Disclaimer: "I do not own Teen Wolf. The show, the characters, and any quotes from the show belong to Jeff Davis and his amazing team of writers. I only own Nixie, and anything I make her do or say."

Chapter 4: Episode 3x4

Usually, if a girl ended up in the boys' locker room, it would be cause for concern, detention, a scrambling to find clothes and cover body parts.

But… well, it was Nixie. Her presence next to 'her boys' was pretty much the only reason anyone needed to look for anymore. They didn't need any other explanation. Even Coach Finstock stopped questioning why she was in the boys' locker room as much as she was. It's not like she was always there. Just… whenever she, Scott, and Stiles had something to talk about.

And aside from that, it's not like Nixie was ogling any of the boys in here. She didn't have time for crushes or dating. And none of the boys in here were ogling at her. They knew better, lest they wanted to get punched in the face.

Or… well, they knew enough to at least never get caught staring at her.

In any case, no one raises an eyebrow or looks at her funny while she's standing next to Scott's left side, leaning against the locker next to his. And granted… an owner accidentally leaving their dog outside the clinic was usually not the greatest cause for concern.

But with a psychopathic, sacrificing, maniac is on the loose looking for virgins… well, it definitely raises a red flag. Which Stiles clearly thinks is possible as he asks Scott, "Okay, was he… like, you know? Could he have been a virgin maybe? Did he look like a virgin? Was he, you know, virginal?"

Scott immediately answers, "No. Definitely not." Nixie raises an eyebrow though and then gestures to herself and asks, "Do I look virginal?"

Both boys pause and look at her. Dressed in her boots, pants, leather coat and tank top, hair pulled back on her head… she was beautiful as always. Not that she agreed with that assessment, and they knew she never would… but Nixie also knew that she didn't look like some perfect princess who had never had sex. So Stiles and Scott offer up, "No."

Stiles then adds, "By the way, don't ask me to look at you and surmise that again. You're basically my sister. I'd rather not dwell on whether or not you've ever had sex… because then I have to figure out how I'm going to kill the poor bastard that was stupid enough to let you go."

Nixie smiles at that, and says, "Noted. In any case, my point is… just because he doesn't look like one… doesn't mean he isn't one. And besides, Scott can only do so much, what with picking up on chemo-signals and all that. How is any of that going to tell him if this guy was a virgin?" Stiles flails and says, "I don't know! Maybe something he said or did at the clinic or something!"

Scott makes a thoughtful noise in the back of this throat, and then turns to Nixie and says, "You know, that's true. There is that new policy Deaton put into place. You know… the one where I have to sleep with all of his clients." And Nixie, not even batting an eye, jumps right in and says, "Right, and how's that working? Business booming again?" "Oh, absolutely. Everyone wants a piece of this." "Obviously. By the way, I'm pretty sure I can get you a discount on condoms to sell at the front desk. That's bound to go a long way."

Stiles flails his hands at both of them and says, "Okay! TMI! This is a joke right?!" Nixie rolls her eyes and says, "Obviously Stiles." "Well, then you should've stopped, like… two sentences ago, or something." "Where's the fun in that?"

Scott grins and puts an arm around her shoulders. Sighing, he says, "It's nice when I get to have you on my side once and a while." "Always on your side Scott. Stiles and I are just usually the ones that take up all the sarcastic banter. Between the two of us, I don't think we'd survive if you jumped in all the time too." "Good point."

Stiles stares at both of them deadpan, so Nixie sighs and explains, "Look, Stiles… bottom line, Scott has no idea." Scott nods and adds, "Plus, why are you talking about him like he's already dead? He's just missing." Stiles gives them both a look and says, "Yeah. Missing and presumed dead because he's probably a virgin, guys. And you know who else is a virgin? Me. I'm a virgin, okay? And so is Nixie. We're both virgins. And do you know what that means? It means that our lack of sexual experience is now literally a threat to our lives. Okay?"

Nixie and Scott both stare at him, and then Nixie leans against the locker again and says, "Speak for yourself. Some would-be psychopath comes at me in the dark, I'll kick his ass. Or her ass. I'm not sexist, I don't care." Scott grins at her, but both turn to Stiles when he exclaims, "That's great for you. You're like a ninja. Not even a hunter, a ninja. While me, I'm flesh and bone and standing here with sarcasm as my only defense. I need to have sex… like, right now. Like someone needs to have sex with me, like today. Someone needs to sex me right now!"

And as Stiles slams his locker door shut, Danny turns to face them and says, "Alright, I'll do it."

Stiles nearly jumps out of his skin in fright, the yelp escaping his lips before he can stop it. Nixie slaps a hand over her mouth to keep herself from laughing aloud. Danny grins over at her while Stiles asks, "What?!" And Danny simply says, "Come to my place at nine. Plan to stay the night. I like to cuddle."

Nixie literally turns away from them when Stiles turns to look at Scott and her. She couldn't make her face stay straight yet. It was hard enough to keep her shoulders from shaking. Then Stiles turns back and asks, "That was so sweet. Are you kidding?" To which Danny says, "Yes. I'm kidding!"

And Nixie finally let's out a burst of laughter while Stiles says, "Okay, you know, you don't toy with a guy's emotions like that Danny." Danny shrugs, and then stops by Nixie and says, "And I usually charge extra for the cuddling… but you, I'll help for free." Nixie grins up at him and says, "If only I were actually someone who should be allowed to stand in the 'boys' locker room. I might actually take you up on that Danny." He chuckles and hugs her quick before moving on.

And that's when Isaac finally walks in the door. Frowning as Coach calls him out on being late, Nixie leaves Scott and Stiles listening to Coach, while she meets Isaac by his locker. "Hey." He looks over at her and says, "Hey. Um… sorry I'm…" Chuckling, Nixie says, "Don't apologize to me for being late. I mean… text me next time, but it's not that big a deal. Just… is everything okay?" "Yeah. Everything's great."

Looking into his locker… where half of his clothes and possessions are, Nixie raises an eyebrow and asks, "Really?" He notes her glance, and then says, "Um… well, Derek doesn't really have room for me to keep any of my stuff." "You're living with Derek?" Isaac nods, and Nixie asks, "Where do you sleep?" "On the floor. It's a good floor. It's flat… and hard. Flat and hard." Nixie raises an eyebrow again, and then says, "Well, maybe I'll have a talk with him. You at least need a…" "Please don't."

Frowning, Nixie asks, "Why? Are you afraid of him? Is he…" "No… no, it's not that. I just… he's got a lot… a lot to deal with right now. What with his uncle and… and his sister… who he thought was dead, but now isn't dead. I just… I don't want to add to it. I…"

Nixie puts a hand on his shoulder, and then says, "You are not a burden Isaac. You never have been, and you never will be. Do you understand?" Isaac nods down to her, and then smiles and kisses the top of her head before saying, "I know. You won't let me forget." "Well, that's part of my job." "Really?" "Obviously." "I thought that was just what you did for your boys."

He glances over at Scott and Stiles, but when he looks back at Nixie, she's giving him a confused look. Tilting her head, she asks, "You're a boy, aren't you?" "Well, yeah." Shrugging, Nixie finishes, "Well, then that means you fit into that category. Now, if you were a girl, you'd be in the same category as Lydia and Alison. But you're a guy, so you're bundled with Scott and Stiles."

She doesn't really see the awed sort of look that takes over Isaac's eyes. To her, this isn't news. It's simple fact. Isaac is one of them. He's someone that she cares about, and in her opinion, he's an honorary member of Scott's pack. And therefore… he's one of her boys. Patting him on the shoulder, she says, "I'll see you after Isaac. Knock em dead on the trail." "Yes ma'am."

She was heading up to her free period… when her phone went off. Looking down at the text, she sighs as she looks at Scott's message, "We have problems. Get down here." Looking down the hall, where she knows Mrs. Clark is waiting for her to arrive to check in for attendance, Nixie says, "Well, so much for trying to achieve perfect attendance this semester." And she takes off back down for the cross-country trails.

And yeah… it's the kid that Scott had seen at the clinic the day before… strangled with his dog's own collar no less.

As they're walking away, Isaac glances back and asks, "Did you see the way the twins looked at him?" Nixie blinks in confusion and asks, "The twins? What about them?" Scott turns to her and says, "Isaac says they're the ones that turned into the mega wolf. They're with the alpha pack." "Oh for Pete's sake!"

Stiles nods in agreement, but then says, "But they looked at Kyle like they had no idea what happened." Isaac shakes his head and says, "No. They knew." Stiles gives him a look that asks if he's an idiot, and then says, "The kid was strangled with a garrote, alright? Am I the only one recognizing the lack of werewolfitude in these murders?" "Oh, so you think it's a coincidence that they turn up, and then people start dying?" "No! But I still don't think it's them!"

Then both look at Scott, and Isaac asks, "Scott? What about you?" He looks between them both in surprise, and then says honestly, "I don't know yet." And then he looks down at Nixie, who is standing in front of him, one arm crossed over her chest, the other up so her hand is gently touching her bottom lip. Her eyes were narrowed in thought, until Scott asks gently, "Nix?"

She looks up at him, and as she shrugs he says, "No, come on. I need those theories." "I have too many right now to actually be helpful."

Looking between all of them, Nixie then sighs and says, "My most likeable one though? The murders definitely have something to do with the alpha pack being here." Isaac smiles victoriously, but then it slips again when Nixie says, "But I don't think they did this."

When it looks like Isaac might argue, Nixie says, "I'm not saying they're simply innocent bystanders. For some reason, their presence here is also bringing with it sacrificial deaths. But they're an alpha pack. They're not afraid of anything from what I can gather so far. Least of all, getting caught. They wouldn't go through all the trouble of killing a person using the threefold death, when they can just as easily slash their throat open and kill them."

Sighing, she looks to Scott again and says, "I have no idea why their presence has also brought the killings. I'm working on that. Currently no leads. I'll get back to you." Scott nods in appreciation, and then says to the others, "We… and I hate to say it… but we need more."

Stiles stares at him and asks, "What more do you need? They're sacrifices. That's what the threefold death is for. It's…" Scott looks at him and says, "Look… Isaac has a point. Human sacrifices Stiles? A little far-fetched, isn't it?"

Stiles' eyes widen and his arms begin to flail, but Nixie puts a hand on his arm and says, "Chill. Down a notch, please." Then she looks at Scott and says, "Scott, please bear in mind what we have dealt with before, and then tell us what is far-fetched." "What do you mean?" Stiles jumps back to life at that, and stresses, "Scott, your eyes turn into yellow glow sticks, okay? Hair literally grows from your cheeks, and then will immediately disappear, and if I were to stab you right now, it would just magically heal…"

He pauses to take a breath, and then just points at Nixie when she finishes for him, "But you're telling us you're having trouble grasping human sacrifices?" Scott looks between the two of them, and then sighs and says to Isaac, "That's a good point too." Isaac grits his teeth for a moment, and then says, "I don't care. They killed the girl that tried to save me. They killed that kid, even if it does turn out that they did it indirectly. And I'm gonna kill them too."

Before he can walk away though, he pauses when a hand grips his wrist. Turning back to see Nixie, he says, "Don't try…" "I'm not going to."

When he blinks, Nixie shrugs and says, "I'm not like Scott. I'm not always opposed to killing somebody. I've threatened entirely too many people for anyone to think that. And I might not entirely agree with 'why' you're going after them already… but they're definitely not good guys. So no… I'm not going to try and stop you." Isaac tilts his head in question, and then grins a little when Nixie says, "Be careful. I'm serious. Because if they hurt you, then I'm going to have to try and kill them. And I won't have time to plan it properly, and then I'll go to jail, and I really don't fancy sitting in an eight by eight cell the rest of my life. Got me?"

Isaac leans forward and kisses the top of her head again before saying, "Yes ma'am." Then he stalks away. Sighing, Nixie turns back to Scott, who looks at her with wide eyes and asks, "Why didn't you tell him to not do that?" "Because he wouldn't listen Scott. Besides, that's not my job. You're our alpha. That's your job. My job, on the other hand, is to be the totally awesome chick who is prepared at a moment's notice to help you dispose of all the evidence."

Stiles nods and says, "And Derek drives the dump truck. Isaac brings the curtain. I bring the accelerant and matches. And Nixie makes sure the crime scene is so spotless it would never be seen as a crime scene."

Scott looks between them both, and then says, "You two have thought about this entirely too much." And then he chuckles when Nixie says, "We live with werewolves. It's our job to be prepared for the worst case scenario. Don't even get us started on what we have planned when you have little werewolf babies that have absolutely no control on the full moon." "You have contingency plans for when I have kids?"

"Yes. And let's just say it involves a whole lot of bleach and a very big hole in the ground, and leave it at that."

She was sitting in French class, trying to wake Alison up discreetly, when she heard her phone buzz in her pocket. Pulling it out and looking down, she sees Stiles' text that reads, "Isaac just left class. He looks edgy. Don't like it. Scott and I can't leave to check and see if he's doing something stupid." Nixie nods and sends back, "On it."

Standing up with her books, she takes her finished paper to the front and asks, "Can I leave to go to the restroom?" "Certainly, Ms. Bennett." Nixie almost misses the use of her true last name… so much so that when it finally registers she nearly drops her books to the ground.

Tightening her grip, she turns back to Ms. Morrell.

Morrell, for her part, had for a moment, seemed a bit smug. She doubts very many people had what they would consider dirt on Nixie Haven. Formerly Nixie Bennett.

But the smug expression vanishes when she looks up and meets, for the first time, the glaring blue eyes that were infamous at this school. And all of that force is being sent at her. Leaning closer and whispering in a harsh voice, Nixie says, "If you ever reveal to anyone what little you think you know, I will kill you in the slowest and most painful manor I can think of. And I promise you, I have a more terrifying imagination than you could possibly comprehend."

Heading out the door after that, she sighs and says, "Great. Now I have to add that to the list of things I have to worry about. Just freaking peachy."

By the time she reaches Isaac and the twins, the two brothers are already trying to beat each other up. Tilting her head, Nixie says, "Odd."

And then Aiden tosses Ethan across the floor, directly in front of Isaac, and then disappears around a far corner.

Nixie picks up on what's happening to late, and before she can move to be near Isaac, Mr. Harris is coming out of the classroom. Glancing between the two boys, he asks Isaac, "Isaac, what did you do?" Ethan, bleeding from his nose and mouth, lets Danny help him up and says, "He just came at me."

Isaac sighs, and then turns to see Nixie marching up to him. Eyes hard, trained on Mr. Harris at the moment, Isaac knows she plans to either reveal the truth, or take the blame. And considering no one else would believe that Aiden and Ethan had tried to beat each other up… she was fixing to take the blame.

Catching her round the waist before she can get any further, he whispers in her ear, "Hey, it's alright." "I'll kill them." "They didn't hurt me." She pauses, and then looks up at him and says, "They're getting you thrown in detention, at least. I…" "But they didn't hurt me." He looks down at her a moment, and then smiles a little and says, "I'll definitely appreciate the help later. Trust me. But right now, I've got this."

She sends one last glare to Ethan and Danny on the floor, and then moves away to be with Scott while they wait for Mr. Harris to deal out Isaac's punishment. Nixie is still pacing outside his classroom when Scott says, "Why don't you go check in with Stiles? He's waiting outside the front office for his dad to come out right now. He's really concerned with figuring out if Kyle was a virgin."

Nixie glances at the room, and then sighs and says, "Just… keep me posted." "Of course, Nixie."

When she finds Stiles outside the office, Kyle's girlfriend, Ashley, has just stepped out. Poor thing looks like she wants to just curl up in a ball and die. They'd really been in love, those two.

Stiles stands to his feet and brings Ashley away from the door and says, "Hey, can I talk to you for a second? I'm sorry, it's just… I need to ask you something… and it's going to sound really and completely insensitive so I apologize in advance." Ashley nods, but still looks at him in shock when he asks, "Was Kyle a virgin?" "What?" "Your boyfriend, Kyle… was he a…"

Her hand raises and Stiles flinches in preparation for the slap to come… but it never makes it to his face. Opening his eyes to look, he sees that Nixie is now standing next to him, and she'd caught Ashley's arm mid-swing.

The girl looks pissed as hell at the hand Nixie has on her, and then at Nixie, who has yet to say a word. And then… she just starts trying to hit Nixie. Hands and fists punching and slapping at Nixie's shoulders and chest.

What gets to Stiles is that Nixie doesn't fight her. She just lets Ashley go at her. Until finally, Ashley just starts crying, and Nixie draws her forward and wraps her arms around her.

Cradling Ashley's head, letting it rest on her shoulder, Nixie rubs her other hand up and down her back and says, "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry." She just sobs onto Nixie's shoulder, arms wrapping around her at the waist and squeezing tight, holding on as though for dear life.

When Noah comes over, he watches the two of them for a while, and then motions for his deputy to step forward and escort Ashley away. She lets go of Nixie reluctantly, and then, before she's completely gone, she turns back and says, "No. He wasn't a virgin."

As soon as she's out of sight, Noah turns to both of them and asks, "Have you two completely lost your minds? I have four murders! You see those men in there? That's the FBI. They're pulling together a task force to help, because it looks like we've got a full-blown serial killer on our hands. Do you two get that?" Stiles nods and says, "Yes, Dad, we get that. And that… that wasn't Nixie's fault. I asked the question. Nixie just… intervened… in a much gentler way than I did."

Noah looks to Nixie for a moment, eyes gentling at her in a silent apology. Then he turns back to Stiles and asks, "Then what the hell are you doing?" Sighing, Stiles says, "I'm trying to find a pattern."

It takes a moment, but Noah finally sighs and says, "Look… you two, get back to class. Now. We are handling this. Go." Nixie grabs Stiles arm and pulls him away. He looks down at her and says, "Nixie, we have to…" "I know that and you know that. But you dad will not understand that. He's not privy to werewolves and druids and kanimas and all the other supernatural shit that seems to circulate in this town. Come on." "Where are we going?" "Kyle's locker. They're setting up a shrine there. With any luck… somebody will leave something that might give us a clue as to why he's being killed, since we now know that it's not because he was a virgin."

Stiles follows along with her willingly after that, and when they come to stand before the locker, Stiles asks, "Why didn't I think of this sooner?" "You were on the path of questioning the girlfriend. I knew that… which is why I went to exploring the other avenues and options." Stiles grins over at her, and then says, "We make a great team." "Obviously. Evil beware our combined, sarcastic efforts."

He's chuckling a little when Boyd walks up and pins something else to the locker. "Boyd! Hey… I didn't know you were back in school." Boyd raises an eyebrow and says, "Yeah. I would've told you… but we're not really friends." Then he glances down at Nixie, and she doesn't miss how his eyes drift down towards her chest, where he knows the scar from last year rests.

Lifting his gaze to hers, he nods and says, "I lost your number. Sorry." "It's alright. Here." She holds out her hand until he grins a little and takes out his phone and hands it over. Taking it and putting her number back into his contacts, she says, "Keep me posted, will you?" "Sure. Do you… do you need anything right now?"

Stiles blinks at him a little, and then glances at Nixie. Something had happened between these two… something that Stiles could tell, made Boyd feel that he was in her debt. And it wasn't just her help the night that he and Cora had lost control. This was something else.

Regardless of what it was though, it gave him an opening to ask, "Yeah, actually. Did you know Kyle?" Boyd glances at him, and then back to Nixie when he says, "Yeah. We were in Junior ROTC together." Stiles blinks in confusion, until Nixie explains, "Reserve Officers' Training Corps, is what it stands for Stiles." Back to Boyd, she asks, "Were you two friends?"

Boyd shakes his head, and then concedes, "I only had one friend. She's dead too." Stiles nods awkwardly at that, but then looks to Nixie who puts her hands on her hips. Boyd grins slightly at her, and then says, "Sorry. I forgot for a moment… it's hard to lose you." "Damn straight. And don't you ever forget it again." "Yes ma'am."

As he walks away, Stiles sighs and says, "You know what really sucks about all of this?" "What?" "We're not actually going to be able to know what connects Kyle to the next victim, until we actually have…" Nixie nods and sighs before finishing, "Another victim. Shit."

Stiles is still looking over the locker when Nixie's phone rings. Picking it up, she asks, "Yeah Alison? What's…" "Nixie!"

When Stiles turns around, Nixie is already gone, sprinting down the hall and around the corner while asking, "Where are you?" "Janitor's stock room. Isaac's here. We're trapped inside. Nixie… he's… I think he's shifting… he's losing it. I… I can't…" "Stay calm, and try to calm him." "I'm trying, he's not…" "I'm coming. Isaac!"

He hears her voice over the phone and his eyes that had been starting to glow dim a bit. But his voice is still a growl when he says, "Nixie. I… I can't… I can't breathe. I… I can't… I have to get out! I have to get out! LET ME OUT!"

Nixie hangs up the phone and says aloud, "Scott! Wherever you are, get to the stock room! Now!"

She's just rounded another corner when Scott meets her halfway and sprints past her. He shoves the drink machine aside like it was nothing, and then Nixie grabs the handle and throws the door open. Gasping as she looks inside, she says, "Scott, grab him!"

Nixie steps aside as Scott races in and tosses Isaac through the open door and into the tiny section of hall outside. He glances at Alison, and then says, "Check on her." Nixie nods and steps inside, grabbing Alison by the shoulders. "Are you hurt?" "I'm fine."

But when she brings Alison into the light, the blood and bruising on her arm does not look alright in Nixie's opinion. Frowning at it, she watches as Scott struggles to keep Isaac in his position on the ground.

Well, not struggles to keep him there. More like he's struggling to do it without hurting Isaac. Nixie nudges him with her foot and says, "He's half shifted right now. So shift."

Scott's eyes glow in response, and he yells, "Isaac!"

Isaac's entire body relaxes, and then he slumps down to the ground, panting in relief. Rising to his feet, Scott turns and asks, "How is she?" Alison immediately says, "I'm fine." Nixie gives Scott a look and says, "Isaac hurt her arm, but it's not his…" Scott nods and cuts her off, "I know. Check on him."

Nixie moves down to Isaac's side, gingerly touching his shoulder. He keeps looking at Alison, at the blood on her forearm, and then says, "I'm sorry. I didn't… I didn't mean to do that." Nixie nods and says, "We know Isaac. We…" Isaac looks up at Scott and says, "I'm so sorry." Scott looks down at him, and then as Alison says, "It's not his fault," he answers, "I know." Isaac relaxes a little bit, now knowing that Scott isn't mad at him for what happened to Alison.

Then he turns to Nixie and says, "I'm sorry. I… I tried… I tried to, but I…" "Hey." Running her hands over the sides of his head, bringing him closer to she can hug him, she says, "It's okay. This isn't your fault." Then she looks up at Scott and says harshly, "It's theirs."

Scott nods, knowing she means the twins, and says, "I guess now we know they want to do more than make you angry. They want to get someone hurt." Isaac leans back from Nixie, and then asks, "So are we gonna do something?" Scott nods and says, "Yeah. I'm gonna get them angry. Really angry."

Then he looks at Nixie and says, "I'm gonna need your help on that." "Name it." "Are you tools still in Stiles' jeep?"

Nixie takes a moment to ponder why he might need those… and then grins wide and says, "Hell yes."

"Alison, I need a big paperclip." She pulls it out and bends it open for Nixie, who is bent down by one of the twins' bikes. The other one had already been dismantled quite a bit, all of the pieces Nixie had managed to take off, now in Scott's book bag so he could show them to the twins.

That had been step one. Step two was to get the other bike, still fully intact, started for Isaac to drive. From where he is standing watch, Isaac glances back at the two girls and asks, "How long is this gonna take?" Nixie glances up at him and says, "Patience is a virtue, Isaac." He nods, but grins eagerly all the same when the engine cranks.

Alison grins too and asks, "Is there anything you can't do?" "Get an A on my own English papers." "What? Why? I always get A's when you help me." "Yeah, well, none of the rest of you have the same problem I have. Which is that I apparently write all of my papers with paragraphs that consist of only one sentence."

At her raised eyebrow, Nixie says to Alison, "What? I put in commas." Alison just laughs a little and says, "Come on. Let's get Isaac set." "Right."

He hops on the bike, and Alison takes his hands at the handles and says, "Pull back with your left hand. Kick down to put in gear. Front brake. Throttle. Back brake for stopping. And try not to crash."

Nixie doesn't miss how close those two got… or the grin that came across both of their faces. In spite of all the differences and fighting that had happened between the two… it seemed they would be alright and could be friends.

Possibly more than friends. Nixie wonders how Scott will feel about that. Not that he should be jealous since he and Alison aren't dating. But… still.

But not important right now. Isaac nods to the advice about not crashing, and then takes off into the school doors as Nixie opens them. Grinning as Alison comes up and sends the picture they took to Scott, Nixie asks, "How long do you think it'll take?" "One minute." "I was thinking thirty seconds." Alison grins and asks, "Bet you a dollar?" "Sounds good."

They both walk leisurely down the hallway, and then both smirk when they hear Aiden shout, "Get off my bike!"

They meet Scott in the hall, and then Isaac moves over to join them, all standing and watching as everyone steps out to see what the commotion is.

And though Nixie still doesn't like Ms. Blake, she grins when the woman says, "You have got to be kidding me! You realize this is going to result in a suspension."

Aiden and Ethan both look over at them, and then Aiden watches as Nixie lifts a dollar from her pocket and says, "You win. Took them over thirty seconds. I shouldn't have given them so much credit." Alison takes it smoothly from her and says, "Live and learn." "Right."

Nixie winks at Aiden, and then walks away with Alison while the boys head back to their locker rooms.

Alison hands back the dollar and says, "Here. I was kidding." "You sure? You won, fair and square." "I'm sure. Thanks anyway. You wanna come over for dinner later?" "I'll have to see how much other homework I have first." "You can always do it at my house." "True. Alright, why not? I'll see you later." "Awesome."

After Alison walks away, Nixie feels her phone ring. Pulling it out, she answers with, "Yeah Lydia? What's up?" "Nix! It happened again!"

Pulling her bag out of her locker, Nixie asks, "What happened?" "I ended up in a place without even realizing I was going there. I ended up in music class and didn't even realize it. Not until Danny came up to me and pointed it out. And the teacher's missing." "What do you mean missing?" "I mean there's chanting on a recording on his phone, and there's blood splatter on top of the cover for his piano keys. Nixie… I'm…" "Stay there, I'm coming."

On her way, Nixie calls Stiles, who says, "Hey, I can't talk right now." "Stiles, we've discussed that." "Right. Sorry. Never answer the phone that way. I'm with Deaton right now though, so…" "Great, bring him with you." "What? Where?" "To the school. Music class. Lydia did a thing again where she basically zoned out and walked somewhere without knowing it until she snapped out of it. And she says the teacher's missing. Well… more like taken. So yeah… get Deaton down here too."

"Can we get a copy of this?" As Lydia goes about sending a copy of the recording with the chanting on it to Deaton's phone, Nixie and Stiles search through the man's desk and papers for anything that might give them a connection between Kyle and this man. Stiles glances up and says, "Hey Doc. You know, any help would be… well, helpful." Deaton nods and says, "Each grouping of three would have its own purpose, its own type of power. Virgins, healers, philosophers, warriors…"

Nixie pauses on that one and says, "Wait. Warriors?" Stiles looks up at her and asks, "What are you thinking?" "Could that also mean soldier?" Both look to Deaton, who nods and says, "Absolutely." Nixie hands the picture she just found to Stiles, who then holds it up for the others and says, "He was a soldier. And Kyle was in ROTC with Boyd, we found that out earlier today."

Deaton nods and says, "That's gotta be it. That's the pattern. Where is he now?" Stiles shrugs, but then turns to ask Nixie, only to see that she's already on the phone. It rings three times, and then Nixie sighs when Boyd answers and asks, "Yeah Nixie?" "Are you at home?" "Yeah. Why?" "Okay, I just… I need you to stay there. Be on alert. And if anything… literally anything happens that makes you feel edgy or nervous, you call me. Immediately, do you understand?" "Yeah, okay. What's going on?" "We found a connection. Between the murders. Or… you know… potential murders."

Boyd asks, "What? I…" "Boyd, it's a long explanation right now. Just… text me every fifteen minutes until I tell you that you can stop, alright? Not much, just to let me know you haven't already been kidnapped or taken or anything like that. Alright?" "Yes ma'am." "Good. I'll call you later."

Hanging up, she then turns when she hears Lydia say to Deaton, "It's just… I thought of somebody else with a military connection." Stiles huffs and asks, "Who?" Lydia turns to him and says, "Mr. Harris."

Sighing, Nixie says, "Great. Now we have to go try and protect him too. Alright, let's go." Lydia blinks and asks, "What if he left already?" "The man never, I repeat, never, takes his work home with him. He'll stay here until midnight if it means not having to grade papers in his own house. He's here. Let's go."

But when they get to the classroom, he is indeed gone. Nixie and Stiles glance at each other, and then immediately go about pouring over his desk and papers, just like they had the music teacher's. Deaton looks over everything, and then says, "This is just one of several possibilities. He may have simply left for the day." Nixie stands up straight and asks, "Where were you five minutes ago when I explained that the man never… I repeat, never… leaves early with school work to do?"

She gestures to the many still ungraded papers and tests left on the man's desk, and then goes back to rummaging through the desk with Stiles. Then Stiles stands up straight and pulls out Mr. Harris' bag, saying, "Besides, I don't think he'd leave without this."

Nixie scans over the tests on the desk one more time, and then does a double-take before leaning closer. Deaton watches her a moment, and then asks, "What is it?" "It's… one of the tests is graded R. I didn't know that was a thing." Stiles comes to her side and says, "It's definitely not a thing."

Then Lydia holds up one and says, "This one's an H." Nixie makes a thoughtful noise in the back of her throat, and then says, "So he didn't fail as terribly as this one did. Splendid." Deaton raises an eyebrow at her, but Stiles responds for her, "Sarcasm. There is always time for sarcasm." He nods, and then Deaton asks, "What else is here?"

He takes over looking at the tests, and after he's taken a moment to put them in a specific order, he lifts his gaze and sighs forebodingly. Definitely not a good sign. Then he asks, "Stiles, you remember I told you 'druid' is the Gaelic word for 'wise oak'?" "Yeah." "If a druid went down the wrong path, the wise oak was sometimes said to have become a dark oak. There's a Gaelic word for that as well."

Nixie looks past him at the words on the table, and then asks, "D… dar… How do you pronounce that?" Deaton leans back and says, "Darach."

Sighing, Nixie says, "Well, that most definitely can't be good. Even sounds terrible. Funny how that works."

Lydia laughs slightly, and then turns to Nixie and asks, "By the way… why didn't you tell me about the twins?" Nixie blinks at that, and then says, "Well, because I just found that out today. And it seemed to be a thing you should hear in person, and I haven't seen you all day. Well, except for now. When you were already stressed out. I wasn't about to add to that… not until later."

Lydia nods, and then asks, "How do you do that? How do you just… know where I am and if I'm ready to hear something? Even with the GPS?" Nixie shrugs and says, "It's a gift. And a curse. Take your pick on which you believe. By the way, this isn't entirely my fault. You're supposed to be texting me every hour, especially if you want specifics on an 'as they arrive' basis." "I know. Sorry."

Nixie nods, and then says, "You're off the hook because Alison updated me about where you were throughout the day. She knows I'm worried about… this." She gestures as a whole to the fact that Lydia keeps finding dead and taken bodies. Then Nixie adds, "Next time though, I'm just gonna show up when you don't keep me up to date. And your mom, or werewolf boy toy, or whoever else you happen to be with is just going to have to deal with it."

Lydia grins and says, "They'll get over it, or I'll get rid of them." "Nice philosophy. I like it."

Then her phone rings again, and Stiles asks, "What is this? Call Nixie day? Every time I've seen you, your phone's been ringing." "Don't you know by now Stiles? I'm in high demand."

She answers and says, "Hey Isaac? What's…"

Nixie pauses as he speaks, and none of the other three try to stop her as she begins marching out of the room while shouting, "HE DID WHAT?!"

Cora wasn't sure what to make of the sudden pounding on the outside of the door. It wasn't hard enough to be that of a supernatural creature. But it certainly wasn't just someone knocking cordially on the door. Derek was still at his table, not moving. His eyes had lifted to the door briefly, and then closed before he started rubbing his temples.

Finally not wanting to hear the knocking anymore, Cora walks over the door and is about to open it when she hears the voice on the other side say, "Derek Hale, you open this door right now. If I have to pick it open before you get here, so help me, I will shove a whole barrel full of wolfsbane so far up your ass you'll…"

As the tirade continues, Cora glances back at Derek. He finally just nods, so Cora pulls the door to the side.

She remembers this woman vaguely, from images she remembers seeing the night she'd been out of control. Nixie looks up at her for a moment, and then asks in annoyance, "Who are you?" "I'm Cora. And Derek isn't…" "Derek will damn well see me, or I'll shove you both full of wolfbane and mountain ash."

Pushing past Cora, who stares at her in shock for a moment, Nixie then marches straight up to Derek's table and asks, "What the actual hell?" "Nixie… I can…" "How could you do that to Isaac?" "I'm protecting him!" "You threw a glass at him, and it shattered… just like his father had done to him before. Isaac already feels worthless half the time, and the other half of that time, he only doesn't feel worthless because we're all here to remind him that he's not and that he's ours. So excuse me, if the excuse, 'you were protecting him', is not enough of a damn explanation!"

Taking a moment to catch her breath, Nixie jams a finger down onto the table and says, "Explain. Explain it to me right now. And so help me, if you cannot come up with something a hell of a lot better than that one sentence reasoning, I will rip your throat out, with my teeth."

Derek stares at her for a moment, and then runs a hand through his hair and says, "Deucalion was here." "WHAT?!"

Derek gives her a rundown of exactly what happened, and then doesn't try to stop her when she rounds the table and lifts his shirt so she can see where the wound was that Kali had given him with the lead pipe. It was small and almost completely non-existent now; but still in the process of healing since it had been left in so long.

Nixie takes a moment to collect herself so she doesn't shout again, and then sighs and says, "So… he wants you to kill one of your own pack?" Derek nods, and then says, "Isaac and Boyd… neither of them can stay here. If I don't do it willingly, and I won't… they'll find a way to make it happen. I can't risk letting him stay here."

Silence for a moment, and then Nixie simply asks, "What about Cora?" "What about her?" "Does she need to go somewhere else?"

At Derek's confused look, Nixie sighs and says, "Now that you've actually explained it, I can see you thought it through. You knew Isaac would come to me." "Or Scott. Yeah, I knew." "And you knew we'd help him and give him a place to stay." "Yes."

Nixie glances at Cora, and then says, "We can help her too. If you need her to be somewhere else as well. She can stay at my place, since Isaac is staying with Scott." Derek tilts his head and asks, "He's not staying with you." "If it were temporary, sure, I'd let him stay. But as a permanent residence, the McCalls have more to offer and more space than I do. Isaac will be more comfortable there."

Derek nods, and then says, "Cora's blood. They don't want me to kill her. At least… she's not the first one they want me to kill. It's Boyd and Isaac we need to worry about." "Alright."

Nixie pokes him in the chest gently, and then says, "Don't do that again. Making me think you're trying to turn back into an asshole. You had me worried." Grinning slightly, Derek kisses the top of her head and says, "I apologize. I'll keep you posted." "Good."

As Nixie turns to leave, she pauses at Cora and asks, "And you're Cora Hale?" Cora nods, and then jumps in surprise when Nixie reaches out and wraps her up in a hug. Squeezing her tight, Nixie says, "I'm glad you're okay. Give me your phone."

Cora glances briefly at Derek, but at his smile and nod, she hands over her phone, and watches as Nixie inputs her number. Handing it back, Nixie says, "Rule is simple. Call me. For anything. If you don't, I'm gonna be pissed. Got me?" Cora nods, and then says, "Thanks. And… thanks for your help. You know… the night I was…" Nixie nods, and then shrugs and says, "That's what we do. And besides, when you're not wolfed out and trying to kill me… you look like someone who could be a friend someday."

Raising an eyebrow, Cora asks, "Not yet?" "We just met sweetheart. Give me a week before we step into that territory. Besides, you're not ready to handle having me as a friend yet. But don't worry. We'll get you there. Because I'm intense, but I'm awesome to have around once you get used to me. Ain't that right Derek?"

Derek simply chuckles and says, "Yes." "Good. Alright then. Goodnight all."

As she hops on her bike and speeds back towards Alison's for dinner, she sighs and says, "It's going to be a really long semester."

Chapter 4! Hopefully Chapter 5 will be easier to proofread and I can post that tonight as well. If not, tomorrow it is. Or... I'll try for that. If the internet breaks though, bear with me people. (Technology. So unreliable at times.)

Anyways, in the meantime, I thought I'd take a minute to throw in that, if you guys see any mistakes or anything that really bugs you, please let me know. I do proofread some and try to keep as many mistakes as I can out of these... but it seems to be inevitable that some still manage to slip through. But, if they don't bug you that much, then yay!

Hope you're enjoying the story so far! :)