Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was Saturday night and it was just Melissa and Isaac at the house; John was taking care of the boys since Isaac seemed to be having nightmares. The attack happened Thursday afternoon and the three boys slept together just fine that night but Friday, Isaac woke up screaming and ended up scaring Scott and Stiles as well. Both adults figured that Isaac would feel less guilty this way- as it was Isaac felt absolutely horrible that he'd caused Scott to have an asthma attack last night. It had taken awhile for her to explain to Isaac that Scott wasn't going to die and that he didn't know his nightmare was going to happen so there was no reason to feel guilty.

"Come on Isaac, dinner time," Melissa called out as she set a plate down for him.

Isaac walked into the kitchen, still a little subdued but he at least smiled at her as he sat down. "Thank you."

"And after dinner it's bath time, then we can read a story okay?"

He nodded and picked up his fork, letting out a huge yawn before spearing a piece of chicken.

Melissa frowned a bit, "You okay Sweetie?"

"Just tired… I didn't go back to sleep last night, I was worried about Scott, and then…" he trailed off.

"What else?" Melissa pushed, fork on her plate now.

"If I closed my eyes… I-I," Isaac whimpered. "I would feel like I was back in the freezer, for disobeying Dad…"

"He can't hurt you anymore! And you know I'll never do anything like that to you right?" Melissa soothed, reaching out the ruffle his hair.

"I know, you're nothing like him. I just- I still feel scared sometimes… So I'm tired 'cause I didn't get a lot of sleep," he explained, poking at the food on his plate. "Do I have to eat dinner, I'm just really sleepy…"

"Yea you have to eat dinner. If you go to bed now with an empty tummy, you'll wake up at midnight with the shakes," Melissa told him. "At least eat the chicken and the peas, if you don't want the rice that's okay."

Isaac sighed heavily and dropped his chin onto his hand, slowly putting another piece of chicken in his mouth and chewing. He knew Melissa was right, going to bed hungry wasn't fun at all, but eating just took so much effort! It took him 15 minutes just to finish off the few pieces of chicken he had on his plate; then he was just pushing his peas around.

"I thought you liked peas?" Melissa asked, hoping that some conversation would help spark his appetite a bit.

The little boy smiled at her before scooping some into his mouth, "I do like peas. I'm just –huge yawn- ready for bed."

"Okay, I can see that you're really tired, just a few more bites and then we'll get you into the tub okay?"

He groaned, "Bath? Do I have to?"

Melissa laughed, "Yes you do, you spent most of today running around with Scott and Stiles! You're filthy! No wonder you're so tired though."

There were only a few more grumbles as Isaac ate his peas and pushed his plate away, leaving most of the rice untouched. Melissa figured that it would have to do before she grabbed his plate and scooped the rice back into the pan. She'd reheat her food after he was in bed, he obviously wasn't going to make it until she finished dinner. "Go get your swim trunks on, I'll be right behind you," Melissa told him. As he shuffled to the bathroom, she put her plate in the microwave and then tied up her hair. "I'm coming in, are you dressed?" She opened the door and found Isaac sitting on the floor, leaning up against the wall. He'd barely managed to get the trunks on before closing his eyes; Melissa sighed fondly as she turned on the faucet. Once the tub was filled she patted Isaac on his leg, "Come on Buck-o, into the tub!"

Isaac lifted a hand to wave her off as he groaned in his sleep, eyes not even fluttering. Melissa flicked some of the warm water on his face while calling his name, finally getting him to open his eyes.

"I know you're sleepy, just a quick bath okay?"

"'K" he mumbled, eyes half shut as he climbed into the tub. He pulled his knees to his chest and rested his chin on them, so that way he wouldn't fall into the water.

Melissa could tell that he wasn't going to be much help with the cleaning so she rubbed the soap between her hands and started washing his back and arms. At least this way she'd get the worst of the dried sweat off of him; she shook him lightly and handed him the soap. "I need you to wash your feet Kiddo. If I move you, you're gonna fall in the water." The last thing she wanted was for him to think she was dunking him in the water for being bad.

He mumbled as he opened his eyes, grabbing for the bar of soap blindly, barely managing to rub it between his fingers to work up the suds. While he was doing that, Melissa carefully got his hair wet and started shampooing it. Isaac slowly ran his soapy fingers between his toes, between his long blinks- having Melissa massaging his head wasn't helping him to stay awake at all. Thankfully it wasn't long before she told him to look up so she could rinse out the shampoo. "One star… twooooo…. Star. Th… three star," Isaac whispered, doing his best to keep his eyes open and count while the water cleaned his hair. "Fo-four…. Four star."

"Alright, let's get you dried off," Melissa told him, unplugging the tub and letting the water drain. "This is obviously as clean as you're getting tonight." She helped him out of the tub and onto the floor rug, pulling one of the towels down and draping it over his tiny shoulders. Now came the hard part: if she left him alone to dry off, he would surely just sit on the floor and fall asleep. But on the other hand, they never really covered if he was comfortable enough to be naked in front of her. She needed to make a choice though, he was already wobbling on his feet. "Hey Isaac, is it okay if I help you dry off? I'm afraid you're going to fall over and hurt yourself if I leave you alone."

"That's 'k," he told her.

Melissa smiled at him, thankful that he wasn't too shy about it. "Okay, I'm going to wrap the towel around you, I need you to put one hand on my shoulder, to stay balanced. Then I'll help you take off the trunks."

Isaac nodded in partial understanding, reaching out to put on small hand on her shoulder. Melissa then adjusted the towel around his shoulders so must of his front was covered; even though he said it was okay, she was still going to give him as much privacy as she could. Once the towel was situated, she reached under it and untied the drawstring and helped Isaac shimmy out of the wet swim trunks. After he stepped out of them, she grabbed the towel and rubbed it over his body, getting him as dry as she could. "Okay, time for clothes now, so make sure you stay balanced okay. I don't want you to hit your head," she warned.

Isaac yawned in response but his hand was still on her arm so hopefully she'd be able to recognize if he was losing balance. "Okay, right foot first," she told him, pajama pants rolled up and ready to go.

It took a few minutes since the little boy was slow to respond but she got him dressed and was toweling off his hair in under ten minutes and she counted that as a win. She picked him up and carried him up to her room, setting him down and pulling the covers around him.

"Isaac, hey, I'm going to be downstairs, cleaning up dinner okay. If you need me just call, I'll be right up. Get some sleep." She figured he must have heard her because he nodded his head and mumbled a goodnight to her as well. She kissed his forehead and made sure the covers were tucked in around his small frame, surely he was out like a light before she even got to the stairs.

Chapter Text

Melissa watched as the boys ran around the backyard, their laughter carrying to her through the open window. "You'd think they wouldn't have any energy left after running around at school for most of the day," she mumbled to herself before going back to work.

"Tag, got you Isaac," Scott laughed, running away from his new brother.

Isaac threw his arms up in the air, he was It again… he was always It. He couldn't wait for a growth spurt like Miss Melissa was telling him he was going to get, then he'd be able to catch Scott and Stiles. As it was, the only reason he'd catch Scott is because he'd get winded and would slow down to catch his breath. Stiles though, they almost never caught Stiles- it totally wasn't fair. But Isaac ran after him anyways, wanting to give Scott a break from being It. Scott caught onto his plan and ran over to Stiles, easily catching up with him; when he was close enough, he grabbed onto Stiles's shirt and slowed down.

"Scott, hurry, Isaac is coming," Stiles urged, not knowing his friend was betraying him.

With Scott slowing Stiles down, Isaac finally caught up and held his hand out to tag Stiles. Just before his hand connected, Scott let go of Stiles's sleeve and dashed away, not wanting to get tagged so soon.

"You're It Stiles, I finally got you," Isaac laughed before collapsing onto the grass.

"Scott, you traitor! No fair!" Stiles whined.

"It's –pant- totally fair –pant- you're so much faster –pant- than me," Isaac complained from his spot on the grass.

Stiles looked down at Isaac, then over at Scott who was also wheezing a little bit, "Sorry, I forget that I'm really really fast. We can play hide and seek instead if you want?"

"Sure, that sounds like fun," Scott answered. "Just let us catch our breath so our huffing and puffing don't give us away."

They managed to get a few rounds of hiding in before Melissa called them in to wash up and get started on their homework. Melissa smiled as the boys all ran to the bathroom; she had heard the boys discussing how unfair it was that Stiles was faster. She couldn't help but be a little proud that Isaac and Scott came up with an idea together, and that Stiles realized his advantaged and willingly suggested a different game for all of them to play.

Chapter Text

Melissa wrangled the boys into the tub, they were getting big so pretty soon they'd be taking separate baths but they just insisted on bathing together still. Isaac had even gotten past being naked around them thankfully. It had been a bit of a shock for the boys the first time they'd all washed together since Isaac still had his bruises and scabs. Isaac was super self-conscious about it but the two boys didn't say anything about it. She mostly didn't need to supervise them but, some nights when they were particularly rowdy she had to pop in and make sure they weren't flooding the linoleum. Tonight though, the boys seemed in control so she left them to it, going to straighten out the living room while it was unoccupied. They boys talked quietly while they washed up, all three of them facing away from the wall.

"I can't wait to go to bed," Scott mumbled. He sniffled loudly and let out a cough. He'd been coughing here and there all day and it was starting to drag him down.

"I'll wash your hair," Stiles offered. His hair was still really short, he got his hair buzzed every week so it didn't need much washing. Scott's hair though, it was really thick and he never really got it clean said his mom.

"K, I can do Isaac's then," Scott answered.

Isaac smiled, he loved it when someone else was cleaning his hair, it was like a head massage. When he did it he always felt like he didn't scrub enough and that his fingers were clumsy. They three of them rotated to make a train and started with the shampooing, Melissa coming in to check on them.

"Already on the hair washing?" she asked.

Scott started coughing again and groaned, rubbing at his throat with a soapy hand.

"You okay Scott?"

He shrugged, "I keep coughing and it's making my throat hurt."

She knelt down and felt his forehead, he did feel a little warm; before she could decide if he was feverish, Isaac started coughing too. "I knew I shouldn't have let you boys go play in the stream the other day. You boys were in those wet clothes too long, I think you're getting sick."

Stiles rolled his eyes, "They didn't get it from the water, Bethany was coughing at school last week and was touching all the toys. I told them not to touch it 'cause of germs but Scott got asked to play dinosaurs."

"Dinosaurs is fun!" Scott argued, sniffling.

Isaac held his hands up to his mouth as he coughed, "I didn't play dinosaurs, why am I coughing?"

Scott stopped scrubbing Isaac's hair, "We shared a juice box, so you must have got it from me. Sorry…"

"Okay, let's get you rinsed off and up to bed okay? I'll get your pajamas ready, you wash out the shampoo and dry off," Melissa told them. They'd be getting soup in the morning, thank goodness it was a three day weekend and they didn't have school tomorrow. Isaac always got upset if he ever had to stay home from school.

"Okay Isaac, look up," Scott said, dipping the cup into the water. He dutifully looked up while Scott washed out all the soap, then handed the cup to Stiles.

It didn't take long for the three of them to get all rinsed off and out of the tub; the water draining as they toweled off. Scott was hit with another coughing fit as he tried to get dressed. Melissa frowned, his cough sounded really bad, hopefully he didn't get pneumonia, since his asthma put him at risk… She rushed them all upstairs and grabbed a book off of the shelf. She waited until all three of the boys were settled in the large bed, covers pulled up to their chins.

"Can I have cough syrup Mom?" Scott asked. He didn't want to be coughing the whole time she was trying to read to them.

"Me too," Isaac said. He hated the taste of it but if it helped him to not cough it was worth it.

Melissa nodded and set the book down on the bed, heading to the bathroom to get their medicine. When she came back, she had both boys sit up and she gave them each a small dose cup. Isaac made a face after he drank his but he took it at least. After she'd gone and rinsed out the cups, she sat down near the foot of the bed, book open so they boys could see the pictures.

About halfway through the story, she heard Scott's sleepy wheezes and looked up, he was going to need another pillow under his head to make sure he was breathing okay. Beside him, Isaac was also fast asleep, arms flung up over his head. Stiles was awake though and he was looking at Scott.

"I'll keep an eye on him, make sure he breathes okay," he offered. They'd been through another scare not long ago and now Stiles was also keeping an ear out for Scott's breathing.

"You're such a good big brother Stiles, I'm proud of you," Melissa told him. It wasn't official yet, the wedding was coming up in the summer but, for all intents and purposes, Stiles was their big brother. She grabbed a spare pillow and slid it under her son's head, tucking the blanket back under his chin when she was done. Then she leaned over and kissed all three of them on the forehead.

"Get some sleep Stiles, I'll be downstairs if they need me."

-a few hours later-

Isaac sat up in bed suddenly, chest heaving as he tried to take deep breathes.

"What's wrong?" Stiles asked, immediately awake.

"I feel sick," Isaac mumbled, holding his tummy.

On the other side of him, Scott rolled over and groaned as well, eyes slowly opening. Stiles suggested they go to the bathroom if they felt bad so all three of them shuffled out into the hall. Isaac barely made it into the room before he was kneeling over the toilet and heaving, causing Scott to flinch and gag in reflex.

"Here," Stiles offered him the trash can, since both of them wouldn't fit by the toilet.

Scott sat by the door, so that way he could be far away from seeing the gross stuff; Stiles sat down behind Isaac and started rubbing his back. Getting sick was the worst and Isaac was really loud every time this happened. It didn't take long before Melissa heard and came running up the stairs, seeing Scott at the open door with his trash can.

"Isaac's getting sick and my tummy feels funny," he told her, hugging the small can close to him.

"Where's Stiles?" she asked, stopping to look into the bedroom.

"I'm in here with Isaac," he called out.

Melissa knelt down and smoothed Scott's hair, he was looking a little pale but at least he wasn't still coughing or wheezing. Since Stiles still seemed to be in perfect health, she believed they had the flu and not food poisoning so she went and got the Zofran from her medicine cabinet. If it wasn't bad food trying to get out of their system, she might as well do her best to stop the nausea.

"Here Scott, under your tongue and let it dissolve," she told him, giving him the small white pill. Then she stepped further into the bathroom and flushed the toilet, wetting a rag to wash Isaac's face. "Do you think you can take this?" she asked.

"Is it gross?" he whimpered. If it tasted gross he would probably end up throwing up again. His stomach was still gurgling unhappily as it was.

"It's like strawberry," Scott told him, since he'd already let his dissolve.

Isaac held out his hand for the small pill, "What does it do?"

"It will make it so you don't have to throw up," Stiles said, still rubbing his back. "You just let it melt under your tongue, that's what she told Scott."

"K." He waited for another wave to pass before he put the small tablet in his mouth. He swallowed a lot as it dissolved but it didn't make his stomach feel any worse so that was nice. After a few minutes of no vomiting, Melissa filled up a disposable cup and gave him water to rinse his mouth out.

"Let's get you back to bed, you can take the trash can with you, just in case. If you can't sleep I'll make you some soup," she told them. She watched as Stiles untucked the blankets along the wall and resituated their pillows.

He saw her look of confusion and explained, "If we all sleep laying this way, Isaac won't have to crawl over Scott if he suddenly has to run to the bathroom."

Melissa smiled, Stiles was thinking ahead like always; she helped the boys climb into bed, giving them a few extra pillows so they could be sitting up while their stomachs calmed down. Then Stiles climbed out of the bed and picked up the story Melissa had been reading them, asking his brothers if they wanted him to read it. They both nodded weakly and snuggled in on either side of him. Melissa left the desk light on for them and quietly went back down the hall; they should be okay once they fell asleep again.

It didn't take long for Scott to fall back asleep, since his stomach wasn't as upset as Isaac's seemed to be. Once Stiles finished reading the book, Isaac was still awake and curled into his side.

"You okay Isaac, do you need the trash can?" he asked, rubbing Isaac's hair.

"No," he mumbled. "Tummy still hurts but not like I'm going to get sick."

"I can read the story again if you want?" Stiles offered. Isaac nodded weakly and resituated himself against Stiles's side. This time he was asleep before Stiles got 5 pages in.

Chapter Text

Stiles ran into the house, excited to tell Mom and Dad the news, even if Isaac was totally embarrassed about it.

"Mom, Mom, guess what happened today!" he cried out.

"Stiles! Don't… it's embarrassing!" Isaac whined, climbing onto Stiles's back in an attempt to shut him up.

"Easy there boys, what's going on?" Melissa asked.

"Isaac has a date!"

Scott giggled again, dating was for grown-ups, Isaac was going to have to go on a date!

Isaac rolled his eyes and shoved his brother, Dude, not cool!"

Melissa smiled at Isaac, "What kind of date, tell me about it." Stiles opened his mouth and Melissa shushed him, "Not you Stiles, I'm asking Isaac."

Stiles pouted but let Isaac explain what had happened. "Sarah was talking to me at lunch today and well, she asked if I wanted to go see movie on Saturday. She wants to see Ratatouille."

"That looks like a good movie, did you say yes?" Melissa asked.

Isaac blushed, "Yea, is that okay?"

"Of course, did you want me to drop you off, who is going with you two? I don't want just you two kids at the theater by yourself you know."

"I think her older sister is taking us? Or maybe her older brother, I'm not sure. But someone else is going with us. Sarah said you could call her mom for more information," Isaac explained.

"You know what happens on dates, right Isaac?" Scott teased. He made kissy noises at Isaac and then ducked away as Isaac reached out to smack him.

Melissa shook her finger at Scott, "They are just going to watch a movie and have fun together, don't make him feel bad Scott."

"Sorry Mom, but I know you and Dad do that when you go on dates."

"But they are older, duh Scott!" Isaac cried out. He was feeling nervous, did Sarah want to kiss him like that? Did she think he'd want to? What if he was bad? Oh god… he had no idea what he was going to do…

-Saturday-

"Isaac, you can't wear that shirt, it's got holes in it!" Scott complained.

Isaac glared at him, "But it's my favorite!"

Stiles stepped in, looking through Isaac's shirts, "Here, wear this one. It's nice, and clean, but it's not like, too fancy. Besides, I know Sarah likes blue so, that means she'll like this shirt."

Isaac took the shirt and pulled it on, if Stiles said it was okay, then he'd put it on. He didn't know why he couldn't just wear his favorite shirt but then maybe wearing something with holes in it wasn't proper for a date. Mom and Dad always dressed up real nice when they went on dates- should he ask Dad for a tie?

"Okay, now remember, if you get something to eat, like popcorn, you should offer to hold it, so she doesn't get butter on her clothes," Stiles told him, remembering when his shorts got stained. "And if you do hold the popcorn, put a bunch of napkins in your lap."

"But you can't hog the popcorn!" Scott warned.

Isaac rolled his eyes, more than likely, they'd each get their own small one, but he was taking enough money just in case she wanted one larger bag. No way was he going to share a drink with her though, they were only 11, that was grown-up stuff!

He took a deep breath as Melissa dropped him off at the front of the theater, Sarah and her older sister standing out front waiting for him. The three of them waved to her as she drove off.

"I'm so excited!" Sarah cried out, bouncing around and making the beads in her hair clack together.

Isaac smiled, "Me too, this looks like a good movie."

The three of them got their tickets and headed inside, "Did you want snacks?"

"Yea, it isn't a movie without popcorn!" Sarah laughed.

Isaac felt his face go pink, "Did you want your own or did you want to share?"

Chandra smiled as her sister blushed and twirled her thumbs together, "We can share."

He nodded and stood in line, looking up at the huge list for something to drink. Luckily the line didn't take long and he ordered a medium popcorn for them and two small sodas. Chandra ordered her own popcorn and led them to the correct theater.

"Okay, I'll sit behind you guys to give you some space but I can still keep an eye on you and make sure no creeps try to talk to you," Chandra told them. She let them pick a row and moved to the one behind them.

The movie was good in Isaac's opinion, it had some action, a lot of funny parts but also a few sad parts to keep it balanced. He was glad that his brothers weren't here though, they probably would have laughed when he started sniffling when Remy got into the fight with his dad. Sarah didn't notice though since she was whispering things like 'oh noooo' to herself as well. Chandra led them out to the front, with the two kids talking about what their favorite parts were and what was the funniest. Isaac found himself with a huge smile on his face as they waited for their parents to come get them, he almost forgot all about what was supposed to happen at the end of the date. Melissa pulled up and honked, waving to him and Isaac turned to Sarah.

"I had a lot of fun Sarah," Isaac admitted.

"So did I," she replied. Before he could do anything else, she leaned forward and pulled him into a tight embrace. Isaac smiled and wrapped his arms around her for a moment before pulling away. "See you at school Isaac."

He waved and jogged over to the car, not wanting to hold up traffic. He couldn't wait to tell Mom and his brothers about the movie. Dates weren't all that bad after all Isaac decided.

Chapter Text

Stiles was bouncing on the bed, this was the first time they'd all stayed together and it was a school night! His Dad and Miss Melissa had gone to dinner a few times now but they'd never slept over on a school night- only on the weekends. They'd been told it was time to sleep now but all three of them were full of energy, how could they go to sleep?

"What do you think they're doing?" Scott whispered, hugging one of the pillows.

"I heard Miss Melissa say it was movie night," Isaac mentioned.

Stiles whined, "Then how come we can't be watching it too?"

"Because it's a school night, duh!" Scott laughed. "Besides, Mom and Sheriff deserve to have adult movie time."

"But I'm not sleepy! I want to see what they're watching!" Stiles revealed, hopping off the bed and tiptoeing to the door. "You two wanna come?"

Scott and Isaac looked at each other and some of his excitement seeped into them and they both smiled. It would be fun to sneak down there and watch a grown up movie; they nodded and slipped some socks on so they didn't make little patter noises as they walked on the wood floor. The three boys quietly slid along the floor until they got to the top of the stairs.

"I'll go first," Stiles whispered quietly, knowing the movie sounds were going to cover his voice. He could hear the sound effects from here! "We'll keep a few stairs between us okay?"

Scott nodded and motioned that he'd go second. He watched as Stiles leaned against the wall, where the stairs wouldn't make any squeaking sounds, and carefully went down. When he'd gone down about 5 steps he waved for Scott to start following, the next boy easily following in his footsteps. Once Scott waved to Isaac, the last little one started his way down the stairs, one hand on the wall and the other clasped over his mouth to make sure he didn't accidentally give them away. Once Stiles reached the bottom of the stairs he peeked around the corner to make sure both adults were still focused on the television. When Scott stepped off the stairs, Stiles waved for him to start scooting towards the back of the couch; Isaac was next, since this allowed them to get closer spots to the television. Once both of them were crouched down by the arm of the couch, Stiles slid over and sat behind them, eyes wide as he took in the movie. The scene took a moment for the boys to realize what was going on, there were some dark slimy creatures making weird noises at each other. They had long heads but no visible eyes, they were clearly monsters of some sort and they were communicated with each other. Then one of the bigger creature started biting at one of his friends, a creepy mini creature shooting out of its mouth to bite the smaller one. All three boys flinched as the smaller creature was attacked by the two bigger ones, the creepy tongue monsters ripping its skin open and yellow blood was everywhere! The ground started hissing and melting, creating a hole that the slimy creatures escaped through. Then some kind of scientist that was in charge of them ran into the room, wonder what just happened. He leaned over the fresh hole in the floor, looking for the escaped things.

"No, look out!" Stiles suddenly called out, standing up and staring wide-eyed at the screen; his sudden outburst startle both parents. They jumped and yelped at the sudden noise to their right, thinking that the boys had already been asleep.

"Stiles, you're supposed to be asleep!" John sighed, not thinking to pause the movie.

Isaac cried out in shock when a monster hand shot out suddenly and grabbed the man's face and pulled him through the hole. "They killed him! Why did they kill him?"

"You boys need to be in bed right now, this is too scary of a movie for you boys!" Melissa chided, finally pausing the movie.

"But what happened to him?" Scott asked, fearful look on his face.

"It's just a movie, he's fine Scott," Melissa smiled, not wanting him to get nightmares.

Scott whined, "But what happened to him in the movie! It killed him didn't it!"

"Actually no it didn't, he shows up again later," John promised. "But that doesn't matter because you boys are going to bed."

Isaac jumped onto the couch and curled up next to Melissa, "No, what if those monsters are waiting for us in the dark?!"

Scott and Stiles both looked upstairs and noticed the dark hallway- the creatures would blend right in and sneak up on them!

"I guess we're cutting movie night a little short," Melissa sighed, turning off the movie and rubbing Isaac's back.

"Mommy, can I get in bed with you, Isaac has the only nightlight," Scott cried, tears in his eyes. He just knew that if he was alone in the dark he'd get grabbed.

John sighed and stood up, "Upstairs, all of us, come on."

Stiles was immediately by his father's side, he didn't want to say aloud that he was too afraid to also sleep by himself so if he just stayed glued to his side, Dad would understand.

John had to turn on the hallway lights before the boys felt it was safe enough to go back up, and they hurriedly ran into the master bedroom and curled under the covers. Melissa went and grabbed the nightlight for them and plugged it in while John helped get the kids situated so they'd all have some room. The three boys huddled together in the center of the bed but they felt safe with their parents on either side of them.

-Next Morning-

"Boys, time to get up," Melissa called out as she went back into the bedroom. She wasn't too surprised to see that the three of them were sitting up along the headboard, Isaac had a pillow clutched to his chest. She walked further into the room and switched off the nightlight they'd left on, smiling as Scott's head dropped off Stiles's shoulder and he jerked awake.

"Time to get up sleepy heads, I better not get a note from school saying you boys fell asleep either!" Melissa warned. When the other two boys grumbled and started moving, she left them to get started on packing their lunches.

"That movie was scary," Isaac sniffled, every time he'd closed his eyes he saw that monster again. At least he didn't have to beg to keep the nightlight on, Scott and Stiles both seemed as scared of the darkness last night, with the slimy black aliens that could be lurking in any corner. And it was a good thing the Sheriff had a big bed so all of them were able to fit on it.

"Well it's morning now so we'll see the aliens coming," Stiles assured him.

Isaac bit his lip, "Can you… come with me to my room, what if one is in my closet, waiting for me?"

"Me too! I didn't even think about that!" Scott whimpered, clutching Stiles's arm.

Stiles nodded, "Okay, since my room is closest, we'll open my closet, then Scotty's and then yours okay Isaac. After we make sure there aren't any aliens we can get dressed."

Scott and Isaac scooted off the bed and shuffled behind Stiles into the first room, holding their breath as the oldest boy reached out a shaking hand. He gripped the handle and yanked his door open, ready to fling himself back at the first sign of dripping alien slobber. Coast was clear!

"One closet down," Stiles whispered, leading the group into Scott's room next.

Stiles had to move slowly because both of his brothers were grabbing his shoulders and huddling right behind him, their scared panting was making his heart race even more. He gently pushed them back a bit before opening the door- if they were right behind him, they'd end up tripping over each other and then they'd all die. But there wasn't any alien in Scott's closet either, Dad must have done a really good job at killing them all before he went to work.

Isaac pulled up short when they walked into 'his' room (the McCalls hadn't moved in officially yet but this was the room that was supposed to be Isaac's and it already had some clothes and stuff in it for him). "If there weren't aliens in your rooms, and obviously not the Sheriff's, then that means it's probably in mine."

"Or Dad killed them all, he wouldn't have left any in the house," Stiles countered, pulling himself up taller.

Isaac bit his lip but didn't say anything, following Stiles and Scott into his room. He covered his eyes as Stiles reached out to grab the handle- he couldn't look and see the alien reach out and snatch him up, the little mouth breaking his head open and eating his brains! His breath came in short gasps as he waited for the screaming to start but the room stayed silent.

"It's okay Isaac, there wasn't an alien," Scott said, nudging Isaac so he'd open his eyes.

"We're all still alive?" Isaac asked.

"Yup, so now we have to get dressed so Mommy doesn't get mad," Scott said, leaving to go into his room.

Stiles bounced back to his room, reminding himself to take his medicine so he could focus. If he was already feeling this hyper, he'd never be able to sit still in class and then he'd be bringing a note home (again). After he was all ready, he went to get Scott and Isaac and found Scott asleep on the floor, only half dressed.

"Scooooooott, you have to get ready for school!" he cried out.

"I'm ready," Scott blurted out, sitting up suddenly and rubbing his eyes.

"You don't have a shirt on…"

Scott looked down and sighed, "No wonder the floor felt so cold…"

"Isaac, you better be awake!" Stiles called out, moving to the next bedroom. He opened the door and hung his head- Isaac was curled up on the bed sound asleep. But at least he'd managed to get fully dressed before he zonked out. Stiles shook his shoulder gently, "Isaac, come on, it's time for breakfast!"

The blond moaned and batted at the hands shaking him, "Go 'way."

"Food will help wake you up," Stiles prodded.

Isaac grumbled but uncurled himself and slid off the bed, keeping his eyes closed. He knew this house as well as Miss Melissa's house so he had no trouble following the sounds of Stiles's footsteps out into the hallways and down the stairs.

"There you boys are, better hurry up and eat so we aren't late," Melissa told them, setting out their breakfast. She watched as Stiles quickly sat and starting eating while her two boys came at a slow shuffle and heavily-lidded eyes. "Next time we tell you boys we're watching a grown up movie, are you going to stay in your rooms and go to bed?"

"Yea," Isaac and Scott both mumbled, spooning their cereal into the mouths. Stiles just smiled and shrugged, knowing better than to promise anything. Melissa knew that was the best she was going to get so she nodded her head and let them continue eating.

Chapter Text

Scott woke up crying in the middle of the night, a random nightmare dancing on the edge of his memory. Within minutes Melissa was there, turning the light on and sitting beside him.

"What's wrong Honey? Take some deep breaths okay," she soothed, rubbing his back as he clung to her.

"I had a dream where those monster rabbits were trying to kidnap me, they were going to turn me into a carrot and eat me," Scott mumbled, sniffling a bit as his tears dried.

Melissa kissed the top of his head, "Well that's just silly of them. Why go through all the trouble of kidnapping you, then having to do magic, when there are plenty of carrots in Ms. Shelly's yard just down the street."

Scott hiccupped and hugged his mom, "They were scary… Maybe Ms. Shelly's carrots were too small…"

"Well, I guess we'll have to go down to her house and tell her to start growing bigger carrots won't we? I won't let any monster rabbits take you and eat you. Let go wash your face okay?"

Scott let himself get picked up and taken into the bathroom; Melissa set him down on the counter and grabbed a washcloth. He closed his eyes after she got it wet and felt a lot better after she wiped his sweaty face. "Thanks Mom," he whispered.

"Ready to go back to bed?"

Scott's eyes flew open and he shook his head back and forth, eyes wide, "No, the rabbits will get me again!"

"Hmmm, how about we go downstairs and get some juice then, maybe I can read you a story?" Melissa offered instead.

"Yea, juice sounds good."

Melissa picked him up again and carried him down to the toy room where all of his books were. "You pick out a story and I'll get you a sippy cup, I'll be right back." She waited until Scott was studying the books before walking away into the kitchen. It only took a few minutes for her to fill up his favorite cup with juice and twist the cap on, just to make sure he didn't spill. "Get on picked out Champ?"

"Yea, this one!" Scott smiled, holding up Green Eggs and Ham, one of his favorites. He took his mom's hand and the two of them shut off all the lights and made their way into the master bedroom. Scott tossed the book onto the large bed and clambered up after it, easily finding his usual spot.

Melissa smiled and waited for him to get under the covers and fully comfortable before handing him the cup of juice, which he promptly stuck in his mouth and started drinking. She climbed in next to him and wrapped an arm around him, holding the book in his lap so he could see the pictures while she read. Melissa cleared her throat and began reading, pausing at the end of each stanza before flipping the page. After Scott finished his juice, she could hear him quietly mumbling along as he looked at the illustrations on each page. There was a small smile on his face that he got every time Sam finally tried the green eggs and ham. By the time she finished Scott was looking pretty drowsy so she kissed his head and shifted him onto the pillow.

"I'm going to turn the big light off okay, but I'll leave the lamp on," she whispered.

"'K'," was all he managed to get out as he snuggled further under the covers.

When Melissa climbed back into bed, Scott curled up against her side, small arm going over her stomach, "Love you Mom," he whispered, barely able to form the words.

"Love you too Scott," she returned, pulling him closer as she lay back.

Chapter Text

Stiles rolled over in his sleep, a quiet whimper coming from his throat. He was sitting with his mom, at the park just down the street. She was pushing him on the swings and telling him about their plans for the weekend. Suddenly she wasn't pushing him anymore and Stiles looked back confused, wondering where she went; she was there, lying on the sand, a light blue hospital gown draped over her.

"Mom?" he cried out, jumping from the swing. "Mommy?"

He knelt beside her and shook her shoulder but she just continued to stare up at the sky, breathing shallowly. Tears were streaming down his face now as he curled up by her side crying out for her.

"Stiles, Stiles," Isaac whimpered, shaking Stiles's shoulder. He must be having a nightmare- he was moving all about and whimpering, tears were on his cheeks. "Wake up, it's not real."

Scott was looking on from the other side of the bed, "It's okay Stiles, you're safe with us."

When Stiles finally opened his eyes and looked around the dim room the boys were relieved.

"Mom? Mommy? Why did you leave me?" Stiles cried out, looking around the room again like he expected to find her. "I love you, don't go, please don't go," he sobbed, closing his eyes to try and picture her again, laughing as she pushed him on the swings.

Isaac started to tear up, realizing that he must have dreamt of his mom and that's why he was so upset now. He didn't know what happened to her, Stiles couldn't say the name of what made her sick, but he did know that his mom was in Heaven with Stiles's mom. As he listened to Stiles cry out, Isaac remembered how Mom used to kiss him goodnight and tuck him in- telling him that she'd see him in the morning. She'd smile and plug in the nightlight for him, saying that the angels would watch over him while he slept. Isaac squeezed his eyes closed as he heard Stiles start to hyperventilate, he was having a panic attack and Isaac wasn't sure what to do. Tears were building up in his eyes, the memories of his mother still so fresh in his mind.

"I miss you!" Isaac sobbed, clutching Stiles's arm as he finally admitted it. He'd had nightmares about it before but he'd never actually said aloud that he missed his mom because that would mean she was really gone and not coming back.

Scott started to tear up as he saw his two friends clinging to each other… this was only their third sleepover and he didn't know what to do. He'd helped Stiles with a panic attack before, but it was small- this was scary! He was crying and clutching his chest and trying to breathe but breathing when you're crying is so hard! And Isaac was clinging to Stiles and crying too so Scott couldn't get to Stiles anyways and help him breathe…

"Mooooommy!" he called, climbing out of the bed and scurrying into the hallway. "Mommy, Stiles needs help!"

Immediately Melissa had her door open and scooped her son into her arms, amazed that she'd slept through Stiles and Isaac yelling. She hurried into the room and gasped as she saw the other two boys trying to suck in a breath. "Stiles, oh Stiles, it's going to be okay, come here," she soothed, sitting on the bed and scooting the two boys into her lap. "What happened?"

"I don't know, Stiles was having a nightmare and woke up talking about his mom, then Isaac got sad too… I don't want you to die either Mommy!" Scott wailed, pushing his way into her full arms.

Melissa wasn't sure what to do, Stiles was just barely starting to come to terms with Claudia's death but Isaac, his loss was still so fresh. And now of course Scott was worried about something happening to her. She needed John here to help, he was the best at handling Stiles when it came to Claudia; her arms were going to be full with Scott and Isaac as it was. "Boys, let's just focus on breathing okay, count to ten with me, let's just count to ten and slow down. I know you miss her and that's okay."

"Why did Daddy take her away?" Isaac sobbed, clutching Stiles like he used to attach to Camden whenever Daddy started yelling.

"Mommy shouldn't have gotten sick! It's not fair!" Stiles yelled out, eyes so huge and scared as he looked up at Melissa.

She felt her heart break for him, he'd had to sit and watch Claudia as the illness slowly took her life, making her forget who he was. It had been heartbreaking for him to see, just as much as it was for Isaac to suddenly have his mom ripped away. Tears came to her eyes as she hugged all three boys close, kissing them on the head over and over, "I'm here for you boys now, I'm going to do the best I can. Let's go call your Dad okay Stiles, would that help, you want to see your Dad?"

Stiles nodded weakly through his tears, knowing that Dad was safe would make him feel at least a little better. Melissa paused, knowing she couldn't carry all three of them down there when Stiles climbed to his feet. He was wobbly and having trouble breathing but now that he was focused on his dad, he was a little calmer. Melissa led him to the bedroom and let him pick up the phone, Isaac and Scott each tucked under an arm.

"Daddy, can you come to –hiccup- Scott's house, I miss M-M-Mommy!" Stiles cried as soon as he heard his dad's voice on the line.

"I'll be right there kiddo, where is Miss Melissa?"

"Holding onto Scott and Isaac, Isaac misses his mommy too," Stiles explained.

Thankfully John decided to stay on the phone with his son, keeping him distracted and by the time he'd opened the front door Stiles was breathing normally again. The minute John hung up, Stiles dropped the phone and went rushing downstairs to jump into his dad's arms and cry. John carried him back upstairs and his eyes widened in surprise when he saw that Melissa was still bogged down by two teary-eyed boys. He sat on the bed and held Stiles close, letting him explain his dream while Melissa sat back and held the other two boys.

"I miss my Mommy a lot… she's gone now but I miss her," Isaac whispered, eyes downcast.

"It's okay to miss her, that means you love her, but you also have to remember that she isn't coming back. It's okay to cry too, sometimes I still cry when I think of someone that's in heaven and I'm a grown up. So crying is always okay to do," Melissa told him, rubbing his back.

"You aren't going to get sick like Mrs. Sheriff are you?" Scott asked, arms snaking around Melissa's neck.

It was impossible to promise something like that, but with the state that the boys were in, she figured she'd have to promise something. "I do my best to stay healthy, I'm not planning on leaving you any time soon. Claudia had something that was genetic, that means she was born with it but I don't have that. That's the best I can promise."

"I love you Mom," Scott whispered.

"I love you too, all of you," Melissa replied, hugging the two boys in her arms.

"When will I see Mommy again?" Isaac asked, sniffling now that his tears have finally stopped.

"You can see her in your dreams, or when you close your eyes. Sheriff also brought in the videos from your house remember, the home videos. You can watch those whenever you want, we just haven't watched them yet because you seemed so sad."

"Tomorrow?" he asked, really feeling like he needed to see her, even if it was just on TV.

"Yea tomorrow."

"Can we watch Mom tapes too?" Stiles asked, still hiccupping softly against his dad's shoulder.

"Of course Kiddo," John promised. "I'm still on duty so we can't go home, but did you want me to stay until you fell asleep?"

Stiles nodded his head, it was nice that Miss Melissa let him stay over when Dad had to work nights but he missed his bed right now. He'd have to make do with Scott's bed though until tomorrow.

"Let's get you three back in bed and I'll read you another story okay? Sheriff and help me with the voices," Melissa bribed. She led the sniffling group back into Scott's room and grabbed a book off of his small shelf to read while John tucked them all in.

Chapter Text

The boys were bouncing around on the blankets and pillows scattered on the floor, their parents had decided that it was okay for them to sleep together still but the bed was getting a little cramped for them. It wasn't going to be permanent but for now they were on the floor with blankets and pillows, using fluffy sleeping bags as cushions. It was going to be bedtime soon so that meant one of them was coming in to read a story; probably Melissa since John had to go to work earlier than she did. Right on time, Melissa opened the door and smiled at the three of them.

"Ready for a story?" she asked.

"Yea!" Isaac chirped, holding up a book of short stories. "Can we start this one?"

Melissa took the book and looked at the table of contents, "Yea this one seems okay, the stories are long enough that I can probably read two before it's bedtime."

The boys all smiled at each other and scrambled to climb under the covers while she pulled over the small desk chair. None of them could really remember when they'd moved on to bigger stories with less pictures, but they realized it was more fun to listen to the words and create scenes in your head. Some nights the boys would whisper to each other about the story they heard and compare their 'mind movies' with each other.

"Okay, let's get started," Melissa said with a smile, turning to the first page.

Isaac's eyes started to close about midway through the second story despite his need to hear the end of the action. He stirred slightly when he got his goodnight kiss but it wasn't until Scott kept rolling over to get comfortable that Isaac opened his eyes again. "Wait, I fell asleep, when did that happen?"

"Not sure, what's the last thing you 'member?" Stiles mumbled, eyes still closed.

"Um, the unicorn named Celeste got separated from her herd, and she was looking for somewhere to hide from the rain," Isaac recalled. "What happened to her, did she find her mom and dad again? Did a hunter find her?"

Scott sat up and started summarizing the end of the story for him but then Stiles interrupted. "Wait, why don't we act it out instead? That would be way more fun!"

Both boys brightened at his suggestion, "Yea okay!"

"I'll be Celeste," Stiles called, crawling out from under the blankets.

"I'll be Drago! Oh, but what about the hunter?"

Isaac gasped, "A hunter does come?"

Stiles smiled at his brother, "It'll be okay, promise. And we can take turns being the hunter ummm…" He looked around and then pulled off his baseball cap from the desk, "Here when we're the hunter we'll have the hat, that way Isaac can keep track."

"Okay yea." Scott took the hat from Stiles and took a few steps back, to be 'off-screen.'

Stiles cleared his throat and spoke in a high pitch to mimic the young female unicorn, "Oh no, I'm lost! And it's raining! I better climb up to that cave for shelter tonight." He mimicked climbing a mountain side and crawling into a cave.

Scott walked up behind him and cleared his throat, voice pitched as low as it would go. "What are doing in my cave little unicorn?"

"Eek! I didn't know it was occupied, please don't eat me Mr. Dragon!"

"Wow, a dragon," Isaac whispered to himself.

"I don't eat unicorns, you are a very precious creature in these forests and I am not an evil dragon. I only eat sheep," he assured her.

Stiles relaxed and smiled, "Oh, well may I stay here for the night? It is raining and I lost my herd… I wandered away too far and can't find them now." Isaac giggled as Stiles let out a few fake sniffles.

"Yes, you may stay, my name is Drago."

"I'm Celeste, it's nice to meet you." Stiles turned towards Isaac, "They fall asleep and when they wake up it's sunny again." Isaac nodded and smiled, holding a pillow to his chest. Stiles stretched and hummed, "I feel much better, now to find my herd!"

Scott stretched and stood up as well, "I can help if you'd like. I can fly above the fields in search of them. Then I can lead you right to them."

"Oh Drago, that would be amazing! Thank you, thank you!" Stiles jumped around in joy as Scott spread out his arms and 'flew' away. Again Stiles turned to Isaac, "Drago was gone for awhile and Celeste started to get hungry. Oh boy, that grass down there sure looks good. I'm sure Drago won't mind if I leave the cave for just a few minutes. I can still see it from the grass so I won't get lost." He acted like he was walking down the mountain again and started munching on invisible grass.

Behind Isaac, Scott had put the hat on and was sneaking up on Stiles, "Alright, a unicorn! She'll fetch me a lot of money in town."

"Look out Celeste!" Isaac whimpered, totally engrossed in the scene.

Stiles jumped up and looked at Scott, "A hunter, oh no!"

"If you come with me, nice and easy, I won't have to shoot ya!" Scott promised, holding a pretend gun up.

"Help, someone help, please!"

Scott took off his hat and let out a roar, flapping his arms and 'landing' next to Stiles. Stiles moved to put the hat on and be the hunter but the door opened.

"What are you boys doing? I thought it was bedtime. Do I have to make you sleep in separate rooms?" Melissa asked, stern frown on her face.

"No! Isaac was sad that he missed the end of the story, so Stiles and I were acting it out for him," Scott explained.

"Yea, I needed to know if Celeste found her family again!" Isaac added on.

"We're almost done, promise! We're at the part where the hunter found Celeste and Drago came to the rescue," Stiles said.

Melissa sighed but couldn't keep the frown on her face, "Okay, you can finish but after that, sleeps time."

All three boys nodded in agreement, "Promise!"

Melissa told them goodnight again and closed the door, letting them finish the story.

Stiles cleared his throat and popped the hat onto his head, "A dragon?! Please don't eat me!"

"Are you trying to hurt my friend? A unicorn? Don't you know that's against the laws of the forest?!" Scott roared, making himself as big as he could.

Quickly Stiles took the hat off and cowered behind Scott, "He wanted to shoot me! His gun was up and everything." Then he took his place facing Scott again with the hat, "I offered to bring her in alive!"

"So you were going to take her and sell her!"

"No… I… uh… okay yes I was. But I need the money!" Stiles whimpered, throwing his gun down.

"Find it a different way, you're lucky I don't just eat you right now! Leave this forest, and if I see you again, I won't be so nice," Scott warned.

Stiles bowed and ran off, hands in the air; he then took off the hat and stood next to Scott, hugging him. "Thank you for saving me, you're a great friend Drago!"

"Well I have even better news, I found your family. They aren't far and they've been looking for you. I can take you to them."

"You did! Oh that's wonderful!"

Stiles put his hands on Scott's shoulders and they flew around the room a few times before landing. Stiles pulled Isaac into a hug, "Daddy I'm so happy to be home!"

Scott cleared his throat, "After that, the unicorn herd stayed close to Drago's cave, knowing that he'd always protect them. Word quickly spread about the hunter that was almost eaten by the dragon and soon, the forest was peaceful. The End!"

Isaac clapped his hands wildly, "That was amazing! I'm glad Celeste found her family again, and she met Drago, a dragon! I'm glad he was a nice dragon and not a mean one!"

"Yea, I'm glad too, I was worried that he was going to eat her at first," Stiles admitted as he climbed back under the blankets.

Isaac hugged both boys close to him, "Thanks for showing me the end of the story, it was much better than just listening to it. I could totally picture you as Celeste and Scott as a big scary dragon. But a friendly, big scary dragon."

The three of them hunkered down and cuddled together, quietly talking about the story until they all fell asleep. Thankfully when Melissa checked on them later, they were all asleep again, so maybe they could keep a promise. She and John had been worried about the boys staying up all night now that they were older. But it seemed like they knew to follow the rules or else they'd be in trouble. It was probably the fact that they wanted to continue to sleep in the same room and if they broke the rules they knew they'd be separated. She whispered a last goodnight to them and closed the door.

Chapter Text

The boys, now teens, were in the backyard messing around before lunch; they had the house to themselves since Melissa was at the store. Stiles was sitting in one of the high branches of a tree while Scott and Isaac were tossing a baseball back and forth.

"Stiles you know you aren't supposed to climb trees anymore," Scott teased.

"But I'm good at it," Stiles stated.

"Then how come you fell in the first place?" Isaac taunted as he caught the ball.

"Hey, you know what happened! Jackson was being a total butthole! He was hanging off that branch for a long time, shaking it and stuff… that was probably the reason it snapped when I finally came down," Stiles pouted, turning away from the two below him.

"How do you know it wasn't just a bad branch? And I know Jackson is a butthole but, I don't think he did it on purpose…" Scott mentioned.

"It was the same branch I used to get up to my spot, I knew it was safe, I tested it. I always use the same branches going down as I did going up- it's the best way to ensure accidents don't happen."

Isaac sighed, upset that he got Stiles mad, he really did pride himself on his climbing skills. Plus it really wasn't that bad of a break, just a fracture; it did require a cast though which meant Melissa had been worried. "You are a great climber Stiles, Scott and I both know that. But if Mom comes home and sees you in the tree, she might actually chop it down this time."

Stiles laughed, casually leaning back onto the branch, "No she won't. This is Dad's tree, she won't just cut it down. Ground me maybe but the tree will stay. And if you want me down there so bad, you're going to have to come get me."

"Not me… I don't do well in trees," Scott mumbled, ready to go back to just tossing the ball. His brother could sit in the tree all he wanted.

"That sounds like a challenge," Isaac smirked. Since he'd finally come out of his shell, Isaac was more apt to mess around with Stiles. Stiles was still the tallest out of all of them but Isaac knew that would change when the growth spurts started!

"Isaac, you suck at climbing trees, you'll never get up to where I am," Stiles scoffed, looking over his shoulder at the blonde.

"Challenge accepted then, prepare yourself- I'm gonna pull you outta that tree!" He quickly tossed the ball to Scott and then pulled off his mitt. He was just tall enough to grab onto the lowest branch and haul himself up.

Scott sighed and sat down on the grass. This was going to take a few minutes, Isaac was a very careful climber, unsure where Stiles was fearless. He watched as Isaac tested branches and pulled himself up further.

Isaac could feel his palms start to sweat as he climbed higher- he wasn't amazingly high in the tree, it wasn't like they had some huge redwood in their backyard but… having his feet this far from the ground made him just a bit nervous. Especially since the next branch was kind high so that meant he'd have to jump to get enough leverage to pull himself up… If his arms failed him and his feet didn't land back on the branch… Isaac swallowed, telling himself that it was going to be fine. He was strong enough to pull himself up, he did chin-ups and pull-ups at school all the time!

"Are you coming or what?" Stiles teased from a few yards higher.

"Shut it, I'm halfway there!" Isaac tossed back. With that he gripped the branch in his hands and jumped, pulling as soon as he reached the peak of his jump. He straightened his arms, the branch now resting against his hips, and he swung a leg over-he'd made it! Just a few more branches to go; he looked up for his next hold as he stood and lost his balance. Time slowed down as he felt himself lean back and his arms pinwheeled; he was vaguely aware of one of his brothers calling out to him. He reflexively took a step back to try and balance himself and completely stepped off the branch, gravity pulling him away from the tree.

Stiles immediately swung down from his branch and leapt towards Isaac, reaching out to grab his wrist but he was too slow and Isaac fell out of the tree. He closed his eyes as he miraculously missed all the branches and then thudded onto the hard ground.

"Isaac! Are you okay?" Scott cried out, getting off the grass and racing over to his brother.

Stiles quickly jumped out of the tree, landing effortlessly next to Scott, "Dude, we need to call Mom!"

Below them, staring up at the sky, Isaac lie there, blinking slowly and looking totally confused. "Why am I on the ground?" he asked.

"Uh oh…" Stiles muttered, looking towards the house fearfully. If Isaac didn't even remember falling out of the tree… didn't that mean a concussion? "Really, we need to call Mom before she comes back and just finds out."

"She's probably driving and that means she won't answer the phone anyways," Scott mumbled, looking at Isaac closely.

Isaac giggled, "Scott why are you so close?" He lifted his arm to push Scott away from his face but his limbs were sluggish and landed heavily on his brother's shoulder.

"Do… Do you remember what happened?" Stiles asked.

"Ummm, did I miss the ball? I remember throwing it with Scott…" Isaac screwed up his face, trying to remember what happened.

Stiles sighed, "So you don't remember being in the tree?"

"I don't climb trees silly, you do!" Isaac snorted, then groaned as his head started to pound. "I just… ugh, my head hurts. Doesn't Mom say we should sleep off headaches?"

"No, no! Isaac, don't go to sleep," Scott whimpered.

"Why not?" he pouted through heavily lidded eyes.

"You can't sleep if you have a concussion," Scott reminded him.

Isaac rolled his eyes, "I'm fine, just tired. Let me take a nap, I'll get up when Mom gets home to help with the groceries."

"Scott I think it's okay if he sleeps, just as long as he wakes up… Remember seeing that one ER show, they mentioned that." Stiles had already pulled out his cellphone and was debating if he should try calling anyways.

"Okay… Mom should be home soon, let's just keep him awake until then… Mom will know if sleep is okay or not," Scott offered. When Stiles nodded in agreement he grabbed onto Isaac's arm, "Help me get him inside."

The two boys managed to lift Isaac up, even though he was offering no assistance at all, just insisting over and over again that he didn't climb the tree. He wobbled on his feet and complained about the spinning and that's how his brothers both knew for sure that he had a concussion- Mom was going to kill them. Once they managed to get him inside, they carefully lowered him onto the couch and sat on either side of him.

"Can I take a nap now?" Isaac whined, leaning over onto Scott's shoulder.

"Not yet, we have to wait for Mom to get home," Scott said, nudging his brother back into an upright position.

"Fine, Stiles will let me nap on him," Isaac shot back slowly, mouth having a little trouble at forming the words.

"Isaac, why don't we play a game while we wait for Mom, like I Spy or something?" Stiles countered.

"Yea, I spy is fun," Isaac agreed, head dropping onto his shoulder regardless.

Stiles nodded, "Okay, I spy with my little eyes… something that is green."

Isaac looked around for a moment, "The pillow on Dad's chair."

"Nope."

Scott made a random guess quickly, so it could be Isaac's turn again, "The movie cover on the shelf?"

"Nope."

"Umm…" Isaac took a breath, chin dropping as he struggled to stay awake. "Oh, my shirt!"

"Yea, okay your turn."

"I spy… something um, blue," he mumbled.

The boys continued to play, Isaac's eyes drooping and his head bouncing up and down as he tried to stay awake. Thankfully Melissa came home before Isaac completely fell asleep and Scott was off the couch in seconds. He didn't even wait for her to come in the house, as soon as she pulled up, he ran out the front door.

"Mom, Isaac needs you!"

"What happened?" She questioned, dropping the groceries back in the car and following her son inside.

"We think he has a concussion and we don't want him to sleep, isn't it dangerous?" Scott whimpered.

Slowly Isaac picked up his head and turned to see Melissa, "Hey Mom… they won't let me take a nap, but I'm dizzy and my head hurts, I just wanna nap."

"Let me see your eyes okay," Melissa said, pulling out the penlight she always carried. She sagged in relief, finding both of his pupils responsive and the same size. "Do you remember what happened?"

"I was throwing the ball with Scott and then they were telling me that I fell out of the tree but I don't remember…" Isaac mentioned.

"Okay, let's get you upstairs. You remember at least parts of what happened and your pupils aren't uneven. I don't think it's that serious… I'll be waking you up in an hour okay, to check on you."

"But Mom!" Scott whined.

"It's okay Scott, sleep isn't too bad if the concussion is minor. But that's why we have to check on him, if he's hard to wake up, or he starts getting sick, we'll have to go to the hospital."

Stiles helped Isaac to his feet, "So you don't think it's that bad?"

"No, it seems to be pretty minor right now but time will tell. Although I thought I told you boys I didn't want you in the trees!"

"I didn't think Isaac would actually follow me… I'm a great climber though! Scott was being good and wasn't in the tree. Isaac just… lost his balance and when he tried to catch himself he stepped off the branch," Stiles mumbled, looking down at his shoes.

"He didn't hit any branches though… just the ground…" Scott added on.

Melissa sighed and helped take Isaac upstairs to his room, she'd have to deal with the rest after John got home. Right now, she'd have to wake him up every hour or so and make sure he didn't start swelling. "Go wait in your rooms while I think of what to tell your father."

Both boys groaned but obediently went to their separate rooms; this probably meant that Laura was going to have to baby-sit them again! Lame!

Chapter Text

Melissa sighed as she pulled into the driveway, all three kids in the backseat; shopping had taken a lot longer than she'd anticipated and now the boys had missed naptime. It wouldn't have been a problem usually but the Hales were out of town and Isaac just didn't trust anyone else enough to watch them. She also desperately needed to get the shopping done so, this time the boys had gone with her. Melissa loved all the boys dearly but Heaven have mercy, Stiles was an absolute nightmare sometimes if he got too excited. What made it worse was that of course, as he got sleepy, he got hyper, like his mind was going into overdrive with the effort to stay awake. As she started bringing in the groceries, the boys all ran inside and started to take out the toys.

"I wanna play with the truck!" Isaac cried out suddenly.

"You played with it earlier! It's my truck!" Scott countered.

Melissa sighed and finished putting away the food before heading off to the playroom; she leaned in the doorway just in time to see Stiles push apart the other two boys, Scott losing his balance and landing on his butt.

"What's going on in here?!"

"Isaac won't let me play with my truck," Scott whined, pointing to where Isaac had the truck clutched to his chest.

She crossed her arms, "I thought you boys promised to not fight with each other. How come Stiles had to separate you two?"

Stiles helped Scott back to his feet, "They were both pulling on it and I didn't want it to break, I knew Scott would be really upset."

"I just wanted my toy, I wasn't hitting him or anything Mom!" Scott pouted, glaring at Isaac.

Isaac blinked quickly and turned his back on Scott, "You said I could play with your toys! I wanna play with this one right now!"

"Okay, I think you boys need a timeout-"

"Moooooom!" Scott wailed, turning to face her with wide, teary eyes.

"I didn't do anything wrong," Isaac called out as well.

Stiles looked down at the floor, afraid to say anything and get in trouble too; as it was he wasn't sure if he was included in the timeout. He was almost always the one in timeout for various reasons and maybe he was in trouble for pushing Scott too hard. Since he often talked Scott into mischief, Dad had given Miss Melissa special permission to put him in timeout if he deserved it. That way Stiles knew that he was going to be held accountable for his actions, not get a free pass just because it wasn't his house.

"Scott, Isaac, put the toys down and go into the kitchen where I can keep an eye on you," Melissa ordered. She watched as he handed Stiles the special truck and hurried into the kitchen, not wanting to cause any more trouble. Scott followed as well, sighing as he stepped into the kitchen. "Okay, you know the deal, get a chair and pick a corner."

Isaac waited for Scott to pick his corner before dragging his own chair over to the cabinets (Scott chose near the window). He looked down at his hands and sniffled, Isaac had worked so hard to not cause trouble here, to be wanted and now he was in timeout again. This was only the second time but the first time that it wasn't really his fault- last time it was because Stiles had talked them into digging in the yard for fossils. That had been a really, really bad timeout!

"M…Miss Melissa?" Stiles called out, head poking into the kitchen.

"Yes Stiles?"

"Can I um… sit at the counter… I don't wanna be in the toy room alone," he mumbled, stepping further into the kitchen.

She saw that he had a small box of crayons and one of the coloring books, so he was going to be occupied and not bothering the other two boys. "Yea, that's fine."

Stiles nodded and hurried to the counter, climbing up onto one of the high chairs and setting his coloring stuff in front of him. Melissa watched to make sure neither of the other two boys tried to communicate with him and that was when she saw Scott's head dropping.

Scott was looking out the window, occasionally seeing someone walk by with a dog, or cars drive by. But sitting there in the quiet kitchen, his brain started to shut down; he didn't get his naptime so he was super tired. His blinks got longer and longer, his chin dropping down onto his chest- every time his head would drop he'd wake up and look forward again.

"Scott, no sleeping."

"'K."

Melissa went back to washing the vegetables and saw that Isaac was leaning his forehead against the cabinet doors, "You either Isaac."

"Hmm," he mumbled in response.

Five minutes later, Melissa sighed and looked at all three of the boys, all asleep in their chairs. Scott was the only one in danger of falling out of his chair, since the other two had something to lean against. She was only planning on having the boys in timeout for maybe ten minutes but clearly they were too tired to be punished. So instead she softly called out, "Wake up boys."

Stiles jumped up, cheek smudged with crayon, "Wasn't sleeping!"

Isaac heard Stiles call out and jumped, head looking around as he blinked, "S'going on?"

"Sorry Mom," Scott mumbled, rubbing his eyes.

"Let's go upstairs. You boys are just too tired, you missed naptime and that made you cranky. I'll let you sleep until just before dinner okay?" Melissa offered, helping Stiles off of the chair. Instantly Isaac and Scott were right there, the 4 of them heading up to Scott's room. Without any prodding from her, the three boys took off their shoes and climbed onto the bed so she could drape a light blanket over them.

As she left the room, Scott pulled Isaac closer to him, hugging his side, "Sorry for yelling at you."

"I'm sorry for not sharing your toys. Miss Melissa is right, when we don't nap, we get cranky… No more skipping naptime," Isaac mumbled, nuzzling into his friend.

"Well since we're apologizing, I'm sorry too for pushing you both," Stiles tacked on, cuddling into Isaac's other side.

Now that the three of them had apologized, they felt much better and easily fell asleep. It wasn't often that they fought with each other but when they were tired from a lack of sleep, they got a little cranky.

Chapter Text

The three boys waved, calling out a good bye as Melissa drove off. Scott hefted his backpack higher up on his shoulders and turned towards the school.

"Well, first day of sixth grade, starts now," he muttered, starting to feel nervous.

"It's nothing new, you've been to school before," Stiles commented, heading into the busy hallway. He fearlessly led them over to Isaac's locker, it was the closest to the doors, and waited as Isaac emptied out his unnecessary stuff.

Isaac sighed heavily, dropping his spare notebooks in the small locker, "Yea but before… we had the same classes…. This time I'm all alone."

"Yea, I am too," Scott agreed, "We'll only see each other at lunch, and I've got Mr. Rami… Aiden told me he was mean."

"Don't trust everything Aiden says, he's a troublemaker- of course Mr. Rami didn't like him," Stiles commented. "You're like the perfect student, at least whenever I'm not around. I'm sure you won't have any problems with him." Seriously, the only time Scott got in trouble was when Stiles was caught talking with him in class when they were supposed to be quiet. They'd moved on to Scott's locker by now, Stiles was next.

"Yea, Stiles is lucky that he didn't get Mr. Rami. I have… Mrs. Strem, she's new so I have no idea what to expect," Isaac said, clutching the piece of paper that had his schedule on it.

Stiles smiled at both of his brothers, "Will you two calm down, it'll be fine! We'll meet up at lunch, by Scott's locker since it's the closest, just like we agreed. You both get to class, find good seats, I can stop by my locker by myself, okay?""

Scott and Isaac both nodded before parting ways; their classes were right next to each other while Stiles's was further down. Isaac was secretly glad that he wasn't the only one feeling really nervous about this. Scott had been just as upset to find out that none of them had classes together when they had gotten their schedules a few weeks ago. This was the first time the three of them would be separated since they'd become a family. He bravely squared his shoulders though and strode into his classroom, dropping into the first empty seat he saw. Then, in order to distract himself from the fact that his brothers weren't with him, he got out his notebook, a pencil, a sharpener, and an extra eraser. Isaac knew he could do this, once class actually got started and he had something to focus on, he'd be fine. Besides, it wasn't like he was starting a new school! He recognized quite a few kid in the seats around him, he would be okay. Just… keep the tears at bay until class started, then he'd be distracted. Deep down, Isaac knew that he'd be perfectly okay, and that once today was over, he'd realize that he'd overreacted! But, right now, it was hard to believe that. His hands were spinning the pencil on his desk, just a few more minutes and he'd have his distraction.

Across the hall, Scott was looking around his own classroom; after a moment, he spotted two friends and waved to them. Jessie and Tom were pretty cool, maybe he could sit by them! When they waved back, and Jessie pointed to the seat next to her, he hurried over. This was lucky! They might not be his brothers but they were fun, and he knew them pretty well. The three of them talked with each other until the final bell rang and Mr. Rami starting calling roll. Then, when Scott heard him call out a 'Lydia Martin' Scott giggled to himself and leaned over.

"Looks like your queen is here Stiles," he whispered, turning to tease his brother- surely there was a goofy, lovey-dovey look on his face right now! And Tom was looking back at him, absolutely confused. "Oh, sorry, I forgot… I'm used to Stiles…" This might be harder than he thought… Stiles always sat next to him, he was always there to share a funny comment about the lesson, and then Isaac would be in front of them, telling them to shush. But now it was Jessie next to him and Tom in the seat in front of her. He couldn't make fun of either of them for making lovey faces at Lydia. This wouldn't be the same without them…

Stiles proudly walked into his new class, waving to Mrs. Hald; he'd been super lucky… or maybe his dad had something to do with it, but he'd gotten one of his favorite teachers. Mrs. Hald ran the after school program and knew him pretty well. Hopefully that meant he wouldn't be getting into a lot of trouble this year in homeroom. As class started, and he looked around the room, it really sank in… his brothers weren't here… At no point could he just look up and make a face at Isaac, or look to Scott whenever the teacher said something confusing… His leg started to bounce and he chewed on his lip, Stiles started to doodle as is mind raced with thoughts of his brothers. Minutes when by and he was startled by Mrs. Hald crouching next to him all of a sudden.

"Having trouble concentrating?"

"Sorry Mrs. Hald…"

"I'm sure your brothers are doing just fine, but I'll tell you what, if it helps, go ahead and take the hallpass and go check on them. Just a quick peek in the window, no interrupting class now, got it?" she offered, smiling at Stiles.

He brightened, amazed that she'd let him do that. "Really? Thank you, I'll be right back, I promise."

She watched as he scurried out of the classroom. Mrs. Stilinski had warned him that this would be their first year in all different classes; she knew how much those three cared for each other so it wasn't really hard to guess what was on Stiles's mind. Hopefully once he saw that his brothers were getting along fine, he'd be able to concentrate a little better.

Stiles stood on his tiptoes and checked on Isaac first, easily spotting his curls in the second row. He looked really nervous but he was taking notes and Stiles couldn't see any tears. None of the other kids were giving him looks- Owen was on his right. Owen was nice, Isaac would be fine. Jackson was kinda mean but he was all the way in the fifth row, and honestly, he was only mean whenever Scott tripped on his shoelaces. Even Jackson knew about what happened with Isaac's dad and knew better than to pick on him, even if that was years ago. Satisfied, he hurried across the hallway and checked in on Scott. It looked like Mr. Rami had them all doing a 'get to know each other' thing; Scott was talking to Jessie and Tom, laughing and writing stuff down. Good. Stiles felt the knot in his chest loosen. They were both fine! But what kind of older brother would he be if he didn't at least check on them? And they didn't need to know, neither of them had seen him. Stile quickly went back to Mrs. Hald's class, smiling and nodding at her as he put the hallpass back on the wall. Now that he knew they were okay, he could maybe pay attention.