The rest of the pack surrounded them and hugged each other, relaying thoughts and words of acceptance that Stiles' battered soul soaked up.
"Derek Hale, I demand you stop right now," an alpha voice rang out in the room, breaking apart the group.
"Mother?" Derek looked up, pushing Stiles slightly behind him.
"Stiles, bro, you wouldn't go and get claimed without your best friend, would you?" Another voice entered the room.
Stiles peeked out from behind Derek and frowned, his eyes growing wide. "Scott?"
. ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ .
"Scott? Isn't that your old friend who promptly abandoned you when the town turned on you?" Peter asked, pulling out his phone as he stayed near his alpha. He had a feeling a physical attack wasn't imminent, but a war of words? All together possible… and quite worth recording for posterity.
"I didn't abandon Stiles," Scott said in a near whine. "I was protecting my mate. The alphas and betas of the town were beating him up every minute of the day. Was I supposed to have my mate near that? Was I supposed to risk her safety like that?"
Derek pulled Stiles closer and wrapped an arm around his waist. His mate was trembling and he feared a setback in his recovery.
"If you were any kind of wolf at all, you would leave your mate at home and stick up for your friend," Boyd said with a disgusted sneer.
"Or if your mate was any kind of mate, she would have been right there beside you, helping Stiles," Erica chimed in, looking Scott up and down and finding him lacking.
"How do you reconcile your abandonment of Stiles, watching him get beat up every day for, what, four years? More? How about you, Talia, you are a political force in that town, how do you explain turning a blind eye to the abuse of one of the townspeople? Not to mention an omega and even further, the Sheriff's son? Wouldn't that usually precipitate some kind of protection or justice against the people who abused him?" Peter sounded like a reporter and he intended to sound that way as a plan began to formulate in his mind.
"Brother dear, why am I not surprised to find you here? What happened to Stiles was unfortunate, but showed the protective nature of a town that was wronged by your nephew. Why don't you ask him why he abandoned his mate?" she responded, her brow raised as she gazed coldly at Peter.
"Protective nature of a town?" Lydia's jaw dropped. "You consider a young omega being beaten daily to be protective? Really? If the blame were really on Derek, wouldn't the town have sought him out? It wouldn't have been too hard to find him. But isn't it the fault of you and Sheriff Stilinski for trying to force two young people into an arranged mating? Something that isn't even done anymore. Stop trying to push off the blame when it is the two of you who are at fault."
"Well said, Lydia dear," Peter said with a grin.
"And while I'm at it," Lydia continued without pause, turning her burning glare onto Scott. "You are the most pathetic of shifters. Big bad alpha using his mate as an excuse to turn away from his friend. Why don't you admit the truth… you didn't want the damn town turning on you. It had nothing to do with your mate. You chickenshit loser!"
Parrish pulled his mate closer to him, rubbing her arm as he grinned. His mate was strong and mighty. It didn't matter if she was human, she was a worthy adversary.
"Why are you acting like this is all my fault? It was mostly Jackson Whittemore, he was the one who targeted Stiles and got other people to beat him up," Scott said defensively. "Besides, if Mrs. Hale hadn't made such a spectacle of the mating ceremony being canceled, even Jackson wouldn't have had a reason to go after Stiles." He turned to the trembling omega. "Stiles, I'm sorry. If I could go back, I would… I would…"
Stiles suddenly straightened, his expression firmed and his eyes resolved as he returned his old friend's gaze. "You would what? You can't even lie about what you might have done. You did exactly what you intended to do. You kept your ass out of the line of fire. For all these years, I blamed myself for losing your friendship, but really it was your choice. Hell, even if you wanted to stick with the laughable story of protecting your mate, there was nothing stopping you from calling or coming over or any other number of ways you could have supported me. So, there is nothing to apologize for. You made your choice and now I am making mine. Get out of my house and don't come back. You are nothing to me, just as I was nothing to you," he finished and turned his back on Scott, burying himself in Derek's arms.
Derek beamed down at his mate. He was not only thrilled at his mate standing up for himself, but hearing him refer to the house as his own made him incredibly proud. With that, it was now his turn.
"My mate has spoken. You are nothing to him and you are certainly nothing to me. Leave our home and do not return. Never speak to Stiles again and if I hear about you saying anything against Stiles, I will come after you with a Death Challenge. If you think you can take me on," the alpha's voice deepened several octaves and his eyes burned a fiery red. "try me. I would love to show you what I think of cowardly wolves. Now leave."
Scott didn't even spare a glance for his former friend as he scurried out the door like the coward he was.
"Pathetic," Kira muttered.
"Why are you here, Mother?" Derek turned his still red gaze to the silent woman. "And why do you think it is okay to just walk into another wolf's den without announcing your presence? Do you not remember how a wolf might react to a hostile presence in his territory?"
"I'm not hostile, son," her previous harsh tone was suddenly gentle and soft. "I heard of your mating and wanted to come and show you my support, perhaps help you plan the ceremony. I know Stiles has been through a lot and may not know what all needs to go into planning. Besides, I brought the original document declaring your intention to mate so you could use it as your mating certificate. I thought it would make it more special for you since you have been intended for one another since Stiles was born. A true love story," she said with a, very obviously fake, happy sigh.
"You don't really think we're going to buy this crap, do you?" Erica snorted, narrowing her brown eyes. Don't mention that they are already mated, something is up, she thought to the pack and the rest agreed quickly.
Talia's gaze met the young beta's and for a split second her eyes went red before returning to their normal shade of brown. "Oh, my dear, it's not fake. I've realized how wrong I was for not defending young Stiles and want to show my remorse by paying for the ceremony and maybe even a mating trip." Her hope remained that the young wolf could be bought and perhaps that would dissuade her son from acting against her. She just had to sweet talk them a little more and then they would be so thankful, her son would use the power for her gain. If she'd known she would be dealing with Derek's pack, she wouldn't have made Alexander stay home. Her husband may have been able to sympathize with Stiles on an omega level. But before they'd left, she'd told him to stay so she wouldn't be distracted by him.
"What happened to it just being the 'protective nature of the town'," Parrish brought up.
"I'm talking with my son and future son-in-law, if you don't mind," Talia snapped.
"Oh, we don't mind at all, but see, we take Derek and Stiles' protection very seriously," Boyd chimed in. "And we don't think you are being completely honest with us. Why don't you tell us what you really want?"
Talia cleared her throat impatiently. "Derek, Stiles, is there any chance we could talk alone? I would love to discuss the plans for the mating ceremony. Perhaps we could have it here. There is a lovely florist on Fifth Avenue whose arrangements would look so lovely near the windows. All the best for you two, you deserve it."
"She lies," Lydia said, her voice monotone as her eyes began to glow green. "She deceives for her own gain."
"Lydia?" Parrish turned to his mate, but she didn't look at him. Her eyes were staring off into the distance, her voice deeper, the sweet, feminine tone that was usually present was gone.
Mrs. Hale was forgotten in that moment as the pack surrounded Lydia. She didn't respond to Parrish, merely kept staring ahead. Derek stepped in front of her and pulled his Alpha to the fore.
"Lydia, what is going on?" he asked, his alpha command pushing through the fugue she was in.
"She lies, she intends to say whatever is necessary to gain what she desires," Lydia continued, her tone not changing.
"What is going on with her?" Kira asked, concerned for her friend.
"I'm not trying to gain anything. Your little human is obviously confused. Stiles, why don't you come with me and we will discuss vacation spots. You'd like to travel wouldn't you?" Talia was starting to worry. This wasn't going the way she'd planned it. Stiles was supposed to be awestruck by her presence and taken in by promises of money and trips. Derek was supposed to fall in behind whatever the stupid little omega wanted.
"She manipulates. Do not be drawn in by her false words," Lydia intoned.
Peter's eyes went wide as pieces of the puzzle began to fall into place. He'd stayed on the literal outskirts of the conversation, wracking his brain for a clue as to what Talia wanted. He decided to test his theory in the quickest way by communicating out loud instead of psychically.
"I think Lydia is exhibiting one of the gifts we discussed before my dear sister invaded our little celebration," he said casually, zooming in on Talia's face. He knew he was right about everything when her face lost all color.
"Gifts?" Talia asked, the word sharp and discordant. "What gifts are you talking about?"
Leave this to me, Peter told his pack. He traded glances with Derek and received his assent with a minute nod.
"Sister mine, I forgot you weren't here for the big happening. You see, after Derek and Stiles were mated and gave their blood," he heard her gasp and her fingers transformed into claws as he continued, "this amazing wind blew through the room. We thought it was coincidence so we carried on."
"No," Talia whispered, but Peter heard and grinned wickedly.
"Oh yes. We gathered round and welcomed Stiles into our pack acknowledging him as Omega Mate. The moment the last member swore loyalty, the newly mated pair began to glow. Very odd. Then the glow began to shift from person to person. Before we knew it, abracadabra, we were a True Pack, complete with new powers," Peter told her, his expression full of spite and glee.
"No!" Talia shrieked. "Those gifts belong to me!"
"What the hell are you talking about, Mother?" Derek demanded, still hovering protectively near Stiles and Lydia.
"It was mine and you've stolen it! All this was supposed to be mine! You were supposed to get them to give me the power seat in the Senate, Derek, you've ruined everything! And you," she said, pointing at Stiles. "You obviously weren't punished enough. I knew I should have told Jennifer to make sure you didn't walk away when she hit you with her car," she bit out. Reason had left her mind and all she could see were the dashed dreams she had been waiting on since Stiles was born.
"You told someone to hit Stiles with their car?" Liam gaped. He'd been quiet up until then, worried and kind of scared at what was happening. Isaac curled around him defensively and Liam clung to him. They were both betas and it seemed they took turns giving each other strength.
"You. Did. What?" Derek gently pushed Stiles to Boyd before stalking toward his mother, his face transforming to his beta form.
Talia growled at him. "I did what needed to be done. And I would do it all again. You stole this from me, Derek! That magic belonged to me!"
"She intended to share ill-gotten gains with another," Lydia said. "The father of the Omega Mate was to receive as well."
"How is she doing this?" Talia screeched, turning towards Lydia. Derek slammed her into a nearby wall, his anger and strength overpowering her.
"My father?" Stiles wished it was unbelievable, but it was entirely too easy to grasp. His father was going to use him and Derek as some sort of magical genies.
"Yeah, your father is not innocent in all this," Talia taunted. "He wanted to use the magics to ensure he'd never have opposition in the run for sheriff again and to be given unfettered power in Beacon Hills. You might be interested to know that some in the Sheriff's department wanted to help you over the years, yet he shut them down, time and again. His way of punishing you for not coming through."
Lydia gave a gasp and the glow in her eyes died away. She collapsed against Parrish and looked up at him. "I could see it all. They had this whole plan cooked up from the time Stiles was born. The Sheriff would essentially get the town and she would get the Senate. She thought Derek and Stiles could be bought off and they would use the magic for them in gratitude."
"You make me sick!" Derek roared as he slammed his mother against the wall. "If it wasn't the fact that you were my mother, I would issue a Death Challenge. But if you want to issue one, I will gladly accept. If not, you will get off my property, and stay far away from my mate and my pack for the rest of your days. If you do not, I will make your life a living hell. Are we clear?"
Talia growled again, but knew she was out of luck. For now. She nodded once.
Get the certificate, Derek, Peter thought. End this for good. With it in your hands, the threat of anything further is gone.
Derek grabbed her coat and yanked it open. Seeing a large envelope in the inside pocket, he grabbed it and ripped it open. He didn't hesitate and despite Talia's cry, he held the document over a candle and watched it burn before throwing it into the nearby fireplace. With a large, crackling spark, the paper burned and turned to ash.
"This is over, Talia. From this moment on, you are not my mother and I am not your son. Boyd, escort her out of the house," Derek said. Peter, you and Boyd will follow her to the airport, make sure she leaves, he thought. He received their assent and turned to his mate. He gathered Stiles to him and heard the front door open and close. "It's over, my mate. She's gone for good."
. ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ .
Two hours later, Derek and Stiles were finally settled in bed, their bare bodies entwined. Lydia had gotten a headache, but other than that, she was fine. She'd remembered every detail of her episode and thought that with practice, she would be able to control it. Boyd and Peter had followed Talia who had immediately returned to the airport and got on a flight back to California. The pack had eaten a late meal together, discussing the odd happenings of the night before turning in.
"I'm sorry you felt you had to disown her," Stiles said quietly.
"I'm not. It was something I kinda knew would happen. I've never been her son, I've always been something she could use or brag about or blame. Never just her son," Derek said with a sigh. He'd grieved the relationship years ago. If anything, he just felt relief. "I have the only family I need, right here in this house."
"That includes me," Stiles said with a joyful sigh.
"The most important of all is you," Derek confirmed, kissing him softly. "I love you, my sweet mate."
"I love you too, hero-wolf," Stiles responded.
"Come here you," Derek growled and gathered him close before rolling on top of him. "It's our mating night and I have definite plans on how to spend it."
"Color coordinating our superhero t-shirts?" his mate suggested with a cheeky grin.
The alpha's response was to bite his neck before plunging into him with a powerful thrust.
Stiles decided the t-shirts could wait.
. ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ .
The rest of the story is planned and plotted! I'm excited to get to it. I hope you enjoyed this!