Homecoming for the Omega

[fadingspark]

Scott's car was silent as they drive back from Mountain View. Dina was fast asleep in the booster seat that belonged to her cousin, his tiny plush dragon clutched in her hands. It was raining as they got over the mountains, and as they passed the sign welcoming them to Beacon Hills, Stiles just sighed.

"You know, I wasn't really planning on ever coming back here," he admitted to Scott.

Scott looked over and gave him a half smile. "Yeah, we all knew. But it's your home too, bro. You belong here."

"I don't know where I belong anymore."

Google had gone through a new cycle of employees, and Stiles found himself with the pink slip he had feared was coming. Things at home hadn't been good, and his focus had suffered because of it. The daycare hadn't asked why Stiles was picking his daughter up early that day, but he didn't want to have a fight when he got home, and Suzanna at least didn't like to fight in front of their daughter. It was his one saving grace.

But today was different, and even Dina's crying from her room wasn't enough to stop the screaming from his wife about just how worthless he had become, how he couldn't even hold down a job anymore, and why couldn't he see what he was doing to the family. And then came the bombshell - she was leaving him. His lack of attention had made her look to another, and he at least knew how to treat her.

She started for the stairs and it was there that Stiles found his strength to fight back. "Fine, leave if you want, but like hell I'm letting you take Dina with you."

The hand slapped across his face, hard enough to snap his jaw. "Claudia is my daughter, and she's coming with me."

It was a raw look in his eyes that made Suzanna step back as his fingers gripped the railings for all his worth. "She's my daughter. You barely spend any time with her since she stopped being a baby. You can have whatever you want, but you're not taking her from me."

He was given until morning to get out. Scott had been there in three hours with the SUV to help. Boxes with clothes, toys and a computer were packed and secured. A Google Bike - last year's office christmas present - was strapped to the roof and the three of them disappeared into the night leaving Mountain View behind.

"I just wanted to be happy, Scott." Stiles touched his cheek at the bruise forming there. "Why is it I can't ever get what I want?"

Scott looked in the rear view mirror. "You did, Stiles. You got one thing."

Turning to look into the back seat, Stiles smiled at his little girl sleeping, then resettled back in his seat. "Yeah. She's enough."

They arrived at the Stilinski house just after one in the morning, and the family came outside as Stiles and Scott exited the car. Carefully, Stiles carried his daughter inside and Melissa showed him where she could sleep in the den in a pile of pillows and a tent made from sheets. Once his arms were free, his father pulled him into a hug, then looked at his face and shook his head. "You okay, son?"

Stiles shook his head. "No. But I'll get there."

*~*

It took him a few weeks to get things in order, but he finally got a small home business up and running in Beacon Hills providing help for small businesses looking for web presence as well as app building. It was easy to work from home, but with Melissa and his father watching Dina, he could get away and focus at a coffee house or in the park for a few hours.

Scott had warned him that he had told the Hales of his return. All but Cora, who was out in Boston, which was a relief in a way. It would make readjusting to the town easier. But he was expecting the slow manifestation of friends he hadn't been able to see in the last three years as Suzanna's control had kept him close to home. Only now, far from her and that life, did he see what had been happening and he was angry that he had let it all happen.

But that was his past. He was working on making a future for himself and Dina, and that was all that mattered now.

Comments

[wildkingdom]

Malia nods a bit, making a mental note of that. She then exhales slowly, taking baby steps into this. They're going to need all the ammunition that he can get, but she knows she has to ease him into that.

"Just because you have Dina now doesn't mean it'll stay that way. You need to get a custody agreement, signed by a judge. That's the only way you'll be able to keep her for good."

[fadingspark]

His head snapped up to look at her, his face paling at the thought of losing his daughter. "I... I can't afford that. I don't have anything, Malia. I lost my job... can't get into the bank account... I only have her."

His eyes go to try and find the kids in the playground, worried she would be gone suddenly. It was his worst fear currently that she would get taken back to Suzanna and he wouldn't have his baby girl anymore.

But she was safe with Ryan playing in the sandbox, trying to build a castle.

[wildkingdom]

"No, you have me. This is what I do." Or, at least, what she's working on doing. This is her job, and she's really, really good at it.

Allison gives his shoulder a soft squeeze, getting up and moving closer to the kids to see what they're doing. Pregnant or not, Allison is still one of the scariest hunters around. Add Malia not too far away, and those kids are perfectly safe.

Malia keeps her hearing tuned on them for a moment, but keeps her focus on Stiles.

"Stiles, I've got them. Look at me."

[fadingspark]

He looks back at her as he watched Allison walk over, the fear still in his eyes. The boy who was once certain of everything in his life was now a man scared of losing the only thing he had left that mattered to him.

"I don't know what to do to keep her safe, Malia. I need to keep her safe."

[wildkingdom]

"I know. And I'm not going to let Suzanna take her away from you."

She glances back to the kids for a moment, before turning back to Stiles. "My boss is one of the best family law guys around. If I asked, he'd probably take the case pro-bono. But the sooner you get the ball rolling on this the better, and you're not going to want to pull your punches."

Which she knows is going to be hard for him. There's still a part of him that loved her once. He's going to have to pretend that part of him doesn't exist.

"We were going to take Ryan up to the preserve to see my aunt after this. If you want, Dina can go with Allison and I can take you to see Sam. The sooner we get started on this, the less time she'll have to snake her out from under you. But I promise you, Stiles, I will not let her take your daughter."

Because regardless how things ended with him and Cora, he's still family. And Malia takes care of her family.

[fadingspark]

"Dad's been trying to convince me too. Something about protective orders and child support." He looked at Dina again. "I don't want to take her mother out of her life, Malia. I know what that's like. And what if I lose? I mean, I don't have income at all right now. What if a judge says she belongs with her mom because she can support her and this doesn't work?"

Running is better. Running is what he was getting real good at.

He shook his head at the idea of Dina going to the preserve. "She won't know anyone there. She'll be scared and I won't be there..."

[wildkingdom]

"If you don't at least try, you will lose." And she means that seriously. "Right now, if we let her set the narrative, a judge will side with her. She's her mother, she can support her, there's no reason why she shouldn't. But if we can document a history of abuse and neglect, show that you take better care of her and that you have a support system here for her, that can go a long way."

She's seen cases be won with less. She knows that they can do this. She pauses for a moment, considering. "Scott will be there. We were going to meet him there for dinner." There's another beat. "Why don't you come with us? I know Talia would probably like to see you, and if you want to keep her safe, there's no one better to. It might be a good idea to help her get used to her? We can make an appointment with Sam tomorrow."

[fadingspark]

Dina knew Scott, so that would be okay. And while Stiles wasn't really certain where he stood with any of the older Hale members, he couldn't deny that the Hale House was probably the safest place on Earth for his daughter.

But there were a lot of memories there too, ones he didn't want to remember. Memories that still, even now hurt him more than Suzanna could ever inflict on him.

Shut up, Stiles! You can't say anything to me about this. You never loved me to begin with! You're still in love with that stupid bitch who left you for the Lockwood prince. Maybe if you actually loved me, none of this would be happening!

"I don't know..."

[wildkingdom]

"You're pack, Stiles."

She knows that he's human, she knows what happened with him and Cora, but the rest of them never stopped considering him pack. She knows that Talia, at least, didn't hold it against him, because she knows it was Cora's choice.

"You've always been pack. You were pack before her and you'll still be pack long after her. Dina too."

[fadingspark]

He sighed, knowing Malia wasn't going to let it rest. And he had been debating on returning Peter's call for awhile now. Plus he hadn't seen Isaac in a long time either. Melissa and his dad were both working, so they would be on their own for dinner anyway.

He was going to have to face this sooner or later.

"Is Cora here?"

Because he could handle it, but he wasn't sure he could handle her. Not yet.

[wildkingdom]

She shakes her head. She hasn't seen her cousin in a very long time - not since her wedding, in fact - and she knows she'll be coming in soon, but not yet. "She's still in Boston. She just finished up her MA though, and said something about coming back in June for job interviews and stuff, but that's not for a month or so."

And he's right. She wasn't about to let it rest.

"It'll be just you guys, the McCalls, me and Isaac and Talia and Thomas." She smirks a bit. "And Ryan usually dominates most of the conversation."

[fadingspark]

He chuckled at that. The boy hadn't stopped chattering since he had taken Dina's hand. "He definitely is Scott's kid," he pointed out, then nodded. "I think I can do that, then. I don't want to overload her with a lot of people at once."

He didn't want to overload himself with a lot of people was more like it. More people he saw, the more he had to admit what was going on and it hurt every time.

"And we can see your boss tomorrow."

[wildkingdom]

"Good." She shifts and pulls out her phone, texting her aunt to let her know about the change in guests. "I'll let Talia know we're bringing two more." She starts to push up from her seat. She'll call Sam on the way there to explain. "Hey Ryan! You ready for some spaghetti and meatballs?"

"Yeah!" His hands fly up in the air, throwing sand everywhere, including on Dina and his mother, before turning to the girl next to him. "C'mon Dina, we're going to go see Talia."

As though the idea that he and Dina wouldn't be spending all their time together had ever crossed his mind. Probably because it hadn't. Allison glances back to Malia and raises and eyebrow, and Malia nods. She then smiles back at Stiles.

"Good."

[fadingspark]

"Yup. Definitely Scott's kid." There's a smile on his face at that, and he went to finish his coffee before tossing both cups out and saving his work on the tablet before shoving it into his messenger bag that he had been using as a pillow at first.

Dina looked at Ryan, furiously pushing the sand off her tutu. "Who's Talia? Is she a stranger? I'm not supposed to talk to strangers."

[wildkingdom]

"She's not a stranger, she's the alpha."

Allison hesitates for a minute, because she's not sure how much Dina knows about Beacon Hills, and she probably doesn't understand the whole pack structure, so she quickly follows up with the usual question that Scott asks when teaching Ryan about the pack.

"And what does the alpha mean?"

"It means she protects us and takes care of us, and we have to do what she says."

Allison nods in agreement, before tipping her head back towards Stiles. "She was really close to your dad a long time ago. She's a friend, not a stranger. Your dad just hasn't seen her in a really long time."

[fadingspark]

Dina thought for a moment, then looked at her dad. "Daddy, am I allowed to talk to the alpha?"

Good thing he finished his coffee or he'd be wearing it. "I'll be there too, honey, and yes, you can talk to Ms. Talia. She's a very nice lady."

Dina's face brightened. "Okay! I can go too. I like pasghetti. Daddy makes it all the time."

[wildkingdom]

"And we're all good. Talia says dinner's in about a half hour." Malia then makes her way closer, sitting down cross legged next to Dina and holding out a hand to her. "I'm Malia, by the way. I don't think we officially met yet."

[fadingspark]

Stiles hitched the bag over his shoulder and walked over as well. "Malia and I went to school together with Aunt Allison and Uncle Scott. She's one of my best friends. And she's married to Isaac, who works with Grandpa at the police station."

Dina nodded. She wasn't going to remember half of that, but it meant she could talk to Malia and she got a bright grin. "Hi, I'm Claudia Marie. I'm three and a half years old and I have rainbow nails now." And she held out her tiny little hand to shake Malia's.

[wildkingdom]

"Well, it's very nice to meet you, Claudia Marie. My nails are kind of boring." She looks down at her simple french tips. "My boss is very uncool. He doesn't think that rainbow nails are 'workplace appropriate.'" She makes a face. "Totally lame."

[fadingspark]

Nope, the little girl has no idea what half those words are. But she knows what a boss is at least. It's who Daddy used to see when he went to work. "Maybe you can paint them on a day you don't have to go to work. Grandma took me to get them done. They washed her feet too and she got paint on her toes but told me that I couldn't wear my sneakers if I got paint on my toes."

Yes, those are Avengers sneakers she's wearing.

[wildkingdom]

"Well, maybe I will. That is an awesome idea." She grins as she leans closer. "You're really smart, just like your dad."

Allison has finally finished shedding all the sand her son had so graciously thrown at her earlier, before picking Ryan up and dusting him off. "C'mon. We better get moving if we don't want to be late." She glances to Stiles. "Do you need a ride?"

[fadingspark]

"That's what Grandpa said. Mommy says that I'm smarter than him though."

Stiles nodded, helping dust his daughter off as she stood up. "You are," he told her proudly, looking at Dina. "And you always remember that." He poked her stomach and she laughed, and then she was up in the air and on his shoulders in an instant.

"Yeah... Dad has my Jeep still, but apparently the tags need to be renewed before I can drive it."

[wildkingdom]

"Okay. Everybody, to the McCall mobile!"

Which is the large SUV that Argents are famous for, down to the armory in the trunk. They don't let the kids touch "Grandpa Chris's fishing tackle box."

Malia flips through her contacts for a second before waving them ahead. "Just gimme a sec, I'm gonna make a call and I'll be right there." She figures Allison will need five minutes to strap Ryan down anyway.

She hits send on her phone to call Sam, hanging back just enough so that the kids couldn't hear her.

[likely_evil]

Sam is at the office. He's always at the office, Jessica would tell you that. But he's there and working on a motion for default judgment that he needed to get filed tomorrow when his phone rang.

He looked at the caller ID and leaned back in his seat. "Malia, what's going on?"

[wildkingdom]

"Two questions. How busy is your day tomorrow and is that save I found on the Donaldson case enough to swing me a pretty substantial favor?"

She has a feeling she won't have to cash in a chip for this once she tells the story, but she wants it to be clear that this is going to be a favor going in and she would owe him big time.