Chapter Text
Stiles shuffled nervously in his seat, only stilling when Derek reached out to take his hand. They were currently sat in his Dad’s office waiting for him to come and speak with them. They’d been waiting a while now.
When his Dad and everyone else had arrived at the house, thankfully, none of them mentioned the apparent strip tease he and Derek had done on their way to the bedroom. They had just walked them out and into the garden, not even stopping to let them put on shoes or a jacket.
Sure they had been given blankets to wrap round themselves while they waited to be escorted back to the station, but they were both still in bare feet four hours later.
They’d both given their statements about what had happened back at the house before being driven to the station, so Stiles could only assume that his Dad was keeping them here to talk to them about, well about them.
And sure enough, as soon as Derek had grabbed his hand, the door to the office opened and in walked his Dad, Steve (one of the other deputies) and some dude Stiles didn’t recognise.
“Okay, so, Steve is here as a witness to make sure I’m going to be impartial,” the Sheriff said, and that’s when Stiles remembered that Steve was the union rep, “and this here is Tom Yates from internal affairs.”
Stiles froze as the man stretched his hand out for Stiles to take. Luckily, Derek was there to nudge him into action.
“Sorry,” Stiles said as he finally shook the man’s hand. “I just don’t understand what this has to do with the IA?”
“Deputy, you are in a relationship with a violent criminal who was recently suspected of the murder his uncle just confessed to,” Yates told him.
“One, Derek’s crime may have been violent in nature, but he is not a violent man and only did what any brother would do in his position. Second, as he and the evidence so clearly shows, he had nothing to do with Allison Argent’s murder. And third, he is not his uncle, he has noinput into what his uncle does and therefore is not responsible for his actions,” Stiles said, not realising he had gotten up out of his seat in anger until he felt Derek pulling him back down again, Steve’s gentle hand pressing down his other shoulder.
“And your relationship?” Yates asked, not at all perplexed by Stiles’ behaviour.
“Started two weeks ago,” Derek said, holding onto Stiles’ hand tight. “Also, this should probably wait until my brother in law gets here.”
“You’re not under arrest Derek,” the Sheriff said. “Either of you. We’re just trying to find out how this all started and if it’s going to have any effect on our prosecution of your uncle.”
“It shouldn’t,” Stiles said. “Not if he’s confessed right?”
“It shouldn’t,” his Dad agreed. “But we still need to make sure everything is covered.”
Stiles nodded. This was the first his Dad had spoken to him since he’d called him earlier in the morning.
“If you’re called to witness, and he decided to retract his confession, then it’s likely the defence will pick apart every bit of evidence we just gathered at the house,” Yates said.
“You mean the clothes we dropped in our rush to get naked? Or the semen on the bed and used condoms in trash?” Stiles asked, trying his best to make Yates feel as uncomfortable as he was feeling.
“All of the above,” Yates told him.
“Stiles,” Derek said quietly, giving his hand a soft squeeze managing to calm him in a way no one had ever before.
Letting out a sigh, Stiles turned back to the other three. “Chinese,” he said.
“Chinese?” His Dad asked.
“Two weeks ago. I got off shift and decided to get take out. I got there and Derek had apparently had the same idea. We ended up taking our order back to my house.”
“You just invited someone who had only five days previous, been a murder suspect?” Yates asked.
Stiles shrugged. “It’s not the first time I’ve went home with an insanely attractive man who I barely know.”
“What about you Derek?” Yates asked him.
“I’d say it started with marshmallows,” Derek told him.
Everyone stared at him in confusion. “Marshmallows?”
“Yeah, back in school. Stiles fit like a hundred and fifty marshmallows in his mouth in one go,” Derek explained. “That was the first time I thought about marrying him.”
“You wanted to marry me for my marshmallow eating abilities?”
“I was seventeen. It was impressive. Also, I’d seen you in the locker room. I knew what you were hiding underneath all that plaid.”
Stiles felt himself grin, but was rudely interrupted from declaring his own appreciation of Derek’s teenaged body by his Dad pointedly clearing his throat.
“Marshmallows aside,” the Sheriff began, “you didn’t have a problem with going home with the police officer who led to your arrest in the first place?”
Derek sighed. “It wasn’t personal. Any of your deputies would’ve found me suspicious. Especially given my record. And well, over the weeks when I was coming to sign in, I may have developed a bit of a crush on him.”
Stiles could feel his chest puff out but tried not to appear too ecstatic in case the IA guy took it the wrong way.
“So, you’ve been sleeping with each other for the past two weeks then?” Yates asked.
“Yes,” Stiles nodded. “Although, last night was only the fourth time we’d seen each other.”
“And if I looked at your phone you wouldn’t have naked pictures of Mr Hale on there?”
“He’s my boyfriend,” Stiles said. “Of course I have naked pictures of him on there. In fact, I have a pretty interesting one with him and an or –”
“I think they get it Stiles,” Derek interrupted.
“So last night,” Yates began, changing the subject. “You had been complaining about your shift pattern, so the Sheriff here gave you the weekend off?”
Stiles nodded.
“You went to your boyfriend’s, spent the night there and somehow discovered this vital piece of evidence.”
“I was looking for a towel to dry my hands on,” Stiles said. “I thought it might belong to Derek’s sister, but when I asked he said it wasn’t and well, Peter Hale fits the description so I called my Dad.”
“And you believed Derek? Just like that?”
“Hey,” Stiles said leaning forward. “He had no reason to go anywhere near Allison Argent.”
“He had no reason to beat Mr Phillips to a bloody pulp either.”
Stiles was about to stand up and punch Yates in his smarmy face, but Derek stopped him, holding him back.
“Mr Yates,” Derek said. “Do you have any sisters?”
“I have two, yes,” Yates nodded.
“And I see your married,” Derek added, pointing to the wedding band on his finger, “you got kids? Daughters?”
“I have three daughters,” Yates told him. “Why do you ask?”
“The women in your life, your daughters… if someone hurt them, brutally raped them and left them for dead and got away with it on a technicality… what would you do? Would you just let him walk away unpunished, knowing that he might do it again, to her, to some other girl? Or would you do your best to make sure he could never hurt her or anyone else again?”
The room descended into silence. Derek’s record didn’t include his reason for his crime, so it was a surprise to all of them just as it had been to Stiles.
“I don’t regret what I did, Mr Yates,” Derek said. “He deserved it. But I would never, ever hurt anyone, especially not a young woman who couldn’t defend herself.”
Yates took a moment to compose himself as Stiles clung to Derek’s hand tightly. “What do you know about Kate Argent?” Yates finally asked.
Derek sat up straight, as did Stiles. This was a name he hadn’t heard yet. She clearly wasn’t linked to Allison’s death or it would’ve been in the case file, but yet… there was something strange about the way Yates asked.
“She was the drunk driver who killed my parents,” Derek said.
“She’s also Allison’s biological mother,” Yates said. “Had her when she was a teenager, so her brother and his wife adopted her, raised her as their own.”
“I don’t see what that has to do with anything. Kate Argent is in prison. I was in prison. I didn’t even know Allison existed until I was arrested for killing her.”
“Kate Argent was released a year ago,” the Sheriff said.
“She what?” Derek asked, a look of utter shock on his face. “Why? She still has four years left on her sentence.”
“Good behaviour,” Yates told him. “Doesn’t really matter right now. It’s grounds enough for someone to seek revenge.”
“I didn’t know,” Derek said quietly, looking more shaken than he had when they discovered the toiletry bag.
Stiles didn’t care what anyone thought, he sat up and wrapped his arms around Derek. He knew what it felt like to lose a parent, never mind losing both. And now his substitute parent had been taken away from him too. All because of some drink driver.
“Why are you doing this?” Stiles asked Yates. “Peter confessed. Derek’s Dad was his brother, his twin. So he had just as much a reason for revenge as Derek apparently had.”
“I have to agree,” his Dad said. “I think you have everything you need.”
Yates looked like he wanted to argue, but held his tongue and instead started to gather his things. “Deputy, we’ll be in touch to let you know what our decision is.”
Stiles didn’t even bother replying, too busy trying to keep Derek calm. When Derek eventually pulled away and they both looked back up, only the Sheriff was remaining.
“City police should be transferring Peter back here later this morning,” he said. “We’re going to have to keep searching the house and the surrounding woods for a couple of more days in case he’s moved anything else from his apartment in the city back there.”
“That what he did with the bag?” Stiles asked.
“We think he did it to pin it on Derek. He said he knew about you two…”
“Did you tell him?” Stiles asked Derek.
Derek shook his head. “He might’ve seen the picture I chose for you on my phone though.”
“Do I even want to know?” Stiles asked with a raised eyebrow.
“It’s nothing bad. Just… Woody from Toy Story.” Derek blushed.
“Woody?”
“Yeah, he’s a Sheriff’s deputy,” Derek explained with a shrug as he looked down.
Stiles snorted in amusement. “Do you use Disney characters for all your contact names?”
Derek smiled. “Only the special ones.”
“Boys,” the Sheriff interrupted, making them both blush as they turned back to them. “I’m not going to pretend that I’m over the moon about this. But, Derek, I can’t say that if it was my sister, I wouldn’t have done the same. And since you didn’t have anything to do with the Argent girl’s death… you’re both having dinner with me tomorrow night.”
Derek nodded, but Stiles shook his head. “Don’t you uh, think that’s a bit soon?”
“What? Meeting the parent after only two weeks?” his Dad asked. “Hate to break it to you kid, but I’ve kind of already met him.”
“Yeah, but –”
“No buts. Dinner. Your apartment. That way you can’t escape.” The Sheriff said in a tone that left no room for argument.
“I can make dessert,” Derek said, obviously trying to be helpful.
“You cook?”
Derek shrugged. “Took some classes in prison. I make a pretty good crème brulee.”
Stiles smiled at him. “I cannot begin to tell you how weird that sentence is.”
~*~*~*~*~*~
Eight Months Later
“Control to forty-three. Please report your current ten-twenty. Over”
“This is forty-three,” Stiles said into the car radio. “I’m at speed trap four-one-four. Over”
“Sheriff wants you back at base ASAP. Says to drop what you’re doing and haul ass back there. Over.”
Stiles frowned, wondering what the big emergency could be. “On my way. Over,” he said before turning on his siren and pulling out of the turn off he’d been hidden in.
At least once a week he would end up on speed trap patrol. It was probably more boring than working the front desk had been, but it’s what he’d asked for so he didn’t complain.
After Peter had confessed to the Argent murder, he’d been refused bail and sent to a high security prison. Stiles had then been put on suspension while Internal Affairs conducted their investigation into his relationship with Derek. A relationship that, despite the interference from IA, his Dad and Derek’s sister Laura – she had a really weird fascination with knowing absolutely everything about Stiles and his intentions towards her baby brother. It was weird – only grew stronger.
During the month that Stiles had been suspended for, he and Derek spent every night together until a comment from Scot suggesting that they just move in together already, had Stiles putting his apartment up for sale and moving into the Hale house up in the woods.
Turned out, it wasn’t actually Peter’s house. When Derek’s parents had died, they’d left it to Laura. But by then she’d already decided she was going to New York, so it was left to Peter to manage the upkeep of the house. And when Derek told Laura that he and Stiles were thinking of moving in together, Laura happily signed the house over to him.
So sure, six weeks was a very short time to be involved with someone before deciding that co-habitation was a good idea. But they spent so much time together anyway that it made sense. Not to mention, that it was a big enough house that they would be able to avoid each other if they really wanted to have some space. And of course, Geronimo fucking loved it, so Stiles didn’t really have a choice but to stay there forever.
After his suspension – in which he was found to have done nothing wrong – Stiles didn’t go back to working the front desk. And he only went back to working two weeks of nights a month also. The new receptionist had started and so Stiles was put to work straight away, out on patrol.
Some days he would work with Steve, learning from the older man’s experience. But most of the time he was on his own as they were so short staffed, that it was all but impossible to safely police the town when they were paired up. He didn’t mind though. Being on his own allowed him the time to text Derek whenever he wanted or to read his kindle and catch up on his favourite comics. All of which, he couldn’t do when he was in the car with Steve as he didn’t even like the fact that Stiles carried his phone with him while on duty.
So, all in all, things were good. He and Derek had been living together for a little over six months, Stiles was an actual proper deputy, Derek was a well respected member of the community having attended lots of plumbing emergencies in the year since his return, Peter had been sentenced to life imprisonment, only escaping the death penalty because he was on a first name basis with the judge – and his mistress – and now he and Derek were thinking about getting another cat.
He pulled into the parking lot at the station, frowning as he realised that everyone had been called back to the station, not just him.
“We got another murder?” he asked Lydia, the new receptionist as he walked in.
He’d actually went to school with her and she was some kind of genius who didn’t actually have to work but got bored at home, so there she was.
“No,” she said. “But there will be soon if your Dad doesn’t get it fixed.
Frowning, Stiles made his way into the back and was instantly hit with the stench of raw sewage.
“What the hell?!” he asked, noting the two prisoners that had been arrested the night before after trying to shoot each other in a crowded bar, were now handcuffed to a couple of desks.
“Thank God!” Jackie shouted as she ran in from the cells, holding her nose. “You gotta come fix this.”
“Fix what?” Stiles asked as she dragged him through to the cells.
“Stiles!” his Dad shouted. “The crapper’s backed up. I need you to fix it.”
“What?” Stiles asked in confusion.
“We’ve all had a go. None of us can unblock it.”
“And you think I can?” Stiles asked as he tried his best to breathe through his mouth.
“Derek’s a plumber,” the sheriff said.
“Yeah. And?”
“Well… haven’t you picked anything up by now?”
“Oh yeah, ‘cause our pillow talk is really just a shit load of plumber jargon. Nothing sexier than all those back-siphons and u-bends.”
His Dad sighed. “Well we need to do something,” he said, waving the plunger in his hand around in frustration.
“Here’s a crazy idea,” Stiles began, ducking out of the way of the muck that just came flying off of the plunger. “How about I go call Derek? You know, the member of our family who is ACTUALLY a plumber and not completely useless with all of this.”
“You do that,” the Sheriff said, waving the plunger again.
Stiles quickly left and called Derek to explain the situation. He should’ve really went through Derek’s boss, but it was kind of an emergency and they couldn’t wait for someone to become available. The smell alone was bad enough, but they actually couldn’t put any prisoners in there. It was unethical. So it needed to be sorted ASAP.
“So?” his Dad said as he came out into the office just as Stiles ended the call.
“He’s on a job just now, but says he’ll be over straight after,” Stiles said.
“Good,” the Sheriff nodded.
“He’s going to have to fix it on his lunch break you know,” Stiles pointed out.
“So, I’ll buy him some marshmallows as a thank you.”
Stiles felt his face flush in embarrassment. “Can we stop with the marshmallow jokes already? It’s not funny anymore.”
“Are you kidding me? They’re hilarious,” his Dad said with a wide grin as he headed into his office.
Stiles scowled in his direction before going over to his own desk and deciding to catch up on some paperwork while he was there.
By the time Derek got there thirty minutes later, Stiles had actually grown accustomed to the smell. Or at least, it wasn’t as bad as it had been when he’d first arrived.
“Remind me again why I chose plumbing?” Derek said as he stepped into the office.
“Because you like it when I ask you to clean my pipes?” Stiles asked as he pulled him down for a quick kiss.
“Of course,” Derek said with an eye roll. “Hey Sheriff,” he added, nodding in the man’s direction.
“Hey Derek. Thanks for coming so quickly.”
“Not a problem,” Derek told him. “You wanna lead the way?”
Stiles watched them disappear into the cells and turned to back to his desk when Derek shouted on him.
“Stiles! I’m gonna need a hand in here!”
Sighing, Stiles went to see what exactly Derek needed a hand with. “What’s up?” he asked as he came to a stop next to him, hanging over the toilet bowl… which Derek was currently elbow deep in. “Wow, you’re so hot right now.”
“Stiles,” Derek warned. Stiles just stuck his tongue out at him. “I need an apprentice.”
“So? What do you need me for?”
“You’re it,” Derek told him as he stood back up. “I can feel the blockage. Feels like a knife.”
“A knife?” The sheriff asked.
“One of your prisoners must’ve tried to flush it,” Derek said with a shrug. “Now, Sheriff, if you’d be so kind as to get me a bucket?” he asked, to which the sheriff nodded and marched off. “And you,” he added as he looked at Stiles.
“What about me?” Stiles asked with narrowed eyes.
“I need to check the cistern,” Derek explained before smiling and waving his sewage covered gloved hands. “I need you to get my wrench out for me.”
Stiles stared at him for a moment before he burst out laughing. “If only that was the first time you’d used that line on me,” he said as he reached over into Derek’s tool belt.
Derek shrugged. “Works doesn’t it?”
Stiles smiled up at him, “yeah, it definitely does.”
THE END