dear_mun | finale spoilers.

That sounds nice. But it's not going to play out that way. Erica and Boyd are too green, Isaac isn't ready, Scott would have to be coerced, and I'm not at full strength. I have you, period. And I'd rather have you as an alpha.

I'm not, but they used to leave the TV tuned to DIY channels for hours at a time. We could at least fix the floor. Build a better bunker somewhere, maybe. I don't like seeing you live like this.

Then why don't you tell me how you are expecting us to be able to hold this territory? "If it comes to that"?

I still have the subway station. That's enough.

Not against three alphas it's not. And unfortunately, I can't see the future, Derek, I don't know exactly what they want. Maybe they don't know yet, either. They're going to size you up, and I don't know what they'll think of you, or the situation in Beacon Hill. Some of which is my fault, I'll cop to that, but most of which was the Argents.

But if they decide we're a liability and should be eliminated, then we have to divide them through any means. I can't tell you how until I meet them. Keep in mind that Gerard is still out there, and so is that vet. Also keep in mind we have human resources now, which we have to use carefully.

Our pack is weak. That's not your fault. Survival is important, but we don't have to only survive, Derek, we should live. And part of that is building defenses while we have time, both physical and social. I need you more than you need me. Remember that.

[Pep talk :)?]

Like our burned down, collapsing house is more defensible? Just needs some fresh floorboards and we'll be all good?

I do not need to hear you making speeches about all the things you don't know, Peter. What we need is a contingency plan that isn't dependent on them being prepared to hang around and let you get to know them before trying to kill us!

[nghghgh no pep talk >:|]

[Hhhhh fine.]

Derek, it's a huge sign of weakness. It just screams here are my issues, I annotated them for you with footnotes and dates, please manipulate my survivor's guilt and inability to let go of the past. We're not turning the house into a fortress. They know you live there, so we'll show them we're not running, but neither will we allow it to limit us with emotional attachment.

There is no time for a "contingency" plan. They're here. They're watching. We can't show weakness. We can't run. But we also can't win a fight as we are now. Your three need time to learn, Scott and Jackson need time to be coaxed around. And we need the humans too.

We're going to stall and collect our — allies. [He narrowly decided against saying "resources" there.] It may not even be necessary... but I'm pretty sure it will be.

[Peter stop trying to make him let go of the past! He likes living in a burned out shell so that he can stay in constant contact with his guilt fueled rage!]

So now our emotional attachment limits us? What happened to the undeniable power of human love you were so big on a few days go?

What do we need the humans for? You don't think that'll look strange to a pack of alphas? Showing up to face them with Stilinski and Lydia in tow just in case we fall short of sarcasm or Molotov cocktails somehow?

[He's not going to actively fight you yet, because you're making sense, just... contradictory, difficult sense.]

[Oh my god Derek just sit down already fffff.]

That works for our allies, not for three assholes showing up out of nowhere to test us for blind spots. And please, Derek, I know you weren't the strategist of our family, but you do understand that you use different tools for different jobs? Stiles and Lydia aren't fighters, they're thinkers, something we have a distinct shortage of right now, not to mention they're important when it comes to influencing Scott and Jackson. The Sheriff has authority and guns. Even Scott's mom has access to things we don't, and useful skills, because we cannot rely on the vet.

I'm betting the other alphas won't have human resources to call on. Even if they have human allies, they probably wouldn't be able to bring them to Beacon Hill. We need everything. Allison can still be pulled in. Chris Argent can even be manipulated into helping us. All these things, we have and can use, but we need to develop our ties to them, and keep the ones we have.

So you need to win your pack back. Isaac seems loyal, but Erica and Boyd are scared. I can't do any of that. You're the one they trusted, and they can trust you again. The instinct is there.

If nothing else, we can always rely on the Argents to be in favor of indiscriminately murdering werewolves.

[Pause]

If we work on involving the Argents, then their only contact has to be with me. Scott can do what he wants, but we don't know if you're on or off Argent's hit list, and Allison isn't coming near my Beta's again if I can help it.

Laura mentioned Deaton being an advisor to our family. Last time I spoke to him, he told me that he'd known my parents. You must have known him from before the fire as well?

I'm not so set on cultivating a relationship with the Argents specifically, but you're exactly right about how they should be handled. You're probably going to have to handle most of the humans, actually. Sorry. [But lol they're not gonna want to talk to Peter.]

I didn't know Deaton well. But obviously the mountain ash came from him, and we all know Scott couldn't have come up with that plan on his own. I'm not saying you can't trust him, but you can't rely on him. He has his own agenda, which evidently involves helping Scott instead of you.

Even Lydia? [You wanna give the rest of us some clues about what the fuck was going on there, Uncle Pete?]

So he gave Scott a weapon to defeat Gerard with. The fact that his priority is Scott rather than me doesn't make him any less of a potential ally than any of the other humans. I don't know if you've noticed, but Lydia? Stiles? Mrs McCall?

None of them exactly signed up for this out of love for me. Scott's everyone's priority.

And like I said, you need to win your pack back. Scott will do whatever he thinks is right, but it's a pain in the ass to convince him of that every single time we need him to do something. Scott is key to this working, and your key to Scott is Isaac. You need to work on your relationship with Scott.

If you think you can pull it off, we can also play it like you need time away from me, like I'm... [The expression he makes is sort of a thoughtful grimace.] ... making things hard on you. Being a bad influence. Make it so that he'll want to help you instead of shutting you out.

[Peter doesn't actually like this plan that much since it's almost the real one, haw haw, but it IS important that Scott is drawn back in.]

I'm not sure that working on my relationship with him by lying to him about you is going to really strengthen trust between us in the long run.

Besides, he needs support as well. You've got more experience than both of us, and even if he's uncomfortable with it right now, he's going to have to learn to coexist with you eventually if this is going to work.

Me telling him that you're a bad influence isn't going to be laying the best ground for that.

[Oh my goodness Derek, do you really think this IS a lie? Peter finds that so precious. And his concern for Scott is kind of touching, if Peter were capable of being touched. In his head he's pinching your cheek, Derek. :) ]

If we don't survive the short run, we're not going to have to worry about the long run. Still... you're right. Then what we need to convince him is that he can't run as an omega even if he doesn't want to accept you as an alpha. We can't force him to work with us anymore. We need him too badly.

Part of reestablishing his trust in you will have to involve how you deal with me. What were you planning for that, might I ask?

[Scott is his baby brother and you are like if Stiles grew up and killed a load of people, Peter. And Stiles is pretty good with that google so you probably are as well so... seems like a good influence to him.]

I know that you have experience, and I know that you can help us, and that's why I'm letting you stay, but for Scott...

...He'll understand it better if I spell it out to him that you're family. That you don't have anyone else to turn too either. I'm not going to kill you again when you're not threatening any of us, and sending you away would be bad for all of us. He'll understand that.

[Flawless werewolf logic, good life decisions.]

I'll do everything you say, Derek. We have a chance to rebuild this pack, and I won't do anything to compromise that.

[Also now he has to go pee on all your stuff so you understand that really it is HIS STUFF.]

We want the same thing now. You... seemed more controlled around Gerard and Allison than you were last time.

[DEREK THE LAPTOP CAN'T TAKE THAT]

... I'm not saying I was totally out of my mind when I killed Laura. But I was in a place — I was... I wasn't well. That's not an excuse and nothing I say or do will bring her back. But it's different now. It'll be different.

If I get that way again, well. [Shrug.] You know what to do.

[SHOULD HAVE KEPT YOUR SECRETS IN A BOOK, LIKE THE REST OF US.]

Yeah.

Well, we'll just have to wait and see, won't we.

[Because nope not getting his hopes up about having a normal family member again not happening no never.]

finale spoilers.

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