Devin growled and threw his pencil and notebook to the side, crossing his arms while glaring at the textbook in front of him. The problem stared at him mockingly from the coffee table and he had just enough self control to refrain from tearing his claws into it. Picking up his phone with a scowl, he tapped his friend's number and typed out a message asking if he understood how to solve the problem. Before he could hit send, however, a hand shook the textbook in front of his face.

Gripping his chest as he fell backwards, he stared at Michael with wide eyes. The man raised an eyebrow at him with a light smirk but said nothing as he flipped through the pages until it reached the bookmark. "What the hell are you doing? Shouldn't you be sleeping? You're human, right?"

"And you're a hormonal werewolf in high school. Who do you think will be affected worse, huh?" He shot back lazily.

Rolling his eyes, he slouched into the couch and eyed him wearily. He still didn't know much about the man other than the fact that he saved his dad and worked for a shady company. He was too secretive for his tastes and while it was interesting at first, it was getting pretty old pretty fast. He watched Michael nod to himself as he sat on the couch, setting the crutches aside as he made himself comfortable, the textbook and notebook in his lap.

"What're you doing?"

"Helping you, what does it look like?" Devin gaped as he held the books out to him, taking them with a cautious hand after the pointed cough. "Why?"

"Do I need a reason to want to help?" Seeing that he wouldn't say anything, Michael tapped the book and scooted closer so they could both read it. "Start with this one. You wanna find x, right? You need to get rid of the denominators first and then rewrite the second equation. After that you multiply the first one by four and the second one by negative seven to cancel out y."

Devin blinked at him and slowly put his phone down as he followed the instructions. After he did as he was told, he glanced at Michael hesitantly, sharp comments ready on the tip of his tongue to defend himself on why he had messed it up. Surprisingly, the other man gave him a grin and a slap on the back, a bit too roughly for his liking but he was too ecstatic to care. Algebra was his worst subject and he'd been on the brink of failing for the entire year now, and yet as Michael helped him work through the problems he felt as if he'd known how to do it all along.

"You're second guessing yourself too much. You're a smart kid, you got this."

"Not according to my teacher. She said that if I don't get at least a B on the next test I'm screwed." He scoffed at the reminder.

"Well, fuck her, then."

Devin let out a bark of startled laughter. "What?"

Michael shrugged nonchalantly. "Why should you have to bend backwards for someone who belittles you? I had a teacher like that when I was in high school, y'know."

"Really? What happened?"

"I gave him hell and relished in his agony."

"You killed him?" Devin shouted, wincing when his voice echoed through the otherwise silent house.

The man chuckled and crossed his arms with a sinister gleam in his eye. "'Course not. I drove him up the wall and out of the school with my good grades. Teachers like that are just waiting for you to fuck up so they can 'make an example of you'." He rolled his eyes at that before continuing. "If you can't please them, provoke them. Do it the right way and eventually they'll show their true colors and that's when you win. You get it?"

"...No?"

Michael snorted and pointed back to the book. "You will. Now do the next one."

As they worked through the end of it, Devin fully relaxed and managed to put the questions he'd fostered all year into words. Michael was a good teacher, a great one, actually. He could understand everything the man said and it seemed like a much lighter load of work than his teacher had talked it up to be. But even though the man smiled and guided him through the assignment, he couldn't help but feel like he was only a distraction. There was a certain vibe Michael was giving off and his eyes kept darting to the windows and door like he was expecting something to happen. Now that he thought of it, that's what he'd been doing ever since he came to stay with them. Devin shook his head and refocused on the numbers in front of him. There was nothing he could do that would make Michael answer his questions. He'd just have to wait it out like the rest of them.

Stiles stared at the phone as it buzzed in front of him, Macie's name flashing on the screen. It had been a little more than two weeks since the incident and he hadn't heard a word from either of them. Until now. He bit his lip as the phone convulsed, debating on whether or not to answer it. It could be important, he knew, but it could also just be her trying to apologize which he wasn't ready to hear. He was still wrapping his head around everything that had happened and the fact that it had to have been discussed behind his back. Sighing as it fell silent, he rubbed his face harshly. If it was really, truly important she'd call back.

It wasn't like he didn't want to talk to her because of course he did, she was one of the only people he had left. He just wasn't ready to hear her try to validate herself. If there was one thing he hated, it was half assed apologies. He'd heard more than enough of them from the doctors and nurses while his dad was wheeled out from the hospital room. Apologies meant that he had to accept something and that- he wasn't good at that. At all. Scratching his neck, he grabbed his laptop and shoved it into the front of his sweatpants, the only place that it wouldn't fall out of while he hobbled to the living room.

Laying the damned crutches to the side, he sat on the edge of the couch and pulled the computer out to rest on his knees, bringing up the screen that held the information they had of all the people attending the ceremony. He'd already gone through them all but he needed a distraction and double, or triple checking in his case, never hurt anyone. Taking a deep breath, he clicked on the first name that appeared on the list and reread through their details, adding extra comments and observations where he felt necessary.

He lost count of how many hours he'd been awake, but apparently it had been enough time for the sun to have risen hours prior. Devin slumped beside him on the couch and he stiffened when he noted how the majority of the Hales had settled around him without him realizing it. "I hate math." He whined.

"No you don't." He responded instinctively. "You hate the person who teaches it. I thought we had this conversation already."

"It makes no sense! Why do I need to know how to make two equations to find proportions, like when will I ever need that for my career?"

Stiles gave him the best unimpressed look he could manage. "What field are you going into?"

"I want to be an animator."

"Then you'll need to know ratios for the things you're drawing and make sure that they have the same portion size. Like I said, math is used everywhere."

"Doesn't mean it's easy."

"But it's systematic which makes it easier. Plus, I helped you the other day."

"You did?" Three voices asked at once, each one ranging in their level of surprise. Stiles looked at Peter on the other side of Devin and the Hale siblings who were eating at the counter. Peter's lips quirked and Stiles narrowed his eyes at him before answering.

"I did graduate, y'know. Salutatorian, too, may I add."

"Really? Huh. I thought you just went around offing people for the fun of it." Laura spoke through her pop tart.

"Laura," Talia admonished. "Watch your words."

Stiles couldn't blame her, he had lost count of how many times he'd debated with himself over that topic. He liked to think that he was helping people but he knew that at the end of the day the fact was that he had killed people. It wasn't a comforting thought and had often nearly brought him to the edges of a panic attack, but he always managed to find a way to distract himself, whether it was a quick hook up or sleeping pills. He'd prefer the latter but when his mind was too muddled and racing with the things he tried his hardest to avoid he found that the quickest way to get rid of them was to be in a situation in which he controlled. Hence sex. He didn't even like sex, hated how the whole concept of it was to show vulnerability to the other person.

Which is why he never took off his clothes when he found someone. It wasn't like he was wearing as many layers as he could, mind you, but he did tend to wear thicker clothes and jeans that made it easier to take his dick out. That was another thing, too. He never bottomed. Now, it wasn't as if he hated the thought but he was too… guarded to let anyone top him. He'd tried it once when he first started working with Angelo and before he knew what had happened he'd stabbed the poor guy in the stomach and was staring at the tear stained, fear stricken face. Angelo hadn't said anything, just gave him a rough pat on the back, muttered something about trauma and instincts, and had Macie take him back to her flat while he took care of it and he was not going to think about that anymore.

Didn't the kid say he needed help?

"It's fine." Stiles held out his hand for Devin's notebook and he wasted no time in handing it to him, scooting himself closer so that he could point out where he was. He found the problem the second he looked at it. "You're not doing the first step and that's throwing the rest of it off. You have to rewrite the equations and then after you do that you cross multiply."

"Oh." He took it back with a small 'thanks'. Devin, the oblivious teenager he was, didn't notice his longing glances towards his room and pulled him into yet another line of conversation. "Say, if you're this smart why don't you get a real job?"

"I do have a real job."

"What if you get caught? Won't you go to prison?"

"I won't."

"But what if-"

"Devin. Enough." Peter stared at him balefully and he huffed out his frustration.

"I'm just saying that you're smart, dude. Really smart. You could probably go and find a job that's safer, y'know? One that doesn't involve you putting your life on the line." The last part was so low that Stiles had to strain his ears to hear it, but when he did all the negative emotions he'd been harboring for all of two minutes vanished and he couldn't help but ruffle his hair.

"That's why you gotta study and get a 'real job', although I'd like to think that mine is pretty difficult, too."

"How so?" Laura asked. She threw the wrapper away and sat down on the arm of the couch, draping her legs across Peter's legs. He rolled his eyes at her but didn't brush her off and Stiles smiled as he closed his laptop, chuckling to himself as he thought the best way to word his responsibilities without revealing too much.

"It's like any other job at the fundamentals, I guess, but other than receiving assignments from my boss we don't really talk that much. I'm in charge of coming up with plans and carrying it out before the deadlines."

Talia nodded her understanding. "I can imagine how stressful that'd be."

Stiles snorted. "You have no idea. Percentages, probabilities, theories and perspectives and who will do this at what time. Gradually, slowly you integrate yourself into the target's mindset until your wavelengths match up. You've gotta observe them: their hobbies, their lifestyle, their closest friends and those who they can't stand. You have to know everything about them without them realizing that you do. Then, and only then, is when the operation can start. That's not the hardest part, though."

"Then what is?" Laura leaned forward, completely enraptured in what he was saying.

"It's coming back from that. But once you do, it's almost like..." You stopped someone innocent from being killed. His dad's smiling face struck him and he shook his head. He couldn't say that. Not yet.

There was a brief silence before, surprisingly, Derek broke it. "You sound like you enjoy it. Your job, that is."

He met his eyes and shrugged, albeit dejected. "It's not so much as I like it. I just do what I have to. I've picked up a lot of useful things on the way and I always have somebody who calls me every month to check up on me, so that's cool. And the benefits are top tier."

Derek exchanged glances with his mom, a bad taste in his mouth at the way Michael worded it. "What kind of benefits do you get?"

"Paid vacation," he pointed to his foot lazily, but they all saw the hardened flash that went through his eyes. "Traveling. Flexible schedule."

"Isn't that like half of the jobs around here, though?" Devin questioned with a furrowed brow. "Why can't you just put in your two weeks notice and look for a different one?"

Despite his best efforts, Stiles laughed. Quite loudly and sarcastic, too. The Hales stared at him expectantly and he brushed his finger under his eyes to rid them of the tears. "It's not possible."

"What do you mean?" Peter's face darkened. "Are you being forced to work?"

"Chill, dude. I already told you that you're more attractive when you're not looking like you're feral." Derek choked to the side of him and he sent him a concerned glance, dismissing it when he saw Laura pounding on his back with one hand and hiding her snickers behind the other.

"Anyway, that won't work. I'm already… well known throughout my field. I'm basically my boss's right hand and he's pretty handy to keep around even though he can be a dick. Besides, I wouldn't be able to work anywhere else and if I quit I'd have nowhere else to go."

"You'd have us. You've already been with us for a couple weeks now, Michael. You should know us better by now and that we don't mind your company." Talia chastised lightly.

"You don't know me though. Hell, I don't know myself sometimes. I'm not good with staying in one place for a long time, I get restless and then somehow end up in situations that blow my mind. I told you that one about the shark tank, right?" He aimed the question at Peter and grinned toothily at his expression.

"You did, yes. Even I've got to say that I've never heard of something like that."

"I'm telling you, man. Shit just happens to me."

"I can imagine." He said dryly.

Before he could challenge his friend -and whoa, when did that happen?- his phone went off, reminding him of the new workload that'd be arriving soon.

"What's that?" Derek growled, frantically looking out the window as if he were expecting a group of people to ambush them.

"Just a reminder for work, nothing to flip out about." He shut off the alarm and groaned as he stretched, his shirt riding up to expose his abdomen.

Peter grinned sadistically and cleared his throat. "Derek, why don't you help Michael bring his laptop to his room? I'm sure he'd appreciate it." His nephew looked up from where he was messing with his phone stiffly, his shoulders hunched to hide his reddened ears.

"What?" He gaped, looking between Michael and back to him.

"How else do you think he'd carry it?"

Michael rose from his spot, wielding the laptop in one hand. "I can just do what I did last time and stuff it in my waistband, no worries."

Derek blinked at him, his eyes trailing to his crotch and then rushing to go back to his face. Peter could smell his embarrassed interest from miles away, but because he was the cool uncle, he bit his tongue.

"Idiot." Derek grumbled. He got up smoothly and hesitated for a second before taking the computer from Michael's hands. "It's not a big deal."

"Right." He responded, confusion and mild amusement weaved throughout his tone. Shaking his head, he pointed at Devin while he got himself comfortable with the crutches. As comfortable as he could, anyway. "You, keep working on your math and remember what I told you. I'll check it over later since I have some time."

"Yeah, yeah. Go back to your cave."

Michael rolled his eyes and nudged the kid with the end of his boot as he walked by. "Gladly."

As soon as the two of them had disappeared down the hall, Peter waved Laura over. "I need your help with something."

"Huh? Why'd I help you?" She asked suspiciously.

"You want Derek to stop waking you up to complain about his love life, or lack thereof, don't you?"

"Alright, what're you thinking?"

"I have a feeling that Derek will set himself up, so all you've got to do is tell me when he goes to your room to complain or sulk."

"Got it. I'll see you in about five minutes, then." She giggled at his face and poked his cheek, just like when she was still a pup. "You still have a lot to learn, Uncle Pete. Things like Derek coming to me when he's upset is like clockwork and since I'm the person he vents to, I know most of his habits. Come to my room in five, I guarantee you he'll be there."

Peter grinned and patted her shoulder in thanks. He and Michael had grown closer within the last couple weeks and he had a feeling that the other man didn't realize the full extent his words went. He was blunt to the point of being rude but because they all had a hint of understanding, for the most part they understood what he was trying to say. What he was interested in was how his nephew would take it. After all, two people who were iffy at best with communicating having a conversation would be an interesting sight to see. Especially when one of which was a hardened assassin and the other an -for the most part- innocent man who hated being put on the spot. The two made an interesting dynamic but he felt that everything would work out eventually.

Derek did his best to hide his discomfort as they came to a stop inside Michael's room. Every surface was covered in his smell and even though he tried his hardest not to think about it, he couldn't help but take a couple deep inhales. It wasn't his fault, alright? Michael smelled good. It was an overpowering scent but soft around the edges somehow and it only made him all the more endearing.

"Well, this is me." Michael drawled. He nodded to his desk. "You can just put it there. Thanks for your help."

"No problem." He obliged the request and set it down gently, curiously scanning over the multitude of scrawled notes scattered around the desk's surface. He recognized some french but they were written so erratically he couldn't really tell what it was meant to say. He also caught Kate's name in there and rolled his shoulders to rid them of the tension that built at the reminder of her. Michael cursed behind him and he turned around just to see him trip over an open duffel bag. Instincts taking over, he rushed to catch him before he could fall.

"Are you okay?" He asked worriedly.

Michael groaned and glared at the crutches that were piled by the door. He pat his chest and hummed. "Yeah, thanks Der- huh."

Derek froze when he cupped his face, turning it this way and that. "What're you doing?" He asked through pursed lips when the man pushed them together.

"Just hold up a minute, I'm checking something." Michael continued to examine him and as soon as the insecurities were building up within him, because why would he be studying his face like it was the most interesting thing in the world, the man stepped back and picked up his crutches.

Derek stood straighter and eyed him wearily. "What is it?"

"Y'know, I never thought this would happen, but I guess I should expect the unexpected by now."

"What?"

"I just thought that you're pretty hot, that's all. I mean, you've got that whole, y'know." He waved his hand at him nonchalantly, but Derek could've sworn that he saw the faintest hints of a blush on his cheeks. "That whole wild appearance but softy at heart kinda thing about you. I mean, you look pretty intimidating but that's sexy, too and I saw you that one time when you helped that squirrel to get some more of the bird feed outside before Laura yelled at you, so that's where the soft part comes in. And your smile isn't so bad either, you should do that more. Plus, you look like you give really good hugs. Oh, and then when you-"

"Goodbye, Michael!" Derek's face was burning by the time he ran out of the room, his heart pounding loudly in his chest as he tried to get a grasp on what the hell had just happened. Did that mean that Michael liked him? Or was that just a way to tease him? But he didn't seem like he was poking fun at him and he looked surprised that he found him attractive at all. So he had a chance then, right? His head started pounding and he focused on forcing his feet to move at a normal speed instead of sprinting to Laura's room like he wanted to.

"Laura!" He whispered loudly as he rushed into her room, spinning around to close the door quickly. "You're not going to believe what just happened! I almost just- what's this?"

Laura grinned triumphantly at her uncle and put down the deck of cards she was shuffling before turning to her adorably confused little brother. "Hey, Der! So what happened? And why are you still standing up, come sit down."

He slowly made his way to where she was patting the bed, staring at Peter with skepticism all but pouring out of him. "Why's he here?"

"I have a name, dear nephew. And I'm here to help, of course."

"With what?"

"You like Michael, don't you?"

Derek flushed and began to mess with her blanket. Laura rolled her eyes fondly and relaxed against the headboard. She swore, sometimes her brother never changed. This was just like when he was in middle school and saw a dick other than his own for the first time in his gym locker room. She still remembered it like it was yesterday, how she went to pick him up after hearing him panicking over the phone and drove them both home before all but forcing him to tell her what happened. A couple minutes of blushing, stuttering, and whispered words later and she got the gist of what had happened to throw Derek into an existential and sexuality crisis at thirteen. Their mom let him stay home the rest of the week because she was worried about him wolfing out in the middle of his classes, and even though he isolated himself in his room for the entirety of it, she knew that he appreciated having his space to think.

But that was a different scenario and she would choose sleep over his repetitive complaints any time.

"So, what did the apple of your eye do this time?" She asked easily.

"Uh…"

Peter held up his hands innocently and gave him an encouraging smile. "Don't worry, I'll keep my mouth shut. I do have some standards, after all."

"Right. Well, um. He kinda called me hot? And said I looked like I give good hugs?"

Laura let the words sink in and then burst out into uncontrollable laughter. "Derek, I love you but you're an idiot."

"Hah?" He growled.

"I have to agree with her. I mean, it's obvious you like him and -no, no, don't make that face. Even Talia knows that you do. It's not a big deal and you could do worse."

"This isn't helping me. Just thought I'd point that out."

"Start with being friends," Laura suggested. "But that means you can't be giving him dirty looks anymore and you can't just stop talking once he comes into the room."

Derek scowled. "I don't-"

"You do." Peter cut him off knowingly. "Even Michael notices it, it's why he never tries to initiate anything with you."

"So what do you two suggest then, huh? It's not like I can just start talking to him like nothing happened."

The duo in front of him shared a look. "Yes you can."

"But I don't even know what he likes! And what if I accidentally hit a touchy subject? None of us know him that well."

Peter raised his hand and waved it mockingly. "I do."

"Exactly," Laura nodded. "Peter, tell him what Michael's interested in and then tomorrow when you go to pick up that journal take him with you and Derek will tag along, too. That'll give you plenty of chances to talk with him."

Derek opened his mouth to argue but didn't get a chance before Peter cut him off.

"That works. Alright, listen up. As far as I know, Michael's pretty interested in the supernatural and history. Every time we're talking in the office he'll bring up random facts, too. If you ever get stuck talking to him then just try to surprise him with something you know, he loves learning new things. Just don't mention anything about his job or why he joined it and you'll be fine."

"Right. So talk to him and if that doesn't work try talking some more." Derek said flatly. "Sounds like a great plan."

Peter slapped his shoulder and stood up, giving it an encouraging squeeze as he headed towards the door. "Just give it a try. He's unpredictable and you don't know that much about his past so just be cautious."

Laura waited until Peter left before dragging him into a rough hug and messing with his hair. "Don't worry so much, from what you told me he's at least attracted to you. You're a keeper, Der, and if he can't see that then it's his loss."

"...Really?"

She smiled warmly and rested her head on his shoulder. "Really. But in turn of my awesome advice, you've gotta watch this movie with me."

Derek looked at the frozen TV screen and groaned as he settled next to her. "Again?"

"Quit your whining, you like it too."

Stiles had jerked from his daze to a series of knocks on his door before Peter let himself in and he should really, really consider putting that one rune back up. It'd make his life so much easier.

"Morning, Michael." The wolf said cheerfully. "Although it doesn't look like you've been sleeping."

"Insomnia's a bitch, but it lets me get work done so I can't complain all that much. Anyway, what'd you need?"

"I'm going to get a journal from an old emissary and I'm dragging you with me."

"But work is-"

"You said you had time yesterday so don't even pull that. Come on, you've been cooped up in the house for weeks now, let's go get some fresh air."

And that brings him to where he was now, seated right by a silent Derek who was glaring out the window in the backseat. He'd tried to sit passenger but Peter refused because 'No, Michael, I won't be able to see with your crutches in the way'. It was the most obvious lie he'd ever heard but he didn't try to argue anymore. Derek was… interesting. He'd mellowed out a lot since he first arrived and while they still sometimes got bickered, they rarely actually fought like before. The times he'd actually heard him conversing with his family were pretty amusing, too, because the majority of the time it was either Derek trying to defend himself from something Laura had brought up or he would just think of something that interested him and talked and talked about it until the other person agreed with him. It was kind of adorable and Stiles liked the sound of his voice, low and soothing with a rough undertone.

"Michael, do you know who Sandy O'Claire was?" Peter asked suddenly.

Stiles frowned and leaned forward, his arm resting against Derek's ever so slightly. He didn't move it and the other man didn't do anything but suck in a breath and stiffen a tad, so he just let it be. "No, was she important or something?"

"Derek knows more about her than I do, but she was a well known witch back in the eighteenth century."

Stiles' eyes widened and he turned to the wolf eagerly, overlooking the dark look he sent to his smirking uncle. "Dude, tell me about her! What made her so powerful? What was her childhood like? Did she create any new spells or did she just stay in the lines of the ones before her? Wait, was she alone or did she travel with other people?"

Derek stared at him as if he couldn't believe he was actually talking to him. Peter must've mumbled something because he shook his head and then cleared his throat before scratching the back of his hand. "I don't know a lot, I just did some extra research when I was in college a couple years back."

"Tell me everything you remember." Stiles ordered half playfully. He'd heard of a couple powerful witches from the past but other than the obvious ones he didn't have that much to go off of. He'd never even heard of the name Sandy O'Claire and his interest was piqued to say the least.

As it turned out, apparently she was one of the most badass witches to ever exist. She was known for her loyalty to friends and absolute blood lust for those who went against her or the ones she cared about. She was one of the first witches who started writing down their spells and runes and all that for other people to learn from instead of just teaching orally, too. And while that was awesome, he didn't really understand why they'd brought her up all of a sudden.

"The journal we're getting is a copy of one of the first ones she'd written. It's been translated over a hundred times so the wording might be a bit rough but I think we'd be able to get the main point out of it."

Stiles hadn't felt this excited over anything for years now, could hardly remember the thrumming enthusiasm and eagerness that spread throughout his body. He was actually looking forward to something, something that involved people who he'd known for less than a month and that was… he wasn't sure what it was yet, but it wasn't bad, he didn't think.

"So?" Peter glanced at him with bright eyes through the rear view mirror.

Stiles blinked and looked at Derek questioningly, huffing when the man sent a teasing smirk back and knocked their shoulders together. "What did you say? I was thinking of something else."

"I'm sure. I was asking if you'd be interested in trying to translate it more fluently. The copy I bought is about to fall apart and there's a mixture of languages in there, too. Since you have the time, why not help us out?"

"Yeah, okay. But I still have to focus on my job and -wait, us? Who else is gonna help?"

"He might not look like it and he hardly puts it to use, but Derek is majoring in linguistics. He wants to be a work at home translator for magazines and books and all that stuff."

"Dude," Stiles grinned. "That's awesome! How many do you know so far?"

Derek shifted in his seat and looked out the window before scoffing slightly and looking at him again. "Right now I'm fluent in thirty seven and I can understand about fourteen other ones."

"Holy shit, man." Stiles scooted closer, wincing when his foot hit the seat. "Wait, so how many years have you been in college now?"

"Seven? About?"

Stiles shook his head and laughed, somewhat unbelievably. He couldn't imagine sitting in rows in a room full of people, not now that he'd experienced the kind of monsters humans could be. His anxiety would be off the charts and he'd end up spending most of the time debating the best escape routes and what to do if a situation that had a low chance of happening actually happened. High school was a different story, back when he was innocent and he couldn't care less what people thought, but he knew better now and sometimes passing thoughts were the start of a massacre.

"I thought that Derek could help us out with the words we didn't know while we rewrite and format the content. What do you think?"

"I'm in. But like I said before, I have a big assignment coming up and I've gotta organize and validate the notes before then. I should be getting another batch of those relatively soon, so I don't know how much time I'll have."

"I can help you if you want." Peter offered.

Stiles snorted and leaned back on his seat. "You know I can't do that. Even if I did need help, which I don't, by the way, I'm under oath to make sure things stay strictly confidential."

The man conceded with a wave of his hand and pulled into a driveway of a house that looked closer to a cabin. Getting the journal was a fast and easy exchange, a couple of words shared between the two of them before Peter came back with a bright smile. He flipped through it gently and sighed pleasantly, handing it to him as his other hand started the car.

Stiles took it excitedly, tracing the spine with his finger and running it along the deep creases and folds. He paged through it, stopping occasionally when he saw something interesting. The ride back was quicker, Peter and himself filling in the silence with enthused thoughts and predictions of what would be in there. Even Derek put his two cents in, translating a couple sentences when Stiles asked if he knew what they were. Stiles had never been so thankful for the training to hide his scent, especially when his nether regions gave an interested twitch at the added drawl in the wolf's tone.

Talia waved at them as they entered the house again, pointing at the phone that was pressed to her ear and rolling his eyes. He couldn't help but grin at her antics, mouthing a sarcastic 'Good luck' to her and felt a surge of warmth go through him when her smile softened and she laughed softly. Peter tossed his keys on the counter and all but dragged him to his office so they could start. Stiles didn't mind, though. He liked being able to do something that wasn't work.

It had struck him while they were in the car, but he had really warmed up to the Hales faster than he thought he would. It was still kind of awkward with Derek, but there was a lot less tension than before and Laura was a trip with more jokes than he expected, even if they were at her brother's expense. Talia had this air around her that made him want to lower his guard and ask for a hug, maybe even an ear to listen to him. He nearly had, once when she caught him eating chips in the early hours before the sun had come up. He had held his tongue, but even when he didn't say anything she gave his shoulder a comforting squeeze that all but screamed 'We're here for you'.

Peter was great, too. Sometimes, when the two of them were bantering or throwing theories and ideas at one another, it reminded him of his time with his old friends. How Lydia would roll her eyes and call him an idiot with that smile or when Scott would stand up for him even when they both knew that he was wrong. Peter was one of his closest friends now and Stiles was starting to really like hanging around him, especially because the older man never pushed.

"Michael, you've been staring at the same page for a while now. Are you trying to read it or memorize it?" Peter quipped.

Stiles shoved his shoulder and grumbled at his laughter when he flipped the page. He managed to hide his smile, though. That counted for something.

Peter glanced up when he heard Michael's phone ringing, surprised when he didn't answer it right away like he usually did. Instead, he spared a quick look before muting it, turning back to the shelves that showcased sweets.

"You're not going to answer?"

"It's not my work phone so I usually don't unless I recognize the number."

"You have two, then?"

Michael shrugged and Peter internally scolded himself when he saw his facial muscles tightening as he grabbed a bag of small chocolate bars. "I couldn't bring myself to leave it behind. All of my old friends know the number on it so I pay the bills to keep it activated."

"Just in case." Peter finished.

He swallowed roughly and nodded. "Yeah. Just in case. I mostly get spam calls on there, so feel free to answer those for me." He tossed the bag into the cart and hobbled beside him on the crutches, a small breath of chuckles escaping him when he saw Laura and Derek bickering in front of them.

"Noted." Peter sighed when Derek ran into an older woman and began to apologize profusely to her, sending glares at Laura when she snickered.

"Are they always like that?"

"Sadly. You get used to it, though." A woman strolled by them confidently, carrying a large bottle of alcohol in one hand. She spared him a cold, steeled over glance before shooting an unrecognizable look to Michael. She didn't stop though, just continued her brisk walk to the end of the aisle before turning left. Derek and Laura didn't notice her, too absorbed in debating what to have for dinner.

"That was-"

"I've gotta go to the bathroom," Michael interrupted. "I'll be right back."

Peter couldn't see his face, but from the determined set of his shoulders and the steady pace he shuffled at, he had an idea of who that woman could be. As much as he was tempted to follow them and make sure he was okay, he swallowed his pride and forced his instincts down. The last thing he wanted to do was cause a relapse in their friendship by breaking his trust, especially because of what he'd gone through just a couple weeks ago. Taking a calming breath, he rolled his shoulders and headed towards Derek and Laura.

Stiles trailed her until they were outside of the store, annoyed and out of breath because those crutches that he'd been using? They're a fucking work out. By force of habit, and maybe a little worry underneath all that, he scanned her over to look for any new bruises or injuries she may have gotten in the weeks they weren't talking.

"I'm kind of surprised," Macie started. "I thought you'd be holed up in a room working like you always are."

"I'm sure you're not here to talk about my working habits." He responded curtly.

Macie nodded and jerked her head towards a car he'd never seen before. "I have the next load of your assignment in there, Angelo asked me to deliver it because he was held back in a meeting. There's also something we need to talk about."

"Right." Neither of them offered to chat as they walked and just when he was starting to feel restless because this never happened, this wasn't like them, they reached the car and Macie slid into the backseat along with him. It was surprisingly roomy in there and he was able to stretch out his foot more than he thought, which was great because he hated feeling the solid boot on his other leg.

She handed him another folder similar to the first one he received and he flipped through it, stopping at a picture of a tree with deep gashes in it. "This is…"

"Yeah, I know." Macie sighed and rested her back against the door, frowning at the picture along with him. "The person we're going to meet up with in France sent us that, said that it looked like they weren't only introducing humans this time."

"So we're not only dealing with a shit load of bloodthirsty hunters, but werewolves too. That's fanfuckingtastic."

"We don't know if it's a wolf yet, but that's what it looks like so far. Which is why we might need… extra help, if you will. Somebody who can pull off psychological magic."

Stiles frowned at her pointed expression and then released a controlled breath of air when he caught on. And then another one for good measure. "You want me to call Jennifer."

"It's good that you understand the situation."

"Do you know how hard it is to reach her? Who knows where she-"

Macie rolled her eyes. "She practically adopted you, Stiles. Every time you guys meet up I'm surprised she doesn't kidnap you and wrap you in blankets and feed you cookies."

"That… I could go for the cookies part right about now." He admitted. "But that isn't the point! How'd you know that we were here anyway?"

"I didn't. I just stopped by to get this," She waved the bottle in her hand proudly. "When I saw you walking around with them. They are hot, aren't they?"

Stiles leaned forward and nodded wildly. "Dude, you see what I mean? Like, I'd be happy with any of them but Peter's married and Laura's been dating this one guy for months now and Derek's hot too, but kind of- wait." He shook his head and pointed at her. "I'm supposed to be mad at you right now. You went behind my back, knew that Angelo was planning on breaking a bone in my body, and somehow decided that was okay. Honestly, Macie, what the fuck? I thought we were friends."

Her face drops and her shoulders slump and Stiles praises himself internally for not saying it's okay like his head screams at him to. Her eyes are apologetic and full of guilt when she meets his again and that, yeah, that's a lump in his throat right now.

"I know I fucked up and you have every right to be pissed off at me. I'm not asking you to forgive me. I'm asking you to put this behind us while we're working together."

Stiles bristled and he scowled at her. "What, you think I'm not mature enough to do my job properly? Did you forget how hard I worked to be able to work with you and Angelo? Fuck, Macie, just because I'm mad doesn't mean I'm going to let you get killed or that I'm not going to look out for you."

"That's not what I-"

Stiles shook his head and opened the door, cursing when his crutches got stuck. They came loose with a quick yank and he stuffed the folder under his arm as he turned his back to her. "I'll try to get a hold of Jen and I'll start going through these tonight. I'll talk to you later." He hesitated when he was a couple steps away from the car. Without turning back, he told her a quick 'be careful', before catching up with the Hales, who, luckily, had finished their shopping and were heading back to their car.

Peter smiled at him when he fell into step with them and called Derek's name, who had been waiting by the doors for him. Stiles was too distracted by his thoughts and missed how Derek shoved Laura out of the way so he could sit next to him in the backseat. He did, however, notice the subtle sniff the man took and sent him a questioning look that had made the flustered wolf avoid eye contact with him until the end of the drive. Stiles sighed and thumbed the folder in his lap. He didn't have time to think about how attractive the blush made Derek, not when he had to call his mentally unstable friend and sort through the new workload.

Things were starting to get muddled already and with werewolves thrown into the mix it was all the more complicated. But this was what he signed up for and he'd be damned if he let a few unexpected factors scare him off.

Derek closed the journal after he finished typing the last of the translations and rubbed his eyes tiredly. They had all been working endlessly and after Michael had received more paperwork to go through he didn't have the time he did before to help them out. He still pitched in when he could, but Derek felt bad whenever he saw the dark bags under his eyes and the yawns he tried and failed to keep to himself. Peter had reminded him to take breaks but Michael hardly responded to them, instead working himself harder in an attempt to balance the two out.

"You should try to talk to him." Laura told him. She finished her text and nodded to Michael's door. He'd been working in there more often than he wasn't, but the difference this time was that he kept it open. It was only a crack, but they all felt marginally better hearing the rhythmic clicking of keys coming from the room.

Derek shrugged and picked up the remote, looking for a show that wasn't too boring. "I don't want to distract him. Did you see how much he had to go through? I mean honestly, that folder was huge."

Laura nodded her agreement and then stilled, asking in a hushed whisper, "Do you think that's like his hit list or something?"

Derek's eyes widened and he slapped her shoulder, eyes automatically checking the hall to make sure Michael didn't hear them. "Laura!" He hissed. "You can't just say stuff like that!"

"I'm serious! We've all gotten used to him but we can't forget that he's literally killed people before. Plus, remember what Peter told us? That woman in the store? What if she's like his partner or something? Like the whole good cop bad cop thing. Wait, would Michael be the good one or the bad one?"

Derek didn't bother to respond, trying to remind himself that Michael was a good person. He was funny and smart and clever and wasn't afraid to stand up for himself, even if it was against a being more powerful than him. He was like a mass of mysteries and Derek was dying to at least solve one, whether it was who had hurt him or how he'd end up working at a job like that.

It was weird to think that Michael was a criminal, especially with how close everyone had gotten to him over the last couple weeks. It wasn't like he held himself any different from the first day Peter dragged him to their house, and he still had that hardened edge to him, but they all just… got used to it.

Peter coughed over the book he was reading and raised his eyebrow when he looked back at him. "Is there a problem?"

"Do you think he's going to kill someone again?" Derek blurted and then instantly cursed himself when Laura's eyes snapped up, too.

Peter sighed and put the book away, leaning forward in the recliner he was occupying. "We don't have the right to tell him what to do and what not to do. He's not the kind of person to just sit back and listen to people, especially ones he hasn't known for that long. All we can do is wait it out, like I told your sister."

She scoffed at his surprise and flipped her hair defiantly. "I like him too, you know."

"I didn't even say anything." He grumbled back.

"You didn't have to, your eyebrows did it for you."

"What? That doesn't make sense."

Laura clicked her tongue at him pitifully. "Oh, Der. If only you knew how much those glorious arches of yours gave away."

Scowling when he felt his face heat, he threw a pillow at her and smirked when it knocked her mascara out of her hand. She retaliated with a low snarl and launched herself at him, laughing when they tumbled to ground. Peter rolled his eyes at their antics and silently longed for the day they would mature. Low murmurs came from Michael's room, followed by the soft click of his door closing and presumably locking.

Laura huffed and tucked a stray strand of hair back behind her ear. "See what you did? He probably thought we were distracting."

Derek rolled his eyes and strained his ears to see if he could make out anything from the room, but to no avail. His stomach dropped at the possibility that Michael was closing himself off again and he nearly jumped when Peter gripped his shoulder comfortingly.

"Don't worry, he's just on the phone with somebody. You know how he is with privacy and chances are that it's his boss or something related to his job."

"How do you know?"

He smiled teasingly and cocked his head. "Because unlike you children, I'm aware of my surroundings and I heard his phone go off."

"Wait, then whose phone is that?" Laura pointed to the vibrating phone on the couch.

Derek shrugged, watching as his uncle picked it up curiously. "It's Michael's other phone, he said that he mostly gets spam calls on it but he keeps it active just in case."

"In case…" He trailed off in hopes of getting more info and gave up on ever receiving it when his uncle picked it up with a pleasant smile that bled through to his voice.

"Hello?" Gradually, his smile fell off and he was left with the most confused expression either of the Hale siblings had ever seen on him. "No, I can't say that I do. Are you sure 'Stiles' is a real name?"

The voice on the other end grew louder in their annoyance and Laura held in a snicker as Peter pulled it away from his ear. After the woman had calmed down some, he brought it back hesitantly, ready to put more space between them again if need be.

"Yes, I promise if I'll call you back if I hear any news on this Stiles. Of course. You have a good day no- and she hung up."

Derek raised an eyebrow and caught the phone when it was thrown at him, Peter shuffling back to the chair and falling into it with a sigh. "What are parents naming their children these days? Honestly, you two should be grateful. Did I ever tell you that I was the one who helped your mother name you? It's a funny story, actually. You see, we were-"

Derek was up in a flash and had his sister's arm in his hand in another. He pulled her towards the door and shouted an apology over his shoulder. "We have to run to the bank, sorry!"

Peter rolled his eyes and flipped his book open as the door slammed shut. "Honestly, just say you aren't interested. Brats." He grumbled.

Author's note: So here's the next chapter for you guys. I... I think you guys are liking it?