A/N: Okay so I wen't a little overboard with this chapter - it's like 8000 words long!
I hope you like this one guys and please let me know what you think!
P.S. this one is dedicated to Scorpio6 because your comments are both hilarious and heartwarming! Thank you for reading everyone!
~ ~ ~
They all seemed to stand in stunned silence for a moment, Erica looking from one to the other before she finally snapped out of it.
"Okay, hold on, I thought your younger sister was dead," she said. "You're telling me that this is your sister?"
"I thought..." Derek began but he seemed to have trouble finding his words. "They found your body."
Cora shook her head, "I got out just in time, and I ran."
"Where...Wha― you've been gone for..."
"Eight years, I know, long time," she said. "I was ten when it happened and mom told me to run, so I did."
"Why didn't you come back?" he asked.
"Uh, guys?" Erica said quietly.
"I didn't think anyone survived, even if they got out," she said. "I heard others talking about a pack being back in Beacon Hills, led by a Hale. I thought when I got here that it would be Laura."
"Laura's dead," Derek said with a shake of his head.
"I figured as much, I don't really know what I was expecting to find but when I got closer I started hearing your name and I figured you'd be the last one left."
"Almost," Derek said.
"Okay I know this is a touching little family reunion but can we please go upstairs before opening that box?" Erica said.
Derek just nodded, never really taking his eyes off Cora as they headed up to the loft.
"This is where you live?" Cora asked as she took in her surroundings, her nose twitching as she inhaled the different scents of the place.
"It's better than when he was living in that burned out of house," Erica said and both of them just looked at her. "Sorry, was that... I mean, too soon?"
"I've had eight years to come to terms with the fact that someone burned down my home with my family in it so I don't think it's that soon," Cora said.
"I'll go make some tea or something, anything else really," Erica said as she made her way to the kitchen.
"Smells like you've got quite a few in your pack," Cora said, she and Derek standing at opposite sides of the room to one another. "I think I might have met one of them."
"Where?" Derek asked.
"Phoenix," she said. "He never mentioned your name but he was a wolf from Beacon Hills who seemed reluctant to tell me all that much about himself."
"Boyd? You met Boyd?" Erica asked, walking in from the kitchen to again meet two very similar looks to before. "I mean...milk in your tea? Or you know, blood? The tears of children?"
"Erica," Derek snapped and she rolled her eyes as she headed back in.
"I think it was him, big guy, looking for a girl," she said. "I knew the rumours of a pack had to be true after that, everyone knows you don't go blabbing your pack secrets to the world, even if you are going rogue."
"Where have you been all this time?" he asked.
"South America mostly, there's a pack there who used to know mom and they heard what happened and took me in, kept me safe," she said. "Last year we heard rumours that there was a strong pack forming in Beacon Hills, like I said, my first thought was that Laura was alive and running it."
"She died nearly two years ago, when she came back," he said, leaning against the edge of the table.
Erica made a scoffing sound from the kitchen and Derek shot her a glare.
"I'm going to assume that it wasn't an accident then," Cora said and Derek looked down at his hands. "I'm not a ten year old anymore, what happened?"
"You weren't the only one to survive the fire," Derek began, launching into the story of what had happened to Peter in that house, and what led him to kill his niece in lust for power.
Somewhere in the middle of the story Erica leant on the bench in the kitchen to listen in, never really having heard it all straight from Derek's lips.
Cora stayed stoic, giving him the occasional nod as she took in his words and giving nothing away.
"I don't know where he is now, but I wouldn't put much effort into finding out either," Derek said.
"Sounds like there's been a lot happening here since I've been gone," she said.
The town was never quiet, even when you were here last," Derek said.
"Then I've got a lot to catch up on," she said.
"So... you're staying then?" Erica asked. "Like, indefinitely?"
"For now," she said with a look over at Erica.
She knew that she was Derek's sister and that she shouldn't be untrusting because it made sense that she would want to come back to the family she thought was dead, but there was something about her that she just didn't like.
"There's a spare room upstairs, where have you been staying?" Derek asked and Erica raised an eyebrow at him.
"Whoa, hold on, she's back for like ten minutes and you're inviting her to stay? Here?" she said before she could stop herself. "I know she's your sister but come on, you should know better than to trust old family members who show up out of the blue."
"Erica," Derek growled.
"Am I wrong though?" she said. "She's been in South America for what, eight years?"
"I'm standing right here," Cora said as she and Erica exchanged a cautious glance.
"Yeah, and is that really a good idea?"
"Erica enough," Derek said. "I never said I would give her a key, I asked if she needed a place to stay."
"Thank you," Cora said with a look back towards Erica. "Relax, I get it. I wouldn't trust me either."
Erica scowled a little before they were both turning to Derek.
"You're welcome to stay," he said to Cora and Erica made a sound to his left. "And you're welcome to go if you don't like my decision."
She just narrowed her eyes and walked slowly towards the door.
"Do you ever take advice from anyone who's not Stiles?" she said before heading out.
Derek sighed to himself and Cora just watched her go.
"Is she always like that?" she asked.
"She's just worried, she's seen what kind of things can happen when you trust people from your past without questioning it," he said. "She'll come round."
"I know it doesn't mean a lot, I mean words are just words..." she said, her expression softening. "I came back because I thought that I might have some family still alive, I haven't seen anyone from home since the fire. I just... If there was a chance..."
He got up and walked slowly towards her.
She looked so much like the girl he had left behind, the one he had never had the chance to say goodbye to. There was something missing though, probably the same thing that he had lost in the fire.
When she had first stood outside his door she had looked stronger, like all the fear had gone from her, never to come back. The girl standing feet from him now looked like it had found her again.
And he felt afraid too, afraid that he had found his sister and that maybe he would lose her again. That was the thing with loss, once you had felt it there was no greater fear than that of having it come back.
He slowly reached out to her and she eased into his arms as their brief embrace became warmer and she held him tighter. She breathed in a choked breath as she listened to his heart beating through his chest and he closed his eyes.
"I can't believe you're alive..." she said as the tears fell from her eyes. "All this time I just assumed you were dead."
"We left for a long time," he said. "There was nothing left here."
"I know what your beta said was right, you have no reason to trust me and I don't expect you to," she said. "It's been eight years..."
"You're welcome here, any time, you're not Peter," he said.
"You don't know that for sure," she said. "I want to earn your trust, like any of your other betas. I smell three, maybe more?"
He stepped back and folded his arms.
"Four, five if you include the one Peter turned, eight if you include the humans," he said. "Well, two of them are human."
Cora raised an eyebrow, "I guess I'll find out later?"
"Most of them are away for now, high schools over."
"Did you want to get the blonde one back?" Cora said. "She seemed a little pissed."
"She needs to calm down, she'll be back," he said. "She has a temper."
"So what you're saying is that we're going to be great friends," she said, shuffling her feet.
"Still a hot-heat then?" Derek asked.
"Some things you just don't grow out of," she said.
"Are you hungry?"
"Starving," she said and he gestured to the door so they could head out together.
*
Isaac lay back on the bed and pulled Scott down over him, their lips colliding and their hips brushing over one another.
Scott was pulling up Isaac's shirt as Isaac was reaching down to unbuckle Scott's belt but they were interrupted by the ringing of Isaac's cell phone.
Scott grunted and turned to look at the damn thing as Isaac just put his hand to the back of Scott's neck and pulled him back down to nip at his bottom lip.
"Aren't you going to answer it?" Scott asked.
"If it's urgent, they'll call back," he said as he rolled his hips upward and trailed his lips down Scott's neck.
Scott moaned little and dipped his head to catch Isaac's lips with his own as he gave a few steady thrusts downwards against the heat of Isaac's lap.
After a few moments the phone stopped ringing, I took just as long for it to start up again.
Isaac grunted in frustration and Scott sat up to let him get it.
"Erica, what's going on?" he said.
"I need to talk to you guys, can I come over?" she asked.
"Can you do it in like an hour?" he asked.
"I'm already here, come open the door," she said.
Isaac sighed as he hung up and turned back to look at Scott.
"I take it you heard that?" he said.
"Oh yeah, I heard it," he said.
"You need a minute?" Isaac said as he eyed him over with a smirk.
"I will if you keep looking at me like that," he said.
Isaac sighed as he sat on the edge of the bed, "I'm going to kill her."
He made his way to the front door and stood occupying all the space in the entrance as Erica took a step forward, ending up nose to nose with him.
She gave him a look and he just looked down at her with his eyebrows high.
"Can we help you?" he asked.
"Well for starters you can let me the hell in," she said with a jab to his ribs as she ducked under his arm to head into their small home.
"That's alright, come on in," he said with a sarcastic drawl as Scott walked out of the bedroom to lean against the wall.
"Don't be sassy with me, believe me, you're going to want to hear this," she said as she paced the living room. "Remember how I said someone came around asking for Derek?"
"You mean one of your other many interruptions?" Isaac asked and Scott gave him a look that made him huff and fold his arms.
"Why? What's going on Erica?" Scott asked.
"Well, turns out he knows her, well, I mean, really freaking well," she said, still walking in circles about the living room.
"Jealous ex-girlfriend maybe?" Isaac said dryly and Erica waved her hand dismissively.
"No, that's more your thing," she said without missing a beat and Isaac gave her a low growl. "Okay, okay, low blow I know."
"Erica just tell us what you know," Scott said.
She sighed and stopped to turn and face them both with her arms folded over her chest.
"Not an ex-girlfriend, more like another not-so-dead relative. You just can't get rid of a Hale apparently... nine lives or something."
"Erica spit it out," Isaac said. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"Derek's sister is alive," she said.
"What?" Scott said, the furrow in his brow appearing as if from nothing.
"What? Laura?" Isaac asked.
"No, she's definitely dead... I mean, for now anyway... Cora, his younger sister," she said.
"She's alive?" Scott repeated and she rolled her eyes.
"Yes Scott, alive, walking, talking, the whole thing," she said. "All I know about her is that she survived the fire by living with some pack in South America. Eight years she's been gone and she only comes back now? Why?"
"Erica, you're pacing again," Isaac said with a hand to his forehead.
"Well wouldn't you be agitated? Aren't you?" she said.
"She probably thought he was dead too," Scott said. "I mean can you really blame her for wanting to come and find her family after thinking they all died all that time ago? No matter how long it's been and despite... you know, not really knowing each other anymore?"
This time Isaac's brow furrowed, "she has a point though, why should we be complacent about it? Look at how far that's gotten us before, I mean I should know."
"Don't go telling Derek you agree with me, he'll kick you out," she muttered.
"He kicked you out?" Isaac asked in surprise.
"Kind of, I was voicing my opinion on how we should be at least a little curious and he did not like that," she said.
"That doesn't sound like Derek at all," Isaac said. "You? An opinion? You're being completely unreasonable."
"Oh come on," Scott said. "If you get any more sarcasm in here none of us are going to fit, and you're not being totally fair. He's just found out that his sister is alive, can he be happy before you guys start telling him all the reasons why he shouldn't trust her?"
They both looked over at him with the same questioning expressions on their faces.
"Really? You're the one defending him?" Erica said. "You're always up for bitching about Derek and you're... siding with him?"
"She's not wrong," Isaac said.
"You could say the same about the two of you!" Scott said and they both just gave each other a glance.
Scott sighed with exasperation written on his face.
"All I'm saying is that he knows his family and if he wants to trust her who can really blame him? He probably knows that he could wind up hurt from it but come on guys, at least let him be happy for a day."
Isaac and Erica gave one another one last unconvinced glance before she was rolling her eyes.
"Whatever, can I crash here for a few hours? I don't really want to go back there just yet," she said as she fell back down into the couch.
"Sure, it's not like you'd leave if we said no anyway," Isaac said.
"Hilarious, you guys hungry?" she asked.
"Not for food," Isaac mumbled.
"I'm starving," Scott said.
"She will never leave if you keep feeding her," Isaac said.
"Funny, that's what Stiles' dad used to say about you," she said.
"Wait," Scott said and they both looked up from their bickering. "Stiles, has anyone told him yet?"
"I figure Derek will," Erica said. "I don't really want to be the one to break that news to him, can you imagine Derek calling him to let him know and it turns out he's already been told? By me? He would definitely kill me."
"I don't know why but you seem to be making more sense than usual tonight," Isaac said and Scott sighed.
He knew she was right, he just hoped that Derek told him soon.
*
Boyd had finally made his way into Portland, only a mile or so off from the state university campus.
He was visiting a small inn near the grounds that Daisy had stayed when she had been with the other pack. She had loved staying there among the buzzing hive of education and youth.
She had told Boyd once of a dream she had to finish her high school education and maybe go on to study something at university. She didn't know what, she just wanted to learn, to grow with the nourishment of knowledge and all that came with it.
As it was, she couldn't afford anything of the likes on her own and Katherine was only interested in funding activities that assisted her needs, so Daisy kept that dream as it was and used it to imagine what things could have been like.
It was possible that she had left to seek something of the likes, and Boyd held on to the little bit of hope he had that it would be true.
He sat down at the bar and asked if they had a room available, which they did, and he paid for one night's stay.
"Haven't seen you around before," the waitress said with a pretty grin on her face. "You just get to town?"
"Uh, I've been in and out of a few places," he said. "I'm trying not to stay in the same place for too long."
"You afraid you'll settle?" she asked as she topped up his drink.
"No, I'm just looking for something," he said, looking down at his hands a moment. "Someone actually."
The waitress nodded a little.
"A girl?" she asked and he nodded. "You push her away a little too much and now you're doing anything to get her back."
He smiled to himself.
"That would probably be easier," he said. "I just need to find her, I just want to know that she's okay. I heard she liked it here when she stayed."
The waitress flicked her dish towel over her shoulder and folded her arms.
"Well come on, you got a picture?" she said. "A guy doesn't talk about a girl like that and not have a picture. I've been here two years, might be able to help."
He took out his ever-withering picture and handed it to her. The more places he visited and the more people he showed the worse the image seemed to get.
He worried that it would disintegrate in his hands or be put through the laundry when he was too tired to think about it before he even got close to finding her.
She squinted down at the picture, holding it on a few different angles to avoid the glare from the cheap fluorescent lights.
"I think I do know her," she said and Boyd had to do a double take.
"I'm sorry, what?"
He was so used to hearing phrases like 'sorry, never seen her before' that he was going to need to hear it again to believe it.
"Yeah, yeah, I mean she's a lot older now than she looks in this picture but I recognise that pretty face," she said. "She was staying here like a month or two ago with a friend, couldn't have stayed more than a week though."
"That long ago?" he asked. "Who was she staying with?"
"I don't know, I never saw them," she said. "They just needed a room to sleep two and she helped us out behind the bar a couple nights to help pay for it, if you wanted you could do that too."
"She didn't say where she was going?" he asked.
"Sorry, I don't really remember," she said regretfully. "All she said was that she wished she could stay longer but that they had to keep moving, you're not like... stalking her or something are you?"
"I wish you were the first one to ask me that," he said and she looked a little guilty. "She just... she did something similar to me is all. One minute she was there and the next she was gone."
"Maybe she likes being lost," she said. "I get that, if I had the balls I would totally lose myself and travel around hotel-hopping."
Boyd gave her a smile.
"A month ago you think she was here?"
"Wish I could say it was last week but it was probably closer to two months gone," she said.
Her scent would be long gone from the place by now. In a bar where hundreds of people come through every week there was no way any part of her was lingering.
He felt a little unease inside him at the thought she was staying with someone else. He didn't know who he was or where she had met him, but maybe it was better her having company than being alone.
Still, the sting of not being asked to accompany her was stronger than it had been before the day had begun.
He couldn't be that far behind her though could he? There was no way he was travelling weeks slower than her, unless the waitress was right. Maybe Daisy wanted to be lost and was doing her best to make sure she couldn't be found.
Maybe it was time to give up.
*
Stiles walked through the campus quad with half an apple in hand, almost the entire other half in his mouth as he dialled Derek's number.
Thank god he didn't pick up, he wouldn't have had the air to speak with if he hadn't been granted a few moments to actually chew his food.
"Stop reading through that library of yours for like the fifteenth time and pick up, one day Derek, one day. I mean I know you remember that you're coming up early this week, remember? No classes this Friday?" he said. "Anyway, you probably won't listen to this but if you do, I am totally working on a new schedule for us, you are going to be pretty impressed. Love you, see you in less than twenty-four hours."
With that he hung up the phone and took another large bite out of his apple.
He then hit dial on Kyle's number and put the phone to his ear.
"Hey what's up?" he heard after the first two rings.
"Hey dude, where are you?" he said as he chewed away.
"I'm in the library, are you eating and trying to talk again?"
"Of course," he said.
"How many times have I asked you not to call me with your mouth full?" Kyle asked with a quiet laugh.
"Could be worse," Stiles said with a grin. "I could have called you with my mouth full."
"You always have to take it a step too far, don't you?" Kyle laughed.
"You know I can't let the opportunity pass by," he said. "Come on, finish your studying and let's do something."
"Can't, I'm about to meet with my study group," he said.
"Is this your super-secret second year study group you're always hanging out with without me?"
He heard Kyle laugh loudly through the receiver.
"That's the one," he said. "I'll come and meet you later and we can get some food."
"Yeah, yeah," he said. "Give me a call when you're done then."
Kyle agreed and they both hung up.
"What the hell is with everyone today?" Stiles said to himself as he took a seat in the shade and pulled one of his course readings from his bag.
*
The next morning Scott and Isaac were up early with Erica as the three made their way to the loft to see Derek and the new arrival.
They had barely stood by his door a moment before he was out to meet them, Cora standing not far behind him.
"It's true then?" Scott asked and Derek rolled his eyes. "She's your sister?"
"She is," Derek said. "And before you ask, yes, I'm sure."
"Are you?" Isaac said and Derek just turned to him with a look.
"Isaac," Scott said quietly.
"Told you," Cora said from behind him with a brief roll of her eyes and Erica scoffed.
Isaac's eyes moved towards her and let out a small chuckle, unfolding his arms and walking towards them.
"She has the same exasperated look as he does," he said. "If she's not his sister she's still got to be a Hale."
He held his hand out to Cora and she just gazed at it a moment before look back to his face with caution in her eyes.
"Isaac," he said and reluctantly she took it.
"Cora," she said.
"This is Scott," he said and Scott stepped forward to greet her. "And I hear you've already met Erica."
Isaac had a grin on his lips as Erica turned up her nose and let out another derisive noise.
"We've had the pleasure," Cora said.
"Don't think this means I'm just going to trust her," Isaac said as he turned back to Derek. "I mean I believe she's your sister but your family members have proved less than reliable in the past."
"I don't expect you to trust her," Derek said. "At least not yet."
"Okay, I'm going to be the one to point this out again," Erica said. "Can we please take this party inside? Why are we always doing this on your damn door step."
"You'll get used to her," Scott said with a warm smile towards Cora.
"So I've been told," she said as they made their way inside.
Isaac's brow furrowed, he wasn't sure how he and Scott had swapped their roles but Scott seemed to be exhibiting less than his usual level of caution and Isaac more so.
"Did you hear Jackson's on his way home?" Erica said quietly to him as Scott asked Cora a few questions about South America.
"I thought I saw Danny post something about being homebound on Facebook," he said.
"He also instagrammed a picture of Jackson's middle finger in the airport," she said. "I guess he'll be back sometime this weekend."
"Could be back now," he said.
"Let's give him some time to get over his jet-lag before we call him, god knows he won't want to be disturbed when he's in a bad mood."
"True," Isaac said, still watching Scott with questions building on his tongue. "She seems more talkative than Derek."
"Not by much," Erica said. "I have to get to work soon, you going to stick around?"
"Maybe," he said. "This is all too weird."
"To be fair we should be used to people coming back from the dead," she said.
"We should stop assuming people are dead in the first place."
She nodded before heading towards the stairs, her work clothes were still in her room upstairs. Derek watched her a moment before his eyes fell back to Cora.
She had only been back for a day but already her scent was starting to linger around the loft, not quite familiar but not so new anymore either.
Derek found it odd that out of the three of them Scott was the one to seem least cautious of her arrival. It wasn't as though he had any real reason to place trust in her and yet he tried harder to make her feel welcome with his questions than Isaac or Erica did with their vigilant glances and hushed conversation.
When Erica came back down she stood at the bottom of the stairs with her arms folded over her chest.
"Anyone who can give me a lift?" she asked.
"I'll drive you," Derek said. "We were going for a drive anyway."
Erica looked over at Cora again and just shrugged.
"Fine," she said, acting like it was a burden to be spending any more time with her than she had to.
"Have you told Stiles yet?" Isaac asked.
Derek sighed and looked down at his hands.
"I have to call him back," he said.
"Are you freaking kidding?" Erica said. "You seriously haven't called him?"
"I have to postpone my visit," he said. "He's not going to like it."
"No shit," Isaac muttered.
"He'll understand," Scott said. "You're just making it worse by waiting though."
"Can we go?" Erica said impatiently. "And call him as soon as you drop me off, don't be a dick about it."
"Erica..." Scott said and Isaac gave him another look.
"I don't know what I just stepped into but it feels like more is going on here than any of you are saying," Cora said. "I'll wait in the car."
As she left Derek looked to each of them.
"If you've got something more to say do it now," he said.
"You know what I've got to say," Erica said.
"I'm with her, weird as that is," Isaac said.
"I think they're being too harsh," Scott said. "But you should definitely call him now because you know he's been waiting two weeks to see you."
It felt trivial to be saying it when Derek had been waiting years to see his sister again but it didn't make it any less the truth.
"Wait in the car, I'll meet you in a minute," Derek said, taking his phone from his pocket and looking at the missed calls.
He felt terrible for what he had to do but after some time, probably at least a day or two, Stiles would forgive him for it.
"Come on," Erica said to Scott and Isaac. "Let's leave him to it."
"You know you're being a bigger bitch about this than I thought you would be," Scott said as they made their way out.
"Oh bite me Scott," she snapped back.
Derek hit the phone icon by Stiles' name and put the phone to his ear as he waited for him to pick up, he wasn't one to feel much of anything but when it came to Stiles he felt it all.
"Don't tell me you're here already?" Stiles' voice greeted him after only a couple of rings and Derek just sighed a little. "I highly doubt you got up that early."
"Stiles," Derek said and he just heard him chuckle through the line.
"Alright, okay, what's going on?" he asked.
"I need to talk to you about something, it can't wait," he said.
"Okay, what's wrong?" Stiles asked, the worry already laden in his voice. "What happened? Are you okay?"
"Stiles, just calm down a second, everything is fine," he said. "Don't start panicking, I just have to tell you something."
"Okay... Still a little more ominous than I'd like but okay," he said. "What's going on Derek?"
Derek sighed. "Cora's alive."
Stiles stood in silence for a moment trying to wonder if what he had just heard was even possible.
"I'm sorry, what? Did I hear you right?" he asked. "Your sister Cora? Died in the fire Cora? That Cora?"
"She's alive Stiles, she came back home," he said.
"What... I mean where... wha―" Stiles stammered. "How is that possible?"
"It's a long story," he said. "I'll tell you when I see you but..."
That's when it clicked to Stiles and he felt his pounding heart sink.
"But you're not coming out here today," he finished Derek's sentence for him.
"The hotel is booked, you can go and stay there, get out of your dorm for a few nights, I just..." Derek said, the disappointment in Stiles' voice making him ache. "I have to be here right now."
Stiles knew it was selfish to get angry, selfish of him to think that Derek should come out to visit him anyway but he couldn't help that those thoughts were swelling up inside him. He swallowed hard in his dry throat but shrugged and shook his head as if Derek could see the obviously forced actions.
"No I... I understand," he said. "I'm not an asshole, I get it."
"I never said you would be if you were angry," Derek said. "I'll send you the hotel details like always. Order room service or anything else you want, I'm sorry Stiles."
Stiles shook his head again. "Don't be, I get it. I'm not just saying I do to get you to feel less guilty I mean I honestly get it okay? Just―" he sighed. "I'll see you next time I guess."
"I mean it Stiles, anything you want," Derek said.
"Don't you dare, don't you dare use this to try and start that fight again Derek," Stiles said. "Look I'll just... When do you think you'll be able to make it back out here? I don't want to sound like a dick because obviously I want you to be with your sister but I'm also not going to deny that I am having very selfish thoughts and I may or may not be punching you in some of them... go, be with her I honestly mean that."
"You're―"
"Rambling on and on, I know, but you should know that it's just the way I deal with things," he said. "I love you."
"I love―"
"I know, and I'm sorry I keep cutting you off I just can't stop," he said. "Just... let me know when you're ready to come back again and when you have half a second maybe... you could tell me about her?"
"I promise I'll make it up to you," Derek said. "I'll call you later?"
"Yeah, yeah okay," Stiles said with a sigh.
As Stiles hung up the phone and dropped down into the closest chair he felt the disappointment sink in. He wished he hadn't been so excited to see him because he knew that was what made it feel all that much worse.
His phone made a ping as the text from Derek came through with the hotel details.
Derek: Order anything you want, they have my credit card details. I mean it Stiles, anything. Love you.
Stiles felt like he could throw his phone but he managed to restrain himself. On one hand he was angry, upset, frustrated. On the other he was running the thoughts over in his head as to how she could possibly be alive after all this time.
If it wasn't a few weeks from exams he would have been on the road back to Beacon Hills already but as it was he was probably behind on study already.
He had known this year was going to be hard but he hadn't expected to feel the way he did.
*
Scott had gone home to see his mother, Derek and Cora had dropped Erica at work and then gone for a drive, more sibling bonding to be done Isaac had thought.
He had gone for a walk, trying to get everything straight in his head. Not that many things were straight in his mind these days.
He chuckled to himself and Scott crossed his mind again. He was done thinking and he hadn't had one of Melissa's dinners in a while so he thought he would head over there for the afternoon, Scott wouldn't mind sticking around a few extra hours.
There was an unfamiliar car parked in front of the house when he showed up and for a moment he didn't pay it much attention until he knocked on the door.
After a moment Scott opened it with a concerned look on his face.
"Isaac, what are you doing here?" he asked and Isaac gave him a confused look.
"Visiting?" Isaac said. "Why is your heart pounding faster than usual?"
"I didn't think you were coming over is all," Scott said and Melissa walked past the door with a grin.
"Hey Isaac," she said. "Why are the two of you hanging out in the doorway, come in."
Isaac squeezed past Scott and kissed him on the cheek but he couldn't quite get past Scott's nervous scent as he walked through into the kitchen. That's when he noticed the other unfamiliar scent that lingered.
A man sat at the kitchen table with a coffee in hand and wearing a decent suit, looking up at Isaac as he walked in with a tilt of his head.
"Uh... hi," Isaac said.
"You must be Isaac," the man said and Isaac raised an eyebrow as he looked over to Scott who now stood leaning up against the archway. "I mean I'm assuming anyway."
"You assume correctly," Isaac said. "Sorry, uh... who are you?"
The man smiled and looked over to Scott.
"I guess it must have slipped your mind to tell your boyfriend that your dad was back in town," he said and Isaac's jaw dropped almost all the way to the floor.
"Your dad," Isaac said, turning back to Scott who wasn't looking up at him.
"Isaac, this is my dad," he said in a feeble attempt at introduction. "Dad, this is Isaac."
Mr McCall got up to shake Isaac's hand and stood only an inch or so taller than him.
"Nice to meet you kid," he said.
*
Erica was getting better at making coffees, she didn't burn the brew quite as much as she had done when she first started.
"Once you get the hang of frothing the milk I can teach you how to do a few patterns if you like," Rajanish said as she flinched at the burst of steam.
"You sure do take this coffee thing seriously," she said as she put the lid on the average cappuccino and put it on the bench for Makayla to give out to the customer.
"In my experience it's not too smart to get in between a person and their caffeine hit," he said with a smile. "Plus I like getting tips you know."
"I guess I better get learning then or I'll be broke forever," she said.
"You don't need to make good coffee to get tips though," he said and Erica raised an eyebrow at him. "No, no! I didn't mean... I just meant you're, I mean you're beautiful so you... I think I should go and check on the... anything really, sorry."
She laughed to herself as he rushed out the back and Makayla gave her a look.
"You make him weird like that you know, he's usually kind of normal," she said.
"So you say," she said.
Her phone buzzed in her pocket and she took a second to check it, knowing perfectly well it was Stiles.
Stiles: He gave me hotel details and said "anything you want"
Stiles: I am so tired of him saying that!
Stiles: Is she nice? Pretty? Or are you having as much fun with this whole situation as I am?
Stiles: Am I wrong to be totally pissed off but also hating myself for being pissed off?
Stiles: Come on you have to give me something here Erica
She sighed and took a moment to reply.
Erica: Calm down okay? She just showed up last night and took us all by surprise. You know how long it took him to invite her to stay? Like 2 minutes. I know I'm a bitch because she's his sister and why shouldn't she stay with him?
Erica: And yes obviously she's pretty she's Derek's sister. No missing the fact that they're related.
Erica: I'd be pissed if I were you. Screw Derek.
Stiles: That was the plan until his sister showed up
Stiles: Wait, LAST NIGHT? She was there a whole 12 hours before he told me?
Stiles: I'm suddenly feeling a little less guilty about being pissed off...
Erica sighed an put her phone back in her pocket as Rajanish came out of the kitchen with a cloth to clean the tables with, his cheeks still flushed with colour.
She didn't know why Cora's arrival had made her irrationally angry. At least Stiles had a reason to be mad, Derek had waited the whole night to say anything. All Derek had done to Erica was growl at her for being rude to his sister.
Still she was angry that he would seemingly put aside all concern because she was back. If Peter or even Cassie was anything to go by, no one should be blindly trusted.
*
"I'm sorry, okay?" Scott whispered as the two stood upstairs in Scott's old room.
"You're sorry? You're sorry that you didn't tell me that your dad was in town?" Isaac hissed back. "What the hell Scott?"
"I didn't want to make a big deal about it is―"
"Scott, your dad is back in town, I have never heard you talk about him before and now you're just blatantly keeping him a secret? Why?" he asked.
"I don't know, okay? The way things were for you with your day I just―"
"Okay no, you don't get to put it back on me that you didn't tell me about this," Isaac said. "When did he get here?"
Scott sighed and looked up at him a moment before looking back down at his feet.
"Two weeks," he said and Isaac's jaw almost hit the floor again.
"How the hell have you kept this a secret from me? Why have you?"
"I don't know! I just, at first I didn't want to tell you because I thought he would just be in and out like always but then..."
Then it clicked to Isaac, it made sense why Scott was defending Derek about Cora.
"You want him to stay?" Isaac asked. "You want to give him a chance?"
"You don't get to give me a hard time about wanting to see my dad," Scott said. "It took a while before I even decided that I wanted to."
"Do you really think that's what I was going to do? Tell you that you're an idiot for wanting to see him?"
"Well the way you reacted to Cora maybe I was right not to say anything," Scott said and Isaac scoffed, turning away from him and shaking his head in frustration.
"Are you kidding me? That's a whole different situation and you know it," he said.
"Is it though? She's Derek's family, he's mine―"
"She's a freaking werewolf!"
"I don't want to argue about this," Scott said.
Isaac sighed.
"You know I would tell you everything," Isaac said, trying to choose his words wisely because he knew that part of him was being very hypocritical, even if it was against his will. "If there as anything you needed to know I would tell you unless for some reason I couldn't, there's no reason why you couldn't have told me this two weeks ago."
"Isaac―"
"Were you ashamed of me?"
"What? Of course not!" Scott said. "It wasn't easy telling him about you but he's in no place to be an ass about it if he still wants to be a part of my life. I promise you I just..."
"You didn't think I'd understand," Isaac finished.
"I wanted you to," he said.
"Yeah well you never gave me the chance and now I'm just... I need a while to just cool off alright?"
This time it was Scott's turn to sigh and he just stepped back to let Isaac through the door. When he got downstairs Isaac had already left.
"You want to tell me what that was all about?" Melissa said with an eyebrow high.
"It's fine mom," he said before heading back into the kitchen.
*
It was almost the end of Erica's shift when Isaac stormed in, walking up to the counter and leaning his hands on it with a grunt.
"Well you look happy," she said.
"You got anything with a shot of poison in it?" he asked and she shrugged.
"I can take your order and make your coffee, that's about as close as you're going to get."
"Scott's dad's in town," he said and her eyes grew wide. "Yeah, surprised right? Maybe I'm just an idiot for not noticing because he's been here for two weeks."
"Well that's awkward."
"I should have noticed the scent on him," Isaac said.
"He goes to community college and works at a vet clinic, there was no way you were going to notice anyone's scent on him and come to the conclusion that his dad was back in town," she said. "You going to order something or just waste my time?"
"I'll have a milkshake," he grumbled, taking some cash out of his wallet and putting it down on the counter.
He gave her a look when she didn't give him any change and she just replied with "it's my tip."
"We're supposed to stop keeping secrets," he said as he waited.
"You telling me you have no secrets from him?" she asked and he felt that pang of guilt again.
"None that I'm allowed to tell him," he said.
"What the hell does that even mean?"
"Nothing," he said. "Screw Scott, and screw Derek."
She chuckled to herself as she finished up with his milkshake and handed it to him.
"Have we always been this pathetic? Sitting around in a coffee shop complaining about our fucking lives?" he asked.
"To be fair, I'm working," she said. "And it's not pathetic. It's normal, probably the most normal thing we have done since meeting Derek."
"Screw Derek," Isaac said again and Erica laughed.
Rajanish looked over at her and she smiled.
"Sorry, I should probably be focussing right?" she said.
Rajanish smiled.
"Your shift is almost over I guess," he said. "Hey Isaac."
Isaac waved and Rajanish's eyes travelled to Erica once more before going back to the job at hand.
"It's sweet the way he blushes whenever you're around."
"Don't think I won't hurt you," she said. "Go and sit somewhere else, I'll be done soon."
He rolled his eyes and went to sit in one of the corner tables while Erica finished up.
"So you guys are pretty good friends then," Rajanish said. "He seems like he's always here."
"Yeah well he's having boyfriend dramas and apparently I'm the only one he can talk to about them."
"You must give good advice then," he said.
"I mostly just tell him to shut up and get over it," she said and he laughed in his weird nervous way.
"I guess you've probably been through a lot of the same problems before," he said and when she cocked an eyebrow at him he turned a shade of scarlet. "No, no, I didn't mean it like that, I just meant that..."
"Do you want to go out for lunch sometime? Or dinner maybe?" she asked and he seemed to lose the ability to speak for a minute.
"What, really?" he asked and she laughed.
"Yeah, I mean I'd ask if you wanted to get a coffee but that seems kind of pointless don't you think?"
"Yeah, I mean, sure I'd love to, I mean... yeah," he finally said. "When?"
"I'll message you and let you know when I'm free," she said, taking out her phone and handing it to him to add his number.
She thought she heard Isaac laugh from across the room but she ignored him.
When her shift was over she left, letting Isaac chase after her out the door and up the street.
"So I hear you have a hot date," he said.
"Shut your mouth," she said.
"No I'm happy for you really," he said. "Is he really your type though?"
"Like you would know what my 'type' is," she said.
"Well last I checked it was Aiden and that guy... not really a comparison," he said.
"Raj is sweet and funny and overall he's a nice guy," she said, stopping in her tracks and causing Isaac to come almost nose to nose with her. "And you know what the best part is? He's not a werewolf so he doesn't come with crazy fucking baggage. Just human baggage."
"Scott's problem right now isn't werewolf baggage and that still sucks," Isaac said as they started walking again.
"It's your problem, not Scott's."
"Whatever," he grumbled. "Sometimes I wish we weren't so stuck in this fucking town."
Erica thought a moment and then stopped again, letting Isaac take a few steps before he turned around to look at her.
"What?"
"What if we weren't stuck here?" she said. "Even if it was only for a weekend?"
"What are you saying?" Isaac asked.
"Stiles has a free Derek-funded hotel room, I don't work the weekends because I still suck," she said. "Let's go to Berkeley, reunite the dream team."
"Dream team?" Isaac said.
"Come on, we're the best ones and you know it," she said and he just shook his head with a laugh. "I'm serious, let's do it."
"Even if I thought that was a good idea, how would we even get there? You can't drive and we don't have a car, or you know, money to blow on that kind of thing."
She smiled, reaching into her bag and pulling out her wallet.
"We don't, but Derek does," she pulled a credit card out and held it up for him to see.
"Is that―"
"Derek's? Yeah, I mean he said emergencies only but like you said, screw Derek," she said. "Are you in?"
He knew that he should say no, he knew that it was a bad idea to run from your problems like they wouldn't be there when you came back, but in that moment the offer was too tempting to pass up.
"Fuck it," he said. "I'm in."
She grinned and took out her phone, dialling Stiles' number and waiting only briefly for him to pick up.
"You know I'm going to talk your ear off for like an hour now right?" he said without so much as a 'hello' to greet her.
"You have plenty of time for that later Stiles," she said. "Go and check into your fancy hotel, me and Isaac are going to make sure we don't waste this weekend."
~ ~ ~
A/N: Please leave your comments and let me know what you think, thanks so much for supporting this story guys, without you there would be no Reckless Encounters! xo