As I hold my breath (sterek)

Part 12

You will regret accepting Hale's claim. You and everyone you care about. See you soon.

Stiles had been staring at the text since he'd received it that morning when he'd gotten to school. It had been a week since the Claiming and until now, life had been pretty much perfect. Yeah, the pack still had to run perimeter checks and there was an active search going for Theo and his crony Matt, but other than that... Life was ideal. He and Derek were getting along wonderfully. Living together hadn't brought about any issues, it was a smooth transition. It was like they'd been living together all along.

He'd gotten his first and last name changed to reflect his new relationship. He was now and forevermore Stiles Hale. No more heinous first name that nobody could pronounce. He was Derek's, fully and truly.

The pack was at an all-time level of peace and happiness. Especially Peter. It was so wonderful to see how happy the older wolf was. He'd always been pleasant, but before Jordan, there had always been a darkness in the back of his gaze, his smile hadn't quite been full, his chuckles not quite joyous. Now, he was full of life. He offered smiles first, his eyes were an even lighter shade of blue, and his laughter was sometimes the loudest in the house. He and Jordan were spending every spare minute together and Peter was finding the most outlandish reasons to go see him when he was at work. Stiles' dad was being treated to more cheeseburgers and fries than Stiles would normally approve of, but knowing it was all an excuse to see his mate, Stiles was willing to look past it. Word was, the Claiming would be happening any day now.

Another reason to do something before Theo decided to cause more trouble.

He texted Derek and let him know he was stopping off to see Deaton after school and he would be home in time for dinner. A few days prior, he'd spent some time with the Emissary and they'd done a simple ritual to find the source of his Spark and what his abilities might be. Deaton had somewhat gleefully let him know he was an open Spark. He would have the capability to go down any road he chose. He'd thought of the various specialties Sparks adapted and what they could do for the tribe. It was easy to narrow it down. He would never take Deaton's position from him, so Emissary was out. A Healer would be fine and good, but in a pack of werewolves, those kind of specialty skills weren't exactly necessary. Druid it was.

Now after receiving the nice little message from McDouchewolf, his choice was even more settled. A Druid was kind of a jack-of-all trades in the Spark world. A bit of this, a bit of that, and a whole lot of whoop-ass.

Never again would he be the weak one. Never again would he be a prisoner of his own panic attacks. Never again would he be the victim.

It was time to get strong, claim his own power, and kick some ass.

Cue the training montage.

No, seriously, Eye of the Tiger and all that shit.

. ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ . ~ .

The threatening texts continued and it was getting on his nerves. They had been hitting his phone regularly for two weeks now. Derek was getting more and more stressed about them, and the inability to find the rat bastard. He kept increasing the protection detail around Stiles and it was time to show him just why it was no longer necessary.

"Come on," he beckoned him, giving him Neo from the Matrix fingers, egging him on. He stroked his fingers along the mate bond, knowing if he twisted his fingers just so it would send a jolt straight to Derek's cock. Magic was fun.

"Stiles, mate, I am not coming at you," Derek said, unable to help the grin as his adorable mate tried to pick a fight with him. Then he groaned, staggering back a step before glaring at his mate lustfully.