Scott braced himself between the door to the loft and Peter and Malia when they move to bolt out of it. 

"Guys, wait." 

"For what? Kate's out there twisting her way into Derek's head, yet again. We need to find her." Peter says seriously, not a trace of smugness. 

Peter had his faults, but if he was willing to put aside his sadistic tendencies for a night to help us save Derek, then I didn't give a damn about his flaws. I was more than willing to fight beside him for Derek.

"All we need's a scent." Malia adds, unknowingly agreeing with her father. 

"That could take hours. If we want to get ahead of her, we need to figure out where she's going." Scott argues, still blocking their way.

"Not to underestimate my own cognitive faculties, but we're not exactly a brain trust of geniuses here." Peter holds his arms out to all of us, even himself.

I couldn't bother to argue. My own skills lay more in battle strategy and force rather than brainstorming. I could probably track Derek, but that would take time, and knowing Kate, she would do a good job of covering her tracks. She wouldn't leave anything behind for us to find. Beacon Hills wasn't too large of a town, but without any leads, we would be searching for days.

"Then maybe we should call one?" Scott suggests with a faint smile. He pulls out his phone, taps away on the screen, and eventually dials a particular number.

The line rings a few times but soon someone on the other end picks up. 

"You have no idea how perfect your timing is." Lydia's voice echoes through the empty loft from the speaker. She trembles as she speaks, making me uneasy. 

"What's wrong?" Scott asks, and Kira replies. 

"We came to a gas station to fill up Lydia's car, but it turns out she had a full tank and there was a very dead body in the bathroom. He's all over the walls and the ceiling. Kate has definitely been here." 

"What does it look like? Can you send pictures?" Scott asks them, earning low groans of disgust. 

"Uh, okay." Lydia clears her throat. 

There's some shuffling coming from her side of the call, followed by the artificial snap of a shutter. 

"To be honest, I have a perfect GPA in AP Biology and there are parts of the human anatomy I have never seen before on these walls." She mumbles. 

Scott's phone chimes a second later. He minimizes the call screen to pull up his messages from Lydia, tapping on the first image and scrolling through the rest.

Kira wasn't exaggerating when she said that the man's body was everywhere. The walls were covered with blood and chunks of meat, and the man himself was torn open on the bathroom floor. It was incredibly violent, and unmistakably Kate.

"Why would she want to kill a gas station attendant?" Malia shakes her head, not understanding the outburst we were looking at.

"I don't think she could help it. This was done in a frenzy, it's not murder. It's a symptom." Peter estimated, considering everything we've been piecing together since we arrived.

"A symptom of what?" Scott cringes at the image of a disemboweled man on his phone.

"A lack of control." I finish for Peter, earning a nod of his in my direction. 

"Derek said he's still having trouble on the moon, that he's still learning, so does Kate want to learn too?" Scott wonders. 

"No," Realization dawns on Peter's face. "She wants the Triskelion."

"Triskelion?" Scott echoes.

"It's something we use to help young wolves control the shift. If she's going for it, she'll make Derek take her to our family vault."

"Is that like at a bank or something?" Scott asks. 

Peter couldn't hold back the ice in his eyes when he looked at the boy he once wanted in his pack.

"No. It's under the high school. It was built there a long time ago before the land was taken by the town. There's an entrance on the surface and Derek knows exactly how to get in."

There were so many times Derek would suddenly appear on campus out of thin air and then be gone in a second. I always assumed he went to hide in a bathroom stall or maybe duck under the bleachers, but having a whole secret vault would make sense. The Hales had been in Beacon Hills for over a century, this was their home, so them having vaults around the area wasn't a surprise to me.

"We should go now, Scott. This feels like our best bet." I say to the Alpha, hoping he would allow us to leave. Each minute that passed where we weren't looking for Derek was starting to become a minute wasted.

Scott contemplates internally before speaking. 

"Lydia, can you call Stiles and let him know we're going to the school?"

"Yeah, yeah, just save Derek." Lydia commands tensely before hanging up.

Scott pockets his phone and with one last glance at the three of us, leaves the loft. We follow him, and Peter yanks the door shut as he exits. A loud clang sounds through the whole building from the force he used, but none of us flinch as we race back downstairs.

Scott and I climb back onto our bikes when we reach the front of the building, while Malia stands there debating what to do. She walked everywhere, having no idea how to operate a car. Running across town worked for her, since she always needed to let out her pent-up energy, but in moments like this where time was of the essence, it was poor planning. 

Peter moves to offer her a ride in his car, so I quickly squash his chances of having quality father-daughter time.

"Malia, you're with me."

She doesn't hesitate to slide onto the back of my back and wrap her arms around me. Peter sends a hateful leer my way, and I simply wink in return before putting my helmet on. 

The two of us take after Scott in the direction of the school, Peter not too far behind. 

Night had already fallen by the time we reached campus, the day fading away. 

Scott, Peter, and I all park haphazardly near the back of campus. The four of us race onto the grounds, passing through the entrance of the school's tunnel. I could remember the last time I was in this very spot, watching Aiden bleed to death in Ethan's arms. It was a cruel reminder of how tainted most places in this town were with death, even here on campus. All I do is hope that tonight, another body wouldn't be added to that list of memories.

We follow Peter closely, unsure of where exactly the vault was, but when we're halfway up the stairs to the courtyard, Malia abruptly stops. Her nose is raised as she sniffs the air rapidly, searching for something. 

"Did you catch a scent?" Scott asks, all of us turning to watch her.

"It's the same one. The same one as Mexico."

"What is she talking about?" Peter looks between Scott and I.

"We don't know what they are, but these things attacked us in Mexico." Scott tells Peter as the four of us search the area for anything out of place. I hadn't seen the creatures for myself, but with the way the others had described them, I was hoping I never would. 

"They couldn't have followed us here." Malia shakes her head in disbelief.

"But they could've been brought by Kate." Scott realizes, and once he's finished speaking, a chittering growl is carried to us by the wind.

Even I could pick up the scent of death Malia had described, my nose burning at the stench.

"Oh, I've heard that sound before." Peter says in a low and grim voice. 

"Did it have an animal skull? A human wearing a skull over its face?" He rushes out, his eyes filled with panic. That wasn't a look I liked on him. 

"I think so." Malia replies. 

"What are they?" Scott asks in a hushed voice. 

Before Peter can answer, heavy footsteps echo through the tunnel we had just passed through. We all turn to see the creature stepping out of the shadows. It appeared like a man, but I could tell it was anything but. It was large and intimidating. The skull of a bear was on its head, splattered with dried blood. It wore armor made from string and bones, and it was almost entirely covered. There was a large spike of bone on its right hand, one I'm sure would cause incredible damage with one swing.

As it draws closer, my hand goes to the back of my waistband, instinctively reaching for my gun. I found nothing there, as I had to leave my firearm at home due to it being a school day. I have to settle for grabbing a dagger from the interior lining of my jacket, secret pockets sewn into it to house my various blades. 

The urge to burst out laughing tempts me. I was not that proud of a person. I could admit when I was outmatched, and here, I barely stood a chance. 

"Berserkers." Peter breathes out. 

Malia growls and goes to charge at the creature. Peter was quicker than her and grabbed a hold of her arm to keep her back. 

"Are you crazy?" He sneers, only letting go when Malia jerks back from his touch.

"There's just one of them." Malia defends her actions and crouches, as if ready to lunge again.

The Berserker hadn't moved since it revealed itself. It stands in the tunnel, waiting for us to make the first move. It was an open challenge. It was forcing us to choose: fight or run. 

"And that means we have a chance." Peter gulps.

"To beat him?" Malia flashes her glowing blue eyes, ready to face the threat. 

"To survive." He corrects her. 

The sound of his fading footsteps makes me turn. I gape at Peter's retreating form as he sprints further into the school, my mouth hanging open in shock. I look at Scott, finding he wore the same expression.

"If he's running, I'm running."

I tug on Malia's sleeve, telling her not to attack, and thankfully, she listens. As the three of us take off running the Berserker jumps into action, snarling with booming steps as it attempts to catch us. 

Scott stays at my side, doing his best to not let my human abilities fail me. One misstep and I could accidentally trip, leading me to get crushed like roadkill by the Berserker. Malia guides us, not running in any particular direction. We cut around pillars and outdoor lunch tables, attempting to slow down the Berserker with obstacles. It works, as the creature eventually falls behind and disappears. 

Though, the lack of its presence doesn't last long.

"Malia!" I shout in warning as I spot an oversized figure in the distance through the darkness of night. She forces herself to stop and holds out her arms, catching Scott and I as we skid to a halt behind her. 

The Berserker had somehow rounded the campus and now stood directly in front of us. 

I clutch Malia's jacket as we begin to back away slowly, not wanting her to stumble. Scott tries to pull us into an adjacent hallway, but when another Berserker appears from around the corner to block it, our chances of escape drop exponentially. 

"It's both of them. They're both here." Malia trembles. It's rare for her to be so fearful. 

"Where the hell's Peter?" Scott's eyes dart around our immediate area, hoping the older wolf would show himself and come to our aid. 

Malia's eyes are trained on the Berserkers as they begin to climb the steps after us. They move slowly, creeping up on their prey. 

"I don't know. He just took off." She tells Scott. 

"It doesn't matter where he is, if we survive this, I'm killing him." I grit out angrily. 

Scott pushes me, urging me to run onto the next level of the building. I attempt to, but before I can reach even ground, one of the Berserkers scales the railing. It jumps over the metal bars without any effort and lands before me. Scott grips my arm and yanks me back, holding me up to save me from tumbling down the steps. 

I look between both entry points of the stairwell, finding we're closed in. 

"What do we do?" I pant, my eyes on Scott. 

He stares at me for a moment, weighing the only options we've been dealt. His eyes glow red soon after as he makes his decision. 

Fight.

He pushes me behind him and lets out a loud growl toward the Berserker at the bottom of the stairs before lunging at it. He draws out his claws and slashes at the creature's chest over and over again. Malia follows his lead and slices at the Berserker above us, but both supernaturals quickly come to find that Berserkers couldn't be taken down so easily. 

The one that Scott faces grabs his head and slams it into the concrete pillar beside them. Malia's Berserker tears its bone spike into her thigh, resulting in a deep gash. It uses her weakened state to pick her up and launch her into the lockers lined against the upstairs wall, and begins to inch closer to her. 

Malia helplessly attempts to crawl away, but her injury has drained her of strength.  

"Jac, no!" Scott yells as I move to help her. 

I ignore him and bolt up the stairs, the towering creature facing away from me. I use the horizontal metal bars of the railing as a leaping point, using it to gain some height and jump onto its back. It jerks from side to side, attempting to throw me off. I grip the eye socket of the bear's skull, preventing it from doing so, while also squeezing my thighs around its waist. 

Raising my dagger high into the air, I use as much force as possible to plunge it into the base of the creature's neck. I assumed that would make it spasm out of control and leave an opening for us to run, but it doesn't. 

This creature hadn't been alive for a long time. My dagger did nothing but annoy it. 

The Berserker reaches behind itself and clutches the end of my braid. I try to slide off of it as I realize what's about to happen, but it's too quick. It yanks me off of its body and slams me into the ground beside Malia. 

I cry out from the impact, barely registering Scott's panicked screams for me. Malia grabs my shoulder, pulling me closer to her as I curse my human body for not being able to regroup faster.

The Berserker looms above us. It reaches back and pulls my dagger from its neck before tossing it onto the ground, the blade clattering lamely. The other Berserker holds Scott over its head and throws him up the stairs, making him land beside us. It climbs the steps and stands beside its cruel companion, both of them staring down at us menacingly as they approach. 

The universe shows us a sliver of pity as Kira comes out from behind us. She wields her katana, confident determination on her heart-shaped face.

She takes on both Berserkers, her blade giving off sparks with the friction of each hit and the strength of her inner kitsune. The Berserkers fall back as she continues to swing at them. But then, Kira faces us with a smile, wrongfully assuming she subdued them. 

Unfortunately, she had just exposed herself.

"Kira!" Scott exclaims, pointing behind her. It was an effort to get her to turn in time, but it's too late. 

One of the Berserkers rips the katana out of her hands. The other backhands her and sends Kira stumbling, leaving her to fall next to Scott. She groans upon landing, looking up at us with a bloody lip, her skin tearing from the Berserker's armored hand.

The creatures begin to advance on us once more, but we're spared once again. 

Out of the shadows comes a lithe figure. 

He takes on both Berserkers at once without hesitation, nothing but his own hands being used as weapons. He was still young, but with the way he fights for us, Derek Hale soon becomes recognizable. 

Even with his lack of memories, it was hard-wired into his being to defend Scott.

He hits with raw strength, flipping and kicking with fine-tuned efficiency. It was hard to see his face in the shadows or understand why his silhouette began to grow in width and height. The Berserkers shove him into the wall but Derek bounces back instantly, not letting them keep him down for long. 

The creatures only ease up when a loud growl carries through the campus. Suddenly, they weren't interested in any of us anymore. They take off running into the night, returning to the one that sent them in the first place. 

Kate. 

My chest grows weak knowing she was so close and I had yet to see her.

Scott rises to his feet and Kira follows, both of them helping Malia and I to stand. 

"You okay?" Scott asks as I sway from side to side. I give him a stiff nod, pushing him toward Derek. I was the least of our worries right now. 

He approaches the other wolf, eyeing him warily. 

"Derek?" Scott squints, the shadows of the hallway obscuring Derek's face from us. 

The Hale steps forward, emerging from the darkness. Any pain or fear that had been festering within me fades at the sight of his face. Youth had abandoned him, and the Derek we had grown to know was finally returned to us. 

I breathed out in relief and a smile overtook my face. It slowly disappears when Derek doesn't smile back, and his eyes glow. The icy blue that had once existed there is gone, replaced with a bright gold. 

"Your eyes, they're yellow." Kira gasps, all of us staring in shock. 

Derek blinks, forcing the color to fade and return to his fully-human form. 

"I don't know what happened... I don't know what she did to me." He mutters in a low voice as he stares down at the ground beneath us. He didn't seem surprised by Kira's words so I had a feeling he could feel it; feel the absence of what made his eyes shine blue. 

"Scott!" Stiles yells, his voice echoing through the empty campus. 

"Scotty!" He repeats. Scott shakes his head, forcing himself out of his stunned trance at Derek's appearance. 

"Up here!" He shouts to his best friend. 

Scott and Lydia soon appear, both of them rushing up the stairs. Stiles has his metal bat posted in the air, ready to take on any threat. That would do nothing against a Berserker, but I respected his effort. He drops it when he spots Derek, a laidback smile brightening his previously worried features. 

"Welcome back, buddy." He claps Derek on the shoulder, completely unaware of what he's just stumbled into the middle of. After a beat, he finally takes note of our downcast expressions, and the heavy silence. 

"What'd I miss?" He asks. 

Scott looks at Derek, the older wolf not saying anything. It's clear this isn't the time to discuss what's happened. 

"We'll talk about it later, but right now, we need to leave. There's no telling if Kate's going to come back and we aren't prepared to fight her and those things. Trust me." Scott insists, tabling the topic of Derek's current state for another time. 

Lydia tilts her head toward Stiles, silently urging him to tell us something. 

"Did something happen?" Kira asks them, their unspoken conversation not subtle at all. 

Stiles nervously flexes his hands over and over again. "Peter tracked Kate down to the Hale vault. The two of them were going to fight but someone else showed up. Whoever they were, they robbed the place." 

"They took the bearer bonds in the safe, and Peter thinks whoever told Kate about the Triskelion only did it so they could steal the money. They used flashers and smokers to keep them blind so he didn't see who it was."

Derek's head shoots up. "All of the bonds?"

Stiles nods, and that only makes Derek more rigid. 

"How much was there?" Malia asks, voicing all of our own thoughts. Derek's reaction was too intense for it to be a minimal amount. 

"A hundred and seventeen." He replies softly, his eyes distant.  

"Thousand?" Scott's jaw went slack.

"Million." Stiles corrects him. By the way he says it, I can tell he's already had this conversation with Peter. 

We all exchange agitated looks at the mention of such a large sum of money. That was a life-changing amount, and anyone who had the guts to steal from Peter Hale was in for a world of hurt.

"We really should get out of there then," I say, grabbing my dagger off the ground to repocket it. I reach for Kira's discarded katana too, handing it back to her. 

"If someone was able to manipulate Kate of all people and steal with Peter right there..." I trail off, the others able to picture the possibilities of what we were up against themselves. 

As insufferable as Kate and Peter could be, they were also real threats that didn't go down easy. We didn't want to deal with them when they were pissed, or the person who had been able to subdue them. 

Lydia pushes past Stiles to reach Derek, laying a gentle hand on his arm. It was the same action she had done when his younger self lay on the examination table in the clinic. 

If I was happy to see Derek back to normal, I could only imagine how she felt. 

Derek, whose face has been painfully neutral this entire time, offers her a light smile. It's as though he can sense how worried she's been, or perhaps even remembers how she remained at his side since we recovered him in Mexico. 

"Kira and I will take you to the loft." She tells him. He doesn't argue, and allows the banshee to lead him to the stairs, Kira trailing behind them. 

"We'll talk tomorrow." Scott promises Derek. The older wolf gives him a grateful nod and allows it to pass to the rest of us before he begins to climb down the stairs. 

"And Derek," Scott calls out, making him pause. 

"Welcome home." He says gently. 

Derek gives him a subtle smile from his position on the stairs, and with another nod, continues on his way. He didn't need to say anything for us to understand how he felt. Derek was never Scott's Alpha, and they had their fair share of differences, but there was no denying that they were one of the same.

Both a part of one pack.

~

||| A/N |||

vote and/or comment if ya want!

PS - more Liam and Jac content coming :)