A Quick note to my readers and followers and everybody who has favoritted me or any of my stories: Thank you so much. I wanted to thank you all personally in a PM, but that was too big of a task between writing and attending the job I actually get payed to do. Lots of overtime lately and not much me-time. Anyway, thank you all. Feel free to comment or even PM me if you have ideas for storylines you want me to look at. I know how this story is going to end, but I love the sidestories that pops up in my head too. Allison and Alex are my two favorites at the moment, and I have a hard time focusing on anybody else. Saving Allison is important to me now, and the Alex/Isaac thing will be ongoing for a while. Sterek moments will show up, and eventually... I think I've said enough. Hang in there and thanks again.

The full moon is coming. Allison's transition has started. Both Scott and Isaac are a little antsy and can't fall asleep. Scott leaves the loft to go find his girlsfriend and the guys. When he sees her, he draws the wrong conclusion, and tries to attack Derek. Chris is coming to the rescue.

While Allison was securely tied up in the basement, Derek and Alex walked around in the ruins of the house. The screams and cursing from Allison had bothered them a little, so Derek had found some duct tape and covered her mouth. He hoped that she'd be able to forgive him at one point in the future, but at the moment they needed to keep the noise down.

"I'm going to tear it all down and rebuild it." Derek threw his hands out and nodded to himself. "I didn't think I'd ever wanted to do that, but things have changed." Alex panned the room they were currently standing in. "It definitely need some work, but the location is perfect for a lair."

Derek nodded and rubbed his forehead. "I know. It was a perfect place in the past. I want it to be perfect again." He hurried to turn away and headed for the stairs to the basement. "I'm just gonna check on her, it's awfully quiet down there."

Allison was practically hanging by the cuffs. Her hands and forearms were covered in blood. The scars from where the cuffs had dug into her skin had healed and were barely visible. She was panting after having struggled to come loose for a while. When Derek approached, she lifted her head and pierced him with her eyes.

"The full moon is only a couple of hours away. It will be over soon." Derek tried to sound soothing as he pulled the duct tape off her mouth, but wasn't sure if he managed. For a moment Allison seemed puzzled, but then she gave out a low growl. "He said, Alex said it wasn't until Wednesday night." She cursed a little when she obviously realized how the guy had tricked her. "It was a good con you concocted there, Derek. One of your finest works." Derek could see that her face was starting to change, but she seemed adamant about clinging to her humanity. She huffed. "You really needed a victory after all your screw-ups. Congrats, enjoy it."

She couldn't fight it anymore. Derek could see her nails turn into claws and he noticed the changes in her face. Suddenly she turned her head up and howled towards the ceiling, before she just slumped down, letting the cuffs and the chain carry her weight.

Derek decided to leave her alone. It could be painful to watch a transition in the first place. Knowing that Allison didn't want this made it even worse. He hoped that she'd come around and thank him for it later, but he didn't really count on it. If she resented him for the rest of her life, it wouldn't matter. He did it to save her, and he felt good about himself for doing so.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Melissa was in Derek's room and Mr Stilinski was in Isaac's. Stiles couldn't sleep. He knew that Isaac and Scott were awake also, even if they both did their best to pretend to be sleeping. They'd all expected Derek and Allison to be back during the night, but so far there had been no words from them.

Stiles knew that Scott had sent multiple text messages to Allison before he went to bed, and if his grave face as he lied down on the couch was something to go by, he'd obviously got no response.

There was one thing that worried Stiles more than anything. Even if it seemed like Alex was on their side, it could be an elaborate con. What if Hester was waiting for them at the Hale-house. What if Alex had found a way to contact her, and that Derek and Allison was mauled to death at this very moment. He didn't really believe that, but the lack of words from any of them was a little disturbing.

A sound from Isaac interrupted his unsettling train of thoughts. Stiles looked up and saw the guy tiptoe through the room dragging his mattress towards the window. He picked up the blanket and the pillow that Alex had been using, before he put the mattress down next to the radiator.

After throwing a quick peek around, as if he wanted to make sure nobody saw him, Isaac lied down and covered himself with Alex' blanket. It was odd and somewhat amusing. Stiles had never really thought about Isaac's sexual preferences before, but after the silent 'chat' with Alex, he'd kept an eye on the guy. So, okay, there had been a moment or two were he'd thought about it earlier, but in the past he'd been pretty sure that Isaac had the hots for Erica.

He'd also wondered if bisexuality was a common feat amongst werewolves, but according to Derek it was not so. It was obviously more about the werewolves ability to accept their attractions. Derek was pretty sure that bisexuality was quite common among humans too, but that people didn't want to know.

During the initial phases of their relationship, Stiles had worried that Derek would drop him as a hot potato, as soon as he met a a girl he wanted. He didn't worry about that anymore. Stiles knew that Derek looked at him as his mate, and that was – for a werewolf – a life-long commitment.

Stiles wasn't even sure if he was ready for this. He knew that his love for Derek was genuine, but he worried a little about the fact that this was his first and only true love. When Derek mentioned that he wanted to rebuild the house for them, Stiles had been excited and happy. He really wanted to make this work. At the moment he couldn't see any other option than to be with Derek for the rest of his life, but he knew that things could change.

He forced the thought out of his mind, and concentrated on Isaac instead. The way he clenched Alex' pillow to his chest was quite revealing. Isaac was obviously infatuated with the guy. Stiles tried his best not to chuckle. Alex was extraordinarily good looking and Stiles was pretty sure that he was gay.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Scott knew how to deal with the full moon, and was perfectly capable of bracing himself. It was still affecting him and it was impossible to fall asleep. He knew that Isaac went through the same struggles, and wondered if he should give up on the whole sleeping thing and get Isaac over to play some video games. He needed something to take his mind of what happened at the Hale-house.

He sat up half way and peeked over to the kitchen area. Isaac wasn't there. Scott remembered hearing someone moving around behind his back a half hour ago, and now he figured it was Isaac. He sat up fully and panned the room. He spotted Isaac close to the panorama window, and when he cocked his head to listen, Scott knew that Isaac wasn't sleeping either.

When he heard something that sounded like a sniffle, he held his breath for a moment to make sure he was right. Was Isaac crying? Scott shook his head in disbelief. That wasn't quite what he'd expected.

"Isaac!" He whispered as he threw a quick glance at Stiles. He didn't want to wake his friend. He noticed that Isaac froze up for a second, before he wiped his nose with his forearm. "Yeah?" He whispered back. "You couldn't sleep either?"

He sat up and seemed to wipe the sleep out of his eyes, but Scott suspected it was tears. Why would Isaac be crying? It made absolutely no sense. "What's up? Did you have a bad dream or something?" Scott was still whispering, and there were no indication that Stiles could hear him. Isaac got up from the floor and moved towards the bathroom. "No, uh, yeah, maybe. I need to pee." He was clinging to a pillow, but was obviously not aware of it at first. Suddenly he looked down at it, and Scott could see his eyes widen before he threw it back on the mattress and headed for the bathroom.

When he came back he slumped down on the couch next to Scott. "When will they be back? I worry about them. Have you heard anything?" Isaac seemed extremely antsy and picked at his fingernails. Scott shook his head. "No, not a word. I want to go there. They were supposed to tie up Alex and come back, right?"

Isaac seemed to startle a little. "What? They were gonna leave him alone in the basement. He'd be like bait. They can't do that." Isaac got up and started pacing. "I should have gone with Derek. Allison's place is here with you."

Scott couldn't agree more. "I know, and now they've been gone for hours. Something must have gone wrong."

They were both aware of Derek's perpetual bad luck. "I'm going." Scott got up from the couch and grabbed his jeans from the floor. "If something happened to them, I won't be able to forgive myself." Isaac was about to get dressed too, but Scott stopped him. "You have to stay here and protect the others. I'll go alone."

-o-o-o-o-o-

Stiles knew that they were trying to keep it down so they wouldn't wake him up, but he was already awake. He'd heard every word and he knew he should try to stop Scott. There was only this little issue; he agreed with him. Derek and Allison should have been back by now. He made an half-ass attempt to prevent Scott from reaching the door, but even if he'd tried harder he wouldn't have been able to stop him.

As soon as Scott had left, Isaac came over and sat down on the floor next to Stiles. He was breathing heavily and he scrunched his face as if he was in pain. Stiles understood that he was trying to say something and waited patiently.

"Uh, I wonder... I mean, just out of curiosity... When did you, uh, realize that you..." He huffed scratched his jaw. Stiles had an idea of what was coming and managed to keep his mouth shut. "I mean, it must have been, eh," another huff came. "When did you know you liked Derek, you know, like... liked him?"

Stiles tried not to laugh. He knew why Isaac was asking. "From the moment I laid eyes on him the first time. I knew it, but I pushed it away for a long time. Why?" He had to look away in order to compose himself. A giggle was tickling his throat.

"I just wondered. I mean, you didn't know you liked guys before that, right?" Isaac was staring at his hands and seemed to be concentrated on ripping his own fingernails out. Stiles shrugged. "Well, no, maybe. I don't know. It was never really an issue. I thought Lydia was the only one. I never really looked at anyone else."

For a long time, they were just sitting there trying not to look at each other. Stiles was fighting not to laugh, and Isaac was clearly a bit embarrassed. "You like him, right?" Stiles had managed to push away the urge to laugh. "He is cute. Almost like a girl cute. I don't blame you."

Isaac emitted a snort. "Pfft, no. It's not... uh, okay, yeah, he is, but it's not like I..." He paused and started to get up. "Forget it. It's not what you think." He was about to walk away, when he suddenly turned around again. "I just feel... I, we saved him, I feel attached to him on some freaked out level. It's not, it's not sexual or anything, it's just..."

Stiles cocked his head and looked at his friend. "It's okay. I think, maybe, he feels somewhat attached to you too." He could see that Isaac got a little startled. Then he shook his head. "He doesn't even talk to me. He..." He swallowed hard. "We don't even know if he can be trusted."

"Did you try to talk to him? As far as I could see you didn't make much of an effort." Stiles rolled his eyes. "For me it looked like you did your best to avoid him."

Isaac started pacing a little. "I tried, last night, but he pushed me away." He covered his face with his hands. "This is so fucked up. I don't know what to do, how to feel. I just... Stiles, tell me I'm not crazy."

Stiles struggled to get to his feet and then he jumped over to Isaac. He leaned heavily on the guy's shoulder and did his best to meet his eyes. "You're not crazy. You just have to try again. Maybe he doesn't trust you either. Remember what he's been through. You heard what he told Allison. After Hester it can be hard for him to trust anybody."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Alex was standing on the front porch, staring into the darkness surrounding the house. Derek was downstairs checking on Allison. They'd had to gag her again. She was too loud, and Derek was afraid someone would hear her. They weren't only worried about Hester and her pack. A poacher or a lonely wanderer could easily come straying by the house.

When he heard a car engine in the distance, Alex scooted towards the door. It didn't sound like any of Hester's cars. This was something old and dingy. Before it came any closer, he could hear the engine choke. The driver attempted to start it a couple of times, but then the woods went silent again.

Alex threw a glance over his shoulder when he heard Derek come back up. "Someone is out there. I don't think it's Hester." He explained what he'd heard, and Derek slumped his head down and sighed. "It could be one of our own. It could be Isaac's car." Then he shrugged. "Or just some random person. He crouched down next to the window and peeked out. "Keep quiet, we need to prevent anyone from coming in here."

The first thing they noticed was a flash of red between the trees. Alex worried that it could be Hester after all, but then he recognized Scott's silhouette and sighed in relief. The front yard was lit up by the moonlight, and Scott seemed reluctant to cross it. He was hiding behind some bushes obviously sniffing into the air.

"You have to stop him. He can't come in." Derek scooted towards the stairs to the basement. "This could ruin everything." Alex got up and moved over to the door. "How on earth am I gonna prevent him from coming in? I can't fight him." He turned to look at Derek, but the guy had already disappeared. Alex drew his breath and went outside. He wondered if Scott would attack him. If so he wouldn't be able to defend himself.

"Scott! Come out! It's okay. We're alive." His voice was trembling and he took a couple of breaths to compose himself. "You shouldn't be here. You were supposed to protect the others." It took a moment before Scott emerged. He took a few steps forward and panned the front yard. "Where's Derek and Allison?"

Alex gestured towards the door. "They're inside. Everything is fine." He shook his head when he realized what a bad decision Derek had made when he told Alex to keep Scott out. The others believed that they came here to tie him up. Standing there in the doorway staring at Scott, Alex knew what the guy was thinking. "DEREK! You have to come. He's gonna kill me. He expected me to be tied up by now."

For a moment, the two werewolves stared at the full moon, before Scott charged at Alex. Alex let himself fall backwards through the door and rolled towards the stairs. He wasn't fast enough, Scott was on top of him in an instant and dug his claws into his shoulders. "What did you do to them? Where's Hester?"

Alex closed his eyes and waited for the final blow, but then he heard Derek's voice. "STOP IT SCOTT! He's on our side." Scott's claws retracted but he was still pinning Alex to the floor. "Where's Allison?" A clang from chains and a low growl came from the basement, and Scott jumped to his feet, leaving Alex bleeding on the floor.

He moved towards the stairs. "Did you catch one of them? Who?" Derek did his best to stop him from getting to the basement, but Scott managed to push him aside.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

The sight that met Scott when he set his feet on the floor in the basement was horrifying. Allison was thoroughly chained to a vertical beam. Her wrist and arms were bloodied, and a small pool of blood had formed around her feet. He was about to run over to her when Derek grabbed his wrist. "Don't!"

Scott ripped himself loose and was about to attack Derek, when Allison lifted her head slightly. In the dim light he could see the orange glow in her eyes and the wolf-like face. He instantly understood what was happening. He didn't know if he could overpower Derek, but he would definitely try. "You turned her! How could you?" He charged forward, but Derek was quicker and managed to jump out of reach. "I didn't."

As he was about to attack Derek again, he heard Alex' voice from behind him. "Hester did. Hester bit her. Derek is trying to save her life. She wanted to kill herself."

A clang from the chains made him turn to Allison again. Her face was contorted as if she was in pain. He spotted an evil in her eyes, and the guttural sound from her throat startled him. Her mouth was covered with a piece of duct tape, and Scott couldn't help himself. He reached out and pulled the tape off. Allison's head shot forward as she tried to bite his hand.

Scott jumped back. "Allison, it's me, Scott." He felt tears welling up in his eyes looking at his girlfriend. He knew she was in pain, he'd gone through this himself. The howl she emitted as she pulled on the chains to try to reach Scott, gave him shivers down his spine.

"How do you know? How do you... How do I know it was Hester?" Scott rubbed his eyes as he scooted backwards. "How do I know it wasn't you?" He tried to focus on Derek, but the tears kept coming. Derek sighed heavily. "When it's over she will tell you. I'm sure. She didn't want anyone..." A loud growl from Allison cut him off.

"I can tell him!" All of them turned to the stairs. Chris was standing half way up. "I saw it. I couldn't save her." His voice was trembling as he approached his daughter. "I'm sorry Sweet pea. I couldn't lose you too. This was the only way."

For a split second, there was a hint of humanity in Allison's eyes, before she again tugged at the chains and growled loudly.

"Go back to the loft, I'm gonna stay here with her." Chris slumped down on the floor and pressed his knuckles into his eyes. "Just go."

Derek was the first on to react. "You shouldn't be here... not alone. I'll stay with you." He was about to seat himself next to Chris, when Scott finally managed to compose himself. "No, I'll stay. Take Alex with you and leave." He didn't care what Chris wanted, he needed to be there with Allison. "Derek, I understand why you did this, but I don't think I want to be around you right now, please go."