(Double update because happy early Thanksgiving! And I didn't want to leave it on that sad note :') )
...
Chris helped coach Scott, Isaac and Lydia on what to tell the officers when they called them. Noshiko and Kira brought Y/n and Stiles back to their home. Everyone was still shell-shocked from the nights events. Y/n kept her hands clenched, trying not to look at the darkening stains on them. "Is there somewhere I can..." Y/n started but trailed off, her voice failing her. Noshiko glanced down at the girl's hands, seeing them slightly tremble, and she understood what she was asking for and nodded.
"Of course. Follow me." Noshiko led her to a bathroom, leaving her after Y/n gave a quiet thank you.
Y/n stared down into the prestine sink for a minute before she finally turned on the water. She inhaled sharply at the cold liquid when she stuck her hands under the stream, yet didn't bother warming it as she slowly started to rub her hands together. She had to look at her hands to make sure they were getting clean, but she didn't want to see the blood. Allison's blood. As the memories replayed in her mind her vision clouded with tears once again.
If she had been a little stronger. If she had been a little faster. If she had stayed back to fight the oni. If she had listened to Lydia's message.
Maybe Allison would still be alive.
She braces her hands on the counter and squeezes her eyes shut, trying to stop the rush of thoughts. She's been down this road before. When her mom died she blamed herself for not being able to do anything to help her, for being the reason she stayed behind while Y/n ran. Of course she knows now there was nothing she could have done. She was a child, barely learning to develop her gifts. And her rational mind tells her there was nothing she could have done to help Allison. The oni are a force of nature. Sometimes you survive, sometimes you don't. She just wishes she could have helped Allison survive this storm.
She takes a deep breath to calm herself before she dries her hands and face. When she made her way to the living room she sat beside Stiles on the couch with Kira on his other side. Noshiko walked in holding a tray topped with a tea pot and some cups. She sets it down on the coffee table and takes a seat on the chair near Y/n. Noshiko pours some of the liquid into two cups and hold them out for the couple. "Here, it'll help calm you."
"What is it?" Stiles wonders as he grabs a cup.
"Tea."
"What? Like magic tea?"
"It's chamomile." Y/n says, having taken her own cup and smelled the brew.
Noshiko nods in affirmation with a smile. "Drink it."
"Thank you." Y/n manages a small smile and Noshiko nods again.
Ken stands in front of the four and looks at his wife. "He's not safe here."
"He's not safe anywhere." Noshiko notes.
"But Allison killed one of them." Kira reminded. "Doesn't that mean something? She killed an oni."
"Is that even possible?" Ken asks Noshiko.
"I'm not sure how."
"Even spirits have a weakness." Y/n says. "Some are easy to reduce to almost nothing, others are nearly impossible."
"But she did it." Kira repeated. "She killed one of them."
"Yeah, and then they killed her." Stiles' words made everyone quiet. "Allison's dead. Now I guess the only good thing is it looks like I'm dying, too."
Y/n looked at him with hurt in her eyes. "You think that's a good thing? You think you dying is good?" All he could do was frown at her. Her lips pressed into a thin line as she looked away, trying to stop her eyes from watering yet again.
Noshiko looks at Y/n in sympathy, being able to imagine how much that thought hurt the young witch. Stiles gives Noshiko a caustious look when she leans a little more towards him in her seat. "He made a powerful move by splitting the two of you."
"So what's our move?" Kira asked.
"At this point, you need a divine move." Ken instructs Stiles.
"What's that?" He wonders, Noshiko helping with the answer.
"In the game of Go, it's what we call a truly inspired, or out-of-the-box move. The nogitsune has had a sente, the advantage, until this point. What you need is a divine move in order to turn the game around."
"Okay, so is anyone feeling divinely inspired?"
"Mom, you said you trapped it in a glass jar, right?" Kira asked.
"It wasn't the jar that trapped it. It was where I buried it."
"The Nemeton." Y/n realized.
"A place I don't know too much about."
"I know someone who does. Alan." Y/n had stepped out of the room and called Scott to tell him what they figured out, telling him that they would meet them there in a bit. When she went back to the living room she found it empty besides her and Stiles. He looked up at her when she came in and it upset him to see her hesitate a bit. He didn't mean to hurt her with what he said. It was how he felt, but he forgot for a moment that that wasn't how she felt as well. She gripped her phone and he could see she was debating something. She seemed to come to a decision quickly as she opened her mouth to speak. "You once told me that if I died, that you'd go out of your mind. That death didn't happen to me, it happened to everyone I leave behind as they try to figure out how to live without me. But what about me? What am I going to do without you in my life? I literally cannot imagine me in a world without you in it, a world where you died and didn't care if you did. I wouldn't be able to live with myself then." His vision blurred slightly as his gaze flicked between her and his folded hands. "Do you get it now? How you felt then, what you said, that's how I'm feeling now."
"I'm sorry." His voice came out quietly, but she heard him perfectly.
"I don't want you to be sorry. I want you to care about your life." She walked over and sat by him, taking one of his hands in hers. "I know the guilt you're carrying. I can feel it. But what he did, what the nogitsune did to everyone, was not your fault. You may remember every moment, some small part of you may have even liked what happened, but that isn't who you really are. I remember everything I did, too. I remember liking it as well, but I know none of that was really me. Not truly. But that doesn't mean I don't have guilt of my own. I have things I need to make up for, just like you. We can do that together, but you have to be here to do that. Nothing will be resolved if you give up. Don't give up on me. Don't give up on us." Her voice took on an almost pleading tone and even without a glance at her own teary eyes he was nodding.
"Okay." She smiled at him before she pulled him into her arms, his own wrapping around her and holding on as if she was everything holding him to the world, and right now she was.
...
Scott and Lydia had gone to the animal clinic to talk to Alan, telling him about how the Nemeton is what kept the nogitsune trapped all those years. Alan says that the problem isn't even a person they're fighting, it just looks like one. He says that it's a spirit that has taken the shape of a human. Scott says that it's the shape of his best friend. Lydia mentions that someone caught it once meaning that someone could catch it again. Alan doesn't know. The nogitsune was trapped a long time ago before the Nemeton was cut down, it doesn't have the same power anymore. Scott wonders if there's anything that does. Alan says it's possible, that when the tree was whole it's wood was used sometimes to contain powerful objects, but he says those are very rare. Lydia thinks of something, and asks if a powerful object could mean an Alpha's claws. Alan asks which one and she tells him they were Talia Hale's and that Peter had them in a wooden box with a triskele carved in the lid. Lydia wonders if it was made from the Nemeton. Alan confrims it was, and when they ask how he knows, he reveals that he was the one who made it. Scott calls Derek, and the Hale confirms he has it and that he would meet up with them. Lydia's eyes suddenly roll as her head becomes light and she almost falls over, Scott steadying her. Alan asked what was wrong and Lydia said something was happening, that she had the sudden rushing feeling that they were running out of time. Supported by Y/n and Kira, Stiles agrees from the doorway, saying he had the same feeling.
Y/n drove the five of them to the school, quickly hopping out to help support Stiles as they made their way to the front doors. "Scott, hold on." Stiles calls before the Alpha could open the double doors. "I know what you're all thinking. If this works, it might kill me, too. But even if it does, you have to go through with it. Stick with the plan, okay?" Stiles glanced at Y/n when he saw her look at him. He's not going back on what he told Y/n earlier, he just wants to make sure that Void goes down, no matter what happens.
"The plan is to save you." Scott responds. "That's the plan I'm going with." Scott turns and opens the doors, but instead of the dark, empty halls of Beason Hills High School, they find themselves in a snow-covered Japanese garden. When they walk towards the middle the doors close behind them, barring their exit.
"Well, this is definitely not part of the plan."
Snow began to fall and Kira held out her hand to catch one of the large flakes of ice. The crunch of footsteps alerted everyone to the nogitsune, bandaged and silver-fanged, lurching into view in front of the doors. Kira took out her katana and Y/n let Lydia take Stiles as she stood in front of them defensively. "Like I promised, Stiles. We're going to kill all of them." He claimed, raising a hand in the air and clenching it. "One. By. One." An oni materialised and Kira swiftly blocked the swing of it's sword. The other four surrounded them as they got closer together.
"What the hell is this? Where are we?" Scott asked.
"Between life and death."
"Bardo."
"But there are no peaceful deities here, Lydia." Something about that didn't sit right with Y/n. It's not easy moving between different plains of existence, much less five consciousnesses no matter how powerful you are. "You're dying, Stiles. And now everyone you care about is dying, too."
"What? What do you mean?"
"I've captured almost all of the territories on the board, Stiles. The hospital. The Sheriff's station. And now the animal clinic." He snatched at the air like he was claiming a prize. Stiles looked at y/n when the animal clinic was mentioned. From behind he could see her shoulders tense and he knew she was scared and worried for her guardian. "Do you know the ritual of seppuku, Stiles?"
"No, and I don't want to."
"When a samurai disembowels himself with his own sword to maintain his honor, but that's not the cut that kills him. The killing stroke is made by his kaishakunin, who beheads the samurai with his own katana. Scott..." He points to the wolf. "Scott is your kaishakunin. I'm going to make your best friend kill you, Stiles. And you're going to let him. Because just like you, they're all going to die. Everyone touched by an oni's blade. Unless Scott kills you first."
"Why? Why are you doing this?"
"To win the game." The oni draw their weapons. Lydia holds onto Stiles while the other three get ready to fight.
"Lydia, Stiles, get back." Y/n says just a the spirits advance and the battle begins. Kira clashes swords, Scott shifts and swipes with his claws, and Y/n uses her defensive magic. There are grunts of effort as they defend themeselves, managing to end up back to back for a moment.
"How is this happening? How are we in this place?" Scott asks.
"You're asking me?" Kira asks bewildered. "A month ago, I'd never even touched a sword."
"How isn't important right now. Surviving is." Y/n said as she ran forward again, lifting her hand and manipulating the snow into a spike of ice that she threw at an oni. She still has doubts that this is actually real, but on the off chance it is, she's going to fight like hell.
Grunts of effort fill the air as Stiles and Lydia watch from their spot crouched and out of the way. "This can't be real." Lydia says.
"Yeah, tell that to them." He responds.
While Y/n and Scott fought two oni each, Kira was faced with the one left, and they locked blades. She pushed as hard as she could, but the oni was stronger as the blades slid against one another and the oni disarmed her, making her katana fall to the side. She stared at it as it pointed the sword at her. Stiles looked between Y/n, Scott and Kira before his eyes flitted to the fallen sword. The oni got the upper hand, grabbing the wolf and witch and leaving them immobile. He didn't want anyone else to die because of him, especially not Y/n or Scott. He scrambled for the weapon and stood up, facing the blade towards himself. If he can end this, he'd happily give his life for it.
"What the hell are you doing?" Y/n yelled out when she saw him, Scott looking at her and then to his friend.
"Stiles, no!" He yelled out.
Y/n stumbled forward when the oni let her and Scott go, the tables seemingly turned in the nogitsune's favor. "Put the sword down." She asks with a hand stretched pleadingly towards him. She's terrified. She's aware that this place could be another trick, and that Stiles is being swayed yet again.
"What if it saves you? What if it saves all of you?"
"What if it's another trick?"
"No more tricks, Y/n. Let him go. End it, Scott. Let your friend fall on his own sword. Do for him what he cannot do for himself. Do it, Scott. Be his kaishakunin. Give up the game." Stiles takes sharp breaths as he steels himself for what he's about to do, but his eyes widen as he looks into the reflective surface of the sword. He looks behind him and sees a text book on the ground, slightly obscured by snow and just beyond that, hidden behind a large rock, is a school desk. "You have no moves left." Stiles lowers the sword, his mind racing. Y/n's lips twitch into a smile of relief. She recognizes that look in his eyes. He's figured something out, something important.
"I do." He tosses the sword back to Kira, who catches it, before he looks steadily at the nogitsune. "A divine move." The nogitsune snarls. Stiles holds a hand out to Y/n and she readily moves to him, slipping an arm around his waist to help hold him. He puts his arm over her shoulders as he looks at her and the others. "Stop fighting them. It's an illusion. You have to stop fighting them. It looks real and it feels real, but Scott, you gotta trust me, it's an illusion."
Scott turns to look at the nogitsune and the oni, who have formed two lines straight to the spirit. He trusts Stiles, so he walks forward and the oni start cutting into him. Kira follows, then Lydia, Y/n and Stiles. Each one being sliced repeatedly by the demons as they walk by. Scott pushes ahead and stands firm in front of the nogitsune before grabbing him by the jacket and running him through the doors. The five stumble through the doors of the school like they had been doing in the first place, completely unscathed.
"We're okay." Scott says, relieved that it indeed was an illusion after all. "We're-" A body comes and throws him into a wall. Kira turns to see Void smirk at her, catching her hands and throwing her down as well. He roughly shoves Lydia into the lockers and she falls to the ground.
"This was my game." He looks at Stiles and Y/n. "You think you can beat me at my game?" He lightly shakes his head as he moves to the middle of the hall. "Divine move. Divine move?" He starts advancing at them hastily as they back up just as fast. Y/n has to hold onto Stiles to keep him from falling, she can't do anything to keep Void away. "You think you have any moves at all? You can kill the oni. But me? Me? I'm a thousand years old! YOU CAN'T KILL ME!"
"We can change you." Y/n's words made him pause and he gave her an intense look.
"What?"
"You forgot about the scroll." Stiles claims.
"The Shugendo scroll." Y/n adds.
Void's eyes flash with fear as he realises what they're talking about. "Change the host."
"You can't be a fox and a wolf." Stiles says.
Scott comes up behind Void, grabs onto his shoulder and wrist with his claws, and bites down onto his arm. Void screams in agony, the sounds only stopping when Scott lets go, making room for Kira to drive her sword into his back. She pulls it out and he falls to his knees, his mouth stretching open to let the possessing fly escape into the air. It buzzes down the hall only to be caught in the triskele box wielded by Isaac who shuts it firmly. Void's body convulses as it losses life and power, skin turning ashen. The body falls to the ground and devolves into smokey shadow, dissipating into nothing.
Stiles' eyes suddenly roll and his knees buckle. Y/n manages to hold onto him and lower him to the ground gently. "What's wrong? Is he okay?" Scott asks worried.
Y/n checks him with her magic and after a moment gives a light smile. "He's fine. The fatigue just caught up with him for a moment is all." Y/n adjusts so his head is on her lap, and after only a few minutes his eyes flutter open again.
When he sees Y/n's amused smile, similar ones on his other friend's faces, he comes to a terrible conclussion. "Oh, God, I fainted, didn't I?"
"Yeah." Y/n confirms with a laugh.
"We're alive. We all alive?"
Scott gives a small nod. "Yeah. We're okay." Lydia suddenly looks down the hall with furrowed brows. Everyone looks at her when she stands.
"Lydia?" Y/n called.
"Aiden." Was all she said before she started down the hall. Scott helped Stiles up while Y/n ran after her. Y/n caught up with her just as Lydia turned into her and hid her face in her shoulder. Y/n instinctively held Lydia close as she looked down the way to see Ethan crying over Aiden on the ground, Derek and Chris with their heads down.
...
"I wish I could say something to him. I wish I could say something to all of them." Kira says to Lydia as they stand by the red-head's locker. Lydia doesn't respond, not really having the energy to try and comfort Kira. "But I don't know how much space or how much time I'm supposed to give them. And I know I'm still just the new girl at school."
Lydia's eyes are drawn down the hall to Coach as he leads Malia in a tour of the school. "Not for long." Lydia says.
"You ever run track?" Coach asks Malia. "I mean, you have excellent muscle definition."
"I sometimes ran from cougars trying to eat me." Malia responded.
"I've had the same problem. So, listen, we're gonna start off slow. You know, a few classes here and there." Lydia and Malia share a smile as the two pass the girls. "Don't worry. You'll learn fast."
"I intend to." One of the things she intends to learn quickly is her shifting. Stiles reintroduced her to Scott and Y/n explaining that they could help her. The wolf and the coyote stand infront of each other in his room while Stiles and Y/n sit next to each other on the bed. Scott swings his arm down, making his claws come out. Malia copies the action, but hers stay the same. She tries again yielding the same result.
"It's okay." Scott assures. "Don't think about it too much. Just try to let it happen."
"It's almost like an instinct." Y/n adds. "Like when you catch a scent and you follow it."
Malia gives a tiny nod as she closes her eyes and tries again, this time successfully making her claws come out. She turns to the other two excitedly. "Ah, wow!" Stiles exclaims as she almost claws his face, but Y/n caught her wrist in time.
"Oh, I am so sorry." She can't hold back the smile though as she looks at her hand happily.
"You did great, Malia!" Y/n says with a smile, Malia's own getting a little wider at the witch's praise.
Things were finally looking brighter after being so long in the dark. Although there is still a lot of things they have to work through, the physical wounds having healed, but the emotional scars still needing time.
The ones fallen will not be forgotten, and the ones still around will be cherished.
~~~
Published: 11/24/21
Edited: 4/12/22
3b is finished! I can't believe it! I was literally anticipating this season since I started writing this book and it feels nice to finally be done with it âºï¸ but now there's so much other stuff I'm anticipating as the story continues ð
What did you guys think? What are you looking forward to in the coming seasons? What do you think will happen? I love hearing your theories and thoughts ð¥°
But for now, I hope you have a great holiday and I'll see you later! Bye ððð¤