Fall in Vermont was really pretty. Stiles could admit he had been bummed to find out he had a spark back in his senior year of high school, only to discover he would have to move to Vermont if he wanted to learn and develop into a proper emissary. Sure, there were other magic schools closer to home, or at least closer to something, but the one in Vermont was the best and the only one that actually had other supernatural courses, and the prospect of studying with all different kinds of magical people was appealing.
Still, moving away from his dad and his best friend had been hard. Was still hard. Stiles had never had the easiest time making friends, so it had been a pretty lonely first couple of months. He had a few people he was friendly with now, namely Grace, a surprisingly cheery harpy, and Charlie, a vampire. When they had started planning a horseback ride to watch the leaves, Stiles had been all for it, and immediately booked his reservation at the place he'd heard offered the best tours, Moonrise Valley Stables. When his friends had flaked out on him, he figured he might as well go anyway, since the views were supposed to be stunning.
Which brought him to where he was, perched atop a roan mare called Dusty, holding onto the saddle for dear life, wandering after a group of families with kids through the woods. The nature really was impressive, he'd give it that, the blue sky contrasting beautifully with the bright-colored leaves, that varied from pale yellow to burnt orange to bright red to deep burgundy. The brisk fall breeze made his cheeks redden, but wasn't cold enough to be uncomfortable. And the fact that he didn't even have to walk? This had been a good idea after all. Dusty seemed content to plod along after the other horses, so little by little, Stiles started to relax, first letting go of the saddle, then not holding the reins so tight, finally managing to enjoy the views fully. He was just pointing out a pair of bluebirds to one of the kids on the tour when a loud "GOBBLE!" and a swoosh of wings came from his left, spooking his horse into a wild run into the trees.
"Oh, shit!" Stiles managed to squeeze his legs around the horse's body to keep from falling but that only seemed to make Dusty run faster. The wind whooshed around his face and he could feel his heart pounding wildly in his chest. He was still holding onto the reins but pulling at them seemed to have no effect on the sprinting horse, and his left foot had slipped off the stirrup. He quickly managed to grab onto the saddle again - he never should have let it go - and bow down low over Dusty's neck to avoid taking a branch to the face and to try and calm her down a bit. They seemed to be following a deer trail, and he had no idea how he'd even get back to the original trail.
What he did not expect was to hear rustling in the undergrowth apparently following beside him and keeping up with his horse. From the corner of his eye he could see a dark shape moving through the trees and his adrenaline spiked again, cold sweat beading in his lower back. He tried to remember if there were wolves in Vermont. He was pretty sure there were bears, too. Shit. He might be truly actually fucked. He was good at offensive magic but he wasn't sure any of his spells were enough to take out a bear. Magic also tended to work better on other magical beings so he wasn't even sure it would work at all!
He was just praying to every deity he could remember when he saw the dark shape run a little bit ahead of him and stop, turning into a vaguely humanoid shape with a… flannel shirt? Fortunately, the sudden appearance caused the horse to stop, but unfortunately it caused the horse to rear, which finally sent Stiles tumbling into the thankfully leaf-covered ground. He rolled a bit and landed on his back, winded and confused, breathing heavily. The blurry outline of a man took shape as he approached him, with a hand extended.
"You're not a bear," was the first thing out of Stiles' mouth. He didn't take the proffered hand.
The stranger laughed, and his voice was low and pleasant when he replied, "yeah, I don't have the right build for that."
Stiles felt his cheeks redden and sat up, finally taking a good look at his… savior? God, he hoped so, because the man in front of him was gorgeous and it'd be a bummer if he turned out to be a serial killer. He was wearing jeans, heavy boots and a flannel over a plain white T-shirt, and seemed to be about as tall as Stiles himself. He had a full beard that begged to be touched, a sharp nose and green-gray eyes under really impressive eyebrows.
He shook himself and reached up for the other man's hand, pulling himself up before he felt his magic reacting. When he looked up, the man's eyes were no longer that weird gray-green, but were instead shining amber. A shifter. Probably a werewolf, by the way his magic was reacting. He could feel it trying to reach for the man, like a puppy asking to be petted. His spark was especially attuned to moon magic, and werewolves were basically moon magic made flesh. It's why he wanted to become an emissary in the first place.
The man growled low, probably at the overfamiliar way Stiles' magic was behaving.
Stiles let go of his hand. "Sorry, dude! Didn't mean to do that! It just reacts to stuff sometimes. You're a wolf?"
The stranger looked at him with narrowed eyes for a few seconds, probably listening to his heart, which wouldn't be too helpful with the way it was still beating kind of fast. For many reasons. Stiles took the chance to finally look around, and saw Dusty haphazardly tied to a tree branch a few feet away, looking for all the world like a nice, calm horse. Sleepy, even. Stiles knew better. Still, it was strange that she was so at ease near a werewolf. Most prey animals tended to get nervous at best when this close to an apex predator. Stiles looked back at said apex predator to find him still staring. "Were you with one of the tours?" He asked.
"Yeah, it was going fine but then Dusty here got spooked by a… wild turkey?" He gestured vaguely at the horse.
The stranger laughed. "We got a few of those around, yeah. She should know better than to take off like that, though." He walked towards Dusty, grabbing her reins again and bringing her back to Stiles. "My family owns Moonrise Valley. I'm Derek." He offered his hand.
"That's awesome! I'm Stiles," he said as he shook Derek's hand, "I'm studying magic at Underhill University."
He grinned. "I figured."
Oh, god, he had cute bunny teeth. Stiles was doomed.
"Let me just text my sister to let her know I found you. She was the one leading your ride. Though she probably knows by now or she'd already be here." Derek started leading the horse along the small trail they were on, and Stiles followed. He'd thought the trail had been in the opposite direction, so good thing he wasn't alone or he'd probably be lost for days.
He scrambled for something to say. "Sooo, your family that owns Moonrise Valley… Are they also your pack?" No one had ever accused him of not being nosy.
"Yeah," Derek replied, looking at him curiously. "Why?"
"No reason! Just wondering, because of the name and all. It's cute!" He grinned and winked at Derek, who snorted and rolled his eyes, but didn't look too annoyed. The fact that his family was also his pack meant he was probably a born wolf, the first one Stiles had ever met.
"The name was my father's idea. We used to be called just Hale Stables, but when we started offering tours and trail rides, he thought it sounded more memorable." He shrugged, but he sounded fond.
"Wait, Hale Stables as in the Hale Pack?" The Hale Pack was well known in the emissary circles; Their current alpha was pretty powerful, and had a lot of sway in the supernatural community even though her pack wasn't that large. Some people also said that the Hale pack 'wolves could do a full shift, but Stiles wasn't sure he believed that. It sounded like fairytale stuff and if there was one thing he'd learned from the supernatural world was that things were never like the stuff in fairytales. For better or worse.
"Heard of us, have you?" He raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, the Hale Pack. I hope that's not gonna be a problem."
"No, dude! Of course not! I just heard a lot about the Hale alpha, all good things, don't worry!"
"Yeah, okay." He shook his head. "I'm sorry for making you fall off your horse, by the way. I didn't expect her to rear like that, but there's a drop off ahead and I was worried you guys might take a tumble, so I had to act quick." It was clear he was trying to change the subject, and Stiles wasn't about to deny him, despite his curiosity. Derek had been kind to him, and he didn't want to make him uncomfortable or anything.
"No problem, the ground was pretty soft, with all the leaves, and it wasn't a big fall anyway. Thanks for getting her to stop running." They had been walking while they talked, toward what Stiles assumed was the original trail his tour had been following, until they reached a clearing and stopped.
Stiles finally looked around, surprised to see a cozy little cabin, a small garden with empty planters out front, and what looked like a chicken coop to one side. To the other side, near the back, he could see an old tree stump with an axe stuck to it, a few chopped logs spread around. It kinda looked like it came straight out of a fairytale.
While Stiles had been gawking at the house, Derek had moved and tied Dusty to a wooden pole near the porch, and turned back to look at him. He hurried closer. "I thought we were going back to the trail."
"Sorry. Laura said she'd move on with the ride, since you guys were almost done anyway. You can book another one, free of charge, of course." Derek smiled, and Stiles melted. "Do you want to come in for a cup of tea? Sorry, I don't really have coffee," he said apologetically.
"A cup of tea sounds nice, thanks." He was usually a coffee drinker, but he wouldn't complain if it meant he could spend some more time with Derek. They headed inside, which was small and cozy but still bright and clean. The main room was kitchen, dining and living room all in one, with a huge fireplace and a comfortable-looking sofa. Two doors to the right led to what Stiles assumed to be a bedroom and a bathroom. "This place is nice."
"Thanks," Derek said from the kitchen area, where he was preparing the tea. Stiles wondered if he imagined the tips of his ears getting a little darker. He soon brought them two steaming cups of fragrant tea and motioned to the front door, leading them to the porch, where a wooden bench was set overlooking the woods around the house.
Stiles sat and blew on his tea a bit, waiting for it to cool. "Do you also do the horseback ride tours? Or is that just your sister? Do you work at the stables too?"
"Only if they're understaffed. I used to do tours, back before we had a good roster of employees. Laura still does because she loves it, but she doesn't have to." He seemed relaxed, sitting and drinking his tea. The leaves were pretty but they had nothing on Stiles's view right at that second.
"So, you just rescue poor clumsy sparks from crazy horses?"
Derek laughed, which was soon becoming one of Stiles's favorite sounds. "I'm actually a licensed forester. And Dusty's not crazy. She just saw a chance and took it. You were probably slacking, anyway." His tone was clearly teasing.
"Well, yeah! I didn't expect you guys to put me on a crazy horse!" He absently gestured with his hands, nearly spilling his tea. "You probably did this on purpose, to get me away from the group, lure me here and murder me or something."
"Oh, and you fell right into my trap, huh?" Derek's smile was sharp and, for the first time in their short acquaintance, Stiles would describe it as wolfish. It was an unfairly attractive look.
"Well," he said, "it's not like I'm defenseless." He touched Derek's hand with a finger, pushing a little bit of his spark into the touch. It was meant to feel tingly, at most, but he startled so hard he almost dropped his cup of tea. "Sorry!" Stiles said immediately.
"Don't worry." Derek was definitely blushing now. "I just wasn't expecting it to feel like that."
"Like what?" he asked.
"Like it's pulling at my wolf." Derek flashed his eyes. "Like the full moon."
Now it was Stiles's turn to blush, which he knew for a fact did not look as attractive as when Derek did it. "My spark," he explained, "is especially attuned to the moon. It's why I'm training to become an emissary. Why I came to Vermont."
"Good." Was all he said in response.
After a few long minutes, he reached his hand for Stiles. "Give me your phone. I'll add my number. When you want to go for a horseback ride, call me and I'll take you."
Stiles handed him his phone. When he handed it back, their fingers touched, and Derek's eyes flashed bright amber again.
They finished their tea in silence, looking at each other more than at the beautiful scenery around them. There was tension in the air, but it didn't feel bad or awkward. It felt expectant, like a new beginning.
When the shadows started growing longer, Derek took the teacups back inside. Stiles walked over to Dusty, petting her velvety nose, and smiled at Derek when he approached. "Ready to go back?" he asked, and Stiles nodded back.
Derek helped him scramble back onto the horse, and then climbed up behind him, taking the reins and effectively caging him in. Stiles shivered.
The trip back was a blur of red and gold leaves, Derek's woodsy, smoky scent, the feel of his arms brushing against Stiles's as he guided the horse through the trails, low conversations between long moments of silence.
When they reached the stables, the sun was setting and the wind was getting chilly. Derek dismounted first and waited while Stiles did the same - with only a little less grace. When he turned back, Derek was staring at him so intensely it gave him goosebumps. He walked closer, pressing Stiles's back against Dusty's warm side, caging him in again. With a breath of relief, Stiles reached a hand and finally touched that soft beard, bringing his mouth into a soft, unsure kiss. Derek was breathing hard, eyes closed, and he responded by grabbing Stiles's waist and deepening the kiss until they were both panting and holding onto each other like they couldn't bear to be apart. The hard, deep kisses turned back into gentle and unhurried, until Derek was just nosing at Stiles's temple and dropping little pecks near his ear and down to his neck, making him laugh softly. After a few more minutes they managed to separate, and he walked back to his car on wobbly knees.
"Call me," was all he said before closing the jeep's door, and Stiles nodded, keeping his eyes on Derek as long as he could as he maneuvered towards the road. When he got home a few hours later, he still felt like he was falling.
Derek’s pack being rumoured to be a cult but the authorities never truly having any proof of wrongdoing by the leader (Derek Hale) or by the members itself to do anything about it.
but then they get probable cause when some people on a hike close to the Hale compound hears some blood curdling screams coming from there.
the compound gets raided by the FBI or some shit and its pandemonium as the members get arrested one by one. the FBI expected violence but they encounter little to no resistance.
Derek Hale is found in a large room at the end of some tunnels under the compound. He’s guarding a large metal door with multiple locks and weird symbols drawn on it.
He doesn’t resist arrest and stays silent apart from one thing.
“Don’t open the door.”
They drag him through the tunnels and agents get to opening the metal door. Derek Hale starts trashing and screaming.
“DON’T! DON’T OPEN THE DOOR! DON’T FUCKING DO IT!”
they don’t listen.
it takes a long time for them to open it, they use various tools while Derek Hale is sat in a cop car, watching the open trap door to the tunnels.
the door finally swings open noisily on its hinges and it’s so dark beyond the threshold they don’t see a thing. some agents shine flashlights in the room but it doesn’t show much of anything.
“Derek? Is that you?” a youthful male voice calls out from the darkness.
the agents frantically call out to the boy and start advancing into the dark room, looking for him in the overwhelming darkness.
“Where is he? Where’s Derek? You’re not Derek. What are you doing here? You don’t belong here.”
the voice seem to be coming from multiple directions at once and the agents’ flashlights all stop working at the same time.
Derek hears the screams of the agents from where he’s sitting in the cop car and he closes his eyes for a long moment. he hears more agents running to the trap door, going to help but he knows it’s useless.
the door was opened. the love of his life was unleashed upon them. there’s nothing they can do now.
Derek opens his eyes only when he hears familiar steps coming up to the trap door. he looks over and sees Stiles emerge. radiant and beautiful as he always is. naked and drenched in warm blood.
he finds Derek with his sharp eyes almost instantly and smiles brightly. he literally skips his way to the cop car and opens the door. he then kneels down on the ground and looks up at Derek adoringly.
“They opened the door.”
“I know.”
“It wasn’t me. I didn’t do it.”
“I know, baby.”
“Only you can open the door.”
“Yes.”
“So I punished them.”
“Yes you did.”
Stiles giggles and moves closer to pillow his head on Derek’s thigh, nuzzling it a little.
“Can you bring me back to my room now? Can you close the door?”
“Yeah, baby. I’ll close the door.”
Stiles smiles lovingly at him and the handcuffs at his wrists turn to dust.
Stiles pulls away from him to get back to his feet and he pulls Derek out of car after him.
“Come on! Quick quick! I wanna go back to my room. Are you going to come in with me today?” Stiles says quickly, holding onto Derek’s hand and hugging his arm at the same time as they walk towards the trap door.
“Do you want me to go in with you today?” Derek asks back and it makes Stiles giggle again.
“Yes I do. I always want you to come in my room. You’re the only one allowed to open the door.”
Derek smiles fondly and nuzzles Stiles’ hair, smelling dirt, ash and blood.
Stiles lets go of him only when they enter the sacred room. He jogs ahead, crossing the open space and cackles happily as he enters the dark open doorway to his lair.
“Don’t forget to close the door, Derek!” Stiles says from somewhere into the darkness.
“I won’t, baby.” Derek says and he grabs the heavy door and drags it shut behind himself.
