~#~#~#~#~ Stiles' POV
Heaving out a soft sigh Stiles stared at the phone turning over and over in his hands, his bottom lip sucked between his teeth as he chewed on the sore flesh in deep consideration. The rhythmic sound of the shower running and the warm puffs of steam curling around him like a soft blanket almost provided the perfect reprieve from his muddled thoughts, almost. Because even after hours had passed since Nick had fully untied him and apologized profusely for his behavior, he still couldn't bring himself to believe that his boyfriend's actions didn't hurt him beyond repair.
Because they did. They hurt him so much.
Just the sheer manipulation and betrayal of trust alone that went into magically changing Stiles' memory was something that ached like a wound across his heart; because Stiles had trusted Nick wholeheartedly, laying himself bare both emotionally and physically for the older man and in return, he'd been deceived.
God, Nick hadn't even told him he was magical for fuck's sake!
Then, there was the fact that his so-called boyfriend had kept him tied up in his bedroom for a whole day and a half, most of which Stiles spent in some sort of panicked haze, his brain shutting down in a twisted attempt to block out the reality he was living.
But he couldn't block it out, not fully.
Just like how he can't block out the growing doubt he feels right now.
Making up his mind Stiles swiped his thumb across the phone screen, quickly typing in the keycode and unlocking his phone for the first time since arriving at Nick's apartment early hours Thursday morning. Blinking in surprise Stiles viewed the numerous missed calls and unread texts flashing up on his screen in silence, over 100 missed calls, mostly from his dad, but surprisingly, the rest were from Derek.
Deciding quite quickly that he still wasn't quite ready to hear his dad's voice, Stiles opened up the first of a string of voicemails from Derek, swallowing his guilt down and tentatively pressing play on the first message, sent just ten minutes after he would have stormed out of the loft on Wednesday, before bringing the phone up to his ear. Derek's familiar gruff voice flowing out from the speaker causing the teen's chest to tighten with a wave of indefinable emotion.
"Stiles…. I'm-I'm sorry about what I said. I shouldn't have answered your phone, and I definitely shouldn't have used your feelings for me as a weapon against you. It was childish and uncalled for. Just.. call me back? Please? I really don't want this to be the end of our friendship". The message ended at that point, before moving onto the next recorded about an hour after the first, Derek's voice noticeably less rough, almost gentle with its remorse in a way that Stiles himself had never had the opportunity to hear before.
"Yeah, so, you're still not answering my calls which I guess is warranted. Cause I fucked up, big time" there was a deep sigh followed by a long pause as clinking echoed across the line, a sound Stiles had come to associate closely with glass bottles, specifically alcohol bottles. "You know what...you clearly don't want to talk right now, and I should respect that so I'm just going to stop calling and leave you alone like you probably want" Derek laughed almost bitterly before adding quietly, in a whisper almost too low for Stiles to pick up "stay safe Stiles".
The third message left by the Alpha was time stamped as being only 20 minutes after the second.
And Derek sounded considerably drunk.
"YOU! You! Were a total dick too! So this... this isn't entirely my f-faullt-t! Jus so ya know!" mumbling followed the loud declaration which in its total bizarre and unexpected manner made Stiles' lips twitch towards a smile. The Alpha sounded whiny and petulant, like a kid who'd lost an argument with their parent. "Youuuu mentioned Kate and Jennifer whihch sucked. U suck. And now I'm dad-SAD! I am..duper sad". Snorting inappropriately at the words being half-yelled down the phone, Stiles slapped his hand over his mouth to stop any laughter from leaking out and alerting Nick to anything out of the ordinary. He was after all, only supposed to be having a shower and then getting ready for their midnight picnic.
Drunk Derek continued talking, words elongated by a sloppy inebriated tongue. "S'okay tho. CAuSe I know you didn't meean it. You w-were mad. An-d I for-forGiVE you! ...I … I di-didnt.. mean whaht I sssaid ei-either" the message cut off there possibly by accident, or on purpose. Who knows with a drunk Alpha werewolf but nevertheless, Stiles continued on, listening keenly to the next message with the expectation of more drunken rambling.
He was wrong.
"Stiles! Stiles! I need you to answer the phone okay? Answer me or your dad, it doesn't matter who, just answer the fucking phone! This is important Stiles. So call me back ASAP! And whatever you do, do not go to Nick's! He's dangerous" the Alpha sounded a lot more somber in the message, but also out of breath and...scared?
Which confused Stiles. A lot. Derek was never scared, especially not for Stiles.
So what changed?
Dread starting to form at the bottom of his stomach like snake coiling tightly, Stiles listened on, as each of Derek's voicemails got more and more desperate. Until the last one, sent only a few hours ago.
"Stiles… listen, I don't... I don't know if you'll ever hear this in time..but I had to try… because I still believe that deep down, despite whatever Nick is telling you, and whatever creepy magic he's doing to your head, you know that something isn't right". Heart fluttering like the fragile beating of a small birds wings, Stiles began to chew the loose skin on his bottom lip more vigorously in a subconscious display of anxiety.
"I just wanted you to know...that I'm sorry. I'm sorry that it took actually losing you to someone else for me to realize how wrong I've been because the truth is… I like you. I really, really like you and I've been a complete idiot about it. I thought I was doing best by you by ignoring it, hoping that you'd move on to someone who deserves you more than I do, someone who doesn't...destroy practically everything they touch because they're so broken inside. ..But, I was wrong. And I didn't give you, or us a chance. Instead, I made the choice to push you away to protect you".
Wait, what?!
The bitter irony taste of blood spread across Stiles' tongue as the teen managed to bite straight through the skin of his bottom lip in shock. Releasing the abused flesh abruptly with a wince, Stiles swallowed rapidly in an attempt to get rid of the taste. Derek's words echoing around in his head like a ball in a game of squash, smashing against the walls of his mind with all the destructive force of a hurricane.
Derek liked him? Actually liked him? Like, romantically?
Still struggling to process the new information Stiles almost missed the rest of the message, his mind barely managing to snap back into focus as Derek's voice continued to flow into his ear.
"I don't blame you... I won't blame you, that is if after all of this is over you want nothing to do with me. Cause you'd be right not to, I fucked up and now you're paying the price. But I promise you, I'm going to fix it. Me and your dad, we have a plan, but we need you to sit tight for just a little bit longer, okay? Just act as normally as you can and don't give anything away. We're coming, Stiles. We haven't left you, I promise"
The message ended there, leaving Stiles emotionally reeling in the bathroom of his boyfriend's apartment. Inhaling deeply to try and soothe a headache forming at the forefront of his skull Stiles closed his eyes for a brief moment before reopening and rising from his position on the closed toilet seat. Approaching the still running shower Stiles reached out a hand finally turning the knob to switch the water off, having long since finished getting washed, and only deciding to keep the water running to make Nick think he was still in the shower.
He had needed time to think. Without Nick's charming smile and honey coated words crawling their way into his mind and making things fuzzy again.
And now that he had time to think, to listen to Derek's messages and process his emotions with a clear head. He knew exactly what he needed to do. With a renewed sense of determination swelling in his chest, Stiles stepped out of the bathroom and proceeded to get ready, pulling on his classic jeans, t-shirt, red hoodie, and white sneaker combination.
Carefully tucking his phone into his hoodie pocket away from Nick's prying eyes, Stiles made his way nonchalantly through the apartment, heading towards the kitchen where he could hear Nick preparing the picnic for tonight. Sliding casually onto a barstool Stiles reached over grabbing a juicy green apple from the top of the fruit bowl as Nick chopped up mint, chilies and spring onions with the practiced ease he always displayed in the kitchen. Crunching into the flesh of the apple Stiles grinned around his mouthful as Nick lifted an eyebrow questioningly in his direction, "nice shower then, love?". Giving a nod of confirmation Stiles swallowed the chewed fruit in his mouth in order to reply, making extra sure to keep his tone light and teasing "yup! Did I mention I love your shower? Because I really, really love your shower".
Nick chuckled and the anxiety in Stiles' chest deflated a little in relief. Eyes straying behind the older man's shoulder Stiles watched as the clock mounted into the kitchen wall ticked closer and closer towards 3 pm, a type of niggling restlessness settling into his bones as his brain whispered desperately to itself.
I trust you, Derek, don't make me regret it. Please.
~#~#~#~#~ Derek's POV
As soon as Derek walked into the Stilinski household his nose was hit with the familiar scent of gunpowder, wolfsbane and mountain ash. Nose wrinkling in disgust as he swallowed down the need to sneeze obnoxiously, the Alpha approached the living room with weary steps, claws threatening to make an appearance at the unpleasant smell invading Stiles' home. Tense shoulders relaxed as his eyes fell on the Sheriff alone on the sofa, staring pensively at a spread of items across the rectangular coffee table.
The floorboard underneath Derek's shoe creaked obnoxiously and John jumped, eyes snapping towards him hovering awkwardly in the doorway before a soft smile spread across his face.
"Hey there son, you've just missed Chris"
Biting back the urge to reply with a snippy "good", Derek simply nodded eying the assortment of objects on the table surface with an air of practiced suspicion earning himself a low chuckle from the older Stilinski. "Yeah, I don't blame ya kid. Half of this stuff is better than what they have in the military, and trust me, I would know. But I guess… this is Allison's way of helping? Although I'm pretty darn sure I'm not going to use any of this shit, I'm the Sheriff after all. Can't be using illegal weapons even if it is to save my son" he grumbled pushing a box of what looked like flash grenades away with a scowl.
Feeling oddly soothed by the other man's firm declaration of weapon abstinence Derek finally plucked up the courage to enter the living room, his inner wolf grumbling, pleased that the Sheriff showed the same disdain for the items of destruction. Taking a seat Derek leaned forward, elbows resting on his knees as his hands clasped together tightly in an attempt to appear nonchalant as he posed the hopeful question he deep down, already knew the answer too.
"No answer from Stiles then?"
A heavy sigh filtered past the Sheriff's teeth as the older man shook his head in disappointment "no, I've rung him at least once every hour for the past two days...just in case he picks up you know? But so far… nothing". Lips twisting into a sad frown Derek cast his gaze down towards his feet as John kept talking, the man growing more upset with the situation "I just… I don't understand why he isn't picking up? Is he scared I'm going to be mad at him for Wednesday night? I know he didn't mean to throw me into the wall, he was just lashing out. I shouldn't have cornered him like that, I should have kept my cool instead of blowing up as I did".
Shaking his head Derek interjected before the Sheriff could continue on his verbal guilt trip "this isn't your fault, Stiles would have run one way or another. Especially with Nick messing with his head like that, turning him against everyone. It was just a matter of time". Giving Derek a particularly bitter smile, John leveled the alpha with a hardened stare "Nick might have started the flame, but I fueled it Derek, and I have to take responsibility for that".
Derek didn't respond, simply choosing to keep quiet as the older man's words settled like a stone in his mind.
Yeah, you're not the only one.
Slapping his hands onto his knees John stood up, his aged joints cracking at the movement as Derek watched in anticipation "right, enough wallowing. We need to go over the battle plan that's going to save my son". Nodding Derek followed suit, rising from his seated position to trail behind the Sheriff as the older man lead him up the stairs into Stiles' room. Confused, Derek opened his mouth to ask John why they were in that room and then his eyes fell upon the cork board positioned on the wall behind Stiles' desk. The Sheriff, it seems had taken it upon himself to assemble a large map across the two boards with various post-it notes dotted on the surface, bullet points and underlined words scribbled on in bright red marker creating a sight so familiar, so... Stiles-like that Derek couldn't fight back the smile twitching at his lips. Stiles really was his father's son.
~#~#~#~#~ Stiles' POV
The evening passed in the blink of an eye and the sky darkened faster than Stiles would have liked, the rose-golden tinge of a sunset sky bleeding rapidly into a dark blue with silvery pinpricks of starlight. Soon enough, it was time to head off, Nick gathering the picnic basket, thermos flasks, and blankets with a giddy sort of air that made Stiles' stomach twinge in worry. Using the excuse of wanting the toilet before they left for their journey to the lake, the teen quickly checked his phone, heavy doubts beginning to form in his mind like a stormcloud at the sight of no new messages from Derek. In an attempt to steel himself against the very sudden, very terrifying realization that Derek and his dad might not be coming to save him, Stiles breathed slowly in through his nose and out through his mouth until his mind calmed down enough for the shaking to stop.
Stubbornly ignoring the pale reflection of himself in the mirror above the sink Stiles twisted his features into a facsimile of a smile before leaving the bathroom and joining Nick at the door of the apartment, his voice overly chirpy to hide the underlying sadness.
"All right, let's go"
-time skip-
In hindsight, Stiles probably should have figured out something more sinister was going on than what Nick was letting him believe, but as strange as it sounds, the teen once again found himself falling back into the familiar and captivating presence that was Nicholas Campbell.
Upon arrival Stiles noticed quite quickly that the lake Nicholas had brought him too was a truly beautiful sight, and as they perched themselves down on its grassy verge with a thick waterproof picnic blanket to keep the dampness of the ground away, the Spark found his eyes settling instinctively on the deathly still waters of the lake in awe. The surface of the water acted as a perfect natural mirror of the night sky above, reflecting the full moon in all its silvery glory and the stars speckled around it like thousands of tiny little glowing fireflies. Various sounds of wildlife echoed around them as Nick unpacked the food from the basket and a few extra blankets to shelter them from the cold. Wrapping a large checkered blanket around his shoulders Stiles waited patiently as Nick set out the various tupperware boxes filled with what the Englishman clearly viewed as appropriate picnic food, which to put politely, was nothing at all like the picnic food the teen was used to.
Then again, he hadn't been on a picnic since before his mom died, and PB&J sandwiches with fruit juice, chips and cake were probably not something respectable adults take to picnics. Rapidly blinking away the bittersweet memories of summers long past, Stiles accepted the cup held out towards him, smiling his thanks as he brought the steaming object underneath his nose to inhale deeply. Eyebrows creeping towards his hairline in a pleasant surprise, Stiles hummed lowly as his senses lit up at the unique aroma billowing off the liquid. Intrigued, Stiles blew gently on the cup before taking a tentative sip, his taste buds immediately singing with pleasure at the impossibly fruity and flowery taste which burst across his tongue.
Eyes comically wide Stiles hurriedly blew on the cup once again, eager to drink more of the warm liquid which made his insides feel like toasted marshmallows. Nick watched his reaction to the tea with an amused look on his face, a pleased glint appearing in his baby blue eyes as Stiles did his best to drain the small cup of the still scaldingly-hot tea.
"You like it? It's a personal infusion of mine. I learned some fantastic tea making skills in Southwest China a few years back, I'll happily show you later if you want?" Nick proposed earning himself an enthusiastic nod in return. A beat of comfortable silence passed and then the older man spoke again, a distinctly offhanded tone to his voice which made Stiles pause in his efforts to drink the entire cup "I guess after tonight, I can take you there myself and you can learn like I did, straight from the masters of the craft". Snorting unattractively Stiles rolled his eyes at Nick's words, more than used to his boyfriend's wild promises and fanciful ideas of their future together.
"I can't go to China with you Nick, don't be ridiculous"
Reaching out and grabbing Stiles' hand with a deathly grip Nick grinned impishly "of course you can, love. We're going to travel to the world together. Once the blood moon begins nothing will stand in our way anymore, not your friends, not your father... Not even those pesky little doubts you keep having in your adooorable little head".
Flinching back violently, Stiles tried in vain to tug his hand out of Nick's hold, only for the older man's fingers to tighten like iron, causing the delicate bones in Stiles' hands to grind together and ache. With his heart now thumping fast and loud in his chest Stiles spared Nick a nervous glance, his stomach clenching at the dark look being trained on him.
"What's the matter, Stiles? Don't you love me anymore?" Nick queried, lips forming a sad pout as his head tilted innocently to the side. Rapidly shaking his head Stiles gave one last desperate tug, his hand slipping out of Nick's grip sending him careening backward. Scrambling quickly to his feet, all the while silently cursing the blanket around his shoulders for and slowing him down, Stiles made a break for it, his long legs carrying him across the grass in massive strides.
Heart in his throat he ran, heading up the steep hill back towards the car park, and after what seemed like an age, Stiles finally made it to the top, only slipping a few times on the soft earth beneath his shoes. Gulping large desperate breaths of air into his lungs the teen suddenly stumbled, stomach lurching and legs buckling under the weight of his body. Reaching out to try and steady himself Stiles yelped loudly as the world around him suddenly whited out, his limbs growing tingly and useless as he fell roughly to the ground. Everything was spinning, even the ground was twisting and turning underneath his now shaking body and Stiles had to bite back a sob, a ringing beginning to echo in his ears only serving to add to the crippling sense of disorientation enveloping him.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Looks like you didn't get very far darling. Although, that might have a little something to do with a special ingredient I slipped into that tea you loved so much. I was prepared you see, couldn't have you running off at such a crucial moment in our relationship!" Nick announced cheerfully from somewhere to the left and Stiles whined pathetically as strong hands plucked him from his curled fetal position on the grass.
Securing Stiles better in his arms Nick hummed as he began the trek back down the waterfront "come along, love. The eclipse will be starting soon, and I'm certain you won't want to miss even a second of it".
~#~#~#~#~ Derek's POV
"I'm still not happy with the idea of you doing this alone, I should be there. He's my son" the Sheriff grumbled, noticeably displeased as they pulled into a small side road, the almost silent purr of the camaro's engine cutting off as Derek parked. Leaving the keys in the ignition Derek turned to John, his brow furrowed in frustration, ready to snap.. until he saw the hurt and desperation flickering across the older man's features. Realising just how hard it must be for a father to sit and do nothing as someone else saved his son, Derek gave the Sheriff a comforting squeeze on his shoulder, looking deep into his tired gaze "Nick's too strong and Stiles needs you alive, I'm not risking him coming out of this without a dad to help him through. He's going to need you Sir, getting him away from that asshole is only the first step".
Nodding almost reluctantly to the logic in Derek's words, John blew out a long breath reaching into his pocket to retrieve a small black device, about the size of a remote car key with a single button in the middle. "You're right, but I don't trust that Tobias, so I want you to take this, just incase something goes wrong and you can't get out with Stiles. I have to other one so if you press the button mine will start emitting an alarm and I'll know you need back up". Opening his mouth to reassure the Sheriff once again, that he was capable of doing this Derek swallowed his words as the elder Stilinski leveled him with a pleading look "please, just… for my peace of mind. Take it". Giving a sharp nod Derek grabbed the device and stuffed it into his pocket before sliding out of the car, facial features shifting into Beta form as he set off into the night.
He had a Warlock to kill.
And a friend to save.