Chapter Text
“Hurry up Stiles! The line is gonna get longer if you take forever!”
Stiles was a lanky boy with pale skin and a spattering of moles on his face, while his friend Scott was only slightly more muscular. He had a wavy mop of hair that fell infront of his face like a sheep dog. Stiles’ hair was short and buzzed. Neither one of them were dressed like they were going out.
Scott is excited and a bit nervous to go to the only club that allows 18 and up in Beacon Hills. He’d never been to a club before but Allison, Lydia and Jackson were going to be there. He’d been trying for weeks to get closer to Allison but never got the chance to at school. When Allison invited him, he’d agreed to go before even realizing Jungle was a gay club.
“I only agreed to this so I could begin phase 2 of my plan to split up Lydia and Jackson before Valentine’s day.” Stiles says jogging up to meet his friend as they walk up the street to the entrance of the club. Suddenly Stiles is shoulder checked hard, causing him to fall over. “DAMN DUDE. You’re just gonna keep walking?”
The person who bumped into him grunted only slightly staggering down the sidewalk to the backside of the club. Stiles saw a slight glimmer of blue on the ground from his lower point of view. He picks it up to find it’s a dangling earring with a blue crystal. “You dropped… You know what fuck that guy.” Stiles says brushing himself off.
“What’s phase 2 again, and when was phase 1?” Scott stands at the end of a long line.
“I told you… last week is when I began to ignore Lydia. I can tell it’s bugging her. Tonight, I’m gonna find SOMEONE to make out with and make her jealous. Someone hott…”
“If you say so buddy. I got your back dude. Like that one Lacrosse game when I accidentally on purpose nailed Greenberg in the nuts so he had to sub out and you got to actually play.” Scott snickers at Stiles. “Just give me a heads up if you need a wingman… or wingwoman? You’re still bi right?”
“How many times do we have to go over this… you’re my wingman… it doesn’t matter who— Nevermind.
Let’s just find Lydia and Allison inside.”
The two make their way up to the bouncer at the front of the line and hand him two very questionable fake IDs. The bouncer doesn’t really care much and lets them in.
It was loud inside, to the point where Stiles had to shout at Scott to let him know he was going to hit the bathroom.
*Flush*
Stiles stands in front of the wall length mirror and runs his hand through his short brown hair a few times. “You got this… you are gonna finally get Lydia to notice you. Worst case scenario you meet someone else and move on from that strawberry blonde goddess.”
“Believe me that’s not the worst case. Fresh towel?” The bathroom attendant creeps out from the shadowy corner by the door.
“JESUS CHRIST! I didn’t see you there.” Stiles flinches but still pulls out a dollar and stuffs it in the man’s tip jar.
“Apologies young man… bit of advice, management wants all the young bloods on the dance floor at last call. I suggest leaving before then. Getting out of the parking lot can be… murder. Ask for your lady friend, try adding some flare to your look.”
“Thanks for the… advice?” Stiles says drying his hands, failing to notice the attendant’s lack of reflection in the bathroom mirror as he walks out.
Scott sees Stiles scanning the crowd from across the room and waves him down like a maniac. He manages to push past a sea of sweaty bodies to find the small group talking about a plan to get drinks.
“These two don’t have X’s, they can order alcohol. Figures the two goofballs Allison invited would have working fake IDs” Jackson moans out in frustration.
Jackson, Lydia and Allison all sat at a table. Jackson was the typical arrogant jock type that oozed white privilege. Lydia sat there staring at the two boys with her perfect strawberry blonde hair and perfect cocktail dress. Allison got up and hugged Scott, her cute dimples and pink lips planted a kiss on his cheek.
“Careful or the Goofballs might forget your order, Jackson.” Stiles says, rolling his eyes.
“Whatever Allison wants, Vodka Redbull for me and—“
“Yeah, yeah, Dirty Shirley for the pretty lady. I know.” Stiles tries to act cool.
“How did you know what I like to drink? Have we met?” Lydia says practically looking through Stiles.
“We’ve known each other since the 3rd grade…”
“Huh!?” Lydia shouts back over the loud music.
“Scott, can you help me carry drinks back?” Stiles grabs the boy by the sleeve and drags him over to the bar.
“Just relax man! You’re doing great with Lydia.”
“NO! You heard her, she has no idea who I am… even though I’ve had at least one class with her every year for the last 7 years. I think I need to find someone to make out with.”
The bartender slides a pink fruity smelling drink over to where the two were standing to order. “This is from the gentleman across the bar.” Stiles reaches for the drink with a grin, but it’s quickly moved away from his grasp. “To the one with shaggy hair.”
The two look over to see a handsome man nod to Scott as he takes a sip of his drink. “Oh come on Stiles don’t pout!” He looks at the boy with an embarrassed pleading look.
Stiles snatches the drink from Scott’s hand and takes a big gulp of it while making aggressive eye contact with the man who bought them. “Maybe I need a little bit of… flare.” He slams the half empty drink down on the bar and puts on the earring he found earlier. “How’s thissss—“
The world folded in on itself for a moment and Stiles heard a crackling sound. Everything was blurry, until it just snapped back into place. This time he wasn’t at the bar with Scott anymore. He was in a room chained to a wall. The room was just a bit bigger than a janitor’s closet. His arms and legs were bound tight with heavy chains, it was exhausting to stand.
He tried to move and wriggle but with no success. The boy fell over and knocked down some odds and ends that were in the storage room. A large silver platter was in front of him on the ground and showed him his reflection. The man staring back wasn’t Stiles though.
As soon as he realized he was looking at his reflection, he blinked hard a couple of times but opened them to the same hazel green color every single time. He also realized his body was different. When he fell over from struggling, his back was cold and bare on the concrete floor. He looked down and saw muscles, chest hair and abs. Stiles actually had defined abs now. “What the f—“ he stops as he realizes his voice is much deeper and gruff than he remembers.
Meanwhile back at the bar Scott sees Stiles zone out for a good few minutes as he’s handed drinks for the group. “Earth to Stiles, come in Stiles.” He waves his free hand in front of the boy’s face.
“What the hell is a Stiles?” The boy says, staring back at his hands full of drinks.
“Let’s get back to the girls and Jackson before they start to get bored.” Scott says, shouting over the loud bass.
“What? I… I NEED TO GO TO THE BATHROOM. I’ll be right back.”
“DUDE! You just went!”
The boy rushes off before Scott can complain about having to hold all the drinks. He rushed off to the single unisex bathroom and locked the door. Stiles takes a deep breath and exhales slowly to calm down. He turns on the sink to splash water on himself a few times, but when he gets a better look in the mirror he slams his fist to the sink. “OUCH! FUCK! What?” He looks at the boy in the mirror and back down to his hand. He didn’t recognize the person staring back either. Derek Hale stared deep into the mirror, examining every mole and freckle on the boy’s face. “This can’t be…”
He quickly empties his pockets and looks in the stranger’s wallet. The boy didn’t have much on him.
Derek pulled out a Sharpie and opened the wallet to find a few singles, his ID and an XXL condom. “21!? How is this kid older than me? This guy looks like he could be a freshman IN HIGHSCHOOL.” He says to himself with a voice crack. “Stillinski… What the fuck is his first name?
Derek tried to remember the last thing that happened in his actual body, but it was a bit hazy. Laura, his older sister, told him to check out the rumors that Jungle was run by vampires, but the rest is a bit of a blur. He’d been in the process of auditioning to become a GoGo dancer, but he blacked out and woke up in this other guy’s mind. He had to find his real body and get to the bottom of why he’s not himself anymore. Before being knocked out prior to the switch, he got a pretty good layout of the club, but he needed a better look.
“He’s even bigger than…” Derek mutters, fidgeting with the waistband of his boxers.
*knock knock knock*
He whips his head around startled to the door and felt something brush against his cheek but touched his head and face to find nothing was there. “Alright!” He shouts back to the door.
“GURL HURRY THE FUCK UP! I’ve got like 8 pairs of panty hose holding all of THIS together to get through.” A giant woman says in an oddly deep falsetto.
He opens the door and glares at the drag queen. However, his normal menacing glare failed to have the same impact that his original body is capable of. “MOVE BITCH.” A much deeper voice than before commands.
She shoves him out of the way and slams the door. Derek got his bearings and moved to the dance floor to get a better look. In the crowd, he wanted a good vantage point so he jumped on top of a box to peer around the dance floor.
“YOU CAN’T BE UP THERE IF YOU’RE NOT GONNA DANCE!” A twink from the ground shouts up at him.
“FINE COME UP HERE!” He motions for the dancer to join him on the box. Derek was using the man to look as inconspicuous as possible. He was grinding and gyrating on the man, all while continuing to scan the room.
“IS THAT STILES!?” Allison points to the dance floor, mouth agape.
“Damn… he’s kinda getting it for a nerd.” Jackson says just as shocked.
“Who’s Stiles?” Lydia says, staring at the boy on the box, really seeing him for the first time.
“Phase 2 huh?” Scott mutters to himself with a grin. “I should go get him…”
Scott makes his way to the dance floor, but only finds the skinny guy who was dancing with Stiles before. “HEY! Have you seen my friend?”
The man on the box quickly turns around and realizes that his dance partner is gone. “He was just here?” Scott shrugs in recognition and heads back to the small group.
Derek spotted an Employees Only door up on the second floor of the club. He made his way up there and opened the door to find his actual body chained up and on the floor. “Hey… this might sound weird but, do you recognize me?” Before he could get a response, everything went black.
“Uhhhhg… what?” Derek comes to on the cold concrete.
“Oh you’re awake! Good… do you think you could itch my back before that dumbass bouncer knocks you out again? I can’t quite reach it… ALSO WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING!?” Stiles shouts, still on the floor.
“Huh?” Derek rubs the back of his head to see blood on his fingertips. “I suppose you’re in my body and I’m in yours?”
“No shit Sherlock. I mean how is this happening, and why can I smell the dirty mint mojito gum on the bottom of MY FAVORITE PAIR OF CHUCKS!? Are you some kind of bloodhound or something?”
“Or something…” Derek mutters back.
“Well could you help me sit up? I can’t get good leverage and I’ve been like this for almost an hour.”
Derek stands and confidently tugs on Stiles’ big frame to sit him upright but fails miserably. He severely misjudged the footing trying to lift him and fell on top of the man. Derek was on top of Stiles now, their faces only inches apart. “Uhh… S… Sorry.”
“Damn I hardly felt that… Woah you’re freakin strong.” Derek flushed a bit pink at the compliment. “Did you have shots with Scott? I always get a little feverish glow when I take shots…”
“No… You’re 21 and can’t hold your liquor?” Derek tries to change the subject.
“HAH! YOU THINK I'M 21!? I guess Derek Hale, the all-star basketball player, wouldn't be the type to recognize a freshman he met once.”
“I graduated last year…”
“I’m a sophomore this year dummy… We met last year at lunch. You— never mind.”
“I what? How did you even know it was me? There’s no mirror in here.”
“Shut up and help me out of these chains.”
“How do I do that? You’re not exactly able to rip apart these chains…” Derek said, poking his small bicep as he flexes.
“Ever heard of Brains winning over brawn? Hand me the bobby-pin on my shirt’s collar.”
Derek pats his neck and collar searching for a bobby-pin. He finds it and puts it in Stiles’ hand. “Are you for real? You keep a bobby-pin on you to pick locks?”
“What can I say… I’ve ended up in handcuffs more than a few times.” He says while tapping and clicking the lock on the chains, as a low metallic snap can be heard. “SHIT. I’ve only gotten to try behind my back once. This happened last time too. Hand me the bobby-pin on the waistband of my boxers. AND NO PEEKING AT MY GOOD AND PLENTIES.”
“Shut up. Here.” Derek gave another unsuccessful glare.
“So, what do you think is going on here?”
“The club is run by vampires and having an 18 and up night to try and get as many teenagers in here as possible. They usually prefer young blood, supposedly it’s sweeter.”
“Oh yeah… vampires… young blood. Right. That makes sense…” Stiles said, hardly paying attention.
“Yeah… you’re taking this well… Stiles?”
The lock clicks and all the chains fall slack on the ground. “You know my name?”
“Well, I don’t know how to pronounce whatever the fuck your ID says but that shaggy looking kid called you Stiles.”
He flexed his hands in front of himself and got a better look at his body. “Yeah, that’s Scott… he’s been my best friend since kindergarten.”
“How did you know who I was?”
Stiles held up a tarnished silver platter that was leaned against the wall. “I’d recognize your eyes anywhere… They’re really pretty.” He says still distracted by his new body. Stiles gently traces his abs and palms his massive broad chest and pecs. “NO WAY! I CAN MAKE THEM BOUNCE!?” He says, distracted by his dancing muscles.
“DO YOU MIND!?” Derek says abruptly.
“Huh?” Stiles says as a set of sharp fangs pop out from both the top and bottom rows of his teeth.
“That only happens when… WAIT… I CAN EXPLAIN. I have a medical condition.”
“Yeah? Is it called Lycanthropy?” Stiles says lightly touching his new pointy teeth. “OUCH!” He accidentally pricked his finger, but it instantly healed under the small pool of blood that gathered on the tip.
“You’re… you don’t seem… huh?” Derek’s feet gave out from underneath him.
“Don’t seem what? Upset? Confused? Shocked?” He says bending down to pick his original body off the floor with ease. “Damn I need to bulk up a little…”
“Scared… you’re not scared of me?” Derek says unsure of what kind of reaction he wanted from the boy.
“Well, it’s pretty obvious. I can smell, almost the same way I can see. I think it’s called Synesthesia? You know where you can mix senses… yours is like bursts of color? Each color is a specific smell? But these smells are subtly different… At least that’s how it feels to me.” Stiles looks at his body up and down inhaling. “My real body smells… Red?“
“Yeah… nobody even understands when I tell them that’s how I smell… you picked up on that really fast.”
“Not to mention the claws…” he looks at his hands once more, examining them. “I felt them pop out when I broke that bobby-pin and got frustrated… the teeth on the other hand come out when—“
“I THINK I KNOW HOW WE SWITCHED BODIES.” Derek practically shouts to change the subject.
“Gotta be the earrings, right?” Stiles says touching his ear and removing a red dangly crystal earring. “That’s the last thing I remember doing before we switched.”
“You’re not scared of vampires or werewolves, you manage to gather information very quickly, and you know how to pick a lock using bobby-pins? Just who are you?”
“Oh, you know… Just your average horror enthusiast, who happens to be… son of the sheriff.” “OH GOD. Laura’s gonna kill me… and then you.” Derek grumbles.
“Is she your Alpha?”
“She’s my… yeah… how do you know about what an Alpha is?”
“So that would make you her… Omega?” Stiles says, looking at his body once more. “How does slick work?”
“WHAT!?” Derek says almost offended.
“Oh sorry… I guess that’s a bit personal. My bad.”
“I’m her beta, and she's my sister.” Derek forces another failed death glare.
“Wait… so you’re a beta? Damn… I don’t know much about those. The fics I’ve read don’t go into much detail about betas. Do betas get pregnant like omegas do?”
“I think you might have the wrong idea about werewolves…”
“You mean… I can’t believe everything on the internet? I’m just fucking with you, but tell me about knotting—”
The door to the room bursts open suddenly. It was the bouncer from outside the club earlier. He looked surprised when he opened the door and hisses, revealing his fangs. Out of instinct Stiles pounces on the man and starts clawing at the goon. To his surprise there was no blood coming out of any of the claw marks and the wounds weren’t healing like a werewolf’s do.
It looked like the goon was down for the count. Derek scanned the room and found a grimy wooden broom and tried to break it in half over his knee unsuccessfully. “FUCK! How do you get anything done in this body!?”
Stiles made grabby hands for the broom and snapped it in half with little to no effort. “I manage in my own way usually, remember Brains over Brawn?” He taps his temple.
“We have to stake him, or he’ll wake up pissed. But first—“
“HELL YEAH!” Stiles plunges the stake deep into the man’s chest. At first nothing happens. Derek quickly grabs a plastic painter’s tarp to shield their bodies. Suddenly the man’s body swelled up like a balloon and popped with a massive splattering of blood. “Woah… THAT’S SO COOL! Where did all that blood come from?”
“Vampires don’t bleed unless they’ve been staked. Their bodies have a sack of blood in them around their heart, the only way to kill one is to pierce that sack. The aftermath is a bit… messy.” He says shaking blood and entrails from his hands. “That or fire…”
“Wow… a werewolf vampire Hunter. Sounds like some Twilight fan fiction.”
“Yeah… these vampires don’t sparkle.”
“Uhhhg… all I wanted was to make out with someone hott tonight to make a girl jealous. Now I’m stuck playing Van Hale-sing.”
“Oh… I was dancing with some twink on one of the GoGo dancer boxes earlier. I hope I didn’t ruin your plan.”
“What!? THAT’S PERFECT! Phase 2 is still on baby! Twinks aren’t typically my type of guy, I’m more into…” Stiles looks down at his body once more.
“Anyway… I’ve got a job to do.” Derek says annoyed but still blushing.
“What kind of job were you going to do without a shirt?” Stiles says with comically expressive brows.
“It’s my family’s job to keep the people of Beacon Hills safe. It’s been our duty for over a century, we make sure the balance between humanity and the supernatural is maintained. As shifters we’re the bridge.”
“The bridge?” Stiles says confused.
“Shifters have two souls. The human soul and the animal soul… both are connected but the animal soul still has influence over our humanity. Especially on the full moon, but that can be controlled with an anchor.”
“An anchor? I thought you were a bridge… Now you’re a boat?”
“Maybe if you paid more attention and stopped playing with my—“
“OH! Did Lydia see!?” Stiles says as we stops touching his new body.
“Who’s that--”
The two were interrupted by a shrill, strangely vibratory scream coming from the dance floor. They both peek out the door to look down to the lower level where the crowd was. There was a lot of blood on the ground, it was all over the walls and separate bar areas. The blood made all the small clusters of vampires feeding on people stand out in contrast to all the red. It looked like there were some living patrons pushed up in each of the corners of the club.
“We have to find Scott and them. You don’t think they’re…” Stiles says with a grim look.
“Let’s see if we can get downstairs without drawing any attention… Vampires get too lost in themselves when they feed to notice much. I think I know where the other earring is.”
They slowly creep down the stairs to the large open area. The club was completely silent, except for the chewing and slurping sounds that are coming from the vampires. Stiles can hear something else, the pounding of about ten other hearts.
Derek slips and falls down the last few stairs, flat on his face in a pool of blood. “GROSS! Why does your body just keep falling everywhere?”
“You get used to it…”
“Ok… you go check on your friends and I’ll go get the earring from the bathroom.”
“Like hell! Why would I leave you alone? Trust me, we shouldn’t split up.”
“Just go! I can take care of myself.”
“I said no! Let me go with you. MY BODY MY CHOICE.”
The two are quietly screaming at this point. “FINE! Just follow me and don’t get in my way. You can keep a lookout if that’ll make you happy.” Derek reluctantly gives in.
The door to the bathroom was next to the bar where Stiles had sat when he put the earring on. Derek slowly opened the door to find the drag queen who went to the bathroom after he had earlier, was on the floor covered in blood. “Damn they really busted you up…” “WHO YOU CALLIN BUSTED!?” The drag queen says.
Derek let out a loud audible gasp. “YOU’RE ALIVE!?”
“Honey, I’ve seen some shit in my day. Drag Mama always told me, if the club goes to hell in a handbasket just play dead and ask questions later. That’s how I got my name. You can call me Hellena.”
“Fascinating… nice to meet you… listen… have you seen a blue crystal earring?”
“Check the sink and get the fuck out of here!”
“That’s it! Uhh… here.” Derek opens Stiles’ wallet and tosses a dollar to her.
“Awww thanks babe.”
“Derek… we have a problem.” Stiles calls out from just outside the door.
Derek rolls his eyes and looks out in the middle of the dance floor. Scott’s there being forcibly held by the bathroom attendant from the beginning of the night. “I’m the only one in the group that can multitask.” He says resting his blood-soaked chin on the boy’s neck. “Give me the earring or this shaggy looking kid is gonna be a Scooby Snack.”
“WAIT! Uhh… Why do you want to switch bodies with me?” Stiles calls out, breaking the tension a bit. “Give me the earring.” He quietly whispers to Derek.
Derek looks on at the interaction, hesitantly handing him the earring. He had no idea where Stiles was gonna go from here. Given how weak and flimsy his body is, there’s no way he’s got the combat sense to take a vampire head on. “Relax… I’ve got a plan.” Stiles says low and through his teeth.
“Because you’re hott obviously. I’d rather look like you than me. Being a vampire… well… it fucking sucks. Yeah, I’ll live forever but the meat suit that is this body isn’t in great shape. We age and don’t heal contrary to all the movies out there. Think more Death Becomes Her… what am I saying… you're a child?”
“Me and Stiles have seen Death Becomes Her…” Scott says nervously.
“Yeah SCOTT… that was after the LACROSSE GAME you guys won when GREENBERG had his ACCIDENT…”
“Derek?” Scott says confused.
“YES SCOTT. STILES told me about the ice cream sundaes you had that night before the movie… with CRUSHED NUTS…”
A spark of recognition flashes across Scott’s face. Almost as soon as he realizes what Stiles is trying to tell him, he quickly picks up his foot to the vampire’s crotch.
“You know… that might have hurt if my ex hadn’t already cut my bits off. Another reason I want to ditch this body.” The vampire rolls his eyes and chomps down on Scott’s neck.
“SCOTT NO!” Stiles roars out, eyes flashing blue. His teeth and claws were bared, ready to fight.
Just as Stiles was about to lunge toward the vampire, a sharp wooden rod impaled him from behind. The vampire collapsed to the ground and Scott laid there not moving. Behind him was Allison, who looked almost as ferocious as Stiles.
“He’ll survive, but we’ll be in trouble if we can’t figure out what to do with all these things before they get full.” Derek says gesturing to the feral looking vampires. “We can probably stake all of them at once if we—“
*click* *click* *click*
“Yeah, or we could burn this place down. With them in it.” Lydia says covered in blood from behind the bar holding a Molotov cocktail. Jackson and a few of the other club goers are also holding bottles of liquor with bar rags stuffed inside.
One of the creatures hisses and Jackson tosses it. Lydia and the rest panicked, threw their bottles and bolted toward one of the doors. Stiles in the confusion, looks around to see Derek huddled up on the ground, against the bathroom door. He could hear his heart pounding above everything else going on around him. “LYDIA GET JACKSON TO HELP SCOTT OUT.” Stiles shouts.
“Uhh…“ She stammers as her face becomes pink, completely enamored by a shirtless Derek Hale.
“NOW LYDIA.” Stiles practically barks out.
“OK OK! JACKSON…!”
Jackson and Allison both help Scott up and walk him to the entrance. Stiles slides over to Derek on the ground to see if he’s ok. He’s practically catatonic. “Derek, we gotta get out of here! Let’s go!”
The boy was breathing harder and harder. Stiles understood what was happening. Derek was having a panic attack. There wasn’t much time to think about it. Stiles picked the boy up and kicked down the door to the bathroom. “Hellena, it's time to get out of here… C’mon.”
“Ohh baby you don’t have to tell me when to cum…”
Stiles is carrying Derek through the burning club like a bride. As the vampires screamed and hissed, they began to burn and bloat. Each one let out a wet pop as they moved through the minefield of monsters. Finally, the two managed to make it outside. The whole front of Jungle is swarming with cops, paramedics, and now the fire department.
“Sorry, I’m not so good with fire.” Derek says weakly in Stiles’ arms.
“In a body like mine… I don’t blame you. Here…” Stiles puts the blue crystal earring on Derek and the red one on himself. In the blink of an eye the two were back to normal.
“Your body’s not so bad…” Derek says as he plants a kiss on the boy’s lips. The two just sit there in each other’s arms softly kissing.
“OH MY GOD.” Lydia says absolutely gobsmacked.
“Little brother… Do you mind telling me what’s going on here?” A beautiful woman who looked to be in her late 20’s walked up to the group.
Derek and Stiles both snap out of the moment, eyes traveling over to the unexpected crowd. “Hell yeah… Phase 2 was a success.” Scott rasps from the curb.
“SCOTT! YOU GOT BIT! ARE YOU OK!?” “Laura! I can explain!” The two boys talk over each other.
“He’ll be fine, a bite doesn’t mean he’s gonna turn. He’s only susceptible to mind control. The vampire that bit him is dead right?”
*CRASH*
“I’d say so.” Stiles says looking back at the burning club.
“Vam… pire…” Jackson says in a hollow tone.
“YES. Vampires are real. I’d suggest keeping it to yourself, they tend to get upset when people talk about them in the news.” Laura says abruptly as her eyes flash red. “Get this guy’s number and let’s go before people try and figure out what all happened here.”
“LAAAURA SHUT UP!” Derek moans.
“Put your teeth away while you’re at it… horndog.”
“Alright! Just give me a sec! Go wait in the car…” Derek says as his fangs receded
“Fat chance little bro… You better believe I’m staying for this.”
“Uhhhg. Here. Text me.” Derek reaches into Stiles’ back pocket and pulls out a sharpie. He gently lifts up the boy’s sleeve and writes his number on his arm. “That’s her right? I think she definitely noticed you now.” Derek says whispering in the boy’s ear.
Lydia and Jackson stood there in complete shock. “That was so hott…” Allison says, snapping them out of their daze.
“Alright time to go. I’ll be taking that.” Laura reaches past Derek over to Stiles’ ear to take the earring from him.
“You’re so fucking embarrassing.” Derek groans.
“Yeah yeah, don’t get your knot in a twist. Where’s your shirt?”
The two zoom off in a black Camaro as Stiles is left exhausted, still processing the last several hours. The adrenaline starts to wear off and he can feel himself coming back to reality. “WHO WAS THAT!?” Lydia squeaks out.
“Derek Hale!? REALLY!? You don’t know? He’s like a legend at Beacon Hills High… all the trophies in our display case have his name on them.” Jackson says shamelessly fan-girling.
“Derek’s the one who took care of those bullies when we were freshmen right?” Scott groans, looking a bit pale still.
“Is that his name? I’ll have to pull his record up when we get home. How old is he?” A commanding voice asks the group of teens.
“Dad… I—“
The sheriff stood there with his hands on his hips, taking in all the blood and gore on everyone who was in the club. “What are you even doing here? It’s not exactly your type of club.”
“Uhhh… Well dad, there’s a conversation we should—“
“You’re not gay.” The Sheriff says tilting his head over to Lydia.
“I COULD BE!?”
“Not dressed like that you’re not.”
“Honey… don’t worry. You don’t have to put a label on it. Here you dropped this earlier. Might come in handy with that boy.” Helena walks up planting a perfectly stamped kiss mark on his cheek as she hands him the XXL condom. “Thanks for telling him to come get me from the bathroom big boy.” “Would you look at the time… I should really get going.” Stiles checks his watchless wrist and grins as he looks at Derek’s phone number on his arm. “See you guys Monday!”
Derek turns up the radio’s volume and leans back in the seat a bit, staring at the ceiling of the Camaro. Laura quickly turns it down and gives him a look as they head back home. Derek’s body was covered in dried blood and soot.
“What!? I’ll take the car to get detailed tomorrow.” Derek is the first to break the silence.
“You know that’s not… Well, now that you mention it. You will be doing that tomorrow, thanks little brother. I’m more interested in that boy!”
“What about him? He’s just some guy… There’s this whole plan for some girl with phases. We switched bodies, and his friends took care of all the vampires.”
“Umm… No. I meant… SINCE WHEN ARE YOU INTO GUYS?” Laura blurts out. “It’s fine that you are, but I’ve only ever seen you with girls. You never told me… even after I told you about me and—“
“BECAUSE I DIDN’T KNOW. I’ve never met anyone like him… He just accepted me instantly as a werewolf. Whenever I’ve told other supernatural girls that I was a wolf, I’d always get weird or scared looks. Even telling other werewolves that I’m a Hale got me the same treatment.”
“From one Hale to another, I get that last part…”
*bzzt*
Derek frantically digs through his pocket to find his cellphone. It was just a reminder to check in with Laura. He scowls at the phone and puts it back in his pocket.
“Wow, you’re already this antsy to hear back from a boy?” Laura says tapping the clock. “It’s 3am! I’m sure he’ll text you soon.”
“I AM NOT ANTSY.” Derek’s scowl turns pink.
“Ok, fine I won’t make fun. Tell me about him.”
“After we switched, I found my body tied up in a closet and watched him get out of chains I couldn’t bust out of. He used these bobby pins he keeps on his clothes to pick the lock! He even figured out the earring made us swap minds or whatever the fuck they do. His fangs dropped and he didn’t freak out about what we are. The whole night… He managed to hold it together better than me. If only we’d gone at this job together, in the first place…” Derek says, staring out the window.
“Wow… coming out of two closets in one night. Three if you count the actual closet you ended up in.” Laura giggles. “You could have handled that better, but since it was your first solo job I’m not too mad. I guess we could invite him into the pack to partner up with you… We haven’t had any new members since—“
“I DIDN’T ASK YOU TO… I mean… He’s human.”
“Derek… You know being a pack member has nothing to do with that. Bitten and Born wolves feel the pack bond all the same.”
“That’s not what I mean… I like that he’s human.”
“Oh! Well, being a human isn’t a bad thing.” Laura tousles Derek’s hair. “Humans do smell better huh?”
“Better than you…” Derek mutters.
“ASS!” Laura punches Derek in the arm.
***
A few days passed and surprisingly not many people were talking about the fire at Jungle. Then again not that many people survived, and it was only Stiles, Scott, Lydia, Jackson and Allison who went to Beacon Hills High out of the few who made it out.
Stiles has been thinking about Derek all week. The man’s phone number is still on his arm days later. Thankfully he usually wears a tee shirt and flannel combo that covers his arms. People don’t really pay attention to Stiles anyway, but Scott hasn’t noticed or cared. He’s been a bit out of it and spacey since that night at the club.
In fact, today at lunch he hardly said a word, even to Allison. “I can’t believe it’s gone, and I didn’t even get to say goodbye. I hope Hellena’s alright.” Danny moans out.
Danny was a tan medium build guy with dark hair and dark eyes. Him an Jackson have been friends since he moved to Beacon Hills from Hawaii at the start of middle school. He’s also one of the only openly gay people in the entire school.
“Actually, she is! I was the one to help her out.” Stiles says pulling on his open flannel like he did more than just open a door and tell her to get out.
“In other news, guess who got reservations at Okami for Valentine’s Day?” Jackson scoffs.
“JACKSON! YOU GOT IN!? I loooove sushi.” Lydia squeals out, throwing herself on him.
“Stiles, do you still reserve a table there every Valentine’s Day?” Scott says dry.
“DUDE. I— uhh… you can’t be too prepared.” Stiles lets out a nervous chuckle. “That was supposed to be Phase 3 but now…” He says quietly through his teeth.
“I also have a reservation for Okami, we could do a triple date. It will be fun.”
“Who’s he gonna take McCall? Danny? Pfft. He’s not Danny’s type.”
“Don’t act like you know my type! He’s not… but it’s not like you know what I like.”
“Aww c’mon Danny, that hurts. Am I not attractive to gay guys?” Stiles says, rolling his eyes.
“Invite Derek.” Scott says abruptly.
“OH MY GOD ARE YOU KIDDING!? I haven’t even texted him yet!” He looks at his phone.
“MINE!” Danny snatched the unlocked phone from Stiles’ hand. “Who’s Derek and what are we texting him.”
“GIVE IT!”
“How about… ‘This is Stiles’. Just keep it short and simple.” Danny sat there tapping quickly and made one last gesticulated finger press. There was a bloop sound and the message was sent. Almost immediately after there was a quick *bzzt* sound. Danny’s eyes widen and he leans over to show Allison. “NO WAY.”
“WHAT! WHAT IS IT!? It better not be a dick pic.” Stiles flushes pink.
Danny hands him the phone grinning. “CAN YOU COME OVER TO MY PLACE TONIGHT!?” Stiles shouts, drawing the attention of at least two other lunch tables.
Stiles picked up his books and bolted from the cafeteria in a flurry of limbs. His heart was racing. “What the fuck. He wants me to come over? What for?” He makes his way to the bathroom and continues to talk himself through this. “I should just ask him what he wants… Yeah. That’s it I’ll just ask. I shouldn’t agree right off the bat… Don’t wanna come off as desperate. Be short and simple just like Danny…” another bloop sound.
“What time?” Stiles stares at the phone, as if his fingers hadn’t betrayed him. “AHHHHG! Why did I say that!? That’s not that I—“
*bzzt*
“7pm, Laura says to come with an appetite.”
“OF COURSE! DINNER.” Stiles says, exhaling. “Hungry like the Wolf?” Stiles says laughing to himself then he hears another bloop sent sound.
“OH MY FUCKING GOD! I DID IT AGAIN! Apple needs to come out with multiple authentication texting I swear. SHIT HE’S TYPING!”
The now typing ellipses appeared and disappeared several times. Stiles could feel time slowing down every time he saw the ellipses at the bottom of the text.
*bzzt*
“Oh no, not you too… She told me to make the same joke.”
“She’ll be the Duran to my Duran.”
“Be careful not to use all that wit before dinner.”
“Trust me I’m just getting started.”
“See you tonight, hope you like burgers.”
***
After school stiles heads out to the mall to pick up some things to bring to Derek’s. He didn’t know what to get them but, he really felt the urge to bring a gift. “What the hell should I get werewolves…” he mutters to himself.
He settles on a few things and a small bouquet of flowers from the hobby store next to the mall. As he was getting in his powder blue jeep, he couldn’t shake the feeling he was being watched. He quickly whipped around but nobody was there.
Still fighting the nagging feel of something off, he makes his way to Derek’s loft. It was on the far end of Beacon Hills just bordering The Preserve, a massive federally protected forest. The loft was at an industrial sized warehouse. It was massive inside with a section in the corner taking up about an eighth of space.
It looked like it had the facade of a town home inside the building. Stiles knocks and rings the doorbell. A bunch of thuds and footsteps sounds come from the other side of the door. The door opens to an overpowering smell of garlic and chili powder, while Derek stands there with tissues in his nose. He was wearing a very form fitting tank and basketball shorts that said “Beacon Hills High” on the leg. “Hey Stiles.”
“Hi Derek!” Stiles says flushing pink, while extending out his hand with the gifts.
“What’s all this?”
“Oh, you know, just a little of this and that. My mom raised me to bring a housewarming gift when I go over to someone’s house for the first time… Manners were a big deal to her.”
“SO, IT’S FOR BOTH OF US!!” Laura shouts from upstairs where the actual loft is.
“THANK YOU FOR CLARIFYING!” Derek shouts back. “Come on up.” Turning around to grab Stiles’ shoulders and guide him up the stairs.
Laura has her hair pulled back and an apron that has “Hungry Like the Wolf” screen printed on it. She’s moving around the kitchen like a pro. Casually stirring things, quickly chopping herbs and even a quick flambé of some meat. It smelled amazing.
“Hi there Stiles! Quick question how do you like your meat?” Laura says, wiping sweat from her brow.
“Oh! Uhh… Medium Well for burgers, medium rare for steaks.”
“Ahh… Good man!” She quickly and efficiently crafts three of the most picturesque burgers Stiles has ever seen in his life. “Chili cheese curly fries sound good?”
Stiles eyes dilated like he was a predator and he’d found his prey. “This is… I— Everything is just so…”
“Oh god… if you’re like this now, I don’t even want to know how you’re gonna act after the first bite” Derek rolls his eyes.
“What can I say… it’s a gift and a curse.” Laura says buffing her nails on her apron.
“WHVT ABLOUT THIVZ CUBEE A CURVEZ!?” Stiles says shoveling food in his mouth.
“Isn’t the first thing you said to me when you walked in is that your mom taught you manners?” Derek snickers.
“I wasn’t really expecting food like this…”
“What exactly were you expecting?”
“Rabbit… maybe pork?”
“Please tell me you’re not referencing the three little pigs.” Derek moans.
“HAHAHAHA!!! Little brother, I'm so glad you found this one.” She gets up and returns with a pig shaped cookie jar that was part of a set of three she had on the counter. “I keep all the important stuff in these.
My cookies are rather coveted. Those earrings are in the small one.”
She opened the jar to reveal perfectly shaped cookies that look like they would have come straight from a bakery. Stiles grabs one and sets it down on a napkin.
“It’s deer by the way.” Laura says with a wink.
“THE COOKIE!?”
“EW NO! WHATS WRONG WITH YOU. The burger is venison.”
“Who sells venison in Beacon Hills? Hunting in the preserve is illegal… for humans. Oh. Wait… can you turn into an actual wolf!?”
“Damn Der, you weren’t kidding how quick this one is.” Laura says grinning. “What big eyes you have, Stiles.”
“It was in debriefing. Of course I’d tell you all about the human I SWITCHED BODIES with.” Derek looks away embarrassed.
“Debriefing for what?” Stiles says bug eyed.
“The Jungle F— incident.”
“We’re not Hunters, if that’s what you’re thinking. We’re… more like guardians. Our family has been tasked for generations to protect this area of the world. We don’t allow any threatening supernaturals near Beacon Hills.”
“We protect those who cannot protect themselves.” They both say in unison.
“Well… that explains some of the weird shit my dad has seen over the years.” Stiles says with a far off look in his eye.
“Oh? What does he do?”
He’s… an… architect.” Stiles says hesitantly as he looks over to Derek who’s gone practically white as a sheet.
“SHIT.” Derek mutters.
“Stiles. Why are you lying to me?” Laura says basically appearing right in front of him in an instant.
Her eyes flash red as she asks “What does he do? And I would suggest not lying to me.”
“He works for the city.”
“Yes, doing what exactly?”
“For the police department...”
“Go on…”
“As the sheriff.” Stiles says, wincing.
“Is that it? You were worried I’d be upset about this?” Laura says practically teleporting behind Derek to smack him upside the head.
“OUCH! I was afraid you’d kill him! He’s the first person to find out our secret since…” Derek’s eyes darken.
“Yeah… we’ll he’s different than her I can tell.” She says back just as dark.
Stiles places a colorful bag and a bouquet of silk sunflowers on the dinner table. The two across from him perk up immediately, had the two been anymore canine they would have tails that would be wagging.
“I uhh… I got you silk flowers because I figured the real ones would smell too strong and they’d eventually die. I also got you a bottle of champagne with my fake ID and some unscented skin care stuff from the mall. After the whole body swap thing, Derek’s sense of smell is what I remember most. I figured that stuff would be a nice break from what you’d normally get.”
The two sit for a moment and just stare at Stiles. “IT’S PERFECT. Your mother would be proud sweetie.” Laura bursts out wiping a tear from her eye.
“Are you sure these flowers aren’t scented? These smell great!” Derek says taking several huffs.
“Oh yeah, what is that? That’s nice, very light and sweet. I can’t really place it. All the cooking has really thrown off my nose.”
“No… nothing.”
“Stiles. What did I say about lying?”
“HOW DID YOU…”
“Your heartbeat. Derek got the nose, and I got the ears. He sucks at being a lie detector.”
“I DO NOT.” Derek says offended.
“You’re certainly not as good as me.” Laura says.
“ Au Du Mieczyslaw .”
“Oh… do what now?” Derek says, still trying to place the word.
“You must have gone to Sephora for that right? I think I’ve heard of that one.” Laura says glaring at Stiles. “Would you join me in the quiet room?”
“The quiet room?” Stiles repeats worried.
“Relax… It's just a soundproof room I had installed when we moved in together a few years ago. It’s warded with… nevermind it’s soundproof.” She says dragging Stiles off.
“Wait you can’t just—“Derek starts.
“I can and I am. As your Alpha.” She says cutting him off.
Derek is left pacing in the room for about an hour till he gave up and sat down. He was leaning back in his chair sniffing the sunflowers as the door flew open. He got startled and fell backwards. “That’s the second time since he got here that you fell over. Are you ok?”
“Shut up.” Derek huffs then quickly turns to face Stiles. “WHAT WAS THAT ABOUT.”
“She said… I had her permission to court you among other things.”
“Yes! Of course! You brought his Alpha such a thoughtful gift minus the champagne but you didn’t know werewolves aren’t affected by alcohol so I won’t hold it against you… but you’re something special Stiles I can tell.”
“COURT ME!?” Derek says wide eyed.
“Actually Lydia, Jackson, Allison and Scott are going to Okami on Valentine’s Day, I have a reservation too. Would… would you go with me? Like a date?”
“Ohhhhh I think I get it.” Derek says, covering his mouth while silently saying “Phase 3?”
“I need you to say yes.” Stiles says, shooting a brief glance over to Laura.
“COME ON LITTLE BRO JUST SAY YES. Some people might say a first date on Valentine’s Day is over the top, but I just think it’s so romantic.” She sighs wistfully. “Plus, my bestie Ryoko works there, so she’ll get you the hook up and maybe even a doggie bag for me afterward.”
“Thank god dog puns aren’t off the table.”
“When YOU say it, it’s offensive” Derek says and Laura nods.
“Oh, shit really?”
“Bah! Nooooo we’re just fucking with you man.” Derek laughs as Laura looks on content.
“Listen, I gotta get going before my Dad comes in the cruiser. I’m supposed to be home in… 10 MINUTES!? SHIT. Gotta go!
Stiles grabs his cookie and kisses both Hales on the cheek practically leaping down the stairs making an oddly similar sound to the one he heard when he got there. “Bye sweetie! Text Derek and let him know you made it home ok!”
“Thanks Laura!” Stiles closes the door as he jumps in the jeep.
“He’s gone now, you don’t have to cover your teeth.”
“LAURA WHAT THE FUCK!”
***
Days go by and the two boys haven’t seen each other since dinner. That’s not to say the two haven’t been texting. They’ve been talking about everything you can think of like their favorite books, movies, and foods. They’ve even had deeper, more meaningful conversations, such as how both of their mothers died. Stiles’ mother had a brain tumor that caused early onset dementia and Derek’s mother died in a fire a few years ago.
Neither went into too great a detail about the other’s trauma but, the conversation had been started. At least each of them had been open with each other about an area of their lives that they didn’t speak of often.
Finally, it was Valentine’s Day and Scott had been texting Stiles the details of when to meet the group. He was oddly specific and was texting using bigger words than he thought Scott was capable of.
“Dude, I already told you that Derek is on his way.”
“Yes Stiles, it’s imperative to phase 3 that Derek be here.”
“Alriiight.” Stiles says completely skeeved out by Scott at this point. “I know it’s your first Valentine’s Day with Allison. Just relax.”
The two walk in and see that Allison, Lydia and Jackson have already been seated at a large table.
“Hiii Welcome to Okami, my name is Ryoko. I’ll be your server today, we’re still waiting on one. Correct?” A cute girl in a black and white server’s outfit says guiding them to the table.
“Uh… yeah. Just… one.” Stiles looks back at the girl uneasy.
“RELAX. I’ll make sure and show him to the table when he gets here.” She says with a slightly forced smile. “Alright, what can I get everyone started with to drink?”
“I’ll have a Long Island iced tea, and a water no lemon, no ice for my date.” Stiles says handing over his ID.
“Damn… you’re not going to order your date a real drink? Cheap ass.” Jackson scoffs.
“Noooo. I just happen to know that Derek doesn’t drink alcohol and prefers water over soda.” Stiles leans back in his chair glaring at Jackson.
“Regular Iced tea and water… got it.” The girl narrows her eyes at him and grins. “Uhhhg damn. This pen won’t work. Lemme see...” she takes a napkin and scribbles something on it to make the pen ink flow.
“Hey guys! Sorry I’m late, my sister was being a pain in the ass.” Derek walks up to the table. “Oh, hey Ryoko! Long time no see! We doing drinks? Water, no lemon, no ice for me.
“AHHH!!! DEREK! C’MERE” She wraps the man up in a hug, rubbing circles on his back. “Don’t worry, your boyfriend here already ordered for you.”
“Hi Stiles.” Derek kisses him on the cheek and sits down as if it was second nature.
“Awwwww!” Allison coos from across the table.
“WE’LL HAVE TWO SPRITES PLEASE!” Jackson says just under a yell.
“Actually Ryoko… better make that a Sprite and a Shirley Temple.” Stiles pats her on the arm as she’s taking note of the order.
“Thanks Stiles.” Lydia says actually making eye contact with the boy.
“Yeah, no problem.” He says nonchalant, completely disregarding the daggers that Jackson’s staring him down with.
“Coke and Cherry Coke for us please.” Allison says cheerfully.
“Coming right up.” The waitress walks back to the kitchen.
“I was looking at the menu and the family style option for 200$ doesn’t seem too bad for the six of us to split.” Allison says pointing at the menu.
“Yeah, it’s pretty good. I’ll cover the bill if everyone just tips Ryoko nicely.” Derek says, pulling out his black card.
“Derek! No way! I can’t imagine what you do pays well…” Stiles says wide eyed.
“My family comes from money and when the inheritance kicked in…”
“Oh… Sorry… I didn’t mean to…”
“It’s ok…”
Everyone at the table was staring at the two boy’s tender moment with odd fascination. “What do you do Derek?” Lydia interrupts.
“I’m… in security.” He says as Stiles nods along.
“Hi there! I’m back. So, what can I get you guys?” Ryoko comes back.
“A family special and 6 mooncakes for dessert.”
“Alrighty, I’ll be back when everything’s ready.”
“How do you know Ryoko?” Allison asks.
“Well, she’s my sister’s best friend. Our families are so close, she’s practically my cousin.”
“I’m back again! We’ve got the family special and individual wasabi and ginger for everyone. Enjoy, just shout out Ryoko! And I’ll be back in a flash.” She quickly leaves again.
“Uhhh… Scott, where’s your wasabi?” Allison says confused.
“I thought it was Guacamole!” Scott chokes out, dramatically flailing his arms around.
Allison and the whole table are looking on at the spectacle when there’s a sudden jolt at the table.
“ALRIGHT! FUCK YOU TOO? Can you believe that guy?” Jackson shouts to someone who bumped into the table and is already clear across the restaurant.
“Get him some water!” Allison calls out to the table.
“Here!” Derek reaches for his water. As he’s about to grab it, Scott completely snaps out of his coughing fit like nothing happened.
“I think I’m ok now.” Scott says.
“Okaaaaay.” Jackson says, side-eying the boy.
“At least he’s ok, I guess?” Derek exhales, reaching for his water. Just as the tip of his finger touches the glass it tips over spilling all over the table. “Shit! Sorry… I dunno how that happened. Let me go get Ryoko”
“Don’t worry little… Derek. I’ve already got you a new one!” Ryoko appears out of nowhere.
“Thanks…” Derek takes the glass awkwardly.
“So, Derek. What’s life after Highschool like?” Jackson says, shocking the entire table.
“Well… it’s different from what I expected. That’s for sure…” He says smirking. “I mean it’s not as bad— “Derek pushed back his chair and backed away slowly.
“What’s— EEP!” Lydia squeaks out, rising out of her chair.
“Easy now… you wouldn’t want me to give the pretty girl a makeover like my fantastic Smokey eye…” The vampire from Jungle who’d bitten Scott was standing behind the girl's chair, face charred, with his razor sharp nails pressed to her cheek.
“DIDN’T I KILL YOU ALREADY!?” Allison yells out.
“Well… if you would have gotten a little higher up, you might have but the way to a man’s heart isn’t through his stomach bitch.” The vampire says lifting up his shirt to reveal a see-through hole just above his belly button. “Now… I’m gonna say this once. You’re going to give Shaggy the keys to your jeep and he’s gonna go get the earrings for me.”
“Ok ok… don’t do anything rash. Here Scott. ONE CONDITION THOUGH. MAKE HIM DRIVE SAFE.” Stiles says gritting his teeth.
“Yeah yeah. I command you to go to the loft and get the earrings from that pig jar… while driving safely.” The vampire rolls his eyes.
Stiles hands Scott the keys, just before he goes, he can see the boy's eyes completely vacant. “Scott be careful.” Stiles calls out, to no reply.
“Take me. Leave Lydia out of this. It’s just a bit, we’re just pretending.” Derek roars.
“No Derek you can’t!” Stiles shouts holding up his arm in front of Derek.
Derek, Lydia and the vampire all stared at Stiles like he had two heads. “W… why not?” The vampire says confused. “Aren’t you in love with this girl?”
“Because I’m not pretending. Lydia is beautiful and smart and crazy talented but so is Taylor Swift.
Neither of which have ever given me the time of day. I’ll be damned if you try to take him from me.” Stiles says moving closer to Derek. “Ryoko!”
Suddenly there’s a wooden rod through the vampire's chest. “Isn’t she your goddess?”
“Consider me converted I guess.” Stiles says as he kisses Derek.
With a loud wet pop blood is splattered everywhere. “WHAT THE FUCK” Lydia screeches. An invisible wall shields everyone but Lydia from the blood splatter.
“Wow! Glad that’s over…” Stiles exhales.
“Not bad Stiles.” Ryoko says, appearing out of thin air completely clean. She pats him on the back.
*Alarm sound*
“And in under two hours. Pay up!” Stiles says, holding out his hand.
“Fiiiiine” Ryoko says, pulling out a blue earring from her apron pocket. She puts it on, and her eyes flutter shut. “Oh, Hi guys! Derek! Wow and you must be Stiles… I’ve heard so much about you!”
She snaps her fingers and in a shimmer of light, Laura and Scott appear next to her. Laura was smiling and had one of her cookies in one hand and Scott’s arm in the other.
“ALLISON!” Scott shouts rushing over to his girlfriend.
“Awww they’re so cute. Young love is so precious.” Ryoko says.
“Speaking of young love… Derek, are you ok?” Laura tilts her head past stiles to get a look at her brother.
“WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON!? AND WHERE’S JACKSON!?” Lydia screams, covered in blood and entrails for the second time.
“Is it safe?” Jackson pokes his head out from under the table.
“I COULD HAVE BEEN KILLED.” Lydia says tears streaming down her face.
“Easy young one, easy. Here, have some tea. It will help, I promise.” A small Asian woman came out from the kitchen area to hand all the teens a hot drink.
“Like hell I’m taking anything from you OLD—“Lydia starts.
“DRINK IT.” The woman’s eyes flash Alpha red.
“Better do what Satomi-san says… she’s even tougher than me.” Laura says snatching the drink from Stiles.
“Not you.”
The group all drink the tea and passed out. “Wow, Ryoko's still got it.” Laura says, elbowing her friend in the ribs.
“Hey! I might look 20 but I’ve been turning 20 for about 80 years now. Maybe I learned a few things along the way.” Ryoko says grinning.
“So… Satomi is the Alpha of this pack, and Ryoko’s their Emissary? She’s a witch who can do magic too… I’m confused, aren’t Alphas territorial. Doesn’t that get weird?” Stiles asked, rubbing his chin.
“Only if you make it weird, right Satomi-san? Our packs were always close growing up, we have an alliance of sorts.” Laura says, patting Satomi on the back.
“Her mother and I were like sisters; I owe her family my life… When she passed I knew their pack would need help, so we’re here to help when we can.” Satomi says bowing.
“Satomi-san!” Laura hugs the woman seemingly too tight.
“Ladies, let’s give the boys a minute to talk… Derek’s about to lose his shit, I can tell.”
The two find a now empty table since all the patrons were apparently just Satomi’s pack members, who got up and left after the whole ordeal. “What did you mean you weren’t pretending? I thought you wanted Lydia? When you asked me to help… you weren’t lying.”
“Uhhh… about that. I never asked you to help me with Lydia, I just asked you out.” Stiles says reaching for Derek’s hand. “Laura pulled me into the quiet room that night we had dinner and asked me if I wanted out…”
“If you wanted out? What do you mean?”
“Well, she asked me if I wanted to go back to not knowing about supernatural stuff. When I told her no, she asked if it was because I had feelings for you and…” Stiles squeezes Derek’s hand. “I told her I did. She said it was going to be hard being with you, since I’m human. She told me I had to take the bite if I wanted to be with you. When I said no, she told me I’d have to prove myself.”
“SHE OFFERED YOU THE BITE!?” Derek’s hand sprouted claws that dug into Stiles’ hand. “Shit!” I’m so sorry.
“Eh it’s alright. I think this is why she offered me the bite.” He says looking at his bloody hand.
Suddenly a plate of mooncakes appears in front of them with a note and a set of bandages. “Sorry to interrupt, but we thought this might come in handy, we’re totally not listening. Continue. -L” Derek read the note aloud frustrated.
“Here. I’ve been working on this for a few days.” Before wrapping his hand, he took a bit of blood on his finger and traced a symbol on the table. Just like magic, the room was completely silent. “Maybe now we can have a little bit of privacy.”
“Stiles. Did you just use magic?”
“What? Like it’s hard?
“Not everyone can use magic. I can’t even use magic.”
“Oh… it was in the margins of this book Laura gave me. It had a bunch of handwritten notes. I think it belongs to someone named Deaton? It was all very Half Blood Prince… It isn’t that easy, but something about it just made sense.”
“How has this entire night been possible?”
“When Laura told me I had to prove myself, she gave me your assignment to finish. Since the vampire wasn’t dead, she was still keeping tabs on him. She found out that he was meeting up with Scott every night to get information about me. It’s part of why she offered me the out since he was using me to get to you. I went over all the information she had on him and found out he was planning something here at Okami. She told me that it would be completely safe for my friends but that I had to figure out a way to keep you and Scott safe. The table was warded when she drew a sigil on that napkin. Anyone at the table would be safe from harm. I think that’s why your water tipped over, he must have tried to slip you something. I figured I could get him to send Scott away, he wouldn’t be able to order him to do anything that would put him in danger. Besides keeping tabs on Scott and the vampire, I had pretty much free rein to plan tonight. Except misleading you… That was Laura’s idea.”
“What?”
“She said we had to keep you in the dark since we were both being stalked by the vampire and Scott. She didn’t want him to catch on, otherwise the plan might fall apart. It turns out, I’m pretty good at lying to werewolves… I guess growing up as the Sheriff’s son taught me to answer questions in a way that isn't technically lying? She told me that’s why she cooked all the strong-smelling food… She didn’t want you to pick up on any… excited smells. Whatever that means.” Stiles shrugs. “To pass her test, I had to minimize damage to the restaurant, keep the plan secret from you and Scott, and not let anyone get hurt… including myself. I even bet her a cookie that I could do it in under two hours.”
“Her cookies aren’t THAT GOOD.” Derek rolls his eyes, realizing he said that out loud and looked around nervously.
“Relax! Remember… soundproof?” Stiles points to the slightly shiny dome above them. “Her cookies are practically a religious experience. If I had fangs, they’d be out.”
“GROSS!”
“What?” Stile says looking confused.
“My sister’s cookies are not allowed to make you horny.” Derek says grimacing.
“THAT’S WHAT THAT MEANS!?” Stiles says as the sound ward flickers and breaks.
The two laugh and share a quick kiss. They take a mooncake each and tap them together taking a bite at the same time. “So Stiles, what's it gonna be?” Laura says walking up.
“What’s what? Stiles says confused.
“We’re gonna wipe your friends' minds from the last week. Are you sure you want this life? We were born into it; we didn’t get to choose.”
“I choose Derek.” Stiles said confidently holding his hand.
“Are you sure you don’t want the bite? You’d make an excellent wolf.” Laura says with a toothy smile.
Derek’s eyes flash blue and his claws pop out. “He said no.”
“Little brother. DO NOT FORGET WHO YOUR ALPHA IS. I was just making sure.” Laura’s eyes flash red at the challenge. “Welcome to the Hale Pack Mieczyslaw Stillinski.”
“Who… WAIT WHAT!? The flowers…” Derek turns bright pink.
“Yeah, I might have put them in my gym bag for like an hour on the way to dinner. I… wanted to make sure they smelled like me when I gave them to you.” Stiles says reaching behind himself to tug his shoulder.
Laura walks away from the boys and leans her head on Ryoko’s shoulder. “Wow he managed to create a sound ward in less than a week? Not to mention freeing a head vampire’s familiar without any loss of life?” Ryoko says. “You’re gonna have to introduce him to Alan. He’s got one of the brightest sparks I’ve ever seen. You gave him that book on purpose, didn’t you? ”
“Yeah, I had a hunch after meeting him. I thought he’d be good with magic. Wanna know the scariest part? I think he might be Derek’s mate too.” Laura says quietly.