sterek

by: kjerstin-art

INDEX1. SHIPPING

2. WHY STEREK ?

3. CANON

4. THANK YOU

1. SHIPPINGShipping, derived from the word relationship, is often played on

perceived chemistry between characters. Shipping is when you

want two characters to be in a romantic relationship. It is considered

a general term for fans’ emotional involvement with the ongoing

development of romance in a work of fiction.

Shipping refers to the whole phenomenon; a ship is the concept of

a fictional couple; to ship a couple means to want to see them in a

relationship; a shipper is somebody significantly involved with a

fictional couple.

by: starktrek

Shipping is also about the anticipation.

Will they finally get together?

Why should they get together?

Shippers write paragraphs and essays about their favorite ships;

they’re devoted to their OTP (One True Pairing).

When someone says they ship Sterek, they are saying they love the

idea of Derek and Stiles in a romantic relationship. To show their

love and support, Sterek shippers get inspired by what happens

in the show to create their own stories and fanart. While some works

are solemnly part of the imagination of its creators, others remain

faithful to what we see and what we get on the show.

by: kickingshoes

by: aeslinn

2. WHY STEREK ?To tell a real love story, one that resonates on a deeper level, the

characters have to be equals, not necessarily within their own

universes but from the point of view of the narrative. The two parts

of the couple need to have their own personal character arcs. They

need to exist outside of the couple, with a narrative agency that few

pure love interests ever get. That’s why Scott and Allison work well

as a story. They are established as romantically linked, but more

than that, they have near equal shares in the narrative because they

are characters with their own personal arcs.

If either Derek or Stiles are going to be deemed worthy of a real love

story, this is where they’ll find it. Not just because of chemistry, not

just because they are both opposites and mirror images, but because

they are narrative equals.

by: alphapact

by: halewolfing

by: wholove

CHEMISTRYFound in every interaction between this pairing, from their snarky,

quirky banter to their deep, searching looks. This is the deepest

root of our love of Sterek, the reason we latched onto the pairing,

the reason Sterek has spread like wildfire. Every moment they are

on screen together is loaded with emotions, and more than just

adversarial ones. The characters play off of one another, humor one

another, tease one another, all the while giving the fandom a chance

to wonder about all that they could yet be.

Chemistry cannot be manufactured on television. In books you can

create chemistry with words, but on screen it all comes down to a mix

of casting and luck. It doesn’t matter how well you plan it, sometimes

chemistry happens even when it wasn’t supposed to.

Stiles and Derek have undeniable chemistry.

by: tumsa

by: sinyhale

POTENTIALThis pairing is all about delicious potential. Hilarity and angst and

somewhere in between the spark of something that can last.

They’re like magnets that push and pull, act and react. It’s that

potential built up mixed with the slow build, that has us on the edge

of their seat, waiting for that much more that could easily happen.

To reach the point where that chemistry is undeniable, not just to us,

not just to the other characters, not just to you, but also to them.

by: mydearsourwolf

by: alphapact

by: ohhelga

by: schmorill

TRUSTDespite explicitly stating his distrust of Stiles in 2x04, Derek has

shown several times over and several times again that he does trust

Stiles. He may not even know it, standing by his resolution to trust no

one, but nevertheless, he has trusted Stiles to keep him alive, to keep

his secrets, to find the way into the bank, to protect his unconscious

and dying sister - the list goes on. Derek can count on Stiles - always

has been able to. Stiles has seen Derek weak and vulnerable and has

come through for him time and time again. And just like he saved

Derek, Stiles has also been saved in return. Though he’s stated his

dislike and distrust of Derek several times, he’s trusted Derek with

not only his own life, but also Scott’s and later his father’s. Derek

punched Stiles in the wrist and Stiles walked right back up to the

table and stood next to him because as much as they push each other’s

buttons, Stiles knows Derek would never hurt him.

by: sinyhale

They have saved each other’s actual lives several times, but with

trust, they can also save each other in even more important ways.

It’s that potential saving that makes us so emotionally invested in the

pairing. It’s how fate, as cheesy as that sounds, brings them together

and makes them grow more and more fond of each other. It’s how

fear became curiosity, how curiosity became concern and

how concern can become so much more.

by: radioactivated

SCOTTScott McCall has always been the link between Stiles and Derek. Stiles

can be and has been the bridge that Derek needs to become closer to

Scott as a brother, as an ally. There is untapped energy in the three of

them as a group, in the way that they could become the greatest allies

and lead the greatest pack Beacon Hills has ever seen.

Scott and Stiles can help Derek become the leader that his mother

was. Scott is smart and he’s strong, but his heart is his weapon.

Stiles is brave and he cares, but his mind is what is always ahead of

everyone else. Derek is too noble and pragmatic, but it’s his soldier

soul that makes him move forward.

Scott’s heart, Stiles’ mind and Derek’s strength combined

would be an unstoppable force.

by: weredoc

by: kumagorochan

by: alphapact

EQUALSAs they’ve grown closer and closer, their relationship has changed,

but not their dynamic. Derek is still a puzzle that Stiles wants to solve

and he has been the one, moreso than any other character, to work

on putting it together. Stiles is still unreadable to Derek - he’s the

human who runs with wolves and is not afraid to remain by his side.

Still them, but with less walls to climb, because Stiles understands

a bit more of Derek’s pain and Derek is giving in more and more to

Stiles’ amusement.

From day one, they have interacted as equals - not because they

were physically matched, but because Stiles said so and Derek

let him. Derek’s physical prowess complement Stiles’ physical

weakness (striking in comparison to his peers). Moreover, Derek’s

biggest weakness is his susceptibility to words, which are Stiles’

greatest strength.

There’s the epic potential of becoming something great without

changing them. They don’t need to change for each other. That

acceptance has been there for a while.

Together they become more.

Together, Stiles and Derek complement each other.

by: ohhelga

by: zainclaw

TROPESMerriam-Webster defines “trope” as a “figure of speech.” In

storytelling, a trope is just that — a conceptual figure of speech,

a shorthand for a concept that the audience will recognize and

understand instantly.

The appeal of Stiles and Derek rests on the fact that the relationship

satisfies several extremely popular tropes, such as:

Belligerent Sexual Tension: There’s a couple, usually a

sweet but quickly angered person paired with a secretly-kind jerk,

who is not able to admit their feelings. Despite the conflict, there

is an attraction. Sometimes they will progress to admitting their

friendship but insist they are Just Friends. Eventually, they can

admit their feelings to practically anyone except their loved one.

Fire-Forged Friends: Characters hostile to each other or

indifferent that must fight on the same side. Afterwards, they are

no longer hostile and perhaps even actual friends, which eventually

evolves into Battle Couple dynamics - the kind of couple where

bullets figure prominently in the story of their early romance. Where

“war buddy” and “significant other” are synonyms. Where if you

harm either one, the other will kill you as surely as the sun rises.

And is it worth the wait,all this killing time?

Are you strong enough to stand,protecting both your heart and mine?

by: jojenreeds

Can’t Live With Them; Can’t Live Without Them: One

person, often a loner-type, is paired off with someone else against

their will. He can’t stand the person/situation and wishes for his old

routine. When he gets it back, he suddenly realizes he misses that

person a lot and does everything in his power to get them back.

by: fruscianted

Odd Friendship: A friendship which develops between

two characters that would seem unlikely to be friends, whether

it’s because of them having diametrically opposed personalities or

some other quirks of their beings that would lead to them clashing.

Through their friendship, they learn more about each other and

about themselves.

Vitriolic Best Buds: These guys bicker constantly. They’re

always snaping at each other. They snark relentlessly. They duke it

out on equal terms, hurling insults at one another with prejudice.

But underneath the verbal fencing is a rock-solid friendship. Often,

they have opposite morals, personalities, or fighting ability which is

presumably the cause of the vitriol.

by: sinyhale

by: herzdieb

by: winterkiss

Opposites Attract: Strong relationships thrive on how

each member compensates for the other’s weaknesses with his own

strengths, and vice versa. It is all but guaranteed that the characters’

differences will cause more friction than harmony between them.

That’s what gives the Odd Couple its fuel for situations such as:

Slap-Slap-Kiss: When two characters spend

a lot of time bickering, it is all but inevitable that sooner

or later one of them will interrupt the other in mid-rant

by suddenly grabbing and kissing them. The kissed one

rarely resists, and usually responds wholeheartedly.

Usually this is triggered by their hostilities reaching a

climax that results in an exchange of slaps, followed by

a moment where both stare at each other in combined

confusion and shock, after which they dive into the kiss.

Will They or Won’t They?: Two characters,

often combative but with obvious Unresolved Sexual

Tension, resist going into a full blown relationship for a

rather long time.

Aww, Look! They Really Do Love Each

Other: When a couple/potential couple — who spend

the entirety of the show yelling at each other, insulting

one another, stabbing each other in the back, etc. —

have a moment when they reveal that, deep down, they

really care for one another.

Love At First Punch: They say you never get a second

chance to make a first impression, but if that first impression involves

you insulting, smacking or punching anyone with an arrogant

personality, then you’d best watch out. You may have just made

yourself a cruel and brutal enemy. And if they don’t become your

enemy, they may become something else.

Power Trio: Linking back to the SCOTT point, the most

common pattern for this is for two members of the group to be each

other’s Foils, frequently coming into conflict with each other, with the

third member of the group acting as the mediator, keeping The Team

together and balancing their respective personalities.

by: levin-atanx

by: alphapact

HISTORYWe see Derek and Stiles reflected in other popular couples, and we’re

inevitably driven to them. A few examples of romantic duos that share a

similar dynamic to Derek/Stiles are:

Elizabeth/Darcy From Pride And Prejudice (Though

More So In Adaptations Than The Book.)

Knightley/Emma In Emma (As Well, Their Modern

Successors, Cher/Josh In Clueless.)

Katherine/Petruchio In The Taming Of The Shrew

(And Their Modern Successors Kat/Patrick In 10 Things

I Hate About You.)

Han Solo/Leia In Star Wars.

Beatrice and Benedick in Shakespeare’s Much Ado

About Nothing.

by: pembroke

by: herzdieb

PARALLELSAllison & Scott and Derek & Stiles kind of parallel each other in

opposing ways.

Allison and Scott pretty much fall into instant infatuation whereas

Stiles and Derek mistrust and dislike each other from the start. Allison

doesn’t know about Scott for a good chunk of their relationship, and

Stiles knows all about Derek right from the get-go. Allison and Scott

get into danger because of each other, whereas Derek and Stiles get

into danger together and then have to get each other out of it. Scott

and Allison have to sneak around to spend time together, and Stiles

and Derek try to avoid having to see each other, but always manage

to gravitate back together despite themselves. Scott and Allison

spend all of their time declaring their love for each other, and Derek

and Stiles go out of their way to convince everyone they don’t care if

the other one dies even though they keep saving each other.

COMPATIBILITYWhen Stiles and Derek are in a scene together they bring out sides in

each other that are normally hidden. Derek is more sarcastic, more

human, less of a burned shell. Stiles is less accommodating, often

more focused. When they are together they figure stuff out and get

shit done and they play off each other in fascinating ways.

They talk out ideas and possibilities and follow through when they’ve

figured something out. They have similar damages, things they can

understand that no one else can. They’ve both lost people they loved

and felt responsible for it. They both hide their true feelings, one

behind a brutish silence, the other behind sarcasm. There is anger in

both of them. They have both loved or are possibly still in love with

women who didn’t love them back.

They protect each other. They argue and push and pull, because oddly

enough, even with threats and such a physical strength differential, their

decision making process is democratic or at the very least iterative.

by: tifferini

by: aspenaire

by: dereksassypants

by: snarkyashale

FANDOMAs in August 2013, of the 24,360 TEEN WOLF stories on AO3 –a

general fanfiction archive– 15,556 of them are tagged Stiles/Derek

(64% of the total), which is more than five times the amount of stories

that feature the next most popular pairing (Scott/Allison).

Sterek is the third most popular pairing on AO3, only surpassed

by Sherlock/Watson (Sherlock BBC) and Dean/Castiel (Supernatural)

Of the top 10 stories (involving all fandoms) with the most kudos on

AO3, 7 are Derek/Stiles. And of the top 20, 15 are Derek/Stiles.

The most popular tags in Sterek stories are: fluff, angst, alternative

universe, established relationship and hurt/comfort.

The most popular art online community, deviantART, has currently

10,495 artworks featuring Derek and Stiles; from drawings to

digital paintings and from tshirts to craft pieces.

On Youtube, the estimated number of Sterek videos is 38,500.

The most popular videos go beyond 200,000 views.

Last year, Sterek won the Ultimate Slash Madness Tourney against

Destiel with 429,233 votes (55,63%). This year, 32 pairings were

competing against each other. Sterek took the second place with

854,216 votes (49,91%) against Destiel. The number of votes doubled!

by: silvermittt

by: AkiMao

by: qhuinn

by: stereksextape

by: wolfsbanepunch

LGBTViewers are desperately yearning for stories about people who are

queer as a matter of course, stories that don’t revel in how being gay

is the most miserable thing that can happen to you, stories that aren’t

about being queer as if that is the most important thing in our lives.

Stiles and Derek have fully realized personal story arcs. If they fall

in love their story won’t be about them being gay, it will

be about them being them. They will be queer people in a queer

relationship, but their story will be about werewolves and personal

guilt and learning to trust someone. And every time some fourteen

year old queer kid sees them doing their Buffy impressions and fighting

monsters, that kid will feel more of a person and less of a caricature.

by: steammmpunk

by: AkiMao

by: sinyhale

CONNECTIONStiles and Derek share a fundamental connection, one that only they

can understand. Both share not only loss in their pasts, but also carry

a guilt, a feeling of responsibility for those losses. While we don’t

know the reason for Stiles’ guilt, it’s been made clear that it’s there

and that fact sets him apart from others on the show who’ve lost

loved ones - save for Derek. They share something that no one else

can understand or empathize with, something that we hope someday

they will be able to talk about and help each other through.

by: mydearsourwolf

by: winterkiss

STORYA romantic relationship between Stiles and Derek would make an

incredibly interesting story. It’s full of both internal and external

conflict. Internally, their own clashing yet complementing personalities.

Externally, the hinge point of Scott, of Stiles being his best friend and

Derek being someone who’s been forced into his life due to circumstance,

along with their differing species and age difference. These things add

depth and consequence, making the pairing something that is ever-

-threatened and therefore ever-engaging.

I’m not you, nor you me, but we’re both moving steady. by: winterkiss

by: mydearsourwolf

by: herzdieb

While watching Teen Wolf, people get the chance to step outside the

heteronormative bubble for forty minutes, imagining that not everyone

is automatically either straight or gay. Once you are able to put aside

heteronormative assumptions, only two things matter: narrative and

chemistry.

Both Derek and Stiles have come a long way since they first met. A

romantic story between them would not be boring (at all), would not be

about two characters who are meant to be, would not be another story

about “love at first sight”. They’re the people who were actively avoiding

working with each other, but were still forced to do it. It’s infuriating,

hilarious and full of angst.

by: alphapact

by: herzdieb

It would be amazing to watch two emotionally constipated characters

try to negotiate actual feelings, to discover that they do care about each

other, to discover they trust each other, to fight the misunderstandings,

to come to a point where they try to avoid each other, to neglect those

feelings. This would be a relationship where we could see both characters

fight for it. It wouldn’t be a blissful or easy road for the two of them, but it

would be honest and sincere without either of them asking for anything

in return.

by: sinyhale

by: snarkyashale

Why do I ship Sterek?

I don’t see Sterek as two individuals I really want to see making out

or something like that.

I see a boy who lost his mother and perhaps also his father for a little

while. I see a boy who probably thinks of his mother before he goes to

sleep and how his life would be with her.

Dad?

Dad, please say something...

by: lostyourtemper

I see a young man who smiles and laughs, but deep down he’s

breaking. Someone who protects people because he can’t bear to lose

anyone else.

This character breaks my heart and sometimes I just wish he had a

cup of raspberry hot chocolate, a blanket and a new video card for

his PC games.

Derek had feelings for Kate, which obviously ended badly and he

blames himself every day. He returns to Beacon Hills and lives in the

Hale house because he must remind himself of what we did and how

everything is his fault.

He doesn’t trust anyone, because “trust” killed his family. He doesn’t

want to be alone, but he does it to himself because he feels that he

deserves it. He starts a pack and later they leave him. He thinks he

deserves this, that he should not have a pack again.

Derek,we have to go!

i didthis

If only something could go right for him. Anything! Like, his coffee is

perfect that morning, his favorite team won, or even getting a lucky

penny it would be great.

These two have gone through so much in their young lives. I just want

them to have someone to lean on when things get rough.

3. CANONWe don’t want Derek and Stiles to get the sweeping music treatment.

They don’t need it. We want to see them fight for this. We want to

see them drawn to each other despite their own better judgment. We

want to see them bleed for this. We want tooth and claw and tears and

miscommunication.

by: crisisindisguise

by: syllirium

Getting Stiles and Derek to their happy ending should take a long time.

It should be hard. It should be a difficult road with a lot of pitfalls. Who

wants easy? Easy and sweet is for people like Scott and Allison. Derek

and Stiles are different. Their jagged edges are what makes them so

good, what makes this so interesting.

Something like Derek and Stiles is a story about overcoming adversity.

It’s about how love, like weeds, can grow in unlikely places. It’s the

antithesis to sweet and easy. It takes a long time and a commitment by

the writers to go there. The road is long and complicated. And maybe

they won’t ever get to anything like a happy ending. You know, that’s

okay, too.

We want the show to leave us with metaphorical blue balls and tears

and make us writhe with how much we want them to get together. Not

just us fans, but everyone. We want to see Derek and Stiles steep in

unresolved sexual tension until they, and we, can’t take it anymore. And

we want them to be the same sarcastic assholes they’ve always been.

by: hale-obrien

But what we’d like to see is for all of that to be undeniably real. Even

if they never act on it, we’d like to see it made explicit that they want to.

Maybe they aren’t ready to even acknowledge anything, but we have

other characters, who know them and who are there when Derek and

Stiles interact. Just something, indicating that people in their world,

who know them, have also picked up on what we as viewers have.

And later on, when they are ready to acknowledge to themselves their

own emotions, we can get some angsty, sweet, sweet denial. You know

that’d just make their discussions just a bit more desperate, more fierce

and frantic. The tension would be maddening and beautiful.

by: shercocklocked

by: winterkiss

The age difference is an interesting issue to explore and work with

related to Stiles and Derek’s characters. It brings up all the traumas

in Derek’s past, forces him to deal with all the things he’s been hiding

and running away from for years. It forces the viewer to contemplate

how much age matters in defining equals, specifically in comparison

to the other underage pairings on the show. It just brings so many

possibilities for good television, we get giddy just thinking of it.

“Making it canon” is the journey, not the destination. “Making it

canon” is not about a static couple, it’s about a living, breathing

story. “Making it canon” is not easy. But that journey, that struggle,

makes it all the more satisfying in the end. “Making it canon” is

about acknowledgement, not happy endings.

by: aeslinn

by: sterekboberek

by: qhuinn

4. THANK YOUIf only there was enough space in this tiny book that could express all

of our love for this show and this pairing...

The selection of works for this book was not easy. These were only

some of many good examples of how talented and passionate Sterek

shippers are. We are not trying to represent the whole fandom, but

even if we tried, this little book wouldn’t be able to, not even a little bit,

not even at all. It’d not be able to represent all fans of all genders and

ages, from all around the world. The Sterek fandom is massive and it

keeps welcoming more fans each day it passes. It keeps bringing new

talents and new minds together. It’s all because of love and passion

for this show; it’s all because of you.

We hope that you can accept this as part of our love and gratitude for

everything you have given us until now. While for some fans, Teen

Wolf is merely a show that they enjoy watching during Mondays, for

others it’s a source of inspiration. Your work inspires us to do more

and do better. Thank you for this story, thank you for the amazing

performances, thank you for the attention to the little details, thank

you for the understanding and the love.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

by: finduilasclln

2013

made with love