Chapter Text
… … …
Derek ran. Ran through this wretched preserve. Ran for his life as he heard gunshots from behind, the sounds of hunters carrying his inevitable fate.
He always knew this day would come. He knew that he’d be getting what was coming for him. Five years of hiding was never going to be long enough for these monsters to leave his family alone.
He just wished they’d let Laura go. But apparently the Argents had made a promise to eradicate every last Hale.
And it’s all Derek’s fault.
It was five years ago that Kate burned down his home with his family trapped inside. Five years since he’d gone feral and killed her. Five years of running around and hiding in New York with Laura. Five years since Gerard killed their uncle and sent them a massage.
You can’t run away, Hale. I will find you. And I will make you suffer.
And suffer he did.
He finally broke the tree line as he reached an unfamiliar clearing. Even for a wolf he could feel his breath running out. His legs felt like strings as he collapsed against some old withered tree. He could hear them coming closer. Shouting out taunts as if that’s gonna make him turn around to try and fight them.
He would never do that. He’s not stupid enough to die like a prideful idiot who has nothing to be proud of to begin with.
Please just… stop. Leave me alone. Just go away. I can’t…
Would it be easier if he just let them kill him?
He could be with his family. His mother, father, sisters, brothers, everyone.
Is it really worth staying alive when you have nothing?
His self-hating/suicidal line of thought was broken as he suddenly felt the clearing go all too quiet. A brisk chill taking hold of the air around him as he heard a sound.
A sound of laughter. Bright, mocking, smug laughter.
And it was coming from abov-
“Well would you look at what the cat dragged in. Or should I say, what the dog dragged in?”
Derek looked up at the old tree to find a young man, Possibly a teenager, hanging off one of the tree branches. With short messy brown hair and glowing pale skin and long slender limbs.
But Derek couldn’t focus on any of it because of the boy’s eyes.
Pure, Pitch Black orbs.
A Demon.
His mother told him about demons when he was a pup. Told him all about how they were tricksters. Manipulaters. Powerful and menacing and only went out to cause chaos and destruction.
“Awww. You don’t really think I’m that bad, do you?”
The thing’s voice had a saccharine sweetness to it but Derek knew. He knew it was a trick.
he knew he should fight. To tell this thing to get out of his head. To leave him alone. Demons were bad news wherever they went. And Derek couldn’t afford any more trouble than what he was already in.
Yet part of him was just… too tired to fight at this point.
“What do you want?” The wolf said in a clipped tone. Leaning against the tree and pressing his palms against his eyes.
“Oh come on. Why do you assume I want anything? You’re the one who came to my little cage. If anything I thought YOU wanted something.” It said with a pout as it swung its legs back and forth.
Derek frowned. Words not registering.
“What… what do you mean?”
“Well, what do you think people visit demons for?” It said with a condescending grin.
“I didn’t visit you. I was running. If I knew your… cage… or whatever, was here? I would have steered clear.”
He didn’t fully understand what the cage talk was about. But he remembered stories about how demons were usually exorcised and then disposed of by Druids.
“Don’t be such a sourwolf, now. Unless you don’t want my help.” The thing said with a scoff
“Your help?”
“Why yes! You’re the one who was begging earlier. You want those hunters to leave you alone for good?” It cooed as it looked down at him.
“I…” he did. He really fucking did.
“Then let’s make a deal.”
“N-No. I can’t. I can’t trust you I’m-“
“Oh come on, Derek. You said it yourself. You’ve got nothing to lose, and everything to gain. You don’t exactly have much time left… or much of anything left.”
“What if you’re lying? What if you kill-“
“I wouldn’t. But even if I did, would that be too bad?”
…honestly. It probably wouldn’t.
“Fine… what do you need?”
The thing’s smile stretched as it vanished in the blink of an eye and re-appearing a second later right in front of him.
“Well, I’ll help get rid of all the hunters who seem all too keen on getting rid of you. And in exchange you’ll be a sweet little puppy and break the crest that’s been keeping me trapped in this lovely little tree.” He shivered as he felt the thing’s hands gripping his own and guiding them towards a round smooth stone that’s stuck to the tree’s base. A strange symbol carved into it.
Derek knew that this was a terrible idea. But the alternative is getting killed and/or tortured by hunters.
“Deal.”
-//-//-//-//-//
It only took a few minutes later for the hunters to show up at the clearing.
The dark moonless sky was lit with dim starlight as the old withered tree stared them down forlornly. Not one of the hunters was able to notice the cracked stone symbol at it’s base before the sounds of creaking rang through the open field.
“Come on out, Hale! We promise not to hurt ya too bad!”
Yeah right. Derek understood why. Gerard’s got dibs on the wolf who killed his daughter.
“Oh please! You couldn’t have tried to sound a little bit more convincing? Even a smooth brained idiot wouldn’t have believed you.” The Demon scoffed. And the hunters all looked up to see the boy with voids for eyes staring down at them from the old tree. Neck twisting at an unnatural angle.
And that’s when the first shot rang.
Derek could hear everything from where he’d hidden himself. The sounds of bullets flying everywhere. Of racing hearts and scrambling feet. Shouting and screaming that quickly turned into begging.
The sounds of laughter and giggling. Of flesh tearing. Of claws tearing through flesh and shattering bones. It moved fast. Too fast. The type of fast that’ll hurt your eyes trying to see it. It sounded like it was tearing it’s own body apart to move that fast.
It only took a few minutes for things to go quiet.
Derek came out from behind the tree to find the demon standing on top of a pile of bodies. Six trained professionals hunters with years of experience, who looked like they had a bear claw their faces off all piled up on top of each other with their limbs twisted at unnatural angles.
The thing looked up and looked back at him. Smiling that all too wide smile at him as it beckoned him closer.
“Come on now. Don’t be shy.” It yawned as it put it’s chin on its palm.
“So That’s it right?” Derek asked as he tried not to look too pleased at the sight of dead hunters. Some might call him cold or evil for taking pleasure in seeing dead people but these particular dead people were not exactly his best friends so he gets a pass.
“Whatever do you mean?” It asked with another head tilt.
“That was our deal. I set you free and you kill the hunters. So now we don’t owe each other anything so you and I can go our separate ways.” Derek claimed. Trying to push an air of finality in his words.
The demon stared at him quietly before exploding into loud boisterous laughter. Throwing its head back and wiping away stray tears.
“Oh sourwolf. You’re so funny! Do you really think it’s that easy to get rid of me? Oh no no no no no.”
What
“But that was our deal!”
“Our deal was that you would free me and I would take care of any hunter trying to kill you… now remind me, how many hunters want you dead?”
No
“You tricked me.”
“Oh don’t be so dramatic! I thought you understood how wordplay worked.”
“So what? You’re gonna keep leaching off of me on a fucking technicality?!”
The demon hummed. Putting a finger on it’s chin before looking up and snapping it’s fingers.
“Why yes!”
You have got to be fucking kiddin-
-//-//-//-//-//