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Derek Hale thought, not for the first time, about his life choices as he followed his pack through the dark preserve on a warm summer night. The majority of his betas were home from school on break and apparently their idea of a fun night out was trekking through the dark woods in search of a creature that may or may not exist, a creature that had been “terrorizing” (the newspaper’s words, not Derek’s) some of the locals, a creature that ranged in appearance from a tiny fairy to a giant hairy beast. Derek huffed as Isaac laughed at something Cora said. If there really was a creature out here, they were doomed.
Lydia Martin was leading the pack, her boyfriend Jackson Whittemore next to her, arm slung around her waist. The banshee and the kanima (what even was Derek’s life) seemed to be in an “on again” patch in their rocky relationship. Erica Reyes and Vernon Boyd were next, hands clasped and swinging between them. Scott McCall and his girlfriend Kira Yukimura were next to them, Scott’s eyes never straying from his kitsune girlfriend’s face, eyes alight with adoration. Danny Mahealani, the only human in the pack, and his boyfriend Ethan (Derek still hasn’t bothered learning Ethan’s last name. Derek’s still not sure he likes Ethan. Derek only allowed Ethan into the pack because he makes Danny happy and Derek is willing to do anything to make Danny happy. Derek is weak.) were trying to talk with Scott about his work at the vet clinic, but they seemed to be giving up as Scott’s whole focus was on Kira. Isaac Lahey and Cora, Derek’s little sister, were a little to the left, discreetly trying to hide their joined hands from Derek, as if he were some kind of wilting flower that needed protection from their big, scary relationship. Derek scoffed. Of all his betas, he probably liked Isaac the most - although he’d never admit that out loud - so they really had nothing to worry about.
He was happy for them. He was happy for all his betas, truly, because they all seemed happy. If he got a little jealous of all their happy relationships sometimes, well, that was his business and no one else’s. Except maybe Laura’s. His older sister loved meddling in Derek’s love life, or lack thereof. Thank god Laura was on a business trip right now or she’d be all over his internal pity party.
Derek stumbled to a halt when his chest bumped into Danny’s back. Danny turned to give his alpha a funny look and Derek mentally cursed himself for getting lost in thought when he should have been focusing on their surroundings, on his pack’s safety. He looked around and noticed they’d all stopped in a small clearing, moonlight pouring in through the trees. Lydia was bent over a tree stump, Jackson hovering behind her. He was about to ask what she was looking at when he was hit with the most intoxicating scent of sandalwood, sage, and vanilla. It smelled heavenly and Derek had to stop himself from scenting the air around him, knowing it would make his betas question his sanity, and not for the first time.
“What is it?” Derek finally said, pulling himself back to the moment, moving past Danny and weaving his way towards Lydia.
“Shh,” the redhead hissed, glaring at him. Derek tried to appear unaffected. Derek failed. Jackson sent him a pitying yet sympathetic glance. Derek hated his life sometimes.
“I think there’s something in here,” Lydia whispered, turning her attention back to the stump. Derek stepped closer, staying as quiet as possible, and peered over her shoulder.
The stump appeared to be hollowed out, a pitch black hole even though moonlight was pouring into the clearing. The darkness was odd; it seemed to be moving, shifting, changing. Derek felt drawn to it, the scent was back and stronger than he’d smelt it before. Moving closer, Derek stretched his hand out, fingertips grazing the top of the hole. Before he could plunge his hand into the darkness something sprang from the hole, startling Derek, who jumped back, pulling Lydia with him. Derek felt the rest of the pack move in closer, sensing their alpha’s alarm.
Derek held a hand up, signaling everyone to stay put as his eyes tried to focus on the thing before him. It appeared to be a black mass of smoky particles, ever moving, ever changing, floating a few feet above the tree stump. Derek had never seen anything like it in his life.
“What the hell is that?” came Jackson’s voice behind him. The rest of the pack muttered and shifted closer, trying to get a better look at the mass, blob, thing before them.
“I’m not sure,” Derek answered, hesitant to move closer to the blob, unsure of what it could be capable of. “I’ve never read about anything like this in the bestiary.”
The blob moved and shifted before them (Derek could see the other side of the clearing through the creature’s form, and wasn’t that just bizarre). Lydia stepped closer, stretching out her hand, appearing as unassuming as possible. Jackson tried to pull her back, but she swatted his hand away. “Come here, little guy,” she said, voice soft as if she were speaking to a child. “I won’t hurt you.”
“Lydia, I don’t think that’s a good-,” Derek started, but stopped as the creature moved closer to Lydia’s hand. The thing seemed to hesitate for a moment, unsure of what to do, before it shifted again, stretching out a small part of itself into a wispy tendril that, for lack of a better word, nuzzled itself into Lydia’s palm. Derek heard over half his pack cooing at the scene before him.
“Look,” Lydia said, a small smile on her face. “It’s a nice little thing.”
“Lydia,” Jackson huffed, stepping forward. “We don’t even know what that thing is! Maybe we should just kill it.”
The creature retracted itself from Lydia’s hand as she whipped around to face her boyfriend. “We’re not going to kill it, Jackson,” the banshee hissed, lips turning into a deep scowl. The creature hovered behind her, as if using Lydia as a shield, as if it was afraid. Jackson put his hands up in a placating gesture, not wanting to start a fight with Lydia in front of everyone. “We are not going to kill it, right Derek?” Lydia turned to face him, eyes bright and fierce. The rest of the pack turned to their alpha, waiting for his response.
Derek looked at the creature again, still hovering behind Lydia. It seemed to be twitching, or shaking maybe, and as Derek stepped closer to them, it shrank smaller and let out a tiny squeaking noise. He stopped as Lydia glared at him. “We’re not going to kill it,” he said, stretching his hand out toward the creature, trying to convey harmlessness. “We don’t even know what it is.” The creature moved over Lydia’s shoulder before hesitantly reaching out and grazing Derek’s fingertips. Derek was hit by another wave of that intoxicating scent as the creature retracted itself back to the safety of Lydia’s shoulder.
“I think it likes you, Der,” Cora snarked at him. Derek glared at his sister as the rest of his betas tried not to laugh.
“What are we going to do with it?” Danny, ever the voice of reason, finally asked.
“We could just leave it here,” Jackson said.
His comment was meet with outrage from Lydia, Kira, and Erica. “Don’t be rude.” “He’s all alone.” “It’s probably scared.”
Derek sighed, knowing where this was heading. “Enough,” he yelled over all the commotion. “It can come home with me, until we can figure out what to do with it.”
And that’s how Derek Hale found himself babysitting an amorphous blob one warm summer night in June.
~
When they all trekked back into the Hale House, Derek went straight to the family bestiary that, by some higher power, managed to survive the fire. He knew he wasn't going to find what he was looking for, but it was better than nothing.
The rest of his pack gathered in the living room as the creature floated and moved about the room, seeming to take in its new surroundings. It seemed to take a particular liking to the girls, swirling around them in a black blur, ruffling their hair and making them laugh. It buzzed happily as Isaac stroked a hand through a smoky tendril. It hovered above Scott's outstretched hand, hesitant, before wrapping around his entire arm, causing Scott to laugh in delight.
Derek felt a tiny, fond smile tugging at his lips, watching his pack, his family, enjoying themselves and this new, mysterious creature.
~
The bestiary was, as expected, no help. Derek sent Scott home that night with instructions to talk with Dr. Deaton, the local veterinarian and their pack’s emissary, about the creature in the morning.
Then, Derek spent the rest of the night watching the creature float and zoom around his family's rebuilt home, thoughts drifting to the past events that brought him to this point in his life. When it got to be too much to bear, Derek headed to bed, the creature close behind him. He suppressed a laugh as it flitted about his bedroom, seeming to take in all the little details. It stopped, hovering in front of the only family photo Derek could find in the ashes. With a pang, he reached around the creature and placed the picture frame face down on his dresser, not wanting to deal with those memories any more that night. The creature made a low chirping noise, as if sensing his distress.
“It's fine,” Derek found himself saying, for some strange reason. “I'm fine.”
He finished getting ready for bed as the creature continued watching him. As he climbed into bed and slid under the covers, he felt something like safety, rather than fear, under the creature’s watchful presence. He fell asleep to the comforting smell of sandalwood, sage, and vanilla.
~
Scott and Kira came by the following day around noon. Derek turned off the baseball game he’d been watching; the creature appeared to twitch in annoyance as it had seemed to be enjoying the game just as much as Derek had been.
Scott walked into the the living room, large bag in hand that he dropped on the coffee table with a loud thump. “Deaton didn’t have any ideas,” he stated rather dejectedly as Kira began playing with the creature. “He gave me these old books though, said there might be something in them.”
Derek felt his head begin to throb at the thought of all those dusty old books he’d seen in Deaton’s office. “Well then,” he sighed. “Let’s get started.”
~
Living with an amorphous blob, or A.B. as the pack had come to call it (“What are we going to name it?” Scott had asked. “We are not naming it,” Derek had replied. “But look at it! It’s so cute,” Erica had chimed in. “Besides,” Cora added, hand stroking through the creature’s wispy tendrils, “we can't keep calling it 'It’. That's just rude.” The creature seemed to hum in agreement. “Fine,” Derek had huffed, “we'll name it.” No one could agree on a name that fit, so A.B. it was.), was nothing Derek had ever expected to experience in his life.
For starters, A.B. was always there: it floated in the kitchen while Derek cooked or did the dishes, it hovered next to him on the couch when he watched TV, it floated outside the bathroom door while Derek showered, and it stayed in his room while he slept (Derek tried very hard to not to think about how this was more comforting than creepy). Derek felt himself growing more and more comfortable around the creature, talking to it as if it were a companion of sorts. He found himself telling A.B. about his past, about what happened to his family, how guilty he felt, the sorrow and grief he still carried with him, things he didn’t even talk to his sisters about. For reasons he didn’t really understand, Derek felt like he could trust this strange creature.
Sometimes A.B. seemed to behave like a pet: seeking out attention, nuzzling into Derek’s hand with a smoky tendril, hovering by the back door as if wanting to go out and play. Other times, it came across as more human in nature: it hovered just above the couch or kitchen chairs as if it were trying to sit, it made little chirping noises or hums as if agreeing with what Derek was muttering to himself, floating into his personal space and making interested noises as he read through ancient tomes about supernatural beings, and every so often Derek thought he saw the smoky outline of a human form in his peripheral vision, only for it to disappear when he turned to look at it.
Derek continued reading through the books from Deaton, hoping to find the answer to what this strange creature was. But, occasionally, Derek found himself hoping they never figured it out. He’d grown used to A.B.’s presence, the comforting feeling he got around the smoky creature. It unsettled him, really, when he thought of the day A.B. would decide it’d had enough of them all and it up and left. Derek felt a pang in his chest at the thought, not understanding why he felt so upset at the notion of life without A.B. around.
All things told, it was a very strange several weeks, but not the strangest thing Derek had experienced in his, considerably, short life.
Which was, of course, the time Laura decided to return from her business trip.
~
Laura Hale burst through the front door of their family home like a tornado, as she was wont to do, heels clicking harshly against the wooden floorboards Derek had painstakingly installed himself. He winced as he closed the book he was reading through, mentally preparing himself, as he was wont to do, for A Talk™ with his older sister.
“So,” Laura started, sitting in an armchair across from him. “Cora tells me you’ve adopted a pet.”
Derek sighed. “It’s not a pet and Cora knows that.”
“Are you sure about that?” Laura replied, inspecting her fingernails. “Cora said you haven’t really left the house the past few weeks, preoccupied with this creature of yours.”
“A.B. is not mine,” realizing his mistake, Derek quickly finished with, “a name we all came up with, thank you very much.”
Laura looked skeptical. Derek felt his temple throb with the start of a headache. “And where is this creature?” Laura asked.
Derek shifted, trying to remain unaffected by his sister. He was the alpha, after all. “It’s upstairs, in my room,” Derek sighed. Laura’s eyebrow arched. “It’s hovering above my bed. I think, um, I think it’s napping?” Derek didn’t mean for that to sound like a question. Laura’s eyebrow arched higher.
“It’s not a pet, ok!” Derek exclaimed, throwing his hands up. “We haven’t been able to figure out what it is yet, so it’s been staying here until we know what to do.”
Laura leaned forward, arms crossed on her knees. “Why didn’t you just kill it?”
They both turned to face the stairs as a loud shriek came from Derek’s bedroom. And then A.B. was in their presence, flitting about in agitation, tendrils wisping around Derek’s head and shoulders. Derek held out a hand in placation, shushing A.B. in a quiet voice. A.B. seemed to settle, wrapping itself around Derek’s hand and arm. “No one is going to kill you,” he whispered to the creature. Laura sat back up, her other eyebrow joining the first, high on her forehead.
“You sound like Jackson,” Derek said, facing his sister. “It hasn’t done anything wrong. Look at it.” He moved his arm around a bit, A.B. staying firmly in place (or as firmly as an amorphous blob could be). “It’s basically harmless.”
“That you know of,” Laura responded. “You said it yourself, you guys have no idea what this thing is.”
Derek huffed. A.B. unwound itself from his arm and came to rest beside him on the couch.
“Look, Derek,” Laura said, big sister voice fully in place. “I just worry about you, alright.” She held up a hand to stop Derek from interrupting her. “You live out here, in this big old house, by yourself, wrapped in your memories and your guilt. You go work at the fire station with Isaac and Boyd, and that’s great, but then you come right back here. To be alone. Do you think that’s what mom and dad would have wanted for you?”
Derek averted his gaze from his sister’s, eyes feeling damp as he let emotions sweep through him. He wasn’t surprised to feel the ghostly whisper of A.B. stretching out a tendril across his shoulders, as if it were laying a comforting arm around him.
He let the silence stretch for a few moments before collecting himself. When he turned to face Laura again, he was surprised to see her eyes were red. Clearing his throat, he said, “I tried to move on, to see someone.”
Laura barked out a laugh, as she swiped at her eyes. “Jennifer wasn’t exactly a great choice for moving on, Der. That chick was crazy.”
Derek chuckled at the memory of his disastrous, thankfully short-lived, relationship with one of the teachers at the high school. “Yeah, she kind of was.”
“I think,” Laura said, once she’d regained her composure, “it’s time you tried again.”
“Maybe,” Derek replied, confused when A.B. seemed to twitch in agitation beside him.
“I met the new deputy, Jordan Parrish, before I left town,” Laura said, eyes lighting up. “He’s very charming and handsome and he’s got those love me tender eyes you seem so fond of.”
Derek felt his cheeks warming. “Alright, okay. I get it.”
Laura laughed again as she stood up. “Come here,” she said as she opened her arms.
Derek stood up and allowed his big sister to pull him into a hug. “We love you, Der,” she whispered in his ear. “Cora, me, your pack. This is your new family. You worked so hard to bring this group of people together, to make them whole. You’ve made all of us happy and we all want the same for you, alright?”
Derek nodded into her shoulder, feeling overcome and unsure of what to say. For the first time, in too long, he allowed himself to cry.
~
Derek woke the next morning, mulling Laura’s words around in his head. He knew it was time to move on. He’d spent so much time dwelling on the past, living in his guilt and his grief. Jennifer had been a mistake. He hadn’t been ready for a relationship when they’d met and she had turned out to be rather crazy, not as crazy as Kate, but still. It was enough to put him off trying to date anyone, and that had been several years ago. He needed to move on, try again.
He was thinking about heading over to the sheriff station after his shift was over as walked down the stairs, tugging a shirt on, when he was hit with that intoxicating scent again. Derek followed the scent into the living room and stopped short at what he saw. There, standing next to the couch, was perhaps the most attractive man he’d ever seen, with brown disheveled hair, honey colored eyes, cute button nose turned slightly up, pink plush lips, and moles scattered across his cheek, neck, and down his very-much-naked torso. The man’s mouth formed a slight smirk the longer Derek stared.
Finally remembering that he was, in fact, an alpha werewolf and this man, no matter how delectable he looked, was, in fact, an intruder, Derek took on a more defensive stance and asked, trying to make his voice sound menacing, “Who are you and what are you doing in my house?”
The man moved around the couch, and yep, he was completely naked, hands held up in front of him. Derek flexed his hands, feeling his claws elongating, fangs not far behind, when the stranger stopped in front of him, hands still held up. Derek tried very hard not to stare at those hands and how long those fingers were. “I asked you a question,” Derek said, voice not nearly as stern as he wanted it to be.
“Relax, big guy,” the man said, and Derek was surprised at how deep his voice was. He was even more surprised when the man tilted his head back and to the side, baring his throat to Derek, a sign of submission. “You know who I am,” he said, eyes gleaming and mouth smirking as Derek, no doubt, looked rather gobsmacked.
“I do?” Derek questioned, wracking his brain, trying to remember if he’d ever met this man.
“Yep,” the stranger replied, lowering his head, eying Derek up and down. He seemed to vibrate with some kind of unnatural energy.
Familiarity flashed through Derek and he gasped, “A.B.?”
“The one and only,” the man replied, small smile on his face. “Although that’s not actually my name. But I do appreciate you all giving me a name and not referring to me as ‘blob’ or ‘smoky thing’.”
“I don’t-,” Derek started then stopped, trying to wrap his brain around this whole situation. “I um, what? How is this possible? What are you?”
A.B, or whatever his name was, smiled wide. “I’m a very, very old type of shapeshifter, if you will. Older than your books date back. That’s why you haven't been able to find anything.”
“Seriously?” Derek asked, feeling rather out of his element and not liking it one bit.
“Really, really,” the man before him replied, rocking back on his heels. “You know, you’re pretty cute when you’re confused.”
Derek spluttered and felt his cheeks turning pink. “I’m not confused. I’m just trying to wrap my head around all of this. And what am I supposed to call you?”
“I don’t believe your tongue-,” and here, the man gave Derek a very heated once-over and Derek’s cheeks positively burned, “can pronounce my true name. But you can call me ‘Stiles.’”
“‘Stiles?’” Derek repeated, thinking about how silly, yet fitting the name seemed.
“Yep,” the man--Stiles, apparently--answered. “I can tell you have more questions.”
“So, so many,” Derek responded. “But first, clothes. We need to get some clothes on you.”
Stiles pouted but allowed Derek to pull him upstairs to his bedroom where he threw a t-shirt and a pair of sweats at him. The clothes were obviously too big, hanging loosely from Stiles’ lean frame, but Derek felt like he could breathe properly now, without all that enticing skin on display. He got distracted all over again, though, when Stiles pulled the shirt up to his nose and inhaled before saying, “Your clothes smell really good. And they’re really comfy.”
“Uh,” Derek stuttered, trying to ignore how much he liked the sight of Stiles in his clothes. “Right. The pack. We need to call the pack.”
“Ok,” Stiles said, dropping the shirt from his face. “I can’t wait to for them to see me like this.”
“Yeah,” Derek replied, moving back towards the stairs, keeping a careful distance between himself and Stiles. “I’m sure they’re going to be very surprised.”
~
A half and hour later, after the most uncomfortable silence of his life, Derek heard cars pulling up outside the house and he sighed in relief. Stiles perked up at the sound of voices and car doors slamming shut. He stood beside Derek in the living room, huge smile on his face, clearly excited to see everyone. The pack all made it into the house but stopped walking and talking when they rounded the corner to the living room and saw Derek and Stiles standing there.
After an awkward moment of silence, everyone broke out. “Finally, Derek, about time.” “Der, I know we talked yesterday, but this was fast.” “Oh my god, he’s so cute!” “Nice catch, Derek.” “Why is he wearing your clothes? What’d you do, Der, tear his off last night?” “I know you said it was an emergency, Derek, but meeting your booty call the morning after doesn't really constitute an emergency, does it?”
“Enough,” Derek finally shouted over all the noise, face red with embarrassment. Stiles’ shoulders were shaking with mirth.
Everyone stopped talking, not used to hearing their alpha yell. Derek rubbed a hand down his face tiredly. “He’s not a booty call,” he said. “This is actually, believe it or not, A.B. But he said we can call him Stiles.”
There was another moment of silence, this time in disbelief, before everyone started laughing. Derek turned to Stiles, giving him a desperate look. Stiles smiled at him, and then his body began to shift and change, solid flesh giving way to the black, smokey, shapeless form they were all used to, Derek’s clothes falling to the floor below it.
Everyone immediately stopped laughing. “Holy shit,” someone exclaimed as the black particles came together again, solidifying into the human form of Stiles, once again completely naked. Someone whistled; Derek suspected Cora. Scott covered his and Kira’s eyes. Lydia and Danny glanced on in appreciation as Derek quickly retrieved the fallen clothes and shoved them back at Stiles. The latter simply chuckled as he put the too-large clothes back on.
“Alright,” Laura said, moving fully into the living room and collapsing on the couch. “Answers. Right now.”
~
Stiles told them what he could, that he was a leviathan, an ancient type of shapeshifter. He had been on the earth for a thousand years, had traveled the world, had learned all manner of languages and cultures. He was able to take on a human form whenever he wished, but he hadn’t done so in a very long time. He told them how he felt lost sometimes, like he was searching for something but he wasn’t entirely sure what. He’d ended up in the Beacon Hills Preserve because he’d felt “drawn” to the area.
“It was a scent, really,” Stiles explained. “I caught wind of it when I was up in Canada, close to the border. I have a better sense of smell than you werewolves, believe it or not.”
Derek felt his stomach lurch at that, mind racing, thoughts going to the scent he’d first smelt in the woods, right before they’d found Stiles, the scent he’d kept smelling since. It was ludicrous, Derek had thought. There was no way this was happening, not with a shapeshifting leviathan he’d only just met. No way. Laura and Cora both stared at him, as if sensing his inner turmoil, for surely they remembered the stories their mother used to tell them of alphas finding their true mates and the scents associated with such a match. Laura opened her mouth to speak, but Derek shook his head, not wanting to get into this right now, not in front of his entire pack.
Of course, Cora took that as her queue to ask, smirk in place, “What was the scent?”
Stiles paused in his ramblings of making his way down to California, long finger tapping against his chin as he thought. “Hm, kind of a mix between leather, fresh laundry, and citrus.”
Laura and Cora looked at Derek again, knowing his love for the leather jacket hanging in the hall closet, the way he prefered to line dry his clothes because they smelled better that way, how he always made fresh squeezed orange juice. Derek gave them a sharp look and shook his head again.
“Anyway,” Stiles continued. “The only reason I revealed myself to you all that night was because the scent was so strong. I knew it had to mean something.”
“Why did you decide to take on a human form now?” Boyd asked.
“I knew I could be a better companion to Derek in this form,” Stiles replied, as if it was the most obvious answer in the world.
Derek choked on nothing. His sisters smirked at him. The rest of the pack looked slightly confused.
“Um,” Isaac said. “What?”
“Well,” Stiles started. “I’ve spent the last several weeks with Derek and I could sense that he was lonely, even before the conversation he had with Laura yesterday.”
The entire pack turned to look at him, expressions softening. Derek fidgeted under their gazes, ears burning. Stiles looked around in confusion. “What? What’d I say?”
“Nothing,” Derek finally replied, clearing his throat. “It’s nothing. That’s probably enough for now, right? Who’s hungry?” He stood and headed towards the kitchen, hands shaking at the thought of his entire pack learning of his vulnerability.
He picked up the phone and ordered pizza on autopilot, knowing exactly what everyone liked. When he set the phone down, he turned and saw Erica leaning on the wall behind him, eyes searching his face. After a moment, she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him into a tight hug. Derek hesitantly wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her blonde curls.
“No one thinks you’re weak, Derek,” she whispered. “We all love you and want you to be happy. You brought us all together and made us whole, made us a family. We all owe you so much. So, please, let us return the favor. You don’t always have to do this alone.”
Derek hugged her tighter. “Thank you, Erica,” he whispered back. He kissed the side of her head before pulling back. She smiled at him, wide and sincere. “I’ll be out in a minute,” he told her. She nodded and headed back into the living room, Derek trailing behind her.
He paused in the doorway, taking in the scene before him. His pack, his family, laughing and talking, surrounding Stiles, the strangely beautiful creature who might just be his mate. Derek smiled as he stepped into the living room. “Who’s ready for some pizza?”
His question was met with cheers and a slightly confused look from Stiles. “I’ve heard of pizza, but I’ve never had it. Does it taste good?” he asked.
“Pizza is literally heaven on earth, my friend,” Scott answered as he threw an arm around Stiles’s shoulder. “You’re gonna love it.”
Stiles perked up at that, turning to give Derek a wide smile. Derek smiled back, trying his hardest to ignore the shit-eating grins his sisters were sending his way.
~
Later that evening, once everyone had their fill of pizza and asking poor Stiles all the questions they could think of, the pack finally started leaving. Most of them stopped to give Derek a hug, some lingering (Lydia, Isaac, Erica and Scott), some quick (Boyd, Kira and Danny), and some awkward (Jackson). Ethan shook his hand, which was more contact than they’d ever had, really. Cora and Laura pulled Derek into a group hug, gushing about how happy they were for him and how proud they were. He hugged them back, chuckling at their enthusiasm. Once he’d shaken them off and shooed everyone out the door, he stood with his forehead pressed to the wood, listening to the sound of cars starting and pulling away from the house, small smile on his face.
Derek finally turned away from the door to see Stiles smiling at him fondly. “What is it?” Derek asked, stepping closer to him.
“You love them all,” Stiles replied. “Very much.”
“I do,” Derek answered. “They’re my family.”
“What about me?” Stiles asked, expression turning thoughtful, with a hint of apprehension.
Derek thought for a quiet moment, before responding, “You’re family now, too.”
Stiles’s expression cleared, smile returning. “I am? Truly?”
“Truly,” Derek answered, small smile tugging at his lips.
Before he could register what was happening, Derek found himself being squeezed tightly by Stiles’ long arms wrapped around him. “Thank you,” Stiles whispered into his neck as Derek tried to wiggle his arms free of the iron tight hold around him. “I’ve never had a family to call my own.”
Derek swallowed thickly, finally freeing one arm to wrap awkwardly around Stiles’s shoulders. “Well, you do now.”
Derek could feel Stiles’ smile as he nuzzled into his neck, sending shivers down his spine. “You really do smell amazing,” Stiles said after a moment. “It’s the smell I followed all the way here, the smell from the clearing. What does it mean, Derek?”
Derek sighed, not sure if he could have this conversation right now, but knowing Stiles deserved the truth. He pulled himself free of Stiles’ hold and walked them both over to the couch. Derek perched on the edge of his cushion, nerves causing his leg to bounce up and down. Stiles plopped next to him, reaching out a hand and placing it gently on Derek’s leg, trying to calm him.
“Whatever it is,” Stiles said, voice calm and soothing, “you can tell me.”
Derek looked at Stiles, at the earnest expression on his face, his wide and trusting amber eyes, and knew, with a surety he hadn't felt before, that everything was going to be fine. He placed his hand over Stiles’s and their combined weight stilled his bouncing leg.
Taking a deep breath, Derek said, “How much do you know about werewolves?”
Stiles tilted his head to the side, expression thoughtful. “As much as can be expected, I guess. You know, we supernatural creatures do tend to keep some of ourselves secret from the rest of the supernatural community, though, so I’m sure there are things I don’t know about you and your kind.”
“It’s true we don’t know all there is to know about each other’s kind,” Derek said, giving Stiles a pointed look. Stiles laughed and Derek thought it was possibly the most beautiful sound he’d ever heard. “Well,” he continued once Stiles had quieted down. “Werewolves are pretty much an open book; what you see is what you get. We don’t really have many secrets. But,” he hesitated, shifting back a little on the couch, thigh pressing into Stiles’. “When my mother was an alpha, she would tell my sisters and I stories about how some alphas were lucky enough to find their one, true mate, the one person in this world that truly completed them.”
“Like a soulmate?” Stiles asked, eyes bright and eager, hand twitching slightly under Derek’s.
“Yes,” Derek answered. “Like a soulmate. The mate completed the alpha in every way, filled in all of the alpha’s nooks and crannies, making them essentially one soul residing in two bodies.”
“Did your mother find her mate?” Stiles’s voice was quiet.
“No,” Derek replied. “But she found my father, and they loved each other unconditionally and were very happy together.”
“How did she know about mates then?”
“Legend, stories passed from one alpha to the next,” Derek said. “I guess my great grandfather found his mate. Can you guess how an alpha finds their mate?”
Stiles was silent for a moment before comprehension began to dawn on his face. “Scent?” he finally asked, voice tentative, eyes hopeful.
“How long ago did you first smell the scent that brought you here, Stiles?” Derek asked, voice shakier than he wished.
“Almost three years ago,” Stiles answered, eyes wide.
Derek felt something in his chest constrict. “Which is about the time I became alpha.”
Stiles’ eyes, if possible, got wider. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”
“It makes sense,” Derek said, emotions running wild. “It explains why I feel so comfortable around you, even when you were a smoky creature and I had no idea what to do with. I told you things I’ve never told anyone else, not even my sisters. It explains why I feel like I’ve known you for ages when it’s only been weeks. It explains the heavenly scent I smelled in the woods when we found you, the scent I can’t get enough of. It explains why my chest aches at the thought of you ever leaving.” Derek turned his face away, cheeks heating, embarrassed by the strength of his emotions, the passion in his words.
Stiles flipped his hand over, lacing his fingers with Derek’s. “I’m not going anywhere,” he said, squeezing Derek’s hand tightly. “I’ve been on this earth for a very long time, Derek. I always felt lost, like I was always looking for something. I feel like, no-,” he paused for a moment, quiet. “I know I’ve finally found what I was looking for.”
Derek’s head snapped up at that, hope coursing through his veins when he saw the bright smile on Stiles’s face. “Really?” he asked, feeling an answering smile start to grace his own features.
“Really, really,” Stiles replied, and Derek laughed, joy rippling through him. Stiles joined in, leaning on Derek’s shoulder for support. They stayed like that for a moment, laughter quieting down as they breathed each other in.
“Come on,” Derek finally said, standing from the couch and pulling Stiles with him, their hands still clasped tightly. “Let’s go to bed.”
Derek climbed the stairs, pulling Stiles along behind him, his thumb running softly over Stiles’ knuckles. They walked into his bedroom and Derek didn’t bother with the lights; there was enough moonlight streaming in through the window to bathe the room in a soft glow. Derek only dropped Stiles’ hand so he could tug his shirt off and shuck his jeans. He grabbed another pair of sweats from the dresser and pulled them on.
Stiles followed his lead and pulled his borrowed shirt off. Derek stared again, mesmerized by the sight before him. Stiles seemed to glow in the moonlight, pale skin almost ethereal. Derek’s sweats were slung sinfully low on his hips. Derek sucked in a sharp breath. “We’re gonna need to buy you some clothes that actually fit.”
Stiles smirked. “I like your clothes. They smell good, remember?”
“I remember,” Derek said, stepping closer to Stiles. “But you can’t go around looking like that. You’re far too distracting.”
Stiles’s smirk grew. “Is that so?”
“Absolutely,” Derek answered, placing his hand on Stiles’ chest, relishing in the soft skin beneath his palm. Stiles purred at the contact, placing his own hand over Derek’s.
They stood there in the moonlight, staring at one another for several moments, before Derek couldn’t take it anymore. He slowly leaned down, giving Stiles time to back away if he wanted to. But Stiles surged forward and met him halfway, lips brushing Derek’s in the softest of kisses. They kept it chaste, lips on lips, hands resting between them, trapped between two heartbeats.
When they finally pulled apart, Stiles smiled at Derek, the most tender expression on his face. “I’m so glad I found you, Derek Hale,” he whispered.
Derek’s smile grew and his chest ached with a long forgotten feeling. “And I’ve been waiting for you,” he whispered back.
They tumbled onto the bed together, legs tangling together as Derek pulled Stiles into his chest, arms wrapping tightly around him. Stiles sighed in contentment as he nuzzled into Derek. Derek chuckled as he pulled the blanket up around them.
“What do I smell like to you?” Stiles mumbled into Derek’s chest.
Derek tightened his hold on Stiles before replying, “You smell like sandalwood, sage, and vanilla. You smell like home.”
Stiles smiled into Derek’s skin and he felt it all the way to his core. “You’re a big old sap, aren’t you?”
“Don’t tell the others,” Derek responded, rubbing his cheek against Stiles’ soft hair. “I have a reputation to uphold.”
Stiles snickered before his breathing evened out and sleep overcame him. Derek placed a gentle kiss to his temple, smile ghosting over his face. Closing his eyes and breathing in the scent of his mate, safe and secure in his arms, Derek felt for the first time in his life, truly and utterly happy.