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As they drove away from Beacon Hills, Stiles and Peter debated about setting up new identities. Stiles knew Peter could get those, if they wanted. But Stiles wasn't convinced that new identities were needed.
"Part of it is pure stubbornness," Stiles admitted. "I like who I am and I want to just keep being me."
"I like who you are, too," Peter grinned.
"Aww..." Stiles cooed. "And part of it is petty. I just want to say 'fuck you, Scott McCall' and do whatever we want in spite of him."
"The down side is that he reached out to someone outside the Pack to attack us," Peter pointed out. "That means he's working with someone who is smarter than he is and better equipped. Scott's arrogance and someone else's intelligence can be a deadly combination."
"Dammit," Stiles sighed. "I hate it when you're right."
"Doesn't mean we have to give up our identities completely, but we do need to be careful," Peter replied. "At least until we can figure out who Scott has allied with."
"More like who Deaton has called in," Stiles nodded. "But, in the end it's the same thing. Someone smarter and more powerful than Scott is calling the shots, in spite of what Deaton thinks is going on."
"While Derek and Jordan will do what they can to take care of your dad, he's still in Beacon Hills," Peter went on. "Whether that's a good thing or a bad thing remains to be seen."
"Yeah," Stiles nodded. "Intellectually, I know dad can take care of himself but, well, I've been taking care of him for so long that it's ingrained in me to worry."
"I did drop a word to Satomi Ito," Peter added. "She will at least keep an eye on the border between her territory and Beacon Hills. Depending on the circumstances, she will also take in refugees from Beacon Hills. Even if she won't let them stay, she can help get them away to safer territory. I've shared that with Derek and Jordan, I know they'll share that with your dad and anyone else who may need it."
"That's good to know," Stiles replied. "Having an exit strategy should always be part of the plan. And I haven't had the time to think about anyone else who might be targeted by Scott."
"Well, that's something Scott will also not think about," Peter said. "While his focus is on me and you, whomever he has called in will likely be looking at any of the other supernaturals in town. Someone who is allied with Monroe or any remnants of Gerard Argent's organization will be targeting all supernaturals, not just 'wolves."
Stiles frowned in consideration. "And there's nothing we can do about that, is there?"
"Well..."
"Oh! What have you done?" Stiles demanded.
"I may have left messages with several of the Hunting Clans that there's an unknown group looking to take over Beacon Hills," Peter gave a wry grin. "And that, for their safety, I'm taking the Guardian of the Nemeton out of the territory."
Stiles laughed. "Good story!"
Peter was silent for a moment. "You don't know?" he asked cautiously.
"What?" Stiles was confused.
"You are the Guardian," Peter said gently. "That is probably what Deaton is really after."
"What? No!" Stiles protested. "Wouldn't I know that? How can you tell?"
"It's... hmm..." Peter took a minute to articulate his thoughts. "The best I can tell you is that I can feel the connection because it's part of the Pack Bond. When I think of you, there's an image of a tree that stands behind you."
"Oh. My. God!" Stiles breathed. "How did that happen?"
"Sometimes, you don't get to pick," Peter admitted with a shrug. "The Nemeton must have chosen you. With everything that's happened over the last couple of years, who knows why it latched on to you at some point. But it's recent, since I didn't have that image until the last few months."
"Let... let me check," Stiles said doubtfully.
Peter let Stiles be as they drove north, towards Oregon. It was awkward getting across the Rockies from northern California. There were smaller roads but most of the major highways lead to Reno, Nevada, which was too much of a bottleneck for Peter's liking. So going north before going east was the somewhat better option. He had decided that moving quickly was a better option than moving totally under the radar -- something he was glad Stiles accepted without too much question. So they were looking to move as far north and then east as possible, at least for the first two or three days. Once they were safely east of the Rockies, they could take some time to decide where to go.
Peter was glad they were in a comfortable car. While Peter adored his sports cars, this would likely be a long journey and Peter had bought a new vehicle under one of his aliases in preparation. When Stiles had reported his concerns about the meetings Scott had all but forced Stiles to attend, Peter had packed the SUV with essentials -- food, clothing, and weapons -- for both of them. If they ended up not needing to leave Beacon Hills this time, it was preparation for the next debacle that Scott was sure to cause.
They drove in silence for almost an hour before Stiles let out a gusty sigh.
"Damned tree," Stiles said. A cross between cursing and fondness.
"Did you find the connection?" Peter asked.
"Once I knew to look for it," Stiles nodded. "It hid the connection from me and was waiting for me to go looking for it." He took a breath. "There's more."
"Oh?"
"The Beacon Hills Nemeton is the master node for all the ley lines," Stiles said baldly.
"All of them?" Peter was stunned.
"Yup!" Stiles popped the 'p'.
"Oh."
"Yeah," Stiles said softly.
It was Peter's turn to be quiet as he thought through the implications of that.
"New plan," Peter decided. "I'm going to find a regional airport once we get to a reasonable sized city in Oregon and charter a plane to take us to..."
"Iowa," Stiles said immediately.
"Iowa?" Peter asked. "That's pretty random."
"It just popped out," Stiles admitted. "So it may not be totally random."
"Anywhere particular in Iowa?" Peter asked.
"Umm... no," Stiles replied. "But I'd like to look at a map. Maybe that will give me some ideas."
"I'll dig out a burner phone so you can check," Peter replied.
"Hey!" Stiles pointed at a sign. "A twenty-four hour diner! Can we stop?"
"Sure," Peter replied. "Even I can use a break."
"Maybe they have curly fries," Stiles said hopefully.
Peter could only laugh.