Author's Note: This chapter introduces Stiles and Derek's kids. They play a pretty central role in the rest of the fic, although Stiles and Derek are still fairly important as well. To put it another way, there be OCs ahead. Feel free to stop reading if it's not your thing.

"I've been thinking a lot about babies," Stiles announced. They were lying in bed, Stiles leaning against Derek's chest and Derek's arms wrapped around him warmly, watching a movie they'd seen a hundred times. Derek let out a sigh and then pulled Stiles closer. He nuzzled his neck and nipped playfully at his earlobe before asking,

"What about them?"

"I want some." Stiles' pulse quickened. They'd talked about this before, they both wanted kids, but it had always been a hypothetical someday scenario.

"How many?" Derek asked calmly. He felt Stiles smile broadly.

"Hundreds," Stiles said joyfully, then after a moment, "A bunch, it doesn't matter. We can start with one though."

"And how do you plan to go about that?"

"I was thinking we could have a surrogate and both donate sperm. I want little baby Hales," he was speaking very quietly, the way he always did when he poured out his heart.

"Or baby Stilinskis? They could be yours if we do it that way."

"Our babies. And they can be werewolves or humans and it won't matter because we'll love them forever either way. Sound good?" Stiles asked.

"Sounds good," Derek replied, nuzzling his neck again and giving him light kisses.

"I was thinking we could ask Erica," Stiles said after a moment. "Since she's pack she'll still be a part of their lives. But I wasn't sure if that would affect the whole werewolf/human thing. Would they all be werewolves or could they still be human? And if she shifted would a normal baby still be okay?"

"Werewolves can have human babies, they'd be okay," Derek answered. He took Stiles' hand and kissed his wrist. It was Derek's way of saying he loved Stiles' humanity, kissing his wrist where Peter had nearly ended it. It always reassured Stiles when he was feeling anxious about his own weakness. Stiles understood, their kids would be fine.

Neither Dr. Deaton nor Mrs. McCall was thrilled to be called to the Hale house at three in the morning, but they came anyway. Derek had been too young when he'd lost his family to know what to expect from werewolf pregnancy so he and Stiles had convinced everyone to prepare for a home birth. Stiles had spent a great deal of time reading up on the subject but it didn't make him any less uneasy as Erica lay screaming in the bed. Derek gripped her hand tightly, playing daddy and alpha simultaneously, a firm, calm presence. Stiles, on the other hand, was pacing like a caged animal, jumping whenever a contraction made Erica roar.

"Calm down, Son," Sheriff Stilinski said, clapping a comforting hand on Stiles' shoulder. "You're worse than I was when you were born." Stiles looked at his father sheepishly but there was still panic in his eyes.

"What if something goes wrong? What if he needs help and we're too far away from the hospital? What if…"

"Stiles!" Derek snapped. Stiles saw that he was making Derek nervous as well and made a concentrated effort to be still and quiet. It resulted in a small whimper when the next contraction hit. This time is was Mrs. McCall attempting to calm him, putting her hands on his shoulders firmly and staring him down.

"She's doing fine Stiles. So is the baby. I've seen this enough times to know, hell, I've done it." Stiles swallowed and nodded but he knew it wasn't enough to keep him calm. He stepped up behind Derek, wrapped his arms tightly around his husband's waist, and buried his face between the strong shoulders. Derek didn't release Erica's hand but he curled his free arm over Stiles' in a comforting gesture.

Stiles heartbeat sped up when Mrs. McCall told Erica it was time to push, Derek felt it against his back like a jackhammer. Stiles squeezed Derek tightly when Dr. Deaton said he could see the head, Derek endured. Then the baby was crying and Stiles was stumbling away from Derek, looking terrified and desperate. Mrs. McCall cleaned the baby off and handed the tiny bundle to his new dad. Stiles stared down at the baby in his arms with tears blurring the edges of his vision. He turned toward Derek excitedly.

"Look at him! He's so cute and tiny. And… he's ours. We have a son," Stiles said, completely in awe. Derek smiled at the both of them and took one of the baby's tiny hands between his fingers, holding it up toward Stiles.

"He's a werewolf," Derek said. Stiles saw the tiny claws at the edge of his fingers. He beamed and brought the baby over to Erica. She touched him gently but didn't make any motion to take him. She had agreed to be their surrogate but she didn't really want kids and she wasn't going to demand much importance in their children's lives. They were pack, that was enough.

"Well, you'd better give him a name then," Stiles' dad said, peering at his grandson over his son's shoulder. Derek reached out for the baby and Stiles handed him over happily.

"Andrew Richard Hale," Derek whispered reverently, holding him as tightly as he could without hurting him and looking like he might never let him go. Stiles' heart nearly broke when he saw the tears Derek was barely holding back. The first new Hale since before the fire, it was significant.

Stiles wasn't any better a year and a half later, if anything he was worse. At first he had tried to focus on Derek and remind himself that Andrew had been fine and it would be okay. He wanted to hold Andrew but the baby had been too distressed in the room and they'd had Isaac take him away. Eventually Stiles had just ended up shaking in a corner trying to fight off a panic attack. It wouldn't be so bad if they weren't having twins.

The first twin came out screaming, drawing Stiles' attention instantly. Mrs. McCall moved to hand her to Derek, who was closest, but he shook his head and gestured at Stiles. Stiles took her gratefully. Holding their daughter chased all of the anxiety out of him. He smiled at her, kissed her forehead, and ran a finger over her tiny claws. The second twin took his time following his sister; Stiles didn't really notice until he heard Dr. Deaton say uncertainly,

"He's so small." Stiles looked up sharply and saw Derek moving to the baby's side like a flash of lightning. Stiles could see that he was very small and he wasn't crying at all.

"Hospital, now," Mrs. McCall said sharply. Stiles would have had a heart attack right there if it weren't for the warm baby in his arms. Everything happened in the blink of an eye. They were in the police cruiser racing to the hospital with sirens blaring. Derek was cradling the baby boy nervously but he'd managed to draw a shuddering cry from the infant. He was breathing, but only just. And then they were at the hospital and the tiny boy was being put in an incubator.

It was terrifying, but the doctors stabilized him. He was in the hospital for two weeks before they were allowed to take him home. He was never left alone though, the pack, in whole or in part, was always with him. When Stiles and Derek were finally able to hold both twins in the comfort of their own home they breathed a sigh of relief. Laura Marie and Martin David Hale. They didn't have any more; they didn't think they could take it.

Andrew turned out to be a miniature werewolf Stiles. He had soft brown hair and large, warm brown eyes. The day he started talking he seemed to decide never to stop. In that respect he was actually worse than his father. But he also had a steady confidence that often reminded everyone of Derek. Someday he would be a powerful alpha.

Laura was a force to be reckoned with. Derek said she looked just like her namesake, with charming green eyes and glossy black hair. Her personality was modeled after the two women in her life; sassy like Erica, kind like Allison, and fierce like both. She reveled in being a werewolf more than her older brother and it often caused fights with her younger.

Martin looked like Stiles imagined Derek had as a kid. He had Derek's hair and eyes and he moved like Derek. His personality especially reminded everyone of the Derek they'd met their sophomore year. He was broody and aggressive most of the time and he didn't play well with others. He also seemed desperate to prove his worth to everyone. He pushed himself much harder than his siblings.

"Because he's not a wolf," Andrew said one day after he and Stiles had watched Martin follow Derek off to exercise. That had confused Stiles when he'd realized. How could he look so much like Derek and be human? But Derek had just shrugged and said it happened sometimes. Stiles wondered if it was more common with twins.

"I keep telling him it doesn't matter. You're human and you keep up with the pack just fine. But he won't listen to me. I think Laura teases him about it sometimes. You should talk to her. I mean, I've talked to her, but she won't listen to me either. She might listen to you though, since she's kinda a daddy's girl." Stiles smiled at Andrew's verbal diarrhea, it was something they bonded over.

Stiles was actually surprised at how difficult raising werewolves was. He'd watched the betas struggle for control but he somehow thought it would be easier for children born that way. He was wrong. Sure, by the time they reached high school their control would be as solid as Derek's but that was a long way off. The trouble was, kids tend to lack impulse control; it wasn't that big a deal when the impulse was to push a kid on the playground, it was dangerous when the impulse was to sink your razor sharp claws into them.

They kept the kids out of school for as long as possible to give them time to learn. Andrew had even sacrificed a year so he and Laura could help keep each other in check. When their first day was getting closer Derek sat them down and explained about having an anchor to keep them human.

"What's your anchor?" Martin asked. He didn't really need to know any of this but Derek and Stiles both felt it was better to include him. Besides, he might be able to help in unexpected ways if they shared the knowledge.

"It's changed over the years," Derek answered slowly. "When I was little it was my sister. Then when I lost everyone in the fire it became my anger. Now it's Stiles."

"So twice it was someone you love, is that easier? Or did you feel more in control when it was anger? Can it be a place? Or a memory? Can you be your own anchor? Like if I really like being human can that be strong enough? What about…" Andrew fired off rapidly before Stiles scooped him up and pressed a finger to his lips, silencing the onslaught. He was six, the twins just shy of five. Derek sighed.

"You'll have to find out for yourself what works for you. It's different for everyone. Love does seem to be a more powerful anchor but it isn't the only one. You've got a lot of ideas so I think you'll be okay. You'll figure it out." Andrew beamed at him.

"No he won't," Laura said bitingly. "He has too many ideas; he won't be able to focus on one long enough for it to work." He stuck his tongue out at her.

"Andrew can do it," Martin said flatly. "You're the one who'll have trouble." As if to prove him right her eyes flashed and her claws extended. Martin didn't even flinch.

"Calm down," Derek said soothingly.

"What would you know about it, you're not even a wolf?" Laura shouted, lurching forward. She was stopped by Andrew's firm grip on the back of her neck, claws just barely poking out from his fingertips. He'd been off Stiles lap in an instant. Stiles had seen Derek do the same thing when the betas had gotten riled up but he wasn't sure where Andrew had learned the technique. Laura's claws retracted and she looked like she was fighting a whimper. Andrew released her and flopped cross-legged on the floor as if nothing had happened. Martin shot him a glare and stormed off.

"You need to work on your control," Derek said authoritatively. "You could kill your brother if you're not careful."

It was a problem. Either because they were twins or because they were on opposite sides of the human/werewolf line, Laura and Martin always seemed to push each other's buttons. Somehow Andrew managed to keep things in check at school, but at home the twins would often end up brawling before anyone knew to stop them. Martin was strong and managed to mostly hold his own but Laura could heal and had sharp claws. Someone always stopped them before it got too out of hand but Martin always seemed to have at least one set of vicious red scratches. People noticed. Stiles fabricated a story about a wild dog that came around their property that Martin insisted on trying to take care of. Martin sold the story well.

They kept Andrew and Laura carefully restrained in the cellar when the moon was full. Andrew had shown remarkable control so far but they all agreed it was better to give him a few years. Martin always insisted on sitting with them, out of reach but there, watching what happened. Derek was also present, keeping an eye on his kids and making sure nothing went wrong. He still wasn't fast enough one night when Laura slipped her restraints and went for Martin. The boy screamed in agony as her claws found his face, cutting deeply and tearing from his ear to his eye.

Derek had Laura pinned, snarling and clawing at his arms, when he felt Andrew rocket past him. He turned, ready to grab the boy and fling him beside his sister. It wasn't necessary. Andrew was cradling Martin, fully human, and pulling his brother to his feet. Stiles appeared then, heart pounding, eyes terrified. He took the bleeding boy to the hospital.

Martin wasn't allowed in the cellar after that. Andrew wasn't restrained anymore. Laura redoubled her effort to gain control. They had fewer accidents. The school called social services. The scratches scarred. They got through it.

Author's Notes:

1) First of all, sorry for the lag between now and the last update. I didn't feel like this chapter had a satisfactory resolution and I didn't want to leave anyone anxious for more. On the plus side, you might notice that there are now 3 more chapters.

2) Sorry to everyone who was hoping for a Sterek wedding this chapter. I would have obliged, but I pretty much covered exactly what it would look like in the last chapter and it wouldn't have been interesting.