Look I'm in my accidental baby inquisition faze.

Did you know that, technically, Eli was supposedly born before the entire series? I didn't. Derek would have been 22 I think, which is a normal age to have a child, especially one you don't know about.

This is according to the Wiki timeline, but the Wiki literally contradicts itself by saying the movie is 15 years after the show, and Eli is 15. Ergo, he couldn't have been born in 2011, before the show.

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Six months later.

"Elijah Hale?"

The only words on the note that came with the child who was left at the Beacon Hills police department at 3 in the morning. He had wandered in with an envelope and his stuffed bunny in his hands.

The on-duty officer ran outside to look for his parents but found no one, not even a car nearby. Reading the note, they hesitantly call up the only Hale in town currently.

"Um, yes. Sorry, I know how late it is- Sir, just... I'm from the police department. Could you come down to the station? It's urgent." The officer gets out through my angry growls and groans.

"Why?" I manage to get out, realising it has to be serious enough to call me this late.

"A child?" The officer says watching the sleepy child crawl into a ball on a chair.

"A child?" I ask in disbelief.

"Yes, um... An Elijah Hale? Do you know him?" The officer asks.

I frown. "No..."

The officer yelps slightly. "Well, uh, could you still-"

I cut him off with a sigh. "Fine. I'll be there soon."

The officer doesn't get to respond before the line is disconnected. Stiles rolls over sleepily looking up at me, his boyfriend.

"A child?" He repeats, unsure of what he has heard.

I look over at him and my face softens. "Sorry for waking you. Yeah, apparently there's a child with the last name Hale at the station. Could you come with me to work this out?" I ask softly.

He tilts his head in confusion. "Me? Why?"

I groan. "I'm not exactly the best with children, and I have no idea how old he is, or even who he is. His name is Elijah apparently."

He nods his head softly, sitting up with a stretch. "He's probably scared. I mean if he's a little kid. He might be a teen who got arrested." He mumbles.

I lean over and place a kiss on his forehead. "Thanks." I say before standing up and pulling on the first pair of pants I see.

Stiles does the same and we're both dressed quickly and at the station in about twenty minutes.

I walk through the door and head over to the officer at the desk. "Are you the officer I talked to about the kid?"

He nods and looks behind me. "Stiles?"

Stiles smiles slightly and waves. "Where's the child?" He asks.

"Uh..." The officer blinks a few times before getting past the fact Stiles was here. "In here. I put him in here so he could sleep." He says a lot calmer now that he knows Stiles is here.

I look around the doorframe and down at the small bundle on the armchair. He is so small; he couldn't be more than three. Snuggled up to a bunny toy.

Stiles looks in and "Aww!" He smiles walking into the room and sitting on the floor near the child. "You guys talk, I'll watch over him." He whispers softly waving us away. I can't help but smile at his own.

I walk back out to the main area. "So you said his name is Elijah Hale?"

The officer nods following me. He picks up a note and hands it to me. I read it and frown. The scent coming off of it was familiar but barely.

"I don't know who this kid is." I say looking at the guy.

Suddenly Stiles comes running into the room. "Derek! He's your son?" I look at him, confused, and he holds up another piece of paper; it's crumpled.

I take it off him and read it. It's a birth certificate, the mother's name is scratched out but there's my name in bold print.

"Where did you find this?" I ask.

Stiles rubs his neck. "In his clothes, a pocket. I saw it sticking out and grabbed it. I couldn't help but read it and... Yeah."

Suddenly, it hit me: I knew who his mother was; she was a violent werewolf that I had slept with when I was going through my grief. I left her because she got to be so much; I didn't know she was pregnant, though.

I pout thinking about how this kid had to deal with her. "Can you check to see if this is real?" I ask looking at the officer.

He nods and scans it, finding it's real and the mother's name. "Do you know her?" He asks pointing to the screen.

I sigh. "What do I have to do to make sure he never sees her again?" I ask ignoring the question.

"Derek?" Stiles asks placing his hand on my shoulder. "You're just accepting him as your own."

I turn to him. "He is mine. And even if he's not, I'm not letting him go back to her!" I yell surprisingly angry.

He nods taking a step back.

I sigh. "Sorry. I'll explain later. Could you check on him?" I ask softly.

He smiles gently and nods walking back into the room. I turn back the the officer who was just watching us.

"So?" I ask as if that didn't just happen.

"Uh... I mean, it's a legal problem, but there's nothing stating you're not allowed to take him home. Legally, you're his father, so... Um, but to stop her from taking him, you have to go through the court." He says nervously.

I nod as I see Stiles walking through the door with a now barely awake toddler. "I can take him now?"

The officer nods. "Yeah, I just need you to sign, just so I can put it in the system that he's in your care."

I do so. Stiles walks up to me, rocking the boy as he starts tiredly crying. "Shh, it's okay. Look, this is your dad; he's going to take care of you." Stiles mumbles.

Elijah cries more. I finish signing the papers and turn taking the boy into my arms, facing away from the officer before flashing my eyes at the child. 'If he has two werewolf parents then he should respond.' He does momentarily quiet down before screaming and reaching for Stiles.

Stiles comes into my eyesight, and he takes him off of me with an awkward smile as if to say, 'It's okay, he'll come around to you eventually.' The child calms slightly, crying into Stiles' shoulder.

I sigh and turn back to the officer. "Can we go now?"

He nods handing me a note. "Just take this. If you get pulled over and asked why you don't have a car seat show them this and tell them to call the station."

"Thanks." I say taking it and walking out the door, Stiles and Elijah following behind.

We climb into the car; Stiles holds Elijah tight in his arms, buckling the seat belt over the both of them. I look over at them and frown.

Stiles notices and sighs. "What's up, Der?" He shakes his head and smiles when I sigh again. "Look, we'll work this out, together. For now, let's just get him home, so he can sleep." He says softly looking down at the now calmer toddler.

"I know that Stiles. I just... It's just out of the blue. I'm not going to just throw him out. He's my child." I say starting up the car.

"You sure?" He asks softly as the child starts to fall asleep in his arms.

"Yes. I know his mother, a horrible werewolf. And he smells... It's a werewolf thing, we can sense our kin. He's mine. And there's no way I'd let any child be in her care, even if they're not mine." I explain, starting to drive off.

He nods. "Then we'll do whatever we can for him." He mumbles.

"You don't have to help me." I start but I can feel his glare on the side of my head. I sigh and smile. "Thank you."

"I'm not going to leave you with a child to take care of. You said when I moved in that everything in the loft is ours; he's going to be there, so he's our responsibility." He says with surprising maturity, upset I would even think differently.

I quickly turn to him at a red light. "I know Stiles. But it's not fair on you. I'm just giving you the option, I wouldn't hate you if left-"

"Derek, just... I want to help. It's not fair on you either. I'm not leaving."

I nod and start driving again. "We'll get through the night and talk about what we're going to do tomorrow." I say ending the conversation.

We drive the rest of the way home in silence, and Stiles carries the child inside, laying him on the couch.

"He needs a bed." He mumbles placing the bunny under his arm. "And more clothes."

"And a lot of things Stiles. We'll get them in the morning." I say, softly placing a hand on his shoulder. "Come to bed."

He nods, quickly grabbing a hoodie and placing it over the child like a blanket. "Poor thing."

I gently grab his hand and drag him over to the bed. "He'll be there in the morning." I say softly wrapping him in my arms, kissing the top of his head and pulling him down onto the bed.

He laughs softly. "Okay." He sighs climbing over to his side of the bed and laying down.

I get under the covers and face him. "Goodnight Stiles."

He smirks. "Goodnight, Daddy Derek." He chuckles as I push him lightly, and he rolls to face away from me.

I pull him tight against my chest, hearing his heartbeat slow. Now two slow heartbeats in the room, two slow rhythmic breaths, slowly luring me to sleep.

With a bang, squeal and a giggle, I'm startled awake. I sit up, jumping out of bed and running to the kitchen only to find... 'Elijah, right, my son.' I sigh dragging a hand down my face as he holds a pot in his hand.

He frowns and tries to say something. "Ha, grr meh." Before squealing again, dropping the pot and running behind me.

I turn to see Stiles sleepily pick him up. "Hiya, Eli." He mumbles. "You woke us up. Guess we gotta baby-proof the loft." He walks over to me and smiles.

Elijah looks at me and frowns again.

"What's his problem?" I ask leaning against the counter. "Elijah, I'm your dad, not him."

Elijah crosses his arms and looks away. Stiles just laughs. "Maybe he didn't like you trying to control him like a werewolf."

"Stiles, he is a werewolf." I grumble, turning to make myself a coffee.

"He's also a little kid. You probably scared him."

"I scared him?" I bend down to pick up the pot. "I'm the one who got woken up by him."

Stiles laughs. "You do realise you're upset at a toddler."

I sigh and shake my head chuckling at how stupid that is. "Yeah, okay. I'm sorry." I turn back around and walk up to Elijah, bending down to his level. "Hey, look, I'm sorry if I scared you last night. Can we be friends?" I ask holding my hand out.

He hums in thought. "Da, mah!" He shakes his head pushing my hand away.

I frown, standing up straight. "Stiles, aren't kids his age meant to be able to talk? I mean, he seems smart and aware enough."

Stiles shrugs. "I don't know. I think so. Maybe he's just delayed. I think I read somewhere that kids who are... Um, ignored... Tend to be developmentally behind." He says, getting sadder as he speaks.

I nod. "Well, not anymore." I continue to make my coffee and take a sip before an idea comes to mind. "Maybe we should call Melissa. She's a nurse and a mother. Just so we make sure we're helping him properly and get what he needs."

He nods, adjusting the boy in his arms. "I'll ring her at a more appropriate hour. See if she'll come shopping for some stuff. I'll call my dad, too."

I take another sip and sigh. "And what about the pack?" He tilts his head, and Elijah copies him laughing. "It's meeting night. We're going to have to bring him."

Stiles hums in thought. "Maybe Dad or Melissa could babysit, or I could stay home."

I shake my head. "They'll smell him on me. We have to bring him, he's pack now too, technically."

Stiles nods again as Elijah starts making grabby hands and points to his stomach. Stiles laughs. "I think he's hungry."

"So give him some of your snacks." I say, walking off to the lounge area.

-

We get to the auto shop early to set up an area for him to play, and Stiles calls the "adults" to meet them there, being as vague as he possibly can and having to convince them.

"No, no one is hurt. Yes, it's serious, though. No, I can't tell you over the phone. Just meet us at Hale Auto." He has basically the same conversation with both of them.

"Stiles? You have a child?" Noah says, surprised, walking into the auto shop office.

His son nods for a second, from the floor. "This is Eli. He seems a little behind on his speech." He says, his thoughts drifting slightly as he watches the child try to say something in his arms.

Noah shakes his head. "No, I meant, why do you have a child?"

I sigh, leaning forward in my chair behind the desk. "Didn't check last night's reports, Sheriff?" I joke. "According to the database, he's mine. He showed up alone at your station last night."

"Yours?" He asks in disbelief.

"Yep, I can confirm, even though I had no idea about him until yesterday." I say, tapping my nose.

He nods in understanding. "Is he the urgent thing you needed me for?" He asks.

Stiles looks up at him. "Yeah, uh... Neither of us know how to raise a child." He says sheepishly.

"And you think I do?" Noah asks.

Suddenly, a female laugh comes through the door. "I'm guessing that's why they called me as well." Melissa says as she sees the boy. "Aww, look at you." She gestures to grab him.

Stiles hands him over. "His name is Eli, Elijah. Derek's son." He says quickly before standing up and walking to his dad. "Actually, Dad, I called you because I remember Mom saved some of my old clothes and stuff. Though maybe we might have some that could work for him."

Noah nods again. "Right! Yeah, I think they're up in the attic. I have to get to work soon, but you can go through it. You still got the keys to the house?" Stiles nods.

Melissa holds her hand up. "So I'm gonna guess I'm here to help with the actual parenting stuff."

I sigh and stand up. "Just advice and... Yeah. I know Stiles didn't ask if you were free today, but could you go with him to buy stuff? We're clueless about this stuff. And I have work to do here."

She nods and smiles down at Elijah. "Sure. I'm guessing you need like everything? Car seat?" I nod. "Right, well, Stiles, we should get going then." She stands up, toddler still in her arms. "Noah, we'll go to your house after buying at least a car seat."

She receives a nod from the sheriff. "You got a note for him not being in a car seat?" He asks. Stiles nods, patting his pockets and pulling out the piece of paper. "Alright, be careful." He says as the three of them disappear.

We watch them get into Melissa's car and drive off. I walk back over to my desk and look through my papers.

Noah sighs. "You sure you're ready to raise a child?" He asks.

"I don't really have a choice. I remember his mother, not a nice wolf. He's not going back to her, not that I think she wants him. Who else would, one, know I live in Beacon Hills, and two, drop him off at the station?" I say before leaning back. "And he's like ninety per cent going to be a werewolf, considering his parents both are. I don't think I could put him in the system, not that I want to. Werewolf bond and all that." I rant.

He smiles softly at me. "And Stiles?"

I smile back, shaking my head. "So far, he's doing better than me. It's like he's the one that has the bond, he wants to do this."

"You've been dating maybe six months, right? Don't you think it's a little rushed?" He says softly, with no hint of judgement.

I laugh. "Our whole relationship is kinda rushed, living together straight away. I thought so, too. I told him he doesn't have to help, but he wants to. Literally would not let me think about doing this alone."

He nods. "Okay, just... You have help if he's too much. Maybe have me at the bottom of that list." He jokes. "But we'll help out."

"Thanks, I know. We've gotta introduce him to the pack tonight, which... Is going to be so fun." I say sarcastically. He nods and checks his watch. "But uh... You've probably gotta get back to work. I'll let you leave."

He chuckles and nods goodbye with a small wave. "I'm too young to be a goddamn grandpa!" I hear him mumble under his breath, causing me to chuckle.

The rest of the day goes by normally with the occasional worried thought about how Stiles is doing with my child. I let out a worried breath I didn't know I was holding when I get home and smell both of them in the loft.

"I'm home!" I call walking into the room.

Stiles grabs Elijah's hand and walks over to me. "Say hi to dad, Eli!" He says, stopping when they reach me.

"Ha!" Eli says cheerfully.

I kneel down to his level. "Did you have fun with Stiles and Melissa today?" The small boy takes a step back but nods. 'He understands but can't talk?'

"We got him a lot. Mainly a car seat, which Melissa said we should probably get another so we both have one in our cars, oh and a bed." He says, pointing behind him to a small wooden bed near the couch. "And my dad had a bunch of clothes and toys, so I grabbed what I could. And-"

"Stiles!" I stand up and kiss his cheek. "Thank you. He's probably going to be the most spoilt child in town with our pack, even more so than you and Scott were."

Stiles scoffs. "We were not spoilt!"

"His mom is a nurse, and your dad is the Sheriff. Eli's going to get out of trouble so easily, just like you two did." I laugh as he submits and nods. "Anyway, I'm going to clean up, then we can head to Scott's. If we get there early, we can slowly introduce him to the pack as they arrive instead of scaring him all at once."

"Good idea. I'll pack some stuff." He says, picking up Eli and taking him over to the small area now covered in toys and blankets.

I smile, watching them for a moment before heading off to take my shower. I walk out in my towel like always and head over to change.

"Should you be changing in front of him?" Stiles asks.

I pull on my pants and shrug. "I don't know. I mean, he's just a little kid, and it's not like he doesn't have the same parts."

Stiles hums, still not sure. "True, I guess. Plus, it's not like we have a spare room or anything."

I frown and look around the room. "Yeah, if he's going to be living with us, we might need somewhere more divided. Looks like we're gonna have to save up for a house."

"Yeah, for now, we should get a gate or something and make a corner for him. I've already baby-proofed everything I can think of."

I pull on my shirt and shoes. "Come on, let's go." I say, grabbing my keys.

"Uh, actually, I put the car seat in my car. So we have to take that." He says, picking up Eli and a bag.

I sigh and nod, grabbing his keys instead. We walk out to the car and get in, Stiles buckles him up, and we head to Scott's apartment, knocking loudly.

"Hey! You guys are earl- is that a baby?" Scott asks, cutting himself off.

"Gah!" Eli says proudly, pointing to himself.

"Long story, I mean, not really, but I'm going to be repeating it all night, so Scott, this is Elijah, my son. The newest member of your pack." I sigh, pushing through with Stiles and Eli behind me.

"Right!" Scott laughs awkwardly. "Your son." He closes the door and walks into the lounge room. "Could I get a little bit more information?"

Stiles sighs, putting the child down. "Derek impregnated a mean werewolf lady, and she dropped the child off at the police station. Now Derek has a child." He follows after Eli, who has run around the couch I'm sitting on.

I lean over and grab him on his second lap, Stiles sighing and plopping next to us.

"So you just... Have a child now?" Scott asks, sitting across from us.

I nod. "Yep, I mean, I could adopt him out like Malia was." I feel Stiles stiffen. "But we saw how that went wrong, and plus, my wolf instincts are telling me not to do that." Eli stands up in my lap and starts running his hands over my face.

"Oh, hey. He's finally warming up to you." Stiles smiles, then turns to Scott. "He tried using his werewolf eyes to stop him from crying and scared the shit out of him."

"Stiles!" I scold.

"What?" He looks at me, confused.

"Language. I know he's not talking, but..." I sigh. "I don't want his first words to be a swear word or adjacent."

Stiles nods in understanding. "Oh yeah, didn't even realise I swore."

Scott chuckles. "You're really taking on the dad role, huh?"

"Have to. His mother didn't even care enough to teach him simple words." I mumble.

Stiles nods. "I asked your mom, and she said he should be speaking full sentences by now. I mean, still baby talk but real words. But I haven't heard him say a single actual word, and I've been with him every second for nearly twenty-four hours."

Scott frowns. "You spoke with my mom?"

I nod. "She's a lifesaver. She took Stiles shopping for everything we could possibly need." I feel Eli's hands scratch at my stubble.

Scott continues to frown. "And Stiles was with him all day, not you?"

I go to respond, but Stiles cuts in. "It's okay. He had work, and your mom would have preferred to take me shopping anyway." He defends. "Plus, Eli preferred me and has already grown on me."

Suddenly, a knock is heard. Scott sighs and answers the door to Lydia, who walks in and just stares at Eli. "I don't want to ask."

We explain it to her, and thankfully, she just accepts it quickly. We do the same for everyone who arrives. Some of them laugh, others gush over the cute child, and others pretend to be upset by the new addition to the pack.

Cora was annoying to explain it to. She had just gotten back tonight from an unexplained trip out of town.

"Wait, so I'm an auntie? Dude, I'm not even twenty-three yet."

"To be fair, he didn't know." Stiles laughs.

She makes a face. "So, does that make you his new mommy, Stiles?" She teases.

Everyone pauses what they are doing because 'Yeah, what would Stiles be to Eli?' Even Eli looks up, more copying the adults in the room, tilting his head from Kira's lap.

"Uh..." Stiles doesn't know how to respond. "I guess..." He says in thought.

I sigh. "No, Stiles. Y-" He looks over at me, hurt slightly. "I mean, we wouldn't use that term, right? It might confuse him." I mumble, shrinking under his gaze, not wanting him to look so sad.

"Aww, Derek's gone all soft. He gets a boyfriend and now a baby; they're a happy little family." She teases again.

I roll my eyes at my little sister's antics. "Okay, that's enough, Cora." I sigh.

She nods, listens, and smiles. "It's gonna be weird having a kid in the pack again." She mumbles, walking over to him and finishing our conversation. Everyone had returned to their things.

I turn back to Stiles, who is slightly pouting. I lean over and whisper in his ear. "I didn't mean it like "I don't want you in his life", I do. I just meant you probably don't want to be called mom or similar stuff. You should choose what he should call you when he finally can."

He nods. "Yeah, thanks for clearing that up. I'll think about it." He says, his usual smile back on his face as he pecks my cheek.

"Good. Because he's not going anywhere, and neither are you." I mumble, wrapping my arm around him.

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Does Derek come across as a bad parent? I was trying to get across the tough guy awkwardness, but I feel like he's just flip-flopping between loving and hating Eli, which is not what I want. Derek loves Eli, they have an automatic bond.

I barely remember Cora, so I feel like she's 100% out of character, but honestly, they all are at this point.

Grammarly updated during my writing of this chapter and added commas everywhere.

The next chapter might take longer to come out. I wrote this all in a hyperfocused few days, around doing my usual stuff. I have an idea for the next chapter, but I don't know if I'm gonna continue this past that.

Love ya

Drew X