Stiles bounced excitedly in his seat, straining against the seatbelt confining him to Peters car as they neared his house and the promise of someone new, a druid, Nadia. Peter looked over at Stiles, smiling at the excited spark as he looked out of the windows.
"Your father and Nadia are...catching up."
As he said it, Peters' voice turned doubtful, and Stiles groaned.
"He hasn't scared her off, has he?" Though his tone was lighthearted, he wondered if the Sheriff's cross-examination had made the druid leave before they'd even met.
"Round one of the interrogation is going smoothly." Peter grinned. "Nadia's not one to be deterred easily." The statement made Stiles mind conjure up many more possibilities of the woman who had been tasked with his supernatural education, and a bolt of nerves made him frown and slide further into the seat.
Peter slowed the car and pulled into an empty space. He looked over at his companion and reached a reassuring hand over to squeeze his shoulder. Stiles' eyes met his as he gave him a wavering smile, things would be okay. The two strengthened each other, and subconsciously, they knew that they made the other better.
Peter pulled away, and left the car, shortly followed by a nervous Stiles. They trudged up the path, opening the door and stop, pleasantly surprised to hear the Sheriff laughing and the sound of another woman laugh drifting through the walls. Stiles slows, a small bittersweet smile appearing on his face. Peter faces him, realising it had been a long time since the presence of a woman had been familiar in the Stilinski Household since...Claudia Stilinski.
Peter wraps is arms around the silent boy, pulling him into his chest, hiding him from the emotions that brought him back to the death of his mother.
"You can do this, Stiles." He faces him, looking into his eyes. Stiles blinks, before sheepishly coming back to the present day. The boy leans his head into the Were, letting out a long, haggard breath.
"I can. Yeah..." He smiles, his mouth wobbles, but Peter knows he's okay now. He's okay.
Smiling broadly, Peter nudges Stiles towards the lounge. "Let's go see Nadia then, huh?" Stiles grins, brightening up.
"Yeah!"
They walk into the room, drawing the attention of both John and a lady, Nadia? Stiles smiles shyly, his crooked grin framing blushing cheeks as he shifts, unsure of what to say.
The woman is tall, taller than him, Stiles realises. Her corkscrew hair frames her face, her caramel skin contrasting beautifully against the muted colours of her clothes. The woman is breathtaking. Stiles stares.
Nadia smiles, she walks over to Peter, swiftly hugging him and looking over the man. Stiles raised a hand, running fingers through his unruly hair, surprised at the display of affection.
"It's good to see you, Peter!" She grinned, pearly white teeth glinting in the dusky light. Peter smiled, nodding amiably. She turned to Stiles, her intelligent eyes sweeping over the frail form of the boy she'd been tasked with educating on the likes of his magic.
"And, Stiles?" She smiled at him, gauging his reaction, analysing the boy.
"...Hey!" Stiles awkwardly waves a bony hand, and suddenly lets out a tentative noise of surprise when she hugs him. He returns the embrace slowly, a grin spreading across his face, Nadia seems great.
She pulls away, twiddling her thumbs through her knitted jumper, before sitting on a chair, turning to Stiles. He sits meekly next to her, his nerves showing again. But things were okay, right? Stiles looked at Peter, who nodded encouragingly.
"So, I gather I'm here to teach you about your spark, right?"
"Yeah! And, I have so much to ask! Peter told me you're a druid, are you a spark? I read before that some people are both? Or is this kinda thing limited to one...talent only? Can Weres be sparks too? "
Nadia scrunches her eyes, laughing and looking down at her lap. "Trust me. There is a lot to go over" She looks seriously over at Stiles. "I've never taught someone like this before...but I think we can get on well!" She drums excited fingers on the arm of the couch, reaching into her bag that lies open at her feet.
She fumbles through it, Stiles watching, fascinated until she brings out a glass jar. It fits easily into the palm of her hands, and she weighs it carefully. Stiles' eyes widen, the dark powder inside bringing back memories of everything that happened in the Hale Pack.
"Mountain Ash." She confirms his thoughts, giving him the vial to observe. Peter looks on sharply, intrigued, but wary of the powder's potential.
"It's a great place to start when you're building on your spark, you've manipulated it before, right?"
Stiles nods, fascinated by it, before turning back to Nadia. She looks pleased.
"It's fairly easy to move, so if you want, we can tae=ke this someplace outside to get started?" The Druid lets the question hang in the air, mischievously grinning as she waits for the pack's approval.
"I'd love to!" Stiles beams, looking eagerly at her, sharing her enthusiasm. Peter nudges John, and the two stand up. Stiles looks at them, suddenly unsure and confused by their actions. He furrows his eyebrows, a sense of nervousness reappearing,
"Where are you going Pops, Peter?"
John smiles at his son for the first time in the encounter, and he strides towards him, gripping him in a firm, convincing hug.
"I need to get back to the station, and Peter wanted to meet the guys, so I thought we'd leave you two to it?" He turned to Nadia as if seeking permission for the lesson to commence.
"Sounds good to me...Stiles?" Stiles looks at the ground, before steadily breathing, a large gulp sticking in his throat.
"Yes. I'll be fine." He smiles at Peter and John and stands up, hugging the two briefly before escaping into the hall. John chuckled, Peter, looking forlornly after him. He would be fine without them, he was healing.
Five minutes later, Nadia and Stiles trudge through the denser part of the forest, searching for an ideal place to start the magical lessons Stiles was promised. Nadia explained that nature would enhance his spark, solidify the power.
"The Nemeton will assist you, and maybe you'll meet some of the entities and creatures out here too! You just have to accept their energy as your own, its a cycle kinda thing, ya know?"
Stiles widened his eyes as if a vast new world has been opened, and he nods furiously, speeding up his walk, he wanted to practice...as soon as possible!
Nadia chuckles.
"I'm glad it's you I'm helping, you seem like a great kid, I feel like you can be powerful if you harness it right. But don't let it get to your head!" She adds sarcastically, watching Stiles grunt in agreement.
A few moments later, they emerge into a clearing, with ethereal plants framing the ground, the sun shifting through thatches of trees, creating an intricate design of light and shadow that was thrown across the leaves and moss.
"Perfect!" Stiles declares, Nadia nods agreeably, plopping her bag down, and unearthing the jar again. She lets it fall into her hand, and Stiles watches, his mouth agape as she winds the ash through her fingers, like a magnet attracting its opposite.
"So I need you to concentrate, counting down from ten helps...I'm going to lay this on the ground and you need to imagine it as a liquid form and warp it. Imagine it doing your bidding like you can pick it up and move it any way you will..."
She gently places the ash on the ground, backing away slightly, before concentrating on Stiles.
He stares intently at the powder, before shutting his eyes and lets his power shift through him, the powder lifts up as he looks up again, and he watches it settle in a perfect circle around him. Beaming, he laughs incredulously, looking at Nadia delightedly.
"Whaddya think?" She hummed approvingly, clapping quietly.
"You're pretty good at the basics, huh?" Stiles looks smug.
"We can test out some other tips and tricks, see where you feel most comfortable!"
So for the next hour, Nadia and Stiles practised with vigour, covering a simple base of all of the elements of magic. Stiles was doing well!
As they trudged back to the Stilinski Household, Stiles sighed happily. Nadia looked at him, wondering about his story. Why would such a promising spark have such a small pack?
But the thought was pushed to the back of her head as they emerged into the lit house. Entering out of the now dark outside world felt invigorating, and the two happily settled into the couches in the living room. Peter and John came in the latter scanning Stiles for any kind of damage and felt relieved after seeing none.
"Nadia is sleeping down on the couch okay for tonight, we can get the spare room sorted tomorrow, I hope it's not too uncomfortable..." The Sheriff shifted uncomfortably, feeling guilty for the lack of organisation. But Nadia smiled rushing to assure him.
"No, it's all good! I don't mind at all!" So the Sheriff smiled, relieved and pleased. This idea wasn't as bad as he had imagined, if not better! tiles said goodnight, hugging John and Nadia, before dragging Peter off to his room.
"No funny business up there!" John teased.
Stiles spluttered, mortified, before deadpan saying "Haha." Fathers.
Peter snorted, following Stiles up the narrow staircase. "Ignore him..." Stiles muttered embarrassedly."
"Sure..." Peter smirked. Stiles playfully scowled at him, then flopped onto his bed, patting the spot next to him. Peter sat down, sobering up shortly.
Stiles looked at him bewildered. "What's wrong?"
"Lydia messaged me again."
Stiles stiffened, turning away from the Were. "Oh."
"She wanted to know why I'm still talking to you." Peter grabbed Stiles hand, looking into his eyes earnestly. Stiles shifted away, his breath hitching.
"And what did you say?"
"I haven't replied."
Stiles sagged against Peter, temporarily relieved, the man hadn't told the pack what really happened. Peter looked at him again, rushing to comfort him. "Shall I tell them?"
The boy looked panicked, seizing up and frantically batting his hands.
"No! No...no please don't, Peter..."
"I won't." He smiles at him, a soft reassuring smile to ground him, his secrets were safe. But why didn't he want them to know?
"If you don't mind me asking..." Stiles looked wary. "Why can't they know?"
Stiles looked ashamed, then scared, the knot returning with a vengeance to his stomach. "I...I...What if they find out, and they still don't care?" His voice cracked, and his lips started to wobble. "I know I shouldn't care anymore, but the thought of them...not caring...even after they know...that would hurt. A lot..."
Peter lets out a soft "Oh..." It made sense. It was normal not to have recovered yet, it's okay to need some time to let go.
"I promise, little spark, I won't speak to any of the bastards again, and I won't say anything about what happened." He kissed the boys forehead, leaning in and leaning their faces together, a moment of quiet intimacy to combat Stiles hitching sobs.
Stiles hugged the man soundly until they fell asleep, tangled together on his cramped bed, but all the space in the world was worthless to them that night, they got through it, and that's what mattered.