Hey guys! I hope you're all doing well and that 2015 is off to a good start. Here's the next chapter, no need to drag out this AN for long. Enjoy!
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Although Kira is moving as quickly as she can, she knows she's going to be too late. She's been ten steps behind this whole game, and even now that she knows the rules she still can't figure out a way to win. Her feet pound against the pavement, a jarring rhythm that makes her head ring, because she's trying but she's still not going to be enough. It was just lucky that she'd thought to go to Deaton. She's been on the outside this whole time, on the periphery of the pack but not quite part of it, and she'd somehow assumed that they'd be able to defeat the nogitsune without much help from her. She'd been good for information, the odd tactical talk, but she wasn't meant to be involved in the final fight.
But when Scott went missing, she knew she had to do something. She'd gone to everywhere she could think of – his house, the school, Allison's, the woods. She couldn't find him, and she didn't know who she could go to for help. Stiles, Lydia, Allison – they were all gone. She couldn't get a hold of the twins, and she didn't think that approaching Derek or Peter by herself would be particularly wise. And when she realized that Isaac was MIA as well, her mind flung itself into high gear and finally came up with a solution.
Deaton. The druid. Scott had talked about him a lot; he'd told her about everything that had happened before she came to Beacon Hills, all the evils they'd defeated and the friends they'd lost, and Deaton had been a big part of that. So she'd gone to him, and she'd found him – and she'd found the remains of a disaster.
It had taken a while to understand what had happened, because Deaton was still tense and Mrs McCall was almost hysterical, and then Kira became almost hysterical when she saw the body lying in the ice-filled tub. In her frantic state she had thought that maybe Deaton and Mrs McCall had changed sides too, and that they'd done something to the Sheriff, but they'd explained that no, that wasn't the case. It made her feel better, but only slightly.
When she realized just how dire the situation was, she'd offered her help. She may be new to the supernatural, but she's still part of it. Foxfire is in her blood; power hums through her veins. Maybe she can't control it just yet, but that doesn't mean she's useless. It had taken some convincing – and some flashy displays with her sword – but eventually Deaton had allowed her to help.
So here she is, tracking down Isaac and Mr Argent, who are tracking down Scott, who had been tracking down the nogitsune. When she first moved to Beacon Hills, she'd gone for a few walks late at night. It's a peaceful time, quiet and soft and gentle, and it had never seemed dangerous to her. But now she knows what lurks in the dark, and it does seem dangerous. She hasn't said anything to anyone, but she's terrified all. the. time. But the others aren't – every single member of the pack is strong, fearless, dedicated. (She had also thought them infallible at one point, but recent events had proven that wrong.)
She can't keep up, and she won't back down. So she keeps running.
Like she'd anticipated, she's too late. The anticipation doesn't lessen the jolt of fear and guilt that threatens to crush her as she comes upon the wreck. The first thing she sees is the blood; the second thing is the bodies.
Her heart slams to a stop and her feet falter and she just stares in horror at the scene before her. It's deathly silent, until there's a low moan. This jerks her into action and she stumbles forward, dropping to her knees beside Mr Argent. He blinks up at her, but he doesn't move.
"Are you okay?" she asks, even though she already knows the answer.
"Yeah," he grunts, like the word actually causes him pain. "You need to go find Allison."
Kira hesitates, waiting for the hunter to pull himself to his feet and lead the way, but the only things that move are his eyes. She realizes. "Did Allison do this?" Her eyes sweep down his body, taking in the arrows sticking from him, the rigid way he's lying. A faint tang lingers in the air, something vaguely familiar; she remembers Allison. It smells like a poison that she'd seen Allison use once.
"Yes," he says, the pain in his voice is even stronger. Kira feels her heart break for him, but they both push their feelings to the side. They can deal with that later. "You need to find her."
"Which way did she go?" Kira rocks back on her heels and looks around, but there's no sign of the hunter.
"That way," Isaac says, and she looks over to him. He's lying perfectly still. He groans, apparently remembering that he can't move. "Toward the train station," he clarifies. "She only just left, so you can probably catch her."
Indecision freezes Kira to the spot. She knows she should go after Allison, but it looks like Mr Argent and Isaac could be badly hurt. She doesn't want to just leave them, but she also doesn't want to let Allison get away. She wishes Scott were here; he always knows what to do. But he's not, so she makes her decision. "I'll be back," she says, and Mr Argent gives her what seems to be an approving look.
"Be careful," Isaac calls as she starts to jog away, and within a minute both of them are far behind her. She slows her steps as she reaches the next block, focusing on a dark shape up ahead. She can't tell whether it's moving away from her or toward her, and she doesn't know what it is. She wishes she'd brought her sword, but it would have slowed her down – and been hard to explain should she run into any other pedestrians. She feels strangely bare without it, even though up until a couple of weeks ago she'd never even touched a sword.
Two blocks away from the wreck, she catches up. Kira doesn't even have time to start to think of a plan of attack before Allison is turning around, seeing her, freezing. Allison narrows her eyes. "What the hell are you doing?"
Good question, Kira thinks, but she doesn't say anything. She and Allison are standing about a foot apart, but suddenly it doesn't feel like far enough. With one well-timed lunge Allison could hit her, could know her to the ground and kill her without so much as a second thought. She's still adjusting to this, because not long ago she had actually considered Allison a friend; they were meant to be on the same side of this fight. Now they're on opposite sides, a hunter and a kitsune at odds, and Kira is horribly aware that she's no match for the other girl.
"Did Deaton send you?" Allison asks.
Kira nods instinctively, surprised by the accurate guess. Then again, there aren't many other people who could have told her where to find Isaac and Mr Argent; there is no pack anymore, after all.
"Did you do something to upset him?" Allison has recovered from her instant of shock and is back to being cold and distant – and unnervingly amused.
"Wh-what?" As subtly as she can, she reaches into her pocket. Her fingers brush up against a small vial, and she slowly pulls it out.
"He sent you after me," Allison says, unaware of Kira's intentions. "He must have known it was a suicide mission. Is there any particular reason he wants you dead?"
Kira doesn't answer. Even if she wanted to, she can't; her lips won't move, her tongue won't work, her heart won't stop hurting. She knows it's not true, that Deaton hadn't sent her on a suicide mission – for a start, he'd sent her after Isaac and Mr Argent, not Allison, and also she'd had to convince him to let her do so – but it still gets to her.
"Personally," Allison says when Kira doesn't speak, "I don't really care whether you live or die. So if you want to walk away now, I won't stop you. Just stay out of my way."
God, it's tempting. A month ago Kira would have taken her up on the offer, would have turned her back and walked away, but she can't. Not now, not when everything is so horribly wrong. As much as she hates to admit it, she might be the last line of resistance. She owes it to the others to fight – even if she fails, she has to try.
"Huh." Allison raises her eyebrows. "I guess you've got some fight in you after all."
"I have more than that," Kira murmurs, and Allison tilts her head in confusion. The kitsune wraps her hand around the vial, preparing herself. She doesn't want to do this – she hates that she has to do this – but it might be the only way to save Allison. And if she can get to Allison, they can start working on saving the rest of the pack. One step at a time.
"You know you're like him, right?" Allison says smoothly, and Kira loses her train of thought. "The nogitsune, I mean. You're just like him. You may not want to admit it, but you can't deny it."
"I don't need to deny it," Kira says, gathering up her courage and wrapping it around herself, "because it's not true."
Allison laughs, a harsh sound that causes the hair on Kira's neck to stand up. "Yes it is. He's a kitsune too. Manipulating, tricking, hurting people – that's what you're all about."
No. She can't quite form the word. Hadn't Scott told her that when he saw her – the real her, the fox aura around her – he didn't think it looked evil? She trusts him, she does, and she's never seen him be wrong. If he says she's not evil, then it's true. And she doesn't feel evil. She doesn't want to hurt people; she wants to help.
Then again, so had Stiles.
"Ah." Allison smiles, knowing she's got her. "You may not be that way yet, but it'll come. And why try to fight it?"
I can't. Again, she can't say it. But the words thunder in her head and she can't shake them. But then she thinks of Scott and the rest of the pack, of how it used to be before the nogitsune came along. Maybe they can have that again; maybe they can help her control her powers. Maybe she doesn't need to hurt anyone.
Except this once.
"I can't let you do this, Allison," she says, purposefully avoiding the question. "Just come back with me, and Deaton can help."
"I don't want help," Allison says, voice clipped, posture upright – perfectly calm and in control. "And you're starting to get on my nerves. Out of the way, kitsune."
"No." This time the word does come, bubbles up from her lips, spills over. Allison stares at her. "I'm not letting you go."
"You don't have a choice." Annoyance flashes through Allison's voice, and Kira feels a hint of fear. But she doesn't back down; she can't. "One more chance, Kira. Get out of my way, or I'm going to have to hurt you."
Kira squares her shoulders, grits her teeth, and meets Allison's eyes. Before she even has time to tell herself to be strong, Allison lunges toward her. Kira darts out of the way, spins around. Feels pain explode across her face. Her hand flies to her cheek and she stares up at Allison, who's preparing to hit her again. This time Kira's quicker, and she sweeps Allison's legs out from under her. The hunter falls, hitting the ground with a heavy thud, and Kira straddles her, pinning her down. She hates herself for this, but it's necessary.
Allison struggles, annoyance and surprise battling in her face, and then it turns to concern as Kira pulls the cork out of the vial and pulls a short dagger out from her boot. At this Allison becomes even more alarmed, but Kira is still too quick. She dips the knife in the clear liquid, and then she leans down. "I'm sorry," she says, and she really is, and then she takes the knife and stabs it into Allison's shoulder.
The scream is almost deafening and Kira finds herself being flung to the side. She hits the ground and lets out a grunt of surprise and pain, but she forces herself to sit up. Allison pulls the knife from her shoulder and looks like she's about to throw it at Kira. Then it falls from her hand and she's shaking, and Kira scrambles to her feet and backs up. She watches in horror as Allison starts convulsing, her breathing becoming shallow and shudders wracking her body.
Just as Kira is starting to think she did something wrong, something goes right. Allison leans to the side, looking like she's struggling to breathe, her eyes watering. And then she spits out a small black fly, stark against the pale pavement. Allison keeps coughing, her hand on her chest like her heart is actually hurting, and Kira just stands there desperately hoping everything is going to be okay.
Finally, Allison looks up at her. Kira braces herself for another attack, suddenly convinced that it didn't work and that Allison is still under the influence of the nogitsune's magic. There's anger burning in Allison's eyes – she looks set to kill. But then that fades and there's only desolation, and somehow that's even worse.
"Oh god," Allison whimpers, her shoulders sagging and her breath catching in her throat, "what have I done?"
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Please review, and I hope to see you soon for the next chapter!