"Yeah I realized that

I will never learn

And I've realized that

I'll probably get burned"

Playing With Fire by Taynte

Sitting next to Isaac's bed at the hospital was utter torture. The only movement from him was his chest moving up and down with each breath. No progress had been made on the healing front since Riichi tried the previous day. Isaac's right side of his body was still charred brown and black and he was still in a coma. I was just glad Melissa was working and let me in to see him. After last night I needed to see him.

Stiles had willingly gone to Eichen House which was difficult enough for everyone, and I just wanted to talk to my best friend.

For the first few minutes, I didn't know what to say. I mean, what do you say to your comatose best friend? Sorry, you're in a coma? Wish you were here? Melissa recommended talking to him about my day and things that were going on, to act like he was awake and aware and could respond, but it sort of felt wrong to do that. He wasn't awake and aware. He was in pain and unconscious and that trumped everything going on in my life. Then Melissa went on to say that there were reports of coma patients hearing the things around them and that sometimes coma patients seem to respond to things that are familiar to them.

So with her warm eyes and smile and a gentle rub of my arm, she encouraged me to say whatever came to my mind like the fantastic mother she was. But what if the only things that came to mind were sensitive topics that could make everything worse? And if he could hear me? Why burden someone who couldn't move or doing anything to help with something like that? Would that not make their situation worse?

With a sigh, I leaned forward in the chair and took my hat off, squeezing the fabric between my hands. "I guess I should say something, huh?" I said mostly to myself with a quick glance up at Isaac. I didn't expect a response. "If you were awake, you'd probably say something sarcastic. Something you've always been good at. You'd probably also attack Stiles the first chance you got." Chuckling, I pulled at a loose thread on my hat. "You're always rushing into the fire every chance you get like you're making up for the years that you couldn't. But you protected Allison that night, so I'm sure she appreciates it after everything you two have gone through."

I shook my head at the thought of those two. "At first, I couldn't wrap my head around you two liking each other. I mean, you were part of Derek's pack which meant you were against her on two fronts: with Scott and with Gerard. I thought maybe it was just a physical attraction. You're both good-looking people. But, I don't know, the way you can get under her skin and challenge her and still protect her without making her feel helpless, keep up with her and watch her back without making her feel like she can't be trusted. . . You deserve to be happy for once, Izzy. Not laying comatose in a hospital bed because a psychotic fox spirit possessing one of our friends decided to cut power wires to wreak havoc.

"But I guess he's not really one of your friends though anyway." I huffed and pinched the bridge of my nose. "Even in middle school, I can't remember you and Stiles ever getting along. If you were awake, I wonder what you'd say about what happened last night. Something about how you'd rip his throat out if he touched me or Boyd again, probably. Or something about how we need to figure out how to end this before he ends us. Then if Stiles was around, he'd say something rude about your scarves which would make me want to hit him because he doesn't know why you wear them. Why it's still a habit to wear them. Same reason why you like long sleeves."

Rubbing my throat, my eyes drifted down to the floor. "If I didn't heal faster than humans, I'd probably have to wear a scarf today. I've never met a nogitsune before, but the way it was so much stronger than me. . . and it wasn't even trying. It threw me like a rag doll, and I couldn't do anything about it. All I could do was stand there helpless, staring at Scott who had a sword sticking out of him."

I looked at my hands, remembering the moments before Scott had been stabbed. "It was because of me. He got hurt because of me. Because I did something to the Oni." My chest grew tight as I replayed what I did. "I-I think I killed one, Izzy. And I didn't know what to do. The other Oni was going after me, but Scott jumped in the way. He got hurt because I got distracted. Even when I do something right, I do something wrong. And then the nogitsune used me to taunt him.

"Everyone knows Scott. . ." I couldn't say it. "That Scott and I have a bond. That we look to each other for certain things. And the nogitsune used me to push it home, make him feel hurt and vulnerable and scared. Then he went on about kitsune being drawn to each other, like he was saying Stiles and me are closer than-" Cutting myself off, I sat up in the chair. That didn't sound right. "Wait, he said 'certain kitsune.' I was thinking it meant me and Void. It made sense. Somehow, he was able to get into my head. Like we were connected somehow, maybe because I was a tether while Stiles was a sacrifice, even if I wasn't his tether. But no. . . I don't think he meant 'certain kitsune' as in individuals. I think he meant specific kitsune types since he then mentioned fire and void like that was one pairing. I would've thought ocean and fire would be the complementary types. I mean, you've seen me and my mom. Two sides of the same coin. But I guess not. Maybe it's earth and ocean. River and mountain. Fire brings light to the void while darkness snuffs out the flame."

Slouching in the chair, I bit the inside of my cheek as I thought it over. "I once taught Stiles about the thirteen kinds. Figures it's being thrown back in my face by a nogitsune possessing him. . . And why's it even important anyway? Was he bringing it up just to get under our skin? Or to make it seem like I'm some partner of his?" I tapped my fingers a few times, shaking my head. "No, that wouldn't make sense. He's manipulating me. He's manipulating all of us. Has been the whole time. Something's always in it for him.

"Jumpstarting the power in Kira gave him power. He got Chris and Derek arrested, getting them to stop looking for him and almost killed by a bomb. Used Scott to take the pain he had taken from people who were hurting. He wants something from me. But what? What does he want?"

I could almost hear Isaac's voice in my head as an answer. Power. It's what they all want. My dad, Derek, Peter, Deucalion and his alphas, and Jennifer. Power and control.

"If he wants power," I said in response, feeling one of my tails on the chain under my shirt, "maybe he wants my tails?" I groaned and shook my head. "No, they'd be pointless to him. They're no match for Noshiko's Oni. He'd waste too much time trying to get them while knowing I won't sacrifice them anyway." I went to crack my knuckles to bring them some relief but paused when I looked at my closed fist. I had killed an Oni. Or at least, that was the only explanation I could think of for the firefly and Oni dissolving into the shadows. "Power and control. Kitsune would have an easier time killing other kitsune, and he saw me shove my fist into the Oni and kill it. If he can't control me, he doesn't want me to have power over him. He wants me on his side or to at least hesitate long enough for him to succeed. And what better way to kill a nogitsune than to set fire to the darkness?"

Poetic.

But that would mean killing Stiles. Stiles, the human that grounded the group, pointed out things others didn't realize and figured out how to solve problems. The idea of killing him sounded wrong. Gerard, a monster in human form, was one thing, but Stiles never wanted to do anything other than help.

But sparing him would mean letting a nogitsune live. Nogitsune, chaotic tricksters who enjoy surrounding themselves with pain and suffering. A lot of people would die if it was allowed free.

My eyes stung and my head hurt, and I looked up at Isaac's unconscious face. "I don't know if I can do it, Izzy. Either path. I can't spare him because that'll spare the nogitsune. But I can't kill him because that'll kill Stiles. The moment the poison wears off, the nogitsune will begin tormenting my mind again, I know it. And I don't know how long I can take it."

I took in a deep breath, my lungs burning at the ragged stretch. "Koko ni anata ga ireba īnoni, koishii. I miss your steady presence and blunt advice, even if it's bad most of the time. I need you, Izzy."

A rough hiccup wracked my body, and I bit my lip and buried my face in my hands, clenching my eyes shut. The last thing I wanted to do was cry. Silence returned to the room aside from steady breathing and the sound of the machines.

Then there was a quiet knock on the door, and it opened after a few moments.

I wrapped my arms around my torso, leaning back in the chair as I looked up to see Scott walking over, apprehension and concern clear as day on his face. The door shut, and I saw Melissa pass by the window. Scott stopped next to my chair, though he was looking at Isaac.

"How much did you hear?" I asked as I put my beanie back on.

"Only the last part," he said, a certain tenderness in his voice. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to ov-"

I cut him off and waved my hand. "It's okay, Scotty. It's not like you sat outside the room for ten minutes listening in." Sitting up with a sigh, I shifted my body to face him. "I am sorry about the other day though. I shouldn't have snapped at you. You were just worried."

"You don't need to apologize. It's been a rough couple of weeks for everyone. It's okay."

"No, it's not," I pressed. "I shouldn't. . . I shouldn't have taken my frustrations out on you."

Scott wore his gentle smile. "I guarantee I've heard worse than someone defending themself for having a secret. I shouldn't have pressed something you didn't want to talk about, and I'm sorry for that. Now, we can spend all day apologizing to each other and not accepting each other's apologies, or we can try and figure out how to help Isaac and Stiles." He held out his hand.

"I don't think we'd spend all day doing that. Just a few hours of being stubborn at most." I chuckled at his exasperated glare. "Alright."

I grabbed his hand, and he helped me stand. We both took one last look at Isaac before leaving the room. Once in the elevator on our way to the first floor, he asked, "Have you talked to your mom about what's been going on?"

"No." Speaking of, I couldn't remember when I had seen my mom last. I saw Riichi and Dad last night, but not Mom. A few months ago, not seeing her for days at a time would be normal, but since we had begun to try to be a family again it was strange. "I haven't actually seen her much at all now that I think about it."

"Do you think she might know of a way to get rid of the nogitsune?"

I shrugged. "Couldn't hurt to try." The elevator opened and we walked out, avoiding the people wanting to enter. "What's everyone else doing?"

"Well, Allison and Lydia are coming up with a plan to raid Katashi's personal belongings, I don't know what the twins are doing, but they're pretty sure we're going to need them, and I think Boyd went to see how Derek is doing."

That sounded. . . interesting, I supposed. "Let's hope she's home." We left the building and started toward the parking lot when I realized what he said, and I stopped walking, making him stop and look at me with a question written on his face. "Wait, raid Katashi's belongings? Did I hear you correctly?"

"Oh, right, yeah." He shook his head, looking bashful. "After Stiles was admitted, I went back to the clinic and talked to Deaton, Allison, and Argent. O-on the phone." He added that last part quickly. "Argent was the one who told Deaton where the nogitsune Yakuza boss was killed, and that's where Deaton got the poison. Lichen born out of the blood of a nogitsune, he said. Then they talked about a Shugendō scroll the Yakuza boss had been looking for that has information on how to exorcise a nogitsune."

"And you still want to talk to my mom about getting rid of one?" I asked, raising a brow.

He shrugged. "To cover all the bases, just in case something goes wrong. . . because something almost always goes wrong for us."

Hating to admit it, he was right. "You've got a point. So, I'm assuming Katashi had this scroll then?"

Scott nodded and said, "Yeah, Deaton said they come in any size, so Allison thinks it's hidden in Katashi's prosthetic finger."

"Gross."

Once we arrived at my house, we found Riichi and Mom inside playing Go in the living room. They were sitting on pillows on the floor with the old, wooden goban set up between them and the coffee table pushed up against the TV stand to give them room. Black and white stones were laid across intersections. Riichi, as the novice player compared to our mom, was playing as black who always went first, and Mom was playing as white.

I leaned on the back of the couch as Riichi set down a stone, and I asked, "Who's winning?"

"You know that's not how it works," Mom replied, not taking her eyes from the board as she made a move.

"Mom is, as usual," Riichi said, eyeing the single white stone that he had captured from her which was abysmal compared to the small pile of black stones she had taken from him. I snorted quietly while watching him set down a stone.

Mom shook her head with a sigh, completely exasperated with us, but what else was new? "Again, not how it works. This isn't checkers."

"What is it then?" Scott asked, looking curiously at the game.

Mom looked up from the board after setting down a stone. "Go. I had once hoped it would teach them patience and strategy but have gotten no such luck." An eyebrow raised as she gave me and Riichi pointed looks. "One way to get points is to capture your opponent's stones, but that isn't the only way."

"One that Riichi is quite terrible at," I added.

"Hey!" Riichi glared at me. I simply smiled at him, but he didn't seem to appreciate it.

Mom's voice cut through the tension, her accent more prominent than before. "Riichi." She gestured to the board. "Focus." Riichi groaned and listened, taking a black stone and setting it on the board next to the white stone Mom had just set down which made her sigh.

"What?" he blurted, raising his hands in exasperation. "It's a valid move!"

"You don't have to answer every move. They're not all sente." Mom set one of her stones in an unoccupied area of the board. "You need to move past your passive style and play more aggressively. Gaining territory or attacking are more important than following your opponent around the board like a puppy."

Scott, who had been watching the board with a tad bit of interest, perked up when she said that and looked at me. "That's what we've been doing." When I gave him a confused look, he continued, "The nogitsune. We've been following him around the board, making a move only when responding to one of his own. We've been playing passive to his aggressive while he leads us into traps, and we fall for them."

"Sounds more like he's playing nuclear than aggressive." Our heads turned back to Mom who was turning a stone between her fingers. "Aggressors and belligerents attack outright and gain territory with no prodding needed, like Sara. I've never seen her willingly play a passive move unless it was already sente, and she forgets fuseki."

"I don't forget it," I argued, crossing my arms and shifting my weight. "I just don't like it. The opening is too slow." Go in general was too slow of a game for my complete liking, so if I could start a fight within the first few moves? I would take it. Granted, my speedy, aggressive style often led me to make silly mistakes when playing against one of my parents, but it crapped on Riichi's passiveness, though I had my own theories about his playstyle.

"Riichi avoids fights," Mom continued explaining to Scott, rather than expressing her disappointment, "preferring to play passive moves or follow his opponent. Both are easily preyed upon by those who are nuclear. They favor trick plays and have an easy time against those who can fall for their traps."

"And how do you play?" Scott asked, suddenly far more interested in the board game than before. It was obvious he didn't know anything about the game, but its relevance to our current situation made it all the more interesting than before. He moved around the couch and plopped down, now closer to their level. And he started following their moves again and looking over the placement of the stones, trying to make sense of it.

Not sure how he could make sense of it if he didn't even know the possible moves.

Mom looked at her stone then set it on the board. "I play orthodox. Alert but not aggressive."

"Normal, nothing out of the box," I said, explaining it a little better for the novice. "What you would consider to be proper or optimal moves."

"Only because they cannot be called correct."

I rolled my eyes at her addition though they didn't seem to notice anyway. Correct. That's some bullshit. Just because a move is solid and leaves few weaknesses, doesn't make it the correct move.

Scott used the pause in the conversation to pitch another question. "If we're too aggressive or too passive, we'll be led into traps, so if the nogitsune is playing nuclear, what's the best playstyle to counter it?"

Mom laid down a stone, occupying all of Riichi's stones liberties and capturing them. "What I like to call 'fire'," she said, watching Riichi as he decided where to set his next stone. I frowned at her suggestion, not liking how similar the connection seemed to what the nogitsune had said about void and fire kitsune.

"That just sounds like another name for aggressive," Scott pointed out.

"Extremely aggressive," she corrected, glancing up at him with what seemed like a twinkle of amusement in her eyes and a smirk pulling at the corner of her lips. "But they play smarter than regular belligerents. They destroy their opponents or eat away at them from the inside instead of picking petty fights whenever they get the chance. They're the ones who build up their territory from the first stone they set down. And they favor the keima or the 'knight's move' when attacking. The only way to beat a player who likes to trick their opponent into a trap is to cut off the trap or reverse it. That's what fire is good at when against nuclear, seeing the trap and attacking before they're caught up in it, burning it down with no way to salvage it to their opponent's advantage."

"That's why you call it fire."

Mom nodded and held up a stone between her index and middle fingers. "The nogitsune is waiting to play his next move, and I can assure you, the moment he gets the chance, he will make it." She reached down to the board and set down the stone with a solid clack. "You'll need to figure out how to answer."

My elbows dug into the back of the couch as I continued to lean forward on it. The only way I could think of answering was with a fight. Fire and void, light and dark. I looked down at the goban and the stones arrayed across the surface. Black and white. Yin and yang. Duality.

Peace and war.

"What moves can we take?" Scott asked.

"Start a fight, invade his territory, build your own territory, or let him keep his initiative. But beware of the fox. They always have a trick up their sleeve. And the best way to counter one fox is with another."

Scott's head tilted to the side like he was thinking about looking at me standing behind him. I had a feeling he thought about the same things that had been racing through my mind. What Void had said about fire and dark kitsune. The connection between us, and I had yet to tell him of the nogitsune's voice plaguing my thoughts that day I snapped at him. But how could he see the whole board and plan his next move in the game if he didn't know all the information and rules?

He turned back to my mom and Riichi still playing Go. "Kitsune can kill nogitsune, can't they?" he asked.

"You can kill one by killing the host, yes," she said. "It is difficult but possible. And other kitsune will have an easier time getting closer to a nogitsune because of their speed. But killing one is different than you might imagine. Most people think when you kill something, it cannot return, but when you kill a nogitsune, a spark of its spirit still lives on."

Looking down at my hand, I remembered the firefly I had pulled from the Oni the previous night. It still flickered with light until it melted into the shadows. I doubted it was truly dead since they're spirit demons. It could likely be summoned again from whatever void they came from after some sort of regeneration period. Similar to what Mom was saying for nogitsune, they just had to be brought back. It might take specific circumstances, but it was possible.

Closing my hand, I looked at my mom. "So, what's another way to deal with a nogitsune?"

"You can control one if you have their tails," Mom said. "Assuming they made physical versions, but not all full kitsune do. You can also poison the fox, but that often kills the host as well or only keeps the fox at bay for a period of time. I don't think your friend would survive being poisoned again, and I believe Alan used all the lichen he had gathered anyway." She eyed Riichi hovering around the board, hesitating to put his next stone down. "Or a Shinto priest can exorcise one at an Inari shrine."

"Inari shrine?" Scott repeated.

"Inari is a kami, or what you would consider to be a Japanese god," she explained as she set down a stone almost immediately after Riichi set one down. "Foxes and kitsune are sacred to Inari who is often depicted with white foxes. If we were in Japan, it would be quite easy to get rid of the nogitsune, assuming you were successful at subduing the possessed host which is difficult in its own right. There are thousands of Inari shrines you could go to."

She smiled, looking down at the board. "I remember visiting the Fushimi Inari-taisha with my father when I was young. It's quite stunning, and the priests were kind, though none the wiser about two kitsune in their presence. But I suspect your friend wouldn't be able to make the journey. And I'm wary to think of a nogitsune on a plane." She scowled at the thought and shook her head. "No, time is not a luxury one has when dealing with a nogitsune."

Scott set his elbows on his knees. I could practically see the gears turning in his head. Or rather grinding and smoking in frustration. I couldn't blame him. He wanted nothing more than to help his best friend and protect others from getting hurt, but my mom, a four-hundred-year-old kitsune who knew far more about nogitsune than him, wasn't being all that helpful.

When he finally looked up again, he asked, "There's nothing else we can try?"

Her eyes seemed to soften when she turned to him. "Those are the only ways I know of."

Scott's shoulders drooped, but then he glanced back at me before facing my mom again. "Have you ever heard of an Oni being killed?"

Mom's expression twisted, my eyes widened, and Riichi almost dropped one of his stones, barely catching it before it landed on the goban. I hadn't mentioned anything to anyone about what happened to one of the Oni the previous night, and it didn't seem like Scott, Boyd, or Kira had mentioned it to Deaton either meaning my mom and brother hadn't heard about it from him, so thankfully, to them it probably seemed like a strange question from a werewolf who notably didn't know a lot about the supernatural. But damn, was it teetering close to something I had been keeping to myself.

Although considering it wasn't like I told Scott not to tell anyone, I wasn't all that annoyed with him. Maybe just a tiny bit. Like an ounce. But I wasn't sure why I had been keeping it to myself anyway.

Well, it had only been the previous night. I hadn't exactly seen many people I could discuss it with.

Finally, my mom answered, "No, but I'm not very old."

"You're four-hundred-years-old," Riichi said, his bluntness was followed by a clack of him setting down a stone.

She held up her hand. "Let me rephrase, I'm not very old for a kitsune. I don't know everything, only what I was told by my own parents or learned over time."

"That's not considered old?" Scott asked.

"Maybe to people who usually don't live past a hundred. But kitsune regularly live to be nine-hundred." Mom gestured to me and Riichi. "Full kitsune at least, not always halflings."

I was shaping up not to like the word halfling. The only time I'd heard it before Void using it as an insult was when Isaac went through a Dungeons and Dragons phase and when I read The Lord of the Rings. I'm definitely not short enough to be a hobbit. Not even short enough for it to be a plausible nickname. But really? Halfling for half-kitsune? The memory of Void sneering it made chills run down my spine. I didn't need to hear my mother say it, too.

"Regardless," Mom continued, "there might be other ways to deal with nogitsune, but those are the only ones I know. I'd imagine Shinto priests or maybe even Japanese Buddhist priests would know more about how to get rid of kitsune than us kitsune do. The stories don't often paint us as benevolent."

I supposed that made sense, though I did wonder if Shugendō priests would know of a way, too. "It'd make for a boring story. And most kitsune probably don't want to get rid of other kitsune." The nogitsune's words repeated in my mind. But then there's the part of you that doesn't want to, that can't do it, the part that couldn't bear to kill another kitsune. We didn't grow on trees like werewolves, and since we had such long lifespans, kitsune tended not to have normal family units with multiple children unless they fell in love and settled down. And even then, it wasn't necessarily the same type of love humans felt.

"No, certainly not. Nogitsune would be rare exceptions. But kitsune aren't often against each other anyway."

Why fight each other, an already decently uncommon supernatural creature, when you could stay out of each other's way?

Scott and I watched them play a few more moves in silence, mulling over the conversation when my mom's phone went off. Pausing before setting down a stone, she grabbed her phone and turned off an alarm. "I have a client meeting," she said, dropping her stone in the wooden bowl housing what remained of her stones. "Would either of you like to continue for me?"

"Uh, no," Riichi cut in before I could. "I'm not playing against Sara's aggression."

"Why, because you know you'd lose?" I asked with a grin.

"Tired of being dragged into fights." He stuck his tongue out at me, then said, "I'm going to make something to eat, think we have a frozen pizza. Want some?"

"Sure. I'll put away the game."

Both Mom and Riichi stood from the floor, stretching out their legs once standing. "Love you both," Mom said as she went around the couch. "Don't destroy the house."

"No promises."

My mom gave me a look before heading to the foyer.

Riichi watched her walk out of the room and turned to Scott and me. "So, what do we destroy first: the living room or the kitchen?" he jokingly asked.

"I heard that!" Mom called out.

"Love you too!" Riichi grinned at me and Scott before waving us off and going into the kitchen.

Rolling my eyes with a smile, I knelt next to the goban and started collecting the stones in their respective bowls. Seconds passed with Scott still eyeing the board before he slid off the couch to kneel and help. Every few pieces, I'd look up to see Scott contemplating something as he collected the other set of stones. His deep-thought expression was one of the most obvious expressions he had, other than outright confusion.

"What are you thinking about?" I asked, keeping my voice down so Riichi wouldn't hear from the kitchen in case it was something Scott would've liked to keep quiet.

Scott's eyes snapped away from the white stone in his hand, and he quickly put it in the bowl. "Uh, just thinking." Giving him a small nod, I dropped the subject, picking up more stones. If he deemed it important for me to know, I'd be there to listen; otherwise, he could keep his secrets all he wanted.

Then he asked, "How do you play?"

Pausing as I grabbed the last of the black stones sitting out, I said, "Oh, uh, it's actually really simple. It's the strategy part that gets people."

"Honestly, it kind of looked like they were just setting down stones at random."

I chuckled and set the lid on the bowl. "To the untrained eye, definitely. And, well, technically you can put them down in random spots, you're just not likely to win that way." Scott slid the last of the white stones away, and it felt so final. I had no idea what would happen once I slid the goban back to the side of the TV stand and put the coffee table back. It wasn't like we had agreed to hang out or anything, just that we should talk to my mom about the possible ways of getting rid of a nogitsune. I mean, he didn't have to leave yet, right? We're friends. He didn't have to be kicked out of my house just because we had finished what we came here for.

And it would be easier to hang out together while we waited for the green light on whatever Allison and Lydia came up with. Yeah, let's go with that.

As Scott moved to close the bowl of stones, I asked, "Do you want to learn?"

His expression perked up into a smile. "Yeah, yeah, that'd be. . . that'd be great."

I held out the bowl of black stones for him to take. "The weaker player plays as black and goes first."

Scott handed me the bowl of white stones and took the black ones. "Does it matter which side we sit on?" I shook my head while crossing my legs beneath me to sit instead of kneeling, and he sat on the opposite side.

"So, there are two possible moves at any given moment," I began explaining, setting the bowl next to me on the floor. "You can either set a stone down at any intersection on the board or pass your turn by handing over a stone. The game is over when one player resigns or both pass consecutively, and points are then counted. You get points by capturing stones or controlling vacant intersections."

"Sounds easy enough." Scott picked up a stone and looked at the board. "I can put it anywhere?"

"Technically."

Scott chuckled and said, "And that's code for no, absolutely not."

My cheeks heated up as I smiled. "You can, it's just. . . it's a game from East Asia. If you know anything about East Asian cultures, particularly Japan, it's that tradition is very important. So while not a rule per se, there are traditions that players adhere to."

His head tilted and eyes narrowed. "But if I know anything about you, it's that you like to break them. Probably why your mom was so obviously against your play style, right?"

Half-nodding and adjusting my legs, I explained, "Fuseki is the board opening, usually about six moves to set up your positions on the board. It's tradition and players use that time to build territory and gain influence over certain areas of the board by placing the first stones in their chosen areas and building upon them. I think it's too slow and usually start encroaching on Mom and Riichi's territories right away. And that. . ." I trailed off with a shrug.

"Breaks tradition but not the rules," he finished.

"Exactly."

Scott glanced between me and the board then slowly reached out with a stone in his hand and set it down on an intersection near the closest star point. "Bad or good?" he wondered with a smirk.

"That depends on what you do with it." I set down a stone on the star point opposite him. I didn't want to start a fight in the game when he didn't even know how to play.

He looked at the stone I had set down. "Yeah, I think it'll be a while before I fully understand what we're doing."

I laughed and he joined in, setting down another stone. We continued in silence for a few moves, until he said, "You told Stiles that kitsune are good at games. How is that for kitsune playing against each other? You made it out like Riichi is bad at Go."

If kitsune are naturally good at games, how is Riichi bad at the game? That's what he was asking, albeit in a weird way. It would come down to normal skill and strategy, rather than a trickster creature playing against a human. Though I'm sure a kitsune that's worse at games than other kitsune would be worse than humans that are good at games. Stiles just wasn't the best at chess.

"He's not a bad player and he knows what he should do, but he doesn't play to win," I told him, making a move.

Scott made a quiet sound of understanding as he set down a stone. "So he's one of those who play to have fun?"

"More like he intentionally picks moves to frustrate the rest of us." Scott looked a tad bewildered at the idea. I mean, Riichi came off as a genuine person. Helpful, kind, patient, but he was still a fox. What's a fox without its games? "I think he enjoys seeing Mom get annoyed. Even as a kid, I swear he would deliberately choose the most passive options, and that's usually following your opponent around since you can't build territory or be much of a threat."

"The kitsune being a trickster."

"Yes."

My mind traveled to the previous night with the nogitsune controlling Stiles. The fox had so easily tricked us the entire day, playing as the innocent, anxiety-ridden human that we all cared for. The one who would have figured it out immediately. With Scott being naturally trusting and me having been mind-tormented by it and finally having peace, neither of us saw it. Especially as it had us chasing our tails around the city. And then Scott got hurt because of me.

"Stop that," Scott's voice broke through the silence.

I looked up from the board. "What?"

"Stop blaming yourself." He set down a stone then set his arms on his knees. "There's plenty of blame to go around, so stop hogging it." His thick voice made it clear that he was blaming himself just as much even with an attempt at making a joke.

Shaking my head, I set down one of my own stones. "I don't blame you for wanting to believe your best friend. None of us figured it out. We were just trying to protect him like he'd do for us." I rubbed my eye while sighing. "That blame doesn't rest on any of us."

"But standing there as he knocked out Boyd and Kira?" he asked, gaze hardening and jaw tensing. "As he threw you against a wall? That is on me."

"You were run through with a sword because of me," I argued, leaning forward, and almost glaring at him. I could feel my pulse picking up as the conversation grew tenser. "You couldn't do anything without making things worse. There isn't any blame on you, alright? But I got distracted, and you were hurt because of it, and then Kira and Boyd were hurt as a result."

"You-" Scott cut himself off, shutting his eyes. When he opened them again, he glanced toward the kitchen, turned back to me, and leaned forward, lowering his voice when he spoke. "You killed an Oni. I don't care if I was stabbed with five swords. You proved they're not invincible. If anything, you're doing a heck of a lot better than the rest of us."

"Because you don't even know everything," I blurted, cutting sharp and harsh. He leaned back, startled.

Clenching my jaw, I looked away. My heart thudded in my chest as the familiar heat ran through my veins. With twitching fingers, I carefully closed my fists. Silence spread between us as I let my breathing and heart calm, and the warmth that spread throughout my arms receded to a normal, human temperature.

I let my hands fall to my lap and slouched. "You don't know everything," I whispered.

"Then tell me," Scott said gently.

Untangling my legs from underneath me, I stretched them out, still quiet but letting the soreness in my legs ease. Scott moved around the board and sat next to me. He didn't say anything as he sat, simply letting his shoulder brush against mine in silent support.

I didn't even know where to begin. But I needed to. He needed to know. I wanted him to know.

"That night Stiles went missing," I started, my voice a sliver above a whisper, "and Allison got that strange voicemail, they weren't the only ones that something happened to."

He held out his hand, an offering for me to take. Ever since we had started getting closer over the summer, silent support through holding a hand or a hand on a shoulder had become common. I'd never told him outright, but I was grateful for it. Sometimes words couldn't be expressed, but touch remained comforting. It wasn't the same as when Isaac would sling his arm around my shoulders or kiss my forehead throughout the years, but it was similar enough. Same concept, different execution. Sometimes words were difficult to express.

But he needed to hear it this time.

I put my hand in his, letting the warmth of his skin replace the heat from the fire trying to manifest.

"What happened?" His voice remained soft and coaxing, and I met his gaze.

"I dreamt with his voice in my head." My eyes stung as tears formed along the surface, obscuring bits of my vision at the memories and echoes. Shaking my head, I breathed deeply, trying to continue. "At least I think it was him. Sounded like a twisted version of Stiles, and he knew exactly what to say to get under my skin. What to pick and prod at." My grip tightened on Scott's hand as my voice grew shakier. "And it didn't stop when I woke up. I heard it at school, at the hospital all weekend, and right before Stiles showed back up. Then the voice went silent."

Biting my lip, I looked down at my lap, holding his hand between mine. I couldn't look into his concerned pretty eyes as I continued. "I didn't know what to do. I didn't. . . I didn't want it to be Stiles, but I knew it, I know I did. I knew he had the nogitsune in him. You wouldn't believe the rationalization I was feeding myself. 'It couldn't be him. He's acting normal. It's Stiles. I'll definitely kill the nogitsune no problem because it's not Stiles. He's still human.'" I scoffed. "Even the voice in my head was calling me delusional."

"He's playing tricks on you, same as the rest of us," Scott said, squeezing my hand. "Made Stiles go missing to mess with me and his dad. Somehow got Lydia to lead us to the wrong place, and Lydia second-guessing herself isn't good for anyone. Got Argent and Derek arrested to keep them incapacitated. Left Allison out of it and confused her with strange voicemails, both of which she hates."

"And drove me insane," I added, throwing up a hand. "Great."

"Or knew exactly how to make you drive your own wedge between the rest of us." I frowned and turned to Scott, so he continued, "You hate asking for help and you push others away when you start thinking negatively about your abilities because you don't want to hurt anyone." He nudged me with his shoulder. "It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what he might have been picking and prodding at. But we could've tried to help, you know?"

"We all could've done a lot of things over the past few days, but the only way to get ahead of the nogitsune is to take the initiative."

Scott looked at me incredibly unimpressed. "And we're back to you brushing things aside."

I started to take my hand away from his, but he kept his grip firm. Not forceful, just firm. Enough to keep me from running away. Smart boy. "I can deal with my own problems once a demonic fox is no longer possessing our friend. There are still a few things we need to figure out, like the nogitsune's next move, how to get the fox spirit out of Stiles, and why the nogitsune seemed hyper-fixated on my abilities and our 'connection' because I guarantee he doesn't say anything without a reason." I dropped my free hand after making air quotes.

"Kitsune might be stronger together, just like wolves," Scott said. "And you killed an Oni. I doubt he wants you against him."

"Except I'm not the only kitsune against him. Mom, Kira, Riichi, and Noshiko can all go after him, too. Together they're definitely more powerful than me, and Noshiko has killed him before."

Scott's eyebrows shot up, and I was reminded that I hadn't shared that last bit of information with him. "What?" he asked.

Sighing and closing my eyes, I rubbed my forehead. I forgot I hadn't told anyone about anything that Ken had said regarding the mysterious voicemails that bombarded Allison's phone. Granted, I hadn't planned on saying everything, but I also hadn't said anything at all.

I looked back up at Scott after a few moments. "Forgot about that. Long story short, in the forties, Noshiko killed a nogitsune nearby and hid what remained in the dead Nemeton which was given power again by Jennifer and then us."

His face dropped, and I immediately hated having to spill the beans on that last part. The last thing I wanted was for him to blame himself even more. "You mean, the nogitsune was given power again by me, Stiles, and Allison? It's here because of us? We caused all of this?"

"Because of the ritual that was performed because the Darach had been holding three people hostage, yes. And she became a Darach because the Alpha Pack tried to kill her and failed and said Alpha Pack had been caused because Gerard disintegrated Deucalion's eyes with flare arrowheads. It's a series of events. Very, very unfortunate events." It was my turn to squeeze his hand for support. "What happened to plenty of blame going around?"

"Causing an evil fox spirit to re-awaken is not the same as not recognizing it wasn't Stiles in control," he countered bluntly.

"I thought you were supposed to be the optimistic one."

"It's a little difficult to be optimistic at the moment." He then huffed with a grin, though it didn't quite reach his eyes. "And you're the only one I feel I can admit that to." The optimist admitting his lack of hope to the pessimist who's trying to keep him optimistic. What fun.

Not knowing how to respond, I set my head on his shoulder. All we could really do was do the best we could, right? Either that or give up. But Stiles wouldn't give up, so the rest of us couldn't either.

Koko ni anata ga ireba īnoni - I wish you were here

Koishii - Darling, dear, a term of endearment

Goban - a Go board

Sente - means playing first, but in Go it has multiple means: if a move is sente then the opponent has to answer it, if a player has sente it means it is their turn

Fuseki - means arraying stones, in Go it's the whole board opening, there are rare occasions where a game does not have an opening and a fight starts immediately

Keima - a knight's move, used for attack in Go by reducing the running space of groups

Kami - a Japanese god or spirit venerated in the Shinto religion with Inari sometimes being considered to be a collective of three or five individual kami

Fushimi Inari-taisha - the head shrine of the kami Inari in Kyoto, Japan with thousands of torii gates that lead a network of trails into the forest of Mount Inari and predates the capital's move to Kyoto in 794

Hey everyone! Sorry my updates have been slowing a bit, but don't worry! It's not because of this story, life's just been getting in the way for the past few months. I've got the next chapter completely written, it just needs to be edited and revised, so I'll be doing that once I've let it sit for a bit so I'm not rereading the same thing over and over again and miss things haha.

Just so you're all updated, I have outlines for the rest of season 3b, at least two (maybe three) chapters in between season 3b and season 4, and then also season 4. I have plans for season 5a laid out, just not outlined, though I do have general ideas and what I want to write. So, right now, it's sitting at a minimum of 67 chapters (so we're just about halfway!) but there will be a higher minimum when I plan out seasons 5b, 6a, and 6b. I'm also planning (hopefully but not guaranteed) for extra one-shots to be published outside of this main story, like one of Sara and Scott at college or one of Sara and Isaac when they were younger, things like that, that either doesn't contribute much to the main story and Sara's development or takes place outside of the show.

If there's anything you're hoping to see, feel free to drop a review or PM.

Thanks for reading!