Teen Survivors 💰 S.S.

A Promise to the Dead

Laura had taken herself and Derek off to the opposite side of the country. She had hoped that being on the opposite side would somehow make their lives just as opposite. Derek was all for it. The further he could be away from Beacon Hills and the memories, the better. Their mother had told them of a few people that their father had introduced her to and Laura felt they were the best chance for help. She was a druid emissary for a pack that lived in upstate New York. They found that the town was bigger than their home had been and the emissary lived off at the mountainous outskirts. She looked a bit older than Deaton was and saw that she had an apprentice that she was training. Her name was Maggie and she was only a year younger than Derek was. They were told that they would be allowed to stay in town only if their Alpha allowed but were assured that he was reasonable. Laura and Derek were then taken to meet this Alpha and his pack. 

His name was Oscar and was around his mid-20's. His pack numbered six and with the youngest beta, they saw that he was roughly Derek's age. Laura explained their situation to the Alpha but he had already been made aware of the tragedy they suffered in Beacon Hills. He permitted them to stay, granted that Laura not create any betas and form a pack on his territory. Laura agreed as she had no plans for making a pack so soon. Laura and Derek got themselves an apartment in town and tried to get through their new circumstances as best they could.

Derek was enrolled at the local high school to finish his senior year. The school had four sports teams, including basketball and Laura told him that he could join if he wanted. She wasn't going to enforce their mother's decision for him because it didn't seem as important now but Derek didn't care. The thought of playing basketball didn't matter to him anymore. His arrival had also stirred up some waves with most of the school's female population, but Derek wasn't interested in any of that either. He didn't care about being popular or enjoying his senior year as much as he did before the fire. He threw himself into his studies to distract himself and his grades found over a letter grade in improvement, though college didn't appeal to him. He then got himself a job at the local gym where he found comfort in lifting weights and the workout machines. He started to build up in muscle as a result making him more handsome than before, but he kept himself reclusive and hardly spoke to anyone.

However, he seemed to have found somewhat of a friend in Maggie. She was in the same high school as him and they had often studied together. Even after graduation, Derek had taken some interest in the herblore and supernatural lore that Maggie was learning. She was working hard to take over for the pack's emissary when she retired. Maggie became the only person that Derek really talked to, outside his sister. Eventually, they even found themselves hooking up a few times over the years though Derek never let himself take it further than that. Maggie didn't resent him for it though. She seemed to understand, even if he never explained himself. A part of him felt that he and Maggie could be good together, but Derek couldn't let himself open up to her and that wasn't fair to her. He couldn't let himself open to anyone, not after what happened the last time he did, not after Kate. Derek felt he didn't deserve happiness. Not when thinking of only himself had gone on and hurt everyone he ever cared about. He hoped that at least his sister could find some as he felt that she deserved it more than anyone.