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"You'll be fine," Uncle Peter assured Derek as they pulled up to the school in Peter's car.
Derek sighed. He fiddled with his seat belt. Uncle Peter insisted they wear the belts, mostly because he didn't want to draw attention to themselves by not wearing them. Even as 'wolves, they still could be killed if ejected from the car in an crash.
His family and his therapist had been telling Derek everything would be fine but he wasn't sure he believed it. But his therapist had urged him it was time. Until you try, you won't know if you're ready.
"You can call if you have any problems," Uncle Peter promised.
Derek nodded. His phone was programmed to call Uncle Peter in an emergency. And his mom. And his therapist.
"I'll be here when school lets out," Uncle Peter said.
"Okay." Derek didn't move.
"I think this is where you get out of the car," Uncle Peter said gently.
"Yeah. I know." Derek took a deep breath. "Thanks." He got out of the car and slung his backpack over one shoulder.
Derek didn't look back but he didn't hear the car drive away until he was inside the building. Luckily, he was a bit early and the chaos of the day had not reached its peak. Yet.
He went to the office.
"Excuse me?" Derek said politely. "I'm Derek Hale. I'm supposed to see a guidance counselor? Mr. Matias?"
The woman at the desk looked up at him and squinted. "Oh. Yes. Hang on," she said, peering at the computer screen. "Right. Mr. Matias is expecting you. He's down the hall, second door on the left." She waved a hand in the direction of the offices.
"Thank you," Derek replied. He went down the corridor and knocked on the door that had the counselor's name.
"Derek. Good, you're early," Matias said. Mr. Matias was a silver-haired Hispanic man. His shirt was already rumpled, Derek suspected it had started out that way, although the man didn't wear a tie. "Sit for a minute."
Derek perched on the edge of the chair. He got a whiff of cigarette smoke. Matias might be a smoker, although the smell was light enough that he might live with a smoker. The office also smelled faintly of tears, Matias must get the criers Derek thought absently.
"Okay, this is for you," Matias handed Derek a folder. "It has your class schedule, an updated school ID, a locker assignment, lunch information, and my office hours. There is some preliminary information about senior year pictures, events, and graduation. You'll get more of that as the year goes on."
Derek took the folder and opened it. He looked at the class schedule. It had the classes his mom had said would be there, he'd figure everything else out as he went. He didn't really need a locker but he wouldn't turn it down. It was good to have a back-up storage if he needed it.
"Per your mother's request, I have not talked to your teachers beyond letting them know you're coming back for your senior year after some health problems that have been resolved," Matias said.
Derek knew Matias wasn't a 'wolf but that he was in-the-know about the supernatural. Something Derek wished he knew a year ago.
"You're always welcome to contact me if you have questions or run into problems," Matias went on gently.
"I... should be okay," Derek said softly.
"If you need, you have a pass in there for the Nurse's Office," Matias said. "That's a safe space you can retreat to. When you have a chance, stop by there and introduce yourself so the nurses know who you are. They have your school ID picture, of course, but it's easier if you stop by."
"Okay," Derek replied. He took out the school ID and winced. The picture had been taken at least a year ago and he looked so much younger.
"Yeah, most of the ID pictures are awful," Matias gave a small laugh. "You're not alone in that."
"Good to know," Derek replied.
"Any questions for me?" Matias asked.
"Not that I can think of," Derek admitted. "Thank you."
"Not a problem!" Matias said cheerfully. "And if you need anything, and I mean anything, you're welcome to come here."
Derek could sense that the man meant that sincerely, and Derek nodded. "I appreciate that."
"Okay, then," Matias said. "Have a good day."
"I'll try," Derek said as he stood.
"That's all any of us can do," Matias nodded.
Derek left and went through the main office. The woman he talked to earlier was busy with another student, so Derek went out into the hall to find his way to his first class.
"I tell you, Scott! I have a five-year plan! I'm going to work on Lydia and she'll have no choice but to fall in love with me!" a voice said.
Derek looked around to see who was talking. He spotted the speaker, another student that might be about Derek's age. He wasn't as tall as Derek but he was wiry, with short brown hair and wearing a plaid shirt over a Beatles t-shirt.
"I don't know, Stiles," the boy with him sounded doubtful. "I don't think Lydia even knows who you are."
"You know she knows me! We have classes together!" Stiles, evidently -- and what kind of a name was that? -- replied to his friend. "Come on, I have AP Chemistry and Harris already hates me, so I don't want to be late on the first day."
Derek also had AP Chemistry with Harris so he followed Stiles to the classroom. His friend went off in another direction, evidently not in AP Chem with them. Stiles sat off to one side and Derek slid into a seat next to him.
"Oh, hey!" Stiles said. "Are you new? I'm Stiles."
"Derek," Derek replied. "Not really new but, well, it's a long story."
Stiles shrugged. "Whatever. If you need anything, let me know."
"Thanks," Derek replied.
Derek winced as the early bell rang. Damn. He had forgotten about that. He needed to get used to the noise.
A flurry of students came into the room. A red-haired female student sat at one of the desks at the front of the room. Derek could smell Stiles' faint lust for the girl, something he didn't want to know. But, well, he was a teen-age boy himself.
The final bell rang, Derek was better prepared for it this time, and a man walked in to stand in the front of the room.
"I'm Mr. Harris, and this is AP Chemistry," he said baldly. He handed a sheaf of papers to the red-haired girl. "Pass the syllabus around and make sure you get one." He waited a moment while the papers got passed around. Derek and Stiles got the last two sets.
"In this course you will learn about the fundamental concepts of chemistry including structure and states of matter, intermolecular forces, and reactions. You’ll do hands-on lab investigations and use chemical calculations to solve problems. Save your lab notebooks and reports; colleges may ask to see them before granting you credit," Harris rattled off as if reading from a page. "The goal is to be prepared for the Advanced Placement Chemistry exam offered in early May."
Derek nodded. Any chance he had to earn some college credit was to his benefit. Even if he didn't do well on the exam, he needed the science credit for his high school diploma.
"You are seniors, you chose to be in this class," Harris went on. "There is a lot of material for you to learn and a lot of experiments to perform. I will not listen to excuses about anything. Late assignments will not be accepted, so it will be to your benefit to work ahead and pay attention."
Derek nodded. Laura had warned him Harris was a stickler for deadlines.
"I am calling roll today for the first and last time," Harris said. "I don't care if you come to class or not. However, there will be pop-quizzes that will count toward your final grade. So plan to be here."
Yup. No change on that, either.
Harris did not look up as he called last names. The girl in the front was 'Martin' and the boy next to him was 'Stilinski' although there had been a stir of interest from Stiles when Derek answered to the bored 'Hale' that Harris called out.
"The textbook information is on the syllabus," Harris said. "Getting it is up to you." He finally looked around the room. "Any questions?"
It was more of a dare than an honest question. Silence.
"Pick a lab partner and check out your workstations," Harris ordered. "Each station has the equipment on the list. I set those up myself, so I know exactly what is there. If you break something, let me know so it can be replaced. If something disappears, that is your problem and needs to be replaced before you need it."
Yeah. Laura was right. Harris is a dick, Derek realized.
Most of the students paired up with whomever they were sitting with. Stiles made an aborted move, likely to ask to pair up with the Martin girl but she turned to whomever she was sitting with and Stiles settled back.
"Willing to be lab partners?" Derek asked.
"Yeah, sure," Stiles replied with an unenthusiastic shrug. "It'll be fine."
"I don't know anyone," Derek admitted.
Stiles did look at him at that point. "Right. Yeah, we'll be okay," he said. "Unless you're a slacker and then you'll regret being paired with me."
Derek gave a sharp grin at that. "Unless you're the slacker, and then you'll be sorry to be paired with me."
Stiles gave a barking laugh. "Okay, we'll be good."
"Let's check out a workstation," Derek said.
There were two workstations left by the time they got moving to the working lab space.
"Don't take that one," Stiles hissed as Derek moved toward the one at the back of the room. "That's on the end of all the systems and half of them don't work right. There is never hot water, the cold water is only a dribble, and the gas flow is pathetic."
"Good to know," Derek said. He wondered briefly how Stiles knew but that was a conversation for another day.
"This one isn't quite as bad," Stiles said. "Although there is rarely any hot water."
"We'll live," Derek shrugged.
"You have your schedule?" Stiles asked. "I know we'll need time outside of class to do some of this work and I don't want to spend my nights in school, if you know what I mean."
"Oh, right," Derek said. He pulled his schedule from the folder.
"Dude!" Stiles said, looking at the paper.
"Don't call me 'dude'!" Derek growled.
Stiles held up his hands. "Whoa, down boy!"
Derek took a breath and let it out. "Sorry... just... don't."
Stiles nodded. "I get it, my bad," he apologized.
"It's just that we have, like, exactly the same schedule," Stiles said, unfolding a sheet of paper that had been in his back pocket.
Derek stared at the duplicate schedule.
"Looks like we're going to be seeing a lot of each other, du--"
Derek glared.
"Big guy," Stiles finished with a wry grin.
"No study halls," Derek said. They both had packed schedules.
"Yeah, but we have lunch at the same time," Stiles said. "Sometimes, that's all we need." He frowned. "Unless you're into sports?"
Derek shook his head. "Nah, not my thing." He was barely ready for school. Managing his 'wolf strength for any sport was more than he could handle.
"Good enough," Stiles nodded. "Hale? You live in the Preserve?"
Derek nodded.
"Okay, we'll work something out," Stiles said. "My dad works a lot and it's just me and him. So I have the house to myself more often than not. Well, except for Scott. He's only in AP History with us. He only got in because there was a seat available, not because of his outstanding grades. So he'll need a lot of my time to keep up with that."
"You're not worried about the rest of these?" Derek asked. He knew taking all AP classes would be a stretch. He hadn't realized anyone else would be masochistic enough to do the same thing.
"There's a dozen of us doing all of these classes," Stiles said. "There's another couple dozen taking two or three and another bunch like Scott, taking one."
"Okay..." Derek drawled.
"We'll suck you into the Dark Side, don't worry," Stiles said as he started to gather up his belongings.
"Only if you have cookies," Derek said solemnly.
Stiles laughed merrily.
Sure enough, half of the Chemistry class was in all of his classes over the rest of the day.
Derek officially met Scott at lunch -- Scott was the person Stiles had been with early that morning. Derek had to breathe a couple of times to deal with the cacophony of voices in the enclosed space. Maybe working on Chemistry projects over lunch would be better than dealing with the noise.
"Scotty, my man! How's it going?" Stiles asked as a floppy-haired boy with a crooked jaw sat down with him and Stiles at a table off to one side. Derek saw the Martin girl with some of the other AP kids and a handful of jocks at a table in the center of the room. He also saw Stiles look longingly at her before leading Derek to where they were currently sitting, in a corner against the wall.
"Meh," Scott shrugged. "I feel like I'm a week behind and it's only lunchtime on the first day."
Derek brought his lunch out of his backpack. He was glad not to be eating the school lunch, what he saw of it looked pretty pathetic.
Stiles, who also had packed a lunch, pointed his finger at his friend. "Which is exactly why I talked you out of even trying for those other AP classes."
Scott, who was eating the cafeteria lunch, sighed. "Yeah, but... I already miss you!"
"We're going to History next, you'll get your daily dose of Stiles and then you'll be all set for the rest of the day," Stiles said.
Scott stuck his hand out at Derek. "Scott McCall. Friend of Stiles."
Derek shook the hand. "Derek Hale."
"I've adopted Derek," Stiles announced. "We're lab partners-in-crime against Harris, who was his usual dickish self today."
"Man, is he ever going to retire?" Scott nodded in agreement.
"My sister Laura had Harris when she was a student and she moaned about the same thing," Derek admitted.
"The man hates me," Stiles admitted. "You may end up being collateral damage if something happens."
"I'll have to protect you from yourself," Derek said.
"Ha! If you can do that, you'll be lucky," Scott said as he inhaled his lunch. Although Derek could hear a slight wheeze in Scott's breath. He wondered what that might be.
"Come on, History is next," Stiles said.
"Do we know anything about the new History teacher?" Scott asked as he took his tray to the drop off.
"Nope!" Stiles shook his head. "It says Yukimura on the schedule, so your guess is as good as mine."
"Then we'll find out together," Derek said.
"Too true," Stiles nodded.
When Scott started to head to the back of the almost empty room, Derek shook his head. "I'd rather sit closer to the front, if that's okay."
"Yeah, Scottie, we gotta do good so, come on. The middle will be better," Stiles encouraged his friend.
Scott gave a huff but moved to sit next to Stiles, which was in back of the seat Derek took. The Martin girl sat in the front again and the rest of the group arrayed themselves around the room.
Mr. Yukimura was, as Derek would have guessed, of Oriental heritage, maybe Japanese but with a definite New York accent. Interesting.
The teacher stood in front of the class and handed out the course syllabus.
"Okay, first thing I'm going to do before anyone asks is point out that Kira, over there by the windows, is my daughter," Yukimura explained. "This is the only AP History section, which is the only reason she is in one of my classes. Mrs. Readling, who I suspect most of you know as one of the other History teachers, will be correcting her tests and papers, so there's no conflict of interest. Or at least as little as possible."
Kira blushed beet red in her seat by the window but gamely waved a hand at the class.
"Okay, with that over, this is what we're going to do this year to prepare you for the AP History exam," Yukimura went on.
Derek heard Scott take a deep breath as he leaned forward to see the girl. Oh, great. Now he could smell Scott. Derek was starting to regret his decision to come back and work on his high school diploma.
By the end of the day, Derek was exhausted.
"See you tomorrow!" Stiles waved as Derek left their last class.
Derek waved absently over his shoulder and fiercely hoped Uncle Peter was waiting. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the car sitting out front with Peter sitting in the driver seat.
Derek dropped heavily into the front seat and sighed gustily.
"That bad?" Peter asked.
"Yeah. No. Just... a lot," Derek admitted.
Derek was grateful when Peter didn't go into the 'I told you so' lecture that he knew his mother would have given. They had both suggested that he go out into public, even to the grocery store or the mall, to get used to being around people. Derek knew he had spent too much time alone over the last year and the shock of being with so many other people for several hours was painful.
"How are your classes?" Peter asked.
"Okay," Derek admitted. "There's a group of other students taking all the same classes, so I spent a lot of time with mostly the same people."
"Do you need anything?" Peter asked.
"Nah. Mom ordered all the required textbooks and if there's anything I need, I'll let her know," Derek replied.
"Good," Peter replied. He drove back to the Hale house, pulling up in front of the door. "I have to go back out but I'll be back for dinner."
"Okay," Derek nodded. "Thanks."
"Any time, pup," Peter said. He ran a hand down Derek's arm, the scenting was comforting.
Derek stood still as Peter drove away. He took a deep breath of the fresh air and enjoyed the moment of relative silence.
"Derek? Is that you, honey?" his mom called from inside.
He knew she had identified him the moment he was near the property but he answered anyway. "Yeah, mom. I'm home!"
"Come inside," she called. "Thought you might like a snack."
Resigned to the interrogation, Derek gamely sat at the kitchen table and took the plate of cake and glass of milk his mom handed him. Although it was his favorite, spice cake, so she had made an effort to make him happy.
"So, tell me how it went," she encouraged.
"Mostly it was what I expected," Derek admitted. "Although it turns out there's a small group of about a dozen other students who are taking the same set of AP classes. So I have the same schedule as them."
"Anyone interesting?"
Derek shrugged. "I paired up with Stiles Stilinkski in Chem and hung out with him all day."
"Stilinski? Is that the Sheriff's son?" his mom asked with a frown.
"I would guess so," Derek admitted. "I don't know how many Stilinski's there are in town." He frowned at her. "Don't do anything about it."
"Just looking out for you, sweetie," Talia admitted.
"I know, just... let it be," Derek said firmly. His therapist encouraged Derek not to be afraid to set boundaries with his family.
She looked startled but then pleased that he had said 'no' to her. "All right," she nodded. "But don't hesitate to let me know if you want me to check on it."
"Thanks for the cake," Derek said, finishing the glass of milk she had poured. "I'm going to take a nap before dinner. Oh, and Uncle Peter said he'd be back for dinner."
"Do you have homework?" she asked.
"Nothing is due tomorrow," he admitted. "But I need to organize it, there's a lot to do."
"Okay, then," she said as she held him close to scent him. "Have a good nap."
Derek took off the clothes that smelled of too many other people before he fell asleep. He slept heavily and was glad he had set an alarm. He got up and went down to the now bustling kitchen.
"Hey, Derek," his dad gave him a quick hug. "How are you?"
"Doing okay," Derek admitted. "What needs to be done?" He was glad when his dad didn't ask any more questions.
"Set the table," his dad said. "Everything else is under control."
"Okay," Derek nodded.
As they were cleaning up after dinner, Laura asked, "So, is Harris still a dick?"
"Oh, geez, yes," Derek nodded. "Evidently, I also got stuck with the one person Harris hates as a lab partner."
"Oh? Who has that unenviable position?" Laura laughed. "They gotta be pretty bad."
"Nah," Derek shook his head. "Stiles is in all the AP classes that I am and you know that doesn't happen by accident."
"Stiles? What kind of a name is that?" Laura looked puzzled.
"His last name is Stilinski and all the teachers called him Stiles," Derek said. "Wait. Mr. Yukimura, the new History teacher seemed to hesitate over Stiles' name when he called roll, but Stiles said, 'call me Stiles' and that's what Mr. Yukimura did. Maybe he has one of those weird names."
"That's possible," Laura nodded. "How did you do?"
"Meh. It was loud, of course, and I took a nap when I got home," Derek admitted. "But it was mostly okay."
"Good," Laura nodded.
"I need to do some planning things," Derek said as they finished putting away the pots and pans. "This is going to be a lot of work and I need to put it on a schedule so I don't forget anything."
"I'll finish up today," she said. "But don't expect it all the time!"
"Thanks," Derek grinned.
Back up in his room, he spread the syllabi out on his desk. He went through each of them carefully, noting assignment due dates, dates for tests, the exam dates, and anything else that he could glean from the papers.
Of course, nothing was perfect and he paid attention to deadlines from different classes that fell at the same time. The good news was that he wasn't the only one who would have to deal with this.
He pulled everything back together and organized what he would need for classes tomorrow. He went back downstairs to organize his lunch. There was no way he was ever eating the cafeteria food if he could help it.
The second day was easier and knowing he'd see Stiles again made it easier to get out of the car when Peter dropped him off.
"Thanks!" Derek waved.
"See you at the end of the day!" Peter nodded before driving off.
Derek didn't have anything to put in his locker, so he went directly to the Chemistry classroom. He was surprised to be the first on there but it was only the second day.
Stiles came in just as the first bell was ringing. Derek was better prepared today and it wasn't as bothersome.
"Hey! We need to exchange phone numbers," Stiles said. "I wanted to talk to you about a couple of things last night and realized I didn't have your number."
Derek nodded. "Good idea," he said.
Stiles handed Derek his phone. "Here, put your number in my contacts and I'll call you."
Derek dutifully entered his number into Stiles' phone and then pressed send. He handed the phone back to Stiles as he answered his own phone. Derek answered and hung up so that the number would be in his contact list.
Stiles nodded. He looked around. "Can you come early some days? Maybe we can get some work done before classes start?"
"Sure," Derek replied. "My Uncle Peter is taking me and picking me up right now but that's only for a few days." Derek knew Peter was waiting for him to admit he didn't need someone to take him to and from school.
"Cool!" Stiles nodded. "We can work that out."
"Don't any of the AP instructors talk to each other?" Derek asked. "There are a bunch of assignments due at the same time. That's going to be a pain."
Stiles laughed. "Actually, my theory is that they do talk and work to make it as hard as possible on us. So all that doubling and tripling up is on purpose."
Derek had to laugh.
"Come on, class is ready to start," Stiles said.
Harris was at least consistent. He obviously hated Stiles but he was pretty rude to everyone. Even the Martin girl who sat in the front and who was unfailingly polite.
Harris gave a pop quiz, even though it was only the second day, but it was mostly things they should already know. Derek knew he messed up at least one question but he didn't feel too bad about that.
It was... nice to have someone to hang out with that didn't treat him like he was fragile. Uncle Peter was the only one who came close to treating him like he did... before. But his mom and dad were still too careful. He'd have to talk to his therapist for some ideas on how to get them to relax.
Stiles babbled at him all day. It took until lunchtime on the third day of school to realize Stiles didn't need a reply to everything he said but Derek tried to pay attention anyway.
Scott joined them for lunch and for History, which made for something of a 'break' in the day. Scott drew Stiles' attention when he was there, which Derek honestly did not mind. Derek had gone from being alone or with family for days on end to being around people for multiple hours. So it wasn't Stiles -- it was just the intense experience.
"Doing anything this weekend?" Stiles asked as they packed up from their last class of the week.
"Getting started on all the reading we have to do," Derek admitted.
"Yeah," Stiles nodded. "That's my plan, too. Where you going to start?"
"Probably with the Lit," Derek admitted. "Some of those stories look interesting. And writing Lit papers is my weakness, so I need more time to let the stories percolate before I can try to write that first assignment."
"If you get bored, text me," Stiles said. "Dad has to work most of the weekend and Scott's working all day Saturday and Sunday. So I'll be glad for a distraction."
"I'll keep that in mind," Derek nodded.
Peter was waiting for him.
"See you Monday!" Stiles waved.
"See you!" Derek waved back.
Derek had been out for a run in the Preserve then helped with breakfast before he settled in to the desk in his room to look at the Lit reading. He found a text on his phone from Stiles.
hey... one of the first readings is a poem... I suck at poetry... help...
Derek paged through the Lit book and identified the reading. He sighed. It was one of Longfellow's poems, Evangeline: A Study of Acadie. Great.
i suck at it too
He thought for a moment. He looked at the time Stiles had sent the message. Two hours ago.
did you find a study guide yet
He watched the dots start and stop. Stiles came back with a link to an online study guide for the poem.
your a lifesaver Derek sent back.
The study guide helped a lot and some of the questions their teacher had asked were almost directly from the study guide. Since Derek knew the other students were smart, he used the answers in the study guide to help him write something slightly different. For one of the questions, he went out on a limb and contradicted the answer in the study guide, figuring it was worth trying. If nothing else, he'd see what the Lit teacher was looking for.
The first Chemistry assignment was going to be due later this week. Luckily, it was largely a research project so he wouldn't need to spend too much time in the lab. But there were a couple of things he should review with Stiles, just so they were on the same page.
that chem thing... can we stay after school for a bit on mon or tue to go over it... thought I should go over parts of it with you since were partners
Stiles must have been near his phone.
mon works... what about your ride
i can drive myself... mon works
cool
Sunday afternoon, Derek sought Peter out.
"Umm... I'm gonna drive myself to school, if that's okay with you," Derek said. "Gonna stay for a bit and do some homework with Stiles."
Peter looked surprised but Derek got a whiff of approval.
"Sure, pup," Peter said. "Thanks for letting me know."
"Umm... thanks for taking me this week," Derek said. "It... it helped."
Peter gave a nod. "Always glad to help out."
In the morning, by himself in a car he hadn't driven by himself in months, Derek almost changed his mind. He suspected -- hoped -- Stiles wouldn't mind the change of plans. Then he took a deep breath and started the car. He knew others had been driving it and the smell of his pack in the car helped him put the car into gear and drive to school.
At the end of the day, Stiles asked, "Where did you want to work? Here? The chem lab?"
"The lab, I think," Derek said. "Some of the questions I have are about the equipment and I want to make sure I'm getting it right."
"That makes sense," Stiles nodded.
Scott came up to them. "Where you guys going?" he asked, looking expectantly.
"I told you at lunch we needed to work on some Chem things," Stiles said patiently.
"Oh, right," Scott nodded. "Sure. I gotta go to work anyway." He waved. "See you later." He rushed off.
"Scotty, Scotty, Scotty," Stiles shook his head.
It was said fondly, so Derek held on to his questions about Scott and Stiles' relationship.
It didn't take as long as he thought it might to fill in the questions for the first assignment.
"Let's start on that next assignment, unless you have to be somewhere?" Stiles asked.
Derek shook his head. "Nope," he said. "Just let me let my mom know I'll be later than I told her."
"Sure!" Stiles nodded.
Derek sent his mom a quick text about staying later at school and then settled in to working on the next assignment in the Chem list. It was mostly using the equipment to do measurements in both linear and volumetric systems, as well as both English and metric.
"Glad that's done!" Stiles said as he scribbled in a notebook. "Rather be ahead than behind in this class."
"Yeah," Derek nodded.
"Want to get some pizza or something?" Stiles asked as they packed up their belongings.
Derek hesitated.
Stiles shrugged. "If not today, some other time is okay," he said. "Just my dad isn't going to be home, so I'm on my own."
"Oh." The simplicity and acceptance of that loneliness took Derek's breath away. "Sorry, can't today but some other time?"
Stiles smiled. "Yeah, that would be great."
"Need a ride?" Derek asked as they closed up the chem lab for the night.
"Nah, I got Roscoe," Stiles said.
"Roscoe? You named your car Roscoe?"
"It's a jeep," Stiles replied. "It was my mom's and, well, that's what she called it." A shrug. "Never found out why and even my dad isn't sure where the name comes from."
"Huh, kinda cool," Derek said.
"Yeah," Stiles replied.
There were only a handful of vehicles in the parking lot. Derek's Toyota didn't stand out but the blue jeep did. "That's yours?" Derek asked. "Looks like fun!"
"It can be," Stiles admitted. "Needs lots of work, which I can't afford. So I try to baby it as much as I can."
"I know a little about cars. Maybe some weekend I can give you a hand?" Derek found himself volunteering before he really realized what he was doing.
"It's okay for now but maybe in a couple of weeks?" Stiles said. "I need to check the breaks and change the oil, so another set of hands would be good."
"That's easy," Derek nodded. "Sure. Let me know when you're ready to do that."
"We can combine it with a study session," Stiles said. "I'll look at the schedule and see when we might benefit from some serious working time."
"That would be good," Derek replied.
"See you tomorrow!" Stiles waved as Derek went off to his car.
At home, Talia asked, "How was your study session?"
"Good," Derek admitted. "Stiles and I knocked out a couple of assignments for Harris, so we're at least a little ahead."
"Mr. Harris," Talia corrected.
"Sure," Derek shrugged.
"I know your sister didn't like the man, but that doesn't give you an excuse to be rude," Talia said firmly.
"Okay," Derek replied. "He hasn't said anything overtly rude to me in class yet, so I guess I'll give him a break."
"Better," Talia said with a nod.
She came over and gave him a small hug. "You spend a lot of time with Stiles," she said.
"Yeah, well, he is in all my classes," Derek defended.
"It's not a bad thing," Talia tried.
"And Scott hangs out with us, too," Derek said. "But he's only in one class with us."
"Just keeping tabs on you," Talia said gently.
Like you should have a year ago... Derek tried not to be bitter. At least she was trying.
"I have more homework," Derek said. "I'll come down when it's time to set the table."
"Okay, go and get that work done!" Talia replied with a small laugh.
Derek took a minute to think about his relationship with Stiles. Well, using the word 'relationship' made it sound bigger than it might be. But there was nothing hidden about it, nothing out of place. Nothing to worry about. Maybe. He bit his lips for a moment.
Maybe he should talk to his therapist. That would be good. He sent Bill a text, asking for an online meeting tomorrow or the next day, in the early evening. Derek was in the middle of working on writing up the Chem assignment he and Stiles had completed when Bill came back with an appointment for the next evening. Sending back a confirmation, Derek went back to his school work.
The next evening, Derek closed the door to his room, for privacy. The soundproofing would ensure that no one would listen in to his discussion with his therapist.
"Derek! Good to hear from you!" Bill said. "How are you doing?"
"Mostly okay," Derek said. "School is a lot. A lot of work and a lot of people but, well, I think it's a good thing for me."
"Good to know," Bill replied. "Did you have a specific question you wanted to talk about or just to talk?"
"I'm just... checking on my own reactions," Derek said. "I think it's okay but, well, mom asked a question about it and it got me to thinking and then I realized I was thinking too much. So I figured it would be good to check in and get another opinion."
"That alone is good," Bill nodded. "The fact that you're willing to examine your initial reaction and decide to get another opinion about it is a good move. Tell me about it."
Derek elaborated on his interactions with Stiles. How they were in all the same classes and that they seemed to have gravitated together. That Derek even offered to help Stiles work on his jeep.
"Stiles does have another close friend, Scott," Derek said. "He's in History with us and I know he and Stiles hang out sometimes. But Scott has a part-time job that takes a lot of his spare time. We mostly hang out with Scott at lunch and in History."
"Do you and Stiles spend a lot of time together, just the two of you?" Bill asked.
"Not really? We did spend a couple of hours in the lab doing a couple of Chemistry assignments," Derek said. "We do text occasionally, which I don't do with anyone else."
"Does it feel like a good relationship?" Bill asked.
"I think so?" Derek said. "We have similar goals, to pass these classes. But other than that, I don't know a lot about Stiles."
"What have you told Stiles?" Bill asked.
"Nothing, really," Derek admitted. "But, well, Stiles' dad is the Sheriff and he was around... then."
"So Stiles' dad likely knows what happened," Bill said.
"Yes," Derek agreed. "He was there... that night."
"Does Stiles know anything?"
"I don't think so?" Derek admitted.
"What do you think might happen if Stiles did know?" Bill asked.
"Ummm...." Derek hesitated. "I don't know."
"Would he walk away from you? Or be upset with you?"
"I don't think so," Derek said. "No."
"That sounds pretty definite," Bill pointed out.
"Yeah... Stiles is a good person," Derek said.
"You sound pretty convinced of that," Bill said.
"I think I am," Derek nodded.
"Does that answer your question?"
"It does!" Derek said, pleased with his own reaction to Bill's probing.
"Anything else?"
"I don't think so," Derek shook his head.
"Want to make an appointment for, say, two weeks?" Bill suggested. "That will give you some more time in school and more time with Stiles and your other classmates."
Derek nodded. "That's a good idea," he replied. "And it will help me stop from spiraling if I know I'll be talking to you soon."
"Going back to school was a big step but it sounds like you're doing well," Bill said. "Keep up the good work."
"I will, thanks!" Derek smiled.
Feeling more settled, Derek went back to his homework.
The next few weeks rolled on. Derek found that he and Stiles worked well together. It was nice to have someone to talk to about assignments and to read each other's papers before they turned the papers in.
They spent one weekend working along with Scott at the Stilinski home on the History project that was required for the class. Stiles' dad must be working again, Derek never saw him.
Derek watched as Stiles walked a fine line between gently coaching Scott and actually doing the work for him. Derek realized Stiles had a lot of experience in getting Scott to do his own work and left them to sort that out between them. Derek stayed long enough to share some pizza and play a round of video games before he left.
Derek was sitting in Chem early one morning, before anyone else came in. He didn't mean to listen in, but he couldn't stop once he heard Stiles' voice. He'd think about that later.
"Stiles! Do it! Come on, one of us has to get a date to the dance," Scott said. "You have a good shot at it!"
"I don't know..." Stiles tried to protest.
"Come on," Scott whined. "You should do it!"
"Scott!"
"Stiles!"
"I've been waiting for Lydia..."
"Stiles! That's not going to happen, and you know it," Scott said gently. Derek gave Scott credit for challenging Stiles on his obsession with the girl.
Stiles let out a breath in frustration. "I will, if you ask Kira," Stiles countered.
"Kira! She won't go with me!" It was Scott's turn to protest.
"Teacher's kid," Stiles pointed out. "No one will ask her. But she's kinda cute."
"She is cute," Scott admitted.
"You ask Kira and I'll do it," Stiles said.
"Deal!" Scott was enthusiastic.
"See you later!" Stiles said. He stopped in the doorway when he noticed Derek in the room. He took a breath and then slid into his usual seat.
"Morning," Derek said casually.
Stiles fumbled his books and took a breath. "Um, I was wondering..."
Just then a handful of other Chem students clattered into the room. Including Lydia Martin who, as usual, completely ignored both Derek and Stiles.
"... never mind," Stiles said, shaking his head.
"Can you stay late tonight?" Derek asked. "We should get that next Chem assignment done sooner than later." And it was going to be the full moon on Saturday, which meant Derek wouldn't have as much free time to do homework on the weekend.
"Sure," Stiles said. "Good idea!"
Derek watched in amusement as Scott and Stiles exchanged wordless looks at each other over lunch. When they got to History, Stiles gave Scott a small shove toward Kira. Scott shook his head and they sat in their usual seats.
Stiles and Derek weren't alone in the Chem lab after school. Harris was wandering about, checking equipment and puttering at something. Another set of students were also working on the other side of the lab.
They completed the experiment and were cleaning up when Stiles said, "Umm... maybe we can write this up on Saturday?"
"I have... family things to do later in the day," Derek said. "It would have to be in the morning."
"Oh, right," Stiles nodded. "Sure. Plan to come over about eight and I'll even make pancakes. If we get started early, we should be finished well before noon."
Derek nodded. "That works." He'd be home in the early afternoon and would be ready for the Full Moon run when it got dark.
At the Stilinski home, Derek asked, "Your dad working?"
"Yeah, he works a lot," Stiles replied. "It's not too bad."
Derek got a whiff of loneliness, however. He wanted to invite Stiles to his home but knew better. There were too many secrets that weren't his to share.
They ate too many pancakes, even for Derek, but they were good and Derek had a good time. The Chem assignment wasn't awful and they had that completed well before noon. Derek started to pack up his books.
"Umm..." Stiles took a breath. "Three things, that may or may not be related."
"Sure," Derek looked up.
"Let me get this out, and, well, you don't have to answer if you don't want to," Stiles said.
Now curious, Derek bit his lip and nodded.
Stiles looked at his hands as he talked. "I'm kind of a nosey shit, and I listen too much to things my dad would be... unhappy that I knew. That's kind of a way of letting you know that, well, I know something not good happened to you about a year ago. I don't know exactly what, and I don't want to know but, well... you should know that I know that much."
Derek sat back, stunned.
"And, I know from my mom, that tonight is the full moon and that's part of your family thing tonight," Stiles went on.
Derek couldn't breathe.
"And, given all that, I'd still like to ask if you want to go to the Fall dance together next month," Stiles said, finally looking up. "We can be just friends, if you'd like but, well, I like you and think maybe we make a good team, if nothing else."
Stiles took a deep breath. "I hope I didn't make things wrong between us, but it felt even more wrong not to say something."
Derek finished shoving everything into his backpack, picked it up and left. He didn't remember driving home. He finally was able to pay attention to his surroundings when he was somewhere in the Preserve.
He was shifted into his full 'wolf form, something he had never done before. That it had taken a shock to his system to get him to transform really should not have surprised him.
There was a howl that he recognized as Uncle Peter. It was a come home call.
Derek wasn't ready to face his family. He wasn't ready to face himself. He ran further into the forest. When he stopped, he found himself in a glade that held the trunk of what had to have been an enormous tree. Stiles would be fascinated... NO! He couldn't think that way...
Derek sat down, dropping his head on his paws. It was getting dark, he wasn't sure where he was, and it was the full moon. He thought maybe he should stay where he was for the moment.
Derek heard the howls but he didn't answer. Then he heard some crashing through the underbrush on the far side of the tree. He lay closer to the ground, afraid to move.
A huff of breath and more noise. Someone had climbed on the stump of the tree.
Derek caught a familiar scent. Stiles! What?
"Hey, mom," Stiles said. "I think I fucked up, big time."
A moment of silence and a sigh. "Remember Derek? I told you a little about him. He's kinda cool, cute, and smart. So. I finally admitted to him that, well, I know things I shouldn't. And that I know he's a 'wolf, even if I didn't quite spell it out." A bitter laugh. "And then I asked him to the Fall dance." More silence. "Yeah, it didn't go so well."
Derek was confused, worried, and pleased. What was Stiles doing here, wherever they were in the Preserve? He seemed to be talking to his mom? Why would he do that here? Stiles and his mom know about 'wolves? He shook his head.
He must have made a noise, because Stiles sat up and looked around.
Derek sat up and stared at Stiles.
"Hey! Sorry!" Stiles held up both hands. "I didn't mean to disturb you. I'll just... go..." Stiles climbed down from the stump.
Deciding to take the chance, Derek changed back. The transformation wasn't as hard as he was afraid it might be.
"Derek! Dude! You're naked!" Stiles slapped a hand over his eyes. He peeked through a couple of fingers for a moment. "Yup. Naked!"
"Don't call me dude!" Derek growled.
That made Stiles laugh. Which made Derek relax a bit. Stiles turned his back to Derek. "Okay, this is easier."
"I'm sorry..." they both started at the same time.
Stiles huffed. "Yeah. My bad. I... I come here to talk to my mom. She brought me here when I was little and explained a little about things that go bump in the night. When I got older, she talked about 'wolves and other supernatural beings."
"Does my Alpha know that she... knew?" Derek was surprised.
"Don't know," Stiles admitted. "I was nine when she died and she had been sick for most of a year before that. In one of her lucid moments, she wasn't sure if her disease was just a disease or a curse someone had put on her."
"Neither of those are good," Derek said. "But... your dad?"
"As human as they come," Stiles admitted. "He knows enough to know there are things like 'wolves out there but, well, he really doesn't quite believe in magic."
"You have magic." Derek knew that, somehow.
Stiles nodded. "Yeah."
"Huh. 'Wolves and magic are usually incompatible but my Uncle Peter knows more than most," Derek said. "Maybe you can talk to him?"
Stiles shrugged. "Can I think about it?"
"Sure," Derek said. "I'm the first one to understand about consent." He took a breath. "It's important to me because I didn't understand it before. That I could say 'no' and that people should listen." Another breath. "Even adults."
Stiles nodded. "Um... this is kind of awkward," he said, still not turning around. "Not that you aren't nice to look at... oh, shoot me now..." Stiles moaned and slapped a hand over his mouth.
Derek laughed. "I can see if I can transform back into my 'wolf. This was the first time and, well, I'm not sure I can do it again."
"You were beautiful as a wolf," Stiles nodded. "A bit scary, I mean, a wolf! But... yeah, maybe?"
"Umm... I know my family is looking for me, and I'm going to have to tell them something" Derek admitted.
"Oh," Stiles' shoulders tightened slightly. "You can tell your mom?" A pause. "Oh, fuck it. Tell your Uncle Peter and we'll figure it out from there."
"Are you free tomorrow? We can talk?"
Stiles nodded. "Yeah. Tomorrow. With clothes. Clothes would be good."
"You can make pancakes again," Derek suggested shyly.
Stiles nodded. "I can do that!" He sounded pleased.
"My mom won't let me out of her sight for a while, so maybe ten?" Derek said.
"Text me when you're on your way," Stiles suggested.
"That works," Derek said. He turned to go toward what he hoped was home. "Hey, Stiles?"
"Yeah?"
"Thanks."
"You're welcome."
Derek focused on his 'wolf and found himself in full wolf form. He let his 'wolf take charge of bringing him home.
When he found his family, he stayed in his 'wolf form.
Talia sighed. "I don't know if I should praise you or ground you for scaring us like that, young man!" she said as Derek sat in front of her and wagged his tail a bit.
"Oh, get over here," Talia said, opening her arms. She hugged Derek, who gladly submitted to her. "We will talk about this. You disappearing like that worried us."
Derek whined.
"Yeah, I know," she said softly. "How about we go back home? I think we've had enough for tonight."
Derek nodded.
"Stay with us," Talia directed.
Derek nodded again and danced back a few steps.
Talia changed into her 'wolf and howled to bring everyone in for the night. It turned out that they weren't too far from home. Derek got some clothes before he joined into the post-run dinner, finding he was ravenous. Laura gave him a questioning look but he shrugged and she took that as an indicator that he was mostly all right.
"Come outside and talk to me," Talia invited. Although it was more of an order than a request. Derek could live with that.
"Can... can dad and Uncle Peter join us?" Derek asked.
"Certainly!" Talia nodded. "Go out back and get comfortable. I'll bring them out."
Uncle Peter was already in the back yard and was pleased to be asked to stay.
"For whatever reason, you did good, pup," Peter praised.
Derek felt himself blushing.
Talia and his dad came out and they sat in a small circle. "Tell us what happened," she said softly.
Derek asked, "Did you know Stiles' mom had magic?"
Talia looked surprised but Peter did not.
"I did not know," Talia admitted.
"I knew there was a magic user in town," Peter said. "She was on the top of my list of suspects but when she died, that disappeared and I let it go. So I assumed it was her."
"Stiles and his dad know about 'wolves," Derek said. "Stiles' mom told them. Stiles has some magic and I think he's looking for some help with that."
Talia moved closer and put her arm around Derek's shoulders. He leaned into her warmth.
Derek sighed. "And then he asked me to the Fall dance."
There was a moment of silence.
Then Peter snickered. He held it in for a moment, then broke out laughing.
"Peter!" That was Talia. Although Derek could smell her amusement.
"What of all of that... was the worst?" his dad asked.
Derek shrugged. "He kind of did it all at once. But he asked about the dance last."
"Is there more?" Talia probed.
Derek nodded. "I ended up somewhere in the Preserve. There's a huge tree stump and..."
Peter sat up. "The Nemeton!"
Derek frowned. "Really? That's the Nemeton?"
Peter nodded. "Go on..."
"So I was... thinking," Derek went on not wanting to admit to pouting, "and Stiles came from another direction, sat on the stump, and started, like, talking to his mom before he realized I was there."
"And..."
"Well, I lost my clothes when I shifted the first time," Derek admitted. "And I wasn't thinking and changed back. Stiles was good about it and turned around, to give me some privacy. Not that it's a big deal to us but he was kind."
"That's good," Talia nodded.
"He invited me over tomorrow," Derek looked up at the sky and realized the time, "in the morning for pancakes." He wriggled a bit. "I... I'd like to talk to him."
"He can come here," Talia said.
"I think maybe I'd like to talk to him alone, first," Derek said. "If it goes okay, then maybe I'd like to bring him here."
"Will you be all right doing that?" Talia asked gently.
Derek nodded. "Yeah. We've both had big secrets and, now that we know, it should be easier to talk about them."
"If you work things out between you, Stiles is welcome to come here," Talia said.
"I'd like that," Derek nodded.
"Anything else?" Talia said.
"I hope not!" Derek sighed.
She laughed and tightened her arm around him. "We just want to keep you safe," she said. "We all suffered when you were... targeted. It made me realize that I had spent so much time being the Alpha, I had failed you as your Mom."
"Mom!" Derek protested.
"I think we are all thankful to Peter for his vigilance and that he was paying attention to this family. And to you," she went on.
"We all survived and eliminated a threat to all 'wolves," Peter said. "Thanks to you for being brave when you needed to be."
"I... I know now it wasn't my fault but it's still hard," Derek admitted.
"You going to be okay?" Talia asked.
Derek nodded. "Yeah. Thanks. And sorry for scaring you, I just panicked."
"After everything, not surprised," she replied. 'But you did well and you came back to us, which is the most important part."
"I'll always come home," Derek said softly.
"Aww, kid!" Talia hugged him tightly. "Go to bed, you have a hot date in the morning."
"Not too early," Derek admitted. "Wasn't sure what time I'd get to leave."
"You need some sleep, anyway," she said. "Your first transformation like that will take more out of you than you think."
"Oh, good to know," Derek nodded.
He hugged his dad and Peter before he left. He slept heavily, not dreaming. It was almost nine before he woke, so he was glad he had told Stiles ten. He'd have time for a shower and clean clothes.
on my way
perfect... btw dads here and hes cool but wanted to let you knw
Derek nodded. He was surprised he hadn't run into Stiles' dad before this.
"Sheriff Stilinski," Derek said as the man answered the door. He was dressed in his uniform, so Derek suspected he was working today.
"Derek," the Sheriff nodded. "Good to see you again. How are you?"
"I'm better," Derek admitted. "Thank you for being... kind to me... then."
"Come on in, Stiles has been waiting for you," Mr. Stilinski invited. He lowered his voice. "Me too, been waiting for pancakes myself."
Confused but willing to play along, Derek followed Mr. Stilinski into the house.
"Perfect timing!" Stiles said cheerfully. "Coffee's ready, juice in the fridge. Help yourself and grab a seat."
Derek took both coffee and juice and sat at the table. Stiles set a huge platter of pancakes in the middle. "Help yourself!"
Derek was grateful that conversation focused on school and the projects they were doing.
"Thank you for indulging me in breakfast," Mr. Stilinski said, pushing back from the table. "I need to work half a shift this afternoon, but I'll be home for dinner."
"We should be done by then," Stiles nodded.
Derek helped Stiles clean up as Mr. Stilinski left for work.
"Sorry about that," Stiles said as they sat down. "I didn't know he'd be here." Stiles sat next to him, not across the table like he had been earlier.
"Nah," Derek waved it off. "Nothing like what you'd get at my house."
Stiles held out a hand and Derek took it. Stiles' hand was warm and comfortable in his.
"I didn't mean to surprise you yesterday," Stiles said. "But I also didn't know how else to tell you what I know without being, well, sounding like a stalker."
"I've had a stalker, you're nothing like that," Derek said.
Stiles colored. "Good to know. I think."
"I did tell my parents and Uncle Peter about you," Derek said. "That... helped. I kinda scared them."
"Meh. It's something we do as teenagers," Stiles grinned. "Scaring our parents. Some day I'll tell you about the times I scared my dad."
"Umm... does Scott know anything?" Derek had to ask. "About... the supernatural?"
"Oh, no! That's not going to happen!" Stiles sighed as he shook his head. "Scott can't keep a secret to save his life. If he knew anything, that would blow apart the entire Statute of Secrecy."
"It's not called that!" Derek protested.
"It's close enough," Stiles laughed.
"But, yeah. I suspected as much but wanted to check," Derek said.
"Now, I want to think we're intelligent people but emotions make a mess of anything," Stiles said. "But I am still asking if you want to go to the Fall dance with me."
"What about your five year plan with Lydia Martin?" Derek had to ask.
"Oh, man! You know how to ask the hard questions right off the bat!" Stiles gave a short laugh. "I'm already the Sheriff's kid, which makes me a narc whether I am or not. And I'm in all the smart kid classes, which makes me a nerd. I'm very decidedly gay and have no interest in girls, except as friends. Lusting after Lydia takes the gay designation off the table and being pathetic about it gives me at least the sympathy vote."
"But... going to the dance with me will out you," Derek protested. "As at least bi, if nothing else."
"Now that I'm a senior, it's not as big a deal," Stiles shrugged. He grinned. "And it will be worth it."
Derek felt a certain amount of warmth at that admission.
"What... what if it doesn't work?" Derek had to ask. "I don't want to ask for trouble but..."
"Well, depends on what happens," Stiles said. "If it just doesn't work, I'm hoping we can at least be friends. If we implode spectacularly, then I will promise to not be a total dick about it. That would be unfair to you. So, maybe we can't work together..."
"Chemistry?" Derek prodded. "We're kinda stuck there."
"Fair," Stiles nodded. "I can promise not to sabotage either of us. Harris would eat that shit up for breakfast."
"I can see that," Derek agreed. "No sabotage. That's good."
"And while it's still Fall, the school year isn't forever," Stiles said. "So it would be finite."
"You can keep Scott in the divorce," Derek grinned.
"A pre-nup?" Stiles laughed. "Yeah, Scott will be on my side, sorry. But I'll keep him reasonable."
"That's fair," Derek agreed. "But, yes, I'd love to go to the Fall dance with you."
"Yes!" Stiles fist pumped his free hand.
"I need to go home," Derek said. "But I'll see you tomorrow, right?"
"Oh, definitely," Stiles nodded. "Now we have to work on getting Scott to ask Kira to the dance."
"Maybe we get Scott to ask her to join us for pizza or a movie first?" Derek suggested. "Something before the dance?"
"Good idea!" Stiles said. "Hopefully, Kira feels better on a double date than with just Scott."
Derek missed Scott asking Kira out but, according to Stiles, it was all 'very cute and nauseatingly sweet' like they suspected it would be. There were a couple of movie and pizza dates before the dance, which all went well.
"Ready, pup?" Peter asked when Derek came out of his room in his suit for the dance.
"You know, I think I am," Derek replied.
Peter nodded. "Let your mom see how good you look and then you go and have a good time."
Derek hugged Peter tightly. "Thank you for believing in me."
"Just believe in yourself and you'll be fine," Peter said.
The Sheriff took an embarrassing number of pictures before he would let them leave the house.
"Send some to my mom," Derek said.
"I will!" the Sheriff promised.
Derek escorted Stiles to his car and opened the door. "Your chariot awaits!"
"This is going to be so much fun!" Stiles grinned. He leaned in for a small kiss. "Been wanting to do that forever."
Derek, not being stupid, kissed him back.