Under The Guardian Angel's Protection [Sterek] (boyxboy)

3

Derek had woken with a start in the morning, a loud clatter from downstairs disrupting his - albeit - very light sleep. He climbed out of bed, sluggishly finding himself a pair of loose grey joggers and a white t-shirt to slip on. The clothes made him frown because putting them on had been harder than he expected, he was sore in all kinds of ways.

His legs clicked as he cautiously came out of his room, treading his way lightly to the stairs where his eyebrows lifted.

"Deputy Parrish?" Derek cleared his throat, the sleepiness still hovering over him.

The young man, in his beige uniform blinked, seemingly stuck in his own little world. "I'm the guardian of the supernatural."

Derek thudded down the stairs, meeting the younger man at the bottom, who was very clearly disorientated. "What are you doing here?"

Parrish shrugged, blinking his cider-coloured eyes away. "I'm not sure." The man smiled sheepishly, before straightening his Deputy badge. "I felt drawn here...I'm not even sure how I got here."

The Deputy shifted on the spot, evidently uncomfortable and a tad shy.

Derek rubbed his eyes and lifted an eyebrow at the floor. "You brought that?"

Parrish's head rotated and his eyes fixated on the floor. "Yeah? I guess I did."

On the floor lay a round bucket, which Parrish had evidently dropped since it was tipped over on its side. Neither of them could think of the relevance of the bucket nor a reason for Parrish even being at the Hale house.

Derek left the bucket alone, passing it to grab his car keys. "I'll take you back to the station."

The Deputy nodded slowly, following Derek out of the door without any conscious effort. He pulled the door shut behind him and stifled a smile as he saw Derek's car sat in front of the old Hale house. It was a sweet ride compared to his usual patrol cars.

Derek didn't bother locking the Hale house and instead just climbed into his camaro, waiting for Parrish to stop admiring it and to just get in.

"This is a sweet ride!" The Deputy complimented, slamming the passenger door shut slightly, making Derek cringe. "Oops, sorry."

He laughed sheepishly as Derek started the engine.

The police station was mostly empty as Derek pulled into a parking space, aside from a few patrol cars and... Stiles' jeep. At the sight of the baby blue shed of a car, Derek had to place a hand over his face to stop himself sighing.

"Maybe you could help me explain this to the Sheriff?" The Deputy asked with a small smile. "I don't want him to think I'm skiving from my shift, I need this job."

Reluctantly, Derek nodded. He was overwhelmingly aware that he would almost certainly see Stiles there but felt obliged to help the young hellhound out.

The pair headed into the station, Derek walking behind Parrish like a dog who had been told off. The station was almost empty aside from a few other deputy's and office clerks who paid zero attention to the two, which Derek was thankful for. After all, it wasn't his first time in the station.

"The Sheriff?" Parrish asked one of the office ladies, with an unconscious but flirtatious grin.

"In his office." The lady responded politely.

Parrish nodded at Derek as if to say 'follow me' as he shifted his way towards the Sheriff's office.

They reached the door, seeing the Sheriff and his son chatting away to each other through the glass. Derek averted his eyes from Stiles, watching as Parrish curled his fist and knocked on the door lightly.

The Sheriff stood up, scooting past his son to open the door for the two with a grimace. "Parrish, Derek, come in."

Parrish waltzed into the office eagerly, plumping for the first available chair, whereas Derek hesitated, wondering if he really needed to be there. He slid in regardless, ignoring the slight pout on Stiles' face.

"You're late." The Sheriff pointed out, eyeing Parrish with a slight scowl.

"I can explain." The young man replied immediately, holding his hands up in admission. "I went to his house." Parrish gestured at Derek, who'd gone rigid under the stare of the three.

The Sheriff shifted, looking evidently uncomfortable. "You went to Derek's house."

Parrish nodded with confirmation. "I snapped out of it after Derek found me roaming around his house." He snorted slightly, crossing his arms over.

"You had a black out?" Stiles asked, interrupting suddenly.

Parrish nodded at the Sheriff's son with a smile. "I don't know why."

"He brought a bucket." Derek added, crossing his arms over his chest and resisting the urge to grunt.

Stiles lifted his head, gawking at Derek slightly with his lips fastened into a straight line. "A bucket?"

The pair stared at each other, Derek finally allowing himself to look at the younger boy and regretting it, as he got lost in the hurt in Stiles' eyes.

Parrish coughed slightly, laughing sheepishly at the thought of the bucket. "I'm going to be the first one to admit...This hound inside of me is a little odd."

"That's why you're late?" The Sheriff clarified, raising his eyebrows almost up to his hairline.

"It is." The Deputy smiled at Derek and his boss, nodding. "You can go now, Derek."

Derek averted his eyes away from Stiles, wishing that he'd never step foot in the office.

"See you later, Derek." The Sheriff nodded at the wolf, a worrisome look growing on his face, as his son glowered at the floor.

|°|°|°|

Derek got back home to the Hale house, it standing tall in the sunlight and he sighed. He missed his family big time. Pushing the front door open, he found himself almost kicking the bucket which Parrish had left and growled at it in response.

He decided to lit the fireplace, watching the flames crackle away as he sat on the armchair in the living room, a contented sigh falling out of his mouth.