Author's note: trigger warning for possibly perceived noncon/dubcon, although there is no ill intent on any character's part. This will make more sense after you read the chapter, if you choose to. I'm not sure if the chapter needs the warning, but better safe than sorry.

Stiles and Isaac stayed home from school the next day. They'd definitely earned the right to skip, after everything they'd been through. After the argument with Scott, they'd dragged themselves back up to Stiles' room, where they passed out in each other's arms for the night. Stiles woke up when his dad finally got home and checked up on them, but Isaac never stirred. He'd been worried about nightmares for both of them, but it seemed like they were exhausted enough that their brains didn't have the energy to torment them.

They finally got up close to noon, climbing in the shower together under the hottest spray Stiles could stand. Isaac probably would've gone hotter, but them being able to stay together was more important. Stiles scrubbed every inch of Isaac's body, making sure any hint of what happened the day before was gone. Isaac needed to smell like home again, not blood.

His dad was waiting for them in the kitchen when they finally came down, sliding a couple of steaks onto a serving dish. Stiles was about to scold him for one of the most impractical lunches he'd ever seen, before his dad informed him that red meat was good for iron and eating with other people helped you absorb vitamins and nutrients better. He let it slide this time, since it was for Isaac. They all sat down to eat together, with both Stilinski men watching Isaac to the point of awkwardness. It would probably stay that way for a while.

Boyd and Erica stopped by before the school day was officially over. Erica practically tackled Isaac as soon as she saw him, which made Stiles' skin bristle. He knew Isaac wasn't a delicate flower, but he still wanted everyone to be careful with him. She thanked him for saving her, before lightly chastising him for ripping her shirt and covering her in dirt. Boyd gave him a firm nod that said more than any words could. Before they left, Erica slid Isaac's ring back on his finger, thanking him again. In all the chaos, Stiles had forgotten to get it back from her. Seeing the ring in its rightful place helped solidify that things were finally getting back to normal. That was, except for the last thing looming over his head.

"I texted Scott. He said he's busy with a shift at Deaton's tonight," Isaac mumbled into Stiles' hair as they sat on the couch together, watching TV. They weren't actually watching it, but it was good background noise. They were mostly doing their best to relax and think about nothing.

"Oh," Stiles muttered, trying not to sound bitter. He failed.

"Take this with a grain of salt, since I've never had a best friend before, but I think you guys will be okay. You've been through too much together for one fight to ruin what you have."

"But shouldn't our history have been enough for him to give me the benefit of the doubt? That low opinion of me had to have been brewing inside of him somewhere," Stiles argued. What Scott said to him hadn't been a spur of the moment thing conjured up by the stress of everything that was happening. It had been building and Stiles finally had enough of it and confronted him about it.

"I don't think it's a low opinion of you. I think he has a low opinion of the supernatural world in general. You're probably the safest person to take his frustrations out on."

"He should take it out on Peter," Stiles grumbled, snuggling further into his side.

"I don't disagree with you there," Isaac chuckled, pressing a kiss to his forehead. "Just give it a little time, let things settle from the most recent crisis, and I'm sure you'll be able to work it out."

"I hope you're right. And I hope we'll actually get a break from all the murder and mayhem."

"Agreed," Isaac sighed, leaning his head back and closing his eyes.

"You good?" Stiles asked, looking over him carefully. Werewolf healing might get rid of the physical wounds, but it didn't get rid of everything.

"I'm with you, so I'm perfect."

"Charmer."

"How did you end up finding me? With the same spell you used to find Boyd and Erica?" Isaac wondered. Stiles cringed, wishing this topic had never come up. He didn't want to tell Isaac what he'd done, but he also didn't want to lie to him. If he found out from one of the others, he'd be upset.

"Not exactly."

"What does that mean?"

"You won't like it."

"I figured."

"I found another spell. One that let me relive the last day of a person's life," Stiles said softly, bracing himself for what was to come.

"You didn't."

"I did."

"Stiles!" Isaac exclaimed, rearing back so they were facing each other. All of the color had drained out of Isaac's skin. "Tell me that doesn't mean what I think it means."

"Isaac."

"Did you feel what he went through? Did you feel him die?"

"It wasn't that bad."

"Oh my God," Isaac panted, covering his mouth with a shaky hand. "I think I'm gonna be sick."

"Just breathe, okay."

"Shit," Isaac mumbled, pulling Stiles into a crushing hug. He could feel Isaac's body trembling as he held him. "You shouldn't have had to go through that. Especially not because of me."

"Don't you dare blame yourself. And I'd do anything to find you, you know that."

"That doesn't make me hate it any less," Isaac sighed, running his hands along his body. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. It was just like a really intense virtual reality," Stiles assured him. He wasn't going to bring up the screaming.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"I should be asking you that. You're the one who went through the real thing," Stiles insisted, carding his fingers through Isaac's hair. It was getting long again, almost to the point where it had been when Derek had first given him the bite.

"There isn't anything to talk about. Just another near death experience to add to the tally," Isaac deflected. Stiles wanted to push for more, instead of letting Isaac bottle it up, but this didn't feel like the right time. They were good about opening up to each other when they were ready.

"No more of those, got it? It's getting kind of ridiculous."

"A man's gotta have hobbies."

"Choose a different one," Stiles snorted, scratching behind Isaac's ear in the way he knew he liked. Isaac melted into his touch, letting some of the tension he'd been holding drift away.

"You're gonna make me fall asleep," Isaac murmured tiredly, resting his head on Stiles' shoulder.

"You need the rest," Stiles said soothingly, continuing his ministrations. Isaac hummed in agreement, tucking himself that much closer to Stiles. He could feel Isaac's eyelashes brush across his neck as his blinks got more sluggish. It didn't take much longer for Isaac's breaths to even out. Stiles waited a few minutes for Isaac to be deeply asleep, before easing him to lay back on the couch in a more comfortable position. He grabbed the blanket that was hanging over the back of the couch and laid it on top of Isaac. It didn't seem like enough, so he jogged up to his bedroom to get some more. He opened the door, then immediately almost died from a heart attack.

"Stiles."

"Don't do that!" Stiles hissed, clutching his chest as his heart tried to escape from his ribcage. Derek was standing in front of his window, staring at him blandly.

"I'm here to check on Isaac."

"And I have a front door. Most houses do."

"How is he?" Derek asked, ignoring his last statement.

"He's healed, at least physically. The other stuff might take a while." Derek nodded once, keeping his expression even. He still did everything he could to pretend he didn't have emotions, even though personally checking on his Beta said the complete opposite. He could've asked Boyd or Erica for an update, but he came anyway. "Where have you been?"

"I was making sure Argent kept to his word. I followed him and his cargo to the airport. They are out of the country by now." Stiles felt his blood pressure instantly rise at the mention of the "cargo." He was glad that they would be nowhere near Isaac anymore, but he didn't know if he could fully trust that they would be taken care of properly. And the thought of what he'd prefer to happen to them made him think of his fight with Scott.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Has what I wanted ever stopped you from doing something?"

"Do you think I'm a bad person? Because of what I did to the guy who hurt Isaac?" Stiles asked nervously. He wasn't sure what he was expecting to hear from Derek. He was the type to be blunt and not worry about hurting feelings. Derek wouldn't lie to him.

"If it had just been me there, I would've killed them all," Derek said simply. Stiles was sort of taken aback by that response. Derek always threatened violence like it was nothing, but he usually didn't follow through. Stiles knew he was being serious right now.

"Do you think it's bad that I wouldn't have stopped you?"

"No."

"Really?"

"In a perfect world, no one would have to kill anyone. But we don't live in a perfect world. Sometimes there is no choice. As long as what you're doing is justified, as long as you can look at yourself in the mirror at the end of the day, knowing what you did had to be done, it doesn't matter what other people think."

"Yeah?"

"Would you look at your father differently if he had to kill someone on the job to save someone else?"

"Of course not!"

"So unless you're going out and maiming people for the hell of it, I don't see what the problem is."

"You make it sound so simple."

"It can be simple, if you accept that life is messy and sometimes you have to get messy to survive it."

"Tell that to Scott," Stiles muttered.

"Scott," Derek scoffed, shaking his head. "He can't handle that we see things differently from him."

"Don't compare me to you," Stiles whined. That was way too far in the opposite direction.

"You're a survivor, Stiles. As much as I loathe to compare us as well, we have that in common. You do what you have to do. Isaac is the same and so am I. We're also fighters."

"Am I though?" Stiles had always considered himself the brains before, but not one to be on the front lines. The magic was helping him get to that point, but it was still so new.

"Remember the fight with Peter? And with Jackson? You weren't even there, but you showed up anyway, using the skills you had at your disposal. Scott has to be dragged kicking and screaming into a fight and that's why he's different. If he can tell himself that anything ugly he had to do was forced on him, his hands and conscience stay clean. Seeing you do something you never had to and he never wanted to doesn't work with how he sees the world."

"That sounds like pretty much what Isaac said," Stiles sighed.

"My Beta is smart, like me," Derek smirked.

"He must get his humble nature from you as well," Stiles grunted, shaking his head as he walked over to his bed and grabbed the blanket he came up to get. "Did you want something else? I need to get this blanket to Isaac." Derek looked like he wanted to argue being brushed off, but didn't since it was for Isaac. He'd probably never admit how much he cared about his Betas, but Stiles could see it.

"If he needs anything, I'll be around," Derek said, glaring before he walked back to the window.

"Again, I have a front door."

"And you have a window," Derek smirked, before vaulting out of it more gracefully than he had any right to.

"Werewolves!" Stiles huffed, throwing his empty hand up in exasperation and muttering to himself as he walked back down the stairs. "The window and the door lead to the same place. This isn't like the wardrobe that leads to Narnia."

"But the window is so much more fun."

"Jeez!" Stiles yelped, almost dropping his blanket. Maybe there was a spell he could do for heart health. "Why aren't you asleep?"

"Because I woke up?" Isaac shrugged, sitting up on the couch. He still looked tired, but it was that rumpled sleepy look that drove Stiles wild. He loved seeing his boyfriend look strong and brave, but soft and relaxed was even better.

"I was getting you a blanket."

"I'll still take it. And you," Isaac said, standing up and walking over to him. He wrapped Stiles up in a hug and rested his head on his shoulder. "Feels like I'm always cold."

"You know, it's a lot easier to share body heat in a bed," Stiles said, shifting the blanket so it was tucked over Isaac's shoulders.

"Oh really," Isaac grinned against his neck.

"Scientifically proven. It's the combination of nudity and blankets. Add in a little bit of cardio and you'll be working up a sweat in no time."

"I'm not sure, but I'm willing to test out your theory."

"For the good of mankind," Stiles agreed, grabbing Isaac's hand and pulling him up the stairs. Isaac pulled him into a searing kiss as soon as they made it into the bedroom, closing the door with a bump of his hip. Stiles ran his hand over every inch of skin he could reach, needing the comfort just as much as he carved the pleasure. "God, I missed this."

"It's only been a few days since we've fooled around," Isaac chuckled, before he peppered kisses along Stiles' jaw.

"A few days too long," Stiles groaned, turning them and crowding Isaac until he walked backward toward the bed. His knees hit the back of the mattress and he fell onto it, pulling Stiles down with him. Stiles climbed up his body, straddling Isaac's hips and grinding down. "I don't think I can relax until I've kissed every inch of your body."

"That doesn't sound very relaxing," Isaac panted, throwing an arm over his eyes.

"Is someone getting worked up?" Stiles questioned cheekily. The hardness Stiles could feel poking him gave him all the answer he needed. There was no way they were going straight to the main event though. Stiles was going to drag this out as long as humanly possible. At least, as long as they had the house to themselves.

"And a little chilly," Isaac murmured.

"Right, body heat. Let me help you with that," Stiles smirked, pulling his shirt off and tossing it away. He took his time with Isaac's, lifting it inch by inch and kissing him along the way. Isaac squirmed under him, moving his hands around like he wasn't sure what to do with them. Stiles finally pulled Isaac's shirt all the way off, leaning back to appreciate the view. Perfect, unharmed skin laid before him, just how it should always be. "Gorgeous." Isaac groaned at the praise, but Stiles would never stop heaping it on him. He deserved it all and more.

Stiles laid down on top of Isaac, needing as much skin to skin contact as he could get. The urge to stay like this and never separate felt almost overwhelming. Isaac rubbed at his shoulders, probably trying to get him to hurry up or to shift them so he could feel Stiles as well, but he didn't budge. This was about Isaac's pleasure, not his. Stiles wrapped his hands around Isaac's wrists and held them to his sides, taking control so he could keep the focus on Isaac.

"Beautiful," Stiles purred into Isaac's skin, lavishing every inch with kisses and licks. Isaac's body was trembling with pleasure underneath him and it egged Stiles on even more. He swirled his tongue around Isaac's bellybutton, making his ab muscles jerk at the sensation. "So perfect." Stiles got lost in the sensations, feeling the tension building in his stomach without even being touched. He closed his eyes and writhed against Isaac's body.

Stiles needed more. He needed something that would get rid of all the painful memories. Something that would make it so nothing bad ever happened to them again. He needed the reassurance that nothing could ever tear them apart. That probably wasn't something that existed, but he was happy enough to pretend that this moment would last forever.

Stiles sucked a bit of Isaac's pec into his mouth, marking him in a way his boyfriend always went wild for. All of Stiles' marks had faded by now and he couldn't wait until he was covered in them again. Isaac always made it his mission to sneak them into places that couldn't be seen, like it was their little secret. Stiles could put them anywhere on Isaac, since they never lasted.

Isaac's breath hitched as Stiles kissed the fading color. He was right about this not being very relaxing. Stiles could feel Isaac's heart pounding away in his chest. He put his ear over the thumping, counting the beats and thanking every higher power for each one.

But were they coming a little too fast? And was there something wrong with Isaac's breathing? Stiles sat up and looked down at his boyfriend, feeling sick at what he saw. Isaac's eyes were open and staring blankly at the ceiling. There were tears spilling across his cheeks and the only sound in the room now were his tiny, gasping breaths.

"Isaac?" Stiles whispered, reaching to cup his cheek. As soon as he made contact, Isaac let out a whimper that had Stiles jerking back as fast as he could. The touch must've opened the floodgates because now Isaac was letting out heaving sobs while he was still frozen on his back. Stiles tried again to touch him, but Isaac started shaking even more violently.

What had he done? Stiles had been too lost in this own needs to pay attention to what was happening to Isaac. Had he been struggling the whole time? Had Stiles been too selfish to notice? Stiles backed away from the bed, feeling sick to his stomach. He needed someone to come help Isaac so he wouldn't hurt him anymore. Stiles pulled out his phone, jamming the buttons hard enough to almost crack the screen.

"What?"

"I fucked up," Stiles choked out, barely keeping a handle on his own tears. "Derek."

"I'm coming," Derek replied sharply, before disconnecting the call. Faster than Stiles could comprehend, or maybe he was just too panicked to track time, Derek was bursting through his window. He didn't have a problem with it this time. Derek barely glanced over at him before rushing over to Isaac, surveying the situation. Isaac was still gasping out sobs, each one sounding more painful than the last.

"I thought he was fine," Stiles sniffled, covering his mouth with his hand.

"You should go," Derek said gruffly, carefully approaching his crying Beta.

"But-"

"Stiles," Derek said firmly, before turning a pair of understanding eyes toward him. Stiles didn't usually get that expression from Derek, so he was inclined to listen to him. "I've got him."

"Okay," Stiles whispered, taking one last look at Isaac before his wobbly legs led him out of the room. He got as far as the hallway before he sank down to the floor, wrapping his arms around his legs as he listened to the low voice of Derek soothing Isaac. He couldn't make out the words, but it sounded like Isaac's cries were getting a bit quieter. The crying he'd caused.

Stiles wasn't sure how long he sat in the hallway before a hand touching his shoulder snapped him out of his stupor. He looked up, finding Scott crouched in front of him. The combative look from the night before was replaced by one of concern.

"What are you doing here?"

"Derek texted me. Come on, I'm taking you to Deaton's with me."

"I can't go," Stiles argued. He couldn't leave Isaac. He had to make sure he was okay.

"I think you should give him time. Give both of you a chance to calm down, then talk when things aren't so fresh," Scott suggested, pulling him up without waiting for an answer. Stiles was too drained to fight, letting himself be dragged out of the house. Away from the most important person in his life. Could he even call Isaac that anymore? And would Isaac feel the same way? They'd gotten Isaac back, but now they felt more separated than ever before.