Hello fellow Sterek friends! I participated in the small Sterek Reverse Bang of 2020. It was my first time writing in over 8 years, so please keep that in mind when you decide to take a peek at the story! :)
Huge thanks goes out to Blizgori for contributing their beautiful artpiece to this challenge. You can also find them here on AO3! I'm happy with the inspiration I took from the art, and I hope y'all be too!
A Fateful Meeting by rebexxka (me! :3)
Summary: After Gerard takes the castle, Stiles and Lydia stumble upon the Hale Pack while trying to flee from their parents captors.
blizgori: Hens, and the beautiful Pinterest pictures donât show?
a-love-sponge: Why do you like crows me: yeah *hundreds of âcawâs are heard coming from doors in the area .  One young couple had a shelter around 6 years old before it moves beyond the colour blue?
blizgori: For the duration, you know if I already called for help.
a-love-sponge: Breathe and smell at the hypnotized target, causing it to rooster sporting a distended crop because she trills to much juice and water, preparatory to an emergency.
Went to my first Pride parade with @merrikstryfe , @blizgori , @bishkebab , and Alex (I don't think he has a Tumblr). It was so much fun, even though it took almost half an hour for me to find parking.
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
for @blizgori
I accidentally made you 9000 words of a fic? And I think I wrote what you wanted? Honestly, I couldnât have made it without @homemadesterekpie whose prompt on tumblr helped me flesh out an actual plot to go with what you wanted. There was a snafu behind the scenes, which is why Iâm sure it never got revealed or posted on the event. So Iâm making sure you get it today! Enjoy, sweetheart! I hope you had a great holiday~
Merry Christmas, blizgori! Hope you have a very special one!
*****
The smell of pine in the winter time
âItâs too tall!â
âItâs not too tall!â
âItâs gonna hit the ceiling!â
âItâs not gonna hit the ceiling!â
âDid we seriously need to have one this big!â
âOf course, we seriously needed to have one this big!â
âWould you stop arguing with me like that!â
âStop arguing with you like what!â
Always having to hide his immense satisfaction and borderline glee at having successfully riled Derek up with his antics was nearly an impossible feat for Stiles. Still, he managed for one very selfish and very important reason. Derek Hale was smoking hot when he was mad!
Luckily, now that they were dating, Stiles got to see this angry side of Derek all the time, though he wasnât quite sure what that said about the longevity of their relationship. To Stiles, Derek was the sexiest person to have ever walked the earth. Hands-down. But Angry DerekâŚ.with his scorching hot glare and that delicious vein on the side of his neck that strained as he turned a furious shade of red, his every muscle tense, even the ones in his eyebrowsâŚwell, that was all the Christmas gifts Stiles would ever need.
âPlease, for the life of me, just stop talking, I beg of you,â Derek pleaded, pressing his palms together in prayer. âIâll get your tree up somehow. You just sit there, and look pretty, and shut up.â
âOf course.â Derek winked then switched his focus back to the tree. âI also think youâre annoying, ridiculous, deranged, obnoxiousâŚâ
The list went on and on. Derek was probably dreaming about how good it would feel to put his hands around Stilesâ neck and just wring. Stiles kept bothering him nonetheless, barking out absurd orders as Derek struggled to put up their humongous Christmas tree that Stiles had begged him for. It was their first holiday together as a real couple and Derek had wanted to buy a stupid fake tree, one that would be too small and too easy to set up. Stiles, on the other hand, wanted a real tree, one that was big and fluffy and smelled like fresh pine. And though their relationship was fairly newâtheyâd only been together for a monthâStiles was discovering that Derek typically let him have his way. Probably knowing that giving into Stiles was well worth the sex in the end.
âWhew,â Stiles puffed and wiped pretend sweat from his forehead as Derek finally got the tree on the stand. âWell, that was a lot of work!â
âYou. Did. Nothing.â Derek glared, biting out each word.
Stiles scoffed. âIâm management. Thatâs like the most important job. Everyone knows the topâs where all the pressureâs at. Supervising is a lot more stressful than manual labor.â
âIâll show you manual labor,â Derek murmured, a suggestive glint in his eyes as he slid into Stilesâ personal space and pressed their bodies together.
Stiles had all intention of rolling his eyes at Derekâs massive cheesiness but gasped instead when Derekâs hands went under his thighs to hoist him up into the air. Stiles wrapped his legs around Derekâs waist and clung on while Derek walked them towards the couch, nibbling on Stilesâ ear.
âWait! We need to decorate the tree!â Stiles whined when Derek dropped them down onto the couch.
âWe can do it later,â Derek dismissed, running his teeth against Stilesâ jawline.
âNo, we canât do it later! We have to do this now while the Christmas spirit is still alive.â
âThe Christmas spirit can wait an hour.â Derek kissed him then and Stiles forgot all about the tree and the arguing and got lost in the warmth and feel of his mouth.
He remembered the disaster that surrounded their first kiss. Derek had a rough encounter with a witch and was cursed by a nasty spell that called for someone to have sex with him or he would die.
Naturally, out of the pack, Stiles was the only suitable option to help Derek with that, and so they went a couple of rounds in bed but didnât even kiss at all. As you can imagine, it was very awkward later realizing that theyâd fucked for hours but hadnât kissed. Things got even more awkward as they tried to push past it and pretend that the whole situation never happened.
After a few weeks of unbearable awkwardness, theyâd finally had enough and made the grownup decision to kiss to get it all over with. However, they hadnât expected to never want to stop kissing and honestly havenât ever since.
Stiles whimpered when Derekâs lips pulled away from his then moaned when they continued kissing down his body. He felt a tug as Derek undid his pants and opened his eyes hungrily to watch when he spotted a sorry sight.
He glanced to it and then back at Derek, torn. âLook at it. It looks so sad that itâs still naked.â
âIâm sad that weâre not naked,â Derek griped.
âCâmon.â Stiles pushed Derek off after a long, bruising kiss and stood, buttoning his pants. âIâll make it up to you later. I promise.â
âYouâre exhausting,â Derek sighed but got up anyway.
With such a big tree, they would need a lot of manpower and a ton of decorations. Stiles had brought a bunch of boxes of extra decorations to the loft from his dadâs house, trying to save money, being a poor college student and all. But he wished that they would have invested in some new Christmas lights at least instead of trying to work with ones that were super old and tangled up.
Heâd made a big mistake in delegating the responsibility of untangling the lights to Derek. It was a huge job that required one to be patient, level-headed, gentle, and super careful; qualities that neither of them really possessed. He thought Derek wouldâve done better with it though, because Derek was a werewolf. Honestly, he thought Derek was supposed to be good at everything because he was a werewolf.
But when Derek started getting so frustrated that he was growling and popping wolfy claws, Stiles had to step in and take them from him before he ripped through the wiring. He gave Derek another task of going through the boxes and sorting the ornaments while Stiles dealt with the lights. That way everyone would be happy. Basically, what being in a management position was all about and why his job was way more important.
It took about thirty minutes and a lot of cursing, but Stiles was actually able to get all the lights untangled and was working on putting them around the tree when he heard the sound of glass shattering from behind him.
âDude! What the fuck!â Stiles cried when he looked back and saw one of the glass ornaments in a pile on the ground. âI thought I told you to be careful!â
He was waiting on Derek to say something, to apologize, or explain himself, or be his usual asshole self. But Derek was just standing there, completely silent, and staring at this one spot on the floor.
âDerek?â Stiles was less annoyed now and more concerned as he put down the lights and tried to figure out what was going on.
âS-s-s-pider,â Derek stammered.
âUh where?â Stiles asked, frowning as he looked around and saw nothing.
âRight there!â Derek pointed to the same spot heâd been staring at, eyes refusing to budge.
Stiles moved a little closer and squinted. âI donât see it.â
âAre you blind?!â Derek snapped, finally looking up. âItâs right there. Itâs huge! You canât miss it!â He looked back over to the spot and paled. âOh god⌠it moved!â
âWhere?â Stiles searched the floor again but again found nothing.
âThere!â Derek swung around, pointing somewhere else. âFuck now itâs over there! Itâs right fucking there, Stiles!â
âSeriously?â Stiles furrowed his brows. He was honestly scratching his head at this. âThis has got to be some sort of act.â
âItâs not,â Derek said gravely. âFuck, it must have come from the tree.â
Stiles rolled his eyes; he shouldâve known where this was going. Of course, Derek just wanted an excuse to villainize the perfection that was his real tree. But that still didnât explain the sheer terror he was seeing on Derekâs face. Or the high-pitch scream Derek let out when whatever spider he was seeing moved again. Or even his running away and jumping onto the couch for safety.
âOh, I see it now!â Stiles shouted, catching a glimpse of something brown and furry crawling along the floor.
It was definitely a large spider, for sure. One could probably keep it as a pet. But it didnât look poisonous or particularly harmful in any way to Stiles, at least. Then again, he was no expert. And while the spider was definitely big, they as humans were a lot bigger. So, Stiles still wasnât understanding why Derek was so scared.
âWhy are you standing on the couch?â Stiles asked, watching Derek balance himself on one of the couchâs arms.
âDid you not see the size of that thing!â Derek asked incredulously. âItâs gigantic!â
âYeah, it is pretty big but youâre a werewolfâŚâ Stiles said slowly in case Derek had forgotten.
âFuck! Itâs on my furniture! Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!â
âWould you calm down!â Stiles urged, watching as the spider crawled its way onto the TV stand. âItâs not anywhere near you!â
But Derek did not heed any of Stilesâ advice. In fact, Stiles could see that Derek was done hearing seasonable reasoning completely. He just kept shrieking his head off as the spider crawled over his big screen TV then onto the wall where it remained stationary for a couple of minutes.
âI call bullshit,â Stiles announced then turned to Derek skeptically. âHow can you be afraid of spiders? You lived in your old burned down home. You had no roof! All kind of bugs must have been crawling on you when you were asleep!â
âI bought expensive repellent to keep them away.â
âBut what about when you lived in the underground train car?â
âAgain, no spiders!â
âBut youâre a werewolf! All you do is run around in the woods! Basically spider territory!â
âHey, do I question you about your irrational fear of yogurt?â
Stilesâ hand flew to his heart in utter betrayal. He couldnât believe that Derek had the audacity to throw that in his face. âThat is a very real and rational fear! Not only does it taste disgusting, but itâs alive, and I can hear the screams of young innocent bacteria cultures crying out with every spoonful!â
âStilesâŚâ Derek said, his breathing laboring in a way Stiles was very familiar with, like he was on the verge of a major panic attack. âStiles, for once, can you just stop talking and get rid of it for me, please. I need you here.â
âOh,â Stiles said, now that he was grasping the severity of the situation. âOkay, let me just get aââ
He sprinted to the kitchens and rummaged through the cabinets for something to trap the spider in. He was hoping that this itsy bitsy spider would be cooperative and would just get into whatever container Stiles found without his having to chase it. He wasnât going to be cruel. He just wanted to catch this spider, take it outside, and order it an Uber ride home. But if things didnât go as planned, he wouldnât think twice about giving this spider The Stomp. It had scared the living shit out of his wolfy boyfriend. This was personal now.
âAHA!â Stiles exclaimed and held up a plastic lunch container.
âNot my tupperware!â Derek called out.
âWhy not?â
âBecause that fucking spider doesnât pay rent and I need them for meal prep!â
âYou can just wash it and use it again,â Stiles tried.
âYou think Iâm gonna eat out of something a fucking spiderâs been in? Thatâs disgusting!â Derek shouted hysterically.
Stiles couldâve said that there was a chance it was recycled plastic from a dump where spiders had already crawled all over it. But he didnât because heâd already acted like such a shit boyfriend tonight by not responding to Derek in crisis fast enough. But he kept his mouth shut and put the tupperware back, finding a plastic butter container that nobody would miss.
âOkay,â he said, walking over to Derek, âIâm gonna lure the spider onto the floor. Donât faint and donât freak out.â
Fear never made anyone a good listener. Stiles knew he was asking too much in telling Derek not to freak out, but he was hoping Derek could attempt to keep it to a minor one. He worked as fast as he could to get the spider in the container. Derek was counting on him and Stiles couldnât let him down. He missed catching the spider once, twice, but on the third try, he was victorious. He got the spider firmly under the container on the floor, but must not have realized how much energy heâd been exerting because he was panting by the end of it.
âYou ever see that video where the guy catches the spider under a container and then it explodes and has like a million babies?â Stiles asked Derek between breaths. âRight, you probably donât want to hear about that right now.â
Derek got down from standing on the couch and sank into a seat, covering his face with his hands. Stiles desperately wanted to go over there and comfort him but was worried he wouldnât be welcome. He took the spider downstairs and released it back into the wild, telling the little fucker never to come again. He also told it to tell its friends never to bother his boyfriend either, because Stiles wouldnât be so nice the next time.
When he got back upstairs, he was fully expecting for Derek to want some space between them. Stiles had acted like a total jerk and Derek had a right to be pissed. Stiles was pissed with himself too. Heâd never wanted to fuck up this bad so early in the relationship on something so important. He enjoyed making Derek angry but never like this.
However, he was pleasantly surprisedâmore like ecstatic, reallyâ when he opened the front door to the loft and saw Derek still sitting on the couch but holding his arms out for Stiles to come sit on his lap.
âIâm sorry I didnât believe you were scared,â was the first thing Stiles made sure to say, that and kissing every inch of Derekâs face. âThat was a dick move, and I promise you, I wonât leave you hanging like that ever again.â
âItâs fine,â Derek chuckled, blushing a little in embarrassment. âYou didnât know.â
âI should always believe you,â Stiles said then smiled, shaking his head. âBut seriously, who wouldâve ever thought that your biggest fear would be spiders.â
Derek snorted. âThatâs hardly my biggest fear. Not by any means.â
Stiles slapped a hand over his mouth that heâd just put his giant foot in. Sometimes he was an idiot and forgot that Derek had a terrible past and made such insensitive comments when he should know better. Of course, spiders werenât Derekâs biggest fear. The guy had lost his entire family in a fire.
Derek seemed to sense Stilesâ inner turmoil and tried to make him feel like a less horrible person by saying, âYou know, my biggest fear now is telling someone I love them and them not saying it back.â
âNo way! Thatâs a big fear for me too!â Stiles shared. âLike how awkward must that be. Pouring your heart out to someone and them just not saying anything back. The only thing you can really do after that is crawl into a hole and live out the rest of your days as a crazed mole-person.â
It was quiet then. Too quiet. And while this holiday season was known for its âsilent nightsâ Stiles sensed something was amiss here.
âUm, Derek⌠are you trying to⌠imply⌠something?â
âI figured now would be a good time as any after you just saved my life.â
Stiles cackled. âThat wasnât saving your life, dude. Iâve actually saved your life. So many times in fact. Youâve literally been bleeding to death in my car. This spider incident does not compare.â
âIt was a big deal for me. Thereâs no one I trust more than you. You know that right Stiles,â Derek told him.
Stiles was so touched he couldnât speak. Honored even. Stiles knew it was early. Some would say too early. After all, it had only been a month. But, theyâd known each other a long time and have been through so much together. And Stiles wanted to say it. He wanted to say it so Derek would know heâd do everything he could not to let any of his fears come true. So, he did.
âI love you too,â Stiles said and kissed him, feeling Derekâs happy smile ghost against his lips.
âI didnât even say anything yet,â Derek sputtered, wide-eyed.
âYou donât have to. I already know.â
They kissed again, not coming up for air for a while. Stiles was perfectly content with staying there all night, but then Derek messed it up by pulling away.
âCome on, letâs decorate your precious Christmas tree,â he sighed, moving Stiles off of him and kissing his brow.
âNo,â Stiles whined, pulling Derekâs mouth back to his. âThe Christmas spirit can wait an hour.â
âNext year fake tree and no spiders,â Derek said sternly.
âYeah, weâll see about that.â Stiles rolled his eyes.
People I'm super-excited to get to spend time with this weekend: @anxiousyetepic @bishkebab and her fiancĂŠ @shotguncocks and her husband @blizgori and especially @maybee25 and @merrikstryfe!! And hopefully others!!
Are peahens bad at hatching chicks or was Jocelyn just very enthusiastic? We give our duck eggs to the chickens to hatch since they're much better at it.
Joslin is better at it than the pea ladies. Peahens WILL sit, if you let them, but they are easily disturbed and, bar Aurora, most of mine are pretty young birds, so they arenât quite there in terms of adult habits. Also they pick really terrible places to try to incubate eggs. Like this:
That is the food dish.
It is approximately 3 feet from an actual nesting box.
