I can't believe I missed that these exist now????

About to make some ebay reseller's day because my god I need them.

Ruthless || Lydia and Ariana

Timing: Now Parties: @letsbenditlikebennett @inspirationdivine Summary: Ariana confronts Lydia Warnings: domestic abuse discussion, reference to gun use

The only thing stronger than the crushing guilt was the fiery anger that seemed to roar anytime Ariana dared to think of Lydia. Every ounce of common sense she had was telling her this was a terrible idea, but she didn’t care. The worst had already happened, what more could Lydia possibly do to hurt her? A large part of her wanted to rip Lydia from limb to limb and make her pay for what she’d done to Ace. The only thing that was remotely holding her back was the promise she’d made to Ace when they first talked about all of this. She didn’t know what she was going to do, but she needed some sort of… Hell, she had no idea what she needed, but she’d figure it out when she got there. There was no sense of caution in her as she marched up Lydia’s driveway and banged loudly on her front door. 

Already, Lydia had construction workers downstairs, filling up the secret tunnel that had apparently been there decades without anyone noticing. Her nightmares had adopted a new quality, with teeth and glowing eyes. The death of Winn Woods was no longer on the news, but it had started haunting her this week and this week alone, thinking about that silver bullet piercing right through him. Wondering whether it had hurt, that split moment. Whether he had been afraid, or lonely. Maybe he had known, maybe he hadn’t, he had thought he could escape his past right until he hadn’t. He hadn’t been born a werewolf, but he had been one all the same. The thoughts went around and around in her head, like a spinning top. She didn’t just think about Winn Woods. 

Mushroom season would peak this year on a full moon. Wasn’t there something ironic in that?Every day, the pollen called on her a little harder, enticing her closer and closer to the local fairy rings. It tickled her skin, bounced her legs. Just yesterday, she’d promise bound three young men to do the macarena until their legs fell off. She was frenetic, and furious. Lydia stared at the email she had been writing for the past two hours listlessly. Jeremiah and Mohammed had quit their security positions as soon as they had smelled what had happened, so two new guards had come in. Pushing the thought away, Lydia tried to return to describing her in-depth paint analysis services, to confirm authenticity. She’d barely written another word when someone banged on the door. Lydia reached for her phone, checking the camera. Ariana, the young werewolf. Her stomach soured as she put on her best, cruelest smile and went to answer. “Ariana, darling, why don’t you come in!” The little girl was a thief after all.

Whatever this was, Ariana didn’t understand it and practically spat out, “Don’t call me darling.” Already, she could feel the hum of a low growl threaten to rise its way up to her throat. Her claws were practically screaming under her skin to come out and spill Lydia’s blood the way she had spilled Ace’s. Only a small part of her could register 

that going in was a bad idea, but she needed Lydia to pay for this. The only one more at blame for what happened to Ace was her and she couldn’t just get away with this. Her arms were crossed over her chest as she huffed out, “Fine.” There was no reluctance as she followed her in. This wasn’t a conversation meant for the neighbors to overhear. There was no holding back the anger that was brewing under the surface and she demanded, “What’d you do with him?” She wasn’t sure she really wanted to know the answer outside of the gun wounds, but her own actions had led to this. She should have just told Athena about Lydia then none of this would have had the chance to happen. 

This explained it, then. Why Ariana had been sneaking about, who had bitten Sammy. All of it made sense now. Which meant they’d been conspiring against her much longer than Lydia had ever realised. She wanted to wring Chloe’s neck for this, for ever even having put them in this situation, but she needed Chloe until at the very least she could secure a full house once more, so the woman would have to stay. For now. Lydia caught O’s eye as she walked past them, tilting her head so that the zombie would follow. It was still close to the full moon, after all. Lydia led the both of them through to her office, where she promptly sat back at her desk, scrutinising the girl. “I won’t be shouted at in my own home,” Lydia said, with a lightness that didn’t match the situation, as if they were arguing about where Lydia left her bins, rather than murder. Killing a human, Lydia quickly corrected herself. “I think the question is rather, what did you do to him?” 

“I’m hardly shouting at you,” Ariana huffed with her arms crossed squarely over her chest. This wasn’t even close to loud for her. Lydia didn’t want to see loud or stare down the face of a transformed wolf. Every instinct in her wanted to just rip her to shreds, but that wasn’t the way to go about this. She rolled her eyes at the fae’s question. “Seriously? What did I do to him? You kept him in your basement and murdered him and you’re asking what I did to him?” How could she possibly be thinking what Ari had done to him was wrong? He wanted to be a wolf. He wanted a life outside her fucking basement. She’d been trying to help him when all Lydia wanted to do was keep her meals around for far too fucking long. Her blood was boiling under her skin and she answered, “I bit him because he was my friend and he wanted me to.”  

What a petulant child. It was the only thought Lydia could muster inside her, all that rage and betrayal fizzing right under her skin. Lydia had been deprived here more than anyone else, and this girl was rolling her eyes at her?Lydia tapped her acrylic nails against the mahogany desk impatiently. That Ariana was a werewolf at all was the only reason she received even a modicum of Lydia’s patience, although it was already wearing thin. “What, exactly, did you think would happen after?” Lydia asked quietly. “What was your grand plan? Did you expect me to starve myself after you removed my sustenance? Did you think he would stay with you once he’d used you to escape? I’m ever so curious.” 

The question Lydia asked next felt like a dagger sinking into her gut. What did Ariana think would happen? The guilt of that question had tormented her for days now and she still didn’t have an answer, but she refused to let Lydia see her cry. To give her any indication that she’d get the upper hand here. She wouldn’t. She’d pay for this somehow even if she had to go down the route of getting Athena involved. “That you wouldn’t eat or kill a werewolf and that oh, I don’t know, he was of course welcome to stay with me. I could introduce you to someone new if I had to,” she grumbled with her fists clenched at her side, “I’m sure as shit not giving you her name now though.” That much was true though the implication that she ever would had been stretching the truth. She had only spoken to Kelly a handful of times since that open mic night, but she still knew she’d feel like shit if she were to send her to her death. “I find it really hard to believe you have to keep your food long term hostage in your home instead of I don’t know, just eating them and being done with it. Seems kind of excessive to play with your food.” 

Lydia glared at her. She hadn’t killed a werewolf. He’d had the bite, it meant nothing, as little as killing someone bitten by a zombie. He hadn’t yet turned. He’d been a threat, he’d- Lydia wasn’t letting this rug rat get to her. “If you had asked for a trade, we wouldn’t be in this situation, my dear. I’m not unreasonable.” Now it was Lydia’s turn to roll her eyes.  “That isn’t how it works, sweet pea. You’re all the same, lecturing me on my diet without any understanding of it. You couldn’t eat an elephant all at once, could you? And yet once you start, well, the elephant is fucked.” Lydia pursed her lips, her false smile an icy sneer. “I hardly have to justify myself to you, do I? I have no doubt you’ve already cast me as an irredeemable villain, simply for having a different diet to yours. Then again, perhaps you have never accidentally snacked on a hiker, so you have all the moral high ground.”

Ariana felt her breath catch in her throat again. She’d wanted so badly for there to be another way that she let herself believe her half-assed plan could work. That there would be an answer to this where no one else got hurt. Who the hell was she to think she could accomplish something like that? Celeste hadn’t been able to and Celeste had been way smarter than she’d ever be. Her lungs felt like they were on fire, but she refused to falter. Not here. Not now. Not in front of her. “Right, because you were so receptive when I showed up here before and not at all full of it,” she remarked. Lashing out felt better than admitting Lydia was right. She should have just brought Kelly here or worse. Athena was still sitting in the second spot on her speed dial. “Don’t call me that,” she spat, “I’m not-- I don’t care that you have to eat people to live. That’s hardly your fault. You just don’t have to be all Silence of the fucking Lambs about it. And no, actually, I haven’t accidentally snacked on a hiker. I’m careful about that shit. I mean… I ate the hunter that killed my sister, but that was on purpose and not the point.” The last part slipped out and she internally groaned. This wasn’t going well, but what did she think would happen? They weren’t alone here and she doubted she could just rip Lydia apart like she so badly wanted to do. 

“You mean when you were trespassing on my property? You weren’t there to bargain, girl, you were there to spy. I should never have been so gentle in the first place,” Lydia retorted sceptically. “Don’t lie. It’s bad enough you’ve caused this mess, don’t make it worse.” Which would sting to hear, wouldn’t it? If Ariana hadn’t interfered, Sammy would be happy. He was content here. As he had told Lydia all the time, what he felt was more than just devotion. She had been his world, and everything had been better that way. “Silence of the lambs?” Lydia scoffed, crossing her arms. “That is a tad dramatic, don’t you think? That said, I’m ever so young for a fae. I’m fascinated to hear what a child has to advise me about how to best prepare my meals.” I’m careful about that shit. Some individuals were so proud of how little danger they were to humans. As if they were living their lives ready to defend themselves to the courts of a Hunter’s ego. It was a great, pathetic source of pride for Ariana, clearly. There was a cheap shot to make there, lined up so well that Lydia opened her mouth to make it searingly, before thinking better of herself. Fury didn’t need to make her cruel. “I am sorry about your sister. I do know what that feels like.”

“Fine, I was spying which was how I figured out what kind of fae you were and went to that stupid open mic night in the first place,” Ariana said as she crossed her arms over her chest for what felt like the millionth time. Why was she here? What was this possibly going to accomplish? This had been another bad idea in her long series of dumbass decisions. Then all of a sudden she couldn’t tell who she was more angry at-- Lydia or herself. “I may have bitten him, but you didn’t have to shoot him,” she retorted though she still felt her stomach doing flips inside of her as she did. She should have gotten better help. She should have done literally anything else, but Lydia could have also just chosen not to kill him, too. “Uh, not really. I don’t know, think you’re old enough to figure out how to find a less serial killer Netflix documentary way of preparing your dinner, Vicky.” Her words were sharp, especially as she emphasized the name she’d found on Lydia’s subreddit. She shifted uncomfortably as Lydia apologized about her sister. It felt all wrong. “Oh,” she started, unsure if this was a trick or something, “No one should have to know what that feels like.” Had Lydia’s sister been as terrible as she was? “That doesn’t make this better. Did you at least bury him or do something?” 

“He would never have survived as a wolf. He didn’t have the constitution for it. He wouldn’t have been happy as one, and he would have grown to resent you in the end. His family are hunters, after all,” Lydia replied, her words as barbed as icicles where Ariana had struck a nerve, “Do you really think he would have been happy, long term, when he spent his whole life learning how wrong we were. All you offered was a flightful fantasy, enough for the moment and no more.” She raised her eyebrows at the reference to a different name. It should be mildly concerning that Ariana had found it, or had even bother to in the first place, but it was laughable the way the girl threw it as an insult when it had been a name Lydia had chosen for herself. The tone sombered, dead siblings lingering in the air. “I took care of his body.”

Her resolve struggled as Lydia threw the very fears she had this entire time right back in her face. Even if Ariana had managed to save him, what if Alcher and Lydia were both right and he just ended up hating her for it? He probably hated her now too and the realization made her feel sick. “You don’t know that,” she responded weakly, not even believing herself at this point. What was she supposed to do now? Her heart felt ready to burst and it was becoming harder to breathe again. No, she wasn’t doing this here. She did her best to maintain a half-assed glare that likely didn’t do much to convince Lydia that she was mad at anyone but herself. “You took care of it,” Her breath hitched in her throat for what felt like the millionth time and she swallowed it back down, “How?” 

“I know him better than you ever would have,” Lydia replied with a poignant shrug. “You could only have met him a handful of times. I felt everything he felt, for more than a year. How could you possibly compare?” Misguided and terrible as this all was, Lydia did feel for the young wolf, naive and deflating under the weight of her actions. Of course, Lydia would have to take precautions, she was still infuriated, but she did feel a twinge of guilt at tearing a child down so effortlessly. Then she remembered that Chloe was refusing to speak because of the situation Ariana had caused, and her mood soured all over. “Why? Do you want to pay your respects?” 

Another surge of anger went through her as Lydia spoke. She didn’t know Ace better, not when she was influencing his emotions and actions. Then again, didn’t Ariana only know the version of him that had been under Lydia’s direction? Suddenly, she felt deflated again. “Yeah, fine. You knew him so well and still,” her voice cracked as she spoke and her mouth felt entirely too dry, “Maybe not as well, but I knew and cared about him, okay? I didn’t-- I just wanted… Fuck.” She could feel her heart thudding heavily against her chest and her clenched fist ready to crash into the next thing she saw. She needed to breathe. She needed to keep control of herself. There were other people here that she didn’t want to hurt. Hell, she didn’t want to hurt Lydia either. Not really as much as she envisioned how good it would feel to rip her to shreds. Her next question drew her out of the rabbit hole she was letting herself fall into. “I-- would you let me?” She asked even though she was almost sure of the answer. 

“You were just spoiled. You tried to take something that wasn’t yours, you don’t get to cry now you broke it. I’m sure you cared, but you were selfish,” Lydia replied harshly, cocking her head back to sneer at Ariana down her nose, looking down on the girl even though she was the one sitting, not Ariana. Lydia sighed, brushing invisible crumbs from her skirt, brushing the entire affair away. Ariana already knew what her answer would be. So that Lydia could let the girl lead someone to incriminating evidence. If she was so soft on a human to deliberately bite him, she would be soft on the wrong kinds of humans too. “I wish things were different, Ariana. I had no desire to take a human you liked away from you. If you wanted to make him your pet so badly, all you had to do was make the trade. I’m already taking more risks than I can afford just trying to pacify you.”

Ariana knew it wouldn’t matter to her that a person couldn’t belong to anyone but themselves. Nothing she said or did mattered anymore. Ace was already dead. Lydia already knew it was her who bit him in the first place. She grumbled, “Yeah, whatever you say Lydia. I don’t know why I bothered coming to talk to you about this.” She’d been so heated, she’d needed some kind of answer, but what she found only confirmed what she already knew. Her actions had essentially sped up the timeline for Ace’s inevitable death. The familiar feeling of lead in her lungs was catching back up to her. The air in here felt too thick and she needed out. “He’s not a-- you know, whatever fine. I don’t see why it’s a risk, but I shouldn’t have even bothered coming here.” 

“I hope you got what you were looking for.” Lydia replied. All of that righteous passion extinguished. Lydia almost felt bad. The girl was friends with Deirdre, perhaps she might find some solace there. Deirdre was good at being kind. Although that would be inconvenient, bringing Morgan into this all too. Morgan was far too human to understand this either, and unlike the welp in front of her, Lydia cared what Morgan thought. “Hmmm, perhaps not, but you have saved me some work in coming, however much trouble you’ve caused.” Lydia narrowed her eyes, sitting forward. Under her desk, her legs jittered. The spores were thick in the air today. “I see that we still don’t see eye to eye. Oh, sweet Ariana, you’ve forgotten you owe me a gratitude.”

Ariana hadn’t been sure what she was looking for, but this certainly wasn’t it. She’d already known Ace was dead. She’d heard the gunshot and smelled his blood. It wasn’t as if Lydia was going to provide any insightful answers or let her properly say goodbye. So she bit her tongue and said nothing. It seemed only now she was reminded of just how dangerous Lydia could be. Athena and Kaden had both warned her of this yet she still stomped over here fueled by grief and rage without any sort of a plan. She felt defeated, but a small spark in her still fired back. “Oh yes, I’m so glad I could save you some work,” she said sarcastically even though her glare was softer now. She’d been ready to walk out the door when she froze. A gratitude was owed. She remembered Kaden mentioning “thank you” could be a dangerous thing to say to a fae, but it had already been too late and she’d been hopeful it hadn’t been something Lydia was actually able to turn into a promise. Her heart felt as is if it was caught in her throat as she looked to Lydia. “What do you want?” 

“For you to get off your moral high horse. For you to pay the price for what you made me do. The danger you put me in.” Lydia paused, her eyes flicking off into the distance as a small smile curled her lips. “You know what? I have had the most amazing idea. It’s ever so fitting. Let the punishment fit the crime, and all that. If you’re so eager to dilute your species by making humans into werewolves, then you should do that. Spend the next full moon in the Common. Or at the very least, start it there. Of course, I expect you not to talk about this situation with anyone.” Lydia shrugged, spinning her chair back and forth, and as another idea struck her, her smile grew. “If you like, once you’ve secured a few humans to fill Sammy’s place in your life, we can talk again, settle our differences and all that.” If they ever got to that. It was the kind of thing that would change Ariana the same way eating her own mother had changed Lydia. She would understand just how cheap human lives were once she’d had a taste of her own. And if she didn’t? That guilt eating her up right now would only magnify, suffocating her until she left, unable to cope. Lydia was fine with both of those options, honestly.

“I didn’t make you do anything,” Ariana snarled as she took a few steps back. She already hated where this was going. Lydia wanted to punish her on top of killing Ace. Seriously? Was she not already struggling enough? Horror crossed her face as Lydia continued. Did she really have to do this? She supposed she wouldn’t really be able to test the waters until then, but she already felt sick. There was no way she could shift in the Common under the full moon and maintain her control. Outside of the moon was one albeit still very difficult thing, but during. Shit. Then she was mentioning settling differences once someone filled Sammy’s place in her life? Something struck her with hearing his name for the first time and so cruelly from her lips. She wanted to rip into her and make all of her promises fucking meaningless, but something was pulling her back. It’d be so easy, to just shift right here and have this be done with, but she couldn’t. Instead, she let her anger simmer inside her and decided she needed to leave before she caused even more damage. “Oh, fuck you,” she said with a newfound ferocity before storming out of the place. She was sure to slam the door behind her, hopefully hard enough to cause some sort of damage.