Human is Just a Word 85/85
Chapter 85
The next few days the pack was more clingy than usual. They could have died. Peter could have wiped out the whole pack. They were all shaken and needed to make sure that everybody was still there.
There wasn't a moment in which Stiles didn't have a child clinging to him or a wolf pressed to his side or just somebody seeking him out for a hug and some scenting. Not that he minded.
Quite the opposite, Stiles needed to reconnect with the pack almost as much as Derek did.
Plus, there was so much to do.
Since Derek was Peter's only remaining relative, it was up to him to decide what to do with his body. Derek didn't want him to lie with their family so he was cremated and his ashes spread in the preserve. Being the only living Hale also meant that Derek inherited Peter's part of the Hale estate.
Derek spent a lot of time these days on the phone with his lawyer.
Then they had to decide what to do with the mansion and with the ruins of Laura's house.
Aside from the human problems, there were also quite a few werewolf problems to think about.
For example, could they hold a territory this large just from the outskirts or should they move back to Beacon Hills, the center of the territory?
Stiles and Derek spent quite a few evenings discussing these things, sometimes with various members of the pack, sometimes alone but at the moment they were just weighting their options.
Their biggest concern at the moment was Tom. The beta rarely left his room and only joined their meals because he had the feeling that he had to. He didn't speak much and retreated to his room as quickly as possible after every meal. Lydia spent a lot of time in his room as well.
He did, however, open up to Melissa. And it was her who tricked him into spending more time with the pack. By now she could walk with a cane but not for long and for coming upstairs she still preferred the chair. She could move around in the chair quite well on her own and everybody, including Tom, knew that she didn't really need somebody to wheel her around but when she asked him to help her to get upstairs, he did it eagerly. And he stayed until she wanted to go back to her own place.
It had the side effect that Melissa spent more time with the pack as well and Stiles wasn't sure who was using who as a crutch but as long as it brought the pack closer together he wasn't complaining.
The kids, especially Gina and Jeremy, adopted Tom in an instant and just like Melissa, the beta got roped into watching them or helping with homework without even realizing.
He avoided most of the adults and when Derek or Stiles addressed him directly he still couldn't look them in the eye but by now he dared to turn his back on them. It was progress.
Stiles didn't know when or how Isaac had managed to gain Tom's trust but he was the only other adult aside from Melissa he actually liked having around.
Sometimes Tom and Isaac disappeared for hours and when they came back they were content and even Stiles could smell the forest on them. He pictured them running through the woods in their fur, just quietly burning some energy, but he never asked.
The first night Tom joined them in the den, in his fur and lying in the outskirts of the pack pile, Stiles' felt like bursting with pride.
Stiles woke to Erica standing over them with her phone in her hand, taking pictures. This time it wasn't him she was taking pictures of, though.
Tom was still sleeping, still on the edge of the pack pile, but over night the kids had moved over to him. Even Stacy had somehow managed to make her way from the center of the pile where she had been sleeping in Megan's arms to Tom where she now was sleeping draped over his front leg. Becky and Jeremy were in their fur next to the beta while Benny and Gina lay criss-crossed on top of him.
It was a sight worth a few pictures.
When he woke up, Tom didn't know what to do and over the bond Stiles caught a spike of panic. Tom's predicament ended in a wrestling match with all kids involved. Stephen had just enough time to snag Stacey out of it before she could get hurt.
Not much later they were all lying on the floor, panting, and for once Tom seemed content.
Derek gave him a quick scratch behind the ear in passing and Tom didn't even tense, he just lolled his tongue happily.
With that much going on Derek and Stiles rarely found time for themselves. They did manage to escape to their apartment for half an hour now and then and Stiles was determined to make the most oft the short time they had. When they came back to the others they were both disheveled and reeking of sex and more often than not Stiles was sporting an impressive bite mark on his neck.
The first time Tom saw it, he avoided Derek more than usual for the rest of the day but he did seek out Stiles the following day.
"I'm sorry." He said and Stiles didn't even know what he meant but then Tom stepped closer and hesitantly reached for the mark on his neck. "I can help you with the pain. Isaac showed me how to do it."
His fingers still hovered over the mark, never quite touching.
"It doesn't hurt." Stiles took his hand between his. "I'm okay, he doesn't hurt me."
Derek had told him that Tom had thought that he owed his alpha sexual favors so it wasn't hard to guess what Peter had asked of his claimed human.
"It's not like that." Stiles said, holding his gaze. "Listen to my heart."
He didn't know how good Tom was with hearing lies but it was the only thing he could think of.
"I love Derek." He said and then waited for his heart to confirm the truth behind his words. "He never hurt me and he never will." Another pause. "I'm with him because I want to be with him."
Stiles didn't know how much the beta could read in his heart-beat or if he could smell how content he was. Stiles even tried to communicate it over the bond.
"Derek is not abusing me." He said and at least some of it had to have gotten through to Tom. At least enough to put him at ease for now. Given time he would see for himself how Derek treated his mate and his pack members.
Those short sexy times with Derek where good but they never had time to drew it out which meant no knot for Stiles. Among other things.
So when one evening the pack basically kicked them out of the loft, telling them that the kids would survive a night alone just fine and that the daddies should take some time in their own apartment to have some adult time, Stiles didn't say no.
"You sure we have the whole night?" He asked once he had locked the door of their apartment behind them. It felt strange to be alone with Derek without already thinking about what they had to do afterwards.
"As long as there's no emergency …" Derek didn't sound that convinced either and for a moment they both stood there, not sure if they should trust the truce.
Stiles half expected one of the children to come after them with whatever was on their mind but everything stayed quiet.
"If there is an emergency while I have your knot in me, they'll just have to deal with it." Stiles decided. Then he literally jumped Derek, wrapping his legs around his waist and his arms around his neck.
The werewolf didn't even falter and when he put his hands on Stiles' ass it was more for grouping than support, not that Stiles was complaining. He just wrapped himself tighter around his mate and brought their mouths together.
"I love how you can just manhandle me." Stiles said between kisses when Derek just walked them over to the bedroom. "Too bad we're still wearing our clothes." Another kiss. "You could fuck me into a wall. Holding me up the whole time. I love it when you do that."
"Like this?" Derek changed direction and instead of dropping them on the bed, he went for the nearest wall.
Stiles' back collided with it hard, forcing the air out of his lungs, but then Derek pressed his hip between his spread legs, pinning him to the wall.
He didn't even need his hands to hold Stiles there so he had those free to roam over Stiles' sides and chest.
"Fuck." Stiles bucked his hips but it was like he was humping a rock. Derek didn't give an inch and the line of his erection pressed firmly into the dip of Stiles' hip. There were at least two layers of jeans too many between them but even like this, the pressure against his straining cock was delicious.
Somehow Derek managed to get Stiles out of his shirt without dropping him and then he hurried to get out of his own.
At least they were skin to skin in the upper department now and Stiles was desperate to explore every inch of exposed skin with his hands and mouth.
Now Derek did start to move, grinding his groin against Stiles'.
"You're going to make me come in my pants." Stiles screwed his eyes shut in his attempt to not come from dry humping in under thirty second like a horny teenager.
He felt Derek grinning against the soft skin of his throat and he knew he was doomed.
Derek started to move his hips in agonizing slow circles but he kept a firm pressure on Stiles' dick, never giving him a chance to catch his breath.
Stiles held out for maybe a minute longer but then he threw his head back with a strangled cry and bucking into Derek he creamed his pants.
"There." Stiles went limp, trusting Derek to hold him upright. "Are you proud now?"
"Very." Derek nuzzled his neck but then he eased him down. Stiles' legs didn't quite work just yet so he let gravity pull him down to his knees and since he was down here anyway he could do Derek a favor and do something about the bulge in his jeans. He was awesome like that.
They did move over to the bed eventually, Stiles preferred knotting on a comfy surface, thank you very much, where Derek took his time to open him up while he littered Stiles' front with little nips and kisses.
Since this was their second round neither of them was in the mood for fast and dirty and Derek slowly worked up to four fingers before he even considered putting his cock anywhere near Stiles' ass. By now Stiles was hard again, his skin on fire from what felt like a million marks Derek had bitten and sucked into his skin and he was more than ready for his mate's knot.
"C'mon, fuck me." Stiles pleaded and he didn't care how desperate he sounded. "Please, Derek, I want your knot. Please."
"Okay." Derek kissed him on the mouth. "Okay, take a breath."
And with that he pushed in slowly. Even with the prep Stiles felt the stretch but he just relaxed into it.
"Good?" Derek asked.
"Move."
Derek moved slow and sweet and it would take them forever to come like this but Stiles didn't want it any other way.
Stiles came on his knot without a touch to his dick.
"Fill me." He grit out, riding out the aftershocks and clenching around the knot deep in him. "C'mon, alpha. Fill me."
"Mine." Derek bit down on his neck and pumped his release into Stiles.
Later, when they had cleaned up and were lying in bed together, content but not quite ready for sleep, Stiles drew his mate close, draped a leg over him and rested his head on his chest right over his heart.
"Do you feel that?" Derek asked into the silence.
Stiles didn't need to asked what he meant. He felt it. There were two new beacons blooming in his head. His dad and Melissa.
"About time." Stiles muttered and snuggled closer to Derek.
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