Bag 'em

They kept to the woods for miles, the cold of the snow biting at the flesh of Stiles soles. The sound of the dogs fading the further they got away, but none of them believed that it was over. They wouldn't just let them go, but at least they were out of the base, giving them at least a chance.

Stiles arms were beginning to burn, his back aching under the weight of Case. "We need to stop." He called in a low breathless voice, still stiff and suffering from the after effects of his panic attack a few hours earlier.

"We can't." Alec replied, not bothering to turn around.

Huffing, Stiles jerked Case's small body up his back.

"Do you want me to take him for a while?" Asked Kira, smiling softly.

Stiles exhaled, "That would be great." They paused, Kira holding out her arms to the small child, only for Case to grip tighter to Stiles.

"Its okay buddy," Stiles soothed, "Kira's just going to carry you a little bit."

Case shook his head, refusing to go to the girl, and Stiles sent her an exhausted smile, "Come on, little dude. Look at her, she's so nice." Kira flushed at the praise, causing Stiles to grin. "She just wants to help look after you."

Kira took a small step forward, not touching the boy. "I promise, I won't drop you. – Hey, we can pretend to be…knights. You can be the brave knight and I'm be your trusted steed."

Case frowned at her, his dark brows pulled together considering. "W-what's a steed?" he asked quietly, his warm breath playing over Stiles ear.

Stiles grinned, nodding for Kira to continue.

"A steed, is a horse."

"A horse only really brave knight's get to ride." Stiles added hopefully.

There was a moment of silence before Case whispered, "Stiles is my steed," tightening his arms a little more.

Stiles exhaled, closing his eyes in defeat.

"Just hand him over." Malia grunted suddenly for a small distance away.

"If he doesn't want to come to me, I don't want to force him." Kira scolded, meeting the other girl's impatient gaze.

Malia rolled her eyes, "He's just a kid. He'll do as he's told."

Stiles frowned at her, his chest tightening at the cold dismissive tone. Was that how she was treated at home. Ordered around, treated as little more than a soldier in training. "He's fine." Stiles grunted, shifting the weight and taking a step forward, ready to continue on their trek.

_(*o*)_/

But the time Alec finally sort shelter, the dawn was beginning to kiss the sky. They'd taken a detour fifty miles behind, and began to head towards civilization. Now they were crouched in the tree lines, watching an old rundown farm house. The lights were all out and there was no sign of life anywhere. Stiles moved Case off his back, forcing him around so he could wrap the boy in his arm and keep him warm as they waited.

"You think anyone's home?" Liam whispered, his arms wrapping tighter around himself as a shiver rippled through his body.

"I don't hear any heartbeats." Joshua informed them quietly.

"Then what are we waiting for." Malia grumbled impatiently, let's get out of the damn cold.

"This is close to the base, they'll be by to check it."

"They've probably already been." Stiles countered, matching Malia's impatience. "Come on, Alec. We're freezing out here, and frankly, I need to rest." He met his ex-guard's gaze along the line, pleading silently.

For a few seconds, Stiles was sure Alec was going to argue, but then he exhaled a tired sigh and nodded. "I'll go in first, check it out. Joshua, you stay with them. Any sign of trouble, take off." He waved an arm back towards the wood. "Understood?"

Joshua straightened a little and nod. "Yes."

Stiles watched Alec closely as he cautiously approuched the wooden house, keeping low to the snow covered ground. Of course, being dressed in black as he was, meant he stood out like a sore thumb against the pure white.

"You okay, Dude?" Stiles asked, looking down at the little boy in his arms.

"Hmm, hmm." Case nodded against Stiles chest.

Stiles didn't know how long they waited out there in the snow, the cold biting at his face, it felt like hours, but eventually Alec reappeared at the door, waving them all forward. One at a time they made their way towards the house. Liam heading across first. "You go." Kira insisted, gently pushing at Stiles shoulder.

With a sharp nod, Stiles raced out from the tree line, rushing across the huge expanse of ground, Case secure in his arms.

He burst into the house and exhaled a relieved sigh. There was a fire already alight in the living room, it was small, but it was enough to chase away the cold. He felt Case shiver against him as the warmth slowly began to seep in. Liam was crouched down in front of it, hands outstretched. Setting Case down, the little boy remaining linked to him via their hands, he looked around. He was surprised that no one was there, it was a little after dawn, so Stiles would have expected the owner to be preparing for their day. He certainly would have expected someone to have come running when Alec invaded their home without so much as knocking. "Where is everyone?"

"Who knows?" Alec answered behind him.

Stiles turned to regard the man, his gaze catching on the floor beneath Alec's feet. "Is that…" he tried to let go of Case's hand so he could get a closer look, but the kid wouldn't relinquish his hold.

Alec lowered his head, then sighed. "Yes." When he looked up, he met Stiles gaze with the same detactchment Malia had shown earlier. "I thought you wanted a rest." He muttered, nodding towards the living room.

With a frowned still etched on his face, Stiles turned, just as Kira came bursting through the door.

_(*o*)_/

Stiles couldn't stop thinking about the blood by the door and the person it belong to. Where were they? What happened? Had there been an accident that had led to the owner of the farm being rushed off to hospital? When would they return, and what would they do when they did?

If anyone else had noticed the blood, no one had said anything. Instead they began to make themselves comfortable. After Kira had fanned the fire into a roaring blaze, they all gathered into a comfortable half circle around the fireplace. Kira and Malia were sat with their backs against the couch, shoulders together and feet stretched out towards the heat. Joshua and Liam had laid claim to the large armchairs. Liam curling into a tight ball, his head resting on the arm, as he stared into the dancing flames. Stiles himself sat on the couch, Case stretched out next to him, the boy's head resting on his lap, with a blanket draped over his shivering body. As for Alec, he was stood by the window, his weapon gripped in his hands as he stared out at the white snow covered landscape.

Leaning forward, Stiles exhaled a relieved sigh at the sight of Case fast asleep. Pulling his lip between his teeth, Stiles carefully slid his hand beneath the little boy's head and shuffled out from beneath him, replacing his lap with a pillow.

Free of his little shadow, Stiles stretched out his back, eyes drifting between everyone. No one so much as looked at him, all of them seemingly hypnotised by the fire. Looking around the room, he searched for some clue as to its occupance, padding over to a dresser where a set of photo frames lay face down. Lifting them one at a time, he frowned. The house seemed to have been owned by a small family. Stiles' eyes flickered between the faces. The three small kids; two girls who barely look old enough for middle school, and the eldest, a boy, looking to be getting ready for junior high. The mom grinned proudly beside her kids and husband, in front of the house Stiles was currently hiding in. Her dark hair covered with a beautiful head scarf, speckled with gold.

As for her husband, he was large, tanned, and baring a deeply imbedded scar cutting along the left side of his face. There was something in the man's eyes that spoke of darkness and pain, a look that reminded him not only of his dad, but also of Derek. The man had obviously been through a lot, had fought his way to this perfect house, a home for his family. Stiles couldn't believe he'd just abandon it.

Setting the frame back down, Stiles headed for the kitchen, his stomach growling at the sight of the fruit bowl. "Hope y'don't mind." He said quietly, snatching an apple of the top and taking a huge bite from it, while his eyes travelled the room. Catching sight of the phone, he inhaled deeply, almost choking on the juice in his mouth. He coughed as he rushed over, lifting it from its cradle and beginning to dial the number.

When he raised it to his ear, Stiles frowned. It was dead. He hung up and tried again, but it remained silent. Setting the phone down with a deep sigh, Stiles looked around. Everything looked normal, undisturbed. Nothing like how the living area had looked when they'd arrived. Except for…

He moved carefully over to the basement door, bending to stare at the polished tiles, and the small drops of…

"What are you looking at?"

Stiles looked up to find Alec staring at him, his back straight. "You see this?" he asked, pointing to the blood drops.

Alec looked down and shrugged, "There must have been an accident. That's why no one's here."

Straightening, Stiles looked around, his mind turning over itself. Attempting to solve a puzzle. "I…" he turned to look through the kitchen window, towards the barn. Its doors were closed, which wasn't weird, but… "If it had been an emergence, would you have hung around to close the barn doors? And why only these few drops." He looked back, past Alec, to the front door.

"People are weird." Alec dismissed with another causally shrug.

Stiles looked up at the guard, taking a slight step back. "Why'd it take you so long to signal the all clear?"

Alec met his gaze, "Had to make sure there was no one in the house."

Shaking his head, Stiles looked to the basement door again, then back to Alec. "What did you do?" he whispered.

"Nothing." Alec insisted, his eyes growing hard.

"I don't believe you?" It wouldn't be the first time his instincts were off. He'd mistrusted Derek at the beginning, hadn't he? And Ms Blake. His gut instinct wasn't always right. With that thought in mind, Stiles jerked forward, yanking open the basement door and threw himself over the threshold.

"Stiles!" Alec growled, grabbing at his shirt.

Stiles was too quick though, he hurried down the darkened staircase, his enhanced vision guiding the way. He was a few steps from the bottom when he saw them, a pile of limbs on the dirt ground. His heart began to race. They weren't his first dead bodies, regretfully. "What the fuck did you do?" He yelled, turning around.

Alec was right behind him and Stiles swung for the man, his fight or flight response kicking in. Alec caught his arm easily. "They were already dead." He insisted.

Stiles yanked his arm from the man and ended up toppling backwards down the stairs, landing with a grunt on top of the dead. Quickly he scrambled off them, muttering an apology as he moved. Getting to his feet, he fixed Alec with a hard mistrusting look. "Dude, I thought you were different?" he snapped furiously. The light spilling in from the top of the stairs was blocked out and Stiles heard the incessant clicking of a light switch, but nothing happened. Ignoring the startled gasp, Stiles kept his eyes trained on Alec.

The man exhaled a tired sigh. "I'm telling you, they were already dead when I got here, all I did was….toss them down here." He gestured at the lifeless forms.

"Tossed them? Who do you think you are, a UPS worker? They're people."

"They're dead." Alec argued. "Did you want me to just leave them where they fell? – Or would you have preferred me to leave you out there in the cold while I buried them?"

"You could have called us in and explained, we could have buried them together." Alec didn't look impressed and Stiles knew there was no talking to him, "What did you do to the phones?" he added accusingly.

"I didn't do anything to the phones." Alec rolled his eyes, "The lines are dead, as is the electricity."

"What?" Kira gasped muttered from the top of the stairs.

"Go check, if you don't believe me." Alec insisted, waving her off. "The refrigerator, the TV. Nothing's working. – Can't even get a cell signal."

Stiles' eyes widened, "You've got a cell?"

Clearly growing tired of the conversation, Alec twisted his body to lean against the wall and fished something out of his pocket, then tossed it to Stiles. The teenager just managing to catch it. "Look for yourself. Nothing is working."

"You think it's just local, or state wide?" Liam asked quietly.

"Don't know, and at the moment I don't care. All I'm worried about is Manticore coming after us, which is why we need to get out of here as soon as possible. So, rest, find some dry warm clothes and get something to eat, because we're leaving at night fall." With that Alec marched back up the stairs.

"What about them?" Stiles demanded, glaring after the man.

"What about them?" Alec replied, clearly irritated.

"We should bury them."

"Why?"

"Because it's the right thing to do." Said Kira.

"And how exactly do you expect to bury them? The ground is frozen, there's no way we could dig five graves before dark."

"We can't just leave them here." Stiles snapped angrily.

Alec met the teenager's gaze, brow raised in challenge. Stiles was no stranger to that look.

"Stiles!" Came Case's panicked cry. "Stiles!"

Gritting his teeth and shooting the ex-guard a disgusted look, Stiles leapt over the bodies and hurried up the stairs, not wanting the kid to come looking and see what lay down there. "Hey, kiddo. You didn't sleep long." He smiled, pushing to the front of the group.

Case looked between them all suspiciously, before focusing on Stiles. "I'm hungry."

The mere mention of food had everyone's stomach's churning, the sound like an echo between them all. "Okay," Stiles smiled, looking around the kitchen. "Let's see what we can find to eat." It wasn't as if the houses owners would be needing it.

While Stiles rifled through the cupboards downstairs, Malia dragged Kira and Liam to search through the closets of the dead family as Alec had suggested, while the man in question marched back to the living room with Joshua, to once again position himself in front of the window.

_(*o*)_/

Stiles wasn't one for cooking, there was a reason they lived on take out and salads, though as far as his father was concerned, it was for the sake of his health. But everyone knew how to make pancakes, right? – They weren't as good as Derek's. His boyfriend had a talent Stiles envied.

Stiles glanced over at the phone longingly. He desperately wanted to call home and reassure his family he was alive and free. It would take them days to get back to Beacon Hills, maybe longer.

"Stiles?"

"Yeah buddy?" He tore his eyes away from the phone to look over to where Case was sat at the kitchen table, some colouring supplies Stiles found in a drawer scattered in front of him.

"When can I go home?" He asked quietly, tears welling in his eyes.

Obviously Stiles wasn't the only one desperate to see his family. "I don't know, little man. Just as soon as it's safe."

Case let out a sad sigh that tugged at Stiles heart strings, and caused tears to fill his eyes. "Do you know where you're from, Kiddo?"

Case looked up, straightening while setting down his crayon. "Portland." He announced proudly, "415 North West Overton Street."

Stiles smiled at the kid, nodding and shooting him a thumbs up. "Great job. We'll see about getting you back there, okay. Back to your mom and dad."

The mention of his parents had Case instantly curling into himself, his head dropping down. Dropping the wooden spatula against the edge of the pan, Stiles padded slowly over and pulled out a chair, lowering himself down and leaning forward on his forearms. "Case? Case, what's wrong."

The little boy shook his head and Stiles' chest tightened as a tear was flicked off Case's nose and onto the paper in front of him. The sound of a throat clearing behind him, had Stiles turning to see Alec watching him, a regretful look on his usually distant face.

The look alone was enough to fill in the blank spaces, and Stiles inhaled sharply, turning back to Case. "Oh, little buddy." He reached out to gently grip the small boy's arm and gave it a squeeze. If the boy's parents were dead as he suspected, then… then who was there for the boy to go home to.

Case sniffled, finally looking up. "My grandma." He announced, as if reading Stiles mind.

With a nod and a small shaky smile, Stiles whispered, "Okay, kiddo. We'll get you home to your grandma, okay. I promise."

With that, and another gentle squeeze of the kid's arm, Stiles got to his feet and headed back to the food. As he lifted the spatula once more, Alec stepped up behind him. "We're not going to Portland," he announced in a low whisper, "We're heading for the boarder."

Stiles' head snapped around to fix the man with a hard defiant look. "Like hell. I'm going home."

Alec pressed his lips into a thin line, "What don't you get? They'll be coming after us."

"I'm going home. – And so is he." He jerked his head towards Case.

"Don't be ridiculous Stiles, you have no idea what you're dealing with. We have to get across the border."

Turning his body fully to face the older man, Stiles glowered up at him. "If you want to head to Canada, fine, go, but I have people back home depending on me. People are dying." Assuming that the crazy ass serial killer hadn't been caught already.

Alec's hand snapped out to grip Stiles arm, shaking him. "Do you have any idea who you are? Who you all are?"

"I'm Stiles Stilinski of Beacon Hills, and I'm. Going. Home." He seethed, yanking his arm free of Alec's grip. "

They stood there, staring angrily at one another for a few seconds, before Alec grunted in frustration and spun around, marching out of the room. Once he was gone, Stiles inhaled deeply and shot a reassuring smile over to Case, before turning back to the burnt pancakes with a sigh. And he thought Derek was an argumentative, stubborn ass.

_(*o*)_/

Almost five hours after they'd escaped the clutches of Manticore, they sat down to finally eat. It was obvious that Stiles was the only one in desperate need of food after months on a strictly controlled diet. Despite the edges of many pancakes being burn, everyone piled their plates as high.

There was no conversation as they ate, everyone too focused on filling their bellies. Even Alec ate like he'd been starved for a month, which seemed ridiculous as he'd been working for Manitcore.

Only once they'd finished and Stiles sat there, slouching back in his chair, did he finally break the silence. "So, where is everyone from? Case here, is from Portland, and Malia is a fellow Beacon Hills resident, but what about the rest of you?" he looked around the table.

Kira was the first to speak, looking shyly across the table at Stiles, "I'm from San Francisco." She said shakily.

"Cool." He shot a look down the table towards Alec, "I've always wanted to see San Fran."

"Don't call it that." Kira laughed, rolling her eyes.

"Okaaay." Stiles held up his hands in faux surrender. "What about you, Liam?" and the boy shrugged.

"You don't know where you're from." Malia huffed, disbelievingly.

"I don't have a home." He whispered, eyes fixed on his empty plate while he shredded a slice of bread between his fingers.

"Did you run away?" Kira asked gently.

Finally Liam lifted his eyes, looking around the table, "No. They killed my whole family, so there's nowhere for me to go!" he snapped, shoving back his chair and storming angrily to the back door.

"Hey!" Alec snapped, "Don't go out there."

"It's okay." Stiles hurriedly said, leaping to his feet. Looking over his shoulder, Liam shot him a hurt, hateful look, and Stiles stomach clenched. "I mean, you're not alone, okay." His eyes pleaded for the kid to listen. "Look, I know how you're feeling, kinda. I lost my mom," Stiles exhaled a long breath, "She died a long time ago, but it still hurts."

Tears filled the younger teen's eyes, and he stared down at his hand on the doorknob. "It wasn't just my mom, it was my dad and brother, too."

Stiles swallowed thickly, "I – I'm sorry, Liam."

"He's right." Alec muttered from his seat, "You're not alone. You still have family. We're your family."

Liam scoffed, shaking his head. "Right. Because we've been through so much together. It's not the same."

"It's not a platitude, I mean it literally. Your mom and dad were my brother and sister."

Everyone's heads snapped around to stare horrified at Alec, who couldn't help but smirk at the disgusted looks on their faces. "Not like that. We're not blood relatives, you can all chill out." He slouched back in his seat, fixing his eyes back on Liam. "But we were all born in the same place, raised by the same man." He glanced over to Joshua with a soft smile, the taller man, lowering his head.

Stiles frowned, "You mean Sanderman?"

Alec looked up with surprise. "Yes. Claudia told you?"

"She told me you were all experiments created by a mad scientist."

Alec frowned as Joshua's head snapped up, a hurt look in his eyes. "Father wasn't mad. He was trying to save the world." The taller man argued, his voice harsh yet soft.

Alec reached out and gripped Joshua's shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "It's okay."

"Father was a good man." Joshua insisted again sharply.

"Yeah, he was." Alec nodded.

"Why would Claudia say such things?" Joshua asked, confused.

"Are you suggesting my mom lied to me?" Stiles growled, insulted.

Meeting his eyes, Alec shrugged, "Not exactly. It's complicated." He sighed, looking over to where Liam was still stood at the backdoor, watching the scene with watery eyes. "Sit back down, kid."

For a few seconds it looked as if Liam was going to ignore the order and escape, but then he dragged his feet over to the table, retaking his seat. Slowly, Stiles lowered himself back down and stared accusingly at Alec.

Getting out of his seat, Alec strolled over to the refrigerator, groaning when he opened the door and found nothing but juice and soda. "I could really do with a beer right now." He muttered, grabbing a Coke and slamming the door closed, then dragged himself back to the table.

"They're muslin, there wouldn't be any alcohol in the house." Stiles informed him matter-of-factly.

"How do you know?" Kira frowned.

"My dad's a cop, I know how to read a crime scene." Something passed over Alec's features, causing Stiles to frown. "What?"

"Nothing." The man sighed, shaking his head.

"So? I'm waiting for an explanation?"

Alec gave a wary sigh, "Look, you're mom wasn't lying, okay, she just… - We were created for a purpose…"

"Yeah, the perfect weapons." Stiles interrupted with a bitter laugh.

"Exactly," Alec snapped, "We were created to fight a war, when it comes."

"Against who?" Kira asked fearfully.

"Stheno's followers, and their emissaries." Joshua interjected.

"Emissaries?" Stiles gasped, his heart jumping into his throat, eyes widening as they flickered between the two men. "As in, pack emissaries?"

Alec and Joshua stared at him with surprised eyes.

"Packs of what?" Liam asked, frowning.

"Werewolves."

"Werewolves aren't real." Liam scoffed disbelievingly.

"How do you know about werewolves?" Alec demanded, leaning forward and locking gazes with Stiles.

"My… - I'm part of a pack. In Beacon Hills."

Alec groaned, shaking his head. "What was she thinking?" He muttered, looking heavenwards.

"Wait, are you saying there are werewolves in Beacon Hills?" Malia laughed.

"Hello, are we seriously talking about werewolves?" Liam frowned looking around the table.

Stiles waved a hand at Joshua, "What do you think he is?" Instantly Liam's eyes widened as he stared at the large man, eyes flickering over his contorted face. "I mean, you're a werewolf right?" At Joshua's nod, Stiles continued, "Why can't you shift back?"

Joshua frowned, "Shift back? To what?"

"Human?"

"He can't." Alec interrupted, "He was born that way, just like our father. – So you're parents are in Beacon Hills too?" He asked, turning to fix a frustrated look on Malia, who nodded. "Dammit." He swore, shaking his head. "We had one directive, go to ground and stay away from werewolves."

"What, why?" Stiles frowned.

Meeting his eyes again, Alec exhaled a tired breath as he replied, "Because we didn't know which packs could be trusted. We need to keep the seals secure. To keep you from falling into the hands of the emissaries."

"Seals? What? There aren't any seals in Beacon Hills." Malia said, confused.

"Ohmygod!" Stiles gasped, eyes widening.

"What?" Kira frowned.

"The sacrifices."

"What sacrifices?" Alec demanded, straightening and leaning closer with interest.

"There have… - Before I was taken, we were investigating a series of sacrifices committed by a Darach."

"A what?" Kira asked, looking increasingly confused.

"A dark druid, an emissary gone bad."

Alec shared a look with Joshua, before turning back to Stiles. "It seems you win. We're going to Beacon Hills."

A/N: Despite how this looks, this chapter is not me being political and is in fact influenced by an actual episode of Dark Angel, where the lead characters visit a small town and discover the horrific story of a family in the aftermath of the pulse.