Chapter 03: Just Breathe

Present day – February 2011

"Remember the story about the girl who ran with the wolves?"

Stiles and Scott looked at one another and then at Derek and Emilia who were laughing at their reactions. The two teenagers hadn't seen Derek that way, they'd only seen him as being a stubborn asshole in the two months that they had known him. Stiles remembered the stories about the fire and wondered if his sister had known about it back then.

"What are you laughing at?" Stiles questioned running a hand over the top of his head as he looked at his sister again.

"Stuff, just you pair," Emilia shrugged, not really knowing what else to say she knew that she'd told them the story plenty of times over the years until Scott had told her to stop at least. "What do you remember about the story?"

"That there was a girl that was only little, you used to say that she was seven years old and that she would go out into the forest to play," Stiles paused, trying to think of the exact words that his sister used. Derek could see Stiles' brain ticking over and over as he processed the words.

"What else?" Emilia smiled at him, before she found that Derek's head was resting on her shoulder and his eyes closing. "On second thoughts, you pair go to school,"

"What! No, not after you drop shit on me," Stiles exclaimed, only getting a glare from his sister in reply.

"Come on man, we have lacrosse...Danny just messaged asking where we were," Scott answered, he wanted to spend as little time as possible with Derek.

"Oh shit, we were a little pre..." Stiles started to say before he was dragged to his car by Scott.

After Scott and Stiles left, Emilia and Derek stood out the front of the Stilinski house a moment longer before getting in the Camaro. Noah watched as both of his children left, pondering what he was going to do with the information that Emilia had left him with. Derek drove Emilia back to the abandoned station that he'd been staying in.

"Em, what are you going to do?" Derek questioned as they headed back to to the abandoned station and went inside after pulling his car out of sight.

"I...I don't know," Emilia answered, running a hand through her hair before pulling it back. "I honestly didn't think I'd be back here so soon,"

"You couldn't have known what was going to happen," Derek said as they headed inside and he dragged her to one of the subway cars and pulled her inside.

"Yeah, well that was not planned I can assure you that," Emilia told him as she sat down on one of the seats and looked up at him as he leant against the pole. "I'm scared, I mean what I am meant to do I'm 24 years old and was in the military until a month ago,"

Derek looked at her still leaning against the pole before he spoke. "Em, you've been to hell and back already," Derek ran a hand over his face, neither of them were new to the life of being a wolf but he was new to being the Alpha. "Remember you're family,"

"Thanks Der," Emilia smiled at him, she didn't know what she was going to do – but she did know that she needed to see a gynaecologist and obstetrician.

"What happened when you were over there?" Derek asked, he hadn't said anything about it until that point as she'd told him not to, not until she'd seen her dad and brother.

Emilia took a deep breath and motioned for Derek to join her on the seat. She couldn't talk not while he was standing so far away from her. That was the deal, they were best-friends, family. Derek moved slowly before sitting beside her and turning to face her.

"Em?" Derek didn't want to prod but at the same time he wanted to know what was troubling her.

"A lot...when you're one of three females in the platoon they either respect you or shit all over you," Emilia answered, running a hand over her face before it landed on her stomach. "Der, I know I said one of the platoon members but he wasn't just that,"

"What was he?" Derek raised an eyebrow, folding his arms over his chest as he listened to her.

"One of my CO's, the last time I don't think he was expecting me to forcefully remove him," Emilia said, closing her eyes as she remembered physically picking up the man and throwing him from the room they'd been in.

"You're remembering, I can tell your heartbeat just spiked," Derek unfold his arms and put a hand on her leg. "Relax Em he can't hurt you now, you know that,"

Emilia let out a breath of relief before she spoke, grabbing hold of Derek's hand at the same time. Derek sighed and pulled her into his arms enveloping her in a hug, it was something that he figured she was going to need a lot of. Emilia half relaxed in his arms before she spoke again.

"You know it was four months ago, he was killed a week after the last time it happened," Emilia paused for a second trying to think of what she needed to say but coming up blank.

"You weren't the only one," Derek looked to Emilia for confirmation as she nodded not knowing what else to do. "You told your old man he was court marshalled?"

"He was, and that was when he was killed," Emilia told him, her heart remaining steady as she spoke.

"Did you do it?" Derek had to ask, he didn't want to but it was something that had been on his mind.

"No, I wanted to. Believe me, but I couldn't," Emilia took a deep breath as Derek's grip around her visibly tightened around her. "Derek, I'm not going to break any time soon,"

"You don't know that," Derek all but growled at her, he'd been protective of her for as long as he could remember.

"Well if I do break you'll be there," Emilia smiled at him, resting her head against his shoulder. "I'm scared, I know that much,"

Derek pulled Emilia closer, it was because of her that he wasn't staying at the remnants of the Hale house. Emilia sighed leaning against Derek, she didn't know what she was going to do now that she'd told her brother what had happened. Stiles and Scott were slightly intrigued by it, Scott more so as neither of them truly trusted Derek.

A week later and Emilia had moved into an apartment in the down town area, not entirely sure if she was ready to live with her old man and younger brother again. Derek crashed there whenever he felt the need for an actual bed aside from sleeping at the station.

"You have to understand something, Derek lost his entire pack, his family. I know, I was there," Emilia said as she turned around in her living room and faced Scott and Stiles who were standing with their arms folded across their chests.

"But he didn't," Stiles thought that if anyone would understand Emilia would.

"Stiles, we were kids. Not much older than you and Scott," Emilia took a deep breath before she continued. "It was me, Laura, Derek and Peter, that's all that's left of the Hale pack,"

"Em...how old exactly were you?" Stiles asked as he looked behind him before sitting on the lounge to stop himself from rocking excitedly.

"Fourteen, nearly fifteen," Emilia answered, making both Scott and Stiles realise that she'd been a werewolf for a long time and that's what she'd meant about the Hale Pack.

"If my mother hadn't bitten her you wouldn't have a sister," Derek said suddenly appearing in the doorway with Isaac close behind him nervously.

"You two go on home," Emilia said motioning for them to leave and rolling her eyes when neither of them budged.

"No! You told us that we'd have this conversation after school a week ago and it never came," Stiles rambled, he hadn't seen her in that week and now he was being thrown out.

"Stiles, and we will. When I'm ready," Emilia sighed, pulling him up and pushing both him and Scott out the door once Derek and Isaac had stepped out of the way. "Go home,"

"Ugh, fine. But Em, I love you," Stiles mumbled, wrapping his arms around her tightly and hugging her before letting go as he was dragged down the hall by Scott.

Derek guided Isaac into Emilia's apartment shutting the door behind them after Scott and Stiles left. Emilia raised her eyebrow at Derek and then looked at Isaac wondering why the two of them smelled so strongly of grave dirt. Derek nodded before Emilia stepped towards Isaac and smile at him, she had known his brother.

"Isaac?" Emilia questioned, she wasn't entirely sure but he looked an awful lot like his brother Camden.

"It's Isaac," Derek confirmed nodding as Emilia stepped closer to the teenager who shrunk back against the wall.

"Hey, it's okay. Der go shower you smell like shit," Emilia smiled at Derek and then looked at Isaac wondering exactly what his father had done to him. Derek rolled his eyes before moving and heading towards the bathroom to shower. "Towels are already in the bathroom and you've got clothes in my room,"

"Did you know Cam?" Isaac asked his voice barely above a whisper as Derek disappeared down the hallway.

"Yeah, he was in my unit and my year," Emilia answered motioning for him to follow her further into the apartment. It wasn't until they were further in that Emilia saw the prominent bruising under and around Isaac's eye. "You know Cam told me about what your old man was doing," Isaac raised his eyebrow at her but immediately regretted it moving his hand to cover his eye. "Come with me and we'll put something on that,"

Isaac followed Emilia into the kitchen, as he did he noticed what he assumed to be a photo of her army unit. Emilia stopped and watched to see what Isaac would do whether he'd notice Camden with his arm around her shoulder. Isaac squinted as he looked at the photo and recognised his brothers face staring back at him, the teenager held back from crying. Emilia picked up on his chemo-signals changing and sighed, walking quickly into the kitchen and grabbing an ice pack.

"I told him," Derek said re-emerging from the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist.

"Of course you did," Emilia said as she took Isaac's hand and then put the ice-pack on his eye startling him. "This should take the swelling down,"

"His old man," Derek motioned to Isaac before heading towards the bedroom to change into fresh clothes.

"Do you want the bite?" Emilia asked, she hadn't let go of Isaac's hand and her vein's were pulsing black as his pain travelled up her arm.

"I...I...I don't know," Isaac answered nervously as he took the icepack away from his eye and looked at Emilia as Derek joined them.

"Did Derek tell you everything?" Emilia asked, taking her hand away from Isaac and reaching Derek to hug him, she needed it.

"If you're asking if I told him about the hunters and everything, the answer is yes," Derek nodded, looking to Isaac before hugging Emilia and scenting her.

"Der, exactly what did you tell him?" Emilia raised her eyebrow looking between Isaac and Derek as she spoke while still being hugged by Derek. "Derek?"

"Yes," was the only word out of his mouth causing Emilia to sigh. "Sorry Em,"

Isaac looked at Emilia and then at Derek, all he wanted to do was escape his father and Derek was giving him that option it was up to him if he took it or not. Derek let go of Emilia allowing her to go finish getting the food ready that she'd been in the middle of cooking. Emilia mumbled about still being able to smell grave dirt, so Derek showed Isaac to the bathroom and grabbed another set of his clothes that would to until his were clean.

"Damn werewolf nose and pregnancy," Emilia muttered as Derek returned and headed to the washing machine putting both sets of clothing in it.

"You know his old man has him working in the grave yard?" Derek questioned, he'd only found out after saving the kid that night by pulling him out from under the upturned back hoe.

"What? He's just a kid," Emilia turned around to face Derek as she put the chicken on the counter.

"Yeah, I know. Come with me when I take him back," Derek told her, as they both heard the shower stop and movement in the bathroom.

"Yeah...okay, stay for dinner and the night?" Emilia questioned, glancing down the hall and watching as the bathroom door opened. "Isaac?" Emilia called once she realised that he hadn't left the room. Her bathroom was tiny, and Isaac had only just realised how small it was when he got out of the shower. "Derek, hear that?"

"Go, you're better at this than me," Derek pushed Emilia towards her bathroom and took over cooking dinner.

Emilia made her way down the hall to the bathroom, stopping short of the door as she listened to the sounds from inside. She recognised them from when Stiles was younger and having daily panic attacks. Emilia walked slowly into the room and looked around before she spotted Isaac curled up beside the toilet, she walked over to him and crouched down in front of him. Isaac was curled up in himself shaking, mumbling incoherently as Emilia reached out and touched him.

"Hey, hey, no one can get you here," she spoke quietly as he shrunk away from her causing her to sit down instead of crouching. "Come 'ere," Isaac shook his head so Emilia simply scooted closer to him and pulled him into her arms. "Come sit out in the living room with me," Emilia sat on the bathroom floor with Isaac rubbing his back before she coaxed him onto his feet.

"Em?" Derek walked down the hall towards the bathroom as Emilia was helping Isaac from the bathroom.

"Panic attack, Stiles used to have them all the time after mom," Emilia gently guided Isaac back to the living room and sat him on the couch grabbing one of the blankets from the back and placing it over his shoulders.