Maybe I'd land on someone and take them out in the process. [ As embittered as he is, Derek's own humor coincides rather well with the dark jokes that slip out of Stiles. He's been suffering from PTSD for years now, and today isn't going to make it any better. They still smell a little like smoke, or maybe that's the dome, or maybe even just his mind dredging up the familiar smell. It lingers with him, and the only thing that soothes it away is the warmth of Stiles pressed against him, settled under his hands.
If sleep comes for either of them, it'll come when they least expect it.
Simply looking at Stiles, even when his attention is off into the distance, his expression softens a little more as he meets that warm amber gaze of his. Dark as it is now on the island, they still stand out, big and bright and looking at him. Later on he'll laugh at the fact that he hasn't felt this comfortable in eight years. ]
At least I make a decent bed. [ Teasing as it is, he slips his hand around from the back of his neck to cup his face, thumb smoothing over his cheek. He can't help but follow the zig-zagging constellation that marks a path over his smooth skin, almost on instinct. ]
Talk about a dead weight. [ Smiling a little, Stiles turns his full attention back on Derek, tilting his head just so into the path his thumb follows on his cheek. It makes a flush light up under his fingers, as the touch is soft and affectionate and has a lot more behind it than just following his moles.
Derek makes a lot more than a decent bed, let's put it like that.
He's not sure how to broach the subject, the fact that he's got Derek here, that his instincts are practically screaming at him to make a move already, that this is a lot more than the schoolyard crush he had in Beacon Hills. It's more like what his mom and his dad had, before she passed away. What Scott and Allison appear to have.
Figures Stiles would find his in the middle of a competition about mass murder. ] Man, I wish I'd like--done something more interesting with my life before this. Like when they asked me to go up there and talk, I didn't have anything to say. Hi, my name is Stiles, my first name is unpronounceable and I volunteered for the games because my best friend would get killed in an hour.
[ A little wistfully. ] I have like ten more games I wanted to beat. And I would've--I dunno, liked to see my own kids someday. Hellions, yeah, but still kids. Maybe spent some time with a mate, y'know?
[ With the mate. The one he's currently using as a pillow. That's exactly what this is, and he knows it. ]
Badum tsh. [ Said in a complete deadpan. Still, Derek's mouth curls down in a quiet smile back, something simple and small but backed by something greater. He continues following the path of stars that the moles make, back and forth as if he's memorizing them, remembering them for later. And maybe he is, because he's used to losing everything he's ever cared about. He's spent the last six years alone, with few allies and even fewer friends. His heart has been closed off, and he's built iron walls around himself that have been stronger than the games' barriers.
And then, Stiles came into his life and a spark ignited itself in the remains buried away in the pit of his chest.
Maybe he should question it. There had been a similar feeling, with Paige. One that was mutual, what felt absolutely right. But he's forgotten the full warmth of it, even as he holds onto everything that Paige was at the back of his mind. Stiles is his own person, and the sensation almost burns under his skin as his instincts sing at him. This is it, this is the piece he's been missing for so long. What can make him whole again.
Listening, his brow furrows the slightest before he draws his other hand up from the dip at the small of his back. Cradling his face, gently, in both hands, he brushes his thumbs over the high sweep of his cheeks, following the warmth of them even as he feels something warm creeping up his neck. ] You do realize you're going to get to do all of that, right?
[ His eyes search Stiles', taking him in. ] Because you're not going to die here. I'm not going to let you-- and I'm not going to let anything happen to you. So we'll get through this, and we'll get there. You and me.
[ You and me. He said the same thing to Derek earlier, when he was pulling him out of the fire. It was just the two of them, and they were going to get out of this okay. The phrase "two victors" had been Stiles' hope the minute Derek's pictures flashed up on the dome. He knew if they met up, if they made it to this point, the two of them could make it to the end. And he doesn't want to get his hopes up any further--doesn't want to get Derek's up any more, either. Because Stiles is starting to see pieces slide into place, and losing Derek and finishing this with another alpha (or vice versa) sounds just as bad as dying right now.
He shifts upwards a little, not moving out of Derek's hands, until he can get one of his up just enough to brush against the stubble of his cheek. Yeah, he wants to do all that. Wants to get out of here alive.
But when he leans forward and closes the distance between them, pressing his mouth to Derek's, what crosses Stiles' mind is simple. I want you to get out of here alive, too. ]
[ Ever since Stiles pulled him from the fire, it's basically been his mantra. Putting Derek into the games with Stiles had been a very, very poor decision on the part of the council, because now it was just going to come around and bite them square in the ass. Whether or not they realized the actual magnitude of the mistake didn't matter. They might've been dancing around it at first, both unsure of it and what it meant, of whether they'd survive or not, but it was there.
The alphas had put mates into the running, and they were about to regret it. Because Derek isn't losing another person that he cares about-- that he loves-- and will fight whatever the games throw at them to ensure Stiles' safety. Same as he knows, with instinct practically roaring in delight and purring in contentment, that Stiles is right there with him.
A soft rumble vibrates in his chest, simple but automatic in response to his touch to his cheek. And then, there isn't an ounce of hesitation in him, as he tips up to meet Stiles. It's just a press of lips, but he curls his fingers against the line of Stiles' jaw, something in his chest bursting to life again. ]
[ When Derek responds in kind, Stiles relaxes a little, ignoring what is probably every television in the country attuned to this very moment. It's just Derek for him and his senses now, the chill of his scent contrasting with the warmth of the body underneath his, and he tentatively rests both of his hands on his cheeks, fingertips just barely touching his stubble as he holds his position, kissing him softly.
When he breaks away, it's slowly, and Stiles lifts his head to look at him instead--his eyes had changed during the kiss, but there was nothing aggressive or angry about it. Just a pair of bright red eyes, soft and warm as he smiles a little down at Derek underneath him.
Then, he drops his head and snorts, shaking it. ] This is so typical. [ Not the kiss, but. He shakes his head again, affectionate gaze on Derek. ] I'm literally strapped down to a tree in a competition full of people who are trying to kill people, after I killed someone, and that's when I get to have the big mate revelation. Dude, I am so sorry you got dragged into my life, it's always full of stuff like this.
[ But he's really not that sorry at all. He's not letting go of this now that he found it. ]
[ Derek has known since day one that there are hundreds if not thousands of cameras scattered across the island. The gamemakers can turn them on anyone they want, wherever they want, and it's incredibly hard to get out from beneath their eye. He had managed it a few times with Paige, going underground and off their radar-- at least from the cameras, never the trackers-- but he knows better than to think this moment is private.
It doesn't change it any for him, and he focuses on Stiles like the rest of the world is gone, touch soft and kiss softer. Like a quiet realization, and really that's what it is.
As he pulls back, looks at him, there's a matching pair of red eyes looking back at him. Easy, comfortable, like Stiles has lit something warm in him in sharp contrast to that blazing fire that he pulled him out of. And he just watches him, even as he drops his head down. He makes an amused noise in response, slipping his hands down a little to curl against his neck. ] The media's been following my life since I was first in the games. I'm pretty sure you've seen exactly what you're in for with this.
[ He brushes his nose into the upturn of his, thumbing along either side of his jaw. ]
no subject
If sleep comes for either of them, it'll come when they least expect it.
Simply looking at Stiles, even when his attention is off into the distance, his expression softens a little more as he meets that warm amber gaze of his. Dark as it is now on the island, they still stand out, big and bright and looking at him. Later on he'll laugh at the fact that he hasn't felt this comfortable in eight years. ]
At least I make a decent bed. [ Teasing as it is, he slips his hand around from the back of his neck to cup his face, thumb smoothing over his cheek. He can't help but follow the zig-zagging constellation that marks a path over his smooth skin, almost on instinct. ]
no subject
Derek makes a lot more than a decent bed, let's put it like that.
He's not sure how to broach the subject, the fact that he's got Derek here, that his instincts are practically screaming at him to make a move already, that this is a lot more than the schoolyard crush he had in Beacon Hills. It's more like what his mom and his dad had, before she passed away. What Scott and Allison appear to have.
Figures Stiles would find his in the middle of a competition about mass murder. ] Man, I wish I'd like--done something more interesting with my life before this. Like when they asked me to go up there and talk, I didn't have anything to say. Hi, my name is Stiles, my first name is unpronounceable and I volunteered for the games because my best friend would get killed in an hour.
[ A little wistfully. ] I have like ten more games I wanted to beat. And I would've--I dunno, liked to see my own kids someday. Hellions, yeah, but still kids. Maybe spent some time with a mate, y'know?
[ With the mate. The one he's currently using as a pillow. That's exactly what this is, and he knows it. ]
no subject
And then, Stiles came into his life and a spark ignited itself in the remains buried away in the pit of his chest.
Maybe he should question it. There had been a similar feeling, with Paige. One that was mutual, what felt absolutely right. But he's forgotten the full warmth of it, even as he holds onto everything that Paige was at the back of his mind. Stiles is his own person, and the sensation almost burns under his skin as his instincts sing at him. This is it, this is the piece he's been missing for so long. What can make him whole again.
Listening, his brow furrows the slightest before he draws his other hand up from the dip at the small of his back. Cradling his face, gently, in both hands, he brushes his thumbs over the high sweep of his cheeks, following the warmth of them even as he feels something warm creeping up his neck. ] You do realize you're going to get to do all of that, right?
[ His eyes search Stiles', taking him in. ] Because you're not going to die here. I'm not going to let you-- and I'm not going to let anything happen to you. So we'll get through this, and we'll get there. You and me.
no subject
[ You and me. He said the same thing to Derek earlier, when he was pulling him out of the fire. It was just the two of them, and they were going to get out of this okay. The phrase "two victors" had been Stiles' hope the minute Derek's pictures flashed up on the dome. He knew if they met up, if they made it to this point, the two of them could make it to the end. And he doesn't want to get his hopes up any further--doesn't want to get Derek's up any more, either. Because Stiles is starting to see pieces slide into place, and losing Derek and finishing this with another alpha (or vice versa) sounds just as bad as dying right now.
He shifts upwards a little, not moving out of Derek's hands, until he can get one of his up just enough to brush against the stubble of his cheek. Yeah, he wants to do all that. Wants to get out of here alive.
But when he leans forward and closes the distance between them, pressing his mouth to Derek's, what crosses Stiles' mind is simple. I want you to get out of here alive, too. ]
no subject
[ Ever since Stiles pulled him from the fire, it's basically been his mantra. Putting Derek into the games with Stiles had been a very, very poor decision on the part of the council, because now it was just going to come around and bite them square in the ass. Whether or not they realized the actual magnitude of the mistake didn't matter. They might've been dancing around it at first, both unsure of it and what it meant, of whether they'd survive or not, but it was there.
The alphas had put mates into the running, and they were about to regret it. Because Derek isn't losing another person that he cares about-- that he loves-- and will fight whatever the games throw at them to ensure Stiles' safety. Same as he knows, with instinct practically roaring in delight and purring in contentment, that Stiles is right there with him.
A soft rumble vibrates in his chest, simple but automatic in response to his touch to his cheek. And then, there isn't an ounce of hesitation in him, as he tips up to meet Stiles. It's just a press of lips, but he curls his fingers against the line of Stiles' jaw, something in his chest bursting to life again. ]
no subject
When he breaks away, it's slowly, and Stiles lifts his head to look at him instead--his eyes had changed during the kiss, but there was nothing aggressive or angry about it. Just a pair of bright red eyes, soft and warm as he smiles a little down at Derek underneath him.
Then, he drops his head and snorts, shaking it. ] This is so typical. [ Not the kiss, but. He shakes his head again, affectionate gaze on Derek. ] I'm literally strapped down to a tree in a competition full of people who are trying to kill people, after I killed someone, and that's when I get to have the big mate revelation. Dude, I am so sorry you got dragged into my life, it's always full of stuff like this.
[ But he's really not that sorry at all. He's not letting go of this now that he found it. ]
no subject
It doesn't change it any for him, and he focuses on Stiles like the rest of the world is gone, touch soft and kiss softer. Like a quiet realization, and really that's what it is.
As he pulls back, looks at him, there's a matching pair of red eyes looking back at him. Easy, comfortable, like Stiles has lit something warm in him in sharp contrast to that blazing fire that he pulled him out of. And he just watches him, even as he drops his head down. He makes an amused noise in response, slipping his hands down a little to curl against his neck. ] The media's been following my life since I was first in the games. I'm pretty sure you've seen exactly what you're in for with this.
[ He brushes his nose into the upturn of his, thumbing along either side of his jaw. ]