I received quite the good acceptance for the last chapter and thank you for those who had commented their suggestion to me. I will keep all of it in mind for future musing. Anyway, thank you for all of your supports!
After the somewhat tearful breakfast they had, Phil left the Stilinski house to tie up all the loose ends before moving Stiles away from this town. He entrusted Stiles with the two assassins without any doubt because he knew even if it come hell or high water, those two would not allow anything or anyone to hurt his nephew.
He would not trust the safety of Stiles to anyone if it were not those two who guarded him.
His first stop is the school because he knew just how many legal paperwork he has to go through in order to transfer Stiles to New York and into the wide selection of high school that he already have in mind. Between the combined salary the three of them had opted to pool together, they more than just afforded to enroll Stiles to any school that he wished to go, even the private one if Pepper have any say in it or if Tony had not stuck his nose in it too beforehand.
Nevertheless, he had narrowed it down slightly to any high school that are nearest to the Avenger Tower. He is not comfortable enough to let Stiles to go anywhere that is too far away from his immediate reach. So, it left him with the choices of high schools in the Manhattan area and he already have the perfect one in mind unless Stiles wished to go to another one of his own choice that is.
But Phil would not let his nephew go to school anytime soon. He knew it would at least take a while for Stiles to come to term with his lost and Phil does not want to overwhelm him with school before he got settled into his new life in New York.
Though a small part of him had whispered it is due to his selfish need to keep his nephew close as he too come to term with his own lost.
He parked the black sedan car that Tony had booked for them during their stay here, Phil took a moment to look at the whole building with critically analyzing gaze. While Stiles was embraced by the protective cocoon of two assassins last night, Phil had opted to do his own research on the case that had led to the death of his brother in law whilst holding down the fort against any potential threat that could have been targeting them or his nephew.
That search of his lead him to many unsolved mystery cases that managed to make his greying eyebrows climb up more and more to the point where it reached his receding hairline. His eyes roved over each word that was projected on his computer screen and found himself to be baffled over the sheer amount of reports that involved his nephew and his friends.
Admitted into the local mad house.
Jesus Christ.
What the hell was John thinking when he did that and why the hell was he not informed of this. He and John always have an open relationship, well not that open since Phil have many restricted info that are national security that he could not disclose to him but they have an open relationship when it concerned both Claudia and Stiles.
John always tell him about Stiles' life and in return, Phil would tell him whatever that Stiles had reached out to him for whenever the two Stilinski butted head over something. Though the exchange had been sparse to none these past year and now Phil can finally see why.
Serial killers, assassins, homicide, unexplainable deaths, and a disturbingly high amount of animal attack related death. Based on these classified files, Stiles had been involved in many of it, even being the victims of some of it too. Most of it is just too outrageous that he could only wonder just what the hell Stiles is feeling right now after going through all of the things that he had went through.
Being held paralyzed to witness the death of a mechanic. JESUS FUCKING CHRIST. He knew trained agents that does not get out of that kind of mental torture with even a scrap of sanity and Stiles had been sixteen when that happened.
The list just goes on and on and Phil began to wonder if Stiles might actually need therapy instead of being transferred into a new school. He could already list all of the potential psychological damages that his nephew has and PTSD is at the very top of it. He had thought that Stiles would actually be safe here, so far out of his enemies' radar that no harm would befall him in this seemingly nondescript town but it looks like he was dead wrong.
This supposedly small and normal town has its own horror and his nephew had been the victims of many of such atrocities that Phil would not be surprised if the psychologists have a field day with his nephew if they actually got their hands on him. He had his own suspicion of what the causes of the many unexplainable deaths and he could only hope that his nephew had not faced any of those causes. There are creatures out there that he had met in his line of works and he does not wish for his nephew to meet any of those creatures.
And the worst of all, Stiles had lost his friends to some of these unexplainable cases. The first had been Vernon Boyd and Erica Reyes, then Heather Smith, Allison Argent and Aiden Lupus. God why had John not told him all of these? Both of them knew just how much Stiles cared for his friends, Scott being the prime example of how far Stiles his nephew is willing to go for someone whom he had taken under his wing. And Phil can only wonder just how bad the damages of losing each of them had caused his nephews.
Here he thought he is only taking in an orphaned teenager. But as it turned out, he is taking in an orphaned teenager with mountain load of psychological damages and loses. God, he does not even know where to start with his nephew.
Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Phil killed the engine and slipped out from the car. He had worn his usual uniform, only minus the logo on the breast pocket and made his way to the school entrance. He could already feel the curious eyes of the teenagers that peered at him as they nudged each other in questions. Some of them had obviously seen him at the funeral and some are just curious of the presence of an unknown adult within the school compound.
He ignored all of it and made a bee line toward the principal office, fully aware that his presence is expected from last night's call. A flash of red from the corner of his eyes caught his attention and he deceptively turned his eyes toward it whilst making it looked like as if he was glancing at the watch at his wrist.
Red eyes met him and it took all his training to not tense under it, thus revealing his cover of a nondescript man merely looking at his watch for time. His finger itched for the gun he had hidden in between the folds of his clothes but he refrained himself because he does not have back up here if the Alpha decided to attack him.
Yes he knew of the existence of the supernatural creatures, hard not to when he worked with meta humans and otherworldly creatures on a daily basis. He knew the werewolf could smell the gunpowder on his person Phil silently berated himself on not thinking forward to bring the scentless one instead. He should have known this time would not escape the clutch of the supernatural world, no place is to begin with.
With decades of practiced calmness, he forced his heart to calm down by thinking about his nephew, of the love he held for the boy and also of his sister. It did not take him long to be in complete control of himself once again as he strode into the principal office whilst feeling multiple predators' eyes stabbing his back as the door closed behind him.
He had been trained to counteract many supernatural creatures and knew enough ways to fool them but from the look of it, those werewolves must have known Stiles if they could narrow down onto him just because they caught a whiff of his nephew's scent but only it lingering on him instead of the real person.
So, his suspicion was proven right, Stiles is involved in the supernatural and from the look of it, the Alpha truly is someone close to him if the flashing eyes is any indications. No half-baked Alpha would willingly reveal themselves to a potential threat if it were not for them feeling one of their own being threatened. The Alpha must have speculated that he had done something to Stiles for a relative stranger like him to have a strong stench of his pack mate's scent on him.
Though it made Phil wonder where this Alpha and so called pack is last night. It is a common knowledge within the supernatural world that werewolves are tactile and protective creatures, especially toward the most vulnerable member of their pack. So of course, Phil is wondering why none of them had come to the Stilinski house to be with Stiles at his most vulnerable moment of losing his father. It would be against their natural instinct to just leave Stiles wallowing in his own misery alone.
Unless something had happened to make them keep their distance with his nephew or perhaps Stiles had done something to keep them out. Knowing his nephew, it could be a mix of both and it is not hard for Phil to make his own conclusion that whatever it is that had happened, it leads to the death of John. There's only one reason after all if his nephew goes out of his way to push someone out of his life, the person caused him to lose someone precious to him and this time, the person is his father.
Somewhere at the back of his mind, the memory of a younger Stiles raging at him to get out of his life flashed to the forefront of his mind before Phil mercilessly squashed it. He knew it had only been grief talking at that time but the blow had hurt more than anything else. It was what had driven him to be better for his nephew.
He was lured away from his dwindling thought when the principal greeted him with an amicable smile that Phil mirrored as they shook hand. Phil allowed for himself to be lost in the familiar ground of paperwork and the hours passed before he realized that they had finally come to an end with the finalizing of the paperwork needed to transfer Stiles to New York.
The principal seemed approving with the decision Phil had made to give Stiles some time out before starting school and they parted way after the woman offered her condolence to their lost. Phil returned her pitying smile with a tight one and it took him all his willpower to not slam the door shut behind him when he exited the office.
He hates the pitying look people gave him once they realized who he is, it reminded him all too much of the time when he had lost Claudia. This further solidified Phil's belief that he is making the right decision on taking Stiles away from his childhood hometown, away from his friends and life. Phil knew his nephew. The boy hates it more than anything to be pitied by the people around him and Phil knew it would drive him insane if everyone around him treated him as if he is a fragile little thing that would break at the slightest touch.
So, taking his nephew away to live with him in New York had been the right thing to do in order to help him recover from the crippling lost.
Phil was not given a moment of reprieve because the next thing he knew, he was cornered by a group of teenagers with flashing eyes and twitching claws. Each of their face were twisted into a formidable scowl, though only the red-haired girl managed to look downright terrifying despite not having the glowing eyes like her friend and that is only because the similarities she shared with a certain red haired assassin that he knows.
But none of them managed to make him loose his calm because being in his line of work, he had met many people that could make trained agents lose their shits and compared to them, these teenagers looked like a group of puppies trying to become snarling wolves.
Heh, Stiles got his sarcasm and biting quips from somewhere after all and it certainly does not come from the Stilinski side of the family.
"Where's Stiles?"
The Alpha growled in a manner that Phil assumed it is meant to be threatening but Phil only met the snarling face with a dour face that expressed just how unimpressed he is at the teen's attempt to appear bigger than he is. Honestly he has enough of all of this posturing from self-centered villains that think themselves to be worth all the time in the world and Phil is seriously questioning these teenagers' common senses in cornering him in the middle of the day and not to mention, in a crowded school where anyone can see their transformed faces and glowing eyes.
Seriously.
Most of these days he thinks he is trapped in a fantastical fictional world what with the presence of all the supernatural creatures that are supposed to be myth and also the existence of metahuman that he worked with on daily basis. He is not paid enough to deal with all of the bullshit he goes through as work and in his life.
"Here I thought werewolves are supposed to be sharp. Use your nose boy, you can smell the relation I shared with my own nephew. Jesus Christ, shut off your glowing eyes unless you want someone to see that is."
Phil is honestly too tired to deal with them right now and definitely not patient enough to face their bullshit posturing of trying to scare the hell out of him. They had obviously thought him to be a hunter based on the smell of gunpowder on him but honestly speaking, it should not be strong enough to cover his natural scents and the scent that biological family members shared. It had been tested and proven right by the noses of many supernatural researchers.
He only watched with patent exasperation as realization flooded their faces though the Alpha's face looked alarmingly amusing at each passing second because it appeared to be stuck in between an expression of denial and relief. Phil have an inkling of the reason that warranted that expression.
"B-But You're dead! You're supposed to be dead! Stiles said so!"
The Alpha spluttered, the red receding from his eyes now that he lost his composure and the focus needed to wield it. Honestly, this boy is beginning to remind him of a puppy, an overgrown puppy and Phil's mind immediately connected the dot on the identity of the Alpha.
Scott McCall.
Of course, it would be his nephew's best friend, the brother from another mother. There's no other solid reason as of why Stiles would dabble with the supernatural world, unless when his own curiosity get the better of him that is.
Phil shrugged his shoulders, appearing completely nonchalant at his supposed death because he knew his nephew well enough to know that the boy had obviously went to the McCall upon receiving the news of his supposed death during the Chitauri invasion and forgot to update his best friend on his living status when it proves to be a false alarm.
Yep, that definitely sounds like his nephew right there.
"Then you're obviously not attentive enough about him to miss it."
The boy flinched, as if he had hit a sore spot with what he had said and it made Phil wondered once again if he is not that far off the truth with that one if the boy's reaction to it was anything to go by. The rest of the teenagers held a look of guilt and another one of Phil's suspicion was proven right once again. So, it was true that these teenagers had done something to make Stiles push them away from him and it is not hard to guess that them avoiding him over something being one of the reason that lead to it.
"If that is all, I have other things to finish before I take Stiles with me."
Phil shouldered his way through the teenagers, though it is not hard with the way they shied away from him and avoiding eye contact with him. He felt the suppressed anger that he always kept on a tight and short leash rise up inside of him at the sight of their guilt-ridden face despite not knowing fully just what they had done to his nephew.
His protective urge over his nephew rearing its ugly head upon facing the causes that had made his nephew so broken. If he is anyone else, he would have snapped each of their necks without a drop of remorse just because they had added up to his nephew's grief of losing his father. Nothing in this world can make him turn into the monsters he worked with other than for the reason of protecting those he loves.
"Wait!"
He did not stop at the shout because he knew he is not in control of himself enough to stop himself from brandishing one of his hidden weapon against these minors. He does not think he would get away by electrocuting one of them using the cattle prod, unless they kept a tight lid about it that is.
"C-Can I see Stiles? Please. Just let me talk to him at least."
The McCall boy stuttered with hesitation at first but it soon trailed off to outright begging from the sheer desperation in his voice. Yet Phil is not in a forgiving mood at the moment. He does not want any of them to be anywhere near his nephew and he definitely would not let them contact him if his nephew indeed goes out of his way to keep them away from him.
But he is not sure that his nephew really want to completely sever his connection with them, the choice is still Stiles' to make and Phil would not interfere with that, even if he wanted nothing more than to keep his nephew halfway across the world from them.
"I will ask him later and I will tell your mother if he wanted to talk with you. Until then, stay away from him."
So with that said, he exited the school with ease, losing the teenagers on his trail by following the flow of their schoolmates exiting the building. He entered his car and ignited the engine long enough for it to warm over before peeling away from the parking lot.
He made sure to make them completely loose him by flicking on the camouflage function that made the physical appearance of the car appearing different than before. What used to be a sleek black sedan is a nondescript rusty four wheels that are a norm in this area. His own scent was clouded by the spray of scentless odor that S.H.I.E.L.D researchers had produced for situations like this.
Sometimes he really loves being an agent for a spy organization, especially with the high tech that the civilians could only dream about. Though he only hopes his own pay is totally worth the whole shit that keep on happening around him. But in moments like this, he always uses all the resources he has at hand just to be annoying under the pretense of being a spy.
No one ever said that Phil is not a vindictive bastard when it comes to those he cared for and Tony have a long list along with PowerPoint projections on it. He is pretty sure the billionaire even has videos to go with it.
Chuckling softly in sardonic amusement under his breath, Phil turned at the corner of the street that lead to the hospital. Now though, he has a nurse to meet and countless deaths to be uncovered.
So yeah, a bit OOC for Phil but in my defense, he is an overprotective uncle who is too tired of everything and doesn't have time for any more teenage dramas. So yeah, he is badass and aware of the presence of the supernatural, though not everyone in S.H.I.E.L.D know, only the highest level agents know.
So yeah, a bit OOC for Phil but in my defense, he is an overprotective uncle who is too tired of everything and doesn't have time for any more teenage dramas. So yeah, he is badass and aware of the presence of the supernatural, though not everyone in S.H.I.E.L.D know, only the highest level agents know.
