A/N – Just a warning, there are dark themes in here regarding abuse.
When Erik didn't come back to the theatre, Laurie got up and left Aaron sitting in his seat. As she passed, he gave her a smile that made her heart skip a beat. Laurie could never describe to anyone the happiness she felt that her brother was feeling the same euphoria of new love right now. The thought that the two boys were not in danger but probably off somewhere snogging made her flush, but she had been the protective sister for so long that she couldn't stop even if she wanted to. Once she made sure he was okay, she would go back and enjoy the movie.
Entering the lobby, she saw that people were buzzing around, talking excitedly about something that happened in the parking lot. Feeling a chill shoot up her spine, she found Erik's scent and tracked it down to the exit. Outside, an ambulance waited and several police cars were parked with the lights flashing.
Bursting through the doors, she saw Erik's body on a stretcher being loaded into the back of the medical vehicle by some paramedics.
"ERIK!" she shouted. She shouldered her way through the police officers (who were stunned that a teenage girl knocked them aside with such ease) and confronted the one that looked like he was in charge.
"That's my brother. What happened?" she demanded.
"He seems to have fainted, we can't find any injuries on him. His life signs are fine, but we need to run some tests at the hospital. If you want, you can come with us."
Laurie looked around frantically for Robin, but didn't see him. She noticed another ambulance a ways off.
"What happened over there?" she asked, pointing.
"We're not sure. Some kind of car accident…"
"I'll meet you at the hospital!" she called as she raced to the other scene. She had to find out if Robin was alive. If what her grandfather said was true that a werewolf died when their bonded mate was killed, that would explain why her brother was unconscious.
Anson Cooper's Mustang was upside down on the pavement, and they were pulling his body from the wreckage. There was a lot of blood, and one sniff told her that the bully was no longer among the living. A paramedic pulled out a bag of pills and another that contained a needle and some bottles of liquid.
"Looks like steroid abuse, among other things. I bet the toxicology will come back with some interesting results." He shook his head.
Swearing, Laurie tried to recall Robin's scent. Calling it up in her mind, she cast about for the trail, and followed it to the bus stop. Apparently he had decided to go home. How could Robin have left her brother lying there like that?
'Oooh, wait until I find you, jerk.' she muttered to herself. She had grown to like the young man, but nobody abandoned her brother and got away with it. She texted Aaron to meet her at the car, and her parents to meet her at the hospital. Both responded that they were on their way, so Laurie jogged over to the Camaro, thanking the gods that she and Erik had their own sets of keys.
She picked up Aaron, and told him what she knew. He was shocked at Anson's death, and slammed his fist into his leg when she told him about the steroids.
"That stupid kid…we lost a player last year like that, I knew him for years. I swore never to let anybody play if I thought they were using. I thought your brother was using that first day, but he said he wasn't and his blood came back clean when they did the mandatory testing. I'd like to know how Anson got away with it! What do they think is wrong with Erik?"
"They said something about running tests. I guess we'll find out when we get there."
The teenagers met Derek and Stiles at the hospital and were shown to Erik's room where he was awake, but yelling and screaming that he had to leave. He calmed down a bit when he saw his family, but still looked ready to wolf out at any moment.
"Erik! What happened?" Derek tried to calm him with the subliminal Alpha command that worked on his Betas from time to time, but it seemed to have no effect.
"Dad, Anson Cooper tried to run me over! Robin knocked me out of the way and almost got killed! I have to find him, I think something's going to happen to him!"
Laurie felt a flash of guilt at this news; she had assumed the worst of the young man. "Anson's dead, and Robin's missing. I think he took the bus for Red Falls." With Aaron present, she didn't want to say how she knew.
Erik looked at her, terror on his face.
"What do you think's going to happen to him?" Derek asked urgently.
"Under those wristbands he was wearing. It looks like someone had him chained up! He has this creepy uncle that runs a diner in Red Falls, Stucky's Eats! Please Dad, I need to go him, if anything happens to him…"
Derek noted with alarm that his son's eyes were starting to glow…and not the amber that was typical of a mid-rank Beta, but the fiery crimson of a Pack Alpha. The werewolves all sucked in a shocked breath.
"Holy shit…" exclaimed Moose.
"Crap. Aaron, let's go. We're finding Robin and getting him out of there, if he was crazy enough to go back. I'll explain everything on the way." Laurie turned to leave, but her Pop stopped her.
"You're not going without me, young lady. Derek, stay here and try to keep Erik…under control! You're the only one that can do it now!"
Derek nodded. "Be careful. Call me as soon as you can!"
When the three got to the Camaro, Stiles put out his hand. "Keys."
"Dad!" Laurie exclaimed.
"Dad, nothing. I plan to break every speed law in the book, and you're too young to have all that on your record. Call Grandpa and tell him to keep the Smokies off our backs."
Laurie shrugged and handed him the keys, wondering if he even knew how to drive a muscle car after years in charge of the "Mom-mobile". As it turned out, she knew very little about her father's driving ability. The trip to Red Falls was made in impossible time, with both teenagers screaming in white-knuckled fright as the Camaro's engine was pushed to the limits.
"This brings back so many memories!" he said over their screams.
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When Robin returned to the diner, 'Uncle' Carl was already waiting for him.
"Where the hell have you been? Don't you remember what I said I'd do if you ran away from me?" Carl slammed his fist into the side of Robin's head, and grabbed the dazed boy by the shirt, nearly ripping it from his body as he was manhandled into the back, through the kitchen and up the stairs to the small apartment over the diner.
Robin was actually not any blood-relation to this man. He had been kidnapped from an amusement park when he was six years old after he wandered off while his mother and father were distracted. For ten years, he was subjected to a variety of physical abuses, not the least of which was being chained to the back wall of a narrow closet, sometimes for a day at a stretch. The chains were adjusted so that he had to spend the time standing on tiptoes, leading to painful muscle cramps in his legs. Through it all, he was repeatedly warned that if he ever told anyone or tried to run away, Carl would track down his parents and murder them while they slept. Carl made that threat to Robin so many times, the boy had never spent a peaceful night under this roof except on the rare occasions Carl left him alone for a night. Another person in this situation might have tried to escape anyway, but Robin's mind had been thoroughly screwed with for more than half his life. He was told over and over that no one cared that he was gone, and no one would care enough to do anything if he asked for help. Sometimes Carl would scream at him or even strike him in front of customers, all of whom would fail to intervene on his behalf. The constant torture and ever more evil and inventive things Carl came up with to cause him pain in body and mind wore him down almost to a mere cipher of a human being. He was emotionally dead inside, unable even to feel hatred for his captor anymore. Fear was so constant, it was almost a way of life. He never knew when it would happen, but he was sure that one day Carl would go too far and kill him. At least if that happened, Robin's parents would be safe. Robin barely remembered them and had forgotten his own last name years before. The memory he had shared with Erik about his father was really the only one he had.
Erik…
As Carl chained him up in the closet, Robin's mind retreated into a private internal world, a trick he taught himself years ago. Whenever Carl did unspeakable things like fasten binder clips to various parts of his body until the pain became white hot or repeatedly put a plastic bag over his head until he passed out over and over again, Robin could withdraw and pretend it was happening to someone else. He did this now even as his body was turned around, and he was punched repeatedly in the kidneys while Carl screamed at him. Somewhere, above the pain, Robin relived the pleasant memories of the past two days.
When Robin first looked at Erik sitting there, he quickly dismissed him as he did nearly everyone else he looked at. But then he took a second look…and felt a spark of feeling that was a completely new experience for him. Erik in turn was looking at him; Robin could tell even though the other boy wore dark shades.
Robin found himself noting every detail, and that balloon of feeling got larger and larger in his chest. While they spoke, Robin finally recognized the feeling; it was hope. Somehow, he knew that everything would turn out all right as long as Erik was around. It was impossible to explain why he thought this, but he was completely sure. When Erik got up to visit the rest room, Robin almost panicked at the thought that he might leave. Desperation and fear warred inside him. What if Carl found out? What if he tried to hurt Erik like he hurt Robin? Or kill him?
Robin resolved to let Erik walk out, giving no indication that he was interested in his company. This lasted right up until Erik returned, without the shades. One look at the dark brown eyes and Robin might have bartered away his own long-forgotten mother just to drown himself in them. They exchanged numbers, and Erik left when Carl returned. Robin's phone only texted; it could not be used to make calls. He sent out a text as soon as he had a minute alone, and three more over the course of the day. None were answered, and he felt the newborn hope dying inside him. As he curled onto the cot in Carl's bedroom, his face wet with tears, the phone beeped. Terror lanced through him as he looked over at Carl, but thankfully his tormentor was already asleep. He quickly shut off the text alarm.
'Yeah, I'm here. Had some family stuff to deal with. You can totally come over. What time should I pick you up?' Erik wanted to take him away! If only it could be forever.
'As soon as you can.' Robin sent it off before he could change his mind.
Carl woke him up at about four in the morning, and chained him up for a good hour before releasing him. He handed Robin a list of chores.
"And if they aren't done, you'll hang in there till Christmas!" he barked.
Robin had done longer stretches without trouble, but today of all days a vicious cramp started in his right leg, and he was unable to walk even after Carl let him down. The bigger man laughed at him before leaving. Robin got dressed when he recovered somewhat, and wondered when Erik would want to get him. He would try to get as many of the chores done as possible so he could spend more time with him. The phone beeped almost as soon as he was dressed, however. He finished pulling on the 'Robin' t-shirt and picked it up, reading the brief message. Erik was on his way. Robin's heart leapt in his chest, and he marveled at the feeling. What the heck was going on? Why did Erik make him feel this way? Did Erik feel anything for him in kind?
He put on his leather wristbands to cover the new and old injuries from the restraints. He knew the penalty if anyone found out about what went on here.
Robin looked at the inspirational poster Carl had hung on the inside door of the closet as a cruel joke. A baby monkey hung from a vine, looking terrified. The caption read 'Hang in there!' He wanted to tear it down and rip it into a million pieces. He was too afraid to.
He went downstairs and waited for Erik in the parking lot (after first making sure that Carl's truck was gone…sometimes he liked to be tricky).
During the car ride to Beacon Hills, the feeling of hope returned again, and it swelled even more when he realized that, impossibly, Erik liked him as more than a friend. Robin was growing more and more convinced he felt the same way.
At the house, locked safely in Erik's bedroom, he slept for three hours…and it was a deep black relaxing sleep that he could not ever remember having. He showered when he awoke, slipping unnoticed from Erik's arms and examining the bruises on his wrists in the locked bathroom. He wondered if Erik knew he was hiding something, wondered what he would do if he found out. When they kissed…Robin almost believed the years with Carl were a dream…and that he had always been here with Erik. But surely the Hale family would be annoyed at his presence, would surely demand that Carl come and pick him up when they found out about what the boys were feeling for each other.
Instead, the Hales and their friends (especially Laurie, whom he fell in love with immediately) were the picture perfect family he had always imagined was waiting for him somewhere. They genuinely welcomed him among them, and seemed to want him to stay. Christine and Dylan, though older than he was when he was taken, reminded him eerily of that long ago child he had been. He shuddered to think of what Carl might want to do to them.
Erik was really nice…taking Robin to the mall, buying him that present, even offering to take him to the movies, (he had no desire to see a slasher film, but he had to avoid Erik's persistent questions) it all seemed too much…he was not used to such treatment. Then, someone that Erik knew was attacking him for being with Robin. Erik stood up for him, but the idea that Robin was the cause of even the slightest distress for Erik made him want to run back to Carl's and begin torturing himself. He fled while Erik was distracted (as he once did many years ago) and tried to get to the bus stop. There was still time, he hoped, to get all of the chores done before Carl got home. Then, when the inevitable text came that said 'Look, it's been nice knowing you, but I really don't care about you anymore' he would not be the worse off. The good memories, however brief, might be enough to sustain his sanity for a few more years.
Then Erik found him, and even worse…found out about The Secret. He saw the injuries on Robin's wrists, and could guess what Carl was doing to him. Surely now he would turn his back in pity and disgust…
It was when they argued in the parking lot, just as they heard the engine of the car racing towards them, that Robin finally knew. As Erik turned to face the oncoming vehicle, he seemed somehow…fierce…unafraid…even eager to face danger. And Robin knew that Erik wasn't like the other people through all the years that ignored Robin's pain.
Erik would fight for him.
That single piece of knowledge made Robin love the other boy with his whole heart. He couldn't let anything happen to him. Not to him. So Robin shoved Erik out of the way, and waited for death to release him from the misery of his existence, closing his eyes in relief that Erik was safe.
There was a tremendous crunching noise, and he felt a wind on his face, and the sound of the engine faded away. For a second, he thought the car had hit him and that he was floating away to whatever fate awaited the newly dead. Then there was a second crunch, from far away. Robin opened his eyes, and saw the tire tracks and Erik's body nearby. The car must have struck Erik instead of him. Robin got up and walked away in a state of shock to the bus stop, blending in with the crowd who as always failed to notice him. The slow and lethargic bus was just pulling away from the stop, but paused to let him on.
Now he had nothing…the miracle was over. It was time to go back and find Carl and accept his punishment so that Robin's parents would continue to be safe. Maybe this time, he would egg Carl on until he went too far. The idea appealed to him.
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"You will never leave this place again! You're mine! Do you hear me? MINE!" Carl shouted, spraying Robin's face with flecks of spittle.
"Nope." Robin said softly.
Carl paused in his raging, taken aback. Robin had not answered back in almost ten years.
"What did you say?" he asked in a deadly voice.
"Not yours. Never yours. His. Always his. He told me so." Robin was delirious with pain, but still enjoyed the look of fury on Carl's face.
Carl looked at him before turning around and picking up a plastic bag, the kind he often used for take-out orders in the diner downstairs. He pulled it over Robin's head and tied it tight. If the boy had the backbone to defy him, then he might have the backbone to turn him in to the police. Carl couldn't take that chance. In his own way, he would miss the boy. It had been ten years after all.
Downstairs, he heard the sound of the back door shattering inward.
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"We're just a few minutes away." Stiles told his daughter and her boyfriend. His eyes gleamed a bright gold. Aaron turned to Laurie. Hers were glowing a deep blue.
"Laurie, why are your eyes doing that?" he asked, in a surprisingly calm voice.
"Aaron, my family are all werewolves. Can we please talk about this later?" Laurie hissed at him through clenched fangs.
He nodded. Yeah. Later was a good idea. If there was a later.
They pulled into the parking lot behind the diner. Stiles had been here as a teenager many years before. It was called something else then, and the food had been fantastic. But Red Falls had become poorer over the years, and the owner had decided to get himself in the wind while he could still make a profit. They got out of the car and looked up at the sign. Sty's Eats.
"That sounds like a prediction…especially if he's hurt that boy." Stiles said grimly. Then he shifted, the Beta form emerging with the speed of a switchblade. He shattered the door with one blow of his fist.
"Laurie, in the back there's a box labeled 'Lydia's Emergency Kit'. Open it, and follow the instructions inside. Have it ready when I come out."
Stiles entered the diner. Laurie found the box and opened it. She pulled out a worn copy of 'The Notebook', and found bottles of various chemicals. She read the labels, and then the instructions on the inside cover of the book.
"Holy shit." she muttered.
"Werewolves?" Aaron asked again.
"Later, Moose!" she snapped back. She began mixing as fast as she could, taking the utmost care. She didn't notice when the jock disappeared.
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Stiles sniffed around, and looked sharply upward. Snarling, he walked quickly through the kitchen door at the back of the diner and found the stairs that led upward. He bounded up and took in both the terrified (and soon to be deceased) captor and the chained and suffocating Robin hanging in the open closet. Carl stood up, and that one movement was enough to provoke Stiles into action. His right hand with its fully extended claws tore open the human monster's neck in a spray of bright red blood. He was over to Robin in one fluid motion and ripped open the plastic bag so that the boy could breathe. Stiles hyperventilated rapidly, the knowledge that he had just killed roaring through him.
Moose ran up the stairs and stepped into the room. He was pale and shocked, and took in the corpse of Carl Stucky and the fully shifted Stiles with a terrified glance.
"You…you killed him…" Moose breathed.
"He needed to die. Look what he did." Stiles pointed a claw at the closet.
"Oh, man! Holy shit, is that Robin?" The sight of the boy seemed to snap him out of his funk.
"Yes. And if he were to die, then my son would die. No one gets a second chance to make that happen. Moo-…I mean Aaron…my daughter loves you, and that means your life is precious to me as well. None of us will ever harm you. I have never killed before today…but I would kill that again in a heartbeat."
Moose nodded, though he still looked panicked.
"I need you to support Robin while I break the chains. Please be careful with him. When he's free, take him down to the car."
Moose put an arm around the unconscious boy. Stiles yanked free first one chain and then the other. Moose carried him swiftly down the stairs, the chains trailing behind him.
Stiles looked around briefly before glancing down once more at the freshly killed corpse. Cold fury filled him.
"Sty's Eats indeed." Stiles suddenly plunged his claws deep into Carl Stucky's chest cavity.
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Laurie finished up just as Moose carried the chained Robin out of the diner.
"Oh my God! What happened to him?" Tears started to pour from her eyes.
Moose shook his head, and they gently laid Robin down in the back seat. A minute later, Stiles emerged. He was covered in blood, and held out a clawed hand, in which Laurie placed a large bottle. He waved them into the car.
"I tore the gas line. The place should be filled up right…about…now!"
He tossed the bottle through the doorway, where it shattered into oily flame.
Stiles hopped in the driver's seat and fired up the engine, pulling out just before the entire building exploded.
Moose and Laurie looked at the building, and then down at the unconscious boy in his chains. Finally they glanced at each other.
"If you break up with me over this, I'm so going to kick your ass." she said, still crying.
Moose Bradley had never met a girl like Laurie in his life, never seen anyone so strong, so secure, so self-confident…so wolfy. She had no idea that he'd been gone on her completely within a week of their first date. The idea of breaking up with her (even for something like this) was completely ludicrous.
"I love you, Laurie Hale."
She threw her arms around him, kissing him long, hard and deep, and didn't let go until they were back in Beacon Hills.
"Um, kids…" said Stiles uncertainly.
Eventually, Laurie called her father, and told him what happened. "Should we bring Robin to the hospital?" she asked. She felt she had seen enough of them to last her a lifetime.
"No…your brother was very specific about what he wanted." he said quietly.
Laurie covered her mouth with her hands, looking down at Robin. "Dad…you're going to bite him?" Stiles and Moose gave her an alarmed look.
"No. Erik's going to do it."
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They pulled up to the house, and unloaded Robin from the back. Erik met them, and insisted on carrying him into the house. When one of the chains snagged on the ground Erik irritably shattered the wrist shackles and left the lengths of steel where they lay.
Erik carried Robin to his room and shut the door, leaving the rest of the family to wait. He placed his mate on the bed, and tried to prepare himself for what had to be done. He still did not have a clear idea of what happened at the mall. All he knew was that whatever occurred, had elevated him to Alpha status. He felt the power in him, ready to be seized…or to be gifted to another. Derek had tried to argue with him, cautioning him that the bite didn't always take.
"It's going to take this time, Dad." He couldn't say how he knew…but he did. Robin almost died twice tonight, and Erik was not going to allow it to happen ever again.
He felt sad that he would have to hurt him to keep him safe…but there was no other way.
"I promise you, Robin, this is the last time you will ever feel pain because of me." Erik looked up at the ceiling, his eyes taking on a blood-red glow. Fangs far larger than he was used to began to crowd his mouth. He looked down, holding the full shift in check. Where to do it? He finally settled on the left wrist, closing the teeth on the old and fresh wounds, the abused flesh puncturing far too easily for his liking. The taste of his blood was electrifying and Erik tried hard not to enjoy it. Robin whimpered in his sleep as Erik released his jaws and pulled back. He licked the wounds on both wrists, until they began to fade back to a normal flesh tone. Robin moaned louder.
"Yours." he said.
"Mine." Erik agreed.
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Robin woke up alone, and a stab of icy terror pierced his heart. He inhaled sharply, and traced Erik's scent to the bathroom, where he heard the shower running. Robin groaned, thinking of him in there twisting and soaping himself under the hot spray. The young werewolf was suddenly at the bathroom door, gently turning the handle.
The door swung open easily. Trembling, Robin stepped inside.
Erik stood there, whistling while he washed his hair under the jet of steaming water. He grinned through the curtain when he saw Robin standing there.
"I took a shower. I hope you don't mind." Erik called out to him, whipping the transparent curtain aside.
"Just that you did it alone." Robin smiled back.
"Then get in here."
Robin was only too happy to comply.
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Erik and Robin did not come out of their room for a full day. Moose and Laurie did not come out of their room for a full day. No one attended school on Monday.
"I think we may be losing our whole 'parental authority' mojo with the kids, Der." Stiles complained while the two ate a lonely dinner that night. Derek, staring down at his plate of untouched food, had no reply.
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The Hale siblings spent the majority of the time telling their mates the history of the family, what it meant to be a werewolf and what choices the future might hold. Moose contemplated what it would be like to have Laurie's strength, speed and power…but elected to remain human for now.
Robin simply could not believe the new powers he was now heir to. He kept looking at the clean unmarked flesh of his wrists wonderingly, and with Erik's help quickly learned how to shift. When he learned of Carl's death, he cried…though certainly not because he missed the monster. It was because that whole period of his life had died with his captor…never to return.
No one was implicated in the burning of Stucky's Diner or the death of the owner. Beacon Hills High mourned the accidental death of Anson Cooper, and his distraught parents waged a personal war on steroid use that got them news coverage, lucrative book deals, and even their own television show.
An unofficial search was done for Robin's parents, using missing person's reports from the date and time of his abduction. Robin's last name turned out to be Stark. His mother killed herself a year after his disappearance, unable to bear the grief of losing him. His father, who once had met an actor who played Robin and named his son after the character, was killed when he drove his car into a ditch while heavily intoxicated a few months after the loss of his wife. Robin had been an orphan for years, but still held in captivity by the threat to his parents. It turned out that Robin's parents were rather wealthy, and that Stucky had probably imagined ransoming Robin back to them before deciding it was too risky. With the help of the District Attorney, who was a personal friend of Derek's, the funds were transferred to an account in Robin's name…and proceedings were begun for him to be adopted by Danny and Ted. After a placement test, Robin was allowed to start at Beacon Hills High as a junior, the same grade as Erik and Laurie. On hearing that his parents were dead, he simply sighed, and stated that he hoped they were at peace. The Hales took him to where they were buried so that he could say goodbye.
Although Erik would have preferred to have Robin stay with the Hales, Robin deserved parents who could focus exclusively on him. Erik and Robin were always together at school and most of the time after school…and always alternated sleep-overs on weekends. Ted and Danny had installed a pool, and so that summer the Hale Pack could be found there making full use of it.
During a sleep-over at the Kean/Turner home, Erik and Robin got into bed on the luxurious King-sized bed in his new room. The room had no closet, just an ornate wooden wardrobe. Robin couldn't abide a closet in his room.
Erik pulled Robin's back into his chest, wrapping his arm tightly around his mate, giving him the usual goodnight kiss on the back of his neck.
"I love you, Robin." Erik whispered, closing his eyes. He grinned slightly, waiting for the response.
"I love you too, Batman." Robin gave his hand a light squeeze.
A/N – Once again thank you all for the fantastic reviews which have kept me writing like a madman. This chapter sounds like an epilogue, but it is completely not…I just wanted to resolve Robin's plot and set the stage for the next events. Lots of mysteries that still need to be explored, don't worry. I'm glad you guys liked him so much, he was a very compelling and at times difficult character to write.