"Ugh….There is absolutely NO reason someone should be awake before the sun is even up." Stiles thought as Alex bounces him awake. "And they shouldn't be so perky either," he grumbled to himself. The young wolf finally took pit after the seventh bounce and flopped down next to him with a smile that could have replaced his nightlight, not that he still uses his batman nightlight or anything.

"Come on, you need to get up." Alex chuckled as he lifted the corner of the pillow Stiles was trying to hide under. "Mom's making breakfast and we still need to get you home so you can changes. Unless you want to go to school in Derek's old hand-me-downs. And, dude, that's just not an option. My brother has totally crappy taste. It's some weird cross between psycho biker mass murderer and creepy homeless guy. I mean, I swear mom and Laura try but some people you just can't help."

"Oh my God. If I get up will you promise to stop being so cheerful at crap o'clock in the morning?" Stiles tossed off the pillow, aiming at Alex's head and kicked the covers. Rolling out of bed, he took one step before the sheets tangled around his feet and sent him crashing face first to the floor.

Alex did a good job of muffling his laughter but the scent of amusement floated in the air. He could just imagine that if he was a cartoon character that there would be little lips flapping above his head as they giggled.

"Are you sure you're a werewolf?" Alex asked voice breathless with suppressed laughter.

"Yeah, I'm fine, thanks for asking. Falling on my face is a normal part of my morning routine." Ignoring the sounds of Alex losing his battle to hold back his amusement, Stiles stumbled across the hall and toward the bathroom.

He was through the door and halfway out of his shirt before he realized there was already someone in the bathroom. Being an only child Stiles had never really had to share a bathroom and didn't think twice about the fact that there might be someone in there before he walked through the door. At the last second he tried to reverse motions and pull the shirt back over his head but only managed to get partially stuck.

Assuming it was Derek, Stiles gave up after a brief struggle and pulled the shirt over his head and tossed it defiantly down to the floor. He had been working out and was now a werewolf. He wasn't going to let some brooding, eyebrow wielding, emotional knot of a werewolf give him chest envy. "Hey, sorry to barge in but I need to hurry," was what Stiles planned on saying to Derek.

That all changed when he found Laura naked in the shower. "Hey, sorry to – OH MY GOD! You have boobs!" He then tried to cover them with a wash cloth before turning and walking into the closed door behind him.

Fumbling with the knob he managed to smack himself in the head with the edge of the door before stumbling out of the bathroom and straight into Derek's arms. "What the hell are you doing, Stiles?"

"I was showering, I mean going to shower and then Laura has boobs and I grabbed…"

"You grabbed her while she was in the shower?" It wasn't a roar but it was close. Stiles backed away as he tried to explain.

"No! No grabbing. I'm mean there was grabbing but not boob grabbing there was cloth grabbing and covering. I was covering her with the wash cloth but it was kinda small and OH SHIT don't eat me!"

"What the hell did you do to my sister?" Derek growled inches from Stiles' throat. He had slammed the younger man into the hallway wall before he had even finished begging for his life. Blue eyes glowed in the dim light as his breath coasted along Stiles' collar bone making his skin prickle and tingle.

Somewhere in the back of Stiles' mind he knew he should be scared, terrified even but all he could think of was: 1) God, that was A LOT of chest under the thin black t-shirt that separated his hands from Derek's chest 2) God he wanted to push it up over Derek's head and lick it.

Australian Stiles, you know because he's down below, made his rising interest known at the worst moment. Derek leaned closer, most likely to make another death threat, and brushed his hips against Stiles. He froze eyes wide with shock for just a mere moment before they narrowed. Stiles couldn't fathom the mental twists and turns behind the look he received and was saved from having to try by the arrival of a towel wrapped Laura.

"Awe Derek, I'm flattered really but, I don't need you to defend my honor. If I was upset with Stiles' little unplanned invasion of my privacy I would have killed him myself. And really, he's going to have to get used to seeing some of us naked on occasion if he is going to run with the pack on a full moon. With a fond smile and a smack on the wet wash cloth to Derek's shoulder, she walked into her room letting the door swing shut behind her.

"Derek," called Maria from down the stairs. "Stop threatening the pack; if Stiles wants to fondle your sister one threat certainly won't be able to stop him." Derek's eyes flashed as he turned back to Stiles, looking like the harbinger of Death.

"No! No fondling of you sister. I don't want her. It's not that she not pretty, cause she is, ya know good genes and all but I don't want her that way cause I mean, dude, your sister is like OLD. Crap! Your mother said no killing your pack mates!"

Stiles could hear the laughter coming from Laura's room as well as from the kitchen downstairs. Great, he thought, I get to be the plucky comic relief in the Hale Pack.

"Derek let Stiles go. I need you to do one last check on his jeep to make sure we got all the blood out last night." A second later she added, "Alex, if you're not down in five minutes I'm giving all your bacon to Stiles."

"Oh my God," Stiles says as he slides down the wall. "I've never been so embarrassed. I think I'm going to be sick."

"Just hurry up," Derek growls looking down at him. A smirk slid across his face. "Oh, and Stiles?"

"Yeah?" Stiles answered timidly.

"Advertising that everything in your pants happens in a FLASH doesn't normally make boys popular." Derek says, indicating the red briefs with the yellow lightning bolts that were clearing visible over the waistband of his pants.

"I should've just let the alpha kill me."

The rest of the morning was less weird but considering he ate breakfast with a wolf pack that wasn't saying much. Stiles made it home before his Dad got off the night shift. He was dressed and heading downstairs as his father walked in the front door.

"Stiles." His dad smiled with tired eyes. "You're up early. I figured I would have to drag you out of bed this morning. I'll make us some breakfast and you can tell me how tutoring is going with Alex Hale."

"It's actually good dad. He's really not that bad in math."

"So basically you're telling me that you have a new gaming buddy." The sheriff smiled over his coffee at his son. "Maria is telling me lots of good things though so it seems to be working out. Are you planning on keeping it up?"

"Yeah Dad. I'm going to keep tutoring Alex for at least the rest of the school year." Stiles dropped his eyes to the eggs on his plate knowing that it would be longer than just the school year; it would be for the rest of his life. He had more than just a father now, he had a pack.

Stiles finished his breakfast and helped his father with the dishes before heading out the door. He gave a casual wave to his dad as he trudged up the stairs to get a few hours of needed sleep.

The ride to campus was uneventful and quiet. Stiles was used to picking up Scott and not having a buddy to chat with about important issues like which Iron Man movie was the best made the ride to school a bit lonely.

He didn't see Scott in the hallway but his friend's scent, still heavy with lust and now mixed with a more feminine fragrance; let him know that Scott had been there recently. Grabbing his books, Stiles headed for first not looking forwards to another day of high school.

Sliding next to Isaac again he smiled and started to pick up the easy banter that they had shared from the previous day but Isaac barely looked at him as he said hello.

He sat with his lanky frame hunched over his desk as if trying to shrink into himself. Isaac had his limbs tucked tightly into his sides, taking up as little space as possible in his chair. It looked like he was trying to hide inside his own skin.

The scent of hidden copper fills Stiles nostrils, much stronger than it was the day before. Letting his pencil roll to the floor in order to lean closer to his new friend, Stiles took a careful sniff zeroing in on Isaac's left side where his elbow pressed protectively to his side.

"You okay?" Stiles asked as he straightened back up. He focused in on the sound of Isaac's heartbeat as he waited for the answer.

"Sure, I'm fine." Isaac replied but Stiles caught the up-tick of his heart as it skipped over the lie.

Wanting to get a better gage on the amount of damage Isaac had, Stiles let his pencil start to roll again but caught it before it fell, letting his elbow bump gently into Isaac.

The hiss and wince of pain was more than Stiles expected in reaction to such a minor brush. Whatever was wrong with Isaac it was more than just a little bruise.

"Sorry, sorry." Whispered Stiles as the bell rang. "I didn't mean to hurt you."

"It's okay. Not your fault. I just took a bad hit in practice yesterday." Stiles didn't even need to listen to Isaac's heartbeat to know that was a lie, having decided to keep a closer eye on him during practice.

Isaac didn't take any hits on the field the day before because he had spent almost the entire practice, except for warm ups and the suicides, sitting on the bench.

The one time he had been on the field he had not been passed the ball once. He ran back and forth with his teammates until the whistle blew and coach switched him out and sent him back to the bench. He might have well been running track for all the ball play he saw during practice.

But before Stiles can ask more questions the teachers starts in on her lecture and he has to pretend to pay attention while his real focus shifts from the smell of copper and the strange waft of citrus that is coming off of Isaac. Fear, his instinct supplies.

When the bell rang Isaac was out the door before Stiles had time to even gather his belongings. He spent the day catching traces of Isaac's strange coppery and citrus smell all morning until he was once again sitting next to him in chemistry.

Scott was once again wrapped around Allison in the back of the classroom and didn't even notice Stiles as he walked in and waved. He didn't think Scott would notice is a giant man eating land shark came in and ate the class as long as Allison was by his side. His friend was in love. And an idiot.

Flopping down next to Isaac he gave him his best "trust me, I'm a good guy" smile and tried to pry more information out of him. "I don't remember you taking a hit yesterday. Was it Jackson? He can be a real dick sometimes."

"No it wasn't Jackson. I just fell hard on my side. It's not a big deal, just a bruise." The way Isaac continued to hold his side made Stiles worry that maybe it was more than just a bruise.

"Did you tell coach? You should have him look at it today." The citrusy smell intensified as he spoke and Isaac paled visibly.

"I'm fine," Isaac snarled scooting his chair a bit further away from Stiles'. "Just drop it, damn it."

"Is there a problem, gentlemen? I'm sure we could discuss it further in detention unless you would rather begin class."

"Sorry Mr. Harris," they both mumbled under their breath as the dark haired teacher slunk down the aisle passing out papers. Funny how all the F's seemed so much bigger and brighter than the small sad A's that were almost hidden in the upper corner.

Stiles' paper sported a crooked B with the minus sign darkened with multiple strokes of the red pen. Isaac's paper had a bright, cheery F placed in the middle of the page. Shame and fear wafted off his new friend in a thick wave.

"Hey, don't worry." Stiles nudged Isaac with his shoulder being careful of his wounded side. "We can start studying together."

"My dad's going to beat the shit out of me." It took Stiles a minute to realize that there was no up-tick from that statement. Isaac wasn't lying or over exaggerating; he was being completely serious.

His knee started bouncing with nervous energy as Stiles tried to process what he had just learned. As the son of the sheriff, he knew the importance of evidence and 'I smelled the bruise and his heartbeat let me know he was telling the truth' would not hold water even with his father, who would be more than willing to take a leap of faith with his son.

Stiles knew he needed more proof, something that the officials would take seriously enough to really investigate. He had heard his father complain too many times about parents that had been investigated only to be cleared after a cursory home visit and then have the children hospitalized because of horrible beatings later. Stile didn't want to make it worse for Isaac by tipping his hand too soon.

Class ends before Stiles has any concrete plans. Isaac once again bolts out the door without saying goodbye leaving Stiles to watch his back with a worried frown.

"You okay?" Scott rested his hand on Stiles' shoulder and gave him a confused look. "Did you and Isaac get in a fight? Don't let it get to you, man. Not everyone can appreciate what a great friend you are at first. Give him some time."

"We didn't get in a fight. There's just something going on with him right now that I'm trying to help him with but he doesn't really want my help." Stiles followed Scott out of the room before adding, "Hey! Why would you think he didn't appreciate me? What's wrong with me?"

"Nothing Stiles. You're the best friend anyone could ever ask for." Stiles heard the lie on the first part as well as the unwavering truth of the second. He knew Scott loved him, would always be his brother but knowing that even he thought there was something that needed fixing, damn his ADHD, still stung.

The rest of the day seemed to fly by for once. Stiles' brain kept jumping between helping Isaac and how his best friend secretly wanted his brain to get fixed. It wasn't until lunch that he remembered the horror of the night before; the fight with the alpha, well his daring escape from the alpha, had been all but forgotten which was beyond surprising.

He should be traumatized, in serious need of therapy in a big comfy couch but instead it was more like a memory of a show he had watched and just barely remembered. Images blurred and flittered through time and distance.

Stiles had a nagging suspicion that Maria had something to do with it.

Isaac didn't show up for lunch and Stiles didn't see him again until practice that afternoon. Coach seemed to have it out of the team that day, deciding that they needed to work on stamina and staying power which somehow translated to them running back and forth across the field until that had, as a team, sweat out enough to equal the weight of at least one player.

Even as a wolf, Stiles was a bit winded but had to act exhausted like the rest of the players. Not that he would earn an Oscar because the coach stopped by him and patted his shoulder. "Nice hustle out there Blinski. Keep that up and you might just make first string this year."

With the death glare from Jackson and curious glances from the rest of the team, Stiles could feel his ears heating up at the unexpected praise and notice. He stood up and offered a hand to help Isaac.

"Do you need a ride home today?" Stiles had noticed that Isaac took the bus in the morning. He didn't know how he got home in the evening but he was betting Isaac was forced to walk.

The tall boy hunched down, trying to fold himself into a smaller person. "I don't want you to go out of your way. I live passed Oak Creek."

"That's perfect," Stiles smiled. "I tutor at the Hale house so you are on my way."

Isaac was quiet in the locker room and most of the way home. Stiles tried every way he could think of to get more information out of his new friend short of asking out right 'is your dad beating the crap out of you?'

Pulling up outside a one story house Stiles gave it one last shot. "If you need anything, help or something, you know you can ask me, right?"

Isaac smiled, tight and sad. "Maybe you could tutor me in chem? I really need to bring my grade up before progress reports come out."

"Well, duh." Stiles said with a smile watching as Isaac trudged up the short walk and into the house. He paused at the door to wave before disappearing inside. Stiles couldn't help but think he was a lousy friend.

Once he was out on the road to the preserve Stiles dialed his father. The sheriff answered on the second ring. "Are you alright son?"

"Can't a son call his father without something being wrong? Maybe I was just checking in with you."

"Then you would have just left me a text. What's wrong? And are you driving? Do you know how dangerous that is?"

"Yeah, I do. My dad's actually the sheriff you know. Will you be home tonight? I really think I need to talk to you." His father was quiet on his end but with his new werewolf hearing Stiles could hear his dad's heartbeat pick up speed. "It's nothing bad, well I mean it's bad. No, okay – it could be bad but it's not me that it's happening to but I just need to ask you about it." Funny, that didn't seem to help his father's heart rate decrease any.

"I'll be home tonight. We can talk when you get back from tutoring Alex." Stiles hated that his father sounded so tired. He had so many responsibilities and Stiles' antics on top of it. Did he really want to add something else to his father's plate?

Then he remembered the way Isaac held himself in class, the subtle flinch whenever someone moved too quickly near him and Stiles knew he had to do something. "I'll see you when I get home. I'm hanging up now so that I will be safe, I hear the sheriff is a real hard ass about these things. And before you say it, I promise to pull over if I text. Love you."

With a possible solution to what to do about Isaac, Stiles drove the rest of the way to the Hale house feeling lighter. He parked behind Derek's car and gave it his usual pat as he walked up the stairs and into the house.

Alex was in front of the console with his math book open in front of him. "I thought we would take turns playing. That way we can get our homework done at the same time."

Liking the younger Hales' logic, Stiles dropped his backpack and joined him on the floor. It helped keep his mind off Isaac and his worries about his friend. At least Stiles tried to tell himself that. An hour later when Maria popped her head in they still hadn't started their assignments. "Dinner is in thirty minutes. If your homework is not finished by then or at least mostly done by then I will have Laura bury your game console in the backyard."

It was amazing how quickly homework could be completed given the right incentives. Alex and Stiles easily finished before being called to the table to join the rest of the pack.

The whole family was there. Stiles was introduced to Derek's father and uncle. Derek looked like a younger version of his father, a little bulkier and grumpier but no one would ever doubt they were related. Uncle Peter was slimmer with dark hair and mischievous eyes that Stiles found himself on guard for immediately. By the time the salad course was finished they had exchanged multiple barbed remarks.

"If you two don't behave, neither of you will be getting dessert." Stiles had already eyed the layered cake waiting to be devoured on the counter. His mouth shut with an audible click.

"Dearest Alpha, I was just trying to make the young pup feel at home, part of the family one could say."

"Peter behave." Maria may have said it with a fond smile but there was no doubt that it was an order.

Without the constant distraction of the video game to keep his mind focused off his worries, Stiles found himself thinking about Isaac. Alex nudged him with his foot raising his eyebrows in a question at Stiles' unusual silence. Shrugging Stiles looked back down at his food.

"You're quiet tonight, Stiles."

"Thank God." Derek said in what could loosely be termed as a whisper.

"Just thinking." With a silly smile plastered on his face he went on to describe the day's practice and how the coach ran the team into the ground with dozen of suicides. He had perfected covering his mental processing with verbal rambling years ago. It was a good defense when your father was the sheriff and you needed time to come up with a plausible explanation for some of the shit Stiles had pulled in his life time.

Maria kept a pleasant smile on her face during the whole story even as the rest of the pack's eyes glazed over as the tuned him out. When he finished she reached across the table and laid her hand over his. "I hope someday you will learn to trust me with your worries. Your pack is here to help. You still need time to learn that though.

Stile felt that familiar curl of guilt in his stomach. It was the same you he got when he lied to his father. Maria kept the eye contact with Stiles for another couple of heartbeats before giving him another pat and standing to clear the table. "Derek, you have dishes tonight. Laura, take out the trash."

Alex and Stiles escaped during the expected rumblings from the siblings over chore distribution. "I've gotta go." Stiles said as he grabbed his backpack. His feeling of unease had only grown during dinner. He needed to check for himself that Isaac was okay but he wasn't ready to share his concerns with the pack.

Alex walked him out to the jeep and leaned in through the open window. "Something's bothering you. Why won't you tell us?"

"I can't be sure just yet. I just need to know everything before I can."

That's even more reason for you to tell us. We have even more experience than you do with senses and being a wolf."

"It's not like that, it isn't just a wolf thing, it's…complicated and before you say it, no that's not a good enough reason to tell you guys."

"How can you not trust me? You can tell me anything. Stiles you're my best friend – no you're more than that. You're my pack brother." Alex replied, as if his heart was broken.

"I don't know anything about you guys! I've only been a wolf a few days and I can't risk someone's….look just give me a few days okay? Your mom is willing to give me time, why can't you?"

"I just wanna help." Alex said with a frown that nearly broke Stiles' heart. "Just let me know if I can help. Okay?"

Nodding Stiles hopped into his jeep and pulled away watching Alex in the rearview mirror until he was just a speck.

He's half way to Isaac's house before he even realizes that he is driving there. Stiles' wishes he had asked for Isaac's number so he could call but he hadn't thought about that in school. Parking down the street a bit, he focuses on the house. After a moment or two he can pick up a couple of heartbeats; one slow and steady coming from what was most likely a bedroom and the other, fast and panicked coming from below the main floor.

Slipping out of his jeep, Stiles hops the back fence and works his way silently to the back door. It takes just a twist of his wrist to break the lock and let himself in through the kitchen. He can hear the snores of Isaac's dad coming from down the hall and frantic scratching and pleading coming from below.

Following the sound of desperation is easy, dealing with the smell of old blood and fresh fear is not. His wolf strains to emerge, tugging at the tentative hold he has over his control.

By the time Stiles comes to the door to the basement he is panting with the tension of holding back his shift. The scent of raw terror hits him like a physical blow staggering him back, protecting Isaac is his only though, with his wolf desperate to find the boy and destroy whatever caused him pain. He gagged on the odor, retching to try to get the taste form out of the back of his throat.

But in his rush to help all his werewolf agility and stealth failed him and he stumbled down the steps, heel sliding on the top causing him to half fall as he legs bumped down each one and the only thing that kept him off his ass was his death grip on the wooden railing.

"Dad," Isaac's voice pleaded from inside a dented white freezer wrapped in chains. "I'm sorry. I'll do better, I swear. Please let me out. Please Dad."

Horrified at the sound, Stiles didn't waste another moment hesitating or worrying about trying to be quiet. The old lock came apart like dried clay as he crushed it in his hands, ripping apart the chains around the freezer. The top of the freezer slammed into the wall, cracking the plaster and causing a small cloud of dust as he pulled a trembling Isaac from its depts.

Stiles? What are you doing here?" Isaac stuttered, his whole body trembling and covered with cooling sweat.

Knowing he had no way of speaking to Isaac that didn't involve howling with rage at his friend's pain, Stiles chooses to remain silent, simply smiling down at Isaac as he pulls him from the freezer.

"What the hell are you doing in my house?" A lanky man, eyes raging behind thin framed glasses thundered down the stairs. He held a baseball bat in his hand, knuckles white around the grip. "Who the fuck are you?"

"I'm Stiles Stilinski, you asshole. Who the fuck locks their kid in a fucking freezer? He's not a goddamn ice cream sandwich, you sick piece of trash." Stiles watched as Mr. Lahey's face turned bright red, veins popping out with such force that he was surprised he didn't have an aneurism right on the steps.

With a snarl of fury the older man hefted the bat and closed in on the two boys. Stiles had his father's number ringing before he had even reached the bottom step. "My father's the sheriff," he yelled as he heard his father pick up on the other end.

"Stiles? Where are you, son?" His father's voice had taken on its 'sheriff tone', the one that dealt with the dredges of human depravity on a regular basis and still managed to hold it together. "Stiles, I'm on my way. Give me more information."

"You can't do this anymore Mr. Lahey. My dad's on his way and I've seen what you do to your son."

"That's the way son, just stay on the line for me. - Don't hang up." Stiles could hear his father radioing for help and the roar of the cruiser. He stood up pushing Isaac behind him as the enraged man closed the last few feet between them.

The bat seemed to swing in slow motion. Curling in on himself, wrapping himself around Isaac as his instincts scream for him to protect the human, it was almost too easy to prepare for the blow but the pain of the strike still rippled through his body making his stomach churn and twist from the sudden pain. Werewolf healing or not; it still hurt.

The second blow was aimed at his side. Mr. Lahey apparently targeting Isaac just as much as him. Realizing he needed to get himself and Isaac out of the house before he lost complete control Stiles kicked out with his feet as Mr. Lahey stood over him, hitting the older man with all his strength in the knee cap. It crunched like breaking glass sending Isaac's father tumbling to the ground clutching his leg and screaming.

Dragging Isaac to his feet, Stiles pulled him up the stairs and toward the front of the house. He could hear the wail of the sirens in the distance and knew that help would be there soon. The chain refused to slide out of the lock as he fumbled with it at the front door. The constant onslaught of fear wafting up from Isaac combined with his frantic heartbeat and the screaming cusses from the basement had Stiles' humanity all but completely buried.

With a snarl he ripped the chain from its clasp and tugged the door open, ignoring both the splintering of the wood in the door frame and the gasp of shock from Isaac in his haste to get them out of the house.

By the time they were on the lawn the red and blue lights from the squad cars could be seen at the end of the street. Stiles held onto Isaac, pulling Isaac into his arms as the taller boy's legs seemed to give out from beneath him, and carried him to the curb to wait for his father to arrive.

Within moments they were within the protective circle of the Beacon Hill deputies, many of whom Stiles had known for most of his life. Two went into the house to check on Mr. Lahey while the rest stood guard over Stiles until his father, filled with worry, pulled in front of the house. Without a word the sheriff gathered his son to his chest, pulling him close enough that Stiles could feel the imprint of his father's badge in his skin.

Stiles let his body sag against his fathers, feeling safe for the first time in days.