perpetual anticipation is good for the soul but it's bad for the heart

[maxxx]

Comments

[beanchaointe]

Yep.

[That's not suspicious at all.]

[illtempered]

I think Lydia has a guy over.

( He pauses the packing for a second. )

Is your spare room ours or your friend's. Should we get our own room?

[beanchaointe]

["Good for her." Alexander pokes his head back out. "That is good for her, right? She doesn't have extremely questionable taste in men?"

She dated his boyfriend but they were sixteen and Alexander likes to think he has excellent taste.

Lydia sighs before she answers:]

You can have the spare room.

[illtempered]

She's -- her version of discerning.

( Quite questionable. He was awful to her. She apparently dated his ex's brother, a violent Alpha. Had some kind of flirtation with the older deputy (he heard about that secondhand) and ... Stilinski. )

We'll be as quiet as church mice.

[beanchaointe]

[Alexander does not know what that means, so he shrugs. "Good for her."]

Thanks.

[And with that she will emerge from her bedroom, feeling slightly better about the situation, but not by much. She makes her way over to Harvey to join him on the couch.]

So I have some friends that will probably arrive sometime tonight and will be sleeping in the spare room. I hope that won't be an issue?

[rehire]

( He sets the trashy magazine aside. )

I'm in your world. And this is your place. We play by your rules. Also, they're your friends. It's your prerogative who you invite. Am I staying over?

( That was the plan before. )

[beanchaointe]

You are welcome to stay.

[She's not kicking him out. She's just giving him an out if he wants to postpone meeting her best friend a little bit longer.]

Also, I realized in our conversations about this thus far, it's been a lot about what I can do for them. Maybe we should be putting on the table what they can do for me.

[Which is in Harvey's wheelhouse, really.]

[rehire]

Now you're thinking like a lawyer.

( Very Legally Blonde moment. )

Do you want something from them?

[beanchaointe]

That's what I need to figure out. Or me and Parrish need to talk about.

[It doesn't necessarily have to be about her. And there's a lot that they don't know about hellhounds in general.]

I think it depends on how much I can ask for.

[rehire]

They need your help. It's not about how much, but what they need. And what you need in return. You and Parrish.

( The Hellhound. )

If you want my advice, I don't think they'll take a 'no' lightly.

( He doesn't think they'll let her say no, either. He knows how they work. Directly. )

[beanchaointe]

I don't think they will either. They have some kind of collateral somewhere, it's just a matter of what.

[She checked with Jackson and Allison and nothing seemed off with them. But they aren't the only options.]

[rehire]

They know something?

( A beat. )

Or someone?

[beanchaointe]

I think more like they have someone.

[Because the fastest way to get to any of them is through the people they care about.]

Allison and Jackson seemed surprised and unaware but that doesn't guarantee anything, and they aren't my only friends.

[rehire]

Who on your list of friends would be had?

( They're still new, he doesn't know her that well. )

[beanchaointe]

[She takes a deep breath as she considers.]

Scott McCall, but he's a pretty hefty target these days and dating the witch regent of New Orleans. Isaac is keeping close to a Bennett witch across the Atlantic. Derek ... well, Derek has made a habit of getting kidnapped lately but he's keeping close to Hayley Marshall.

[None of them are people that would want to be pissed off.]

Malia is just a bad choice from any angle.

[Between Parrish, Peter and Malia herself, it would not end well. Which just leaves, well.]

My mom, in Beacon Hills, who's just a boring high school principal. And Stiles, who you've met. Or Derek's sister, but we've never really been that close.

[He's been isolating himself lately. He might be the best target.]

[rehire]

The uppity vampire.

( He frowns. )

And your mother hasn't said anything about anyone approaching her.

[beanchaointe]

No, but she wouldn't. The Sheriff hasn't called either, so I'm going to assume she's fine.

[Beacon Hills is far to go to acquire leverage when there are closer options.]

[rehire]

Then it's Stiles. They wouldn't go up against Davina and Scott, nor would they choose a relative of Derek Hale's.

( And only because they're getting to know each other. )

You and Stiles have history together.

[beanchaointe]

[She nods.]

We've known each other since we were eight. It's a lot of history.

[And that's never minding the romantic part. Stiles, Jackson and Allison are the pillars of Lydia's emotional well being, and they've never really been unseated.]

He's one of my best friends.

[rehire]

You should warn him.

( He tries something, still in David's and Ezra's pockets. He sends David a message.

Do you have eyes on Stiles Stilinski? )

[beanchaointe]

[Lydia nods, reaching for her own phone to send a text to Stiles:]

You still in DC?

[David glances down at the message and hesitates before responding with: Are you asking as my attorney or as Lydia's?

He doesn't mind Harvey's conflict of interest, but David wants to know who's side he's on for this conversation.]

[rehire]

( While Lydia is on the phone... )

Your attorney who gave you his playbook. He's your trump card, isn't he?

[maleficum]

[He doesn't like thinking of it as a trump card. Some would consider it that way, but that gives the impression that he intends to play it.]

We wanted to have all of our options on the table, if needed. So I am aware of him and his connection to Lydia. But I would much prefer to come to a solution that's mutually beneficial for all of us.

[rehire]

Which is why you blindsided us and laid a guilt trip on her at lunch.

[maleficum]

My intention wasn't to end in a supply closet. I just wanted to talk. I admit my approach could use some work, and Allison Argent has already chewed me out for it. But we do intend to meet her terms and provide the plan she asked for, as well as any other demands she might have.

[Aka he is open to this being a win-win situation. He just needs to know what Lydia wants out of all of this.]