She Was My Light, Always Burning Bright:

The mahogany coffin covered with purple flowers stared back at me as I slowly made me way down the aisle and I blindly reached out for Jackson's hand as I took a steading deep breath. This was the moment where I needed to be strong for everyone else.

The portrait of Allison that had been chosen gazed back at me. her shining dark brown eyes almost silently telling me it was all going to be okay and in that moment I almost believed to was true. The bright smile on her lips ignited a faint spark of happiness in my heart but I didn't let myself feel the entirety of its intense burn.

Lydia and I had taken over the planning of Allison's funeral because we didn't want Chris to worry about anything other than grieving the loss of his daughter. We decided to forego the usual depressing funeral ritual and do something that seemed a bit more 'Allison'. We had organised students from the high school to help set up white folding chair on the grass field at the cemetery where Kate and Victoria had both been buried and the sun was shining brightly which seemed to be the perfect symbolism for Allison's personality.

Isaac and Chris led the way down the aisle together as Scott, Stiles and Lydia followed directly behind and Jackson held my hand tightly in support as we trailed after them. The seats had been filled with fellow high school students who had come out to say goodbye to Allison. Not many of them actually knew her, only her name, the fact that her aunt was a serial killer, her mother committed suicide, but still they showed up to honour their fallen classmate.

We all sat down in the front row that had been reserved for her closest friends and her father. The people who knew and loved her without reservation. Kira, Ethan, Danny, Derek, John and my mother all sat directly behind our seats, the next in line to say they knew the young huntress.

Chris slowly made his way up to the pedestal in front of a blank screen where a microphone had been set up next to the coffin and he glance at the portrait of his loss daughter longingly with tears in his eyes. Everyone in attendance froze when they noticed he was standing there and they immediately stopped talking in the middle of their sentences. The veteran hunter cleared his throat gently as he tore his eyes away from Allison's smiling face and looked out at the crowded that had gathered to say goodbye.

"Uh, I want to thank you all for coming. I know Allison would've appreciation you taking the time. And I'm sure she would've expressed it more eloquently than I am." Chris said into the microphone with a watery chuckle at the end as he scratched his nose unsurely and I breathed out a small laugh as I ducked my head slightly with a sad smile on my lips. "Huh, I – I was practically forced to relinquish control of Allison's funeral planning to, uh, Sophie and Lydia but I did want to say something before they took over. This may be a father's bias opinion but I don't think anyone could've asked for a better daughter. Allison was selfless and strong and brave. No matter the circumstance, whether we were moving again, or when her mother and Aunt Kate died, Allison handled it was grace and dignity. She, uh, she was something indescribable. God, I loved her. She was my baby." Chris murmured softly as he looked at the top of the podium with tears falling from his eyes and his hands tightened around the edges of the wooden top until his knuckles turned white under the pressure. I exchanged a slightly worried look with Lydia as I stood up from my seat and hurried over to the hunter's side gracefully as I stopped next to him with my hand on his back.

"Hey. I got it. I got it." I whispered to him gently as I rubbed his back with a sad smile on my lips and Chris looked over at me with tears streaming down his cheeks as he nodded slightly. I watched as he made his way back to his seat at the end of the front row and Isaac immediately put a comforting hand on his back as he wiped away his own tears with the other hand.

I took a shaky breath as I looked out at the audience that was staring back at me expectantly and the nervous butterflies in my stomach ran rampant as I gripped the top of the podium. I glanced over at Allison's photograph with a sad smile on my lips and I could practically hear Allie's voice telling me to suck it up and get on with it.

"Hi. Um, I'm Sophie McCall. Chris was right when he said that Lydia and I practically forced him to hand over the reins of planning Allison funeral. Not just because we're both control freaks by nature, but um, because we were her best friends and I like to think that no one knew her like we did." I said into the microphone with a sad smile on my lips as everyone chuckled lightly and I let out a watery laugh of my own as I wiped a stray tear from my cheek with the back of my hand.

I took another deep breath to calm my racing heart as I closed my eyes for a moment and then I cleared my throat gently as stole a quick glance at Allie's smiling face before turning back the audience.

"Allison Argent can't be summarised in just a few words. Allison was naturally caring, sweet and charming, even a little shy with those she didn't know. But underneath the slightly timid exterior, she was stubborn, funny, strong and loyal to her friends and family. Allie was beautiful, inside and out. Her mere smile could light up a room as soon as she walked in. It was contagious, making you smile just by looking at her. I only knew her for a little over a year, but as soon as I met her, it was like she had always been part of my life. This was where is belonged. Here, with all of us who loved her…" I trailed off quietly as silent tears rolled down my cheeks and I let out a small watery chuckle as I wiped underneath my eyes with my finger.

"Oh, thank god for waterproof mascara." I joked lightly with another small laugh as I glanced over at my mother because she was the one who had recommended I wear it and she smiled back at me slightly with tears in her own eyes as she leaned her head on my father's shoulder.

"Anyway, a few days ago I was a blubbering mess holed up in my room, but then a friend of mine knocked some sense into me." I continued with my speech with a small smile as I looked over at Jackson who had moved into the seat next to Lydia and was now holding her hand as she leaned her head on Stiles' shoulder while she cried. "He told me, 'It's okay to be sad, but eventually, we have to move on. It doesn't mean forgetting, it means holding onto the memories while you make new ones. Allison would want you to stop being sad and celebrate her life instead.' And I think that's very good advice for all of us. Allison wasn't the type to dwell of the past, or focus on the bad things in life. And I know for a fact that she absolutely loathed funerals. So, when Lydia and I started planning this we were feeling a little… challenged, over how to make something Allison hated into something that she would've loved. Eventually, we decided… well, screw having a funeral!"

Everyone stared at me like I was crazy as I smiled slightly at the audience with a small laugh coming from those who personally knew me and Lydia stood up from her seat with a little small smirk as she walked up to join me at the podium.

"We decided that we were going to celebrate Allison's life instead." Lydia stated happily with a small genuine smile on her lips as she stood next to me and I automatically reached for her free hand as she wiped away a tear from her cheek. "It's what Allison would have wanted, people rejoicing and having a good time. That's what she was all about, making people happy, even at her own expense."

"So, now… in the memory of Allison Katherine Argent, please, everyone have a good time." I told them cheerfully as I grabbed the remote control from on top of the podium and I pressed the button that made dance music play from the speakers set up around the area.

Everyone looked around in shock as they slowly started standing up with confused smiles and I turned around to face the blank screen behind me as I pressed another that turned it on so that photographs of Allison played on a loop. I smiled at the grinning face of Allison that was plastered in front of me and I knew that she would've approved of the way Lydia and I had handled her memorial.

"This is good, right? We did a good thing?" Lydia asked me unsurely in a small voice as she tightened her hold on my hand and I wrapped my arm around her waist as I nodded my head in answer with a small smile.

"Yeah, Lyds. We did good. She would've loved it."

"I miss her, Soph."

"Me too. But, you still have me and I love you to bits and pieces." I told her honestly as I squeezed her waist gently with a small smile and she grinned happily as she rested her temple next to mine.

"I didn't get to say goodbye to Allison." she stated abruptly as she pulled away from me quickly with a serious expression and she stepped in front of me as she grabbed both of my hands gently in hers. "I didn't get to say goodbye to Allison. I didn't get to tell her how much I loved her, or how much she meant to me. So, I'm going to tell you. Sophie, I love you. You're my best friend in the entire world. You're not just there for me, but you understand me better than I understand myself and I can't thank you enough for that. I honestly don't know what I would without you. You're my sister. My other half."

"Oh my god. I hate you." I murmured to myself through silent sobs as I wiped my cheeks roughly and Lydia let out a watery laugh as she wiped her own tears away with her hand. "Oh, god, you're a bitch. Making me cry. I love you so much, Lydia. Just being with you makes the good times better and the hard times easier. Please stay in my life forever because you're one of the best things that have ever happened to me. Thank you for being my unbiological sister."

"Oh, god. Now you're the bitch."

"I know." I said honestly with a small giggle as I wrapped my arms around her tightly and she returned the embrace just as fiercely as she giggled along with me. I pulled away from her slightly as I looked out at the people in attendance with a small smile and I leaned my head on top of Lydia's as she squeezed my waist gently.

"Goodbye, Allison. We love you." Lydia whispered into the wind as she sniffled delicately and I felt tears prick my eyes as I took a deep breath to steady myself.

When someone you love becomes a memory, that memory becomes a wonderful treasure you'll always hold in your heart.