Chapter Text
The vet’s office was warded against their kind so Derek waited patiently in the lobby for Deaton to come out. He hated being here, everything that it represented made him ache. Deaton was supposed to be his emissary not Scott’s. Reluctantly Deaton let him through to the back office, offering Derek a chair that he refused. It was best to get this over with as soon as possible, still standing Derek asked, “I need you to do me a favour please.”
He watched quietly as Deaton thought it over, Derek could smell his refusal even before he spoke, “I’m sorry Derek but I’m not your emissary, I can’t help you.”
Fighting down the aggression of his wolf Derek kept his voice soft, “You haven’t even heard me out.”
Deaton’s refusal was immediate and emphatic, “I don’t have to Derek I’m not your emissary.”
He was really starting to piss him off, “I know you’re not my emissary Deaton. I get that you hate me, although I’ve never understood why considering I haven’t done anything, but it’s not about that.”
Before he could finish Deaton was cutting him off, his sent turning angry, “You killed Paige Derek and you led Kate to your door! You’re not fit to be an alpha, you’re incapable of looking after a pack. You got Erica and Boyd killed!”
Damn that hurt way more than he expected it to. Taking in a cleansing breath Derek focused on not losing his temper as he defended himself, “I killed Paige because Ennis gave her the bite and she was dying. What was I supposed to do let her suffer? As for Kate, I was barely sixteen and she was twenty four. She used me to hurt my family but I am not to blame for that. It has taken me years and hundreds of dollars in therapy to be able to say that, but it’s true. I was sixteen and a virgin and she was older and sophisticated and interested in me Deaton. She wanted me, what boy would turn that down? I thought I was in love with her, I even had an engagement ring hidden in my drawer. I have never set out to hurt anyone. When I became Alpha it was because Scott couldn’t, he was a kid who could barely control his own powers how was he supposed to lead a pack? I tried so hard to be his friend, to be his brother. That’s all I’ve ever wanted, a family and a pack, but he rejected me at every turn, he used me to get what he wanted. But I still helped him, I have done nothing to him or any of his friends and you still hate me. You want to blame me for Erica and Boyd then go ahead, but they left me. That’s why they were taken, they left the pack and I let them go. Do you know how hard that is? Do you think any other Alpha would have done that? They’d have been beaten into submission and forced to stay but I didn’t want to hurt them. I wanted them to want to be pack. You can judge me all you want but you were my mother’s emissary and you should have been mine, God knows I needed one, so you can do this for me. Keep an eye on Stiles.”
Deaton had the decency to look abashed when he said, “That’s what you wanted me to do?”
Honestly what did he think he’d ask for, a human sacrifice? Considering Deaton’s low opinion of him, maybe that’s not too far off. Focusing on the task at hand Derek tells him, “I’m leaving and the kid has a habit of getting himself in dangerous situations.”
Deaton's response was automatic, “Scott will keep him safe, he’s his best friend.”
He couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled out of him. Scott had never kept Stiles safe, that was Derek’s job, even if no-one else realised it. “Scott hasn’t a clue what’s going on with Stiles right now. He’s been so focused on Allison and Isaac that he’s forgotten about Stiles and the kid is falling apart. He needs someone to be there for him and remind him that he’s not alone. Things with his dad haven’t been the greatest, even though he knows everything now, things have gotten worse at home. He’s been having these nightmares so he’s barely sleeping and he’s abusing his meds. I won’t be here to stop him anymore so you have to do it. Get Scott to check on him, keep him from doing anything stupid.”
That fear had kept him in Beacon Hills even after Cora left. He should have gone with her, but one wiff of Stiles’ scent had him staying put, but he couldn’t put it off anymore. He had to leave. “You’re just leaving your pack?”
It was said with such contempt and disgust that it made Derek wonder why he ever liked Deaton in the first place. “I’m not the Alpha anymore and Scott has made it abundantly clear that he doesn’t want me here. I never wanted to be the Alpha you know, that was always Laura. I was supposed to follow and fight, to protect my Alpha and my mate. That’s what I was raised for, Cora too.”
Things were so simple back then, he had a job and he was good at it, really good. He was going to be the best second there ever was. Shaking his head clear of those thoughts Derek smiled sharply at Deaton, leaving him and his office behind.
Footsteps followed him out to the lobby and past the small barrier but he kept walking. Deaton’s voice stopped him at the door, “Stiles will want to know where you’re going, that you’re ok.”
He was right of course, Stiles would want to know and he would be furious when he found out Derek left without saying goodbye. “Back to New York, Dylan’s a mess, I can’t let him run the company for much longer or he’ll have a break down.”
Derek was pretty sure it was too late, Dylan was having a melt -down even though Derek checked in twice a day, Dylan wasn’t able to be in charge for this long. Curious Deaton asked, “You run a company?”
It just showed how little Deaton knew about him, how little he cared, before he transferred his allegiance to Scott, “Yeah Deaton. I own a financial company in New York, what you thought I was a college drop out that never did anything? I have a PHD in Finance and an MBA, I have an entire life I left behind in New York so I could come here and find my sister’s killer and keep Scott safe. Stiles has my number if he needs me, but don’t expect me to come running when Scott fucks up. I have better things to do.”
That maybe sounded a little immature, but he didn’t care. He was through with Scott McCall, the only person in Beacon Hills he cared about was Stiles and if things worked out then he’d be leaving Beacon Hills at the end of the year for school in New York. Derek would make his move then. He let the door slam behind him not wanting to hear anything else Deaton had to say. He was going back to New York and when the time came, he would give Stiles a place to live and they’d both have a family again, Scott McCall be damned!