Scott knew he wasn't the strongest, knew without a doubt that Derek would destroy him in a fair fight so he did everything he could to avoid one, but standing there, staring at the Alpha as he walked out of the house he knew his luck had run out at last. Derek was livid that the Kanima escaped and Scott had more than one unresolved issue with everyone trying to kill Lydia without making sure she was the correct target first. "Give me two hours." Resigned though he was, he didn't have time for this fight, and his mom was already freaked enough about everything going on without him showing up to the hospital in blood soaked clothes.

"You've got one."

Stiles looked back and forth between his best friend and the retreating figure of the Alpha. "What just happened?"

"I challenged Derek."

"Are you crazy?" Stiles hit Scott upside the head. "What were you thinking?"

"That I wasn't going to let him kill anyone."

"Oh." Somehow Stiles didn't think that was the real cause of the display, but he didn't call his friend on the obvious lie. Scott had been challenging Derek in one way or another for months and the elder hadn't called him on it before now.

"Come on. I have to pick up Mom and you need to get Lydia home."

"Scott." He shook his head at Allison, asking her not to interfere. He knew this day was coming and he couldn't put it off anymore. Stiles watched on in uneasy silence as Scott drove away, knowing that life would look much different in the morning and he wasn't sure that it was a good thing.

.

.

Scott barely made it into the subway station before his body was launched across the room. Derek was livid and he wasn't about to hold back this time. There was a good chance that this fight would wind up with Scott dead on the floor. For weeks he had been standing in the way, attempting to hold back the tide of war from both sides and the Alpha was sick of being stopped by the upstart Omega.

With a roar Derek shifted, warning the rest of the pack to stand back. This fight was between Derek and Scott and he wasn't going to tolerate interruption. Scott stood, ignoring the pull of the claw marks where Derek grabbed him, as he shifted into his beta form and engaged. Claws slashed and teeth snapped in a vicious battle of wills, the younger refusing to yield his ground, even as blood poured down his arm and thigh. Scott clambered to his feet, wavering with loss of blood and centered his mind on the target. With a last burst of energy, he launched his body at the bleeding Alpha, slicing his claws across Derek's eye and kicking at his exposed side. Growls filled the room as Scott's body was slammed into the pavement and pinned by the throat. The Omega clawed at the hand blocking his airway, scrambling to bring in precious oxygen in his panic. Before he was completely lost to the black, Derek flipped him on his side and dug his fangs into the exposed flank. Scott cried out in pain even as his body sagged heavily in surrender. Crowing with victory, the Alpha loomed over the broken body under him before the red haze started to clear and he took inventory of the damage. His body shifted back to his human visage and he squatted over the bleeding form. "Damn it, Scott." He stood, carrying the newest pack member in his arms. "Why do you have to do everything the hard way." Snarling when he caught the scent of the Argent clan clinging to Scott's clothes, he tore off the offending garments and started to patch up the injuries.

It took close to two hours for all of the wounds to be stitched closed and bandaged. When he was finished, Derek pulled one of his t-shirts over the cold skin of the beta and covered him with a tattered blanket. Satisfied that the stench of Allison Argent was erased by his own, Derek turned to change his own bloody clothing before stalking into the station to talk to the rest of the pack.