So sorry you've had to wait so long! Things are going to get dramatic though!

*Hawk-eye-33: Thank you (: Hmmm, I wonder… Thank you so much, that was really nice of you to say (:

*RK 2341: Hehe, we have an Andrew hater over here, and I'd say you're not the only one :P UPDATE IS HERE!

*channingsandoval: Thank you, and yes! Update had arrived!

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Tuesday 7th June – The Next Morning

Derek gets an unexpected call in the morning, from a person he didn't think he'd hear from again, not after the loft fire. He presses answer and brings it to his ear. "Where are they?" Derek asks.

"Kate and Zak are MIA." Chris tells him. "I searched, I don't know where they are."

"Of course you don't."

"Derek, I would never agree to let them do what they did to your home." Chris says.

"Which home are you talking about? My loft complex, or my family's home?" Derek asks angrily.

"Now, Derek… You know I had nothing to do with what happened to your family-"

"You're full of shit." Derek cuts him off. "They burnt down my loft, almost killed my pack, and now I'm certain you burnt down my house, with my family inside." He growls.

"I'm giving you my word, Derek. I had nothing to do with what happened to your family."

"You remember them?" Derek asks him. "Because I do. Every day. My Uncle. My Mom. My Dad. Laura. C… Cora." He grounds out.

"Derek-"

"When I find them, they're dead. And when I find the rest of you, I'm going to kill you too." He says before he hangs up. The Alpha puts his phone down on the bedside table, taking a deep breath to calm himself, because realistically, there's nothing he can do right this second. He still doesn't know where the hunters are hiding out and they've been very smart about hiding their scents as well, as hunters will be, especially when there are angry werewolves on their tails.

"Kill them?"

Derek looks to his side, finding a pair of blue eyes looking at his face. Ashlyn looks back at him, now very obviously awake and now in his bedroom as well. Seems she's sneakier than he gives her credit for, or maybe he wasn't paying enough attention. "I didn't know you were up." Is all he says, getting out of bed.

She watches him, sees the tension in his shoulders. She's still angry about yesterday, but she can't let slide what she just heard him say. "Derek?"

But the Alpha just goes into the bathroom. He shuts the door, leaving Ashlyn alone in his bedroom. She hears the shower come on, and she knows that's his way of putting space between them, hoping she won't ask anymore questions about what she just heard. But it isn't that simple, especially not with someone like Ashlyn.

So, she just leans against the door frame again. But instead of leaving, she waits.

And when the Alpha comes out, a towel wrapped around his waist, he really does expect an empty room, because he certainly took his sweet time. But he finds her still in the same place, and by the annoyed look on her face, she agrees that he took his time too.

She looks up at him and their eyes lock. Derek knows he can't really avoid this conversation. So, he tries to change the subject. "I thought you were mad at me." He states, looking in his drawers for some clothes.

"I am." She agrees.

"Then what do you want? Why are you here?" He asks, glancing at her for a moment before looking back into his drawers.

"I want to know what you're planning to do-"

"Nothing that concerns you." He cuts her off, harsher than necessary. Ashlyn burns holes into his head with her glare, and it makes him turn to her. "What do you want me to say then?" He asks her.

"The truth." Ashlyn says. "I understand that Jessie, and I'm now guessing you as well, firmly believe that Kate and Zak had something to do with the fire at the loft complex, and I think I believe that too-"

"You think." Derek repeats.

"I don't have proof." She says. "But I know someone wanted people to get hurt, because the alarm was disabled. And why would someone kill so many innocent people? It wasn't the Hell-hound this time, that thing tears people to pieces, it doesn't sneak, not like that." She explains.

"How does that not make it Zak or Kate then?" Derek asks her, his built up anger clear in the tone of his voice.

"I never said they were innocent." Ashlyn says. "But I really think you're letting your frustrations get to your head, especially when I heard you promise Chris you would kill all the hunters, even if you don't know if they've done something wrong." She explains. "And I think what happened yesterday is messing with your head a little bit too."

"My frustrations…" He repeats her words again, but slowly this time, like he's trying to think of what he's supposed to do with them. "Are you my shrink now?"

Ashlyn exhales out her nose slowly. Now he's definitely letting his frustrations go to his head, because he's getting lippy with her. "Even if I'm mad at you, we still live together, I just want to help where I can-"

"You sound like a shrink." He says. "And I don't need one."

She isn't sure what it is, but his words hit her quite hard. It's like he's not talking about a 'shrink' at all, maybe he's talking about her, in general. But she doesn't walk away that easy, and she knows Derek's…difficult. She knows because she's difficult too. "You know… I watched how crushing the Alpha role is when my sister and her husband were Alphas. No, I don't understand personally, but I do know enough. And I know that you're worried about the Hell-hound, about the people dying, and about the hunters." She says, keeping a calm manner, because she does care for the man and she does want to help him and the pack, even if he 'doesn't need it' and even if she has her own frustrations that are aimed at him too.

Derek looks over at the wall, not wanting to agree out-loud, but he doesn't need too, they both know, they all know.

"And having another person here probably isn't helping either." She says. "I don't know why he acted out yesterday, but I still think that deep down he wants to help-" She tries to make him feel better, but only does the opposite.

Derek hears his name, and he just snaps. "You know what? You keep saying those things, that he's here to help, that he wants to protect you, but all he's really done is cause trouble. All he's really done is step on everyone's toes. All he's really done is-"

"Derek-"

"-follow you around like a love-sick feline."

It falls quiet.

"What? You didn't know?" Derek asks her, but there's a sarcastic twang to his voice, and Ashlyn knows there's a big chance this is going to turn into an argument. "It's obvious, Ashlyn, everyone else can clearly see it." He says.

Ashlyn shakes her head, looking into her lap. She didn't stay to argue, she didn't stay to talk about Andrew, she stayed to help him make a better decision that doesn't end up getting more people killed. And from yesterday and how Andrew reacted to all that, she's sure Andrew has strong feelings for her.

But Derek's on a roll now, and he's letting some of those frustrations out. "The guy's in love with you." Derek says.

Ashlyn won't look at him.

"You don't believe me?"

"Stop it." She says, looking up at him now.

"Why do you think me and him bump heads so much, huh?" Derek asks her, his voice getting louder. "He wants you, he wants to take you away-"

"Derek… I said, stop." She says.

"Maybe you want to go with him then?" He says. The Alpha's pacing the length of the room now, his face has grown a little red because he's getting mad. You'd think with him in a towel he'd look silly, but he just looks annoyed and…and…frustrated. "You kept saying you'd do it, that you'd up and leave us, that you'd leave with him if it came down to it."

Ashlyn glances over to Derek's door, because she knows other people in the house are awake, but now she hears footsteps quietly getting closer. Someone is trying to get a good listen. "Derek." She says, looking at the man again, her face the picture of warning.

"Why didn't you just take him and leave?" Derek asks her, the anger dropping from his voice, because that's the real question. Why is she still here? Why hasn't she taken off yet?

"You know why." Ashlyn says.

"I don't." He says.

"I'm not doing this with you." She shakes her head, getting off his bed. "You're being a jackass, again." She says, opening his bedroom door and walking out, slamming it behind her. And just as she thought, the teenagers are all looking at her. "What?" She asks them sharply, flashing green eyes at them, causing them to look away.

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That Evening

Jessie looks up when the front door opens, but it's Andrew that walks in, not Ashlyn like she was hoping. "Hey." She looks at him. "We don't know where Derek, Ashlyn or Tyson are. Do you have any idea?" She asks him.

Andrew glances at her, but keeps walking, ignoring her.

"Hey, I asked you a question." She frowns, standing up. She follows him, jogging to catch up with him. She gets in front of him, putting her hands to his chest so he'll stop. "Where is-"

It happens so fast. Andrew pushes the girl, Derek's sister, up against the wall. "Don't ever touch me again." He warns her, flashing green eyes.

"Get off me." Jessie tries to sound strong, but her heart's racing. She never expected that. But Andrew's hurting, and he's nasty.

Andrew glares at her for a moment longer before he backs up, getting out of her personal space. He walks away from her, going into the living room.

Jessie breathes raggedly, her heart pounding in her throat. She looks at her arm, finding his fingers have marked light bruises into her skin from the force of the shove. She pulls her sleeve down, hiding it. And for once, she feels scared in her own home, and scared of someone living in her home.

.

That Night

Derek pulls his leather jacket on, and leaves his bedroom. He picks his car keys up off the kitchen counter. "Where are you going?" Isaac asks, seeing the Alpha on his way out.

"It's dark, and Ashlyn's not back. I gotta find her." Derek says. After their argument, and after Ashlyn walked out of his bedroom in anger, she took Tyson and she left to cool off.

"Did you ask Andrew-"

"Trust me, Isaac. There's no point in that. I'll only be wasting my time." Derek stops him. "Tell Scott he's in charge until I get back." Derek says, opening the door.

"Derek, hold on." Isaac says. "Jessie's been locked in her room awhile. I don't know what's going on. She seems upset. Doesn't want any of us in there."

"She's having a 'moment'." Derek says, because he remembers how not too long ago she slammed him with the 'it's my time of the month'. "Leave her, I'll check in with her when I'm back." Derek says. He walks out the door, but stops, turning back around to face Isaac, who looks all kinds of concerned. "If you're really worried, slip some chocolate under her door. I'm sure you know which is her favorite." He says, then he closes the front door and walks out into the rain.

The Alpha knows she isn't stupid enough to take Tyson into the woods when it's wet and dark, because that's far too dangerous given the Hell-hound's still out there. So, he heads off in the other direction, towards town. He puts his nose to the wind and inhales, trying to pull her scent out from all the other smells, but it's hard with the rain coming down, and it's only going to get worse.

"Ash?"

Ashlyn looks to her left, looking at where Tyson's curled up on the bed. "Yeah?" She reaches over, brushing his hair out of his face.

"When are we goin' home?" He asks her, his tired eyes locking with hers. "I wan' go home to De'ick's."

"I… I don't know, sweetheart." Ashlyn says. "We're gonna stay here for now, so why don't you get some rest? C'mon, try and get some sleep." She says to him, laying down beside him on the familiar bed. She tucks her hoodie further around him, as there are no blankets. "Sleep now." She says quietly.

Tyson's eyes slowly slip closed the more she brushes her hand through his hair soothingly, until he's eventually asleep.

Derek finds himself in a familiar part of town, but he can't put his finger on it just yet. He continues to follow Ashlyn's faint scent through the rain, not caring that his hair's soaked, as are his clothes. At least he knows his jacket will dry out easily. The closer he gets, the more he starts to realize. Until he's standing outside the house and it clicks. He sighs softly, because he should have known. She has nowhere to go, they're all those two have. So, where do they go? Back to the rental house they were all temporarily staying in.

Ashlyn must have dozed off, because a creaking in the house makes her eyes snap open. She rubs them, sitting up. She checks on Tyson, he's still curled up with her hoodie, sleeping. She hears the sound again, and she's on instant alert, scanning the room. She gets off the bed slowly, being as quiet as she can.

Someone's in the house.

She inhales.

No, scrap that.

Something's in the house.

She tiptoes around, the house dark, and she's keeping it that way, to stay hidden. She needs some time on her own. She steps into the kitchen doorway and falls still. Red eyes blink at her in the darkness. "Derek?" She says. "How did you find me?"

But it isn't a voice that replies, it's a deep growl, and it comes forward. She sees it's massive figure in the moon's light.

Her eyes widen, and she turns to run, to get to Tyson, but the second she moves, she's taken off her feet. She tries to fight as she's dragged away from the Hellhound lurking in the kitchen.

"Shhh, shhh, shhh." Derek hushes her, his hand over her mouth. He hears the Hellhound coming their way.

"Wait! Tyson." Ashlyn manages to get her mouth clear and speak.

Derek stops. "Go, get upstairs, I'll get him-" He says in a hushed voice.

"No-"

"Yes, go." He pushes her towards the stairs, giving her a pleading look. "Go, now." Their only exit is blocked, and he knows they won't survive trying to go through the Hell-hound, they need to be smart.

She flares her nostrils angrily, but listens, racing up the stairs as quietly as she can. She can see now that coming to a bunch of rental homes where barely any of them have been rented out yet was a bad idea. Because, yes, she was alone, but she was too alone. She just made herself and Tyson an easy target for the Hellhound.

Derek hurries into the bedroom, finding the boy on the bed. He scoops Tyson up, like he did in the fire, and he heads for the stairs. He moves as fast but also as quiet as he can, because he can hear the Hellhound right on his tail. At least the pouring rain is making it harder for the Hellhound to hear and smell them, as they aren't exactly all that aquatinted. And that's probably Derek and Ashlyn's only advantage.

Ashlyn looks at the bathroom door nervously, worrying. But she hears agile footsteps, and she smells the two scents she's come to know best. She opens the door in time for Derek to come in, and shuts it before he can tell her too. She clicks the lock as well, just in case. But she knows that won't save them.

"Give him to me." Ashlyn says. Derek puts Tyson into her arms and the boy hugs her tightly, scared. "Shhh, you gotta be quiet, Ty. Shhh." She soothes him, holding him close to her chest as she feels him start to quiver in fear.

"Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Derek asks quietly, crouching beside her, taking her face into his hands. "Did it hurt you?"

Ashlyn shakes her head. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. This is my fault." She whispers, tears welling up in her eyes, because they can hear the Hellhound making it's way upstairs.

"It's not your fault, it's mine." He says. "I never should have let you walk out of the house." He says. "You need to trust me right now, okay?"

"Derek?"

"Go out the window. I'm gonna hold it off-"

"No. No. It'll kill you-"

"Doesn't matter, get Tyson and go-"

"I'm not leaving you-"

"You have no choice."

But their argument is short-lived when they hear a gunshot. The heavy footsteps go racing back downstairs and then gunfire fills the air.

"C'mon, go. Go. Go!" Derek says, grabbing her hand, dragging her to her feet and out of the bathroom. With the distraction, they might be able to out-run the Hellhound.

They fly out of the house, and immediately see what the commotion is.

"Go! Get out of here!" Chris yells to them.

Derek looks at the man, and he has all his hunters with him, except Kate and Zak. They're shooting at the Hellhound with automatics. And much to Derek's surprise, it is actually slowing it down. Right now, Derek's promise to Chris means nothing, he has to get Ashlyn and especially Tyson to safety. "C'mon." he says, threading his fingers through hers so they can't separate. The two adults run back towards the house, Tyson clinging to Ashlyn tightly, tears streaming down both his cheeks.

They run as fast as they can for as long as they can, until their legs burn, until they're panting, both their hearts racing. But they're far enough away, so they slow down to a stop, both catching their breath. Tyson's heaving now, crying loudly, scared out of his mind. Ashlyn looks at him, heart-broken, and she feels all kinds of guilty.

Derek sees her face and he brushes his thumb over her cheek, wiping away a tear that slips loose. He rests his forehead against hers, guiding her forward by his hand on the nape of her neck. He puts his other hand on Tyson's back and gently rubs soothing circles. "You're safe now." He tells her, because the girl's trying her hardest not to break and cry, but she's just as scared as Tyson is. "Hey. You're safe now." He says again. "I've got you."

She just nods, unable to get any words out, too much fear and adrenaline pumping through her, and she's almost heaving trying to catch her breath.

"Chris will handle it, let's just go home." Derek says.

She swallows to wet her throat so she can speak. "But… B-But, you and Chris-"

"Don't you worry about that." He says.

"The… The Hell-hound, it… It went after Andrew again, wh-what if it-it comes after us again-"

"No." Derek shakes his head. "I'm not gonna let it hurt you. I promise." He swears. "Now, c'mon. Let's go." He says, because he doesn't want to hear anymore of that talk. He hates to see her so scared. He takes her hand again, and they start moving.

.

"Oh, thank God." Scott says, seeing Derek come in the house with Ashlyn. Tyson's practically balling now, muffled because he's hiding his face in Ashlyn's shirt. "Chris called, told us what happened-"

"Not now, Scott." Derek says. He walks through the teenagers, Ashlyn holding onto the sleeve of his jacket with her head down, Tyson glued to her.

The others know when to leave Derek alone. But then there's Andrew. "Hey." As soon as he smells Ashlyn, he spots her, and he races over to her. "I was worried about you, where were-" He tries to takes her hand, because despite their fight, he does have feelings for her and he does care, and she yanks it away from him, and she refuses to look at him. Andrew frowns and reaches out again.

"Don't." Derek says to him, shaking his head.

Andrew narrows his eyes. "What did you do to her?"

Ashlyn pulls herself away from Derek, and Tyson starts to scream. He reaches out for Derek, his cheeks bright red and blotchy. But Ashlyn just hides his face in her neck and races off upstairs, getting away from everyone.

Andrew looks like he might follow, so Derek grabs his arm. "I said, don't, you've caused enough trouble already-"

And like with Jessie, Andrew shoves Derek up against the wall.

"Hey! No!" Isaac barks, coming forward, coming to protect his Alpha.

But Derek's an Alpha, he's stronger, and he's in no mood to put up with or pretend to be able to ignore Andrew's crap right now. So, he grabs Andrew's shirt and shoves him back, throwing the man away from him, sending him into the dining room table with a loud smack.

"Stop it! Stop!" Scott gets between the two, holding his hands up. Andrew gets back up, looking as pissed off as Derek is. "That's enough." Scott says, looking between them.

Derek inches forward, and much to everyone's surprise, it's Danny that wraps her hands around his forearm. "Please, don't." She says, looking up at him.

Derek exhales sharply out his nose, glaring at Andrew. But his eyes betray him, and they fall to Danny. He knows his eyes are glowing red because he sees in an infrared fashion.

"You should go upstairs and make sure Ashlyn and Tyson aren't hurt or anything." Danny says to him, even though Derek's already briefly done so, and they all know he definitely would have already done that. "We'll deal with this."

"By 'this', you mean me-" Andrew starts, and Derek's head snaps back to him.

But it's what happens next that's the surprising part. "Shut the hell up!" Danny snaps at him. "Either spend your nights running from that Hell-hound or shut your mouth and you can stay here." She says. She can feel them all looking at her with varying degrees of shock. But she looks back up at Derek. "Go on." She says, her voice soft again.

Derek nods slowly. "Can you check on Jessie then?" He asks her.

"I tried. I think she's been asleep most the day." Danny says. "It's late, I don't want to wake her. Maybe a good sleep will help her feel better tomorrow?"

Andrew looks at his shoes, because of course he knows why Jessie hasn't been around.

"Go on." Danny says, slowly letting Derek's arm go.

"Shhh." Ashlyn tries to hush Tyson. She put him in his bed, but he's fighting her every step of the way. There's only one thing he wants.

"De'ick! De'ick!" He cries.

Tears slip down Ashlyn's cheeks, because she can't calm or soothe him in any way and it's heartbreaking. She hears the door open, so she looks up, ready to tell them to get the hell away from her, but she sees it's Derek.

He shuts the door and quickly moves over to them. Tyson cries for him, reaching out for him, so he takes the toddler into his arms. And instantly, Tyson hugs around his neck tightly, and he just cries into Derek's jacket.

"I c-can't get him to stop." She says.

Derek looks at her, then looks at Tyson. "Hey, you're safe now. I'm here, I'm not going to let anything happen to you, okay?" He tells Tyson. "I need you to try and calm down, because you're scaring your Aunt. Can you try that for me, bud?"

Tyson doesn't say anything, but he does nod, still holding onto Derek tightly.

"Get in bed." Derek says, looking over at Ashlyn.

"I'm staying with him tonight." Ashlyn says, her voice drained and quieter than it should be.

"I know." Derek nods. "But get in bed."

She nods, and she gets into Tyson's bed. Derek's doesn't ask or give an indicator. He just flicks off the light and moves to the other side of the bed. He gets in beside Ashlyn, and shimmies his jacket off without disturbing Tyson. They're all wet from the rain, but none of them care.

"C'mere." He says, looking at Ashlyn. And she doesn't hesitate, she comes forward, coming right into Derek's embrace. "Get some sleep. I'm here, no one will hurt either of you." He tells her.

She nods, resting her forehead against his. "Derek?" She whispers so quietly he almost doesn't hear her.

"Yeah?" He says, looking at her.

She slowly leans in more, their noses touching. She gently presses her lips to his, the faintest kiss. She pulls back just a little, so she can meet his eyes. She sees no sign of objection in his eyes. "Are you okay with that?" She asks anyway, in a very quiet voice.

Derek nods. "I'm okay with that."

Ashlyn takes that as a good sign, and she moves closer to him, putting her arm around Tyson as well. Derek brings the arm that isn't around Tyson around her, holding the both of them close to him, keeping them safe.

.

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Wednesday 8th June – The Next Morning

The Alpha wakes, his eyes slowly opening. He blinks a few times, taking in his surroundings. Tyson has migrated from holding onto his neck for dear life, to lying in the embrace of his Aunt, curling up under her chin. Derek leans up on propped elbows, looking down at them, so he can see Ashlyn's face. She has frown lines, even while she's sleeping, and it makes Derek frown too. He rolls onto his stomach and leans down, pressing a kiss to Ashlyn's hair.

The contact makes her wake now too. "Huh?" She says softly, her eyes opening.

"It's just me." He tells her, in case she has any panic about being cuddled and kissed after what happened last night. He's never seen Ashlyn scared like that before, aside from the fire. And he never wants to see the fear she held in her eyes during the fire ever again. "How're you feeling this morning?" He asks her, tucking her bed-head behind her ear so it's out of her face.

Ashlyn rolls onto her back, looking up at him, allowing Tyson to curl up beside her ribs now.

Derek waits for an answer, but all he gets is an unsure shrug. He exhales out his nose, not very comforted by her reply. "It's going to be okay. I promise, we'll protect you, that won't ever happen again."

"It was my fault." She says.

"No, it wasn't." He shakes his head. "Wrong place, wrong time, it could have happened to anyone." He says. "Okay?"

She doesn't answer.

"Ashlyn, I… I'm sorry." He apologises. "About the other night, about yesterday, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have spoken to you like that or done what I did." He says.

She just reaches up and touches his chin, brushing her thumb over the stubble. He looks at her, somewhat confused. The girl guides him forward, and he can understand that. She kisses him gently, like last night.

When she pulls back, he leans back in and kisses her just as gentle. "I'd say that's apology accepted?" He mumbles against her lips.

Ashlyn rests her nose against his and sighs heavily.

He frowns. "I thought you were okay with this?" He asks her.

"I am." She nods. "It's not that."

"Then what is it?" He asks her.

"You… You should see Chris today." She says.

Derek exhales, pulling away from her. He sits up in bed, looking at the far wall.

Ashlyn sits up too, letting Tyson's arms slip from around her so he's lying on the bed alone. "I didn't really wanna bring it up, but… After last night…" She says. Derek says nothing. "He saved our lives, Derek." She says.

Derek looks at her now, still wearing a frown. "I could have saved you, I didn't need his help. I don't need his help now."

"Derek." She says. "You need to talk to Chris. Get to the bottom of the loft fire, find out where he and his hunters were, if they have alibis or not. You can't just go around killing people off of accusations."

"You think I don't know that?" He asks her, but he isn't mocking her, he isn't even angry. "The last thing I want to do is be anywhere near anyone even associated with the Argents."

"I know." Ashlyn nods. "And I know why. But… I really don't think Chris was part of the loft fire, or… Or the fire at your…family home." She treads so lightly, scared of prodding a sore spot too hard and having him flip out.

Derek looks at her again, really looks at her, studies her in a way that makes Ashlyn think he is going to flip out. But he doesn't. "Not that long ago, you said you didn't trust them." He reminds her.

"I still don't trust them." She says. "But I know a murderer when I see one. I looked that Hell-hound in it's eyes last night… You know what I saw?"

Derek shakes his head. "What did you see?" He asks her.

"Nothing." She says. Derek's eyebrows flatten, confused. "When I look in yours, I see a very strong man, with a dark past. I see the love you have for your sister, and your family, and for the pack. I see a leader. I see a noble, very selfless man." She says, meeting his eyes. But Derek is looking down, because he can't accept the praise. "I don't know Chris very well, but when I look at him I see a protector for his own cause. I see a family man. But when I look at that thing, I see nothing. No love. No motivation. Nothing. It's doing what it's doing for fun. Derek… Do you understand what I'm saying to you?" She asks him.

He sighs softly and nods, looking back up at her. "That if any of them are innocent, it'd be Chris, and that I should talk to him and patch things up." He says.

"Yes." She nods.

"Also, that you think far too highly of me." He says, a twinkle of amusement flashing in his eyes.

A small smile pulls at Ashlyn's lips. "I don't think those things, Derek." She says. She brings her hand up, caressing his cheek. "I know those things. Otherwise Tyson and I would still be out there in the wild, so would Andrew." She says.

"I guess I can… I can deal with Chris today. But, Christ… I can't deal with Andrew right now, Ashlyn." Derek says.

Ashlyn squeezes his shoulder with soft eyes, for agreeing to talk to Chris. But that look soon disappears, because she knows this thing with Andrew is getting more and more out of hand every day. "I'll talk to him-"

"No." Derek shakes his head. "I don't want you being alone with him, not after the other day."

"Derek…" She sighs.

"Did you forget how he treated you?" He asks her.

She shakes her head. "I didn't forget, and I haven't forgiven him, and yes, I'm still mad. But we're close… If anyone's going to be able to knock some sense into him, it's me. We both know that."

"I don't like it." Derek says, and Ashlyn knows exactly why.

"I know you don't." She says, because she can clearly see that. "But he knows how I feel, that I don't feel the same way about him as he does about me. We need him here to help. And I still don't want him out there, he'll get hurt. I can… I can make this work, just let me try." She says.

Derek exhales out his nose slowly, thinking it over.

"Whether you want this or not, I'm gonna try." She says.

He looks at her and nods, because he knows she will, that's just who she is. "If he so much as touches you-"

"I'll call out and you'll come running?" She offers, hoping to lighten the mood.

And it does, because he fights that little smile of his. "Yeah, something like that." He says.

"Okay." She nods. "So you deal with Chris today, and I'll deal with Andrew?"

"I still don't like either of those ideas." He says. "But… Okay." He nods.

.

Lunchtime

Jessie unlocks the front door, coming into the house. She rubs her temples, her head pounding. She must have a migraine or something. She throws her house keys on the kitchen counter and goes into the living room, plopping down onto the sofa that Andrew isn't using as a bed. At least she's home alone, so she can have some down time and hopefully her headache will dull down or go away completely.

Derek and Ashlyn stand together, waiting for Chris to get off of his phone. "So… Andrew has Tyson for the meantime." Derek says. Ashlyn looks at him. "Did he have anything to say to you?" Derek asks her.

"Just wanted to know if I was okay. And he told me he was sorry about the other day, said it wouldn't happen again." She tells him. "We spoke for all of 3 seconds before you and I had to leave. He took Tyson to the park. So relax." She says. Because she still does trust Andrew with Tyson, she knows he'd never let anything happen to the boy either.

"I don't mean to do that." Derek says, because he's almost sounding like a jealous boyfriend, except they aren't dating, and he totally isn't jealous. "I just don't want him thinking he can come onto you or something like that."

"And why wouldn't he be allowed to do that?" Ashlyn asks him in a challenging tone, because they haven't put any labels on anything. And maybe she likes to push Derek, because he'll push back.

"Because you've been sleeping in my bed, not his." Derek shoots back without missing a beat. "That's not changing any time soon."

"Am I interrupting something?"

The two adults look away from each other, looking at Chris who's now walked back over to them, his phone tucked away again.

"What do you know?" Derek asks, ignoring his question.

"Like I said, I had nothing to do with either of the fires. But… Kate and Zak's whereabouts can't be accounted for, for the loft fire at least. And I haven't seen or heard from them in days. I don't know what else to tell you."

"Tell me that your sister or any of those hunters had nothing to do with the fire that killed my family." Derek says boldly.

Chris just looks at Derek for a few quiet moments. "I had nothing to do with the fire that killed your family." He says.

Ashlyn sees Derek's shoulders tense. No, Chris wasn't lying, but Chris only said he had nothing to do with it.

"I can't swear on anyone else, only myself." Chris explains. "I'm sorry that ever happened, Derek."

"Not as sorry as they will be when I find them." Derek says.

"Get the facts first, Derek. Because I can't let you kill innocent people. I can't let you just kill my hunters, or my family." Chris says.

"I know." Derek says. "Thanks for showing up." Derek says. He takes Ashlyn's hand, right in front of Chris, much to Ashlyn's surprise. "Let's go home." He says, and starts walking away from Chris.

"Derek." Chris says. Ashlyn and Derek stop. Derek looks at the man over his shoulder. "If any of them had something to do with any of that… We have to talk about how we deal with it. I don't like just killing them being the answer."

"I didn't like burning my family alive being the answer either, but that didn't seem to matter." Derek says, and Ashlyn feels him become tenser, he's obviously trying to remain calm.

"If it was one of them, we'll figure it out." Chris says. "But I need you to come to me first, Derek."

Derek just looks at Chris, then keeps walking, Ashlyn following him. She glances back at Chris, and she can see he really hopes none of his crew were involved in either fire, but deep down he knows, just like the pack know, that there's a very high chance of them being solely responsible for both fires.

They come to the car and Derek lets her hand go, fishing his car keys out of his pocket. He unlocks the car, then hears Ashlyn's voice.

"Derek?" Ashlyn says, looking at him. Derek stops, looking up at her. "Are you okay?" She asks him, she's come to see just the mention of his family is painful, so that can't have felt very good.

Derek rests his arms on the top of the Camaro, and he actually thinks about the question. She waits for his answer, a little worried. Derek looks down and he shakes his head. "I'm really not." He says.

Before she can say anything else, or try to comfort him, his phone starts ringing. And Derek answers it right away, so he can escape the emotional interaction.

"Yeah?" He answers his phone. He glances at Ashlyn and she looks a little disappointed at the sudden cut off, getting into the Camaro.

"It's me." Jessie says.

"Jess? Aren't you in class?" Derek says, confused.

"I came home early." She tells him. "So, if they call you, can you tell them you picked me up?"

"Jessie, you can't walk out of school-"

"I feel like shit, c'mon." She says.

Derek exhales. "Fine." He nods. "I'll cover you. Go get in bed, we'll be back soon-"

Crack! Bang!

"Jessie?" Derek says. "Jess? Jess, are you there?" He asks, frowning now. "Jessie?"

Ashlyn looks out the window at Derek, hearing him and seeing the look on his face. She gets out of the car. "What's going on?"

"No! Get away from me! Derek-"

Dialtone.

Derek's heart drops, and Ashlyn's eyes widen. He takes off so fast, Ashlyn has to push herself to catch up to him as they sprint back towards the house.

"I was looking for Ashlyn, but I can make this work too." Zak says, throwing Jessie down on the floor.

"Get the hell off of me!" She fights him every step of the way, as the man pins her down, their hips uncomfortably pressed together. "Get off!"

All Derek feels is dread. She's at the house alone. She's alone and there's a malicious Hell-hound on the loose. All he feels is dread.

Ashlyn and Derek race towards the house. They get to the door and it's locked, something's blocking it, keeping it shut.

"No, no! Don't touch me! Please don't touch me!" Jessie cries out.

And that word, touch, it makes Derek barrel his way through the door, like he did in the fire.

Zak's head shoots up. And as soon as Derek sees what's happening, and the Alpha looks him in the eye, the wolf's glowing an aggressive red, Zak knows he's not going to come out of this alive.

"Get him off me!" Jessie cries, terrified. "Derek?!"

And the terror in her voice is what pushes Derek to the edge.

Zak sees the Alpha move forward, and he knows he's going to die. He feels adrenaline pump through his veins, he knows he's going to die. It's not his intention, but he sees it. He sees the lamp that fell to the ground in the scuffle to get Jessie on the floor. He grabs it, he knows he's going to die. And holds it up over his head, he knows he's going to die. And he swings it down as hard as he can.

"Jessie?!" Ashlyn screams.

Time slows down for Derek. But his body goes into auto-pilot. He can't stop what happens next. He rips Zak off of Jessie and tackles him down onto the floor. His claws come out, they come up, and they come down, just like the lamp did. He tears at the man that's begging for his life. Blood squirts up at the Alpha, but he doesn't care, not one bit. It takes seconds for Zak to stop moving, very obviously dead, but to Derek it feels like hours. But he doesn't stop there. Once he starts, he can't stop. He just can't stop.

"Derek!" Ashlyn shouts his name, now at Jessie's side, trying to rouse the girl. But Derek can't hear a thing over his racing heartbeat so clear in his ears. "Derek!" Ashlyn yells. She's trying to find a pulse or something, but Jessie isn't moving, she doesn't seem to be breathing. But when Ashlyn touches her head, she notices just how wet her hands now are, and how wet the ground under her head is. "DEREK?!" Ashlyn screams for him in fear, tears falling down both her cheeks, because the ground isn't wet, her head isn't wet, it's blood. It's all blood.

And it snaps Derek out of it. The Alpha just looks at the remains of Zak, and he feels time starts to speed back up. Until it's normal speed again, and he's just panting, and his heart beat isn't so loud.

"Derek, help me!" Ashlyn screams.

He turns to her, and his stomach flips upside down. The girl holds Jessie in her arms, and the younger girl isn't moving at all. There's blood all over Ashlyn's hands, and it's soaked into her jeans, there's a large pool of it where Jessie's head just was.

"No, no, no." Derek races over, kneeling into Jessie's blood but he doesn't care. "Sweetheart?" He touches Jessie's face, but she doesn't move or say anything. Derek's eyes glaze over and he finds it's hard to see clearly. "Jessie?"

"D-Derek…" Ashlyn stutters.

Derek shakes his head, because he refuses to believe she's… He won't even think it. He takes Jessie out of Ashlyn's arms and stands up. "Get the others, get to the hospital." Derek tells her, and he takes off as fast as he did when he got that phone call.

The rain that begins to come down doesn't bother Derek at all. All he cares about is making his legs move faster, and keeping Jessie held securely, a hand under her head. The blood mixed with rain runs down his arm, but he doesn't care. He cares about getting her to the hospital as safely and quickly as he can. Because she's not allowed to die on him.

.

Ashlyn races up the halls, the whole pack with her. Numerous sets of eyes flick between the doors, looking for the right number. "Here! Here!" Scott announces, racing in.

They expect to find Jessie in a hospital bed, Derek at her side, watching over her. But Jessie's nowhere in sight. In fact, it's just a waiting room, a waiting room that only a very distraught Derek occupies.

"Where is she?" Danny asks, stepping forward. "Where's my best friend?" Danny asks, going over to Derek.

Derek's eyes come up. They're red, not Alpha red, they're tear-filled red. He looks at Ashlyn, the silent question in his eyes.

Ashlyn opens her mouth, to explain she couldn't tell them what happened, she was so upset, but she just shakes her head. She looks at him apologetically, because someone needs to tell them what happened.

"What's going on?" Stiles asks. All they know is something is wrong with Jessie, that she's been rushed to hospital. They know nothing else. "Where is she, Derek?" Stiles asks him, looking the Alpha dead in the eye. "Where is she?" He asks, moving to stand in front of Derek. "Tell me where she is. Tell me what happened to her." Stiles demands.

Derek blinks, looking away. He wipes the tear that falls straight away, but not fast enough for the others to miss it. Derek doesn't cry. Derek does not cry. Now they know something's very wrong.

"Is she… Is she…alive?" Isaac asks what they're all thinking.

Derek sniffles, wiping his hands down his face. He keeps his head bowed, looking down at his shoes. "Doctor said she probably won't make it through the night." He mumbles.

Danny clings to Isaac's arm, and feels her legs give out. "Whoa. Hey." Isaac catches her, helping her to sit down. "I…" He tries to offer words of comfort, because Danny is Jessie's best friend, but Jessie means so much to all of them, so the words just get stuck in Isaac's throat.

Scott looks at Stiles, and Stiles just looks shocked. And for once, for once, he isn't moving or fidgeting, or anything like that.

Ashlyn moves over to Derek. She sits down beside him, and she can't find the words. She puts her hand on his knee, but there's no comfort in it, because she's just so shocked with what's happened, and what Derek's just said.

She might not make it through the night

"The bite…" Scott says, looking at Derek. "Give her the bite."

A spark of hope flares up in them all, but Derek puts it out when he shakes his head. "Jessie's special. She was the only 1 out of 4 kids that was born human. Her body can't bond with the werewolf gene. I'd just end up…killing her." He mutters, looking down again.

And that's the end of that conversation.

Now they wait.

.

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I hope that chapter was worth the (far too long) wait! What the heck happens now?! JESSIE?!

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