Bitten
I was standing with my arms crossed over my chest while Der was sitting in front of some lockers. I frowned then asked, “Who was it?”
He looked at me then started explaining, “There’s a lot of myths about how people can be turned into a werewolf. Usually a bite. Then there’s one about rain water.”
I nodded. “Drinking rain water out of the puddle of a werewolves print,” I finished for him.
Der looked down then kept his eyes trained ahead. “There’s another one.”
I heard Kate Argent’s voice ring through my head as she asked, “Can you get turned by a scratch?”
“If the claws go deep enough. Maybe,” someone that sounded a lot like Chris replied.
That’s when I remember Peter tearing out Kate's throat with his claws. I was shocked. There’s no way what I was thinking could be possible. However, something in Der’s expression had me more worried about him than Kate Argent possibly being some supernatural creature. I moved to sit in front of him and asked, “Derek, if this is all just a dream, why do you look so worried?” I was hoping to reassure him but he tensed even more.
Der finally looked at me and my heart broke for him. Fear and grief were mixed in his eyes one trying to overtake the other with each breath that passed his lips. “Because I don’t remember waking up so tell me how do you know? How do you know if you’re still dreaming?” he rushed out. The panic in his voice was more revealing than his eyes had been. He was terrified.
I was worried now too. If Der wasn’t dreaming he was in trouble and no one was there to help him. “Your fingers, in dreams you have extra fingers.”
He grabbed my hand and pulled it up between our faces. As soon as I looked at it I could tell I had more than five fingers. Derek’s grip tightened and the fear in his eyes won the battle. He took a shuddering breath that looked more painful than soothing.
I placed my free hand on his shoulder hoping it would offer some semblance of comfort. “It's going to be okay Der. I’ll get you help,” I promised.
He turned to look at me searching for something. I tried to keep the distress out of my expression and project an air of confidence and safety. He grimaced but some of the tension seemed to ease out of his shoulders so I’d call it a win.
He opened his mouth but before he could reply I was waking up in the car. For a second I didn’t know what was going on then it started to trickle back to me a memory at a time. I remembered leaving Beacon Hills then the trip with Danny. Next I remembered the nightmare and leaving the Inn. Then finally something colliding with the car and crashing into the tree.
The memory was enough to snap me back to the present. I could tell there was something warm running from my forehead down my face now. It was dripping from the lashes of my left eye and flowing in thick beads down my cheek like tears. I could feel some of it pooling at the corner of my mouth while the rest continued its journey down my chin to my shirt.
My head throbbed with the beat of my heart, pumping more of the sticky substance out of the gash just below my hairline. I tried to blink my eyes open but my lashes were matted together and the effort only made the pounding worse. I groaned in pain then whimpered when the sound reverberated through my skull. A metallic taste started filling my mouth and the scent that pervaded my nightmares started to clog my nose.
I brought my hand up to wipe away the slick fluid starting to cool against my cheek. I felt it coat my fingers. I finally forced my eyes open and looked at my hand. It was covered in blood.
I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t think. I kept seeing flashes of metal glinting and red liquid raining down around me. I felt empowered, strong as I remembered feeding on the pain of others and the chaos I caused. My ears started ringing. My heart was racing. I started trembling. A tear fell down my cheek mixing with the blood already there. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from my crimson coated fingers.
I felt a hand land on my shoulder and flinched, jerking away from it. I was dangerous. I was a murderer, a monster. I would only hurt those I cared about. I couldn’t let anyone touch me. I couldn’t let anyone get close to me.
A man’s voice calling my name finally filtered in through the ringing in my ears. However, it wasn’t Danny trying to bring me out of my panic attack. It was a tall, muscular boy with dark skin and glowing yellow eyes. It was a boy I watched die in his Alphas arms. “B-Boyd,” I choked out. That’s when I noticed the two girls standing behind him. One had on a leather jacket and blood red lipstick with her own glowing eyes. The other was holding a crossbow and standing tall but all I could think about was her laying on the ground bleeding out while Scott held her and Lydia screamed. The guilt and panic grew stronger at the sight.
I tried to scoot farther into the car and away from the dead teens in front of me. “No. No this can’t be real,” I mumbled. I looked down to my hands to count my fingers but they were still covered in the fluid form of life I hoped I’d never have to see again. My vision blurred and I was getting dizzy. Spots were starting to dance around the edges of my line of sight. That’s when I heard it.
“Stiles, where’s Danny!?” the three hallucinations were yelling. It got my attention. I sucked in a shuddering breath and turned to where Danny should be in the driver's seat. However, the spot was vacant. All that remained was blood and an open door.
Everything went quiet. There were no more teens yelling. The trees seemed frozen. The animals appeared to be holding their breath. Not even the wind dared to blow. The panic and pain that was just consuming me was only a distant memory as I felt a cold rage start to take hold in my gut.
I got out of the car and noticed the pools of red and black in the fresh, white snow heading farther into the trees. I saw my baseball bat laying next to one of the puddles closer to the car. I picked it up and started following the trails of blood through the leafless, ice covered trees.
The closer I got the louder Danny’s screams grew. The anger continued to grow inside of me starting to mix with worry and a desperation to get to him. I started running when I heard what sounded like a bone snap.
I came upon them just as a man sunk his sharp fangs into Danny’s shoulder. I froze for a second then Danny was crying out in pain and I was running again. I swung my bat at the man's head believing it would be enough to knock him out.
My bat connected with a sickening crunch. The man got up off of Danny and stumbled towards me before falling to his hands and knees then face planting into the snow. I looked at him for only a moment but it was enough for me to realize this was the alpha from my nightmares. His clothes were torn the same way, he was oozing black blood at the same rate, and the quick glance I got of his wild red eyes proved he was feral. I couldn’t focus on him right now though I needed to check on Danny.
I dropped to my knees beside him letting my bat fall out of my hands and started accessing his injuries. His arm was broken, he had a bruise starting to form around his throat, and there were a set of claw marks that went from his left shoulder across his chest and stomach to his right hip that was gushing blood. I didn’t look at his shoulder because I already knew about the bite mark there. “You are not dying this time. Do you hear me? You are not allowed to leave me again.” I pushed my magic at him believing the bite would take with every ounce of strength I had.
He opened his mouth to say something but all that came out was a gurgle. The black substance covered his lips and started to run down his chin. I sobbed and gently pulled him up to lay against my chest. “No. no. no. no,” I kept repeating while still trying to believe the bite would take. It didn’t work though. I watched as blood started leaking from his nose and streaming down his neck from his ears. His eyes were turning glassy and he seemed to be looking farther away as time dragged on at a snail's pace. His breathing was getting shallower and the time between each breath seemed to last longer. A minute later I heard a labored, rattling gasp then I felt his heart stop beating. Seconds after that the pack bond snapped.
“Danny!” I wailed just as I had in the nightmare I was living. This time though instead of waking up everything went black for a second time.
I blinked my eyes open with great difficulty. I looked around confused. I was sitting alone in the woods covered in snow and ice that had been stained red. I didn’t remember what happened until I noticed the pool of black blood in front of me and it all came rushing back. However, that only left me more confused because Danny’s dead body should still be in my arms and an alpha should be laying a few feet away in the snow. I tried to move but it was like all of my limbs had turned to lead. I could tell I was shivering but movement beyond that was difficult.
Eventually I was able to force myself to my feet. I swayed for a second as the exhaustion set in but I couldn’t give in. I had to get Danny. I stumbled in the direction of drag marks I could see in the snow now that I was standing.
I kept going until I couldn’t stand anymore and fell to my hands and knees panting. I still couldn’t give up though not until I was with Danny. I started crawling in the direction the marks led.
I had to stop once again to catch my breath. I couldn’t feel my hands at all now and I was getting sleepier as the minutes ran on. I was tempted to just lay down and stay there for a second but then I remembered how many nights Danny had stayed up for me and I kept moving forward.
Eventually I found them. The alpha was standing over Danny’s body. I felt the cold rage settle in my gut again but this time it was accompanied by a warmth that started flowing through my entire body. I’m not sure how but I found the strength to stand once again.
While the alpha still had it’s back turned to me I examined the scene. There was black blood mixed with spots of red all over the white shimmering ground. Scraps of clothing that had been torn were scattered around. Next to one of those scraps was the pocket knife my dad had given Danny for Christmas.
A roar drew my attention back to the alpha who was now advancing toward me. I jumped out of the way just in time to avoid being impaled by claws. I went to tighten my hand around my bat when I realized I never grabbed it. I started to panic but I didn’t have time to do more than hiss out, “fuck,” before the alpha was coming at me again. I tried to dodge his claws but I didn’t manage to get past them this time. They graced down my chest, tearing open my stiff shirt and leaving superficial scratches.
I quickly looked around for something I could use to defend myself against the alpha before he could attack again. Just as I was about to give up the search I noticed Danny’s knife laying about a foot away. I grabbed it as quickly as I could and barely managed to avoid the alphas fangs when he tried to take a bite out of me.
I opened the knife just as the alpha turned around and started advancing toward me again. This time instead of moving away I stood my ground. He lunged at me and embedded his claws into the flesh of my right shoulder while I drove the knife as far as it could go into his throat and slashed. The deadly talons sliced their way down to my elbow, ripping open my skin and tearing at the muscle under it as the alphas body fell away. I cried out at the debilitating agony that seared through my arm. I fell to the ground cradling it against my chest and panting with tears streaming down my face.
The warmth that had been filling me was starting to fade now and I was shivering again. I couldn’t feel my hands anymore and the exhaustion was back in full force. Pain was spreading throughout my whole body then being replaced with numbness from the cold. I could see the blood pouring out of my arm and the gash on my head must have reopened because blood was running into my left eye. Now that the pain was fading I could think again even though my thoughts were slower than usual. I needed to get to Danny’s body.
I walked on my knees to Danny and that’s when I noticed the claw marks down his chest that were steadily oozing black goo. I was so confused. I didn’t understand what was happening. I placed my cold, numb hand on his chest and his pack bond flared to life this time tinged red. “H-h-how?” I croaked out through my chattering teeth.
I didn’t get to do much more though because now that I had him my body decided to give in to the exhaustion that was weighing heavily on my shoulders. I fell face first into the soft powder covered ground. I don’t remember much after that just shouts of my name and warm hands then blankets being placed on me.
When I finally came back into a coherent state of consciousness I was in front of a fire, drowning in a sea of blankets, with my chest pressed against a warm body and strong muscular arms wrapped around me. I tensed for a moment but felt myself relax and nuzzle closer when I caught the scent of Armani. The movement caused a bright flair of pain to pulse through me and I groaned. A second later and the pain was being pulled away like weeds from a garden.
I took a minute to gather my thoughts and reassure myself that this was real then I pulled away enough to look at him. I took a deep breath then asked,” How are you alive? I felt your heart stop beating and your pack bond break. I heard you take your last breath Danny.”
Danny looked at me for a second and relief flashed through his eyes before he said, “Oh thank god I thought you might never make it all the way back. You’ve been out of it for quite a while.”
I frowned at him but didn’t say anything so he huffed and pulled me closer again. “I’m not sure Stiles. I remember the alpha biting me and excruciating pain. Then it stopped and I was looking down at you holding my body. I heard you scream and then everything faded around me.
“I woke up to that alpha dragging me through the snow. I remember being so angry and worried and then I had claws and I was running on nothing but instinct. I slashed at his legs until he let me go then I was up and attacking. Before I could do any real damage though he landed a few hits that left me so weak I couldn’t move.
“I passed out again after that and didn’t wake up until I heard you. I made sure the alpha was dead, picked you up, brought you to the car, changed you into some dry clothes, wrapped you in every blanket I could find in our boxes, turned on the heat, went back to get my knife and your bat, and drove us here.
“I cleaned off all the blood I could then patched up your wounds. Once that was taken care of I started trying to fight the effects of the hypothermia. I’ve been trying to keep you warm for the past three days. Nothing really seemed to be working until I got down here with you. I was so worried about you I haven’t even called the pack to check in with them.”
I was still confused but followed along with what Danny was saying until he said the word pack. I frowned harder trying to remember why the word sent dread through me. I was sure I was forgetting something important. It took me a second but then I remembered Derek. I sat up quickly and started trying to find my phone. “Holy fuck. Danny, where's my phone? Derek’s in trouble. Danny, where’s my phone?” I rushed out in one breath.
He shot straight up at the sight of my panic and handed me my phone. I didn’t say anything else just started calling Peter. He answered and said, “Well how nice of you to finally grace us with your presence.”
“Peter listen I don’t have time to explain right now but a lot has happened and Derek is in trouble. Peter, Kate’s alive and she has him. You have to get him now. Please Peter you have to hurry,” I explained.
I heard him suck in a breath and then doors slamming and a car starting. “Where does that bitch have him, Stiles?” he asked. His voice was so full of hatred and fury it reminded me of when he was the alpha.
I shook my head to clear the thought and said, “I don’t know Peter. Ask Parrish to track his phone and take him with you. You’re going to need all of the help you can get.”
He cursed but agreed nonetheless. “Okay Stiles I will. You’re going to explain all of this once we have him back though. Understood?”
I nodded my head even though he couldn’t see me. “Of course we just need him back first.” I paused for a second before adding, “And Peter, make it hurt so much she wishes she was never born. When you’re done I want her head on a silver platter so there’s no way she can come back again.” He agreed once more and hung up.
I felt myself relax once again now that I knew Der would be okay. I let out a breath and turned to Danny. “The nightmare I had that night was of you getting bit by that alpha and dying in my arms Danny. Then before I woke up in the car I had a dream of Derek. That’s how I knew he was in trouble. When I woke up I started having a panic attack because I had blood on my hand. I saw Allison, Boyd, and Erica. They’re the ones who snapped me out of it enough to realize you weren’t there with me,” I explained then asked, “Do you think we should call Jules and ask what the fuck is going on?”
Danny stared at me with his mouth hanging open before snapping it shut and nodding his head. “Yeah. Yeah I think we need to call Aunt Jules. Maybe she’ll even be able to explain how I’m alive.” He grabbed his phone and dialed her number.
“Hello,” she answered and Danny put the phone on speaker.
“Um… hey Aunt Jules. Look a lot of shit has happened since we left and we kind of have no clue what any of it means. Do you think you might be able to help us?” Danny asked.
She said, “Actually I’ve been researching since you boys left and I’ve found a few things that could probably help but I need to know everything that’s happened,” so we told her everything.
Once we had finished we heard her sigh. “Just as I thought. I can definitely help you guys. So first things first. Stiles, when you sacrificed yourself you went into a different plane of existence. Your spark followed you to that plane and then back again. However, because it had been to a different plane of existence part of it stayed there giving you access to that plane. I think those ‘hallucinations’ you’re having are actually spirits from the other plane. The ‘nightmare’ was most likely given to you as a warning from one of those spirits. Your dream of Derek though was your spark picking up on his distress through your bond and letting you know what was wrong so you could help him.
“Now onto Danny. The bite didn’t take because you already had magic so instead it killed you. When your soul left your body that magic died. Normally that would have been it but before you died you and Stiles had a bond, a connection. He was your alpha and he had a spark that had access to the plane you were in so when he screamed your name his spark followed that connection to your soul and pulled you back into your body. You most likely would have died again except you no longer had magic to stop the bite from taking and Stiles had believed so hard it would that it sped up the transition and kept you from bleeding out before it could take,” she explained.
Danny and I stared at the phone in stunned silence. It was hard to believe but it made sense. It was the most logical reasoning and quite frankly the only real reason we had at all so we had to accept it.
When it became clear we weren’t going to say anything Jules cleared her throat and added, “I might also have a theory on why Stiles didn’t die of hypothermia, lose any limbs to frostbite, or need to be hospitalized for his injuries.”
We still didn’t say anything so she continued, “Um… so Stiles used a lot of energy when he knocked out that alpha. He used even more when he brought you back and forced the bite to take, so his spark wasn’t able to keep the cold from affecting him. However, it needs Stiles alive so it kept him just warm enough to stay that way while it replenished the energy he had used. Then when he saw the alpha his spark recognized a threat and accessed the magic in the land to give him enough strength to eliminate it. After he was safe it let go of that magic and once again stopped expending energy and started accumulating it to help his body heal.”
I was finally able to process everything enough to move past the shocked silence so I said, “Thank you Jules.”
“You’re welcome sweetheart. Thank you for saving my nephew. There’s one more thing I wanted to address before I go though. The full moon is in two weeks. You need to start training and find an anchor so you have control, Danny. I know you both start school in a couple of days but on the weekends I want you both to come to the Inn so we can help. Those wolves in your pack should be able to help too.” We agreed and she hung up.
Danny made me a cup of hot cocoa still on autopilot and sat silently staring at the wall while I sipped the warm beverage. Eventually he cleared his throat and murmured, “Do you think Derek’s gonna be okay?”
I wrapped both of my chilled hands around the steaming mug while I nodded. “Yeah I think he’ll be okay. I have no doubt that Peter will get him back and make sure Kate pays for all of her crimes.”
He turned towards me and rubbed the back of his neck, “Yeah about that,” he started then paused before continuing, “are you sure you’re gonna be okay?”
I frowned not understanding what he meant. “Of course you heard Jules.”
He shook his head and said, “That’s not what I was talking about. I can see your body healing but I can’t see inside your head.”
“Oh…” then it clicked, “Oh. Oh my god. I killed that alpha didn’t I Danny?”
He placed his hand on my uninjured arm and pulled me in until I was leaning against his chest. He ran his fingers through my hair and I felt the dull ache that had been building up recede. “You did. But Stiles if you didn’t we would both be dead right now. It was self defense. You were only defending yourself and protecting me,” he tried to reassure.
I made a high pitched whining sound then added, “And what about what I said to Peter? I literally gave him permission to torture someone Danny.”
He hummed and continued to play with my hair. It was surprisingly calming and was keeping the nightmarish thoughts I could feel trying to creep in at bay. “Well like you said Peter will make her pay for her crimes. Anything he does to her will be well and truly deserved. Besides if Peter doesn’t do it someone else will and it’ll be worse for everyone.”
I sighed conceding his point even though I knew I was a murderer, justified or not. I shifted so my cheek was resting against his shoulder and I was breathing against his neck. He let his hand slide down until he could grasp the nape of my neck and rub his thumb in soothing circles. “Thanks Danny,” I finally mumbled. He hummed again and squeezed the back of my neck in acknowledgement.
We stayed like that until I felt like I wouldn’t fall apart the second he let go. Then he went to cook dinner and I went to take a proper shower. As soon as the water hit me it started to turn pink. The sight reminded me Danny couldn’t get all of the blood off of me which made me think about the way my hands would always have the blood of the lives I took on them. The thought sent me crashing down to the floor of the shower panting.
I scrubbed at my skin while fighting to breathe around the lump in my throat until it was pink and the water ran clear. It was only after I had washed away all of the blood that I could take a full breath.I sat there for a while just soaking in the steam and trying to fight the thoughts that were trying to force their way to the forefront of my mind.
Eventually Danny came to let me know dinner was ready. I stood up, turned off the water, got out of the shower, dried off, and dressed before making my way to the kitchen.
Long after my shower and we’d finished eating the pack called. Dad called me with Peter, Derek, and Jordan while Danny called Jackson so we could also talk to him, Chris, Isaac, and Ethan. Everyone greeted each other then went quite so a few much needed updates could be given.
Peter went first with his update on Der. “So as some of you may already know Kate Argent was still alive. It seems that when I ripped her throat out she turned into what one calls a werejaguar. She recently captured Derek and was once again holding him captive in the tunnels under the old Hale house.
“From what I could gather she was looking for a medallion we used to teach our young to control the shift. She apparently needed it and quickly because she was on the run from some family of hunters from Mexico.”
“The Calaveras,” Chris interrupted.
“Indeed Christopher,” Peter agreed. “Kate apparently killed some of Araya’s men after faking her suicide. They have requested her head as proof she is dead or they will continue the hunt for her with the first stop being Beacon Hills where they will kill any non-human they find even if they are innocent.”
I rubbed my forehead and said, “Please tell me you sent them her head.”
“Of course I did Darling. I know you requested it on a silver platter but don’t you worry I saved her heart for you instead.”
A hysterical laugh escaped before I could stop it. “Oh my god Peter,” I sighed once I got myself under control.
Peter seemed done with talking after that so Jordan started. “While he was getting information out of Kate I got Derek down from some type of metal bars that he was chained to. He was hooked up to some wires but they don’t seem to have done much damage and everything has healed physically but he hasn’t said a word since we found him,” he informed everyone.
I nodded and asked, “That’s good. Derek’s probably just reeling because it was Kate, just give him some time. What exactly did Peter do?”
He sighed. “Well first he put her where Derek was then he used his claws to cut her when she didn’t answer his questions. Then he started breaking bones and taking off body parts. Eventually he caught her on fire. He put the flames out before she could die though. She started answering then. Once he got all the information he could he ripped her heart out and tore her head from her body.”
During the conversation most of the pack had remained quiet but that soon changed. Dad started berating Peter for being so cruel. Peter was yelling about how Kate had literally burned his family alive and had committed statutory rape and how if he hadn’t gotten the information then they would be dealing with hunters wanting revenge. Chris had tried to mediate the conversation by calling Dad instead of talking through Jax’s phone. Parrish was fussing about there being a noise complaint if they didn’t keep it down. Jackson and Ethan started trying to ask what had happened to Danny and why they had felt his bond break before it came back but differently.
I was on the brink of having another panic attack because of everything when everyone fell silent again. We heard sniffing and then Derek whispering, “Why did it take so long for you to help me? Did anyone even notice I was missing? Did anyone care?”
The panic was gone now but my heart shattered at the vulnerability and insecurity in his voice. I was filled with guilt and the desperate need to comfort. The grouchy, socially inept Derek was gone and all I could think was that the man sounded like a broken, wounded child. I was now realizing how accurate that description fit.
“Oh Der,” I mumbled then added, “of course we care. We all love you in our own way. You’re an important part of this pack. Every single one of us has a role and we wouldn’t function if even one of us wasn’t here. I’m so sorry it took me so long to get you help but I would have had to die before I would have broken that promise.”
Der took a shuddering breath but I could tell what I said had calmed the worry he had that we wouldn’t care if he wasn’t with us. Once he was breathing normally Peter said, “I’m so sorry Nephew. I got a text saying Cora had called and asked you to come get her because she was ready to come home so I didn’t know. I should have called to check and make sure but I didn’t and for that I am terribly sorry.”
That seemed to calm Der even more if the relief that flooded the pack bonds was anything to go by. I sent love and reassurance to everyone but that made Jax and Ethan focus back in and return to their line of questioning.
“So seriously what happened to Danny? Why is his bond different now?” Jackson asked.
Ethan followed that with, “Why did it break like it would if he died?”
Their questions riled everyone back up and chaos ensued. With each passing second I could feel myself drawing closer and closer to a panic attack again. Danny must have picked up on this because he shouted, “Enough!”
I’m not sure if it was Danny shouting or the alpha power that bleed into his voice as his eyes turned cherry red that caused it but everyone stopped talking and from the sounds of it moving. I felt myself lean into him and then the bonds in my chest shifted and a warm tingly sensation settled on the left side of my chest just below my collar bone. I’m not sure what actually happened but I knew it had something to do with Danny as his bonds grew even brighter and stronger.
“Okay someone better explain what is happening and/or has happened right now,” Peter demanded.
Danny scrunched his eyebrows together and in the most ridiculous impersonation of Derek said, “I’m the Alpha now.” This earned a few snorts but mostly huffs of annoyance and what I’m sure are a couple Hale eye rolls. I chuckled but started explaining the last few days to the pack. When I got to the parts I didn’t know Danny took over.
After rehashing everything with the pack Dad gave us an update on Beacon Hills and Deaton. “So a deadpool has started and there are a bunch of assassins running around ya know assassinating people. Scott’s pack seems to be dealing with it so we haven’t gotten involved. Other than that not much is happening. Deaton keeps making trips to that stump but he hasn’t outright done anything since you and Danny left.”
“That’s good. Stay together as much as possible and keep doing what you’re doing. If anyone tries to come after you take them out. Protect yourselves and your packmates but don’t get involved otherwise. Jordan, Sheriff, see what you can do to help the town with your positions but don’t do anything you wouldn’t normally do for a case,” Danny instructed.
Once that was taken care of Isaac gave us an update on London and how our other four packmates were doing there. “The local pack seems to be taking care of everything supernatural so we haven’t really even seen a threat since we left Beacon Hills. We're doing pretty good and getting settled but we miss you guys and want to come home. Well not Beacon Hills but we want to be with our pack.”
We smiled and I said, “We miss all of you too. How about you guys finish the school year there then we can get you transferred back here with us during the summer?” Everyone agreed and we decided to spend the rest of our evening bonding and telling everyone what’s happening in our lives.
Dad let everyone know he finally grew some balls and asked out Melissa. I told him how proud I was of him and he seemed relieved that I meant what I said at Christmas.
Chris shared his exploits with a man he met in London. A hot flash of jealousy seared through Peter's bond while Chris was talking and I made a mental note to talk to him about it some other time.
Peter didn’t have anything to share and neither did Isaac. However, Jackson and Ethan explained how they had started dating. Danny congratulated them and expressed how happy he was they could find someone who made them happy. I felt a cool twinge of relief come from them and smiled softly.
Danny nor Der had anything exciting to share so I told everyone I had officially come out to my dad. This made Der question how Dad didn’t know when we went out to a gay club every Friday which sent bubbly amusement through the bonds.
Finally Jordan decided to tell us about a new recipe he found and wanted to try. I felt myself leaning in closer to Danny and yawning while Parrish talked. Danny frowned and wrapped an arm around me pulling me even closer. I let out a content sigh as the heat from his body helped ease some of the cold that had started leaking in and he siphoned away the pain from my arm and head. He must have been able to smell it wafting off of me once he was paying attention.
When Jordan was done we all agreed we should get some rest and ended the phone calls. Danny slid his phone in his pocket then turned to study me. “How are you feeling?” he asked.
I gave a non-committal shrug and said, “I’m fine.”
Danny’s frown deepened then his eyes focused on my chest. “Okay so that’s creepy as hell. Anyways I knew that was a lie without needing to hear your heartbeat seeing as I just drew your pain.”
I shrugged again and focused my eyes on the floor which looked very interesting at this particular moment. “So maybe I’m not fine but I will be.”
Danny sighed and laid a hand on my shoulder steering me back in front of the fireplace. “Now see that wasn’t so hard to say,” he replied.
I gave him a drowsy smile and nodded. “No I suppose not,” I mumbled back my eyes starting to drift closed.
The last thing I remember is a blanket being wrapped around me and Danny saying, “Goodnight Stiles.”
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