Mr Stilinski comes to the loft to tell Alex about his mom and his sister. Stiles freaks out when he hear his dad's voice. Melissa feels the need for adult company and makes a bold move. Chris is thinking about his daughter and what the future will hold for her and the pack. With the news about Alex' family taking everybody's attention, Stiles feels left out and ignored. Derek has his own set of concerns, but doesn't want to share them with anybody.

"Do you want me to wake up Stiles?" Alex was pretty sure Stiles' dad didn't know about the little incident last night, and he felt no need to reveal it either. "No! No, let him sleep. I came her to talk with you." Mr Stilinski grabbed the cup he was handed and took a sip from it. "Wow, excellent coffee."

Alex got a little nervous. If the guy was on duty it could be multiple reasons for this. There could be long lost charges against him for all sorts of criminal activity; braking and entering, prostitution, thievery, or maybe something regarding drugs. The list was long.

"Me? What would a police officer want with me?" He put on his most innocent face as he lifted his own cup to his lips. He put it down quickly when he realized that his hand was shaking. Mr Stilinski took another sip. "I'm not here on duty. Well, sort of, but this is completely off the record."

Alex relaxed somewhat, but he didn't let his guard down completely. "Okay. I'm intrigued." He looked down at the puppy who was busy 'inhaling' the food. Stiles' dad leaned back and sighed heavily. He took a moment, which told Alex that this wasn't easy for him either.

"Your name came up, uh, in an investigation." He threw a quick peek at Alex as he twirled the cup in his hands. "Your mom, Sonya Johnson, is in jail on a murder charge."

The fact that it had nothing to do with him personally was a relief, and it took a split second before Alex realized what the man had said. He held his breath for a moment. "What? My mom? Murder? What?" The shivers, that he'd just managed to get under control came back, and he had to hold on to the counter to keep himself up.

"Alex. Please sit. Can you please come and sit down." Stilinski patted the seat next to him, and as in a trance, Alex walked over and slumped down. "There has to be a mistake." He looked up at the man who was now shaking his head. "No mistake. She admitted that she'd shot her husband, but that isn't all."

How could that not be more than enough? Alex didn't even know how he felt about this. His mom had finally got rid of her husband. He was pretty sure there could have been better ways to do it, but after all these years, he was gone. "I, I don't know what to say."

Mr Stilinski cleared his throat. "I don't know... I guess you're not aware of it, but you have a sister." He put the cup down and grabbed Alex when he almost fell of his seat. "You have a six year old sister who is currently in foster care. They are searching for relatives."

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

Stiles and Derek had heard every word exchanged between Alex and Stiles' dad. When Stiles got aware of his dad's presence, he'd almost freaked out. He'd wondered why he was there so early, and feared that he knew what had happened last night.

Another issue was that he was currently reeking of sex and facing his dad at the moment was not desired.

When he realized that this had nothing to do with him, Stiles had relaxed, but curiosity made him eavesdrop on the conversation. Not that he had a choice. He couldn't tune it out, even if he wanted to. He noticed that Derek was also keenly listening in, and as the information trickled in, they looked at each other wide-eyed.

Loud yapping paused the conversation for a moment, and then Alex shouted a little hysterically: "Isaac, get up. You have to take Peri out now. I... can't move."

A small commotion followed, before Mr Stilinski's voice was heard. "I'll take the dog. Let this sink in. Tell Isaac about it. I'll be back shortly."

As soon as the door closed, Sties didn't waste a second. He jumped out of bed, and urged Derek to get up too. "We have to take a shower before he's back. Hurry!" Completely naked, he ran out of the room and practically dived into the bathroom. In the corner of his eyes, he could see Isaac and Alex cuddled together on the couch, but he didn't say anything to them.

He hurried to turn on the shower, and got under the streaming water to rinse of the cum and sweat from this morning's little exercise. He was practically done when Derek entered with a pile of clothes. "Thought it would be better if you meet your dad dressed. Don't you agree?" He put down the lid on the toilet, and dumped the clothes on top of it before he too got into the shower.

Stiles managed to get dressed, and he felt reasonably presentable when he walked into the living room; just as his dad came back.

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

Ever since the divorce, Melissa hadn't dated much. She'd been out to dinner with a couple of guys, but it never led to anything. Dr Howard – the most handsome man she'd ever had the pleasure of laying her eyes on – had pursued her for a while. It was quite intriguing until she discovered that he was a self-absorbed control freak.

If she'd wanted a casual, clandestine relationship, there was multiple options at the hospital. Working long hours together, it was quite common for the staff to hook up for a quick release between emergencies.

Melissa had never done that. As a single mom, she'd done her best to be with her son as much as possible. Instead of crashing in the break-room when she had a couple of hours off between two back-to-back shifts, she'd hurried home to be with Scott.

Things looked different now. Scott was going to move out whether she liked it or not. Until he turned eighteen, she could hold him back, but he'd really already moved on. The house in the woods wouldn't be finished until long after his birthday anyway.

At Alex' party – Isaac's and Alex' party – she'd tried to be more 'Melissa' than a mother. It wasn't easy; she'd totally forgot how it was to completely be herself. At the dining table, she'd been seated next to Mr Stilinski, and the two of them had joked about how their sons were 'grownups' soon. Chris was sitting opposite them and was perfectly capable of relating to it.

It was sad to have to leave. She'd felt so comfortable talking with these men. For the first time in ages she'd let her concerns for her son rest, and enjoy the casual company of someone closer to her own age without it being work related.

When Stiles' dad learned that she had to work the night shift too, he'd jokingly suggested that they could have breakfast together in the morning. She'd laughed it away, but as she walked to her car in the morning, she regretted that. Grabbing a sandwich and eating it all by herself before she went to bed made her feel lonely. She knew that Scott and Allison were at the house, but she was still a little uncomfortable about them sharing a bed, and didn't feel like waking them up.

With a sigh she picked out her phone. She stared at it for the longest time before she pressed 'call'. When Mr Stilinski answered she drew her breath quickly. "How about that breakfast?"

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

After two hours alone at the house, Chris started to get a little impatient. He hadn't really expected anyone to show up yet, but he was extremely curious about the outcome of the incident last night. He'd picked up his phone several times, pondering on making a call or two, but he didn't want to act like an nagging teenager.

His curiosity was partially directed towards Stiles. The boy had bore his humanity with pride among all his werewolf friends. He'd never showed any urge to be turned, and he was even a little cocky about it. Chris knew that deep down, Derek believed that the relationship between him and Stiles would be easier if Stiles got the bite, but he'd too respected Stiles' choice.

It couldn't be easy for any of them to wake up to this new reality. Calling Derek at this moment could stir things up, and Chris felt that it was a little selfish of him to bother them at this point.

More so than Stiles' state of mind, Chris wondered about how his own daughter was doing. Allison had showed great leading skills after giving Stiles the bite. She'd wrapped everything up so nicely and made sure that Derek and Stiles got a bit of alone time.

The overflow of adrenaline that pumped though her body probably helped; she was trained to act like this in critical situations. In a crisis where a weaker person would collapse or flee, she managed to stay calm and collected due to her training as a hunter.

It couldn't last forever. Chris knew that when everything was over and the hormone-levels came back to normal, everybody would experience some kind of backlash. He knew that Allison was with Scott at the McCall house, and he hoped that the boy was able to deal with whatever reaction Allison had.

Speculating about it was probably not healthy, but Chris couldn't help himself. If he'd got it right; if Derek had lost his Alpha status, it was very important that Allison kept her head straight. There was no doubt in Chris' mind that his daughter would have to lead this pack if Derek couldn't. Scott would never even try to challenge it, but she had to show the others that she'd be perfect for the role.

For Chris, it was the most natural thing in the world to support a female leader; among hunters it had always been like that. With werewolves, it was more random; it was based more on abilities than gender. In human society, a female leader faced bigger challenges than a male, and Chris worried that these young boys were still too influenced by that.

Allison had to show no weakness whatsoever if she wanted the boys' respect. From day one – this day – she had to step up and assume her position without hesitation. She had to show them without a shred of doubt that she was up for it.

Chris shook his head and cursed to himself. It was futile to spend time pondering over this. He still felt an urge to call her and tell her, but he had to trust that she knew what she was doing. He didn't even know if Derek really lost his status; he was a main piece of this puzzle, and speculating wasn't going to change that.

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

Mr Stilinski got very surprised when he received a call from Melissa. He was still at the loft, but there wasn't much more he could do there at the moment. After filling in Stiles and Derek on what he'd found, he was about to leave.

Alex had listened patiently without interrupting as he'd explained the whole thing again. Derek and Stiles tried to look surprised, but he suspected that they had overheard some of the conversation he had with Alex. Derek's room couldn't be particularly soundproof; they hadn't talked very loudly.

After getting the printouts from the car, he'd sat down and explained the content for Alex, before he decided to take off. He'd told him to take his time coming to terms with everything, and if he wanted to do anything about it, they could look into it later.

He'd also explained that getting custody of his sister would be practically impossible under the circumstances, but he was a relative and could probably get visitation rights. Alex seemed unable to grasp it all, but with Isaac, Stiles, and Derek around, Mr Stilinski was sure that he'd be taken care of.

Isaac and Stiles seemed relieved about the fact that he'd managed to keep their involvement a secret. Even if he wasn't to keen on lying, it could sometimes be a good thing. This case was one of those instances.

He had no idea how to interpret the invitation from Melissa, but he was very intrigued. They'd known each other for years, but never really spent any time alone together. He worried that they wouldn't have anything to talk about but their sons, and that it could be slightly awkward, but she was definitely refreshing company. He also had to admit that he was a little smitten by her.

When he hung up, he discovered that Stiles was staring at him curiously. His end of the conversation had contained of a few one syllable words, so he was pretty sure that his son had no idea who he was talking to, but that little wink – or maybe it was just a tic – Stiles gave him, made him a little self-conscious.

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

Stiles didn't feel much different today than he did yesterday. So he had an ability to eavesdrop on his friends and family without sneaking around; he could also practically smell the leftovers from the party through the sealed door of the fridge, but his body felt very much like normal.

He knew it was a big thing for everybody that he got the bite, and he'd expected to be the center of attention for a while. In an odd an twisted way, he'd kind of looked forward to it. The news about Alex' family put a little dent in that. Stiles himself found it extremely interesting, but he was a little disappointed about the fact that Isaac and Alex didn't even ask how he was doing.

Derek also got freakishly absorbed by the tale about Alex' mom, and he did his best to help Isaac comfort the guy. Stiles did agree that this was big, but he'd hoped to get a just a sliver of attention about his own situation.

Playing second chair didn't suit him one bit. 'Why the hell did his dad have to bring the news today?' He knew it was selfish to think like that, but couldn't really help himself.

That Derek didn't seem the slightest concerned with the fact that he wasn't an Alpha anymore, was also troubling.

Stiles knew perfectly well that Allison was better leader-material than Derek, but he wasn't interested in being anybody's bitch. He wanted to be the crown prince; or maybe the term would be queen? Regardless, he wanted to be the mate to the 'King of the castle', and he wanted Derek to be that king.

He walked over to the kitchen to grab himself some food. The other three still didn't pay any attention to him. As he opened the door to the fridge, the dog swooped in in front of him and stuck his head in there. Stiles looked down at the little guy. He was obviously seeking attention too.

He pushed the dog away gently before he closed the fridge and sat down on the floor. Periwinkle's tail wagged vigorously. He put his front paws on Stiles chest before he stretched his neck and licked him on the chin. "Easy there boy." Stiles managed to get the dog onto his lap and scratched his ear. "I guess we can comfort each other." It took a little while before Peri settled down somewhat. "And they called you Periwinkle? Well, get used to it. Your owner is a sort of a nancy." He didn't mean it derogatory; he really liked Alex with his sometimes very flamboyant gestures.

Sitting there patting the dog was very calming. Stiles looked over at the couch. He'd heard a few words from there, but decided to try not to eavesdrop. What Alex had to deal with was big, and Stiles felt bad for only thinking about himself.

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

Derek drove fast towards the house. When they left last night, they had not managed to clean up the place properly after the party. Isaac and Alex had brought all the leftover back, but there were still a few things that had to be taken care of.

Stiles had been a little moody when he learned that Derek wanted to go there by himself, but had eventually accepted it. It wasn't like Derek didn't want to be around his boyfriend, but he needed time alone to think about the recent events.

The fact that Stiles got the bite was not really such a big deal; maybe for Stiles himself, but for Derek and the rest of the pack, everything would be easier. There wasn't a problem in itself to have a human in the pack, but there were risks involved. Humans were weaker and would always have to be protected in a different way.

Mating with a human carried it's own problems. It wasn't unheard of, but it would always be considered a weak link. Derek could have handled it; he'd handled it for a while already, and he would never have forced Stiles to become a werewolf. What happened last night was really a blessing in disguise.

A bigger issue was Derek's own status. He knew that he could possibly become an Alpha again. It could be a long and hard road, and he wasn't sure if he was up for it. It wasn't easy leading a pack, and he was never really trained for the task. Among other things, it would require him to force Allison out. With her in the pack, Derek wouldn't stand a chance. Being a newly hatched Alpha, she showed unusual skills and abilities to become the perfect leader. Challenging her could cause unwanted results.

Derek didn't know if Allison was aware of all this. He had no clue if she was going to step up and do what was expected of her now, or if she would shy away from the responsibilities involved. Derek didn't think so. Scott would support her unconditionally, and Stiles – being turned by her – would feel the bond, even if he didn't know it yet.

It was a poorly kept secret that Isaac felt that Derek sucked as a pack-leader, so he'd probably accept Allison's takeover easily. Alex' thoughts about it wouldn't even be an issue; he was brand new to this pack, and was also used to having to submit to the strong female Alpha.

Derek knew that it really came down to the dynamic between him and Allison. He was the one who had to make the choice. He'd looked forward to bringing a pack back to the house. He'd wanted a new Hale-pack; a pack that could pick up the old tradition of keeping Beacon Hills safe.

As a hunter, Allison was trained for the same agenda. Her family's main focus had been to keep their hometown protected.

Derek had reached his destination, and parked behind Chris' SUV. He was a little surprised that the hunter was at the site. They'd decided to take the day off, and he wondered what the guy was doing there. Chris had been very open about his take on the pack-leader issue, and Derek wasn't sure he wanted to hear his point of view right now.

With Chris' involvement with the house; it wouldn't have been a house without him, Derek felt that he couldn't just push the guy's opinion aside. He was almost like a member of the pack himself. He braced himself, before he walked over to face the hunter.

He soon discovered that he had nothing to fear. Chris didn't even mention what had happened last night. He just took Derek on a quick tour, pointing out what needed to be done before Dave and his buddies could finish their part of the job. After agreeing on how long it would take, Chris made a call before he left Derek alone with his thoughts.