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Fourteen-year-old Stiles and his six-year-old sister Sarah stood outside a bakery, looking in at all the different breads and muffins. "Do we have any money?" Sarah asks her brother, looking at him hopefully.
He smiled down at her, "It looks like we have enough left for a loaf of bread and we still have cheese left over from this morning." he told her as he takes her hand and walks through the door. The old woman at the counter looks down at them, "Can I help you?" she asks sweetly.
"I'd like to buy a loaf of bread, please." he tells her, pulling out the couple crumpled bills and holding them out to her. She eyes him suspiciously before taking it and going to fetch his bread. When she comes back, she bags the bread and goes to hand it to him. When he tries to pull away though, she holds on to it. "Can I ask where your parents are?" she asks him, and Sarah tries to hide behind her brother.
Stiles clears his throat, "They’re at home ma'am, waiting for us to get back." he tells her, praying that she'll buy it and let them leave. "It's almost nine pm and the middle of winter, why did they send two small children, just for bread?" she asks him, making him swallow nervously.
"We only live with our mother and she's very sick. She hasn't been able to keep anything down but soup and toast. We ran out of bread, so she sent us here, and I brought my little sister so that she didn't wake mother up." he told the lady.
Finally, to his relief, she lets go of the bread and sends them on their way. Once they step outside, Stiles pulls his sister along quickly, praying that the lady didn't change her mind and come after them.
"Stiles, where are we going to sleep tonight, I'm cold." Sarah says to him, her little lip shivering from the cold air. He slows down and starts looking around. "It looks like there's woods not too far away. Maybe we can find a good spot and even make a small fire." he tells her.
It takes them almost ten minutes to make their way to the woods and another five minutes to make it in deep enough for Stiles to feel comfortable. Just as he lets his backpack hit the ground though, the clouds open and it starts to sleet and snow.
He shines his dying flashlight about and is about to give up hope when it hits something large and metal in the distance. He picks his bag up and takes his sister's hand and they make a run for it. He smiles big when he sees that it's an old boxcar, that once was attached to a train.
He wrenches the large door open and peers around inside and is shocked to find it completely empty and hardly dirty at all. He hops inside and then reaches down to help his sister inside. He pulls out their few blankets and lays them all out on the hard floor before taking his hoody off and covering his sister up and pulling her close.
He knew that she was hungry but wanted to try and warm her up some first. After a good ten minutes, she finally stopped shaking and they both sat up. "Now we can eat." he told her with a smile digging the fresh bread and left-over cheese out.
Once his sister started eating, he took the large tin can they found the day before and opened the door. He was only gone a few minutes and when he returned, Sarah was thrilled that they had something cold to drink.
"I found a creek not too far from here, I think this will be a good place to stay. Once the sun comes up, I'll head back into town and see if I can find some work. The first thing I'll get is some more blankets." he tells her, eating his own food.
She smiles at him, "Do I have to stay here by myself?" she asks, looking worried. He frowns, "I think it would be best if you did. If I see that lady again and I have you with me, she might become suspicious again. Don't worry, I'll be back before the sun dips." he tells her.
They finish up their dinner and settle in for bed. After their long day, it doesn't take either of them long to fall asleep.
.....................................
The next morning, Stiles gives Sarah the last of the bread and cheese before heading back through the woods. He noticed a trail that lead from the boxcar, directly to the road that he hadn't been able to see the night before.
He's only walking a few minutes when he realizes that he'd walked away from town instead of towards it. He's about to turn around when he sees a large house come into view and decides to give it a try. Maybe someone with a house that big would need some help.
He put on his brave face as he hurried up the steps and knocked on the door. Not even a minute passes when a younger man, maybe in his late twenties opens the door, smile on his face. "Hi there, can I help you with something?" he asks nicely.
Stiles smiles at him, "I was just wandering around, trying to find some work. I was wondering if you needed any help?" he asked the man, praying that he would say yes. The man looked the boy over and saw how tattered his clothes were and how hungry the boy looked and his heart broke.
"Why don't you come in, I'm sure I could find something for you to do around here." he told Stiles, stepping to the side and letting the young boy in. "My name is Peter, by the way." he told the boy, holding out his hand. Stiles took it, "I'm Stiles, it's nice to meet you."
Peter Hale lived here with his ten-year-old nephew, Derek. Only a few years prior their house had burnt down, killing their entire family. So, Peter salvaged whatever he could and rebuilt there home, and took on raising his only family left.
Once they were in the kitchen, Peter looked around, trying to think of something the boy could do for him. He knew the boy desperately needed the money and didn't want to turn him away. He could also tell that the boy had a lot of pride and wouldn't just take money for nothing.
"I’ll tell you what, I have a dusty attic full of a bunch of old things. If I gave you a bunch of boxes and told you to sort some things out for me, could you do that?" Peter asked him, and Stiles’ eyes lit up. "Yes Sir, thank you so much!" he said excitedly.
Once Stiles started, time seemed to fly by quickly and it was soon lunch time. Peter called for him to come down to the kitchen. When he walked in, there were stacks of sandwiches, cans of soda and even chips.
"Please Sir, you don't have to feed me. I don't want to be a bother." Stiles told him as he started to back away. Peter waved his hand with a chuckle, "Nonsense, I don't feel like eating alone, come and sit." he told him, and Stiles obeyed,
"So, Stiles, shouldn't you be in school right now?" he asked, taking a bite of his sandwich. Stiles stopped mid chew and starred at the man. "I uh, well I have to take care of my sister. So, I must work and make money instead of going to school." he said, and then took another bite.
Peter nodded, taking another bite and then sipped at his water. "How old are you, if you don't mind my asking?" Stiles almost chokes on his food this time. "I'm fourteen, Sir. My parents both died in a car crash and it was only my Sister and I left." he tells the man, hoping to God he doesn't call the police now.
He didn't know why he was telling this man the truth, lying came so easy to him now. Both his parents had been gone for nearly three years. He learned early on that lying was his best choice or Sarah and him would be tossed into another horrible foster home and he couldn't let that happen.
"You can calm down, I don't plan on calling the cops or anything. I think it's a wonderful thing you're doing by taking care of your sister. Just promise me that you'll come by every day and work for me. I can pay you twenty dollars a day, how does that sound?" Peter asks him and Stiles stares at him in shock.
"Yes Sir, I would love that. Thank you so much!" he says, not able to stop himself from smiling. They both finished their lunches and Stiles went back to his work. Peter called him down at three and told him that was enough for the day.
He handed him his twenty dollars, along with a plastic bag full of juice pouches, sandwiches and crackers. Stiles thanked him again and went on his way.
When he returned to the old boxcar, his sister was sitting there with her feet dangling over the edge, bored as can be. "Stiles, I didn't think you would ever come back!" she yelled out, jumping down and running over to him.
"You'll never guess what happened today, I found this really nice man who wants me to come back every day and work for him. He said he'll give me twenty whole dollars a day. He even sent me home with sandwiches, juice and crackers. So, lets hurry up and eat and we can head into town." he tells her, picking her up and heading into the car to eat.
"We already have dinner though, what do we need to go buy?" she asks him, stuffing her face with the best tasting sandwich she thinks she's ever eaten. "To buy some blankets of course! I saw a dollar store last night, we should be able to get at least two blankets and maybe even a pillow. Tomorrow we can get some food, even if he does send more home with me."
.........................
His first week working for Peter flew by and by the end of the week they had enough blankets and pillows that sometimes they were hot at night. This made Stiles happy, knowing that his little sister wasn't suffering at all.
It was Friday afternoon and he was getting ready to leave when Peter stopped him. "Stiles, I was wondering if you and your sister would like to come back this evening for dinner?" he asked, helping Stiles put the last of the dishes away.
Stiles smiled at him, "I would like that very much and I'm sure my sister would as well." he replied, making Peter smile. "You'll finally get to meet my nephew, he's been dying to meet you." Peter told him, making Stiles smile even more.
"What time should we be here?" Stiles asked, pulling on his hoody. Peter smiled at the fact he didn't say no, "You could grab her right now and just come back, if you'd like." he told the boy who nodded his head and disappeared from the house.
When Stiles walked up to the boxcar, Sarah was sitting on the ground playing with two kittens. "Where on earth did you find those?" he asked with a smile, coming to sit down next to her. She smiled at him, "When I woke up this morning I heard them outside and they looked hungry. So, I brought them inside and gave them some milk and they haven't left since."
Stiles chuckled as he reached down and pet them both. "I suppose you'd like to keep them then?" he asked her, and she started nodding her head quickly. "I'll tell you what, you can keep them as long as we stay here, which I think might be a long time. I kind of like it here. After dinner, we can head into town and get them a litter box and some food."
She smiled as she started to climb in the boxcar to get the food. "Peter invited us to his house for dinner tonight. Put the kittens inside and let’s go, he's expecting us back soon." he told her with a smile.
She smiled back at him and did as she was told and soon they were off. "I wonder what we're having, I hope it's something really hot." Sarah told him when they were almost there. He smiled at her, "I'm sure it will be sweetheart, just mind your manners." he told her as they walked up the porch.
This time, a young boy answered the door, all smiles. "Hi, you must be Stiles and Sarah, please come in." he told them, moving to the side just as Peter had done the first day. When they walked into the kitchen, things were already cooking and smelling delicious.
"My uncle Peter will be back shortly, he needed to run into town for something." Derek told them as he continued into the living room and gestured for them both to sit.
Stiles didn't know what it was about Derek, but he never wanted to be without him. He'd made the choice right then and there that they would not be leaving Beacon Hills if he could help it. He knew that he liked boys now for a couple years and his teen hormones were going insane right now.
Derek was beautiful in every way possible. His green eyes did things to Stiles that he would never admit to anyone. He blushed hard at his thoughts, he'd never had them before. At least not this strong anyway. For once in his life, he seemed to be lost for words, which his sister of course needed to point out.
"Stiles, why are you so quiet, you talk all the time, are you alright?" she asked innocently, and he blushed harder, clearing his throat. "Uh, yeah I'm fine. Anyway, it's great to finally meet you as well. Peter has told me loads about you." he said with a nervous smile.
Derek chuckled, and Stiles vowed to do anything he could to hear that sound as often as possible. "I hope it's all good things, I swear I'm not as bad as he makes me out to be."
Stiles laughed, he was sure this boy was flirting with him. He was fourteen, he knew what flirting was, at least he thought so anyway. "He hasn't told me anything bad, don't worry." he said as they heard Peter coming in the front door.
When he walked in he smiled bright, "Great, you've all already met!" he said, going to stand in front of Sarah. "Hi there little one, I'm Peter and I've heard so much about you." he told her, making Sarah smile. "It's nice to meet you too mister, Stiles says he really likes it here and that you're really nice." she told him, making the man smile even more.
"Well I happen to think he's pretty great too. Why don't you guys come out to the kitchen for a snack. Dinner won't be ready for a while." he told them all, getting to his feet and walking back towards the kitchen.
Once they were seated and all had a snack in front of them, Sarah started talking. "Guess what mister Peter, I found two kittens today." she told him happily, taking a bite of her cookie. Peter smiled, "Oh yeah, and are you going to keep them?" he asked, shooting another smile to Stiles who was looking nervous.
He didn't want her to slip up and tell the man where they were living. Little did he know, but Peter already knew. She nodded her head, "Stiles said that I could, now I just have to pick out names for them."
"Well I'm sure you'll think of something great!" he told her, getting up to refill their glasses with milk.
At some point, Derek brought out his school work and started working on it. Sarah scooted over to him and watched. "I wish I had school stuff to do, I can't wait to start school." she said, peeking over at Derek's paper and trying to read it.
When Peter looked over at Stiles, the boy looked on the verge of tears, though he was holding them back. Then an idea popped into his head, "Stiles, why don't you bring Sarah with you from now on and I could teach her some things. I used to be a teacher and I really don't have anything to do during the days."
Sarah's face lit up as she turned to her brother, "Oh Stiles, please say yes. I would love that so much, I want to learn how to read." she almost yelled out and everyone chuckled. Stiles nodded his head, "If Peter doesn't mind, of course you can sweetheart." he told her, reaching out to hug her tightly.
Stiles turned to Peter, "Thank you so much, you don't know how much that means to both of us." he said, once again trying to hold his tears back. Peter waved a hand at him, "I don't mind one bit and I'm happy to help!" he told him, getting to his feet and going to check the food.
When it was almost time to eat, Sarah helped the boys set the table and her mouth watered when Peter brought in the baked pork chops, mashed potatoes, and corn. She had to contain herself from ripping into it like a wild animal, Stiles did too.
Peter and Derek shared a smile as they started eating as well. By the time they were all finished, Sarah looked as though she was going to burst. "That was so yummy mister Peter, thank you so much." she told him, making the man laugh at his nickname.
"You both are very welcome, I'm glad you could make it." he told them, standing to gather plates. All four of them teamed up to clean the dishes and in no time at all everything was finished.
Just as Stiles was getting ready to say it was time for them to go, Derek spoke up. "If it's alright with my uncle, why don't you guys stay the night. We could watch movies and play video games all night, play games or whatever." Derek said, looking to his uncle who was smiling.
Stiles looked to Sarah and she was smiling again, nodding her head. He was just about to say yes when her smile faltered. "What's the matter sweetie?" he asked, going down to one knee. "I want to, it sounds like so much fun, but what about the kitties?" she asked.
Before Stiles could say anything though, Peter spoke up. "You know, I happen to have an old litter box and litter that hasn't been used yet. Why don't you and your brother go grab them and bring them back here. They could stay the night as well, it's supposed to get down pretty low tonight."
It's then that he knew Peter had planned this all out. He had heard there might be a snow storm rolling through tonight and he was worried about Sarah and himself. "Thank you, we'll be right back." he told him, taking Sarah and running from the house.
..................................
When they were gone, Derek turned to his uncle. "How are we going to make them stay the whole weekend, it's supposed to drop below zero all weekend and up to a foot of snow." he said worriedly.
Peter smiled at him, "Don't worry, Stiles will do what's best for his sister." Derek nodded his head, "Did you find out where they were staying?" he asked, following his uncle into the kitchen to set up the brand-new litter box he'd bought that morning. "I sure did, who do you think left her the kittens?" he asked with a chuckle. Derek smiled and shook his head as he helped bring all the pillows and blankets downstairs.
"They are living in the old boxcar not too far down the road." he told his nephew. Sadness crossed the boy’s face, "They must be so uncomfortable, and so cold. Why can't you just adopt them or something, we have the money and the room."
Peter smiled as he reached out to hug his nephew, "I was already planning on it and hopefully after this weekend, I'll be able to talk him into it. I just wanted him to get to know us both before saying anything. I didn't want to scare him off or anything." Peter told him as they finished laying out all the pillows and blankets.
Stiles and Sarah had only been gone ten minutes, but by the time they started back, it had already started to snow, and they were both freezing by the time they reached the house. Thankfully Stiles had thought ahead and brought changes of clothes for each of them, so they wouldn't have to sit around in their wet clothes.
"Is there somewhere, where we could get changed, Sir?" Stiles asked, after shutting the front door and placing the kittens on the floor. Peter smiled, "None of that Sir nonsense, please call me Peter. And if you'd both like, you could have a nice hot bath and when you come down I'll make us some hot coco and we can start a movie." he told him and both the children's faces lit up.
Sarah jumped up and down, “Stiles, a bath! Did you hear that?” she giggled, and Stiles smiled wide before showing her the way to the bathroom he’d cleaned a few times and got her settled in her bubble bath before walking to find Peter.
“Can I talk to you somewhere privately?” he asked, and it was then that Peter knew he was busted. Peter led him to his study and as soon as the door closed, Stiles was talking. “You planned all this didn’t you? I bet you even put the kittens there for her to find while I was away.” He said, not meeting the older man’s eyes.
Peter sighed, “Yes, I did leave her the kittens. I needed a reason for you to come here and stay the weekend. It will be below freezing, and we are to get about a foot of snow, I couldn’t let you two out there in that kind of weather when I have plenty of room here for the both of you”.
Stiles finally looked up at him, “Why didn’t you just tell me that and offer me and my sister a place to stay for the weekend?” he asked. Peter smiled then, “Because I thought you would be to proud or worry to much about accepting something like that. I don’t know what all you have been through, but I didn’t want to scare you away. We like having you and Sarah around and we would like to help you out.”
Stiles thought for a moment, this man was so nice to have already taken them in tonight and this weekend and he even gave him odd jobs around the house when he knew this place didn’t need anything and Peter more than likely dirtied things up for him to clean.
Stiles trusted before though, and it didn’t turn out well. He trusted the police and the nice lady after his parents were killed and they were placed in three foster homes that did nothing but hurt them and use them as their maids and for monthly checks. When they told him, they would have to be separated, that was the last straw.
He really liked Peter and Derek and he had done so much to help them out already, he wanted to believe that they were good people, trying to do the right thing, but he was scared.
Finally, he took a deep breath and looked back to Peter, “You are right that you don’t know what all we have been through, it has been horrible, and we have trusted before and were hurt because of it and almost torn apart. I believe you when you say you want to help us, but you must know that I’m scared, not just for Sarah, but for me too. We will stay until the storm passes and it warms back up a little. I will keep working for you and building up trust and if after some time I really feel like this is going to work, I will let you help us.”
Peter smiled at him, “I wouldn’t expect anything less. I will take that, you stay until it’s warmer out and then be on your way. Just know, that if at anytime you need something, you let me know and I will be there to help in an instant.”
They talked for a few more minutes and when they were done, Stiles helped Sarah into her new clothes and he took his bath. He couldn’t believe how wonderful the hot water felt and he couldn’t remember the last time he had a hot bath. He stayed in there until he was wrinkly, and Sarah made fun of him when he came out, telling him that he looked old, making everyone laugh.
For the rest of the night they watched movies, ate snacks and stayed warm.
................................
The weekend passed quickly and by Tuesday it was warm enough for them to go back to the boxcar. Stiles was worried that Sarah would protest, but she didn’t. She thanked Peter again for everything and told him she couldn’t wait to come back the next day and start learning.
Over the next few weeks everything was fine, Stiles worked at Peter’s everyday and had about three hundred dollars saved up from working there. He bought Sarah some new clothes and some toys, and even some toys for the kittens.
He managed to build a nice fire ring and bought some pots and pans from the dollar store so that they would be able to have hot food every night, which he knew made Sarah happy. The biggest surprise for Sarah came when Stiles returned from town one evening with a blow-up mattress for them to sleep on, instead of the hard ground. The blankets helped, but not nearly enough.
One night when Stiles returned home from Peter’s, Sarah was already laying down and the sun hadn’t even started setting yet. “Hey kiddo, why are you laying down already?” he asked, sitting down next to her. She looked over and gave him a tiny smile, “My belly and head hurt, so I laid down.” She told him, snuggling into his side.
He frowned as he felt her head and found it warm. He dug around for the medicine he bought the other week just in case and gave her some. He made her some soup and after she was feed and asleep, he ate and then turned into to sleep as well.
He woke with a start a few hours later and at first, he didn’t know why. When he looked over at his sister though, he bolted up. She was shaking next to him, little whines coming from her. He shook her, “Sarah sweetheart, you need to wake up.” He called, and she peeked her eyes open as tears slid down her face.
He acted quickly, wrapping her up in some blankets and jumping from the boxcar, making sure to shut it so the kittens didn’t escape. It took him all but ten minutes to reach Peters house and when he got to the front porch he started pounding on the front door, yelling for Peter. It didn’t take long before the lights were coming on and a worried Peter and Derek were at the door.
“Stiles, what’s happened?” Peter asked, reaching out and taking Sarah into his arms. “When I got home last night she was already laying down. She told me her belly and head hurt and she had a slight fever. I gave her medicine and some soup, and she fell asleep shortly after. When I woke up, she was crying and shaking and burning up.” He blurted out in a rush.
Peter laid her on the couch as Derek ran in with a thermometer, handing it to his uncle. It wasn’t in her mouth long before it beeped and read 103.7. Stiles sobbed behind the man, and Derek went to him, hugging him tightly.
Peter turned to him then, “Stiles, we need to get her to a hospital.” He whispered, and Stiles cried harder as he nodded his head. He knew she needed help, but he also knew they would call the police. Peter must have read his mind, because he was next to him in a second. “I won’t let them separate you or put you in a foster home. I will sign anything I have to, to make sure you end up here, you just need to trust me.”
Stiles cried harder as he reached out to hug the man.
........................................
After being in the hospital for a few hours, a nurse named Melissa came in with a smile on her face. “Hi there, I just wanted to come in an talk to you, to let you know what we found out. Sarah has a bad infection right now, one that has caused her to have step throat. They are prepping the OR right now so that she can have her tonsils removed. Once that happens, they will want to keep her overnight, just to make sure there are no complications and then with some medicine she should be able to head home.”
Stiles, Derek and Peter all smile at one another, and Stiles lets out a sigh of relief. She smiles again at them, “There is an officer outside that would like to speak to you all. Would it be alright if I let him in?” she asks, and Peter nods.
After a minute, a nice-looking man walks in, “Hi there, my name is deputy Parrish, it’s nice to meet you Stiles. I’d like to ask you some things and then talk to Peter in private. You think you can answer some questions for me?” he asked, and Stiles nodded.
Parrish sat down in front of them, pulling out a notepad and pen. “Can you tell me how you and your sister ended up in Beacon Hills and where you have been staying?” Stiles takes a deep breath, “Three years ago our parents were killed in a car crash, and we were placed in foster care together. We went through three of them because they were abusing us. When we had to move to our fourth, they were going to separate us, and I couldn’t let that happen. So, the night before we packed our things and ran. We have been on our own for two years now. We’ve moved around from town to town and stayed when I found enough work to feed us. We have been here for about two months now, living in an old boxcar in the woods.”
Parrish finishes writing everything he says up and then looks to Stiles. “I want to say that I am sorry our system failed you and your sister and that you are a brave young man and wonderful brother for taking such good care of Sarah.” He tells Stiles, who smiles and says thank you.
After that, Parrish takes Peter to another room to talk, leaving Derek and Stiles alone with a sleeping Sarah.
Derek reaches over and takes Stiles hand in his, squeezing it tightly. “He is right you know, you are pretty brave.” He says, and Stiles smiles at him, “I’m not brave, I just love my little sister to death. She is my only family left and I would do anything to make sure she was safe and happy.”
Derek nods, “I know that, and I think that is wonderful. That is how Peter and I are with one another since our family passed away all those years ago. Peter didn’t have to keep me, he could have left me and moved on with his life, but he chose me instead.”
“You are his family though, why wouldn’t he chose you?” Stiles asks, and Derek shrugs his shoulders. “I guess you have a point there. I guess I’m trying to say that I’m proud of you too and so is Peter. I hope you guys will be happy living with us.”
Stiles smiles, “I know we will be, I think I knew this place was home and that is why I never moved on. We try to move every few weeks, but something was holding me here.” He says, squeezing Derek’s hand. “My new family”.
FIN