"Love your ego, you won't feel a thing

Always number one,

The pen with a bent wrist crooked king

Sign away our peace, for your war

One word and it's over

Dropping your bombs now, on all we've built

How does it feel now to watch it burn, burn, burn?"

Raise Your Weapon by deadmau5

I woke a few hours later to a hand brushing my hair out of my face. I snatched the wrist out of the air, opening my eyes wide.

"Hey, hey, it's alright," Isaac said gently as my eyes focused on his form sitting in front of me. "It's just me." I released his wrist. He ran his hand through my hair, and I relaxed, letting my head rest on my other arm.

"Last night wasn't a bad dream, was it?" I asked, looking up at him.

He shook his head. "No, it wasn't. You really did break into a bank vault. We really did chase two moon-starved werewolves through the woods and into a school. Your brother and Derek's sister are really alive." He shrugged. "That about sums it up."

"And I've gotta get to school."

Isaac tilted his head back and forth. "Or you can skip and help Derek and me."

"Nope!" I heard someone call over. I sat up to see who spoke. Riichi sat on a chair next to the table in front of the large windows flipping through the newspaper. "I may have been gone for a few years, but I'm still your nīsan. You're going to school." I groaned and flopped back down onto the couch. "Oh and check your phone. It's been blowing up since you passed out."

Isaac picked up my phone from the coffee table and handed it to me. "There are a few from Lydia and Allison, but most are from Scott and Stiles. I'm assuming. It took a little bit to realize all their nicknames in your phone, but I think I got it. Then I texted you to see my nickname, and I gotta say, I miss it being Apollo."

I smirked. "What, you don't like Moon Moon? Who doesn't love Moon Moon?"

He gave me a blank stare. "I hate you."

"Except you don't." I then stood and pushed him out of my way, grabbing my boots and pulling them on. "When are you going back to school?"

"I was thinking of tomorrow."

I snatched my jacket from the back of the couch. "Good. I'll be by after school. We need to talk." I then looked to my brother who still sat casually at the table. "You and I need to talk, too."

Riichi didn't look up from the paper. "Can't wait." As I made my way out of the loft, I heard Riichi ask Isaac, "Dude, what did you do?"

I hurried home, quickly showered, got dressed, and barely made it in time for the first period to start, sliding into my seat right before the bell rang. I glanced behind me at Scott and Stiles who gave me pointed looks. "I haven't checked my phone yet, sorry," I told them quietly. A sub taught English Literature that day. Ms. Blake must've been the teacher in the boiler room last night.

During the first passing period, Scott and Stiles told me about the virgin sacrifices, one of them being Heather, the girl who Stiles was getting busy with before she disappeared. I was relieved to hear that Boyd and Cora hadn't killed anyone. During the second passing period, I met with Allison and she pleaded with me not to tell her father she had shown up at the school and helped. I told her I'd keep her secret. During the third passing period, I checked in with Lydia as she had been the one to find the body at the pool. Besides being minorly freaked out, she was alright.

The moment school ended, I hightailed it to Derek's loft and saw the group I had left this morning, Boyd and Cora included, awkwardly sitting around the coffee table eating Chinese takeout. Riichi quickly set his takeout down and stood. "Finally. Let's get this over with." He grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the loft. We walked to the far end of the hall, barely out of regular earshot for the werewolves inside.

I set my hands on my hips. "Okay, I guess. I was actually planning on talking to, you know, my boyfriend first, but I guess not," I said with snark and sass.

Riichi folded his arms over his chest. "I get it. You're not exactly pleased with me right now since I didn't tell you and our parents I actually survived, but seriously, I was eleven. I thought it was the best move at the time. There was no way I was leaving Cora alone. But was it so bad?"

"Was it-" I stopped myself from repeated his words, my eyes wide and jaw open. I nodded my head quickly. "Yes, yes, it was. My brother fucking died, okay? You died." My fists opened and closed as I tried to contain my anger. Keep calm. Keep your fox calm. "Mom didn't talk for weeks afterward no matter what Dad and I tried. Then we all just stopped talking altogether. They've since gotten close again, but not me. I'm like the damn black sheep. Half the time they barely look at me. I've gotten a good chunk of my damn training from other people or myself. Mom has also begun hating any and all werewolves, by the way. She's been blaming everyone, literally everyone for your death. The only reason I've gotten through it is because of that tall, blue-eyed boy in there keeping me company. The friends I supposedly have? Yeah, no, that's a recent development. Only a few months recent. So no, you don't get to waltz back in thinking everything is fine and dandy and just how you remember it. You weren't the only thing that died that day. Our whole family did."

Throughout my entire rant, Riichi didn't say a word, simply watching me with his sad eyes that I missed so much. "I'm sorry. I thought-"

Another voice spoke up. "It's my fault." Riichi and I turned to see Cora walking over tentatively. She took in a deep breath, stopping in front of me. "If you want to blame someone, blame me. I was the one that convinced him to run away with me. I thought hunters might come after us if they knew we had survived. Please, don't be mad at him."

My hard gaze softened at her heartfelt expression. "Not you, too, with the puppy dog eyes," I complained. I pinched my nose and sighed. "It's not either of you I'm mad at."

"Mom," Riichi realized. "You're mad at Mom."

I nodded. "I missed you, Riichi. A lot." I turned back to Cora. "You, too, Cor." I moved towards her and pulled her into a hug. For once I was taller than her. Growing up, she had always been taller than me. "I missed my big sister." She laughed into my shoulder, holding me back.

"So, she gets a hug before I do?" Riichi asked from behind me. "I'm your actual brother, warugaki."

I groaned and let go of Cora. "Always with the nicknames. Come here, manuke." I then pulled my brother into a hug. Once we pulled out of the hug, I met his eyes. "Only one question remains: are you coming home?"

Riichi rubbed his arm, thinking about it. "At some point, I know I should see them again, but. . ." He trailed off, glancing over at Cora with soft eyes. I raised an eyebrow, recognizing the look. I was the same look I gave Isaac when worried about him, but not quite the same one Allison, Lydia, Scott, or Stiles got. Riichi cared deeply for Cora, maybe even loved. He wasn't about to leave her side just yet.

"I get it," I said quickly, the corners of my mouth twitching up. "On your own time."

Isaac and I sat on the hood of my car at the cliffs overlooking Beacon Hills. The drive had been quiet but not tense. I played with the sleeves of my top and sighed, but before I could start, Isaac said, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry about everything this summer."

"No, Izzy, let me, please," I pleaded, looking up at him. He nodded and I took his hand in mine. "There were so many things we were juggling this summer, both of us, and while part of me is angry, I mostly just wish we could have communicated better. And I know Derek told you not to tell me about the Alpha Pack and Boyd and Erica, but you still missed so many plans. I didn't know where you were most of the time and it honestly scared me. Then you turn up at the hospital where Scott and Derek save you." I sighed again. "We lost Erica. We almost lost Derek. We did lose Cora and Riichi for years. I-I don't want to lose you, too."

"You won't," he said firmly, squeezing my hand. "And you wanna know why?" My eyebrows furrowed together. "Because I'm never going to leave you alone in this crazy world."

My heartbeat sped up and I smiled. I then backtracked. "But just because-"

"Just let it be." Isaac laughed. "Forget possible death, kidnapping, blood, and gore. The point is, I don't plan on going anywhere, okay?"

I nodded and relaxed my shoulders. "Okay."

"Now, can we talk about your brother and Derek's sister mysteriously reappearing from the dead?" he asked. "I don't mean to sound like Stiles, but that's a little suspect, don't you think? Sounds like a random subplot thrown in for drama in a crappy TV show."

My snort turned into a laugh. "It hadn't crossed my mind, but I assure you it's real. Cora doesn't seem to have changed much, but Riichi's always been malleable. And I'm glad we got Boyd back."

"I miss Erica. I wonder why they killed her. Why not put her in the vault with the others?"

Hearing the sadness in his voice, I brought his hand up to my mouth and kissed it. "Knowing her, she probably fought back a lot harder than they did, maybe even tried to escape. Honestly, she might be the lucky one. She doesn't have to deal with the Alpha Pack and can finally rest."

"Yeah, you're right. At least we have each other."

Sitting in Physics the following day wasn't something I wanted to do. Scott and Isaac were extremely tense after morning cross country practice that I had accidentally made Isaac late for because of various sexual-related reasons. Neither of the boys had said anything when they sat down, leaving me to silently watch Isaac from the corner of my eye during class. He hadn't even grabbed my hand when he sat down next to me.

Mr. Harris wrote "Inertia vs Momentum" on the board over equations and a graph. "Alright, since inertia is a subject of which you all know plenty," he began, "why don't we start with momentum?"

I frowned as he underlined the word 'momentum.' Was he implying we were all lazy? Knowing Harris, probably.

"They're here for a reason," I heard Scott whisper to Isaac from behind us. Isaac glared at the board. "Give me a chance to figure it out before you do anything. Okay?" My face twisted up in confusion. What happened and what haven't they told me about? "Isaac." Isaac didn't reply, continuing to stare forward, his jaw tense. He brought his hand to his face, resting his head against it.

"Danny," Harris called, turning around to face the room. "What do we know about momentum?"

"It's the product of mass and velocity," Danny answered. "The more massive something is, the faster it's going."

Isaac then spoke up. "Mr. Harris, can I use the bathroom, please?" Harris waved his hand towards the door and the cardigan-clad teenage boy hurried out.

Scott stood as well. "I have to go to the bathroom, too." Well, that's not suspicious. If I didn't know better, I'd assume you two were fucking.

"One at a time," Harris said.

"But I-I really have to go, like medical emergency have to go."

"Mr. McCall, if your bladder suddenly exploded and urine began to pour from every orifice, I would still respond, 'One at a time.'" Well, that's descriptive and oddly specific. "Is that enough hyperbole for you, or would you like me to come up with something more vivid?"

Scott sighed. "No. No. That's pretty good." He sat back down in his seat. I glanced back at him with a confused expression, raising an eyebrow at him, and he shook his head then looked at his notebook.

A few moments later, a loud thump hit the lockers on the other side of the classroom wall. Harris rushed out followed by the students. Scott looked less surprised and more dejected. And I hurried out with Danny at my side.

"What is this?" Harris asked. "What's going on?"

In the hall I spotted Ethan, Aiden's twin brother, bloodied and on the floor in front of Isaac. I knew it was Ethan because Danny went straight for him and I followed, kneeling on Ethan's other side. "You alright?" Danny asked as we helped the twin up onto his knees.

"Uh, he just-he just came at me," Ethan replied, his face covered in blood. I frowned. That doesn't quite sound right. I looked up at Isaac who was frozen where he stood. It definitely didn't seem right at all.

"Isaac, what the hell did you do?" Harris asked. Isaac's face shifted into resolve and annoyance. That wasn't the face of someone who had just beaten someone up.

Blood was still dripping from Ethan's nose and mouth. "Um, Mr. Harris," I started, "he should really go to the nurse."

Harris nodded. "Danny, Sara, please, escort Mr. Steiner to the nurse's office."

Danny and I hefted Ethan up and he stumbled down the hall between us. Once a good distance away from the Physics class, Danny asked, "Why would Isaac do something like this?"

"I don't know, I don't even know him," Ethan mumbled.

"Sorry, Ethan, but I was asking his girlfriend."

"Kuso, I don't know," I quickly answered. "It doesn't sound like him at all." I wasn't even a hundred percent sure he had done it. Sure, Isaac had changed since he had gotten the bite, becoming more aggressive and willing to take action, but attacking Ethan in the hall? That didn't sound right. I huffed and looked at the bloodied boy. "I'm sorry, Ethan."

"If that's your boyfriend, I'd hate to meet your brother," Ethan said, chuckling despite the situation. My eyes narrowed a little. How would he know I have a brother? And the people that did know believed him to be dead. It could've been a slip of the tongue or joke, but the way he said it made it seem like he knew for certain I had a brother. Whatever, he's hurt. Get him to the nurse.

At lunch, I went to find Scott to get answers. I found him at his locker slowly putting books away. Students were trickling out of the halls, either going to the cafeteria or leaving campus for lunch. "Scott, what the hell is going on?" I questioned when at his side.

His jaw was set and his eyes hard. "Stay away from Ethan and Aiden," he told me, shutting his locker and turning to me.

"Only if you answer my question."

"They're alphas."

I took a step back at the news. "I'm sorry, what? They're what?"

Scott sighed, nodding. "They're the ones that combine to make one giant werewolf, you know, the one Peter mentioned."

I made a little rewind hand motion. "So, did Isaac actually beat him up then?"

He shook his head. "No. Aiden did and fled the scene to make it seem like Isaac did it. They're trying to piss us off. Getting Isaac thrown into detention, getting close to you, Lydia, and Danny. . ."

Rubbing the side of my face, I groaned. "Well, they're definitely not gonna be getting close to me anymore. What'd they think? Lydia and I wouldn't find out about their werewolf status?"

Scott shrugged and tilted his head. "Maybe. Or maybe they weren't sure if you and Lydia knew, or thought they could sew some tension between you and Isaac before you found out about them."

I opened my mouth and raised my hand to rub my jaw, thinking for a moment back to when I met Aiden. "Aiden did recommend breaking up with Isaac." I nibbled on my lip, remembering the moment in the library.

"What?" Scott blurted with a frown. "When was this?"

"I may or may not have asked Lydia and Allison for relationship advice a few days ago. And Aiden was there and agreed with them." I gave him an awkward smile.

He raised his eyebrows. "All three of them said you and Isaac should break up?"

Rocking on the balls of my feet, I replied, "Maybe."

Scott looked at me sternly, sort of how an older brother would when disappointed with you. He crossed his arms over his chest. "I'm assuming Isaac doesn't know." I shook my head. "You two are impossible. Between his impulsivity and your inability to confront an emotion that isn't anger, I'm gonna go gray before we graduate."

"Pretty sure you need to account for all the supernatural problems causing you stress, too. Also, not even sure if it's possible for a werewolf considering how fast your cells regenerate. Or does that mean you'll go gray even faster?" Scott didn't reply, instead snapping his head to look down the hall. "What is it?"

"Allison and Isaac." Scott took off running and I ran after him. He turned the corner and I spotted a vending machine pushed up against the door of a janitor's closet where yelling was coming from inside. Scott shoved the machine away, ripped open the door, and pulled a shifted Isaac out. Isaac slid on the floor and Scott pinned him down, shifting his eyes as well. "Isaac!"

A weak growl left Isaac as he calmed and shifted back. Scott let him go and Isaac crawled back to the nearby wall. I knelt next to him, putting a hand gently on his neck. Isaac was panting hard, and I could feel his pulse against my palm. The closet. A small space. Like the freezer he had been locked in by his dad.

"I'm okay," I heard Allison say as I ran my hand through the back of Isaac's hair. "I'm fine." I looked up to see Scott holding her bloody arm.

"I'm sorry, I didn't-I didn't mean to do that," Isaac stuttered, shaking in place.

"I'm okay," Allison reassured.

"I'm so sorry."

Scott glanced back at him. "It's not his fault," Allison said, worried Scott would blame him.

"I know," Scott quickly replied. "I guess now we know they want to do more than get you angry. They want to get someone hurt."

"So are we gonna do something?" Isaac wondered.

"Preferably something that doesn't require anyone else getting hurt," I added.

Scott nodded. "I'm gonna get them angry. Really angry."

An idea popped into my mind, remembering Scott's disappointed look on the first day of school as his eyes landed on two pristine motorcycles. I smirked, glancing between the three in front of me. "I have an idea of what we can do." They looked at me with curious expressions. "They really like their bikes."

Allison took apart some pieces from one of the incredibly nice motorcycles parked outside and gave them to Scott and I. Isaac stayed with her so she could hotwire the other one for him to ride into the school.

After getting the picture of Isaac on the motorcycle, Scott and I sat in front of Ethan and Aiden in their last class of the day and turned to them with cheeky grins. From our bags, Scott and I each pull out some parts from the dismantled motorcycle with Ethan and Aiden looking on. They both sat up in their seats.

Scott spun the gear in his hand. "Looks kind of important," he remarked. He looked over to me. "Right, Sara?"

"Yeah." I held up my smaller part. "And I have no idea what this does, Scotty." My eyes glittered with mischief as I turned to the twins. "Do you?"

The sound of a motorcycle revving could be heard in the hall. "Wait," Ethan demanded as Aiden stood. "Aiden, don't!" Aiden didn't listen to his brother, rushing from the classroom.

I smiled sweetly at Ethan. "You can't outwit a fox." He gave a low growl which just made Scott and I smile more.

The sound of the bike engine grew louder, so the teacher went to check it out, us students following close behind. Other students and teachers left the classrooms to inspect the noise. When we got there, Aiden was with his bike and Isaac was far enough away from it to avoid suspicion, joining mine and Scott's side with Allison.

"You have got to be kidding me," Ms. Blake scolded. "You realize this is gonna result in a suspension."

Isaac wrapped his arm around me, holding me close as Aiden and Ethan glared at our little group. They tried.

Scott, Isaac, and I put away and collected what we needed from our lockers then began to leave the school, descending a flight of stairs as Scott and I regaled Isaac with the details of us taunting the twins in class.

"Yeah, I wish I could have seen their faces," Isaac said, his hand in mine. "They look seriously pissed?"

"Yeah," Scott answered. "Couldn't tell who they were more pissed at, Sara or me." We stopped in the hall at the sight of Ethan and Aiden. The two were glaring harder than they were in class. "Kind of like that."

The twins began stripping off their shirts, tossing the clothing aside. Isaac, Scott, and I glanced at each other with 'what the fuck' expressions. Ethan then knelt to the floor and Aiden shoved his hand into his brother's back, their bodies molding to form one giant werewolf. The sound of bones crunching made me want to puke. The giant wolf roared once fully formed. Forgot for a moment that they were Voltron Wolf.

Isaac dropped his bag and began rolling up his sleeves. "We can take him."

The combined wolf roared again, and I set my jaw and tossed aside my bag, ready for a fight. "Hell yeah."

"Are you kidding?" Scott asked. "Let's go!" Scott started running first. Ugh, fine. Isaac and I hurried after him, the giant werewolf barreling toward us.

The twins grabbed Scott and Isaac from either side of me and tossed them in the opposite direction we had been running. That angered both me and the fox inside. My eyes turned bright orange as I growled, and my aura appeared, encasing me in a glowing, fiery light. Sending a large wave of brilliant red fire in their direction, they were knocked off their feet. The twins separated and fell to the ground, huffing and slowly healing from the burns.

I then paused, allowing my aura and colored eyes to disappear when I saw an older man walking towards us.

The older man was blind, using a white cane to approximate his location, and wearing red-tinted glasses. Isaac and Scott looked up to see him walk around them, heading straight for the dismantled twins. They immediately stopped growling at the sight of him. The twins quickly stood up to look at the newcomer.

The man lifted the walking stick and pulled off the red cap at the end, revealing a sharp point. He then slashed them across their faces. I winced at the sight. The blind man put the cap back on. The twins parted to let him by. I moved out of his path as well, a small smirk gracing his features. The man and the twins didn't say anything as they left.

"Who the hell is that?" Isaac asked as we all watched them leave.

Only one name came to mind. "Deucalion."

As the boys got up from the floor, I looked down at my hands, thinking of the flame they had produced. My fire was supposed to be orange and yellow, never red.

Wonder Pup: Plz come over

Wonder Pup: Sara

Wonder Pup: Saaaarrraaaa

Wonder Pup: Look at ur phone

Wonder Pup: Get here ASAP

Me: Why?

Wonder Pup: U'll know when u get here

Me: If I get there and it isn't important, I WILL feed you your inkei still dripping in blood

Wonder Pup: Duly noted, plz hurry

Wonder Pup: Oh n bring snacks

Me: What kind?

With three grocery bags full of snacks, I knocked on Scott's front door both concerned and confused with his requests. Only two things matched Scott's favorite junk foods while the others matched mine and Isaac's.

Scott opened the door shortly after I knocked as he probably heard my car pull up to the curb. Thankfully because it had started raining cats and dogs about two hours prior.

"Hey, gotta be honest," I told him, heading straight for the kitchen and not letting him speak. "I'm a little confused as to what you had me pick up because most of these are things Isaac likes, not you, koinu." I started unpacking the bags, setting the food on the dining room table. "So unless you're trying to grow a few inches, wear scarves, and all of a sudden become white as fuck, I have no idea why the hell you wanted me to stop by."

When I didn't get a reply, I looked up from what I was doing to see Isaac sheepishly standing in the entryway next to Scott. I frowned at their pained expressions. "What's going on?" I asked, slowly setting down the thing I was holding.

"I'll be in the living room," Scott said, glancing at Isaac then snatching the bag of beef jerky and can of cheddar Pringles before scurrying out of the room.

I watched Isaac walk over to me, not quite looking straight at me. "Izzy, what's wrong?" I asked.

Isaac took in a strangled breath. "Derek kicked me out. He threw a glass at me like. . ." He trailed off.

But I understood his meaning. "Like your father used to do." He nodded sadly. "Come here." I held out my arms and he stepped in them, accepting my hug. He was cold and wearing clothes that didn't look like his, so I assumed Scott let him borrow some clean, dry pajamas. I rubbed his back comfortingly. "Did he say why?"

"He only said with Cora and Riichi there he needed me out," he mumbled into my hair. "I think something happened while we were at school, but he wouldn't tell me."

"I'm assuming Scott's letting you stay here then?" I felt him nod. "Well, I didn't get you some snacks for no reason, so let's go pig out and forget about all our worries." That got him to chuckle, but he also listened and pulled away. I picked up the box of chocolate frosted Twinkies and handed it to him which got him to smile.

"You're amazing."

"I know, koishii. And so are you. Don't forget that."

We gathered all the snacks in our arms and joined Scott, who was already munching away on his chips in the living room.

Scott grimaced at his phone and looked up at me. "I just looked up that word, and seriously?" he wondered.

"What word?" Isaac asked as we sat next to Scott on the couch with me in the middle.

"Inkei," I answered. "Penis. Told him if this wasn't important, I'd feed his to him."

"While dripping in blood," Scott added, incredibly disgusted. "Don't forget that part. I thought Stiles' descriptions were a little much, but yours are just gross."

I shrugged. "Gets my point across. So, what are we doing? Video games, board games, movies, darts on a picture of Derek?" I took my wet jacket off and tossed it to the living chair nearby.

Isaac opened the bag of mini chocolate-frosted donuts. "I like that last one." He pulled out a donut and popped it in his mouth.

"We should definitely not do that one," Scott said, ever the voice of reason.

"But that was the best option!" I opened the big container of Red Vines and held it out to him. "Licorice?" Scott considered it for a moment, shrugged, then grabbed one from the tub.

"I don't know how you guys can eat that stuff," Isaac grumbled. "Twizzlers all the way."

Scott shook his head. "I'd take Sara threatening to cut off my dick in about a hundred different clever ways before willingly eating a Twizzler. They taste like sugar-coated plastic."

"And medicine," I chimed in, taking a bite out of a strand.

Isaac looked exasperated with both of us. "Have you ever even had medicine? You never get sick."

"I was curious what all the complaining was about."

"And while we're on the subject of strange likings," Isaac continued, "I will never understand your liking of green tea Kit Kats."

"Matcha," I corrected. "And honestly, it mostly just tastes like white chocolate Kit Kats with like a slight twist, but you don't get to say anything about the chocolate because your obsession with chocolate is unnatural. You like chocolate with everything."

"What's so wrong with that?" Scott asked, watching us with amusement as he chewed on a strip of jerky.

Shaking my head and waving one of my hands, I explained, "It sounds better than it is. Cupcakes, ice cream, brownies, cookies, pastries, all fantastic, but then it starts getting weirder with him. Bacon, okay maybe. People put bacon on everything, so why not try that? But then this baka says he wants to try my mom's squid with chocolate. And it didn't end there. Broccoli, mushrooms, jalapeños, pickles-"

"I get it, I get it," Scott interrupted with an amused grin. "Isaac, you have a chocolate problem. Isn't that supposed to be a girl's thing?"

I could tell he was teasing, but at the same time, I had to do something.

. . .

"Ow!"

Nīsan- Older brother

Warugaki - Brat

Manuke - Loser, clueless, missing a beat

Kuso - Shit

Inkei - Penis

Koinu - Puppy

Koishii - Darling, dear, term of endearment

Baka - Idiot