Once the pack had consumed the sandwiches, Roy had introduced the vigilantes (using their code names) to the pack and Stiles had finished laughing at the look of shock on Oliver and Diggle's face at how much the pack ate, and Chris Argent and Alan Deaton had both returned from dealing with cleaning up the warehouse, then gone back to their separate homes, Stiles retreated to the backyard, and Oliver followed him out.

"You did well out there, Stiles," Oliver offered, "Roy told me while you were in the bathroom that Ra's himself was there, and you faced him down."

Stiles sighed, "In hindsight I don't think Ra's was ever actually going to hurt me…but at the same time I was glad when he left. It feels like it was all some kind of sick test, and I still don't know if I passed or failed."

"I think that, in this situation, whether you passed or failed is a matter of perspective. There are probably some within the league that will say you failed, because you let your personal feelings and attachments get in the way of your loyalty to the league, while others, myself included, not that I'm in the league, would say that you succeeded in your goal, which was saving your family and friends…sorry, pack."

"You sound like Obi-wan Kenobi," Stiles rolled his eyes at Oliver, who snorted.

"Do, or do not, there is no try," Oliver quoted with a smirk. Stiles slapped his palm to his forehead.

"Oh my God, I know you did that deliberately. That's Yoda, not Obi-wan."

Oliver couldn't help but laugh, which felt strange given he was dressed in his Green Arrow garb. When his chuckles died out, he looked back over his shoulder towards the house.

"Your dad recognized Sara." He observed.

"You forget, I went to the Lance family to begin with because my dad and Captain Lance were Police Academy buddies. Dad's known Sara since she was born. Hell, Laurel was the flower girl at my parent's wedding. Sara would have been one too, except she wasn't really old enough to walk down the aisle at that point. I think she was only about eight months old back then. I mean, my dad knew you were alive, and now he knows I'm alive…it wasn't a big jump to make, especially when he does know Sara reasonably well. I wouldn't be surprised if he picks you out as well, just going from, you know, the me being a badass, Sara being a badass, the Green Arrow appearing, and the you coming back timing…he is the Sherriff after all. He's not stupid, I had to get my brilliance from somewhere."

"I seriously need to stop making friends with people whose dads are cops," Oliver sighed.

Stiles laughed, "At least you're off the hook there with Jackson. His dad is too busy being some bigshot Lawyer in London. Speaking of Jackson…what was with the hug? I thought you were in love with Felicity?"

"Who told you that?" Oliver hissed.

Stiles held up his hands in surrender, "My own eyes…and you just confirmed it with your reaction. Dude, remember, we were island hobos together, I saw you do heart eyes over Laurel's picture…and Shado…and occasionally Sara, so…yeah, I know what you look like when you're in love. Therefore…what was with the Jackson hug fest?"

"I…I found out some stuff after you two left…but I want to talk to him about it first."

"Ok, fair enough," Stiles nodded in acceptance, although Oliver could still see the curiosity burning in the younger man's eyes, "Are you guys gonna stay the night?"

"I don't know if there's going to be room. None of the others are showing signs of leaving."

"Yeah…but they'll probably all sack out in the living room. Scott and Derek were starting to get it ready when I came out here."

"All of them?" Oliver asked in bemusement.

"Well, Dad and Melissa probably won't, and Parrish I'm not sure of…and Lydia, but everyone else will probably.

"What about you?"

Stiles hesitated, and Oliver got the idea that he'd touched on a sensitive subject, especially when he saw the discrete way Stiles was tapping his thumb against his fingers, as if he was counting them. It was something he'd seen Stiles do a lot of on Lian Yu when he was particularly upset, distressed, anxious or after a bad nightmare.

"Stiles?" Oliver prompted, glancing over his shoulder, uncertain if he should go get help.

"I'll see if I'm invited," Stiles eventually replied, "i…I hadn't told them I was part of the league…they might be a bit annoyed about that. Scott used to have this whole Batman no killing rule, and, well, I completely blew that tonight."

"You were saving them…protecting them. I know how much you used to talk about Scott on the island. If he cared for you even half as much as you cared for him he wouldn't care about what you did tonight. Why wouldn't you be invited? They're your friends…unless it's a…you know…sex thing."

"Dude…it's a puppy pile. It's not a sex thing." Stiles hissed, a look of horror on his face, "They're werewolves, not succubi or something like that."

"What? It's not like I know much on the subject."

"Obviously. Ever noticed that, after a big fight Jackson gets a bit…I don't know…clingy…more attached?"

Oliver thought about it, before nodding. Although Roy had never directed it towards him Oliver had noticed that after the fight against Slade's Mirakuru army Roy had gone home with Felicity and slept on her couch…and then there was the hug from earlier. While Oliver knew that he'd initiated it, Roy had certainly reciprocated...something that normally Roy wouldn't do.

"It's about establishing pack bonds…sharing scent and all that…feeling safe and together after the danger has passed," Stiles explained. Oliver nodded in understanding, and the two fell into a comfortable silence, standing side by side as they watched the stars in the clear night sky. The silence was broken by the sound of Stiles yawning loudly.

"Alright, time for you to sleep. You've had a long day."

"Who are you, my dad?" Stiles protested as Oliver shepherded him back into the house. The Sherriff met them at the door, obviously overhearing the comment.

"No, that would be me. Go brush your teeth Stiles."

"Yes Dad," Stiles rolled his eyes and headed upstairs. Oliver went to keep walking, but found his path blocked.

"Look…I don't know who you are," the Sherriff began, "and frankly, I don't want to know. I have my suspicions, and that's plenty for me. Thank you…for looking out for him, both tonight, and…and before, when you were both…missing. I'm glad that he's got a friend like you that can be there for him when he needs help, especially when I'm not around and the pack isn't there."

"Sir," Oliver nodded, reading between the lines and knowing that Stiles was right…the Sherriff had figured out who he was, although he hadn't said anything about it.

"You're welcome back here at any time…if you ever need a break from Starling City…Beacon Hills will be safe…although perhaps no less…crazy at times."

"Thank you, Sherriff. I…I really appreciate it. Friends like you and your son are hard to come by."

Oliver and the Sheriff shook hands, and Oliver knew that he had made an ally in Stiles' father.

"You would be proud of how he handled everything. He adapted far better than I did to life on the island."

The Sherriff let out a grim laugh, "That boy has always been a little bit too good at taking care of himself…since his mother got sick. I'm glad at least it helped him then."

Oliver and the Sheriff walked back to the sitting room, and although Oliver had been forewarned, he wasn't expecting what was happening in the room.

Derek, Scott, Kira, Lydia and Liam were all stretched out on mattresses on the living room floor, with pillows and blankets. Parrish was sitting in one of the comfortable chairs, with Lydia leaning against his leg as he combed his fingers through her hair, lazily braiding it.

Stiles came downstairs again, obviously having washed his teeth, and he stood beside Roy, close to the pack, but both of them obviously uncertain about if they were invited to join in.

Derek and Scott, however, had apparently anticipated the hesitance on behalf of the pair that had been away for so long. They both got up and Scott wrapped his arms around Roy and basically tackled him onto the mattress, while Derek picked up Stiles, who let out a squeal, and then deposited him gently on the bedding, before laying down beside him. Oliver's eyebrows quirked curiously, and Melissa McCall, Scott's mother, shrugged at him in acceptance as Roy relaxed in his place between Scott and Lydia, the latter of whom began playing idly with his hair. Oliver could visibly see Roy relaxing, and he made a mental note that maybe, when Roy was particularly tense, he should try that. Stiles, however, had curled up between Scott and Derek, looking more relaxed than Derek had ever seen him before.

"So, now that we know where the boys are going to sleep for what is left of the night, do you guys want to stay over. One of you is going to have to sleep on the couch near these guys, and the other two are going to need to sleep and Jackson and Stiles' rooms, but…I don't know if you're going to get a motel or something at this time of night." Melissa offered apologetically.

"It'll be fine, thank you, Mrs. Stilinski," Diggle nodded thankfully.

"We appreciate it," Sara added, "We didn't really think that far ahead when we planned on the tip down."

"You guys take the rooms upstairs, I'll sleep down here," Oliver offered and Diggle and Sara nodded in agreement, picking up their bags, which they had brought in from the car while Oliver was talking to Stiles, and heading up, bidding everyone else a good night.

Despite the Sheriff figuring out who he was, Oliver didn't want his identity to become public knowledge, even among Stiles and Roy's friends, so he didn't change, instead just ducking into the bathroom downstairs for brushing his teeth and taking off his distinctive hooded jacket and his shoes, before he headed back out to the living room and dropping down gratefully on the couch. Scott passed him a spare pillow and a blanket, which Oliver took with a thankful nod.

"Goodnight guys," he Sheriff and Melissa waved as they made their own way up to their beds, switching the lights off in the process.

Oliver lay silently, watching as the group on the floor settled down for the night, and despite not having been involved in a fight, and being surrounded by people who were essentially strangers, it didn't take him long to fall into sleep.

A/TW

Oliver woke early, sitting up and stretching, wincing as his back creaked form sleeping on the couch. He looked around the room, a smile spreading across his face as he took in the sleeping werewolves and other pack members.

Lydia and Parrish were sharing the chair Parrish had occupied, with the deputy having wrapped a blanket warmly around them both. On the floor Scott was spooning Kira, and Liam has his head resting on Scott's hip, his feet tangled with Derek's, and Stiles' feet draped over his stomach. Oliver bit his lip to prevent himself making a noise as he beheld Stiles, comfortably using Derek's chest as a cushion, snuggled against the eldest of the werewolves and obviously sound asleep. Oliver remembered Sara's comments about Stiles being Bisexual, and he found himself wondering if there was something there…not that it was really any of his business for the moment.

At some point during the night Roy had moved, away from Lydia and Scott, and towards Derek, Stiles and the couch Oliver was sleeping on. Roy's legs were now practically touching the top of Derek's head, and Roy's back was pressed against the length of the couch, physically as close to Oliver as he could possibly get. Curiously, Oliver dropped his arm over the side of the couch so his hand grazed Roy's shoulder. The younger man shifted in his sleep, visibly relaxing at Oliver's touch.

Careful not to step on anyone, Oliver got off the couch and made his way to the kitchen, where he, unsurprisingly, found not only found Diggle, but also Melissa and the Sherriff as well.

"How was your sleep?" Melissa whispered, offering Oliver a cup of coffee. He nodded in thanks and accepted the mug.

"It was good, how did you guys sleep?"

"Like a log," the Sheriff sighed, "Unfortunately I'm on duty today, so not much in the way of a sleep in. Parrish has the night shift, so he's fine for a few more hours…lucky."

"I'm just glad that I don't have to go back until tomorrow," Melissa replied.

"Speaking about work…we should start thinking about what we're going to do next," Diggle turned to Oliver, who nodded.

"We'll head back later today," Oliver agreed, knowing that, with the storms that had hit Starling City he was going to be busy for a few days with cases of looting or people taking advantage of the situation to do the wrong thing.

"At least Deaton told Scott he had the day off, and it's the weekend, so that lets Kira and Lydia off work too," the Sheriff nodded, "they'll need their sleep after yesterday."

"I think we all will," Melissa replied, topping up her mug of coffee.