It's something, at least, that Stiles doesn't actually pull away after that first startled flinch, though it says too much about the state he's in. The state they've all let him get to--the lone, fragile human in their number, who throws himself into everything without regard for how easily broken he is.
"My body can deal with it," he snaps, and he knows it sounds defensive, but he can't seem to control his reactions when he deals with Stiles. "I'll be fine. You won't."
He scowls, gaze drawn back to the mottled bruising on Stiles' face from where it had drifted to the way his hands fidget between his legs, and his shoulders slump even more. He remembers this, remembers his human brother and cousins, the way their pains had lingered and how hard it had been for him and the others to understand. That they had to play gently with them, protect them, sometimes slow down so they could keep up. But mostly, care for them when the inevitable consequences of their humanity caught up with them, and he reaches out without thinking, fingers pressing gently to Stiles' cheek below the bruising so he can draw the pain out. It's one of the first things he remembers consciously learning, and at least he can do this, even if he screws everything else up. He doesn't have to be a monster, even if he is, doesn't have to kill, even if he has, repeatedly. He can heal too.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2014-09-15 04:58 pm (UTC)"My body can deal with it," he snaps, and he knows it sounds defensive, but he can't seem to control his reactions when he deals with Stiles. "I'll be fine. You won't."
He scowls, gaze drawn back to the mottled bruising on Stiles' face from where it had drifted to the way his hands fidget between his legs, and his shoulders slump even more. He remembers this, remembers his human brother and cousins, the way their pains had lingered and how hard it had been for him and the others to understand. That they had to play gently with them, protect them, sometimes slow down so they could keep up. But mostly, care for them when the inevitable consequences of their humanity caught up with them, and he reaches out without thinking, fingers pressing gently to Stiles' cheek below the bruising so he can draw the pain out. It's one of the first things he remembers consciously learning, and at least he can do this, even if he screws everything else up. He doesn't have to be a monster, even if he is, doesn't have to kill, even if he has, repeatedly. He can heal too.