Title: Support Systems
Fandom: Teen Wolf
Pairing: Reads mainly Gen, but has background Derek/Stiles
Categories: Sheriff Stilinski, parenting, family, pack, magic!Stiles
Length: Medium (8,242 words)
Warnings: Minor character death. original character - death is not described

Author on LJ: merryish No longer updated
Author Websites: Molly

Author's Summary: It's the first time they've spoken since the end of the Alpha pack and the Darach. Derek leans across the picnic table while Stiles is talking to Cora on his other side, and what he whispers to John on this momentous occasion is, "It's ground turkey. Stiles made me promise. I'm sorry."

Review:
Some early lines in this story do a great job of summing up what John is coming to terms with...

[John] presses his palm flat against the table. "[Stiles] thinks it's his life to risk, but it's like ... my arm's out there, running around without me, doing its best to get its fingers cut off. And he doesn't get it."

Melissa takes his hand in both of hers and squeezes. "I get it."

"So how do you deal with it?" He raises his eyes to hers. "How do you sleep at night, knowing what's going on out there?"

"I take a lot of Ambien." Melissa shrugs, and gives him a rueful half-smile. "And when I don't have to work, I drink a lot."

If you like Sheriff Stilinski or can imagine the terror of having a child who spends his teen years an inch from possible death with no sign of backing off, this is for you.

I love John's point of view, the way he and Melissa support one another, the way he finds an ally in fellow concerned parent Chris, and the line he walks with Stiles, who will always be his kid, but who's heading into adulthood in a world that turns out to be more dangerous than he expected.

The scene at Derek's house with John being introduced to the pack is particularly well done. I love the moment after Stiles' magic practice when John is on an adrenaline rush of concern, while Scott already understands what's going on and is sharing in Stiles' excitement. You get to see how strange it must be for John to feel on the outside of decisions and events that are defining Stiles' future. And at the same time, he's being brought into the pack's circle, given more understanding and a chance to have a relationship with Stiles not based on lies.

It's a compelling characterization of John -- never too simple or over the top -- and through his eyes, a new way to look at the pack, especially Stiles and Derek.

Support Systems