Beacon Hills had changed a lot in the years that Derek had been gone. He looked at Laura, who was standing beside him. There had been strong wards in the town, but no one had approached them. Derek wasn't even sure that anyone was attached to the wards. If there was, someone would have come for them.

"Laura?" Derek asked.

"I have no clue," Laura answered. She looked shell-shocked.

Derek had never been happy in New York, but he understood why Laura had gone there. The family in Virginia would never approve of her running like she had and would not take them in without ensuring that she understood that running from the hunters like that wasn't something that she should do. Especially leaving Peter behind. That was the biggest thing that Derek had hated. He knew it was the main reason he had never fought her decision. Derek had left with her, she had needed him, and he had gone with her. Laura had learned everything about the fire that she could, and she hadn't been happy, but the depth of the issues between Derek and the rest of the pack while she was in college, had made her understand that Derek had been used and abused. She had forced him into therapy.

It hadn't really helped as Derek wasn't able to face his rapist and the person who had hurt him the most. The news of her death had reached even New York and the packs there. Hell, Derek was pretty sure that Laura had gone out and partied that night while Derek just sat in his room and tried to wrap his head about the fact that Kate Argent, as well as her father, was dead. The FBI had gone after the Argents for many charges, but what had stuck out most was the terrorism charges. Kate had resisted arrest, and when she drew on a Beacon Hills Sheriff's Department deputy, the FBI had opened fire.

It had still been ten years after that before Laura had even wanted to set foot in Beacon Hills. It was long past time for the Hale Alpha to come home.

"Let's go to the house," Laura said.

Derek nodded his head as words were beyond him right now. Laura got back into the car, and Derek followed on her heels. He dropped into the driver's seat and started up the Camaro. They had taken their time on the drive. Derek had chosen his car for the trip mainly because he loved it and hated Laura's SUV.

The drive out to the location of the old house was silent as they both thought about what they wanted to do and how it was going to affect them. Derek slammed on the breaks when there was no house there. He wasn't sure what the hell was going on. He looked at Laura, who frowned. She got out, so Derek turned off the car and pocketed the keys. He didn't trust moving around the area without them.

There was a monument where the house had stood. It was beautiful, and there were the names of everyone who had died. Derek touched his father's name, and the tears started, then was Spencer. His full-of-life little brother. Derek tried to find Cora's name, which should have been just above Spencer's.

"Laura," Derek said.

"Yes?" Laura asked. She was still somewhere behind him.

"Cora's name isn't on here," Derek said.

"What?" Laura laid a hand on Derek's shoulder and read over his shoulder. "Who messed this up?"

The soft tinkle of Faeries had Derek looking around.

"The Hale Alpha and her Beta are welcome in Beacon Hills, and they are most welcome here. Please do not fear us," someone said.

Derek realized that the Faerie was sitting up on the top of the monument, on the shoulder of the large wolf that Derek knew was carved in the stone to look like his mother. Even though no one who died could shift like that except for his mother, Derek knew who each wolf was depicted. There was a soft look in the eyes of Spencer.

"Who had this monument made?" Laura asked.

"The Hale Alpha did, Alpha Hale," the Faerie said.

Derek was confused about that because there was only one Hale Alpha in Beacon Hills, and that was Laura.

"Speak sense," Laura demanded.

"Just because you don't have the knowledge needed to understand doesn't mean that I am the one who is trying to trick you," the Faerie said.

A soft scuff had Derek spinning around. He saw a pretty fox staring at them. It had a coat that Derek had never seen before. It kind of looked like it was half burned with a fire still blazing on parts of its body. The fox chuffed at them before it took off. Derek would have thought that it was a Werefox, but it hadn't felt like it. He knew that sometimes being around the Fae changed even the most simple of animals.

"Do you want to meet with the Hale Alpha, Alpha Hale?" the Faerie asked.

Derek would have laughed, but he knew that it wouldn't be good on Laura's part for Derek to laugh. He was pretty sure the Faerie was fucking with her, but he couldn't be sure. Derek's mother had hated the Faerie, and she had only allowed them a small bit of land in the Preserve. It seemed like they were allowed pretty much anywhere now. Derek knew that while this one was engaging with them, others were all around, watching and waiting for one of them to mess with.

"Yes," Laura answered.

"Then go to your hotel; someone will find you and let you know when you are allowed to visit the Hale Alpha and consort." The Faerie disappeared before their eyes.

"Let's get checked in to the hotel and then we can wander around and see what is up," Laura said.

Derek nodded his head. He knew that something was up around here, but he had no clue what it was. He figured that they would figure it out pretty easily.

---

The coffee shop smelled like heaven to Derek. Laura had kept him up half the night, and while caffeine did little for him as far as keeping him awake, Derek loved the smell and taste of it. He opened his eyes as he finished inhaling. There were only a few people in there besides the staff. Derek could hear them moving around in the back, and he counted the beating hearts.

"Welcome to Moon Bean Café," the man behind the register said as Derek finally stepped up there. "What can I get you?"

"What's your most popular hot drink that's got a lot of coffee?"

"That would be the Jitter Wolf," the man said.

Derek looked up at the menu for the first time and realized that the names of everything were fantasy-themed, but if someone was aware of Werewolves, then they would know about everything there. This place was run by someone in the know, and they were having a laugh.

"I'll take it. What flavors?"

"Well, that's your choice between brown sugar cinnamon or chocolate. No, we don't do substitutes. If you want something else, I can build you a drink."

Derek looked at the young man. He seemed to be only a few years younger than him.

"Brown," Derek said.

"Awesome. That is the most popular. Anything to eat?"

"Cinnamon roll, please." It was the smell of them that had Derek coming into the shop.

Laura had been pacing a hole in the floor since the night before, and Derek had slept for shit. The person had not found them to let them know the Hale Alpha was willing to meet with them. Laura figured it was someone who was acting like Laura had given them the alpha spark. Yet, they both knew that was impossible. Laura was still an alpha. So it was a big mystery what was going on.

Derek handed over the money when he was given the total.

The man behind the counter winked at him and then set about getting Derek his drink.

Derek listened to the way the people in the back talked to each other. They were all close. There was family, friendship there. Something that Derek missed. Laura only ever had Derek as a beta. She handled that she didn't need any more than that; she didn't need bonds that would break again. They didn't need to pose for their family again.

"One Jitter Wolf," the man said as he laid it down. He winked at Derek and grabbed a bag from someone behind him without even looking. "And your muffin."

Derek took the two and gave the man a nod before he turned to leave. Outside, it was still dark, but Derek liked that. He would be able to look around without too many noticing him. The Camaro was parked where he left it, but someone was standing there. Derek paused until the man turned to face him. The uniform was hard to miss, but it wasn't until Derek got a good look at the badge that he knew it was not just some random deputy.

This was the Sheriff. Derek read the badge to see his name was Stilinski. The same name as the deputy who had sat with Derek for hours after his family died. Helping him not feel alone when he felt so fucking alone.

"Sheriff," Derek said.

"Mister Hale, I see you've met the Alpha Mate," The Sheriff said.

Derek nearly dropped his drink. He hadn't really met anyone, and while he knew the Sheriff was usually told about everything, Derek's mother had never trusted the one before, but it seemed someone trusted this one.

"No one introduced me to the Alpha Mate," Derek said.

The Sheriff pointed at the cup. Derek frowned, but he looked at it. He found an address on there and Derek's name, even though Derek had never given it.

"So, are you the unwelcome wagon?"

"Nah, son. I just wanted to extend an olive branch to you and your sister. I have the file on everything that happened with the fire. The truth, not the shit that went down that got me the job I have now."

"We know the Argents were looked into."

"Yes, most of it the FBI kept quiet, especially after the then beta, but now alpha revealed to the wrong team what was going on here. Argent was bribing the branch that looked into those things, mostly to protect Katherine."

"You are well informed," Derek said. He didn't know that any cop in New York City ever knew that much about him and Laura; hell, the other packs didn't either.

"I'm the Sheriff; I've gotta be to keep the peace in my county. How are you feeling about being home?"

"I don't know yet."

"Well, enjoy the muffin and coffee. The Alpha and his mate will be there whenever you two are ready to visit. Welcome home."

Derek had no clue what to say to that. The Sheriff tipped his hat at Derek before heading toward the SUV on the far side of the lot. A deputy was standing there who flashed his eyes at Derek. While they looked like they could be the eyes of a beta from a distance, there was too much darkness in them. They were orange or red, but not Alpha red, more like a mix between orange and red.

With great hesitance, Derek got into his car and drove to the hotel. He found Laura pacing on the phone. There had been no word in New York City about a Hale Alpha in Beacon Hills.

"IT'S MINE!" Laura yelled.

"Alpha Hale, calm down. You left. I told you that someone would come and take over. The Beacon Hills Nemeton cannot be left alone for that long. Darkness will creep in, and it's not good. We had heard rumors of an Alpha protecting it, but we assumed it was Satomi Ito. She was a dear friend of your mother's. We never looked into it because they never caused any issues. From what I understand, the pack is pretty much invisible. The investigation into the Argents was solely at the hands of the interim Sheriff after the last was removed by impeachment after the fire was investigated by the FBI, which was also at the behest of the interim Sheriff."

"Sheriff Stilniki?" Derek asked.

Laura looked up at him with a little shock on her face. She knew the Sheriff just as much as Derek did.

"Yes, actually. His son is lovely, from what I want to understand. He went to Yale with my youngest. He and his little friends."

"Friends?"

"Well, there were rumors they were a pack, but no one ever visited and asked to cross the lines, and they stayed at school until Christmas, and then when they got back from that, they didn't leave again until Summer. There was no Alpha with them, so they couldn't be a pack that would survive that."

"So Beacon Hills is stranger than it was before mom died," Laura said.

"It's calm, and that was all the council ever cared about."

"Thanks. Sorry for yelling."

"It's understandable. We figured that something would come up. The Hale lives are so very interesting."

Laura hung up and looked at Derek. Derek handed over the cup of coffee, and Laura's eyes widened at the address.

"That's close to the old house."

"Yes, they are on our land, Hale land that is still owned by us."

"So we can go to them legally. Let's see about this meeting, and then we can decide what to do."

Derek nodded his head. This wasn't going to end well. Laura had finally given up fighting the draw to bring her back to Beacon Hills. Derek figured that the law was going to side with the other Hale Alpha. That meant that even if they won against the wolf, there would be damage to their reputation.

---

The house was grand, but it wasn't nearly as ostentatious as Derek thought it would be. Laura was dressed to the nines, looking as regal as their mother had.

The porch had a few people on it, all of them looked younger than Derek and Laura, but it was hard to tell exactly how old.

"Welcome, I hope you found the house just fine," the man from the coffee shop said.

"You the Alpha Mate I supposedly met?" Derek asked.

"Well, only kind of. The Sheriff likes to play word games, and he's good at lying when he needs to be. You can call me Alpha Hale."

"You are no Hale!" Laura spat at him.

Derek reached out to touch her arm, but she snarled at him.

"Tut, tut," a voice said.

Derek gasped as Peter walked through the front door. There was someone behind him, but they weren't visible yet.

"That is no way to speak to the Alpha of Beacon Hills," Peter said as he stopped at the top of the stairs. "I would invite you in, but I do not wish to see my house destroyed with that anger, Laura. You will show respect for the Alpha of the land, or you will leave."

"You want me to bend the knee to some jumpstart?" Laura asked.

"Bend the knee? Someone has been watching too much TV," Peter said. He looked at the other man, who just nodded his head. "He earned the right to be called Alpha."

"Who did he kill?" Laura demanded.

"Laura," Derek hissed. She was close to snapping, and Derek did not want to see her taken down by this pack. They were outnumbered over 5:1. The wards that were coming from the house-made Derek want to turn tail and run.

"Ah, so you hold onto that kind of shit, do you?" the man asked. He jumped over the banister on the porch and landed skillfully on his feet but then stumbled as he took his first step.

Most of the pack laughed, and the man turned around and bowed at the collection of people. Then he flipped them off.

"So have you heard of True Alphas?" the man asked.

"It's customary to introduce oneself," Laura said.

"See, I knew I forgot something. Oh, wait, no, I wasn't. It's actually the standard hierarchy of pack interactions for the visiting pack to introduce themselves first. Since you didn't, I assumed you wanted to keep who you were a mystery," the man said.

"You know exactly who we are," Laura said. Her teeth were clenched, and the words were not good sounding.

Derek felt like everything was slipping away. They were going to die, and it was going to be the pack who had taken in his uncle. The last Derek knew Peter was still in a coma.

"I do. I know your names, but I don't know your positions. Derek is a beta, but that's pretty common. I mean, I have thirty-three betas in my pack. Is Derek your left hand, right hand? No hand?"

"Quit playing games."

"Oh, sweetie, you would know if I was playing games with you. I'm an asshole. I will use pageantry and codes of ethics and every other thing in the world to make sure that the people I hate being put into their place."

"And you hate me?" Laura asked.

"Oh, honey, I fucking loathe your guts. I would gladly watch you burn in hell for the rest of eternity, and it wouldn't get old."

"What did I do to you?"

"It's not what you did to me." The man looked back at Peter.

Derek realized too late that the man was too close to Laura. He lunged to put himself between her and the man, but he hit a wall. He looked down to see Mountain Ash rings around him and her. There was a very powerful magic user there, and they were damned good.

"Ah, ah, ah, Derek. That's not nice. I've not done a damned thing to her. I've already promised Peter I wouldn't kill her. I allowed you onto my land, and that means something even if it means nothing to her."

"And you would hold that promise?"

"He's my mate; I would never do something like that." The man's eyes flashed red, deep alpha red. "Laura Hale, you have the chance to fix everything. Tell me why you left your uncle in bed, trapped in his own mind as his body stung with pain. Why didn't you send for him? Why did you leave him under his own damned name knowing that there were people out there who had already tried to kill him?"

"I don't have to answer to you," Laura said.

"Laura, please," Derek said. He looked at where Peter was still standing on the porch.

Peter didn't look too caring about what the man asked.

"He was weak. Someone had gotten close to the family. He was the reason they were dead."

"No, Kate Argent is the reason they are dead."

Derek whined, and before anyone could say anything to him, there was a body colliding with his. Derek didn't know who it was, the scent was there, and it was something familiar.

"Cora?" Derek asked.

"It was not your fault. I will tell you that every single day until you die if I have to, Derek."

"Bring him up here," Peter said.

Derek didn't resist the tug on him, and then he was being hugged by Peter as well. The rest of the betas stayed back.

"You're alive?" Derek asked.

"I wasn't in the house."

"When the investigation was looked into, it was found that the remains and identification were lied about. The list that was given by Laura was just used by the person paid off in the ME's office." The man was still looking at Laura.

Derek looked at these people who were around him. None of them looked too worried about anything. Derek looked at Cora again, who was just looking at him. "How come no one told us you were alive?"

"Why would we?" Peter asked.

"What?" Derek looked at his uncle.

Peter still had a hand on Derek's shoulder. "She left here without a care to anyone in the pack. Talia never treated the bitten and other wolves in the pack as anything but family. Yet, she left the extended pack members without an Alpha. She broke the bonds."

"You told me that none of them would bow to you, and they left the pack on their own."

"I didn't need them. I just needed you, Derek. If we were only just us Hales, then none of this would have happened."

"This still would have happened. The Hales are the gateway to the destruction of everything. You know your royal heritage, Laura."

"How do you know so much? Peter tell you everything? Whisper sweet nothings in your ears? He'll betray you just like he betrayed all of us."

"What betrayal?" the man asked.

"Derek blames himself for everything. That he's the one who let Kate into the house, told her how to get inside so they could meet. She should have never gotten across unless Peter did something."

"Laura, mom hadn't renewed the wards. Deaton was changing a few of them, and they were set to be renewed the next week. I heard her and dad talking about it. Peter wasn't even in the house."

"I knew they were due to be renewed, but that happens the day after the Wolf Moon every year. It's been that way since I was a child."

Laura looked at Peter still, and Derek was pretty sure she would kill him if she could. Derek had heard her make comments here and there, and Derek had always put that down to her being pissed off when their family died.

"So you blame Peter and not Derek when both of them had no part in it."

"HE SHOULD HAVE KNOWN!"

"And so should have Talia and Greg. I was doing what my alpha wanted me to do. I was looking into a different threat. I took care of that threat when I was healed up."

"How did you escape the nursing home?" Laura asked.

"Interesting choice of words. Escape. And you'll have to blame me. I found him and knew that something was wrong. I was doing a reading thing. Dad was pissed at me and forced me to do it as part of a volunteer group. I learned a lot on my own, and I began to build a pack around us. I was sixteen when it happened. So, yes, he escaped because I figured out what he was, and I saved him."

"Sixteen? What did he do, seduce you?"

"Nah. I went to college the next year; I was bored as hell. I didn't see him again until after I was eighteen.",

Derek's world was rocked, and he had no clue what to think about any of it. His world was different. Everything was just so strange, and he had no clue what to do about it. He loved Laura, and he thought things were good, but she had left their pack behind, lied to Derek, and let Peter be tortured by pain.

Turning, Derek stepped toward the house. He knew that Cora and Peter were right behind him. He heard Laura screaming, but he ignored her. Derek followed a pull, and he found himself in a bed that smelled like Peter and the man outside. He curled there and waited for what was going to happen. It was like the world had been jerked away from him, and he was left adrift in space alone.

"Stiles," Peter said.

"It's fine, Peter," the man said. His name was Stiles, it seemed.

Derek felt the bed dip, and he jerked a little as Stiles wrapped himself around him. Derek hadn't been held like this in a long time. He started to cry.

"Go," another voice said, and then there were two more bodies on the bed with them.

Derek let himself go.

---

Beacon Hills was growing still. Derek had been around for what his mother called a small decline. It had declined more until Peter had taken over everything.

"Community?" Derek asked.

"Yes, that's what we are building. There are many humans here, but they are all learning how to live with the supernatural. There are probably more humans aware than what I would like."

Derek laughed, and he looked at Stiles. The new Hale Pack was massively different than the pack Derek had grown up in.

"Even New York isn't like this."

"Well, we have a very strange Alpha," Peter said.

Derek turned to look at his uncle. Derek hadn't seen Laura since the day he had walked away from her. He promised that one day he would listen to her and her reasons. He didn't trust her about any of it, but he was okay with one day talking to her.

"I'm learning that."

"I've reached out to the family. You are welcome anywhere. You don't have to stay here."

"I've wanted to come home for years. I tried so hard to get her to come home, but I couldn't leave her. She wanted no other betas."

"She wanted to make sure you never left her. It was the only way she could. If she took on other betas, you would leave her. She didn't want you to leave her, ever."

"I wouldn't have."

"Even if you found out that Cora was alive? Peter was awake?" Stiles asked.

Derek about said yes, but then he thought about it. He's ached for a real pack for a long time now. The wounds had healed in his heart and in his head. He would have left Laura in a heartbeat if he had known that she was safe.

"Why so many betas?"

"Strays," Peter said.

"Strays?"

"I take in anyone who swears to protect the town. If they swear the oath to the Nemeton, I'll take them in."

"What about that deputy who was with the Sheriff?"

"Who was it? Did you get a name?"

"No, he had like orange eyes?"

"Hellhound," Peter said.

"I've got reports of loiterers," the Sheriff said as he walked up to them.

"Aww, shucks," Stiles said.

"We can leave, sir," Derek said.

Stiles and Peter both started to laugh, and the Sheriff just waved at him.

"He's playing," Stiles said.

Derek looked between them and tried to figure out what he was seeing. It was the eyes. There was a look to the eyes. They were related. Stiles was the Sheriff's son. Stiles was the one that went to Yale. Derek covered his face. He had been told everything he needed. Stiles had gone to college to learn; he had already been the Alpha then. His pack went with him, but since he wasn't an actual Werewolf, there were no rules against human alphas going places.

"How long have you had Cora?"

"She came with a threat after a few things were leaked out of the town. I tried to pass on a word, but I assume it stopped with Laura," Peter said.

Derek nodded his head. He lowered his head and rubbed at his face. His life was in shambles, but he had more love than he had from Laura for a long time. He was going to be staying in Beacon Hills. He was going to be accepted here. He had family here. Community.

The community was the biggest thing he had been missing over the last years. He wanted to feel that kind of love again.

"You kept that you were healed from everyone," Derek said.

"Yes, I did. I didn't want threats coming after me. No one pays too much attention to the alpha mate unless the mate draws that attention himself. I learned the easiest ways to do that a long time ago. There is a reason I was never outed at the left hand by anyone."

Derek nodded. He looked across the street to see a woman in a deputy uniform. She looked beautiful, even with the massive scar that ran down her cheek and neck. She wore them like a badge.

"Who is that?"

"Braeden, part-time deputy for dad. She handles most of the out-of-area talks with packs and pack security. She works closely with Peter to make sure we are all safe. Why?"

"She's pretty," Derek said. He ducked his head, expecting to be made fun of. Laura always did when he expressed an interest in someone.

"Well, she'll be happy to know that," Peter said.

Derek looked up at his uncle to see him waving Braeden over.

"She's here to meet you anyway. She was the only inner pack that wasn't there yesterday. She was working with a victim she got close to to help them get ready to go to court. Stiles decided that it was a better use of her time."

"Hello," Braeden said. She held out her hand to Derek when she got close to him.

"Hello," Derek said. He stood up from the bench he was sitting on to take her hand and shake it.

"Are the love birds acting grossly?"

"No, they haven't kissed once."

"Wow, they are being good. Just wait. That won't hold. There is a reason they have a set of rooms that wouldn't be out of place in a castle. Just don't go in without making sure they are dressed."

"Uncle Peter never had shame. He walked around naked more than anyone else in the pack."

"And he gave that to Stiles."

Derek laughed. He looked at where Peter had pulled Stiles into his arms, and they were cuddling there in public on a bench without a fear in the world. He knew that the Sheriff didn't seem to mind the relationship. There was an age difference there, but it didn't seem to be too horrible. Which was good. Derek had met couples with bigger differences in New York City, and they were happy for a long time.

"Why don't I show you around and let these two love birds go back to the house that I am pretty sure is empty?"

"Hell, yeah," Stiles said.

"You aren't working?"

"Just got off shift and thought that coming to find where these two had dragged you would be a good thing. Hungry?"

"Yes, they were supposed to take me out to lunch."

"Good. We can do that first, but we are going where I want."

"I bow to your knowledge of the town," Derek said. He held out his arm, and Braeden slipped her hand onto his elbow.

Stiles and Peter said nothing as Braeden tugged Derek along with her. Derek looked back at Peter and Stiles just once as they turned the corner. They both looked really happy as they looked at each other. Derek had never thought that Peter would settle down like that. Even before the fire, because no one had ever been able to keep up with him, that wasn't family, but it seemed like he was settled with Stiles.

"Worried about him?" Braeden asked.

"No, I can see how much they love each other. Just thinking about how I never thought that Peter would be happy like that. I didn't expect him to ever find someone who would accept him and everything he had to do to protect the pack."

"Stiles fits him. Stiles might not have the correct attitude to be the Alpha, but he balances that with people in his inner circle who speak up and make sure that he doesn't mess anything up. He's a good guy, and he's made sure that we are all happy. He'll sacrifice his own to make the pack happy. He swallowed down a few things in the beginning when things were not the greatest. He usually came out being right on things, so no one questions him about trusting anyone again."

"There was a fox in the woods the other day. The coloring looked like it was on fire. I never thought too much about it, but now I'm thinking. I saw the coyote who was at the edge of the house."

"She's an extreme pack secret, and there might be a day when she trusts you with coming over to you, and only on that day will anyone tell you who she is. Her name is Malia, and that's it."

Derek knew about pack secrets, and he understood them. He didn't have to know everything that everyone knew. Not things that others didn't want to tell anyone.

"Where did you see the fox?"

"When we were at the location of the old house. A Faerie came and talked to us."

"Ah, yes. The old house is one of the locations they have unrestricted access to. Stiles uses them as security. The Faerie in the area loves to protect it. They have caught a few hunters who have made it through the wards before. They haven't for a while because the ones that lived and escaped the Faerie made sure that everyone knew what Stiles had done."

"That was a bit of genius on his part."

"Despite the issues with your mother, they liked her. They trusted her for the most part, and they hated the loss of life that happened that night. They defend the Preserve and are one of the first lines of defense we have when shit goes down. They have their areas where they are allowed to fuck with people, but they are allowed anywhere. Once they are out of their secure areas, they can't mess with people more than letting them get lost. There are areas of the Preserve that are now open for all of the pack mainly because the Faerie have made sure no one goes there anymore. Haunted, full of sprites, there are a lot of rumors."

Derek had no clue where they were going, but he could see that people were looking at him. Braeden kept on about the town and what protections there were as they walked. It didn't take long for Derek to figure out that this was to show that Braeden trusted him and, therefore, the other people could trust him.

"But to get back to what you were talking about."

"INCOMING!" someone yelled from behind them. Braeden stopped them, and she sighed.

"What's going on?"

"Stay still. How did you guys get here to town?"

"Peter made me drive them in."

"Oh, good. We don't have to chase down their car."

Seconds later, the fox streaked past them, the same one he had seen in the Preserve. Then right on its heels was a wolf. It didn't seem like it was a full-on chase given how the fox let the wolf catch up, would flick him in the face with his tail, and then take off again.

"Now's the time to back out."

"What?" Derek asked.

"That was our alpha and his loving mate. The whole town knows what they look like in that form and it's well known they are pets of the Hales. No one had tried to cage them. Though it helps that when Stiles turns when they are in town, he puts collars on them."

Derek watched the duo until he couldn't see them anymore. He shook his head at the display they were doing. He had a feeling that this pack was absolutely nothing like any other pack that was in existence, but he was okay with that. He could do with some fun after the shit life he had before this.

"So, are you single?" Braeden asked.

"Yes."

"Good. Stay that way."

"Sure," Derek said. He felt Braeden's hand tighten on his elbow, and she pointed at where they were heading. It looked like a nice place and the kind of place that one went on a date at.

Yeah, Derek was pretty sure that things were finally looking up, and he looked forward to settling into this community built here.

The End