Leave Me In Ruins

Deal

Cinis' mouth curled into a snarl. "You think this will hold me? Once our deal is made, I am freed from these binds, and the first thing I'll do is rip out your wolf's throat while you watch."

Stiles gave a smug smile. "See, I couldn't figure out how the whole knocking on wood thing worked. Why didn't Nymphs appear anytime someone knocked on wood? I know lots of superstitious people who do it. And then I realized you have to be in the presence of a wood nymph. And whatever is asked for you, have to do it. You're bound to the trees, and when someone wishes on one in your presence, it's like pouring sugar in front of a fairy. You can't help yourself. You have to grant it."

Cinis narrowed his eyes.

"That's what Kai did. He promised to keep the cops off your trail, and all you had to do was what? Poison me?"

"I had to leave you injured at our agreed meeting spot. He said I couldn't kill you because you were how he was going to get close to him." Cinis shot a glare at Derek, who was being pulled from the ground by Isaac.

"So now we get to make a deal, right?" Stiles smiled.

Cinis looked like he'd rather rip his own throat out than make a deal with Stiles. That idea thrilled him. He hoped it made him sick to his stomach. He hoped it made his skin crawl.

"Let me guess, you want me to spare you and your friends?" Cinis sneered.

"Hmm, ya know, I don't think so." Stiles smiled, taking a step forward. The fact that Cinis had stopped killing Derek and his magic had released the pack made him think this was like a leash. Cinis couldn't do anything until a deal was struck.

"Remember, I have to get something out of it as well. That's the definition of a deal," Cinis hissed.

"You know, I've heard that a tree nymph is actually a dryad and that their true form is sacred. They don't like to show it."

Cinis took a disgusted step back. His lips curled into a sneer.

"I'm petty, and you've hurt a lot of my friends. I think I'd like leaf from your true form."

Cinis narrowed his eyes once again.

Stiles hoped to hell this plan worked. He'd read dozens of lore pages and myths on nymphs. One was that the leaf of a dryad was a sacred relic that could be used to cheat death. It was proved to be only a myth, but he hoped to hell Cinis thought he believed it.

"Stiles?" Derek frowned at the human.

Stiles glanced at Derek. It was a look that Derek knew to mean 'trust me'.

"Why would I give you that?" Cinis growled.

Stiles shrugged. "Because it's what I want."

"You think I'm stupid?"

"What do you want in return?" Stiles asked.

"Your death."

"Okay."

"Stiles," Derek growled, but Stiles ignored him.

"What the hell are you doing, Stiles?" Scott grabbed at his arm, but he refused to look away from the nymph.

"You didn't tell them your plan." Cinis smirked, his head cocking to the side.

"Stiles, what is he talking about?" Derek demanded, worry laced in his tone.

Stiles continued to ignore them. "Well? Do we have a deal?"

"You think I'm stupid," Cinis scoffed.

Worry clawed at Stiles' chest. If this didn't work, he didn't know what else to do. This was his last ditch effort to iron out that kink.

"You know I expected you to bargain for your friends lives, but I suspect the love your wolf has for you is one sided."

Stiles clenched his jaw.

"You didn't get him out of town. You got your boyfriend out of town. You don't care what happens to him."

"That's not true," Stiles swallowed. He pushed at the anger that surged through him. He had to keep calm. He needed this to work.

"Oh," Cinis' grin grew wider. "Oh, I have it backwards. You got your boyfriend out of the way so you could be with the wolf. The leaf isn't for you... it's for him. You're guaranteeing his safety."

"Stiles, what is he talking about?" Derek demanded. He could smell the anxiety on Stiles.

"You're gonna sacrifice yourself," Erica snapped. "Are you serious right now? What happened to your fucking plan, Stiles?"

Stiles ignored the pack's sudden outbursts. He couldn't tell them. Cinis had to believe what he was saying was true.

"Do we have a deal?" Stiles asked, his eyes not leaving Cinis'.

Cinis extended a hand. "Your life for a leaf?"

Stiles nodded.

"Stiles, no." Derek grabbed his arm but it was too late.

Wind swirled around the pair as their hands clasped in agreement.

As the wind died down, Derek released Stiles, a look of betrayal on his face.

Stiles' heart clenched. He hated to see Derek look at him like that.

He forced his eyes back to Cinis, who pressed his hands together before throwing his arms up. Like quicksand, bark consumed his legs, then his torso before his body looked no different than a tree.

Stiles pulled the small jar of mountain ash out of his pocket and threw it at the roots of Cinis' true form.

A shout came from the where Cinis' face was as the ash surrounded the him. The once lively brown bark dulled to an ash grey. The leaves shriveled and crumpled to the ground.

Silence hung in the air as the pack took in what Stiles had just done.

"You played him," Scott said with a scoffed laugh.

Stiles looked at Derek who stared at him with a relieved expression.

"I thought you were really planning on sacrificing yourself."

Stiles dropped his chin to his chest. "I didn't mean to upset you. I needed some way to get him to show his true form."

"I thought the knocking on the wood thing did that?" Malia frowned.

"I may have worded it that way intentionally. This was that kink I mentioned," Stiles grimaced as he waited for the berating.

Instead what he got was Derek's hands cupping his face and pulling him into a hard kiss.

"Hey lover boy, he's not dead yet," Erica said, poking Derek's rib as she walked by.

Derek released Stiles with a grunt.

"So when he called you boy toy..." Isaac gestured between Stiles and Derek.

Stiles ducked his head in embarrassment.

"Wait, you're sleeping together?" Scott raised his brows.

"I told you they were," Malia threw up her hands.

"You're sleeping with Derek and you didn't tell me?" Lydia slapped Stiles' arm.

"Okay, can we talk about this later, please?" Derek growled.

"I'll break the barrier, someone get an axe," Lydia huffed when Stiles made no move to do it himself. He was too pleased with the fact that Derek was holding his hand.

Derek pulled Stiles in to him, pressing their heads together. "If you ever pull something like that again, I'll kill you myself."

Stiles grinned and pressed a kiss to his lips. "No you won't. You'd miss me too much." He laughed before pulling away to help the pack.

*AN*
Okay, so I'm gonna add one more small chapter for you guys.
Also, I will be continuing Shatter my Reality, so if you were reading that one, be on the lookout for a new chapter in the next week or so.
I also have a new Sterek story coming out soon. It's a Royal AU.