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The minute John laid eyes on Derek Hale that late summer day, he knew everything would change.
Derek had grown into himself while he was away. But the eyes. The eyes were both old and scared in a way John needed to understand.
Stiles was babbling something about murder and bodies and Scott that John tuned out for a moment. He took a deep breath. Held it. Let it out.
"Stiles!" he said firmly. "Let me do my job."
"But, dad..." Stiles started.
John held up his hand. "Stop."
Stiles stilled. John rarely pulled out the 'stop' word because it would lead to questions. But in this moment, he needed Stiles to let him talk to Derek. Alone.
"I need you to go home and stay there," John said softly. "Please."
Stiles nodded. There was a stubborn tilt to his head but Stiles would do this.
"I'll be home for dinner," John promised. He'd have to be there, otherwise Stiles would go haring off somewhere John couldn't control and make everything worse.
"Kale," Stiles muttered as he stalked off toward the Jeep. "You're eating kale tonight."
John sighed and let it go. He turned to Derek and eased the young man into the patrol car. He walked around to the other side and got in.
Derek was sullen, scared, and menacing without moving. John didn't let it bother him. This kid had been through too much and deserved someone on his side. John had elected himself.
It was him or Stiles, and Stiles would bring chaos down on them all.
Derek barely moved on the drive to the station. John pulled up to the back door of the building and helped Derek out of the car. John took Derek to his office. He took off the cuffs and offered Derek a bottle of water.
Derek shook his head.
"Sit, please," John said softly. "You've been through a lot, and I'd like to talk." Derek didn't move. "Just talk."
That elicited a frown of confusion. John was glad to see Derek sit. He put the water on the desk in front of Derek.
"I wanted to help you, the night of the fire," John said gently. Derek flinched. "But you left without warning and I had no way to reach you."
"Laura..." Derek cleared his throat. "Laura insisted we leave."
"She was scared," John nodded. "I understand that."
"She..." Derek stopped.
"She was the Alpha, wasn't she?" John asked.
Derek's head came up fast. He leaned away. Scared eyes turned terrified.
Without a word, John held out his hand and a small flame danced on the palm of his hand before burning itself out.
Derek's eyes went wide. Terrified had turned to curious.
"I knew the Hales, or at least most of them, were werewolves," John said carefully. "And that fire was no accident. Even if it was, there was no reason for so many to die that night."
The reaction to that, John didn't expect. Or, maybe he should have.
Derek shut down. "I want to leave," he said lowly.
"I can't do that," John said. "First of all, you're technically a suspect in the murder of a young woman we found in the woods. It's the only way I have to protect you."
"Laura." It was barely a whisper.
John nodded. "I suspected. But I didn't know her well and needed to be sure."
Derek curled into himself.
"Second of all, I have evidence that the fire was set deliberately," John said. "But I've had no one to do it for. I can do it now, so your family can see some of the justice they deserve."
"That won't work," Derek muttered.
"Has anyone ever tried?" John asked.
Derek looked up. Puzzled.
At least Derek was now thinking and not just reacting.
"Your Uncle Peter is still alive," John decided this might be a good time to add that to the discussion.
"Laura... Laura told me he died in the fire!" Derek hissed.
"Nope," John said firmly. "He's in the long-term care ward of the hospital."
"He... he should have healed by now!" Derek said.
"I can't get in to see him," John admitted. "I had no legal reason to see him, even as Sheriff, and Laura had forbidden any visitors that were not family. The hospital had to support that choice."
Derek shook his head. "Something is wrong, if he's still in the hospital!"
John nodded. "But we have to be careful. If someone is doing something to keep him in the hospital, we have to be careful not to get caught."
"Can we... can we just take him?" Derek asked.
"That's one option," John said. "But to do that, we have to do it later at night. When there are fewer people to see us."
Derek nodded. But he vibrated in place, wanting to do something.
"Where are you staying?" John asked.
Derek blushed. "The.. the house."
John sighed. "You know perfectly well that's not safe."
"It's home," Derek protested.
"I am sorry, but it's a burnt-out husk that should be torn down," John said firmly. "I know that hurts, but it's at the 'attractive nuisance' stage, and you'll be sued if you don't do something about it." He'd have to check to see who the legal owner might be.
Derek huffed. But John took it as a win that Derek didn't protest.
"Come on," John decided. "I've decided you're a potential target instead of a suspect and taking you into protective custody."
"What?" Derek was stunned.
"My kid is going to feed me kale for dinner, so you get to suffer along-side me," John said. "You look like you can use a hot meal and a shower."
"I don't have a lot of money," Derek finally admitted. "I had to use the emergency credit card to have enough gas to get here and I don't know what the limit is. Laura took care of all of that."
"Then it's a good thing I have an extra bedroom," John said. "Come on. It's been a long day and if we want to try to get to Peter, it'll be a long night." He looked at Derek. "I need you to trust me and wait here for a bit. Half an hour. I need to do enough paperwork to cover my ass."
Derek gave a startled huff at that.
John went out to the office and talked to the deputies that had been there when he took Derek in. He explained that Derek had a reasonable alibi and that he was worried he would be the next victim after Laura.
"I'm taking Hale home with me," John finished. "It's the last place anyone would look for him."
Deputy Black nodded, like it was something he suspected John would do. John thought Black was at least in-the-know about the supernatural, so taking a Hale into his home wasn't a total surprise.
"Let us know if you need anything," Black said.
"You can come and eat the kale my kid will be feeding us," John sighed.
There was some gentle laughter. Everyone had been 'lectured' by Stiles at one point or another about watching what John ate. They watched. They just never did anything about it.
"We can get your car later," John promised Derek as they got into the cruiser.
Stiles' eyes went wide when John brought Derek into the house.
"Explanations in a bit," John said. "We both need showers and some food."
Putting Stiles into caretaker-mode was always a good option.
"Sure," Stiles nodded. He turned to Derek. "Maybe dad has something that will fit you?"
Derek looked surprised at that. "I... I have some clothes in my car."
"Dude! You're car isn't here and putting dirty underwear on after a shower is the worst!" Stiles protested.
Derek blushed at that.
"I have some things you can use," John nodded. "Come on, you can have the first shower while Stiles cleans up the guest room." He looked at Stiles. "Derek's going to stay for a couple of days."
"Oh, man," Stiles rolled his eyes, then turned to Derek. "The room looks worse than it is, to be honest. I'll put fresh sheets on the bed while you clean up."
"Umm... okay," Derek replied, obviously overwhelmed.
John let Stiles do his thing, showing Derek the room, getting towels, and digging through John's room for some clean clothes. Derek gamely took the handful of clothes and disappeared into the bathroom. Stiles set up the guest room -- that had never had guests -- while Derek was in the shower.
John took a moment to have a cup of coffee while the boys were busy. It gave him a chance to think and plan what they needed to do next.
Stiles came clattering down the stairs. He had a basket of laundry in his hands.
"Yeah, the sheets on that bed needed changing, so I thought I'd throw some laundry in," he said. "Don't spoil your dinner!"
"Just coffee," John waved the mug. "Derek and I need to go out again, after dinner."
Stiles glared.
"After dinner," John said.
A huff. "All right," Stiles replied. "It better be good."
John barked a laugh.
While dinner included the dreaded kale, it wasn't as awful as it could be, John had to admit. Stiles had done some research on making the kale somewhat palatable. The meatloaf and mashed potatoes were good.
"You did good, kid," John said as he cleaned his plate.
A small blush. One that reminded John that he needed to say 'thank you' a bit more often for all Stiles did around the house.
"There's cake, for after," Stiles said. "Do you want that now, or wait until later?"
John looked at Derek, who had been quiet but had eaten heartily.
"Let's go and sit in the living room for a minute," John decided.
Stiles nodded. "Five minutes, while I put the left-overs away," he said.
"Sure," John agreed.
Derek sat in an armchair in a corner. As if he could isolate himself from them.
Stiles came in and dropped onto the couch. "So. What's up?"
"First of all, I need you to think first, before you say or do anything," John said to Stiles. "Derek is trusting us with..." he glanced at Derek, "with his life."
Stiles sat back, then nodded.
"Let me start with this," John said. He again held out his hand and produced the small flame that danced on his hand.
Stiles, of course, leaned in and poked a finger into the flame. He was startled when his fingertip got slightly singed.
"Wait." Stiles frowned as his mind obviously went a million miles and hour. He held out his own hand. A bigger flame appeared and didn't disappear until Stiles closed his fist.
"What the fuck was that?" Stiles asked.
"Magic," John admitted. "Your mom... she had magic and showed me that I had some. Nothing like hers. Or yours."
Stiles sat back on the couch, mind moving now at light speed. "We... did things... together. When I was little."
John nodded. "There are some books in the attic that she put aside for you when she realized she was ill. It's time to get them out."
"What does..." He looked at Derek. "Oh, fuck. You're a werewolf, too!"
"Too?" John asked, startled.
"Umm..." Stiles started. "The other night..."
John groaned. "I'm not going to like this, am I?"
"Probably not," Stiles admitted.
"Your friend is a 'wolf," Derek said.
"Scott? Scott is a werewolf?" John was stunned.
Stiles sighed and rubbed his hands over his face.
"I think you need to tell me what really happened the other night," John said.
Stiles recounted the story of hearing the police call and going into the Preserve with Scott. That Scott was bit by... something, and turned into a werewolf. How Stiles identified what happened and how he was trying to help Scott manage his new-found abilities.
"Throwing lacrosse balls at Scott is... inventive," John admitted.
"At least he mostly can manage," Stiles said. "But, well, it doesn't seem like he should advertise he's a werewolf."
"No." Derek said flatly.
John nodded. "There are people called Hunters. In theory, their job is to police the supernatural. Deal with creatures that the human legal system can't."
"Oh, right," Stiles nodded. "Like, well, how would you put a werewolf in jail?"
"It can be done, but it takes special planning," John replied.
"And not all Hunters follow the Code," Derek added. "Some... just kill because they can."
Stiles huffed. "Who polices the police?"
"Exactly," John nodded. "Derek's family didn't die in an accident. I can prove that. But, well, until Derek came back to town, there was no reason to."
"Now what?" Stiles asked.
"We get Derek's Uncle Peter out of the hospital and see if we can figure out what might be keeping him there. 'Wolves heal from most things and even with the burn trauma, Peter should be out of the hospital by now," John said.
Stiles bounced. "A rescue mission!"
"Whoa!" John held up a hand. "You're staying here."
"What? No!" Stiles protested. "I can help! I can... watch out! Or something."
"We... we shouldn't leave him here alone," Derek said, obviously reluctantly.
"You sure?" John said, looking at Derek.
Derek nodded.
"Yes!" Stiles fist pumped.
"We... we need to be prepared for anything," Derek added. "If there are Hunters involved, we may need to run."
"Oh," Stiles sat down. He considered. "Mom... mom had a place in the woods. A place she said I'd always be safe. I haven't thought of it in years but, maybe, we could use that as a Plan B?"
John nodded. If Claudia had a bolt-hole in the Preserve, it may or may not be there. But it might be safer than coming back to the house. It gave them an option.
"So we plan for the worst and hope for the best," John said.
Stiles got up. "Then we need cake," he said firmly.
John noticed that Derek got a bigger piece of cake than he did but didn't say anything. It was good to give Stiles a focus that wasn't him or Scott.
John stayed in his uniform but picked up a jacket and a flashlight to take with them. Stiles dressed for a hike in the woods, with boots and heavy jeans. Derek didn't have much beside the clothes he had come in, but he probably could likely take care of himself better than he or Stiles could.
John handed Stiles and Derek flashlights, as well as protein bars. Derek looked reluctant. "If not for us, maybe for your Uncle Peter?"
Derek shrugged but John saw him put them carefully in a pocket.
They went to the hospital. John went to the long term care ward, a route all too familiar from Claudia's illness. It was after visiting hours and the halls were quiet.
The nurse at the station was unfamiliar to John.
"We're here to see Peter Hale," John announced.
"Mr. Hale is not allowed visitors," the woman said, barely glancing at them.
Derek stepped forward. "He's my uncle. I know family is allowed," he said softly.
The woman looked up, startled. She finally noticed John in his uniform.
"Sheriff, I didn't recognize you," she said. "Do you know this man?" She nodded at Derek.
"Yes," John said. "Derek Hale is Peter's nephew. He's here in regard to his sister's death and needs to see his uncle."
"Oh! I am so sorry!" the woman apologized. "Certainly. Come this way." She led them down the hall. "We get Peter up out of bed, since he seems to react well to that." She looked at the clock. "I'd normally be getting him ready for bed but I'll wait until you leave."
"That would be appreciated," John said.
"Thank you," Derek added softly.
She left them as they entered the room.
John saw the back of Peter's head, sitting in a chair that faced the window in the room. The window was, interestingly, slightly ajar. John was surprised the window even opened.
"Uncle Peter?" Derek called, moving forward. He stood in front of the chair.
John was -- and wasn't -- startled when Peter raised his head and growled.
"YOU LEFT ME!" Peter yelled.
"Oh, fuck," Stiles muttered.
"It was Laura," Derek whimpered. "I.. I didn't know! She told me you died!"
Peter seemed to hear that. But John could see he was agitated.
"You owe me!" Peter growled.
"Umm... dad?" Stiles sounded worried.
"Hang on," John held out a hand, to keep Stiles back.
Peter struggled to stand. Even though he wasn't as tall as Derek, he loomed over his nephew.
Before John could do anything, Stiles slithered his way to the front. He held out a hand and said, "STOP."
Even John could feel the intent behind that.
Peter froze in place.
"He... he won't move, until I let him" Stiles said, then winced. "I hope."
"We should get out of here," John decided. He looked at Derek. "Can you carry Peter?"
Derek nodded.
"Okay, Stiles, check the hall," John said. "We can go out the back way."
"Won't that be alarmed?" Stiles asked.
"Do that 'stop' thing at the alarm," John said. "You can't make it any worse."
Stiles grinned. He poked his head out and came back. "Hall is clear."
"Okay, let's get out of here," John said.
Derek scooped Peter up over his shoulder. Stiles went ahead and paused at a door that had an alarm notice on it. Stiles muttered to himself, pressed his hand on the door, then pushed it open.
The alarm remained silent.
"Don't know how long that will hold," Stiles admitted.
"Meh," John shrugged. "There are cameras, so they'll see us if they go looking." That was a problem for later.
"Oh, yeah," Stiles replied. "Okay, we should be clear."
John let Derek ease down the stairs behind Stiles and John carefully closed the door behind them. He'd take any advantage he could get.
The stairwell emptied onto the lawn in back of the hospital.
"You have to lead the way," John said to Stiles. "Your mom never took me wherever we're going."
Stiles took a breath, then nodded.
"Don't worry about me," Derek said. "I can keep up."
"Good man," John said.
John stayed behind Derek as Stiles led the way. He stopped and started a couple of times, as if he wasn't quite sure of where he was going. He moved deftly through the woods without using the flashlight. Derek didn't seem to need one, so John left his off. It would also make them harder to follow.
"Almost there," Stiles said softly.
John wasn't -- quite -- starting to huff but he was glad there was at least a break coming soon.
Stiles stepped through some brush and they followed him to a clearing.
"Ohhh..." Stiles cooed. "I didn't know how much I missed you!" He went up and put his hands on the huge tree stump that sat in the middle of the clearing.
"Derek, put your Uncle on the tree," Stiles directed.
"Is it safe?" Derek asked.
"Safest place for him right now," Stiles replied calmly.
Derek carefully laid Peter on the stump and was about to step back when Stiles said, "No. Move closer. It wants to meet you, too."
John frowned. What the fuck?
"Dad, come here," Stiles directed. "Mom wasn't sure but it needs to meet you tonight."
Confused but game, John stepped forward.
"Put your hands on the tree," Stiles directed.
John moved next to Stiles and leaned in to lean on the tree. Derek was on the other side of Stiles. Peter lay in front of them.
"Ummm...." Stiles sounded uncertain as everything went white.
The others were still there in the same position and John found he couldn't move.
"You have done well, young Spark," a voice said.
"What?" Stiles looked around.
A being of some sort appeared sitting on the tree on the other side of Peter from them.
"I have missed you, Mischief," the being said.
"You're Greenie!" Stiles breathed.
"A lovely name from a young child," the being nodded. "I am glad you came to me in your time of need."
"Umm... I don't know what we're doing?" Stiles winced.
"You came, that is the most important part," the being replied. "And you brought an important part of your life with you."
"Can you help Peter?" Stiles asked. "I... I stopped him from hurting us but I don't know how I did that."
"I have had an eye on him and helped you," the being admitted. "But, alone, I could not help him. Together, we can save him."
"What do we need to do?" Stiles asked instantly.
"Think of him, whole, healthy," the being replied. "I can do the rest."
Stiles nodded.
The being put a hand on Peter, then nodded. "I must make one change," it said. It pulled something from Peter and tossed it to Derek, who caught it reflexively. "That will be better."
John couldn't see Derek but heard a groan.
There was a flow of dust that came from Peter. The being collected it and set it aside. "Take this with you, Mischief."
Stiles nodded.
"It is good for the Hale Pack to return to this land," the being said. "I have unlocked what you need to know, young Spark."
Stiles looked up, startled.
"When you need me, I will be here." The being faded in a whirl of sparkles and the whiteness turned to dark.
"Whoa!" Stiles said, looking around at the trees that had come back into sight.
"Are you okay?" John asked.
"Umm... I feel like my brain is on overload," Stiles admitted.
Derek groaned and sat down.
"Derek, are you okay?" John asked.
"I... I don't know," Derek admitted.
"Everyone, sit and take a breath," John said.
"We should have brought water," Stiles sighed.
"Nibble on the protein bar," John suggested. "It's counter-intuituve, but it gives your stomach something to do. Takes your mind off the thirst."
"Huh," Stiles replied, taking the bar out and unwrapping it. He took a small bite, chewing slowly. "That helps."
Derek did the same with the protein bar he had. He seemed to be hungry,
"What did that person, wait, was it a person?" Stiles looked around.
"You called it Greenie?" John prompted.
Stiles nodded slowly. "Mom and I used to come out here," he said. "She would... talk to the tree, I guess you'd call it. But at one point, she introduced me and, well, I was a kid. I called it Greenie because it was a tree person." He huffed and waved his hands. "I was a kid!"
"Okay," John replied with a small smile.
Stiles turned to Derek. "What did it toss to you?"
Derek looked down at his empty hands. "I don't know? I felt something hit me and I still feel odd."
"It made you the Alpha."
They all turned to see Peter sitting up on the stump.
"Peter!" Derek called. He scrambled onto the stump and wound himself around Peter.
"I'm so sorry, pup," Peter said lowly. "But I needed to get out of there and I... I didn't know what I was doing."
John was puzzled but let Derek and Peter console each other for the moment. They were safe for the moment and could afford the time to indulge in the emotions that flowed between the two men.
"Umm... I need to take care of something," Stiles said.
"Like what?" John asked, concerned.
"There's a... thing over there that's dangerous," Stiles said. "I think mom knew it was there but it wasn't anything she could do something about on her own."
"And what makes you think you can take care of it?" John asked.
"Greenie dumped a shitload of... stuff in my head," Stiles said. "All I did was think about the thing and it told me what to do about it."
John glanced at Derek and Peter. They weren't going to move just this minute.
"Show me what you mean," John said.
Stiles led to a spot on the other side of the tree stump. Stiles knelt down and dug gently with his hands between two roots. He came up with a glass jar.
"That's... dangerous?" John asked, squinting in the dark. "Looks like a dead bug."
"A..." Stiles frowned, sifting through the information in his head. "A chaos demon. If it got loose, it would be... chaos."
"What will you do with it?" John asked.
Stiles said some words in a guttural language John knew he had no hope of understanding. A small... window? Something whirled in front of Stiles. He tossed the jar into the whirl and it disappeared. Then the whirl disappeared.
"That's better," Stiles said, dusting his hands off. "We can go home now."
John shook his head. "Probably a good idea."
They went over to Derek and Peter, who had just climbed off the stump.
"I knew there was a Nemeton in the Preserve, just not where it was," Peter said. He laid a hand on the stump and said a soft, "Thank you."
Stiles held out a hand. "Those of the House of Hale are always welcome to seek refuge at the Nemeton, in a time of need."
Peter nudged Derek. "This is you. You're the Alpha."
Derek's eyes went wide. Then red. He took Stiles' hand.
"The House of Hale thanks the Guardian for a refuge in time of need," he said.
A white light flowed over both Stiles and Derek.
"Now can we go home?" John asked.
Stiles nodded. "Sure! We can even call for pizza," he said. "It seems like it might be a night to celebrate."