[ lies have an intimate relationship with this city. every inch of duplicity is based on or profits off of dishonesty, and derek's lost a lot of his initial fire when it comes to dealing with it. he's tired. dishonesty breeds in this city faster than rats, and it's funny that after what feels like a life time of shutting down and trusting no one and assuming the worst, it's a place as filthy as this that's started to bring out the best in derek.
back home, he couldn't see the better qualities in stiles. he was too quickly blinded by a need to protect him and scott without stopping to ask if they needed him, and then he was too quickly frustrated by his youthful ignorance to treat him like someone capable of critical thought. here - he trusts stiles as much as he trusts himself. he trusts stiles more than he trusts himself. he's quicker to listen, quicker to ask for help, quicker to apologize, even if it's all still a little hard to do, sometimes. he hopes stiles doesn't think he's been too much of a dick.
now that they're back in the down, he lets his eyes spill back into hazel, the red disappearing like the moon behind clouds. stiles reminds him of his promise, tapping at his chin with his phone, and that's annoying, but not enough to stoke a reaction. derek just stares ahead into nothing, contemplative. he acts like he can't hear stiles, but he senses the twinge of pain in stiles, and that gets his attention. he looks oddly... stubborn, when he's pulled away from his thoughts. ]
Mm.
[ yes. correct. he did say that he would put stiles down. he did say that. this is true. stiles is right.
derek's not going to put him down.
... okay, fine, okay, yes, fine. okay. he will. maybe. he just needs a second to ramp up to it, because he's a little afraid of hurting stiles by not being careful enough. slaps over the head, mild insults, that's one thing - but derek doesn't know how bad stiles' injury really is yet, and he's afraid of doing something to make it worse. a strained few seconds pass before he relents, but there's anxiety bubbling in his stomach as he frets over doing this right. ]
Fine.
[ reluctantly - very, very reluctantly - derek sets stiles down, moving slow and keeping close. it's clumsy, how he does it, because he sinks his knees down and stiffly maneuvers himself into an uncomfortable position so stiles doesn't have to bend his back when he gets up, but then he stands, and stiles can stand, too. derek looks at him for all of two seconds before deciding this was a bad idea. ]
You're in pain. I can tell. We need to get you home.
[ derek frowns, eyebrows together in the middle, and he's standing straight, but he has his hands half-out like he's expecting stiles to fall. rather than look like a dom and a sub wandering the down together, they probably look like an old man and his overzealous grandson. ]
no subject
back home, he couldn't see the better qualities in stiles. he was too quickly blinded by a need to protect him and scott without stopping to ask if they needed him, and then he was too quickly frustrated by his youthful ignorance to treat him like someone capable of critical thought. here - he trusts stiles as much as he trusts himself. he trusts stiles more than he trusts himself. he's quicker to listen, quicker to ask for help, quicker to apologize, even if it's all still a little hard to do, sometimes. he hopes stiles doesn't think he's been too much of a dick.
now that they're back in the down, he lets his eyes spill back into hazel, the red disappearing like the moon behind clouds. stiles reminds him of his promise, tapping at his chin with his phone, and that's annoying, but not enough to stoke a reaction. derek just stares ahead into nothing, contemplative. he acts like he can't hear stiles, but he senses the twinge of pain in stiles, and that gets his attention. he looks oddly... stubborn, when he's pulled away from his thoughts. ]
Mm.
[ yes. correct. he did say that he would put stiles down. he did say that. this is true. stiles is right.
derek's not going to put him down.
... okay, fine, okay, yes, fine. okay. he will. maybe. he just needs a second to ramp up to it, because he's a little afraid of hurting stiles by not being careful enough. slaps over the head, mild insults, that's one thing - but derek doesn't know how bad stiles' injury really is yet, and he's afraid of doing something to make it worse. a strained few seconds pass before he relents, but there's anxiety bubbling in his stomach as he frets over doing this right. ]
Fine.
[ reluctantly - very, very reluctantly - derek sets stiles down, moving slow and keeping close. it's clumsy, how he does it, because he sinks his knees down and stiffly maneuvers himself into an uncomfortable position so stiles doesn't have to bend his back when he gets up, but then he stands, and stiles can stand, too. derek looks at him for all of two seconds before deciding this was a bad idea. ]
You're in pain. I can tell. We need to get you home.
[ derek frowns, eyebrows together in the middle, and he's standing straight, but he has his hands half-out like he's expecting stiles to fall. rather than look like a dom and a sub wandering the down together, they probably look like an old man and his overzealous grandson. ]
Arm.
[ "give me your arm, please," he means. ]