4.02

[burninhale]

Well, this is it. This is the end. I've been stabbed, shot, electrocuted, set on fire, come back from the dead, and this is what did it. I'm ready to lie down in a grave now. It's all gone, it's over, farewell.








Except coffins and grave plots actually cost money. Which we no longer have. Add to that —

...

No, let's focus on the money. I don't think we need to discuss anything else.

Comments

[burninhale]

[ Twice already he's held back things he would've said to the adult Derek. Peter suspects this instinct will wear off with enough exposure, and also suspects he might even feel a bit guilty when it does. Which is irritating in its own right — only Cora might get the same reaction — but he's squashing that for now.

"Your mostly untrained beta" helps. ]

"Outgunned" is more or less the status quo. There are some other people you may meet. The Nemeton is active again. You know, just Beacon Hills stuff.

[coldsteelblue]

That's sad. Yeah, real good job holding everything together. No wonder this town has gown crazy.

[This, none of it, would have happened if Talia was still alive, but that can probably be traced back to Derek.. Really, though, it's Kate's fault. He supposes he'll have to make due with Peter, which is kinda hard to do when, you know, it's Peter.]

[burninhale]

What is it about homicidal psychopathy that makes you think "holding everything together" would be my forte, exactly? And why are we still talking about this?

[ He's trying to be good! And it is so difficult and unrewarding! It'd be so easy to say something awful about Derek's turn as alpha. Naturally, he'd make it sound a lot worse than it was. That would be beyond petty, though. ]

[coldsteelblue]

Fine, I'm dropping it for real this time. It's just that everything is different.

[The effort to be nice doesn't go unappreciated. It really shows how much Peter has grown, but the fact he's biting his tongue because it's this Derek and not the brooding one says a lot.]

[burninhale]

Yes. It is.

[ Though the words are clipped, Peter doesn't seem to be irritated like he was a second ago. Maybe in someone else, it'd be tired or sad, but in him it doesn't reach that emotional depth.

The next moment, however, is indistinguishable from his earlier manner. ]

You'll get used to it. Don't let Stiles boss you around. He was practically demon possessed like, two whole minutes ago, he doesn't get to talk.

[coldsteelblue]

[The sudden change in tone had Derek watching carefully, brows quirking. It's never been an easy task reading Peter if he wasn't outwardly expressing himself, thus, Derek ends up somewhat agitated himself. At least some things didn't change.]

I hadn't noticed. He seemed normal to me aside from being really overactive.

[And not to worry, uncle. Just because he's smaller doesn't mean he's easier to boss around, Stiles can attest to that.]

[burninhale]

[ Two Stiles now have been mercilessly sassing him, so while he's not at all worried about Derek getting bullied, he's hoping Derek will basically keep up their standard relationship, i.e. casual violence for backtalk. Because Scott would probably disembowel Peter for bouncing Stiles' head off a steering wheel. Living vicariously through Derek! It's another old habit. ]

That's normal for him. By the way, if you're really sticking around, don't hit on Malia.

[coldsteelblue]

[Derek's face is screwing up now.][Please don't tell him you're into girls way younger than yourself. He'll judge just like the older Derek.]

[burninhale]

[ It takes him way longer to realize what Derek's implying by that face than it should, considering. ]

It's not that, you little —

[ Nice, he's being nice, he's not calling Derek names, come on he can do this. ]

— she's related to you, that's all. God.

[coldsteelblue]

Ohh.

[Well, that's a relief and Derek smirks at Peter barely refraining from name calling.]

...

[Wait, what?]

Oh! ... How?

[burninhale]

Oh, I don't know. [ He sounds lazily disinterested rather than evasive or hurried. Call it a lifetime of experience lying to Derek. ] How do those "once removed" things work again? I might have to draw a chart. But still, that's too close.

Well, technically, don't hit on anybody, this is a weird situation, but I know it's pretty much impossible for any teenager to listen to that.

[coldsteelblue]

[Face palming. That's what all this has brought him to. Why can't things just ever be simple, huh? Why can't he have one normal teenage day in his life?]

Weird? I'd say more like a cluster fuck. But hey, what about that red head? She's pretty cute.

[burninhale]

[ He can't help his reaction, which is an involuntary laugh that he turns into a cough. ]

Well, nobody else is related to us, as far as I know. Try not to let this get too distracting, will you?

[coldsteelblue]

[This is why he can never decide if he actually likes or dislikes his uncle.]

When do I ever get distracted. Totally focused.

[burninhale]

You're distracted right now, talking to your older self. Look, whatever he has to say about me...

[ Peter pauses, then shrugs. ]

He's probably right. Maybe 85% right. 80%, 83.5% right. Well, you know what I did, so you can assume he has good reasons to be the way he is. Did you know you punched me across the room through a stair railing? Because you do.

[coldsteelblue]

[Derek's getting suspicious of you, Uncle Peter.]

What did you do that I'd want to punch you across the room? And why does he, the older me, look like that.

[burninhale]

[ Took him long enough, geez. ]

You grew up. Life was hard, so you made yourself stronger to bear it. And you know what I did. I deserved that punch, and worse. [ Not that Peter believes that in a meaningful way. He believes that everyone else believes that, though, and he's perfectly capable of parroting it. ] But you didn't kill me. That was almost a year ago.