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Teen Wolf
Scott Appreciation Week 23:
day 1 : you’re an omega, ficlet/moodboard - set sometime in s1-s2, angst, mentions of alison/scott
day 2 : scott & parental figures, ficlet/moodboard - bad parent rafael, angst, mentions of alcoholism, scott remembers what happend the night rafael left, mentions of isaac/alison, re-write of a few canon scenes from when rafael first appears, good parent melissa
day 3 : healing/processing, ficlet/moodboard - minor blood & injury, hurt comfort
day 4 : identify, ficlet/moodboard - ft. biromantic, asexual, genderqueer, he/she pronouns scott, scott buying a bra, that’s the whole thing, scria (nb kira but it’s not specifically stated just implied)
day 5 : canon divergence, scott/kira, ficlet/moodboard - set after season 4 finale, scott/kira, hurt/comfort(?)
day 6 : rage, ficlet/moodboard - set pre-series, bad parent rafael, mentions of bullies & alcoholism
day 7 : dealers choice, scott/allison, ficlet/moodboard - grief/mourning, mentions of past alison/scott & alison’s death, set between s5e8 & s5e9
Rarepair Week 23:
day 1 : pre-canon, stiles/allison, ficlet/moodboard - first meet, hurt/comfort, minor injuries, implied/referenced child abuse, spoiler alert that’s not what really happened but allison doesn’t know that yet
day 2 : season 1, lydia/scott, ficlet/moodboard - alternative universe, mechanic!scott, bartender!lydia, underage drinking/working at a bar, creepy guys, protective scott mccall, slight angst, confessions, first kiss, somehow set in the summer but also s1 idk
day 3 : soulmate au, lydia/scott/cora, ficlet/moodboard - soulmates au, bartender!lydia, mechanic!scott, set after canon
day 4 : only one bed, malia/theo, ficlet/moodboard - hurt/comfort, post canon, full shift malia, full shift theo
day 5 : season 4, kira & mason, ficlet/moodboard - hurt/comfort, identity issues
day 6 : season 3, malia & derek, ficlet/moodboard - hurt/comfort, malia getting overwhelmed, derek is malias brother (even if that’s not how family trees work)
day 7 : post-canon, kira/derek, ficlet/moodboard - marriage proposal, professor!kira (it’s just background)
day 8 : kira/allison fanart
Lydia Appreciation Week 23:
day 1 : lydia & power, ficlet/moodboard
day 2 : favorite relationships, ficlet/moodboard - lydia/scott, drinking, post canon, first kisses
day 3 : what-if-wednesday, ficlet/moodboard - lydia/theo/allison, smoking weed, swearing
day 4 : song lyrics/moodboard
day 5 : lydia & death, ficlet/moodboard - lydia/aiden
day 6 : lydia & enemies, ficlet/moodboard - lydia/theo, first kisses
day 7 : free day, photographer!allison x model!lydia moodboard/ficlet
Sciles Week 23:
day 1 : winter, ficlet/moodboard - post-canon, stiles/scott, they live in chicago, fluffy romance + hot chocolate, scott is hopelessly in love
day 2 : summer, ficlet/moodboard - trans fem!scott, established stiles/scott, background kira/malia, slight angst, talk of scott’s transition
day 3 : repercussions, ficlet/moodboard - hurt no comfort, set season 5, crying
day 4 : first meeting, ficlet/moodboard
day 5 : free day, moodboard/song lyrics
day 6 : game night, ficlet/moodboard
day 7 : halloween, ficlet/moodboard - background malia/theo
Rarepair Halloween Event:
angels & demons : hayden/theo, ficlet/moodboard - angel!hayden, demon!theo, Clark is missing, demons have fangs & glowing eyes bc I said so, same with angels being able to see peoples souls
stalker : allison/theo/hayden, ficlet/moodboard - stalker!allison, stalker!theo, unknowing hayden, overall dark themes
nightmare : cora/theo/liam, ficlet/moodboard - hurt/comfort, hurt theo, season 5&6 mentions, mention of liam & cora working at the hospital
vampire slayers : kira/theo, ficlet/moodboard - they’re rich & snobby <3
slasher flick : erica/theo/hayden, moodboard
scooby gang : hayden/theo/liam/mason/corey moodboards - they’re in a polycule but hayden is only dating theo & liam
knife : allison/theo/liam, moodboard/ficlet - nsfw, knife play, blood, dark themes
Kira Appreciation Week 23:
day 1 : kitsune attributes, ficlet/moodboard - kira’s able to full shift to fox form but can also halfway shift like the werewolves do, pet names, kira & theo, the puppy pack, scott
day 2 : lyrics + album, moodboard
day 3 : colors [warm tones], moodboard
day 4 : childhood, kira/allison, ficlet/moodboard - canon divergence, they’re both 14, childhood crushes, love confessions & first kisses
day 5 : what if wednesday, moodboard
day 6 : nerd!kira, ficlet/moodboard
day 7 : it’s alright to cry, moodboard
Thiam Appreciation Week 23:
day 1 : liam’s parents, ficlet - theo meeting liam’s parents for the first time, background mason/corey, liam’s step dad knows about the supernatural but I can’t remember if that’s canon or not — this is lowkey a crack fic —
day 2 : nightmares, ficlet/moodboard - post canon, talk of arguments, mentions of canon events, swearing, angst
day 3 : moment of realization, ficlet - love confessions, swearing, post canon, mentions of canon events
day 4 : angst, ficlet/moodboard - hurt no comfort, post-canon, mentions of canon events
day 5 : the pack, ficlet - lowkey stiles bashing but it’s more him just being a dick yk, references to liam’s parents not being supportive of him being bi (nothing graphic)
day 6 : a song that describes them, moodboard
day 7 : dealers choice, fem thiam, moodboard
Rarepair Character of the Month 2024 Event:
scott & erica : ficlet/moodboard - trans fem scott, trans fem erica, he/him pronouns for scott, coming out, conversations about being trans/scott figuring herself out, erica’s deadname is mentioned but she’s the one saying it
scott/hayden : ficlet - nsfw, scott gave hayden the bite, alive hayden, set sometime after season 5, she calls him alpha. yeah i finally wrote that trope. Mmmm idk how to feel
scott & hayden : ficlet/moodboard - grunge sleaze foster sibling au, background scott/theo & hayden/kira, scott isn’t biologically melissas
stiles/theo/cora : moodboard
melissa & theo, scott/theo: ficlet - pack mom melissa, theo is part of the pack, theo needs a hug, pre-slash, post canon
Scott Appreciation Week 2024:
day 1 : emotions, ficlet - cora & scott, swearing, talk of missions, talk of the hale family being dysfunctional, they talk about their feelings yall
day 2 : lyrics, moodboard
day 3 : find your anchor, ficlet/moodboard - scott/liam/theo, post canon, domestic fluff
day 4 : this isn’t just about the game, ficlet/moodboard - scott/cora, hurt/comfort
day 5 : good dreams, or bad, ficlet - scott/liam, scott & melissa, post canon, angst, guilt, insecurities, sick fic, mental health issues, hurt scott mccall
day 6 : the person you should trust, moodboard - kira/scott
day 7 : dealers choice, album + lyrics, moodboard
Lydia Appreciation Week 2024:
day 1 : lydia & the pack, moodboard
day 2 : lydia & seasons, moodboard
day 3 : what if wednesday [werewolf au], moodboard
day 4 & 5 : song lyrics/rarepair friday, moodboard - theo/lydia, s6 au where lydia is the one to break theo out of hell trying to save stiles but quickly falls into a messy relationship with theo that complicates her feelings with stiles (song is two-headed mother by ethel cain)
Stranger Things
Stancy Week 24:
day 3 : badass couple, ficlet/moodboard - post-canon, college students Steve & Nancy, drinking, swearing
day 4 : moment you knew they were your otp, moodboard
day 5 : tender & sweet, moodboard
day 6 : au’s, ficlet/moodboard - college au! + engaged au!
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Sciles Week Day 4: Scars
Pairing: Scott/Stiles
Word Count: 12149
Trigger Warnings for mentioned past abuse (no non-con) to Stiles from a former Alpha.
Scott is doing the weekly grocery shopping for his mum when he first picks up the scent. Another werewolf. Although his first reaction is to look around, try and identify them, he reigns it in. Instead, keeping his eyes on the list in his hand, he focused on his sense of smell, letting it guide him. He made his way down the aisle and turned right, passing the next two aisles until he found the source. Keeping his movements slow, he spots what appears to be a boy or young man really, maybe his own age, standing with hunched shoulders staring at the variety of bread.
Now that he’s closer, he can smell that werewolf has likely not showered in days, and his clothes are mess, cuffs of his worn jeans caked in mud, a few leaves caught in the hood of his jumper, and small tears that make Scott think he’s been running, fast and not carefully, through the woods.
Scott’s glad that it’s midweek, and early afternoon, so the shop is relatively quiet. He doesn’t think this new werewolf is a danger, from the way he appears to be trying to make himself small, but the less people around the better just in case.
He pushes his trolley, and he’s not sure if it’s the squeaky wheel or the other werewolf finally catching his scent, but he stiffens and turns slowly towards Scott. Scott can clearly read the fear in his eyes, but before he can say anything, reassure this other boy he’s safe, the other boy flees.
Scott abandons his trolley, gives chase, but for someone so skinny the other wolf can move incredibly fast. He’s gone by the time Scott makes it out the front of the store. Scott’s first instinct is to chase after him, but he knows from history that doing so alone probably won’t be successful.
He pulls out his phone and calls Lydia.
‘Lydia, get Isaac and meet me at the store – I just ran into another werewolf but he ran off into the preserve. I think he needs help.’ He said into the phone before she could even greet him.
He didn’t want to involve the whole pack, but he needed at least one more wolf helping him to track, and Lydia was there to hopefully be able to approach the boy once they found him. There was just something telling him this boy needed help. Lydia pulled up, Isaac in the passenger seat, 15 minutes later.
‘Thanks for coming.’
‘It’s fine. Lydia said there was a werewolf problem?’ Isaac asked, looking around as if he half expected the werewolf in question to just jump out at them.
‘Yeah, but not like a problem problem. More like I think he needs help. He was just standing there, staring at the food like he wasn’t sure what to do. He was young, thin, dirty – ’
‘Dirty?’ Lydia cut in, raising an eyebrow in question, and Scott nodded.
‘His jeans were covered in mud and there were leaves caught in his jumper, he looked like he’d been running, for days maybe – his clothes had tears in them, probably from catching on trees or things as he ran.’ Scott explained. ‘I tried to talk to him, but as soon as he saw me, or maybe smelled me, he froze and his scent – the fear coming off him was stronger than anything I’ve ever smelled before. He ran before I could even try to tell him he was ok.’
‘Are we sure he isn’t a threat? If he’s running from something that’s got him that scared, should we be worrying about that?’ Isaac asked, and Scott shook his head.
‘I’m sure he’s not a threat, there’s something about him – and if whatever he’s running from does make its way here, then we’ll deal with it. The look in his eyes – he’s terrified, we have to help him.’ Lydia and Isaac both looked at him, then nodded.
He leads them slowly through into the preserve - it doesn’t take him long to find a fresh scent. Apparently once he thought he’d lost Scott the other wolf stopped running as fast. Moving as quietly as they can, they continue on until Scott hears rapid breathing - at first he thinks it’s someone panting, but then he hears the whimpers between breaths and he moves quicker until he sees the boy, curled up in feral position in the dirt and leaves beneath a tree.
He softly tells Isaac to stay back, then moves forward cautiously with Lydia.
‘Hello? Are you… are you ok? Can we help you?’ The boy doesn’t answer, just keeps gasping for breath and shaking, burying his head in his hands and pulling at his hair.
‘Scott, I think he’s having a panic attack.’ Lydia says, and Scott turns to look at her, his eyes wide. ‘We need to help him get his breathing under control.’
Scott moves until he’s in front of the boy then gently lowers himself until he’s almost at eye level - or would be if the boy was sitting. He gently puts his hand out, has to fight the urge to flinch when the smell of fear hits him.
‘I promise I’m not here to hurt you, I just want to help. I need you to try and breath with me, try and focus on my breathing and match it. Do you think you can do that?’ There was no response, and Scott would have thought he hadn’t been heard if not for the hands stilling in the other boys’ hair.
‘Keep going Scott.’ The hands moved again, about to pull and Scott instinctively moved one hand to stop them.
‘Hey, hey it’s ok. That’s just Lydia, she’s here to help too. She’s a friend.’
‘No more… wolves…’ the other boy managed to get out between breaths, and Scott’s eyes widened, turning to look at Lydia who just shrugged. Scott turned back to the boy.
‘No, it’s ok, she’s not a werewolf, I promise. But…’ he turned to Isaac. ‘Isaac, can you head back to the others, tell them we found him and we’re helping. I’ll call when I can.’
Isaac looked reluctant but after a moment he nodded then turned and moved swiftly away.
‘There, is that better? Now it’s just you, me and Lydia. No other werewolves.’ The boy was no longer rocking as hard, and Scott was able to gently pry his hands away from his head to get a better look at him.
He’s not as young as Scott thought - definitely around his own age, not a teenager like he’d first thought. His face is pale and thin - too thin, like the rest of him. He has dark bruises around his eyes like he hasn’t slept properly in weeks, only making the paleness of his skin more pronounced, and the moles that are dotted across his face and neck also stand out.
His eyes are still squeezed shut, so Scott doesn’t know what colour they would be, but he is sure they’d be showing the fear that is coming off this boy in waves.
‘You’re ok, we’re going to help you if you let us. My name is Scott, can you tell me your name?’ The boy shook his head and Scott made a soothing sound, not unlike what he’d use on a frightened pet at the vet clinic. ‘That’s ok. You know, you feel really cold, but I think we have a blanket in the car if you want to come - ‘ Scott cut himself off when the boy began to shake.
‘Scott, perhaps you could go and get the blanket and bring it here.’ He heard Lydia suggest and he glanced at her. She was giving him the look that said she’d figured something out and he should listen to her. So he nodded and rose slowly.
‘Ok. Ok, Lydia’s going to stay here with you, I’ll be right back.’ He moved away slowly then turned and ran back to the car.
Lydia moved carefully towards the boy, and took over Scott’s position. When she reached out a hand, he flinched minutely but then visibly seemed to relax. Although it made Scott ache inside to see the boy accept Lydia’s touch when he’d all but rejected his own, but he pushed that away. The important thing right now was the boy allowing them to help him. So Scott made his way back to the cars as quickly as possible, running once he was sure he was out of earshot of the other werewolf. He was about to collect the blanket when he glanced back at the store, and had a thought.
He ran most of the way back to where he’d left Lydia and the boy, only slowing down when he thought the other werewolf would be able to hear him. He made sure to make noise as he approached, and called out to Lydia softly to alert her that it was just him.
When they came in to view, Lydia had seated herself in front of the boy, and was holding his hand. Neither was speaking, but the other boy appeared to have finally opened his eyes. When he looked over at Scott, he saw they were a warm brown clouded by fear. He slowed down even more as he carefully approached them.
‘It’s just me, no one else is with me I promise. Look, I have that blanket for, and – ’ He cut himself off, glancing at Lydia briefly before continuing. ‘I also have some food, in case you were hungry. I think I… interrupted you earlier before you could get your food.’
He came to a stop a few steps away from them, and crouched down slowly. He held out the blanket to Lydia, who leaned to take it, then moved so she could drape it over the other boy’s shoulders. Then Scott began to take items out of the bag he’d been carrying.
‘I wasn’t sure exactly what you liked, but I thought you were looking at these in the shop so I got some.’ Scott held out a packet of croissants. ‘I also got you a couple of things I like, and some of my – friends.’
He caught himself in time to stop himself saying betas. He pulled out a box of pop tarts, a packet of Cheetos and a bunch of bananas. He laid them out on top of the bag, and waited as the boy looked at him, then at the food.
He was so tempted to say something, offer again, make a suggestion, but something told him that pushing him would only make things worse. So instead, he just settled down on his knees and waited. Finally, the boy nodded.
‘Yes? You’d like something to eat?’ Scott asked, and the boy nodded again. Looking at Lydia, he saw her smiling. ‘Ok, would you like the croissants?’ This got him another nod, so Scott picked up the packet and then held it out to Lydia. He was glad he’d handed it to her and not the boy directly when the movement of his arm caused the boy to flinch. He sat back, and watched as Lydia opened the pack, holding it out for the boy to reach in and take one of the croissants.
‘There you go. Well, Scott, I think that was a very good idea you had. Now, don’t worry, if you want more than one you can have more, but I think you should slow down just a little bit – we don’t want you getting sick from eating too quickly.’ Lydia spoke slowly and with a very soothing lilt to her voice, and Scott was so grateful she was part of his pack.
They sat there for twenty minutes or more as the boy ate two croissants, and then a banana at Lydia’s suggestion. When he seemed to be done, Lydia passed the half empty packet of croissants and the banana peel back towards Scott who packed them away into the bag with the other items.
‘Feel a bit better now?’ Lydia asked, and the boy looked at her and nodded, then glanced at Scott.
‘Th – thank you, Alpha.’ The boy whispered, and Scott’s eyebrows raised in surprise, both at the fact he had spoken – and spoken to Scott – and at the formality of his words and his tone. It was like he didn’t want to say the words but thought he had to. He looked at Lydia, who shrugged subtly, then tilted her head towards the boy.
‘Um… you’re welcome.’ He responded, and when the boy didn’t flinch or seem to react negatively in any way, Scott relaxed minutely.
‘Now, I think we should get ourselves out of these woods because when I looked at the forecast earlier I’m sure it said it was going to rain later today, and I don’t know about either of you but I don’t like being caught in the rain – and this skirt is dry clean only.’ Scott held his breath at the teasing tone in Lydia’s voice at the end – it was such a Lydia thing to say, but how would the other boy take it?
Lydia just kept her eyes on the other boy, still holding his hand, her thumb rubbing back and forth over the back of it. The boy looked up at her, then his eyes darted to Scott and then up at the sky. Scott followed his gaze and sure enough, there were clouds starting to form – dark clouds. When Scott looked back down, the boy was watching Lydia again.
‘No… no werewolves, please.’ His voice sounded better than it had the first time he spoke, but it still sounded as though he hadn’t used it much recently and Scott wished he’d thought to pick up some water at the store. ‘No… no… Stilinski.’
Scott’s eyebrows shot up at the name and he saw Lydia’s do the same, her eyes flicking towards him quickly before settling back on the boy.
‘Stilinski? Do you mean Sheriff Stilinski?’ The boy seemed to freeze at the word Sheriff, looking around. He nodded slowly, but his shoulders hunched in on themselves. ‘No cops.’ He whispered and Scott wasn’t sure if Lydia would hear it.
‘Well, if you want to see Sher – I mean, Mr Stilinski, we can certainly take you to see him. Can I ask… Do you know him?’ The boy shook his head, then looked back at Lydia.
‘My mum.’ He said and Lydia nodded.
‘Ok, your mum knew him.’ The boy nodded, and Lydia smiled. ‘Ok, well how about Scott calls him and asks him to meet us at his house, ok? And…’ Lydia hesitated, looking at Scott before she looked back at the boy.
‘Now, you look like you’ve got a few nasty cuts and bruises, and I know you werewolves all heal up easily and quickly, but I do think we should get someone to look you over – ’
‘No hospitals!’ The boy all but shouted the words at her, but Lydia just blinked.
‘No, no hospitals. We know a nurse, she’s human but she knows about werewolves and she helps look after Scott and his friends and I’m sure she would come to the Sheriff’s house as well, just to check there’s nothing more serious. And she could bring you some clean clothes – the Sheriff won’t have anything that fits you, but I think Melissa will.’
Scott knew she was talking about his mum even before she said her name, but he had to wonder why she hadn’t told the boy about the connection. Also – if his mum was bringing clothes, did Lydia mean hisclothes? Surely the boy would be able to smell him on the clothes and would just freak out?
‘Does that sound ok?’ Lydia asked, and the boy looked between them a few times, contemplating his options, before nodding slowly.
‘Can you – can you call him here? So I can listen?’ The boy asked, and it took Scott a second to realise he meant to call the Sheriff fromhere. He nodded.
‘Of course.’ Scott pulled out his phone, opened it and called the Sheriff’s mobile, hitting the speaker button.
‘Scott?’ He answered, and Scott kept his eyes on the boy, trying to see if there were any signs of recognition to the voice.
‘Hey Sher- Mr Stilinski. Um, Lydia and I were wondering if you could meet us at your place, we need to talk to you about something.’ Scott winced at his own words and saw Lydia turn to roll her eyes at him.
‘Something? Scott, is this another supernaturalthing I need to be worried about?’ The Sheriff asked, whispering the word supernatural.
‘No, no – I mean. Look, it’s not a problem, there’s nothing to be concerned about, no one is – there’s no danger to anyone. But we do have –
‘Sarah.’ The boy spoke up, cutting Scott off. ‘Sarah Stilinski.’
‘Does the name Sarah Stilinski mean anything to you, Sheriff?’ Scott asked, and he heard the Sheriff let out a breath.
‘Yes, she’s a cousin of mine, lives in Michigan, well did last I knew – why? Scott, what’s going on?’ Scott looked at the boy, trying to ask a question silently and he seemed to understand because he nodded.
‘We’re with her son, out in the preserve. I think he needs your help, sir.’ Scott said, watching as the boy closed his eyes, hunched into himself more.
‘Stiles?’ The Sheriff asked, and Scott watched as the boy flinched slightly, before he nodded.
‘Yes, sir, that’s who we’re with.’ Scott said.
‘Where’s Sarah?’ He asked, and Scott didn’t know what to say. But as he watched, the boy shook his head once, and a tear escaped from where he had his eyes squeezed shut.
‘I’m sorry, sir, I think it’s just Stiles now.’ Scott said softly.
‘I had no idea. Ok, Scott. Let me tell Parrish something’s come up and I’ll head home. But Scott, is he – is he ok?’ The Sheriff asked, and Scott hesitated.
‘I don’t know, Sheriff. But he’s here now, and we’ll help. All of us.’ Scott said, and Scott nodded when the boy looked at him.
‘Ok. Ok, I’m leaving now, I’ll be home soon.’ Scott was about to hang up, when he remembered something.
‘Oh – Sheriff? Do you think… any chance you could change into something that’s not your uniform before we get there? Just…’ Scott trailed off, unsure how to explain the request, but the Sheriff just sighed.
‘Of course, Scott. I’ll see you soon.’
‘Thanks, sir.’ Scott hung up, then smiled gently at the boy. ‘Was that ok?’
The boy nodded, then hesitated. ‘The nurse?’
It took Scott a few seconds to realise what the boy – Stiles – was asking. ‘Would you like me to call the nurse now as well?’ Stiles nodded.
Scott hesitated, then looked at Lydia.
‘Stiles – I should have told you – the nurse, Melissa, is Scott’s mum. She’s not a werewolf, that’s true, and she does help us, all the time. But if we ask her to come and help now, we’re asking her as a nurse first, not as Scott’s mum, ok? Lydia told him, her voice just as soothing, and Scott could smell the distress.
‘I’m sorry, Stiles, we didn’t mean to lie to you, we just didn’t want to overwhelm you with too much information.’ Scott said. ‘But we should have told you. I can call my mum, and see if one of her nurse friends can come instead? They won’t know about werewolves but – ’
‘No.’ Stiles said, cutting him off. ‘Just… just call her.’ Stiles seemed deflated now, and Scott hesitated, but he knew Stiles needed to be checked over by someone. So he dialled his mum, thankful that she wasn’t on shift at the moment.
‘Scott? What’s up – don’t tell me you’re still at the store?’ His mum answered, and in any other situation he would have laughed.
‘Mum, no I’m not. Actually, I’ll have to get back to that later. Listen, we need some help, ok? Can you meet us at Mr Stilinski’s house? And bring the first aid kit?’
‘Scott? What happened, are you ok? Is it Isaac? Liam? Lydia?’ His mum was all business now, running through the names of his pack, and he could hear her moving through the house.
‘No, no it’s not – we’re all fine. We have – we have a relative of the Sheriff’s here, and even though he’s like, well me, Lydia and I still think it would be good to have you look him over, just in case.’
‘Like you?’ She questioned.
‘A werewolf, mum.’
‘And he’s hurt?’ She asked, and he thought he could hear her rummaging around in a cupboard. ‘How bad? Anything that’s bleeding more than it should be, or any really deep wounds?’
‘Not that I can see – they mostly look like they’re from running through the preserve, or some other woods.’ She hummed thoughtfully.
‘Ok, so just the basics then. I clean him up, make sure things are all clear for when he heals.’
‘Thanks mum. We’re about to leave the preserve, so we’ll be at the Stilinski’s house soon. Oh – um, he needs some clean clothes mum. Any chance you can grab a few things of mine for him? Until we can organise to get him some of his own?’
‘Sure, let me just pop into your room – ’
‘No! I mean, um I know you were planning on doing some laundry today – any chance any of my stuff is ready? Like, you know, anything that’s completely freshly clean that only you have touched?’ He hoped she got the message – he didn’t want to say it out loud in front of Stiles, but he hoped that if she could grab some clothes that were just out of the machine that only she had handled then any lingering scent of his would be as minimal as possible.
‘Why would that – oh, yeah, ok. Yes, a load just finished in the dryer, I’ll grab some things.’ She said, and he sighed in relief.
‘Thanks mum.’ He said. ‘Love you.’
‘Love you too Scott.’ He hung up, and although the boy had his eyes shut again, he wasn’t as hunched over as he had been before Scott made the call, which he took as a positive sign. Scott pocketed his phone, and slowly stood, picking up the bag. As he watched, Lydia stood and then reached out to help Stiles stand, making sure the blanket stayed wrapped around his shoulders.
He led them out of the preserve, Lydia walking with Stiles to help keep him steady. He let Lydia put Stiles in her car, then slid into his own and followed them to the Sheriff’s house. When they arrived, Scott could see the Sheriff’s car in the driveway. Lydia pulled in behind it, and Scott pulled up on the street. He got out, and watched Lydia help Stiles out of the car and up to the front door, which opened just as they stepped up onto the porch.
Stiles stopped and stared at the Sheriff, then with a gentle nudge from Lydia he started to step forward before he hesitated again. This time, however, his hesitation seemed to be fuelled by Scott, who had just stepped up onto the porch behind them.
‘Um. How about I stay out here – I’ll wait for my mum, then just hang out, out here in case you need me for anything?’ He said, trying his best to sound casual. Stiles hesitated again, then slowly nodded and stepped forward, into the house. Scott knew he’d be able to hear anything that was said, and Stiles had to know that too. But he wouldn’t be there where Stiles could see him, and that seemed to be good enough for Stiles. And even if Scott couldn’t be in there, actively trying to help Stiles, well at least he was out here, making sure nothing and no one was getting near him any time soon.
***************************************************************************
When his mum and Lydia stepped out onto the porch a few hours later, Scott was so deep in thought that he nearly jumped when his mum laid a hand on his shoulder. He looked up and could tell that they had both been crying, or at least trying not to cry – he didn’t blame them, he’d been exactly the same. One thing he was clinging to was that Stiles had been adamant that the abuse had never been sexual, the alpha had never been interested in him like that. It didn’t make the rest of it ok, but at least that was one thing that Stiles hadn’t had to endure.
Still, the things that Stiles had been through – Scott was not a violent person by nature, and he always went out of his way to find a solution that didn’t involve killing but right now, all he wanted to do was find this old alpha of Stiles’ and kill him. Slowly and painfully.
He stood, and was about to say something when he caught himself, indicating towards the cars.
‘Will you come back to mine?’ He asked Lydia, who nodded before she got in her car. He gave his mum a quick hug, then gave the Sheriff’s house a last long look before he hopped into his own car and headed home.
Once there, he found not only Lydia, but Isaac, Malia, Liam, Kira, Mason and Corey.
‘Look, I’m not sure exactly what Isaac told you, but yes we found a beta in the preserve today, and yes he’s running from something, or someone specifically – his old alpha. But he’s not running because he didsomething, ok?’ Scott told them, and they all nodded. He could tell from the look on Isaac’s face that the other boy probably had a good idea of what Stiles was running from. Isaac caught his eye, and he nodded slightly, watching as Isaac’s shoulders slumped.
‘Scott’s right. Stiles – the beta – he’s been through a lot, and what he needs now is somewhere he can feel safe, and eventually people he can trust – and hopefully that will be us. But he definitely needs space, so we’re not going to try and crowd him, he’s going to meet us all, but slowly. For now, I’m planning on going back to see him after school each day this week, just spend some time with him, and Melissa is going to check on him when she can, especially if the Sheriff has to be at the station. None of us are werewolves, so he seems fairly ok with us. In a week or so, I’ll broach the topic of maybe bringing one of you along to meet – but only one. Too many new things or people at once will just overwhelm him.’ Lydia explained to the pack, and Scott didn’t think he’d ever been more grateful to have her in his pack.
‘What about Scott?’ Liam asked, glancing up at his alpha.
‘That’s… complicated.’ Scott settled on. ‘He’s met me, but not only am I another werewolf, I’m an alpha so I’m going to be keeping my distance for now. He needs time to settle in, to feel safe and if I remind him of his old alpha, my being around him isn’t going to help.’
‘But, you’re nothing like what his alpha must be like!’ Liam protested, and Scott gave his beta a small smile.
‘Thank you, Liam but it’s not about that. It’s just the simple presence of an alpha. Your instincts tell you that alpha means safety, right?’ He asked, mostly knowing this was true but always having a small bit of doubt in himself. Liam nodded. ‘Stiles’ instincts don’t. He needs time to process that, to…’
‘Heal, and then learn to live with it.’ Isaac cut in, and Scott looked at his friend, nodding. He knew Isaac would understand, although he wished, as he frequently did, that he didn’t.
‘So, Lydia will decide, with Stiles, who to introduce him to first, how quickly, things like that. But when you meet Stiles, one thing I need you to remember – do not ask him about what happened. If he wants to tell you, wants to talk about it, he will. If he doesn’t, then you don’t ask. Got it?’ Scott asked, waiting until his pack all nodded at him.
Although the younger members of the pack didn’t know everything Isaac had been through, they all knew he’d been living with Scott and his mum for over a year after his dad was killed and that Isaac had briefly been a suspect. And the rumours for why he’d been a suspect that still occasionally popped up at school. So they understood what Scott meant about not asking Stiles about what happened – Liam had asked Scott once, about Isaac. And all Scott had told him was no one should go through what Isaac had to go through, and that he was never to ask Isaac about it – if Isaac chose to tell him, or any of the others, that was his choice.
They did ask Scott if there was anything else they could do, and he shook his head before Lydia piped up.
‘Actually, Mason – tomorrow, before I go see Stiles, I need to go shopping. You’re about the same size as him, physically, so you’re going to come with me.’ She told the human boy, who just stared at her. ‘I may be an excellent judge of size when it comes to clothing, but it’s always better to have something to measure against. Bring Corey, if you must – actually, he’s about the same colouring as Stiles too so I can see what colours will work for him.’
The boys in the pack all just stared at her, and she shrugged.
‘He needs more clothes, and it will be good for him to have something that’s his instead of borrowed – not too many things, when he’s up for it I’ll take him out so he can actually pick some things for himself. But for now, this will work. And… this way, they won’t really smell of anyone else.’ Lydia tacked on, and Scott nodded in understanding. That was Lydia, always thinking of things no one else would.
***************************************************************************
The next few weeks passed both slowly and incredibly quickly. Days at school seemed to pass by in a blur (which was a little concerning with it being Scott’s final year of high school). But after school, knowing Lydia, and then slowly other members of his pack, were with Stiles – time seemed to slow to nearly a stop. Even when Scott had other things to occupy his time, like working or homework or visiting his mum he would count down the minutes until Isaac was home and he could hear how Stiles was progressing. Surprisingly, despite being a werewolf, Isaac had been the first member of the pack Lydia had taken to introduce to Stiles – though Scott thought it had something to do with their similar histories.
He didn’t know if she had told Stiles that or how she’d gotten him to agree to it but apparently it was helping – Lydia told him that the fifth day of going over with her, Isaac had asked if he could speak to Stiles alone and Stiles, after a brief moment of panic, had allowed it. They’d apparently spoke for over an hour, and when Lydia had been allowed back in there had been a difference to the way Stiles carried himself – not a major difference, he wasn’t suddenly a new person, but he seemed just a little bit more settled in himself, a little less likely to shrink in on himself when he said something he thought he shouldn’t.
Scott saw a difference in Isaac too – for the first time since Allison had died, sacrificing herself to stop the nogitsune possessing her – Isaac seemed to be getting back to his old self. He was starting to snark a little more, which had surprised Liam greatly the first time it was aimed at him. He had spoken about trying to convince Coach to let him onto the cross country team late so that he could maybe be on the lacrosse team again. And he was starting to smile more – not often, but they were real smiles. It seemed like having someone to help, and someone he understood in a way no one else did, was helping Isaac.
Next to meet Stiles had been Kira – chosen both because she was not a werewolf, and because she was a girl. Since most of Stiles’ previous pack had been males, Scott thought this was a wise move, to try to balance out the ratio for Stiles as he met the rest of the pack. They had hit it off once Stiles realised she was a Star Wars fan. Mason had been next, and Stiles had apparently been incredibly surprised to learn there was a human in their pack. Lydia said that Stiles had been a little overwhelmed at first, mostly by Mason’s propensity to talk and talk about things that excited him but seemed to get passed that very quickly.
Despite Mason being one of the newest members of the pack, Stiles was constantly asking him questions about different creatures they’d come across and what he knew about the supernatural (except for werewolves) and Mason was only too happy to have someone to listen to him. It seemed Stiles was very much like Scott had been as a new werewolf – completely unaware of anything supernatural, and now he was trying to make up for it.
Corey had been next, mostly by virtue of being Mason’s boyfriend and unable to spend that much time apart, but given his extremely quiet nature his introduction seemed to go pretty unremarked. Mostly he was content to just sit with them while they talked, and occasionally provide a few bits of information about chimeras, at least from his perspective.
Malia had been next, and that had been a tricky one to navigate as she’d understood the need to be careful around him but was still rather blunt and often unable to censor herself. Thankfully, Lydia’s introduction had included the titbit that Malia had lived as a coyote for nearly eight years and that had caught Stiles’ attention so their first meeting had involved a lot of questions about her life as a coyote (from both Stiles and Mason who had always wanted to ask but never thought he could).
Finally, it was Liam’s turn. Scott knew that Liam had been worried about this, worried that he was going to say the wrong thing or mess up somehow. So the day before Lydia was taking him over to the Sheriff’s house to meet Stiles, Scott invited him over to talk.
‘I know you’re worried about meeting him.’ Scott said, and Liam looked down at his hands.
‘I just – I don’t know how to act. What if I say the wrong thing or – ’
‘Just watch the others, let Stiles lead the conversation and pay attention to how the others speak to him, move around him.’
‘I just don’t want to make things worse, it sounds like he’s been through so much – ’
‘So have you, Liam. Maybe not in the same way, and I’m not diminishing what Stiles has been through, not at all. But never forget that you, that we all, have been through a lot. We all carry scars.’
‘We don’t scar anymore, we heal. Like, really quickly.’ Liam said, confused, and Scott smiled.
‘I don’t mean the scars you can see. The invisible scars. The ones no one can see, the ones we often forget about ourselves. I know they say ‘well someone out there has it worse than you’ and yeah, they’re probably right. But that doesn’t mean what you went through didn’t suckand didn’t leave its mark on you. It doesn’t mean it didn’t change you. And I don’t think Stiles is the kind of person who would look at you and think ‘well you didn’t have it as bad as me so you can’t be upset’.’
Liam nodded slowly, understanding but unsure why Scott was telling him this now.
‘So, I think what you need to remember when you meet Stiles is, think about how you felt after the beserkers, or the dead pool – did you want to talk about those things with anyone? Or with everyone? No, none of us did, not really – so we waited until we were ready. And when one of us was ready, the others listened.’ Scott explained, and Liam nodded again, understanding better. He still didn’t like to talk about that time, although he knew that Scott or any of the others would listen if he did. And now he knew what Scott meant.
All he needed to do was be willing to listen to Stiles. So that’s what he did.
***************************************************************************
Nearly three months after finding Stiles, Lydia came to Scott at lunch one day, when the rest of the pack were suspiciously absent, and told him Stiles was ready to meet him again. Scott nearly choked on his drink – Lydia would wait to tell him until he’d taken a sip.
‘What? Really? I mean… ok, wow. Are you sure? Is hesure? When?’ Scott asked, firing the questions off rapidly until Lydia held up her hand.
‘Yes. This afternoon. You rode the bike, yes?’ She asked, and he nodded.
‘Ok, well give the keys to Isaac, you’re coming with me and the rest of the pack will come over a bit later. Isaac can bring the bike since he got a lift with Kira today.’ She explained, and he wanted to ask more questions, but he bit his tongue – literally. He bit his tongue to stop himself. He just nodded.
‘Ok. Do I need to, I don’t know – ’ Lydia smiled at him.
‘Just be yourself, Scott. I know you’ve been helping the others, especially Liam before he met Stiles. So you know what to do, and honestly, he’s come a long way since we first found him. You’ll be surprised.
And he was.
He followed Lydia into the Sheriff’s house after school that day, and Stiles was sitting in the living room waiting for them. Lydia waltzed right in, dropping down onto the sofa beside Stiles, who smiled at her. Scott paused in the doorway – he’d never seen Stiles smile before, it was… breathtaking. Scott was overcome by the intense need to always keep Stiles smiling that.
When he moved again, stepping into the room, Stiles’ head turned in his direction, and the smiled dimmed, though Scott was grateful it didn’t disappear altogether. He watched as Lydia took his hand, giving it a gentle squeeze.
Scott looked around, then sat down in a seat diagonally opposite the sofa, where Stiles and Lydia could easily see him.
‘Hi Stiles.’ Scott said softly, and after a moment Stiles nodded.
‘Hello Alph – Scott. Hello Scott.’ Stiles corrected himself, repeating his greeting with a small nod for himself. Scott smiled.
‘So, Stiles… how’s it been, living with the Sheriff?’ He asked, hoping it was a neutral enough topic to start them off, and he was relieved when Stiles kept smiling.
‘It’s been good. I met him a few times when I was really young, but I hadn’t seen him in a long time before I – before I got here. But he’s been good to me, letting me stay here.’
‘That’s good, I mean that it’s been good. He’s a good man.’ Scott said, internally rolling his eyes at himself.
The next few visits with Stiles went about the same, some basic small talk, maybe a few little anecdotes from Stiles about living with the Sheriff. They always started with just Scott, Stiles and Lydia, with the rest of the pack joining them after a little while. Then, finally, after about five visits, Stiles seemed to be comfortable enough with Scott to start opening up more.
‘He’s been taking me into the station sometimes – get me out of the house, he says. But – um, I’m not sure if I’m supposed to really tell anyone this.’ He paused, and looked at Lydia, who rolled her eyes fondly.
‘Oh, he won’t mind, and Scott’s not going to tell anyone, I promise.’
‘He’s been letting me look at some of the cases with him, none of the really serious ones or anything, like vandalism, theft, things like that. Asking me what I think, things like that.’
‘That sounds interesting.’ Scott commented, glad when it got a slightly bigger smile out of Stiles.
‘It is. Looking at the evidence, trying to find patterns, figure it out. I like it.’
‘I’m glad.’
‘And, the Sheriff and I have been talking, well and Lydia too, and…’ Stiles trailed off, looking at Lydia.
‘We think it’s nearly time to get Stiles enrolled in Beacon Hills High. We’ve been doing some studying, catching him up on a few things he missed, but he’s not really as far behind as he thinks he is – certainly not as far behind as Malia was, and look where she is now.’ Lydia said, giving Stiles a smile.
Scott smiled too, happier than he would have thought at seeing the progress Stiles had made. He was definitely a world away from the boy Scott had first met in the preserve months ago.
‘Well, it will be great to have you at school Stiles. And really, if Lydia says you’re ready and up to date, then you’re ready and up to date. Trust me, most of us, not just Malia, rely on her to help us pass.’ Scott was shocked when Stiles actually laughed at that, then he started laughing too. Before either of them, or Lydia, could say anything else, the front door opened and the rest of the pack spilled in, coming to a stop in the doorway of the living room taking in the sight of Scott and Stiles laughing, Lydia smiling at them while she rolled her eyes.
‘What’s so funny?’ Malia asked, settling in to the seat next to Scott’s when Kira score the last spot on the couch.
‘Scott was just telling Stiles how you all would be failing high school without me.’ Lydia said, putting on a lofty voice as she spoke. Malia just shrugged.
‘Yeah, and?’ She asked, not quite getting the joke, which just sent the rest of them off.
Scott looked around as he laughed, and he caught Stiles’ eye. Stiles gave him a quick grin, and Scott was incredibly happy at the small moment, and the fact that Stiles didn’t just turn away from him immediately. He let himself settle into the chair, relaxing into the conversation with his pack, but mostly content to just sit and listen to them all talk and laugh.
That meeting set the tone going forward, like a small, but important dam, had been broken. Scott still never went to see Stiles on his own, but sometimes it was just him and Isaac and Stiles, or him and Mason and Corey and Stiles. He could tell that Stiles would still get nervous if there were only three of them and the third person went to go get something, or was ready to leave – whenever they just wanted an extra drink or snacks, Scott always jumped up and offered to go get them, or decided he was also ready to leave.
But Stiles was starting to initiate conversations with him now, a month after their first meeting. The first time, Scott was nearly stunned into silence when Stiles turned to him and asked what his favourite class was at school.
Of course, Stiles then went on to ask everyone else the same question (understandably, since he was due to start in a week at BHHS), but he’d asked Scott first.
Then, the next time Scott was over, he asked Scott about his work at the clinic, listening as Scott told him his favourite parts of working for Deaton (the dogs, always the dogs).
Then Stiles didn’t talk to him at all for two visits, steadfastly ignoring him, pretending he didn’t hear questions posed by Scott or giving a simple nod or shake of the head, and Scott wasn’t sure why.
Then it was like that had never happened, and Stiles was back to talking to him, asking him questions, occasionally smiling at him. When he asked Lydia what she thought it meant, if Stiles hated him or something, she just looked at him sadly.
‘He likes you Scott, he does – but sometimes I think he doesn’t want to. It… it scares him, that he likes you, that he’s starting to trust you.’
‘Because I’m an alpha?’ Scott asked, coming to the realisation. Lydia nodded.
‘I think he knows, intellectually, that you’re nothing like the other one, that you’re a good person, a good alpha and friend and leader. But intellect means little when you’ve been through what Stiles has. Sometimes that fear rears its head and he can’t do anything to stop it. But the fact that he didn’t ask you to stay away, or ask one of us to ask you, I think that means a lot.’
Scott nodded, and she gave him a smile, laid her hand on his arm.
‘I know you want to help him, Scott. And I know you’re really starting to care about him. So just remember that, if it happens again. At least he still wants you there.’
Scott smiled back, and the next time it happened two weeks later, and the time after that, he remembered those words.
***************************************************************************
Nearly six months had passed since the day Stiles arrived in Beacon Hills when Scott got the call. He and the pack were gathered at Lydia’s house, the seniors pouring over Lydia’s chemistry notes while she helped the sophomores with their maths. Scott was about to ask Stiles a question (he was now second only to Lydia when it came to chemistry and maths) when his phone started ringing.
He pulled it out of his pocket, eyebrows raising when he saw Derek’s name on the screen.
‘Derek? What’s up?’ He asked, pulling the attention of most of his pack, bar Stiles and the puppies as Stiles had nicknamed the younger trio.
‘Hey Scott. Look, it might not be anything, but I wanted to give you a heads up.’ Derek said, and Scott was becoming confused. He gave Lydia a look to keep working with Liam and the others, then moved from the room.
‘A heads up? On what?’ He asked quietly.
‘Braeden and I have been travelling around, looking for other packs, just to see what’s going on, trying to make some connections, you know allies that sort of thing. And we just met a pack in Wyoming, they told us their Alpha just left like a day ago to look for one of their betas who went missing.’ Derek told him.
‘Yeah, ok, so?’ He asked, not getting what Derek was trying to tell him.
‘Well, they were all pretty hesitant to talk to us, but when I mentioned my mum, one of them had heard of her when she was younger and when we were getting ready to leave, she slipped us a note, to meet her at a diner in the next town over. When we met with her, she told us that the beta isn’t missing, he ran away. Their alpha turned him nearly two years ago, wooed him and convinced him to accept the bite right after his parents died when he was vulnerable, and has been abusing him ever since. Six months ago, the beta took off, and the alpha has been looking for him ever since. Five days ago, he remembered that the boy used his mother’s maiden name until she remarried – when they met, he was using his stepfather’s surname. He finally remembered the boy telling him his name, well nickname, came from the mother’s original surname.’
‘Why are you telling me all this, Derek?’ Scott asked, getting impatient.
‘Well once the alpha had the surname, he remembered the mother had had a cousin, who lived in – ’
‘Beacon Hills.’ Scott finished for him, his stomach dropping. ‘Derek, was the beta’s nickname?’
‘Uh… Stills? Something like that. Apparently the cousin was Stilinski.’
‘Stiles.’ Scott breathed out.
‘Yeah, that was it – wait, how did you know that?’ Derek asked. ‘Have you met him? Scott, his alpha is tracking him to Beacon Hills as we speak. This beta told us he’ll do whatever it takes to get this Stiles back.’
‘Yeah, I figured that, thanks. And yes, we know Stiles. Thanks for the heads up, Derek, we’ll take care of it.’
‘Scott, seriously – he’s apparently a very one-track mind sort of alpha and he thinks Stiles belongs to him. Think Peter but more possessive over people, not wealth. Just as crazy by the sound of it, though.’
‘Yeah, I already knew that. Don’t worry, we’ll deal with it. I’ll deal with it.’ Scott said, a tone of finality in his voice.
‘Ok. Just, I mean if you want, Braeden and I can be there in two days.’
‘No, it sounds like this guys’ got a head start on you anyway, by the time you get here, hopefully it will have been sorted. I gotta go warn the others, but thanks for the call.’
‘Any time. Good luck, Scott.’
Scott hung up the phone, and pocketed it, turning to find Stiles standing behind him, looking like he’d seen a ghost. Scott raced forward, but stopped just short of touching him.
‘He’s coming here?’ Stiles questioned, his voice sounding blank – almost like he did the day they first found him.
‘Yes, but don’t worry, Stiles, I won’t – we won’t let him hurt you.’
‘You can’t stop him, you can’t, he won’t – I have to leave. He found me.’ Stiles was starting to panic, his body shaking.
‘Hey, Stiles, it’s ok, calm down, come on – you don’t have to leave, I promise you we’ll keep you safe.’ Isaac and Lydia appeared behind Stiles, their eyes wide as they took in the scene.
‘What – ’
‘He’s coming. I have to leave, I can’t go back.’ Stiles said, and Scott reached out, pulling the beta in to his chest, wrapping his arms around him.
‘Shh, Stiles it’s ok. You never have to go back, you never have to do anything you don’t want again.’ He rubbed one hand up and down Stiles back, continuing to whisper into his ear. Isaac and Lydia stepped closer, each reaching out to put a hand on Stiles shoulder in comfort.
‘Scott is right, Stiles. You never have to go back there, and we won’t let him hurt you. You have all of us now, you have a new pack and we take care of our pack.’ Isaac said softly.
‘My pack… my pack didn’t…’ Stiles tried to speak through his tears and the shaking that still wracked his body.
‘We know they didn’t look out for you like they should have Stiles. None of them did, and they should. But we will.’ Lydia said.
They stood there like that, taking it in turns to whisper to him, maintaining contact until he started to calm, his body eventually stilling as he remained in Scott’s arms.
‘Do you trust us, Stiles?’ Lydia asked, and Scott inhaled sharply – it was the first time anyone had asked him that. He pulled himself away from Scott, not completely out of his hold, but enough to turn to look first at Isaac, then Lydia. He looked back up at Scott, then back at Lydia and nodded slowly. ‘Then please trust us when we say we will protect you, and we will stop that sorry excuse for an alpha.’
The derision in her voice as she said the word alpha was more than clear, and Scott was glad she’d never aimed that derision his way.
Stiles looked between them all slowly, holding eye contact with each one before he slowly nodded. Then he pulled away from Scott, and turned to Lydia.
‘I think I’m ready to go now. I’m going to call Uncle Noah and ask him to come get me.’ He told her.
‘Are you sure? You can stay here tonight if you’d like.’ Lydia offered, but Stiles just shook his head.
‘No, I think I want to go home.’ He said softly, and Lydia nodded.
‘Ok.’ Stiles wandered back to the other room to get his phone, calling his uncle to come and collect him. Scott quickly filled Isaac and Lydia in on what had happened.
‘Fill the others in for me, ok? Then tell them to head home, get some sleep. If he left a day ago, he’ll be here by tomorrow at the latest. And we need to be prepared for a fight.’
‘Where are you going?’ Isaac asked, and Scott looked at him.
‘To watch over Stiles.’
‘You think the alpha is already here?’ Lydia asked, and Scott shook his head.
‘No, I mean maybe but that’s not why. His first instinct was to run, which I can understand. But…’
‘But you still think he might try to?’ Lydia finished for him, and he nodded.
‘It’s like you said Lydia – he trusts us, but the fear is still there. And I’m just worried the fear will win out before we can deal with the alpha.’ Scott said, and Lydia looked over her shoulder to the room where Stiles was talking to his uncle, then back at Scott.
‘I get it. Look after him, and if he does try to leave, tell him I’m gonna kick his ass for trying to leave without saying goodbye.’ She said, trying to joke to cover up how hurt she would be if he did try to leave without saying anything.
‘I will. Uh, if anyone asks, my mum called, yeah?’ Lydia raised an eyebrow, but nodded. He gave her a smile, then left, to head off Stiles and Sheriff.
***************************************************************************
Scott watched from his spot across the street as the Sheriff and Stiles pulled up. He wasn’t sure if Stiles would have told the Sheriff what had happened, but just in case Scott had sent the older man a text telling him to keep an eye on Stiles tonight.
He sat and listened – not listening in per se, just keeping an ear out – as the Sheriff and Stiles moved around the house, talked a little about their days, then bid each other goodnight. Scott waited nearly three hours in the dark, and cold, but then, just as he suspected, an hour after the Sheriff had finally drifted off to sleep, Scott heard movement in the house.
He focused in on the sound, and followed it as Stiles moved down the stairs quietly, then he opened the front door and slipped out. Scott moved from his spot, meeting Stiles in the middle of the street.
‘Stiles.’ He said softly, but the beta still jumped, whirling around to face him.
‘Scott. What are you doing here?’ He asked, eyes darting around, though Scott wasn’t sure if he expected the rest of Scott’s pack to show up, or his former alpha.
‘Trying to stop you from doing… exactly what you’re doing.’ Scott replied, and Stiles’ shoulders slumped.
‘I have to, Scott. Who knows when he’ll get here, I need to – ’
‘You don’t need to, Stiles. We meant what we said, Stiles. We’re going to protect you – you’re part of our pack now, and we protect each other. We’ll protect you, we want to protect you.’
‘Why, Scott? Why would any of you want to put yourselves in danger to protect me?’ Stiles demanded, and Scott’s heart broke at the question.
‘Because we think you’re worth it.’ He answered, and Stiles stared at him.
‘I’m not.’ He whispered.
‘You really should listen to him, Scott. He’s not worth it.’ Stiles froze, his face draining of colour and Scott turned towards the voice. The man walking towards them was tall and lanky, thin really. But there was something in his face, a look in his eyes that Scott had seen before – in Peter, in Ennis, in Kali. It was a look of disdain, hatred, superiority.
‘Jason.’ Stiles whispered, and Scott looked back to him, where he was still frozen.
‘Hello Stiles. I’ve been looking for you, for a long time. You just left, not a word. And look at this, I find you and you’re doing the same thing again, to your… new alpha?’ The other alpha asked with a sneer. Stiles shook his head, but couldn’t seem to speak.
‘Leave him alone. You’re not welcome here, and Stiles is not going anywhere with you. I suggest you leave before I make you leave.’ Scott told him, moving himself so he stood between Stiles and this Jason.
‘Oh, I’m afraid I can’t do that, Scott. Stiles is part of my pack, no matter what you and he seem to have been doing since he took off. He belongs to me, and I will be taking him with me.’
‘He’s not a piece of property, you don’t ownhim – you don’t own anyone.’ Scott shot back, watching the way the other alpha moved. He was moving carefully, stalking towards them until suddenly he lunged at Scott.
Scott ducked to the side, swiping out with his claws, catching the other alpha in the side. Jason recovered quickly, spinning back around, arm out to try and swipe Scott. Scott caught his arm, yanking him close, twisting his arm up and around to his back. He dug the claws from his other hand into Jason’s back, forcing him to stand still.
‘Scott, wait!’ Stiles’ voice took him by surprise, and, bringing Jason with him, he turned to face Stiles. ‘I don’t want you to kill him. You don’t kill people, and I don’t want you to start because of me.’
Scott stared at Stiles, and the other just stared at him. Scott nodded, and slowly pulled his claws out, then released Jason’s arm, shoving him to the side.
Before Scott could say anything, Jason surged forward towards Stiles.
‘Stiles!’ Scott moved, but Stiles kicked out at Jason, then threw up a hand at Scott to stop him.
‘No, Scott. Please, let me do this.’ Stiles asked, and Scott paused, watching him. He looked between Stiles and Jason, who was watching them with interest, then he nodded. He took a small step back, and let Stiles focus.
‘So brave, Stiles. But foolish.’ Jason lunged again, claws out, but Stiles moved, turning away from the incoming attack and then spinning back in to appear at Jason’s back, scraping his claws across Jason’s back, then punctuating that with a kick to Jason’s knee. Jason went down from the force and rolled with it, coming out of the roll on his knees, fangs bared and eyes flashing red.
He leapt up, and while Stiles threw out his arms to deflect him, Jason managed to land a swipe on Stiles’ shoulder, then as Stiles corrected his stance, Jason kicked out, catching Stiles in the stomach. Stiles stumbled back, then caught himself. He stood, then raced forward, taking the lead in the fight for the first time. He feinted to the right, then ducked to the left to land a punch to Jason’s ribs, and another on Jason’s jaw. Then he kicked in the knee again, and when Jason went down, Stiles caught him by his shirt and brought a knee up to Jason’s groin. Scott winced in automatic male sympathy at the move, then grinned with pride.
Stiles landed one final kick to Jason’s torso, sending him sprawling across the road. Stiles moved to stand over the other alpha, and after putting his foot on his chest, he leaned over. He was quiet, but Scott could still hear what he was saying.
‘I am not worthless, Jason. I have never been worthless, and I have never deserved any of the things you did to me. I deserve to be happy, to have people who love me, and I will do more with my life than be a punching bag for you. I have a new pack here, and our pack looks after each other. Don’t come back.’
Stiles stepped away, then turned his back on his former alpha and walked towards Scott. Scott was about to speak, but then two things happened at once. He heard a car racing up the road from his left, and he glanced in that direction before movement in the corner of his eye caught his attention and he looked back to see Jason had stood and was racing at Stiles, claws out.
Scott opened his mouth to yell, reached out to grab for Stiles when a gunshot sounded and Jason fell.
Stiles spun around in shock, looking at Jason on the ground, then looking around. Scott looked too, and then saw the car he’d heard. It had come to a stop nearly twenty feet away. The front door was open, and when it closed Scott saw someone step out from behind it that he hadn’t seen in months.
‘Chris?’ He asked, looking at Allison’s father. The older man looked over at Scott and smiled, nodding in greeting.
‘Scott.’
‘Scott? What’s going on?’ Stiles asked, looking between them and the body in the road.
‘Stiles, this is Chris Argent, he’s an old friend. Chris, what are you doing here?’
‘Derek called, told me about this violent alpha that was heading to town, asked if I was close. I was only a couple of hours away chasing a lead on Kate, so I took a detour, and looks like I made the right choice. This is the alpha, right?’
Scott nodded, but before he could say anything else, the door to the Stilinski house opened and the Sheriff came running out, service weapon in hand. Then he spotted Scott, Stiles and Chris, and the body on the ground, lowered his weapon and sighed.
Scott looked over at Chris, and then back at the Sheriff.
‘We can explain.’
***************************************************************************
They were able to explain, and Chris had an easy, believable cover story for the Sheriff to use (all they needed was one of his spare knives and an old gun which they put in Jason’s hands and voila, a good reason for Chris to have shot). But when Scott noticed Stiles starting to shake as the adrenaline wore off, he called Lydia and asked her to come and stay with Stiles. The other boy had been unable to meet his eye since the Sheriff had come out, and Scott wondered if he’d pushed too hard.
Lydia had arrived, and after Scott and Stiles had given their ‘statements’ to Deputy Parrish, Lydia took Stiles inside and Scott headed home.
The next day, just after his mum left for her shift at the hospital, a knock sounded on the front door and Scott ran down the stairs to answer. He wasn’t sure who it would be since the only people who tended to come over were the pack, and none of them knocked any more.
He opened the door and was surprised to find Stiles standing on the other side. Looking behind him, he saw Lydia wave from her car before pulling away from the kerb.
‘Uh, hey Stiles. How – how are you going?’ He asked, stepping to the side to let the other boy inside.
Stiles stepped inside and looked around – it was the first time he’d been to the McCall house.
‘Hi Scott.’ He said, turning back to him. ‘Um, is Isaac home?’
Scott tried to hide his disappointment – of course Stiles was looking for Isaac, not him. He shook his head.
‘No, he’s not. He’s got a meeting for a group project, he’ll be home later though.’
‘Oh, no I meant – I’m here to talk to you. But I’d rather do it just the two of us, so I was just checking.’ Stiles stopped, closed his eyes. ‘Sorry, I’m not making sense. I want to talk to you, and I just wanted to make sure we were alone first.’
Scott nodded, unsure where Stiles was heading with this – but also felt a small flutter of hope that Stiles wasn’t just willingto be alone with him, but wanted to be alone with him.
‘Of course. Well, yeah, it’s just us. Mum’s at work. Um, do you wanna go sit in the living room?’ He asked, and Stiles nodded so Scott led him over to the couch.
‘So. Ok, so when I first got here, you know I didn’t really want to be around you, right? Because of what… of what Jason had done. Then eventually we got to know each other, and I sort of got the impression that you liked me – I mean, more than just a friend or part of the pack. But the thing is, when we met I was completely helpless, like this sad little puppy you get at the clinic that you want to cuddle and fix and that’s not what I am, Scott.’ Stiles looked up at him, and Scott sighed.
‘You’re right. About all of it, in a way. When I first met you, I wanted to help you - you looked so alone, and afraid. I wanted to make you feel safe. But then you finally started to settle in, you started to smile and laugh and I got to know you, the real you not just that scared beta in the preserve. And then last night you stood up for yourself. You showed him that you’re not that scared beta anymore, that you’re strong and independent and more than capable of looking after yourself. That’s who I fell in love with. So yes, I still want to make you feel safe, and loved but I also know you can look after yourself. This isn’t about saving you, Stiles. It’s about loving you.’
‘I didn’t want to love you. In fact, I fought it for a long time. It made me feel weak, falling for another alpha. I knew you weren’t like him, but it still made me feel like I wasn’t enough, that falling in love with another alpha just proved what he’d said about me being useless.
‘I know you made yourself scarce at first. Well, mostly – I knew you were out there sometimes, watching the house. But you let Lydia introduce me to the betas one by one, and I knew that when they were spending time with me and Lydia it meant you were on your own, without your pack. But you still stayed away, didn’t push to come inside or join in because it’s what you thought I needed, wanted. And then when you did come around, you were so careful, no sudden movements, always staying where I could see you. Letting me lead conversations, make decisions. And part of me worried it was an act, even though I knew it wasn’t.
‘Then last night, when I asked you - told you - to stop fighting for me, you did. I could tell you didn’t want to, but you did. You stepped back and let me do what I needed to do, for myself. To prove to myself that I could. When that shot rang out, and Jason dropped dead, I thought for a second that you hadn’t really believed I could do, that you’d just pretended to let me deal with him until your friend arrived.’
‘I didn’t!’ Scott interjected, and Stiles nodded.
‘I know that now. I spoke to Lydia last night, and then Christ came by this morning to see Noah. And that was when I finally knew, or I guess let myself believe, fully, that all those things I’d seen in you, they were real. That’s who you are. You’re never going to push me for something I don’t want, or I’m not ready for. You’re never going to make me feel like I’m less, or weak or useless. And now I know that I’m not – last night I proved that to myself.’ Stiles told him, giving him a small smile. There was a lull then, a silence but it wasn’t uncomfortable. Scott thought about what Stiles was saying, and it made him think back to his conversation with Liam, before Liam had met Stiles for the first time.
‘You know, I told Liam once that not all scars are visible – in fact, we don’t get visible scars anymore, as werewolves. Because we heal, some people start to think that nothing can hurt us, not really. But it’s those scars that aren’tvisible that are the worst. Because they’re so easy to overlook, to ignore even as they become so ingrained in who we are. But you chose not to do that. You chose to fight back against what was causing them, first when you left then when you stood up and fought for yourself last night. You might always carry those scars, but they don’t define you Stiles. And it sounds like you’re starting to see that.’
Stiles cocked his head as he considered this, then nodded.
‘You’re right. It’s a part of me, it always will be. But it’s not who I am. It’s not who I want to be, who I choose to be.’
‘So, who do you choose to be?’ Scott asked softly, and Stiles looked down at his hands where they lay intwined in his lap, then back up at Scott.
‘I choose to be… me. Happy. Pack.’ He paused, a small smiled gracing his lips. ‘Yours?’
Scott stared at him, not sure if he’d heard him correctly. Then Stiles’ smile fell and he started to back away.
‘I’m sorry, I’m sorry that was totally inappropriate – ’
‘You can be mine only if I can be yours.’ Scott said in a rush, and Stiles froze, looked at him.
‘Do you mean it?’ He asked in a whisper, and Scott nodded.
‘I mean it. I don’t know if I’ve ever meant anything more. But… if we’re going to do this can you promise me one thing?’ Stiles looked wary now, like he didn’t want to blindly promise anything. ‘If I ever do anythingto make you uncomfortable, or scared or unhappy – will you tell me? Or, if you don’t think you can tell me, tell someone, like Lydia or Isaac or – ’
Stiles laughed then, and Scott stopped, looking at him.
‘The fact that you want me to promise that is why I don’t think you ever will do anything like that.’ Stiles told him. Scott smiled at him, but then spoke again.
‘Still. Will you promise me? Please?’ He asked again, and Stiles looked at him, considering, then he nodded slowly.
‘Ok. I promise.’ Scott nodded back, and while he hoped it was never necessary he still hoped that Stiles would live up to this promise if it was. He was comforted by the knowledge, however, that if any members of his pack ever found out he’d done something they wouldn’t hesitate to say something to him.
‘Thank you.’ He said, and Stiles smiled at him.
‘Can you promise me something in return?’ Stiles asked him, and Scott sat up straight, nodding vigorously. ‘Promise me… that you’re going to kiss me in the next twenty seconds?’
Scott’s mouth dropped open at the request, his brain short circuiting. Then Stiles started laughing at him, and Scott knew, as he had the first time he heard that sound, that he would do anything he could to keep hearing that sound. Stiles held up a hand, counting down from five with his fingers and just as he got to one, Scott moved forward, bringing an arm around Stiles’ waist and pulling him in close.
‘I love you, Stiles.’ Scott whispered, and Stiles’ eyes closed briefly. When they opened, he stared directly at Scott.
‘I love you too, Scott.’ Then Stiles closed the distance, pressing his lips to Scott’s in a gentle kiss.
Scott let himself sink into it, revelling in the feeling.
He knew this wasn’t going to be easy. They both carried scars with them and always would. He was sure he would mess up, and all he could hope is that he would never screw up so badly that Stiles left, that he hurt Stiles beyond repair. And he knew he would need to be patient, that Stiles would have good days and bad days as he continued to heal, that he might pull away sometimes. But he wasn’t going to doing it alone – he had Scott now, and the Sheriff, and the pack, and Scott would give him space but, like last night, he wouldn’t let Stiles run.
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