Survival
Chapter 49
Windows
...
Liam was walking home after seeing Hayden to her's, which impressed her father greatly. It had been a nice date and a movie. Pity he wasn't old enough to drive, though.
He noticed oncoming headlights slowing and moving toward him. He was a Werewolf, but that traitor Garrett had caught him off guard and kidnapped him, and he was only a human, not even an adult human. Liam tensed and readied his claws.
"Hey little boy, need a ride?" A cheerful voice called. "I have candy."
Liam smirked, "Sean, you're an idiot, you know that, right?"
Sean just laughed, "Seriously though, do you need a ride? And what are you doing out so late?"
"I had a date." Liam walked over and opened the passenger side door, "And I'm a Werewolf. I can defend myself pretty well." He looked at Sean and grinned, "Is this just a trick to get me alone and eat me?"
"Nah, you'd be too tough. Blunt my teeth all up."
"What are you doing out so late?"
"I was visiting Donovan and his dad. We talked a lot longer than I'd expected." He turned and mussed Liam's hair, earning an irritated glare, "How was the date?"
"We had a good time." He grinned again, "And her parents like me!"
"How could they not love our precious little pup?"
Liam gave a fake growl, "Don't call me a 'little pup', Jaws."
Sean began humming the theme to the Jaws films as he drove.
Soon enough he pulled into the Dunbar's driveway.
"See you tomorrow, Pup."
"Thanks for the ride, Jaws."
Sean waited until Liam was inside the house before backing out and heading home to the McCall's.
...
Later that night,
Sean awoke suddenly to the sound of a window creaking open.
Oh God...
It was coming from the direction of Scott's room.
His heart started pounding faster, as if it might tear itself from his chest.
Not again. Never again!
He transformed into Wendigo form, grabbed his baseball bat, and charged into the hall, kicking open Scott's door to find-
Derek Hale standing by the window and Scott was sitting upright on his bed.
"Sean?" Scott's voice barely penetrated the fog in his mind.
The bat slipped through boneless fingers, Sean began trying to steady his breath, he was nearly hyperventilating.
Derek walked over slowly and put a steadying hand on his shoulder as Melissa McCall ran into the room with her handgun.
"What's going on? Sean?" She noticed he was in his Wendigo form, and terrified. "Sean, it's all right, nobody's going to hurt you."
"I should have warned him I sometimes come in through the window." Derek said sadly, pulling the trembling Wendigo into an embrace, "It's alright. We're not in danger. I use the window all the time," He smiled, "Easier than picking the lock..."
Sean, of course, didn't laugh.
"Sean, I'm sorry. I thought you knew about the windows."
"I did." Sean said dully, "But I panicked anyway." He looked at the broken door, and covered his face with his hand.
PTSD, Derek thought, He's reacting as if we were under attack.
Melissa vanished from the shattered doorway only to reappear moments later with Sean's medicine and a glass of water. Sean took the medicine wordlessly.
Sean began repeating the calming mantra in his mind, The sun. The moon. The truth.
Scott and Melissa joined in embracing him, and after a few minutes his heartbeat was close to normal, the worst of it had, hopefully, passed.
"I'm sorry about the door." Sean's voice was soft, quiet.
"Don't worry, it's just a door." Melissa said soothingly, "You're far more important than a door."
"C'mon, let's go down to the kitchen and talk."
...
Scott couldn't help smiling, "You were coming to help me?"
"We're pack. Family." Sean was pale and still trembling slightly, "I won't let it happen again. I was helpless before. My family died that night. I'm not helpless anymore, and I'm not about to let another family die like that."
"You didn't let them die, Sean. There was nothing you could have done to stop it -"
"I left the door open." His voice was laden with grief.
Scott and Mrs. McCall were perplexed, but Derek understood immediately.
"When I went out to find Willow," Sean's voice was trembling and he swallowed hard, "I left the front door open. I let him in."
"That monster was determined to kill you, if you had shut the door, he'd have walked in anyways, unless you lock yourself out every time you go outside. Even then he would have found another way in." Derek's voice was uncharacteristically warm, comforting even. He put an arm around Sean's shoulders. He knew the feeling, the guilt. He'd all but served up his entire family to that whore Kate Argent and her damnable hunters. But Sean hadn't done anything as foolish as he had. He had left his front door open while he stepped outside for a moment, who hadn't done that? He didn't deserve to feel that guilt.
When Sean started sobbing Derek pulled him close, literally giving him a shoulder to cry on. He felt like the world's biggest dick, sneaking around a house where a traumatized kid lived. He was lucky Sean hadn't come in swinging and bashed his empty head in.
After what happened to Erica, Boyd, Allison and Aiden and, to a lesser extent Isaac and Jackson, Derek didn't know if he could survive failing another member of his pack. He was going to protect them all, and Sean, Stiles and Liam were the most vulnerable. The easiest targets, and he would protect them, even if it killed him.
...
The night ended with a small puppy pile, Scott and Derek curled around Sean, their presence calming his fears and allowing him to sleep. Derek watched the young Wendigo's peaceful face. He was suffering, but he was reacting better than Derek himself had at his loss. Derek had shut himself off emotionally, swallowed by guilt and pain. Sean had no trouble expressing his emotions, and he made friends readily.
Derek was grateful for that fact. Maybe Sean's life would turn out alright...
...
To be continued...
I noticed that, in 'Muted', the front door to the Walcott's house is open while Sean is looking for Willow. If he'd lived, (hopefully he didn't really die!), Sean would have probably added leaving the door open to his survivor's guilt and PTSD. Even though shutting it would have accomplished nothing at all.
Derek is in the same boat, he blames himself for his family's deaths, Paige, Boyd, Erica, possibly Aiden. While he made some bad decisions, he had no way of knowing about how evil and manipulative Kate was until it was too late. He also wasn't at fault here, either. No one was. Sean knew about the windows, but his mind was jumbled by his PTSD.
Yes, Derek is out of character. That's why it's called 'Fan' fiction
