( Derek moves over to Hayley to help with all the bags. This is a lot of bags, but he's grateful Hayley took it upon herself. And clothes, oh that's sweet. )
You don't need my permission.
( He holds the one bag that holds different clothing out to her. )
( Which is his way of saying thank you. He hears the shower, too, as plates clank against each other removing them from their cabinet. )
I'm focusing on her needs. Say what you want about what happened to her, and why, but what matters is her being back. And how she feels. She was my best student. Technically. But, because she took to being a werewolf in the ways that don't matter. But, did to a teenage girl.
[Hayley nods. She doesn't mind a little bit of attitude, so long as it doesn't go too far over the line. And she also thinks that what she's been through might change things for her some.]
If she's going to stay in town, maybe we can introduce her to Hope. See if she fits in with her friends. Give her some friends her own age.
[Since most of her existing friends are both much older and scattered.]
( She would like Hope's style and confidence. He doesn't remember her doing great with other teenage girls. But, she had Isaac and Boyd. She had her pack. And some kind of Stiles flirtation that was also more an assignment given from Derek when everyone was in search of the kanima. Lydia. But also Matt. )
[Hayley nods her agreement, before she hears the water switch off in the guest room. They can leave the conversation there for now, and a few minutes later Erica emerges from the bathroom, wet hair hanging around her shoulders and dressed in a comfortable, generic sweat set.
"Better?" Hayley asks and Erica nods, relieved.]
Much, thank you. I threw my old clothes in the garbage but I left everything else in there, if that's okay?
[Hayley nods. "Of course. Consider that your room until you no longer need it."
Erica nods again, and the shower did give her some time to clear her head. And maybe have a good cry. She isn't really sure what to make of any of this, but she has to move forward, and that involves making sure the pack she knows is still the pack that wants her.]
He is part of the pack right? He's not part of Hayley's pack? She glances over at Hayley, wondering if having another alpha around is weird.]
That's not weird, right?
[Hayley shakes her head. "Of course not. Scott's great. He's also close with my friend Davina who's a witch. Maybe she could come with him to see if she can figure out why you're here."
Erica actually perks up a bit at that. It sounds more productive and not just her being awkward at people who have moved on from her death.]
Scott has only been in town because he's with Davina. Alphas aren't... the Alpha pack isn't normal alpha behavior. Odds were she was going to be home when we went over. But, I'll let him know.
( He's also grateful he has Hayley's support in this, too. )
Let's eat, and then we'll clean up and go to Davina's.
[Erica nods, and they will settle in for food and light conversation. Derek reaches out to Scott somewhere along he way, so when he conveys as much to Davina, she's happy to help.
Before Derek offered her the bite, she was quiet. She had asthma and struggled in gym. Kids... You remember high school. ( Does she? He knows there was a church involved. ) Sometimes, kids just aren't nice. She struggled on the climbing rope one of the days. Derek found her after. When she returned to school, she was like a whole new person. The consensus was that she'd gotten hot overnight. She dressed different. She got cocky. And flirtatious. And, she and Derek's pack were sort of like a gang. She also had a temper and she could be petty, cause she was still a teenage girl. In a way, it did give her a better life, but she wasn't given the tools she needed to be better, only stronger.
( He shakes his head, sitting back on the couch. )
This is all in the past, between Derek and me, but he knows what I thought of his bite.
( He sighs, holding his phone up. )
It's not just her, Davina. There are all these returns across the US. I should ask why not Europe. But, she's a part of it. Some people think it started with Elena and this big witch ceremony she was kidnapped for, and others, like this guy Barry just think it's quantum theory?
Maybe there are some in Europe. They're just not part of our network.
[There is, actually, at least one. But that's an NPC problem for Luke and Robin to discover later.]
I also can't say I blame her. I'm not fully familiar with going from zero to supernatural but I do know what it's like to feel like you suddenly have the world in the palm of your hand.
She couldn't. She was afraid, she went on the run and we weren't able to protect her. Isaac went looking... What he found -
( The discovery was awful. What it did to Derek was awful. )
But, that's just it. I want her to have this second chance. It's a good thing. If this comes down that people are just back. She's someone who deserves the second chance. And if she'll let me, I want to help her with it.
( It's Davina's apartment, but she's here to see Scott, so he braces himself before getting up and moving to the door. Smiling, because this is a happy occasion, he opens the door to greet her. )
While she never got the chance to learn to let Scott be her moral compass the way Isaac did, there was always something about him that was steady, safe. Different from Derek in so many ways, but still strong. She never understood why he didn't want to be part of the pack until it was far too late, and she never got the chance to correct those mistakes.
She can feel the differences, the internal nagging in the back of her mind that she used to associate with Derek and now she realizes is just "alpha." He's older, too, an actual adult. She, for the first time, feels how much time has passed for them, and it does sink like a stone in her gut, tears filling at the corners of her eyes, but she tries to blink them away, and returns Scott's smile as best she can.]
( He's prepared to be there for her, to answer absolutely every question she has, even if it hurts. He can talk back through their sophomore year. Things were brutal, Derek set an example for her Scott didn't stand for. Between the hunters, what they didn't know Lydia was and Jackson's kanima form (and Matt) and Gerard, life was hard then. Allison also went through everything with her mom and framing Derek. He doesn't blame Erica for becoming a product of Derek's posturing. He never know what it meant to be an alpha and Scott really, really had to learn. He just had friends at the time, friends he trusted. And he saw examples he didn't agree with.
Being an alpha didn't mean teaching werewolves cockiness or intimidation. And it didn't mean beating other alphas into submission. But, he worked through what it did mean. For him. For his friends. He learned on his own, but he also learned by Derek's new example he set. Self-sacrifice. Hard choices. Finding common ground in people you might not trust.
He'd like to think, that despite growing older, he's still the same goofy kid. He's watched more TV and movies and does his own grocery shopping, but, he still has his cute-dumb moments. And, his idealistic moments. And, his foolish moments.
His network has grown wider than it's ever been.
He hopes that ultimately can help Erica the most. )
Hey, Erica. ( He steps aside, ready to hug he if she wants that, he's always been affectionate, but knowing where she's come from as well. Not just with Derek, but the fault. ) Come in, come in. Make yourselves at home.
( He shakes Derek's hand and pulls Hayley in for a hug once Erica does step inside the apartment. The hug is also for her, as well, if she's feeling it. )
[She does take the hug. Aside from the weird angel guy, no one else has touched her since she arrived here. It isn't until after, as she starts to sink into the hold, that she realizes how much she needed it.
More tears slip free and she tries to push them back with a shuddering breath but look, she was held captive for three months, and she thinks she might have died. It's probably a miracle that she hasn't had a small breakdown about this sooner.
And Scott's safe.
After a couple heavy breaths, she sucks it in, trying to get control of herself again. She is not putting her best werewolf foot forward if she wants Scott to let her into the pack.]
You have nothing to be sorry for. You're here now. You're safe.
( Turning to her, he says that as he squeezes her shoulder, trying to calm her. Not imbuing those feelings in her, or taking that pain away. But, trying to soothe her. Relax her. )
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praevaricatio) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
everyonelives2025-10-11 07:15 am
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You don't need my permission.
( He holds the one bag that holds different clothing out to her. )
We'll set the table while you change.
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[She passes her over another bag and Erica takes both before following Hayley's directions to the guest room.]
I also got her a phone. We can set it up and save the numbers for the pack, at least. Give her some people to talk to.
[She then waits until she hears the shower start, allowing for a little bit of privacy for them both, before she turns back to Derek.]
How're you doing?
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( Which is his way of saying thank you. He hears the shower, too, as plates clank against each other removing them from their cabinet. )
I'm focusing on her needs. Say what you want about what happened to her, and why, but what matters is her being back. And how she feels. She was my best student. Technically. But, because she took to being a werewolf in the ways that don't matter. But, did to a teenage girl.
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[Her becoming a werewolf just amped the mean girl tendencies Hayley already had. Becoming a mom mellowed her a lot.]
It seems like she has a lot to adjust to.
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( And he won't either, though, he may be more lenient. )
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If she's going to stay in town, maybe we can introduce her to Hope. See if she fits in with her friends. Give her some friends her own age.
[Since most of her existing friends are both much older and scattered.]
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( She would like Hope's style and confidence. He doesn't remember her doing great with other teenage girls. But, she had Isaac and Boyd. She had her pack. And some kind of Stiles flirtation that was also more an assignment given from Derek when everyone was in search of the kanima.
Lydia.But also Matt. )I want to let her choose.
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"Better?" Hayley asks and Erica nods, relieved.]
Much, thank you. I threw my old clothes in the garbage but I left everything else in there, if that's okay?
[Hayley nods. "Of course. Consider that your room until you no longer need it."
Erica nods again, and the shower did give her some time to clear her head. And maybe have a good cry. She isn't really sure what to make of any of this, but she has to move forward, and that involves making sure the pack she knows is still the pack that wants her.]
Did you talk to Scott?
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( He didn't do great at being her alpha the first time around, so maybe he hasn't earned being there with her. )
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[Derek is part of the pack too.
He is part of the pack right? He's not part of Hayley's pack? She glances over at Hayley, wondering if having another alpha around is weird.]
That's not weird, right?
[Hayley shakes her head. "Of course not. Scott's great. He's also close with my friend Davina who's a witch. Maybe she could come with him to see if she can figure out why you're here."
Erica actually perks up a bit at that. It sounds more productive and not just her being awkward at people who have moved on from her death.]
Yeah, that sounds like a good idea.
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( He's also grateful he has Hayley's support in this, too. )
Let's eat, and then we'll clean up and go to Davina's.
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And, because she can't help but be curious:]
What's she like, Erica?
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( He shakes his head, sitting back on the couch. )
This is all in the past, between Derek and me, but he knows what I thought of his bite.
( He sighs, holding his phone up. )
It's not just her, Davina. There are all these returns across the US. I should ask why not Europe. But, she's a part of it. Some people think it started with Elena and this big witch ceremony she was kidnapped for, and others, like this guy Barry just think it's quantum theory?
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[There is, actually, at least one. But that's an NPC problem for Luke and Robin to discover later.]
I also can't say I blame her. I'm not fully familiar with going from zero to supernatural but I do know what it's like to feel like you suddenly have the world in the palm of your hand.
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( He has a smart girlfriend. )
She had the apple. ( It's a metaphor, but actual. He remembers it clearly. ) He got her hair done, she learned how to do make-up. Heavy.
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[Every girl has one, when they're trying to figure out who they are.]
Sounds like she wanted to be someone new. Or put a new face on who she wanted to be.
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( And that story doesn't have a happy ending.)
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And she didn't come back.
[That must have been awful, for all of them.]
And now she's here. Which has to be a head trip.
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( The discovery was awful. What it did to Derek was awful. )
But, that's just it. I want her to have this second chance. It's a good thing. If this comes down that people are just back. She's someone who deserves the second chance. And if she'll let me, I want to help her with it.
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[When she came back to life, all she wanted was for her personal anchors to ground her. She doesn't think it will be any different for Erica.]
Just be her friend. That's all I wanted when I came back, was to know that my friends were still there.
[And almost as though on cue, there's a knock on Davina's apartment door.]
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While she never got the chance to learn to let Scott be her moral compass the way Isaac did, there was always something about him that was steady, safe. Different from Derek in so many ways, but still strong. She never understood why he didn't want to be part of the pack until it was far too late, and she never got the chance to correct those mistakes.
She can feel the differences, the internal nagging in the back of her mind that she used to associate with Derek and now she realizes is just "alpha." He's older, too, an actual adult. She, for the first time, feels how much time has passed for them, and it does sink like a stone in her gut, tears filling at the corners of her eyes, but she tries to blink them away, and returns Scott's smile as best she can.]
Hey.
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Being an alpha didn't mean teaching werewolves cockiness or intimidation. And it didn't mean beating other alphas into submission. But, he worked through what it did mean. For him. For his friends. He learned on his own, but he also learned by Derek's new example he set. Self-sacrifice. Hard choices. Finding common ground in people you might not trust.
He'd like to think, that despite growing older, he's still the same goofy kid. He's watched more TV and movies and does his own grocery shopping, but, he still has his cute-dumb moments. And, his idealistic moments. And, his foolish moments.
His network has grown wider than it's ever been.
He hopes that ultimately can help Erica the most. )
Hey, Erica. ( He steps aside, ready to hug he if she wants that, he's always been affectionate, but knowing where she's come from as well. Not just with Derek, but the fault. ) Come in, come in. Make yourselves at home.
( He shakes Derek's hand and pulls Hayley in for a hug once Erica does step inside the apartment. The hug is also for her, as well, if she's feeling it. )
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More tears slip free and she tries to push them back with a shuddering breath but look, she was held captive for three months, and she thinks she might have died. It's probably a miracle that she hasn't had a small breakdown about this sooner.
And Scott's safe.
After a couple heavy breaths, she sucks it in, trying to get control of herself again. She is not putting her best werewolf foot forward if she wants Scott to let her into the pack.]
Sorry.
[She swipes at her cheeks.]
It's been a weird day.
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( Turning to her, he says that as he squeezes her shoulder, trying to calm her. Not imbuing those feelings in her, or taking that pain away. But, trying to soothe her. Relax her. )
We can start anywhere.
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