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 10: Episode 3x10

As soon as Ms. Blake kisses Derek… she knows that Scott, Stiles, and Nixie have already talked to him about what happened. Leaning back from Derek, she asks, "They're already here, aren't they?"

Derek motions with his eyes to where they are, and all three step out from behind the wall they were waiting beyond. And Derek doesn't miss the firm grip Scott is keeping on Nixie's elbow. She'd probably wanted to jump out and take Ms. Blake on as soon as she'd walked up to Derek, as soon as the woman had hugged him like he was still a friend. Scott was keeping her reined in. For now.

Ms. Blake glances at them, and then says, "So… they told you it was me? That I'm the one taking people?" Scott narrows his eyes at her and says, "We told him you're the one killing people."

The bitch has the nerve to scoff at them and say, "Oh, that's right. Committing human sacrifices? What, cutting their throats? Yeah, I probably do it on my lunch hour. That way, I can get back to teaching high school English the rest of the day. Oh, that makes perfect sense!"

Stiles, tears coming out of his eyes, asks, "Where's my dad?" Ms. Blake just asks back, "How should I know?" She turns back to Derek and says, "Derek, tell me you don't believe this."

He looks at her for a minute, and then over at the other three. Eyes landing on Nixie, he asks her silently one more time, just how sure she is of this. But nothing wavers in her gaze, and she nods to him firmly. She is one-hundred-percent sure.

Back to Ms. Blake, he asks, "Do you know what happened to Stiles' father?" "No!" But Nixie takes a step forward, straining against Scott's hold, and says, "Ask her why she almost killed Lydia." Ms. Blake turns to her and says, "Lydia Martin? I don't know anything about that." "Bitch, don't even dare try to lie to me."

Derek then asks, "What do you know, Jennifer?" "I know that these boys, and this girl, for whatever misguided reason, are filling your head with an absurd story. And one they can't prove, by the way."

But at that statement, Nixie finally takes a step back, so Scott can step forward. Producing a vile from his pocket, he asks, "What if we can?" Ms. Blake eyes it for a moment, and then asks, "What is that?" Scott moves forward and says, "My boss told me it's a poison and a cure, which means you can use it… and it can be used against you."

Ms. Blake's face actually takes on an appearance of worry as she asks, "Mistletoe?" Nixie smirks and says, "Damn straight." And as Scott throws it at her, they watch her form shift between that of the beautiful woman, and that of the slashed, torn, and beaten darach that she truly is.

When she tries to run after that, Derek catches her by the throat. Claws coming out, probably ready to kill her, she begs, "Derek, wait, wait! You need me." Hissing in her ear, he asks, "What are you?" "I'm the only person who can save your sister. Call Peter. Call him!"

He stares down at her for a moment, but then looks over at Nixie and says, "Nix. Call Peter." She dials the number, and when Peter picks up, she asks, "How's Cora?" "It's not good. She's in and out of consciousness. She's vomiting up black blood along with one other alarming substance." Glancing at Ms. Blake, Nixie asks, "Mistletoe?" "How did you know that?" "We'll come to you Peter. Stay with her. Do not let her out of your sight."

Hanging up, Nixie nods to Derek, affirming that Cora definitely wasn't doing well. He squeezes Ms. Blake's neck harder in response. And though Nixie, at this point, honestly doesn't have a huge issue with killing the woman, Scott asks, "Derek. Derek, what are you doing?" Pleading for her life now, Ms. Blake says, "Her life… it's in my hands."

He picks her up, literally off the ground, and Stiles comes forward and says, "Stop. Derek, stop!" Ms. Blake glances at them and says, "Stilinski… you'll never find him." Derek squeezes tighter, even as Scott says, "Derek. Derek!"

But his hand stills when Nixie voice says gently, "Derek." He looks over at her, and she sighs and says, "We… we need her. For now."

He finally drops her unceremoniously to the floor, where she sits up, laughing a little, and says, "That's right. You need me."

And then she finds herself punched in the face. Hard. She gasps and jerks to see who did it, finding Nixie now standing in front of her. Scott had finally lost his grip on her. Not that he was holding on very tight anymore. Glaring at Ms. Blake on the floor beneath her, Nixie says, "Keep on talking out of turn, homicidal maniac. I'll kill you myself if you annoy me enough. My patience, as of late, is wearing exceedingly thin."

Then she turns to the others and says, "So… if we're done debating about whether Ms. Blake is actually a darach or not… can we please head to the hospital now so we can save Cora? And then we can get Noah." Glancing at Ms. Blake, she adds, "And we will find Noah. Or there is not enough magic in the world to save you from me."

In the jeep on the way there, Stiles says, "I don't know, something feels wrong about this." Nixie nods from the backseat and says, "Mainly everything. But that's just my opinion." Stiles nods in agreement, "I mean… we proved it to Derek. But she still has this look like it didn't even matter. You know? Like it was all still going according to plan. I mean… you saw it… didn't you Scott?"

Nixie raises her hand from the backseat and says, "I definitely saw it. It's why I punched her in the face. And I'm likely to do it again. Just FYI." Scott grins back at her, and then sighs and says, "Let's just see if we can keep anyone else from dying." And Stiles grins too when Nixie says, "As long as we're not including Ms. Blake or the alphas in the group of people we're protecting, I'm all for this plan. Sorry Scott, but I have my limits." "Noted."

After pulling up at the hospital, when Stiles gets out and retrieves something from the trunk, Scott asks, "What's that?" Stiles points to him, "Well… you've got claws. Nixie's got her endless supply of daggers and knives. And I've got a bat."

But as they walk into the hospital, preparing to head up to Cora, Melissa shouts from behind them, "Scott. Scott!" As she catches up, she asks, "What are you guys doing here? The hospital's evacuating." Scott nods and says, "We're here for Cora." "What, all of you? And why does Stiles have my bat?" Nixie glances at Ms. Blake, and then says, "Insurance." Scott looks back to his mom and says, "Mom, just trust me on this. You need to get out of here. Right now."

Melissa looks at all of them, landing on Nixie for a moment, and then she looks back to Scott and explains, "The building is supposed to be clear in thirty minutes. We've got two ambulances that are coming back. One's ten minutes out, the other's twenty. Cora needs to be on one of those. They'll be picking up in the basement garage." Scott nods and says, "Got it."

As they head back up the hall, Melissa looking on worriedly, Nixie turns back and says, "Don't worry Melissa. I've got him." "Yeah, well, you worry me too Nixie." Nixie smiles a little and says, "Love you too. See you later."

Once in the elevator, Ms. Blake looks up at Derek, who refuses to let go of her arm, and then says, "You don't have to keep me on a leash Derek. I'm going to help." But as she says it, she glances back at Scott, who is in the corner glaring at her. Then she looks to Stiles, who is in the other corner, his bat raised and ready to swing.

She doesn't see Nixie, but she suddenly feels the cool steel of a blade touch her back in a silent threat and warning.

After they reach the right floor, Derek leads the way… but Cora isn't in her room. There's black blood on the ground, and the drips after that lead to another room down the hall. A room where snarling and growling sounds can be heard. Nixie tilts her head to hear better, and then says, "That's definitely not good."

As Scott calls Derek's attention there, the snarling increases in volume, and then Peter comes flying out the doors. Sliding across the floor on his back, he ends up stopping right at their feet. Looking up at them, wincing in pain, Peter says, "We've got a problem. A very big problem."

And yeah, it is a big problem. Because the wonder twins have gone and formed 'Voltron Wolf', as Stiles had called it, and were in the same room with Cora. Perfect.

Derek charges in immediately, already wolfed out and angry as hell. Nixie pulls out a blade and prepares to run… but Scott stops her and says, "No. Let me. Get to Cora. Get her out of here. Hurry."

So she waits until Scott has Ethan and Aiden occupied, and then has Stiles and Peter come with her to help get Cora off the floor and out of the way. And meanwhile, the stupid darach, Ms. Blake, who had just sworn ten seconds ago that she was going to help, was back in the elevator, leaving them behind.

She was definitely going to have to die. Sooner rather than later.

Making sure Peter has Cora over his shoulder securely, Nixie says, "Go. Run!"

Derek and Scott follow after them, Derek also ordering for them to not stop. But Stiles, trying to buy them more time, hides behind the door and attempts to hit Aiden and Ethan over the head with it.

It shatters, splinters, and breaks into a million pieces against their thick skull. Literally. They roar at him for the futile attempt, and as he scrambles away, Nixie says, "A, for effort, but I'm afraid it's going to be a D for execution." "Not an F." "Hey. There's no failure in trying. Only in quitting." "Right. Because now it the perfect time for a philosophy lesson." "No, but there's always time for sarcasm." "Really?" "Yep."

As the power goes out, Stiles curses and says, "I can't see a damn thing. Scott! I…" Nixie grabs his hand and puts it on her shoulder and says, "Just keep hold of me, and you'll be fine. Let's go."

It takes a minute, but the backup generators finally kick in. Not anywhere near as much light as it was before… but enough to see clearly by. Peter lays Cora down on a spare bed while the rest of them work on barring the doors. Looking up as Scott and Derek catch up, Peter asks, "Where's the big guy?" Derek stands watch at one door and says, "Close." Stiles nods and asks, "And what about Ms. Blake?"

Nixie shakes her head along with Scott, and Stiles asks worriedly, "What do you mean? What does that mean? Like, she's gone? Guys, are you kidding me?!" Derek turns to look at him and says, "Quiet!" "Me be quiet? Me, huh? Are you telling me what to do now? When your psychotic, mass murdering girlfriend… the second one you've dated, by the way, has got my dad somewhere, tied up, waiting to be ritually sacrificed?!"

Scott pulls Stiles back from where he'd gotten into Derek's face and says, "Stiles, they're still out there." Stiles nods and says, "And they want her. Right? Which means that, now, we don't have her either. So my dad and Cora are both dead!" "Not yet."

Stiles turns to Derek to yell at him again, but Nixie grabs his arm and jerks him around to face her. Putting a hand on his chest, she says, "Slow it down Stiles. Think it through. This isn't over yet." "Nixie, my dad is…" "For now, still alive. Focus on that. Because right now, we're trapped in a hospital, with a dying werewolf, and a mega twin out to eat us alive. Those are the problems we need to fix right now. Then we'll find your dad. Alright?"

He finally nods to her, and then looks over at Cora when Scott asks Peter, "Is she really dying?" "She's definitely not getting any better." Sighing, Scott says, "There has to be something we can do. We have to help her."

But as they're all trying to think of what to do, the doors on the other side of the room open, and in walks Ms. Blake. Hmm… Nixie didn't see that coming either.

She still doesn't think Ms. Blake is actually here to help though. Something must've stopped her from leaving. Something downstairs that was somehow worse than the alpha twins.

Ms. Blake looks at all of them, and then says, "You can't help her. I can. I can save her, and I can tell you where Sheriff Stilinski is. But there is a pack of alphas in this hospital who want me dead. So I'll help you, but only when I'm out of here and safe."

Ah… and there was the catch. Of course.

Derek throws one of the medical trays across the room and tries to tear across the place so he can tear Ms. Blake apart himself. Scott stops him though and says, "Derek wait!" "She was trying to get out!" Ms. Blake immediately defends herself, saying, "I was trying to keep from getting killed. You can't blame me for that."

Nixie scoffs and says, "Honey, don't even go there. I can blame you for quite a bit if I feel like trying. Go ahead. Ask me what else I think is your fault. I'll write you a book." Stiles puts a hand to her shoulder and says, "I'll proofread. It'll be a bestseller." "Excellent."

Then Stiles points to Cora and says, "If you wanna show you're one of the good guys, then heal her." Ms. Blake shakes her head and says, "Not until I'm safe." Nixie sneers at her and says, "Self-centered asshat." Stiles blinks and then asks, "Asshat?" "I've used the word bitch more than I'd like to recently. I'm switching to a different word." "Well, alright then."

Peter looks to Ms. Blake now and says, "I'd like to volunteer a different method of persuasion. Let's torture her." Derek immediately says, "Works for me." And Peter and Derek are both surprised when Nixie says, "I have every knife you could possibly want on my person, as we speak. Which would you like to start with?"

Derek grins at her briefly, but then they all look up when the intercom cuts on, and Melissa's voice says over the speakers, "Um, can I have your attention? Mr. Deucalion… excuse me, just Deucalion, requests you bring the woman calling herself Jennifer Blake to the E.R. reception. Do this, and everyone else can leave. You have ten minutes."

Nixie keeps her eyes on Scott, whose eyes have gone wide with terror. Ms. Blake watches him too, and then says, "He's not gonna hurt her." Derek points to her and says, "Shut up." "He won't. Scott, you know why. Tell them it's true."

Everyone pauses for a moment, and then Derek turns to Scott and asks, "What does she mean?" But Scott isn't entirely sure how to answer, so Ms. Blake rolls her eyes and says, "You're not the only one he wants in his pack, Derek. Deucalion doesn't just want an alpha pack. He wants perfection. That means adding the rarest of alphas to his ranks."

And before Nixie can explain it further herself, Peter says in astonishment, "A true alpha." Stiles glances at Nixie and asks, "Is that what you told me about? What Deaton said Scott could be?" Nixie nods, and then Stiles asks, "So… what is it exactly?" Peter hears him and responds, "The kind of alpha that doesn't have to steal his power from another. One that can rise by the force of his own will. Our little Scott."

Scott looks over at Nixie for a moment, and then he looks to Derek and says, "It doesn't matter. We still need to get her out of here." He nods to Ms. Blake at that, and Stiles comes forward and says, "Scott, your mom…" "My mom, said there's one more ambulance coming in twenty minutes. And I don't think we've been here that long. So if we can get down to the garage, get to the last ambulance, we can get out of here."

Peter scoffs and says, "The twins aren't gonna let us just walk out." Scott nods and says, "I'll distract them." Derek sighs and says, "You mean fight them." "Whatever I have to do." Derek nods after a moment, and says, "I'll help you."

Which is when Ms. Blake buts in again and says, "Um… sorry, but I'm not going anywhere without you, Derek." Derek looks ready to argue… possibly try to tear her apart again. But Scott puts a hand on his arm and says, "It's alright."

Then he looks at Nixie, silently asking if she will help him take on the twins. Her response is to simply raise an eyebrow back at him before saying, "I thought my involvement in going out to try and kick their conjoined assed was a given at this point. Do I really need to say it out loud?" Scott grins and says, "No. But I usually don't ask. I usually ask you to hold back." "Yeah, well, then it's a testament to how serious our situation is. I'm in."

"Me too." Everyone looks to Peter in surprise when he says that, to which he just shrugs and says, "What? Cora is my niece. But, I would prefer to go out there with an advantage." Stiles asks, "Like what? You mean, like a weapon?" Peter nods, and then quips, "Something better than a baseball bat."

Nixie rolls her eyes and says, "Whatever. Let's look around and see what we can find. We're in a hospital for Pete's sake. There's gotta be something in here."

They turn over every drawer and cabinet, looking for something. Stiles picks up the defibrillator paddles and asks, "What about these?" Derek turns to look at him, and then asks, "Do you know how to use those?" Stiles looks back and forth between them, "Well, no." "Then put em' down."

They keep digging, and then Scott asks, "Epinephrine?" Derek turns to look at the big ass needle he's holding, and then says, "That's only gonna make him stronger."

As the others keep digging, Nixie pauses for a moment, and then looks at the needle in Scott's hands. Then she turns to Peter, on her right. Grabbing one of his arms, lifting his hand so she can see it, she says, "Extend your claws." Peter raises an eyebrow at her, but does so. She looks at them, and then asks, "This is you at normal speed and power now?" "Yes." Then she turns back to Scott and asks, "How strong?"

Peter looks between her and the vile that Scott is still holding. Then he nods, catching onto her train of thought, and asks, "And for how long?" Scott blinks in confusion, but says, "Um… I guess it depends on how fast he burns through it." Nixie nods, "Okay. Peter will be the trial run."

She grabs it from Scott, bringing it back to Peter. She holds it in her hand for a moment, and then says to him, "You may not believe me when I say this… but this isn't personal. I just don't have the time to try and figure out where this would hurt you the least." And then she stabs it into his chest without any other warning. Pushing the whole thing in, she then says to Scott, "Alright, let's go. And you three, get Cora and get out of here. We'll meet you later."

As they step out the door, Peter feeling more amped by the second, Scott shifted and ready, and Nixie with two blades pulled out and twirling in her hands, Scott asks, "You really think we'll meet up with them later?" "I sure hope so. If we have to meet up with them sooner than that, it means something has gone severely wrong since we split."

Hearing the roaring from up the hall, Nixie says, "But we'll worry about that later. Let's go!"

As Nixie, Scott, and Peter all basically take turns getting thrown around while Stiles, Derek, and Ms. Blake rush Cora down to the basement, Scott lands beside Nixie for a moment and asks, "How you doing?" "Oh I'm great. Can't you tell?"

As soon as they know the others are clear, they take off running around the corner to hopefully lead the twins astray. It couldn't have been five minutes, maybe a little over that. But Peter was already on the ground, weaker again. Sighing, he says, "That shot didn't last very long." Nixie helps get his left side while Scott grabs his right. Picking him up, Nixie says, "Werewolf metabolism. Should've guessed, I suppose. Still, would've been nice to have just a few more minutes."

As they move to hide in the room marked 'Soiled Laundry', Nixie briefly touches a hand to her right hip, where the injury Kali had given her had been. It wasn't bleeding again, thank goodness. But it did hurt now.

She then looks over at Peter when he says, "Those twins are really starting to piss me off." Scott nods and asks, "How the hell are we supposed to get past them?" Peter shrugs and says, "Personally, I think if we keep letting them beat the living crap out of us, they'll tire and give up."

Scott looks to Nixie, and shakes his head before saying, "We can't wait that long." Nixie nods, and then glances around the room before her eyes finally land on the laundry chute. Pointing at it and then looking at Scott, she asks, "What do you think?" He nods eagerly while Peter sighs and says, "Great."

He goes first. Scott follows after him, probably a little too closely behind. He practically lands right on top of Peter. Shoving Scott off to the other side of the laundry basket, Peter gives him a look and says, "You couldn't have waited, like, ten seconds?"

Meanwhile, at the top, Nixie's phone vibrates as she's getting ready to come down. Checking it, she sighs and says, "Great." Then she lets herself fall down the chute.

Peter and Scott are out and waiting for her, and as she hits the clothes beneath her, Peter gestures to her and says, "Like that." Scrambling up, Nixie hands Scott her phone and says, "They didn't get out. Derek and Ms. Blake were chased by Kali and now they're stuck in the elevator." Scott nods and texts them back using Nixie's phone, saying, "Don't move. On our way."

Then he snags Nixie's elbow and says, "I need you to find my mom. If you can. I mean… she…" "You've got Derek?" "Yeah." "Okay. Then I'll get your mom. Don't worry Scott. I'm on this." "Thank you."

As Peter and Scott run in the other direction, Peter comments, "That girl just aims to move mountains all over the place for you guys, doesn't she?" Scott glances over at him, and then he chuckles and says, "She doesn't move mountains. Mountains get the hell out of her way when they see her coming."

As Stiles sits there with Cora, silent in the ambulance, he sighs and says, "You just hang in there a little longer okay? Believe me, if anyone's gonna get us out of this, it's Nixie and Scott." Then he chuckles to himself and says, "I can't believe I just said that. The Scott part… not the Nixie part. Not that Scott was ever unreliable. Scott's always been Scott. It's just that… Nixie's always been Nixie too. You know? And before all this supernatural shit started happening in front of us… I don't know. I was never even remotely worried about whether or not my dad and I would be alright, you know? I wasn't worried, because I knew Nixie would be there to help us, to stop whatever bad thing was coming for us."

Laughing at himself again, he says, "She always makes you feel that way. Like you're the only person in the world that actually matters, and everyone else can go to hell, so long as they don't mess with you. And I know you haven't been here long enough to see it. You've only seen her threaten people and maybe slap a few of us in the head. But… I've seen it. I've seen her actually fight for us. You should've seen the way she kicked Jackson's ass last year for the way he treated Lydia. Let me tell you… it was not pretty."

Sighing, he says, "You know, I used to always be the one with the plan in all of this. Or… at least, a plan B. You know? And now… now I don't know. Now I'm thinking… maybe you were right. Maybe we are pretty much useless. Maybe all we really do is show up and find the bodies."

He takes a moment to think about what he just said, and then can't help a few tears falling as he says, "I don't want to find my father's body." He takes a moment after that to collect himself. Then he smiles a little and says, "If I ever said any of that to Nixie though, she'd hit me in the head. And… she's right. I know that. You know, it may have taken us a while to figure out all that was going on… might've taken us time to figure out how to stop it or how to find who this darach was looking for. But… we figured it out."

Nodding to himself, he says, "We'll find my dad. Nixie will make sure of it." Looking back to Cora's body, Stiles then comments, "You know, you're a lot easier to talk to when you're completely unconscious." And then he hears doors open from nearby, and as Stiles peeks out the window of the back, he sees the twins walking around, searching for Ms. Blake probably. Leaning back and out of sight, he takes a quick breath and prays silently that the others can hurry up so they can all get out of here.

Nixie was bolting up every set of stairs and down every hall in this place. She's pretty sure she saw Kali at one point, but since she didn't appear to have Melissa, Nixie kept right on sprinting away, eyes darting into every room and around every corner, searching for Melissa.

It wasn't until she made it all the way to the roof, outside and in the rain again, that she found her answer. Melissa was with Deucalion, making her way back towards the door to go back in. Sighing upon seeing Nixie, Melissa asks, "Where's Scott?" "Undetermined for now." Glaring at Deucalion, Nixie says, "Let her go." "Of course dear."

At Nixie's confused expression, Melissa says, "I'm his gesture of goodwill." Narrowing her eyes again, Nixie says, "Demented jackass. If you think Scott will ever truly join your pack, you have seriously flipped your lid."

Deucalion grins a little and says, "Kali told me you were a fiery one. And I have to congratulate you. There are very few werewolves, let alone people, who can manage to get close enough to do any real damage to her. You've caused her to have to rethink her philosophy on how dangerous humans can truly be." "Well yay for her and for me. Melissa, let's go."

Melissa steps forward, but Deucalion grabs her arm again and says, "I have a condition now, darling. She can go, if you stay." Glaring at him, Nixie says, "If I stay I'm going to attempt to hurt you." "Not to kill me." "That'll be a bonus." "Very well."

Melissa walks past and says, "Come on. He can't chase after us if he's blind. You can…" "Melissa, I said I would stay, and I'm staying. Go find Scott. I'll meet you shortly."

As soon as Melissa is gone, Nixie pulls out her blades again, and asks, "What the hell do you want with me?" "To understand dear." "Understand what?" "Understand what exactly it is about you that makes everyone around you want to remain within your good graces. Even Ethan, one of mine, has backed off on occasion, when he thought it would turn you completely against him and make him give up this boy, Danny."

Stepping closer, Deucalion asks, "What do you suppose it is about you that makes people react that way? Why do you suppose they strive so hard to not disappoint you?" "I'm sure, I don't know. And I don't care. They're mine, and they could never do anything so bad that I would ever let them go. They know that." "Exactly. Which brings to mind the question again. Why do they strive so hard…" "I heard you the first time. And again, I don't know, and I don't care."

She lunges at him, but he dodges her and says, "You have skill, I admit. But I've been practicing being a blind man for a long time. You're going to have to do better."

And she tries, but he keeps dodging her. She only lands a few minor blows, none of which do him any real harm.

Then she tosses one of her smaller blades off to the side while she moves the other way. And as she'd hoped, Deucalion's eyes follow that sound rather than her. And finally, she lands a blow into his right shoulder, piercing through, and then she pulls it out and slices at the hand that's holding his walking stick.

That's when Kali appears again, coming from behind and grabbing Nixie by the arms. Twisting them behind her and holding tight, she shoves Nixie to her knees. Wincing from the pain, she refuses to drop her blades, no matter how tightly Kali twists. Deucalion chuckles a little and says, "You are a clever child. Bravo, I congratulate you again."

Stepping up to her, he bends down to her level and says, "But, as I said before, I wish to understand you. And I feel that the best way to do that, is to see for myself, just who exactly this person is, that everyone is so desperate to keep in their company.

Nixie isn't sure what he's doing at first, until she feels one large claw at the back of her neck. Eyes widening, she says, "Don't you dare…" But then his claw plunges into the skin of her neck, and Nixie can feel the supernatural power flow through her mind, calling to the present, memories of her past. Some that were known to all; some known only to a few.

And others that no one, not even those closest to her, had ever been told before.

Deucalion searches through her mind deeply at first, expecting it to be harder than it is to find the source of everyone's devotion to her. But it's not hard to find at all. Everyone's devotion to Nixie… is a reflection of her devotion to them. He sees the threats she's made, the fights she's been in defending those that she claimed were hers.

He sees the woman who resembles her in Eichen house. He sees the same woman trying to attack Nixie as a child, before returning to sanity and apologizing. He sees a child tell her mother that it was okay.

He sees Nixie with Peter after Stiles had left that first year. He sees the fight she put up, and the scar she'd attained for it. He sees her push others behind her, putting herself in the line of fire of bullets and arrows. And not once did she hesitate, or flinch.

He sees the other scars too. He sees how she's hidden them in favor of not making others worry. He sees her devotion to making her friends smile and keeping them happy.

And he sees more than that… more than maybe even she can see. He sees the shift in nature. He sees how certain reactions and situations seem to make it rain around her, and how cold it sometimes gets near her when she's upset.

In all his life… he'd never seen someone who was so destined. He'd never met someone who had everything it took to be…

When he pulls his claw out from her neck, it is with a gentler touch then when he'd sunk it in. Nixie slumps now, dropping her blades from exhaustion. And though Kali makes to twist her arms tighter, Deucalion lifts a hand and says swiftly, "Let her go. Gently."

Kali gives him a confused look, but does as he says. Nixie is laid on the ground, and as the rain hits her face, she opens her eyes wearily and says, "Bastard." Deucalion looks down at her, his blind eyes somehow very accurate in their gaze. And then he says, "You will be a wonder to behold someday my dear. I will have to see if you can join us then."

Glaring, Nixie says, "Hell will freeze over first." "We shall see."

After they leave her there, Nixie sighs and pushes herself into a sitting position. She stays there in the rain for a moment, and then touches the back of her neck. It's bleeding, but she doesn't think it's too bad. Sighing, she rises to her feet, and then grabs her knives before heading back into the door. She needed to find Melissa again. She needed to help the others.

And they needed to get the hell out of here.

She's running down the halls again, trying to find anyone she knows again, when she rounds a corner and nearly runs into the gun Chris lifts up when he sees her. Sliding to the ground, knife pulled out, she kicks the gun away and then smoothly stands back up, knife aimed directly under Chris' throat.

She doesn't actually penetrate him. She stops right at his throat, and finally takes in who she's standing in front of. Chris, for his part, doesn't move, and reaches out to hold Alison back when she makes to try and stop Nixie before she's ready.

Finally, she takes a breath, and then turns to see that Scott, Melissa, and Isaac are here as well. Sighing in relief, she puts the knife away and says, "Sorry." Chris shrugs and says, "I'm impressed. That was your first instinct?" "Yep." "Nice." "Thanks. Now, can we please get out of here?"

Scott steps up and says, "We still have to get Derek." "Well, then what the hell are we waiting for?"

As they continue on and move into a spare room, Scott continues to explain the situation to Chris where he'd left off before Nixie showed up. Then Chris asks, "So then, they're essentially trapped?" Scott nods and says, "Right." Isaac comments, "But there's no way of getting them out without turning the power back on."

Melissa moves around them and hurriedly says, "But wait, wait, wait. If the power's back on, they're gonna hear the elevator moving, right?" Nixie nods and says tiredly, "And they'll be on Ms. Blake and Derek as soon as it stops." And then Scott adds, looking firmly at Nixie, "And we can't get in a fight with them."

Nixie gives him a look, but then sighs and says, "I will avoid it at all costs, if I can. Cross my heart and hope to die." "Good." Chris then gestures to himself, Alison, and Isaac and says, "You've got us now." But Scott shakes his head and says, "It's too much to risk. They want her dead, and if she dies, there's nothing that we can do for Stiles' dad or Cora."

Chris sighs, and then says, "I don't even think I know which teacher this is." And before Nixie can comment, Isaac says, "She's the one with the brown hair. She's kind of hot."

All eyes shift to him, and as he looks around, he says, "Oh… it's… it's just an observation." Nixie fixes him with a hard stare before saying, "She's the English teacher we were in class with the day the horde of suicidal birds decided to kill themselves by flying into the classroom windows." Chris nods to that, understanding that explanation easier.

Then Alison, who is looking at herself in a mirror, says, "I've got an idea."

And she grins when Nixie says, "Excellent. What do I need to do?" "Same thing you always do. Be what we need you to be." "I'm aware of that, but currently what is that?" Alison pulls Nixie's hair bow out so her hair falls down, and then says, "Be a distraction."

The twins chased Nixie down the hall just like Alison predicted. Wearing Alison's heels, which were a size too big, was not exactly easy. But she managed it.

As she got outside she rolled onto the ground so Alison could rise up and start shooting her arrows without worrying about hitting Nixie. Chris came out, guns blazing. And Nixie pulls out more daggers from within her jacket and started throwing them with expert precision towards the three alphas that were now before them; the twins and Kali.

Once they're gone, Alison sighs in relief and says, "Thank God. That worked." Nixie nods, but then looks down at her ringing phone. "Yeah Stiles? What's up?" "Scott's gone."

Alison's smile slips immediately when Nixie entire body tenses up like a statue. Then she asks, "Stiles, I'm gonna need you to repeat that. I'm sure I heard you wrong. What?" "Nixie… Ms. Blake escaped. She took Scott's mom. And he… he doesn't know what else to do. So he went with Deucalion. He said he was gonna find them, and Deucalion is gonna help him so long as Scott's in his pack."

Nixie takes a moment to think that through, and then she sighs and says, "Stiles, where's Derek?" "In the elevator. Unconscious." "Wake him up. Do whatever you have to. I'll meet you inside in a minute."

Hanging up, she hits one of her speed dial numbers while Alison asks, "What's wrong? What…" "We misinterpreted what guardians meant… again?" "What? What does it…" "Parents, Alison. It meant parents. And Ms. Blake just took Scott's mom. And now Scott is with Deucalion. We have reached the territory of 'up shit creek without a paddle'."

As her phone rings, Alison asks, "Who are you calling?" "Scott."

He answers on the fourth ring, and says, "Nixie, I have to…" "Scott, I get that we're low on options. I get that. Just… promise me. Promise me that you will still call me. And promise me that when I call you, you're going to answer the phone."

There's a pause, and then Scott says, "You know I will. I promise. Um… and here. Deucalion would like a word." "I don't have anything to say to him."

But the phone is already passed, and Deucalion says, "Hello dear. I assure you, Scott is in good hands." "I disagree." "Because they are not yours?" "Damn straight." Deucalion chuckles softly, and then says with, what actually sounds like sincerity, "Scott may call you and you may call him whenever it is needed. I would not prevent him from staying in contact with one as… precious to him as you are."

He hands the phone back to Scott, who speaks with Nixie for a few more seconds, and then hangs up. Looking to Deucalion, Scott asks, "Why?" Deucalion grins a little, and then says, "You really have no idea who she's going to turn out to be… do you Scott?" Scott tilts his head curiously, but Deucalion simply adds, "Rest assured, I would not dare try to cut you off from her. It would pain her too much, and I'm quite certain it would endanger the lives of the rest of my pack, if I were to attempt to do so."

Beginning to walk away, he says, "Come on Scott. We have a lot of work to do… and a short time to do it in."

Chapter 10! Woohoo! Only two chapters left guys. Hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoyed writing them. They will both be posted later tonight (granted that the internet doesn't crash before I'm done reading through them again).