Maia was pulling on one of Peter's old shirts when she heard a low howl, looking out of the window towards Beacon Hills.

"Scott."

The two wolves ran and she came across Scott and Stiles in the woods, the teens looking up at her when she approached. The former Omega looked at her and stared through the woods, sure that he had heard another wolf with her. "Where's Derek," he asked, his eyes scanning the tree line. She just shook her head and reached up to tuck her hair behind her ears, looking at his yellowed eyes, "What's wrong? What happened?"

"The Kanima master? Yeah, he's Matt," Stiles said, the woman turning to him.

"He's controlling Jackson," Maia asked, seeing both of them nod. She shook her head in disbelief, looking at the teens and sighing. "Explain yourselves." The two explained all that had happened at the party with the laced drinks and less than conventional party favors- the revelation that when Matt had been thrown into the pool by drunken party goers, he couldn't swim. "Stiles saw it first and when he called me over, I saw Jackson pulling him out. By then the cops had shown up and busted the party- we ran out and I saw Matt standing with the Kanima at his feet, pissed off and ready to kill. And so I called you."

Maia let out another heavy breath, wishing that Derek wasn't currently incapacitated- she really could have used his help. "Alright, go to your father Stiles and find out whatever you can on the little piece of shit. I have to go take care of a wolfed-out pack right now. I'll catch up with you all in a few hours- call me if you find anything," she said, sending the two wolves off.

The newest member to her pack moved to her side, trying his best to keep his eyes off of her naked legs.

"You know, he killed me," Peter said, the Alpha narrowing her eyes. "No, he just helped- your nephew dealt the death blow, remember? Took your pack right out from underneath you… but you can't hold a grudge, because I'm the Alpha and you're going to play nice with the rest of the boys, aren't you Peter?" She inflicted her eyes on him and the wolf bared his teeth, feeling himself underneath the weight of her unspoken order, "Do I have a choice?"

While they trekked their way through the woods and into the dark, Derek found himself floating in a white void. He could hear his voice being called from far off, feeling as if he couldn't catch his breath. The wolf could tell that he was covered in sweat and naked, his entire body on fire. The voice spoke to him again, stronger and more insistent, "Wake up. We don't have much time."

He was then assaulted by a low-pitched sound, feeling as if his head was about to split open-

Derek jerked awake, looking around to realize that he was back in the Hale House- the last moments before the darkness and the white had overtaken him were of Maia and Peter. He then came face to Dr. Deaton, looking at the dog whistle hanging around his neck. "Let me help you get your clothes on. We have to move," he said, holding Derek's shirt and jeans in his hand. The Alpha was confused, but allowed the vet to help, "You were in my house?"

"Yeah and I don't have good news," Alan replied, meeting Derek's eyes. "Boyd and Erica are safe, but Isaac's gone-"

"Shit."

Derek tried to get to his feet, but he was still very weak, nearly falling when he stood. "Yeah, that's going to last for hours- and yeah, you're still an Alpha, just not a particularly competent one at this moment," the vet replied to the werewolf's questioning eyes. He looked at the bite mark on his arm and winced, pulling his sleeve down over it. "Have you seen my wife?" The question was biting and Deaton eyed the male standing in front of him, "No, why?"

"Because she's the one who dragged me like a sacrificial lamb to Peter," Derek replied, seeing the vet nod and begin to rub his brow. He looked at Deaton before attempting to slam him into a wall, growling impressively even in his weakened state. "Tell me what you know." The vet disarmed him easily and started to put him on his back before thinking better of it, sighing. "I can't do that Derek; you know that helping your family used to be a pretty important part of my life. And now, helping you- doing my best to keep you alive- is a promise I made to your mother. Telling you what I know about this and Maia is not conducive to that end. You have to just trust me on this Derek," he said seriously, the Alpha male searching his eyes. Derek stepped back and swallowed, showing Deaton the most respect he could muster up just then. "Then can you tell me what the hell just happened," he asked, seeing the human sigh.

"Maia helped Peter resurrect- a feat that can only be achieved when the ground and the moon intertwine: the Worm Moon. But it came at a price, leaving your uncle physically weak; he'll have to rely on his intelligence and cunning for some time more, which he is in no short supply of. Peter needs to be accepted into the pack and he's going to try and get inside of your head, try and manipulate you. Not even Maia can just accept him in- not in normal circumstances," Deaton said evenly, refusing to meet Derek's eyes. "He's going to try and convince you that working together is the only way to protect yourselves against the hunters, and the only way to destroy the Kanima. You shouldn't trust him."

Derek nodded and turned away, preparing to go for his pack, "I don't trust anyone. Not anymore."

"You know as well as I do that if Maia had wanted to kill you, she could have. Many times. So no, you shouldn't give up on her just yet because the only way you're the Alpha you like to think you are is with her. And you better damned find her. Soon."

With those words weighing on him, Derek began running, unsure of where the journey was going to take him and what he was going to find when he got there.


"Jesus."

Peter looked over at Maia as she drove to the police department, the Alpha having told him her entire story. "And if you tell Derek or say anything, I will kill you- again- and I'll kill him too. I'll have to," she said, pulling into the parking lot. He met her eyes and nodded seriously, "I swear. It stays between you and I… given you take note of my loyalty when all of this is over."

"I'll consider it."

They got out of the car and moved to walk inside, seeing the desk officer look them over. "Hi, can I help you," the woman asked, Maia smiling before holding up her cell phone.

"Yes- I believe that Sherriff Stilinski needs to see me."

The woman took her and Peter to the back of the station, Maia knocking on the door before entering the office. "Hey, you needed me?" Scott turned to look at his Alpha and saw Peter at her side, struggling to keep control over himself. He couldn't question her, not in front of Stiles' dad, but he and his friend exchanged a look that Maia didn't miss.

"Dad, I know we're not supposed to bring in outside intellect but Mrs. Hale here offers a… unique perspective on the case. You should let her look it over- after all, she's the one who helped connect the murders," Stiles said, looking at the beautiful woman smiling falsely at him. His father gave him a look, shaking his head, "I thought you came up with the whole swim team connection."

"Yeah… no."

Maia moved to stare at the information spread out on the Sherriff's desk, Peter hanging out against the wall, watching over her. They reviewed all of the evidence and discovered that Matt had been at the scene of four murders- facts that only solidified Maia's decision to kill him. But Sherriff Stilinski wanted to investigate further, particularly with Scott's mom and her interactions with Matt on the night he had killed Jessica Bartlet. She agreed to come down to the station and Maia prepared to take her leave, she and her pack mate moving to the front of the station.

"Wait," she said, catching the scent of blood and looking over the counter for the officer on duty. She found the woman dead and heard a hissing sound that she knew had to be the Kanima, hearing the click of a gun behind her head. "Shit…"

"Nice to see you again Mrs. Hale," Matt said as Maia turned slowly to face him. She could see Peter on the floor and inhaled, raising her hands. "Or should I call you Alpha?"

She smiled venomously and shrugged, "Only if I can call you dead. Which you will be, sooner than you think." Matt laughed humorlessly and pressed the barrel of the gun to her forehead, jerking his head to the back of the station. "Get going sweetheart."

"Hey Scott, we have a problem," Maia spat through her teeth, everyone looking up as she entered the room. The Sherriff went for his gun to Matt shouted for him not to, "I will put a goddamn bullet through her head before any of you have a chance to move! And I doubt no matter who or what she is, that she can survive that."

Holding the Alpha at gunpoint, Matt forced the Stiles to handcuff his father and put him in a cell before forcing the human and the young wolf down the hall. "See, I figured that after what happened at the school that she was more involved in what I had discovered was a very dark underworld in Beacon Hills. I followed you both at the rave and saw what you really were- werewolves," Matt said, the Alpha wishing she could just tear his throat out. But she couldn't survive a bullet to the head and she wasn't particularly looking forward to a year in the ground waiting for another Worm Moon- and hell, with how mad Derek was going to be when he woke up, he might just let her rot…

"So beautiful, what's a guy like me gotta do to get a real set of claws," Matt asked, dragging his lips up the side of her face. Maia panted, trying to keep herself from phasing, "You've got the Kanima to kill for you- where do you get off wanting to be a lycanthrope?"

"Being the Kanima master isn't all its cracked up to be doll," Matt replied harshly, getting a firm grip on her hair before looking at Scott and Stiles. "You two, destroy all of the evidence. Now."

Maia inhaled deeply, looking out of the corner of her eye at the boys as they hesitated. "Just do as he said," she whispered as she flashed her eyes at Scott. He knew that Matt wouldn't make it out of the station alive and proceeded to do as she told him, knowing that vengeance would soon be had.

She waited a few moments before speaking, curious as to why Matt was acting out the way he was. "What do you want from us," Maia questioned, the young teen stiffening against her. "Well, I was thinking since you are a mythical beast and I'm turning into a mythical beast- with scales crawling across my fucking body- that you could help me; I just had to gain your compliance first. And since you seemed a little stubborn, we had to do it this way… You said something in the library about a 'bestiary' and I Googled it- you have a supernatural guide to dummies, don't you?"

"Yeah, but I don't have anything that can help you for that. Looks like you're fucked."

A car pulled up and Scott looked out to, knowing that it had to be his mother. "No, mom. Crap," he murmured, Matt shaking gun at him. "McCall, get away from the window and finish working!"

Matt moved to look over his shoulder, seeing the figure standing there. "Alright, hey Maia. Look who joined the party," he said, moving so that she could see Derek standing in the doorway. He met her eyes, attempting to speak before collapsing to the floor, motionless. She shouted as she looked over his shoulder at Jackson, roaring in anger. "Hey," Matt snapped, reminding her of the gun to her head. Maia reigned herself in and clenched her teeth, casting a glance down to her husband. "I'm sorry," she whispered, Matt moving to check on Stiles and Scott.

The crazed teen looked at the two others, turning his wrath onto Stiles, "So Stilinski, you run with a nice crowd- what do you turn into on the full moon?" Stiles, every witty and sharp tongued, was quick with his own comeback, Maia knowing that she could have laughed if it weren't for the asshole holding her hostage. "Oh, I'm an abominable snowman, but my transformation is seasonal," he replied, Matt smirking humorlessly before looking at Jackson. Without any spoken order, the Kanima cut Stiles down, Scott beginning to lunge at Matt. "You next then, McCall? Save your heroics," the human sneered, Jackson moving to throw Stiles on top of Derek's chest. The Alpha grunted from the weight of the teen falling onto him, wishing he could throw him off and across the room, "I hate you Stiles. So much…"

Another car arrived and Maia knew it was Melissa McCall, closing her eyes. "Alright guys, lets play a game. Maia, you're going to force Scott into following your orders because I'm going to make you follow mine. That sound alright," Matt questioned, the Alpha snarling- she was getting increasingly annoyed by the arm around her neck. "Yeah, you and what army?" He smiled and threw her towards Jackson, moving over to where Derek and Stiles were in the floor. Scott watched as he rolled Stiles off of the Alpha, Matt moving to apply a boot to the older man's throat. Maia could see Derek's eyes fluttering in his head, her breathing picking up before she shouted at Matt, flinging her words, "Alright! I'll do anything- just let him breath!"

Derek gasped as Matt stepped away, motioning with the gun to a chair. "Sit," he instructed, the woman shaking as she did exactly as he asked. She looked down at Derek and then back to Matt, her eyes glowing an intense, burning red that Scott had never seen. "Do whatever he says. That's an order," she whispered, hearing the front door open.

Scott's mother walked into the room to see Matt pointing a gun at her son and Maia sitting as still as a statute. The woman looked at her evenly, her jaw taut and her eyes just as tight as she stared at Matt's back. Without any provocation, the teen looked at Scott and shot him just below the right side of his ribcage. Both women shouted as they watched him fall to a knee, Matt menacing Scott's mother back into a jail cell.

"Scott, get that bullet out of your chest," Maia hissed through her teeth, looking at their captor. "Now, so you can heal. And Derek, get that venom out of your system."

"What the hell do you think I am doing?"

She heard the human let out a shout and storm back into the room, yanking up his tee shirt to show Maia the progression of scales spreading over his body. "Look, this is getting worse! And you can either help me or I can put a bullet into your little boyfriend," Matt threatened, the Alpha looking at him venomously. "You want the bestiary- okay. But I can tell you know after reading it and translating it that there is nothing in there that will help you. It's the simple laws of the world Matt- you can't break the rules of the universe without the universe trying to balance it back out," Maia snapped, her fangs coming together loudly. "You forced Jackson to kill innocent people and you killed one of them yourself! You're getting exactly what you deserve Matt-"

"Innocents? You think that those fuckers I had Jackson kill were innocents? They killed me," Matt shouted in reply, flailing the gun carelessly. Scott was sitting on the floor, slowly healing and watching Matt's every move. "I was over at Isaac's house when I was younger, after the swim team won the 2006 State Championship. They were all there, drunk and fucked up, and they threw me into the pool! I was eleven fucking years old and I couldn't swim, so I drowned. Literally sucked water into my lungs until I was gone… Lahey resuscitated me, yeah, but he threatened me not to tell anyone and said it was my fault I didn't know how to swim. Yeah, it was my fault that I drowned…

"But hey, then the Kanima came along and I started balancing the universe out myself. They got their comeuppance-"

The power went out suddenly and Matt whirled around as the emergency lighting flashed on and the sirens began to blare. Outside headlights swept over the building and hunters with automatic weapons started firing through the windows, Derek leaping up to grab Maia. He moved to pull her underneath a desk, Matt running as Scott reached out for Stiles. "No Scott! Stay down- you don't need anymore fucking bullet holes," Derek shouted, seeing the scared express on the teen's face before the smoke grenades started rolling in.

"Peter," Maia roared, seeing the still-weak werewolf crouching in the doorway. "Get Stiles and run! Take him home!"

He did as she said and once was out of the way, they started to move, Derek only wanting Matt. But then the Kanima came out of nowhere, Derek barely seeing it before it was in his face, his wife grabbing him by the back of the shirt and swinging him around so that she could land a powerful kick to the Kanima's midsection, knocking him back through two rooms. Derek panted as he whirled around to face her, seeing her red eyes, "Thanks."

"I didn't do that for you," she replied bluntly, moving to dart through the station. "I still need you."

Hunters began to flood the police station and the werewolves were forced to fight, Maia running away from two men before pausing and turning around with a deadly glint in her eye. "I would run if I were you. I'm hungry," she snarled, her claws lashing out at her sides.

Scott kicked a hunter in the chest before coming face to face with a crossbow, looking above it to see Allison. "Allison? What are you doing," he asked, confused. She only glared at him, her eyes cold, "Where is Maia?" Scott felt his loyalty to the Alpha rise and knew he couldn't answer the question, still attempting to talk to her. "What happened?" Allison lowered her crossbow and pushed him in the chest, her lips pressed into a hard line. "You bitch Alpha bit my mother and to keep herself from turning into one of those things, my mom killed herself. So now I'm going to kill her and if you want to stay alive, you'll stay out of my way," Allison replied, moving to hunt down her prey.

She found herself stalking Jackson instead in the station's evidence room, the creature curled up on one of the high shelves. Knowing that it was being watched, the Kanima snarled and pounced, Allison shooting it in the head with a bolt from her crossbow. Her eyes widened as the Kanima simply pulled out the arrow and came at her again, the inept hunter running for her life.

Maia could hear the racing of a human heartbeat, the way blood rushing through the owner's veins more sluggish than that of her own or Derek's. She paused on her way through the garage, hearing a faint hiss as she looked over at the police car in the corner.

Allison lashed out with her knife as something moved around to where she was crouched, a claw-tipped hand meeting her own to twist the blade from her hand. The teen found herself face to face with her mother's killer, enraged by Maia, "Take your hands off of me you murderous bitch!" Confused, the Alpha released her, dodging another knife as Allison came at her again. "What is your problem," Maia questioned, holding one of her arms behind her back and forcing her to her knees. "You're my problem! You killed my mom!"

Realizing that the break she had felt the previous night was Victoria ending her own life- and severing her tie to the pack- Maia nodded, looking up as the Kanima slithered its way towards the two women.

She bent down in Allison's ear, speaking lowly, "Well, let me tell you something about your mother Allison. She was a cold, heartless bitch. She was privy to every action that Kate or the hunters ever made- because she made them. As the oldest Argent female, she was in charge: men are meant to be soldiers, women were born to lead, right sweetheart? That night at the rave when I bit mommy dearest, I found her attempting to kill Scott via wolfsbane vapor. She stabbed Derek and she stabbed me. She got what she fucking deserved. And if tomorrow or in a year, you still feel the same way about me being a mother and protecting my pack, no matter what, you know where to find me. But until then…

"Run."

Maia flung Allison towards the door as the Kanima lunged at her, grabbing it around the throat and wrestling it to the ground.

Derek was moving to break the humans out of the holding cells before hearing a commotion and moving out of the way as Maia and the Kanima crashed through the wall. He couldn't understand how she seemed to be holding her own against the creature, seeing more than a few rips in her clothing where it had lashed out at her. "Derek!" Scott skidded into the room just as the Alpha grabbed Jackson by the tail and tossed him back into the hole he had burst through, lifting his wife to her feet. He looked her over and motioned to the cells, "Help me get them out?" Maia moved to the Sherriff's cell and he looked at her red eyes, searching her face. "What in the…" She gripped the bars as Derek did the same, both of them yanking the door clean off of the cell.

"Long story officer," she replied, looking over her shoulder at the hunter who had entered the room and started fighting with Scott. Maia snarled in a way that made the Sherriff cringe, taking the knife that Allison had had and throwing it at the man, hitting him squarely in the chest before he stabbed Scott. "And that was self-defense."

Maia pushed him towards the door and moved to break Melissa out as well, knowing that Derek was trying to stave off the hunters from getting to his pack. "Ma'am," the young woman said, seeing her cowering in the corner at the very sight of her. Maia extended her hand and attempted to help her again, looking over her shoulder anxiously, "Mrs. McCall, there are a lot people here that want to kill Scott and we can't get him out unless we get you out too- its okay to be scared, but I assure you that there's much more dangerous things to you out there than me."

The woman grasped the Alpha's hand and Maia pulled her out of the cell, pushing her towards Scott. He wrapped his arms around his mother, seeing her horrified face when she took him in, "Oh no…" Scott released her and sent her on after the Sherriff, disappearing down a side hallway as Maia and Derek moved to do the same.

Derek pulled Maia against the wall as two hunters ran by, holding her there with his own body- to shield her, just in case.

"Gerard, it wasn't supposed to happen like this," they both heard Scott said, his hushed whisper picked up by their acute hearing. He continued on, Maia watching Derek's face as the young wolf let his secrets flow, "I did everything you asked: joining the pack, spying on Derek and Maia, getting you information on Jackson and Matt-"

"Leave the human to me Scott and go return to your pack," Gerard replied, Derek suppressing a growl. Maia heard him drop something and Scott picked up it, the Alphas looking at each other. Maia stroked her husband's face and he bared his teeth angrily, pulling her outside.

Once they had gotten away from the battlefield, they paused, Derek whirling her around to search her face carefully. "What happened tonight, with Peter and the second Alpha," he asked quietly, swallowing painfully.

"Remember when I told you that if I could tell you, I would," she asked seriously, looking up at Derek. She reached up to cup his face in her hands, Maia exhaling quietly, "Derek, listen to me when I say that my life has gotten so incredibly… messy that somewhere along the lines, right and wrong got really blurred. But I know what I'm doing and you're going to have to trust me, because I'm keeping up safe and I'm keeping you alive: there's a price on your head and the pied piper wants his pay. So just don't ask me questions, alright?"

"Alright," Derek replied, seeing a serious… fearful look in her eyes that he had never seen before.

She sighed and then they started running, keeping pace with each other as a choir of wolves sang out to them. Derek looked at the sleek body moving alongside his own and his lips grew taut, realizing how much danger she was in as well, "You know we have to kill him, right? For betraying the pack?"

"Yeah," Maia murmured, pushing on. "Just not yet- he's like you. I still need him, if not for a little bit longer."