"He following you around too?" Scott questioned me as he nodded his head to Derek's parked camaro on the other side of the school parking. I pulled off my helmet and climbed off my bike before looking over my shoulder at Derek. He had his shades on with his left arm hanging out the window. He smiled his crooked smile when he saw me looking at him and I turned my attention back to Scott.
"Yeah." I muttered, hanging my helmet on my handle bars. "He may be a Beta now, but he still has his cocky alpha attitude. He's not letting me out of his sight."
"Yeah, I know the feeling. I got the twins swarming me. Come on, let's go find Stiles so we can tell him about last night." I nodded in agreement in followed him up the school steps.
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"So then she starts talking about phosphors and the key having chemicals on it, right?" Stiles rambled as he led Scott and me into an empty chemistry room, closing the door behind us. "And so that made me think of the chemistry closet and the fact that someone had to let Barrow in. . ." Stiles turned to the chalkboard and stopped talking as he stared in confusion at the empty board. "It's gone." Scott and I exchanged worried glances for our best friend. "Okay, it doesn't matter though. It doesn't matter. I've still got the key." Stiles turned back around and pushed past us to the chemistry closet. He pulled off his car key chain and started flipping through the keys on it. After two rounds of looking them, he grabbed each key one by one and looked over them again slower this time. "What the hell? I had it. . . I had it here. I had it here this morning, I swear to God, I had it this morning." Scott and I looked at each other again.
"The key you were talking about last night?" Scott asked.
"Yeah, I showed it to you, right? Didn't I show it to you?"
"No, you just told me about it. I never actually saw it." Stiles started to breath heavily as he looked back at the chalkboard and walked back over to it.
"I was here a couple of hours ago. And the message left to Barrow spelling Kira's name was right there on the board in my handwriting and I had the key to the chemistry closet."
"So you unlocked the chemistry closet so Barrow could hide in it from the cops and then you wrote him a message to kill Kira?" I questioned him.
"I know how it sounds. . . but look at this." Stiles reached into his pocket and pulled out a newspaper clipping and handed it to Scott and me so we could read over it. "This is a news report that came out about Barrow when they caught him, okay? About the shrapnel bomb that he used. See this? See what he did? He put nuts, bolts and screws. And then he hid the bomb and the detonator in a box that he wrapped as a birthday present. What does that sound like to you?"
"Coach." Scott muttered after he thought about it for a minute. "The joke we played on Coach."
"That was my idea. You remember? That was my idea? That's no coincidence. It can't be." Scott opened his mouth to say something but he couldn't find the words.
"I don't want to sound like I'm trying to tell you that you're wrong." I said. "But I don't think you're trying to kill people either, Sty." Stiles crumbled the newspaper clipping in his fist and glared back at the chalkboard.
"It was here. It was all here."
"Dude, are you feeling okay?" Scott asked. "You're looking really tired."
"Yeah, I'm fine. I just haven't been sleeping really. . ."
"Sty, why don't you go home?" I suggested. "Take a sick day or something."
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After school, Scott and I jumped down the steps of the building and jogged to our bikes.
"You need to meet me and Kira at my house." Scott said. "Before the sun goes down. But first you need to get rid of Derek." I looked to the right to see Derek in the same spot as where he was this morning. I focused back on Scott.
"And you need to get rid of the twins." I said.
"Kira's taking care of that."
"Ok then. See you at the house." I jumped onto my bike and kick started it before pulling on my helmet and pulling out the parking out at top speed. I looked in my side mirror and saw Derek right behind me. I smirked and focused back on the road in front of me. I revved my engine before letting go of my throttle and shooting forward. I barely touched the brakes to turn left down a back road. An engine growled like a wolf behind me as the camaro tried to keep up with me. I looked to the right and saw an opening in the trees. I took a deep breath and yanked the bike to the right, jumping onto the dirt path, leaving Derek behind me.
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I pulled up to Scott's house at the same exact time of Scott and Kira. I got off and threw off my helmet before running up the steps to the house.
"Lock the door." Scott ordered me as I walked through the door behind Kira and him. I turned the lock and started going around and locking all of the windows.
"We're running out of time." Kira exhaled deeply.
"I know. But Allison, her dad and Isaac are working on something that could help."
"I don't want to sound pessimistic or anything, but you really think that's going to keep them out?"
"Actually, we have a kind of security system. Things happened a couple of weeks ago, a lot of things, and we had my boss help make a few changes to the house."
"Your boss? Do you work for a security company or something?"
"No, he's a veternerian."
"You had a vet put in your alarm?"
"Yeah, but I can't arm it. Only my mom can."
"Where's she?"
"Don't worry. She'll be here." A car approached the house and we heard a car door slam before hearing the back door. Kira and I followed Scott into the kitchen to see Scott's dad standing by the table with his laptop in his hands.
"Oh, come on." I whined. "What the hell? Can we have one day where we don't see your face?"
"What are you doing here?" Scott asked him. "And why do you still have a key?"
"Funny you mention keys." Raphael said. "Because while I have a key to this house, I'm not exactly sure how you got a key to my office." Raphael turned his coputer around and opened the lid of it to reveal a picture of Scott and Kira on his screen.
"Oh damn." I mumbled.
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"Let me help you out here." Raphael said. "This kind of thing usually begins with something along the lines of, 'It's not what you think.' Or, 'I can explain.'" I looked towards the window to see the sun getting lower and lower.
"Scott, you need to get him out of here." I whispered to him so low that only a werewolf could hear it.
"Dad, let me help you out." Scott said. "You need to leave."
"I will." Raphael said. "With a satisfactory explanation."
"Go get a warrant."
"I don't need a warrant. I'm your father."
"No, you're a gene donor. I got my hair color from you. And that's all I got. So you're not allowed to play tough dad with me." The door behind Raphael opened allowing Melissa to walk into the kitchen.
"Hey, what's going on?" Melissa asked as she looked in confusion from Raphael to her son and back again.
"Maybe one of you should explain." Raphael suggested. But it was too late. Darkness creeped through every inch of the house as the sun set and I looked around for any signs of danger.
"Scott. . ." I muttered.
"Who the hell is this?" I turned around to see one of the ninjas standing in the living room, black smoke fluttering off of him. Raphael started walking over to him and Scott tried to stop him.
"Dad, no!" Scott ordered but Raphael kept walking to him. "Dad, wait. . ." A ninja appeared out of no where behind Raphael and stabbed him in the back. Kira screamed as he felled to the ground. "Dad." I growled as a third one appeared. The front door opened and a loud familiar growl sounded. A shadow figure slid into the living room and for a second I thought it was another ninja but it was the eletric blue eyes that told me that it was Derek coming to protect his Alpha Female. "Mom, the ash!" I roared, flashing my canines as my eye sight turned blood red as I wolfed out. I charged at one of the ninjas and ducked under his swinging sword to come up behind him and kicking him in the back. A window shattered as the twins joined the fight. I grabbed my ninja by the back and threw him back out the window. Scott followed my lead and Derek pushed the last one out the door. "Mom, now! Do it now!" Melissa tossed something onto the doorway and a line of mountain ash surrounded the house. The ninjas stood outside the doors and windows just staring in at us. Kira slowly walked up to the screen door and reached out her hand to the barrier but pulled it back as the barrier gave off a eletric jolt to her. She back away slowly as the twins stared at her like she was some sort of prey.
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"Are all the baseboards ash wood?" Derek questioned Scott.
"Uh, yeah." Scott answered. "It was Deaton's idea." I shoved Scott out of the way and stood in front of Derek.
"And where the hell did you come from?" I snapped at Derek.
"I've been following your scent." Derek said as it was nothing.
"For how long?"
"All day. You really thought you lost me back in the woods? Come on, Lily, just because I'm not an Alpha anymore doesn't mean I don't know how to track someone down." Derek pushed past me into the living room as Melissa called to Scott.
"Scott, this isn't good!" Melissa yelled. Scott ran over to his mom and dad while I focused back on Aiden who was smirking at Kira.
"It's Kira, right?" Aiden questioned her. She nodded nervously. "You going to tell us what you are?"
"What?" She inquired. "What do you mean?" Aiden grabbed her by the wrist and began to drag her to the barrier.
"Aiden. . ." Ethan growled.
"Watch!" Aiden demanded. He placed her hand on the barrier to get the samer reaction as before. "See that? She can't go through it either. So, what are you?"
"She's a kitsune, idiot." Derek snapped behind us. "Use your eyes. You can see it all around her." I looked back at Kira and flashed my eyes to wolf sight to see a orange flaming barrier surrounding her. I looked closer at her. At the top of her head, an outlining of a fox's head was clearly shown. I followed the outlining of a fox's body down her to her feet to finish the outlining with three fox tails. I got rid of my wolf sight and turned my attention back to Derek who continued to explain. "The younger ones give off an aura. She just hasn't learned how to conceal it yet. She probably doesn't know what kind she is either." Scott came into the room after hearing the conversation and dragged Kira out of the room.
"I wasn't going to hurt her."
"Not yet."
"Why do you think we're here, Derek? For a study group? We're here to protect Scott."
"And I'm here to protect Calla."
"We're trying to fight for him." Ethan said.
"I'm sure you are. I'm sure you'd kill for him."
"But are you willing to die for him?" I finished Derek's thought. The house began to shake and I looked out one of the windows to see the ninjas banging against the mountain ash barrier with their swords.
"What are they doing?" Scott asked, coming back into the room with Kira right behind them.
"Testing for weaknesses." Ethan explained. Dishes began falling from the counters as the ninjas continued to hit the barrier. Two of them got smart enough to stab the barrier and started to created a hole in it. One of them stuck their hand in the hole and pushed with all his strength to get through. "Guys? We have a problem."
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"Allison, please tell me that you have something." Scott said hastily over the phone to her. "They're here. They're trying to get in. And it looks like they're gonna be able to do it."
"Okay, okay listen." I heard Allison say on the other line. "They're Japanese demons. They're called the oni. They're looking for someone possessed. Someone with a dark spirit attached to them."
"A nogitsune."
"How'd you know that? Scott?"
"Just. . . Tell me what else."
"Okay, they won't hurt you. They know you're supernatural but once they do this check, once they realize that you're not carrying with you this dark spirit, then they won't hurt you, I promise. All they're looking for is the nogitsune." Scott hung up.
"I'm right, aren't I?" Kira asked. "They're looking for me."
"They're looking for a dark spirit." Scott said. "And I know it's not you."
"Lily, we're going to have to do something." Derek said. Something shattered and I turned my attention back to the door and see the oni stepping through the barrier and into the house.
"Don't do anything." We all looked at him for an explanation.
"Is he serious?" Aiden questioned us. The oni snarled as they got closer and closer to us. I growled as three of them stood in front of us.
"I said don't do anything." I felt something touch my hand and I looked down to see Scott grabbing my hand. "Trust me." I could hear a whine building in Derek's chest as he dragged me away from his side and guided Kira and me to the front of the group and stood in front of the oni. The three oni stepped up to each one of us and grabbed the left side of our faces. As soon as I felt the hand on my, I felt like an eletric current was going through my body. It wasn't painful, but it was enough to paralyze me and squeeze every last breath out of my body. I stared into the oni's eyes as they glowed a bright neon yellow color. I can literally feel its stare piercing my soul. It felt like eternity until it let go of me, dropping me to the ground, no energy left in my body. I felt a hand on my side and then Derek's face appeared in my sight. My eyes drooped as I tried to look at him but I couldn't move.
"You're going to be okay." Derek whispered to me as he ran his hand through my hair. "You're going to be okay. I got you. I got you, Lily." He picked me up and held me close to his chest and that was the last thing I remembered that night.