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Derek stared at the calendar on the wall, the days dwindling away without him coming up with another solution. He sighed and stood, reaching into his pocket to retrieve his phone and sending off a text to the one person he’d been hoping to avoid until after the situation was resolved. He set the phone on the coffee table he’d recently acquired and sat on the couch to wait. He heard the car when it turned into the parking lot, but couldn’t bring himself to answer the door. He knew he had bad plans sometimes, but he was sure this was going to be the worst.
“Hey dude, what’s the emergency?”
“Don’t call me dude.” He didn’t mind really, but it was habit to say the words now. A deep breath, this was going to go over like a ton of bricks. He barely managed to mumble out the words, “I need your help.”
“You’re gonna have to speak up there big guy – I’m not all with the enhanced hearing,” he gestured at his ears, eyes widening as his head shook softly from side to side. Derek sighed again before repeating himself.
“I. Need. Your. Help.”
“Obviously. It’s not like you call me to hang out. So what’s do you need my help with this time? Rogue werewolves, rogue hunters, Rogue from the X-Men?” Stiles laughed at his own joke. Derek could barely contain the eyeroll. Doing that wasn’t going to win him any points with his request.
“Prep.”
“Dude...okay…but like...you're a werewolf...I don't think you need PREP?"
“That’s not what I meant.” He glared, could feel his teeth grinding as his jaw clenched, the tips of his ears turning red. Something Stiles definitely noticed.
“Oh...so...you mean like... ” his hands flailed in the general direction of his ass, voice dropping to a whisper, “I always thought I'd be the one needing prep for that, but whatever floats your boat... ”
“WHAT?”
“What what? I didn’t say anything? What?” Stiles’ face was completely red now, which fine, at least they matched.
“Jesus Stiles. The blood moon is coming – the pull will be stronger than–” Stiles interrupted before Derek could even finish the sentence.
“Yeah yeah. Perigee-Syzygy, the Supermoon. I got it. Enhances the wolfiness. Not always in a handy fun way. Never probably in a handy fun way. But you’re born; shouldn’t you be able to handle this?”
“I…not as a full wolf. Last time I was in the middle of the desert, alone. There wasn’t any risk – nobody for hundreds of miles. I woke up…” he trailed off, embarrassed to admit the next part but knowing he’d need to for Stiles to take him seriously. He cleared his throat and tried again, gaze falling over Stiles’ shoulder, unable to look him in the eye. “I woke up surrounded by dead hares. Apparently I killed everything in a twenty mile radius and I don’t remember doing it.”
“That’s…um…okay then. Prep. Prep is probably really good.” Derek could hear the jackrabbit patter of Stiles’ heart as he processed this information. At least he was taking it seriously now. “So, why me?”
“What do you mean why you?”
“I mean, why are you asking me to help you? Shouldn’t you ask your alpha? Or like…Malia used to be feral, she probably has some tips?”
“Scott’s not my alpha.” He knew he was glaring, he couldn’t help it.
“Uh yeah, he’s the only alpha werewolf in town, pretty sure he’s your alpha.”
“He’s not my fucking alpha Stiles.”
“You two are ridiculous with this ‘he’s not my alpha’ bullshit.” Derek let out a groan of frustration before reminding himself that it didn’t matter right now.
“Even if he was my alpha, he’s going to have his hands full with Liam. I heard about what happened last time. And Malia isn’t here, but even if she was…she gave over to the coyote, she has no idea how to take back control once she’s shifted fully.”
“Okay, those are fair points Derek, but still…why me? There has to be someone else you could’ve called.”
“Firstly, there isn’t or I would’ve called them.”
“Rude but true.”
“Shut up. Secondly, you research, it helps. You can probably help.”
“That’s a winning endorsement there big guy. What exactly is it that you think I can do here for you?”
“I need you to keep me trapped. In the basement. Of the old house.”
“The house where all of us have almost died on several occasions?” At Derek’s nod Stiles sighed. “Yay. And what do you mean keep you trapped? Mountain ash circle?”
“Not just a circle, I don’t know how much this is going to affect me. I need you to circle the house but also me into the cage we used when the kids were learning control. And then I need you to stay and make sure I don’t get out. And also that nothing else gets in.”
“I’m sorry…I must be hearing things. You want me to stay in the decrepit basement of a burnt out house – by myself – with a probably feral wolf and guard you from the world and the world from you?”
“Yes.”
“And you think I’m the only person who can do this?”
“Yes.”
“Because why exactly? What qualifies me?”
“You – you have skills.” Derek sputtered the words, knowing exactly how convincing they didn’t sound.
“Right. Fucking lie. I don’t even need to be a werewolf to hear that.” He sighed deeply, heartbeat slowing and steadying, scent going a little bitter. “It’s because I’m the most expendable isn’t it?” And Derek could hear the lack of stutter in Stiles’ heartbeat, knew that’s what he thought of himself. He hated what he had to say next, but knew it was the only way to get Stiles to agree.
“Yes.” Before he even finished speaking the word he could see Stiles’ head start to nod, scent going completely defeated.
“Okay. I’ll see you tomorrow before sundown. I’ll meet you out there.” He turned to leave the loft and Derek reached out, hand stopping before it could hit Stiles’ shoulder. There wasn’t anything he could say tonight to make it better anyhow.
Derek spent the better part of the following day clearing out a path around the old house, making sure Stiles could easily create an unbroken line of ash. It was late afternoon before he had a chance to head to the basement and check the cage, assuring himself it would hold. He went back upstairs, grabbing the supplies he’d brought for Stiles from the Camaro’s trunk and getting them set up in the basement: food, water, a battery-powered camping lantern, fold-out chair with a blanket and pillow so Stiles could at least be mildly comfortable, and his laptop. The internet wouldn’t work out here, but he’d loaded up the bestiary on it and added in all of Braeden’s gathered intel from her time as a hired hit. They hadn’t worked out, but had made surprisingly good friends after it was all said and done. He heard the Jeep come chugging into the clearing and headed up to meet Stiles on the porch, arriving just in time to see him dragging his trusty bat out of the back seat along with a bag of what had to be the mountain ash.
“Get the outer ring set up, I’ll meet you downstairs.”
“Sure thing Derek.” Stiles’ voice still sounded off, but there was still nothing he could do to fix it, so he turned inside without another word, and headed into the basement again. He set the cage’s key on top of the folded blanket then moved to the other side of the room, stopping far enough back that the cage wasn’t quite in touching distance before toeing off his boots and socks, stuffing the latter into the shoes so he didn’t lose them. Next went the Henley and belt, the shirt folded neatly on top of the boots and the belt looped into a circle next to them. He was sliding his jeans down his hips when he heard an uptick in Stiles’ heartbeat and realized that he’d come downstairs without Derek even realizing it.
“Jesus dude, warn a man if you need some privacy. Fuck.”
“Don’t call me dude.” He bent slightly at the waist to tug the pants over first one foot, then the other, before neatly folding the jeans and dropping them on top of everything else. He calmly walked into the cage, pulling the door shut behind him until he heard the lock catch. He moved to a small cot in the corner, lying down on his back and twitching a thin scratchy blanket across his hips to cover himself before he finally looked to doorway that Stiles seemed to be stuck in. When Stiles realized he was still staring he blinked a few times before moving over to the chair, carefully pocketing the keys before shifting everything off of it and arranging it to his liking. He glanced at the edge of what used to be a window, noticing the growing dark outside and setting down the bat before grabbing up the remainder of the mountain ash and moving in a circle around the cage, hesitating as he passed the spot where Derek’s clothes lay discarded for a moment before continuing on. He felt the line settle as the last grains fell from his hand, the sun choosing that moment to slip beneath the horizon outside, stealing the last of the light. He fumbled back towards where he knew the chair was, finding the lantern by feel and flicking it on. When he turned and dropped into the chair his breath caught. Derek was gone…well, not gone but not Derek really anymore. Instead he saw the wolf, the one he’d only briefly glimpsed those couple years back, shining black fur and glowing blue eyes. Derek as a wolf was indescribably beautiful. And he was just standing there, staring back at Stiles through the bars of the cage. Beautiful and unnerving then.
“Might as well settle in dude, it’s going to be a long night.” The Derek-wolf chuffed at him, what sounded suspiciously like a laugh if he was honest, before dropping his nose to the ground and beginning a slow circle of the inside of the cage, soft snorts disturbing the dust gathered on the floor but thankfully not affecting the mountain ash at all. Stiles knew it should be safe, but watching the dust particles drift across it without disturbing the line had him settling a bit more. It helped that despite the warnings; so far Derek hadn’t seemed at all aggressive. He picked up the laptop, booting it up and opening the only folder on the desktop, helpfully labelled “Stiles Read This”. It was the bestiary, new additions in a secondary folder. Awesome. He slid further down in the chair, legs splayed in front of him, pillow on his thighs to hold the laptop up at a better angle, and started to read. Occasionally he’d notice movement just above the top of the screen, the flick of a tail, the tips of the wolf’s ears popping up before disappearing, but overall it was pretty quiet.
He’d been reading for hours before his stomach rumbled. He stretched, a groan escaping as his muscles tried to un-tense from sitting still for so long. He carefully set the laptop, still on the pillow, off to the side and stood, shaking out his legs and bouncing a little as they tingled. He reached over for a bottle of water and a granola bar, glancing at the cage as he moved. He lost his balance, tumbling over the side of the chair and cracking his elbow as he went down when he saw that things had most definitely not been calm despite being quiet. Derek was on the outside of the cage, having dug a hole beneath it through the hard-packed dirt flooring, right in the spot Stiles wouldn’t have seen with the computer on his lap. The wolf was nosing at the mountain ash line, eyes flicking up to meet Stiles’ as it pushed forward. Stiles could see the barrier bend in response, something that shouldn’t have been possible for anyone who wasn’t an alpha. But it was happening. It hadn’t broken…yet. His body tensed as he struggled for something to do to distract the wolf from continuing to push forward. His mind was totally blank. He went to stand, pushing up with his hands and sending a spike of pain through his elbow that left him whimpering. Surprisingly, he heard an echoed whimper come from the wolf, which redoubled its efforts to get through the line. It was enough to give him a spark of an idea.
“Hey there big guy, you worried about me,” the sound of his voice stopped all movement from the wolf; he watched as it cocked its head, one ear tilting up to indicate it was listening. “I’m alright for now, but you need to stay on the other side of that line. Can’t have you running free tonight buddy.” He was moving closer slowly, the wolf still and waiting. He stopped when he was just on the other side of the line, watched as the wolf’s muzzle lifted slightly, nostrils flaring as it scented the air. He held his breath as it let out another soft whine, trying and failing to push its face across the line. He thought about everything that had happened over the last two days, thought maybe he’d misunderstood something important. Thought he’d be dead if he was wrong now. And then he took a breath and stepped over the line. Teeth closed gently over his wrist, a slight nip before they left his skin and two hundred pounds of wolf rubbed against him like it was a cat. He felt the shudder of relief that coursed through him, was sure the wolf – Derek, it was definitely Derek in there – felt it too. He stepped over to the door of the cage, unlocking it and opening the door before moving back across the line. He almost fell as teeth snagged on his jeans, a low growl coming from behind him. He looked over his shoulder, eyes narrowing at the teeth closed around his back pocket.
“Bad dog. Drop.” The growl intensified but he knew it now for the show it was. “I’m grabbing some of the stuff and bringing it in here, I’ll be right back.” Derek chuffed but opened his jaw, letting Stiles go, though he paced the line while Stiles gathered up a couple of the water bottles and snacks as well as the laptop, pillow, and blanket, before sweeping past Derek, careful of the line of ash. He settled onto the cot, dropping the scratchy blanket Derek had first used onto the floor and replacing it with the nicer one that had been brought for him. He propped the laptop on his knees, settling the pillow behind his head where it rested against the cage bars and patting the spot next to him on the cot when he saw that Derek was still pacing. The wolf chuffed again before crossing the floor and hopping up gently to settle next to Stiles.
“Good dog.” He patted Derek’s head, barely managing to pull his hand back as Derek’s teeth snapped on air. He knew it wasn’t serious though, could tell as Derek settled down, muzzle resting on his paws. He read for another hour, the heat of the wolf next to him keeping the chill of the room from bothering him too much. He let out a loud yawn, arms stretching above his head, shirt riding up to reveal a small bit of skin. He yelped when a cold nose brushed against it, swatting at Derek who merely moved his head to the side, easily avoiding the smack, before using a heavy paw to push at Stiles’ side. He took the hint, shutting down the laptop and flopping sideways on the cot, the wolf curling in front of him as they drifted off to sleep.
Stiles woke to a heavy weight across half his body, disoriented momentarily. When he managed to blink enough to clear his eyes, he almost wished he hadn’t woken. Derek was sprawled over him; somehow Stiles had rolled in the night, back to the room and face pushed against the pillow – the only thing protecting it from being smashed into the bars. Derek had shifted back sometime in the early morning hours, a leg and arm wrapped over Stiles, his nose shoved into the join of Stiles’ shoulder and neck. The man was like a fucking octopus. A very naked octopus. He cleared his throat and shifted slightly, trying to untangle Derek’s limbs from his before this became very awkward very fast.
“Wha–” and oh god, he could literally feel Derek’s lips moving against his skin as the man mumbled at him from where he was groggily joining the land of the awake. Stiles had to get up right now. He used what little strength he had, relying on Derek’s still mostly asleep state to help him, and shoved himself up, tripping in his haste to get off the cot before any more parts of him could touch any more of that gloriously naked flesh. When he was free he snatched up the second blanket that had been discarded the night before, tossing it over Derek’s hips and ass before exiting the cage and breaking the mountain ash line. He could hear Derek moving around behind him, definitely more on the awake side of things now, but carefully remained facing away until he heard the pull of a zipper.
“Okay so, successful night – no dead bunnies, no dead citizens. Good times. I’m gonna go and break the ash outside and go. Because…I have stuff…so I’m gonna go.” He nodded to himself, aware that his rambling was making less sense than usual but unable to stop it. He grabbed up his bat and opened the basement door, intending to head out before anything else could fall out of his mouth.
“Stiles…” He stopped, turning back at Derek’s voice. “Thank you.”
“Um…sure. Anytime big guy.” He could feel his cheeks heating up at the sight of Derek, hair sleep rumpled, barefoot, and shirtless. He hadn’t even buttoned his jeans yet, just pulled them on and dragged up the zipper.
“Oh hey Stiles?”
“Yeah?”
“About yesterday…is that offer to help me prep still on the table?” Derek, the smug bastard, smirked as Stiles flailed so hard he fell on his ass.
“Son of a bitch! Ow.” Stiles groaned at the pain shooting up from his tailbone, embarrassment causing his face to flush an even darker red. He could hear Derek laughing, the chuckle that started as he fell turning into full blown laughter. A glance up showed Derek doubled-over with it. He wanted to be mad but damned if laughing didn’t transform Derek’s face into something beautiful. The man was always attractive, but seeing him laugh, that was something else. “Can we pretend that didn’t happen and that I just calmly said yes?”
“Nope.” Derek popped the P like Stiles normally did, laughter finally starting to peter out but the smile still on his face.
“Is it still an option at least?” Stiles stood up, brushing dirt off his ass as he took a hesitant step back into the room. He blinked and Derek was suddenly right in front of him, hand reaching forward.
“Yep.” He popped the P again, lips brushing against Stiles’ as he did so, the hand he’d been reaching out curling gently around the back of Stiles’ neck as he pulled him forward into a kiss.