He almost doesn't regret getting the whole thing with the Alpha twins when it ends with Allison driving him to emergency.
"Fine I'll train you ok, just don't die."
He takes her up on it a week after he's released from the hospital, and by the end of their first session he's considering a return trip. If she doesn't actually enjoy beating him up she's doing a great job of faking it. It's almost a month before he can stay upright for more than thirty seconds when they spar. But as soon as he starts feeling sort of kinda comfortable with hand to hand stuff, Allison's already moving him on to weapons.
The compact bow she chooses for him fits nicely into his hands, and he's surprisingly decent with it. Nowhere near a hunter, but by the end of his first month Allison isn't rolling her eyes anymore, and Mr. Argent actually lets him into the super-secret basement to play with all the other pretty weapons. It's kind of awesome.
Again, none of them choose to dwell on their life choices.
Lydia is the one to veto throwing knives, after he nearly takes off her head with one the morning she shows up to help with his training. Guns are another no go - too loud and conspicuous.
Crossbows are okay, and there's more than one really appealing sword lurking in the weapons vault. But it's the baseball bat that ends up being his weapon of choice.
It fits right in Stiles hands somehow; the weight is comfortable, familiar.
They practice with it like a sword or a club at first, and he eventually morphs into some new style of his own, part street fighter, part gymnast, part plain old American baseball.
Allison approves. He can tell because she stops holding back during their mock fights, which means he loses more often and gets some serious bruises. He's weirdly proud.
When he beats her for the first time she laughs, a sharp bark of surprise.
Lydia, who had taken to working on the floor while they spar, looks up from her books and gives a rare, genuine smile. It looks good on her.
They offer to show her some moves and she goes back to the prima donna smirk, apparently still averse to the whole sweating thing. But she's getting better with the spells and potions stuff, and she carries a knife in her designer bag.
There's a week where the wolves are completely absent from school. Scott comes back talking about pack bonding, something involving Derek's past and dealing with potential threats.
While they're gone it's up to the humans to hold down the fort. It's a tad more complicated than walking the dog or picking up homework. Lydia starts screaming in the middle of math class - and Stiles has felt the urge to do so before, but not like that - and ten minutes later the school is under attack. Birds crashing through windows, lab rats knocking over cages, a pack of wild dogs barreling down the hallway. Even the fish in the office look feral. And Stiles has never expected to call a fish feral.
They have the presence of mind to get out of the classrooms, ducking for cover in a windowless storage closet. It's cramped and uncomfortable, but they're safe.
"After this we come armed" he hears Allison whisper in the dark.
"Does that bow even fit in your locker?" Lydia hisses back.
When it's quiet they get out, stumbling over each other in the process. The animals are gone. Across the hall a row of lockers are dripping, emblazoned in red. Three curved lines. It's a Triskeleton.
"Oh" Lydia says. "Coming armed. Okay."
They take pictures for Deaton, and the pack who return the next day. Allison bumps up their training schedule and starts carrying a tiny crossbow around in her backpack.
Scott sits in once, watching as Stiles and Allison spar in the school's backfield during a spare block. The ex-couple don't hang out much these days - Allison still needs a bit of space from anyone even vaguely wolfy. But they can hold a conversation without turning crimson, making the situation at least comfortable if not the easy rhythm they once had.
Stiles lands on his back with a muffled groan, and Allison stands over him trying very hard not to smile.
He groans again, louder, as if to make a point. She definitely enjoys this.
Behind him, Scott laughs, muffling the sound with a cough. The change in Allison's face is immediate.
"Could you do better?"
"Is that a challenge?"
Half of Stiles wants to tell her that he knows Scott, and he's just kidding around, but a very small portion wants to see Allison pummel him. So he sits.
It's a draw in the end - with Lydia chucking a textbook at them both because the unresolved sexual tension is seriously bothering her - but considering Allison is human and Scott is, well, not, Stiles considers it a win for team human.
Thanks to everyone for reading! Next chapter has Derek. And Stiles. together. ...okay not together but it's still awesome I promise.
Review for Derek! Make him happy for once :P
