The Der-Bear-Est of Them All

Children of the Nemeton

Noah gets the letter delivered to his wife who in turns takes it to the Hales and Stiles. He returns to his office and goes about his day.

Stiles shifts into his fox form and slips out of the Hale House meeting up with his mom at the edge of the preserve. An orange and black fox yips at him and nuzzles him before leading the way to the grove of trees surrounding the Nemeton. Stiles stills as two other heartbeats come nearer. He growls and then his ears perk when he sees the fox coming towards them along with a hooded man.

Claudia stands protectively between her son and the newcomers. Stiles then moves in front of his mom and growls before making a questioning noise. Suddenly where the black fox was one second there is now a girl a few years older than him. He tenses because she looks like–He shifts back and looks her over curiously. "Who are you?"

The girl smiles. "Hello Mieczyslaw. My name is Juliana, but you can call me Julia. I'm your half-sister."

Stiles blinks and looks at the man before looking back at Julia. "Prove it?"

Julia nods and her eyes flicker deep amethyst purple as she holds out her hand. "Take my hand."

Stiles steps closer and takes her hand, his own eyes glowing deep amethyst purple. His mouth drops open and then tears slip down his cheeks. When they pull apart, he starts crying before hugging her. "I'm so glad you're okay. I hate Jennifer. She's taking my mate from me," he whispers.

"I know and that's partly why I'm here."

"Really?"

Claudia shifts back and looks at the hooded man. "Who might you be?"

"Aylward, Spark Claudia. Juliana's guardian after the slaughter of her family.

"Aylward, must you make it so grim?"

"It's the truth. Plain and simple."

Julia sighs and looks at Stiles. "With your help and your mom's help we can petition the Nemeton for help in defeating Jennifer. We'll petition her to help Derek as well."

Stiles sniffles. "I miss my Der-Bear. He's not the same boy but I still love him and want to help him but sometimes I feel as small as the nine-year-old I am."

"Then that's what we'll do."

The group of four slip into the clearing and each of the sparks kneel and seek out the Nemeton for help and to pay respect. She gladly welcomes all of them and there's the sound of light laughter in the trees as a breeze brushes against all of them. She senses the pain Spark Mieczyslaw is bearing. She senses the tragedy that Spark Juliana went through. She senses the fear of Spark Claudia for her son, his mate and her husband's daughter. "I will help you my dear Sparks."

They each offer a few drops of blood willingly against the trunk of the sentient tree and smile when the ground rumbles as vines emerge and nuzzle their cheeks. "Thank you for your offerings. I will show you what you must do."

By the time they finish communing with the Nemeton it's early evening. The three sparks shift back into their fox forms. Aylward nods at Claudia and Stiles.Stiles looks at his sister. "When will I see you again?"

Julia nuzzles him and smiles. "Soon. If you need me, you need only reach out and I'll hear you. Now go home. We have much to do and less than a week to carry out the plan the Nemeton has crafted for us."

Stiles nuzzles her back and yips. "Okay. Be safe. I want to know everything about you, and you have to stay safe for that to happen. Once Jennifer is dealt with, we'll have all the time in the world, and you can meet my mate!"

Julia geckers and nods before darting over to Aylward as they disappear into the other side of the preserve.

Claudia nudges her son, and he sighs as he slips back into the Hale house and goes upstairs to the library curling up in Peter's chair. He stays in his fox form as he thinks over everything that he's learned.

That's where Peter finds him an hour later and he smiles at the sleeping fox. He wakes him up and escorts him downstairs for dinner with the family. Talia smiles at him and once he's seated, they all dig in. When he finishes eating, he shifts and goes back up to the library for the night.

Noah is just finishing dinner when Claudia returns home and the two of them exchange a few looks before settling down at the table to eat.

Julia and Aylward retreat to a small cabin hidden in the preserve and cloaked by magic. They feast on red potatoes, steak and green beans. Then they turn in early.

The Nemeton watches over her guardians and begins to work on eradicating the darkness seeping into her roots. Jennifer is becoming a Darach and must be stopped. It aches her that Spark Mieczyslaw is so heartbroken, but they've come to her, and she protects her own.

If anyone had been near the clearing, they would've seen the shadows thin and a large tree with a sentient presence growing until the entire preserve is coated in her protection. She smiles when Spark Juliana's magic reacts in her sleep to greet the Nemeton. She reaches into the earth to reach out to Spark Mieczyslaw and Spark Claudia who each react in their sleep to greet her.

Yes. Everything is going according to plan and darkness shall not make its home permanent on her land.