Sundays used to be Stiles favourite day of the week. Sarah would drag him, protesting for the sake of it, shopping at those stupid farmers markets, buying organic vegetables and overpriced tack. They'd eat lunch at Bayona where they had a permanent reservation, maybe go out to the club and play some Tennis. Stiles called it their 'Standing Date' which made Sarah laugh, and she was so beautiful when she laughed. Stiles missed that. He missed having someone to spend his free time with.

Alison had never been to New Orleans before - she'd told him on the car ride back to her hotel – and for the first time in a month, Stiles thought maybe he'd get out of his Sunday funk. Spend some time around the city he loved. Show it off a little.

And spending time with Alison wouldn't hurt, try to convince her that seeing Scott was a bad idea. Such a bad idea. Because he'd never get over being left again.

"This place is stunning!" Alison gasped, as they strolled through the French Quater. Her arm was linked in his, a shadow of their former friendship, but nice all the same. They'd stopped at CC's for coffee and were making their way down Royal when he saw Sarah.

"Fuck," He groaned, because damn, she looked great. Alison was too busy looking around at the street with an expression of simple pleasure to notice Stiles expression. But Sarah noticed. God, did Sarah notice.

"Who," Sarah said, walking on her towering heels over to them both, "The hell are you?"

Alison looked her up and down, and then glanced at Stiles. "Alison." She said, voice tinged with a hard edge that Stiles had almost forgotten. "And you must be Sarah. The ex."

"Didn't take you long to move on." Sarah pointed out, maybe knowing on some subliminal woman only level that Alison wasn't about to be cowed down. Stiles, on the other hand... Stiles had always been whipped by Sarah. "It's only been a month."

He wanted to quip. Wanted to say something, anything, that wouldn't leave him standing in the street feeling like his heart was being squeezed by a vice, because this was Sarah. His Sarah. Christ, he still wore his wedding band.

"No, it really didn't." Alison said, voice pleasant and open. Her arm was still linked through his, weird how it felt like a lifeline. "It was lovely to meet you, though." She smiled.

Sarah smiled back, probably without thinking. Stiles remembered that Alison always seemed to have that effect on people. She'd been sweet to the point of diabetes... right up until she wasn't. Then she was the secret lovechild of Black Widow and Hawkeye – and if you ever saw that side of her it was really difficult to match it up with the blushing and the doe eyes.

Sarah walked on, with a flick of her hair that reminded him of Lydia back in high school, and Alison gave his arm a little tug, just enough to get his feet working. After a few moments, she spoke.

"She wasn't what I was expecting."

"What were you expecting?" Stiles said, curiosity overtaking his desire to melt through the cracks in the sidewalk.

"I don't know. Maybe not so... Blond?"

Stiles snorted a laugh. Yeah, no one really expected Stiles to get a girl like Sarah. Stiles included. "I mean, she's really pretty!" Alison blurted. "But like... so... um..." She stalled, waving the hand that wasn't tucked into his arm expressively. "Neat?" She paused. "Although, looking at you now... I just can't get it through my head that you're not in plaid."

He laughed. "I used to live in it." He agreed. "But Sarah thought it gave a more... professional look... you know? I needed an image." Image had been important to Sarah.

"I miss your hoodie." Alison smiled, squeezing his arm.

"Me too."

She'd bought him a hoodie. It was red, bright, eyecatching red. It made them both laugh, and the girl in the store gave them strange looks, but Stiles didn't care.

"When was the last time you went home?" Alison asked him. They were sitting at the picnic tables in city park, people watching.

"A while." He admitted. "Dad comes here, and the others, you know, if they can." They didn't try very often. Stiles wasn't pack anymore, it was a formality now – no longer the boy who ran with wolves – but other packs respected the bond. There were complications, no one had really gotten on with Sarah, and she actively encouraged him to stay away. He tried to explain to Alison, words tumbling over themselves as he rambled on. After a while, his voice trailed off – he hadn't had a case of verbal vomit in a long time.

"You really loved her, didn't you?" She said, after the longest paused.

"Yeah."

"She changed you a lot." Alison pointed out. "You feel like a different person when you talk about her."

"She made me better."

He was a little surprised when Alison shook her head vehemently. "No." She said, voice steady. "She made you different. Not better. Different. Everything you just said, about the... the pack... and her – it's like... she changed you, and they didn't like it."

"You think?" He laughed, and god, look at all the bitterness again. "You know, I don't even talk to Derek anymore?" He managed. "He just... he totally cut me out. Cora too – like I just wasn't there. He wouldn't let me tell Sarah about the pack, and Scott... Scott agreed. He agreed with Derek over me."

"You said you still talk to Lydia?"

"Yeah." He paused. "I was her man of honour." He grinned, "Jackson was flipping out, because obviously Danny was his best man, and he thought it would be weird – you know?" He grinned at the memory of the wedding party dance. "Danny copped a feel in the middle of the dance floor, I mean, that asshole really grabbed me." Alison laughed along with him. "I always knew I was attractive to gay guys."

I'm going back." Alison said as they lingered over desert. "Please come with me."

"You're going to hurt him."

"You don't know that."

"I do."

Notes: Hi all!
I'm really glad you all liked the first chapter, and I'm sorry that this one is so very short! I'll be adding another chapter soon - this leads on quite nicely to the next section which starts off with some Derek POV. It was really nice to hear back from so many of you! I recognise so many of your names :) I'm glad your also reading this story too.
I've also got (for the first time, you'll know!) even a bit of a plot this time! Shocker! Also, I've just finished watching Almost Human, and I'm all caught up with SPN and if you want to talk to me about either just hit me up on twitter ( bmwiid) or tumblr (bmwiid or 74days)
Cause you know I love to hear back! :D