Chapter 11:
"So what are you going to do?" Derek asked Chris.
The Sheriff had taken some medicine for the slight pain, added with the jet lag, he was sleeping as peacefully as he can in this situation.
Meanwhile, Chris told Derek about all of the precautions that the safe house had, told him where the emergency exits were, and on a map told him where he could find other Argent safe houses that should be empty.
Chris was preparing to go and meet up with other hunters and told Derek such. "There are certain pubs that are known as hunter hangouts. I'm going to go to one and see if I can get someone's help figuring out what the magical situation is."
"While using the Argent name?" Derek questioned.
"It holds some merit, so I thought I'd try," Chris responded with a small smirk as he grabbed another gun.
Derek didn't like feeling worried about a hunter, but Chris has proven himself more or less useful and not a close-minded jerk. He wasn't a friend, but he was an ally. "Are you sure that's safe? You and your father had a falling out, so I can't believe he wouldn't bad mouth you."
"I have no doubt in my mind that once I chose to stand with whatever Allison decided, as well as what my moral conscience was comfortable with, that he made me seem like the stupidest hunter to ever be born to all of our connections. But that's the high brow clan. The kind that doesn't always resort getting their info from bars. And besides, as much as my father may try to tarnish my name...my skills speak for themselves. I'll be fine." Chris promised.
"I hate waiting," Derek commented. He knew the plan. It was going to be slow at first. They needed to know how the magical community worked before they could plan. From what they could piece together from Noah's tales, it seemed the magical community lived parallel to the humans.
Much like the stories of wild beasts that werewolves are portrayed as because the ones the humans most encountered were wild, feral omegas who were losing their sanity for being without packs, the magic users were the same. Any stories the humans or hunters gathered weren't from the society as a whole, but that one demented individual that was shunned, outcasted or exiled.
Whatever information they get, couldn't be taken at face value. They were racing against the clock but they didn't want to get Stiles in unnecessary trouble.
Derek knew what he had to do. Protect the Sheriff and keep him calm. Easier said than done when he himself wasn't that calm either.
"I know. And I know it's harder now that we're here and we have more information. But we can't go anywhere blind. You know that better than anyone."
"I can help you if I come with you. If you start talking to someone, others who hear may go and speak about themselves. I can pick up lies. I can't sit around!"
"All of that is really tempting, Derek, I won't deny that. If nothing pans out, I'll bring you out with me next time. But for now, I really do need you to just stay here and watch over Stilinski, okay?"
Derek really didn't like it but didn't argue. They'd lose time if he continued to argue.
"I'll read through whatever I can find here," Derek stated.
"Hello Stiles, it is very good to see you," Luna said dreamily as she hugged him.
Stiles hugged her very tightly. He always liked Luna. She was weird even among the magical people, and Stiles felt very at home with her. Noting he ever said or thought was crazy. Whenever he felt stressed, guilty, or defeated she always knew how to bring him back without belittling him or making his worries seem pathetic and stupid.
"You too, Cedric," Luna said as it was Cedric's turn.
Cedric hugged her back, "How are you?"
"Oh, I'm very well! I've started journaling about the creatures that living around here for different seasons. It's become quite the project." Luna told them as she led them to the kitchen. "Would you care for some treats? Dad got some lovely pastries from our neighbor yesterday."
"That would be lovely," Cedric said as he pulled out a chair for Stiles. "How is your father?"
"Also very well. He's out with a friend just now, so I'm afraid he'll miss you. It's a shame. He was very fond of the stories I told him of you." Luna told Stiles.
Stiles smiled at her, "I'll leave him a thank you note."
Luna's father embraced her and encouraged her to be herself. Stiles didn't know how he'd have survived if not for Luna's help and support. He watched as Luna used magic to fill up a kettle while she went to fetch a plate for the pastries that were promised.
The Lovegood home was just as one would imagine it. Not that one could really pre-imagine it but once you're inside you're not surprised. Something caught his attention though.
"Is that me?"
"Hm? Oh yes. I started a mural in my bedroom but I ran out of space. Dad didn't mind, he loved hearing about your adventures and liked being able to see you too. Do you like it?" Luna asked.
Stiles felt heat rise inside of him as he looked at the portrait of himself painted into the wall that led up towards the staircase. He was looking upwards with a full moon painted overhead while he stood on a stump. It shouldn't have bothered him much, but it sort of did.
"Why did you draw me on a stump?"
"Remember that very odd dream you had that wouldn't leave you alone? It was so detailed I could see it perfectly in my mind's eye." Luna answered.
"The dream?" Stiles mumbled to himself as he tried to remember. It finally clicked. It'd been years since he's had it. Before the insane events at the Triwizard Tournament, and after what followed he's not surprised that a weird dream about a magical stump was forgotten about.
Remembering it now, he realized that it might have been a huge forwarning about what would happen.
"Stiles?" Cedric called out.
"The Nemeton…"
"Stiles?" Cedric called out again, a bit louder.
Stiles snapped out of it and focused back to the two. "Sorry. I just...I...the tree stump turned out to be a bigger, more literal part of my life than I thought."
"Do you wanna talk about it?" Cedric asked.
Stiles didn't even understand what it meant, not then and not now. So he shook his head. "I'm already confused enough as it is with what's going on."
"What is going on? I got a letter from Neville the other day. Poor dear is in such a state thinking he lost you." Luna commented.
"You're in contact with Neville?" Stiles asked.
"Yes," Luna replied with a smile.
"We shouldn't stay too long. We can't risk Stiles being found." Cedric said and then gave her a brief summary of what's been going on. And because she asked, Stiles also gave her a rundown of what's happened to him in America after his wand was snapped.
They return to Malfoy Manor within the hour. Cedric didn't want to risk Stiles's safety or freedom.
"I'm sorry we couldn't stay longer. I'd forgotten how nice Lovegood is." Cedric told him.
Stiles smiled up at him. "She's weird. I love weird." He reached out for Cedric's hand, it felt much more natural to do so now. "It was the breath of fresh air I needed...but now that I'm back...I have to talk to Harry."
"Stiles-"
"No. I have to. Being with Luna reminded me of what it was like back then helping Harry. Feeling so damn small and insignificant because there were adults from all over the world around and 'surely they'd do something!'. No one helped Harry because it wasn't their job or it was prophesized or whatever. Luna gave me the courage and reminded me that being a real friend is to take the world by the horns sometimes."
"Stiles...that made no sense," Cedric stated.
Stiles sighed, "I know. I ran it back just now. And it's not the point. The point was that it was thanks to a friendship like Luna's that Harry and I got the courage to do what knew was right in the circumstance we were placed in. Ever since I left I felt a sense of unfinished business. I can't just keep hiding. I can't just stay safe while Greyback is out there doing god knows what and I'm a possible way to stop this. I'm sick of being benched. I'm sick of playing defense. I wanna know what Dumbledore's been up to. I want to find out what the hell Greyback's up to. I want answers."
"You're going to wear a hole in the floor." Noah deadpanned.
Derek stopped before he forced himself to take a seat. "Sorry. I just hate sitting by."
"I get it. But as someone with a sprained ankle, I'd appreciate you not rubbing it in my face that you can pace around and I can't."
"Do you need more pain killers?" Derek asked, already reaching for them.
"Any more and I'll be out of commission. I'm not gonna let you and Argent bench me on my own son's rescue mission," Noah told him, then added. "It's not bad anymore. And I'll keep resting it until Argent comes back with some news. Which I hope is soon."
"Me too," Derek said.
"Can I ask you something?" Noah asked after a while.
"Yeah, sure."
"How the hell did Stiles get involved with werewolves? With you, specifically?"
Derek wished he didn't need to recount some of his not-so-shining-alpha-moments, but it was only fair. And it didn't seem like Argent was going to come through the door any time soon.
"Laura and I had just come back from New York. Peter had just healed but was more than psycho...he killed her. And I had to bury the body because I didn't know." Derek began. He could see the moments popping up in the Sheriff's head about the night Stiles and Scott went after a dead body and the events that followed. All the things that the Sheriff dismissed as Stiles acting out in very weird teenage rebellion were actually him and his friends, and not friends, trying to not get killed. Or locked up in an insane asylum.
