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Title: Taken Treasure – Stiles Summer Stories 2026

TW Disclaimer: All rights reserved to Jeff Davis and MTV. This fanfiction on the other hand is entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.

Tags: m/m, Canon Divergence, Canon Happened Without the Hales, season 5, Pack Alpha Peter, Spark Stiles, Pack Feels, hurt/comfort, fluff, kidnapping, Bad Alpha/Friend Scott

Main Pairing: Peter/Stiles

Teen Wolf Characters: Mieczysław 'Stiles' Stilinski, Peter Hale, Derek Hale, Laura Hale, Cora Hale, Erica Reyes, Vernon Boyd, Isaac Lahey, Scott McCall, Noah Stilinski

Writer’s Month Prompts 2026: snow + spring

Summary: The Hales left together after the fire. Now, they return to reclaim their territory. Peter decides to remove the biggest threat first by kidnapping the clever boy of the McCall Pack. He quickly realizes how undervalued Stiles is by his Alpha and decides to keep the boy.

Taken Treasure

Stiles Summer Stories 2026

When the Hales burned, Peter only made it out alive by a miracle. Or rather, a sacrifice. His older sister, his Alpha, had burned and died. As her closest, still living Beta, the Alpha spark had passed on to him. He had already been horribly burned, but the Alpha spark gave him the last needed burst to get himself and his only other living member of the family out of the house. He clung onto Cora as he carried her out and she clung onto him even after he passed out.

He’d been badly burned and even with the Alpha spark in him now, he knew it would take a while for him to heal. But he wasn’t alone, at least. Laura and Derek hadn’t been in the house during the fire. The four of them, together, left Beacon Hills. Their home had been burned down, their family was gone. Laura was supposed to leave for New York anyway, having been accepted into Julliard. So New York it was. Time for a fresh start for the Hale Pack.

“Are we ever gonna come back?” Cora asked softly, clinging onto her big sister.

Laura was carrying her onto the plane. Ever since the fire, Cora had been incredibly clingy. Understandably so. Losing this many pack bonds, losing this much family, was hard on them all, but she was so young. Peter reached out to card his fingers through her hair, smiling.

“Some day, maybe,” Peter replied. “But for now, we need to heal. Make a new home for ourselves.”

He looked at Derek, saw the boy hunched over, still looking guilty. The fire had happened a week ago, they’d waited while Peter was in the hospital, they first needed to get their insurance and affairs in order, needed to organize where to go in New York. Peter had bought them a penthouse close to Laura’s college. He would take care of his niblings, now that their parents were gone. They needed to heal, emotionally and in Peter’s case also physically.

/break\

Peter sat at the dining table, holding the newspaper but not reading it. His gaze was unfocused, his thoughts elsewhere. Usually, he enjoyed his early mornings in front of the large window front overseeing all of New York, watching the sunrise. Today, he was distracted.

“You okay, uncle Peter?” Derek asked as he joined his uncle.

Peter put the newspaper down and looked at the boy. Young man. Derek had been adrift for a while. Therapy had helped him work through his guilt and understand that he had been a victim, that what Kate Argent had done to him had been wrong. Once they’d worked to that point, Peter went to hunt down Kate and tore her throat out. It had been satisfying, even if it didn’t change anything. At least it would stop the huntress from doing what she had done to them to anyone else.

At twenty-one, Derek was more settled in himself. Had healed for the most part and was trying to build a life for himself. He’d tried college, but it hadn’t been for him. Right now, he was on his way to become a fire fighter and Peter was damn proud of his nephew.

“Satomi called,” Peter admitted in the end, once Laura entered the penthouse too.

She was sweaty, wearing her training outfit as she’d been out on her morning jog. Laura paused at his words. The name meant something to her – since she had been trained by Talia to become her successor one day, Laura had met all Alphas of Beacon County before.

“Satomi Ito?” Laura asked slowly, approaching Peter and Derek.

Peter hummed and folded the newspaper, just to have something to do with his hands. He was aware that he now had the undivided attention of both Derek and Laura, even if Derek didn’t quite know who Peter was talking about, he could read the room.

“Satomi Ito is the Alpha of Fox Creek,” Peter offered for Derek’s benefit. “It’s… the first time, since the funerals, that she has reached out to me.”

“What does she want?” Derek frowned deeply, sitting tense.

“There is a new Alpha in Beacon Hills, having claimed our territory,” Peter said finally.

“What?” Cora’s voice screeched just a little as she came barreling out of her bedroom. “Who? How dare they! It’s still our territory! It’s been Hale territory for centuries! What kind of insensitive jerk would try to claim lands that have belonged to a pack for so long and was torn away from us in such a brutal way! It’s not like we left for fun!”

Her eyes were blazing golden in her anger. Rage had always been an issue for Cora, even more so after the fire. Peter could relate, he’d always been prone to violent rage too. He sat and waited for his Betas to calm down again. Laura sat down opposite Peter, frowning at him.

“I’m afraid this one doesn’t know customs,” Peter replied. “He was turned. And he’s a… True Alpha. If one believes in this fairy tale nonsense.”

Peter sneered a little and huffed. He had a pretty good idea how the boy had become an Alpha. From what Satomi told him, Alan Deaton had been mentoring the boy since before he became a werewolf and had been a voice in the boy’s ear forging him the way he wanted. Control. Power. That was what it was always about and if that boy listened to Deaton, then he was the perfect candidate to make an Alpha. An Alpha under Deaton’s control.

“What do we do, uncle Peter?” Laura asked seriously.

“Wait,” Peter decided, under Cora’s loud protest. “The boy may have broken protocol, may have insulted our pack with his claim, but so far… it can be chalked up to him not knowing about our culture. I will keep a close eye on things, I have asked Satomi to keep me updated. Who knows, perhaps the boy will be a good Alpha, building a good, strong pack. We have left the territory open, so it figures someone would try to take it. If he does it justice? What does it matter to us?”

He smiled at his niblings. Cora huffed annoyed and stomped off. Derek frowned but nodded, accepting his Alpha’s decision. Laura remained seated, looking at him for a very long moment. Knowing that Peter was too vicious and had lost too much to give the territory up so easily. However, there were only four of them. And a turned wolf who didn’t even care enough to learn their customs wouldn’t give up the territory without a fight. They weren’t ready for a fight yet.

Yes, Peter was going to keep tabs on that boy and his pack. And while doing so, he was going to strengthen their pack. It was time to turn some Betas and grow their pack, to prepare to take back the Hale territory. Peter had always planned to come back. Maybe he had gotten too comfortable here, in New York, maybe he hadn’t wanted to return to the source of so much pain.

But Peter wasn’t good at letting go. And he always took what he wanted.

/break\

Stiles was shaking as he drove down the road. His eyes kept flitting to the bloody wrench on his passenger seat. He wasn’t just shaking from the ice-cold rain that had soaked him in front of the vet clinic, no, he was also shaking from rage and frustration. Which was, of course, when Roscoe broke down. Sure, why not. Everybody else had abandoned him, why shouldn’t his Jeep too?

He got out of the Jeep, popped the hood and checked. There was so much duct-tape. He took a shaky breath in frustration because this was just another one on the huge pile of problems he needed to deal with. The Dread Doctors, Theo, Malia being off chasing Corinne with Braeden and putting herself in danger, Scott… Scott believing Theo and not Stiles, really thinking that Stiles had, what, killed Donovan for shits and giggles? When Stiles, his best friend, told him that it was self-defense?

Stiles closed his eyes tightly and leaned over the Jeep, feeling ready to puke, really. Stiles had begged. Pleaded with Scott, asking how he could fix it. Stiles’ heart had broken when all Scott did was look sadly at him and turn his back on Stiles before walking away.

Stiles’ chest was heaving with his breath as he tried not to have a panic-attack and as he tried to fix his Jeep, but it felt like everything in his life was breaking apart, so why not that too? He went to get his tools, just to realize that the very wrench he’d need was missing. Was laying on his passenger seat, covered in blood. Because Theo had taken it, after Donovan’s death, as proof. And Scott had eaten it up. Not a moment of doubt in this guy’s words. That was the kind of trust Stiles had from his Alpha, his best friend, his brother.

Stiles had once stepped into gasoline for Scott, but Scott couldn’t even be bothered to doubt a fucking stranger and give Stiles the benefit of the doubt. Maybe Stiles shouldn’t be as surprised as he was. It was par for the course at this point, wasn’t it? All the times Scott had chosen Allison over Stiles, ditched him for dates, how Scott hadn’t even noticed the injuries Stiles had gotten from Gerard even though they had been a message to Scott, how Scott kept doubting him. Perhaps their friendship had always been much more one-sided than Stiles had wanted to see, but for so long, Scott had been his only friend so he was clinging. It seemed easy for Scott to let go.

“Hey there. You look like you could use some help.”

Stiles turned around and came face to face with a blonde bombshell. She smiled at him, red-painted lips giving way for pearly-white teeth. Before Stiles could say or do anything did she hit him with something, knocking him out. Everything went black as he passed out.

/break\

Peter pursed his lips very displeased. “You knocked him out. With a part of his car?”

“Well, you said to take him,” Erica offered an unapologetic shrug. “What was I supposed to do? Ask nicely? ‘Hey, so my Alpha would like to kidnap you, could you just get in the car?’…?”

“She got a point there, Alpha,” Isaac piped in, being his usual helpful self.

Peter glared at both his Betas. A year ago, he had told his niblings that they would sit and wait. And then he had started turning Betas. Three friends of Cora’s from school. To all three teens, the Hale Pack had become a second home, a second family – or, in Isaac’s case, a second chance at a family as Peter took on his case and got him out of his abusive home. When Peter offered them the bite, they accepted. At that point, Peter already knew he would need them.

Everything Satomi kept telling him about that True Alpha was concerning. The rotating door of a pack that he seemed to be having. Pack was supposed to mean something to a wolf and a True Alpha, above all else, should inspire loyalty. Everything Peter had witnessed in the past month since they had come to Beacon Hills, this pack was barely held together and not by the Alpha either.

Right now, Peter knew that Stiles Stilinski was the greatest threat to Peter’s plans. The Alpha tilted his head as he reached out to trace the boy’s face with a gentle claw. He was prettier than expected, this up close, his long lashes painting longer shadows on his cheek.

“Take a break,” Peter ordered. “You and Cora are on the banshee tonight.”

“Yes, Alpha,” Erica chimed. “Uhm. What do we do with him now?”

“I’ll take care of that,” Peter assured her.

He bent down to pick the boy up. He carried him into Peter’s bedroom, through the connecting door to the smaller bedroom there. It was going to serve as Peter’s walk-in closet once they would permanently move back to Beacon Hills. For now, it would be Stiles’ new home. Boyd and Derek had put together a bed, a closet and a desk for the boy, once Peter had made this decision.

It was the obvious move. Stiles was the biggest obstacle, so removing him from the chessboard was the only way to go. Not permanently, not kill him. The boy had done nothing wrong and Peter wasn’t a monster. He just needed Stiles out of the way for a little while, just long enough for that True Alpha to cause his own pack’s downfall. Peter doubted he’d even have to do anything, aside from take Stiles, because Scott McCall was doing a stellar job alienating his own pack all on his own. Removing the one who kept the pack together, who might be able to talk sense into Scott, and things would be falling apart all on their own. It was such a beautifully simple plan.

“Mh,” Peter furrowed his brows as he felt the boy’s clammy forehead. “Well, that’s not good.”

He went to the closet to get out clothes. Laura had bought some, in Stiles’ size. Peter was careful as he changed the boy out of his damp clothes, took a towel from his own bathroom to dry Stiles off before putting warm, dry clothes on him. The boy didn’t stir the entire time.

“I’m afraid I need to have some precautions in place for you, little one,” Peter murmured. “I apologize for the inconvenience, I hope you’ll come to understand.”

Everything he’d observed and heard about Stiles, he knew the boy would be a tremendous asset to the Hale Pack. Ideally, Stiles would be smart enough to understand, in the end. For now, Peter needed to be cautious with the little trickster. He put the padded cuff around Stiles’ ankle, a solid chain linking to the corner of the bed’s metal frame. It was a high-quality bed, sturdy, comfortable too. Peter had spared no expanses. Just because Stiles would be his captive didn’t mean the boy couldn’t have a comfortable life with him here.

/break\

Stiles groaned as he came to it. His head was pounding. He reached up to hold his head while sitting up. There was a rattling. He blinked confused, disoriented. There was a bump on his head. He looked around. He definitely did not know this bedroom, which caused his fear to rise. He remembered driving, breaking down, a blonde offering help… Oh. She’d attacked him.

“Okay,” Stiles whispered to himself, taking a deep breath. “I’m not strapped to a chair, there are no surgery tools anywhere, or other torture devices. So, we are better off than the last two times I got kidnapped. Bed’s concerning. Very concerning.”

Maybe his kidnapper didn’t want him for torture or experiments – naturally, his first assumption was that the blonde girl who had taken him was another one of the Dread Doctor’s chimeras. Somehow, Stiles doubted that the Dread Doctors kept their captives this comfortable. The room was nice. Tidy and pretty, the furniture looked new, the mattress was comfortable. The metal chain tying Stiles’ leg to the bed-frame was concerning. This might just be a pervert.

“You’re awake. Good. So Erica didn’t permanently damage you.”

Stiles tensed and sat cautiously, watching a brunette girl enter the room. She was carrying a tray. So the blonde – Erica – wasn’t working alone. They were around his age. Maybe chimeras, but maybe not working for the Dread Doctors. They might be working for Theo.

“Who are you? Why did you take me? What do you want?”

“No,” the brunette shook her head. “I’m not answering questions. I’m just here to bring you food. Alpha said to bring you food once you’re awake. Here. Eat.”

She put the tray on the bedside table. There was delicious smelling omelet on a plastic plate, a bottle of water with condensation pearling on it, and a juice box. There was a spoon.

“...Am I expected to eat omelet with a spoon?” Stiles asked baffled.

“Yep. Alpha said not to give you knives, forks or breakable plates. You may turn them into weapons or use them to pick the lock on your shackles,” the girl replied.

Was Theo the Alpha she referred to? It was his ultimate goal, after all. To become Alpha. He must be gathering a pack of his own with the chimera experiments from the Dread Doctors.

“I’m Cora,” the girl said belatedly. “My Alpha will be by later. He’ll explain things. Now eat.”

Stiles wanted to be spiteful and not touch the food. But he was starving. He hadn’t eaten all day, had been so busy with research and then the confrontation with Scott and the kidnapping. It was light outside – he had seen it when she’d opened the door to the windowless room Stiles was in, had seen that there was a second bedroom on the other side of the door and that it was flooded with sunlight. As soon as Cora was out of the room did Stiles wolf down the omelet. It was as good as it smelled. Stiles hated that his captor knew not to underestimate him, because yeah, given a metal fork, he could have easily cracked this stupid lock. He’d need a different plan, then.

/break\

Peter smiled delighted as he watched his little captive explore. Clever boy, of course he’d check boundaries. How far the chain could reach, where else he could go, which doors were locked. Looking for tools to open the locks but finding none. Peter had removed anything that could be useful, only leaving necessities for Stiles. He had a camera installed in the boy’s room, to keep tabs on him and make sure his captive wasn’t escaping.

Though he did draw the line at the bathroom. No camera in there. The bathroom door leading to Peter’s bedroom was firmly locked, so was the bedroom door and outside his bedroom, the rest of his pack would be waiting and watching. Even if Stiles could get out of the chain, break down the two locked doors, then he would still have to get past at least four werewolves.

Noticing that the person he was waiting for was ready for him, he turned off his phone and pocketed it. It wouldn’t do for anyone to see the live feed he’d just been watching. With a smile on his lips did Peter approach, offering his hand in greeting and being met with scrutiny.

“Peter Hale. Back in Beacon Hills,” the sheriff narrowed his eyes.

“I come in peace,” Peter chuckled amused as he entered the sheriff’s office.

“I remember you making my life hard all the time, when you were still a defense lawyer.”

“Oh, I am still a defense lawyer. That’s just not the function I’m here as right now.”

“Then why are you here?” Noah asked, sitting in front of him with an aura of authority.

The Alpha in him felt challenged, but he also recognized that this station was the sheriff’s den, his territory, so he reined in his wolf and decided to play nice. Stiles’ father was important for multiple reasons. Not just as the boy’s father, but also because he was the sheriff.

“My family and I will be moving back to Beacon Hills soon,” Peter said. “It’s been a long time.”

The man softened somewhat at the reminder of Peter’s family’s tragedy. “Why inform me?”

Peter was about to make a risky gamble, but from everything he had observed so far, the man’s loyalty laid first and foremost with his son. As long as Peter could convince Stiles to join them, the sheriff would be on their side too, which meant he had to lay some groundwork with the sheriff. Build some trust. A show of faith, so to speak. He smiled and flashed his eyes red.

“Oh, crap,” Noah sighed and rubbed his face. “More werewolves.”

“More werewolves,” Peter confirmed amused. “I thought it prudent to inform you of our stay here. We’re here to get the new place set up and show our newest pack members around a little.”

“Why inform me?” Noah asked, a frown on his face.

“I’m in contact with Satomi Ito, she told me you’re in the know, so… it made sense to me to reach out to the sheriff, so he can be prepared for the coming changes,” Peter paused. “Also to let you know that your son is currently… occupied otherwise, helping my pack.”

“How?” Noah looked extremely suspicious at that.

“Well, I went to your house first to meet in a more causal setting and met your son,” Peter chuckled. “He has quite the hunger for knowledge. The prospect of centuries of knowledge had him quite tempted to learn more about the Hales, and the history of these lands.”

Noah hummed and reached for his phone, where he was going to find a generic text that Peter had sent, after analyzing past chats between father and son and figuring out how they talked to each other. An excuse about being at the Hales and plundering their library. Noah still seemed suspicious, but that was okay. Peter had it all planned out. Later tonight, Peter would convince Stiles to call his father and reassure him about spending the weekend.

/break\

The chain was long. Stiles could very easily explore the room and beyond. Cora had locked the door behind herself, but there was a second door, leading to what might be the most luxurious bathroom he had ever seen in his life. There was another door leading out of the bathroom, most likely into the bedroom next to the room Stiles was being held in. That door was locked too. But Stiles could make his way to the toilet and even the shower.

Neither his room nor the bathroom had any sharp or pointy objects Stiles could use to pick the lock. It had been a far reach, considering Cora’s words, but still he had to check. In the end, he went back to the incredibly comfortable bed and laid down. Waiting for ‘the Alpha’.

There was knocking on the door a while later and a dark-skinned boy entered. “Lunch time. I see you ate breakfast. Good. Alpha wants you taken care of.”

“Creepy,” Stiles muttered and shot the guy a look.

He just grinned and switched out the tray. It was a grilled chicken sandwich. No utensils this time. More water and another juice box too, for variety. There were some brownies too. This was wild.

“I’m Boyd,” the boy said. “Alpha will be by with dinner for you. Just wait a little longer.”

Stiles just nodded and watched Boyd leave. The door was locked again. Stiles resisted a whole five minutes before devouring the sandwich. It was delicious. At least the food was good. And honestly, laying back and relaxing was nice for a change. He had been constantly working and doing and thinking. Right now, he was forced to sit still. Not his strong suit. He hated waiting.

/break\

Peter was thrilled when he got home and finally came face to face with a wide-awake and attentive Stiles. He locked the door behind himself and pocketed the key. Stiles’ eyes were beautiful. Sharp, clever and such a deep golden-brown that Peter could quite easily drown in them.

“You must be Stiles,” Peter smiled delighted.

“And you must be the Alpha,” Stiles stared at him with narrowed eyes.

It was amusing how much father and son were alike. The same scrutiny the sheriff had met him with. Oh, Peter didn’t want to know what the man would have done if he’d known Peter currently had the sheriff’s son captive in a backroom behind his bedroom.

“I am,” Peter confirmed. “I’m Peter Hale, Alpha of the Hale Pack.”

Stiles’ eyes widened in recognition. Good. Exactly what Peter had expected. After the Argents came to town, he had investigated them, had figured out that Kate had laid the Hale Fire.

“You killed Kate Argent,” Stiles said, looking Peter up and down. “What I found out, she’d been killed during a ‘hunt gone wrong’. But that wasn’t an accident or anything.”

A pleased smile spread over Peter’s lips. Oh, that clever boy was a delight.

“Yes, I did,” Peter confirmed, seeing no reason to lie. “She killed my family.”

Stiles nodded slowly, looking wary. “Why am I here? Chained to a bed?”

“Well, I thought you should be comfortable, since you will be here for a while,” Peter offered.

“Why,” Stiles repeated with more emphasis.

“You’re… an obstacle in my plans. I’ve been hearing about your pack for a while now and then I’ve been watching and I determined that out of your whole pack, you are the biggest threat to me.”

“Me?” Stiles snorted and shot him a look. “Damn, you suck at research then. I’m just the pack human. Not a werewolf, or a banshee or a kitsune. Just a boy running his mouth.”

“Now, now,” Peter frowned and shook his head. “Don’t sell yourself short, sweetheart. The kitsune, from what I can tell, has been sent away after losing control, because neither her centuries old mother nor her True Alpha could help her rein it in. And the banshee? In theory, a great threat. In reality, completely untrained. She doesn’t know what she’s doing, has no idea how to channel her powers. From how I heard it, she was nearly driven mad going against another banshee?”

The Benefactor, Meredith Walker. Peter still couldn’t believe any of that, when Satomi had told him how many lives had been lost in her own pack when the banshee set out a deadpool to have all supernaturals of Beacon County killed. It was the final thing to tip him over into returning. Clearly, his territory was being neglected if the True Alpha let something like that happen under his nose.

“But you? You’re the brains of this pack,” Peter continued. “You’re the clever one, who figures things out. Like you figured out that Kate had laid the fire. You have a keen intuition. You’re the only one in your pack who figured out that Theo Raeken is working for the Dread Doctors.”

“W… What…” Stiles went still and stared wide-eyed. “How do you…”

“Oh,” Peter shook his head. “It took only a couple days of watching him to see. He’s not exactly hiding it. If your Alpha had believed you, had surveilled him, they’d know too.”

The boy flinched away at Peter’s words like he had been struck. What a peculiar reaction.

“You’re the one who is keeping this pack together. I’ve been watching your pack and I’ve heard your desperate pleas with your Alpha, about college plans. Keeping the pack together. That should be the responsibility of your Alpha, but all he does is shrug it off and pretend that things would just figure themselves out somehow,” Peter scoffed at that.

Stiles hunched in on himself, his eyes on the ground. Ah. The boy was well-aware of it, then.

“You’re what’s keeping this pack together. So for things to work out, I need you out of the way for a while,” Peter smiled. “I’m here to reclaim my territory, for that I need the McCall Pack gone.”

Stiles snarled and lunged forward. “I will not let you hurt my pack.”

Peter chuckled and caught the boy by the hood of his hoodie, dangling him in front of himself like an angry kitten. Stiles was even hissing and seemed ready to claw at him. How delightful.

“I don’t plan on hurting them,” Peter assured him. “Your Alpha has been pushing his pack away for weeks now. The way I see it, all I have to do is remove you for a little while, and then the pack will fall apart all on its own. So you’ll be good and sit here.”

The boy kneed him. Peter smiled tightly. What a feral little kitten. Peter was going to have so much fun with this one.

“Now, now,” Peter chided Stiles as the boy tried to hit him.

He caught Stiles’ wrist. And when he did, he near instinctively drained the boy’s pain, startling them both. It was so overwhelming, the wolf did it without even thinking. Stiles whimpered softly and went slack in his hold. Frowning concerned, Peter carried the no longer struggling boy to the bed.

“Are you injured?” Peter asked concerned. “Why are you in so much pain?”

“I’m fine, I don’t need your help. You kidnapped me,” Stiles snarled. “Your Beta knocked me out!”

“Right, that,” Peter furrowed his brows and gently felt for the bump on Stiles’ head. “If you are in this much pain from that, then I think we should take a trip to the hospital.”

“What,” Stiles blinked at him stunned. “You know I’ll escape if you take me there, right?”

“Oh, sweetheart, I wouldn’t let you out of my sight. And even if you escape. I know where you live, I have your scent. I’ll find you again,” Peter chuckled amused. “And your safety is worth the risk. I told you, I’m not here to harm you or your pack. I meant that.”

“Then… What do you want?” Stiles asked confused.

“I want back what’s mine,” Peter spoke patiently. “When my family and I left, we didn’t do it to abandon these lands. We did it to heal. And then this… pup came in and took it. And he’s not taking care of it, the way the land deserves. He’s not even taking care of his pack the way you deserve. I’ve seen it, I’ve seen you beg and plead with your pack not to trust Theo and yet your Alpha didn’t heed your warning. Worse yet, he did the very opposite. He invited Theo into the pack.”

Peter watched closely, Stiles’ reaction to his words. The boy was well-aware of all of this.

“A real Alpha would never do such a thing,” Peter said firmly.

“It’s not like I had proof,” Stiles argued weakly, shrugging. “That’s our dynamic. I’m the cynic. Scott is the optimistic one, who believes in people and second changes.”

“Caution isn’t condemnation,” Peter pointed out and curled his finger under Stiles’ chin to make the boy look up at him. “A good Alpha would heed his Beta’s warnings and would, at the very least, not invite someone into the pack when an established and respected member of the pack is against it.”

Those pretty golden eyes were staring at Peter with near despair. Oh, the situation was much worse than anticipated. Peter had expected Stiles to put up a fight. But he’d also expected Stiles to fiercely defend his Alpha, to be in denial about how bad things were. It was heartbreaking to realize that Stiles knew exactly how broken this pack was.

“Your Alpha has invited the Devil into his house and he chose to listen to him,” Peter continued. “You are his voice of reason. You call yourself a cynic, but you are the realist. You see the problems that he is trying to ignore, the way he’s been ignoring the kitsune’s plight until it got too bad. He’s ignoring Theo as a threat, ignoring your warnings. One of your pack-mates is literally being chased by a dangerous assassin and… I don’t see your Alpha helping her. Some freelance mercenary is helping her track Corinne. The woman isn’t even pack, is she? And yet she is out there, protecting the girl and trying to help her when her Alpha isn’t doing anything.”

The coyote was personal for Stiles. From what Peter had learned, the two used to date. Stiles fell silent, like this was one thing even he couldn’t justify or defend. Good. Peter was going to make the boy crack, make him see reason. Peter let his hand wander to cup Stiles’ face and draw more pain.

“Why are you injured?” Peter asked, more gently. “Because I am taking you to the hospital if you need it. I won’t let you escape, to make that clear, but I will not let you suffer either.”

“I was hunted down by a chimera a couple days ago,” Stiles shrugged. “I’m fine. I don’t need a hospital. It’s fine. It’s already healing. It’s going to be fine.”

“Where? Let me see,” Peter urged.

“Why do you care?” Stiles heaved a frustrated sigh.

“Because you smell like you have an infection,” Peter pointed out. “Now that I’ve been sitting with you for a while, I can smell it. It’s not strong yet, which means if we clean out the wound and take care of it, you’ll be fine. So let me help. I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You just want to tear my pack apart,” Stiles snorted.

“No. Not even that,” Peter hummed. “Originally, I thought our return would mean I would negotiate the territory with McCall and, if necessary, fight him for it. Chase your pack away as a whole. But then I watched and saw that given time, your pack would fall apart on its own and I could save my pack from an unnecessary fight? A few months from now, there won’t be any McCall Pack.”

“That’s not,” Stiles started sharply and then cut himself off.

“You know it’s true,” Peter pointed out gently while tugging on Stiles’ shirt. “Come on, be cooperative. I want to help you. This is like wrangling kittens.”

“I don’t need your help,” Stiles hissed.

Peter huffed when he finally got the boy’s shirt off. He’d changed Stiles earlier, so he knew the injury wasn’t on the boy’s front. He hadn’t seen the back though. Stiles hunched over in frustrated defeat and Peter sat down behind him to take a look at the nasty bite on Stiles’ shoulder.

“The coyote is off on her own, with the mercenary,” Peter said gently. “The banshee is still learning her powers, and she has been accepted into MIT so she will be gone soon. The kitsune is gone. The pup is filled with so much anger. And that’s it, isn’t it? That’s your pack. You, the Alpha and Theo. And your Alpha is going to leave too, has been accepted into UC Davis. He’s letting the pack slip away from him, you’re the one trying to keep it together. Without you, it’ll come apart and by the time me and my pack moves back here, the territory is all ours.”

Stiles ground his teeth together in a way that made Peter wince. He went to the bathroom and got everything he needed to clean out the wound, cautiously siphoning Stiles’ pain during it, knowing that reopening the wound to do so would hurt. He disinfected and bandaged it up after.

“So, what? I’m going to live here until graduation and nobody is going to notice I’m gone?”

Peter laughed at that. “I’m going to keep you here long enough to give you some time to think about my words. I think you know that I’m right with everything I said. For now, I need you to call your father and reassure him that you’re alright and that you’ll be staying here for the weekend. I texted him earlier that you got lost reading up on the Hale history in our library.”

“Right. Totally gonna happen,” Stiles drawled dryly.

“Sweetheart, do not mistake my kindness for me being a pushover,” Peter’s smile turned sharper. “I don’t want to hurt you or your pack, but if I don’t have any other option, I will. So no cheap tricks, no hidden messages to your father, I would hate to have to abduct him too.”

He dialed the sheriff’s number on Stiles’ phone and handed it to the boy. Stiles stared at him with furrowed brows while the phone rang, using his clever mind to determine how serious Peter was. How big of a threat Peter could be. Peter made sure to stand firm.

“Stiles? Kiddo? You alright? I got your text earlier.”

Stiles narrowed his eyes at Peter. “He—ey, daddio, I’m fine. The Hales just got a lot of books.”

“Mhmh,” Noah sounded skeptical.

“It’s a great distraction from all the college stuff,” Stiles shrugged. “I was thinking of staying the weekend. I know you have a lot of work, with everything going on…”

“Okay, Stiles. I… With Donovan still on the lose, I would hate to have you home alone. And Malia is still gone, isn’t she? When will she be home again?”

“I… don’t know, dad,” Stiles deflated some. “I’ll text you tomorrow, okay? Love you.”

“I love you too, kiddo. Take care. And don’t bug the Hales too much.”

Peter smiled pleased and took the phone from the boy once the call disconnected. “That was much more cooperative of you than I expected, darling.”

“You’re a dangerous man, Peter Hale,” Stiles looked at him sharply. “I put my dad in enough danger lately, I don’t need him at the business end of your claws.”

Something told Peter that this wasn’t all, but he’d accept it for now. He got up and then paused.

“Ah, the key, please,” Peter held out his hand. “You’re sneaky, but don’t think I didn’t anticipate you trying to swipe it from me. You’re good, I didn’t even notice when you took it. Give it back.”

Stiles narrowed his eyes, a defiant pout on his pretty, plush lips as he handed the key back. “You’re smart. Smart people are dangerous. I think I’ll do good keeping an eye on you for now.”

Peter barked out a laugh at that, shaking his head. “Oh, you are fun, sweetheart. I’ll see you later.”

“Hold on,” Stiles stopped him at the door. “Boyd said you’d be by with dinner.”

“Ah. Pardon me,” Peter tilted his head. “I’ll bring you food in a moment. Anything else?”

“The books I just lied to my dad about reading?” Stiles asked snarkly.

“As you wish,” Peter smiled and left the room, locking the door behind himself.

/break\

Not Theo, not the Dread Doctors, but a new, dangerous threat. Peter Hale. The man had been very open about why he was here, but Stiles still felt like he was missing pieces. Oh, he fully believed what a dangerous enemy Peter would be if provoked. If he wanted, the Alpha could probably tear Scott apart. So for now, Stiles decided to sit back and wait.

Part of him wanted Scott to prove Peter wrong. To stick up for their pack. To notice that Stiles was gone and find him. But then… would Scott even be looking for him? After everything that had been said and done? Scott had walked away from him, not offering Stiles anything he could do to fix things. It was as loud as if Scott had told him to his face that he was out of the pack.

So maybe part of Stiles was just… hiding out here. Hiding from the world. Because Peter was right.

Malia was off with Braeden, hunting her mom. Scott wasn’t involved with that at all. As her Alpha, he should be. Instead, Malia was doing this with someone who wasn’t even pack. Lydia was going to MIT, she had told him months ago. Kira was in the desert. Scott was going to leave for UC Davis and if… if he left and if the rest of the pack fell apart… then Peter would be right. There would be no pack left to deal with, Peter and his pack could just return and reclaim the territory without any kind of fight. Peter wouldn’t have to do anything.

Liam was still angry at Scott for using Hayden as bait and not even telling them. Mason was angry at Scott for using his claws on Corey without so much as asking or explaining anything to Corey. So even the pups wouldn’t stay loyal to Scott once he’d leave. A dark voice in Stiles’ mind whispered that maybe they’d even be better off with an Alpha like Peter.

So far, the man had made sure Stiles had good food, was taken care of, had even tended to his injury. His injury that Scott hadn’t even noticed yet. But this total stranger had noticed, and taken care of it. Been gentle with Stiles in a way he couldn’t even remember experiencing.

Stiles hummed softly around a spoonful of goulash while flipping through an old book. Peter had been true to his words, he had brought Stiles yet another delicious meal and a stack of books. Bestiaries, historic records, folklore. Currently, Stiles was reading about werewolf culture.

For now, Stiles was choosing to stay put, to learn more about the Hale Pack and may, just maybe, Scott would prove Peter wrong. Stiles wished he would, but the cynical, realistic part of him knew how all of this was going to pan out. All he could do was bet on the Hales over Theo, now.

/break\

“I should really call my dad again, now that the weekend’s nearly over.”

Peter tilted his head curiously and looked at his screen. Stiles was sprawled out on the bed and staring directly up at the camera. Of course the boy had noticed those. Chuckling to himself, Peter took Stiles’ phone and went to the boy’s room next door. Stiles sat up and stared at him expectantly as Peter handed the phone over. His pretty, little hostage was being so awfully cooperative.

“You coming home, Stiles?”

“Nope,” Stiles popped the ‘p’. “Whatever Peter told you why he’s here is actually a lie.”

Peter narrowed his eyes and flashed them red in warning, but Stiles just continued. “He’s actually here to reconnect with his long-lost daughter. I agreed to help him, mostly for Malia’s sake. Look, there’s nothing I’m missing in school right now anyway, I already got enough credits to graduate, so I’m taking some time off to help.”

“Mh. That checks out,” the sheriff replied. “I knew he was serving me a load of crap.”

Peter stood frozen, staring in confusion at the cheekily smirking boy. “Yeah. So, don’t worry about me. I’ll be gone for a bit, but I’m fine.”

“Probably safer than you would be here,” the sheriff sighed. “This Dread Doctors stuff is getting more and more… I’m worried, Stiles. Be careful, stay away as long as you can. And tell Peter that if anything happens to you, anything at all, I’m putting a wolfsbane bullet in his head.”

“Yeah, fairly sure he knows that,” Stiles chuckled and made eye-contact with Peter. “Love you.”

The call disconnected and Stiles tossed his phone back at Peter. Peter caught it, but he stared in confusion. What had just happened? Why did his hostage look so damn smug?

“What was that about,” Peter demanded to know.

“So, I spent the last three days learning more about you and your pack, since they do indulge me in some conversation when dropping by food,” Stiles answered casually. “And I read your family history. But you really don’t know, do you? I was so sure that she’s the real reason you came back, why you want to reclaim your territory now, why you want the McCall Pack to fall apart. So you can chase him out and so Malia can join your pack. Her family’s pack.”

“What,” Peter growled dangerously. “Are you talking about.”

“Malia is your daughter,” Stiles offered. “I didn’t know you were her father, we just knew that she was a Hale, because that’s what she’s been listed as on the deadpool. Malia Hale. But reading your family ledger, I somewhat doubt that your brother cheated on his werewolf wife to sire a daughter with a dangerous killer – just doesn’t really fit the good doctor’s vibe, you know? But you? Notorious bachelor, feared Left Hand? Yeah, that sounds like someone who might have hooked up with the Desert Wolf. You called her Corinne, before. You’re not using the names of my pack, you keep calling them the coyote, the banshee, the kitsune. Braeden is the mercenary. But Corinne? You call her by her name. Because you know her. So, I came to the conclusion that you’re Malia’s birth father. But… I really thought you knew and were here because of her.”

Corinne had had a child… with him. Admittedly, Peter hadn’t looked more into why the coyote and the mercenary were chasing Corinne. Braeden had been on Corinne’s tail for many years, Peter had somewhat just assumed that the coyote had decided to become Braeden’s apprentice.

“My… daughter…” Peter whispered stunned, sitting down on the bed.

“So it really was just a coincident that you came here, months after we learned the truth?”

“I came because of the Benefactor, because of the danger this had posed to my territory, the proof of failure that it was. The banshee should have been better trained, to help earlier. The Alpha should be threat and protection enough that assassins wouldn’t dare enter. But I didn’t… My daughter?”

Stiles patted him on the back awkward. “Yeah. Congrats, it’s a girl.”

“So you assumed I knew,” Peter shot him a look. “What do you expect now?”

“Honestly, I don’t know,” Stiles shrugged. “I don’t trust you yet, not really. But from everything I have seen and observed this weekend, I know that you do care deeply about your family. And I care deeply about Malia. I always wanted to help her find her father, but so far we really haven’t had the time to do so. It’s one disaster after the other. So… I’m curious to see what you do next.”

Peter huffed and glared at the boy. What a brat. What was Peter going to do with him? And what was Peter going to do about that daughter? After he confirmed it, of course. Stiles was a master manipulator himself and Peter wasn’t just going to take his words at face value like that. No, in this boy, Peter had found quite a match for himself. He smiled and tilted his head.

/break\

Stiles had really thought he’d figured Peter out when he realized that Peter was Malia’s father. Now, he started to consider that maybe, all Peter wanted really was his territory. Well, now that Stiles had made him aware of Malia, he apparently also wanted his daughter.

“Starting to get really bored here, Catwoman,” Stiles groaned and tilted his head back.

“Oh, I’m sorry, is my amazing company not enough for you?”

Erica huffed offended and Stiles grinned at her. He’d been the Hales’ ‘prisoner’ for a week now. He had texted Lydia that he was alright but that she shouldn’t tell anyone. He had also texted Malia that she was getting backup from the Hale Pack – Peter had sent Laura and Cora to help. So far, Stiles… liked the Hale Pack. He’d learned that the majority of the food he got served was made by Boyd, who had a real talent. He started talking about DC with Erica, they’d even watched Batman movies together on Erica’s laptop. Isaac was kind of an asshole, leading to some snarky back and forth between the two of them. Derek was quiet but could have some bite too if he wanted.

“I wasn’t made to sit still for so long,” Stiles sighed and shook his leg for emphasis.

The chains rattled. He was being taken care of here. The injury from Donovan was healed by now, thanks to Peter. He was more well-fed than he had been in a while, because all this stress with the Dread Doctors had caused him to forget more than one meal. Here, he got to sleep in, actually rest, eat well. He had all the books he could want. The company was great too, he really was getting along with the Hales. But the better he felt, the more restless he got.

“There’s still danger out there and I am sitting here, doing nothing,” Stiles muttered.

He was worried about Lydia. Not so much about Malia anymore, because now Malia and Braeden also had two werewolves as backup. That should help. It made Stiles feel a little better. But there was still Liam to consider too. Peter wasn’t telling him about what was happening outside. How Scott was doing, if there was still a McCall Pack. At this point… Stiles didn’t know.

/break\

Peter stood tall and proud in the preserve. It was chilly, autumn was creeping in and the leafs were turning colorful. Peter had always loved the preserve during this season. It was such an interplay between life and death. The trees were slowly dying, yet he could hear the gurgling of the nearby spring feeding into the creek. It was ironic, he and his siblings had never quite agreed what was the best season. Talia had always been a lover of spring, had loved their mother’s garden and when the flowers would blossom. Aaron had always loved winter the most, loved playing in the snow, building snowmen and having snowball fights with his siblings. The only thing all three were unanimously agreed upon was that summer sucked.

“Uncle Peter,” Derek whispered roughly, straightening up.

“Yes,” Peter smiled and turned. “I can hear him too. He’s not very quiet.”

Alpha McCall stomped into the clearing, a snarl on his face. Peter’s intuition had been that this True Alpha would be a failure, ever since he had first heard about it. But seeing it firsthand had been bad. Had gotten worse after Peter grew attached to Stiles. At first, he’d thought the boy’s dismissal would be a good tool to make Stiles join his side. Now, it made Peter’s blood boil that this boy had an asset like Stiles in his pack and chose to neglect and ignore him. It made him even more angry than the boy’s overall failure as an Alpha, to chase his pack away.

“You took Stiles,” Scott growled, his eyes red. “Let him go.”

Peter scoffed. It was such a display of brute force. A real Alpha should be naturally imposing.

“I took him days ago,” Peter raised his eyebrows. “Did you only notice now? Or were you too busy scrambling to try and pick up the other pieces of your pack? How is that working out for you?”

Not well, Peter knew that. Laura and Cora were with Malia, for now. Making sure she would be safe, until Peter could go and help his daughter himself. For now, Beacon Hills had priority and he trusted that Malia would be fine. Lydia was in the hospital and Peter knew that helping her would certainly work in his favor with dear Stiles. Kira was out of anyone’s reach for now, the Skinwalkers never returned whom they took until they were done with their lessons. Liam had told Peter quite the story when he’d talked to the pup, so Peter didn’t see much of a chance for Scott there either. But Peter could offer the pups, both Liam and Hayden, a place in his pack.

“Stiles is part of my pack,” Scott growled at him. “I’m going to get my pack back.”

“You think that’s how it works?” Peter sneered and let his Beta-shift come over him. “You’re the Alpha, so they’re yours? So you have a claim over them? No.”

He snapped at the other Alpha and felt himself shift. It was rare for him to access his Alpha-shift, but this untrained pup was pissing him off. All Peter could think about was the beautiful boy sitting in Peter’s penthouse, held captive by the Hale Pack – and yet treated better than by his pack.

“You abandoned them all, you let them down, you pushed them away,” Peter’s voice was a distorted growl as he was more wolf than man at this point. “The power, the asset to your pack, and you were so careless with him? With them all? How do you have such unwavering loyalty and throw it away like that and then act surprised that someone else will take him from you?”

Scott reared back, a shocked expression on his face, confusion written all over it. Oh, the useless wolf couldn’t even understand what Peter was saying in his Alpha-shift, could he? Derek sighed and stepped up between the Alphas, ready to translate, to mediate.

“My Alpha says that if you’re this careless with your pack-mates, you shouldn’t be surprised when they leave, and you shouldn’t be surprised when another Alpha takes them.”

Scott attacked first, and Peter gladly slashed at him. He knew not to kill the other, because despite everything, Stiles still cared about Scott. And Peter was not going to make the same mistake as Scott. He was not going to alienate Stiles, he was going to earn the boy’s loyalty and trust and he was going to be worthy of it. Scott whimpered as Peter had him pinned beneath himself.

Peter slowly pulled his Alpha-shift back. “You will leave. You will go to college and never return. These lands are Hale lands. I am the Hale Alpha. I am the Alpha of this territory. I’ve always been the Alpha of this territory, even when I was gone. But now I’m back. And you will leave and never return, or else I will not show you mercy. And know that this is not my mercy, it is Stiles’ mercy.”

/break\

This wasn’t how things were supposed to go. When the feral Alpha had torn through Beacon Hills, Stiles had thought their lives would change for the better. Suddenly sitting with the popular crowd, Scott being co-captain of the lacrosse team. Scott got a girlfriend and for a hot minute, Stiles had been dating Lydia. But ever since Scott became Alpha, things… hadn’t gotten better.

Jackson left. Allison died. Aiden and Ethan joined. And then Aiden died and Ethan left. Malia and Kira joined. And now Kira was in the desert and Malia was hunting her murderous mother. Stiles, Scott and Lydia remained. In the past days, Stiles kept wondering about that though. About the way Scott had left him alone in the rain. About the kindness he’d experienced from the Hales.

There was knocking at the door, and then the lock clicking open. “I’m sorry to interrupt.”

Stiles sat up to watch the Alpha enter. Peter looked unusually serious, his face tight. Tilting his head, Stiles waited for what the Alpha wanted. Something told him that this wasn’t a friendly visit.

“You’re not here for a game of chess, I take it,” Stiles crossed his legs warily.

“Some things have happened, sweetheart,” Peter’s voice was too gentle.

“I’m not going to like where this is going, am I?” Stiles asked tensely.

“The pup,” Peter paused at that. “Liam. He tried to kill Scott for the Alpha spark. He let himself be manipulated by Theo and Scott… made that very easy for him. It seemed the girl he cares about was about to die, so Liam begged Scott to offer her the bite. He refused. So Theo…”

“Made him think that if he took the Alpha spark from Scott, he would be able to heal her,” Stiles whispered, a horrified look on his face. “H… Hayden, is she dead? And Liam? Is he…”

“They’re alive. But suffice to say, the pup is no longer part of the McCall Pack,” Peter looked too serious still, like this wasn’t the worst part. “The banshee… Lydia, she was attacked by Theo. He used the claws to get the location of the Nemeton from her. Or so she told me, after I… helped her. She was catatonic in the hospital, I… offered my help, when your father reached out.”

“My dad reached out to you?” Stiles asked baffled.

“Mhmh, he knew from you that memory manipulation is something werewolves can do, but that it is very delicate and that it’s mostly done by Alphas,” Peter pursed his lips. “I helped her. She is still recovering, but she would like to see you, once she is released from the hospital.”

“Yeah,” Stiles rattled his chains pointedly.

Peter smiled at him, far too soft. “We both know that you stole one of Erica’s hairpins days ago and could have escaped if you wanted, sweetheart. You were hiding here, from everything.”

Stiles swallowed and averted his eyes. Here was nice. There were no Dread Doctors. No chimeras. No betrayal. Nobody wanting to leave him. It was warm and safe and good. Which was probably a fucked up way to think about the place he was being held captive, huh?

“Lydia is going to be fine,” Peter reassured him and reached out to cup his cheek. “And Laura reports to me that they have tracked down Corinne. I would like to wrap up the matter of Theo first, before I’ll go to join them and help them take her down. Because to face the Dread Doctors, we will need everyone, including Laura, Cora and Malia.”

“What did you do with Scott?” Stiles asked, half dreading the answer.

“I set him an ultimatum to leave my territory,” Peter replied, slowly leaning in. “I hurt him, but I didn’t kill him. I knew you wouldn’t… approve of that.”

“What do you care what I approve of?” Stiles wanted to know.

Peter was so close, Stiles could count the shades of brilliant blue in his irises. His breath hitched when red bled into blue. It was mesmerizing. The Alpha smiled at him and leaned even closer, so Stiles could feel the wolf’s breath puffing against his lips. Stiles swallowed hard.

“I told you before, I consider you the greatest threat this town had to offer for me,” Peter whispered. “Likewise, I consider you the greatest asset my pack could gain. I know the banshee is going to leave, and after the traumatic event she’s just been through, I can hardly fault her for it. That’s fine. I hope you will help me… rekindle some kind of relationship with my daughter so she may join my pack. I know the pups, Liam and Hayden, they will need an Alpha and I’m more than willing to take them on. But you? You, I want. Need, really.”

Stiles was holding his breath, like any kind of movement would break this moment and thrust him back into reality. Because surely this wasn’t it. Surely the gorgeous, powerful Alpha werewolf wasn’t really saying what Stiles thought he was saying. He swallowed hard when the tension became unbearable. They’d spent hours talking, about the books that Peter left him that Stiles had read now. About the Hale Pack, the life they had led in New York. About the dangers the McCall Pack had faced here, the things Stiles had lived through. Stiles found it terrifyingly easy to talk to Peter. He loved the man’s sharp tongue and smart mind. He was wicked, in the best sense.

“Right,” Stiles jerked back. “Yeah, I don’t… know about that. I mean, I’m just human, right? I don’t really need to be in a pack. I just… I should go home. If you’re all done here, then.”

He reached down for the cuff, taking the hairpin out of the hiding place in his sleeve and opened the lock in seconds. Peter allowed a fond smile before schooling his features.

“I’m going to interrogate Theo about his involvement with the Dread Doctors, before I’ll kill him. His manipulations are evident at this point, thanks to Lydia, Liam and Hayden. I will not tolerate that here, I know the harm he has caused, directly,” Peter said. “Would you like to accompany me?”

“...Sure,” Stiles said, knowing it was a horrible idea.

/break\

Peter took great pleasure in killing Theo. Not just because he was a threat to the territory, more so because of the threat he posed to Stiles. To the boy Peter had chosen as his Alpha Mate. He’d been so close to kissing Stiles at the penthouse, but he supposed he’d prefer Stiles out of shackles for their first kiss. More willing. Even though he had chosen to stay, for days now.

Peter’s fist went through Theo’s rib-cage and he pulled the still-beating heart out of the liar’s chest, before offering it to Stiles. “Would you accept this as a first courting gift, dear? And as a promise that I will always choose your side, that I will protect you?”

“That’s so gross,” Stiles gagged and covered his mouth. “Oh my god, that’s so gross. Courting gift? Are you for real? So… in the penthouse… you were… serious?”

“I’m incredibly serious, dear,” Peter smiled sharply. “You are an asset and I do want you, but for more than just thst. You are clever, cunning, beautiful. I want you at my side. I think that together, we could create a magnificent pack and we will be able to protect the territory in a way your old pack hadn’t been able to. Will you accept my courting?”

Stiles squinted at the heart and then glared up at Peter. “Only if all future courting gifts are, like, normal. Chocolates, or flowers or – food? Just not… body-parts. Gross.”

“So that’s a yes, then?” Peter asked delighted and reached out for Stiles.

“Oh, if you think you’re touching me with your blood-soaked hands, you are so,” Stiles yelped when Peter did grab him by the waist and pulled him close. “...Wrong. Damn it, Creeperwolf.”

Peter laughed delighted at that and nuzzled into Stiles’ neck. The heart had been dropped and was on the floor, discarded. No longer important, just like its owner. All that mattered was the beautiful boy in his arms and the fact that Stiles had accepted his courting.

“You do know that you have so much buttering up to do with my father though, right? Like. You kidnapped me. He is probably going to assume this is Stockholm or some shit.”

“Is it?” Peter asked curiously and moved back enough to look at Stiles.

“Dude, I could have gotten out about an hour after you first talked to me,” Stiles snorted. “I… like your pack. I like you. Even though you are a creep and a weirdo. But… You’re protective of what’s yours. Your pack, your territory. That’s… qualities my last Alpha was lacking. And I liked seeing you with your pack, it… felt like pack. I missed that. Things hadn’t felt like pack in a long time.”

“It could be your pack too, if you’d like,” Peter whispered. “I do want you in my pack, whether you accept my courting or not. You will be a magnificent addition to the pack. And Erica will be personally offended and angry with me if you don’t join.”

Stiles snorted and leaned forward, leaned into him. Peter relished in that, pulling the boy closer.

“You’re not here to stay, right now,” Stiles pointed out softly.

“Mh, considering how things are, I think I can send Derek and Laura back with the pups alone, until after graduation. I could stay, familiarize myself with my territory again… and with my mate.”

“Bold,” Stiles muttered, but his cheeks were pleasantly flushed.

“For now, I will leave to help take down Corinne, then I’ll return the rest of our pack and we will all work together to end these Dread Doctors. I will not leave the territory unprotected while there is a major threat to it,” Peter promised. “I will not leave you unprotected.”

Stiles bit his lip and then he leaned in, tilting his head for just the right angle to press their lips together. Peter smiled pleased into the kiss. The preserve was quiet around them, as though it was holding its breath while its Alpha and future Alpha Mate shared their first kiss. Even the gurgling of the spring seemed more gentle. Peter found himself eager to rediscover his lands, through all the seasons, with his pack, old and new alike, and with his mate. A future was awaiting him and even though there were threats yet to be dealt with, he felt strangely euphoric. Like he could face them all, as long as he had Stiles at his side. When he’d come back, he hadn’t expected to find such a treasure, neither would he have thought a treasure like Stiles would be his to keep.

~*~ The End ~*~