I've made a few adjustments to the story for my benefit. Everything just ended way too easy!

Scott McCall wanted to scream. He tried to, but his breath was stolen from him the moment Sebastien's claws tore into the back of his neck. The connection was immediate, intense, and wrong. It felt like a parasite worming its way into every corner of his mind. Scott hardly noticed as his legs began to falter. The pain in his head surpassed it by far. He could actually feel Sebastien, feel the Beast, probing his mind. Memories of Allison rose, unbidden, to the surface. Every flawless detail, as vivid the day she died. Images flashed by at a sickening speed. Her raven dark hair. The slight pout of her lips. The rough callouses from her bow on her otherwise soft hands. Every moment, from their first meeting to her final moments replayed in a matter of seconds. Sebastien seemed to latch on this.

"Marie-Jeanne." Scott barely heard the man's soft whisper over the roaring in his own ears. Sebastien stumbled backward, ripping his claws from Scott as he did so. Pain flared, white-hot and all consuming. As he fell against the wall and slid to the floor, Scott was dimly aware that Lydia and Kira had arrived. Then Lydia screamed, a powerful declaration of Mason's true identity. The blast of sound was too much for him and blackness came, and this time, Scott welcomed it.

TWTWTWTWTWTWTWTWTWTWTWTWTWTW

"Scott? Scott, can you hear me?"

"We need to get him out of here. Now. Take him to Deaton."

"Wait! I think he's coming around."

"Scott, you with us?"

Scott groaned softly. His body was a throbbing mass of pain. The voices that drifted just above him were familiar and undeniably urgent. He knew that he should try to find out why, but he simply lacked the energy. He was about to drift off again when a hand caressed his cheek. Soft, small, with a slight electric pulse. Kira, his mind supplied. He leaned into the touch. It was so achingly familiar, something he'd missed for so long. Desperate to see her, he slowly blinked open his eyes. He sat slumped against the damp tunnel wall. Liam held a balled up sweatshirt to the back of his neck. Even so, Scott could feel the blood tricking down his back. Kira's dark eyes, full stress and worry, found his. He wanted to comfort her, to do something. He tried lifting his arm, but he barely got it to twitch. He looked around, confused. That's when he saw Parrish, singed and sooty. The memory of the fight slammed into him and questions flew through his mind. He tried to voice them, but he was simply too weak to do so. He looked around, pleading for answers.

"Shhhh, it's okay." Kira soothed gently. "Everyone's fine. The plan worked. We freed Mason. Sebastien's dead. Theo's been…taken care of. We won, Scott." Her words seemed to dissolve what little energy he had left and he let himself sag back completely, his eyes closing.

"Scott?" Liam asked nervously. "What's wrong with him? Why isn't he healing?"

"It's because of what Sebastien did." Lydia rasped, her voice little more than a whisper. "When he accessed his memories."

"Is he going to be okay?" Mason asked, almost guiltily. No one answered.

"Let's get him out of here. Deaton will know how to help him." Parrish said with more confidence than he felt.

As strong arms lifted him gently, Scott found little reason to remain consciousness. He slipped gratefully back into the welcoming darkness.

TWTWTWTWTWTWTWTWTWTWTWTWTWTW

Scott woke to the sound of someone snoring softly nearby. As he slowly began to regain consciousness, he became aware of just how sore he was. Every single inch of his body was in pain. Even his hair hurt, if that was even possible. The worst of it seemed to be at the back of his neck. Stiffly, he reached back to feel. The moment his fingers came into contact with the bandage, he gasped and black spots danced in front of his eyes.

"Easy. I wouldn't do that just yet." Someone said from his right. A hand gently guided his arm back down the mattress. Scott blinked a few times to clear his vision. He was surprised to see that he was in his own bedroom.

"Stiles?" he whispered groggily.

"The one and only." Stiles replied with a small smile. He looked exhausted, but his smile was genuine.

"You…okay?" Scott croaked, gesturing to the bandage that peeked out from beneath his shirt. Stiles made a dismissive gesture.

"I'm fine. You, on the other hand, have been making us worry. Sebastien really did a number on you. Deaton said it's lucky that he didn't do more damage when he accessed you memories. For now, all he did was mess you up for a while. You've been out for a couple days, man. Any longer and I swear your mom was gonna call an ambulance." At the look on Scott's face, Stiles continued. "You're healing, don't worry. It's just going slower than normal. Hence, the bandage." Scott took a minute to process it all.

"Oh…so…we're okay? I mean, we're all alive?"

"Alive and accounted for." Stiles confirmed.

"Good." Scott said with a wince. The pain was starting to get worse. "That's good." Stiles frowned.

"Hey, you okay? You know, Liam's gonna be here in an about an hour, but I can call him now so he can take your pain."

"No…s'okay. I'll be fine." Scott said with a wince.

"You almost died, Scott." Stiles said quietly. "This never happens again." He declared after a moment. "No more secrets. If something happens, no matter what, we tell each other. We trust each other always, you and me. We never let it get this bad again, agreed?"

"I promise." Scott replied. Stiles squeezed his friend's shoulder carefully.

"Alright. It's settled then. Now, there are bunch of ladies downstairs who would just love to know that you're awake."

"My mom's never letting me leave the house again, is she?"

"Pretty much. You ready?"

"Bring it on." Scott said, smiling. Stiles grinned back, with all the happiness and mischief of their childhood. For the first time in a very long time, everything felt right once more.

Hope you enjoyed it!