A/N: One-shot based on the prompt by the lovely montparnasss of tumblr:
"How about a small Teen wolf fic where everyone just really appreciates Stiles and realises how much he's done for all of them. Sort of like a huge cuddle pile where everyone just loves Stiles. ;v; "
SPOILERS AHEAD! Going to take a lot from the latest episode!
As Erica is presumed dead this fic is done under the assumption she is.
This is also un-beta'd, sorry for any mistakes!
Scott had been fairly quiet on the way back home from staying at the motel, the others had been fairly withdrawn too. Aside from Stiles; his best friend was sitting next to him, his knee jumping up and down as he blabbed on and on about some new theory of his, whether it was regarding the murders or something more mundane, Scott didn't know. He shook his head, he was in a very pensive mood for once; the revelation of being poison by wolfs bane for the – what was it, the third, fourth – time now?
Turning his head he looked over out the buses window, his thoughts traveled back to the last night, it wasn't the first time he'd owed Stile's his life. But for once, just how much his best friend, his brother had done for him finally sunk in. How he'd stuck by him when Scott had first got bitten and helped him learn to control his new abilities. He'd stuck around even when Scott had thought he was a murderer! Hell! Stiles had been beaten, trodden on, pushed around and even paralysed and yet he'd stayed. And not just that, he'd stood up to Alpha's, and monsters and Gerard. He'd done what research was asked of him he came up with all the plans. There was a slight sinking feeling in his gut when Scott realised just how lost he'd be without him, how lost and possibly dead they all would be. He glanced back over at his friend who was still prattling on like there was no tomorrow, like he was completely unaffected by what had happened. But Scott knew that wasn't true. He knew he wasn't terribly observant, but his wolf senses helped out with this now. Stile's was nervous and strangely angry, at who or what he didn't know. The anger had appeared clouding the air when Ethan had told them about Derek. Scott pondered that for a moment before pulling out his phone and sending a mass text to everyone aside from Stiles, telling them they were to meet up when they all got back to Beacon Hills. It was time to do something for Stiles.
Lydia's phone went off at the same time as Allison's, they both read the texts and raised an eyebrow at each other, Scott wasn't the most stealthy of people. Her eyes softened thinking about Stiles, how he knew just how smart she was and still cared, how he was always there for her. The goofball cheering her up and making her think. How he'd tried to comfort her but had been waylaid by having to hold up Derek in a swimming pool for two hours. At the time she'd been pissed, but now she'd been filled in on everything she couldn't help but feel a little selfish and at the same time proud. How happy he was at the lacrosse game for playing and winning. How he'd helped her get over Jackson, how he'd even stepped aside for him. She didn't understand how anyone could be so selfless. He'd helped her a lot with all the weird things happening around her, such as finding dead bodies and animals going crazy. He'd saved all of the werewolves at the motel, even Ethan the alpha of another enemy pack, which she still didn't understand. When she saw him, her friend standing in the gasoline, she'd acted impulsively. She frowned when she realised she'd do it again, for him, Scott, Allison and Jackson. She wasn't selfless, far from it, she was selfish and that's why she'd keep them alive.
The brunet former hunter was also in a dark mood, it seemed everyone involved in the supernatural was and Allison was no exception. She mentally agreed that they should do something for Stiles. He was always there for everyone, always researching the paranormal and getting everyone in and out of scrapes. Making people laugh and hiding what was going on in his head; she wasn't as naive as she used to be. She knew he doubted himself and how he was human, but she also knew he didn't want to be a werewolf, she didn't know how she knew this though. There was just something about him that conveyed that feeling. They'd ended up getting to know each other quite well when she and Scott had been sneaking around behind her parent's back. She knew how much the others owed him and through them, she did. Without him, Scott, Lydia and Jackson wouldn't probably be alive or have been saved. She bit her lip thinking of what her own grandfather had put him through. Why of all the people in the world did they have to be the ones involved? Everything was so convoluted and poisoned, not to mention she still had no idea what to say to Boyd, who was sure to be there. But she'd still go, because of Stiles.
Issac grumbled under his breath when he got the text going around, he understood why he was texted but it's not like he's had all that much to do with the guy before now, Erica was the one who liked him. Ah, Erica he missed the fiery blond; he owed Stiles for helping her in one of her highly rare and sporadic seizures after a kanima attack. He rubbed his forehead, he supposed he did owe the guy and his allegiance was to Scott now after everything that had happened with Derek. Perhaps getting to know the chatter box wouldn't be such a bad thing, after all he was funny. They wouldn't have been able to sort out the whole Kanima mess without him and lord knows what he's doing to try and figure out the murders that were happening. Not to mention the guy had rescued him from a jail cell when he first turned and could put up a good fight… Heck! He even stood in front of him and Erica when talking to the master through Jackson as though he was the werewolf, not them! He chuckled to himself at the thought of Stiles' being a werewolf, before he thought of the matter at hand, at least Stiles didn't act like Issac was going to break at any moment or make him feel uncomfortable. Which was strange, but considering he confronted a half scared to death catatonic werewolf with a history of abuse and lived, who knew what Stiles was capable of. He shrugged to himself, tried of thinking and then went back to sleep, rearranging himself on the bench he'd commandeered for himself.
The only one who didn't appear to react to the text was Boyd. In actuality his mind was going a mile a dozen, he'd first talked to the guy ages ago when he was bribed into letting Stiles and Scott into the Ice Rink for a date. That event had possibly kick-started this chapter of his life, but there was no way of knowing that. It was quite likely that Derek would have approached him anyway. His mind ticked over thing things he'd done for all of them. Unbidden the memories of the Argent basement swam to the surface, Stiles' first instinct was to help them, even though he got electrocuted for it. The sound of skin pummeling bare flesh rang through his head as the beating ran around in his head, he could feel himself and Erica strain against their bonds even as the current shot through them. He could smell the blood and fear and then the bus bounced over a rut in the road and freed him from the memory. Stiles tried to talk to him whenever they saw each other even if Boyd cut him off. The small human had even tried lifting safe off of him and then proceeded to save his life. But he still didn't want to go, not after everything that had happened, but he would because Erica would want it and secretly he did too, but he wasn't used to having friends. He lifted his head feeling someone's eyes on him, it's Stiles, he was glancing around at the group. Boyd didn't doubt for a second that he knew something was up.
It was late afternoon by the time the bus rolled back into town, the group congregated outside the bus and somehow Stiles had been elected to do over to Derek's apartment and check on him. The human teen wasn't stupid, he knew the other's were planing something, but he honestly couldn't be bothered to deal with it. So he'd jumped in his jeep parked in the school lot and drove through town, he made it to Derek's building in record time. He trudged up the stairs because of course the sourwolf had to live somewhere without an elevator (1). He found the door to partially open and dried blood on the handle, rushing inside he found something completely unexpected. Derek was in bed with someone, Stile's couldn't tell who it was but the Alpha was fast asleep with no visible injuries. The weighted door banged against the wall, jerking the werewolf awake; eyes red and fangs bared the semi-clothed alpha took up an offensive stance to only see Stiles. The man relaxed slightly and his partner moved allowing Stiles to see her fully for the first time.
"Miss. Blake." He exclaimed as she stirred and Derek phased back to human form.
"Mr. Stilinski what are you doing here?" She said pulling a sheet up to cover herself, now fully awake.
"Wow, I would have thought you had better taste than that, but I guess I was mistaken," Stiles commented before turning his attention back to Derek, "Did you have fun?" Derek didn't respond at all, barely moving a muscle when the teen took a step towards him, "This really isn't the time to play the mysterious silent brooder," his voice eerily calm, "Did you have fun fucking my high school teacher?" Stiles' voice broke slightly on the next part, "Whilst everyone thought you were dead or dying?"
"I - ." Derek frowned, he was never very good at talking, particularly with Stiles, he always felt like the boy saw too much, which is why he ignored him, swallowing he answered in a breathy voice, "Yes." Something was going on here and Derek knew he didn't have the upper hand.
"Oh, good, I'm glad." There was a pause where it felt like nobody was breathing, "The other's are alive, I'll let them know you asked."
"No." Derek exclaimed, "I want the," he hesitated for a moment before continuing, "The new other's to think I'm dead."
Stiles nodded in understanding. Still standing there and staring at the Alpha. "The other's nearly died last night you know."
Derek jumped, "The Alpha's?" He asked forgetting that Miss. Burke was there.
"No, one of them nearly died too, tried taking a buzz saw to his stomach." He felt Derek's questioning gaze, "The were dosed and each of them tried to take their own lives. I spent the night taking care of them. One tried to drown himself, he put a safe on his chest to stop himself from getting out of a filled bathtub. Another went catatonic reliving the memories of his past. And finally one of them tried to light themselves on fire." Derek moved away from the younger man his breath short and gasping, he felt a hand on his arm and flinched away from Jennifer's touch. Stiles continued deliberately leaving out names, Derek would know who was who, "I wrestled the buzz-saw off of him, I tried lifting the safe and in the end used an oxygen flare to get to him, I crawled under a bed to rescue a catatonic person and I nearly went up in flames myself rescuing someone else from them."
"It's my fault." Derek whispered his knees felt weak, it was a feeling he hadn't felt in a while, this hopelessness.
"Yes." Stiles said eerily calm for the moment, "The whole time you were screwing her! You should have been there for them!" Something in him snapped and he was across the room hitting Derek and the werewolf was letting him. His hands were raw by the time he was calm enough to let go. Somehow he'd ended up on top of the werewolf lying on the rough wooden floor. Stiles got up knowing that talking wasn't going to help anything and walked away from the already healing werewolf, he was nearly at the door when he said he wouldn't tell the others Derek was alive, but that he should find somewhere else to live. He completely blanked his new teacher.
He drove home at breakneck speeds and stormed inside, his father left him a note saying he'd be back late. Stile's barely took any notice of it and went upstairs, he'd just finished cleaning up his hands when the doorbell rang. He ran downstairs to answer it and found a pack standing on his porch, before he could say anything they'd made their way inside and were setting out the take out they'd brought with them on the coffee table, the others were setting up for what looked to be a movie marathon.
"What's going on?" His usual motor-mouth skills leaving him.
"We are having a night in and just being teens again." Lydia exclaimed as she picked up a bowl of sugary goodness.
"What?" He asked incredulous, "I mean I get, Scott, Allison and Lydia, but why you two? Oh no, did they brain wash you too?" He said getting some of his mental faculties back and ducking just under Allison's tap on the back of his head.
"They're part of the group now." She said nodding at Boyd before curling next to Scott at the end of one of the couches.
Issac got up and started setting up the first Star Wars, original series of course (2). Whilst the others got comfy, somehow Stiles had ended up in the middle of the couch with Lydia on one side and Allison on the other curled up between him and Scott. Issac pressed play and practically leaped back to his seat on the other side of Lydia, Boyd being the largest and least touchy had claimed the arm chair.
"Ahh yes, I have my bitches," Stiles said putting arms around the two women, "And my other bitches," He patted Scott and Issac and nodded seriously at Boyd, before they all broke into laughter as the theme music filled the room. It was bitter-sweet on occasion, but the night passed in a blur of much needed laughter. If it was slightly forced, then that was fine, but the crux of the matter was they were closer for it, they were finally beginning to heal. They manage to squeeze in two of the trilogy before they had to get going, they all bid Stiles a fond fair well. Stiles smiled as he watched them leave, he knew they'd never say what they were thinking but their actions spoke for them. Locking up behind him he cleared up the mess they'd left before heading up to his room and started getting ready for bed.
He'd just changed into flannel bottoms and an old grey t-shirt when he felt a breeze across his back, he turned around to find Derek stood in front of his formerly closed window, crouching slightly as if preparing to run.
"What do you want?" Stiles demanded, not in the mood to battle wits with the Alpha.
Derek paused for a moment and all the thing he wanted to say died in his throat, how he wanted was to apologise for how he originally acted towards the teen, how he wanted to thank him for being there for Scott, for stopping Peter, for doing research and for saving everyone's lives, for being him. But the words didn't come and he was left here staring moodily at the younger man.
"I mean, I know I'm attractive and everything but you already have someone for that."
Derek winced at the terrible barb which they both knew it was.
"Sorry, my sparring abilities have been seriously diminished, I just want to get a good nights sleep so either say what you came to tell me or leave." When Derek didn't move, Stiles got frustrated, "The other's will smell a fresh sent of you around my house if you don't go soon. In fact it's probably too late. How long have you been watching?" When he still didn't get anything from the brooding werewolf, Stiles gave up and got into bed. Grabbing a book from the night stand, he knew he wouldn't be able to sleep with him here, but at least he could pretend to get something done.
Derek opened his mouth like a fish before snapping it shut, scrunching his eyes for a moment he then opened them and forced two words out, inside he laughed at the look on Stiles' face when he dropped his book in shock. Before anything else could be said Derek was gone out the window and down the street, leaving a flabbergasted Stiles behind him.
Stood outside watching the spirit of Erica smiled at how they had done something for the human who'd saved them all in some way. Even Jackson had sent him a text that'd made him laugh, but he hadn't shown it to anyone. Her grin was wide as she felt part of the unfinished business that held her to this plane untethering from her soul. Hours later after everyone had left including the sourwolf, she continued to watch over the house.
"You always did make a good Batman, Stiles."
A/N: I'm not good at people expressing mushy feelings to each other; it always seems forced or awkward, to me at least. I hope this sufficed! I really wanted to include Erica and Jackson ad I hope how I did it was alright.
(1) Dunno if it's true, but it's kinda my own personal head cannon.
(2) I'm a fan of both, but I can seriously see Stiles only admitting to liking the original.
Reviews are lovely.