Taking another slow breath out he reached for another, pushing aside the lid and peering in. His brows furrowed when the smell of ash didn't hit his nose, but instead, stale, faint Jasmine and bergamot. His mind swept through memories of walks in the woods, gentle lectures, and coffee dates. Laura's perfume.

He plucked the small purple bottle. This box wasn't from their house. It was things Laura had left in their apartment in New York. This was the box Derek had packed after she died. He pulled out a framed picture of the two of them. A coffee date two days before she left for Beacon Hills.

He pulled a book on flowers. She had gotten into flowers after the fire, picking up a hobby his mother had loved. She was the best florist he knew. She could make even the ugliest flowers fit into a beautiful arrangement. Laying the book next to the perfume on the table, he continued to rifle.

A small jewelry box that held a simple silver necklace. A flower charm dangled from it. A recipe book she bought when she wanted to learn to cook. And a familiar purple box, gilded in silver stars and moons.

It had been a gift for her birthday. Another hobby she had taken up. Derek had never teased her about her many hobbies. He knew they were something to fill the emptiness she was feeling. He knew because he had felt it too. He had attempted to fill his own void, but he often found himself numb and distant.

He brushed his fingers along the small box before plucking it out. He opened it, making his stomach roll.

"So the three-card spread has many variations but I really like past, present, and future. Watch." Laura had laid the cards out in an arch. "Pick three." He did as told plucking three from the deck. They were black with gold filigree.

Derek rolled his eyes but said nothing as she stumbled through her reading.

"Okay, so you pulled..." She paused glancing up at him. "The three of swords upright." Her eyes saddened. "Your past is filled with suffering and grief. Your heart feels broken."

Derek narrowed his eyes. They were dangerously close to topics he didn't like to discuss.

"The second card is your present. And you pulled—" She let out a small sigh. "Five of cups upright... You feel a great loss, you're drowning in self-pity and grief."

Derek's jaw clenched. He didn't want to play this game anymore.

"The last one is your future." Laura's tone tried to sound hopeful. She flipped his third card and froze. Her fingers partially concealed a cloaked figure holding a lantern. "The Hermit reversed," She whispered.

"Let me guess it's just as bleak as the others?" Derek sneered.

"You face isolation and loneliness, you may feel aimless like you're lost."

"This is stupid. It's all fake." Derek swiped at the cards scattering them to the floor of the kitchen.

"Derek," Laura huffed, scrambling to gather them up. "I borrowed these."

Derek had felt bad for how he reacted and gifted her with her own deck. She didn't ask to do another reading for him though, and he never offered.

"Alright, Laura," he said, opening the box. He splayed the purple cards across the table and stared at them. The stars and moons shimmered in the sunlight that peeked through the window.

He slowly pulled three cards from the deck and laid them face down in front of him. It couldn't be all bad. Right? Maybe his luck had changed. It was a decade ago that he had last pulled cards. He was a vastly different person now.

He flipped the first one to see a figure draped in a purple robe, holding a scythe in one hand. Leafless trees framed him. The card faced away from him.

"Death reversed," he whispered as he compared it to the guidebook. "Fear of change, stagnation, decay." He frowned at the words. His stomach twisted, this was already not going well. But it was his past card. Perhaps his present card would be better.

His fingers brushed over the silky exterior. He took a deep breath, his heart hammering against his ribs. He flipped the card. A moon peered up at him. In front of it were six swords held aloft, in front of the moon. Beneath them looked to be a vast ocean of purples and pinks. This one faced him.

He flipped through the book to find the six of swords. His stomach flitted as he read the words, transition, leaving behind, moving on. That didn't seem so bad. But what did it mean? He wished Laura were here to tell him. What he wouldn't give for her to be here.

"Future," he breathed reaching for the final card. He was surrounded by people who cared for him. He wasn't alone or lost. He was right where he wanted to be. He wasn't missing anything. This could rip it all away though. Show him a disruption he wasn't willing to accept.

He considered briefly not flipping the card and just packing them away but a tug at his chest froze him in place. He could almost hear Laura's words. 'You can't be scared of your future, Derek, that's how you get stuck in the past.'

He hurriedly flipped the card. Two people faced each other, each one holding a cup in their hand. They leaned into each other like lovers.

Derek blinked at the upright card and flipped to find the right page. Unity, partnership, connection.

Relief rushed out of him. That didn't sound bad at all.

The sound of voices outside had him quickly shoving the cards and book back into their box. That would be Cora and Stiles back with the last load of boxes from his old loft.

He managed to get the box closed just as they entered, each one carrying boxes.

"Just set them in the living room," Derek said, trying to act nonchalant. He didn't know why he was acting like he'd just been caught reading porn. It was a silly card read.

"Oof, you started on the hard ones first. How's it going?" Cora asked, glancing at the ash-filled boxes behind him.

He turned to the boxes on his dining table and shrugged. "Honestly, it's pretty bleak. I don't know why we kept these all this time."

"Are you planning on keeping them?" Stiles asked, peering at the one open box of Laura's behind Derek.

"Not most of them. Maybe this one but the rest are..." he shook his head.

Cora lifted one of the lids and her expression went hollow. "You kept this?" she whispered. She reached in and pulled out an alphabet block. He could barely make out the letter L through the scorched wood.

Stiles sucked in a breath.

"Laura was... I didn't have the heart to argue with her." Derek shrugged.

"You shouldn't keep these." Cora put the block back and stepped away from the box like she could catch something from it.

"Yeah, I think I'll keep the box of Laura's things from the apartment in New York but the rest..." How was he supposed to throw them away though? It felt...wrong. Like he was forgetting them.

"Why don't I take these out to the jeep, you guys can start unpacking the other boxes." Stiles stepped past Derek and Cora and gathered two of the boxes into his arms.

Derek's chest warmed. He was glad Stiles was there. He was often like a soothing balm on a fresh wound when it came to his past. He never pressured Derek or made him feel less than. In fact, he was always so supportive.

"Did you go through those while we were gone?" Cora asked, meeting Derek's eyes.

"A few of them."

"I'm sorry. You should have waited for me."

"I honestly forgot what was in them. I knew it wouldn't be good but... You have to understand. We were in a low place. Keeping this was the only way we knew how to cope."

Cora rounded the table and placed a hand on Derek's arm. "You don't have to explain."

"I'm sorry you had to see that," Derek bowed his head in shame.

"You said you're gonna keep Laura's box?" Cora turned to the perfume bottle and raised it to her nose.

"Yeah, she uh, she picked up a lot of hobbies while in New York." Derek gestured to the cards and books.

"Cooking, like dad always did." She smiled at the recipe book. "Flowers. Mom was always so good." She brushed her fingers along the cover. She paused as she got to the deck of cards. "She got into tarot?"

"Yeah, I bought her those." Derek nodded. "No clue where she got the inspiration to start."

"Me," Cora whispered.

Derek frowned at her. "I had a friend at the time, Savannah, she got a deck for her birthday. I told Laura I wanted a deck for my birthday. She listened to me rant for two days about how it works and the different pulls."

Derek blinked. "She wasn't just filling the hole with hobbies. She was filling it with all of your hobbies."

Cora opened the deck as Stiles returned. "Is that a tarot deck?" He asked, peering at the cards as he gathered the last of the boxes.

"Yeah," Cora laid out the cards.

"You never told me Laura was a fortune teller," Stiles nudged Derek as he walked by.

"I never got my deck," Cora spread the cards out and placing her hand over them, swirled them around the table. She continued to mix them up.

"What are you doing?"

"It's how you shuffle them."

"Pull a card," Cora urged.

"What? Why? Don't you have to have like a special spread and such?" Derek pretended to not know how it worked. He didn't know why. It was nothing to be ashamed of.

"You can do a single card pull. It's often good for clarity. Or if you have a question. It's been a long time since I've messed with tarot honestly."

Derek stared at the cards. He didn't have a question. And despite his most recent pull not being so bad, he was still afraid of them. Like they alone could disrupt his life.

"My mom had a deck when I was young," Stiles said, returning once again. The boxes were all out of the house.

It was almost like a weight was lifted off Derek's shoulders.

"I'm trying to get Derek to pull one."

"It's fake," he grumbled.

"You pull one," Stiles urged her.

Cora plucked a card. "The Star upright." She held up a card with a woman looking up into a night sky, a star gleamed down at her from a distance.

"I have no clue what that means," Stiles shrugged.

Derek pointed to the book. "Look in there."

Stiles flipped through pages and then tilted his head. "Wait, it's just some words."

Cora snatched the book from his grasp. "Well, duh, it's interpretive. So the star upright means hope, faith, and rejuvenation."

"Wait, but I thought..." Stiles frowned down at the cards before gathering them up into a pile. "Hold on, let me try— oops," Stiles reached for the card that he dropped.

"What is it?" Cora asked wide-eyed. "When you accidentally flip a card, that means the universe is trying to tell you something."

Stiles laid the card on the table.

Derek's stomach lurched. The two of cups card lay upright.

"Two of cups," Cora hummed, flipping through the book. "Unity, partnership, and connection."

"What on earth could the universe be trying to tell me with that card? I'm not even dating anyone."

Derek's heart sped in his chest like it could escape the situation. Surely that wasn't what his card was referring to.

"Maybe you're gonna meet someone soon."

"In Beacon Hills?" Stiles snorted. His eyes cut to Derek briefly.

"I dunno, I'm not a professional tarot reader," Cora shrugged, gathering the cards back up.

"There's one downtown by the station."

"Think she'd teach me?" Cora laughed.

Derek stared at Stiles, his mind reeling. Did that mean something? Surely not. It was chance. There were only seventy-eight cards. The chances of pulling the same card were... less than two percent if he was doing the math right. Shit. That wasn't a high percent. Surely that had to mean something.

"Well, I should get going. Derek, if you need help unpacking all these I can come back by tomorrow."

Derek blinked trying to process the words Stiles had just spoken. "Uh, I uh, sure."

"Okay, I'll see you around noon then?" He gave Derek's forearm a gentle squeeze as he walked by.

Derek nodded, unable to say anything.

"Thanks for your help, see you." Cora held out a fist and Stiles bumped it with his.

Derek loved how easily Stiles fit in. Like he was meant to be here, part of the family. It felt natural having him around.

Once Stiles was gone, Cora turned to him and crossed her arms.

"What?"

"How much longer are you gonna pretend that you're not in love with him?"

Derek stiffened. "He's family, nothing more."

"He could be literal family if you got your head out of your ass."

Derek shook his head. "Stiles deserves better."

Cora scoffed. She poked him in the chest. "That's a pathetic excuse and you know it."

Derek scrubbed a hand down his face. He stared down at the box of tarot cards. He had spent the last two years convincing himself that Stiles deserved to find someone outside of the supernatural. Someone normal. But when he pulled his future card...

"I need to run out for a bit, you want to order in tonight?" Derek asked, grabbing his keys from the counter.

"Uh, Sure. Chinese or Pizza?"

"Chinese," Derek answered sliding on his leather jacket.

"Where are you going?"

"Out," He answered vaguely, he took the steps from his new house two at a time. This was stupid and he didn't know why he was doing it but he was determined to get answers.

-

"Are you really doing this?" Derek asked himself staring at the sign in front of him. The 'Matron of Ravens' it read. The shop was small, its glass front was decorated with raven symbology. The words 'for fate seekers' were plastered at the bottom in elegant scroll. A simple porcelain mask hung from the corner. Through the glass, he saw shelves of tarot cards, crystals, and other trinkets.

"You seem hesitant dear," A voice pulled Derek's attention to the door where a woman in a long black dress stood. Her thick hair was pulled into a black side braid that draped to her waist.

"Yeah, I don't really know why I'm here." Derek glanced over his shoulder at the car. He should just get back in and go home. Pretend none of it had happened.

"Yes, you do. You're just afraid of the answer." She smiled. "You can't be scared of your future. That's how you stay stuck in the past."

Derek's head whipped back to face her, his eyes wide.

"Come inside." She walked in, not waiting for him to answer.

Derek followed despite the pit in his stomach. He didn't even believe in fate. And she was right, he was afraid of the answer. He wasn't going to do anything about it.

The inside of the shop smelled like lavender and sage. It wasn't overbearing to his senses though.

"Sit." The woman gestured to a table with two chairs that sat behind an open draped room.

Derek sat and let out a slow breath. He felt foolish. His heart hammered and his stomach rolled.

"My name is Maven Dusk," She said, sitting across from him, the curtains now drawn giving them privacy. The space was so small Derek almost wondered if this was meant to be a closet.

"Derek Hale." He glanced around. The walls were draped in tarot iconography and ravens.

"So tell me, why are you here?" Maven asked, clasping her hands together on the table.

"Aren't you supposed to know the answer to that?" Derek asked, focusing back on her.

Her lips quirked into a smile. "I'm not a mind reader, Derek. I'm a tarot reader."

He dropped his chin to his chest and let out a breath. "I'm sorry, I just..." he scrubbed a hand down his face.

"You're troubled by something. What is it?"

"My sister. She had this deck." He glanced around expecting to see one lying around but there was nothing on the table but a black tablecloth. "I don't know... I don't believe in this stuff, no offense."

"You must if you're here."

"I didn't. But I pulled this card and I don't know what it means. I mean, I read her book but... it's just the keywords or whatever."

"Is your sister versed in the way of reading tarot?" Maven asked, tilting her head slightly.

Derek's shoulders dropped. "She was learning...but she's..." he trailed off.

"Ah, I see. You feel like she may be trying to tell you something?"

Derek met Maven's eyes. "I did a three-card spread. It's the only one I know. Past, present, future. And it didn't mean much to me, but not ten minutes later someone pulled a card and it was the same card I pulled for my future. The deck was shuffled. The chances of that are... I mean how often does that happen?"

Maven leaned back and hummed. "You want to know if this person is important to your future?"

"I can't imagine a world in which he's not," Derek muttered. "I want to know what the card means."

"Well, why don't we see if it shows itself to you again?" She pulled out a deck from seemingly nowhere. Had they been in her pocket?

She spread the cards out in an arch.

Derek's stomach vaulted. "Wait."

She paused, looking up at him. "Is something wrong?"

He shifted in his seat. He didn't want another pull.

"You claim to not believe in them yet you fear the cards. Why?"

Derek frowned down at the black cards. Gold lines draped across them, converging to a porcelain mask in the middle.

"I had a bad reading once and I just..."

"The cards don't control your future. You can change it at any time. That's the beauty of it. Go on."

Derek took in a slow breath and let it out as he reached out. His hands shook as he plucked three cards from the lineup.

"First," She nodded to the first card Derek pulled.

He hesitated before closing his eyes and flipping. The artwork depicted a man riding a chariot, being pulled by two horses. It was reversed.

Derek sucked in a breath as he waited.

"The Chariot," Maven hummed. "You lacked control and direction in your past. You held onto aggression. Perhaps you were controlled by an obsession or goal."

Derek let out the breath. That was true. But he was in a better place now. He carefully flipped the next one. An arch of leaves held up by four posts, in the distance were two people in celebration. The card faced him.

"Ah, the four of wands. This card is often associated with community. This card shows celebration as well as a harmonious, happy, and relaxed environment. You are currently in a happy place. Your life has balance and stability."

Derek nodded. Once again true. He stared at the final card. Part of him hoped it was a different card. Part of him hoped it wasn't.

"You fear your future. Why?"

"Because I'm right where I want to be."

"Is that why you came to see me? Because you're right where you want to be?"

"I'm afraid of it getting messed up. I've worked hard to get where I am. I can't—" he shook his head. "I won't lose that."

Maven smiled warmly. "Are you at risk of losing that?"

"I don't think so."

"Then why not be excited for the future? Eager for what more you may accomplish." She gestured to the card, urging him to flip it.

His throat shriveled like leaves on a hot day. He could do this. It wasn't a big deal. He flipped the card over quickly. A hand held a cup that overflowed into a lake below it.

"Ace of cups." She smiled. He wanted to take that as a good sign, but he couldn't push away the anxiety. "I see why you're afraid now."

Derek straightened in his seat.

"The keywords here are love, new feelings, and intuition."

His stomach rocked.

"You have feelings for someone, don't you?"

"What does the card mean?" Derek pressed, ignoring her question.

"Well, it suggests the awakening of new feelings. Or perhaps a new stage of intimacy with someone. This card signals there is an opportunity for you to grow emotionally should you accept. You only have to learn to trust your gut and avoid over-analyzing situations."

Derek scrubbed a hand down his face.

Maven frowned, watching him. "You seem displeased. Many would be thrilled to receive this card."

"I can't—"

"Tell me what future card you pulled earlier." She urged, tucking his picked cards back into the deck.

"Two of cups," Derek said softly.

"A card known for unity and connection." She nodded. "That card encourages the beginnings of partnerships of any kind, and the harmony that arises when two people come together to work in unity. It also suggests a relationship that is mutually beneficial, one where the partners encourage one another."

Derek's throat stuck.

"You fear this. Why?" Maven tilted her head at him.

"He deserves better."

"Perhaps you are his better."

Derek blinked at her. No. She just didn't know the whole story. "He was messing with the deck. He dropped a card and it flipped over facing him. It was the two of cups."

"So you think that he is who you will end up with?"

"I don't know... how else do you explain it?"

Maven gave him a sympathetic look, it made him feel small and judged. He hated it. He shrunk back into his seat. What was he a thirteen-year-old girl?

"It's all up to interpretation. Do you love him?"

Derek swallowed, his throat still like glue. "Yes."

"And how does he feel about you?"

Derek opened his mouth and snapped it shut. Did Stiles feel something for him? He never questioned it. Stiles had never hinted at it or acted differently. He never smelled different either. A new fear gripped his chest. "I don't know."

"Perhaps he thinks you deserve better."

Derek frowned. The idea that there could be better than Stiles was a ridiculous notion.

Maven plucked a card from the middle of the deck and slid it forward. "Perhaps you should stop overthinking it and just make the leap."

"I don't want to lose him. If he doesn't want me then—"

Maven sighed, sliding the card back into the deck. "I cannot tell you want to do. I can only tell you what the cards say."

"Thank you. I feel better knowing what they mean." He wished he had more clarity with that knowledge, unfortunately, though he was only more unsure.

-

Derek sat at the kitchen island, staring at the tarot cards in front of him. They were splayed out like Maven had done. He could only stare though. He didn't know what he was waiting for. The cards weren't going to jump into his hand. His sister wasn't going to appear and claim to be trying to sway him from the other side.

"Knock knock," Stiles' voice called from the front door. Derek whipped around to see Stiles stepping inside. He jumped to his feet.

"Stiles, you're—" Derek glanced at the clock on the stove. Noon. "Right on time," he sighed. How long had he been staring at those cards?

"Yeah?" Stiles frowned. "Are you playing with those cards again? You did not strike me as the tarot type."

"Yeah, I'm not." Derek rubbed at the back of his neck.

"So what's with these? You decide to become one of those whimsical ladies on the front of tarot monthly?"

Derek snorted a laugh. "No, I was just... thinking I guess."

"Let's see what the universe has to say." Stiles reached over and plucked a card from the spread.

"This is the same card I pulled yesterday," Stiles hummed showing the two of cups.

Derek stared at it.

"What does this card mean again?" Stiles reached for the book but Derek snatched the card from his hand.

"Whoa, hey, what—"

"Pull again," Derek demanded.

"Dude, are you okay?"

"Pull again."

"Okay." Stiles grabbed another card from the deck. He held up the Ace of cups this time.

Derek snatched it from his hand. "Pull again."

"Derek, what's going on?" Stiles tilted his head, eyes scanning his face.

"Just—" Derek scrubbed a hand over his face, before slumping back into his seat. He let the cards fall away.

"What's wrong? Talk to me?" Stiles placed a hand on Derek's shoulder and it was like everything melted away. Stiles was always a comfort for him.

"I keep pulling these cards and..."

"I didn't think you believed in this."

"I don't."

"So why are you letting it bother you?"

"I don't know. I did a pull for myself and then I went to that tarot place downtown and paid for a pull there. These two cards were my future card and I'm just... trying to understand."

"They're just cards. Maybe you're putting so much stock in them because they were Laura's."

Derek sighed. "Maybe."

"Or maybe the cards are telling you that I'm your future," Stiles laughed.

Derek's shoulders slumped.

"I'm kidding."

"I think you're right."

Stiles blinked at him.

Derek's heart slammed against his chest wall as he searched for any scent changes. Nothing.

"I'm confused."

"Do you know what these cards mean?"

Stiles shook his head. "I mean, I don't know this one," he grabbed the Ace of cups. "I think the other one was something about connection."

Derek stared into Stiles' eyes. They danced worriedly in the bit of sunlight that filtered through the kitchen window above the sink.

"You left Beacon Hills. For years. Why'd you come back?"

Stiles' brows shot up. "What?"

"You could have settled down anywhere, but you chose to come back here. Scott moved to L.A. Lydia is traveling the world. Why'd you come back?"

Stiles shifted. "My dad's here and..." He shrugged, his eyes dropping to the card in his hand. "so are you."

Derek cupped Stiles' chin, forcing him to meet his eyes. "You deserve better."

Stiles blinked again, his brows furrowing. "If you're afraid of me leaving, I'm not going anywhere, Derek. This place is my home. You are my home." His eyes flitted down to Derek's mouth for just a moment.

Hope rocketed through him. Don't overthink it. Take the leap. He could do that.

Derek surged forward, catching Stiles' lips on his. It was less of a kiss and more of a declaration. A promise. A leap. He pulled back just enough to whisper into Stiles' mouth. "I want to be your better."

"I have no clue what that means, but yes," Stiles dove back in, reconnecting their lips.