Btw, I still haven't got a beta, but I do use the free Grammarly version now. I'll probably go back and go over the older chapters as I find the time, but it'll be slow-going since there are sooo many. Thanks for your patience with my non-native fumblings. 3
Chapter 68
The party was, for all intents and purposes, a success. The old ladies had a whole afternoon of social interaction which didn't consist of sniping and verbal backstabbing among each other, Jackson was hilariously coddled and stuffed with food, and Lydia and Danny didn't look completely spooked by the casual togetherness of humans and werewolves in such a setting.
A little after dusk had begun to fall, Danny searched out Stiles and asked him for a quiet word.
"I don't mind them listening in," Danny said as they slowly walked down the street, "but I can do without the judgy looks."
Stiles couldn't help it, he snorted with laughter. "Believe me, those are free anytime you don't want them."
Danny quirked his own smile. "I wanted to say sorry for how I've decided to handle this whole situation. I've had some time to think about it now and talk it over with Lydia and Jackson and yeah. I was a pushy bastard when I should've known that it wouldn't be welcome. I hope you can forgive me."
Stiles carefully looked Danny over for signs of mind control, but all he and Lou could detect was honest remorse. "Well, I guess I can make allowances for you being shocked and worried. We've all been there at one point. But you'd better understand that cornering supernatural beings that can rip you limb from limb is a really bad idea. With all the shit that went down, Peter's just not into stupid games and you can bet that other supernaturals will be just as unscrupulous in defending their safety."
"Believe me, I got that message," Danny replied. "I just wanted to make sure that there are no hard feelings. I already promised Mr Hale that I'll keep mum about everything, and he knows to call me if you need help with anything IT-related."
"Seems like you're working towards making a deal with him," Stiles said, slowly working through that bit of news. "That's cool if he's on board with it. Can I just ask why?"
Danny was quiet for at least a dozen paces. Finally, he said, "I can't tell you anything, not yet, mainly because I'm new to all of this, but I've been made aware that being on good terms with the local pack has some serious advantages."
"You've been made aware … you don't mean by us," Stiles said, staring at Danny. "You'd have just said 'by you' if that were the case. Who told you!"
"I can't tell, yet," Danny repeated, grimacing apologetically. "I wish I could, but I'm bound to secrecy. And no, that's no figure of speech."
"What." Stiles halted him with a hand on his arm. "A magic user bound you to secrecy? Do they live in Beacon Hills? Are they dangerous to us?"
Danny smiled wryly. "No, they aren't. You would have noticed if that were the case, believe me."
"Hm." Stiles let go of the other teen and they resumed their slow walk.
"You're really too smart for your own good," Danny continued, almost idly. "Not that I had any doubts about it, and I did warn them. If it's any consolation, I trust you. I trust you to do right by Jackson, even if it frustrates both of you, and I trust you to keep your friends and even the city safe. You already proved that to me in the garage and later at the hospital, but also just in how you're continuing to visit Jackson and be there for him. It means a lot to him, you know. Even if he doesn't say it."
"Seems a little out of the left field to tell me all of that," Stiles pointed out. "We've never had much to do with each other."
"Such is the supernatural, apparently." Danny shrugged. "It either brings people together or tears them apart." He looked at Stiles then, open and compassionate. "I'm sorry for what McCall has done to you and your dad. I didn't think he had it in him."
"Yes, well, his best friend privileges have been permanently revoked and given to a far more deserving candidate," Stiles said. If his voice was a little hoarse, Danny didn't comment on it. "It still hurts like a bitch - he helped kidnap my dad, for fuck's sake - but it's getting better. I'm looking forward to the day when we can get together with his mom again without either of us tearing up or experiencing intense feelings of rage."
"That bad?" Danny looked like he couldn't quite believe it, or thought it was hyperbole.
Stiles sighed. "Well, the tearing up thing is far more likely to happen but Scott does look a lot like her so it sneaks up on me sometimes when I see her around. It's not her damn fault so I try not to be like that around her."
"Harsh, man. You found really good ones in Isaac, Erica and Boyd, though. They won't pull bullshit like that," Danny said. He smiled tentatively. "I'm a little envious, to be honest. I only ever really had Jackson and Lydia. They're great and I love them to pieces, but they're just two people."
Stiles raised a sceptical eyebrow. "You're always surrounded by lots of people."
"Yes, but they're just that. People. Acquaintances, mostly," Danny returned. "Maybe it's the gay thing that I can't seem to get close to anyone else, I don't know."
"It's not the gay thing," Stiles said with a scoff. "Are you saying that you want to give my friends and I a chance because you're feeling lonely?"
Danny shrugged. "Lydia and Jackson feel drawn to you after what happened and, well, I've always known that you're a solid guy. I just didn't feel like we had a lot in common. If I want to spend any meaningful time with Lyds and Jackson now, I need to be on good terms with you."
"Geez, don't hurt yourself to butter me up," Stiles said and rolled his eyes.
"I don't mean it like that," Danny assured him, still smiling. "While I'm not happy that my friends got hurt, I see this as a chance. Isaac, Erica and Boyd seem like good people. They've all changed a lot for the better since you befriended them and I guess … I guess I wanna find out whether the same will happen to me."
"What if it does? What if it changes you, but you come to hate it?" Stiles asked. "Short of leaving Beacon Hills, things could become really messy between us."
"It could, but that's true for every friendship, isn't it?" Danny countered. "I like to think that discovering the supernatural helped me see that there are people out there who actually care for long-lasting and productive relationships. It helps that packs are usually for life."
"Yes, but they are for life." Stiles huffed. "Look, I mean no disrespect, but latching onto the first pack of werepeople you come across might not be the best idea. There might be people out there who fit you better than us."
"There might be," Danny agreed easily, "and I'll probably meet some of them as time goes on. But I gotta tell you that I genuinely like what I've seen of your pack so far, okay? Just … accept that, please. I'm not looking to crash your party, but I'd very much like a chance to meet you all properly and get to know you. I think it could be good."
"Hmpf," Stiles grumbled. "There you go again being all cute and shit. It's the fucking dimples, you asshole."
"Does it work?" Danny laughed.
Stiles sighed dramatically. "Some. There'll be rules. For one, leave Derek alone. He's not remotely interested in a relationship, and even if he were bi-curious, which he's not, he'd shoot you down harder than you can blink."
"I understand," Danny said softly. "Bad experience?"
"You have no idea," Stiles muttered. "Two, the others would probably like getting to know you, but they haven't been treated well at all at school, so just take it slow. Tag along if they invite you, and you can offer outings if you've got something that might interest them, but don't press if they say no for some reason."
"Sounds very reasonable," Danny agreed. "What about you? How can I prove myself to you?"
"By not being a douchebag. That covers a lot of stuff, most prominently the not betraying us part. No blabbing to hunters or mundanes about anything concerning the pack and the assorted families if you can help it. If you've got concerns, you can always come and talk to all of us, even my dad. Jackson's parents will both be in the know soon enough, and I guess Lydia's mom will follow sometime. She hasn't said, yet."
"Lydia decided to sit on it until her parents' divorce is through," Danny offered. "Her mom's so busy that she forgets that she even has a kid half the time."
"Ouch. Sounds like it won't be pretty."
Danny winced. "Her dad's an asshole. He's got a side chick in Atlanta, and apparently, he's also got a little gambling problem. Mrs Martin is busy suing for child support and what have you before he can lose it all."
"Double ouch." Stiles grimaced. "Thanks for telling me. I won't mention it to her, but it's good to know."
"Yeah, if Lydia's in a beastly mood it's probably not her period."
Both boys looked at each other in horror, Danny paling at having said that and Stiles sputtering at having heard it.
"Anyway, I understand the keeping silent thing," Danny said hastily. "Jackson told me a little about the Argents, and of course I've done my own research on them, especially after they left town in disgrace."
"About that …"
And Stiles grilled Danny about the Argents' most recent movements all the way back to the house.
oOo
That night, Stiles made it a point to spend some quality time with just Jackson, Lydia, and Danny. It wasn't exactly comfortable since there truly wasn't a lot of common ground between them if one pushed aside the supernatural issue, but it also wasn't terrible. Jackson, naturally, felt the least at ease with the visit, even if he did appreciate the ladies' pampering via cake a lot, and Lydia surprisingly was the most forward.
"I've been exchanging emails with Peter," she told Stiles when he wanted to know how her education about being a banshee was coming along. Her shrewd eyes took in his every tiny reaction. "He's a skilled conversationalist, I have to give him that."
Stiles was still feeling the raw intimacy of his and Peter's moment earlier and managed not to rise to the bait. It was a close call, though, because Lydia was nothing if not beautiful, and boys and not a few grown men, too, fell under her spell all too easily. "And what are you conversing about?"
Her red lips pursed slightly, clearly disappointed that Stiles hadn't shown any insecurity. "Mostly the texts he's sent me to read. Our discussions about them are quite stimulating."
Jackson rolled his eyes. "Do you want to tell me something, Lydia? Am I boring you?"
Stiles, who had no desire to mediate a lovers' spat, interjected, "How's it going? Are you still in the theoretical stage, or are you using your powers already? If so, what for?"
"No, we haven't gotten that far, yet," Lydia admitted. "Apparently, a solid theoretical foundation is key to finding my way through the manifestation of my gifts. Under ideal circumstances, a member of my family would have taught me from early childhood."
"It begs the question who in her family was also a banshee, doesn't it?" Danny asked quietly.
"It's not my mom," Lydia huffed, "and no one else in my mother's family has shown any sort of otherworldly abilities either."
"Maybe they're very good at hiding it," Jackson said and it was clear that they'd had that discussion before. "Or it could come from your sperm donor's side of things."
"That's ridiculous," Lydia said with a glare. "I told you to stop saying that."
"Well, if they're not around much, you wouldn't know, would you?" Stiles interrupted the upcoming argument. He turned to Jackson, an idea forming in his mind. "It's not a bad idea to investigate that lot. Do you feel up to that task? Maybe with Danny's help?"
"Shouldn't I be doing it?" Lydia asked frostily.
"You obviously don't want to, so why even bother?" Stiles replied. "Give them what they need to know to begin and we'll see what turns up."
"What are we looking for?" Danny asked. "Without a familial connection, we just can't call them and ask personal questions."
Stiles nodded. "True, but you can find out whether someone was on meds or in the hospital for a while. Look for bouts of therapy, too, but leave the files alone. If it gets too thorny, back off, Danny. We only need a general idea if it's worth investigating further."
"Understood," Danny said softly. He actually looked glad to have a job.
"How can I help with that?" Jackson muttered sullenly. "I'm no good with hacking."
"But you probably have met quite a few of the relatives over the years," Stiles answered. "So you know who's a bit cooky, or which relative rarely showed up because of health reasons or whatever."
"Huh. True." Jackson lost his scowl and looked pensieve. "Alright."
Lydia narrowed her eyes at Stiles. "You're good, I'll give you that, but it's my family. I'll help."
Stiles smiled impishly at her. "Excellent. Is the end of summer enough time for you?"
"Please," Lydia said snippily and inspected a red fingernail. "We'll have the information by the end of next week."
"You are good, Stiles," Danny snickered and took a long draft of his chilled lemonade.
oOo
It was past midnight when the guests finally left the party. Erica's parents protested, naturally, when Stiles' father insisted on cleaning up what was left of the dishes himself, but Erica managed to wrangle them out the door and towards their car before they could slip back and do it anyway.
"I can't even with those people," John said, shaking his head. He pointed at Isaac and Derek who'd stayed behind when Peter had left. "You don't mind helping out a little, do you?"
"Of course not, sir," Derek said and meandered back out into the garden to collect the garbage and bring in the used dishes and cutlery.
"I'll take care of the grill," Isaac said and followed.
Stiles clapped his father on the shoulder. "It was a pretty good party, wasn't it, pops?"
"It was," the sheriff agreed. He laid a hand on Stiles' back, the touch grounding and comforting. "It was good to talk to some adults in a private setting. Reminds me that I should get out more, live a little. Now that Jackson's dad is no longer the district attorney I can see myself having a beer with him every now and then."
"Jackson's mom is fierce," Stiles said. "I didn't know that she handles the city's Reading Kids charity finances. That's one of the largest charities in the county."
"She also coordinates the legal counsel with her husband," his father reminded him. "She's a legal aide herself, although she hasn't worked in that capacity for several years."
Since Jackson had his utter meltdown after finding out about the adoption, Stiles mentally added. Which, wow.
"I had no idea that it was so bad that she had to stay home for Jackson," Stiles said out loud. "That adds a whole new dimension to the issue, doesn't it?"
"Adopted kids often suffer from abandonment issues, even if there was never any indication of their parents leaving them behind." The sheriff sighed. "I had to learn that, obviously. And then I also had to understand that biological kids aren't immune to that type of fear, either."
"Dad …" Stiles breathed, throat constricting. Around him, the mountain ash tightened its grip and Lou sent a feeling of warmth that enveloped him like liquid honey. "Can we not?"
"No, kid, we never quite talked about it, and I think we need to. I was an absentee parent at best these last years, and negligent in part at worst. You had the lion's share of the housework on top of school since your mother died and that was just not okay. I'm sorry. I'll make it up to you, of course, in any way I can. I just needed to say that before my courage left me again."
"I was angry sometimes, and I missed you," Stiles murmured, casting his eyes to his awkwardly shuffling feet, "but I understood."
"But it's not okay," his father replied, sounding so worn and tired. "And I need it to be okay between us, Stiles. Before this new thing in your life sweeps you away completely. I just need you to know that I'm here, that I'm never going anywhere. No matter what."
Stiles looked up, fury bursting through him like a little explosion. "If this new thing in our life sweeps me away, you'll be right beside me, dad. You wanna make it up to me? You can start by fucking stopping to assume that you don't have a place in it."
They stared at each other, the sheriff shocked and Stiles so angry that his eyes were hot and glowing.
"Hell, kid," John said shakily. He ran a trembling hand through his hair and then put it over his mouth. "I don't want to cramp your style. All this … I've no idea how to handle it. I'd just be in the way."
"You're not cramping my style, not even with … with Peter, and you're doing pretty well." Stiles forced himself to take a breath. "You're my fucking family. You'll be there or else, you get me, old man?"
The sheriff blinked against the wet sheen in his eyes. "Yeah, I get you."
"Good. And since you're being so accommodating right now, you can finally sign the fucking contract with me and Peter. If you being around means you have to get the bite, you'd better consent to it. I'm not letting you die because of some preventable bullshit."
"I can't be a werewolf," his father protested, though he did so quietly.
"And you probably won't become one. Between the super dudes - and hopefully dudettes in the future - and my healing stuff, I'm pretty fucking certain that it won't have to come to that, but for a last resort, it's damn powerful," Stiles argued. "Sign the contract, pops. Be a part of our pack. We're not a family yet, not with everyone, but we could be. I want to be. Plus, you always wanted at least one more kid. That's your chance, man, that's your chance."
A laugh burst out of the sheriff. It was a bit abrupt, but it was honest. "Alright," he said, sort of wobbly, "alright. I'll sign the contract, and I'll adopt half a dozen werewolf kids. Why not?"
Stiles lit up with hope. Quite literally. A soft sheen of light was emanating from his tanned skin and he felt his eyes go warm again. "Really?"
"Really." John smiled like he couldn't believe how awesome his kid was. "Come here now, it's time for a dad hug, you little scamp."
Stiles threw himself into the embrace and clutched his father tightly. The comforting scent took on a new dimension as Lou got in on it and crawled all over the sheriff's back in his own imitation of a hug. It felt like drowning in the softest and most secure cloud, ever, and Stiles never wanted to leave that safe, warm place again.
Then there was a soft whine, followed by a quiet chuff, and two pairs of strong arms surrounded them further and the heady smell of dad became the even more addictive smell of familyfriendssummersafetyhappiness.
End of chapter 68
