Scott was back downstairs a few minutes later, finding Isaac had beaten him down. He was standing in the corner with Chris, seemingly getting a pep talk from the older man. It was nice to see that Isaac had a supportive male figure in his life. Even though he was a father himself now, it didn't mean that this kind of relationship didn't have value. Scott was lucky enough to have a close bond with Sheriff Stilinski, since the one with his biological father was still lacking. It wasn't as bad as it had been for all those years during his childhood, but they weren't hanging out at the ball game either.
He was about to make a noise to announce his arrival when Chris enveloped Isaac in a hug, whispering something in his ear before letting him go. Isaac nodded, taking a deep breath and trying to shake off his nerves. Scott was tempted to smuggle the little girl out with them, just to make Isaac happy, but decided he shouldn't interfere with their family business.
"All set?" Scott asked, keeping his voice light.
"Yep," Isaac confirmed, accepting the keys from Chris and picking up Julian from where he was sitting in a high chair Scott hadn't noticed before. Isaac led them out to the car, tossing Scott the keys once they got there. "Do you mind driving? I don't think I ever had a legal license here, now that I think about it."
"Sure," Scott shrugged, trotting around to the driver's seat. He got the car running and windows rolled down as Isaac strapped Julian into his carseat in the back, which looked a lot more complicated than Scott imagined. He'd always liked the idea of having kids someday, but seeing all this was just confirming how hard it was.
"Thanks for this," Isaac said as he climbed into the front seat. Scott started driving toward the big grocery store in town, being more careful than he ever had in his life. He wouldn't even go one mile over the speed limit with Isaac's son in the car.
"No problem," Scott brushed off, shooting him a smile. "Gives us time to hang out. Just us men." Julian gurgled from the back, evidently agreeing with him.
"Right," Isaac chuckled, slouching in his seat and closing his eyes.
"You okay?" Scott asked.
"Yeah, just tired," Isaac sighed, rubbing at his eyes. "I haven't slept since before… you know."
"That's not good," Scott winced, pulling up to a stop light.
"I've tried, but every time I close my eyes, I'm back in that alley," Isaac mumbled, reaching back to touch the baby. "I'll be fine."
"Well, you're home now, so everything will be okay. Uncle Scott is here," Scott said, pouring every bit of confidence into his tone. As long as he was around, he'd do anything to protect his family.
"You're really running with this whole uncle thing," Isaac chuckled, looking a little more settled now.
"Is it weird that the title feels just as important as my role as Alpha?"
"I've never been an Alpha, so I couldn't tell you, but I appreciate it either way."
"So, you and Chris seem like you've gotten pretty close."
"It was pretty awkward at first, but now he's the best father figure I could ask for. I'd never even held a baby before Celine, and while a lot of things are instinctive, I had no idea how to do the basics. He walked me through everything and basically kept us all alive when we weren't able to do it ourselves. Allison is so strong and smart, but I struggle sometimes," Isaac said.
"You don't give yourself enough credit. Everyone needs help sometimes, but I've seen you go through a lot and you've always made it out the other side. Not everyone can say the same," Scott insisted.
"I guess I'll have to take your word for it, Uncle Scott." They drove the rest of the way with Scott telling Isaac about different events in the spots they passed. He tried to keep it lighthearted, instead of about fighting and death. That was in the past and things weren't like that anymore.
He pulled into the parking lot of the biggest grocery store in town, turning off the car. His phone beeped as Isaac got out and started getting Julian out of the back, so he took the moment to check the message.
"Hey, Derek wants to talk to us about something. You mind if he meets us here?" Scott asked.
"Derek in a grocery store? How could I pass up seeing that?" Isaac laughed, strapping some sort of complicated contraption to his chest.
"Why is that weird?"
"The man barely fed me while I lived with him," Isaac snorted, securing the baby to his front. "What does he want?"
"He didn't say. I texted him to meet us here," Scott replied. They walked into the grocery store side by side, with Julian kicking his feet happily. Scott grabbed a cart and he followed Isaac, who quickly began filling it. He was very particular about what he selected, sniffing and inspecting the produce before he deemed it worthy to buy.
"Do you know if your mom has a dutch oven?" Isaac asked, as he eyed a couple of carrots.
"A what?"
"I don't know why I asked," Isaac chuckled.
"So is this beef whatever really that good?" Scott asked, tossing a package of candy in the cart for himself.
"If you do it right, yes."
"Do you think you could teach me how to make it? And can I switch the beef out for deer?" At Isaac's look of confusion, he explained. "Deer is Malia's favorite."
"Got it," Isaac laughed. "How did you two get together anyways?"
"It's kind of a long story."
"I bet. Your first meeting story must be a hit in some circles. Alpha roaring her out of her coyote form. So romantic," Isaac chuckled.
"Well, didn't Allison shoot you with an arrow and stab you a bunch of times?" Scott shot back.
"That wasn't our introduction though," Isaac pointed out, carefully choosing a bottle of olive oil. "That was probably when I was trying to kill Lydia."
"We sure have come a long way," Scott sighed wistfully.
"Yes, we have."
"Reminiscing about the good old days?" Derek asked, appearing behind them in that way he had.
"If that's what you want to call them," Isaac scoffed, sending him a grin. Derek returned it, since smiling was a thing that he did now. Even after all these years of softer Derek, it was still a little strange for Scott to see. It was definitely better than the troubled man he used to be though.
"So what did you want to talk about?" Scott asked.
"Actually, it would be easier to show you," Derek replied, turning to face Isaac. "Do you mind following me somewhere after you're done here?" Isaac shot a panicked glance in Scott's direction, which did not go unnoticed by Derek.
"Uh, I don't know. I really don't want to be gone too long," Isaac said.
"It will only be a few minutes," Derek assured him, looking at him curiously. "Is everything okay?"
"We can't let all this food spoil in the trunk, right?" Scott laughed, giving Isaac an out. He gave Scott a look of appreciation.
"Just a few minutes, but only if you help us shop," Isaac sighed, smiling a little at Derek's grimace.
"I hate shopping," Derek grumbled, waving a hand in acceptance.
"I remember," Isaac snorted. They walked as a trio down more aisles, just letting Isaac do his thing. He got into a very intense conversation with the man at the meat counter at one point, even slipping into French without realizing it. Whatever he said must've worked though, because he got a cut of meat that seemed to make him happy.
Now they were in the wine department, letting Isaac prattle on like a snob about the grapes or vines or whatever. Scott went down to where they had the sparkling wine, so he could pick something out for Malia. They couldn't get drunk, but she liked the bubbles.
"I don't even know why I brought this carrier. I hate it," Isaac grumbled, trying to adjust the straps as the baby whined. He pulled Julian out, trying to fix everything with one hand as the baby squirmed.
"Do you want some help?" Derek offered, looking a bit reluctant. Isaac froze, eyeing him suspiciously.
"Have you ever even held a baby?"
"It's been a while," Derek admitted. Isaac looked down at Julian, who had started making grabby hands toward Derek. "I'll stay right here." Isaac sighed, looking like doing this was physically painful, but he handed the baby over. Julian immediately giggled, pawing at Derek's face and grabbing fistfulls of beard.
"Interesting," Isaac murmured, resuming his task. Scott swore he heard Derek laughing softly from down the aisle, but he wasn't going to say anything about it now.
"What a beautiful family!" an older woman cooed as she walked down the aisle past Isaac and Derek. Derek's face turned red as he got flustered, but Isaac rolled with it, wrapping his arm around Derek's shoulders and kissing him on the cheek.
"Thank you," Isaac replied kindly, staying in that position until the woman turned out of sight. Scott couldn't resist pulling his phone out and taking a picture of them, quickly putting together a group chat of everyone but the two of them and sending the photo.
"I'll get you back for that," Derek growled.
"I'm sure you will," Isaac laughed, taking Julian back and strapping him to his chest again. "Dear, would you mind buying this wine for me?"
"Why? You're at least 21 now, right?" Derek asked, looking up to do the math in his head.
"Yes, but I need to get my American ID figured out still," Isaac confirmed, smirking at Scott as he walked back to the cart. "Don't worry, biting freshmen is Scott's job."
"It was only one," Scott defended, rolling his eyes. Liam was an extenuating circumstance. "And we were only sophomores, so that's not much better."
"Very mature sophomores," Isaac laughed. They finally finished up the shopping trip, using Chris' credit card, and followed Derek's car out of the parking lot. They drove through town, heading toward the reserve and a place Scott hadn't been to in years. Everything looked pretty much the same as he remembered it, except for the house being gone, and it was like he was being transformed back into a teenager. He parked behind Derek and got out, looking around at everything with slight nostalgia.
"Man, I haven't been back here since-"
"After the Alpha attack in the hospital?" Isaac asked, bouncing Julian in his arms.
"I think so," Scott confirmed. They walked up to where Derek was standing at the edge of his old family property. "I thought the city took this and was planning on putting a development here?"
"That was the plan, but after the stuff with Kate and Mexico and being de-aged, I decided to dispute it," Derek replied.
"After what?" Isaac asked in bewilderment.
"It's a long story," Scott brushed off.
"I ended up getting all of my family's land back, after a few years of legal stuff, but I haven't done anything with it yet," Derek explained, bending down to pick up a couple rocks. "I never knew what to do with all of it. Until now."
"And what's that?" Scott asked.
"I know you were looking for a place for your family in town, but I was wondering if you'd ever thought about building something?" Derek asked, directing his question toward Isaac.
"What?"
"Why don't you use part of the land to build a house?"
"You can't be serious," Isaac said, with a surprised laugh.
"I always loved this place as a kid and it just feels right to have a family back here. Especially one that I care about," Derek said, reaching a hand out and letting Julian grasp his finger happily. "I have so many regrets about things I did back then and how I treated you. Let me try to make it up to you."
"Derek, if this is some way for you to earn forgiveness, there's no need."
"But I do. I hate how we left things and I want to make things right," Derek insisted.
"It's too late for that," Isaac said, shrugging a little. Derek looked discouraged before Isaac continued. "I don't hold anything that happened between us against you, I promise. We were all doing the best we could at the time and I don't hold any grudges against you."
"Do you really mean that?" Derek questioned.
"Allison insisted that the kids have names that honor people we care about," Isaac said, waving them off before they could question the abrupt subject change. "We settled on Celine Christina, because I wanted her to have a connection to Allison, for the obvious reason. So Celine for a spin on Celestine and Christina after Chris."
"Celestine?" Derek mumbled.
"Ask Chris," Isaac laughed, shaking his head. "When it came to Julian, Alli wanted to choose something from my side, but good Lahey memories are slim pickings. We went with Julian after my mom, Julia, but there wasn't anyone else I wanted to honor. At least not blood relatives. So I chose McHale."
"Julian McHale Argent," Scott whispered, feeling his heart swell at the new information.
"I wouldn't name my kids after someone I didn't love, so get that idea out of your head. You don't have to do anything for me. We're good," Isaac said simply. Derek smiled softly at that, looking down at the ground. Scott knew how much family meant to the man, so hearing this must've been so heartwarming.
"Either way, my offer still stands. This is a great place to raise a family," Derek said. Isaac looked around the space, considering the offer.
"I have to talk to Allison before I give you an answer."
"Of course."
"And there is still the issue of finding a place to live until everything is ready. And getting money to pay for it. And I don't know the first thing about building a house," Isaac mumbled, looking slightly overwhelmed by everything this would entail.
"You don't have to make a decision now. And if you decide this isn't the right move for your family, I won't take offense," Derek shrugged. "But I can help you with whatever you need."
"This would be a lot of space for the kids to run around in. And for Allison to practice her archery." Scott's phone beeped in his pocket and he pulled it out.
"Speak of the devil," he chuckled, holding his phone out for them to see the picture Allison sent. It was Celine sitting at the kitchen table with his mom and Chris, putting together a puzzle. Scott smiled at the photo, pleased to see his mom so happy.
"Isaac, what's wrong?" Derek asked in concern, making Scott's head snap up to see what was going on. Isaac was staring at the phone with a pained look in his eyes.
"Crap, okay," Scott whispered, tucking his phone away. Isaac had started to tremble a little and somehow Scott knew that everything he'd been trying to hold back was forcing its way to the surface. Scott wasn't sure what the trigger had been, but now he just had to try to help him through it. "Isaac, do you think you can hand Derek the baby?" Isaac made a little distressed sound in the back of his throat and pulled the baby closer to his chest.
"What's going on?" Derek asked quietly, but Scott waved off his question.
"It's okay. Derek will stay right here and Julian likes him, remember? I just want to be able to give you a hug and that's kind of hard with a baby in between us," Scott coaxed, carefully reaching his hands out. He wasn't going to pry the child from his arms, but he wanted to be ready in case Isaac relented. "Let us help you, okay?" Isaac finally focused on what Scott was saying enough to comply, relaxing his grip on Julian. Scott helped him pass the baby into Derek's arms and as soon as he was clear, Scott grabbed Isaac and pulled him into a tight hug.
Isaac wasn't able to hold back any longer, sobbing into Scott's shoulder as his knees went weak. Scott lowered them down to the ground, but didn't let go. He could feel all the fear and anguish pouring out of Isaac and Scott felt terrible about what he'd been through and how he was struggling. Scott held the back of Isaac's head as his shirt became saturated with tears. Derek was standing in the same spot, bouncing Julian to distract him from the scene in front of them.
"I-it was too close," Isaac choked out, shaking apart in Scott's arms. "I almost lost them."
"I know, but you didn't. They are healthy and happy, thanks to you," Scott soothed, motioning for Derek to join them on the ground. "Look at your son, okay? He's here and he's fine." Derek was staring at them both in concern, but Scott could deal with the explanations later, if Isaac wanted him to.
Maybe they shouldn't have pushed Isaac to leave the house so soon, but worrying about that wouldn't change things now. Now Scott just had to help Isaac through this. He should've known that Isaac would be struggling with this, even when he tried to play if off the night before, but they hadn't been around each other for so long that he didn't want to overstep.
"I had to kill him, I had to. Why did he make me do that?" Isaac stammered, staring at Scott with haunted eyes. Maybe he could get Stiles to talk to Isaac soon, since he had experience with killing in self defense. This was a situation that Scott couldn't really relate to. Every death he'd been a part of had involved some sort of monster, and while the Omega was trying to do a monstrous thing, he was still mostly human.
"You did the right thing," Derek said firmly, evidently able to glean enough information to understand the situation. "You do what you have to do to protect your family."
"Yeah?" Isaac whispered, rubbing his finger along Julian's hand.
"You're a father and fathers protect their own," Derek confirmed, shifting the baby a little so he could put a supportive hand on Isaac's shoulder. Isaac nodded, sniffling a little as he calmed back down.
"Do you think we can head back now?" Isaac asked, gently taking Julian back in his arms.
"Of course," Scott said, helping Isaac stand back up. He still looked absolutely wrecked, but he was steady on his feet as they walked back to the car. Isaac buckled Julian back into his carseat and stayed in the back to sit next to him.
"You mind if I come with you?" Derek asked, trotting backwards toward his car.
"Not at all," Scott replied, climbing into the driver's seat. They would get Isaac back home to his family and reassure him that they were all safe, as long as it took. The Argent family wasn't isolated in enemy territory anymore. This was the new Beacon Hills, where the McCall pack protected and cared for their own, no matter what.