The Hale Pack had always been the United States pack, ever since they had arrived across the landmass that was now called Russia. Derek had heard the stories for a long time about the power of his pack. How people sought out his mother. Now though, that wasn't happening anymore. People didn't search out Laura like they did his mother. The Hale Pack was waning, and Derek had no idea how to stop it.

"Derek," Laura said as she sat down across from him in the living room.

Derek was staying here so that he could help her figure out what was going on. He had his own place in town, closer to the shop that he ran. He needed to leave to take over a shift for someone in about twenty minutes.

"Laura, I've been here for hours, waiting for you. You were the one that wanted me here so that we could go over this, and it's been a week, and you don't have time to even eat with the pack. I've got to go to work, and I need to go ahead and move back into my place. I'll grab my stuff now so when I get off work later today, I can just go home."

"No," Laura said.

"You might be the Alpha, but maybe think about how what you are doing here is part of why the pack is failing." Derek stood up and headed for the stairs. He heard Laura growl but then there was a few other Betas there to hold her back. Derek knew more than a few things about what was going on, but until Laura saw the error of her ways, she wasn't going to fix anything. Derek had tried his hardest to show her that rejecting everything that their mother did wasn't going to win her points.

"I forbid you from leaving," Laura said.

Unlike when his mother gave an order like that, Derek felt the words as they floated by. He turned to glare at Laura and then just went up the stairs. The Betas would keep her in check while he left. Derek wasn't sure why Laura hated everything about how the Hale Pack had been. They had been a huge happy family before Laura had taken over. Derek moved his body by rote, grabbing everything that was needed as he let his mind wander.

Kate Argent had changed many things, and Derek wasn't even the most changed by it. Talia Hale had been broken by it, and she had held on long enough to finish out training Laura as Alpha, and then she had left. Derek's father had left long before, taking Spencer and Cora with him back to New York, where he had been born and raised. Hell, Derek had almost gone, but back then, he thought it was his fault that Kate came into their lives, and it wasn't until years later that Derek had let that go. By then, there was too much distance.

Derek went for a visit every three months, but there was something broken in Derek's relationship with his father. Derek didn't think it could be fixed. There were times like now that Derek wished that his mother hadn't cast Peter out of the pack. She hadn't been able to see the hubris that was her throwing him out for not seeing a threat to the pack when she was the one that forced him into a college that wasn't close to Beacon Hills. Derek still held that Peter wasn't at fault for any of that. Laura thought that he was the author of all of the woes of the pack. That he was out there throwing a wrench into everything that had gone wrong with the pack.

Laura was gone from the house by the time that Derek made his way down with his bag. There was no one there to see him off, which he was more than fine with. He got into his car and drove straight to his shop.

Derek loved books, he loved reading, and when he had come home from college with a business degree since it was what his mother wanted him to get, he had settled into life doing what she wanted. Then his mother had stepped down, and she was gone. Derek found that she had been in South America a few weeks ago, being closer to the packs down there. Going back to her roots, without her family. It was times like this that Derek thought about how maybe his mother had broken them all. Divorce was nearly unheard of in wolf packs. Yet it was what his mother had done before she had fucked off.

The shop was bustling, and Derek loved it. There was a steady stream of people in and out for the coffee but also for the tea. Then there were the people who were there for books. Derek's job today was just checking out the book, people. The coffee and tea stations were staffed well. He was just there to make sure that the place didn't go to shit since the shift manager wasn't able to come in due to having a fever.

A man was sitting in the far corner of the place, a book in front of him. Derek watched him as he picked up his mug and took a sip of whatever drink he had. There were more than a few other books in a stack beside him. Derek's eyesight let him read the titles. They were from the hidden collection. Deaton had spelled the area to where it was only if someone was in the know that they could pick up items from there.

The book the man was reading was the newest in the supernatural thriller. Derek was actually shocked since that book had just come out. He looked at the display area and felt that hot curl of weirdness in his gut from it. No one in the pack knew that he was the one that wrote that series of books.

It wasn't that he was ashamed; it was more that he wanted something that they didn't touch.

"How long has he been here?" Derek asked, knowing that Selena would know exactly who he was talking about without saying something to point out who he was talking about.

"Well, he was here at open. Spent three hours looking at books, then he left for two, and he's been here since. He bought all of those books after having us hold them for him while he left for those two hours. He's not even balked at paying for refills since he's drinking the tea lattes. He leaves money in the tip jar and hasn't said an unkind word at all, even when Jeremy spilled his first drink. It did not get on him, but you know how entitled assholes are."

"Has he said anything?" Derek asked.

"About-" Selena waggled her eyebrows. "No, I was shocked when he walked to the section and grabbed books, but he has said nothing. He keeps playing with what looks like a Harry Potter wand replica, though."

"I'll keep an eye on him. Everything else going okay?"

"Yes, are you sure you want to just staff the checkout?" Selena asked.

"Yes, I am very sure. I need to do some paperwork."

Selena laughed at the poor code words for his writing. She didn't know what he published or anything like that.

Derek played off the shy part really well to where no one really paid him any attention on that front.

Derek settled in with his laptop covered in stickers from various book releases he had received as a store owner. It was the one he kept here at the store. All of his writing was synced between devices, and he did backups every few days.

"Dinner?" Selena asked an hour later.

Derek looked at the time to see it was going on four which meant if they were ordering, they needed to get going on it now.

"Sure. Pizza," Derek said. He knew that he was being asked since whatever rotation they had going would mean he was the one to pick. He liked pizza and a little store that did it closer to how pizza was originally done.

Everyone had their orders written down on a sheet, so Selena just needed to look at it and confirm no one wanted anything different.

The man stood up from his table, closing his book around a sheet of paper to track where he was. Derek watched him out of the corner of his eye as he walked to the tea counter and ordered something. It wasn't, but a few seconds later, he pulled out money from his pocket, and Derek froze as he took in the symbol on the man's wrist.

The Hale Triskele was prominent but along with that was another symbol that Derek had only seen a few times. The Gajos Serch Bythol which had the Hale Triskele in the center in yellow.

Derek had been taught the sigils of the hunters and especially the families. Laura trusted none of them, and even their mother had started to be like that near the end. Derek wondered if this meant that the man was attached to other Hales in some way. There were a few cadet branches of the family, siblings of Derek's great grandmother. Laura had cut them off since they were not in the pack but usually part of other packs.

The serch bythol symbol wrapped around the man's wrist and was slightly oddly shaped, but it was there.

"Derek?" a voice called out.

Derek made himself look at the customer, who was ready to be checked out. He pasted on a smile and started to do his job.

Pizza came and went with Derek sitting at the checkout counter to eat. He never minded. This shop was small, and he loved that it felt like family. He never sacrificed customer service, and sometimes just doing simple things actually made people come and visit his place more. It was how he had put the closest coffee shop out. It had been a chain place that sold subpar food and a more harried staff than anything else. The little bistro on the other side of the street from Derek did better food, and between them, the coffee shop had died. The food had gone out of the way first, with it stopping selling just because people didn't even go for the convenience of it all.

Then Derek's book store started to sell fancy coffee and quick enough that people stopped going there altogether. It had been great to Derek to put a chain like that out of business, at least on this side of town. There was still another on the far side, but that one didn't matter to him.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Selena asked.

"Yeah, we got this. It's a slow night, so things will be fine."

Selena nodded and clocked out.

It was now just Derek, Alan, and Grace. Alan was at the tea station, and Grace was on the coffee. Despite it being after eight at night, both of those would do enough business to stay open. The book store closed at ten, and usually, there was a rush of kids in after nine to get that last coffee before they closed. They were close enough to the college campus that off-campus student housing was the bulk of his business for coffee and tea.

"So, how good is this one at making stuff?" the man asked.

Derek looked up from where he was, looking at the books coming out over the next while figuring out how many of each to order. The man was talking to him.

"Alan's actually one of the best we have. He's just in a lot of classes this semester, so he works a few hours a night."

"That's why he's jamming in studying. Good on you for allowing that."

"It's not like we all don't have downtime. Derek Hale." Derek held out his hand.

The man looked at it like he was afraid it was going to attack him.

"Sorry, I don't shake hands. These are my moneymakers. But Stiles at your service."

"Stiles?" Derek asked.

"It's a nickname. No sense in being like you and giving up everything that a Fae would need to mess up your life."

"And why would the Fae want anything to do with me or you for that matter."

"Cause they like to fuck with people."

"How did you know I was in the know?" Derek asked.

"Hale? Really? You think I don't know the names of the pack in town here."

"Hale is a fairly common name," Derek said.

"Yeah, elsewhere, but here in Beacon Hills, there is only one family of Hales. I'm just passing through the area on a coast-to-coast-to-coast trip."

"Coast to coast to coast?"

"Well, I started in Florida, and I made my way through the lower half of the county and then up along California. Then I'm going to head back across to the east coast again and go through the top half."

"Ah," Derek said. He looked at where Stile was tapping his fingers on the counter. "And what exactly are you doing on this trip?"

"Learning anything and everything. Meeting packs, Fae, you name it, I wanna talk to it."

"You should be talking to my sister about that."

"I already asked Alpha Hale for an audience; she denied me but allowed me to stay here. I'm recharging as it were. Gonna be in town for about a week."

"Well, you are doing a lot of something here."

"Yup, relaxing. I don't do well on my own, so I found the place that felt the best, magic wise and I've been camping. Gonna be here tomorrow as well. Unless the owner would care?"

"Nope, as long as you get drinks and don't bother anyone, you are welcome to stay as long as you like. We have students who stay all day as well sometimes. Like when the Internet went out in one of the dorms. Half came here, and half went to the school library, but it had, you know, other kids working on things. So I got a lot of kids. Went through a lot of pots of coffee since that was all they could afford."

"You are a good man, Derek Hale. I'm gonna go bug Alan about a latte." Stiles turned on his heel, humming as he did, and headed to the tea counter.

Derek wasn't sure what to think of him. He couldn't place his age either. He felt like he was younger, but there was something about his eyes that made Derek wonder if he was a lot older than he seemed.

Derek didn't think much about Stiles until after Laura was yelling about a magic-user at the Nemeton. Deaton had found evidence, but that it was innocent, the magic-user was communicating with the Nemeton and just doing a check.

"You are the one who is letting him stay," Derek said.

"Letting him stay? I have allowed no magic-user to stay," Laura said.

"Stiles," Derek said.

"Stiles? The Gajos hunter? He's a magic-user?" Laura asked.

Deaton looked a little upset at that. "Laura, you didn't know he was a magic-user? If I had known it was him, I never would have brought it up. The Nemeton is quite happy with him."

"No, I didn't know that. I knew that Adam Calaveras used magic, but I didn't know it was a Gajos trait."

"It's not. The Gajos line is just lousy with magic users. Celeste and Claudia were the only ones in their history to be born without it, other than those who are born Werewolves, that is," Deaton said.

Derek wondered daily if Deaton was one step from killing Laura to have a different Alpha in the area.

"I want him gone," Laura said.

"Laura, that would not be good. He promised him he was allowed to stay a few weeks. If you renege on that, you will be seen in a horrible light. He's doing nothing."

"He sits in my store and reads and drinks too much tea."

"What?" Laura asked. She looked pissed off. "What the hell is he doing hitting on someone in my pack?"

Derek looked at Deaton, who waved for him to leave. Deaton was the peacekeeper in the pack. He was the only one who could make Laura see reason. Derek slipped out of the house and headed toward his car. He thought about Stiles and how he only ever stopped and talked to Derek when one of them was heading out, whether it was Derek after his shift or Stiles when the store closed. He was nice and dropped too much money in the store. He never seemed to care, though. He broke a hundred first thing in the morning buying a book and then used the rest to buy drinks. Derek was sure that he would get obese, but he was slim, despite all of the food he put away. He always left just before lunch and was gone for exactly two hours before he came back. Derek had started to add him onto the dinner order if they were ordering out. Otherwise, Stiles went to the bistro, bought food before coming back, and ate it in the book store.

The drive to work took little time as it was still pretty early. Derek was closing again, so he planned on sitting with Stiles and eating. He would find out what Stiles wanted to make sure that Laura didn't run him out of town.

"What the hell?" Derek asked when he saw someone standing at Stiles' table. It wasn't one of his staff.

Derek rushed inside. Jackson Whittemore was a young man with many issues, but he was mostly a good man.

"How is Danny?" Stiles asked, and he waved at Jackson to sit down.

Jackson sat down with his latte with two extra shots and three pumps of peppermint. He was the main reason Derek had peppermint syrup year-round.

"Danny is good. How could you slip back into town and tell no one?" Jackson asked.

"I'm here for work right now. Business before pleasure. I was gonna pop in and say hello to Lydia tomorrow."

Derek tried to figure out who Lydia was and then remembered Professor Lydia Martin, who taught math and science at Beacon University. She was a whirlwind, and most of the students hated her. Lydia had to be her since Lydia was in some kind of weird relationship with Jackson and Danny. Derek didn't understand it, but then again, he only knew they were all three together, but not all of them were actually together.

"What kind of work?"

"Bounty hunting," Stiles said.

Derek felt a frisson of fear in him. He had trusted Stiles, but it seemed that he wasn't to be trusted. Laura was right to get him out of town.

"I don't have an active case at the moment, just doing some research for another team while I'm taking a little vacation. I need to decompress, and taking a walk down memory lane with everyone that I left behind isn't quite what I wanted every day."

"I hear that." Jackson grabbed a sheet of paper from the stack that Stiles had beside him and wrote down a few things. "That's all of our numbers. Text me at least, and let's plan on dinner out tomorrow. I know a great place where we can get a private room to talk."

"You know, I'm bisexual, much like yourself. Are you sure you want me around Lydia and Danny?" Stiles asked. He waggled his eyebrows.

"Stilinski, I can still take you."

Stilinski, the name was like a sucker punch to the gut. Stilinski had been the name of the Sheriff who had been elected just before his wife had died. He had been run out of town by Derek's mother along with his kid. This was Sheriff Stilinski's kid? They were in a lot of trouble then if he was here to make waves.

"Nice tattoo. Danny does a few things for a company who has a logo like that."

"Tech support for Gajos Security Group, I know. That's my aunt's business. When I saw Danny's name on the bidding list, I told her she had to hire him. She hasn't been upset about it at all. So dinner tomorrow. Go ahead and pencil me in." Stiles looked beyond Jackson and at Derek, who was still just standing near the door.

Jackson turned around to see Derek and nodded his head before looking back at Stiles.

"That's just Derek; he owns the place, probably worried because I'm never nice to anyone unless I'm setting them up for a fall."

"You'd never do that to me," Stiles said. He winked and picked up his tea. "Give my love to Lydia. Tell her she is still my Goddess, and no one will ever replace her in my heart."

"Ugh, you and your weird love for my wife."

Stiles laughed and jumped over to kiss Jackson loudly on the cheek.

"Ugh," Jackson said as he pushed himself away from Stiles. He rubbed at his cheek before he left. He snagged a coffee on his way out.

Stiles smiled at Derek before he went back to whatever he was doing on a laptop. It was the first time that Derek had seen it. He had seen the bag with him, but he had never been on it around Derek.

Derek didn't know what to do. He wasn't sure what was going to happen.

The pull of the full moon was waning, and Derek loved it. He felt free. He raced along the trees with the rest of the Betas in the pack following him. Laura was taking a smaller group and teaching them since they were new to the pack.

It was a beautiful night, and Derek was looking forward to the feast afterward. This time was Chinese from the place that served food all night long, taking advantage of the college students.

A howl ripped through the air, and Derek stopped. It was too quick as several Betas hit him, and they all tumbled over. The howl happened again, and Derek couldn't help but go to his Alpha. He ran as hard and as fast as he could in his wolf form. He and Laura were the only ones in the pack that could do it. While it was able to be done by anyone who had been bitten by a Hale, it was easier for a born Hale.

Derek knew exactly where they were, and it wasn't good as he found Laura facing off against three wolves. After a few seconds of looking for Derek, to realize they were not wolves but Werewolves. Stiles was standing in front of them. Stiles was dressed in a pair of slightly tatty jeans and a plaid overshirt. Under that, he had a graphic T-shirt that had a quote about how his wolf was better than everyone else's wolves. In his hand was a bat, but it looked like no other bat in the world. There were runes all over it, and then there was also what looked like blood on it.

"You are the one that is trespassing Laura," Stiles said.

"No," Laura said.

"This is Ito Pack land. We are here with permission. You came across the landlines and invaded. I protect myself."

Laura shifted to human form.

"You are here to take this land away from me."

"No, I came to visit friends, and that was it. I didn't even know that the bookstore was your brothers." Stiles moved with Laura when she tried to get at the wolves behind him.

Derek was paying attention to the three of them. They were staying back, letting Stiles handle this.

"Laura," Derek said as soon as he shifted to human form. "You don't want to attack him. The Gajos will descend on this town, and you will lose the spark. The pack powers are waning."

"Listen to your brother," Deaton said.

"Why do you like him more than me? I'm the Alpha!" Laura yelled. She swiped at where Deaton was getting closer to her.

"I have tried to help you, but I'm done." Deaton raised his hands and stepped back. He didn't leave the clearing, though. He looked to the side, and Derek followed his gaze where a human behind the three wolves or someone in human form.

Derek inhaled, and he smelled blood. There was something to the smell that Derek knew. It was someone that he had known a long time ago.

"Stiles," someone said.

Derek looked, but it had to be the human.

"Deaton, can you look at him? None of these three are going to shift to check him out, and I'm the only thing keeping them from attacking."

"Yes, I will." Deaton walked around the wolves to settle on the forest floor.

"Now, Alpha Hale, we have a big issue. It's the full moon, and this trio of Werewolves was not on your land, and you attacked them. They didn't even growl at you when you got close to the land marker. I can feel the land marker. What do you have to say for yourself?"

"Land marker?" Laura asked. Her tone was still full of growls, and Derek knew that a fight was inevitable.

"The magical ley line that runs right here. It's what tells Satomi where her land is and where your land is. All of the Ito Pack knows it and follows it. Can you not feel it?" Stiles asked. He shifted his bat to where it was hanging loose at his side. One of the wolves moved to stand beside Stiles more.

"Then the Hale Pack's loss of power is more than we thought it was. Laura, you are barely holding onto the pack. You are going to be the reason why the Hales are laughing stocks. Your pack is barely holding on. They aren't even that upset about protecting you."

Laura looked back at Derek and the rest of the pack. Derek could feel them behind him, and he knew that things were a little iffy on that front. The pack wasn't nearly as close as the Hales had been when his mother was the Alpha.

"And you want me to what? Give this spark up to someone behind you?"

"I don't care who you give it to."

The wolf directly behind Stiles' eyes glowed red. The other two glowed blue.

"Is that Kaïs?" Derek asked.

"No, these are not of the Gajos Pack. Just like I'm only minorly affiliated with the Gajos. I was for a while, but another pack caught my eye. I still hunt and work for the Gajos; they are family. You have been letting the pack wane, Laura. It's time to allow someone else to step up."

"You have no control over me," Laura said.

One of the wolves moved. Derek stepped closer as the wolf went from animal to human form. It took Derek a few seconds to realize that it was his father.

"Dad?" Derek asked. He jerked a little as his brain went over who the other two wolves were and then who the young man behind Stiles getting treatment from Deaton was. Derek didn't even try and stop himself from running. He slid to the ground beside his little brother. "Spencer."

"Hey, I'm fine. Deaton says a few stitches will take care of me."

"Derek, take him to the hospital," Stiles said.

"And the rest of your pack?" Derek asked. He had a feeling he knew who the other two were, especially the Alpha, but he didn't want to say their names. So far, they were perfectly happy, just staying hidden.

"They trust you with Spencer," Stiles said.

"Good. Come on," Derek said. He scooped Spencer into his arms, and off they went with Deaton behind him. There was a contact at the hospital who would take care of him while noting that it was an animal attack in the Preserve. Derek didn't like leaving Cora, Peter, and his father to face Laura, but he was pretty sure that the pack wasn't going to attack, even if Laura told them to.

"Derek," Satomi said.

Derek saw her standing there with a small pack.

"Your brother is fine?"

"I will be," Spencer answered.

"Well, then I'll have my pack escort you out of the area. I will make my will known on what I think of Laura attacking guests on my land. Her own brother at that."

Derek nodded his head. He didn't have a lot of words about his sister at the moment, that was good.

Derek heard the lock tumblers open, and he jerked up from where he had been asleep. He looked around the room. Spencer was still asleep on the bed, curled into Derek. The smell of food drew him out of the cocoon of his bed. He slipped a pair of pants over his boxers just as Stiles appeared in the doorway. He nodded at Derek but then walked right past him to check on Spencer. Stiles crawled into the spot on Spencer's other side to curl into him.

"No sleeping," Peter said from the doorway.

Derek looked at his uncle for the first time in a long time. He had never been around when Derek went to visit, and Derek understood why now.

"Not gonna sleep, just wake him up," Stiles said, but the hint of sleep in his voice told Derek he would be passed out sooner rather than later.

"What did they say?" Peter asked.

"Shallow and no real damage. He's got seventeen stitches for the one that wasn't as shallow. He will need to be careful, but it's not as horrible as it could have been. What happened?"

"We were running, Stiles and Spencer at the front having fun like they normally do. We stayed well away from the line, but we also strayed too close, hoping to run into you. Spencer especially. He misses you a great deal."

"Is he the only one?" Derek asked.

"No, and that's why I was never around when you visited them."

Derek nodded.

"How did you become an Alpha?" Derek asked. He looked at where Stiles was asleep, curled around Spencer. It ached that Spencer allowed a stranger that close. "It happened a year after I went with Greg to New York. Talia has never forgiven me for it either. She had cast me out, but she was pissed that I went with my family. I was in the park with Spencer, and he was playing with some other kids. A gang member was being chased by cops. He tried to grab Spencer and hold him hostage. Spencer bit him on the arm, and when the guy threw him down, I reacted. I saved lives that day, and when I woke up the next morning, I was an Alpha."

"How did you save lives?"

"He had already shot several people before he took Spencer. They wouldn't have been able to get medical attention while the gang banger was loose with a gun. No one died. We were allowed to exist in New York under the protection of the Gajos Pack. Kaïs has been wonderful in helping me learn how to be an Alpha."

"Are you here to take over?"

"No, our reasons for being here are much more personal, but I refuse to get into that. Let them sleep a little while longer. Come out and meet the rest of our little pack."

"How many?" Derek asked.

"Just one. We never made the pack much bigger. I had Greg, Cora, Spencer, Stiles, and his father. I didn't need anyone else."

"What would have happened that pulled them into the Hale Pack and out of the Gajos?"

"Again, I refuse to answer that." Peter wrapped a hand around Derek's shoulder and pulled him out of the bedroom.

In the kitchen area was Cora, along with a man that Derek knew was Stiles' father.

"Sir," Derek said as he offered his hand.

"You can call me Noah, son. I'm glad to see you are in good spirits, all things considering."

"Cora," Derek said, and it took just a few seconds for her to rush him and hug him close. Derek looked around. "Where's dad?"

"He's waiting for the delivery person downstairs."

"How did you get in?" Derek asked.

"I picked the lock," Cora answered. She wasn't letting go of Derek, though.

"Well, that's a fun skill."

"Stiles taught her after she attempted to be used to get control of Peter once. She can pick pretty much any lock using a lot of things. Stiles is damned good at it."

The front door opened, and Greg entered with about ten bags in his hands. It looked like groceries.

"Breakfast?" Derek asked.

"Yes, Stiles needs to sleep so we can cook, and it will rouse him. Deaton texted me updates on Spencer, so I know he's doing okay."

Derek looked at Peter.

"Greg and Noah were at the Sheriff's station. It seemed the local Sheriff was put in jail, and there is an emergency election for a new one. How do you feel about him doing that?" Peter asked.

"Laura won't like that," Derek said.

"Laura has no opinion. Right now, she's being held in a cell on Satomi's land. We have a tribunal of five coming to pass judgment for her attack."

Derek nodded his head. It wasn't going to come down on the side of Laura. Even Derek could feel the lines of where Hale's land ended, and Ito land began. If Laura couldn't, there was a much bigger issue, but she still crossed a line and attacked a human. The worst part was that they would look at her worse for attacking her own brother.

"Derek," Peter said.

Derek looked at him, and he nodded. He wasn't going to stop what was happening.

"How have I never met Stiles or Noah before?" Derek asked.

"That goes into territory I refuse to discuss," Peter said.

"I'm getting sick of that answer," Derek said.

"Well, tough luck. Would you like me to discuss what happened with Kate Argent with anyone who asked?" Peter asked.

"No," Derek said.

"I thought so. It's not my place to discuss most of that. Usually, whenever you came to stay, Noah, Stiles, and I would go to stay with Celeste and Kaïs."

"I feel like I'm lost," Derek said.

"Go nap. You still look tired. Go and cuddle with Spencer. That will make you feel better; it always did before."

Derek nodded his head. He wasn't sure how he felt about it with Stiles in the bed too, but he really didn't care. He needed to settle himself somehow, and Peter was right; cuddling with Spencer usually did.

Derek heard laughter, and it was what woke him up, not the smell of food or coffee but the laughter. He opened his eyes and looked at where Spencer and Cora were standing in the doorway. He frowned as he was still in bed, and the last time he had been in bed, he had been cuddling Spencer.

Looking down, Derek saw he was now cuddling Stiles. Yet it felt right.

"Oh," Derek said.

"Peter, Derek's awake, and I think he figured it out," Cora said.

"Well, then leave them alone. Stiles is nearly awake; I can hear the breathing change from here."

Derek waited to see what Stiles was going to do as they were tangled in each other. Stiles had one of Derek's legs trapped between his and had his fingers laced with his on the hand wrapped around him. Derek had no clue how to get them apart without waking up Stiles.

Mate.

The word was something that Derek hadn't thought about. He had known there was someone who made him want to be in their life in Beacon Hills when he was younger. Then that person had left after the fire. There had been a lot of people who left Beacon Hills after that. A few had been because of it, but most had just been normal. Leaving for college had been the biggest one, and Derek had stayed close to wait for them to come back, then he was just staying.

It had never crossed his mind that it was Stiles. He had been drawn to New York City, but he had assumed it was his family.

Derek wished he would have told his mother fuck you when Cora in Spencer had.

Stiles stretched, and froze a little, then seemed to just melt into the bed.

"Dude, you didn't even take me on a date before getting in bed with me."

Derek laughed and pulled Stiles closer to him. "Well, to be honest, Spencer was between us when I got into bed."

Stiles laughed. He wiggled a little, and Derek let go of him. Stiles slipped off the bed and stretched, his body cracking in ways that made even Derek's body ache from the sounds.

"I'm hungry, and I need coffee. Maybe now you can get the answers from Peter that you want."

"I think I'm good. I figure that all of those answers revolve around you. How did you know?" Derek knew that humans didn't feel that pull to mates like Werewolves did.

"Hmm, I didn't until I met Cora at college. I wanted to be around her a lot, and my magic was pulled to her when I gave into it. Ask my aunt about it, and she talked me through a lot with Kaïs listening in, even though he wasn't supposed to be. He told me that it sounded like what he felt for Celeste the first time he met her. Didn't take long to figure everything else out from there. So yeah, mates and all of that shit."

"So you came here for that?"

"I did. I was doing recon the first time I saw you walk into the bookstore I had sequestered myself in. I don't think you noticed me at all, which was part of what I wanted. I really had done no research. Though I will say, I love the store. I could live there."

Derek nodded his head and sat up. It looked like Stiles was up for the day. Derek grabbed a shirt from the dresser and then grabbed a second and offered it up to Stiles. Stiles grinned and stripped off his shirt, and pulled Derek's on.

"NOW!" Noah yelled.

Derek looked at Stiles.

"That's I'm setting the food down in two minutes; if all that is left is eggs by the time you get down, it's not my fault."

"Ah," Derek said.

Stiles left the bedroom, walking pretty fast.

Derek had bought a pretty big dining room table for his place when he had moved in. Mostly it was used for paperwork since big dinners didn't happen, even at the house. Yet the table was full now. Cora was seated between Peter and Noah with Spencer on Noah's other side.

"Come here, Der," Spencer said as he patted the seat beside him.

Derek sat there, and Stiles took up the spot between Derek and Peter. They all had plenty of room as chairs had been removed. The only open seat was between Stiles and Peter, where Greg sat down as soon as he got there.

The food was all in the middle, enough for an army or a group of people that had more Werewolves than humans.

Spencer was the first to fill up his plate, and even when he was nearly done, Stiles added more potatoes to it. Then Stiles served himself.

The order wasn't anything like what Derek had been doing with Laura.

"I see you thinking," Greg asked.

"I almost forgot what it was like to be in a pack that cherished its humans. I know Spencer is eating first because he's injured. Stiles because of magic. And then after that is age, youngest to oldest."

"See, you haven't forgotten," Greg said.

The meal was interesting. Derek hadn't been a part of a pack like this since before his mother had gone off the deep end.

Since Greg cooked, he didn't have to do cleanup. Derek waited for his father to drop onto the couch before he all but rushed to get beside him. He liked being between Spencer and Stiles while eating, but he was so conflicted.

Greg laughed and pulled Derek in and gave him a tight hug. When he let go, he kept Derek close, though.

"I've missed you," Greg said.

"Dad, please," Derek said. He turned his face into his father's chest, and he let out all the emotions he had been keeping bottled up over the years. He had stayed in Beacon Hills because it was all his fault. He had stayed because he should be around the fallout of what had been his fault. His mother and Laura had never told him any different.

Derek wasn't sure how long he cried, but everyone else talked low around him but never said anything that made Derek pay attention. Until Peter spoke.

"Noah, now that we are here," Peter said.

"Peter."

"No, you've kept it from all of us for long enough. You said that if we ever made it to Beacon Hills, you would tell us why Talia ran you out of here."

"Me," Stiles said.

Derek listened to the voices, but he didn't turn to look. His tears had dried, and he felt worn out, physically and emotionally.

"Why you?"

"She found out my connection to my aunt. Mom never wanted to live the life, so she stayed hell and gone from it. She and her father moved here for safety under the protection of your mother, Peter. It was found as an Alpha secret that I am unsure if Talia was ever told. Mom wrote about it in a journal entry."

"I also think she knew that Derek and Stiles were possible mates. As much as she said, she didn't blame Derek for what happened. I think she did. She wanted us gone enough that she threatened to kill Stiles. I tried to push it to higher authorities, but Talia was still seen as the world's best Alpha. It wasn't until after that things changed. I chose not to push it then. I had already found safety in the Gajos Pack. They trained Stiles in his magic and how to be a good magic-user."

"He would be a good emissary," Derek said.

"Ha, I would not."

"Why not? All magic users are good emissaries."

"No, they are not," Stiles said.

"What?" Derek asked.

"Magic-users are supposed to be pack protectors. It's the way it was in the past. Magic users were drawn to packs to help protect them. Emissaries were humans who had been born to the pack or married into the pack. Someone who had a stake in the game as it were. It was actually hunters who started the whole thing of magic users; druids specifically were the best emissaries. Two birds with one stone as it were."

Derek looked at his father.

"That's all in Stiles' wheelhouse. He's the historian. He went to Yale for Werewolf history. A new professor took over there from overseas and stopped teaching the hunter-biased history."

Derek raised his eyes at his father's words and looked at Stiles. Who was blushing. Derek smiled at him and held out a hand. Stiles allowed himself to be pulled into Derek's side. The three of them filled up the couch. It was good for Derek. With these people around him, he might just finally be happy.

Derek looked up at the door to the shop opened. Only those with keys could enter, so it was someone he trusted. He had given keys to all of his family in town and Stiles and his father. They were in Peter's pack, which meant he could trust them.

It was Stiles, Noah, and Spencer. That wasn't good. They were there to give their testimony, but most of the pack was still giving over. Derek's was all done first thing in the morning, and he had left after that. He hadn't wanted to hear anything else about what his sister had done to destroy the name of the Hale Pack.

"Anything?" Derek asked.

"No, they were still talking to the rest of Laura's pack. It might go until tomorrow on that. They will not rush anything. No ruling will come down before they have all of the information they need. At least as far as what to do with Laura. Her Alpha spark has already been taken from her. It was offered to Greg, but he passed on it. It was given to Peter." Noah's voice was calm as he spoke, and that helped

"Yes, I felt that. I told the pack members who were having issues to go to the house and be together. I can't be there. I tried, but then I came here. I couldn't take it. I guess since you are here, there is something else?"

"Peter's at the house with the pack, getting to know them. Cora is with him. We were sent here by Peter to keep you company. Pizza is on its way," Stiles said.

"I don't want to go there right now. Over the last two days, I have learned that I've put up with a lot of shit from the pack, from Laura, and I don't like it. I don't like how I let them treat me."

"I've got a few things I need to do in New York. It will take a month," Stiles said.

"Okay," Derek said. He wasn't sure what Stiles was getting at. Derek didn't want him to leave for a month.

"Come with me. Spencer and Cora can be taught everything you need to teach them to run it while we go to New York. Spencer went for business management, and Cora followed Peter's footsteps in handling money. You can get a reset in New York while I handle my business with your father. Then we can just enjoy New York. Not have to worry about anything at all."

Derek liked the sound of it. He looked at Spencer.

"We have all the time in the world. We can hang out after you get back. Go and get yourself taken care of mentally, Der. You've got to have some kind of PTSD from this. Cora and I will be here."

Derek nodded his head and looked at Stiles. He smiled at him.

The phone ringing had Derek looking at the far wall. He sighed and walked over to it.

"Hale," Derek said.

"House. I know I told the others that you didn't need to, but we have a ruling, and Celeste is here to tell us what it is," Peter said.

"Stiles ordered pizza. As soon as it gets here, we can head over."

"That's fine." Peter hung up.

"Why did he call?" Spencer asked.

"I might have put a spell on all of our stuff. Peter's call should have come through unless he wasn't calling from his cell. Which he might have broken, again. Let's wait on pizza and then head over."

"That's what Peter told me to do," Derek said. He sighed and rubbed at his eyes. He didn't want the stress of this, but he also knew that he needed to have the stress of it. Things would be better after this was all said and done.

"When you're going through hell, keep on going, right?" Derek asked.

"Hell yes, but also try and make sure that at the end, you aren't going to remember the hell that much either. It can all be done well. And don't think that you aren't going into therapy. I have a lovely lady I talk to, and she does over the computer sessions. You will meet her while we are in New York and then you can decide if she will work for you. If not, we can see about other people she might recommend."

"Sure. I tried it here, but Deaton wasn't the best at it. He was too polarized to Laura then. He might be better now."

"Well, if you want to talk to him, you can just meet my lady?" Stiles asked.

Derek nodded his head. Going to New York City and getting distance seemed like a good idea. He wasn't sure what he really wanted out of going to New York when it was all said and done. He just hoped that he was happy. Seeing his family in Beacon Hills, seeing how Stiles was, Derek had learned that he wasn't happy. He thought he had found happiness in the life he made himself live here. Happiness wasn't living with someone who hated you. Derek understood that now. He hated that he had done that for so long.

There would be a long time before Derek thought he would start something more than friendship with Stiles, but it seemed that Stiles was okay with that. Derek didn't figure he would ever push Derek into anything. It didn't seem to be the kind of person he was. Unless Derek was doing it for stupid reasons.

Stiles walked over to Derek and opened his arms. Derek stepped into them, and he hugged the shit out of Stiles. Spencer came up behind and hugged Derek. It was going to be a rough road for a while, but he could do it. Derek could do it and be happy at the end if he allowed himself.

The End