The Hale Pack

10 Lulling

Stiles woke slowly. In stages. First he realized that he was in a soft warm bed. Then he realized that it was very warm. But the kind of warm that lulls you into staying in bed longer just to enjoy it. Next he realized that he could taste the slightest tange of old blood in his mouth. Weird.

Taking a deep breath he felt a soreness deep in his muscles and it pulled a pained groan from him as he hid his face in the soft pillow.

Then suddenly he felt hot fingers slide around his wrist and a warm feeling started to bloom inside him. Taking all the pain from his body slowly out of him.

Turning towards the touch he blinked his tired eyes opened and saw Derek holding his wrist and both of them had black viens running up their arms.

"You're awake." Derek said softly. It was almost a surprised way how he said it.

"Yeah..." Stiles rasped. Coughing and feeling like his throat was scratchy. "What... what happened?"

Derek's eyebrows furrowed in worry. "You don't remember?"

Stiles tried to remember but it was a little fuzzy at first. Then he remembered Scott. "Is Scott okay?" Stiles asked as he gripped Derek's arm back as soon as he rememebered what had happened.

Derek nodded slowly. "Yes. He's fine. The pack bite took right away... I think because you already connected to him so he was already almost apart of the pack anyway."

Stiles sighed in relief. But then he looked over at Derek and let his hand go. "Would you have really killed Scott?"

Derek's eyes looked away and his fingers slide away from Stiles wrist. "... If there was no other way... yes."

Stiles coughed a bit again and scowled. "But you gave him a choice. What if he had said no."

Derek sighed and looked him in the eye. "I would have forced him to join the pack."

"But if that didn't take... you would have killed him?" Stiles felt weak as he lay there in Derek's bed. He could barely lift his arm to rub his face.

Derek growled softly. "Yes. I am the Alpha. It's my job to protect my pack. If killing him was the only way to save you I would have killed Scott. I wouldn't let you die out of a stupid sense of morality." Derek's eyes were flickering back and forth from Red to rich forest green.

Stiles didn't know how to feel about that. He looked into Derek's eyes and searched those flickering orbs. He realized that his scent, Derek's mix of pine trees and musk and sandalwood, was all around him. That is was lulling him back to sleep slowly.

"Okay."

Derek's left brow rose in question as his eyes stay green now. "Okay?"

Stiles smiled up at him weakly. "Yup." Then he yawned and closed his eyes and nuzzled into the pillow again enjoying Derek's scent lulling him back to sleep. Before he could fall asleep again he reached out and took hold of Derek's wrist and held it. "Thank you for saving me, Big Guy."

He fell into a deep sleep but could have sworn he felt hot fingers run through his hair in a gentle touch just as he fell asleep.