Title: The Hunter's Prayer

Genre: Romance/Hurt/Comfort

Rating: NC-17

Words: 3038

Disclaimer: I make no money off of this… However I do battle my boredom with this story. Everything mentioned belongs to their copyrighted owners. The only things owned by me are the original characters and horribly written dialogue.

Warnings: Slight AU [Future!fic], Language, Violent and Gory Images, Sexual Conduct, Homosexual Relations, Mentions of Rape and Child Abuse

Pairing: Derek Hale/OMC

A/N: My brain completely died when I was trying to write the next chapter for my Stile/OFC story… I got three hundred words before my brain committed suicide and decided pudding was more interesting than writing… Pudding is awesome… Anyways… I suck at writing heterosexual stories, either I'm so corrupted by Yaoi that my brain can't process it or… My brain is trying to tell me something I'm ignoring.

So… Now that I've given a crappy excuse for why it's taken me… Three weeks? To fail to write the next chapter for my other story I'm going to attempt to distract people with more Yaoi. I've finished the storyline for this so all I'm doing is writing and fleshing it out while I rewrite The Hunter's Dog. I went back and looked at what I'd previously written for the third chapter and wanted to shoot myself in the foot… I didn't even attempt to explain how Aiden's thought process went. Bad Dreaming! Back to work… Yes… I'm scolding myself. Wanna fight about it? Haha. Anyways… Yeah. Enjoy the chapter!

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…

Aiden sat staring at his cellphone from his seat on the couch in his living room. Thirty minutes past the time that Ryan was normally home. Derek was at work for his first shift of the week, so there was no way that he'd know what was up. His mate had been called in to cover another one of the mechanics that had to rush out of town suddenly, his wife was giving birth early from the sounds of what Derek had mentioned. Shaking his head he refocused as he stared at his cellphone. Clenching his jaw as another moment ticked by his heart started slamming, the shrill ring of the phone signaling a call… It wasn't the one he wanted.

"Did Derek pick Ryan up today? He hasn't stopped in to see me." Mabel huffed from the other end of the phone. She was obviously frantic with worry just like Aiden was. The young Alpha leaned back pinching the bridge of his nose as the woman suddenly burst into hystarics as he didn't answer back. "Aiden!"

"Stay where you are… No one moves. This is my territory… I will handle this. Call Derek at work and let him know Ryan's missing. Advise him to stay at work until I know more." Aiden was up and off of the couch grabbing his coat, yet it was the figure standing before him as he wrenched the front door that had him hesitating. Jean-Claude just smiled as he reached out easing the phone from Aiden's grip.

"He'll call you back, dear… He has an appointment." Jean-Claude's eyes were trained on Aiden as he snapped the phone in half. Looking around the cabinesque home he smiled softly. "Nice place… It seems the Hunter's are moving faster than you are. I've taken your son as leverage… He will be returned unharmed under the condition you bring me what was taken from me."

"And why would I do that. My pack is easily stronger than you… I'd have noticed you bringing a heavily armed pack into my territory… You're all alone. Your attempts at winning leverage are poorly played, Jean-Claude." Aiden finally stepped back gesturing for the male to enter his home. Strong arming the other male with his son at risk wouldn't play out. Even if a Blood could heal faster than he could, something as simple as decapitation could still kill them. "What do you want…"

"My mate… The Hunter's took my Damien from me. You see… We've been betrothed since we were children, and I hold Damien very close to my heart… So you see the harsh reality of my situation. You bring me Damien… And I release your son. A child for a mate." Jean-Claude slipped his hands into his pocket as he tilted his head to look over his shoulder, not even bothering to act as if he was nervous. The cautious look on the males face had him turning to look at Aiden. "You want proof that I have your son, that he's not dead?"

"Preferably…" Aiden bit back, he'd never been put in the position that he was currently in before. The other male pulled a black cell phone from his pocket pressing the call button. There was a soft click on the other end of the line before he could hear his son on the other end.

…

"So… You guys are going to use me as a chess piece?" Ryan sat in a small iron cage, running his fingers along the bars creating a frustrating sound that had the man guarding him twitching in annoyance. "I asked you a question…"

"And I'm choosing not to answer you. Now shut up." The gruff man snarled, his feet propped up on the work bench connected to the basement wall. The rickety chair creaking under him as he slowly sat up.

"Hey… Hey! … Hello! … Dude! Dude! … Jackass! … Princess! …You're stupid… What's your favorite color? Did you ever like the Red Sox? Why's the sky blue?" Ryan noisily ran his fingers along the bars of the cage trying to annoy the living hell out of the grumpy man sitting across the cool damp basement. Slapping his hands across the bars he finally gave an annoyed yell. "Are you a pedophile?"

"Shut the fuck up!" The man finally yelled. Glaring until Ryan pursed his lips with furrowed brows. Seeing as the boy had become silent the man turned his attention back to the wall with a sigh. "Finally…"

"… I have to pee!" Ryan shouted after a couple of minutes of silence.

…

Aiden had to give his child credit… Nothing much seemed to shake Ryan despite the situation he was in. In fact it was almost as if the small boy was certain he'd be fine. "You showed him that you were Blood?"

"He calmed right down when I explained the situation to him… Came without a single complaint." Jean-Claude snapped the phone shut watching Aiden for a moment, the young man paced around nervously before pinching the bridge of his nose. "You've decided?"

"I want updates on Ryan daily, and I want to be able to talk to him… I'll get your mate…" Aiden finally said as he looked at Jean-Claude. The man had played every card perfectly, there would be no way to avoid what outcome the man had chosen. Even if he took his entire pack to retrieve his son he doubted it would be manageable. "If anything happens to him…"

"He will be well taken care of. No worries." Jean-Claude smiled at Aiden, shoving his cell back into his pocket. Slipping a small black notepad from his pocket he tossed it onto the coffee table. "The last known location of where they were holding Damien… Seeing as you used to be a Hunter... This should be a piece of… What do you American's say… Pie?"

"It's cake…"

…

…

…

"So why are you going?" Derek snarled throwing the coffee table onto its side as he stood up from the couch. Aiden was leaning against the wall across from him. The older male just stood silently as he looked at Aiden. "Aiden… Why the hell would you agree to this?"

"Ryan wants me to do this… So obviously he knows something we don't. I trust his judgment Derek." Aiden slowly looked up at his mate as the other male stood before him, anger rolling off of him like thick waves of heat. Reaching out Aiden gripped Derek's shirt as the other male stalked towards him, rolling his honey colored eyes up to meet the vicious blue of Derek's enraged eyes he swallowed softly. "I need you to trust my judgment like I trust his…"

"I'll trust you when you start telling me the fucking truth!" Derek calmed a bit under Aiden's touch, but it didn't take the poison from his words. Aiden was so calm despite the fact his son was being held hostage by another Alpha. Shaking his head he looked away barely able to stand looking at his mate. He wasn't sure if he felt betrayal or just pure rage at the other males current state.

"You want to know why I can't sleep… I can't sleep because I'm having nightmares. I'm having nightmares because I killed Niyol's older brother for his position as Alpha. I slaughtered him like a dog in his sleep…" Aiden looked up into his mates eyes; there was disbelief in Derek's eyes as his mate stepped back. Shaking his head Aiden was the one to look away this time. Running his tongue over his suddenly dry lips he drew a slow breath. "I wanted to be the one to avenge Niyol… So I slept with his brother Dezba… And I killed him."

There was nothing coherent in the thoughts that flooded Derek's head, he suddenly felt guilty for thinking Aiden had been hiding something that would tear their makeshift family apart. He looked at Aiden as the smaller male stood quietly, flesh shivering and trembling as if he was waiting to be struck down. The first thing to come out of was immediately regretted as Aiden shifted back against the wall as if he was trying to avoid any physical contact. "You were twelve…"

"Thirteen… Dezba didn't care though." Aiden's fingers working over his right forearm. Swallowing hard as he looked up at his mate. Lips parting before he shook his head looking at the ground as he drew a shuddering breath. "I was easy to overpower, weak… And he liked that, I'd been Niyol's and he had the chance to violate the one thing his brother cherished. But… It was my fault that Niyol was killed… and he never let me forget it."

"Aiden…" Derek's lips parted as he made to say something only to purse them looking at his mate in disbelief, the broken look on Aiden's face tearing at his heart. "What happened…"

"I killed the other Hunters… I left my dad for last. And I couldn't kill him." Aiden closed his eyes as he reached out; Derek's jacket was the only tangible thing at that moment. It felt as if his world was breaking apart as he breathed quietly. "I'm going to get Damien back… And then… Jean-Claude's going to lend me some of his pack to track down my father. I'm going to kill him and get this over with. It's literally tearing me apart Derek. I can't sleep anymore, I just… I can't function."

"We get Damien… And we finish what you started. Then I'm kicking Jean-Claude's ass for making me worry about Ryan. He's taking good care of him?" Derek swallowed hard. Even with Jean-Claude claiming to care for the child, it was hard to stomach. Aiden's soft nod had him looking at the ceiling. "We'll have Ryan back soon… Before you know it."

"I feel so fucking weak…" Aiden murmured.

…

…

…

Ryan was suckling on a blueberry tootsie pop as he tilted his head to the side. "Royal flush… Pay up bitch." The child settled his cards down on the velvet top of the pool table sitting in the game room of the lavish home Jean-Claude's pack was occupying. Jean-Claude's brows furrowed. "What? American's are better at poker."

"I still don't understand how you… Is a four of a kind not better?" Jean-Claude laid his cards down examining them earnestly until Ryan threw a blue poker chip at him. The Alpha growled softly at the small Beta. "Didn't your father teach you to respect the elders."

"You mean the elderly… You ain't droolin' old man." Ryan snickered throwing another poker chip at Jean-Claude. After a moment the child crossed his arms looking at the male seated across the pool table. "So… Is he nice?"

"He? Who are you talking about?" The older male went about shuffling the card's again. After a moment his eyes widened. "Damien is a lady… It's a family name."

"Is she older than you?" Ryan snatched the cards away quickly dealing them between himself and the other male. Jean-Claude became quiet for a moment as Ryan watched the male blush, not a light blush a full-fledged flush. "That much older?"

"Damien is fifteen… She's betrothed to me. When she's full grown I'm going to marry her if she chooses to have me." Jean-Claude looked a little cautious before looking at Ryan. The child watching him expectantly, picking up his cards he laid them down immediately. "I have a joker…"

"So… Have you ever kissed her? I mean… She's supposed to be your wife right. That's what my dad does with Derek because he loves him." The child laid out his cards, backs up towards the ceiling as he took Jean-Claude's joker and dealt another card. After a moment he looked at the older male laughing at the pure embarrassment on the Alpha's face as he opened and closed his mouth looking like a confused goldfish. "Seriously?"

"I'd… I'd never touch Damien without her permission. It's… I just couldn't. She's still a child!" Jean-Claude finally found it in himself to look appalled at Ryan's question. The wolf looked down at his lap scratching the back of his neck. "I do love Damien… Very much so…"

"Jeeze… Haven't you ever had a girlfriend?" Ryan pushed Jean-Claude's cards towards the male again. Raising a brow when the adult put a hand to his lips with his own brows furrowed. "Seriously…"

"I've never had the desire to please anyone other than Damien… Just watching her smile is enough to make me happy." Looking over at Ryan the Alpha finally slapped his cards down, face flushed as he couldn't find anything else to say. Ryan seemed to be picking him apart and analyzing him in a very uncomfortable manner. "I have things to attend to. The cot is set up in the basement; I've left a phone down there if you need to contact your father."

…

Aiden looked over at his mate as Derek slept on, the dark of the night surrounding the car as he drove on. The silent hum of the road under the wheels calming him slightly as they traveled. The soft chirp of his cell phone signaling that the car had picked it up and put it on speaker phone had him blinking. "Hello?"

"'Sup dad! So I got you some info on Damien… Turns out 'he' is a she… Fifteen year old about five foot something." Ryan sounded like he was jumping on a bed or something. Aiden furrowed his brows. "They're taking good care of me. Jean-Claude sucks at poker by the way. His poker face es no bueno."

"It does sound like they're taking care of you. Derek's asleep right now. He's in the car with me… His mate's fifteen?" Aiden gave a look of confusion to the road as if it could talk to him. Apparently it still didn't want to as there was no answer from the asphalt.

"It's not like they're doing anything. He said he was waiting for her to grow up… He turned red when I asked if he'd kissed her yet." The loud crunch of the springs under Ryan's butt had Aiden just shaking his head. "Hey dad… You can't stop me from jumping on the bed!"

"Ah… And you were grilling him for information why? You're a little too young to be kissing girls yourself." Aiden's mind drifted slightly as he frowned. Jean-Claude's mate was a little young, yet it seemed that the older male was so genuinely worried he was willing to give anything to have her back. He'd have to grill the other Alpha himself when the chance showed itself, he didn't like the idea of going about this situation with one eye blind. "Shouldn't you be in bed?"

"Don't have to go to sleep… And he wanted to talk, very lonely guy." Ryan was bouncing on the bed again by the sounds of it. Aiden just shook his head smiling. "I know you're frowning… Fine… I'll go to bed, but you better get me some video games. I have wiped the floor with everyone here; no one knows how to play poker."

"Go to bed Ryan…" Aiden's grin widened as he heard the child whine and mutter for a few moments before giving a soft sight. "I love you Ryan… Just… Stay out of trouble. If anything happens call me…"

"Dad… I'm eight. I don't wet the bed anymore. Trust me… I can handle it. You did train me to fight, remember?" Ryan had stopped jumping on the bed altogether at that point as Aiden flicked on his turn signal pulling onto the main highway. "Love you dad…"

"Night, brat." Aiden murmured as the phone clicked off.

A/N: Although I don't think I've put it in here anywhere... Jean-Claude is ninteen. He can pass for twenty-twoish to people that don't spend long periods of time around him.