Disclaimer: "I do not own Teen Wolf. The show, the characters, and any quotes from the show belong to Jeff Davis and his amazing team of writers. I only own Nixie, and anything I make her do or say."

Chapter 10: Episode 4x10

"I am completely and totally fine!" But as Stiles tries to go back out the door, Melissa quickly blocks his path. "Uh, uh, uh… you completely and totally have a concussion, Stiles. Lie back down. The doctor said you're not leaving without a CT scan." Stiles throws up his hands and says, "We still haven't paid for the last one!"

Stopping him again, Melissa sighs, "Look. Meredith is at the station. Your dad said it could take some time, but he will get her to talk. Stiles… even if I let you go, what would you do?" Stiles grits his teeth for a moment, but then says, "Fine." Sitting back down on the bed, clenching his hands together, he looks back at Melissa and asks, "Can I have two favors though?" "Anything, Stiles. Anything."

Turning back to her, he says, "Can you get me a tape player?" Melissa tilts her head, "Like cassettes?" "Yeah. Tapes." Melissa grins and shakes her head before saying, "Yeah. Yeah, I'll see what I can do. And… what's the other one?"

Stiles takes a breath, and then asks, "Do you know where Nixie is?" Melissa nods, "Scott told me that she was on the hunt for Lori, Brett Talbot's younger sister." Dropping his head, Stiles runs a hand over his face and says, "She shouldn't be out there."

Melissa frowns and says, "Stiles, why not? Nixie's actually the only one of you guys that has been trained by a hunter. If anyone's going to find Lori in all this rain, it's her. Isn't it?" "Maybe." Coming to sit beside him, Melissa asks gently, "What's wrong? Why the sudden worry?"

He looks up at her. "It's not a sudden worry. I'm always worried. But I just… I just figured out that maybe I've never been as worried as I should've been." When Melissa gives him a confused expression, he turns to her and says, "I… while we were with Brunski, he told us a story. The story of the night I was supposed to be kidnapped by Gerard. Brunski knows what happened. One of Gerard's men ended up getting sent to Eichen."

Shaking his head, Stiles says, "And the story he told us… about what really happened to Nixie that night. I… I can't… She told us she'd been roughed up. Knocked unconscious. But if Brunski was completely telling the truth, and I actually think he was…"

Looking to Melissa again, Stiles says, "They cut into her, Melissa. The cut into her chest in a way that Brunski said should've cause her the most pain. And when she didn't scream or anything, they started shocking her until she finally went unconscious." Melissa's eyes are wide and Stiles adds, "And I can't… I mean, Lydia asked if that was one of her scars. One of them! As in, that's not her only one. As in, there are many more that Nixie never told anyone about. And now she's out there again, and she…"

Melissa wraps an arm around him and says, "If I thought she'd listen, I'd call her and tell her to get her ass in here, right now. I would, Stiles. But you and I both know, she's not built that way. She needs to be out there, trying to protect the people that matter to her. And… in part… I guess her trying to protect us, involves not showing us what has happened to her when she gets hurt. You haven't even seen them yet, and look how devastated you are."

Stiles ponders that for a bit, not having considered it before. Then he looks over at Melissa again. Smiling, Melissa says, "She never wants to cause you guys pain. Well, aside from the occasional head slaps." "Occasional?" Laughing, Melissa says, "Point is… let's go a little easy on her. We can't let her keep doing that. Not by any means. But… we can try to understand, why she didn't show us before. Okay?" Stiles nods, "Yeah. Okay."

Melissa stands up to go and get him the tape… I mean, cassette player, and then turns back to him and says, "And by the way, Nixie already had several other words with the representative of you and your dad's insurance policy. The first CT scan is paid for."

Stiles chuckles after she leaves the room. Running a hand through his hair, he sighs and mutters, "Ah, Nixie. Where are you now?"

Rain pouring down around her, Nixie tilts her head as she hears Kira shout from nearby, "Brett, run!"

The lacrosse field. So that's where Brett was. And from the sound of Kira's katana slicing through arrows in the night, Nixie can tell that she has him handled. Which left Lori up to her.

Werewolves were fast and good at hiding, for the most part. So Nixie didn't start off trying to find the young girl in all of this. She started off trying to find the people after her. And that was definitely a good place to start, since she soon saw two men dressed in solid black, sneaking around the buses parked in the back of the school.

Lori was cornered, one man at her back, and two at her front. She had nowhere else to go. She can only hope that Brett had better luck than she did.

That's when a motorcycle speeds up behind her. Nixie turns it sharply at a one-eighty, spinning around so the bike blocks Lori at the front, and she throws a dagger at the man who was at Lori's back. Catching him in the shoulder, Nixie watches him go down, and then slides off her bike just in time to avoid the first volley of arrows. Pushing Lori closer to the ground, Nixie says, "Stay here."

Then she leaps over the side of her bike and charges the other two men.

They definitely had not been prepared for that. Hurriedly trying to reload their arrows, one of them never even has a chance. Nixie slips the helmet off her head and swings it around to clock him in the side of the head. She actually cracks the face mask portion of the helmet from how hard she hit him. Then she turns to the other man, and moves to the side just in time to avoid an arrow to the shoulder. It skims the side of her left bicep instead. Giving the man a look, she says, "Hey!"

He actually does freeze at the annoyed tone in her voice. Gesturing towards her jacket, which is torn yet again, she says, "This thing is expensive." Then the hurries forward. Kicking off the nearby bus for leverage, she flips around in the air, swinging her leg as hard as she can, and knocking the man in the jaw. Nixie is pretty sure she hears something crack from the impact.

And all she can bring herself to think about that is… good.

Grabbing her helmet from the ground, she hurries back to her bike. Finding Lori still unharmed, she then hurries towards the other man that had been behind Lori. She yanks her dagger out of his shoulder, and then kicks him hard in the face to knock him out too.

Back to Lori, climbing onto her bike again, she says, "Hop on." When Lori doesn't, Nixie turns to look at her. The girl was still frozen in fear, not completely understanding what had just happened. Gentling her tone, Nixie says, "Look, I know you're terrified, and I don't blame you. I know you've never seen me, so why should you trust me. But I don't have time to prove to you that I'm not like them. So you need to make a decision. Do you trust me to get you to the clinic? Or do you try and get there yourself?"

Lori stares at her for a moment, and then asks, "What's your name?" "Nixie Haven." And Lori relaxes immediately and says, "Satomi said we could trust you." "Good. Then get on the bike and put the helmet on. And put this on. You look like you're about to freeze." When Nixie hands over her jacket and the helmet, Lori looks at her and asks, "Aren't you cold too?" "Yeah. But that's nothing new. Just hurry up, before someone else comes out here. Someone with more experience than these losers."

Lori doesn't waste any more time after that. And as soon as she's on the bike, Nixie says, "Hold on to me. And no matter what happens, or what you think is about to happen, do not let go of me. Understand?" Lori nods against her back, and then clutches tighter when Nixie immediately begins speeding away.

And as new arrows begin flying at them in the night, Nixie can't help but sigh. It was going to be a while yet, before she could get Lori to the clinic safely. But, she had a full tank of gas, and a need for speed that terrified even the people who knew her best. She would get it done.

As Scott runs into the clinic, Kira comes out from the backroom and smiles wide upon finally seeing him again. They rush up to each other, and before they try to say anything, just hold each other and come together in a desperate kiss. Leaning back from her, a look of concern taking over his face, Scott asks, "Is your mom…" Kira nods, "She's okay. Healing." "What about you?" Blinking, Kira asks, "Me?"

Scott nods earnestly, and asks, "Are you okay?" Smiling, Kira answers, "Right now? Very." He smiles at that, and then kisses her again, gentler than before.

When they pull apart again, Scott gets down to business and asks, "Did you find him? Did you find Brett?" Nodding, she says, "Actually, I think I found almost all of them." Taking his hand, she guides him into the backroom. To the other alpha in the room, Kira says, "Satomi, this is who I was telling you about." Turning her head around to see, glowing her red eyes, Satomi smiles gently and says, "I know who Scott McCall is."

Scott nods to her, and then looks around at everyone else. Then he looks over at Brett, who asks Kira, "Did you find her?" Kira shakes her head and says, "No, Brett. I'm sorry, I tried. But I called Nixie, and she's…"

Brett is running a hand through his hair, contemplating running back out there to try and find his sister. That's when the back door of the clinic is banged on. Deaton unlocks it, and then smiles and says, "Kira. We have them."

And in walks Nixie, drenched and soaked to the bone. Nixie hair bow had long since broken, so her hair was hanging down in wet strands along the sides of her face, some sticking to her neck in places, and water continuously dripping and landing on her body. Lori, on the other hand, was as dry as she could be. The helmet and jacket that Nixie her wearing had protected her from the rain, at least on her torso.

Nixie looks around at everyone in the room, and then asks Kira, "Do we have everyone?" Kira beams at her and says, "We do now. What took you so long?" Raising an eyebrow, Nixie says, "Apparently my powers of intimidation don't work when I'm driving my bike over a hundred miles per hour down the road. I had to get away from them before I brought Lori here."

To Lori, Nixie gestures towards Brett and says, "There he is." Lori smiles and then sprints across the room to her brother. As they hold each other tight, Nixie asks, "What's next?" Scott is about to answer, when Satomi moves up beside them. Looking over Nixie, Satomi says, "So you are Nixie Haven." Nixie nods, and then tilts her head and asks, "Does that make you Satomi?" "It does."

Satomi jumps in surprise when Nixie wraps her up in a hug. Squeezing the woman tight, Nixie says, "Really glad you're okay." Then she lets go, and bows her head a bit in a sign of respect to the other alpha in the room.

Then she turns back to her alpha and asks, "What next?" "We need to get them somewhere safe." "Right." Then Scott adds, "And I need you with Lydia. She can't be at the station with Meredith by herself. And between the two of you, I need you guys to figure out how this is still happening so we can stop it."

Nodding, Nixie is about to leave, until Scott says a bit louder, "And then we are going to talk, Nixie." Frowning, coming back to him, she tilts her head and says, "We always talk." He gives her a look, and then says, "Lydia and Stiles have both called to talk to me. I know what happened at Eichen. More to the point, I know the story Brunski told while you were down there."

Nixie, for a moment, ponders how to get out of this current conversation for now. But, then she remembers she's in a room full of werewolves who can hear her heartbeat. So finally, she shrugs and says, "Fine." Scott raises an eyebrow, "Fine? That's it?" "What else do you want me to say? You apparently aren't going to give me a choice."

Coming up to her, he asks, "And you dislocated both wrists tonight?" "I had to get out to protect Lydia. I'm fine now. Jordan fixed them." "Nixie, you're hurt." He reaches out for her hand, stealing some of her pain for emphasis. And as it runs up his entire arm, the rest of the room either gasps or leans forward in astonishment. Nixie scowls and says, "I am fine."

Scott shakes his head, "I can feel it, Nixie. You're hurt." "Just because you think it hurts like hell, doesn't mean I agree. I have a high-tolerance for pain. I am…" "You were kidnapped by Gerard, had a wound carved into your chest, and were electrocuted to the point of unconsciousness. You might be fine now, but you were not fine before. And you should've told me."

Nixie stares at him for a long moment, and then sighs. Coming closer, wrapping him in a hug, she says, "Look, I promised no more secrets, and I meant it. But not right now. We need to figure this out. We need to stop this." Leaning back, she adds, "And then you have to give me time to make sure we aren't all going to fail our classes because of what we've been dealing with this year."

Scott grins a little at that, and then nods and says, "Fine. But we will talk, Nixie. Promise me that." "I promise." "Good. Go help Lydia. I'll keep you posted." "Got it."

As she's about to leave, Lori shouts, "Wait!" Hurriedly taking off the jacket, Lori tries to hand it back. And Nixie does take it for a moment, removing two daggers from the sleeves and slipping them into the back of her pants. Then she slips it back over Lori.

Taking Lori's hand, she shows her where to press a small button that exists in the sleeve. And once pushed, a sharp blade protrudes rapidly from the sleeve. Pushing it again retracts it. Then Nixie smiles at Lori and says, "Give em' hell. Besides, you need this more than I do tonight."

With a final nod to everyone, she heads back out the door. The sun is beginning to peak over the horizon as she cranks up her bike. Sighing tiredly, she tells herself, "Just a little while longer." And with the rain still falling down, she makes her way as fast as she can towards the station.

Lydia jumps a little, waking up as the door to Noah's office is shut again. He looks down at her, and then says, "I thought I told you to go home." Glancing at him, she says tiredly, "I thought I would you I wasn't going anywhere." Noah gives a short chuckle at that. Lydia glances back into the room, where Meredith is still sitting. Then she asks, "Did they get anything out of her?"

Noah sighs, "Should've gone with the medium."

Jordan walks into the room then, having gone back to Brunski's office with more deputies to do a more thorough search of the room. He supposes he should've known they didn't need to though. Nixie had already gone through it, so there wouldn't be anything else to find. Still, as Noah and Lydia stand up as he arrives, he tells them, "We went through everything in Brunski's office again. So far, everything amounts to pretty much nothing.

Then he looks over at Lydia. Looking her up and down, finding her still in the same outfit she'd been wearing when he found them last night, he asks, "Did you not go home yet?" She gives him a look and replies, "Not until Meredith starts talking." Jordan then mentions, "But Nixie's gone home by now. Surely you can…"

Lydia tilts her head at him and asks, "You think Nixie went home?" Jordan ponders that for a moment, and then sighs and says, "She said she was coming here after she helped Kira. I figured she was maybe with them, asleep or something. You guys need sleep." Lydia rolls her eyes and says, "If Nixie said she was coming here, then she's coming here. And if she hasn't gotten here yet, then that means she didn't finish what she was trying to do yet. Last I heard, she was trying to protect and save a young werewolf named Lori."

Noah blinks and asks, "So she's been out all night?" "Seriously? Why are you so surprised? It's Nixie we're talking about." Sighing, Noah puts a hand on her shoulder and says, "Lydia, look, go home. And take Nixie home too. You both need to get some rest. Meredith will talk, I promise. And when she does, I'll let you know. Trust me on this. Everybody talks eventually."

Lydia pounces on the opportunity to bring it up again, and says "Then let me try." Noah exclaims, "No, we've already discussed this!" "I've gotten through to her before. Just let me try."

Noah is about to argue with her further, when the door behind them opens up. And his mouth drops open at Nixie's appearance when she walks into the room. Soaked to the bone, hair and clothes dripping, she still walks up to them as though it were any other normal day.

Well… any other normal day in Beacon Hills.

Coming up to them, she asks, "Well… what has she said?" Lydia looks her up and down, and says, "Nixie… you're soaking wet." "Well, yeah. In case you haven't noticed, it's raining." Holding up a hand to stop all other comments, she says, "Please stay on point. What has Meredith said?" Lydia sighs, "Nothing yet." Pinching the bridge of her nose, Nixie then asks, "And you've tried talking to her?" "No, actually. Noah won't let me."

Snapping her gaze over to him, Nixie exclaims, "Why not?!" His first response is, "Nixie… you're bleeding." "I've spent the entire night being shot at. I got hit once. I'd call that a success. It's a graze, I'll through a band-aid on it later." "And like Lydia says, you're soaking wet." "And like I said to her, it's been raining."

She gives them all a look, like they're being completely ridiculous, and then says, "Lydia needs to talk to Meredith." "Nixie…" Putting a hand on his shoulder, she says, "Look, I get it. Meredith's a criminal mastermind, on some level. Sending anyone in to talk to her is dangerous. That being said, I wasn't exaggerating. I just spent the entirety of my night breaking the speed limit, dodging arrows and bullets, trying to get one girl to safety without being followed."

Noah looks into her earnest eyes as she says, "We do not have time to wait for whatever random specialist might be able to make her talk. If Lydia thinks she can, then we need to let her try. We are running out of time." He stares a moment longer, and then sighs and says, "Fine. But she is not going in there alone." "Well, obviously. I thought that was a given." Turning to Lydia, Nixie asks, "You ready?" "Yeah. But… don't you want to…" "I want a lot of things. Firstly, we need to stop the dead pool. Then I'm going to take a scolding hot shower, finish all my homework from the past few weeks, and then I'm going to sleep for a week straight. Seriously, no one disturb me."

And in spite of everything, Noah chuckles, and then looks over at Jordan. Then back to Nixie, he says, "Listen. I'll go in with Lydia. You let Jordan take a look at your arm." And as he turns, he whispers to Jordan, "And see if you can get her to drink some coffee."

Jordan nods, and as Noah takes Lydia inside, he gently grips Nixie's elbow and says, "Hey. Come on." Looking up at him, Nixie nods, and then allows him to lead her back into the break room. Locking the door behind them, Jordan then notices the two daggers she's slid into the back of her pants. Tilting his head, he asks, "Where is your jacket?" "I left it with Lori. Figured they'll need it more than I will."

He searches briefly for the medical supplies they always have in here, and then helps her remove the button up shirt she'd been wearing over her tank top. As he tends to her arm, he glances over at the rest of her. Her tank top was sticking to her everywhere, and this one didn't help to cover the injuries she was so used to hiding. Not that having them on display mattered. She was still as beautiful as ever. Even with rain still dripping from her hair. Droplets running down her skin, leaving trails beyond where his eyes could follow.

Lord help him. They seriously needed to have a talk about… well, all of this.

After getting the bleeding to stop, he says, "Wait here for a moment." He runs out to his locker for a moment, searching for another spare shirt. He also makes a mental note to restock his locker. Between the shirts he'd already lent to Nixie, and the outfit he'd had to take after being burnt alive, he was running low on spare clothes. But he does manage to find another dark-gray t-shirt.

Coming back into the room, he hands her the shirt and says, "Here. You should put this on. Don't want you getting sick." Nodding, she watches as he turns around for her privacy while she changes. The man had already seen more than this much of her before, but he was still trying to be courteous at this point.

When her hand finally lands on his shoulder, he turns to her and asks, "Are you really alright?" "Yeah. Promise. You should definitely see the other guys. I don't mean to brag, but I totally kicked their asses." Jordan chuckles, and then jumps a little in surprise when Nixie wraps her arms around him tightly. Hugging her back, he asks, "And what's this for?" "I'm not sure I ever really said thank you." "You have. Several times." "Yeah, well, you probably deserve another one anyway. So thank you, Jordan." "Always, Nixie."

Leaning back from him, she says, "You changed it. The thing you always say when I say thank you. Why?" Jordan shakes his head at that, and then says, "It… feels more accurate, I guess. Not just any time you think you need me. Always." Nixie smiles, though she ducks her head to hide her blush. Grinning, he then gestures to her arm and says, "Here. Let me finish with that." "Oh, I'm fine." "Maybe. But it is more than just a scratch. Let me stitch it up."

While he works, Nixie watches his face, his hands, and his stance. He was too close again. Not that him being close was actually a bad thing. She wanted him close. She wanted him as close as he could possible get. She wanted to touch him; and not just in a hug. She wanted to run her hands over him.

She wanted to kiss him. She found herself wanting that more and more by the second. And in that sense, this was bad. She couldn't do that. They were in the sheriff's station, for Pete's sake.

But Jordan isn't oblivious to her trying to get away. With every inch closer he comes, she seems to try and lean further away. So when he's finished, he braces one hand on the counter behind her, blocking her path to leave. Looking up at him, she asks, "What is it? I…" He raises an eyebrow and says, "Nixie, I'm standing, literally, not even an inch away from you. It's not hard to tell that you are practically ready to sprint away from me."

She gives him a look and says, "I'm not afraid of you." "Are you sure?" "Oh my God, yes! Seriously?!" Jordan shrugs, so Nixie huffs and says, "You are not scary, Jordan. Brunski was kind of scary, because he was a threat, and he would've killed my friends. Kate is scary, because she's a psychotic bitch, and now a were-jaguar. Peter is…" She takes a moment to think about that, and then says, "Peter is his own level of demented, scary, and evil. That's what Peter is."

Jordan grins a bit at that, and then steps closer to her. Nixie tries to back up, but she's already against the counter. She has nowhere else to go. And as Jordan boxes her in, she can't move to either side to get away from him either. Lifting his hand gently, running his fingers gently up her neck and then through some of her wet hair, he asks, "And what does that make me, exactly?"

The blush rushed into her cheeks immediately, her head ducking down. But when she looks up at him again, her eyes widen at the small smirk playing at his lips. "Oh my God! What now?!" He chuckles at her, and then grips her arms when she squirms. Huffing, he says, "Stop, trying to get away from me." "Stop crowding me!" "Oh, like you never do."

She still squirms, until she feels his hands find her hips. Hands squeezing gently, he says, "Stop. Or I will take a minute to figure out just how sensitive this spot is." "I will scream. I am not joking." But the look he gives her says that he doesn't believe her. Not for a minute.

And then she bites her lip again, and Jordan lets out a long breath before asking, "So… if I'm not scary, what am I, Nixie?" She looks up at him again, and then reaches up a hand to touch his chest. "You're… Jordan." Sliding her hand higher, she says, "You're a good man. And you are no danger to me and my friends. You walked up to me after being nearly burned alive, covered in soot and ash, a blank look in your eyes… and I still knew you would never hurt me. Even if you, maybe, weren't entirely there. I knew you would never hurt me."

Her hand slides to the side of his neck as she says, "You're good, and patient. You put up with me and my glaring eyes, which is amazing. And… maybe it was annoying at first, but you don't just roll over and do what I say if you don't agree with it. Like I said… it's as admirable as it is infuriating. And I… I seriously don't know what we would've done at this point, if you weren't on our side… even if you technically didn't know what that side consisted of entirely, until yesterday."

Jordan chuckles at that, and then closes his eyes when her hand slides up further running through some of the hair at the back of his head. Opening his eyes to look at her, he asks, "Is that all?" Her hand stops moving for a moment, and then she concedes with a blush, "N… No. I… I don't…"

He was leaning in closer, them being at the station completely ignored at this point. Nixie felt her heart racing in her chest, her eyes slipping closed as Jordan came in closer. His nose just barely touched the tip of hers, and her hand was gripping the back of his head tightly, preparing for what she wanted so desperately at this point.

That's when a rapid knock came at the door. Both of them snapped their heads up to see Lydia standing at the door. She gestures behind her frantically, and Jordan lets out a breath of annoyance before taking a step back from Nixie. Her hand falls back to her side, and she struggles to catch her breath, looking as though she'd been running a marathon a moment ago. Jordan can't help chuckling at her, and then he shrugs when she fixes him with a narrowed stare. Squeezing her hip gently, watching her breath catch in her throat a bit, he says, "To be continued. I still need an answer to my question." "R… Right…"

Moving to unlock the door, Jordan opens it just in time to see Noah coming up to them. Lydia, now inside the room, winks over at Nixie while grinning. Nixie just points a stern finger at her, a sign that obviously meant to shut up for now. Jordan doesn't miss that exchange though, and grins himself when Nixie brings her gaze back to him and blushes immediately. Noah simply looks to her arm, sees that it's been taken care of, and then sighs before saying, "We have to call Peter."

Nixie's previously happy and… while nervous, definitely blissful mood… vanishes in a heartbeat. Standing up straight, she asks, "Why the hell do we need to call him?" Lydia frowns too, but answers, "Because Meredith says that he's the only one she'll talk to."

Sighing, Nixie says, "Shit. This is not going to end well." Handing her phone to Lydia, she says, "He's in there somewhere. For the record though, if we weren't so pressed for time, I would most definitely be against this plan." Lydia nods, "I know, Nixie. You and me both."

Jordan isn't entirely sure who Peter Hale is. Until yesterday, he'd never heard of the man, except in passing.

But Jordan doesn't really care. According to Nixie, Peter was his own level of crazy and terrifying. And from the moment he'd walked into the room, Nixie had not stopped glaring at the man. And it was the same sort of glare she'd given Haigh when Jordan had walked in, burnt alive. That was more than enough for him to make up his mind. Jordan definitely does not like him.

While Nixie stands next to Peter, keeping an eye on him, Lydia briefly explains to Jordan, "We… dealt with him before you got to Beacon Hills. He tried to kill us all, and force Scott to be a member of his pack. We ended up killing him… and then he somehow got me to bring him back to life."

And Jordan's bewildered look, Lydia says, "Yeah, don't ask. Bottom line, we never trust him again."

At the window, looking into the interrogation room, Peter asks, "Her? That's the girl that stole my money?" He tilts his head, as though trying to remember if he's ever met her before, or why she might know his name. But he can't, so he simply asks again, "Her?" Nixie tries to calm herself, balling her fist up at her side, and says, "That girl is a banshee. They're more dangerous than you think."

Peter glances at her, then back at Meredith as he says, "Oh, I think that girl's pilot light went out a long time ago." Then he looks over her and asks Noah, "Sheriff, not to question the unquestionably sterling reputation of your department, but are you absolutely sure you got the right one?" Noah gives him a look and says, "How about you just go in there and see what she has to say."

Peter turns towards the sheriff, a wicked smile coming across his face. But before he can take one step, and before either officer in the room can pull their guns, Nixie's dagger is suddenly held against Peter's throat. Hissing as the blade slices into the very top layer of his skin, he turns back to look at her. Smirking, he says, "I will always be astounded by the lack of fear you have when it comes to me. It's stupid, but astounding. All things considered, given our… past encounters, I would think at some point, you would…"

Nixie presses the blade harder, drawing blood. Then she says, "You are a sociopath, and a bastard, Peter Hale. But you do not scare me." Peter winces at her blade, and then Nixie says, "If you kill her, before we can figure out how to stop this… I will kill you." "She is the one with the dead pool! She is the one targeting everyone!" "Everyone, except for you. And it's still happening. And until we figure out how to end it, we need her alive."

Stepping forward, making Peter step back so she didn't cut any deeper, Nixie says, "I don't like her anymore. That's a given. But you are still the one who nearly killed Lydia, and Derek, and Scott, and Alison. You kidnapped and hurt Stiles. You killed Kate Argent, who didn't actually die, and is now even more of a bitch then she was before. But you will not hurt Meredith. Not before we've ended this."

Peter stares down at her for a moment, and then grins a little. "I can't help but notice, my dear; that you didn't mention what I did to you." He glances around the room, finding both Noah and Jordan now looking at Nixie in concern. Gritting her teeth, Nixie says, "That'll come later." Peter chuckles and says, "Oh… so all this time? They never knew? I'm impressed."

Lydia steps up to Nixie's side and says, "I know." But Peter makes a tsk sound behind his teeth and says, "You know that I did it. But you don't know the whole story, now do you?" Lydia doesn't respond to that, and Peter chuckles and says, "You should ask her sometime. It's a real nail biter." Nixie slices across his neck sharply, making him cry out in pain. Then she says, "Considering I kicked your ass, yeah, I'd have to agree."

He glares at her for a moment, but then straightens up and says, "Tread carefully." Then he looks to Noah, and says, "Well? Are we doing this, or aren't we?" Jordan moves to follow him into the interrogation room. He pauses beside Nixie though, and reaches out to place a gentle hand on her hip. Softly, he asks, "Which one?" She looks up at him for a moment, and then sighs and traces out the scar that rests beneath the shirt she's wearing. Jordan's seen them all, so he knows which one it is. And aside from the berserker wound to her back… this was the worst one she had.

And it had been caused, by Peter Hale.

If Nixie didn't kill him first, someone was going to have to make sure Jordan didn't.

After they get into the room, once Peter begins talking to Meredith, Lydia puts an arm around Nixie's shoulders. "We need to talk when this is all over." Sighing, Nixie says, "Yeah. Scott says so too. You are all going to have to give me a little lee-way on that though. We need some time to catch up on school work after this. Then… then we'll get on to… well, this." She gestures to herself as a whole, clearly annoyed with having to address her scars. She was fine!

And then Noah comes up beside her and says, "Whenever you do decide to have this discussion, I would like to be present." Huffing, Nixie says, "Sure, why not? We'll throw a giant pity party for one little scar." Lydia gives her a look and says, "I've seen that one. It's not little." Nixie looks over at her, and then back to the glass as she says, "Let's just… focus on this right now. I promise, we'll get to this later. But not now."

They all tense when, after Meredith reaches out for Peter's face, he snatches her wrist to pull it away. Jordan sets a hand on his gun and says, "Let her go." But Peter doesn't listen. Instead, he asks, "Why did you do that?" Meredith simply answers, "They're all gone."

Then Lydia gasps, so Nixie turns back to her and asks, "What? What is it?" "Oh my God. They've met before. Peter and Meredith. They… they've met." And before Nixie can ask how that's possible, Meredith says from beyond the glass, "The burns. They're all gone."

Frowning, Nixie asks, "How does she know about the burns?" Lydia shakes her head, not entirely sure yet. Then Peter, frustrated beyond belief, says, "Meredith, you put everyone, including my nephew, and my daughter, on a death list. Don't you think you owe us the slightest explanation of why?"

Meredith leans forward, a slight smile on her face, and she explains, "You said it had to be kept secret." Nixie tilts her head in confusion, and then Noah says, "So he was in on it. The whole time. We should…" But at Nixie's shaking head, Noah asks, "What? She just said…" "No, I get that, and it's confusing. It's just…"

Sighing, she looks to Lydia and says, "I get that my… perception of Meredith, is apparently off. I hate her because of what happened, not because of what I feel in my gut. But Peter, I have always been right about him. Always. And I hate him, more than I've hated anyone else before."

Back to the glass, still confused as hell, she says, "But… he's not lying. He doesn't think they've ever met. He has no idea who Meredith is, except for what we've told him."

Peter, from inside, says, "Meredith. Allow me to remind you, yet again, that we have never met. Ever."

As his body begins to shift… tensing as though preparing for something, Nixie frowns while Lydia asks, "What is he doing?" Behind the glass, Meredith gives him a confused and disappointed look while asking, "You don't remember?" Peter answers, "No. But maybe you do."

And as Peter stands up, shoving the table aside, Nixie jerks towards the door while muttering, "Shit." Peter grabs Jordan before he can do anything, and throws him into the nearby wall. Then he grabs the back of Meredith's head, and sinks his claws into her neck before the others can come in to stop him.

Noah rushes into the room, Jordan scrambling back to his feet. Both of them draw their weapons, prepared to fire immediately. That is, until Nixie grabs hold of Jordan's arm and shouts, "Don't!" Turning to look at her, not missing the panic in her voice, he asks, "What's happening?" Noah nods in agreement to the question, so Nixie explains, "You can't touch them now." Looking at them, Nixie adds, "He's in her head."

Lydia comes in behind her and says, "If you break the bond, you could kill them. Both of them." Noah grits his teeth and asks, "What are we supposed to do?" Lydia blanks at that and says, "Um… I… I don't know."

Nixie glares at Peter and says, "We can't do anything, except wait for him to finish seeing whatever he's trying to see. There's nothing else we can do, without risking killing Meredith." Gesturing to him, Nixie adds, "And he knows that."

Jordan lowers his weapon, holstering it back at his hip. Then he gently turns Nixie towards him and asks, "What the hell is he doing to her?" Sighing, Nixie says, "It's… kind of a mind-meld, so to speak. Werewolves powerful enough, and in control enough, can enter and join the minds of other people. The claws in the back of the neck are like the entrance."

Looking back at them, he then asks, "And he's done this before?" Lydia shrugs and says, "I'm not sure. Not to my…" But Nixie says, "He did it to Isaac last year. When we were dealing with the alpha pack. Back when they were trying to find Erica and Boyd." Lydia nods and asks, "And it worked?"

Nixie sighs, "Yeah. But… Peter took his time then. He made sure Isaac was completely and totally relaxed before he tried to do this. Said it would be too dangerous and ineffective if Isaac wasn't relaxed." Nodding, Lydia asks, "Considering what we all think of Peter, how did he get Isaac to relax?" "He didn't. I did."

Smiling, Lydia says, "Of course you did. How? Tell him a joke? Sarcasm him to death?" "Lydia, I will have you know, I'm a rather charming person when I feel like it. Couldn't I have just been charming?" "Unlikely. It's a lot more likely that you loaded him with sarcasm until he was blue in the face." "You know what? I'm offended. Highly offended."

Lydia laughs, and then asks, "Seriously, though. How?" Nixie blushes a bit, and then mutters, "He kissed me." Snapping her gaze back to Nixie, Lydia asks, "He… what?" Groaning and slumping her shoulders, refusing to look at Jordan as well, Nixie says, "He kissed me. Apparently the sense of security and safety that just seems to pour out of me… it sort of… just sank in more after he kissed me. It made him relax. And then Peter went into his mind. Now, can we drop it, please?!"

Nixie goes back to watching Peter, but then pinches the bridge of her nose when Lydia says, "I didn't know you'd been kissed before." "Yeah, well, it's not like it counted." She jumps a little when Jordan says from behind her, "Apparently, none of them did before."

Oh… right. She'd mentioned that to him before. When the young version of Derek had kissed her to try and soak in that feeling of safety.

If possible, she blushes harder. Then she sighs and says, "In any case… he knows how this works." Lydia nods, and in an attempt to change the subject, for Nixie's sake, she says, "He's the one who showed Scott how to do this when Stiles was possessed by the Nogitsune, and he and Nixie went into Stiles' head."

Both Noah and Jordan jerk their attention to Nixie, and ask at the same time, "What?!" Nixie jumps and glances between both of them before throwing her hands up beside her head. "Okay, seriously, not the point right now. Yeah, I went with Scott, into Stiles' head. It was not as pleasant as you might think, considering the Nogitsune was in control at that point. Now, can we drop it please?!"

They all watch Meredith and Peter for a moment, and then Noah asks, "Why would I think being in Stiles' head would be a pleasant experience?" Nixie shrugs and says, "I guess it depends on how you envision Stiles' mind to be. I've always imagined his mind to be filled with boards of conspiracy theories, plenty of jolly ranchers and snacks, and coffee. Lots and lots of coffee."

Jordan was close to laughing, until Meredith suddenly gasps, and then starts murmuring softly into the room. It's so quiet, even Nixie, with her attuned ears, can't hear it. But as Lydia steps forward, Noah asks, "Do you hear that? She's saying something." He makes to step forward, but Nixie stops him. Gesturing to Lydia, Nixie then motions for both of the men to stay back.

She comes up slowly to Lydia, and then gently places a hand on her back. Rubbing in soothing circles, she asks softly, "Do you hear her, Lydia?" Nodding, Lydia says, "I can. I can hear it perfectly."

Tilting her head, Lydia explains, "She was in the hospital. The exact same hospital." Jordan comes up behind Nixie and asks, "Same as who?" Lydia answers in a daze, "Peter." Nixie glares at Peter again, but then steps back as Jordan gently grabs her elbow and guides her away. Softly, he asks, "When was he ever in a hospital?" "Oh… um. Remember we told you that the Hale place was burned by a hunter with people inside?" Jordan nods, and Nixie adds, "He was one of the people trapped inside. He was so severely hurt… he was stuck in a coma for… well, quite some time."

Looking at Lydia again, Nixie adds, "And apparently Meredith was there at the same time as he was." Lydia nods and says, "It was right after the fire. Meredith could hear him." Noah takes a step closer and asks, "Hear what?" "Everything. She was hearing every thought in his head. Like they'd somehow found the same wavelength. And then… everything going through his mind… was also going right into hers."

Nixie stares at Meredith for a moment, and then asks, "For how long?" "Weeks? Maybe even months. It was almost like he was standing right over her bed, talking about the fire. About getting revenge."

Lydia continues trying to relay everything she can hear through Meredith's whispers. And what Meredith heard… what Peter had thought about while he was in his coma… Meredith's entire plan had come from him. The money he'd use, the people he'd hire, the way it would be handed out. The entirety of the dead pool… it had all come from Peter.

When Peter finally pulls away from Meredith, he collapses onto the ground. Meredith almost falls out of her chair, except Nixie rushes forward and holds her upright. Jordan comes too, checking the back of Meredith's neck. And sure enough, there are four marks there from the claws that had dug in through the skin.

Jordan frowns at Peter, but then looks down at Nixie when she says, "That's why she never felt different. Meredith… she's never been right. Never fully recovered from what… what happened to her. She…" Looking at Meredith closely, Nixie tilts his head sadly and says, "She didn't understand… maybe she'll never understand… just how terrible all this was."

Then Nixie turns to see Noah pull out his gun, aiming it right at Peter's head. Lydia shakes her head in disbelief at Peter, "It was your idea. And you don't even remember."

Looking up at Noah, the gun still pointed at him, Peter asks, "Are you kidding me?" Noah simply replies, "Hands where I can see them." "How in the hell was I supposed to remember any of that?!" Noah motions for him to get to his feet, not taking the gun off of him for a second. Lydia points at him and says, "She got it from you."

Peter sighs helplessly and says, "I was out of my mind! Do you know what it's like for one of us to be in a coma? Paralyzed but cognizant? You try not going crazy!" Jordan gently pulls Nixie back behind him, and then points out, "She was listening to you." Peter scowls and says, "She was listening to the ranting and raving of a lunatic!" Then he calms himself and adds, "A former lunatic. I'm much healthier now."

Focusing his attention back on Noah, Peter says, "I had nothing to do with this." But Noah shakes his head, "If she was following your lead on this, then how do we know there's isn't more?" Peter throws up his hands and asks, "Stealing my own money?! Really?!" "You were going to use it anyway."

Nixie nods in agreement with that, but then jumps in surprise when Lydia exclaims, "Stop. Stop it! This is what she wants. It's why she's here." Frowning in confusion, Nixie asks, "Lydia?" She turns to look at Nixie, and then gestures around them. "Look around. There's four people in here right now. Four people still on the dead pool. Me, Jordan, Meredith, and you." Jordan, still keeping a hand on Meredith's shoulder, says, "But not him."

Peter nods towards Lydia though and says, "Lydia's right. We don't want to kill each other." Noah simply raises his gun higher and says, "The only person I'm pointing a gun at, is you." Peter grins, "Then you better make it a perfect shot, sheriff. Because I don't go down easy."

His smile slips though, when Noah raises the gun to his head and says, "Yeah. Well, I'm willing to bet that a bullet between the eyes doesn't heal real fast… not even for your kind."

Lydia looks around at them and says, "Stop. Please stop. Nixie… please…" Turning to look at Lydia, Nixie admits, "I… I don't see how killing Peter hurts us. He's not on the dead pool. He's the only one with a gun pointed at him. Why…" But Lydia says, "Please! Please, just trust me on this!"

Nixie stares back at her for a moment, and then says, "Noah… please." Peter smirks and says, "This department's getting more corrupted by the second. What are you going to charge me with, Sheriff? How are you going to explain this to a judge? Telepathic girl overhears thoughts of a comatose werewolf, and decides to enact his plans for retribution? Hmm…"

Clicking his tongue in admonishment he adds, "They're gonna be pointing a gun at your head and asking you to go quietly."

But he freezes when Nixie says, "How about we go with elder male kidnaps, tortures, and attempts to murder a young teenage girl?" Peter turns his attention to her, and says, "I did not…" "You kidnapped Stiles. I followed. But Stiles and I can work out the details of our cover story later. The most important part though, is that I have the scars from what you did to me."

Glaring at him, she says, "Do not threaten the people that matter to me. There are so many ways I can ruin your worthless life. You have no idea." Then she looks over at Noah, and says gently, "But… I'd still take the word of a banshee, Noah. Let him leave. No triggers pulled. No blood shed. Nobody else from the dead pool dies."

Nixie comes out from behind Jordan, and gently puts a hand over Noah's wrist that holds the gun. "Please, Noah. Listen to Lydia. Just let him go." Noah looks down at her, and then reluctantly lowers his gun. Holstering it, watching as Peter makes his way back across the room, Noah says, "That's twice, Peter. There isn't gonna be a third." Peter smirks and says, "You won't have time to make it a third."

He should've kept his mouth shut. His only warning for what was to come, was Noah shouting, "Nixie, don't!" Peter had half turned back around, to see what was happening.

That's when something solid, hard as diamonds, slammed into his face with tremendous force. It sent him to the ground, and forced his body to slide and slam into the wall on the other side of the room.

The sound had been like that of a hammer slamming down on top of a solid metal object. That's the sound that rang through the room, when Nixie's fist collided with Peter's face. Hard. She put her entire body into that punch.

She'd done that, put her whole body into it, because that was what she was used to having to do. If punching a werewolf, you couldn't hold back anything. They might not feel it at all, if you held back. And honestly, even with her whole body behind it, Nixie hadn't really expected to hurt Peter. She'd expected, more or less, to simply annoy him with her attempt. And at the very least, she'd only expected to feel a little better about the fact that they were letting him go, and he was still threatening the people that mattered to her.

Her hand didn't hurt. That was the first sign to her, that something very different had just happened. She'd punched Derek in the face before, and she felt like she'd sprained and bruised every bone, joint, and ligament in her hand. Her knuckles had been bruised for a week. But now… well, she feels the same as when she might've punched any other human in the face.

She stares at Peter a moment more, and then looks down at her right hand. And her eyes grow huge when she doesn't see her own skin. But scales. Dark blue scales. And as she uncurls her first, she doesn't find claws at the end of her fingers… but talons. Dark blue talons that match the scales perfect. Long and elegantly curled. She's not gonna lie, she always thought the werewolf claws looked weird on her fiends… like they didn't belong.

But her talons belonged. They looked as though there would never be a better place for them. Still, she honestly can't believe she didn't pierce through her own hand when making the fist. Or… perhaps the scales had something to do with that.

She was still so shocked by her own hand, that she didn't hear Peter scramble to his feet. All she knows, is that she's suddenly being pulled quickly behind Jordan. He and Noah both move in front of her, blocking the path to her, their guns raised and leveled at Peter, Noah aiming for his head, and Jordan aiming for the heart.

Peter stops short when he sees them protecting Nixie. Whether Lydia wanted him let go or not… if he came at Nixie again, he would end up shot. And he wasn't completely stupid.

He does glare at her though… right up until she lifts her head and looks back at him. Then his own eyes widen, and he tilts his head in wonder while whispering, "Silver?"

Finally, after a long moment of silence, Peter smirks ever so slightly, and then turns and walks out of the room. Meredith hurriedly tries to stand up, to go after him… but Noah quickly moves to catch her. Trying to reach out for Peter, Meredith screams, "No. It's not finished! No, it's not finished! NO! It's not done! IT'S NOT FINISHED!"

Jordan glances at her, and then turns around to see if Nixie's alright. But before he can reach out to her, he finds himself frozen as he stares at her. Because where there had once been deep blue eyes… now silver eyes were looking back at him. Bright silver, with a very tiny circle of dark blue rimming all the way around. And her pupils were no longer circles… but ovals.

Nixie stares back at him, and then backs up a step and says, "I… I didn't… I don't… I'm sorry, I know I must look… I can't…"

But as she backs away, Jordan simply follows. She backs herself into a wall, and then closes her eyes tightly. Tears falling from the corners of her eyes, she says, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to… I didn't know it would… I don't even know how I… Oh God, I look like…"

A warm hand cups the side of her neck, and Nixie can feel him brushing away her tears with his other. And then his lips are right next to her ear, and Nixie gasps softly when Jordan whispers, "Beautiful."

She opens her eyes slowly, lifting her head to meet his gaze. Her hand is still covered in scales, talons still extended. And the eyes he looks into are still silver. But they are still her eyes. Squeezing the side of her neck gently, comfortingly, Jordan says, "You look, the same as you always do. The same as you always have. Beautiful."

Nixie stares at him for a moment, and then says, "You are so… so… weird." Jordan grins and laughs before saying, "I'm going to take that as a compliment." Nixie smiles up at him, and then sighs and leans her head back against the wall behind her. Jordan makes to give her a little bit of space, but this time, she's the one that doesn't allow it to happen. Taking hold of the hand on her neck, she puts it back where it was, and then says, "Just… give me a minute."

So he waits, and when she opens her eyes again, the deep blue has returned. Looking down at her hand, Nixie sighs in relief when she sees the talons are gone, and it's her old hand again. Jordan smiles gently at her, and then draws her off the wall and into his arms. Resting her head against his chest, she smiles when she feels him kiss the top of her head, and then his hand on her neck moves to gently card through her still damp hair.

Lydia grins giddily at them, in spite of all the bad that's still going on everywhere else. Noah looks between the two of them as well, and then sighs and says, "This still got us nowhere closer to figuring out how to stop the money payments." Nodding, Lydia says, "I'll call Stiles and Malia. Last time Nixie checked, they were heading to the lake house. Maybe they've found something."

Nodding, Noah glances at Jordan and Nixie again. Then he sighs and says, "I'm too old for this." He takes hold of Meredith and walks her out of the room. Lydia grins at the sheriff's reaction, knowing that when it came down to it, he really only cared that Nixie would be happy. Then she turns back to Jordan and Nixie, and says, "You know, you two might want to consider toning it down a bit when the sheriff is in the room."

Nixie jumps a bit, finally remembering that they're not alone. Jordan turns to glance at Lydia, who shrugs and says, "I'm just saying." Then she smirks and waves her fingers at them suggestively, before hurrying out of the room to get her phone.

For a moment, Nixie and Jordan just stand there. Then Jordan turns back to her and asks, "Are you alright?" "Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine now." Taking her right hand in his, he asks, "How's your hand?" She looks at it too, watches as his fingers gently move over hers, inspecting her for damage, even though there wasn't any to find. Nodding, she says, "It's… fine. Which, you know, was not expected. I was fully prepared for it to be broken afterwards. Would've been fine with that too. Still would've been worth it."

Jordan chuckles. Running his fingers gently over hers some more, he then draws it up to rest against his chest. Meeting her gaze, he says, "We need to talk." "We are talking." Raising an eyebrow at her, he says, "You know that's not what I mean." She blushes and immediately starts biting at her lip again.

It was ridiculous, to think she didn't know what he was talking about. After all they'd been through, after all they'd done together. After all the smiles, the flirts, the caring for each other. And given how often she blushed around him, and how often he made her want to smile in a ridiculous fashion… she knew what it was he wanted to talk about. And she knew he was right. They needed to.

And she had hope, finally, that he could be more. Lydia had told her countless times that he liked her. Lydia had also told her that he wouldn't run from her when he saw her scars. And he hadn't. He hadn't run from any of them when he learned the whole truth either. That part had given her even more hope.

And he hadn't hated her for all they'd kept from him. In fact, he'd explained very recently, how ridiculous the concept even was in his mind. He'd saved her from certain death. He thought she was beautiful. Even with talons and glowing eyes, he thought she was beautiful. Even standing here, a soaked mess, bruised and hurt… he thought she was beautiful.

And he wasn't lying. She could feel it; could see it in his eyes.

So, with all that in mind, Nixie begins working out just how much school work she has to catch up on. Because she would not be able to focus on this rather important discussion, if she knew she still had papers to write.

Jordan watches as her eyes dart around, knowing she's looking at several lists in her mind that he can't see. Waiting patiently as the gears turn at full speed in her mind, he then smiles gently when she looks up at him again. Sighing, she says, "I… um… after we… I mean…"

Huffing, she says, "I'm way behind in my school work. Like, the pile of work I have to do, is beginning to look like Mount Everest." Jordan laughs and says, "Yes, I do seem to recall you mentioning something about that." Nixie grins up at him, and blushes again when he says, "I also recall you saying that you were going to sleep straight after that. For a week. So… do I need to wait until after your hibernation to have this conversation?"

She tilts her head at him, and then says, "You would do that. Wouldn't you?" He shrugs, as though it were no big deal. Smiling again, she says, "Well… no. I… don't want to wait that long." Jordan grins and says, "Okay. When do you think you'll want to talk? I can wait, however long you need."

She stares up at him again, and then shakes her head in amusement and says, "Your patience will all of this bull-crap is, literally, beyond me." Jordan chuckles, and then gently runs his fingers over her hand again. Nixie bites her lip again, trying to come up with a date for him, and also trying very hard to not pull him closer again.

Turns out to be pointless. She'd no sooner started biting her lip again, when Jordan reached up gently, and with his thumb, he gently tugged her lip down from between her teeth. Nixie's eyes widen slightly in surprise, and Jordan doesn't blame her. But… he couldn't continue watching her do that. He was going to lose it, if he had to watch her bite her lip again, and not be able to kiss her afterwards.

And Nixie's heart skips a beat when he says softly, "You have to stop doing that."

She's tempted to ask why. It's on the tip of her tongue, to ask him why she had to stop biting her lip. But… that would not end well.

Well… okay, she wouldn't consider it bad. She wanted to kiss him, and apparently, he wanted to kiss her just as badly. But… they needed to talk first. They needed to talk and figure out what, if anything, they were going to do, and going to become. Then, maybe, she could kiss him.

So instead, she simply nods. And then, after a few more calculations, she says, "Um… Friday? Before the lacrosse game? I can… I mean, if it's alright, I can come by before it starts and… um…" Jordan's thumb gently traces her lower lip, and then his hand slides back down to cup her neck. He smiles when she relaxes into his touch, and then says, "That works for me. I'll be getting off that evening, so I can give you a ride to the game, if you like."

Nixie nods to that, and for a moment, the both of them just stand there, basking in each other's company. Then, though she'd rather remain, Nixie says softly, "We should… probably go and see if Lydia found out anything from Stiles." Jordan nods and says, "Yeah. You're probably right."

But he doesn't move, and just grins when Nixie laughs. Pressing a kiss to her forehead, he sighs and says, "Alright. Come on. I doubt they'll be able to save the day without you present." "I'm both flattered for myself, and yet offended for my friends' sakes." Jordan chuckles and guides her out of the room.

Back in the main office area, Nixie pauses for a moment when Lydia says, "Wait a minute. The floor. Point the camera back at the carpet Stiles." Tilting her head, Nixie then looks back to Jordan and whispers, "Okay. Maybe they can't." He grins at her, and the runs his hand gently up her back, before moving to join Noah in his office with Meredith.

Nixie comes up beside Lydia, looking to see that Stiles is now showing them the floor of the lake house, quiet room. Lydia asks, "Where's the stain?" Then she looks up at Nixie and asks, "Did you actually manage to get the wine stain out?" Nixie gives her a sheepish look and says, "I hadn't had time to get to that yet." "Okay. No, it's fine, I didn't think you had. But that's why it makes no sense. The five-hundred dollars I gave to Brunski was supposed to go to a cleaner to get the stain out." "Lydia, didn't I tell you I would handle that? Geez."

Stiles, from over the phone, says "Guys, can we focus please?! There's nothing on the floor! Yay!" Lydia huffs, "But it doesn't make sense, Stiles." "Lydia, was the hell does wine have to do with anything we're dealing with right now?" Nixie leans into view and says, "Red wine doesn't just disappear Stiles. Now hush for a moment. Lydia's onto something."

It takes another second, but then Lydia holds up a finger and says, "Unless it wasn't wine." And despite Nixie's order to be quiet for a bit, Stiles asks, "What? What do you mean?" Lydia turns to Nixie and says, "The ashes weren't ashes. The study isn't a study. And the record player, isn't a record player."

Nixie grins and adds, "So maybe the wine wasn't wine." Back into the phone, Nixie says, "Stiles, you have to find that wine bottle. There might be something about it that'll help us." Nodding eagerly, Stiles asks, "What kind? What's it called?"

Nixie shrugs helplessly. She hadn't even been there that night. But Lydia immediately answers, "It's a 1982 Cotes du Rhone." When Nixie raises an eyebrow, obviously wondering how she remembered the exact bottle of wine that got spilled in there, Lydia says, "I remember because of how much it was supposed to have cost." "Right. And the fact that you practically have an eidetic memory certainly doesn't hurt anything."

Stiles shoves the phone into Malia's hands, and then spastically sprints out of the room. When he comes back, he shakes the bottle in question and says, "I think there's something inside. Do you have, like, a wine opener or…"

And Nixie can't help it. She laughs when Malia simply grabs hold of the bottle and smashes it down onto the floor. The poor girl had been wanting to break or smash something for a while now. It was about time she got her chance.

Silence reigns for a while, and then Stiles exclaims over the phone, "That worked! It actually worked! It's shutting down!" Lydia beams over at Nixie, and then jumps to hug her as tight as she can. Nixie smiles and squeezes her back just as tight. Then she says, "Let me call Scott and make sure they're okay."

Scott has just let the man he was beating to a pulp, get up and walk away. That's when his phone rings. Satomi, along with everyone, eyes it warily for a second, as though afraid something worse was about to happen. But Scott smiles, and everyone that can hear, grins along with him when Nixie asks, "Are you all still alive? Because I have had a rough night, and it would suck, like, a hell of a freaking lot, if any of you were dead at this point."

Scott looks around at everyone, and then nods and says, "We're alright. Everyone is." "Good. In that case, when you get back here, make sure you bring my jacket. I love Lori to death, but she can't keep it. And tell her if she's become that attached to it, I'll buy her one someday." Chuckling, Scott says, "I got it, Nix. Thank you." "Yeah, well. Thank you for not dying. The depression you all just saved me from, would've been something for the record books. And stop laughing at me. I'm very serious."

With Jordan and Noah step outside, finally getting a call through to someone who could get Meredith, Nixie and Lydia step into the office. Lydia, because she wanted to talk to Meredith. And Nixie… well, because she still wasn't comfortable leaving Lydia alone with Meredith. The girl was messed up in the head, and even that wasn't really her own fault. But still… you'd think that Meredith would at least be able to tell that Peter was definitely the bad guy in all of this.

Slipping a jacket over Meredith's shoulders, Lydia sits down with her and asks, "Are you okay?" Meredith simply nods in return, though Nixie can tell that she feels, at least a little bit, ashamed. She's not happy that her actions have caused Lydia to be upset with her. And as Nixie looks away from them, back out into the bullpen, Lydia notes that Meredith looks up at Nixie with that same upset expression. Sighing, Lydia says, "I guess you are, aren't you? At least, for someone who'd put their own name on a hit list."

"I had to." Lydia glances at Nixie, who is now pinching the bridge of her nose in frustration. Then Lydia asks, "Why?" Meredith gives her a meaningful look and says, "Because I heard you." At Lydia's confused expression, Meredith explains, "I heard you scream in the tunnels at Oak Creek."

Outside, Jordan had just gotten off the phone, when he feels a sudden chill sweep through the air. The rest of the office pays no mind to it. They simply grab jackets or shiver and then brush it off. But Jordan catches Noah's eye, and then they both head back for his office.

Inside, Nixie is leaning against Noah's desk, her posture rigid now. And yes… there was a distinct chill in the air that was probably caused by her. Noah moves closer to Lydia, wondering if anything had changed in the last few minutes. Jordan walks up to Nixie. Putting a gentle hand on her shoulder, he asks, "What happened? Are you…" She waves a hand at him, as though waving away the fact that she's the reason it's now cold in here. Then she sighs and says, "Just… getting answers is sometimes painful." "How?"

She looks up at him, and then nods towards Meredith and says, "She started all of this… because Lydia screamed… the night that Alison was killed."

Ah. And that would do it. Wrapping an arm around her, he asks softly, "Are you alright?" "I'm fine. I'm not about to have a breakdown, like when it happened. I just… it's still sad." Jordan nods in understanding, and then they all look to Meredith again when she says, "That's why I knew it was the right time… to start over."

Lydia takes in a sharp inhale of breath, and then asks, "But with Peter?" Meredith gives a small nod, and then says, "He's the alpha. He's always been the alpha. He'll make it right. It never was with us." Then Meredith looks up at Nixie and says, "Too many people died… because of us. We're the monsters. Even banshees. Even me!"

Nixie shakes her head at that, and then says, "Meredith… you're just repeating what Peter thinks. Come on now. I know… I know some part of you has to know… that's not true." Shaking her own head, Meredith says, "But… he explained… Peter said…" Gritting her teeth, trying to remain calm, Nixie cuts her off, "Peter, in a coma, explained that a deranged and psychotic hunter, burned down his home. With the majority of his family trapped inside. That, Meredith, was before us. All of us. It was beyond our control."

Coming forward, bending down on her knees in front of Meredith, Nixie asks, "Do you… do you understand me enough, Meredith? To know how I operate?" Meredith nods with a smile and says, "You protect those who are yours." "Yes, I do. And how do I decide who's mine?" "You get feelings. Instincts that tell you who is worth taking the time to claim." "Yes."

Taking one of Meredith's hands in hers, Nixie says, "I don't waste my time, with people who aren't worth it, Meredith. So, if you believe that, then you should also believe that every single person in our pack, is worth saving."

Meredith tilts her head contemplatively at that, a small frown working onto her face as she considers what Nixie just said. Pushing forward, Nixie says, "Peter has tried to hurt, literally, everyone that matters to me, Meredith. He turned Scott into a werewolf. He tried to force Scott to kill all of his friends. He threatened Melissa. He's threatened Noah. He kidnapped and threatened Stiles. He threatened Alison. He damn near killed Lydia."

Nixie lifts her shirt just enough for Meredith to see the scar that rests there, and says, "He tried to force me to become a werewolf with him. And this is what I got in return, when I told him no. This is what he does. This is who he is. He even tried to kill his own nephew, at one point. He killed Kate Argent. He brainwashed Lydia so she'd bring him back to life. Nothing, Meredith, but destruction, death, and chaos, follows after him. He…" Nixie ponders for a moment just want to say to make it sink in, and then remembers what Meredith had called Brunski before he died. Giving Meredith a meaningful look, she says, "Peter is a bad person, Meredith. A very bad person."

Cupping Meredith's hand in both of hers, Nixie says, "But with us… with Scott… we found and defeated a kanima, before he could kill the entire town. We figured out Gerard's plan, and we found a way to stop him and save everyone, including Alison that night. We defeated an alpha pack, and a darach. And through it all, Scott eventually became a true alpha in the process. We saved Stiles from a Nogitsune. We saved Lydia. Scott saved Liam."

Nixie shakes her head and says, "We're not altogether human, Meredith. But we are very human, in the sense that, we are not perfect. We're going to make mistakes. And occasionally, some battles, we're going to lose. But we keep trying. With Scott as our alpha, we always keep trying to save people, and to do what's right."

Lydia smiles down at Nixie, and then says gently, "So we don't believe that, Meredith. We don't believe that it's not right with us." Taking Meredith's other hand in hers, Lydia adds, "Not all monsters do monstrous things."

Meredith tilts her head and asks, "Like who?" Lydia smiles and says, "Like Scott McCall. Our true alpha." Nixie smiles up at her, and then jumps a little when Meredith pulls her hands away. Reaching out, she gently cups Nixie's face and says, "Like you." Then she does the same to Lydia and adds, "And like you."

A dawning realization slowly seeps into Meredith's expression, and then she gasps and asks softly, "Oh God. What have I done?"

Noah can see the panic beginning to appear in her eyes, in her trembling hands, and in her shaking shoulders. And he's about to tell the girls to step back from her…

But Nixie isn't upset with her anymore. Meredith wasn't a bad person. She was just confused as to what the right thing truly was. She'd never really had anyone to ever truly show her the right path... the good path. So when Meredith starts shaking, Nixie moves to sit on her other side. Drawing her in, wrapping her arms around Meredith, Nixie softly says, "It's okay. Everything is going to be okay now."

They wait for her to be calm, and then Nixie reluctantly releases her to be taken back to Eichen by the orderlies that have shown up.

Leaning back against the sofa, Nixie glances over when Lydia moves to sit directly next to her. Leaning back as well, Lydia asks, "Well… now what do you suppose we do?" "Eat." Lydia bursts into laughter, and Nixie grins, but then says, "It's actually not funny though. I'm serious. I'm exhausted. And starving. And on top of all that, I now also have a headache to contend with." Lydia leans her head over onto Nixie's shoulder. And once she's settled down from laughing, she sighs, "Yeah. It's been a long couple of days." "Try a long few of months." "Amen to that."

Noah grins at both girls, and then glances up at Jordan. And though it was obvious where things were beginning to head, between his best deputy and his honorary daughter, well… he knew Nixie would be in excellent care with Jordan. So Noah says to him, "Do me a favor. Get Nixie home. I'll take Lydia. We'll get you girls to school tomorrow as well, if you need it. And you can get your car and your bike later. You shouldn't be driving right now. Particularly you, Nixie, since you've been up all night."

Nixie's response is to jump up off the couch and say, "I have no idea what you're talking about. I'm as awake as I've ever been." Noah just gives her a look, so she smiles and says, "I didn't say I was arguing. Just saying, look at me. Have you ever seen me more chipper?" "Yes." Nixie raises her eyebrows, and then looks to Lydia and says, "Damn. I must really look like hell right now."

Lydia just shakes her head in amusement, and then walks with the sheriff out the door so he can take her home. Nixie turns to face Jordan, and then asks, "So… you gonna take me home?" He nods, but as they're sitting in his car and he cranks the engine, he says, "But I think I would be remiss if I didn't feed you something first. You did, after all, say you were starving." "I do recall mentioning that. And I have now decided that I will be highly offended if you don't feed me before sending me home, my dear deputy."

Jordan grins, and takes her to get some quick sandwiches from in town, and then drives her to the Yukimara's. He walks her all the way up to her porch, a gentle hand on her back as they go. Stopping at the door, Jordan asks, "Will I see you before Friday?" Nixie looks up at him, and then says, "I mean, I'm still a frequent visitor at the station. I've never really had a reason before. Don't see why I'd need one now. Although, if you're up for it, I know I have at least two more papers to write, and you happen to be quite adept at proof-reading." Chuckling, Jordan says, "I wouldn't mind."

Nixie smiles, and says, "So… yeah. I'll see you." Jordan nods, and then draws her in closer for a moment. Kissing the top of her head, he then whispers softly, "Goodnight, Nixie. Get some sleep. You've earned it." "Goodnight, Jordan. You too."

She watches after him until he's driven away, a rapid pace still pounding from her heart in her chest. She was excited. And nervous.

But as nervous as she was about the conversation she knows they're going to have… she honestly can't wait for Friday to finally get here.

Chapter 10! Yay! Only three more to go guys. Hope you're enjoying this new version. :)