Stronger
Song drabble ficlets - AO3
Song 21 : Stronger by The Score. Steter Word count: 896
He's the only one who notices it, he can tell that...could tell that early on. He feels the guilt of course, after all, he was one of the people who helped burn Peter alive for the second time.
But he sees the way that the older Hale flinches ever so slightly near an open flame, see's the way his eyes change slightly at the feeling of being too hot, the cloudiness of memory and phantom pains. He is the one who sees the way that Peter will avoid anything above a certain temperature, the way that he will jerk as if something had suddenly reminded him of the past, of the fire...the crackle of something cooking, a scent of certain meats being charred on a wayward barbecue in the town somewhere.
He see's the way that his shoulder's slump just by a small fraction when the rest of the pack make plans and he's once again left behind, forgotten on the sidelines, his ideas dismissed as the rantings of a man once mad.
Stiles knows this all, he sees it all. He has his own traumas to battle, his own misgivings to fight over and make good on. He owes so much to Peter, so many apologises to made amends. After all, how are you meant to say sorry to the guy you helped another Argent set fire too.
But he knows at the same time, that while Peter has his weaknesses towards fire, towards heat and anything that reminds him of the fire, of his family that he lost.
He knows that he came back stronger too. His mind is sharper, wonders sharper again. For all the hiding he does behind his smirks, his armour, there is strength there. He sees it in the way that Peter stands his place in the pack, the way he takes the threats and the snide remarks bitten under breathes, he collects them all and builds his shields up with them, layer upon layer, fixing them together with connections that no one else sees.
But Stiles does.
It's another day, another pack meeting in the middle of summer, another creature prowling through the heat ridden preserve. The wolves are all convinced that they know what it is...and they are sort of right. The last meeting, Peter had commented on a creature but like normal, the others dismissed him, and Stiles had watched as the older Hale rolled his eyes and leaned further back in to the shadows.
It wasn't to do. Stiles brings up the creature that Peter spoke about, he had researched it himself and agreed with the older wolf on it, he tells them that it's easy to catch and easier again to make leave the land. The creature isn't out for threats or destruction on a harmful level, it's more of a trickster, looking for enjoyment in the annoyance of others.
They listen to him, and it rubs him wrong. He frowns deeply as they start to divvy out the roles to each member of the pack.
''No.'' The word is leaving his mouth before he can realise, he's spoken, he sees the way the pack freezes and turns towards him, blinks as he breathes out. ''Peter and I already have plans, and you don't need either one of us for this creature. You have all the information you need.'' Stiles speaks as he nods, conviction in his tone as he stands and brushes off imaginary dust from his jeans.
They try to argue, that they need him, that he was the one who figured it out. But he just holds a hand up and silences them all. ''Peter is the one who came up with the creature, I just agreed with him. This could've been sorted out last pack meeting, but you didn't want to listen to him, now we have plans, so if you excuse us both, we're going to leave before we're late.'' HE nods before turning to look at Peter who's staring at him with a raised brow but a slight smirk curling his lips.
It isn't until they are both in his jeep and driving away from the loft that he finally feels Peter's eyes on the side of his face. It adds to the heat already in the air as he reaches out for the air conditioning, turning it towards Peter even as he smacks his hand against the dashboard to get it working. It's another ten minutes before he's pulling up outside of the ice rink that Peter chuckles.
He looks over at the wolf then, his eyes dropping down to take in the light weight top he's wearing, the jeans he knows are thin too before his eyes lift back up to meet knowing blue ones. They remind Stiles of the ocean in the heat, of the sun sparkling off the surface of the water as he nods and they both climb out of the jeep and head towards the doors.
Inside, the coldness of the rink brings a sigh of pleasure from the wolf beside him and Stiles sees the way he is relaxing almost instantly. He hadn't planned on this when he had left home that morning, but he was glad that Peter seemed to like the idea as they both headed for the front counter to pay their admittance and get out on the ice.














