Chapter 11

After Peter had become alpha, his strength had grown immensely. It trickled through their pack bond, and because they had exchanged bites, rather than Phoebe being the only one bitten, his alpha spark and her magic flowed between them, further strengthening the bond. Phoebe had placed spells on the apartment that could not be broken, and Peter had been training his powers every day to make sure he could not be caught unawares.

Still, she had not ventured from the apartment other than their weekend away since her escape from Eichen House. She was growing restless. She wanted to walk in the woods and collect herbs and flowers; she wanted the freedom to come and go as she pleased.

One day, she mentioned this to Peter.

"I think we're strong enough for that to be safe for you," he said simply.

"What about Theo," she asked. Part of her was still afraid of him, of being put back in Eichen House.

"Whenever you want to go out, I'll go with you," Peter said.

So it was agreed. The next day, Phoebe and Peter ventured out. Phoebe was hoping not to run into any of the pack other than Stiles, at least not yet, but Peter was almost hoping they would. If not for the fact that he wanted to keep her presence here a secret for a bit longer, he would have welcomed their shock.

However, he did want to keep her presence here a secret, both for her protection, and the element of surprise. So, the restaurant they chose for their lunch was out of the way, and their trip into the woods didn't go near any place the pack could be.

When they returned to the apartment, Phoebe's basket laden with herbs she was eager to prepare, she leaned up and kissed him on the cheek.

"What was that for," Peter asked, bemused.

"For not taking me anywhere they could see us, even though I know it would be a huge power play for you."

Peter threw his head back and laughed as she walked into the kitchen to begin preparing her herbs for powders and salves.

. . .

For a couple weeks, Phoebe and Peter had been choosing days to go out around town, deliberately staying away from places Theo and Scott might be. Although Peter could easily take Theo in a fight with his new alpha status and their pack bond in place, Scott would be more of a challenge if Peter didn't have a larger pack, and the element of surprise would work in their favor.

On a day when Phoebe needed more herbs, she and Peter ventured closer to the old Hale property. Phoebe had just started forward to collect some moss off a tree when Peter grabbed her wrist and yanked her back into his chest, turning them so that she was protected between his body and a large tree.

"Mask us," he said, and she did so without question.

Soon, voices carried over the wind to their hiding spot. Peter peered around the tree, and confirmed what she already knew. "Scott and Stiles are fighting again."

"If he hits him again," she hissed, leaving the threat ambiguous. She truly didn't know what she might do.

"If he hits him again, we have to let him," Peter whispered calmly, looking into her eyes.

She frowned, twisting to try to look as the voices grew louder. Gently, Peter placed her back against the tree. "If we interfere, it will tip our hand. We have to wait for Stiles to come to us. We can't let Scott know yet. We'll never be able to stop them if we do."

Phoebe nodded, but she seethed. The sound of a fist hitting skin pierced the silence in the forest. Phoebe's hands shook where she gripped Peter's shirt in her hands. Finally, Peter moved a fraction to let her see what he could see.

She watched as Stiles gesticulated wildly, trying to make a point, pleading despite the harsh bruise already appearing on his cheek. She watched as Scott huffed and said something harshly before turning and walking off toward the person she could now see had been waiting for him, the newest addition to the pack, Theo, leaving his best friend of over ten years staring at his back. She watched as Stiles' face crumpled for a second before he schooled his features and walked back to his jeep that was parked by the old Hale house.
A dark look crept over Phoebe's face as she glared at the spot where Scott and Theo had disappeared. She'd had the misfortune of seeing alphas turn against their packs before – for power, new pack members, threats, and just the possibility of a potential new start. Scott McCall was one alpha she'd have never thought would turn on his pack. But he had, and it had started with his very first, very human beta.

When Scott and Theo were completely out of range, and Stiles had driven off toward his home, Phoebe's eyes met Peter's, blazing with barely contained rage.

"He's our pack," she said. "We can't let Scott keep doing this."

"We'll stop Scott from hurting him as soon as Stiles is truly in our pack," Peter reminded her. "I promised. But Stiles has to choose us first."

"How do we get him to do that?"

"We have to wait," Peter said. "He's already coming to us when Scott hurts him. He's starting to trust us, and starting to lose faith in Scott. We just wait."

Phoebe sighed. She was very fond of Stiles, and had been since she'd first talked to him when he'd called her about Derek. But she knew Peter was fond of Stiles too. His words sounded callous, but the way his jaw clenched when he watched Scott punch Stiles, and the way his hands twitched as though aching for his claws to come out told her more than he would say.

"Okay," she said. "We wait."