FORTY-THREE 

Lydia, Scott, Isaac, and I sit in the waiting room of the Sheriff station. I can't believe that my best friend is dead. It was silenced between the four of us. Everyone was in shock. Allison had died in Scott's arms, it's hit him pretty hard.

This is how our fake story is. This is what Chris told us to say to the police.

We called Chris first. There were two of them. They tried to steal our car. They wore masks. One of them had a knife.

If we get confused, we always repeat, it happened so fast.

"Can you remember anything else?" I was now sitting on the chair, being questioned by Parrish. "Stacey?"

"I'm sorry," I whisper, I felt sick to my stomach. "It just happened so fast." The sheriff had placed a hand on my back and rubbed it. My head was spinning, causing a headache.

✢

I sit next to Stiles on Kira's couch in her house. Our hands were laced together on his lap. Kira sat next to us. Mrs. Yukimura on the left.

"Here," Mrs. Yukimura offered. "It'll calm you."

"What is it?" Stiles asks, picking up the cup.

"Tea."

"What? Magic tea?" Stiles muttered.

"No, chamomile tea." Mrs. Yukimura corrected. "Drink it."

"He's not safe here." Mr. Yukimura walks in the lounge.

"He's not safe anywhere," Mrs. Yukimura said.

"But Allison killed one of them." Kira reminded us, and Stiles puts down the tea and he laced our fingers again. Ever since he found me, we've been basically been inseparable since. Attached to the hip, you could say. "Doesn't that mean something? She killed an Oni."

"Is that even possible?" Mr. Yukimura asked.

"I'm not sure how,"

"But she did it." Kira cuts her parents off. "She killed one of them."

"Yeah, and then they killed her," Stiles added. Stiles squeezed my hand. "Allison's dead. Now I guess the only good thing is it looks like I'm dying too."

It hurt my heart that I know he's slowly dying.

Mrs. Yukimura moves over to us. "He made a powerful move by splitting the two of you." I brought his hand to my lips and placed a soft kissed on it.

"So, what's our move?" Kira asked.

"At this point, you need a divine move," Mr. Yukimura spoke as I drop Stiles and I's laced hands on his thigh.

"What's that?" Stiles asked.

"In the game of Go, it's what we call a truly inspired, or out-of-the-box move." Mrs. Yukimura explains further. "The Nogitsune has had 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?" Stiles asked.

"Mum, you said you trapped it in a glass jar, right?" Kira asked.

"It wasn't the jar that trapped it." Mrs. Yukimura shakes her head. "It was where I buried it."

"The Nemeton." Stiles lowly said.

"A place I don't know too much about." Mrs. Yukimura spoke.

"Who does?"

Stiles and I looked at each other. "Deaton," we say in sync. "Deaton does."

✢

We entered the building of the animal clinic, I could hear Lydia's voice as Kira was supporting me and Stiles.

"Like we're running out of time," Lydia said.

"Yeah, we kind of got that feeling, too," Stiles said.

✢

We pull outside the school, and Stiles climbed out, I quickly followed him. I notice he leaned on the pole for support, and I quickly walked over to him. He put one arm around me, and I helped him.

Still using me as support, we were at the school entrance. "Scott, hold on," Stiles said, and I stopped as soon as he did. "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 it. Stick with the plan, okay?"

"The plan is to save you," I whisper. "That's the plan I'm going with." He looked down at me, and kissed the top of my forehead. Scott then pushed through the doors, and to our surprise, it was... snowing?

It look magical. Frosty doors, white powdered snow. It's snowing. We were in some sort of courtyard, I hear the door slowly creak shut. Stiles kept an arm around me, and I kept an arm around him. I laced my fingers with Stiles.

The doors shut, making us turn around. Stiles took a step forward with me. "Oh, this is definitely not part of the plan." Stiles muttered.

✢

I hold out a free hand, and I let the snowdrop onto my hand. This is unbelievable. Snow falls into my hair. My eyes was soon fixed on the limping Nogitsune. Who walked by, and slowly turned it's head towards us.

We were all alarmed now. Steadily, the Nogitsune walks forward. Kira had drawn out her sword, and I grabbed my blade, doing a few flips with it in my hand before gripping onto it.

"Like I promised, Stiles. We're going to kill all of them." The Nogitsune spits. Stiles had stepped in front of me. "One by one."

That's when an Oni had appeared and collides swords with Kira's. I step back. Two Oni was behind us, two were in front. I turned my head around, and watched an Oni drag the sword along the snow, walking towards us.

"What the hell is this? Where are we?" Scott asked.

"Between life and death." The Nogitsune hisses out. I cocked my head. Life and death?

"Bardo," I recall.

Stiles was close in front of me.

"But there are no peaceful deities here, Stacey," the Nogitsune leans forward. "Your dying, Stiles. And now everyone you care about is dying, too." The Nogitsune takes a step forward, and Stiles squeezed onto my hand.

"What? What do you mean?" Stiles asked in a whisper.

"I've captured almost all of the territories on the board, Stiles." The Nogitsune seethed. The Oni's had cornered us. "The Sheriff's station." I raised a hand and placed it on Stiles' shoulder. "And now, the animal clinic." My eyes widen, Deaton. "Do you know the ritual of seppuku, Stiles?"

The Nogitsune kept coming towards me and Stiles. "No, and I don't want to." Stiles had begun to slowly push us back.

"When a samurai disembowels himself with his own sword to maintain his honor," my hand grips onto Stiles' shirt. "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." The Nogitsune points a finger at Scott. "Scott... Scott is your kaishakunin," I'm basically hugging Stiles now, our arms wrapped around each other. "I'm going to make your best friend kill you, Stiles, and you're going to let him."

We were all close together now. "Because just like you, they're all going to die, everyone touched by an Oni's blade." The Nogitsune was right up close to us now. "Unless Scott kills you first."

The Nogitsune and Stiles were face to face. "Why? Why are you doing this?"

"To win the game," the Nogitsune growls out. That's when the Oni's draws out there sword, Scott had transformed, and Stiles gripped onto me. Kira got out her sword and I flip my blade around my fingers, and held it.

Grunts were heard all around as Kira and Scott fought the Oni's. Lydia, Stiles, and I were hiding behind a rock. Stiles and I ha dour arms around each other, Lydia stayed close to Stiles.

"How is this happening? How are we in this place?" Scott yelled out to Kira, as the Oni's had surrounded them.

"You're asking me? A month ago, I'd never even touched a sword." Kira said. They continued to fight, and my mind was racing on trying to find some answers.

"This can't be real," I whisper to Stiles.

"Yeah, tell that to them." Stiles muttered. The continue to fight, Kira had lost her sword. A sword was pointed at Kira by the Oni. Two Oni's, actually. Everything felt like slow motion. Stiles had crawled towards the sword, and I quickly followed him.

"Wait! What are you doing?" I cry out to Stiles as he had put the sword to his stomach, my eyes were wide. "Stiles, no!"

"Stiles." Scott said.

"What if it saves you? What if it saves all of you?" Stiles shakily asked as he holds the sword to his stomach.

"What if it's just another trick?" I quickly ask, gulping thickly.

"No more tricks, Stacey," the Nogitsune hissed. "End it, Scott. Let your friend fall on his own sword, do for him what he cannot do for himself," I pressed my lips together, as I felt some liquid substance on my cheek. Tears. "Do it, Scott. Be his kaishakunin. Give up the game," I close my eyes, waiting for the sound of gasping from Stiles. "You have no moves left." The Nogitsune continues. I open my eyes and saw that Stiles had held the sword in his hands now.

"I do." Stiles said. Stiles then chucked the sword over to Kira. "A divine move." The Nogitsune snarls, and Lydia had rushed to my side. I had rushed to Stiles' side, gripping onto him. He puts an arm around me, as my hand snaked it's way around his neck. "Stop fighting them! It's an illusion. You have to stop fighting them. It looks real and feels real, but Scott you gotta trust me, it's an illusion."

Scott had slowly turned around to the Nogitsune. Two Oni's were at the back and two Oni's were at the front, protecting the Nogitsune. Scott had stepped forward, and I cringed as once had sliced him with a sword. Scott groaned, but stood back up.

That's when Lydia was sliced in the back, and Kira was too. They both scream, panting as they walked down the isle. Stiles and I both looked at each other. The Oni's continued to slice them, on the leg, on the arm, anywhere they had cut them. That's when Scott had reached the Nogitsune, and yelled, pushing the Nogitsune back out of the doors.

And suddenly, we were in the hallways of our school again. I clutch onto Stiles' arm, gasping. We were in the school. Holy shit, we are in the school! I look at Kira, Scott, and Lydia, their cuts were gone. Stiles and I were still hugging each other.

"We're okay," Scott slowly said. "We're..." Scott was suddenly pushed back into a locker, making me widen my eyes. I turn around with Stiles, there was Void Stiles. Void Stiles had knocked out Lydia, too, pushing her back into the locker.

Kira had drawn out her sword but was knocked out. I grip onto Stiles' t-shirt and we stepped back. "This was my game." Void Stiles growled out. Void Stiles looked at us. "You think you can beat me at my game?" Void Stiles had moved towards us. "Divine move." Stiles and I walked back down the hallway. "Divine move. You think you have any divine moves at all?"

Stiles had an arm around me, pulling me back with him. "You can kill an Oni." Void Stiles seethed, stepping up his pace which made us step up our pace. "But me? Me? I'm a thousand year's old. You can't kill me!"

"But we can change you." I blurt out, and we stopped walking.

"What?" Void Stiles tilts his head toward me.

"You forgot about the scroll." Stiles said. Okay, I have to admit, it's weird seeing two Stiles.

"The Shugendo scroll." I almost grinned because I had said it right.

"Change the host." Void Stiles whispered out, he looked scared now.

"You can't be a fox and a wolf." Stiles lowly said and I smirked. I watch as my brother had put his claws onto Void Stiles' arm, and had sunk his fangs into Void Stiles' arm. Void Stiles screamed. And that's when Scott had let Void Stile go, and with that, Kira had put a threw her sword into Void Stiles' stomach.

I watch Lydia rub her arms as she entered the scene. I hear the sound of thunder, and the lights flicker above us. Kira pulled out her sword, gasping.

Void Stiles had collapsed onto his knees, and that's when I saw a fly come out of his mouth. I watch it fly out towards Isaac, who had captured it in a jar. Isaac's alive. He's well.

I watch as Void Stiles crack, and he had collapsed to the ground, into dust and he just... vanished. It was quiet, and then, Stiles had collapsed, too. The real one. I gasp. I had rushed to his side.

✢

I watch as Stiles' eyes flutter open after a few minutes later. We were all around him, Isaac pacing around. I had put my hand on his thigh. "Oh, god, I fainted, didn't I?" Stiles asked, making me smile. Everyone laughed nervously. "We're alive. We all alive?"

"Yeah. We're okay," I whisper. Stiles sighed, and laced our fingers together. Lydia had slowly stood up and frowned. Lydia had ran out of the hallways, and I followed.

I ran after my strawberry blonde best friend, and watched her stand at the steps. I felt someone run after me, it was Stiles. I stand beside Lydia, who had turned to me, and hugged me. And from far from what I can see, was Aiden lying dead, on the ground.

Lydia started to cry in my arms, and I wrapped my arms tightly around her.

Allison. Now Aiden.