"Are you deranged like me?

Are you strange like me?

Lighting matches just to swallow up the flame like me?

Do you call yourself a fucking hurricane like me?

Pointing fingers 'cause you'll never take the blame like me?"

Gasoline by Halsey

Warmth curled around my torso as I was pulled from a deep sleep. My mind was empty of all coherent thoughts as my eyes flickered open. I didn't recognize the comforter wrapped around me. I could at least tell it wasn't mine.

My first thought was being in Brett's bed. There had been plenty of times I had woken up with his arm around me over the past few weeks, but something about it didn't seem right. Where I usually woke up sore after a night like that, I didn't feel it then. Instead, I felt completely at ease and well-rested.

After a few moments of blinking my eyes to coax the sleep from them, I turned my head to get a better look at the room, and the memories came flooding back. I had slept over at Scott's house after we had finished talking to the police and giving our statements. We had gone to sleep, sharing his bed, after coming up with a tentative plan of fortification to meet whatever attack the nogitsune had planned.

And it was Scott's arm wrapped around me in a warm embrace.

I didn't want to move, but if Scott woke up to see his arm around me, having moved into a cuddling position in our sleep, he would never stop apologizing and being awkward. So, I crawled out from under his arm and out of the bed, feeling a shiver rush over me once I was no longer warm.

I grabbed my phone from the nightstand and walked to the bathroom, shutting the door behind me. The time on my phone read 2:48 pm, which meant the sun would be setting in about two hours or so.

As someone who usually woke up with the rise of the sun, my fox spirit didn't seem to appreciate sleeping through the day. Also, since it was the early afternoon, too little too late to go to school. Not like any of us realistically could after the previous night. I just hoped the school had been informed about what had happened, might give us a little break. And part of me felt bad for Noah or that deputy that questioned us having to stay up and do all that paperwork after the fact.

After using the bathroom and rinsing off my face, I exited, walking back into Scott's room to see him sitting up and massaging the side of his neck.

"You alright?" I asked.

Scott dropped his hand from his neck. "Ready to take the fight to him. We should get started."

Scott showered and got dressed before we went to my house so I could change too.

While at mine, we let my mom and Riichi in on our plan, telling them we wanted them to fortify the animal clinic with Deaton and be ready for an attack. Thankfully, as she was a better Go player and had more experience as a kitsune, my mom approved of the plan, even going as far as to dig out her bō. The last time I had seen her use it was against me and Riichi as children, but she had been mostly toying with us. It would be interesting to see her use it against a real opponent like the Oni.

After my brother and mother had left for the clinic, Scott and I started dispersing our plan to the others involved, making sure they knew where they needed to go in order to best defend the town. But before we could get a hold of Chris or Isaac, Stiles called Scott and filled us in on what Noshiko had done with the remnants of the nogitsune the last time she had faced it.

So, we told Kira and Boyd the plan for them to get to the station and called Lydia to have her meet us and Stiles at the animal clinic to talk to Deaton.

When we arrived, my mom and Riichi were there helping Deaton close the place up.

"Stiles said it was the Nemeton that kept it trapped," Scott told Deaton as we followed him into the exam room after a brief explanation of what Stiles had told us.

"The problem is, this isn't even a person you're fighting," Deaton said. "It just looks like one. It's a spirit that's taken the shape of a human."

"The shape of my best friend," Scott corrected.

"They caught it once," Lydia cut in. "So, someone can do it again, right?"

Deaton shook his head with a pained expression. "I don't know. This thing was trapped a long time ago before the Nemeton was cut down. It doesn't have the same power anymore."

"Is there anything that does?" I asked.

"Possibly." Deaton shifted his stance. "When the tree was whole, its wood was sometimes used to contain powerful objects, but those objects are very rare."

"Wait a second," Lydia said, and we turned to her. By the look on her face, she was thinking of something very specific. "Powerful objects? Like an alpha's claws?"

Deaton looked at her skeptically. "Which alpha?"

"Talia Hale." Lydia moved to quickly explain. "Peter had them in this wooden box with a triskele carved on the lid. What if it was made from the Nemeton?"

"It was."

We looked at Deaton in shock, and Scott asked, "How do you know?"

"Because I made it."

Scott nodded. "I'll call Derek, see if he can get it." He took a few steps away, taking out his phone.

I turned to Lydia and Deaton. "So, that solves one question, but there's something we need to figure out before we can even use it," I explained. "We need to figure out how Allie killed an Oni. We need to figure out how to defeat them if we're going to have a shot at the nogitsune, to even try and trap him."

"What about you?" Lydia asked.

I raised an eyebrow. "What about me?"

"You killed one, too," she reminded. "Do you think you'd be able to figure out how?"

"Foxfire," I said with a shrug. "We already know that."

She raised her hands, partially wincing. "No, I know, but I mean. . . Consciously making it." She looked at me with hopeful eyes.

I didn't know what to tell her other than the cold, hard truth. "I've tried to consciously make it before, but every time, I only make real fire."

Deaton glanced between me and Lydia, a calculating expression taking over as he folded his arms across his chest. "What were you doing the times you've made foxfire?" he asked.

"Fighting the twins and fighting the Oni," I answered.

"That's it?"

I gaped and shrugged, unsure of what else to say. Yeah, that was all I was doing.

Scott joined us again, having gotten off the phone and heard Deaton's question, and he pitched in with, "You said at the hospital that you had made foxfire instinctively before but didn't think you could do it then because the twins weren't trying to kill us that time."

Deaton smirked. "It wasn't what you were doing. It was how you were reacting. Why you were reacting. How you were feeling."

How I was feeling? I had a distinct memory of feeling panicked and worried, but that probably wasn't what he meant. It took a few seconds for me to understand.

I looked up at Scott. "I was protecting you. Both times, I was protecting you. You, Isaac, Stiles, Kira, Boyd."

"Your friends," Scott said. "Your pack. You've only made it when protecting us."

"I didn't do a very good job protecting the pack last night."

"Neither did I. But the good thing about mistakes is that we can only get better."

By the time Derek got back to Scott with having found the triskele box in Peter's things, we were all rearing to go and antsy, but as we were about to leave in order to meet Derek at the school, Lydia stumbled back, paler than before. Scott caught her before she could fall too far back, and she looked up as she righted herself.

"What's wrong?" Deaton asked.

"Something's happening. . ." Lydia trailed off as she looked around. "I had this sudden rushing feeling like we're running out of time."

"Yeah," another voice said. We turned to see Stiles in the doorway with Riichi helping hold him up. "Yeah, I kind of got that feeling, too."

I met Scott's eye and we both had the same thought.

"He's attacking the territories," Scott said. "We need to move."

"Territories?" Lydia repeated. "What does that mean?"

Scott led the way out of the clinic while he spoke. "The nogitsune is hitting the Sheriff's Station, the hospital, the school, and the animal clinic," he explained. The four of us hurried over to my car since Stiles didn't seem like he should be driving, and Lydia seemed to be willing to let Scott and I make the decisions. "Since we're just now leaving the clinic and no one should be at the school, that means he's attacking either the station or the hospital right now."

"Or both," I added unhelpfully, starting up my car. "But since we had never gotten ahold of Chris and Isaac, that means the hospital is severely under-protected." I glanced over at Scott in my passenger seat as I drove and noticed him with a horrified expression. Right, yeah, his mom. "Sorry."

I pulled up to the school soon after, and we all jumped out of the car. Stiles stumbled out, having difficulty walking and staying upright, but Lydia reached out to him, helping him by letting him put his arm around her shoulders. I pulled out my chain dart, gripping it tight.

We went directly to the nearest entrance, but Stiles said, "Scott, hold on," as Scott was about to open the set of double doors. We turned to Stiles. "I know what you're all thinking—if this works, it might kill me, too. But even if it does, you have to go through with it. Stick with the plan, okay?"

"The plan is to save you," Scott told him. "That's the plan I'm going with."

Without any argument from Stiles, we turned back around, and Scott pushed open the doors. Only we didn't see the interior of the school hallway while walking inside. Instead, we saw a beautiful, snow-covered, Japanese garden. We walked through the gate, and I glanced around skeptically. Snow fell from a dark, featureless sky. A small stone fountain had frozen water sprouting from it. Barren trees dotted the area. A chill in the air made me shiver, and Lydia rubbed her arms.

Something creaked behind us then slammed hard. We whipped around to see not the school doors closed, but wooden doors with a carved spiral closed.

It was all so wrong.

"This is definitely not part of the plan," Stiles muttered, looking at our surroundings.

Just as I had feared. It didn't matter what we had planned. The nogitsune was playing his own game, a game in which we didn't know the rules.

I held my hand out and caught a few flakes of snow. The snow melted against my skin. It seemed so real, but it couldn't be, could it? It had to be an illusion. We had just entered the school. Powers of teleportation didn't exactly suit a nogitsune, but kitsune stories always included us making illusions to trick people.

My ears twitched as I heard snow crunching under feet, so I turned to see something covered in bandages and wearing an old leather jacket. While shaped like a human, it didn't walk like one, staggered and menacing as it moved toward us. The only visible part of it was chrome teeth. The only thing it could be was the nogitsune.

I moved my feet to widen my stance and readied my chain, holding it taught in both hands. The others turned as well.

"Like I promised, Stiles," the nogitsune said. "We're going to kill all of them, one by one."

An Oni manifested from the shadows in front of me, and I quickly raised my chain to block its sword. The Oni slipped back, sliding the sword away, and I took a quick glance around to see that the other two had manifested as well, one behind us and one on the other side of the nogitsune. There were three left standing. One killed by me, one killed by Allison, three killed by the nogitsune when they still belonged to Noshiko, and one unsummoned to change their allegiance.

We could do this. Right?

"What the hell is this?" Scott asked. "Where are we?"

"Between life and death," the nogitsune answered, though it sounded more vague than reality.

"Bardo," Lydia realized.

"But there are no peaceful deities here, Lydia." The nogitsune wiggled his bandaged finger. "You're dying Stiles, and now, everyone you care about is dying, too."

"What?" Stiles asked. "What do you mean?"

The nogitsune took a few steps forward. "I've captured almost all of the territories on the board." We may not have been able to see his eyes, but I could still feel the menacing glare. I felt Scott shift behind me, and I turned to see the Oni standing close. If the air and snow didn't already feel cold, the chill in my veins would have done it. "The hospital, the Sheriff's Station, and now, the animal clinic."

The nogitsune raised his hand and clenched his fist. "The river kitsune can try all he likes to heal them, but it'll be pointless." He took steps parallel to us, making me feel like a caged animal watching its captor. "Nothing can heal the poison from an Oni's blade."

My hands trembled around my chain as I clenched my jaw. Did I just get my mother and brother killed by having them stay with Deaton? Or Boyd and Kira by sending them to Noah? And what about Melissa? Was she all alone in the hospital, bleeding out without her son there?

"Do you know the ritual of seppuku, Stiles?" the nogitsune asked.

My stomach twisted as I immediately knew where he was going with that. With the pure white snow glittering down from the sky, it would take the place of the shini-shōzoku to catch the hot, red blood spilled from the abdomen. I felt Scott's hand touch my back as he heard the sudden jump in my pulse or sensed the increased anxiety in chemo-signals.

"No, and I don't want to," Stiles said. He nudged Lydia behind him as the nogitsune drew closer to them.

But the nogitsune didn't care. "When a samurai disembowels himself with his own sword to maintain his honor, but that's not the cut that kills him. The killing stroke is made by his kaishakunin who beheads the samurai with his own katana." The nogitsune held out his hand, pointing directly at Scott. "Scott. . . Scott is your kaishakunin. I'm going to make your best friend kill you, Stiles." He walked forward, daring closer and closer, but we could step back with two of the Oni behind us. "And you're going to let him because, just like you, they're all going to die. Everyone touched by an Oni's blade." He stopped in front of Stiles. "Unless Scott kills you first."

"Why?" Stiles asked, his voice filled with quiet rage. "Why are you doing this?"

"To win the game."

Blades cut through the air, jarring us from the sudden sound, and I raised my chain to prepare for a fight. The nogitsune backed away before the Oni attacked, and Stiles pulled Lydia out of harm's way since neither were fighters. Which left Scott and me against three Oni.

The following few seconds were a blur as I let myself give into instinct to ward off the attacking Oni. I ducked to avoid the swing of a blade and swung my chain to aim for another. And each time I dared move too close, the Oni jumped out of the way as though avoiding what could potentially be a mortal blow from foxfire.

They didn't plan on making the same mistake twice.

My back hit something solid after I kicked an Oni in the chest to force it away, and from the corner of my eye, I could tell I was up against Scott who had fully wolfed out.

"Maybe we could use a bit of destruction," he said, breathless and not taking his eyes away from the Oni nearest to him.

I didn't like it, but he had a point. Part of fire might always be destruction, but Scott had been right before, that I get to decide when and how the flames are used. Not the nogitsune. Not anyone else. Me. And there were never better times to use them than when protecting the people that I cared about.

Peter's words echoed in my mind. Kitsune aren't meant to be controlled. You're meant to be unleashed. Similar yet different issue than the hospital. Whereas I had been afraid of losing control then, I didn't want to be only destruction now. But the sentiment remained the same. Our abilities are there to be used, and we get to decide how they're used. Not for pure destruction but for protection.

Flames danced along the chain and over my arms as my eyes glowed orange.

"Duck."

Scott heeded my warning and ducked down just in time to avoid the ring of fire spreading from my outstretched arms, hitting the Oni and throwing them back.

It bought Scott and me a few moments to catch our breaths and attack on our own terms.

Throwing the weighted end of the chain, the mask of one of the Oni cracked under the force and flames and it was knocked down, but its place was taken by another who took a slice at me. I rolled away to put distance between us then swung the weight at its head.

The weight wrapped around the ninjatō as it blocked the attack, but when I tried to pull on the blade to take it away, the Oni's strength overpowered my own, and it pulled me toward it. With my focus on the Oni in front of me, I almost missed the one coming from behind me. Narrowly avoiding being run through with the sword aimed directly at my heart, I used my end of the chain to trap it, with the downside of the chain being wrenched from my hands by the two Oni.

In sync, the Oni slid the chain off their swords, tossing it away from me. Then they readied their blades again, staring at me with their unsettling green eyes. Glancing behind me, my path was blocked by a mini, ornate bridge.

My mind ran through my possible courses of action as they took steps closing in. I could jump over the bridge, hoping my speed was greater than either of the Oni. I could use my fire to try and throw them back again, though that might backfire and hit Scott who was fighting the third Oni on the other side of the two in front of me. I could try to slide between the two Oni to go for Scott, but that would likely end with me getting sliced up. I could go for broke and try to summon foxfire at the last moment, but I didn't see that playing out how I wanted it to.

But none of my options seemed to matter as the tinkling of chain links reached my ears.

All the fighting stopped as the focus of the Oni changed. I turned to see Stiles standing with my chain in his hands, holding the long kunai blade at his stomach, the shiny metal reflecting the bright white surroundings. My eyes widened and I froze at what he planned to do.

"Stiles, no!" Scott called out. He rushed forward, and the Oni he had been fighting let him. "Stiles!"

Stiles shook as he held the knife and looked up at Scott. "What if it saves you?" he asked. "What if it saves all of you?"

"What if it's just another trick?" Lydia countered desperately from behind him.

"No more tricks, Lydia," the nogitsune promised. He turned to Scott. "End it, Scott. Let your friend fall on his own sword. Do for him what he cannot do for himself." Scott could never do that, not to his best friend, his brother. "Do it, Scott—be his kaishakunin. Give up the game. You have no moves left."

That made Stiles pause, and he looked up from the blade, slowly lowering it. "I do," he said. "A divine move." Stiles gathered my chain dart in his hand and tossed it to me.

Catching the chain, I gave him a skeptical look. I wasn't the one who told him that term, and Scott hadn't known it long enough to tell him it or the meaning either. And according to Kira, Noshiko had only just recently begun teaching her the game of Go, which left Noshiko or Ken as the one who told him it.

But he was right. Only a particularly powerful, unheard-of move could get us out of this debacle.

Stiles took a few steps back, and Lydia wrapped her arm around him again, the two supporting each other in the cold. Stiles then said, "Stop fighting them. It's an illusion." He focused on Scott with desperate eyes. "You have to stop fighting them. It looks real and it feels real, but Scott, you got to trust me—it's an illusion."

As the chain resettled in my hands, and the chill of the metal bit into my skin, it was hard to imagine it was all an illusion. But it made my thoughts from earlier seem more sensical. Even with the cold air, the falling snow, the fatigue from fighting, the feel of an Oni at the base of my foot—kitsune stories told of illusions and tricks. Stiles had to be right. How he was exactly so sure remained to be seen, but the nogitsune had toyed with him the most, the one with the most inquisitive mind. If anyone had figured out the trick, it was Stiles. And I trusted him.

Scott and I turned to face the nogitsune who stood in front of the door. That was the way we came in, so that was the way we go out.

The nogitsune stared us down and the Oni moved into position in front of him, all facing us with a clear path in the middle. Their stances made it obvious they were daring us to go toward them. To get sliced up by their swords.

Scott stepped forward first, leading the way to the Oni. And I winced as the nearest Oni cut across his stomach, causing him to cry out in pain and stumble. But he kept moving forward, so I did too, and the same Oni that cut Scott first, sliced its sword across my back.

It hurt worse than other blades that had pierced my skin, burning a red-hot fire across the wound. And the next Oni cut my stomach. Then my thigh. Then my arm. Each cut and slice made blood soak through my clothing.

But I took a step. And another. And another. Following Scott across the garden and ignoring the Oni on either side of us.

Then with a cry, Scott pushed the nogitsune forward and through the doors, and we followed, breaking the illusion.

We each stumbled forward through the doors, the snowy ground replaced with the hard tile of the school hallway. Reaching up to my stomach, I looked down and saw nothing but cloth—no wound or blood. And all the pain had disappeared. I looked behind me to see the outside of the school. We had just entered through the same doors as before. It was as though nothing had happened.

We each glanced at each other, and I could see the relief on their faces same as mine.

"We're okay," Scott said softly, touching his own stomach. He went to say something else but was quickly cut off by being thrown against the lockers.

I turned with my kunai in hand, but Void caught my arm. Void, with the pale face of Stiles, not the bandaged nogitsune from the illusion. I struggled against his grip only to be hit by his other hand, and I hit the floor.

My vision blurred and my ears rang, but I still felt the distinctive metal in my grip, so I pushed myself up to my knees, swaying a bit. My eyes flashed orange as my body healed the sudden concussion.

Once the ringing cleared, I could hear the loud, thundering voice of Void down the hallway, and my vision sharpened again to see Scott picking himself up as well. We locked eyes then turned our heads, spotting Lydia and Stiles stumbling away from Void.

"I think I need a wolf to help me," I said, staring at the back of Void.

"I'm right behind you," Scott assured.

We both stood, and I unfurled the chain, letting the weighted end hang low. Void stopped just ahead, focused completely on Stiles and Lydia, so I ran forward, swinging the chain as I went then let it curl around my elbow before shooting forward as it trickled with flames.

"You can't be a fox and a wolf," Stiles said, followed by the weight wrapping around Void's throat.

I tugged on the chain, it unfurling as it pulled Void back directly into Scott's claws. Void yelled out in pain. Scott dug his claws into Void's back and grabbed his arm. Baring his teeth, Scott sunk them into Void's arm. Then I used my knife to stab Void in the back.

After the blade cut through his flesh, I stepped back and the others followed suit, all of us watching as Void fell to his knees.

Then a fly flew out of his mouth.

The nogitsune had been successfully expelled.

But as it flew away from us, all I could do was watch in a mixture of shock and relief. Then Isaac came skidding into view and caught it in a small wooden box, twisting the lid shut. I couldn't help the sigh at the sight of him since he had been unreachable for the last few hours. And it was good to see that Derek had been able to get the container made from Nemeton wood.

Then the copy of Stiles began to twitch in front of us, only to freeze and then fall to the floor, turning into ash and disappearing into nothingness.

You don't see that every day.

But just as everything seemed to wrap up nicely, Stiles, the real Stiles, stumbled next to Lydia, just as pale and bleary-eyed as ever, before falling over, hitting the floor with a solid thud. Lydia and Scott knelt on either side of him, and Isaac rushed over.

Scott rolled Stiles onto his back and said, "He still has a pulse." Scott took off his jacket, folded it, and slipped it under Stiles' head.

"What's happening?" Isaac asked from beside me.

"Hopefully just the adrenaline wearing off," Lydia said, rattled.

"I hope so," I said. "Scott bit Void before I stabbed him, so if they were still connected then it wouldn't make sense."

Scott set his hand on Stiles' wrist, and I spotted faint, black veins creeping up his arm. "It isn't bad," he said. "Not like before. It's fading even without me doing anything."

Before anyone else added anything, Stiles's eyes opened, and he took in a deep breath as he looked around at us all staring down at him. We each let out various sounds of relief which Stiles noticed.

"Oh, god, I fainted, didn't I?" Stiles asked, digging his head into the jacket beneath him. I let out a breathy chuckle. A witty remark. He would be okay. "We're alive. We're all alive?"

My eyes flitted over to Scott who donned a melancholy expression, knowing he had thought of Allison, but even with that thought, he said, "Yeah, we're okay."

But as Stiles was about to sit up, Lydia abruptly stood, gazing down the hallway toward the doors. Stiles was about to ask something when she took off running. Stiles quickly got up and followed close behind.

"I don't think that's a good sign," Isaac said.

But by the time we made it outside, we saw Aiden, covered in black blood, lying on the ground with Ethan kneeling beside him in silent tears. And Lydia cried into Stiles' shoulder.

Looks like we didn't all make it.

Again.

The days following the final showdown at the school were long and exhausting. With the deaths of Allison and Aiden settling in along with none of us running on fumes to stop more people from getting hurt or dying, the new normal for the rest of the semester was filled with a sense of bittersweet pain and relief. But at least it was all over, and we had learned a few more things along the way.

Not even a river kitsune's healing abilities could heal the poisonous smoke from an Oni's blade. Once the kitsune controlling the Oni was defeated, the wounds inflicted by the Oni blades healed, leaving no wounds or scars. Silver could hurt and kill Oni, as a silver bullet from Chris had been what cracked the Oni's mask years ago in Japan and a silver arrowhead had been what killed the single Oni from Allison and the two remaining Oni from Chris and Aiden.

Oh, right, there had only been two Oni left by the time Derek, Ethan, and Aiden had arrived at the school, instead of three as there was supposed to be. Because Kira had killed the third to save Boyd at the Sheriff's Station, much in the same way I had outside of the animal clinic.

Apparently, the two of them had saved most of the officers, taking a majority of the focus onto themselves to protect the humans in the precinct.

And now, Boyd couldn't stop watching Kira with googly eyes, as if they hadn't been bad already.

Also, according to my mom, a new name on her roster for patients appeared, as recommended to the family by Morell. Malia Tate. Obviously, it was the only thing my mom was willing to divulge because, despite her own personal issues, she was still a good psychiatrist. And when I told Lydia, she revealed to me what she and Allison had figured out about Malia's true parentage: that she's the daughter of Peter and had been adopted by the Tate's.

The idea of Peter being a father didn't sit right with me, which is probably why Talia Hale had taken the memory from him. Honestly, any child of Peter would probably be like Cora, only a bit wilder.

Then Lydia, Kira, and I saw Malia in the hallway at school, walking with Finstock who was talking to her about classes. It looked like she'd be joining us for the next semester while getting help with her reintroduction to society from my mom.

As for Isaac, he didn't seem to talk to anyone besides Boyd and Chris, who he was staying with instead of Scott, and it worried me, but he only brushed off my worries when I brought it up. I didn't know what else to do in regard to him, so I moved on from it, though something about his behavior continued to bug me. I just hoped it had nothing to do with the Nemeton triskele box that Chris had locked in his safe.

Then Ethan spilled the beans that he would be leaving Beacon Hills again, not wanting to stay where his brother died, but he wished us all luck and made sure we had his number in case we needed to get in contact with him. He also revealed that apparently, Danny knew he was a werewolf the entire time. So, there's that.

And with each passing day, my body lost tension I didn't know it had gained. The nogitsune's voice was gone, hopefully never to return. I'd had the best sleep in weeks in the nights following his defeat.

By the end of the week, I stood in front of my locker switching out my books for my next class as if nothing had happened. Stiles was next to me at his own locker while Scott went to the bathroom.

As Stiles closed his locker door, he said, "Hey, remember at the hospital when I was getting an MRI done?"

I carefully closed my own locker door and looked at him skeptically. "Yeah, why?"

He grimaced dramatically, his knuckles whitening around the strap of his backpack. "I just want to apologize for flirting. That was not me." He then winced, tilting his head to the side. "Or, well, it was but not really. I don't know. I felt weird."

"It felt like a weird connection between us, right?" I asked awkwardly, thinking I understood what he was trying to say.

"Exactly!" Stiles waved his hands while shaking his head. "I've been thinking it had something to do with the, you know, evil kitsune possessing me, so I just wanted to clear that up. I was not intentionally flirting with you."

"Same," I said in agreement, sighing in relief. "I don't even fully understand what was going on, but I do know that I don't like you that way."

Stiles nodded. "Then we're in agreement. I want to puke just thinking about it."

I frowned and glared. "You don't have to be a dick about it." He shrugged, and I shook my head, moving on. "Let's just forget it ever happened. You're not my type anyway."

"No, your type is attractive werewolves." He grinned.

Raising an eyebrow, I said, "Yeah, one werewolf totally means my type is werewolves." His grin didn't change, and I narrowed my eyes at him. "What's that face for?"

"Denial," he singsonged, rocking on his heels.

"Is a river in Egypt."

He looked extremely disappointed at my deflection. "That's not what I—forget it. It'll hit you one day."

I shifted my grip on my messenger bag. Of course, I knew exactly what he was getting at. It wasn't as though anyone was obvious. "You're talking about Scott."

"Oh, so you're not as oblivious as you pretend to be." He gave me a smile. "That's good. Halfway there then."

I scoffed. "You just want to get your best friend laid." And I already have someone for that, though I didn't say that aloud.

"Hey, best friends." Stiles brought his fingers together for emphasis, raising his brows. "Has a very distinctive 's' sound at the end. Plural, as in more than one." He held his hand up. "I know it's a foreign concept to you but say it with me. Friendsss."

I wanted to laugh at his ridiculousness. "So now you're a snake. I thought that was Jackson's thing."

"And you're deflecting." He nudged my shoulder. "It's for your benefit, too."

I rolled my eyes. "Good to have you back, Stilinski." Turning on my heel, I began walking away, leaving him in front of the lockers for Scott to pick up.

I heard him call out, "Missed you too!"

That time I did laugh, shaking my head as I went.

Despite everything that had happened this semester, between being drugged by wolfsbane, learning to hide my spirit, fighting a werewolf pack made of alphas, discovering my brother was still alive, dating and breaking up with my best friend, fighting against a darach, going toe-to-toe against a nogitsune, a few friends dying, and a multitude of other things that probably slipped my mind or would take an hour to list, I had to agree with Scott: I couldn't go back to before all this even if I wanted to.

I had friends, a family, a pack. And we were the new protectors of Beacon Hills, filling the gaps left by the Hale family. And even while suffering loss and setbacks, we were trying our best. We would continue to fight and persevere through anything the universe would throw at us, as long as we did it together.

And of course, there was the age-old wisdom:

The best way to fend off the shadows is to light a match.

Seppuku – aka harakiri, ritual suicide by disembowelment, originally reserved for samurai but also practiced by civilians, used voluntarily to avoid other fates, such as torture at the hands of enemies or to restore their honor

Shini-shōzoku – a white kimono worn for death

Kaishakunin – a person appointed to behead the individual performing seppuku to spare them and onlookers from the prolonged anguish

Happy New Year! Hope everyone is doing well! Hope you liked the last chapter of this story! On Monday, the first chapter of a short interlude story will be posted, so keep an eye out! Thanks for reading, and a special thanks to those who leave reviews!