(If you haven't noticed, I'm a big big big fan of Sciles friendship/bromance feels). Also Lydia not taking shit is a fave of mine too, so there's some of that through here ;) Enjoy!

I do not own Teen Wolf.


Stiles raced over to Kira's house, after trying both Kira and Scott on their cell.

Before Lydia could call Allison to see if she had heard from Kira or Scott since they left the school, Stiles stopped the car.

"There's Scott." he said hoarsely, barely braking before jumping out of the car.

Lydia understood his fear – Scott was lying next to his bike, facedown on the ground.

"Scott! SCOTT!" Stiles said, shaking his arm.

Scott gasped awake, looking up at them wildly. "Barrow! He took Kira. He must have snuck up behind me—"

"We know. He was after her the whole time." Stiles grimaced. "We've got to figure out what he wants with her. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Have you heard from Allison or any of the others? Did they find anything?"

"We haven't called them yet."

Scott pulled out his phone, hitting his second speed dial. "Allison? Hey. Sorry, Barrow sort of hit me over the head and knocked me out…" He winced, no doubt because her response was louder than normal. "I'm fine. Look, Barrow has Kira. Stiles and Lydia came to tell us, but she was already taken. We have no idea what he's planning, but it's obviously nothing good. Did you guys find anything that might help us figure something out?" He sighed, so clearly the answer wasn't helpful in any way. "Thanks. I'll call you when we figure something out."

Hanging up, he turned to the other two.

"Nothing in the bestiary beyond flies and the dead. But we have to think of something. There's no way he's not going to hurt her."

Lydia was confused about one thing. "Why the hell did he go to the high school? She doesn't go there anymore."

"Maybe somehow he knew that she'd be there, or that we'd all go look into it… or maybe that message wasn't written by him. Maybe someone else wrote it to tell him what to do." Stiles said slowly.

"Well, it definitely confirms that he was there." Scott agreed.

"I knew he was there. How did I know that?" Lydia asked, knowing they didn't have a better idea than she did.

"Because you heard the flies, right?" Stiles reminded her.

News to Scott, he looked to Lydia hopefully. "What do you hear now?"

She listened carefully, but it was nothing but typical California night sounds. Crickets and cars driving through streets nearby.

"Nothing." she sighed, disappointing them both. She looked to both of them. "I feel like I can do this, but I don't know what to do. It's like it's on the tip of my tongue, and I don't know how to trigger it." She was pacing now, exasperated. "I swear to god, it literally makes me want to scream."

"So scream." Stiles said seriously. "Lydia, scream."

She looked at him in surprise, but there was determination on his face, and most of all, undeniable faith.

Taking in a deep breath, she released a scream that rattled through her core, forcing the other two to cover their ears. It was a different pitch than any scream she'd ever had, somehow higher and sharper, and it released all of the building tension in her chest.

Her ears were ringing, but in a way that intensified her hearing. The buzzing had returned, but it had more of a static sound to it, and her gaze rose to the street light overhead.

She turned to them excitedly, surprised to find them back up in fear.

"It's not flies. It's electricity."

Stiles' eyes widened. "They said Barrow was an electrical engineer, that he worked at a power substation."

Scott looked over. "Which substation?"


Stiles took him and Lydia in his jeep, Scott keeping pace with his bike. They had to make it in time. They just had to.

Pulling up to the side of the building, Scott was off his bike in a flash, Stiles following as quick as he could. He grabbed his baseball bat from the backseat.

"We should split up. You go in that entrance. I'll try around the front." Scott instructed before racing off, clearly scared that they might be too late.

Stiles nodded and circled around the car, where Lydia was starting to get out.

"Okay, wait here, all right? Just wait for the cops to come."

She looked irritated. "Me? Wait, why?"

"Well I've only got one bat…" he said honestly, shrugging, before flashing her a grimace and heading towards the door.

Lydia huffed irritably in her seat. Being a… whatever the hell she was wasn't very helpful when it came to hand-to-hand combat against a mass murderer. But she didn't fancy sitting in the car. All she could do now was worry about her friends, and worry about what the hell she was supposed to tell the cops when they did arrive.

Needing a distraction, she pulled out her phone.

Did you and Isaac find anything?

Allison texted back quickly. No. Checking with my dad in his office now to see if he knows anything else while Isaac keeps looking.

Lydia sighed, leaning back into the seat. She kept her eyes focused on the building, looking for any sign of life.

She didn't want to worry about them. She knew they had done more dangerous things many times in the past. But she hadn't been around then, she hadn't known them then. And it's not as though there was ever any guarantee. They had no idea what the man inside was capable of. He was taking instructions from somebody else. How did they know his partner wasn't in there to help finish them all off?

Lydia suddenly felt a firm pressure on her chest, like someone had taken a seat there, making her head spin and her heartrate pick up.

She had felt this feeling before, this pressure inside her chest, as if she needed to loosen it or dislodge whatever was in there.

It wasn't exactly painful, but the pressure was intense. She knew she had to do something to relieve it. As she massaged over the spot, hoping for relief, something occurred to her. The taste on the end of her tongue, telling her what she had to do.

Trying not to think about how stupid she felt, Lydia opened her mouth and let out a mind-numbing scream.

It echoed across the entire lot, seeming to rattle even the jeep, and when she finished, she felt she could breathe again. She took in air in generous gulps, the dreadful feeling in her stomach loosening and freeing her from pain.

Suddenly, a strange crackling brightness flashed through the opaque windows. And then everything went black.


Stiles looked around, brow furrowing at the fact that he was outside. He distinctly remembered entering the building.

But there was a lapse, something that made him feel as though he was missing something.

Dammit. He must have blacked out again.

Where the hell did his bat go?

He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket.

Where are you? What happened?!

Lydia.

Coming back now.

The light from his phone was oddly blinding. It was then, looking around, that he realized how dark it really was outside. The building seemed to have lost power. Oh god, what did he miss?

He slipped his phone back in his pocket and made his way around the building using the flashlight from his phone, keeping an eye out for Barrow.

He had no idea where Scott and Kira were. Maybe he should head back inside, seek them out? What if Barrow had gotten to both of them?

Scott is back with Kira. Where are you?

Stiles sighed in relief. She couldn't have had better timing.

He racked his brain for any semblance of a memory of what happened before he blacked out, anything that could help determine what pieces he was missing. The last thing that came to mind was him hearing a noise, figuring it was Barrow or Scott, and running in that direction. Everything else was just emptiness, a void.

He didn't understand why he kept having these episodes. Was he actually having a neurological disorder where he was going about the motions and getting amnesia, or did his brain just shut down and stop him in his tracks?

Since he kept ending up in different positions from where he started, he figured it was the former.

And given his family history, anything that related back to his brain malfunctioning was not a good sign.

"Stiles!"

Stiles rushed forward to greet his worried best friend, who had his arm around Kira, supporting her. Lydia turned from where she had been pacing and headed him off, giving him a once over.

"What's wrong?" she asked quietly, sensing his nerves.

He shook his head minutely to indicate it could wait and turned to the other two.

"What happened?"

"Barrow chained Kira up, made some big speech about Village of the Damned and glowing eyes, and then tried to shock her with maximum electricity. It had to be thousands of volts. He slashed me with the wire to fend me off, so I was basically useless. He zeroed in on her and shot her up with sparks."

Kira continued. "Except, of course, I have no idea how to control that much electricity, so it sort of… exploded out of me instead, killing Barrow. Some I actually managed to absorb in me, but it looks like the incident knocked power out of the whole city."

Lydia was shaking her head. Another death? Granted, it was a mass murderer, but still. Is that why she felt the need to scream?

"Where were you?" Scott asked Stiles.

He stayed quiet, not really sure how to tell him that he honestly had no idea. They all were stressed enough. Who knew what would have happened if they had been too late. On anyone normal, that kind of electricity would've killed them instantly…

He straightened up and looked to Kira. "Someone told Barrow to get you. We thought it was to kill you. But maybe this was the person's plan. Maybe they knew you were a thunder kitsune, maybe they knew you didn't have full control of your powers. Maybe they wanted a blackout."

"What the hell kind of benefit could come from a blackout?" Lydia asked incredulously.

"I'm guessing nothing good." Scott interjected. "Your dad should be here soon, Stiles. We should warn him, about this person using the blackout to their advantage."

Stiles swallowed. "We can try… but you know, your dad seems to be running the show these days, and I don't really know how you plan on explaining kitsunes and psychics to him."

Lydia and Kira both looked at Scott, clearly oblivious to the news that Scott's dad was in town, and in law enforcement. Lydia realized she never did get the story on why it was just Scott and his mom.

Scott's phone rang before he could offer any words of explanation, and he furrowed his brow.

"Allison?" He listened, face growing more concerned. "Is Isaac okay? Were all five the same? What did they look like?" Pause. "Does your dad know anything?"

They all were waiting with baited breath, nervous for what was going on.

Scott's face went ashen. "You're sure that's what he said?"

"What?!" Stiles whispered fiercely, his curiosity about to explode his brain.

Scott's voice was hoarse. "They came out of the dark."


They wanted to head over to the Argents apartment immediately, knowing they needed answers and to check on Isaac.

But the police pulled up, and they knew they had to give statements about what happened.

Scott texted Allison, letting her know they'd all head straight over as soon as they were dismissed.

They were allowed to drive themselves, once they gave a basic overview of what happened.

"So how do these things usually go?" Lydia asked, trying not to show how nervous she was. She didn't want to screw things up and she knew telling the truth wouldn't help make their story sound believable.

Stiles glanced over at her as he drove. "Me and Scott will take the reins for the most part, but generally, try to be as honest as possible while still leaving out the supernatural resources we have. Like, no mention of Kira absorbing electricity, more like, Barrow messed up and electrocuted himself instead when she fought him off. And try not to be too specific about anything. Vague enough that they can't nail you for tiny details, but not too vague that they feel you're lying."

Lydia exhaled. "I'm going to try not to talk."

"We already told them you waited in the car for them to arrive, so they shouldn't ask you much." he promised. "Just follow our lead."

It wasn't until they were at the police station and the tension between Scott and the FBI agent running the interrogation made her remember what Stiles had said earlier. He must be Scott's dad. His badge hanging from his neck was a little hard to read from where she was sitting, but based on how he looked, she could see how they would be related.

The four teenagers sat down on the couch provided, Agent McCall across from them. The Sheriff sat behind the desk behind him, and gave Lydia a reassuring wink when she looked over at him.

Scott and Stiles rehashed the story, with Kira piping in at times, and Lydia had to smile at the chaotic way they told it. Just as Stiles had said, nothing too specific but nothing too vague either.

It was clear Agent McCall was starting to get impatient as the interrogation went on.

"So when did you get there?"

"At the same time." Stiles replied.

The older man's eyebrows furrowed. "At the same time as who?"

"At the same as me." Scott clarified.

"By coincidence?"

"What do you mean coincidence?" Stiles asked.

"That's what I'm asking you. The two of you arrived at the same time, was that coincidence?" His voice raised slightly in his irritation.

Always good at stirring the pot, thanks to a best friend who had been a bad influence on him his whole life, Scott played dumb. "Are you asking me?"

"I think he's asking me." Stiles interjected.

"I think he's asking both of you." Lydia added, trying to hide her amusement.

"Okay, let me answer the questions." Agent McCall sighed exasperatedly, the Sheriff hiding his amusement poorly behind him. "Let me ask the questions. Just so I have this absolutely clear." He pulled out his notebook to review the notes he gathered from their relay of what happened. "Barrow was hiding in the chemistry closet at school. Someone left him a coded message on the blackboard telling him to kill Kira. Then Barrow took Kira to a power substation and tied her up with the intent of electrocuting her, which blacked out the entire town."

Stiles nodded. "Sounds about right."

"How'd you know he would take her to a power substation?"

"Well, because he was an electrical engineer, so where else would he take her?" Stiles said slowly.

"That's one hell of a deduction there, Stiles."

"Well, what can I say, I take after my pops. He's in law enforcement." Stiles said with a smirk, winking at his father at his desk.

The Sheriff couldn't help himself from snorting slightly. Scott's dad sent him a glare, so he corrected his throat. "Stiles, just, uh, answer the man."

"We made a good guess." Stiles said seriously. That much was true.

"And what about you, Lydia? We haven't heard much from you. How did you get involved with this? You just moved here recently, right? To be closer to your boyfriend?" he said, sending her a knowing look before glancing judgmentally at Stiles.

She felt the irritation at the bias he was showing colour her tone. She put on her best fake smile. "Actually, it was because my insides nearly got torn out by an animal attack at my last school, so my mother felt it was best I transfer somewhere else that has a better healthcare option. Scott's mom especially was amazing in my recovery."

Scott sucked in his lips, clearly understanding the jab she had just sent.

She straightened up. "But that wasn't your main question, my apologies. But I have a question for you… is my relationship with Stiles somehow relevant when discussing mass murderers on the loose? Or is that just your personal vendetta against their family the reason for the intrusive question regarding my personal life?"

The man looked surprised, but quickly grew angry.

"You can't—"

"Tell the truth? Isn't that what you asked from us?" Lydia said, stronger and she got to her feet. "The truth is, Agent, we felt our friend was in trouble. We knew Scott was taking Kira home from when we were all hanging out, so we headed there to check on them when he didn't answer our text, only to find him… alone. From there, we did our best to figure out what Barrow could possibly do to hurt a teenage girl. We came up with the idea of him taking her somewhere personal to him, since Kira hadn't even heard of the guy until today, and we only knew a couple things about him. Like that he used to work at a power substation. So we started there. Like Stiles said, we made a good guess. And it saved Kira's life. So are we done here?"

Agent McCall stared for a long moment, before sighing and turning around. "Do you believe this?"

"To be honest, I haven't believed a word Stiles has said since he learned how to speak. But I think these kids found themselves in the right place at the right time. And that girl sitting there is very lucky for it." the Sheriff admitted, nodding towards Kira.

He didn't know what else to say clearly, since he sighed and stood up.

"All right. You all are free to go."

Lydia didn't offer him a glance as she breezed past him, sending a farewell wave to the Sheriff behind him. Stiles' dad looked like it was taking every effort he had not to laugh.

Once outside, the other three cracked up.

"Jesus, Lydia, you couldn't have torn off his testicles a little gentler, huh?" Scott asked through a laugh, patting her on the shoulder.

"That was amazing." Kira gushed.

Stiles was still laughing too hard to talk.

"You're definitely my favourite person alive." he finally choked out as they all calmed down a bit.

She grinned. "I just spoke the truth. It's not just me, right? He really has something against your family. He's dismissive with your dad and the way he talks to you is just condescending and unnecessary."

"Well, to be fair, I'm intentionally hard to deal with when it comes to him."

"So? Professionalism should not be rattled that easily, especially in someone in as high of a rank as an FBI agent. Talk about setting an example."

"Scott?"

Speak of the devil, Scott's dad was halfway out the door, beckoning him over.

"Oh lovely." the alpha muttered as he made his way over.

They weren't too far away, so they could hear what he said.

"Scott. I don't know why you guys are lying, or why Stilinski is content to listen to this crap. But try and remember something. If half this story about Barrow is true, then not only did someone set him loose, but he is a pawn in their little game. A mass murderer is bad enough. A mass murderer being controlled by someone? Far worse."

"Yeah, I get it." Scott said evenly.

His father watched him for a moment before letting go of the idea that he might open up more thanks to his speech. "All right. Go home. It's a school night."

Scott resisted the urge to patronizingly salute him and rejoined his friends.

"We need to get to Allison's. Find out what happened to Isaac."


It didn't take long to get to Allison's. Her apartment was located only a few blocks over from the precinct.

Now that they had time, Scott gave them the scoop of what Allison had said on the phone—Isaac had been researching alone in Allison's room while she talked to her dad and had been attacked. The door sealed shut; Allison and her dad couldn't get in, not until the mysterious figures left.

Isaac had been on the floor, shaking all over, skin like ice. Once he snapped out of it, half-turning into a werewolf to kickstart the healing process to avoid hypothermia, the fear in his eyes was undeniable.

He had described the figures as towering ninjas with masks, carrying steel straight-cut swords and moving in unison. All five were identical, and all had eyes that could only mean supernatural—they glowed like fireflies.

There was no window open, no sign of forced entry, and when asked, Isaac told them the truth—they had materialized out of the shadows.

Allison met them downstairs, giving Kira a quick hug to let her know she was happy she was okay.

Lydia looked to see Stiles contemplating his keys at his car, twiddling the different ones through his fingers, counting them and observing one curiously.

"Stiles?" she asked, doubling back.

He correct his throat and shoved his keys in his pocket. "Sorry. I'm coming."

She didn't miss the anxiety shining in his eyes, despite his attempt to make his face casual. There was clearly something bothering him, but now wasn't the time to interrogate him about it. They had bigger things to worry about.

The group of friends piled into the stairwell, the elevator down due to the blackout. Scott's arm winded around Allison's waist, seeing the distress on her face. It was clear that it was more than just Isaac spooked by the spontaneous attack.

She met his eyes, leaning into his hold as they climbed the stairs, and she shook her head in disbelief. "I've never seen Isaac that scared before. He was so shaken up."

"You said you think your dad might know something?"

The brunette nodded. "His face changed as soon as Isaac talked about their eyes. He went into his office and has been in there since."

"What kind of supernatural creature materializes out of darkness?" Lydia asked the group, not really being an expert on the subject.

"Nothing good." Stiles sighed, putting his hands in his pockets.

They got to the right floor, Allison opened the front door, and they all headed down the hall.

Isaac was in the office now, arms crossed as he and Mr. Argent talked.

"Hey, Isaac, you okay?" Scott asked immediately, looking him over for signs of trauma. It didn't look like he had a mark on him.

"I'm fine." he promised, smallest trace of a smile on his lips. "But we need to figure out what they're after. They didn't kill me, and there had to be a reason."

"And I think I know what that reason was." Allison's dad said as the group surrounded the desk. "I think they were after me."

"You? Why?" Allison's eyes were wide with worry at the idea.

Chris placed a box on the desktop, revealing what was inside.

"Because of this."

Inside was a mask looking to be made of some formidable substance. The lines of the face had the expression drawn into a menacing look, as if glaring and snarling at the same time. But it was broken into several pieces, as if something had shattered it.

"I came across them once before, when I was still in training to be a hunter. It was my first gun deal, I was eighteen, and it was supposed to be a simple exchange. Except Gerard had left out the minor detail of the buyers being yakuza, the Japanese mafia. He wanted to see if I could adapt in the moment. Testing my ability to improvise."

"Or your ability to survive." Allison said bitterly, all too familiar with Gerard's cruel ways.

Lydia had no idea who Gerard was, but she had a feeling he was responsible for the more barbaric ways the Argent family used to follow.

Argent continued. "The moment the sun went down, these figures seemed to materialize out of the shadows. They headed straight for the kumicho."

"What's a kumicho?" Isaac asked.

"Yakuza boss." he clarified. "They had swords, but not curved like katanas, but straight, black steel. Like ninjatos. Everyone shot at them, but nothing seemed to penetrate them. They walked through the line of bullets and weapons as if they didn't even have the ability to feel. The others had surrounded the kumicho, and these… warriors went through them. They cut down every living thing in their way."

"Did they nearly make him hypothermic like Isaac?"

"Not exactly." Chris said grimly. "When they got to the kumicho, his whole being changed. His eyes, fangs… he was something truly evil. Nothing I've ever seen before."

"Not a werewolf?" Scott inquired, intrigued.

"Definitely not a werewolf." he confirmed. "When they made it to him, there was something ritualistic about what they did, as if they were looking into his soul."

"That's what they did to me." Isaac said, running a hand through his hair, disturbed by the memory.

"They didn't bother with the others, besides to destroy them to get to their goal. Makes it seem as though they only go for those with a connection to the supernatural. All of them shoved their swords in him, killing him, spilling his blood on the fountain in the middle of the courtyard. He crumpled to the ground, dead."

Allison piped up from her spot. "Did they disappear after that?"

Her dad shook his head. "No, not right away. There were a few survivors that night from the yakuza, one of them a man named Katashi. He's more commonly known as Silverfinger, because of an unusual prosthetic. He looked like he was going to take them all on himself. I stood up and shot one directly in the face. This was the result." he said, nodding towards the box where the broken mask lay. "I know I didn't kill it. I don't know if anything does. But it slowed it down enough for us to get out of there."

"What was behind the mask?" Scott asked.

A shudder seemed to ripple through him. "Darkness. Absolute darkness."

"So if they are after you, what do we do? How do we stop them?"

"I need to track down Katashi. If I can, I think he might be our best chance at finding out more about what those warriors were after then or what the kumicho was."

"How do you know he'll remember you?"

"He'll remember this." he said firmly, looking at the shattered mask.

"Do you think it has to do with something in Japanese heritage?" Scott asked, eyes flashing to Kira. "Because Barrow tried to kill her, and someone told him to do so…"

"Kitsunes are known as tricksters. They can be good or evil." Kira admitted. "Maybe they are looking for a dark fox."

"Well, they won't find it in you. Then what?" Allison asked. "What happens if all they can do is sense the fox in you but have no ability to determine good or evil? It doesn't sound like they're exactly law-abiding citizens or have any concept of morals."

"Okay. We have to keep them away from Kira for now, just to be safe."

The candles around the room started to flicker all at once, dimming the room.

"That can't be good." Stiles said, his hand automatically reaching to cover Lydia's.

Allison peered at Isaac curiously, brushing his hair away from his neck by his ear.

"Can I help you?" he asked exasperatedly, twitching away from her.

"There's something there… behind your ear…" she said, biting her lip, lifting one of the candles up closer to shine some light on it.

"It's a symbol." Scott said in surprise, seeing the strange charcoal mark too.

"What? What kind of symbol?" Isaac asked, feeling behind his ear for some sort of indicator that it was there.

Allison batted his hand away. "Looks like a backwards five to me. Only more box-like."

Kira peeked up at it. "I think that might be a Japanese Kanji symbol. It means 'self'."

Isaac raised his eyebrows. "Anyone have any ideas why the Oni wanted to mark me as 'self'?"

Before anyone could answer, there was a flicker of motion in the corner of the room.

His voice went hoarse. "Maybe we should ask them."

The group backed up in panic from the darkest corner in the room. The dark warriors had returned.

It wasn't a very big office to begin with, so they were practically on top of each other in the confined space.

Lydia moved towards the door. "We need to split up. Get Kira out of here."

"If Kira's even the one they're after. Dad, you need to get out of here too, in case this is a revenge plot." Allison said fiercely.

"Allison, I am trained to defend myself. No way am I—"

The warriors disappeared again, bleeding into the shadows.

"This can't be good." Scott said, getting in front of as many of them as he could, looking around wildly for any sign of them. He and Isaac were the only ones present that knew how to heal.

There was a squeak of surprise, and they all turned to see Lydia surrounded in the hall by the masked men.

"Lydia!" Stiles shouted, but the door of the office slammed shut before he could get through.

She was on her own.


"Why would they be after Lydia?" Allison demanded as Scott and Isaac pushed on the door, banging against it, the strongest of the group.

"Well, we all had suspicions she had something supernatural in her." Kira reminded them.

"It's not a dark spirit." Stiles hissed.

They heard the start of a scream, the ringing scream they knew well by now, but it was cut off instantly, as if it was actually stolen from her.

At the sound, Stiles pushed through the other two and started using his entire body to slam against the door. "LYDIA!"

Chris had tools in his hand, ready to help unhinge the door, but Stiles' efforts mixed with the other two boys' previous ones knocked the door clean off the frame.

Lydia wasn't in the hallway anymore.

"Lydia?! LYDIA?!" Stiles screamed through the apartment, searching desperately for her.

Seeing a figure lying on the ground a few feet away in the living room area, he was on his knees at her side instantly.

Lydia was shaking all over, eyes wide and not blinking, teeth chattering.

"Lydia? Are you okay?" Stiles asked softly, wrapping her in his arms so she was across his lap, his hands rubbing soothing circles on her arms to warm her up. She felt like ice.

The others crowded around, scared at the sight of her, and Allison ran off to get blankets.

"They came out of the dark." Lydia whispered shakily, eyes wet, clearly full of fear.

"Shh, you're safe. I've got you."

"Check behind her ear." Isaac said suddenly.

Stiles positioned her better in his arms, but it was Allison who brushed her hair out of her face and moved her ear to see the black mark, blankets in her lap as she sat down next to them.

"She's been marked. Maybe that means you're clean from whatever they're looking for?"

Stiles took one of the blankets from her and covered Lydia the best he could. Her face was in his chest, burying her vision away from the rest of the world. It was clear she was shaken up from the experience.

"We need to figure out what the hell is going on." Scott said, not liking the stress on both of his friends. Stiles looked just as terrified. He could hear his heartbeat thudding beneath his chest like a galloping horse.

"I can't believe Stiles broke the door." Allison commented quietly, surprised at the level of strength that would've taken.

Stiles wasn't even listening, too concentrated on Lydia's distress.

"Well, me and Scott worked on it first, so maybe we did some damage." Isaac suggested.

Chris' eyes were trained on the teenage boy holding the strawberry blonde, looking contemplative.

Scott corrected his throat, attempting to draw everyone's attention away from the pair on the floor.

"We need a plan. We need to get out of the dark. But without any electricity…"

"Hey, Danny is throwing that blacklight party at that spot downtown. He was going to use a generator since the electricity bill would be nuts on its own. Maybe we can head there to make a plan?" Isaac interjected.

"Sure it's not just because you wanted to go?"

"Well, yeah, but at least it's a good excuse. We don't have to stay, just figure out a plan before we get ninja-ed to death. Who knows how long those things will play staring contest."

Scott looked at his best friend, who was still completely focused on warming Lydia up. She seemed to be coming around now, snuggling closer to him, eyes watching him with more focus.

"Well, it's all we've got for right now."


The party was in full swing, and the group slipped in unnoticed at first. But then various people recognized the Beacon Hills High alumni and expressed their enthusiasm at seeing them.

Scott put on a happy face for his old lacrosse teammates, the others talking to other classmates, but Stiles kept Lydia glued to his side as he meandered to somewhere with a decent amount of light.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"I just… sort of hurt my shoulder." he mumbled. He had been hoping she wouldn't notice the way he was holding his arm funny. He hadn't been aware at the time, but his aggression towards the wooden barrier earlier hadn't really been pleasant on his anatomy.

"What has you so spooked, Stiles? You've been hiding something all night. Earlier, at the jeep, after you came to join us, something was clearly on your mind…"

Before he could answer, a girl with a glowing orange wig and lots of fluorescent body paint on came over to plant a kiss on his cheek.

She flashed him a huge grin. "Hey, handsome."

And then she disappeared into the crowd.

Lydia raised her eyebrow at him, wondering why he was staring after the girl like he just saw a ghost.

"Can you give me … one second… I'll be right back…" he said distractedly.

Lydia stayed where she was, her heart sinking as he chased down the girl who had just flirted with him. Was she an ex? Or was he literally leaving her to go get some other girl's number?

She sneakily slipped through some bodies, knowing it was stupid of her to eavesdrop but she needed to know who the girl was.

"Caitlin!" Stiles was shouting over the loud pumping music. "How are you?"

"Great!"

"I meant… since Emily…"

"Died?" she shouted back, clearly drunk, but her expression became mournful instantly. She shrugged. "I should've known, when you came to talk to me, that you already knew that she was gone."

Stiles looked sad by the fact, and Lydia moved away. She had a feeling she knew what had happened. Caitlin's girlfriend had been one of the sacrifices.

"I had hoped I was wrong. I had already lost somebody I cared about then, the same way."

She nodded. "So we should dance! Get drunk! It's fun!" she shouted, swinging her arms above her head.

"I would, honestly, but—"

"Oh come on, one dance!"

Reluctantly, he was wrapped up in her, and she danced outrageously to the beat. He couldn't help but smile a little and attempt to move with her.

"There you go!"

She was laughing, and then she was kissing him, and he could taste the luminescent paint on his lips.

Her hands gripped his hair, kissing him hard enough he stumbled a little, and he pulled them apart.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. Don't think I don't want to. I mean, I… you're amazing, okay? But I'm sort of… in love with somebody else." he admitted.

She pouted slightly but then shrugged, grin returning. "That's okay."

"I should actually really get back to her. I just wanted to make sure you were holding up okay."

"Just fine!" she shouted enthusiastically, nodding. "Oh, are those your keys?"

He looked on the ground to indeed see his keys sitting next to his sneaker.

He picked them up, squinting at the extra key he had noticed earlier. It had an imprinted fingerprint that illuminated in the lights.

"It's glowing. You must have had phosphors on your keys."

"How would that happen?"

She shrugged. "They're in your teeth, nails, laundry detergent. Or have you been handling any chemicals lately?"

"No, not at—"

He stopped suddenly.

Chemicals.

Chemistry closet.

"This should be locked."

"Oh my god." Stiles whispered. "I… I am so sorry, but I have to go. Right now. It's nothing against you, honestly, I just… I really have to go right now. Like, please don't think it's you."

"Okay?" she said slowly, looking confused but not upset.

"Okay. Okay, great. I'm glad you're doing well. Bye."

Stiles slipped through the bodies to get to the nearest exit. He couldn't see Lydia anywhere.

He sent her a quick text once he spotted her talking to Allison and Kira.

I've got to follow a hunch I just got. Be back in ten.

He sent the same thing to Scott before jumping in his jeep and driving to the high school, his keys jingling extra loudly as he went.


He had felt like he had been at the high school recently.

He had been having blackouts, periods of time where he had no memory of what he had done or where he had been.

He was the one that thought to check the chemistry closet in the first place. Was that really clever thinking or just his memory resurfacing?

Stiles headed inside the deserted school, pulling out the unfamiliar key and slipping it into the now-locked closet.

The resounding click signalling it opening echoed in the dark classroom, and Stiles swallowed as he entered.

So he had the key to the closet. What did that mean? Did he just unlock the door for whatever person was controlling Barrow? Were they controlling him too?

Stiles saw the instructions were still on the board.

But he looked at them more objectively now, the way the numbers were formed.

Swallowing, he stepped up with a piece of chalk in hand, writing out the numbers beside the others.

He stepped back to see it in full, and felt his heart stop completely.

The penmanship was almost identical. The way the curves of the numbers looped, the space between them.

It hadn't been someone just getting him to unlock the door. He was the one who wrote the instructions to kill Kira. He was the one responsible for the mass murderer coming to the high school and nearly killing one of his friends.

What the hell was happening to him?