To be defeated by a name

Chapter 8

Stiles prepared himself for Scott's reaction, awaiting him to start shouting or crying or both. What he didn't expect was for his best friend to react the way he did.

"This can't be happening," Scott stated, staring at Stiles in disbelief, "You're dead. You can't be here."

"I'm here Scott, it's really me." Stiles assured, guilt flooding him once more as he thought about what he had put everyone through by 'dying'.

As he said this Scott's face turned suddenly blank before he wolfed out, lunging towards Stiles with his claws out. Reacting purely on instinct Stiles pulled out his handgun from in his belt, putting it to his best friends head and effectively preventing the alpha from moving any further.

Stiles barely heard Lydia shouting for them to stop, the noise enough to attract the rest of the pack outside to where they were standing now, on the porch and watching the exchange with bated breath.

"If you were really Stiles you wouldn't be holding a gun to my head." Scott snarled out as they stared each other down, Stiles letting out a noise halfway between a scoff and a sob.

"I wouldn't have had to pull my gun in the first place if you didn't run at me claws flying. I am merely protecting myself. If I had known this was how you would have reacted I wouldn't have come home at all." Stiles replied, voice calm as he surveyed Scott, silently challenging him. It seemed his words were enough though, as Scott instantly moved back, eyes bleeding back to brown and fangs and claws retracting.

"Stiles?" Another voice suddenly asked, Scott having given the pack a clear view of him when he moved away.

"Dad?" He said back, locking eyes on the man he hadn't seen in years. His dad looked older but lighter than he had seen him in years, although the anger and pain in his gaze made Stiles look away, ashamed at what he had done.

"What happened, son? We watched the video, saw what happened to you on that beach and then had you listed as one of the dead on the news. I thought I had watched you DIE and you didn't bother to let us know otherwise. Why didn't you come home? Tell us you were alive instead of letting us grieve." He stated, stepping forward slightly, the rest of the pack watching on in silence.

Stiles couldn't help the overwhelming guilt he felt at his dad's words, looking down as he replied.

"I'm sorry." He started, looking up to see his dad seemingly soften slightly before moving quickly forwards, Stiles meeting him in the middle as they embraced, both crying slightly, "I couldn't come home dad, not at first. I couldn't be Stiles Stilinski anymore, I needed to be someone else for a while to cope and then, the longer I was gone, the harder it was to come back and tell you all I was alive."

"Look at me son." His dad spoke, taking his face in both his hands, "I know what you went through was horrifying but don't think for a second that you couldn't have come home. You being gone is one of the hardest things I've had to deal with but to know I never lost you, not really, is the best thing that's happened to me. After everything you've been through, losing Katrina like that was the last thing you deserved but I am so glad you are alive."

Stiles wanted to reply. He really did. But he couldn't bring himself to speak through the tears that were soaking into his dad's shirt.

A soft cough broke the two apart and instantly he felt his gaze land on Melissa, standing there with tears in her eyes but a look of pure love there too.

"Come here." She said and before he knew it his feet were taking him towards the woman he saw as his second mother. They didn't speak, just hugged and when they pulled away he knew what was going to happen next.

The rest of the pack were angry with him, betrayed looks clear on their faces, and he knew he owed them the truth of what had happened since he had been gone, Scott especially.

He and Lydia hadn't talked about it much, him finding it too hard to talk about everything all at once and instead only gave her a brief insight into his life since they last saw each other.

"Can we all sit down. I'll tell you whatever you want to know but it's going to take a while and I'd prefer to not stay outside longer than I have to. After all, I'm supposed to be dead." He stated, taking their nods as a queue to go inside. He didn't sit down, instead preferring to stand in the doorway, subconsciously taking note of all exit routes out of habit.

Once everyone was seated he addressed them again.

"So what do you want to know?"