Archive of Our Own

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Stiles starts off at college, a bright eyed, bushy tailed freshman. Wandering around campus with a look in his eyes of someone who has never seen so many people in one place before. Orientation had been interesting to say the least. A woman with a high pitched yet nasally voice had led a group of them through the quad and pointed out various things. Student services, food court, campus police. It was a lot, luckily Stiles had a map, a purple marker and a dream. Of course once he was led to the dorms and given his room assignment that dream sort of fell through.The dream had been to get away from Beacon Hills, everybody there and the certainty that his ill-advised crush on Derek Hall would never come to anything. So when he walked into his room and saw his roommate he almost swore, loudly.Isaac Lahey wasn't a bad guy, he was just connected to everything that Stiles had wanted to avoid, for the next four years at least. Seeing his peaceful future disappear down the pan, he resigned himself to the inevitable. Isaac looked pleased to see him at least so that was good. Glad that he hadn't received a roommate that hated him on sight, or one who would make his life hell. Stiles settled in.Isaac being the perpetually nervous sweetheart that he was had left the bed slash side assignments to Stiles. He of course shut that down quick, explaining to Isaac that nobody was there for him to cater to. That he could make this choice, as he had others to get here in the first place and Stiles was going to help him with that. So with the stubbornness that was borne of being the son of Sheriff Stilinski, Stiles sat in the middle of the floor with his meagre possessions and waited. Isaac folded before he did and shook his head before throwing his hands into the air. Isaac chose the bed to the left of the door and Stiles was secretly grateful. He hadn't wanted to share a wall with their neighbours. Their room was larger than usual due to the fact that it occupied a corner of the mazes of corridors that made up the student dorms. Not by much but it was enough for Stiles to beg his father to drive up the following weekend with his small bookcase. They would need it after all.The first few months were uneventful. They settled into a routine of studying and working on assignments. Stiles often wore his headphones whilst Isaac drew. To say that he had been surprised when he found out that Isaac was an art major was an understatement. He didn't think he had ever seen the kid pick up a coloured pencil. Stiles own degree was a mixed bag. He had initially wanted to study something that would lead him into some kind of law enforcement agency. That idea had been nixed quickly when he realised that his dream of following in his father's footsteps, even just tangentially wasn't as appealing as it had once been.So Stiles chose History, with a minor in Mythology. It was only once he realised he had three class free days a week did he decide to pick up another minor. Danny had been teaching him coding, hacking and general computer sciences for years and it only made sense to go down that route. Especially when he saw that the classes were on Friday, later in the day and in no way going to mess with his other scheduled days. Isaac had three separate classes that he was taking, and was apparently happy with the spread.Isaac's drawing's were good, like the paper was alive with the visage of whoever he had deemed to be his muse that day. Sometimes it was people that they saw whilst getting coffee, or food. Isaac would carry his sketch book around like it was surgically attached and whenever they had downtime he would sketch out a particularly sharp jaw, lips that curled around a straw, or an eye, narrowed in suspicion. It took a whole hour of pretending to be working on his paper for Stiles to realise that that one was him. He was oddly flattered by the image, he didn't know why.Isaac would disappear for a day or two every now and again, often when he had no classes or a long weekend. Stiles never asked him where he went, it was like an unspoken agreement, only Stiles couldn't help noticing some things. Like the drawings were getting distinctly recognisable, even if they never blended into a whole person. Once Stiles realised that Alison was Isaac's muse he convinced himself to forget, or at least never to think about it.That was a whole truck load of drama he didn't want to be involved in. The less he knew the better, Scott was his best friend, but Alison and Isaac were also his friends. He knew, when they graduated that Scott and Isaac weren’t together, neither were Isaac and Alison, but the possibility of either was there.Of course his lack of acknowledgement on the subject didn't save him from walking in to find Isaac and Alison on the man's bed. Naked but sleeping. Stiles had backed out of the room so fast that he hadn't seen Isaac's eyes open, or the furrowed brow. They never talked about it and that was fine. It was okay. Stiles was going to kill all three of them if this fucked things up for the pack. Thankfully time moved steadily forward and nobody brought it up.The first year flew by, and before they knew it they were packing up their things to never return to the dorm that had been their home, for a while at least. Stiles had applied for special dispensation to stay in campus housing for another year but the look on Isaac's face when he realised this was confusing. He had cocked his head, blinking a little as if Stiles was being obtuse for no reason when he had enquired as to why the man was looking at him funny. The drive back to Beacon Hills was quieter than usual. It wasn't long and it wasn't as if neither of them had been back at all since starting at Berkley. Admittedly Isaac had returned more than Stiles had, but his dad got it. He was busy too and there was no need to disturb the peace that had apparently descended on the small town.Once they arrived back in town it was decided that Stiles would drop Isaac and his stuff back at the now rebuilt Hale house. Of course once they arrived it was a flurry of activity and Stiles got drawn back into the hustle and bustle of their friends, of the fun of it all. Everyone had gossip to share, stories to tell and the day devolved quickly into a pack night. Derek and Peter sat on the periphery, quietly amused at the antics of the teenagers surrounding them. Stiles was enjoying the peace of not being the loudest or strongest personality in the group when Erica had to go and ruin it all."Okay so when are we going to talk about the elephant in the room?" she had snickered when a lull in conversation had resulted in them all moving into the kitchen to peruse take-out menu's. Everyone looked around, stopping their bickering over what to order and several looks of confusion flashed up on various faces."What are you talking about Erica?" Alison frowned when Erica only waved her hands instead of elaborating."Dude! Stiles got hot!!" she exclaimed loudly and all eyes shot to him. He felt the colour rise to his cheeks and scrubbed his hand over the back of his head. He made a series of noises which conveyed confusion, bewilderment and a general air of nonsense that they were all used to."Wait..." Alison cocked her head, a slow smile spreading over her face. "I think she might be right?""No way, Erica has had a boner for Stiles since like third grade when he Knight in Shining Armoured her when she had a seizure. She is in no way an indicator of anything." Jackson argued, frowning at Stiles himself. "No offence.""Oh full offence, look at him." Erica crowed. "Whist yes I had a crush on the only one of you jerks to ever be nice to me when I was young, awkward and quiet. I am not blind. He always had that look of being possibly hot, he was just surrounded by people who had more easily noticeable and less awkward qualities.""Like what?" Lydia asked, and that was her thinking face. Stiles was doomed, he tried to edge himself backwards and flailed when he hit a stool that someone, probably him, had pulled away from the bench."Okay so Scott has the puppy-eyed charm, Jackson and Danny are jocks and the muscles are apparent. Same with Boyd only he isn't a jock. Isaac is tall, blonde and sensitive." Erica pointed out slowly, everyone shrugged and accepted her assessment with grudging approval. "But Stiles was always classically handsome, it was just covered in quirks that were more apparent. He talks a lot, he flails and is awkward, and covers that in being the funny one.""What about Derek?" he heard Scott ask and swung his head around to eye his best friend who was looking distinctly mischievous."Derek?""Yeah, you described all of us but left him out." Scott pointed out and there was a murmur of agreement that shifted around the group."Well Derek doesn't count, for one I was just talking about the eight of us who went to high school together." When everyone only continued to stare however she sighed, loudly. "Fine, Derek doesn't count because he is the hottest man in this group, hands down, without a doubt. In fact the general hotness scale of this group went up by several degree's when we all started hanging out as a proper pack. I mean.. look at the guy." Everyone followed the direction and Stiles watched Derek try to shrink away from the scrutiny.Peter disrupted the assessing gazes and nods of agreement by appearing with nowhere with a announcement that he had ordered Pizza's and wings, that they would be here in an hour. Stiles breathed a sigh of relief when the conversation was derailed as everyone argued about toppings, and sauces. How Peter knew what to order and why he had just taken the decision from them. With a shit eating grin he turned back to the group and took them right back to the point."I figured this had become less important to the very real discussion happening around me.""Dude! You couldn't have just kept your mouth shut?" Stiles grumbled and Peter laughed loudly."Dude!" he mocked, "Wait until your dad sees the tattoo's and this conversation will look like a walk in the park."Tattoo's?""When did you get a tattoo?""You hate needles.""Why didn't you tell me?"Everyone's voices overlapped and rang out almost in unison and Stiles rolled his eyes."Yes I have three tattoo's, two of them were designed for me by Isaac. Yes I do hate needles, but turns out that is more about a shaft of metal piercing inches into my skin, more than the scratch and burn of a tattoo gun. I got my first one about three months into living on campus and saw it in a window, was instantly obsessed with the art style and my ADHD took over." Stiles explained."Why didn't you tell me?" Scott repeated his question and Stiles smiled softly at his best friend."Scott, I'll be honest, I didn't think you could keep it a secret." Stiles informed him, then burst into laughter at the look of outrage on Scott's face. "Oh come on, your Mom would have found out about thirty minutes after you did and then my Dad would know less than three minutes later. It wasn't worth it.""Can we see?" Alison asked next, sliding between Isaac and Scott and Stiles ignored the looks they both shot her, then each other. He wasn't going to ask, nope definitely not. Never. He flitted from face to face before taking a deep breath."Fine." He turned his back on the group and shrugged the open plaid shirt off one shoulder to show the art work that took up one shoulder. His vest was just low enough in the back to show most of it off and the ooh's and ahh's from the group where gratifying. Erica rushed forward and all but dragged his shirt off his arm, so they could get a better look, only someone cleared their throat and she backed off. Sheepish but oddly gleeful and hiding it badly."That's um, it's.. pretty big for a first tattoo." Derek's voice rose over the other's and Stiles made to turn back around only he was stopped by a hand on his arm."It's wasn't my first, it's my favourite." He explained, shrugging his shirt all the way off now that everyone had backed up a step."What is it?" Scott tilted his head, as if a new perspective might give him some insight."It's a Fuchsias 'Claudia'." at the blank looks he explained. "It's a flower, I got Isaac to draw it for me after I met this girl who was doing a minor in landscaping that lives in our dorm. She had made these window boxes for every room and asked us all nicely if we would be willing to help her with a project. She wanted to add colour to the building, she was kind of a hippy. Anyway she was telling me about this flower that looks like a ballerina and I was only half listening until she told me it's name.""Oh, for your Mom?" Scott asked, ghosting his fingers over the bright pink petals that curved upwards. The flowers looked like they were dancing a duo almost, behind them was a purposeful and faded green collection of leaves and branches that bloomed outwards until two separate delicate branches broke from the rest. One curved over his shoulder and the other snaked down to mid-bicep. The one that curled over his shoulder with smaller buds dotted in and around culminated on his chest. He turned to pull his vest away and show them the Hummingbird, dark green and grey that fluttered over his heart, It's almost magenta neck, the only pop of colour besides the smaller flower that it was drinking from."Wow, that's really beautiful Stiles." Alison commented, "But why a Hummingbird?""Oh. That's what his dad used to call him when we were little, said he couldn't keep still for longer than five minutes, and that was only when he was eating." Scott filled them in and the pack chuckled. It described Stiles to a T."So.." Derek cleared his throat again, his ears had gone a darker shade of pink. "What was your first tattoo?"Stiles laughed then, scratching at his head, looking a little embarrassed. He bit his lip a little before he raised his shirt and there on his rib, was a full moon. It's outline was a light grey, almost invisible with the craters, splotches of darker and darker greys. It was almost delicate. The tiny, yet solid black wolf that howled an inch lower a stark contrast. The room seemed to still a little, Stiles avoided everyone's eyes and lowered his shirt before holding out his forearm."This is my latest one. I wanted a geometric arrow and this is what Isaac came up with after he came back from a visit back here. He said he had drawn it in the middle of the night, half-asleep and when he showed me it I loved it, so." he shrugged, pulling his shirt back on, he raised his head and waited for the teasing."I see it now." Jackson nodded, almost shocked, either at himself or Stiles, the latter wasn't sure. Lydia high-fived him and Alison giggled. She shared a look with Isaac who shrugged and finally the conversation turned to something else. Peter nudged Derek and the two disappeared, only to return with two stacks of pizza and wing boxes and just like that they were back to normal. Eating and throwing shade at each other in a way that only friends can as they bickered about movies and whose turn it was to pick.Later it was decided that nobody was going home, all to sleepy and comfortable to move very far. Derek showed Stiles to a room that was across from his, where he steadily got ready for bed before wandering out into the darkened hallway to find the bathroom. The house was quiet and dark, the corridors lit only by the windows that threw shafts of light against the hardwood floors. He was almost back in his room when he heard the groan, drawn out and pleasured. He hustled as fast as he could but wasn't lucky enough to avoid hearing Isaac's name moaned in a distinctly male voice, or the tinkle of a feminine giggle that followed. He closed the door and welcomed the silence, pressing the heel of his hands into his eyes until he saw spots. He still wasn't going to ask. Of course the next morning he had the infinitely shitty luck of meeting Alison in the hallway, semi dressed in a pair of men's boxers and Scott's shirt from the night before."Hi Stiles." she had whispered,"Hey." he grumbled, his voice wasn't used to being awake and he needed coffee."Sleep well?" she questioned innocently."Oh peachy, you know once I bleached by brain a little." he felt only slightly vindictive when her eyes widened before her face settled into cool indifference. "You know? The good thing about this house, is that if you close the doors properly, they are almost entirely sound proofed."Alison narrowed her eyes at him, assessing him for a second as he poured his coffee and he met her stare steadily."Noted."Of course Scott had tried to corner him about the issue before he actually drove home a few hours later but Stiles had only held up his hand. Explaining to his bestest buddie in the whole wide world that whilst he was very happy for him, and would take his calls if he needed advice. He absolutely drew the line at details, of any kind. Scott had hugged him hard before bouncing back up the house where Isaac was waiting.The visit was largely uneventful after that until John walked into Stiles room without knocking and saw the tattoo on his back. That had resulted in a whole discussion culminating in John saying he had no issues with Stiles expressing himself in any way he liked and tears when Stiles explained the meaning behind his favourite tattoo. Stiles wanted to smack himself for worrying, of course his dad wasn't going to be mad or disappointed. He had always made sure Stiles knew that there wasn't much he could do that would result in ridicule from John, and for a brief moment Stiles had forgotten that.**College after that and his subsequent visits home were easier. The reason for Isaac's look of confusion about living arrangements became apparent, when a couple of days before their new year began he drove them back to Berkeley. Only they didn't stop at the dorms, instead they moved passed the college to an apartment building. Where he was gleefully informed that Derek had arranged the lease for them, and was paying half the rent. He tried to be mad but couldn't, Derek had never liked the thought of his pack so spread out. Especially when housed around such large numbers, some of which were obviously Were's of some kind.So his new year was less fraught with the anxiety that had plagued him that first year. Trying not to stress about housing, money, jobs was hard work. Once he knew he had more leeway thanks to Derek and his over-protective tendencies, those melted away. Worries about what his father would think about his course changes, how the pack would react to how much he had changed in his new environment, also disappeared. Most of it admittedly physical, outer changes, but enough that he was worried he would need to justify his choices or get shit for how he looked. He had allowed a beard to grow, both through laziness and a bet that had started amongst his dorm mates. He had visited a barber eventually and they had trimmed and faded it until it lined his jaw, leaving him with a connected goatee that he had never envisioned for himself before. He liked it though and had kept up with its upkeep as much as he could with his course load.As the years passed his relationship with the pack changed and evolved, until he no longer questioned his place. A squishy human who was no longer one hundred and forty seven pounds, but still fragile bone. His defences had changed too, utilising his sarcasm differently and his often biting words that could hurt and sting had lessened, the more his defensiveness fell within the group.Of course living with Isaac meant he saw sometimes a little too much of his best friends naked backside but it was a peril he learned to put up with. Especially once they came up with house rules, most important of which, was no fucking in communal areas. The arrangement worked well for them for the rest of their college stay.As he and Isaac got closer and closer to the end of their final year, Stiles began thinking about what he would do now, with a degree in history under his belt, he didn't have many career options. Fortunately or otherwise, he had yet to decide, it was suddenly decided for him when his professor approached him after their final assignment had been submitted.Stiles enjoyed his coding classes, they were oddly peaceful, the tap tapping of keys on a keyboard the only noise that often permeated the room unless his professor was giving a lecture, and those never lasted long. Their final assignment had been to create a concept for a video or mobile game. The theme had been open and the only parameters being that it would be geared to audiences of teen or above.Stiles had dived in, drawing from life experience and using his knowledge of the supernatural, mythology and lore. He had created a concept that had the main protagonist thrown into a world he thought was folklore, purely by accident. The protagonist then had to manoeuvre through worlds, interacting with witches, werewolves and various other beasties until he could find his way home. There was even a hunter that would pop up at odd intervals, imparting wisdom or warnings, sometimes peddling falsehoods and the trick was to know which was which. Once he had the outline down, he had explained it to Isaac. The man had been his sounding board a lot, he would listen to Stiles talk, pointing things out or not until Stiles brain worked through his blocks. Then he would knuckle down and get whichever assignment or essay out in record time. This time Isaac had asked about the ways in which the protagonist could collect information, did he just find it, how would that stop the game from getting boring."It's puzzle based." Stiles had explained."Yeah but like how?""You know like... Huh?" he hadn't thought past that point and went back to his work. Hours later, Isaac shut the lamp off, reminding Stiles to try and get some sleep at some point before going to bed. Three days, countless red bulls and Isaac feeding him many, many sandwiches later he had not only created a concept but the first three levels of a puzzle game that would follow along with the story. Allowing the character to collect amulets, books, information or whatever else they needed to defeat the villain du jour, or save the village.Needless to say his professor was impressed. The game still had its bugs and glitches but he received top marks and was happy. Only for a month later, with no class to attend Stiles was woken up early by the ringing of his laptop. Rolling out of bed in his boxers, he figured it was Scott or one of the pack and answered the call without really checking to see who was calling. He flailed wildly when the amused voice of his former professor came out over the speakers. He had been mid stretch and almost fell over in his haste to cover himself up."Hello Stiles. I am sorry about the early morning call." The man had chuckled, Stiles narrowed his eyes good naturedly from his blanket burrito and the man had sobered. "Do you have plans for lunch?""Not that I know of? Was something wrong with my assignment?, Did I miss something?" Stiles could feel the panic rising fast and furious until his professor had smiled and waved away his concerns."No. I have a friend that would like to meet you, he was as impressed with your work and wanted to talk to you about your game." The man explained."My game?" Stiles was bewildered."Yes, see I have an old college friend who has an eye for these things and I wanted his opinion. He had been my go to for the grading process and when I showed him your work he was fascinated. He wanted to know more, and since I only have what you handed in. I wondered if you might be free to meet us for lunch so he could discuss it with you directly." There was something the man wasn't telling him, but Stiles was intrigued enough to agree to the meet. They made small talk for a few minutes before confirming the address and time before signing off.Stiles sat static at his computer for almost a full half hour before his brain kicked in and he called Lydia. He explained what was happening and she had been instantly suspicious. He trusted her instincts and after hashing out a plan, it was agreed that he wouldn't hand over anything and would consult with her after the meeting. She lamented the fact that he hadn't gotten the name of the 'old college friend' but he said he would text her live updates.Dressing a little more carefully than normal, Stiles made his way to the café that they had arranged to meet at and wasn't surprised to see his professor sitting with a man and a woman. Both in business attire and instantly Stiles was a little worried. He wasn't qualified for whatever this was. They noticed him enter and he waved awkwardly before approaching the counter and ordering a large coffee. Once properly caffeinated he approached the table and took a seat. Over the course of the meeting he had kept Lydia updated as promised, ignoring the strings of exclamation points she kept sending him until finally the two people in front of him cut the chit chat."We want to offer you a job." One of them had informed him."With a view to creating this game, and then you would be tasked with assisting existing teams with other projects." The other interrupted.They talked around and over each other for whole minutes and Stiles listened diligently. He asked if they wouldn't mind him making notes and instead he relayed every bit of information to Lydia. Once they were done with their sales pitch it was pretty apparent that they saw potential in his game, and wanted to develop it. But it was also apparent that he would only be the lead creator, with a salary and wouldn't be compensated for his idea, or his concept.Stiles had abruptly asked them how much of a cut of the earnings would he receive and had gained a proud smile from his professor. The woman had narrowed her eyes at him and not for the first time he saw the ruthless streak in her, but this time it was intensified. They guy however chuckled."You're smart. I like that." The woman had sputtered a little at the man's pronouncement and Stiles admitted that he hadn't been making notes, rather than conferring with his lawyer. The belly laugh that had erupted from the man was loud and boisterous enough that it had turned more than a few heads. The woman looked incensed at his audacity but Stiles ignored her. This man reminded him a little of Peter, playful but with an air of challenge about him.They discussed setting up a formal meeting and exchanged contact details. Stiles had thanked them, shook hands with the three people at the table and left. He made it three blocks before he almost hyperventilated himself into a gutter. Luckily Lydia had answered and talked him down whilst demanding a play by play. Lydia instructed him to go home and not set up any meetings until she got back to him.A week later he was at in a large glass and steel skyscraper that scraped the San Francisco skyline, Lydia by his side and together they hashed out a contract. Lydia had been quite ruthless herself in negotiating his cut of the proceeds and an initial payment, matching the energy of the woman he had met in the coffee shop. Neither party had agreed to sign until it had been reviewed and Lydia had objectively turned down their request for a view of the code. Stiles was glad that he hadn't submitted more than the small portion allotted by the assignment. Having only to present the work and submit a video of game play there was nothing that could be sold out from under him.Stiles moved back to Beacon Hills with a degree, a remote job, a signing bonus and a concept shared partnership sale that culminated in more zeroes than his bank account had ever seen. He was flabbergasted and more than a little stressed out. The familiar sights and sounds of his hometown were a soothing balm to his soul, only it didn't last long.**Stiles slumped backwards onto the bed, his shoulders and arms were burning from moving boxes and furniture all day. It had been hard work even with Derek and Scott helping, Peter had even chipped in. Stiles was pooped. The sun had began to set on the day as they were loading the last of Stiles essentials into the jeep from the storage unit. Luckily he'd had the wherewithal to mark the boxes as he was packing, so it made the job that little bit easier. Moving from Berkeley back to Beacon Hills was a chore. Thankfully they had managed to sell most of their furniture before they had to leave his and Isaac's apartment. Sighing deeply he stretched his shoulders out and a deep tiredness settled into his muscles.His plan had always been to move back to Beacon Hills once he had finished with college. The pack had stabilised in his last year at high school, and Derek and Scott had come to an accord. Their pack would always be viewed as strange by others, two Alpha's sharing responsibility was odd. However Stiles thought that was nothing compared to the fact that they weren’t made up of entirely werewolves. A Banshee on the roster, several humans and the rest being betas, it was unusual but it worked for them. Deaton of course kept trying to push for the weird dynamic to straighten itself out, whatever that meant. But Stiles thought it suited them, their odd little cobbled together family.Rubbing his face vigorously he sat up and shook the thoughts from his head, it was working, he had no reason to have anxiety about it, no matter what Deaton said. Standing slowly , he cracked his back and moved to his suitcase to rifle through it for some pyjamas. He would take a shower, go and eat some pizza with the guys that were still downstairs and then collapse into his bed. Tomorrow and the unpacking could wait.John, Derek and Peter were the only ones left when he finally made it downstairs, hair still wet from the shower and trying to dredge up enough energy for anything. Slumping onto the sofa next to Derek he blinked down at the paper plate loaded with Pizza that the man handed to him. There was at least one slice from each pizza box and Stiles tried to will his arms to move. Letting his head fall sideways to rest on Derek's shoulder he yawned widely."I don't think I have enough energy to be hungry." Stiles warned them. His father and Peter rolled their eyes, but he was honestly too exhausted to even dredge up a token response, laced with his usual sarcasm. Putting the top most slice to his lips, he took a bite and chewed slowly. Swallowing it even seemed like a chore, so he closed his eyes and told himself he just needed a minute.He came partially back to awareness when his pillow shifted, his brain tried to tell him pillows weren’t sentient but he didn't care. Whining a little, he reached one hand up and gripped onto the fabric to keep it still and snuggled back into the warmth. A soft rumble under his ear threatened to wake him further, but it abated quickly. He had a weird dream involving Peter, his father and some very awkward flirting about handcuffs. But that threatened to emotionally scar him so he discarded it when he began to wake.The house was dark, the TV in the living room was playing some British baking show that Derek was oddly obsessed with and he was pressed against the man. His face burrowed into his neck, stubbly check resting gently against his forehead and Stiles sighed."Times it?" he yawned."Half past eleven." Derek informed him softly."Oh man is that all." he whined before levering himself upright. He stared down at his lap, sure that something was missing before squinting up at Derek who chuckled."Your dad put your pizza in the microwave." The couch dipped as Derek pressed his hands into the cushions to push himself to stand. He reached for Stiles hands and made him follow suit before nudging him towards the stairs case. It didn't take much convincing for Derek to get him to go to bed, he could still barely keep his eyes open. Thanking Derek for all his help when they got to his room, Derek reminded him that pack had each other's back. He tried to chortle a little at the unintentional poetry but when his head hit his pillow he was out like a light once again.The next morning he rolled over, remembered that he had basically snuggled up to one of his best friends and then refused to let him go. Burying his head back into his pillow he groaned loudly."Morning kiddo." his Dad greeted as he climbed the stairs, back from his shift and probably what had woken him in the first place. "Did Derek leave?""No Dad, he's hiding under your bed, what do you think?" he snarked, hoping his father wouldn't bring up Derek for the rest of the day."Touchy. You sleep okay?" John questioned as he rested his shoulder against Stiles door jamb."Yeah, sorry. I just... I think I'm still tired from yesterday." Stiles rubbed his eyes and sat up, trying to stretch and get his body back into the rhythm of being awake."Well at least you can have a lazy day today before you have to sort your stuff out. Maybe chill out, watch a few movies." Stiles shrugged at him, before John waved his hand at his grumpy son and moved away to go to his own bedroom. "I'm going to bed, night son."Stiles called the same sentiments back before making his way into the bathroom and getting ready for the day. Whilst he brushed his teeth he made a mental catalogue of all the things he would need to do before he had to check back in with his boss. They were coding his game and Stiles had been granted a week off to move back home, most of his work was done on the computer so he was allowed to work remotely. He was valuable to the company enough to allow it which was good. They would require him to drive up to Berkley once a week to check in, but otherwise he wouldn't need to go far. He could at least be happy that most of the hard part about moving was over.Once he had brushed and collected his toiletries he decided that he would have a shower before he went to the grocery store to pick up refills of his bath products and any other essentials that he would need. He had purposefully allowed his oversupply tendencies to wane in the months before he moved home, so it would be easier, but he desperately needed to restock. Making a list in his head as he washed his hair, he made sure he wouldn't forget anything. He needed new deodorant, he'd had to use Derek's yesterday as he had ran out that morning and it smelled good. He never got the brand but he figured he might remember the can when he got to the store. He briefly questioned if it would be creepy if he bought the same one, but his mind swiftly reminded him he had other issues with Derek's scent that were more prevalent. Derek always smelled so good, a nice mix of the woods, aftershave and something he had never been able to identify.Soaping himself up he tried not to think about Derek but as his hand traced lower a picture from yesterday flashed into his mind's eye. Derek had whipped his shirt off as the baking sun had beat down on them all and the sweat had begun to collect in his pits and at his collar. His muscles flexed as he heaved box after box out of the sun and into the storage unit. It was like torture watching the man move like sin personified as he showed off just how strong he was. The image changed then to Derek helping him take some stuff into his room and how Stiles had lost his train of thought when he had bent to put the boxes in the corner. His ass was hugged nicely by his jeans and although Stiles had berated himself silently as he set his computer up, he couldn't help take a peak or two every now and again. Derek was hot as fuck and he wasn't ashamed to admit he wanted the man.Feeling his cock get harder as he thought of Derek's strength, musing to himself at how easy it would be for him to lift Stiles up. Maybe hold him against the wall and really demonstrate just how strong he was. Fuck, his legs weakened just thinking about it. The images changed rapidly, from one fantasy to the next and before long he felt his balls tighten with the tell tale sign of his impending orgasm. It was intense when it hit and Stiles had to squeeze his eyes shut, and rest his hand on the tile to keep his legs underneath him. It didn't matter though because just as he finished and watched his spend spurt towards the drain, the light bulb in the bathroom exploded. Slipping as he startled he almost landed on his ass, he thought he heard more pops and managed to shut the water off and reach for his towel in the darkened room. Just as he wrapped himself up the bathroom door flew open and his Dad darkened the doorway."You okay?" he asked, a little breathless and still half asleep."Yeah, the bulb blew, I'm fine though." he assured the man."Don't move, I'll get you my slippers so you don't get glass in your feet. "John instructed him and Stiles stayed dutifully still in the shower enclosure. He returned quickly with the slippers and Stiles stepped out and into them to follow his dad into the corridor, where he noticed yet more glass."What the hell happened?" he asked as he eyed the fittings in the hallway, each of the bulbs out there had blown too."I don't know, the bulb blew in my room too. Go in your room and get dressed, I'm going to check the breaker." John moved towards the stairs and Stiles moved to quickly comply. It wasn't that strange that one bulb had blown, but the three that had been confirmed so far, was definitely odd. Stiles moved into his room and upped his count to six when he saw the state of his two lamps and main bulb.Gathering his clothes from the open suitcase, he quickly shook out the garments, ensuring there was no glass clinging to them before he pulled on his clothes. Moving to join his father he realised it seemed to be every bulb in the house. John retuned from the basement door and stated that it was clear that the breakers weren't flipped by a power surge. Neither pointed out that the two floors were on separate systems, but the confusion was palpable."You go back to bed Dad, I'll get the vacuum out and try and clean up all the glass." Stiles offered, John nodded, still exhausted from his night shift. He absently reminded Stiles that they had spare bulbs in one of the cabinets, but they would need more if they were going to repair every one in the house. Stiles mentally added them to the list and decided his shopping trip had moved ahead of the other chores on his list. He cleaned each room quickly, ensuring he got as much glass as possible, before he collected his wallet, changed his shoes and climbed into his Jeep.Thankfully the store was empty for so early in the morning, so after stocking up on every bulb he thought they would need, including a few he wasn't sure of. As well as his essentials he checked out and drove home. It wasn't until he pulled up did he see Derek sitting in his Camaro and remembered he was supposed to let Derek in this morning so they could go through his mountain of books and decide what he wanted to keep and what he would donate. Rushing over he apologised profusely and explained what had happened that morning. Derek frowned thoughtfully at the house, before he assured Stiles he would help with the blub removal and replacement.Stiles tried to assure him his didn't have to but the older man explained it was fine, that the job would get done faster if there was two of them. Stiles knew he was right. It didn't take long for them to develop a system, especially after Stiles cut himself for the second time on jagged glass as he tried to unscrew them. Derek would unscrew the broken bulbs, Stiles would take it carefully and deposit it into a bucket he was carrying around, before handing Derek a suitable replacement. Before long the whole house was re-bulbed and they could get to the real reason Derek was here.Going through the boxes of books took a lot longer than either of them anticipated, as they kept breaking off to discuss some of their mutual favourites. There were a lot and some of the jokes and references they lobbied back and forth had them both giggling. Eventually the seven boxes dwindled to four and Stiles was happy. Derek offered to take the unwanted books to the book store, whilst Stiles unpacked his suitcases and his shoes. Making tentative plans to meet up for lunch later. Stiles thanked Derek for all his help and waved at him as he reversed and drove down the street.He made a mental note to ask Deaton if he had any clue as to anything magical or otherwise that could blow a whole house of light bulbs simultaneously. Stiles hoped not, he was really looking forward to living in a quieter version of his hometown. He didn't dare to think about how it hadn't been that quiet since his Junior year and how the other shoe was due to drop soon.**After that Stiles spent two days dealing with his remaining moving related chores before he was ready to get back to work. He still had to join in on zoom meetings however and it was a chore. So once a week he logged in online and went over proposals and projections for an hour, a part of his job that he didn't enjoy. Of course his main job was to develop his game and he had his own team, but as a project head he was required to attend. He wasn't complaining his real part at the company was more than they had ever thought it would be and it was amazing.Arguing still gave him a headache though, so he left his room in search of food or a drink. The house was too quiet and too loud all at once and he could feel he was quickly becoming over stimulated. Pressing his forehead against the bottle of water he retrieved from the fridge he tried to take some deep breaths and calm down. It wasn't working, there was an ache in his chest and it felt like at any minute it was going to burst out of him. Fighting himself and the rising panic he tried to get himself to the living room before he ended up on the floor. He began to count things he could see when the microwave beeped and turned itself on.He whirled around to face it and almost slipped when he stepped on some ice on the floor. The fridge was spitting it out, piece after piece on its own. The coffee maker joined the symphony of noise and was beeping at him too. Clutching his chest he moved out of the room and away, only a flickering in his eye line caught his attention. The TV was flickering form channel to channel, not stopping for even a second before a new face and noise was coming from it. Stiles froze, his vision spotted and he realised too late that he was breathing much too fast. The darkness descended before he could even think of how he was going to fix this.He came to with Derek over him and could have cried. He allowed the man to help him to his feet and swung around to watch the appliances around him. None of them were moving but he couldn't help but swing from one to the next to check. Derek guided his face to look at him after a few minutes and Stiles shook himself."What happened?" he looked shook up and Stiles didn't blame him. He was scared and Derek didn't know the full story yet. Worried that it would sound crazy he hesitated for a second before he remembered what their lives had been like for so many years. He launched into the story, Derek looked sceptical at first. Stiles pointed out the puddle on the floor where the ice had melted and reminded him of the exploding light bulbs. Derek suggested that they go and see Deaton.Of course the man had nothing more for them but some vague ideas and suggestions before promising Stiles that he would be by in the evening to do some tests. Make sure the property hadn't suddenly developed a haunting or poltergeist problem. Frustrated that he hadn't seemed to take them seriously, Stiles left after Derek offered to drive them home."You ever think he will stop being a confusing dick." Stiles bitched as they drove away."As far as I remember he has always been like that." Derek shrugged, "We could go and see if Peter knows anything about it. He has quite a few books about stuff like this.""Stuff like what?" Stiles frowned, "I didn't know he was a ghost enthusiast. I mean I know we have seen a lot of random stuff that I would never have believed a few years ago. But are ghosts even real?""Well it can't hurt to ask." Derek comforted and Stiles agreed. They got to the house and Peter had a lot to say on the subject. Apparently he knew someone who communed with the spirit world on a regular basis. They collected the needed books and Derek dropped Stiles back home. Deaton arrived a little later and they watched as he mixed some herbs and burned them in the fireplace. He instructed Stiles to leave a few windows open and if there was a spirit that the herbs should encourage them to leave.He also smudged the house with sage, which had Stiles biting his tongue. He could have done that but he didn't say anything because the man had eyed him a little too intently for a few minutes when he had arrived. There was something wrong and Deaton wasn't telling them what it was. Stiles promised himself that if whatever it was hurt his father then he would punch the man in the face.Once Deaton left, Derek helped him make dinner and together they watched a few episode of Stiles favourite show. It felt like neither of them wanted Derek to leave but Stiles steeled himself for some serious research and assured Derek he would be fine in the house on his own for a night.Derek had his own theories on what was going on in the Stilinksi house, but as he wasn't sure he didn't want to worry the younger man so he brought his concerns to Peter.Peter was less than enthused about being disturbed again but agreed to look into if the things that Stiles had described as happening. See if they could be induced by magic and if so how they could track the individual. Derek knew that so far the things that had happened hadn't been inherently dangerous but that could quickly change and he wanted to be ready.That night neither he or Stiles slept, both of them worried about what was happening.Over the next few days Derek focuses on the issues with the house but is disheartened when Peter finally gets back to him with a pendant from a magic user he knows in New York. The pendant is supposed to pick up on a magical signature if there is one and will even lead them to the perpetrator. Derek takes the pendant into the house when no one is home. Climbing in through the window of Stiles room he holds the pendant by the leather band and walks around carefully. He follows the advice of Peter's friend and waves it over anything that is of great personal importance to the occupants and gets nothing. There is no magical signature.It's frustrating and Derek feels his claws and teeth shift as he tries to calm his racing thoughts. He knows that Peter and Deaton have been on at him to find a new anchor, to focus on something that will help him control his shift again. He had been struggling more and more since the town began to quiet down with the draining of the Nemeton of its magical energy. It was like with nothing to do, with no anger to channel at the various beasties they were tasked with stopping, his reserves had dwindled.He informed Stiles of the disappointing outcome but was heartened by Stiles optimistic view that at least all they had to do now was hire an electrician to go through the place and find the issue. Derek didn't have the heart to point out that an electricity issue couldn't explain what had happened with several appliances spread across two rooms. Endeavouring to do his own research Derek bid the younger man goodbye and asked for Peter's, magic user friend's information.The magic user turned out to be a woman who was affiliated with a pack on the east coast, she listened diligently as Derek described what was happening. The seemingly simultaneous breaking of every light bulb, the appliances. He had gone into as much detail as he could and then been surprised when she began asking questions about Stiles. His heritage, age, and if he was any kind of supernatural. Derek had been confused at first until he remembered an incident some years before, Stiles had made a circle of mountain ash connect after realising he hadn't had enough. He relayed this information to the woman who enquired how he had done it. Derek admitted that he hadn't known, that their resident druid had stated that it wasn't a remarkable happenstance and they had all moved on.A sigh of frustration came down the line before she had launched into an explanation of the ins and outs of a magical ability. That even with the mountain ash having its own ingrained magical properties, that would not explain how it had magically reproduced enough of itself to complete the circle. She had pressed for more details, whether the circle had held, any other instances of Stiles doing anything similar with the substance. There discussion lasted well into the night and when it was done, Derek knew two things.It was likely that Stiles had an untapped or unrealised magical ability that was seeping from him in an effort to be recognised. It had probably lain dormant until such a time that Stiles had become stressed or it had grown to such an extent inside of him that he simply couldn't unconsciously contain it any longer. When Derek had pointed out that Stiles had just graduated college and he hadn't had a problem. She had regretfully informed him that it probably had seeped some there too, only the events would have been so minor that Stiles wouldn't have noticed.The second thing was that he was going to punch Alan Deaton in the face. Hard.Derek slept fitfully for the rest of the night, worried about what they were going to do and how they were going to help Stiles. The Spark hadn't promised anything but said she would get in contact after she consulted a friend and he would hear from her in a day or so. Derek hoped that wasn't too long and decided he would spend some time at the Stilinski house, hoping that if he was there then he could prevent anyone from getting hurt if another magical accident occurred. Collecting enough things for a few nights he informed Peter of where he was going and drove away.Derek pulled up at the house as the Jeep sped away, Scott and Jackson chasing the vehicle but giving up quickly. Scott wrenched his passenger door almost off its hinges, yelling at Jackson to help John and pushing Derek's bag into the foot well. Derek took off without having to be asked but it was already too late to chase the Jeep anywhere. It had disappeared. They continue driving anyway."Explain." Derek growled and Scott launched into the story."Last night, me and Jackson were talking about going shopping. John had asked Stiles to pick up a few things from the mall for a deputy who was going on maternity leave so we all decided to go together. We were having a good time, it was fun, kinda like old times before the werewolf stuff. Then we went into the toy store." Scott pulled a face, looking a little frightened and Derek's eyebrows rose."It was freaky man, one minute we were messing around in one of the aisles, sword fighting with those lightsabre things, and Jackson jumps out of the end of one of the aisles with a Woody doll and scared me. I always hated that movie as a kid, I almost trashed all of my action figures after watching it. I mean obviously my Mom explained that it wasn't real, and toys couldn't really move and talk on their own. But I had nightmares for weeks. Anyway Stiles laughed, then snatched a teddy off of the shelves and waved it at me. Trying to wind me up, only it's head moved." Scott shuddered."It's head moved? How?" Derek frowned, trying to picture the scene whilst keeping an eye out for the distinctive blue of the Jeep."Like it turned its head, almost one eighty and stared at Stiles. He dropped it and it pushed itself up and tried to stand, obviously with it being a stuffed toy it fell down again, but then it started to pull itself across the floor. Me and Jackson were trying to get to Stiles but toys started falling off the shelves, more bears, action figures, and they all started trying to get to Stiles. He freaked. Threw his bags at them and ran. We followed him but we lost sight of him quickly until Jackson said we should just head to the parking lot. We got there and Stiles was already driving away."Derek blinked a little at the story. There was something missing."Was he agitated before you guys went into the store?" he remembered what the Spark had said, strong negative emotion could cause an accident faster than happy ones. Scott's eyes widened."Yeah," he sighed, confusion warring over his face. "We had just been in the food court and he had almost got into it with a guy who was being a dick to a woman in the line in front of us. He grabbed her and Stiles moved so we followed, we got the guy to back off and escorted the woman to security. Once we left, we decided not to go back for food and just get the trip over with.""Okay, so you guys followed Stiles?" Derek prompted."Oh yeah, well Jackson had drove himself and he had parked in a different lot, obviously the Porsche is faster but we didn't get back in time. Stiles was crying in the living room, and John tried to go to him but the fireplace behind him lit up. I mean from nothing dude, it wasn't even started. Stiles panicked even more, the TV was already going crazy. He ran, out the back door. We tried to go after him but he was already back in the car. That's when you showed up.""So he's decided he's dangerous, thinks he is going to hurt someone, or has already. Where would he go? Somewhere isolated enough that he wouldn't run the risk of running into anyone." Even as he finished the sentence he knew the answer, the small lake at the very edge of the preserve. It was surrounded by rocks on two sides, nobody ever went out there, it stunk of stagnant water. Turning the car around as fast as he could, he pulled off onto the nearest dirt road and sped towards through the preserve.Derek had never been more happy that he was right when they pulled up a few metres away and there was the car. The engine was still running but they couldn't see much else. They got out to get closer and there he was, still sat behind the wheel and muttering to himself, waving his hands around in agitation. Scott and Derek argued in whispers about who should be the one to approach, Scott won, stating he was Stiles best friend and Derek agreed, begrudgingly. He rounded the car on the other side, far enough away that hopefully Stiles wouldn't notice him right away. He listened as Stiles tearfully made plans to run away, reminding himself he had enough money, he could find some secluded land and keep away from people so he didn't hurt them.Scott tried to approach slowly but Stiles saw him and yelled. Telling him to leave, to go away. Scott said he would as soon as Stiles told him what was going on. Stiles ranted wildly that he was dangerous, a bad friend and that he'd almost hurt his dad. He couldn't be trusted and they should all let him leave. He looked only a second from breaking and Derek knew the stand off couldn't last long. Moving closer he listened carefully.Stiles explained that he can't control it. That he made the bears move, but then couldn't stop them, that they chased him because they knew what he was. That he was going to hurt someone. Scott tried to talk him down, telling Stiles that he would never, that he couldn’t. Stiles shook his head, and Scott edged closer but the Jeep roared, lurching forward like it was gunning for Scott and the young Alpha froze. Stiles took his hands off of the wheel and the car cut out, but Stiles breathing got worse and he was begging Scott. Pleading with him to leave, between halting breathes and stuttered words.Derek decided enough was enough but before he could implement his plan, Stiles went slack against the seat and slumped over. Both he and Scott rushed forward and sighed in relief when they realised Stiles had passed out. They both manoeuvred Stiles into the passenger seat before Derek told Scott to take his car. To collect John and get him to the house. Scott agreed and disappeared before Derek started the Jeep and carefully drove through the trees and under brush. It was dense and he briefly wondered how Stiles had got here in the first place but he didn't muse on it long. Hoping Stiles would stay unconscious until he could get him to safety. He barely puts the car in park before he climbed out and carried Stiles into the safe room. It was built to withstand out of control Were's and was dampened against magic. He carefully laid Stiles on the bed inside and backed out.Pulling his phone from his pocket he called Annette, the Spark and filled her in on what had happened. She told him to keep Stiles contained, that a friend of hers was already on his way, she had been planning to call him later, once he was already in California. She apologised for not contacting him sooner and they hung up. Derek stayed outside the room, slumping down to rest his back against the wall opposite the door and waited, hoping that they could do something for Stiles before it was too late."He okay?" John's voice echoed through the dull corridor and Derek's revere was broken."He got really worked up, passed out. His heart is beating and his breathing is even, I think he wore himself out." Derek theorised."Scott filled me in, says that Stiles is probably the reason for all the weird goings on that have been happening." John crouched, before moving to sit next to Derek."Yeah, I talked to someone last night, she knows someone who can help. They are on the way, I was going to tell Stiles this morning that there might be something we could do to help but..""It was already too late," John finished for him. "It wasn't your fault son, none of us saw this coming. If anyone is to blame it's me." Derek raised a tired eyebrow and John dutifully elaborated."When he was eleven his Mom died, and it was hard on us for a while. Stiles more than me, I lost a wife, the mother to my kid, but Stiles he lost his Mom. She was who would read him stories before bed, made his lunches with smiley faces cut into his sandwiches. She was his everything. I worked too much and when she died I didn't help him, I disappeared into a bottle. Until one day I got a phone call at work. Stiles needed to be picked up from school, there had been an incident and he wouldn't calm down. I drove over, they obviously knew what we were dealing with at home so I figured it had something to do with that." John squeezed his eyes shut and tipped his head back against the wall."Stiles was in the nurses office, he had a bloody nose and a band aid on his forehead. I flipped and was raging at the teachers before I got the whole story. Until this little face, with big brown eyes tugged on my shirt and I broke. I was leaving this kid to fend for himself and I started crying with him." John chuckled darkly then."He calmed me down. Hugged me so hard I thought his little arms were going to break and said everything was going to be okay. We sat there, Stiles muttering to me, placating me and I couldn't take it any more. I scooped him up and just got up to walk out. Only I didn't make it far before the principal was calling for me. There were three boys in his office, all with their parents and they needed Stiles version of events. Turns out this little brat had decided that he was going to tell Stiles that the reason his Mom died, was to get away from him and Stiles had lost it. Lunged at the kid, Scott all of ten himself had jumped in when the kid had shoved Stiles hard enough to knock his head on the playground. Of course the bigger kid had fought him off easily, he was about as skinny as Stiles back then and asthmatic." Derek smiled weakly when John did."The third kid, someone who I never thought would have jumped to Stiles defence had eventually tackled the kid when he had gone to kick Stiles while he was down, punched him so hard he knocked a tooth out. I took him home and got him settled. That night I threw away every bottle I could find but later I was heading to bed and I heard him talking. I peaked my head in and he is talking to a poster of Spiderman he had on his wall. I left, but to this day I wonder if I didn't see the thing nod it's head like it was really listening." John finished and Derek gaped."He was doing things back then?""Not that I saw, past that poster nodding along to Stiles story and I convinced myself I was seeing things. But there were little things that looking back, I really can't explain. After that everything eventually settled down, I mean there was still the grief and the pain, but there were never any more fights." John explained, "If I had seen it sooner, maybe I could have helped him before now.""John you can't blame yourself, you didn't know any of this was possible before now." John shrugged at Derek's pronouncement. They sat in silence for a few minutes longer until a croaky voice broke it."Jackson got in so much trouble for that. He didn't let that kid hurt me again after that though." Stiles laughed dry before coughing so hard he had to turn sideways on the bed. Derek and John jumped to their feet but Stiles held his hands up and they paused. He all but begged them not to come in and Derek assured him that he couldn't hurt anyone whilst he was in that room. It was built to dampen magic, but there were snacks in the cabinet and water in the fridge. Stiles nodded in relief and climbed to his feet shakily, swallowing a whole bottle of water before he made it back to the bed.They tried everything after that to convince him that he wasn't dangerous but when he started to get agitated again they backed off. He turned over in the bed and asked them to leave him alone, he was tired. They agreed but not before Derek informed him that there was someone coming to help, that they would be there soon. Stiles showed no indication that he had heard but Derek knew he was awake. Together he and John made their way slowly back up the stairs. The pack needed an explanation.**The call came early the next morning, it was Deaton and for a moment Derek considered letting it go to voicemail. He wasn't entirely sure he could keep his cool with the vet at the minute. Derek was convinced he'd known what Stiles was and had done nothing to help any of them. Holding on to his already shaky control Derek accepted the call then put it on speaker before John or Peter could ask.The rest of the pack besides Scott had gone to bed, he knew they weren’t actually sleeping, much like the rest of the pack but he appreciated the effort at normalcy."Yes Hello." he greeted."I'm on my way, I had a surprise visitor and would like to introduce you to him." Deaton's voice echoed a little, he must have already been in the car. Derek heard a sarcastic snort in the background of the call but when nothing further came down the line he informed them they would be waiting and hung up. Tossing the phone onto the counter, Derek hunched over and rested his elbows beside it."I hope this works." he whispered."Me too." John and Peter chorused, taking a deep breath, Derek stood, cracking his neck and back before making his way to the front porch. He needed a minute. The crisp cool air of the morning washed over him and he felt the urge to shift, to run. To go and explore and be a wolf for a while but he couldn't. Praying for his wolf to keep calm and promising that it would be free soon he counted his breathes until he heard the tires of a car crunch on gravel.The car drove ever closer until inexplicably it stopped, only a few feet from where the Jeep was still parked haphazardly. He could see a man, sat next to a pale looking Deaton. The older man was clutching the steering wheel hard and staring ahead of him. He looked afraid and Derek sucked in a breathe. He couldn't hear them but he could see the man's lips moving. He had a pleasant smile on his face but Deaton didn't look like that was much comfort. After a few minutes the car picked back up and whatever barrier had been shielding them lifted. Once stopped, Deaton and his friend alighted from the car and approached Derek."Alpha Hale, I have come at the request of Annette, a Spark and Emissary of the Fongolio Pack in Brooklyn." The man spoke ducking his head as if bowing before standing tall once again."And you are?" Derek asked. He had been told to double check the man's identity before he allowed him in the house, there wasn't a lot he agreed with Peter on but this he could do."With every passing day a werewolves life is a never-ending battle between its human side and lupine side, but with each you must learn balance." The man quoted and Derek relaxed. Annette had passed on the quote and the guy had read it word for word. "I'm Jonathan Carter, I am a Spark and a teacher.""I'm pleased to meet you. Thank you for coming so quickly." Derek held out his hand and the man shook it. Derek waved at them to follow him, ignoring the put out look Deaton shot him, he wasn't going to acknowledge the man, just in case he felt the urge to rip his throat out. "Stiles is this way.""Please I need to speak to the pack first, if that would be okay?" Carter requested and Derek changed course. Leading the pair into the kitchen he nodded to the seat's around the large table. Footsteps sounded on the stairs and slowly each member of the pack appeared, some rumpled and other's wide eyed from lack of sleep. Derek introduced them all as they rounded the door and began to take seats around the table."Ah, this is very pleasing. I am so glad to see you all and I must say, I love when a pack's bonds are as bright and strong as yours." The man smiled wide and Derek blinked, Scott opened his mouth but John beat him to the question."You can see the bonds?""Well I am very old, and have been at this longer than all of you have been alive. I can see each and every bond as it twists and turns from person to person. I have had this ability since I was a child but it wasn't until my heritage was realised did I truly understand what it meant." Carter filled them in. "I can see the scepticism on all your faces.""You look about thirty, how is that possible?" Peter questioned and Derek had to agree the man hardly looked old enough. His silver hair shined as it swept over his forehead, tied but not securely, in a messy bun behind his ear. His thin lips twitched, and his nose wrinkled."I am part Fae, my mother was an incredible woman who escaped her world's binding when she fell in love with the human she had been sent to lure to his death. I grew up and was kept from my heritage by my mother who assumed that had I known I would have been forced back into the fold. When an accident happened and I survived I went home and that's when she told me what I was. Since then I have been learning and teaching, young people like myself who were kept from their heritage." He shot a dirty look then at Deaton who seemed to shrink back a little. "Don't you worry, the council has been informed of your inaction. They will see fit what to do about it.""Inaction? Council?" Scott frowned, he genuinely liked his boss even if he could be a bit confusing at times."I will explain with time. For now I need you all to close your eyes and feel for that warmth inside of you, that feeling of comfort and safety. Can you do that?" Everyone shared looks, some more bewildered than anything else. When they all nodded, Carter clapped his hands together and stood."Now I can see that the young Spark is indeed loved in this pack. There are connections winding in and through everyone of you that speak of love, familiarity, respect and adoration. This will only make my job easier. I want you to focus on those bonds that you feel and convey through them everything you feel for the young man downstairs and we..." he paused then, head cocked to the side and Derek cracked one eye open followed by the other. Carter met his stare with a smile on his face and Derek felt anxiousness rise inside of him. "We will begin."Carter instructed them all to open their eyes and everyone had varied expressions on their faces. Derek felt the pack bonds flare when everyone had been sending their chosen signals and he knew, that each of them loved Stiles in their own way."Now, I was informed that his mother is dead, is there a way that you might still have something of the woman's that I might examine? It needs to be something that may still carry her essence, or something she deeply connected with. " Carter eyed the two older men at the table, he was pretty sure who Stiles father was but he didn't want to presume."I can get you something from home." The man at the head of the table spoke and Carter for the first time realised what a varied and unique pack he was dealing with. The head of the table was usually reserved for the Alpha, a position of power but the man had ceded the seat to someone lesser in the pack. Smiling he thanked the man before turning to Deaton."I need seven clover leaves, a branch from a growing tree, fourteen unopened walnuts and some sweetened condensed milk. " Carter didn't wait for Deaton to respond, turning back to his bag he pulled out a large book and two thin crystals. Placing them at equal distant apart he flipped the book open to the first page. Scott offered to go with Deaton and John accompanied the pair out of the house. "You have the man in a magically dampened room, is that correct?""Yes, I had it commissioned when I rebuilt the place in case of emergency. Stiles thinks he is a danger to all of us and it seemed like the best place to put him until we could convince him otherwise." Derek informed him, Carter hummed and swiped several pages before settling on a text that looked like it was in another language. Humming again he rose to his feet and asked Derek to lead the way.Once they got downstairs Derek opened the door and Stiles reacted instantly, flinging himself from the bed and backing against the wall."Would you come out here please?" Carter asked and Derek expected nothing less when Stiles shook his head. "I will not allow any harm to come to any of your family or friends, you are perfectly safe to leave this room. I offer my bond as a Spark and my life as a Fae Halfling as a boon to guarantee these words. Do you accept?""What does that mean?" Stiles asked and Derek smiled."It means that should I fail in my task of protection I will have my Spark taken from me and my Fae heart snuffed, which seeing as I have lived well past what is usual for a human means I will surely die. Do you accept? You only need to reach past the wards and we will shake an agreement that you will feel snap into place around our wrists." Carter explained."Like an unbreakable vow?" Stiles squeaked and Carter cackled."Oh I shall like teaching you."Stiles smiled, weak but there and Derek's heart lifted, he stepped forward until he came close enough and reached his hand out, Carter shook once before letting go. Stiles stared at his released hand and shook it a little."It feels like I'm wearing a bracelet, but there is nothing there." he joked."Shall we?" Carter pointed to the ceiling and reluctantly Stiles nodded. Together they climbed the stairs and made their way back to the kitchen. The pack were still dutifully waiting, Carter shook his head in amusement before addressing the room. "I'm so sorry, I should have said. You can all return to your normal day, though I suspect that a lot of you could do with getting some sleep."They all turned to Derek who nodded and they all rose and began to make their way out of the room and passed Stiles who still hovered in the doorway. Jackson and Isaac, Boyd and Erica clapped him on the shoulder, Scott hugged him and Alison and Lydia gave him kisses on opposing cheeks, Carter watched all this with a smile on his face before waving at the seat that had been previously occupied by Deaton."Now I have heard of some of the accidents that have befallen you but I would like to learn more, would that be acceptable?" Carter began when Stiles took the seat. Stiles nodded and recounted everything that had happened up until that point. Carter listened carefully, making a face when Stiles finished. "These are all fairly large incidents, has there been nothing smaller. Maybe in the time you were away at college.""Not that I know of." Stiles shook his head but Carter still seemed sceptical of that answer. He flicked his fingers over the pages of his book again, running his finger up and down until it stopped and then flipped a fair few of the pages over until he settled on a specific page. Raising his head he looked at Derek with a smile before rising from his seat and crossing to the kitchen cupboard, opening and closing them until he found a bowl. He collected the sugar bowl and the milk from the fridge and a spoon.Derek and Stiles both watched in interest as he began pulling bags of thing from his satchel. Once he had everything he needed he lined them all up."I am going to make a mixture that will encourage your brain and your Spark to work in cohabitation, it will allow them to communicate in a way that will let you remember any times that you may have accidentally used your power or caused a small incident. Sort of like leaving a magical fingerprint on an event." Carter explained, Stiles looked a little wary but nodded."Now we have Sage, Anise and Rosemary, a little bit of dill for wisdom and a sprig or two of thyme. Two spoons of sugar to sweeten the tongue and Rose buds for clarity. Peppermint for the taste." Carter narrated as he worked, swirling the dry mixture with a spoon and they watched as everything grinded down to dust before their eyes. He spooned out a serving of the mixture into a nearby empty bag and instructed Derek to put the kettle on. After that was done, he drizzled honey into the bowl and added a splash of milk and began to mix it. Once it was thick he laid it aside. Derek returned with the freshly boiled kettle and two mugs, Carter asked him for a plate too and apologised for running Derek back and forth but Derek waved away his apologies and returned with a plate.Spooning a scoop of the dried mixture into a cup, he poured the boiling water over the top and stirred until the dust swirled in the middle, then held his hand over the top of the cup and closed his eyes. Stiles watched avid, as the mixture slowly sunk to the bottom after it glowed short and bright. Carter handed him the cup with his apologies and asked him to drink until only dregs were left, Stiles eyed the mixture dubiously before drinking deeply from the cup."Minty." he joked, pulling away and making a face and sticking out his tongue."It's necessary unfortunately, but the mint is inert enough that it will cover the taste without affecting the mixture." Carter informed him, once again looking at the book, and running his fingers over three words that seemed to pop to the surface. "Ah, this should do nicely."Once the tea was drunk, Carter tipped the cup over the plate and left it sitting upside down."Are you going to read my tea leaves?" Stiles snorted and Carter huffed, amused."You may scoff but all these methods are tried and tested. Unfortunately they have succumbed some to the media over the years, but everyone in the know understands that only those with a Spark will actually be able to fathom anything from them." Carter informed him."Really?" Stiles laughed."Oh yes. Much like any lore on a creature, Witch practices have a grain of truth to them. Common practices that have stood the test of the story changing with the times. Potion making, tea leaves, crystal balls, gem stones, candles, herbs and spices. These are all things that have stood unchanged because we in the know, know them to be true. There are more, but like a werewolf being a child of the moon or a vampire's thirst for blood and aversion to garlic and wooden steaks.”"Fairies in the woods, living amongst the bird and the insects?" Stiles interrupted."Yes. These are all common knowledge, but as you well know these are almost always because they hold a truth to them that non-supernatural folk dismiss as fairy tale. Their lack of any spark makes them unbelievable and thus, not real. " Carter explained."I have been researching for years, on everything I could find since my friend Scott was bitten by a werewolf. We have made a bestiary even, a way to keep a track of what we know is true, so if we ever need it, we have it." Stiles told the man and for a second he looked surprised."How long have you been doing that?""Since I was sixteen." Stiles answered."Impressive." Carter looked at his watch and clapped his hands. "Now I think it's time we made some marks." Standing he guided Stiles to his feet and asked him to remove his shirt, Stiles shrugged but did as he was asked. Carter swirled a finger through the thick mixture and ran it between his thumb and forefinger before pronouncing it perfect. Dipping his finger again, he began to draw shapes on Stiles forehead. Two upside down triangles that he connected with a line before tapping three dots on his chin and then drawing a swirling spiral on his chest. When he was finished the mixture glowed the same bright yellow colour that the tea had and Stiles swayed."Woah." Slumping into his seat, he closed his eyes and laughed. "I gotta be honest doc, I wasn't sure if you were joking around but I can see it all. It's like a video being sped up and fast forwarded.""Each person likens the experience differently, using their knowledge of other things to make sense of it." Carter explained to Derek who was starring at Stiles a little. "He will find something soon, but for now we wait."Only it didn't take long for Stiles to whip his head forward, eyes wide."My first few weeks at college there was someone in the dorms who used to play their music so loud. Everyone complained but they never stopped. Even after they were reprimanded, one night I was trying to sleep and I clenched my eyes shut with a pillow over my head. I wanted it to stop and it did. The next day he complained that his stereo was broken and everyone almost threw a party because he wasn't allowed to bring another into the building." Stiles blinked at them before smiling to himself. "Everyone was so happy for weeks after that because we could all finally sleep."Carter made some notes in a book and asked Stiles to continue. Before long they had seventeen separate instances that Stiles had used his magic, all of them harmless but all of them caused by him feeling emotions and Carter nodded like that made sense. He explained that when a Spark isn't nurtured, it grows on its own, semi-dormant until such a time that it the body can't hold it anymore. It will begin to seep and cause ripples that if left unchecked can become quiet dangerous. Stiles had balked at that but Carter had assured him that they hadn't been too late. That all of Stiles panic had caused incidents that whilst scary hadn't been harmful in any way. He would have only become dangerous if it had been left unchecked until his thirties or forties.“Unfortunately all of this could have been avoided had Deaton done his due diligence.” He added, sharing a look with both men.After that Carter did a quick perusal of the tea leaves before smiling and shaking his head as if he wasn't surprised. Stiles asked what he saw and Carter explained it was nothing to worry about and he would explain in time. Closing up his book he handed Stiles the salt shaker and instructed him to go and shower thoroughly, with a brand new bar of soap, once wet he asked him to coat it in salt and neutralise the potion's effects.Once Stiles left, Derek stayed in his seat and watched as Carter took the dishes and salted them too, before washing them carefully under hot water. He made sure to cleanse the table and the area with a quick wipe of a cloth before asking Derek if there was somewhere he might freshen up. Derek stood quickly and apologised for not showing him sooner, but Carter wasn't upset he explained that he wanted the man out of the cage as much as they did and now he had a solid foundation to work on he was ready to get settled.Derek showed him to a room at the end of the hall that nobody used, showed him the small en-suite bathroom and asked if he wanted anything to eat. Carter said he would join them for lunch but didn't specify so Derek made his way downstairs and began making pancakes, bacon and eggs. Stiles enjoyed his breakfast foods and the rest of the pack would be happy for food when they eventually made their way downstairs. It didn't take long of course and soon the kitchen was filled with noise as the pack converged.Scott arrives back whilst they are eating, he had two bags with him. He handed both directly to Carter and told them that Deaton had to go because he had a business to run and John had work. Nobody questioned John's absence, not when Peter was missing too and the fraught nature of his own task. Carter nodded dutifully at Scott, who sat and began to eat. The food was consumed almost as quickly as Derek, Boyd and Isaac could make it, but it was filling and after the trying time they'd had over the last week, it was needed.**Stiles returned from the shower and for the first time in days, he felt better. Like everything that had been going on was fixable. He falls asleep at lunch and Carter instructs them to let him sleep. The magical exhaustion will affect him for a few days, and the pack bonds will help with that. Derek carefully carried him upstairs, hopefully to sleep it off in peace. After it's decided that Erica and Scott will clean up after lunch, Carter corners Derek and asks for a private conversation. Derek is more than a little confused at first but figuring it probably has something to do with him being the Alpha he agrees.They go for a walk because it's really the only way for a conversation to stay private in a house full of werewolves that can hear a mouse sneeze miles away. It's an exaggeration of course but the metaphor brings a smile to Derek's face. They amble along for a while until Carter pulls him aside. There are brambles along the side of a dirt road and Carter asks if he would mind if he harvests a few ingredients while they talk. Derek agrees and he watches with fascination as the man touches blackberry after blackberry but only plucks a scant few. Next he breaks thorns from the branches and collects them in a small jar. It's all very fascinating but Derek can feel his wolf getting impatient."Has that been happening a lot?" Carter asks eventually and Derek frowns until Carter nods at his hands and he realises he has been clenching his fists on his protruding claws. There is blood dripping between his knuckles. Derek shakes himself visibly and reigns in the irritation."It was easy when I first became the Alpha, to keep control I mean. I had my anchor and there wasn't a lot of time for enjoying the quiet side of life. There was a new threat almost as soon as we rid ourselves of the old one. Anger was easy to maintain when there was something to be angry about." Derek explains. He apologises to Carter, hoping the man understands that he will never hurt him, he isn't in danger by being alone with him.Carter understands, he expounds on his reasoning for taking them for a walk. He had noticed since he arrived that Derek's emotions were a lot closer to the surface than one would expect of an Alpha werewolf with a pack to maintain. He has seen Derek almost shift, or partial shift three times in the short time he has been on pack land. He wonders aloud if Derek needs a new anchor and whether he has many options.Derek doesn't know how to explain what he feels and why it's such a bad idea for an anchor to be another person, so he shakes his head. He is not surprised when Carter shakes his head at him like he expected nothing less. They continue on and Carter continues to forage. Flower petals here, sap there. The occasional nut that an errant squirrel must have dropped. Each time he strokes the item with his thumb before deciding if he will keep it or not and Derek decides not to ask. They make their way slowly closer to the house but less than fifty feet from the front door Carter stops him again."An anchor is needed to help anyone feel balance. Unfortunately there are two people in that house needing an anchor, something to hold onto when times get rough, when control slips. I ask you why you deny what we both know, and if your reasoning is really worth your life." Carter walks off after dropping that bomb and Derek doesn't hurry to catch up with him. He walks slowly and contemplates what Carter is getting at. He can't go back on his own advice to Scott and anchor himself to another person, it's dangerous for everyone.He catches up with Carter at the front door where the man asks if he can use the back porch for a ritual. It won't harm the residents of the premises and the man believes it is best to do before Stiles awakens again. Derek tells him to go right ahead and reiterates that if he needs anything they will get it for him. Carter thanks him before retreating through the kitchen. Collecting the bags that Scott had handed him, a large glass bowl and two bottles of water. He doesn't ask, just makes sure that everyone stays away from the area for the time being.Carter retrieves the items that John provided him and lays them out carefully in a semi circle around the bowl that he has filled with a bottle of the water. He takes the knife and carefully slices each of the clover leaves into thin strips before scraping off the bark from the branch and accessing the green pulp flesh underneath. He scrapes at it until he has enough and drops it into the bowl. He mixes it gently until the water turns cloudy and begins to add the clover leaves one at a time until he has used them all. Some float and some sink. crushing a berry between his fingers he lets the juice stain the water and watches carefully, nothing happens and he is surprised. He had been sure that Claudia Stilinski had been something other than human. Reciting a few incantations he knows, he waits, after each one and nothing, until on the last one the water slowly turns from milky white and stains pink to a vibrant orange. He adds a few crushed thorns to make sure and listens to the mixture fizz and pop and it turns slowly into a bright and vibrant yellow.As suspected Claudia Stilinski was a Spark.He returns the items to John in person the next day when the man comes by to visit his son. He is carrying a rather large suitcase and when Carter asks, John explains that it's because Stiles won't risk hurting John if he freaks out. Carter nods his understanding and decides he will meditate today and get Stiles involved. It will help him get in touch with his inner Spark and feeling the power under his skin will be the first step in learning to control it.He approaches Stiles after breakfast, the house is quieter this morning and Carter figures now is as good a time as any. He asks Derek which room will be the best to ward with privacy spells and is led into a library. It's large enough and quiet enough already. Derek reveals that it is almost fully soundproofed and Carter thanks him. They get to work right away, moving enough furniture so that they can sit on the floor with enough space between them. He then starts warding the room with layer upon layer of privacy charms and instructs Derek to stand outside the door. Derek looks confused but complies, once the door is shut Carter stands with his face pressed to the other side and screams as loud as he can. Once he opens it again he asks Derek if he heard what he said and Derek confirms he didn't.Stiles comes down stairs dressed comfortably in a large pair of sweats and Carter instructs him to sit, his back to the couch and his legs crossed. Carter settles down less than a foot away and together they close their eyes and slowly Carter feels the other man relax. Once he is sure Stiles will be receptive to what he is about to tell him he begins to talk.He explains about pack bonds and how when a group of supernatural creatures decide to live in such close quarters a bond forms. They will be able to feel each other's pain, distress, happiness and joy. Stiles nods that he understands but tells Carter that he has never felt the bonds himself. Being previously human he thinks that this was likely the cause. Carter agrees and tells him to close his eyes and feel. Stiles throws him a confused look so Carter elaborates, he wants Stiles to wiggle his toes, tense his calves, then his thighs, and so on and so forth until he gets to his face and then repeat the process in reverse until he gets to his chest. Stiles closes his eyes and Carter watches him shift and fidget but eventually he stops and Stiles indicates that he has stopped. He can feel his heart beat and he can feel his breathing. Carter praises him and tells him to focus on his breathing.They breathe deep for a few minutes until Carter carefully breaks the silence with a whisper, he instructs Stiles to feel for his core. If he looks and prods at that feeling in his chest that gets tight when he is panicking it will make its presence known. It's a few minutes before Stiles speaks."What is my core supposed to look like?" his eyes are still closed and there is a look on his face that Carter can't decipher so he explains that it can look different for everybody. Some people picture aura's or balls of light, blurry images like lightening through a cloud. Stiles face goes slack all of a sudden and Carter worries they have gone too far too fast until Stiles opens his mouth."I think I found it?""What does it feel like? What can you picture in your head when you think about that space in your chest?" Carter asks and allows a few minutes for Stiles to concentrate, to focus on the area and eventually he sighs."I couldn't tell at first, it was like it was trying to hide from me, but I think. I think its strings, tangled up and pulsing." Stiles haltingly describes and Carter smiles wide."Remember you have spent so long suppressing that part of yourself that it might feel like it's trying to hide, but it's not. It wants you to feel everything, but you have to let yourself." Carter encourages and Stiles nods. The look of concentration on his face is almost comical until Stiles gasps. The sound is so worrying that Carter almost calls the session off but Stiles doesn't move."It's clearer now. I can see the strings. but some of them disappear or end. Are they broken?" Stiles voice almost cracks with sadness. Carter soothes him and asks him to describe the broken looking strings, asks why they look broken. Stiles shakes his head like he is afraid to look deeper so Carter changes tack. He asks him to describe the different strings. Focus on one at a time, whether they appear broken or not and to describe them. Carter pulls out the notebook he was using yesterday and waits."There's one.. its weak, almost invisible. Grey and it hurts. Why does it hurt?" Stiles all but sobs and Carter shushes him gently, projecting calm into the room and slowly Stiles settles down into sniffles."I believe that is the connection you had with your mother. It will always be there, but with time it will grow lighter and lighter until it is invisible." Carter gently explains, how Stiles will always be able to feel it when he goes looking but eventually he won't be able to see it. He instructs Stiles to pick another one and he says the thin one is twined with a large string, thick and bright. It shines through the mass around it. Carter waits and Stiles smiles wide, his tears tracks stretching on his cheeks."It feels protective and strong. Like love, acceptance and I don't know. It just feels nice." he details. Stiles assigns it a colour and Carter notes it down along with the other information. He suspects it to be his father but he will wait till later to explain his theories. He instructs Stiles to pick another and another. A thick bright red one that feels bouncy and vibrant, friendship and kinship. Like it's been there almost as long as the green one but almost childish, youthful. Purple's strings and pink ones, yellow like sunflowers and orange like fire. He gives each of them adjectives and what he feels for each of them."Are there anymore?" Carter asks eventually when Stiles has fallen quiet, almost for too long. He watches as Stiles face colours and his eyes fly open."One more." he all but whispers, his voice hushed like he is worried someone will hear and Carter reminds him of the privacy wards surrounding the library. He asks Stiles to tell him about the lasts string. "It's dark, but not black. Red maybe, it's shifting and restless. Like it's waiting for something.""Okay so focus on that one, does it feel like the other's?" Carter asks and Stiles turns his face away and clears his throat."No. It feels.. lustful. But not just... sexual you know?" Stiles stutters out and Carter nods. "Like affection, and adoration, but heat and power and love. It's so much." Stiles whines and Carter can tell the session needs to end soon. It won't do if Stiles gets agitated, it may cause him to hide his core again and that could be disastrous. He asks Stiles to pull back from the strings and to view them as a whole, focusing on his core. He asks him to imagine himself slowly backing away like he might from a wild animal until it feels safe to open his eyes. This takes a while but eventually Stiles opens his eyes and Carter can see the relief on his face.They spend a further hour discussing the notes that Carter made and Stiles says he thinks he can identify the strings as members of his pack, but he isn't sure. So that's where they end. Carter giving him homework. Asking him to meditate daily, until he can feel those strings and then he is to pick one and follow it. See if his theories are correct, if they represent those he thinks they do and they will discuss them when Stiles is ready.**Over the next few days it becomes apparent to Stiles that now he knows the bonds are there they are growing, strengthening in such a way that he gets flashes of emotion that he knows aren't his. Once he realises it he begins to try and follow the flow backwards, at first it's confusing. The strings overlap and wind together in parts and sometimes it's hard to pinpoint exactly who sent those feelings his way. So he endeavours to follow Carter's advice. He meditates daily in between meetings with Carter where they discuss next steps. Carter has plans and ideas and he says that the end result will be Stiles feeling safe enough for him to leave again. They will still communicate of course, he has much to teach Stiles but once Stiles is settled enough into his abilities, his control. Carter won't be needed to keep such a hold over his magic.They aren't idle of course, they walk the preserve, discussing their lives and sharing stories. Carter teaches him how to forage, explains that he will get a feel for the ingredients over time. He will be able to tell which ones are the best for what he needs, which ones are dying already or have less juice. Stiles watches as he feels for plants and objects. Animals bones apparently hold a small inert energy of the animal that died, this energy can sometimes be harvested but those spells are dangerous and only for emergencies.Carter tells him of books he will arrange for Stiles to get copies of, magical theory and spells. Potions and everything he can think of that will assist Stiles in realising his power.They talk briefly about Stiles mother and Carter reveals that the woman had a spark, a weak one that had never been realised to fruition. It was likely that she hadn't even known it was there. Stiles felt a deep sadness for minutes after that conversation, wondering if she would have been able to save herself had she known.One such day Carter asks if there is a clearing that they might use for some experimentation. He explains when Derek looks worried that it's to test Stiles magical ability thus far and that seems to calm the Alpha down. He shows them to a small area that is void of trees, it's surrounded by large gnarled tree roots, some twisting and turning and leaving furrows in the earth. Carter deems it acceptable and he and Stiles watch Derek reluctantly leave.Carter reassures Stiles that whilst he will be lowering his dampening on the man's abilities, he still doesn't pose a danger to anyone in the surrounding area. That Carter will be there to stop any mishaps before they have a chance to begin. Stiles looks dubious but agrees to try.They move a few feet apart and Carter asks him to listen to the land. Hear the birds tweeting at each other in conversation, the squirrels scrambling to harvest and build their nests. It's very calming and Stiles listens carefully. He hears buzzing, like TV static but also not really. Like humming, but deep and resonant and he describes it to Carter who explains that it's the land itself. The trees and the bushes, plants of all kinds, joined in silent communication. Normal people feel the connection too, some stronger than others, but all humans enjoy communing with nature in some way. Be it a walk in the woods on a summer's day, camping, hiking. It's apparent that some people feel the call more than others. Those people often take jobs or homes that allow them to be closer to it. To feel the peace that nature brings as a natural state owing to the fact that despite of how we have evolved we are all, deep down, still animals and connected to the earth somehow.Some people even resonate with animals more than other humans, feeling companionship and connection to pets or wild animals isn't uncommon.Carter takes a chance then, to sow the seeds of something that he theories to be true. A deeper connection within Stiles to this particular land."How do you feel when out here, you have told me yourself that these woods have seen many a scene of horror or despair for you? Is that still true, do you feel like the land is dangerous, like you shouldn't be here?""No?" Stiles confusion is palpable."People won't often return to a scene of trauma. They will avoid the place at all costs, even if they know deep down that it has nothing to do with the place. They just can no longer feel safe there ever again." Carter expands his explanation."No I got that part. I just don't get it." Stiles opens his eyes then. "I should feel scared right? I mean I have seen dead bodies, my best friend's life and mine was changed forever in this place. I should feel like I could never set foot here again but I don't. I actually.. I feel safer here than most places."Carter nods like that makes sense which frustrates Stiles. He can feel it building and he wants to shout at the man, ask him to speak plainly and tell him everything but he doesn't. Carter stops wandering around the clearing and comes closer, telling Stiles to feel for his core, to feel the connections to the land. The frustration only builds, until the ground rumbles a little beneath him. He startles but Carter is in front of him, holding his hands up and Stiles stills."The ability is there, you just have to trust yourself to do it. I know you can feel your core and we both know that whilst those things are inevitable, a magical Spark is like a seed and can be nurtured. The land around you has been nurturing you for years. A Spark at its core is just a deeper connection to the earth, a deeper understanding of the mass we occupy and its role in all of our lives. The land has recognised that in you for so long. Do you think you can begin to recognise that connection too.""I'm trying." Stiles tried not to whine but he didn't have the best focus on most days and since he had realised it. There was so much out here. "There is too much, It feels like I can hear things I'm not supposed to.""Like what?" Carter softened, his face clearing of his own frustrations."Like there are ants, I think? Under my feet, but not. Moving around and they are too busy. The bushes are rustling but there's no wind. I know there is a tree that's dying somewhere over there, I can feel..." he flushed suddenly with realisation. "I can feel it? It's older than the rest and the other's have crowded it, trying to help or not. I don't know."Carter smiled and Stiles gaped. At the beginning the movements and muffled sounds that he wasn't sure was real, were like his ADHD symptoms. How sometimes he had to turn off all the electronics in the room until he could find the one that was buzzing with power, too loud and hurting his brain. Making him anxious. But it also wasn't like that, like over stimulation. It was like he was sharing his feelings with the world and it was sharing something of itself back.It felt incredible and freeing. They fell silent again. The thrum of energy that resonated around him, through every living thing was bigger than he had ever thought he would ever feel but it also felt safe, small and just for him."Now I want you to pick something. A plant, a bush, something and focus on it. A patch of flowers, mushrooms. Anything. Bring that feeling of being one with the land and condense it until everything else falls away. Reach for its energy and tell me about it." Carter took to wandering around again and Stiles tried to focus but it was like he had blinked and everything had fallen away. The trees were their usual level of quiet again. Until something caught his attention. Like a zing up his spine he realised that there was a patch of wild flowers that were almost gunning for his attention."There's a flower, or a bunch of them. They are growing but something... it's like they are stifled by something but I don't know what?" Stiles eventually managed to describe. Fighting with the feeling of ridiculousness that had tried to take hold. A tiny voice in his head that was telling him that he had finally lost it. Ignoring it he soldiered on."Is it dying?" Carter inquired."No. It just wants to be bigger, to spread and it can't." Stiles focused on the feeling and a sadness settled over him. He giggled a little when the image of a parent stopping a child from exploring the world around them entered his head. "It wants to stop being the baby, wants to show how beautiful it can be."Carter snorted and Stiles joined in on the soft laughter. Carter stilled next to him and Stiles had the distinct feeling of someone observing a conversation he was having that he didn't know how to describe. Like the flowers were bitching about being bullied by the bigger stronger plants around it. Taking it's nutrients before it had a chance and keeping it small and weak."Sounds like an apt description. Now I want you to feel further apart, look for unused potential. Commune with the nature around you and see if you can mediate this dispute." Carter encouraged.Stiles spread his energy and felt the other plants around the flowers and realised it was true. The earth had energy, love and nutrients to give. The strongest often overtook the weakest and he didn't want to come back here at some point to see the flowers had succumbed. He implored the energy to spread, to lend itself to the tiny plant and at first he thought it wasn't working. Except the dying tree was there, pressing a connection to the tiny bush and Stiles felt it when the feeling transferred. Like a symbiosis, the bush preened at having a friend, a protector and just like that it was over.Stiles took a deep breath and dropped to his knees, gasping and panting. Carter crouched next to him, reassuring and Stiles felt drained."I think I killed the tree, or forced it to kill itself." Stiles almost sobbed, feeling a grief settle over him."That's quite impossible even if what you have just done is very impressive. You cannot force something to do your bidding, you didn't force it to help. It wanted to, like a dying wish." Carter tried to soothe him but Stiles was still dubious. "Could you get those other plants to share space any better, could you make them decide to spread better so that the flowers could bloom?""No. They wouldn't, they were stubborn." Stiles explained, confused now because he had known that. They were selfish of the place they occupied and were unwilling to help. "I asked for help, any, I felt it. The tree, it wanted to impart, it was old and in pain. So it." he stopped. Doubling over and pressing his forehead to the soft earth in front of him. He felt thanks and peace settle over him."You cannot produce something out of thin air, even if the intent is there. You borrow energy from the nature around you and in turn they will borrow yours. A protector of the land and in return they will endeavour to protect you." Carter guided him upward and brushed a few stray pieces of soil from his face. "Have you ever picked a flower and had the distinct feeling like you have just done something bad, or found a pretty rock amongst others and taken it only to feel like it belongs with its friends. The land has been calling to you for years, and you are finally responding.""But how? I mean I have lived here all my life and I never even realised. I played these woods as a kid, me and Scott used to build dens, and play games, but I have never felt anything like what just happened, before." Stiles settled into a crossed leg position and breathed deep, and felt like the earth was breathing with him."It was always calling to you. You kept coming back didn't you? Even when you had every reason to avoid it, you would come back. When you needed peace, would you walk into the woods, telling yourself you just needed peace and quiet?" Carter pressed."Yeah. I used to sit next to a lake that's a ways back. It stinks, its stagnant but I liked to watch the tadpoles and frogs, see them bouncing around. I even took one home once but my mom told me that I had to take it home, in case someone was missing it." He chuckled, shaking his head at the memory that held an entire new meaning now."There used to be a rite back in ancient times, it was used to tie land to a family. To ensure that it would stay under their control. It was mostly hokum but sometimes a Spark or a druid would invoke the earth and the connection would be made. A lot of the time it was a deep spiritual symbiosis that allowed people to live off the land as long as they didn't damage it." Carter took up a similar position as he explained. Hoping that he wasn't revealing too much too soon. "When a family invoked this right, it would continue on for millennia unless something came along to interrupt it. Families died out and there was no blood that resided there any longer, and humans have spread so far and wide. Often times blood rites are disbanded because the younger members are never told of the connection, they never learn that the land is theirs and much as anyone can belong in a place.""What has that got to do with me? My family were immigrants from Poland, I don't have a blood rite to this land.""No but you belong to it and it you because of a deep connection within your soul." Carter revealed. "The hale family has lived on this land for so long that I wouldn't be surprised if an Alpha hundreds of years ago invoked a blood rite. They continued to live here, laugh, love. Grow, imbibing nutrients and when they died, they were buried back into the land, returning their energy. It's because of this deep belonging in your soul that the spiritual world recognised before anyone else that you have been adopted by it.""So like fate, I was always meant to be this, here?" Stiles clarified."Sort of. I can't say that had your lives run differently that you wouldn't have found one another some other way. You were always meant to be in each other's lives, be it pack or not. You could have been an office worker and ran into each other at a function, or any number of possible lives had you been anything other than Spark and Werewolves." Carter explained. Gripping Stiles shoulder and grounding him as he saw the look on Stiles face."Wow." Stiles intones eventually, stuck on the feeling that for the first time for a while that everything feels right and here, now. He finally feels like their weird, funny little pack dynamic makes sense. He doesn't know of any other pack that has survived having two Alpha's who take almost equal roles in running plans. He actually suspects it helps, having Scott be the bleeding heart of the pack and Derek with his ruthless drive to protect them all no matter what. They complement each other well. "Does Derek know that he has a blood rite to the land?""I don't think so, but don't worry I will discuss it with him soon. I think we should focus on your control before we venture into anything else." Carter tells him and Stiles doesn't know how to feel about it.They all have dinner that night, Derek had been apparently stress baking since an hour after he returned alone and the table is covered with pies both savoury and sweet. It's a raucous affair, with stories being passed to the newcomer and he has many of his own too. John is sat at one end of the table, conferring quietly with Peter and Stiles doesn't know how he really feels about that friendship. Peter is an enigma, at one point led by revenge but now he has settled into the pack. Fiercely protective of all of them and Stiles figures that his dad can take care of himself. He won't let anything happen, even Stiles knows that Peter is a lot mellower now that he isn't under any spells or rage.As the evening wanes, the house occupants dwindle from the dining table. The leftovers packed up and divided into Tupperware to be stored. The table is clean and most of the others had gone to bed."When do you think I could go home?" Stiles asks Carter quietly and tries not to wince when a flash of hurt zings down the bond from all sides. "I just want my own bed.""I think maybe tomorrow, I have a few more things I must put into place first but as soon as I do you will be free to reside where ever you feel necessary. Although I do wish for you to remember what we discussed. Try and commune with the nature around you whenever you can, and roam the preserve as much as possible to encourage the connection.""I will. I like it out there." Stiles reminds him."He always has." John pipes up from the end of the table and everyone left turns their attention on to him. "When he was a kid we used to have to pick out markers, explaining that he was only allowed so far from the house. Of course Claudia took him out there too, but one time we couldn't find him anywhere and I was freaking out. Claudia tried to calm me down but I was adamant that a mountain lion had taken him when we weren’t looking. We did all the usual things, checked parks, reported him missing and called Melissa. She asked Scott and he explained about the secret place. The lake deep in the forest where the frogs played. We took him out to show us and sure enough there is Stiles, sat on a rock and leaning over so far I thought he was going to fall in. I rushed to him and snatched him away and all he did is complain for days because he was going to miss his friends." John finishes the story with a wry chuckle and Stiles colours."It's where me and Scott found him." Derek adds quietly and Stiles blinks at him. Once he catches the Alpha's eye he can't bring himself to look away. Feelings course back and forth over the bond and it feels nice. Sweet and shy like something new, but also bone deep.A throat clearing breaks them both from the connection as John stands. He kisses Stile on the forehead and explains that he needs to go home. He has a shift in the morning. Carter bids them a good night too and follows him through the archway along with Peter who volunteers to walk John to his car. Stiles wonders what that is about but before he can think too much about it he yawns wide."You should go to bed." Derek advises."Are you coming?" Stiles blushes when the words register, coughing he clears his throat a little and croaks an addendum. "I mean to your own bed, like to sleep. Or whatever." he finishes lamely.Derek only nods and Stiles takes that as a dismissal. He make his way to his room and collapses across the sheets, sprawled and unwilling to move any further, he falls asleep.**Stiles wakes up with a newfound sense of peace, his body feels loose and relaxed, as if the worries have melted away in the night. His bed sheets feel so soft and warm against his chest and legs that he contemplates just staying in bed all day. The sunlight shining through his window is bright, and feels oddly lively, like it's trying to temp Stiles into standing in the beam. He pictures himself sunning himself like a large, naked cat and can't help but laugh.He has work today, he had decided last night that it was probably time to get back into a normal routine of sorts. He slips his hand under the pillow next to him to retrieve his phone and sees that it's barely six am. The alarm he set still has an hour and a half so he closes his eyes and drifts. Sleep doesn't come back to him, he may have got way too much of it recently so he isn't surprised. He keeps his eyes closed when his door creaks but raises his head to show he is awake."Good morning." Derek greets him, coming closer to the bed, he sounds hesitant so Stiles squints an eye open and takes him in."Everything okay?" he asks when Derek says nothing for a minute, only stares at him, a little intensely."Yeah." He eventually sighs, Stiles moves his legs as he twists under the covers and catches the there and gone flick of Derek's eyes on his chest. He takes a chance and sits up fully, leaning back against the pillows and letting the sheets pool around his lap. Derek doesn't hesitate then, raking his eyes down Stiles chest, catching on his tattoos before he blinks and turns away. "I was wondering when you might be thinking of going back home. I know you want your own bed, but I was thinking..."Derek pauses then, pulling a face that Stiles recognises as his thinking face. He stays quiet hoping that if he doesn't speak Derek will have enough time to collect his thoughts. It doesn't take long of course but Stiles can feel the anticipation building."I know that you want your own bed, your space and your things. I just.. I was thinking that maybe we could move some of that stuff here." Stiles must have pulled a face because Derek hastened to reassure him. "I just... I.. the pack is going to miss having you here and I thought that once you feel more comfortable you could split your time between places.""Like for pack nights?" Stiles frowned, there was something Derek wasn't telling him. He looked a little worried, but there was something else. Stiles couldn't tell what it was, it was harder to read Derek than usual. He resisted the urge to tug on the bond."Well we only have those a few times a month, so if you wanted to you could come over whenever you want." Derek caught his eye before looking away quickly. Stiles nodded, more than a little confused until he realised something, just as Derek who must have taken that as the conversation done, turned to leave."Wait. Does that mean I can decorate? Like this will be my room right? So I can put pictures up on the walls and stuff. Keep the books Carter wants me to study here. Get a bookcase?" Stiles eyed the empty spaces of the room. Apart from a dresser and a built in wardrobe, there wasn't any other furniture."Yeah of course. It will be your room, like Scott and Alison have theirs, and Isaac and" he paused then, a slightly sour look came over his face and Stiles laughed."Yeah don't bother big guy, I am not asking either so I wouldn't if I was you." Derek huffed a small laugh before turning again for the door. "Thanks Derek."Derek ducked his head but Stiles could see the small smile on his face before he quietly told Stiles he was welcome. Stiles waited for the door to close before he settled back under the sheets, he had the distinct feeling that something had just happened but he had no clue what. It was decidedly odd. It wasn't long after that, that Scott bounded into his room with all the personality of an excited puppy, yammering about breakfast and getting to drive him home.Stiles got dressed as his friend lounged on the bed and together they went downstairs and the whole pack beamed at him when he entered. Bemused he took a seat and almost laughed when Erica began plying him with food like an overzealous Italian grandmother. Then for the rest of the day it seemed like they thought they were never going to see him again. He was hugged and squeezed on the shoulder, nagged about eating properly and his sleep schedule. It was very strange.He climbed into his jeep with his laptop bag and a few odds and ends that Scott had retrieved for him when he first had his breakdown and drove the twenty minutes down the road back to his house. He couldn't resist looking back at the group waving at him as he left, reminding himself that he was down the road, he could visit every day. The closer he got to home, the worse he felt, like leaving the pack had drained his energy and his happiness.**Carter moved through the house, watching all the morose wolves and their partners and friends as they all lamented at the fact that Stiles had left. He finally found Derek sitting in a high backed leather chair in the study, a book open in his lap as he gazed out of the window."Good afternoon." He greeted eventually when he realised the Alpha hadn't realised he was there, and as predicted the man startled slightly."How are you today? Do you need something? I can have someone go get anything you might need." Derek shifted in his chair, marking the book before putting it down and giving Carter his full attention. Carter shook his head before sinking into a nearby seat and digging in his satchel to find the book he had procured from Peter."Did you know that the land we are on isn't just Hale land in name and territory?" Carter began, Derek shook his head, frowning, his eyes flitting between the book Carter held and the man himself."A long time ago, one of your ancestors performed a blood rite. It's ancient and archaic magic that is very rarely performed today. It involves the Alpha of the pack, being injured by each of their Beta's and then their mate, the last of which is a highly trusting act. The mate has the responsibility of making their Alpha bleed from the neck. Of course there have been instances of treachery but those were rare. The Alpha then allows their bleeding to slow to such an extent that they quite literally bleed into the land as a shaman or druid, sometimes a Spark, performs a ritual. As they do so the land will absorb the blood and from then on the land is bound to the pack. Until such a time that the pack moves off, and somebody of direct blood descent no longer lives on the land." Carter explained, flipping through the pages of the aged book delicately."Who was it? That performed the rite?" Derek enquired before confirming Carter's suspicions that the Alpha had no clue about some of his family's history."It was your great great grandmother on your mother's side. She'd been fighting a dispute with a pack from another area that had been displaced. They were bigger and stronger and had threatened to kill your family had she not ceded the land to them and join their pack. Allow the Alpha to take her power and become one of his Beta's. They lost three Beta's before as a final resort they decided on the blood rite. Having only six wolves left, as well as herself, she allowed the rite to go ahead and managed to successfully keep the land and expel the pack afterwards with the help of a Spark whose family had moved to the area. Over the last few hundred years, the blood has diluted somewhat and the rite was almost lost until Laura was killed. That's when it re-converged and the spiritual energy settled in those that were present that night." Carter illustrated."Those that were there? So Peter and I?" Derek asked, an ache still echoed in his chest when he remembered that whole mess and the resulting pain."Yes and a recently turned wolf and his friend, who nobody knew until recently was a Spark." Carter finished for him."What does that mean?""That each of you have been, as pack, accepted by the land as true residents. It is unusual for Scott to be included as he is no blood relation of yours, but I believe, because he gained his wolf during a fraught time for the bloodline, and the wolf who turned him had reactivated the rite, it is likely that the land recognised him and you, Peter as brothers." Carter began. "The land also recognised Stiles and the latent powers within him and I believe began to nurture the Spark, even without conscious knowledge of it on Stiles part. I think that because of this it accelerated his abilities a little more than is normal for a Spark who has been untrained.""So now that he is here, and actually on pack land more often that he has been for the last four years, he will settle." Derek wondered aloud."I hope so, I think that he might still need some help from the pack and the bonds that you have formed between you." Carter finished. "I asked Peter if there are any books that might be helpful, so far he has been able to enquire this one."Carter handed over the book over before standing from his seat."I will be around for a little while longer to make sure his magic stabilises, and once I return home I will be able to continue to tutor him on anything he might need. Although I think a lot of things will be instinctive as he has already shown an impressive aptitude for some things that I tested and was surprised when he managed to do those things with ease."Derek wasn't surprised, he knew Stiles was amazing in most things he did and this was no different.**Stiles should have known that everything was too good, his life was going too well and Beacon Hills had been suspiciously quiet for a long time. Some would say that he had been blissfully ignorant of the supernatural and it's place in his hometown, as a child. Stiles didn't disagrees with their assessment, he'd spent years believing that the only scary things that happened were contained to movies and books. There was of course the odd murder in their sleepy little town, and until the Hale Fire their hadn't been many unnatural deaths to contend with. Then Peter had gone on his revenge spree as a driven insane, half comatose werewolf with the help of his nurse who had been keeping him magically subdued, and his world had all but blown wide open. Scott had been bitten and that was that. Stiles life hadn't been the same since.Life hadn't quietened down around three years ago. Peter had his own theories of course but nobody could really say they had minded that their lives were no longer a constant fight. Death was no longer lurking around every corner in the hearts of various baddies who had decided to make them the unwilling heroes. It was nice, and Peter's assertions that the supernatural world had taken notice of the fact that they survived, that they fought and won, and because of that, they were revered. Relatively safe from creatures with nefarious plans.So Stiles blamed himself and the rest of the pack for getting too used to the quiet life when one Saturday his morning meditation was interrupted by a crashing sound through the forest. The sound of running growing louder and louder as something headed towards him, a large something, with several others following. He reached for the satchel he had been instructed to carry around on his trips through the wooded preserve. Mostly to forage for various ingredients that called to him and his abilities. He almost fumbled the small jar of mountain ash he had taken to including in his personal stores, tipping a small amount into his hand he waited and prayed that his lessons with Carter wouldn't fail him.The noise built and built, and with a start he realised he recognised some of the shouting, it was his pack, there was something happening. He could feel the anxiety rising within himself and had to clamp down hard on the feeling, knowing that he couldn't lose it now. He waited until the clearing was shaking before he opened his eyes and was unsurprised when he saw Derek running, in full shift, directly towards him. Scott was running too but the look of fear on his face was scary, he was shouting something, yelling for Stiles to run, but there was something else. Something he couldn't quite decipher so he waited, just long enough. Derek had almost reached him, only a few feet between them when he threw his arm up and released the mountain ash, believing with all his being that the circle would form and hold. He hastily stepped back when he realised he had accidentally formed the circle around the two of them, and was glad when he managed just in time to avoid getting swiped at by an already bloody claw.Scott skidded to a stop next to him and griped his arm hard as Carter came around a small copse of trees and began muttering words that had Derek thrashing and angry in the circle. Stiles fought Scott's hold, nobody was explaining what was going on. Peter stood not too far away looking freaked out and a little out of breath. Isaac and Boyd were nearby both watching Derek with a look of fear that Stiles was unused to seeing on their faces. It was a look they had held a lot when the pack had been unstable, when they had been scared kids, looking for a place to belong and finding it wanting still.Carter continued to murmur, various words thrown out louder and harsher than others and Stiles could feel the intent in them, the rush of power in his own core and it scared him. The bonds flared wriggling and bright in his chest and behind his eyes until Derek collapsed, his wolfy chest rising fast and steady but no doubt unconscious.Stiles felt his anger grow inside him, the unknown and the uncertainty fuelling its fire. The guilt that he helped them hurt Derek burned behind his eyes and he could feel his own heart speeding up. A startled shout next to him was his first sign that he was losing control when Scott let go of him as if he was burned and backed away."Explain." he gritted out through clenched teeth as he fought to keep his own panic at bay, and with it the spark that wanted retribution for his Alpha."Derek was acting really strange all night, he kept coming out of his room and pacing, restlessly patrolling the house. He wouldn't talk to no one and eventually he said he was going for a run and disappeared. We figured it was because..." Scott trailed off and shared a look with Boyd who sighed loudly. "We thought he was adjusting to the house being different, the different smells again and how it had changed.""Changed?" Stiles frowned, tilting his head and swinging a look between Scott and Boyd, but before either of them could open their mouths Carter interrupted."Can we explain back at the house, we need to contain him before he wakes up." Carter waved at Derek and Stiles felt his anger rise."Why does he need containing?" Stiles seethed."He swiped at Erica, she's okay, but he caught her pretty good and the look on his face Stiles, it was like he was daring us all to try and take him down. He looked, gleeful and feral but then he yelled and it was like he was fighting with himself, he full shifted, back and forth and back until he snapped his head up and ran from the house. We followed and Carter said he was heading for you, we didn't know if he was going to hurt you." Boyd detailed and Stiles was more confused than ever. Derek loved his Beta's, he would never wilfully hurt one of them.Carter reached a hand out and asked him to break the barrier and help him and Stiles nodded, they would get Derek into the safe room until they explained and they could figure out what the hell was going on. Together they managed to get Derek's unconscious and large wolf into a semblance of a hold between the five of them and together they set off back to the house. Once Derek was contained, Carter dragged him into the kitchen. The other's followed and Stiles watched as the older man pulled book after book out of his bag."So Derek disappeared and then what?" Stiles aimed at Scott who was eyeing the Fae Spark."He came back this morning and was still agitated, and Erica tried to soothe him. She must have got too close or something because he swiped at her and she went down Stiles. The blood was hard to miss, Boyd managed to drag her away from him, but she was already unconscious. His eyes kept shifting, until his pupils expanded and it was like they went black." Scott hurried to fill him in."Black? Like?" Stiles eyes widened before he ran for the library, only to stop when Peter exited the room carrying the very book Stiles had been looking for. The Pseudomonarchia Daemonum Catalog of Demons was an interesting book that Stiles had the opportunity to read when Derek and Peter had rebuilt the Hale house and various items had been retrieved from the family vault. Inside, it described demons and how possessed people would have outward signs. Personality changes, increases in violent behaviours and black eyes. Peter plonked the thick tomb on to the table, his fingers holding the pages apart on the very image that was burned behind Stiles eyes."Like that?" Stiles pointed and Peter nodded solemnly."How? Where? I don't.. a Demon? How did it even get inside of him, I know they don't really need permission but.." Stiles could feel the panic rising in his chest and tried to school his breathing until a flare in the bond erupted through him. It was worry and fright, protectiveness and fear and he jolted and sucked in a heavy breath. Scott clenched his shoulder under one heavy hand and Stiles blinked when the bond held, but he could feel the other's converging amongst the same feelings. Derek was awake."He's awake?" Stiles breathed and Peter flashed a look at him that Stiles figured he would decipher later."This will subdue the beast inside of him until we can figure out a way to get rid of it." Carter broke the uncomfortable stillness that had settled over the room, waving his hand over a pan of something hot and bubbling."What are you going to do?" Stiles asked and the grave look on Carter's face didn't give him confidence."I need to introduce this to him, but as to how is going to be tricky." Carter warned before he left the room and Stiles flew after him, he knew what Carter was going to do and he wanted to stop him. They raced downstairs and got to the door of the room in time to watch Derek wink in their direction before he convulsed and a thick black smoke erupted from his face before it disappeared into the vent. Scott and Boyd scattered, followed by Carter but Stiles was frozen. Derek was whimpering and curling in on himself on the small cot that sat in the corner of the room. His thick arm thrown over his face and eyes and Stiles wanted to move into the room. He wanted to comfort the older man. He made one step before Derek growled out a warning."Don't." it was quiet but full of enough fear and hurt that Stiles listened. Derek didn't want anyone to come anywhere near him. The thing had hurt Erica, used his claws to do it and Derek was scared he would do it again."It's gone." Stiles tried to soothe but Derek flinched hard, a commotion upstairs had both their heads swinging to the stairs. Derek growled out a command to go but he needn’t have bothered, Stiles was already running. He made it to the kitchen in time to see Carter throw the pan of still steaming sludge at a roaring Scott, his eyes black and blazing almost angrily at them all. The sludge hit Scott's face and Stiles couldn't help the wince as Scott dropped to his knees as the mixture looked like it was burning. Scott's voice was deeper, darker as he begged and screamed before passing out."Quickly, we need to move him." Carter instructed and Peter hefted Scott over his shoulder and carried him into the living room. "The mixture will keep the demon and Scott contained for enough time for me to draw a trap but Stiles I need your help.""What? I've never drawn one before. How?" Stiles moved anyway. The thing had been inside Derek and was now trying to inhabit his best friend. He wasn't going to let it get away again. He moved to Carter's side and watched in horror and awe as the man ran a blade across his forearm and began to use two fingers to paint a wide circle on the floor."Look in the book and find the runes, I need you to paint them as I make the circle and ley lines inside of it." Carter instructed and Stiles didn't hesitate. Using the same knife he sliced a cut into his own arm and collected the blood that dripped forth. Peter placed Scott's unconscious body in the circle before Carter could fully finish it and together they made a macabre picture on the hard wood floors.When they were finished Carter instructed Stiles to stand at the head of the circle and to anchor Scott with their bond. He needed Stiles to keep his inner eye on Scott and how his bond was flaring. Remind the man and the wolf that was possessed that they were helping and that he would be safe. That it would be all over soon. Stiles closed his eyes and focused as best he could on the string he now knew to be the one that led him to Scott. The one that visualised his bond with his brother, his best friend. Carter took up a spot directly across from Stiles and began to chant something that had the blood on the floor flare brightly for a second before it seemed to burn itself into the floor. Stiles spared a split second thought for what Derek was going to say but shook it off when Carter began to speak."Exorcizamus te, omnis immundus spiritus,
omnis satanica potestas, omnis incursio infernalis adversarii,

omnis congregatio et secta diabolica.

Ergo, draco maledicte.

Ecclesiam tuam securi tibi facias libertate servire,

te rogamus, audi nos"

The Latin sounds ominous but Scott began to writhe and the bond flared wide and raw in Stiles chest. A dark voice erupted from Scott, begging in turn with throwing curses at them before it turned its eyes to Stiles. He realised it must sense the connection or know something from its turns inside two of his friends because it began to beg him directly. Pleading with him to make it stop, that it's killing him and Scott won't survive it either but Stiles feels the bond flare with reassurance and strength and he knows the thing is lying. He closes his eyes and focuses on the feeling inside him, and imagines himself gripping Scott's hand tight and fighting with him as Carter repeats the rite. His eyes fly open when he feels a phantom sensation of Scott squeezing his hand back and he watches as the black smoke coughs out of Scott. He watches as it leaves his friend in increments until the last of it flares pathetically across the circle as if in a last ditch effort to escape them before it fades and leaks away.
Scott curls up in a facsimile of the position Derek had taken up downstairs and Stiles makes to move towards him but Carter warns him against it. He advises that Scott stay inside the circle until they can source some holy water to make sure the thing is definitely cleansed from the scene. Stiles frowns but obeys, carefully sitting down at the edge and squeezing his hand tight. He feels and sees Scott reciprocate before the other man cracks his eyes open and gives him a wan smile.
"You okay Scotty?" Stiles voice feels raw and his throat catches as he fights the feelings inside him."Yeah. That hurt like a bitch though." Scott sighs, his eyes falling closed once again. "Like being clawed by a cat that refuses to let go so you can't put it in the bath, only on the inside and all over."The imagery has Stiles cringing in sympathy. He shares a look with Isaac who looks freaked out and antsy on the edge of the circle. Stiles beckons him to come to him and Isaac all but flops to the floor and leans heavily into his side. Stiles grips his hand with the one he can still feel Scott's grip with and Isaac startles visibly when Scott clenches his own fist and he knows they can both feel it this time.Carter is still stood at the head of the circle, he looks exhausted as he talks on the phone, requesting someone bring two bottles of holy water to the Hale house. Stiles figures he is talking to Deaton and deigns to ignore it until Boyd taps his shoulder."Derek is still in the safe room, he is refusing to come out. Carter wants Scott and he to be contained until we can make sure the demon is gone and Erica is upstairs in bed. Melissa is with her." he explains, his voice gruff with emotion but Stiles knows that he is trying to hold on before he goes to her. Enough to give them a status report at least. Stiles thanks him and tells him to go to her, to make sure she is healing and Boyd doesn't hesitate when Stiles assures him that he will keep an eye on things down here.Thankfully Alison and Lydia had been out of the house when everything went to shit and they aren't due back for a while so Stiles focuses on the bonds. He keeps up the connection to Scott as it seems to be soothing his best friend, himself and Isaac. He also pushes as many feelings of safety and reassurance as he can down the string he knows connects him to their Alpha. He gets no reply but figures Derek is licking his wounds.The wait isn't long and a harried Deaton arrives with several bottles clinking in a bag and hands them to Carter who uncorks one and tips some over his still bloody hand before splashing some on Scott. The sleepy man has no reaction besides sprawling on his back."Feels cold." he slurs and Carter huffs a laugh before splashing him a few more times. When he deems it enough he assures them that the ritual was a success. He tells Scott to go to bed, and rest. To eat and drink and recuperate. Isaac helps Scott to his feet and Stiles watches them leave, reluctantly severing the connection he can feel but not before one last squeeze. Scott squeezes back and Stiles knows that his friend is going to be fine. He follows Carter to the basement and watches as he approaches the door to the cell."Don't." Derek growls once again and Stiles huffs impatiently."He needs to make sure there isn't any remnants of that thing hanging around." Stiles explains, his own voice gone deeper and rougher and he knows he is tired too."How?" Derek asks and Carter explains, waving the half empty bottle at him. Derek asks if he can do it and Carter inclines his head in confirmation. Stiles watches him carefully take the bottle from the Fae's hand and upend the thing over his head. There seems to be no reaction and Carter breathes a sigh of relief before excusing himself because he is exhausted. Derek shakes the water from his hair before dropping to the bed and pushing his head into his hands."You can come out now." Stiles hears the plea in his voice but he doesn't care. The urge has been to comfort Derek since he watched him writhe as the Demon vacated him but Derek refuses to let him near.The older man only shakes his head before he eyes the doorway and begins to shift, Stiles watches his bones reform and the fur grow until a large black wolf is left to stare back at him."Oh very mature." Stiles snarks, recognising the avoidance for what it is, before settling down into the same position he remembers Derek taking when he himself was feeling unsafe. Derek huffs at him and curls up on the floor, his tail over his snout but his eyes on Stiles. The younger man doesn't move and neither does Derek, for a long time.**It had been three days and the pack were worried. Derek hadn't come out of the safe room or full shift at all. Peter had provided him fresh deer meat and water but otherwise he allowed nobody near him. Stiles had taken himself to bed the first two nights, later than he should have, especially as his back protested the treatment. The third night, he watched Derek pace the cage like room as the time drew nearer to three am, but Stiles had told Derek that he wasn't moving until Derek came out.The wolf paced and huffed, clearly agitated but not responding to Stiles unless it was to huff and grumble lowly as Stiles got himself comfortable on the blanket that Scott had brought him when he refused to leave. Hooking one arm behind his head he stared at the ceiling above him and contemplated his next move if Derek continued to refuse to come out. The hour began to catch up to him, he tried to resist the slow blinks but they eventually won.He awoke sometime later by hot breathe against his cheek, blinking against the dim light of the basement he came face to face with the large black wolf that he had been trying to get through to. Derek stared at him for a few seconds before he ducked his muzzle and nudged at Stiles."I told you Sourwolf, I will stay down here as long as you decide you aren't leaving." Stiles closed his eyes again, ignoring the huff against his cheek until he felt a tug on his arm. He opened his eyes to frown at the wolf who had the cuff of his sleeve in his mouth, Derek tugged again. "You want me to follow you?"Derek nodded, dragging his arm up and down with him, Stiles carefully climbed to his feet and followed as Derek led him to the bed laid inside the room. Stiles eyed it but didn't get time to hesitate for very long as Derek moved behind him and nudged his butt. Stiles climbed onto the cot and pressed his back to the wall, leaving enough space for Derek to fit besides him. The wolf only huffed at him again as it retreated, collecting the blanket from the floor and dragging it over to give it to Stiles. The younger man smiled at him as he arranged himself before he patted the open mattress."Come on Sourwolf, we both need to sleep." Stiles encouraged, but Derek only stared at him in response. Stiles kept up the eye contact for a minute before Derek seemed to roll his eyes and climb carefully into the open space. Settling down with his muzzle only slightly on the pillow, Stiles threw an arm over his hairy back and sleep quickly over took him once again.He awoke a few hours later to a low threatening growl emanating from beside him. He rubbed his eyes and almost laughed when he realised what was happening. Derek was still laid beside him, still in full shift but eyeing the doorway in which Peter stood. Meat on a tray and a bowl full of water, the bowl had Derek written in black sparkling writing. The older man was obviously trying to goad his nephew."I think we should have breakfast upstairs." Stiles suggested, Derek narrowed his eyes but Stiles was stubborn and Derek knew it. "I could always ask for Scott to bring me some pancakes instead if that would make you feel better."Derek grumbled lowly before climbing from the bed and making his way slowly to the doorway. Stiles groaned as he sat up and moved to follow him, Peter moved out of the way and together the three of them ascended the stairs. The kitchen was full when they arrived and Stiles could feel the anxiety coming off of Derek even as he followed at Stiles heels. Erica was sitting on a stool at the island, fully healed and Derek eyed her before walking carefully forward and resting his head on her lap."Aww Derek, I don't blame you. That thing was inside of you and you wouldn't have recognised me or hurt me on purpose." Erica rubbed her fingertips through the fur on his head and Derek accepted the affection. A lump rose in Stiles throat as he watched Derek move from pack member to pack member. Sniffing and letting them touch him in various ways. He hesitated at Scott but the man held his hand out and Derek sniffed him. Stiles collected a plate of breakfast and moved to the far side of the table where Peter had placed the tray on the floor by the wall, Derek kept an eye on him as he ate but nobody mentioned anything.Afterwards it seemed like Derek was going to retreat to the basement again but Stiles put his foot down, stating he hadn't worked in three days and if Derek wanted he could follow him to his room, but under no circumstances was he to go back to that room. Derek sighed but dutifully followed him. Stiles collected some things and informed Derek he was going for a shower and he expected Derek to be still there when he returned.Stiles attended a meeting and then got to work, keeping a careful eye on a curled up Derek at his feet. He hadn't been able to talk to the man properly in days and Stiles felt like he was coming out of his skin. He got a few solid hours of work out before Derek nudged him in the thigh and he realised that he hadn't had break all day and the sun was going down. Derek followed him to the kitchen and listened attentively as Stiles talked about food and what he should eat. Derek responded in his own way but it wasn't the same. The evening waned on and slowly Stiles felt the heaviness settle inside him. He tried to keep his emotions in check as best he could, knowing that Derek could smell it on him if he got stressed. They retreated back to his room and he quietly got ready for bed, only sending a slightly scathing look at Derek when the wolf tried to sleep on the floor.A routine was established but Stiles became frustrated quickly, the pack were struggling without their Alpha being as present as usual and he wasn't fairing well either. Peter, Isaac and his dad had all tried talking to Derek but nothing had worked. Stiles waited for Derek to patrol the house that evening and let himself break. The tears came easily, he didn't know why he felt so sad and emotional, Derek was still there. The demon hadn't taken him from them but he wasn't able to respond to anyone in a proactive way. Tears streamed down his face as he looked inward at the bond, it was as strong as ever but the guilt, sadness and fear that emanated from Derek was loud.He barely felt the bed dip as Derek settled behind him, pressing his muzzle into his neck and sniffing loudly. A soft plaintive whine broke the quiet so Stiles turned over and pulled Derek into a hug. Derek buried his nose back into Stiles neck when he got comfortable and Stiles eventually fell asleep.The next morning Stiles woke feeling overly warm and sweaty, he didn't think anything of it until he moved his hand and was met with soft, warm skin. Stiles resisted the urge to snuggle and pulled away slightly to eye the soft, pillow creased face of Derek. Stiles closed his eyes and settled back down, letting sleep drag him back under, he knew Derek was probably exhausted. A full shift took a lot of energy and he had kept it up for days, Stiles knew Derek would probably sleep for a while longer and felt no problem with joining him back in the land of slumber.When Stiles awoke a while later, the sun was higher in the sky and he was alone. He climbed out of bed and made his way into the kitchen to see Derek fully dressed and cooking. Stiles didn't know what had changed but something definitely had. He accepted the cup of coffee that Derek poured for him and took a seat at the counter and waited for Derek to join him with food.They never spoke about waking up curled around each other, or how Derek finally came back to himself because of Stiles intervention.**Living in the pack house is an experience for Stiles. Much like college it has the ability to make him feel like he will never be alone in the world which is both the best and the worst feeling in the world sometimes. It's the best when he needs someone to talk to, when he feels like he has an abundance of energy and only his friends can help him run it off, sometimes literally. Other times it's like living with a radio that he can't find and turn off, the house is always full of noise, most nights it peters off but others it doesn't. There is a constant buzz in the background, and sometimes Stiles struggles with being over stimulated and crowded.This was never meant to be a permanent thing, not yet at least. The plan was to get his own place eventually, he didn't want to live with his father forever, and with Derek rebuilding the house, it was sort of a given that eventually he might move in. Only he knew he wasn't ready, both to leave his father alone in that house and to live with a bunch of people. Yes they were his friends but sometimes he needed his space and Scott especially was a little ignorant of that particular boundary. He never understood that sometimes Stiles just wanted to be alone. It had taken a few blow ups over the years for Scott to finally realise that Stiles wasn't trying to slight him, he just needed the alone time, the peace and quiet and the space to think. That was harder to do, even if the person in your space was quiet and calm. Melissa had eventually helped him to explain it.So staying at the pack house whilst Derek equalised back into his mostly human state was fine, but as Derek got better, Stiles could feel himself getting worse.It started slowly, one morning whilst he was in the shower he could hear Erica yelling, she was angry at Isaac over some slight or another and Stiles felt his peace shatter. It would have been fine had he not been suffering from an increase in his 'Magical Accidents' as his father called them. The last few days he had found himself getting frustrated and unable to get away from the noise and busyness around him, and each time something had happened.Books had come flying off of the shelves when he had been reading in the library after a long day of coding, he didn't know what triggered him but he had spent an hour replacing all of the volumes. A couple of hours later he had watched as the fridge magnets arranged themselves behind Deaton as the man talked, his usual droning on about something or another whilst not really explaining himself. The words Asshole, Prick and Idiot had slowly spelled themselves out and Stiles had no choice but to walk away when pack members began to snicker around him.His control was getting better so when he found himself in these situations he was capable of centering himself enough to stop whatever was happening. However his accomplishment wasn't at such a level that he was able to prevent these occurrences before they had a chance to manifest. Carter had explained that he wanted Stiles to be able to recognise those emotions and the results a little better first before they trained his spark further. It was frustrating.So when the water in the shower began to change colour and stain his skin, that was the last straw. He breathed and calmed himself, throwing up a barrier between himself and the world beyond so he could no longer hear the argument and began to calm down. The water went back to normal eventually and he managed to rinse himself off before he stained anymore of his skin. Unfortunately he still had a blue splotch covering a patch between his abdomen and one of his legs that he hadn't been able to wash away.Getting himself dressed and downstairs, he couldn't help but be disappointed in the grown adults who were still arguing in the kitchen. He walked in and stood in the doorway, his hands on his hips. Erica noticed him first and snorted at the look on his face."I think the house needs some ground rules." he aimed at them, both she and Isaac frowned at him quizzically, "It might stop you from arguing like children over something ridiculous.""Hey, he used the last of my shampoo, as if he has much hair anyway." Erica defended herself with a pout on her face, a petulant air of indignance colouring her tone."Shampoo. You are yelling about.." taking a deep breathe and blowing it out loudly he aimed a finger at Isaac. "You stop using other people's products, and you, if anyone else touches your stuff and you find yourself unable to share like a toddler, then move it back to your room when you are finished so you no longer have this problem.""Okay Mom." Isaac mocked, a ridiculous look on his face and Erica snorted at him like she hadn't been about to rip his head off."Dude, we are the same age." Stiles defended himself."Then stop acting like the pack Mom." Isaac shot back and Stiles shook his head with a chuckle."Maybe I wouldn’t have to if you all would stop acting like children." he undermined himself then by stomping off back to his room, listening to the pair of them snicker, at least they were no longer arguing.He collected his hoodie and met up with Carter in the woods as scheduled. They were meditating and he brought up the troubles he was having. Carter suggested that he move back home, that it might be the best thing for him if he was having so many issues again.It wasn't a bad idea, but he was worried that it would interfere with Derek and the control that had settled over him since the demon incident, Carter only smiled at him a little before suggesting he take Derek with him. That Derek could set up a temporary residence in the spare room and that way they could work on the bonds and their control within a relatively peaceful environment. Stiles informed him that he would consider it before they began to forage for ingredients. There meeting continued on much the same as Stiles struggled to focus, his indecision warring in him.The decision was made for him when he arrived home and found the pack all yelling at each other in the kitchen, he tried to get a word in, find out what was going on but nobody was answering him. Too busy yelling at their opponent. Stiles scratched his nails over his head and tried to keep his calm as he watched them, it didn't even occur to him to walk back outside and leave them to it. He joined the fray instead, only to regret it a moment later when he was shoved by an annoyed Scott who was trying to get past him to Jackson.He could feel the feeling inside him building like the worst kind of panic attack and he fought his way to the back door to try and get himself away but it was too late. The window to the French door smashed as he approached it and the level of noise behind him dropped to zero."Dude." he heard Scott whisper, but Stiles closed his eyes and ignored him. Stepping through the jagged hole he had created he walked slowly out into the backyard and sat himself on one of the fallen logs that surrounded the fire pit. One by one the pack followed him out, each of them looking at him with concern."I can't live like this." he groaned, when he was sure all of them were there. A spattering of noises erupted so he held his hand up and thankfully they died away quickly. "I am not asking you to change, or make you have to live on eggshells whilst you wait for my next magical blow up. I am saying that I need to go home. I need a peaceful home, one that isn't full of people who only learned to get along a few short years ago.""Stiles that sounds like an ultimatum." Peter pointed out."It's not. I wasn't supposed to be living here full time anyway and I don't want to interrupt the dynamic you have going here. If that means I move back home and visit like I used to then I feel like that would be the best for everyone." Stiles explained, rubbing the heels of his hands into his eyes as he fought the guilt."So you're leaving." Erica pouted, glum and clearly trying to hide the upset."Not really cat woman. It will be just like it was before, I would have a safe space to go when everything becomes too much and none of you will have to deal with my fits of property damage when I become over stimulated.""You have a safe space here." Isaac tried to argue, "The rooms are soundproofed.""Yes they are, but..." Stiles dug for a way to explain it until Scott made a noise of clarity."It's like the electricity thing right?" Stiles felt affection swell inside him as Scott hit the nail on the head. He obviously remembered the talk they'd had with Melissa when he was a kid."Electricity thing?" Peter frowned, baffled."I never really understood it myself but my Mom said that some people with ADHD and other neurological conditions have a problem with over stimulation. It can be because everyone in the room is talking at once and the level of noise and over lapping voices is making it hard to listen, or sometimes it's more difficult. That even in a completely silent room there is something buzzing. An outlet that is drawing too much power, or a radio that is still putting out static and they can hear it. They can identify which socket and they need to stop it. It can make them crazy and when they can't stop it, it can be really bad for them." Scott filled them in, each member nodding a little as it finally sunk in. "It can cause really bad anxiety and stuff.""And living here is like that?" Derek wondered aloud."Even with my bedroom door shut. It's like buzzing in the background, and I can't find the noise." Stiles confirmed. "I talked to Carter and the good thing is that it wasn't as bad before all this magical stuff started happening so he thinks that it is a manifestation of my Spark becoming overwhelmed. So once I get a better hold of things I should be able to spend more time here, and even move back in eventually."That seemed to mollify them all somewhat and Stiles was relieved. Everyone dispersed slowly leaving just Derek staring at him from across the circle."Carter suggested that you come with me." he quietly revealed. Derek smiled a little but didn't say a word so Stiles continued. "He said it would be good for both of us and I can work on the bond, and we can work on our control in a more peaceful environment.""That sounds fair." Derek agreed and Stiles explained that he would speak to his dad and get the spare room set up for Derek. They agreed that they would do it the next day and in the meantime Derek would have a word with the pack and explain what was going on. He also would set some ground rules for when he wasn't around, cleaning routines and such. The news was met with raised eyebrows and snickers from the pack but Stiles ignored them and made his way to his room to pack.The next morning he and Derek made a plan for Derek to come to the house later before Stiles left. His dad was excited to have him back but a little quizzical as to why Derek was moving in too, even more so when Stiles explained that he would be taking up the spare room, but Stiles wasn't going to unpack that. Derek arrived only a few hours later and got settled quite quickly. Stiles wasn't surprised, his father had grown quite close to Derek whilst he had been away at college.**The first morning was more awkward than Stiles was expecting, he had stumbled out of bed, bleary eyed and rumpled. He barely managed not to brain himself on the door frame as he made his way out of the room, rubbing his head and squinting one eye open he made his way to the bathroom only to find the door locked. Groaning loudly he begged his father to hurry up as he desperately needed to pee. The door swung open and a cloud of steam billowed out, thankfully only a few moments later and Stiles found himself awake faster than he expected with the sight he was presented with. Blinking a little wide eyed he couldn't help but take in Derek standing on the other side of the doorway. Derek's hair was wet and shiny, his muscles shining with water droplets that trailed teasingly between his abs only to stop at the towel at his waist. Stiles eyes snapped abruptly upwards when Derek cleared his throat, causing Stiles to choke a little on his own spit."I need to pee." he reminded Derek, as if he wasn't stood in the doorway, blocking the man's exit. Realising this he moved quickly to the side and Derek passed him. Stiles rubbed his knuckles into his chest to calm his beating heart as he heard Derek's bedroom door close. Shaking the vision from his head he finally got back on task and began his own morning routine.Of course the cycle seemed to repeat itself only an hour later when Stiles was coming back out of the bathroom. His own towel almost falling when he flailed in shock, as he hadn't expected to see Derek in the hallway. Fighting the urge to cover himself up when he realised Derek was staring a little, he only nodded at the man before retreating into his room.Breakfast was easier with his father sitting at the counter, freshly back from a shift at the station and waiting on whatever Stiles was offering up for their morning meal. Rummaging in the sparse refrigerator he found half a dozen eggs and a package of bacon and figured he would go shopping later. They discussed their plans for the day and shared some small talk before Stiles went upstairs to get on with some work, and John went to bed. Derek seemed at a bit of a loss after offering to clean up and informed them he would be back later. Stiles felt a little bad for him, he wasn't surrounded by the pack and had no micromanaging to do.Stiles was proud of his work ethic by the time he stepped away from his computer, the company were pleased with the progress he was making, even if he'd had to have a few more breaks than usual. Grabbing a notepad he made his way downstairs and began to make a list of everything he thought they might want from the grocery store. He realised he wouldn't be able to ask about Derek's preferences once he had added the usual fodder to the pad, and sent a quick text to ask Derek if there was anything in particular he should pick up. He wasn't expecting to see the Camaro in the parking lot when he pulled up at the store, but figured the guy had wanted more items than would be feasible to send in a text. Derek stepped out of his car and together they moved through the store collecting the groceries. Stiles was hardly surprised when he saw how much peanut butter Derek decided he needed, he had seen the man make protein shakes. Throwing in a box of coco powder and a couple of bunches of bananas before Derek could peruse his own list got him a smile.Derek refused to let Stiles pay once they had got to the till and Stiles was hardly surprised, figuring he would put the grocery money into the pack night pot he had been secretly keeping he didn't fight him. After putting everything away and getting on with dinner Stiles found the awkwardness from the morning had disappeared. They chatted like normal, joking about and teasing one another. It felt normal and Stiles was glad.The following few days went by much the same, save for the morning show of course, mainly because Stiles made sure to check who was in the bathroom before he knocked. He didn't think he could take seeing that again. He had managed all those years to keep his feelings a secret, mostly by going after people he had more of a chance with than the allusive Alpha Werewolf. He had thought that being away at college and the distance would have helped but with the new proximity of them living in the same house for the last few weeks was starting to remind him what he liked about Derek.He was funnier than he let on, his humour drier than most but with a quick wit that often caught Stiles off guard. They talked about books and movies, music. Stiles was struggling honestly, Derek was a very attractive man who had a really nice personality, a protective streak a mile wide and a strong sense of family. He secretly cursed Carter for the idea that he and Derek were connected to the land and connected to each other. He thought the idea sounded a little like how literature described soul mates but he couldn't wrap his head around that.How could he and Derek be soul mates. It was ridiculous. He and Derek were nothing alike, they were the complete opposite. He was talkative, barely knew how to shut up if you asked some people and sometimes made the stupidest jokes at the wrong times. Derek was more restrained in nature, Stiles had joked before that he got more conversation from the man's eyebrows than his lips. He had been accused of being unable to take anything seriously which was blatantly untrue, even if he found he got the inappropriate giggles on occasion as well as distracted easily. Whereas Derek was almost entirely serious, all of the time, focused and a planner.Stiles brought all of this up to Carter when they meditated and much to Stiles annoyance he pointed out that it was the nature of soul mates to be opposites. Puzzle pieces that only fit each other, complimenting each other and assisting in ways that no one else would ever be able to."You are aware of the bond between you? You have been practising following them and feeling those connections?" Carter pressed when Stiles only scowled at his explanation."Yes. I have figured out whose strings are connected to whom and have been practising getting more in touch with the feelings they send my way." Stiles confirmed."So tell me Stiles? What do you think of the one bond you refuse to talk about? You have described it before as lustful I believe." Carter opened one eye and regarded Stiles with an amused look that had Stiles flushing to the tips of his ears. "Does it still feel that way?""It's more active than it was, almost like it had been sleeping or.. I don't know. Like it wasn't used to being more than a one sided connection. The feelings I get from it are jumbled and confused, sometimes even I can't figure out exactly what it is I am feeling from it." Stiles explained, hedging around what he knew Carter was trying to get him to admit. The truth was he knew what he felt when Derek was looking at him, the want that coursed through the bond. The need and lust, the absolute hunger. He also knew what he sent back through that bond and wasn't sure it was entirely reciprocated. It was the uncertainty that scared him, the thought that the bond was amplifying feelings that were barely there to begin with, or even fabricating ones that complimented the already complicated bond.He wasn't sure if he was in love with Derek and had so far felt nothing like that come through, which was throwing him off. He felt all kinds of other emotions, anger when the Demon was inside him, a burning fury that singed the bond on its very edges. Anxiety and worry, sometimes in the face of Peter and often Isaac. Stiles knew that Derek felt like he was responsible for the two of them but in very different ways. He wasn't about to tell Isaac that the man saw him like he would a son but it was there, the pride and warmth. The snatches of emotions he felt directed at him were confusing for several reasons, most of which were because he wasn't sure he was supposed to see them. Almost like they were accidentally expressed and Stiles was having trouble getting a handle on what it all meant.He told all this to Carter and watched as the man seemed to sigh, weary."Stiles when I see your pack I know that it is one that has been forged in fire, pain and even death. From the very beginnings it held a fraught beginning. The murder of one family member followed by the murder of another. Two Alpha's sharing a space, one of which came to his status because of sheer force of will. Something I believe he still regrets to this day, as he will never believe he is worthy of the responsibility. Of course he had no choice, none of you have had very much choice in any of the decisions you have made, and despite that some of you still regret those decisions deeply. A decision, a moment of weakness can have a profound effect on a person's life, a lasting one with consequences that are far reaching. It can be hard to make any further decisions of that nature, ever again."Stiles knew what he was saying, about Derek. Of course the man had trust issues, he had unwittingly been used and abused by a woman who he thought loved him. He couldn't ever imagine having to go through what Derek had gone through in his life, and he began to see what Carter was saying. Carter knew that Derek would stay alone if it meant that he wouldn't accidentally betray his family again, and if any of them were to be the one to make the first move, it would have to be him. The only problem was, Stiles didn't think he was ready to admit just how much he needed Derek.He was struggling with his magic and he knew deep down that the reason it was centred around the man was because Stiles felt centred in his presence. They had been there for each other so much through ups and downs and near death experiences. They had saved each other's lives more times than either of them could count. Stiles knew he could trust Derek, with every part of him. Only he wasn't sure Derek could trust him in the ways he wanted him to. He would never hurt Derek intentionally but he often jumped before he checked where he was going to land and if he did it accidentally he would never forgive himself.They meditated for a little longer before Stiles gave up. Inviting Carter inside he tried to ignore the thought spinning in his head and was brought out of them abruptly when Peter came walking into the house without knocking."Can I help you?" Stiles snarked, raising an eyebrow at the man as he perused the living room as if he was looking for something, or someone. Carter took a seat at the breakfast bar, and waved away the offer of coffee, opting for water."I was looking for my dear nephew, we were supposed to be going running." Peter revealed after a moment of eyeing Stiles with his head cocked slightly. The look confused Stiles so he decided to ignore it, it was mostly best to ignore Peter."Well if he isn't in his room, I can't help you?""Right." Peter turned on his heel and headed up the stairs and only a few moments later returned with Derek behind him. The younger man made sure that Stiles knew that he would be out for dinner before leaving.**They had been running at a normal human pace for a while, taking a circuit of the open areas of the town before they would reach the preserve and shift. It was leisurely compared to their usual runs and Peter couldn't help but worry about Derek. The man was clearly lost in thought and Peter had some idea as to what was troubling him."Care to share dear nephew?" Peter tried to coax, hoping that Derek would open up. They had been steadily growing closer in previous years and whilst Peter knew that the reasons behind their lost closeness where his own fault he had hoped that they might one day return to their previous relationship."Not really." Derek grumbled, picking up the pace enough that Peter had to actively concentrate to keep up. They were on the edge of town now anyway and anyone watching might think they were just finishing their leg with a burst of speed."Well if you won't let me help you with your boy woes.." Peter mocked, only to regret it instantly when he found his back pressed into a tree."They are not woes." Derek growled."Sorry." Peter held up his hands, but couldn't help smirking up at Derek. "Man woes? Troubles of the heart? Pining adorably from afar?""I am not pining." Derek leapt away from him like he had been burned."Oh come now Derek, you don't need to be a werewolf to hear that lie." Peter goaded. Only he hadn't been expecting Derek to slump onto a nearby log with his head in his hands."When he was in high school I could tell he had a crush on me, mostly because I could tell when his heartbeat increased and stuff, but it gradually went away.""Or he got better at hiding it." Peter interrupted with a weary sigh."And I figured that he had grown passed it. That the pack would grow and we would be friends as he got older and then he had to come back from college covered in tattoos, and I couldn't figure out what was going on. He was different, but not in a bad way, or even a better way." Derek rambled, an unusual occurrence for the man."He grew into his looks and gained some confidence." Peter concluded."Yes. It was almost like he wasn't seconded guessing himself anymore. He knew what he wanted and he had been getting it, I was almost relieved when he went back to school and I got a reprieve from the..." Derek trailed off, a pink tinge rising on his cheeks. Peter held his chuckle, knowing that if he let himself, Derek would storm off and they would never finish their heart to heart."He smelled different then?" Peter deduced."So much different, and I couldn't get my head around it. I was confused and it wasn't until he moved back home when he graduated that I knew what it was.""He smelled like mate?" Peter wondered, he hadn't considered that Stiles would be his nephews mate, they had always had a connection, most of the time it had been confusing to watch them interact. He believed that Derek was annoyed with the boy more than not, most of the time."Yeah. I.. well I didn't think I would ever find my mate and it turns out that they have been in front of me for years.""Sometimes your mate is right in front of you, your aunt.. well we met in college and I was surprised that she was interested in me at first. She was popular and seemed to have a lot of friends, I was something of a loner and when we started talking in the library I honestly thought she was playing a joke on me. I didn't realise until much later that she was everything I thought I wouldn't find either. My complete opposite in every way. Stiles is your complete opposite." Peter expressed solemnly."Peter.. I" Derek began, his eyes settled somewhere between his feet and Peter knew what was coming so pre-empted it."Derek, we both know that you regret everything that happened in relation to Kate and what she did, but I know that you have nothing to be sorry for. We can rehash this till the day we die, but I know that you were abused by that woman, used in a way no child should ever experience and she repaid you with death and destruction. I only wish I had seen what she was doing, seen what was happening. The adults in your life are as much to blame for what happened and for that I am sorry."Derek bottom lip trembled a little before he hid his face once again. They sat in silence, Derek sniffling occasionally for a few more minutes before Peter decided to change the subject."I've been feeling a little at a loss for a while now and I was wondering what you might think of me possibly opening a book store in town." Peter asked, getting up from the log and stretching, readying himself for the next leg of their run."Isn't there already a book store in town?" Derek asked, frowning up at Peter."Yes, Mrs Kriniski has been looking to sell up for a while now, fortunately for me nobody has taken her up on it yet. I thought I might buy the building, move into the apartment above it and give the pack some space.""Peter the pack,""Doesn't entirely trust me." Peter raised an eyebrow daring Derek to lie, to try and fudge the truth but the younger man conceded with a grimace. They continued their run as they continued to talk, Peter outlining his plans and his reasoning. It would give him something to do and they would be able to present an upstanding cover to the community. One that had been lacking in the years since the fire.Derek saw merit in the idea and once they had chased each other about the woods for a few hours, joined by various members of the pack at different points they made their way into the office at the pack house to hash out the details. Peter needed some of the capital that Derek had been awarded by the insurance after the fire and after agreeing that he would invest in the business, a half share they made plans to approach Mrs Krisinski.**Of course because nothing can ever be simple Mrs Krisinski talked them into buying both of the buildings that made up her property so that she could retire to Florida. Peter was unsure, he had only been planning on buying the one, but when Derek viewed the other, a café. He was hooked, he had plans of his own, to re-open the place. Peter was loathed to talk him out of it, especially when he realised that Derek seemed to have taken to the project with an attitude he hadn't seen in him in years.Peter roped John in of course, they had been spending time together in increments since John had been let in on their 'Furry Little Secret' as Stiles liked to call it. That time had been increasing since Stiles had returned from college and Peter only wanted to encourage the connection. John had some amazing ideas and he was keen to implement them.Hiring movers for the donated furniture and cleaning out the apartments spaces above the shops was a chore of a job. Once they had helped the previous owner load up her U-Haul with her grandson they had the arduous task of cleaning out everything she had deemed unimportant and left behind. As well as fumigating the cat room that had become more than a little pungent. Isaac and Scott had pitched in, carrying trash bags and boxes down the stairs and into the large industrial garbage bins they had rented. The work took longer than any of them thought it would but it was nice to see the blank canvass underneath when it was all done.The construction of course took up a few weeks and in the meantime Derek was throwing himself into re-learning how to bake. He started simple with cookies of all kinds and Stiles was hooked, they chatted as he worked and Stiles learnt some new things about Derek."I used to bake with my Mom when she was stressed, I liked to watch her relax and get happier as she worked." Derek revealed one afternoon as Stiles watched him mix the peanut butter and chocolate chips into the dough. The cookies had turned out so good that Stiles had to be reminded to save some for everyone else."My Mom had a recipe book that she liked to look through before she made dinner, she almost never cooked from it but I think it gave her inspiration." Derek blurted one evening when he had been debating on trying to make a no-bake cheesecake that he wasn't sure he remembered all the ingredients to. Stiles had been talking about his own adventures in cooking and how he liked to follow some of his Mom's old recipes from time to time.Stiles enjoyed watching Derek bake, or cook. It seemed to fill him with an air of contentment that Stiles wasn't sure he had ever seen before. It had been confusing at first, to mesh what he was seeing; a grumpy sour wolf grumbling to himself as he mixed and stirred, with what he could feel through the bond. The peace that flowed off of him was almost like a cool breeze on a stifling hot day, a welcome relief.Stiles watched as a newfound sense of purpose came over Derek as the construction grew closer to being finalised. The café was being kept much the same apart from a dividing wall being removed and then of course there was the kitchen that needed to be built. Kitchen catalogues and websites were perused and discussions had, Peter spent a lot more time around the house and he and his father got on better and better with each day. It was during this time that Stiles discovered that his father had made plans to start a work out regime. Apparently he and Peter had been discussing using the home gym that was to be installed in the apartment above. Stiles made a note to do some research and brought it up the next time he saw the two of them. He was rightfully worried and although Peter assured him that he would keep an eye on things, he couldn't help but think that it was a bad idea.Stiles had a brief scare and almost knocked a glass bowl off of the counter when he suspected that Peter had been flirting with his father, but thankfully Derek assuaged those fears. Stiles agreed that they were quite ridiculous. His father wasn't even into men, there was no way that he would look at Peter like that.Of course with his father out of the house more often, helping Peter, that left he and Derek to fill the evenings. They of course were glad of the reprieve from the various sports channels his dad liked to peruse, and used that time to get up to date with their favourite shows. Derek's favourite was bake off, which shouldn't have surprised Stiles as much as it did. Stiles of course had decided it was time to reintroduce Derek to the world of Marvel and the MCU. There were quite a few movies to get through and Stiles enjoyed listening to Derek's sarcastic commentary, putting in his own two cents when he felt necessary.It was comfortable.Too comfortable.Stiles hadn't realised that he hadn't had another accident until one abruptly smacked him in the face. The day had been going really well, he and a few members of the pack had decided that because the cafe and book store were opening soon they were going to have a little pack night. It was going to be just them, some pizza's, beer, soda. Maybe watch some movies and spend some time together, where nobody was working and they all could relax. It had been a good plan except that Stiles hadn't been paying attention to himself, clearly.The food was ordered, the snacks were dished out but Stiles had the distinct feeling that he was forgetting something. He wracked his brain and went over the list he had made twice but there was nothing, he could feel the frustration building steadily but hadn't headed the warnings. So when Derek had come bounding down the stairs, fresh from the shower and in a tight, v neck Henley, Stiles brain had given up the ghost. He was stressing himself out and the perfect distraction wandered into his path and Stiles couldn't help but stare. Derek had pushed up his sleeves to expose his tanned forearms and Stiles followed the visual up to the bulk of bicep that stretched the fabric, the v of the shirt that split in just the right place to reveal a tuft of chest hair that Stiles knew went all the way down.He briefly let himself imagine the v neck disappearing and Stiles thought of that view, and the next thing he knew Derek was naked from the waist up. Stiles blinked in shock, Derek looked adorably confused and Isaac, Stiles was going to kill Isaac because the guy was laughing, loudly. Derek frowned at the scraps of his shirt that he had managed to stop from fluttering to the floor and Stiles realised with mortifying clarity that the seams, all of them had come apart. So seamlessly and without damage that a person skilled with a sewing machine would have been able to fix it easily.Stiles balked, running up to his room and hiding away, even as he heard Derek return to his own room, probably to change. Stiles held his breathe and hoped that Derek wasn't going to come and ask him what the hell had just happened because he wasn't honestly sure he would be able to explain. He almost melted with relief when he heard footsteps descend to the lower level and looked down at himself in disgust. He muttered to himself as he paced and realised rather abruptly that the thing he had been forgetting was himself. He needed to change out of his shirt and slacks that he wore to his zoom meetings.He eventually made his way downstairs, when enough of the pack had arrived to provide a buffer between him and Derek. He prayed silently to the god of Sparks, or mother nature or anyone who wanted to listen that he would never do that again. Derek didn't say a word besides remind him to eat his pizza once the movies began and Stiles was grateful. He had been expecting someone to say something, one of the pack but nobody did, not one of them made any sort of jokes or anything. It was a little disconcerting to say the least.Especially when his grand plan of focusing on anything but Derek, didn't seem to work. Because like an elephant in a room, he was always there. Cooking with Stiles and standing much too close to him as they combined ingredients and discussed recipes. The smell of Derek's aftershave in his nose, his sweat beading on his skin when he came back from a run on a morning, readying himself a smoothie for his breakfast. It was maddening.He tried everything to distract himself from the very fine werewolf. Cleaning the house from top to bottom when he wasn't working, which worked for a while until he realised that the fridge magnets were re-arranging themselves again. Into increasingly suggestive and even sometimes filthy words.At first he thought it was Peter messing around, one too many times he had woken up to find he and his father having breakfast in the kitchen or just hanging out. Watching sports or something historical on the TV. He realised it wasn't Peter one afternoon when he had just finished sweeping. One of the magnetic letters fell from the fridge and he bent to pick it up, and there in front of his eyes they were sliding slowly together, crooked but so obviously trying to make words and Stiles realised it was him. He had been thinking about Derek again.The man was making him suffer, either accidentally or purposefully, but it was torture. He had woken up one morning, ready to get on with his work day. He had showered and shaved before exiting the bathroom to see Derek doing pull ups in his bedroom doorway. His arms flexing as he moved, his abs tensing and releasing and Stiles had all but ran back to his room. Stopping the door from slamming behind him by barely an inch.For the rest of the day he could barely concentrate, his thoughts almost always going back to the man that plagued his waking hours. He brought it up to Carter once he had the privacy and Carter reassured him that he had seen it happens dozens of times. That there was a possibility that Stiles focus had changed around Derek and his Spark was taking notes of that, the bond and their relationship. It was disconcerting to say the least. He didn't want to non-consensually strip his friend of his clothing at random, have the thoughts bouncing around in his head spelled out for the word to see. It was rude, and at some point would probably result in teeth attacking his throat, and not in a nice way. Shaking that thought from his head, he focused on anything but Derek. Making sure that anytime a stray thought entered his brain, he shook it away fast.It was no use though, he would be reading and the words would split on the page, the letters reforming to make new words. Graphic depictions of himself and Derek in various positions. He found himself more and more upset by it the longer it happened and one day, a few weeks after the grand opening he'd had enough. He told Carter that he was going for a drive and asked the man to join him. Derek eyed the two of them suspiciously but didn't say a word as the two of them left.Stiles drove in silence for a few minutes, Carter perusing a book in the passenger seat whilst Stiles got his thoughts in order.“How do I know if what I am feeling for Derek is real?” Stiles eventually asked.Carter snapped his book closed in his hand and rested it on his lap as he considered Stiles, he seemed to be looking for something so Stiles kept quiet, even if it was killing him. They stopped briefly at the intersection, Stiles glanced into the cafe to his left and smiled as he watched Scott moon over Isaac as he wiped down tables. Alison was dancing around the empty room, to music that he couldn't hear, he was glad to see the three of them happy. He had been apprehensive of the relationship at first, worried that it would cause problems in the pack. The three had however seemed to stabilise into something that was good for them fairly quickly, and whilst Stiles definitely didn't need details, he wondered how they had done it. Got into something that could have easily backfired, and navigated through it with barely a ripple to the bond, or the rest of them. Stiles worried that if he did admit what he felt for Derek, if their own transition would be so easy.“You have had feelings for people before?” Carter eventually asked, as the light turned green and Stiles continued their drive into the dark night.“When I was younger I had a pretty heavy crush on Lydia, it petered off around the time that she saved Jackson from his fate as a Kanima and I realised I couldn't really compete with true love.” Stiles began, thinking back to the feelings that seemed to consume him some days. He knew, deep down, that he and Lydia would never really progress past anything besides friendship, but that hadn't stopped him. He had realised years later that he may have been a little obsessed with something that wasn't real. “Then of course I couldn't help but realise I wasn't entirely straight when a certain werewolf became more of a feature in my life.”“Did you have feelings for Derek then?” Carter wondered aloud.“I wouldn't say they were feelings per se, I think..” Stiles frowned to himself, tapping his fingers against the steering wheel as he organised his thoughts. “I don't know. Half the time I couldn't decide if I was in awe of him, after everything he has been through, how he could pull himself up and even get out of bed in the morning. If I hated him because of what was happening, how he didn't seem to trust any of us but needed us.”Carter nodded along in understanding, in his time in Beacon hills he had been given a picture of some of the things that had happened to the pack. How it had affected them and their bonds with one another. Being half Fae he could see a lot more of other people's aura's and bonds than anyone realised and often found it helpful to guide the supernatural beings that he was asked to guide when needed.“When did it change?” he pondered astutely.“When I was a teenager, Derek was the hot guy that growled at me in a leather jacket, he drove a sweet car and brooded all over the place. I figure out I liked guys because of him and his propensity for losing his shirt, he was an object of fantasy for me for a while, but I got to know him. Saw him for what he really was and who he really wanted to be. He saved my life enough times to make me feel like the damsel in distress, and I saved his right back too. I stopped thinking of him as just the hot guy I knew a long time ago.” Stiles edged around the question. Carter narrowed his eyes at the younger man and Stiles huffed a little. “When I left for college I figured my feelings would fade, he clearly wasn't interested and I figured he was straight so it didn't matter. I met other people, had a few short lived relationships, but I couldn't shake the thought of him sometimes. When I would come back for the holidays or the summer and we would all spend time together I would feel almost drawn to him again.”“Sounds like pretty real feelings to me.” Carter shrugged, “I understand that when you were a teenager it would have been confusing for you. You had a lot to deal with, a whole world had just opened up to you and brought more danger with it than you had ever experienced before. Death was around most corners, then out of nowhere a different side of yourself presented and you hadn't the time to undergo the usual experimentation you might have, had you been anyone else.”“I didn't really need to experiment to know that I was bi-sexual.” Stiles chuckled, “I was surrounded by the lacrosse team at least thrice a week and that was a pretty big indicator once I clued in. I never really realised that maybe I shouldn't be looking until I had a desire to. After that, combined with the... Derek of it all. I was pretty sure I knew.”“So what are you really afraid of?” Carter pushed.“That it isn't real. These feelings are getting stronger because the bond is growing, because that gold band is flexing its muscles now that I know it's there and this is all happening against either of ours will. That the minute I choose to follow where it is pointing, it will realise that Derek is not the one it wants to focus on and I will lose whatever it is I feel for him. That he won't reciprocate the way the bond wants me to think and our current relationship will be ruined, I will have to leave the pack, and Scott will feel obligated to follow me. That Isaac will be torn between he and Derek. It could make a lot of things blow up around us.” The torrent left Stiles and Carter watched him evenly as he ranted a little.“Why wouldn't it be real?”“How could it be? Derek doesn't feel anything for me, if he did, do you not think he would have said something by now?” Stiles grumbled, swinging his wheel to guide the Jeep back towards town.“Has it occurred to you that Derek is in a similar predicament? Except he has more to lose, in different ways?” Carter postulated. “Derek is the Alpha of a very young pack, he has Scott as his second, another Alpha. One who could rightfully claim half his pack with one fell swoop if he felt like it. Taking not only the beta that he connects with the most, the man he considers a best friend and an older man who has quickly filled a gap in his life that hasn't been whole in years. Derek has a lot of trust issues and whilst he trusts that none of you would hurt him in the ways that others have in the past, a small part of him might still wonder if he will become surplus to requirements. Think about it.”“How? We all need him.” Stiles vehemently denied.“There is a younger Alpha that could easily take over Derek's duties. He has the bond with all of you that is in some ways arguably stronger than the one he does. You have all known each other a lot longer, even if it was on a superficial level for a time. You grew up together, attended the same schools, and are all of a similar age. Even if these fears are entirely unfounded, they could all still be what has him hesitating over something that could change the dynamic of the pack if it were to go wrong.” Carter theorised and Stiles knew he was right.Derek loved them all as much as they loved him, but held himself back from some of the group activities like he didn't think he was supposed to be there. It took their encouragement to get him amongst the puppy piles, to decide on a movie, or an activity. He would often stand on the side lines during discussions, shoulder to shoulder with Peter. Stiles wondered if that was how he saw himself, like they saw Peter. Admittedly they had warmed to Peter in recent years, especially as he had apologised and made amends for his actions in the past.“I think that your feelings for Derek are as real as anyone else's, that because the bond has made itself known you have a foundation on which to build your relationship. This has somehow convinced you that those feelings are a figment of the spark, or the bond. I think you are forgetting that the bond wouldn't recognise Derek as yours if you didn't already think that. You need to remember that the bond is a two way street, you can feel him if you focus. You can feel what he feels for you as strongly as he can for you, and if either of you grew courageous enough to look that deep you would both find that your fears are unfounded.”Stiles quietly contemplated what Carter had told him. The man was right, if he truly wanted to be sure of what he felt for Derek then he needed to stop shying away from what he could feel, and what he knew Derek could feel from him in return. The bond could only be an asset if he just focused on what it was trying to tell him, instead of doubting it.As the jeep pulled back up to the pack house, Stiles told himself that he would make sure that Derek was pulled in more often. He wouldn't let him stand on the side lines any longer, he would make sure Derek knew that they all loved him and he was wanted amongst them. He thanked Carter for the talk and watched as the man disappeared into the house before turning back for his own.**That night, Stiles endeavoured to try and be as normal around Derek as he could. They watched a few episodes of Vampire Diaries together, laughing and joking about the stage make up and special effects. Stiles swooned over his crush on the fictional Damon and Derek ribbed him like usual. It felt normal and Stiles realised that he had been working himself up for a while. That he and Derek hadn't changed and the only thing that had was Stiles over-sensitivity to his proximity to the other man. His father was out, a night shift, so before he turned in for the night he called the man and wished him a safe shift. Reminding him to stay away from the fast food that his deputies would be ordering.He bid Derek a goodnight in the hallway, and for the first time he felt the pull under his skin. The need to follow Derek into his own bedroom. To be closer to the man and he let the feeling simmer under the surface as he got ready for bed. He didn't think either of them were ready for any type of conversation, but it felt nice to feel something other than anxiety about Derek and their relationship.Relaxing under the covers he thought back over what he and Carter had discussed.Centering himself carefully he felt for the ball of energy he felt pulsing within him. He followed his usual route, the one he had established all those times in the forest when he and Carter would mediate. Recognising the feeling inside of him, the energy it held and what it meant. He had been practice more of his spark abilities with Carter's help and was becoming more assured of his own control and abilities, but he wasn't looking for that this evening. Instead he focused on the bonds between himself and the pack. Taking a circumventing route to what he was really looking for.The rest of the pack were each either sleeping, relaxed or happy and he contended himself in the uncomplicated connections for a little while as he felt the familiar heaviness of sleep settling over him too. He tentatively reached for the blood red string that connected him to Derek, with its solid gold core. He examined it from afar for a short time, noticing for the first time how it had wound itself into himself as well as his spark, as if it was tied to the very heart of him. He almost balked when he realised this, the commitment so deeply ingrained in him by the bond and what it meant for the both of them. He pictured himself shifting slightly closer as the core of his spark began to calm, going from a twisted ball of restless energy to a slower, mass of undulating light. It felt more welcoming somehow, like he was no longer a scared observer, peaking through the trees at something he wasn't sure he should run away from. Like a summers day had slowly descended in to a quiet and peaceful evening.Stiles pressed himself to the bond and felt the peaceful sleepy feeling resonate back at him from Derek. Relaxation, softness and warmth pulsed back and forth between them until a shot of heat hit Stiles, he wasn't sure who had originated the feeling but it was sparking over his nerves anyway. Like dipping his toe in a bath that he wasn't sure was too hot, he braved the feeling and let the heat engulf him, making him breathless and chase the feeling. Like phantom hands running over his skin he felt a shiver erupt over his skin, waking goose bumps up his spine. The feeling coalesced until a match caught and he was reciprocating, his own hands exploring, much like the ones that touched him. Caressing him with care and warmth, lust and desire and he followed the pattern. Reacting as the touches settled deeper even as they skated, barely touching across his thighs, biceps and back.He was lost to it, couldn't find his way to the surface and unsure as to whether he wanted to. Pleasure coursing through him. Extending outwards in a building pressure until he awoke gasping and unaware he had fallen asleep. The phantom feeling of someone laying close to him faded gradually and he found he missed them. Derek, he missed Derek, where had he gone, why had he left.He was hard in his boxers, his body having reacted to the most sensual experience that he had ever felt in his life. He squeezed himself almost as an afterthought, his brain struggling to come online in his dark room. It was muted until he realised he was still immersed in his dream, in the bond, where ever he was. He was still there and felt Derek give an answering squeeze that made his cock twitch with a heavy need. He couldn't hide the sound that broke from his throat at the sensation, stroking his dick reflexively in answer. It didn't take long for the feedback loop of pulling and rubbing, swiping thumbs in beaded pre-cum and throbbing, thrumming need to reach a crescendo that had both of them finishing in sticky ropes across their chests.Stiles revelled in the feeling of a spectacular orgasm for less than a minute before the reality of what had just happened hit him. He didn't know who had started the game, whether he had touched the man non-consensually or it had been an answer to unspoken question. Had he interrupted Derek, mid masturbation. He and Derek had just gotten the other off without being in the same room, using only the bond to bring them over the edge as they teased at one another. Stiles felt his spark flare and realised that he had facilitated the event, allowing them to touch without the need to be physically close. His anxiety spiked and all he could think about was if he had just forced the connection on a sleeping Derek. It almost made him sick to think about it, consoling himself with the fact that Derek had reciprocated. That he hadn't been alone in that experience, but it gave him a new thought to obsess over.Had the bond, the spark, taken a dream one of them had and made it very real, fabricated something that wasn't there to begin with and if so. It seemed plausible, now more than ever that it had done the same with the love that Stiles felt for the other man. Just like that his fears were back to square one and he was scared to his core that he they had crossed a line that they couldn't come back from.**It had been Peter's idea. Have a mini pack evening at the café and Derek knows that it's only so he and John can have a date night. They apparently wanted to watch a movie, Derek shudders to think about what Peter had said, and how any of it could be code for something else. He had heard them make out in the past and he was just glad that Peter had followed through on his advice to sound proof the apartment. Of course he hadn't expected that they would begin to spend even more time together, or that it would become in anyway as serious as it had. They had yet to have the talk, he knew that much at least, which was annoying. He didn't like feeling like he was lying to Stiles but until it played out he had no concrete answers himself.Shaking his head of his errant thoughts of Peter and John's relationship, he takes the trays out of the display and plates up all the leftover treats, there aren't many but they will do. He plucks a few bags of chips from a shelf as well and adds them to the pile. Hoping the snacks will suffice until they can order out for pizza later. Isaac helps him make everyone's orders when they trickle in, leaving him to make Stiles because apparently he needs to ask Alison something. Its such an obvious ploy. The pack had realised something was off between them when Derek had returned home, quiet and a little despondent. He hadn't explained what had happened, only that he and Stiles needed space from each other and whilst the pack weren't happy they had taken his explanation for what it was.Derek rolls his eyes behind Isaac's back as the kid moved across the café, he knows Isaac is just going to greet the pair. Feigning a need to speak to Alison is a weak excuse, especially as he knows how enamoured Isaac has become in his relationship. He watches as Isaac puts a can of soda and a water bottle on the table in front of Scott and Alison. He gets a kiss from each of them and Derek cant help but smile at seeing the man who is basically his kid brother so happy.He isn't ignoring Stiles, but the man has yet to greet him. They have had small stilted conversations since that morning, but nothing like the usual. He doesn't begrudge Stiles need to gain whatever he can from how he moves through the pack, getting kisses and hugs from everyone before he feels he is ready to face Derek. Stiles saunters up to the counter eventually, and orders his usual before greeting a smiling Erica. They chatter on about something or other, Derek isn't really paying attention. He cant really take his eyes off of the machine, but he can see him moving in the corner of his eye.Stiles is gesticulating wildly. Laughing about something or other and Erica is enthralled by Stiles story. Derek doesn't blame her, he cant understand how anyone can look at Stiles and not be instantly hooked on everything about him. Derek takes his eyes away from the steamer for only a second, he swears, but Stiles is so captivating when he is happy, enthusiastic. Derek feels the pull of the bond, and the surge of feelings that rebound between them both and watches Stiles visibly flinch.The heat screams up his arm when he accidentally presses his wrist to the milk steamer. He yanks himself away from the machine the burn isn't deep but it hurts. Fresh and painful, even as a numbness erupts through the skin almost like pins and needles. Enough that he can feel a shift under the surface, as if his body is trying to force itself to heal faster than it wants to. He presses his own hand to the burn, inadvertently pushing the feeling deeper, but unable to remove his fingers from the area. It must have been worse than he thought, because it is lingering. Not healing like he normally would, but then again he has never had a burn like this one before.“Derek are you alright?” It's Stiles hand that curls around his forearm, his other twisting around Derek's unaffected wrist to pull his fingers away from the burn. He gulps, at their proximity. Stiles moves his arm carefully closer to his face to examine the wound. It's pink and red, itchy and irritated skin begging for something to relieve it. Derek ignores the feeling, much too aware of Stiles in his space.They haven't been this close to one another since the morning they don't talk about. Since Derek came with Stiles name on his lips, and his chest exploding as sensation after sensation rebounded between their bond. He'd known that Stiles, he'd had a similar experience. Neither had been able to too meet the others eye and barely could exchange a word afterwards. Their current civility spurned on by a mutually but silently agreed upon decision to not cause problems within the pack.“I'm fine.” Derek tries, knowing that he is mostly telling the truth, he could feel the burn healing as he spoke. Stiles still tutted at him, plucking a water bottle from the display and wetting a nearby towel. Derek hissed slowly as the cold towel hit his over heated skin and Stiles shot him a look.He watches Stiles fuss over him like the burn is going to do lasting damage and he cant bare the thought of never having the younger man's attention ever again. The thought of their closeness shattered by their inability to communicate. Of letting what had happened in the heat of the moment ruin what he knows could be the best thing to ever happen to him. Stiles fingers curled gently against his skin, holding him still as he tends to the burn that's slowly disappearing. His eyelashes sweeping with every blink as he works and his lips pursed in concentration. Derek has long since known that Stiles is the most beautiful person in the world to him.Derek kisses Stiles before he can really think about what he is doing, what it means. Stiles startles against him, his fingers tighten on his arm but he allows Derek to deepen it. Kisses him back with a desperation Derek isn't sure is a good thing. It almost feels like a goodbye. They slow to a stop when Derek feels a wetness against his cheekbone. He pulls away and his heart cracks when he sees the tears overflowing Stiles eyes. He opens his mouth to ask, to reassure, anything but Stiles is quick. Pushing away from him and running. Behind the counter and into the kitchen and Derek watches him go. Scared that he just did exactly what he was scared of doing. Ruining the pack, the family they have built because Stiles doesn't want him as much as he thought.“Dude.” Scott breaks him out of his revere and he and Erica look pissed. “Go.”He goes, moving before he has any idea what he will say when he catches up to Stiles, if he can catch him. Has he gone out through the back door, ran further away than Derek can reach him. He knows he is being dramatic but he can't help the deep feeling of worry that settles inside of him. He needn't have worried. Stiles is still in the kitchen, leaning over the sink, griping the copper with a white knuckled grip.Derek opens his mouth but Stiles beats him to it.“I..I'm scared.. I love you so much that I don't think I could honestly live without you . I can feel it. Here.” he taps his chest with a stabbing finger and Derek watches him and winces. Reaching out to capture his hand before he can inflict any more. “I'm scared because, what I feel for you is so big that if I ever lose you I don't know what I will do with myself. I'm worried that the bond is why I love you, that the only reason that I feel so deeply is because.. its there. That the minute I acknowledge how I feel that we'll be ruined. Spoiled, because I don't think that I deserve you. I don't deserve us, and everything I can feel we could have if only I don't fuck us up.”Stiles pulls himself out of Derek's grip and moves to pace, as much as he can in the small kitchen behind the café. Derek lets him, he knows Stiles processes things differently. He is muttering to himself and Derek feels the bond flare with fear, bone deep and rattling terror. He can't let that linger, opening his mouth to the words he know he has been too scared to say for far too long.“Stiles. I know you love me. I know it like I knew you would swim back down for me after you tried to call Scott in that pool. I know it like I know that the only thing that could turn you feral would be a threat against your father. I'm not worried that the bond is the reason for it because I felt it grow. Before your spark erupted and you could see..” Derek pauses because Stiles has, eyes wide and tearful. Reminding him painfully of the Stiles who begged for Jennifer to return his dad.“The strings?” Stiles whispers, voice broken.“I felt those connections grow. Some were instantaneous, like when Peter bit Scott, or I bit Erica, Boyd. The bond was always stronger with Isaac because I felt more responsible for him than any of the others.” Derek begins. “But you? I felt that grow, it started off as weak and tentative. Like a spider web between branches in the wind. I figured it would snap when running with wolves became too much for you.”Stiles is still staring at him but his face is clearing because he is putting together puzzle pieces, like only he can.“Then you saved my life, and it wasn't going anywhere. Over the years it got bigger, stronger. Like a lifeline in a storm I clung to it, because I hadn't had a connection like that since... since Laura was alive. Something so strong and sure that I couldn't doubt it. You think I'm not scared of what it means, of what you are to me, what you have always been. I wont let you take that away from either of us.” Derek frowns adamant and angrier than he likes, he shoots a look at Stiles who takes it.“I cant believe you doubt us?” Derek growls, moving steadily closer to where Stiles has come to rest, his back pressed against a stainless steel counter top. Presses his body closer than he had dared before, to feel Stiles, his arms resting tentatively on Stiles biceps.“I don't doubt you Derek.” Stiles assures him and Derek hears the truth, winces when he continues to detect no lie as Stiles pushes on. “I doubt me.”“I haven't doubted you in years Stiles and I don't plan on starting now.” Derek murmurs raising his hand to cup Stiles cheek and watches the younger man's eyes flutter closed on a shaky inhale. “I trust you, do you trust me?”“Always. Every time. With my life.” Stiles affirms, eyes steady when they fly open to meet his and Derek believes him. He knows that what he is hearing is the truth, he would never be able to describe the feeling as the bond flares, and settles in a way it had never done before.”Then trust me on this.” Stiles breathing hitches when Derek leans forward and brushes his lips so softly against Stiles that his is afraid he has imagined it, he repeats the action, firmer now butt still so tentative and Stiles rewards his bravery. One hand slides up his bicep to grip his shoulder as the other sinks into his hair. They kiss then properly. It isn't the first time but its better than that. Nobody is running. Its deep and torturous in its slowness , their bodies a long line of heat against each other.Stiles is the first to pull away, just like last time, but instead of running he pulls Derek forward and tilts his head so Derek can scent him. Exposing his throat and inviting an answering rumbling growl of approval from the wolf. A part of him that had been howling to be let free since he realised how deep his feelings ran for the other man. How much he could smell the scent of mate, home and belonging.“I love you Derek.” Stiles sighs, contentment leeching from his pores almost, as he sags against Derek in relief.“I know, I love you too.” Derek assures him. Pressing a kiss to the fluttering pulse in his neck.When they leave sometime later they aren't expecting the pack to be still in the cafe, Erica's make up is streaked and Isaac looks puffy eyed. Scott is looking up at Derek from where he is sitting like he has never seen him before. Boyd is smiling at the both of them along with a beaming Alison. He knows he is rarely effusive with the pack, trusting in the bond to settle the pack. Trusting in them knowing and feeling how he cares for them. He reminds himself to be more open with them all, because words mean a lot more than he realises with this group.“That was really romantic guys.” Isaac sniffles and Stiles smiles wide before enveloping the beta in a hug. Derek only rolls his eyes at the pair before Erica is punching him hard in the shoulder.”I didn't know you could talk that much.” She laughs.“Only when its important.” he smirks, catching Stiles eye before moving to the coffee machine to make them all some fresh drinks. He figures they could all hang out a while longer. They settle into a booth and Stiles is tucked so neatly against his side that Derek makes a note to remind him how well they fit together. If he should ever begin to wonder again. Maybe he will add it to the vows he plans on making one day. He smiles a little to himself and when Stiles catches it he winks before kissing him.“Dude can you not? That's my brother.” Scott jokingly scolds but shuts up with a blush when Derek blatantly eyes the arm he has around Isaac's shoulders and raises an eyebrow. Alison huffs at the two of them with a laugh.“Lydia is going to be so mad that she missed this.”**Of course with all things, as soon as they figure out their feelings and settle into their new relationship, everything else seems to settle into place. Stiles spark seems to settle with a new contentment as the bond anchors him to Derek in a way he wasn't expecting. He hadn't known that this would be the outcome of them finally figuring out what was between them, Derek's own issues seem to smooth out also. He stops struggling with his shift, his own wolf anchoring to Stiles as his mate.Carter is smug and pleased with the results and announces that his visit has been a resounding success. He pronounces Stiles spark suitably healed enough for them to be able to dissolve the boon they had agreed upon. Stiles feels more than a little worried about Carter removing his safety net but is assured that Stiles has enough control over his abilities to recognise what is happening and stop it before it has a chance to do any damage. He has come along in greater strides than any of them were expecting. Carter assures Stiles that without his magic dampening him, Stiles will have a much better ability to recognise what he needs and how he can help himself.Over the coming weeks he and Carter get into a rhythm of practising his skills that has Stiles becoming more confident as the days progress. He is better able to centre himself when he feels his emotions rising to a point that his spark wants to respond. He recognises now that the spark has always tried to protect him from perceived threats and now he has a better handle on the situation, he can control how he responds.Carter eventually has to leave unfortunately, he has another student to attend to and although Stiles is sad to see him go, he knows he is needed elsewhere. They arrange ways to communicate with each other that will help if Stiles has a pressing need, or even just some questions. Derek and Stiles drive Carter to the airport and thank him profusely for all of his help. He thanks them in return, stating how he learns something new from every person he helps and their pack is unique. Enough that Carter will be able to structure some of his own teachings with what he has learned.Deaton it turns out had known Stiles was a spark from the very beginning but was under the mistaken belief that it was almost trace amounts, like his mother. He hadn't investigated further and Carter assures them that Deaton will have his practices reviewed by a council of magical users for a while yet.The pack settles slowly and surely into their new dynamic, The Pack Mom jokes being prevalent as Sties cant help but be the support he knows they need. Encouraging Derek to show his emotions more often around the pack helps, softening the Alpha to his beta's. Of course once his own issues are sorted, Stiles can't help but realise that there is something different about his father. He knows what ever it is will become apparent soon enough, he and his father rarely lie to each other anymore. Not since their heart to heart regarding werewolves, and the supernatural nature of their world. He knows what ever it is, it isn't dangerous.**