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Derek looked up at the place he called home and thought about how far they’d come.
The place was massive. Fully manned wall, razor wire fence in front of the wall and atop the wall. It was close to 25 feet high. Inside was a small town with people that were just trying to survive. With the way the world changed in under a day it's a miracle they were surviving at all but, thankfully his mate had the benefit of having a genius brain and a genius best friend. They were the ones that started trying to decipher the government's weird implementations and new laws going into place. Everyone else was following along but Stiles and Lydia and some of the other magic community had a gut feeling that what was coming wouldn’t be like anything we’d seen before.
Before long we started to see government officials no longer on air, some were saying they went into hiding. Bunkers. Because, of course, they would have bunkers. The first news we had about the outbreak or disease was on a random Wednesday, it wasn’t even broadcasted as huge news, it was just a scrolling message about riots in London. But then those scrolling messages became breaking news and those riots weren’t riots.
Stiles got the whole pack and all the magic users that considered Hale land their home, to start building the wall. The weres helped the most, especially the were-bears. The news kept saying that the governments were containing the outbreaks, but they weren’t. They were buying time. They did this, we all knew it. Someone released a deadly pathogen that made regular humans into rabid beasts. They weren’t dead though so, no, they weren’t zombies. They attacked and tried to infect as many people as they could until their bodies gave out and it all varied. It was the only good thing that they eventually died but there was no cure.
Six months and the walls were built. It wasn’t easy and they had to fight tooth and nail against the infected while they built but they finally did it. In the meanwhile, Stiles and the rest of the magical group created defenses that would be able to last. He never asked how they did what they did, he was only thankful.
It’s been a year since then, and they’ve lived relatively peacefully, minus the people they’d lost. There isn’t any stabilizing the disease. And it isn’t only humans, he’d seen a were contract it and it was horrible, the damage that could be done was immense. Born weres were safe, but a bitten didn’t have that luxury. Magic users were just as susceptible. The infection took about a day to show. So the rule was as soon as someone was infected, you have to kill them. Preferably a headshot.
Derek was coming back from a scavenging mission, walking through the gates he waved up at Deaton. Looking to his left he saw Boyd and Erica talking softly about something, he tuned them out, they barely got privacy, and just because he was an Alpha, didn’t mean he needed to impede on theirs. He walked to the gates as they opened, dragging his large cart behind him as Boyd and Erica dragged theirs. Once the gates were closed he dropped the cart, smiling and opening his arms as he looked up. Barely catching his kid as Eli barreled into him, hugging him close, he scented his hair before letting him go,
“Why are you waiting for me pup?” he asked as he watched Brett, one of Satomi’s betas, come toward him with a clipboard. He signed his entry [D. Hale, A, 1cart, Midday] and gave it back, “Brett, make sure those herbs get to the medical house, they need it for the kids.” Turning back he yanked Eli by the back of his shirt before he could look through the cart. “Kid you know the rules, it gets distributed equally.”
“Oh my god, I just wanted an orange, I’m tired of apples,” Eli whined but didn’t fight his dad as he was dragged back. He smiled though as Boyd tossed him an orange with a raised eyebrow, clutching it to his chest he turned and felt his dad’s hand fall from his shirt.
“I swear they spoil you.” Eli laughed as he split the orange and passed half to his dad.
“I’m the next Alpha, dad.” He heard his dad laugh and before he could say something else he felt the pop against the back of his neck making him almost trip, “It was a joke!”
It wasn’t. Not really. He was the next Alpha after his dad. It had to be passed down but he was the only kid his Dad and Tata had. Sure his dad could give it to one of his betas or another kid in the pack but it was a Hale tradition. It’s just not something that they talked about in the open, some people still resented his dad for putting down Alpha Mcall. His Tata told him that he was like a brother to him at one time, but before the fall of the world, he made bad decisions and almost got his Dad killed. That was when the pack made the decision to cast him out but he had come to try and exact revenge and his Dad ended up killing him and becoming Alpha. Some of the old pack decided not to join and well, they created their own family. They weren’t against them, the Hales, but the silent rage was there, especially in the last wolf McCall changed.
“Why aren’t you with Stiles?”
The question snapped him out of his head, popping another orange slice into his mouth, he chewed before answering. “Tata just got back too, he was acting weird. I think he’s mad about last week's news.” It made sense, the broadcast from a government we thought was dead, basically said they were letting the disease run its course. So they weren’t investing time in a cure just in waiting it out.
“We’re all pissed but what do you mean, ‘got back? Me, Boyd, and Erica were the only mission today.” He heard his Dad’s tone get ‘growly’ as his Tata says and he flinched inwardly. He probably shouldn’t have said anything.
“Uh, I think he went out with a group to check the boundary spells.”
A low growl was the only thing that was heard as they reached their house, he opted to stay outside, grabbing the rest of the orange from his dad’s outstretched and open hand. Turning he sat on the steps and looked around the neighborhood wondering if it would rain.
“Stiles!” Derek called out as he entered the house, closing the door behind him when he noticed Eli sitting on the steps. He reached up and licked his thumb as he went to search for his mate by scent. He found him in Eli’s room, holding a picture of the three of them. As he got within reaching distance he noticed the noise from the world ceased. Derek realized Stiles had his soundproofing barrier active, that’s why he didn’t answer.
“Baby?” Derek said softly, wrapping his arms around him from behind and resting his chin on Stiles’s shoulder to look down at the picture. It was the day of Eli’s 13th birthday; before the world went to shit.
“Did you know I was collecting lemons to try and make a lemon cake for your birthday next month?” Stiles's voice was soft, he was smiling and running his finger along the faces in the picture.
Derek chuckled, turning and pressing his face against his mate’s throat, gently kissing the skin there, “Is that all the citrus I smelled at Lydia’s house last week? She said if I tried to sniff it out she’d cut my balls off and I’m rather attached to those.” He loosened his arms as he felt Stiles turn. He still had a smile on his face as he looked down at his mate, “What’s going on? Eli told me you went out to the boundary.”
Stiles sighed, Derek could see how he was skimming over his face, it made Derek’s brow furrow.
“We wanted to expand it, so we could grow more herbs, and now that we have the power to move the wall slowly, it just made sense.” Stiles smiled, albeit small, but it was a win. The thing is Derek knew there was something else going on, he knew his mate well enough.
“Did everything go well then?”
“Eventually, it did. We got it where it needs to be and Lydia and Mary will start with Ellis and the were-bears later this week to start expanding the wall.” He said it so matter of factly that Derek wanted to leave it at that, but he could hear and feel the jackrabbit heart of his mate, it was off though.
“Eventually?” Derek tilted his head with a smirk, he figured Stiles broke one of his own rules because he probably saw a book or he found something that he knew would piss Derek off but the words that were spoken next weren’t in the library of options the Alpha had thought of.
“There was a small horde, we were outside of the boundary but we killed them.” The whole time they had been speaking Stiles had been keeping eye contact but when he delivered that sentence, he looked away. “I got bit.” that sentence is the one that Derek never wanted to hear. His brain was already forming options, they could lock him up, and maybe they had time to slow it down. He could bite him. But he knew they were all for naught. These are things they had tried already with many that they had lost. But this was his mate, fate couldn’t be so cruel to him. Not again.
“But they let you in, they-”
“I didn’t tell them. I wanted to see you. You and Eli, before.” Stiles finally looked back up at him, tears were already swimming in his eyes. Derek could see that his mate was resigned, he knew what was going to happen and all Derek wanted to do was wrap him up and never let him go.
He wanted to scream that this is the reason he told him to never go outside the boundary without him. He wanted to shake Stiles and ask him why would he do this to him. But he couldn’t do that. Because he knew why Stiles went out of the boundary. It was for him and the pack and everyone that counted on them, he was doing everything he could to keep them safe.
But who was going to keep Derek safe? Yes, he was an Alpha but his mate is who keeps him sane, who he can be himself, share his self-doubt, and share his fears with. He was the only person who could say, “It’s going to be fine.” that Derek would believe. Now. Now he had to say goodbye to his other half and he couldn’t crumble or fall because he had his son and everyone else that still depended on him. Technically his mate still depended on him and that’s when he noticed he had been quiet this whole time.
“What can I do to make this easier?” Because that was the only thing he could ask. That he could say. He wanted this to be as easy as it could be for Stiles, a man who has brought so much joy and happiness to his life and his pack.
“I just want a quiet night with you, Eli, and the pack, and then…” he saw Stiles struggle with himself, his eyes darting all around and he knew what he wanted to say. Derek knew he didn’t know how to say it.
“Don’t worry, I’ll be with you until the end. I’ll make sure Eli stays with the pack when I do it.”
He hugged Stiles close and kissed the top of his head before leaning back, “Let’s go downstairs, I’ll get the gremlins.” He forced himself to smile and he could see Stiles forcing it as well. They both wiped their eyes and headed down. He let Stiles go and watched him sit on the sofa and relax, he could hear him so he knew his mate let the shield down.
He took a deep breath, feeling himself go numb before walking outside. Reaching down he ruffled Eli’s hair, waking the pup up from his nap, “Go get the pack, we need to have a pack meeting okay?” he could see Eli’s face screw up in confusion but he did as he was asked to do.
Derek went back inside and set up the living room, moving the smaller sofa Stiles chose, with Stiles on it, near the door to the backyard. He then sat down and cuddled his mate and stared along with him at the picture. Stiles hadn’t let go of it and Derek doubted he would.
His head snapped up as he heard his pack start to trickle in. Boyd and Erica took the loveseat. Parrish and Lydia sat on one side of the couch and Jackson and Ethan sat on the other. Isaac and Peter came in and stood near the back of the room. Deaton, the three witches Mary, Helga, and Dio sat on the other couch. The kids it seemed were still with Melissa and the nurses at the daycare of sorts. Their pack was larger but these were the main people he dealt with. Eli came in last and went to go sit with Lydia and Parrish but Stiles snagged him and smooshed him on the couch with them. Derek moved over a bit so they were comfortable. He let his arm reach over to run his hand over Eli’s hair, his gaze ran between Stiles and Eli and he could feel his chest tighten. Finally, he turned to the pack and clenched his jaw before speaking,
“This isn’t a typical social call. This is-”
“I have to say goodbye.” Derek closed his eyes as he heard the inhales in the room and he was honestly thankful that his mate had said it. He didn’t even know what he was going to say at that moment. He could feel the confusion coming from everyone but the immense sorrow he felt coming from his son broke him and he had to clench his jaw so hard he was sure he would crack his teeth. But they all knew what that meant.
Looking over he saw Stiles consoling Eli. Eli was crying openly and clutching at Stiles like he could cure him by sheer force of will. Turning again towards the pack he saw various reactions but they were all filled with anger and sorrow. But no one moved to crowd them at once and he was thankful. One by one they came by and hugged what they could of Stiles because Eli wasn’t letting go. Once they all had hugged him and Eli had calmed down a bit, which wasn’t much, Stiles started to talk. He told each one of them what needed to be done to keep what we had stable and flourishing. Derek could see they all took it seriously, he could see them making sure they were listening so they could enact his mates’ wishes once he was gone.
Then they just talked. They held conversations like they hadn’t in a year. It almost felt like it used to. For a moment it felt like they had just all gotten home from their respective jobs and were just catching up with family. It didn’t feel like it was the end of the world and they lived in a walled city. They even got Eli to laugh a few times. They spoke well into the night, Derek holding onto Stiles and Stiles holding onto Eli, who had fallen asleep. They were laughing at a story when Stiles looked back and Derek knew it was time. He nodded and looked over to Boyd.
“Take Eli, make sure he stays here, okay?” Derek didn’t have to say much more. Boyd stood, coming over he picked Eli up like he weighed nothing. He stared at Stiles for a second then bowed his head and brought their pup back over to the loveseat, sitting and placing Eli between him and Erica.
Derek stood first, Stiles following him, dropping the framed picture on the seat he vacated, before they walked toward the backyard. At the door, the alpha stood for a few moments, looking at the reflection of the glass. He could see Stiles looking outside, tears falling down his face, and then in the back of his pack all holding back their tears. He knew once they went outside they’d grieve but they wanted to give Stiles what he always said he wanted if he died, normalcy. They all had their wishes set in stone in a way. Once the outbreaks started they sat down and explained how they’d want to go if it happened to them, it was depressing but necessary.
Wrapping his arm around Stiles he opened the backdoor and stepped through, looking up at the stars he breathed in the fresh air, “It was a night like tonight that you blackmailed me to date you.”
“I would never, I just simply expressed that it would be better for you to date me than for me to tell my father his deputy was flirting with me.”
“Blackmail.”
“Tomato, Tomato.”
“That still doesn’t make sense, Stiles.”
“Says the man who doesn’t know how to use punctuation.” Stiles laughed and it made Derek smile and he hated himself for it.
“Can we sit?”
“Sure baby.” Derek sat and Stiles laid against him, back to chest but looked up at him and he couldn’t stop himself. Leaning down he kissed his mate, he tried to pour his whole heart into it. He felt a hand on his cheek and he saw the black veins start to appear. The tears he had been holding in fell down his cheeks.
“I love you more than words Derek Hale.”
“I love you more than actions Stiles Hale.”
Derek watched Stiles smile big and then his eye twitched. Derek turned him so he was looking at the woods and sky. He locked his legs around his mates and wrapped an arm around his neck. He kissed his temple with his eyes closed, reaching to the back of his jeans to grab his knife bringing it around, and resting it on his lap. He looked out at the woods as well, watched the way the light of the moon danced between the trees, and tried not to notice the twitches in his mate's body until that was all he could concentrate on. He heard Stiles snarling and he screamed and howled out his pain as he lifted the knife and shoved it up Stiles's chin, through to his brain. He held it there until the twitching stopped and continued to stare out into the trees.
Derek could hear his pack's cries and his son's screams and he knew Boyd and Peter had to be holding him back. He hoped they could keep him back, he didn’t want Eli to see Stiles like this.
He didn’t know how long he stood out there with Stiles but eventually, Lydia and Dio came out along with Deaton and Peter. They helped him get Stiles prepared for his funeral pyre. They wrapped him in white and his red hoodie. Derek held onto Eli as they watched the flames until there was only ash. The witches were in charge of getting the ashes to an urn and back to them. He didn’t want to stay there and watch. He took his son home and they crawled into the small nest Stiles had in their closet where he would go to read his books and cried themselves to sleep.
Tomorrow he would wake and be the Alpha his pack needed but today, he was the wolf that cried for his mate and son.