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A few warnings:
1. I wrote this after watching "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog" 4 times in a row. I expect the judgment.
2. I do not expect every reader to have seen the aforementioned musical (and you don't need to to understand this fic), but I do encourage you to watch it, free on YouTube! Totally worth it, it changed my life. Here's the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Of9kHpCv1ts BTW IT HAS FELICIA DAY AS THE FEMALE LEAD SO WATCH IT
3. I understand that their relationship moves fast af. Just imagine that there's a shitload of sexual tension from all of their years of butting heads.
4. This is unbeta'd, so there's a good chance that there are a few "Aloha Man"'s in there. Sorry.
5. THERE ARE TWO ENDINGS! Therefore, if you are unhappy with the the first, just keep right on going to the second. For the record, I wrote the first one originally, then wondered what it would be like if it was different, thus the second. Enjoy!
-----
"I'd say if I had to choose, I'd pick Star Wars over Star Trek." Dr. Horrible adjusted the webcam he had connected to his admittedly shitty laptop. "I mean, Star Trek is classic and has the most amazing character plot lines, but Star Wars has outstanding character development and is definitely legendary. No one can beat it. But let's move on to the next ask. 'How did the public statement at the mayor's office go? Did it...actually...accomplish anything." His voice fizzled out and he glared at the camera. "Of course it did! You'll probably hear about it within the next few days. And I'm not one for giving out spoilers, but I will say that you should take a look at the mural in the main office." He paused to snicker. "I only go for the big guys. I don't have time for a grudge match with every poser in a parka. I don't need your negativity in my life."
"Anyways, I have to mention that I've been getting further in the application process for the Evil League of Evil. They keep sending me letters and fliers, so a big thank-you to everyone who kept cheering me on. Making a difference in the world of evil would be my wildest dream. I'm gonna get there, guys. The status is not quo." He really likes this whole "Dr. Horrible" thing. It makes him feel good, feel powerful. It's been awhile since anyone had called him by what he used to be, back when he didn't care about change and when the world was simple and innocent. Back when he was—
"Stiles!" A voice said, and he jumped.
"Scott!" He flicked the monitor off and whirled on his friend. "What have I told you? Call me Dr. Horrible." Now he'd have to edit that part out later. Annoying.
Scott rolled his eyes, as if he was the one that was long-suffering. Stiles begged to differ. "Honestly, you've been my best friend forever. There's no way I'm just dropping your name. Also, Dr. Horrible isn't even a good villain name. I thought we've been over this? You could've come up with something more creative. You're smart enough to find a good synonym."
Now it was Stiles's turn to roll his eyes. "We have been over this, because now I'm going to tell you that Dr. Horrible is simple and has a good promise of impending doom to it. You're just jealous that you don't have a supervillain name."
"Stiles, my smile literally makes me light up. All of my names would be too lame. Bright Boy? Bright Lite? No. I'm not some badly-named super-sidekick."
"Fine Scotty," Stiles relented, hands up in surrender. "The warehouse is a safe place."
"Thanks," Scott said, but he obviously didn't think Stiles was doing him a favor.
"Oh! Man, how was your date last night? I almost forgot."
Scott immediately began to blush. "Fine. It went fine."
Stiles smiled slyly. "Oh, it looks like it went a lot better than fine."
Scott ducked his head. "She wants to go out again." He rubbed the back of his neck. "She's really, really pretty."
"Yeah, Silver Huntress is definitely a babe." When Scott looked up he was smiling, and Stiles shielded his eyes. "Man, you've got to warn a guy when you do that. Put that away!" Immediately room darkened. "Thank you. Well, I'm glad it went well, buddy."
"And what about you?" Scott asked. "What about your girl?"
Stiles busied himself as he toyed with his unfinished freeze ray. "Lydia? She's not even...I mean...she's not my girl. You can hardly call us acquaintances. I told her I loved her dress the other day. Pretty sure she thinks I'm a weird gay guy."
Scott raised his eyebrows. "She's two-thirds right then. You're weird, and half-gay. Two of the three."
Stiles glared. "Shut up, Scott. I should probably get heading over there anyways."
"So you can make sure you don't miss her again?"
Stiles scoffed. "No, because I need to make sure that I get back home in time to do some great conniving before bed." He turned to go. "She goes to do her laundry at the same time every Tuesday and Friday anyway." The entire room lit up behind his back, but Stiles ignored it and slammed the warehouse door behind him.
-----
Lydia looked really good, but if Stiles was being honest with himself, she looked good every day. He wanted to say that he loved her hair, and he had his mouth open and everything. She was right there, opening her washer to pour her clothes in, and he tried to say it—but all that came out was a jumbled, mumbled mess of garbled syllables that didn't even sound vaguely like English. Luckily, she didn't look.
Stiles sighed and placed his own clothes in his washer, exactly three machines down from her. If only his freeze ray was finished. Then he could freeze the whole freaking world until he came up with the courage to talk to her.
"I love your hair," he blurted, some of the words sticking to his tongue.
"What?" she asked, eyes curious.
"I...I said I love the...air...heh." She nodded and smiled warily at him, and great. Now she probably thought that he was a lunatic.
He was so lame.
"How did it go?" Scott asked when he got home.
"I feel like we're getting closer to a, you know, real audible connection." Stiles said uncertainly, then shut himself away in one of his side closet laboratories. Time to get that freeze ray done, with this new encouragement and all.
.._.._.._.._.._.._.._.._..
It was Wednesday—a non-laundry day—when Stiles was out in the streets, watching a van park right outside of the BioLife building off of Main. They were transporting the last ingredient for his freeze ray: Wonderflonium. He had a carefully laid-out plan that would go perfectly if he pulled it off right. Stiles took out his phone and opened up the specially-designed app he had made earlier that week, then reached into his pocket and produced a cylinder-shaped magnet. He took aim and lobbed it at the black van, silently cheering when it landed on top and began blinking a faint red. Success.
He looked down at his phone to see that it had connected properly. His fingers hovered over the buttons, ready to move the van the second it was loaded with the Wonderflonium, when a voice behind him made him yelp.
"Hello? How are you? I was wondering if you had a minute to sign this petition."
Stiles whirled around to see none other than Lydia standing there with her perfect hair and wide eyes, gripping a clipboard. "Guh...wha?" He garbled.
"I'm collecting signatures for this petition, do you have a minute?" She sounded a bit impatient, but her face lit up with faint recognition. "I know you."
"You what? I don't..I know...recognition is a funny thing," he stumbled, praying she didn't recognize him as Dr. Horrible. Not yet, anyways.
She raised one perfect eyebrow at him. "Laundry?"
"Oh yeah every Tuesday and Friday," he blurted, then realized what he just admitted to and internally smacked himself. "You know, if you're who I think you might be."
"Well I'm Lydia," she held out her hand.
"Stiles," he replied, and he shook quickly before returning to his phone. "I would stop texting if this wasn't so important." He explained quickly, holding his phone close to him so that she wouldn't see the screen. "I'll sign."
She looked amused. "You don't even know what it's for."
He tapped his foot impatiently. "What is it for?"
"Funding for another homeless shelter. If we get enough signatures, we should be able to open another building for homeless people to—"
"You're not attacking the problem at its roots." Stiles immediately said. "You're trying to treat a symptom. You're not curing the disease."
She tilted her head. "Are you calling the homeless a disease?"
He shook his head, exasperated. "No, I'm calling our society a disease. Homelessness is a symptom." Then paused. "Sorry for being intense. I'll sign."
"Thanks." She gave him the pen and he scribbled his signature. "See you on laundry day, Stiles."
He had already turned to check out the van. "Yeah, see you..." He said distractedly, already thinking about his plan. Then he froze. The girl of his dreams talked to him. They had a conversation. "Why now?" He moaned, looking at her retreating figure. Then he turned his attention to the man placing a steel briefcase into the back of the van. There was no doubt in his mind that it was Wonderflonium. Stiles quickly changed into his Dr. Horrible suit—which was really just a lab coat (complete with arm-length gloves) and a pair of special gadget goggles. It didn't do much, but it provided him with a great disguise and some coverage from superheroes.
Or, well, one in particular.
Stiles steered the hijacked van away from the driver who was circling around to get into the seat, leaving the man shouting and waving his hands around. He chuckled maniacally to himself, and if he was honest his evil laughs were getting much better each day. He was running after it when all of a sudden a black figure came from out of an alley and jumped on top of the van, ruining the connection Stiles had with his magnetic car driving device. He watched as the figure took ahold of it and threw it off the van. "No!" Stiles exclaimed, frustrated. He turned his malice towards the van, but quickly found himself watching in horror as it barreled towards Lydia, who was standing frozen in the middle of the street.
The figure on top of the van quickly swooped inside the driver seat from the roof of the vehicle and stomped on the break. The car stopped a mere foot away from Lydia. She stumbled backwards and fell into a pile of garbage. "You could have killed her!" Stiles stormed up to the figure. It turned, and he wasn't surprised to see Alpha Man, his arch nemesis.
"I could have killed her?" The guy growled. His eyes flashed red. "You're the one with the remote control to the van."
"Oh yeah, because I get a huge kick out of killing civilians!" Stiles bit back. "You're the one who yanked off my control device, dumbass!"
Alpha man shoved him up against the van hood. "Well maybe if you weren't trying to steal, I wouldn't have had to."
"Stop getting in my goddamn way!"
"Yes, I want to stop you every week!" Alpha Man's eyes looked like they were burning.
"Wow, sarcasm, that's original!"
"Help, please?" Lydia's voice came from the trash pile, and Alpha Man let go of Stiles's neck to help her out. Stiles took that moment to bolt, grabbing the Wonderflonium as he went, and was delighted to see that Alpha Man didn't even bother following. It seemed like he was more of a nuisance than a threat in that guy's eyes, and it was both annoying as hell and a really good thing.
Stiles watched though, in disgust and agony, as Lydia and Alpha Man smiled and conversed. To her, he was the great guy who saved the day. She laughed and tossed her perfect hair over her shoulder, clutching her clipboard. Derek smiled back tentatively. Stiles threw his hands up in the air. They were probably singing about their love for each other and all of their perfectly pretty future babies and stupid good-ness in general. It was disgusting to think about, not to mention disheartening to a lovesick super villain. He sighed with distaste, then ran back to his warehouse lair with his prize.
-----
Scott was not very sympathetic. That's something Stiles had learned over the long years of their friendship.
"I fucking glow!" He lamented. "You can't complain to me about your problems with a girl you refuse to talk to when I. Glow."
Stiles scowled at his supposed best friend. "We had a conversation! And now she's totally over the moon—pun intended—for Alpha Man! He steals my thunder, my girl, my publicity! What does that man not have?"
"Evil tendencies," Scott rather unhelpfully pointed out. Stiles stomped away. What did Scott know anyways? He was still bitter about the fact that his only superpower was to glow.
"Argh!"
-----
Alpha Man looked down at the redhead and considered her offer. All 5'4 of her was looking up at him with her intelligent eyes, and even though she looked calm, her hands tightly clutched her clipboard to her chest. Her lips were pursed in a business-like matter, her eyes boring determinedly in his own.
"If you do this, you have the chance to change the lives of the people you protect. You'll have a say in the change." She paused. "What do you say?"
He contemplated, wondering if this is what his parents would have wanted. Wondering if this was what he wanted. "Okay," he finally said. "What do I have to do?"
"Come when I call," she said. "There is one catch, though..."
-----
"You want me to what?" Stiles adjusted his goggles, staring wide-eyed at Lydia.
"It's not that hard, Dr. H. Just work with us and Alpha Man to achieve your goal of bettering Beacon Hills." Lydia said, clutching her clipboard. She had cornered him near his lair after a failed attempt at stealing some scrap metal for his freeze ray (stopped by Alpha Man once again). How she knew where to find him he didn't know, but he just chalked it up to her obvious brilliance and overall amazing qualities.
"Did you see what he just did to me? What he's been doing to me for years? Why would I want to work for my enemy?"
"Not for, Dr. H. With. We're asking you to be equal business partners with Alpha Man. All of us hate the people in power, and we need to band together to overcome their rule."
Stiles crossed his arms and stared at her skeptically. "What does Alpha Man think about all of this?"
She sighed. "He's as happy about it as you are, but he understands the importance of coming together to eradicate the powers that have overtaken our city."
"What exactly did you have in mind?"
-----
Stiles is following one of Lydia's co-workers through a dark labyrinth of metal walls and hallways, their footsteps clanking with no stealth as they made their way deeper into the headquarters.
"What are we doing first?" He asked, mollified by the whole situation.
"Well before we can do anything, we have to introduce you to someone."
"Cool! Who?"
Lydia opened the door at the end of the hall. "Meet Alpha Man." The hero was sitting, but immediately stood to greet them.
"This asshole?" Stiles threw his hands up. "Believe me, I know Alpha Man. He thwarts all my brilliant plans."
"Well they can't be all that brilliant then, can they?"
"Stop undermining me!"
"Stop putting people in danger!"
"Boys!" Lydia said sharply. "You have to make up. You have to put your past behind you. This is for the greater good. You both want the same thing, and you need to work together for this common goal. Now make up, and you aren't getting out of here until you do." With that she slammed the door behind them.
Stiles looked around for a minute, because the silence between him and Alpha Man was pretty awkward. The room had metal walls and metal doors, concrete floors, and a single huge metal table in the middle. Many metal chairs were pulled up around it, and it had metal benches lining the entire perimeter of the room. Just a lot of metal shit, which was probably the cheapest.
"So." Stiles said. Alpha Man grunted back. "Yeah, this isn't going to work if you don't talk to me."
Alpha Man was silent.
"Cmon wolf boy. You know you want to say something." Nothing again. Stiles sighed. "Fine, I'll start. My real name is Stiles. Stilinski. My parents wanted me to have a superhero name so they made my nickname and last name start with the same consonant. Wade Wilson and Clark Kent and all that jazz. I'm twenty-five years old. I don't have any real powers except my brilliant mind. Been a villain for ten years."
There was more silence. Then—
"Derek," he said quietly.
"What?" Stiles looked at him curiously.
Alpha Man looked startled, as if he didn't know that he said anything out loud. "Derek," he repeated more confidently, but he's steadily looking at the ground. "My real name is Derek Hale, and I used to have a family." Stiles gently sat down on one part of the metal bench, regarding Alpha Man with a mixture of surprise and curiosity, but not saying anything, scared to break the delicacy of the moment. Alpha Man—Derek—unconsciously followed, falling heavily beside the villain.
"My family had powers like me. We're some weird kind of hereditary anomaly. Or, were. My parents were wonderful. They were so...so good. They did nothing but help others. My uncle—he was admittedly a bit of a creep, but he ultimately lived for the greater good as well.
"My sisters...you would have loved my sisters. They were conniving spitfires, but they loved this city so much. They loved everyone so much."
Stiles inched towards the hero. "What happened to them?" He asked softly.
"Kate did. She's Silver Huntress's aunt, the daughter of Leader Argent. She wasn't a registered villain, swore that she despised her family. Swore that she loved me." He took a shuddering breath and Stiles found himself gently placing his hand over Alpha Man's on the hard bench.
"She killed them all. She'd been planning it for months, the entire time we were together. I was 17, she was 28. I thought it was wonderful that an older, gorgeous girl loved me that much. She ended up trapping my family in our house. She poured gasoline all over the outside, powered up her unregistered heat gun, and they went up in flames.
"I was out on patrol at the time, on a wild goose chase she had sent me on. I went home to find the entirety of the BHPD sifting through a pile of ashes that used to be my house and my family. That's when I decided to save others from having to watch their lives go up in flames."
"'They may be powerful, but they're not invincible.'" Stiles quoted on autopilot.
"What?" Derek looked towards him and ripped his hand away, hatred beginning to glow in his eyes.
"It's what my mom used to say about villains," he quickly explained. "She used to be good, too, before the government used her and sent her to her death." Stiles swallowed, guessing it was his turn now. "Radiation plant, back when I was ten. They were playing with dangerous radioactive waves and they gave my mom almost immediate brain cancer. It was strong and fast, and she didn't stand a chance."
"Your mom was a hero?" Derek seemed surprised.
"Yeah," Stiles smiled weakly. "But once I saw how society and our leaders used her good heart to kill her, I knew I couldn't follow in her footsteps. The same happened with my dad. He used to be the Sheriff, and they used him until they sent him out to die."
"So you became a villain." Derek finished for him.
"Exactly. She used to say 'Everything happens.'"
"For a reason?" Derek looked at him with distaste.
"No. Just 'everything happens.' The good, the bad. It just...does."
The two of them couldn't really say that they supported the other's choice, but as they sat in that cold underground room wallowing in each other's pain, they realized that good and evil may not be all that different.
-----
The plan was stupid. Of course it was Dr. Horrible—well, Stiles—who came up with it. It was completely awful. It involved a lot of risk, a lot of chance, and a lot of bystanders. If Derek had learned one thing from being a hero, it was that bystanders always get in the way. They're casualties waiting to happen, liabilities that he's got to worry about.
"But we have to!" Stiles argued. "She won't come otherwise. She'll be at her weakest."
"This is not a good plan. We need to minimize the amount of people!" Derek argued.
"Fine! Draw up a plan with less people, less death rays, less success!" Stiles threw his hands up in the air and crowded Derek. Derek realized that everyone in the room (and there were quite a few people) was watching their argument like a ping pong match. "I was brought onto this team for a reason, Derek. I don't have morals. I don't give a shit about casualties. I'd rather maximize damage than minimize it. Therefore, I can come up with the best plans. I don't worry about being good, I worry about getting the damn job done. Eliminating the threat without fail." He stood nose to nose with the hero. "We will succeed. My plan will not fail."
Lydia abruptly stood. "He's right. Dr. Horrible's plan it is."
"Lydia—!" Derek started, but she threw her hand up in a silencing gesture.
"It's settled. We will commence with the plan. Preparations will begin immediately." She looked at them with her eyebrows raised. "I suggest you get ready, boys."
-----
Derek was fuming. "What the hell was that? You didn't mean it, did you!?"
Stiles looked at him, taunting. "Mean what? That I don't give a shit about civilians? It's true. I don't have to worry about dick shit."
"You don't mean that!" Derek said, really fired up now.
Stiles lost the teasing look. "Yes, Derek, I do. We can't worry about individuals when the greater good is what we're trying to achieve." Stiles stepped close, putting his hands on Derek's shoulders. "We're trying to overthrow a whole damn government. A perfectly oiled machine. We're trying to liberate the city! That is worth fighting for. That is worth dying for."
Derek jerked himself away, not because of the fact that Stiles was right, but because of the fact that he couldn't look away from the villain's Cupid bow lips or indescribable eyes. It seemed like Stiles knew he was distracted. "The world's a mess, Derek, and I just need to rule it." He smiled wide, trying to get Derek to soften up.
"You're such a shit," Derek shook his head. "What do we need to do first?"
-----
They had a few hours to themselves, and Stiles decided to take a quick trip home so he could get what he needed. Once he got there, he picked up a pen and paper, and began a note.
It was addressed to the Evil League of Evil, and it detailed why he wanted to retract his application.
Maybe, just maybe, he and Derek could spend more time together. Maybe they could have a duo, fighting crime or justice or whatever superheroes did.
Stiles signed the bottom.
Maybe they could make a life together.
-----
"Are my goggles on straight?" Stiles turned to Derek, still messing with the straps. Derek watched him as Stiles adjusted his belt and boots.
"Yeah, yeah. They look fine. You look good."
"You think I look good?" Stiles said, his voice obviously teasing. Derek stayed silent. "Oh my god, you do!" Stiles paraded himself closer. "Well, what a crazy random happenstance! I think you look pretty great yourself, Alpha Man."
Derek's eyes widened. "You...what?"
Stiles gave a huge sigh. "I've been sending out signals left and right. Bro, I'm so into you!"
"Don't call me bro." Derek said immediately, then realized what Stiles was saying. "Wait...what?"
"You're so dense." Stiles took three strides and mashed his lips messily to Derek's. He pulled away after a few seconds. "That was a shit kiss. Make sure this plan goes well so we can have a good one." He smirked.
"No, no." Derek grabbed him before he could dance away. He kissed Stiles again, making sure to take his time and make it good. "Just in case."
"You're such an ass! My romantic gesture is totally lost now." Stiles didn't look too bummed about it. "Well, let's go. We have a city to save, wolf boy."
-----
There were a lot of press and bystanders in the auditorium. They were all there, listening to Kate's speech about "bettering" the city and eating it up like candy. Some of them looked incredulous, but they wouldn't dare say anything. Kate was the most influential person in the city outside of her father, she could easily have them killed, or worse. Derek looked around nervously from the back of the seating area, his Alpha Man suit underneath his civilian clothes. He had a general sense of unease, and it was definitely because of Stiles's dangerous plan. Kate was still in front, spewing her bullshit into their ears. Derek refused to listen to her words. Derek risked a glance up to where he knew Stiles was waiting: in one of the secluded balconies near the middle of the auditorium.
Derek wasn't exactly sure what Stiles was waiting for, so his knee was bouncing incessantly as he waited for Stiles to make his move. Finally, he did. He took his freeze ray and froze Kate in the middle of one of her rants about equality (ha! as if she knew anything about that) and made the whole crowd gasp. Kate stood, frozen in rage, at the interruption. Stiles jumped from the tall balcony, this time his death ray in hand.
-----
"Look at you all!" Stiles began, his laugh echoing around the resounding auditorium. "Every single one of you is a sucker! For years, you lined up like lemmings, allowing the Argents to brainwash you into compliance with their reeds of lies. Now you can see what I see. You can hear the lies! They want to protect you? No! They suppress you! They don't see your worth! You would benefit greatly from a new change in leadership." He hefted his death ray—the silvery, patchwork contraption—on his shoulder and approached Kate.
"Now that your 'fearless' leader is frozen, you're all terrified. See!?" He whirled on the crowd and they gasped collectively. "She's set each and every one of you up for failure! You're so reliant on our leaders that when someone challenges them, you don't know what to do except show up like sheep for the slaughter!" He raised the ray into the air and shot at the ceiling. "Now you fear me! You fear me because I'm stirring up something inside of you! Listen to your brain, I can almost hear it! Can you?" He put his face into someone else's, smiling maniacally. "Can't you hear that inside you're rioting?" He laughed, wild and free. "Society is slipping!"
He shot three more warning shots, and people screamed as bits of plaster rained down. It was working—they were terrified. He looked around calmly and stage-whispered to a guy standing near him, "Don't you think now is your cue to run?" It was as if he had opened floodgates. The people of their city bolted from the indoor arena, scrambling over each other and barely daring to look behind them as they made their escape.
Stiles smiled triumphantly. "Tell your friends! Dr. Horrible! It was Horrible! H-O-R-R—"
Derek came from nowhere and yanked him back from screaming after them. "Stiles."
Stiles shrugged innocently. "I have to campaign, can you blame me? I still want to be on television."
Derek rolled his eyes and together they turned to the frozen Kate. Except...she wasn't frozen anymore. She lashed out at Derek, making him fall. "You'll pay, you little weirdo! My family will rule! We know what's best for this city, and everything will go as planned!"
ENDING 1
Stiles pointed his Death Ray at Kate, ready to fire. He had done it before, and she deserved to—
Derek shoved into him right as he was about to pull the trigger, and the gun went clattering to the floor. It buzzed crazily, and Stiles could see that the nozzle was entirely broken: the gun was useless. "How could you!?" He whirled on Derek.
"I can't let you kill people!" Derek yelled back. "Kate!" They both turned to see that she had scrambled for the gun and was holding it shakily I'm her hands, eyes alight with craziness.
"This is the end, Horrible and Alpha Man. Your brilliant plan is over."
Stiles approached her, hands up placatingly. "Now Kate, the gun is broken. If you fire it, you'll probably kill yourself as well."
"I don't care!" She yelled. "Don't you see? Sacrifice is the ultimate alliance." She aimed and fired, and everything was white for a moment. Stiles pushed the remaining civilians out of the way, then watched as Kate was thrown against the back wall, and she slumped to the floor, completely still.
"We did it. We did it!" Stiles jumped up and down, scanning the room for Derek. He spotted him on the opposite wall as Kate. He approached him quickly. "Derek, you won't believe it, I think we actually pulled...Derek?"
Stiles saw that there was a piece of the Death Ray lodged in Derek's chest, and it was glowing, showing that he had been impaled with the actual deathly material. "Oh Derek, no," Stiles dropped to his knees next to Alpha Man. "You can't do this. You're gonna be fine."
Derek took a few labored breaths and opened his eyes as much as he could. "You...did it. I always knew...you had...goodness in you," Derek sputtered around the blood that was already pooling in his mouth.
"No!" Stiles had unshed tears in his eyes. "No, you're the one that made me good! You're the only one who can see the goodness inside me. Please, please. I can't be good without you."
"That was...a damn...good kiss, wasn't...it?" Derek sighed.
He closed his eyes and his breathing slowed. "Derek, don't you dare!" Stiles gripped his hand. "I love you." He whispered, and Derek's hand went slack in his own. "I loved you," he said, almost inaudible. "Derek."
There was an ambulance at some point. He doesn't remember when. He remembers the stretcher taking Derek away. But he was already dead. He watched a black bag being unzipped before he turned himself away. There was a time where Scott was suddenly by his side, holding him up, talking to him. He saw Lydia, maybe. Swirling laundry. Then he was back in his own bed, and the world was dark and oh, so cold.
When he woke he found himself drawn to the letter he had written, but not sent. He was waiting to send it when Derek was by his side. Now he would never be. He ripped the letter in what seemed like a hundred pieces before sobbing all over them. Once he finished, he realized there was another, unopened, letter on his desk. The return address was missing, and it was addressed to 'Dr. Horrible.' He ripped it open and saw that it was an acceptance.
Stiles Stilinski, a.k.a. Dr. Horrible: the newest member of The Evil League of Evil.
--
It didn't take long for Horrible to make his way to the top. He had murdered both a sought-after government official and a hero. The city was his. He had the money, the power...the girls. Everything. He was sitting in his office on the 30th floor of one of the tallest skyscrapers in the city, reminiscing. It had only been 6 months. There he was in a cushy office with everything he could ever want. He had an army of villains and heroes. He had the city. And yet...
"Hey. You okay?" Scott was looking at him, concerned. "You went somewhere just then."
Stiles shook his head, adjusting the cuffs on his coal black suit. "Fine, I'm fine."
"Are you thinking about Derek?"
Stiles stood up and slammed his hands on the desk. When he spoke, his voice was like steel. "No." He looked up at Scott, and when he did Scott saw that his best friend's eyes were as dark and black as space. They didn't glitter with their usual humor; they were void of a soul.
"He was good. He was always going to have to pay for that choice."
<><><><><><><><>
ENDING 2
Derek watched from the floor, looking at the running and screaming citizens. "Get out of here!" He yelled. Now that Kate was lucid, anything could happen. He got up and began towing civilians out of the room.
She pointed her laser gun at Stiles, which had been a few chairs away. Derek didn't remember when she had grabbed it. "Dr. Horrible, the city's biggest failure of a villain, turning good? Ha! There was no way this could have ended well. And now I've got you cornered. Who's so smart now, huh? I'll just gun you down and you won't be able to stop me." She aimed carefully.
"Oh yeah? Try me, bitch," Stiles said, and Derek watched in horror as they both squeezed their triggers at the exact same time. They were both blasted to opposite sides of the room as everything exploded in icy blue and hot red. Kate landed near him, and though she had a small gash on her forehead, she looked fine. Her breathing was normal.
"Stiles?" He asked, and then breathed a sigh of relief as he saw Stiles's head pop up from behind some of the press chairs. "Thank god." He walked over to Stiles, and once he made it he realized something was wrong. Stiles was stumbling, struggling to even stand. "What's wrong, are you okay?" Derek asked, concerned. Stiles looked up, face white and hand gripping tightly to a chair in front of him. Stiles nodded, then shook his head quickly and stumbled out of the sea of chairs and into Derek's arms. Derek caught him and realized that a piece of Kate's laser gun was imbedded in his abdomen. Blood tricked down his white shirt and lab coat.
"Stiles?" He lowered him to the ground, throat constricting. "Stiles, talk to me."
"Be bad for me, okay?" Stiles gasped, a pained smile on his face.
"Never," Derek laughed, a tear falling from his cheek.
"And kiss me...one last time. Make those firecrackers go off in my brain." Derek wanted to argue, wanted to say that he'd make it, but—"Derek," it came out as a whisper.
He leaned down and kissed Stiles with as much passion and tenderness as he could. He kissed him with the life he wanted to live with Stiles, the love he wanted to give to him. He pulled away slowly as he felt Stiles's lips slacken.
"Wow, wolf boy." He closed his eyes and smiled, a real, content smile. "You sure know how...to give a boy...what he..loves."
And then his heartbeat stopped.
--
The day was perfect: clouds in the sky, a sprinkling of rain, and tons of bright umbrellas. He would have wanted it this way. Everyone being slightly miserable.
Derek was exposed to the rain completely, letting it soak his suit and his hair until he was dripping. He wore a dark grey suit and a tie that He stepped up to the shielded microphone. "Thank you all, for coming out today despite the weather. It means a lot." He smiled and looked around. "It's been a great six months since the Argents were overthrown, and a new reign has begun. Our new government is being made to rebuild the city and liberate everyone. No longer will you have to live in fear, and one of the people who made this happen was Dr. Horrible."
To his left, Derek could see Scott (aka Shine), who was running his hands through his hair in his peripheral, stand up. "I was his sidekick. As long as I could remember, he wanted liberation for this city. We began a foundation, called the Rebuild Project, and we received aid from many different cities around the state. Their donations are helping us rebuild. We were also given an extra amount of money to build a memorial in honor of Dr. Horrible, who decided to side with good in his final days." Scott looked around. "We are unveiling this memorial today, along with a new foundation named in his honor."
The big curtain behind them was dropped, and in its place was a fountain. It had the normal stone material, shaped lovingly with time and care, but what made it special was the fact that all of the water in it, save for the small two feet at the bottom, was completely frozen forever with the help of wonderflonium.
Derek stepped forward again. "Dr. Horrible always wanted to stop time and make things right. So here is a place where time is frozen forever, for him. His real name was Stiles Stilinski. And he was a hero."