Creepy-ish Mansion on Phoenix, Late Thursday Night

[newroutines]

It was a totally normal late night at the mansion on Phoenix Way. Mike was having a late snack in the kitchen and everything was perfectly ordinary and peaceful.

That... was not going to last. Mike should have known better.

[Up waaaay early for timezones and crying about not being at SDCC, tbh.]

Comments

[justlurkinghere]

Well, so sorry that Derek's horrible life interrupted your snack, Mike! A BLOO BLOO BLOO!

Derek had dragged his dumb ass back from Beacon Hills, pretty secure in the knowledge Scott and Stiles survived whatever the Alpha was doing at the school. Also, his lungs were bleeding. Which put a damper on any rescuing missions.

The only sign he gave of being home was the heavy thud he made, dropping onto the couch and the frantic barking from Puppy Joe.

He'll totally clean up that blood later, Mike. Sorry about that.

[newroutines]

Mike didn't exactly spring immediately into action. He looked up though, frowning in the living room's general direction, at the sound barking.

"Derek?" he called out, already kind of hoping this was something else. Something about the barking was a little unsettling.

[justlurkinghere]

That was because Puppy Joe couldn't get on the couch with him.

Derek just made a noise of acknowledgement at that. On the plus side, no one had a gun out there?

[newroutines]

That was definitely something. Especially since Mike decided to investigate, leaving his snacks behind as he walked briskly into the living room.

Then froze in place.

"Holy –- Derek, what the fuck?"

[justlurkinghere]

Puppy Joe took that as his leave to run and hide behind Mike like the brave little cotton ball he was.

"Don't tell Stiles." Seriously? How was that his first response?

[newroutines]

"What?"

How was that the first response?

"Derek, what the fuck happened?"

[justlurkinghere]

They were codependent, that's how!

"It's complicated," he slurred, pushing himself up in order to remove the now ruined leather jacket.

[newroutines]

Mike offered up a few nice expletives in response to that. He even got his feet moving again, coming closer to inspect the damage. "Yeah. I can see that. Are you ––?"

He wasn't even sure what he wanted to ask.

[justlurkinghere]

"I'm fine." Relatively speaking. "It's almost stopped bleeding."

[newroutines]

"Yeah, that's not really my definition of 'fine'."

Good lord, werewolves could be stressful to live with.

[justlurkinghere]

Well, it didnt really fit in Derek's definition either, but such was his life.

"Can I get a towel?" Yeah, just don't engage that conversation, Derek.

[newroutines]

"Yeah, sure."

But by God, Derek, there was going to be conversation once he got back from getting one!

[justlurkinghere]

DAMN IT.

Derek sighed, slumping slightly once he was alone before very carefully attempting to remove his shirt. Oh god, this was a terrible idea! Like all his other ideas!

[newroutines]

Business as usual, then.

Mike wasn't gone long. He didn't even stop to choose what he picked up: it wasn't like any of the towels in the house were particularly fancy or anything. He was back soon. "You know you're gonna have to be a little more clear about what happened, don't you?"

[justlurkinghere]

"The guy who killed my sister," Derek said, mouth going into a tight line as he shifted in place so that his back didn't touch the couch. Then, with a put upon sigh he turned so Mike could possibly help put one of those towels to the four gouges in his back. If you looked closely, it was about the right size for a hand.

[newroutines]

"Shit."

That was equally in reaction to his wounds as well as his words. Mike was pretty careful as he moved to press the towel to the former. Jesus, he knew Derek could take a lot but it looked bad all the same.

He didn't immediately find anything else to say.

[justlurkinghere]

Derek flinched for a moment before digging his fingers into the couch cushion. "Takes longer to heal when it's from an alpha."

He was pretty sure one of the varieties of wolfsbane could actually be used to speed it up, but damned if he knew which.

[newroutines]

That poor couch.

"I'm gonna pretend I know what that means."

He was not entirely clear on werewolf hierarchy, no.

[justlurkinghere]

"Laura. She was one. It's the kind who can turn people with a bite," he said through gritted teeth. "Turn into a wolf. I'm not one of them."

DUH.

[newroutines]

"Okay." Mike was storing that information in his head for further use. In case there was any. Mostly he was ispecting the damage through the towel. "So, what, this alpha? He's after you now?"

[justlurkinghere]

Probably!

"I'm after him," Derek grumbled. "He bit Stiles' friend and is trying to make him help kill people with him"

[newroutines]

"Jesus." Yeah, Mike, you've probably said that already. "You know, sometimes I get the feeling you should never go home at all."

[justlurkinghere]

"Me too," Derek grumbled. Because everything was terrible! "Didn't plan on it before--"

You know. Dead sister.

[newroutines]

"Yeah." Yeah, Mike knew what he meant. Sort of. Enough not to argue about how he really shouldn't go back. "You said this'd heal, right? Just – slowly?"

[justlurkinghere]

"It should." A beat. "It's not black, right?"

[newroutines]

"No...?"

Oh that was just gross and distrurbing, even as just an idea.

[justlurkinghere]

"Then it's fine." Oh, werewolves.

[newroutines]

"Do I even wanna know why it would be black?" Mike wondered. And then answered his own question. "No, I don't think I do. This whole thing is fucked up enough as it is. You don't think Stiles could, I don't know, help? Like, somehow? Like doesn't he know about shit that's gonna happen, or something?"

[justlurkinghere]

"He didn't tell me my sister would die, so I doubt he'd give me warning about her killer," Derek snapped. They had special time traveling issues.