"Stiles, are you sure about this?" Scott stared at his friend intently, eyes attempting to pierce through his determined demeanour.

Rolling his eyes for what must have been the tenth time in as many minutes, Stiles nodded dramatically, "YES no would you stop that?" Shaking his head, Stiles walked over to Scott's closet, throwing the rickety wooden doors open and grabbing a pair of sweatshirts. One for Scott, one for him. It had been bright sunshine and warm winds when he had gotten dressed that morning, but now the icy chill of evening was setting in, and he found himself shivering slightly. He refused to admit to himself that it was because he was scared, no, he was simply cold. Struggling with it for a moment, he eventually pulled the green jumper over his head, fixing the sleeves as he turned back to face Scott. His friend was holding the jumper Stiles had thrown at him, still staring intently at the boy in front of him. Glaring in frustration Stiles nearly shouted, "Oh my God would you stop that!"

Nose wrinkled in confusion Scott blinked at him, "Stop what?" As he waited for a response, he pulled the extra layer over his head.

"THAT!" Stiles gestured wildly to his friends face, fingers moving accusingly between his eyes and nose. "Stop trying to read me. I know what I'm saying and I know the risk."

Sighing, Scott knew his friend was telling the truth. He could see his friend shaking, he could practically taste the tangy mixture of fear and adrenaline, but it was overruled by the steadfast determination that hung around Stiles' body. Rubbing a hand across his sleepy eyes he groaned, "There's no talking you out of this then?"

"Nope." Stiles crossed his arms, bobbing up and down on his toes in agitation. "And we need to go now. Like right now." Each moment they wasted talking was another moment Lydia spent alone in Eichenhouse, another moment when he wasn't doing everything he could to save her. Watching her get so close to escaping had broken his heart, and it also made him wonder just how many times she had attempted it. Maybe she gave up on them, got fed up with waiting and resigned herself to the fact that they weren't coming. The thought agitated him even further, he felt like he was betraying her by standing still. Rubbing his hands together he headed towards the door, "C'mon lets go."

Scott moved to speak, thought better of it, and then changed his mind again, voice quiet, barely a sigh in the quiet bedroom, "Stiles we can't-"

"WHY NOT?" he couldn't help it. Stiles yelled at Scott, a glint of the boxed in anger he usually hid so well seeping to the surface. The veins in his neck bulged as he yelled, and his face grew red rapidly. Scott flinched, staring at Stiles in shock. Seeing his best friend retreat from him chilled Stiles, soothing his rage into an icy cold layer of guilt. "Scott- Scott I'm sorry. I just- I need-" he sighed, rubbing the back of his neck and staring at the floor.

Scott's shoulders lowered slightly, and a small puff of air escaped his lips, releasing the tension all across his body. "I get it Stiles, I really do, but just stop for a minute and think?"

No energy left to be angry, Stiles' voice dropped to a hoarse whisper, quivering slightly with emotion. "I have been thinking Scott. All I've done for the past month is think. I'm done thinking, okay? I have thought and now I need to act. I know what I'm risking and I'm willing to do it to save our friend." He was still staring at the floor, he felt as though he were a schoolboy in trouble, trying to explain himself to a teacher.

For a moment Scott paused, torn between the fear of losing Stiles and the urge to save Lydia. Clenching his jaw he reached out placing a firm hand on his friend's shoulder. "Okay." Body frozen in shock, Stiles' head shot up, his face plastered with surprise. With a smile Scott raised his other hand, signalling for Stiles not to interrupt. "But, I have one condition. You aren't going alone. We'll both do it, and I think Liam and Isaac should come too."

A frown pulling at the corners of his lips, Stiles squinted at his friend, "Why them?"

"Well Malia refuses to set foot in Eichenhouse, and last time Kira was there, things didn't end too well. Hayden and Mason are great kids, but they just don't know what they're doing quite yet. We'd have to worry about looking after them as well as everything else."

Stiles raised his eyebrows and nodded in agreement, "Good point. Right then, let's go."

"Go where?" Liam and Isaac chorused together from the doorway, jostling slightly with each other for the prime spot. Scott and Stiles stared incredulously at each other before turning in unison to face the pair.

One hand on his hip and the other pointing accusingly at the pair, Stiles asked, "Just how long have you two been listening in on us?" His finger jumped between the pair, and he fixed them with a steely, if not slightly amused frown.

Both boys stood frozen for a moment, guilt pulling them to a standstill. However, the younger of the pair seemed to get over it remarkably quickly, and Liam piped up with an eager smile, "Isaac called me as soon as he heard you come in the window. He was worried you guys were gonna fight again."

Glaring at the shorter boy, Isaac punched his shoulder and muttered to himself, "Yeah and I'm seriously starting to wish that I hadn't."

Laughing, Stiles pouted his lips, "Aww, was Isaac worried that mommy and daddy were gonna break up?" He was bent double, hands on his knees as though he were talking to a very small child, grin threatening to split his face in two.

Isaac rolled his eyes and opened his mouth to retort, but when no answer came he simply laughed bitterly and looked away, opting instead to shove a hysterical Liam off of his feet. Scott chuckled slightly before a look of confusion and concern set on his face, "Wait, which one of us is the mommy? Oh god I'm not the mom am I?" His head whipped around, looking between his three friends for some sort of confirmation.

Stiles stared at him, making no effort to hide the exasperation on his face, "It was a joke Scott. Neither of us is the mom or the dad."

Shaking his head slightly, Scott laughed, "Yeah yeah, of course!"

"Well- now that that's sorted, can we go?" Liam was bouncing impatiently at the door.

Clapping his hands together in anticipation, Stiles hurried towards the exit shouting, "Let's go check into Eichenhouse!" Once out of the room he bobbed his head down to the left and rolled his eyes, adding, "Again" under his breath. Not waiting for the others to catch up, he bolted down the stairs and out the front door, headed straight for Lydia's car. Back in his room, Scott muttered to Isaac as they left, "I'm not the mom though, right?"

Shaking his head quickly and speaking in an overconfident voice Isaac responded, "No! Of course not." He didn't dare look Scott in the eye as he said it, instead turning his face towards the ceiling, where his grin was out of sight.

"Liar" Liam laughed at him from down the hall. Swearing at the younger boy, Isaac darted towards him. Liam only got a moment of laughter before he was forced to flee, racing out of the house towards the safety of Stiles waiting in Lydia's car. Dumbstruck, Scott stood in his hall, mouth hanging open and hands hanging at his sides.

"I am so not the mom." He spoke to himself, voice squeaking slightly in denial. Shaking his head, he returned his focus to the plan, hurrying after his friends.

It was a tight fit, but they all managed to squash into Lydia's car, and soon Stiles was racing along the dark roads, growing ever closer to Eichenhouse. Voice trembling slightly from the back seat, Isaac spluttered as they lurched around another corner, "I know you're eager to check into the nut house, but do you think you could drive a bit slower?"

"Nope." Stiles said it plainly, eyes focussed on the road, not sparing Isaac any more of his attention.

Rolling his eyes, Scott turned in his seat to face the pair in the back, "We're nearly there, just hang on okay?" Isaac gulped, nodding and resting his head against the back of the seat, doing his best not to throw up. Satisfied, Scott turned back to the front, sparing a glance at Stiles as they bolted along yet another dark stretch. He could see the internal battle Stiles was having. Eichenhouse was the one place on earth that Stiles hated above all others, and now he was willingly going to commit himself, risking his freedom and his wellbeing. All of that fear and hatred he had for the place still couldn't outweigh his love for his friend. Pride welled up inside of him, pushing a tight smile onto Scott's face, "Stiles, I don't know what's gonna happen in here, but we're gonna save her. I promise, no matter what, Lydia gets out."

Stiles wanted to respond, to say thank you, but found that his voice had left him. Instead, he glanced at his friend, tried and failed to smile, and so settled for a grateful nod before turning his gaze back to the road. The familiar dark gates slid into vision, and he hit the brakes firmly, sending everyone else jolting forwards. As though he were in a trance, he turned off the car and got out, walking towards the crackling voice box that hung on the wall next to the gate. He tried to swallow, but his tongue was working against him, refusing to send anything down his hot, dry throat. One steadying breath, and then he was pushing down the call button, waiting for a reply from reception. When the speaker beeped, a woman's voice echoing out of it, Stiles jumped, hand slipping off of the speak button. Scrambling back into position, he pressed it down as firmly as he could. "Yes, uh, hi. We have four self surrenders outside the gates. Three of them think they have magical dog powers, and the fourth believes he was possessed by an evil spirit." Silence filled the air once he had finished, only broken by the steady crackling of the voice box.

Eventually, he heard the woman sigh, "Come on in" and the black gates rattled open. The group stared at him, clearly feeling somewhat insulted.

"Magical dog powers?" Isaac gaped at him, mouth hanging open.

Liam stepped forwards, "They're not magical powers, we're werewolves!"

Pulling a face, Stiles nodded, clapping his hands together "Great! Just say that inside and we'll get in no problem." Scott laughed and clapped him on the shoulder, and the pair began the walk up the slippery steps side by side. Liam and Isaac hurried on behind them, still grumbling about 'dog powers'. All four of them stepped through the door to the reception together, blinking in the bright lights after being smothered in darkness only moments before. Behind the reception desk sat a small dark woman, with shining black hair which was sleeked back into a ponytail. Square glasses perched daintily on her nose, she glanced up at the oncoming group.

Staring sceptically at them she lifted a pile of clipboards onto the desk, each one with a self admission form pinned to it. Eyeing them warily, she spoke in a high pitched, scratchy voice which was totally juxtaposed to her otherwise smooth appearance. "So you're-"

"Possessed by an evil spirit, yeah. I was here before, but it made me break out. I'm back now." Stiles smiled at her and grabbed the pen she warily offered him before he set about filling in his form.

Nodding slowly, she stared at him for a moment before resting her gaze on the other three, "And you are the uh- dog people?"

Scott nodded with a serious expression on his face, "I'm the pack leader, Liam is my beta and Isaac's a stray we picked up. Our eyes glow, wanna see!?" All three of them hurried forwards, eager expressions pinned on their faces. Backing up slightly she shook her head, a nervous laugh jittering out of her.

"No no that's quite alright, just fill these in," with an outstretched hand she slowly slid the boards towards the group, not wanting to get any closer, "and then you can all follow me to the waiting room while one of the orderlies sorts out rooms and clothes for you."

"That's great, thank you!" Stiles smiled creepily at her, before frowning slightly, looking up and muttering, "No, why would I want to do that?" With a poorly concealed horrified look on her face, she spun on her heels, rushing off down a dimly lit corridor, beckoning for them to follow. Stiles turned to face the rest of them, making sure they were ready to head into the building. To his surprise, they were just staring at him, "What?"

"What the hell was that?" Isaac pointed accusingly at him, genuine concern etched onto his face.

Staring at him for a moment, Stiles laughed, "It was sealing the deal. Acting, all part of the big charade." He said the final word in a French accent, with a flourish of his hands. When the group remained where they were, staring at him, he groaned, turning and walking away from them. "Oh come on guys, the Nogitsune is gone, when did I ever talk to myself during that nightmare?"

Scott stared after him before shaking himself, "He's right. Come on guys we're being silly. Let's go." He pushed Liam and Isaac in front of him, struggling to shift the deathly chill Stiles' act had thrown down his spine.