impetere: (my body's frame)
Cora Hale ([personal profile] impetere) wrote in [community profile] thepicketfencecliche2017-04-08 10:55 am

puppy love } { of settlements and amusement park trips



Cora: [picks Stiles up early Saturday morning after sleeping off her late night at the bar, and they drive up to the new Hale House, nestled in rural Virginia. As they pull into the loop of a driveway, there's a food truck sitting on the side advertising "home cooked" lunches, and a few other cars to indicate that more than a few of the residents are home. she pulls the car to a stop and glances over with a small smile] This is it.

Stiles: [and he totally hasn't been looking at the defenses along the perimeter at all] Nice.

Cora: Yeah. We found a good place to settle. [and she unbuckles her seat belt] Laura probably made breakfast if you want to come in. You can meet some of the new betas?

Stiles: Do you want to warn her that I'm here first? I can walk around a bit?

Cora: I told Ben and my dad you were coming last night. I'm pretty sure she knows.

Stiles: Then yeah, I'm good for coming in. I'm sure they're expecting it.

Cora: [nods and leads the way in, already picking up the sound of video games from the TV room where Ben and Raph are playing] Knock knock!

Thomas: In the kitchen.

Cora: [and she will lead the way through, greeting her dad with a smile] Hey, Dad.

Stiles: Sir.

Thomas: Stiles, its a pleasant surprise.

Laura: [turns from the stove] Still like pancakes, Stiles?

Stiles: Pretty sure you'd have to rewrite my DNA to get me to stop liking them. [He's a bit stiff, almost soldier like because he's suddenly not sure how to act around people who were family to him once upon a time.]

Thomas: [notices this, and in particular his stance and logs it away] How's your father doing?

Stiles: Good. Thinking about retiring and moving out this way now that we know about Ben.

Laura: [will serve him up a plate] That'd be nice. You must miss him.

Stiles: I do, but we both agreed that me and Beacon Hills needed some distance.

Laura: Personally, I think everyone could do with some distance from Beacon Hills. [and another pair of plates before shouting down the hall] Boys, pancakes are done!

Raphael: [there's some shuffling and Raph in his large werewolfness, comes in with Ben tossed over his shoulder] And I am still the undefeated Mario Kart Champion. [grins and nods] Hey, Cora. Hey, human dude I don't know.

Stiles: [and he is going to give Raph a quick once over because that's one big werewolf] Hey.

Ben: [looking up hearing Stiles' voice] Dad! You're here in time for pancakes!

Raphael: [glances back at Ben's exclamation] Oh, you're the dad. I'm Raphael.

Stiles: I'm Stiles, nice to meet you.

Thomas: Still going by your family nickname, I see.

Stiles: Well, it's easier to introduce myself by it as opposed to Mieczyslaw.

Raphael: [eyebrows go up] Yeah, I think I'll stick with Stiles. [and he'll plop Ben down in front of a plate before sliding to grab his own] Do you want me to wake up Malia and Landon before sit?

Laura: [nods with a sigh] Yeah, tell 'em to move it or lose it.

Ben: Mischiefclaw?

Stiles: [smiles and ruffles Ben's hair] Close enough.

Cora: [Raph goes to disappear up the stairs while Cora hands Stiles a plate and goes to sit] Did you have fun with Grandpa, Ben?

Stiles: Thanks. [goes to sit next to her]

Ben: [hops into a seat and kneels on the chair next to Cora] Uh huh. He took me to see Lego Batman, and then we had ice cream sundaes!

Thomas: And then grandpa came home to go to bed and leave a hyper one with the younger set.

Cora: [she laughs] Then I guess I should be asking if you and Raph had fun?

Ben: We played video games and he taught me how to drive!

Cora: [squints a bit at that] Mario Kart, right?

Ben: With a steering wheel!

Cora: [relaxes again] Did you beat him yet?

Ben: Almost. He let me play Yoshi though.

Cora: Good. You'll beat him one day.

Malia: [and one teenager stumbles down and goes right for the coffee, and there are other footsteps, one of which is Landon who goes for Raph's pancakes and diverted when the larger man grabs his arm and turns him away]

Landon: [pouting] You really need to learn to share.

Ben: That isn't sharing. That’s stealing. Stealing is bad.

Landon: You're right. Stealing is bad. But it's not stealing if Raph graciously lets me have that plate out of the goodness of his giant werewolf heart. [and his eyes fall on Stiles and that is definitely an appreciative onceover.] Hi there.

Stiles: Hey. [is just taking all of this in]

Ben: This is my dad, Landon! We're going to the amusement park today.

Peter: [and the front door opens and Peter enters, having finished his morning jog around the property. He smells the new person in the kitchen and goes to it instantly. He sees Stiles there and, well he's the uncle and Stiles knocked Cora up. He's still angry about that and his glare says so]

Landon: Nice! That sounds like an excellent way to spend a Saturday.

Malia: [will wander over to Peter and place a cup of coffee in his hands] Your anger is distracting. [and that is your daughter politely requesting you to chill out]

Peter: If it was you, he'd be buried in the back yard. What was left of him. [takes the coffee and goes to the living room to read the paper.]

Ben: And I'm not going to puke this time, I promise.

Stiles: [laughs] That's a good thing to aim for, kiddo.

Malia: [rolls her eyes before taking two plates from Laura for her and Landon and going to sit next to her best friend]

Landon: On excellent goal. A good way to achieve that is to wait to have the funnel cake until the end of the day. At least in my copious roller coaster experience.

Ben: One of the guys are school said that if I drink a blue slushie before the coaster...

Thomas: Benjamin, this is not a good topic for when people are eating.

Ben: [slinks back a bit] Sorry Grandpa.

Landon: [leans in with a conspiratorial whisper] Not worth it.

Stiles: [leaning in behind Cora] Jolly Ranchers work better.

Thomas: [rubs at his eyes] I'm getting too old for this.

Cora: [sighs and looks at her dad] You don't have to spend the day with them.

Landon: You could stay here, me and Malia could go with them. Ben and I need to have a water blasters rematch anyway.

Ben: But Momma said she was going to come with us. You can come too though?

Landon: [glances to Cora and Stiles] Only if that's cool with your folks.

Cora: [glances to Stiles and shrugs]

Stiles: It's an amusement park. Big enough for all of them. But I'm not buying their tickets.

Landon: I would not expect you to.

Malia: You never expect to pay for anything.

Landon: That doesn't mean I was expecting him to pay for me.

Ben: I don't have any money. I'm six.

Stiles: [snorts]

Landon: [looks to Malia and bats his eyes]

Malia: [rolls her eyes] Alright, fine.

Stiles: So are you two? [motioning back and forth between Landon and Malia]

Landon: Oh, God no.

Malia: Landon's my best friend.

Stiles: Oh. Cool.

Landon: Oh, I should bring the ukulele.

Malia: Where are you going to play?

Landon: It is a long drive from here to Busch Gardens.

Stiles: [looks at Cora, one eyebrow up in an is he serious look]

Cora: Landon is a musician of ... varying styles.

Landon: I have a band. And I busk on the National Mall, and I have a regular gig at Cora's bar.

Malia: Don't forget the flash mobs.

Landon: Those are only by very special request.

Ben: He sings really good lullabies.

Landon: Those too.

Stiles: Man of many talents then.

Ben: But I can beat him in Mario Kart.

Landon: Video games, not my strong suit.

Stiles: We can't all be perfect.

Ben: [finishes his pancakes] Is it time to go now momma?

Cora: Yeah, kiddo. Go get your shoes on.

Malia: I still need to shower. Why don't Landon and I meet you guys there?

Ben: [and he will jump off his chair and go running to where they were in the living room]

Thomas: Stiles, before you leave let me give you my cell number. Give it to your dad and tell him to call me.

Stiles: Yes sir.

Cora: [nods a bit as she gathers the dishes] Yeah, sure. Text me when you get there.

Malia: [nods and wolfs down the rest of her plate before going to take a shower]

Ben: [runs back in, laces undone] I've got my shoes on!

Stiles: [looks over] Your laces aren't done, kiddo.

Ben: I know. I suck at laces.

Stiles: [smirks] Want me to show you a trick?

Ben: Okay.

Stiles: [and he will kneel down, having Ben bend down and he will show his son how to do the bunny ears method]

Cora: [and she will just watch that out of the corner of her eye and smile a little, before helping to finish cleaning up]

Ben: [and he will try and do the other shoe on his own and he gets it. It's sloopy, but he gets it and smiles and goes to hug his father and knocks him over] Thank you!

Cora: [lets them have that moment as she goes to track down his back pack and duffel bag]

Stiles: [and once he's done, Stiles will get that phone number from Thomas, and then go stand in the hallway with his hands in his pockets, waiting awkwardly because he doesn't know what to say to anyone anymore.]

Peter: [watching from over the edge of his paper, until Ben jumps in his lap to say goodbye, and he will chuckle and kiss his great-nephew's forehead] You be good for your parents today, okay?

Ben: I'm always good, Uncle Peter.

Cora: [will make her way over to Stiles and nudge him gently] You okay?

Stiles: Yeah. It's just... [he rubs at his nose a moment] It's nice to see you guys have resettled into a normal life again.

Cora: [she doesn't have to listen to his heartbeat to know there's something he's not saying there] Yeah. It took a while, but it's been good. Most of it, anyway.

Stiles: I'm happy for you.

Ben: [and he will come join them] I said goodbye to everyone.

Cora: [to Ben] Good. Take your backpack and go hop in the car, okay? [and once Ben does that she'll turn back to Stiles again] And for the record, you didn't miss everything with Ben. There are some things I somehow managed to save for you.

Stiles: Oh?

Cora: [nods a bit] Star Wars.

Stiles: What about Star Wars?

Cora: He hasn't seen it yet.

Stiles: [his eyes open wide] You denied him Star Wars? That's like a form of child abuse. I'm going to have to report you.

Cora: [and there's a bit of a look at that] I wanted him to watch them for the first time with you. I know I wasn't going to be able to do it forever, but right now he listens to me when I tell him he's not old enough for a movie.

Stiles: ... [he takes that in for a moment] I don't get it. You never called to tell me about him, even now that you're settled and safe with a stronger pack until I found you... yet you planned things like this for him?

Cora: [she gives a small shrug] Just because I didn't call you to tell you doesn't mean I didn't want to or hope that one day I'd be able to. But I was eighteen and scared and I was taught to trust and listen to my alpha, who was only twenty-four and doing the best she could. I wanted you to be in Ben's life, Stiles, even if I wasn't really sure how to make that happen at the time. So ... I made sure there were certain things that would still be there for you.

Stiles: [he gives her a small smile at that] Well, thank you. I appreciate that.

Cora: [a small smile in return, before taking a deep breath] And we should go before he starts shouting out the window.

Ben: [as if on cue] Are you coming?! I've been waiting forever!

Cora: [nods as though to say "you see my point"] Alright, we're coming. [and they'll both head out to the car to drive to the theme park!]

Stiles: [and off they go to have fun at the park!]

Cora: [and shenanigans ensue! roller coasters are ridden! Ben and Landon square off in an epic water guns match that ends in Landon winning a giant teddy bear he names Reggie that mysteriously winds up with Ben on his way home. But it's fine, because it leads to the adorable picture of Ben in the back seat snuggling a giant bear as they drive back to DC]

Stiles: [and he avoided the water guns claiming that he sucks, but more because he knew he was too good now at that kind of game and best not to give that away]

Cora: [probably for the best. And at the end of the day, after a long drive home, they're getting back to the city and she glances to him] Do you want me to drop you off?

Stiles: Nah, I can walk from your place.

Cora: Are you sure? Because it's not out of my way.

Stiles: Yeah, I'm sure. Probably going to grab a coffee or something as I go. It's fine.

Cora: Okay. [and they'll drive back to the apartment and she'll park her car] Did you have a good time today?

Stiles: I did. [looks back at Ben who's passed out against the bear] I'm really enjoying getting to know him. Though my father joked that him being like me was fate's revenge.

Cora: [she laughs] He keeps me on my toes, at least. It's not so bad though. [and she glances back to Stiles] But I'm glad it's going well.

Stiles: Same here. [he goes to unbuckle himself] Oh, I talked to my boss. Unless I have to go out of town for work, they'll get me out of work by 5 on Tuesdays, and I can be on call on Saturdays if not off. If I'm on call I just need to stay near a metro stop to get to the office, but yeah. They're willing to give me the time I need to spend time with Ben.

Cora: [nods with a small smile] Good. Hopefully he'll get used to you soon, so you won't be restricted to my days off all the time. [and she'll get out to go and unharness Ben] Hey, Benny. We're home.

Ben: [whimpers and just curls into the bear more]

Stiles: I can help you get him upstairs.

Cora: [nods as she goes to reach for the bear] Sure.

Stiles: [and he will go to pick up Ben gently once he's free from the booster seat, resting him against his shoulder as he grabs both bags from the floor to put over his other shoulder]

Cora: You sure you got it all?

Stiles: Yup. None of it is that heavy.

Cora: Okay. [and she'll lead the way up to the apartment and open the door for him] His room is the first one on the left. [the apartment is fairly lived in with a nice open floor plan, with three rooms partitioned off on the far end of the open area - two bedrooms and a bathroom]

Stiles: [and he will focus on getting Ben into his bed first, taking off his shoes and then tucking him in.] I'll see you again soon, kiddo. [and he will kiss his cheek and head out, leaving the door open a crack in case he was afraid of the dark. Then he will get a chance to actually look around the apartment] So it's just you two here?

Cora: [nods as she drops the teddy bear on the couch] Yeah. Malia crashes on the couch sometimes if I'm late getting back from work, but otherwise it's just us.

Stiles: How long have you been here, and not the new Hale House?

Cora: A couple years? This district of DC has pretty good schools and with Malia starting Georgetown, we wanted to give her an option if she would rather not stay in the dorms.

Stiles: [nods] Good plan. Oh, I forgot. [he pulls out his wallet and slides a check out from under it] This is for you. [it's a check for $5,000]

Cora: [glances down at it before shaking her head] Stiles, I don't need this.

Stiles: I know, but it's not for you. It's for Ben. Child support.

Cora: [she doesn't want to argue with him about the reason why she told him was not because she needed his money, and she doesn't want Ben to think that Stiles was paying to spend time with him. So she'll consider it for a moment, before modifying the description just slightly] College fund.

Stiles: That works. I'm going to set up an automatic payment from my bank to send you a check every month. HR figured with my salary it would be about six hundred a month right now. You can transfer it to the fund from there. [technically he is, just not in that way. His dad's lawyer wants Stiles to be uber cautious about this arrangement and to voluntarily pay child support so that if for any reason the relationship between Stiles and the Hales goes bad, he would have a legal backing to fight for visitation or custody. He wasn't going to do it at first, but his dad pressured him into it.]

Cora: Okay. If you want I can just give you the account number for the fund to make that easier. [she's been putting money in one since she got a job of her own after he was born]

Stiles: That's up to you.

Cora: [nods before moving to an area that basically functions as a makeshift desk to find a piece of bank mail with the account number on it] It'll be easier than sending me a check - things can get crazy sometimes, I wouldn't want to forget to deposit it. [even if she doesn't like the term, she understands what he's doing and she doesn't want to give him reason to believe she'd skirt around that. She finds the paper she's looking for, before moving to hand it to him] The account is in Ben's name, so make the check out to him.

Stiles: [he takes it and tucks it into his wallet] I'll do that. Oh, I need to get his social security number and date of birth so I can put him down as a beneficiary. And how is your medical insurance for him? We can sit and see if my benefit package would give you more options.

Cora: Date of birth is January 23, [insert a year here because what is figuring out timelines]. I'll write down his social for you. And my insurance is pretty good, because it's mostly for him? I don't get sick or wind up in the hospital a lot. But yeah, we can talk about it.

Stiles: Well, you have options now. You're not in it alone anymore. Not that you were really alone to begin with but you know what I mean.

Cora: Yeah, I do. [there's a small smile] If you come by Tuesday, you can bring the information and we can talk about it after Ben goes to bed.

Stiles: Alright. Want me to bring dinner?

Cora: Sure. I'll make sure he has his homework done before you get here.

Stiles: Pizza still the preferred fast food?

Cora: Yes it is. [and she sighs] And he likes pineapple on his.

Stiles: So one for me and the kid, and one for you. I'm sure if he inherits the wolf gene, his taste will change.

Cora: [she shrugs] We've still got a couple years before we figure that out.

Stiles: He knows about werewolves though, right?

Cora: Oh yeah. He was disappointed when you were human, remember?

Stiles: That is true. [wait until he learns his dad is a spy]

Cora: [she nods] Eight is usually when the first full moon happens, so we'll find out for sure then.

Stiles: So two years at minimum.

Cora: [she nods] Yep.

Stiles: I'm sure it will pass fast, but it's a lot of time still.

Cora: Yeah. And right now, I just want him to worry about being a kid.

Stiles: That's a good plan. Well, I should go so you ca enjoy the remaining minutes before he wakes up wanting your attention. Unless you think I should stay until he does wake up. I don't know what the protocol here is...

Cora: Actually, I think he'll probably be out for a good while. And you can stay, if you want, but you can also go if you need to.

Stiles: i just don't want to be in the way if you have things to do. I'm sure with how your work schedule is, Saturdays are precious.

Cora: Honestly, I'm probably going to wind up watching Netflix and passing out on the couch, so the company would not be an imposition.

Stiles: [he's going to pull out his phone to look at the time and any messages, biting his lip] No, I should head back. Scott's working the late shift and he'll be getting off in an hour and we usually have a guy's night at the diner. Maybe next time?

Cora: [she nods with a small smile] Sure. Tell Scott I said hi.

Stiles: I'll do that. He's looking forward to when he can meet Ben so he can completely ruin any good role model image I manage to make on him.

Cora: [she laughs] If he's free to come on Tuesday, I say bring him. I eventually have to get him up to meeting Lydia too.

Stiles: Scott has a date Tuesday. At least I think it's Tuesday.

Cora: Good for him. Then maybe we could plan something for next weekend.

Stiles: I'll see if he can get off, but he just started at this vet office so he gets the shifts no one else wants

Cora: Got it. We'll make it work.

Stiles: Good. Well, you have fun with your Netflix. [and he heads for the door]

Cora: [nods as she goes to walk him out] I'll see you Tuesday.

Stiles: See you Tuesday. [and with a wave he will head out]

Cora: [and she will watch until he gets out of view, before heading back inside and settling into her evening]


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