Steter
| Pairing | |
|---|---|
| Pairing: | Peter Hale/Stiles Stilinski |
| Alternative name(s): | Steter, Peter/Stiles |
| Gender category: | m/m, slash |
| Fandom: | Teen Wolf |
| Canonical?: | non-canon |
| Prevalence: | common |
| Archives: | |
| Other: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Peter/Stiles, also known as Steter, is the slash pairing of Peter Hale and Stiles Stilinski in the Teen Wolf fandom.
Canon
In the show, Stiles and Peter have a tenuous, untrusting relationship. This stems mainly from the parts Peter played in season one and season two. In season one, Peter isn't truly introduced until the end of the season because he is the "big bad" of the season. Peter was the alpha werewolf that bit Stiles' best friend Scott McCall, which spurred the entire show and all of its drama. During season one, Stiles is briefly kidnapped by Peter, and Peter offers to give Stiles the bite to change him into a werewolf as well claiming, "I like you, Stiles." At the end of season one, Stiles plays a big part in Peter's murder.
During season two, Peter manipulates Lydia Martin from beyond the grave to kidnap his nephew and alpha werewolf Derek Hale to help him return from the dead. This further added to Stiles' distrust because Stiles had a massive crush on Lydia and a tentative alliance with Derek.
During season three, Peter and Stiles spend more time together as the werewolves (and those in the know) brace for the Alpha pack. It is the first three seasons where fans pull a lot of their headcanons from in regard to this relationship.[1]
Fandom
Most fans do not see this as a happy or a healthy ship. As uniwerecornwolf on Tumblr explains:
What I like about Steter is the dysfunctional part of it. How Peter can be trusted to try and manipulate Stiles, and Stiles being Stiles, he wouldn’t allow it because he hates Peter and he’s clever enough to give Peter a run for his money. It’s not actually a stretch for me to see the potential for delicious sexual tension in that.[2]
Scatteredmuse echoes that sentiment in his/her Steter manifesto on Tumblr. S/he states that, "it will always be at least a little fucked up. And that’s part of the appeal to me."[3] There's something intriguing about things that are slightly off, and that is definitely the underlying current to this ship. Dialmformaledictions on Tumblr acknowledges other viewpoints in his ship manifesto but agrees with uniwerecornwolf and Scatteredmuse in the end:
Steter is many things to many people—even to me. I’m happy to read and write Peter and Stiles in different dynamics and situations. Sometimes my Peter isn’t even that awful! But if we’re talking about canon, then it always returns to Season 1 and the building blocks of Steter: Desire. Awareness. Defiance. (And look, the acronym is DAD! How can I resist?).... When you have a self-interested character and thwarted desire, there are so many places to go—so many terrible places to go, and I love exploring them all. Peter doesn’t need a redemption arc to pair him with Stiles. For me, their interest in each other is nothing soft or sweet. It’s a struggle for advantage. It’s sharp and dangerous and, almost definitely, not healthy. They are mutually assured destruction, and that’s why I ship Steter."[4]
On the lighter side, yogi-bogey-box explains her position:
They are two survivors, and while Peter can be selfish and usually only looks out for himself, he would be different if someone gave him a reason to be. If someone was good enough to get past his cynicism, that person would be Stiles. And Peter would cherish Stiles because he’s everything Peter wants and needs. Especially after Peter lost everything, he’s even more likely to cherish what he has once he has it. The most wonderful thing about Steter is that it proves you don’t have to be GOOD to be WORTHY OF LOVE. You don’t have to meet some arbitrary standard of morality to have a happy ending, for someone to find worth in you. And you can be broken, you can be less than sane.[5]
Common Tropes in Fanworks
- Daddykink
- Joining Together to Fight a Bigger Bad
- Sugar Daddy/Sugar Baby
Challenges
Example Fanworks
| Examples Wanted: Editors are encouraged to add more examples or a wider variety of examples. |
Fanfiction
2012-2014
- All Times Are Now by 1001cranes
- Be Still My Heart (I'm Only a Moment Away) by Ceris_Malfoy
- Clever Boy by abluemountainashtardis
- Get Off (Me) by KouriArashi
- Head Games by veterization
- Living Dreams and Nightmares by Goldenpetal13
2015-2017
- Ain't Sayin' He's a Gold Digger by taylorpotato
- Every Boy Needs a Dog by Udunie
- Hey Lover, I Got a Sugarcane by pibroch
- Media by Triangulum
- Sweet, Young Thing by GiggleSnortBangDead
- The Kindness of Strangers by mia6363
- The Unexpected Marriage of Peter Hale by moonstalker24
- Tremors by Corpium
2018-2019
- For Great Justice! by Green
- Hunting Pains by Ragga
- it's not the color i came in by nezstorm
- Rewriting the future by Synesthetic
- The Devourers by Malapropian
- when you're going through hell (keep going for me) by cywscross
- Would You Forgive Me If I Called You Hope, Peter Hale? (Hope, By Any Other Name) by Whispering_Sumire
Fanart
- Untitled, Archived version by Orsob
- Would you like me to draw you a picture? by RunawayKid
Fanvids
- Come and Get It by Kate Handa
- Animals by Carrot's Channel
- Reconsider by Horribibble
- Steter; You die like angels sing; by Emilia Stone
Fanmix
- Steter Playlist Tag on 8tracks
Other Fanworks
Links and Resources
Tumblr
- Tags: steter, peterstiles
- steterbigbang
- The Steter Network
- Steter Reverse Bang
- steterthings
- Steter Week
References
- ^ "I disregard most of season four, though, and I thought what TPTB chose to do with Peter was a horrible waste of a wonderfully ambiguous character"
- ^ What Do You Like About Steter? From uniwolfwerecorn's Tumblr
- ^ Steter manifesto on Tumblr
- ^ Steter Ship Manifesto on tumblr
- ^ [1] Why I ship Steter] on tumblr