#derekweek

There’s no other option, no matter what Peter says. Derek won’t let Cora die. Can’t even stomach the thought. Not if he can help it.

“Exactly, Derek,” Peter cuts through his thoughts, “if, if it works. There’s no guarantee it won’t just kill you.”

The Alpha growls, growing irritated with his uncle. “How do I do it? By taking her pain?” It’s what makes the most sense. Growing up he was always taught not to take too much, even from a human.

“And then some,” the older wolf scoffs, “because there’s a cost.”

How many times does he have to say he doesn’t fucking care?

“I can understand you not seeing the downside to this,” Peter says, reading his face as perfectly as always. “You haven’t exactly been Alpha of the year.”

“You’re one to fucking talk, Peter,” Derek scowls at him. “Who bit their Beta and left him all alone to fend for himself? You. At least I tried.” Cora twitches on the bed, capturing both of their attentions until she settles with a shaky breath.

“Oh please,” Peter growls, “you were just as power hungry as I was. You got drunk on it, I know you did. And that’s exactly what you’ll be losing.”

“I don’t care about power.” The Alpha ducks his head, shaking it softly, “not anymore.” He has some semblance of family left and the wolf plans to cling to it; even Peter. So fuck being Alpha and having all this power if he’s just going to lose everyone again.

“What about the power to fight back? Kali’s ultimatum still stands. How do you plan on fighting an entire pack of Alphas as a Beta?” Peter lets his emotions slip for the first time in years, “that’s suicide, Derek.”

Clenching his fists until there’s surely crescent shaped indents in his palms, Derek grits out, “I. Don’t. Care.” Cora thrashes on his bed just then. More of that sickly, black substance leaking out of her mouth, smelling like death itself. “It has to be now,” he rushes to her side, “I don’t have a choice.”

His uncle grabs his elbow, “you always have a choice. It’s whether or not you can live with the consequences. Facing Kali as a Beta.”

Yanking his arm free, the Alpha reminds him, “it’s not just a full moon coming, it’s a lunar eclipse.” It’s his only hope, “we’ll all be powerless. Even them.”

Peter seems to finally have given up on his feeble attempt to get the Alpha to change his mind. Good. Derek’s about as stubborn as they come. Fuck this power if he can’t share it with his family. So he sits in the chair beside Cora as the Beta wheezes in her sleep. There’s no take backs, no second chances. And that is a-okay to Derek. He doesn’t hesitate, with both hands he grabs Cora’s forearm and the black lines begin to leech her pain.

Like fire running through him, coursing through his veins in a constant wave he can’t escape. Doesn’t want to escape because that means it’s working. Derek would much rather feel all of this agony than his kid sister. Cora gasps and jerks on the bed, wide-eyed, struggling to breathe as the poison dispels. The pain travels up his arms and towards his head. Unable to hold back any longer, Derek rears his head back and roars. His vision bleeding red, flickering until there’s only darkness.

An unknown amount of time later, Derek wakes up to something pressing against his mouth. Hard and curved. His eyes flutter open to see Cora smiling at him, holding a water bottle to his lips, he takes a careful swing while he rubs the back of his neck.

“You saved me,” his sister continues to smile. Something he desperately missed since they were kids. “Thanks, Der.”

The wolf sits up a little straighter, now seeing Peter sitting on the spiral staircase with a stoic expression. A mask to hide what he’s feeling or thinking. Big surprise there. “Are you feeling okay?” Derek asks, surprised that he really only feels a little tired. The kind of tiredness where you sleep more than you intended to and wake up worse than when you went to bed. But he still feels strong.

“Better than okay,” Cora tells him, flashing her golden eyes to drive the point home. She’s fully healed and back to herself once more. Exactly what Derek wanted. But something funny happens when her eyes glow, his own respond and his sister lets out a gasp. “Derek, your eyes.”

Peter is by the bed in an instant, “do it again.” Derek sits still, looking confused as all fuck. The older wolf knew that he was sacrificing his Alpha spark to save Cora from the brink of death. He shouldn’t be surprised that his eyes are blue again. “Derek!” His uncle snaps in his face, “do it. Again.” With a resigned huff, Derek does as requested and Peter’s face mirrors Cora’s, “that’s not possible.”

“What’s not possible?”

But no one answers because just then, Derek’s phone starts buzzing on the mattress beside him, Isaac’s name flashing on the screen. Odd, they just fought and he’s busy with Deaton and the others, he shouldn’t be calling him. Except that he is and Cora thrusts the device into his hands with a still growing smile.

“Isaac,” Derek addresses after sliding the green button over.

“What the fuck is going on with you?” The wolf rushes out, sounding hissed like he doesn’t want anyone to hear him. “I was here helping Deaton well all of a sudden I had this pull in my chest like you were in trouble. It went away and then came back tenfold. My wolf is going crazy wanting to get to you. What the fuck is happening?”

“That’s what I’d like to know.”

Peter rolls his eyes dramatically, “come on, use your brain. You just sacrificed yourself for your sister and your first bitten Beta feels a pull to you after having left your pack. What does that sound like to you, Derek?”

Holy shit. There’s no fucking way. It’s way too rare of an occurrence to have happened to him. Derek jumps out of bed, still clutching his phone to his ear and flashes his eyes in the massive window. Rubies reflect back at him. “I’m an Alpha.”

“A True Alpha, and Isaac’s wolf still recognizes you,” Peter explains. “Even my wolf feels it. By willingly sacrificing your power for the good of another, especially when it could’ve cost you your life, you became worthy enough to be a True Alpha. Talia would be proud.”

“I’m sorry I left, Derek,” Isaac’s voice claims his attention, adding to the warmth twisting in his heart. “You weren’t a bad Alpha, you were just trying to learn as you go and I can’t blame you for that. Can I- if it’s okay with you, I’d still like to be in your pack. I want to help you with the Alpha pack and the Darach.”

2.

The second time, Derek somehow knows he isn't making it up. He's walking home from school and just as he tilts his head back to look at the sky, he feels something moving against his leg. He jumps, startled out of his daydreams, only to see the same bright orange fox from a few days prior. It looks up at him, and Derek could swear it smiles. He gives one in return and continues walking, feeling the slight warmth radiating off the creature as he puts a new pep in his step.

"Nice day out, huh?" Derek asks. He doesn't expect a response, but the fox lets out a sound akin to mixing a bark and a chirp. Derek takes it to mean laughter and ducks his head as they continue on.

"You're cute, you know that?" Derek feels the fox hop up to rub its head against his hand, his adolescent height making the leap small.

Instead of responding, the fox leaps in front of Derek, running back and forth before circling the boy, Derek's giggles spurring him on. The fox seemed to show up right when Derek was feeling his lowest, a bad day at school leeching into his mood. With his companion here, Derek feels it melt away.

3.

The fox comes to visit more often as Derek grows older, enough that Laura and Cora both join in playing with it. Derek has named him Mischief, perhaps a little on the nose but apt nonetheless. There's something about the way the fox always seems to know when he's not feeling his best, combating the loneliness and anxiety that Derek feels growing up.

It is a particularly snowy day when Derek asks if he can bring the fox inside to keep warm, and his dad says yes. Elated, Derek snuggles with his friend in front of the fireplace, telling stories about the Hale family until he falls asleep. The fox sleeps next to Derek, curling its tail around his chest protectively.

When Talia comes in to check on them, she notices the faint glow around the fox and gasps, tearing up when she realizes. Later that night when getting him to bed, Talia tells Derek about mating familiars.

"So... I'm gonna marry a fox?" Derek is understandably confused at the idea, but Talia only chuckles and kisses his forehead.

"Not quite, sweetie. Your familiar is a symbol of your mate. Whoever it is seems to have a trickster spirit, mischievous to match the name you gave it years ago. And whether you marry your mate or not, that's all up to you. Fate only shows you the path to them, what you do next is your decision."

Derek stares off in thought for a few moments before looking back to Talia and smiling, seeing how the fox lights up, glowing ethereally. Derek scratches it behind the ear and rests his head against its soft fur.

4.

Derek is hesitant to let the fox join him in traveling, not just across state lines but overseas as well. The fellowship he'd received gave him the resources to use photography to capture the beauty of the world, but he worries about the cost in leaving the fox behind. They've bonded over the years, growing from kit and child to adult fox and human, and Derek is torn. He doesn't want to be alone, having found the constant companionship with Mischief reassuring, but he also doesn't want to take it from their home.

Back in high school, Derek had begun photographing Mischief in the surrounding landscape, his series of Fox Leaps Through Seasons winning him an award. Capturing the natural beauty around him felt like a spiritual experience almost, connecting so distinctly to the earth. Mischief was always by his side, never wavering in his devotion.

When Derek finds himself growing emotional about the potential severance caused by going overseas, Mischief disappears, right when Derek needs him most. It's sudden, and he watches as the fox simply flickers out of his vision. He assumes this to be the end of their relationship, and rather than carry on, he all but collapses where he stands. His hands lay empty on his thighs, head hung low in resignation as he feels a few tears drop.

Talia watches this from inside and rushes out to comfort her son. She kneels next to him and draws him close, whispering reassurances to him. Being older and wiser, she knows Mischief is likely to return. Getting Derek to believe her, though, is the trickier part. She sits back on her heels just as a flash of orange crosses her field of vision, and in a blur of color the fox is back in front of Derek, plopping an old, plain book in front of him.

There are bite marks and a small amount of slobber on the book, but Derek opens it nonetheless. He wipes his eyes with a free hand before letting his other to rest on Mischief's belly, fingers absent-mindedly giving scratches.

"The Care and Feeding of Your Familiar," Derek reads out. "What is this?" He turns to look at Mischief, only to be met with the lopsided toothy grin he's come to know.

"I think someone wants you to take them with you," Talia says, pinching at Derek's cheek the way she knows he loves but pretends not to.

5.

A few years go by as Derek and Mischief continue their adventures. From backpacking across Europe to capturing the narwhals of the Arctic on film, the duo become well-known in the photography and journalist communities - the humble bearded man with his unusually iridescent fox. They are inseparable; have been, really, since they first met a couple decades ago, and their work only excels more because of it. Derek finds himself utilizing his skill and fame thus far to hopefully reach his mate across the pages of his publications, make sure they know he's ready for them. By photographing Mischief, Derek imagines whoever he may be destined to meet will recognize their own spirit inside the fox.

The longer they travel, though, the more worried Derek gets about when he will finally meet the human to match his familiar. Talia and Laura have both tried to allay his fears that his familiar was a mistake, understanding that Derek only wants to find his human mate and complete the picture. He wasn't sure what his mate's familiar would be, but after learning the Hales have often found mates with wolf familiars he knows this is likely the case. Every time he sees a wolf in the wild now, Derek thinks it may lead him to who he needs to meet. He has yet to be right, but he knows it must happen eventually.

+1

Nearing home again, returning to California after his recent tour of Southeast Asia, Derek can tell Mischief is growing restless. He is higher energy than Derek has ever seen him, boundless and light as a feather jumping around. Derek knows it has to be time.

They stop at a local diner on the way into town, enjoying the regional favorites before heading back. As Derek unlocks the Camero, he hears what he thinks is a wolf howl. After so long in nature, Derek feels somewhat of a moderate expert on animal calls.

"There are no wolves in California," he mutters to himself as he straightens, scratching behind Mischief's ears when the fox perks up even more. Derek scans the surroundings, just as he sees a wolf trot into the parking lot, eyes shining a vivid purple. He has no response other than a gaping mouth, not moving as the wolf sniffs Mischief before sitting in front of Derek.

The fox, on the other hand, gives the wolf a few licks before taking off. It doesn't disappear like it did all those years ago, but it moves so fast that all Derek really sees is a streak of orange.

"Nice jacket," a stranger calls out before Derek has a chance to follow Mischief. The wolf has laid down on Derek's feet anyway.

"Uh, thanks," Derek responds. The man is close enough to see now, and he can't help giving out a smile. He looks to be a few years younger than Derek, though not many, and his mole-speckled skin stands out in the setting sun's light. "This guy yours?" He asks, gesturing to the wolf.

"That would be Wilk, and she's a loyal old gal. I'm Stiles," the man says, introducing himself.

"Derek, and that's Mischief."

Stiles gives a small smile and they shake hands and Derek notices that Mischief has wrapped himself around one of Stiles' legs, front paws stretched out to lay on Wilk's. Both men look down at the familiars, only breaking gaze when Derek clears his throat. Stiles jumps, his turned-up nose showing a tinge of red.

"What are the chances- "

"That this was mean to be?" Stiles finishes Derek's sentence. He smiles, a slightly ridiculous visual, his face spread wide with nervous joy. He seems to wear his heart on his sleeve, which Derek appreciates.

"Something like that," Derek answers. He's smirking under his beard and reaches a hand out. Once taken, he pulls Stiles in for a hug, hand cradling the back of his neck.

"Wanna go back to my place?" Stiles asks once he makes himself pull back. Derek merely raises his eyebrows in surprise before Stiles starts stuttering over himself. "Not like that! I mean, I guess if you wanna, but not what I meant, I swear!" He raises his hands and starts to back away, but he doesn't want to disturb Mischief at his feet.

"I wouldn't mind, but maybe let's get to know each other first," Derek deadpans. It's just a show, but Stiles still blushes.

"I just figured you were leaving the diner, so you already ate and I probably shouldn't ask you to eat more right now, but I-"

Stiles is cut off when Derek surprises him with a kiss. It's brief and relatively chaste, Derek's hands on either side of Stiles' face. After releasing Stiles' lips, Derek rests his forehead against his mate's, smiling to himself.

"Sorry, I just needed you to shut up," he whispers.