Chapter 26: Answers ✔

Chapter 26

"How much longer?"

"Still thirty minutes," Allison replies keeping her eyes fixed to the road. I rub my hands along my thighs as I turn my attention back to the road.

"Is he really that bad of a person?" I ask after a while. "I mean everyone says that he's bad news but is he really?"

"He is... trust me." Allison glances at me while keeping her hands on the wheel. "He did some really bad things." She gives a little laugh. "He actually tried to kill your brother."

"Really?" That I didn't know. "When was this?"

"Last year. He tried to become a werewolf because he was dying." She runs a hand through her hair. "But not just any werewolf. He wanted to be an Alpha."

"He sounds like a power-hungry narcissist." I smile before realization floods me. "No offense, of course."

"No, you're right. He didn't care about any of us." Her heart begins to beat faster, causing me to furrow my brows.

"What did he do?"

"He tried to become an Alpha. I just told-"

"That's not what I meant." I cut her off. "What did he do to you?" I turn my gaze to her, to see her grip tighten on the steering wheel. "You don't have to tell me. I'm sorry for asking that was stupid." I quickly ramble, shaking my head.

"No, no it's okay. I just..." She trails off and it goes quiet for a moment before she continues. "He used me. He made me become a monster like him." I turn my head to look at her.

Allison? A monster?

"After my mother died, I was angry. Angry at Derek, angry at everything really." I stiffen in my seat, remembering Derek telling me that he bit Allison's mother which resulted in her following the hunter's code and killing herself. This must be what Allison felt like hearing that her aunt murdered my family. "He was there for me. He trained me." She takes a deep breath in. "I thought we wanted the same thing... Derek dead-" She suddenly stops, glancing at me. "Sorry."

"It's okay. I understand." When you are so angry, you can't see or think straight. That's probably why they say 'anger blinds you'. "You still don't wanna kill him right?" I ask half-joking, but I actually am curious about what she would say.

"No. You see I didn't know that my mom tried to kill Scott and Derek was just protecting him. Or I just didn't care then." She pauses while she takes a turn. "I turned into the bad guy. So I know what it feels like." She glances at me. "That's why I know you're not a monster. Cause if you are then I'm definitely one too. I didn't care about who I hurt as long as I could get to Derek. Afterward, I couldn't believe what I did, what he made me become, that I had to end things with Scott."

A small part of me hates hearing about how Scott and Allison were together. After all, she was his first love. Something I can never be as much as I try.

"Uhh... how are things with you and Scott?" She asks, awkwardly, when I don't say anything.

"It's... good, but we don't have to talk about that. I know you two were-"

"No, it's okay." She quickly interjects. "I broke up with him and besides I'm with Isaac now."

"Oh, so it's official now?" I smile at her.

"Well, kinda." She admits and I see a small blush appearing on her pale cheeks.

"I'm happy for you," I admit honestly. Allison deserves to be happy. She always thinks about other people so much that she forgets to think about her own happiness.

My phone beeps in my hand and I look down to see Scott's name appear.

The Nogitsune is back and it went after Kira's dad. Are you okay?

I feel the familiar feeling in my stomach as I send a reply back.

He's with Kira?

"Who was that?" Allison asks.

"Scott. The Nogistune is back." I say clearing my throat. "Allison... can I ask you a question?"

"Sure... what's wrong?"

"Did... did you ever feel jealous when you were with Scott?"

"What do you mean jealous? Like of other people?"

"Of other girls...and Scott."

"Ah, you mean Scott and Kira?" She asks in realization. When I don't say anything she continues. "You don't have to be jealous of them together. If there's one thing I learned it's that Scott is the most loyal guy out there. He'll never cheat on you. And as for Kira." She glances at me. "She just wants some friends. She doesn't seem like the type of girl to steal another's boyfriend."

"I know, she's really sweet, and Scott's...Scott." I run a hand through my hair. "But I still can't help this feeling."

"You sound just like me. Well...kinda." She laughs a bit before continuing. "Last year, when Scott and I were still together. Erica had her eyes on him. I don't think she really liked him, she just liked the power. But even though I knew Scott would never cheat on me, I still felt self-conscious." She suddenly parks the car and looks at me. "So don't worry too much. Right now Scott only has eyes for you."

I smile but I don't really believe that. I've seen the way he looks at Allison. At the back of my mind, I know he'll never love me as much as he loves her.

Love?

"You know. I'm beginning to think, we aren't that different." Allison smiles over at me.

"No, we aren't." I smile back. "Are you sure you're an Argent and not my long-lost sister?"

"Pretty sure." She laughs before getting out of the car. "You coming?" I don't reply as a sudden thought crosses my mind.

What if the only reason Scott likes me is that I'm apparently similar to Allison. That can't be, we aren't that similar after all, and Scott wouldn't like me because I remind him of his ex.

I shake my head and laugh off the thought. "Coming."

"Gerard."

"Don't be so formal Allison, I'm still your grandfather." His cold eyes turn from her to me. "Ah Miss Hale. The pleasure is all mine."

I sit down on one of the chairs in front of him, Allison in the other. Black goo is stained on his lips. He's definitely in pain, the room reeks of it, but then again the room is scattered with tissues filled with the dark goo so my smell is not the greatest.

"Never judge a book by its cover." He says, watching as I look around the room.

"No, but you can from its reviews. And from what I've heard, you don't have very good reviews."

"I see my reputation proceeds me." He says with a chuckle. "So go ahead, ask the question you're dying to ask and I'll tell you all about Ōkamis."

"How did you know?" I ask stiffening.

"When I heard there was an Ōkami in Beacon Hills, I thought it couldn't be true. There hasn't been one spotted in decades." He wipes his nose again as more black goo leaks out. "Of course, you were very young when rumors spread in the hunting world, but I knew I wanted to meet you. Of course, no one knew it was you...except for me."

"You knew me since I was young," I say, feeling a chill creep up my spine.

"Knew of you. I didn't personally get to meet you until now. But I've always wanted to meet an Ōkami. The untapped power they possess is like no other." He looks longingly into the distance.

"You said a lot of people knew about me. How many?"

"It was quite the topic among Werewolves and Hunters alike. If I remember correctly Deucalion had asked Talia whether it was you."

I stiffen, "Deucalion knew I was an Ōkami?"

"He probably figured it out. Talia wouldn't have told him and Dr. Deaton wouldn't betray-"

"Deaton?" My stomach twists. "He knows?"

"Of course, he knows. He was the emissary to your family, after all."

Deaton knew all this time... why didn't he tell me? Why did he say I was possessed?

I take a deep breath. "What else?" I ask moving forward in my seat.

"That's not how we do things here." He suddenly rolls up the sleeve of his shirt.

"You want me to take your pain away," I ask incredulously. "Not happening." I get up.

"Fine. Don't learn about what you are and what you can do. Watch as you hurt the ones you love over and over again." I stop in my place. "And don't think you won't hurt them again because you will."

"Can you help me protect them?" I ask, turning around to face him.

"I can tell you everything you need to know."

I take a deep breath as I walk towards him and place my hand on his arm. Sharp pain suddenly takes over my hand and up my arm as my veins begin to turn black. It feel as if I'm taking the black goo from him through my veins. I let out a gasp as it spreads throughout my body making it feel like it's on fire.

"That's enough," Allison speaks up, grabbing my hand away from him. I sit back down as the pain slowly recedes.

"I've almost forgotten what it's like to have no pain." He says, rolling his sleeve down.

"Talk," I cross my arms over my chest.

"Definitely a Hale." He scoffs.

"I don't like people who use my friends"

He glances at Allison who is sitting next to me before starting. "To understand more about Ōkamis you need to understand where they came from. An Ōkami is a sub-species of Werewolf, the first of which appeared here in Northern America during the time of the Native Americans. They were first discovered by Japanese hunters and called: Ōkami. Japanese for wolf."

"But you see, the reason why Ōkamis are so rare is because of how they came about. It is not spread by a bite, like some disease. But rather it's passed down. It's a mutation." He pauses to wipe some goo from his mouth. "A mutation that is very rare, quite impactful but often unnoticed. It occurs on the gene responsible for becoming a Werewolf, thus it can only occur in a family of born Werewolves."

"Like my family."

"Exactly. Someone like Scott wouldn't be able to become an Ōkami as he was bitten. He only got the gene after the bite. But if he were to have a child and this child were to become a Werewolf, they would have a chance for the mutation to occur. However, the purer, longer the family line of Werewolves, the more chance there is for a mutation."

"What does the mutation do?"

Gerard gets out of his seat and goes to the bookcase on the right. He opens one of the books and pulls out a folded piece of paper stashed between the pages. "This right here." He says holding it up to me. "Is the missing page from the Bestiary."

"Why did you take it?" Allison asks, standing up to take it from him.

"I was doing some of my own research last year into Ōkamis. I wanted to find ways to harness the power-"

"No doubt for your own use."

"Ōkamis are powerful creatures. If trained correctly." He says looking off at the page in Allison's hand. "But very few are. Those that are, are hunted like common game. Destroying so much potential..."

"What do you mean trained?" Allison asks, snapping him back to reality.

"You'll find out soon enough." He says turning away from the page to look into my eyes. "It looks like you are already on that path." I glare back at him.

"I'm not like you, like Peter." I stand up from my chair. "You see I have a conscience."

"Of course you do. Stronger than most. But that's exactly what makes you more powerful than the average Werewolf." He sits back down in his chair and wipes his mouth. "Ōkamis are generally indistinguishable from the average Werewolf. Mainly because most people aren't exposed to extreme dark energy. You must have noticed by now that you have a better sense of smell and sight than the average Werewolf. Better strength, speed too."

"No, I haven't. I'm not particularly the strongest Werewolf out there."

"Well then again you've never experienced how a normal Werewolf experiences the world have you?" He smirks. "It also depends how far into the darkness you've gone. You'd be surprised at what you can do."

"How do I protect the ones I love?" I ask.

"I'm afraid I can't answer that."

I scoff as I cross my arms. "So you lied to me? You said you could help me."

"If you were paying attention you would notice that my heart rate never increased."

"You can control your heartbeat... I've heard about that."

"I never said I can help you protect them. I said I would tell you everything you need to know. And that's all you need to know... unless you help jog my memory." He says rolling up his sleeve.

"No," I say firmly. "I can figure it out myself."

"What exactly makes a Werewolf different from an Ōkami?"Allison asks absentmindedly staring at the sketch of a wolf on the page. "More wolf than human?"

"Exactly." He smiles slightly, but it looks more sinister than proud. "Smart girl."

"We have all we need. Let's go." She abruptly gets up and walks out the door.

"Right behind you," I say not missing a beat. I reach the door before getting an annoying urge to look back. "Thanks... I guess." I turn away before he can reply and close the door.

"Definitely a power-hungry narcissist."

"Oh yeah." she smiles.

"This is everything non-lethal I could find," Allison says as we walk into Argent's study. There are ropes, cable ties, and a bunch of other equipment I've never seen nor want to see.

"Take all of it," Argent says looking over at everything.

"What's the plan here?" Stilinski says, looking over at all the equipment with an uneasy look.

"Our best shot right now is for Derek and Nina to pick up Stiles' scent at Eichen House. Especially if he went through something stressful there."

"Should all five of us be going to the same place?" Stilinski brings up.

"Where else has Stiles been showing up?"

"School, the hospital..." Allison lists.

"Okay hold on," Derek interrupts. "We did this already. He disappeared. We started looking for him. Then walked right into a trap at the hospital."

"He's getting us to repeat the same moves." Argent realizes.

I shake my head, "We're playing his game and he's winning."

"So, what do we do? Wait for him to come to us?" Allison questions, looking at each of our faces.

"We can't. Not if the oni find him when the sun goes down." Derek replies.

"Well, Scott's working on them right now. With Kira." Stilinksi states. I clench my fist on the table

Don't be jealous. Don't do it

"That's the problem." Argent interrupts my thoughts, causing my hand to relax. "We're all trying to outfox the fox."

"Listen," Stilinksi says after a while. "I'll understand if anyone wants to back out." We all take a moment to comprehend his words. The tension in the room growing.

"I'm not going to be the first wolf to run from a fox." Derek deadpans while grabbing a weapon from the table.

"Apparently I'm carrying a light-saber," Argent says trying to lighten the mood.

"Dad, you, Derek, and Nina hit Eichen House," Allison instructs. "Sherrif, it's you and me at the hospital. We all meet at the school." Allison and Stilinski pack up their gear and head out.

"Ready?" I question Derek as he takes a bag. He pauses, his eyes focusing on something over his shoulder.

"Making sure you have a few lethal options, just in case?" Derek asks annoyed. I look over my shoulder to see Argent loading his handgun.

"I like to prepare for the worst."

"Seriously?" I ask giving him an incredulous look. "That's Stiles, you're thinking of killing."

He turns to look at me with a hard look. "Who said it was only for Stiles?" Derek stiffens next to me. "As I said before." Argent continues, sheathing the magazine into the gun. "I like to prepare for the worst."

We never make it to Eichen house as we get a phone call from Allison telling us Stiles was spotted by a security camera in his bedroom.

"What is all this?" Argent asks, staring at a chessboard laid out on Stiles' desk. Stiles himself is long gone but he definitely wanted us to come here. "What are all those sticky notes for?"

There are many chess pieces laid out on the board, most of which have a sticky note attached to the top.

Allison-knight

Peter-knight

Argent-knight

Scott-pawn

Ethan-pawn

Aiden-pawn

Kate-pawn

Isaac-pawn (off the board)

Jackson-rookie

Deaton-rookie

Derek-king

Nina-queen

"This is what Stiles used to try and explain to me about..." He pauses, "all of you."

"Well, maybe it's a message from Stiles." Allison offers. "The real Stiles." Argent picks up Isaac's piece that was sitting next to the board and studies it for a moment along with the rest of the board.

"You think there's any reason my name's on the king?" Derek asks, a hint of concern in his voice.

"And why's mine on the queen?" I ask picking up my own piece.

"Well, for one Derek you're heavily guarded," Stilinski notes, pointing out that Derek's piece is surrounded by Ethan, Aiden, and Peter. "Though I guess the alarming detail is that you're one move away from being in checkmate." Derek raises his brows and looks back down at the board.

"Well for you Nina, if I remember correctly you were a pawn last time but now you are a queen. The queen is generally the most powerful piece in the game but your piece is on the outskirts away from all the action." Stilinksi looks back up at me. "If I didn't know any better I would think that it's waiting for the best moment to attack. It has the best vantage point and from where it's situated, it can remove any piece in the game. Even its own team."

"That's comforting," I mutter taking a step back from the board, feeling the weight of eyes on me.

"It's not a message from Stiles." Argent suddenly speaks. "It's a threat from the Nogistune." He finishes switching his glance to me.

"He's at the loft." Allison realizes.  "That's what he's trying to tell us."

"And he wants us to come there."

"Night's falling," Derek adds.

"This couldn't sound anymore like a trap."

"It's definitely a trap. There's no way he's leading us there for nothing." I add.

"I don't think it is." Stilinski shakes his head.

"I think your opinion might be slightly biased, Sherrif." Argent counters

"Hear me out." He begins. "What we're dealing with here is basically someone who lacks motive. No rhyme, no reason. Right?

"Meaning what?"

"Our enemy is not a killer. It's a trickster. The killing is just a by-product."

"If you're trying to say it won't kill us, I'm not feeling too confident about that," Derek interjects, with his arms crossed.

"I think if we got in the way of its trick we'd definitely end up as a by-product." I agree.

"It won't. It wants irony." Stilinski states. "It wants to play a trick. It wants a joke. All we need to do is come up with a new punch line."

"So you're saying this thing is just bored and is not against killing someone." I voice. "That's great."

"Well, the sun is setting Sherrif," Argent added. "What do you have in mind?"

Season 3B

Episode 9 (The Fox and the Wolf)

Part 1/1

State: edited

Hey guys! :D

I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Let me know what you think!

Stay safe and healthy! ❤

Until next time my fellow wolfies!! :D

-Nicole ^.^