"𝒷𝓊𝓉 𝓎ℴ𝓊 𝒸𝒶𝓃'𝓉 𝒸𝒶𝓉𝒸𝒽 𝓂ℯ 𝓃ℴ𝓌"

Ophelia Stone had left Beacon Hills the second Hayley Marshall had shown up on her doorstep. She had spent the last month travelling across the country with her baby niece and Hayley, desperately searching for a cure to wake their family. All they need to do is find several different kinds of werewolf venom which would be able to wake Freya, who would then have the proper resources to wake the rest of their siblings. She loves Hayley and Hope, really, she does, but travelling in a truck for a month with a one year old is a lot of work. And it's taken a toll on Ophelia's mental health. Her patience is thinner (she commends Hayley considering the woman is also half werewolf), the fuse for her anger is considerably shorter, and frankly she's getting bored.

Upon embarking with the two and the truck full of coffins, Ophelia had assumed that the search to find the cure would be relatively easy. She could not have been more wrong. Four weeks and nothing. She misses her family back in Beacon Hills. She misses the hundreds of missed calls from Stiles when she wouldn't answer a text message, although he still does, she misses Scott asking her for advice, she misses her girls' nights with Lydia, but most of all she misses Malia. Which is why while Hayley and Hope would visit countless witches, Ophelia decides to take a temporary break from their road trip so she can return home.

However, she didn't have much time to settle in. The second she had informed her friends that she was back, they had swarmed to her house to inform her that Derek Hale was missing. Ophelia wasn't surprised. At all. Scott had told her that he hadn't responded to any of his communication in weeks. Again, Ophelia wasn't surprised. It's Derek, she had said. When the True Alpha added that upon visiting the loft, he had found shell casings, she still wasn't surprised. It's Derek, she said once more. The man was getting kidnapped, tortured, or attacked every other week. And she had remained calm until they had mentioned that the carvings on the outside of the shells, a skull, was something Deaton recognised to be a symbol for the Calaveras, a supernatural hunting family based in Mexico.

Which is why the six teenagers had ventured south of the border: to find and break Derek Hale out of the Calavera's compound. Stiles nods as he takes in the scene around himself and Lydia, both watching the bustling street they're in the middle of. "Hey, this doesn't seem so bad," he proclaims.

"It's not the town, it's the plan," Lydia says.

"What's wrong with the plan?" he retorts defensively.

"Stiles. This could be the stupidest plan we've ever come up with." She turns to look at him. "You're aware of that, right?"

He rolls his eyes. "For your information, Fi said it was brilliant," he counters.

Lydia stares at him. "Fi messaged us and said she robbed a bank the other week because they can't arrest her, and if they'd try to, she would, 'kick their asses.'"

Stiles purses his lips. "Okay, I'm aware it's not our best," he confesses quietly.

"We are going to die..."

As they start walking down the street again, he asks, "Are you saying that as a banshee or you're just being pessimistic?"

"I'm saying it as a person who doesn't want to die."

"Okay. Would you just mind restricting any talk of death to actual banshee predictions?"

"This plan is stupid and we're going to die!"

"Oh, thank you."

Ophelia Stone waves the bartender over to herself and Malia, both girls catching their breaths from the crowded space of sweaty bodies. "Bottle of tequila," she calls out. The man nods and disappears, returning with a bottle of clear liquid. Malia's eyes widen in awe as she watches her friend grab him by the arm and stare into his soul. "Free of charge. Make it an... act of politeness for the tourists."

As the bartender hurries over to another customer, Malia laughs lightly in disbelief. "You have to teach me to do that."

Ophelia sculls back a large mouthful of the spirit and grins. "Oh, love, this is a vampire only perk." She chuckles as Malia's smile falls in dismay and grabs a nearby shot glass to pour the liquid into it. "Want some?"

Malia stares at the glass with curiosity, then cautiously lifts it up to her lips. She holds it up to her friend who does the same, only with the entire bottle instead. As soon as it runs down her throat, Malia coughs. "Wow, that's strong," she chokes out.

The hybrid giggles. "I'd hope so. Doesn't get us drunk, but it helps me handle my wanting to murder the whole room." She gratefully takes the bottle back as Malia shoves it into her hands. "You seen Kira?"

She nods and points to a corner of the room. "Yeah, she's-" Malia trails off in confusion. "She was there."

"Hey, guys."

The pair jump in fright at the voice that suddenly appears behind them, and Ophelia frowns in disappointment at her now shattered tequila bottle on the floor. "Bollocks," she mutters.

Kira grimaces. "Sorry..." Ophelia waves a hand. The kitsune clears her throat, eyes darting across the room anxiously as she watches numerous guards walk around with radios. "Something's happening," she says quietly.

The two girls nod. "We know," Malia replies casually.

"What do we do?" Kira questions, far from calm by their answer.

Ophelia's eyes light up as another song blasts through the speakers scattered across the room, so loud that she feels the bass reverberating within her chest. "We blend in," she grins, grabbing both of their hands and leading them into the middle of the dance floor. Whilst Malia and Ophelia easily lose themselves with the music, Kira stands still awkwardly, clearly uncomfortable with the environment. "Dance with us!"

Watching her begin to dance with stiff and uncoordinated movements, the brunettes share a look once more. Ophelia smiles and places a hand on Kira's lower back, ever so slightly pulling her closer. They hear Kira's heart increase when Malia places her hands on her shoulders, but as she notices their carefree demeanours, a smile graces her face as she begins to ease and enjoy herself. For a few moments, they forget about the fact that they're inside a building owned by supernatural hunters.

All Ophelia can think about is how pretty Malia's eyes are as they stare at each other, occasionally flickering to a dull blue for a few short seconds before returning to their natural colour.

When Ophelia finally realises that almost everyone in the room has gathered around them, she catches sight of a man with a leather jacket and a scowl that could rival Jackson Whittemore heading toward them. What worries her is that he holds a handgun. She glances to Kira and Malia and subtly jerks her head in the direction of him. It's not long before two other guards circle them. Malia leans closer to Kira to whisper, "Ready?" The kitsune nervously nods.

Ophelia tilts her head as she locks eyes with the man in the leather jacket who now stands only a few feet from her. "No one wears those better than me," she states calmly. "Cheers in advance." Before he can even process what's happening, the firearm in his hands has been ripped out of his grip and a punch lands squarely in his face, instantly knocking him out and sending him crumpling to the floor. The teenage girl crouches down and removes the jacket from him, smiling as she shrugs it onto herself. "Oh yeah, this is nice."

As she turns to check on her friends, her smile widens as she finds two other bodies unconscious on the ground. And just as she spots a fourth guard heading their way, Ophelia is beaten by Scott McCall shoving him into a pillar, knocking the gun out of his hand, and throwing him into a nearby wall.

The hybrid sighs and a proud smile graces her face. "That's my boy," she mumbles.

All four of the teens quickly remove themselves from the party that rages on ahead despite the small show of violence and find themselves in a dimly lit corridor. None of them have any idea where they're going, so they pick up their pace whilst listening to any noises or heartbeats that could tell them where Derek is being held.

Suddenly, Scott stops walking. His eyes are trained onto the smoke quickly flooding into the corridor from around the corner. Just as he glances to the girls in confusion, Ophelia's face falls. "Wolfsbane!" she warns loudly, grabbing onto Malia's arm and spinning them around to hurry back where they had come from. "Oh, fuck me!" But then it blasts down onto them hidden in the light fixtures in the ceiling. Immediately, all of them start coughing as the toxic herb floats into their lungs. Ophelia's eyes glaze over, and despite them now glowing bright red it's hard to clear her vision. She hears Scott yell to Kira and then listens to her fail to attempt to take a guard down, then she hears Malia drop onto her knees, violently spluttering.

As she slides down a wall and onto the floor, Ophelia watches a woman with short hair appear before herself and Scott. "Someone who has been an Alpha only a few months should be more careful when facing a hunter of forty years!" she exclaims with a grin. Her gaze moves to the brunette with red eyes. "And you." Her smile slips away, morphing to a face of thunder. "An atrocity to nature. You dare step inside this building? I should kill you right now."

Ophelia coughs out a laugh and weakly waves a hand. "Pleasure to meet you, too, lady." She ignores the piercing glare as she crawls over to Malia who has passed out.

"All we want... is Derek," Scott says.

"My lobito, you're a long way from home."

As Ophelia gathers the werecoyote into her arms, she studies the woman's face with curiosity. "Oh, you don't know where the fuck he is, either," she realises with another laugh. Scott's eyes widen in alarm as he watches the hunter scowl at her words and nod at one of the guards who lunges forward and snaps her neck. Ophelia slumps back against the wall and Scott braces himself as the woman approaches him with a cattle-prod that crackles with electricity. His roar of agony echoes through the winding hallways until he finally gives into the pain.

⋆｡ ﾟ☁︎｡ ⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ﾟ｡ ⋆

When Ophelia finally opens her eyes, she quickly discovers that she isn't alone. She's in a dimly lit bathroom room that smells of mould and the faint remanence of blood staining the tiles, and her friends are scattered around the room, all still unconscious from the wolfsbane. She quickly hurries over to Malia, and even though she knows the girl is alive, she relaxes at the sound of her steady breathing. "Fi?" She locks eyes with Stiles and the boy sighs in relief as he stops his pacing and rushes over to her, pulling her up into a suffocating hug.

Ophelia pats his back. "Yeah, hi, I have a lot to catch you up on," she says, coughing for a few seconds as she finds her throat dry. She breaks away and immediately heads to the large, steel door locking them inside. "They don't have Derek. Zilch." With a groan of frustration, she halts her unsuccessful attempts to burst open the door. Clearly the Calaveras have had experience with locking up supernatural creatures with supernatural strength.

Stiles' eyes widen. "Wait, what?" After she explains to him what she had come to realise seconds before she had died, he leans against the wall and drags a hand down his face. "That actually makes a lot of sense. But we have a bigger problem."

And it's then does she realise something that causes her blood to chill. "Where's Lydia?"

"Araya has her," he says quietly. At her face of confusion, he clarifies, "The Calaveras. The one in charge. She has her."

She feels the familiar emotion of rage come flooding back. "What the hell do they want with her?" Before Stiles can give her an answer, Malia and Kira gasp in unison as they wake. Ophelia speeds over to the brunette and crouches beside her, moving strands of hair off her face and checking her body for injuries for the third time. "Are you okay? Do you feel sick at all?"

Malia coughs and shakes her head. "I'm okay. I don't like wolfsbane, though."

As both girls come to their surroundings, Ophelia and Stiles fill them in with their important findings whilst they wait for Scott. It takes another few minutes of Kira anxiously hovering over the True Alpha before he finally opens his eyes. "He's awake," Kira says instantly. "Guys, he's awake!"

Stiles studies his best friend and nervously asks, "Scott, you okay?"

"Yeah," he replies, letting his friends help him to sit up. Then his eyes widen in remembrance. "They don't have him. They don't have Derek."

"Welcome to the party, Sherlock," Ophelia calls out.

"We know," Kira adds glumly. "But right now, they've got Lydia."

Scott looks around the room in alarm. "Lydia? What do they want with Lydia?"

"I don't care, I'm going to kill them all."

Kira stares at her and shakes her head. "You might be the bravest person I know." Ophelia grins.

Stiles rolls his eyes as he turns back to the hybrid. "Okay, hold up. We're not killing anyone," he denies firmly.

Ophelia stares back at him blankly. "We are. I'm killing someone. Multiple someones."

"Fi, we've talked about this, okay?" he continues to stress. "You can't just go murdering people to get what you want."

"Yes I can," she retorts. "Watch me."

Stiles grimaces. "As much as I would love that," he begins sarcastically. "Have you thought that maybe by the time you kill everyone to get to Lydia, Lydia would already be dead?" He winces at the glowing red eyes that meet his. "Okay... Have you thought about that maybe not pissing the supernatural hunters off would be in all our best interests? That if we're polite guests then they'll give us what we want?"

"You're telling me that if I'm nice to the people who just killed me, then they'll give me what I want?"

Kira and Stiles share a hesitant glance. "Yes?" the kitsune answers uncertainly.

Ophelia rolls her eyes. She turns her attention onto Scott who tries his best to open the metal door. "Give it up, mate, it's hopeless." He promptly stops at her words. "We aren't getting out through there. And we've already looked for a way out."

Kira glances to the countless claw marks in the walls. "I think a lot of people have..."

"I say when that door opens again, we take out whoever's standing in the way and run for it," Malia says.

Ophelia's eyes light up and she points to the werecoyote enthusiastically. "I am all for that plan," she agrees. Malia grins.

"What about Lydia?"

Ophelia Stone looks back to Stiles with an arched brow. Almost instantaneously he says, "No." She huffs a sigh.

Malia's eyes flick across the group. "What about her?" she questions. She watches Ophelia approach her.

"All right, love, we can't leave her."

"Why not?"

"Because she's basically my sister, okay?" Malia's eyes soften slightly at her words. "I don't abandon my family."

Stiles nods as he joins them. "Yeah, we don't leave without people," he adds. He scratches his head as he reminds, "Remember, we've talked about this?" He sends a pointed look to Ophelia. "Rules of the wild kingdom don't apply to friends."

The hybrid's eyes widen. "Woah, I never suggested killing Lyds! I suggested-"

To Stiles' appreciation (because he doesn't want to argue about this again), Kira interrupts with, "Is that what you would do if you were a coyote?" she asks Malia. "Leave her for dead?"

She quickly nods, entirely unapologetic as she admits, "If she was weak and uninjured, yeah. If hunting had been bad that season, I would eat her. Then I'd leave."

"Yeah, that tracks," the Stone agrees.

Stiles hums. "Believe it or not, that's actually progress..."

"All right, guys, we're not dead yet," Scott announces. "And that means Araya wants something."

"But if the Calaveras don't know where Derek is, that means they didn't take him from the loft. Right?"

Stiles frowns at Kira's point. "Maybe he left on his own?"

"No, the bullets aren't his style," Ophelia counters. "He isn't that desperate to get away from us to stage his own kidnapping."

"Maybe someone else got to him," Scott suggests quietly.

What happens next moves incredibly quickly. The door is burst open and guards run into the room with their weapons, Ophelia instantly moving to shield Stiles since he's the only one of them that can't defend himself. Seeing just how protective she is of him, Malia also joins her best friend in aiding the human. The next second, they watch an unconscious Kira and Scott being dragged out of the room. All Ophelia wants to do is slaughter the three men before her, but she begrudgingly listens to Stiles protests because now she doesn't have to worry about just Lydia being a consequence of her violent actions. So she lets herself, Malia, and Stiles be locked inside the bathroom once more, left alone with their thoughts about what might happen to their friends.

Ten minutes later, Ophelia is forced to listen to Scott's screams of agony echo throughout the building. She opens an eye to watch Stiles pace around anxiously and says, "In five minutes, I'm breaking out of here and going to get them." He spins around and opens his mouth, but she interjects. "No, I don't give a shit if it doesn't live up to your morals. I'd much rather these bastards die than Scott."

Stiles abruptly stops walking to stare at her with fear. "What? Is he dying?" Her lips purse into a thin line and she shakes her head. "What's happening?" he presses more urgently.

Ophelia closes her eyes and inhales a deep breath, trying her best to ignore the strong scent of anxiety coming off the two beside her. After a few seconds of concentration, she quietly says, "They've got Lydia and Scott restrained. And... and I think Kira's in charge of how much electricity they're getting or something."

Stiles' eyes widen in horror. "They're electrocuting Lydia?" he whispers.

"Oh, sorry, my bad. Not her. They're threatening to electrocute her. Currently just Scott. Actually, wait... Okay, if she refuses to torture Scott, then they'll shock Lydia instead." She blinks. "Well, shit."

"What else are they saying?"

"They- the hunter lady, she said they want to find Derek, too." Her eyebrows draw together in confusion. "Uh, she says apparently we, or Scott, know who took him."

Stiles stares at her. "What? Why the fuck would we come to Mexico if we already knew where he was?"

Ophelia holds a finger up. "And that's what they just said."

A minute of silence passes. "What else? What's happening now? Can you still hear them?"

Stiles' gaze lands on Malia who shakes her head and closes her eyes once more. "I... I can't concentrate," the girl confesses hurriedly. "I- there's too many sounds and-and voices."

Ophelia takes hold of her hand and shuffles closer to her. "Hey, it's all right, okay?" She dramatically inhales a deep breath. "Breathe with me, okay?" Stiles watches them from a distance, letting her help the werecoyote to relax and use her abilities. "Just breathe. Focus on me." Ophelia guides Malia's hand holding her own so it's resting over her heart. "Concentrate on my heart, okay? Just listen to it."

Malia closes her eyes as she focuses on the rhythmic drumming under her hand, the sound traveling through her body and ringing through her head like a peaceful song. Ophelia smiles when she sees the glowing blue irises and squeezes Malia's hand as a silent, I'm proud of you.

"There you go," she whispers. "Okay, what can you hear?" She listens to the electricity crackle and Araya's persistent voice questioning Scott whilst watching Malia also concentrate on the sounds in the distance.

Stiles observes them and his anxiety only spikes higher as the lights above start to flicker. Malia looks to the door in horror then back the boy. "They're killing him."

"Trying to," Ophelia corrects. "They're trying to." It's Scott. He's someone who should have died months ago but is still powering on because he's Scott McCall. Then she hears a name leave his lips that sounds vaguely familiar.

Stiles watches the change in her expression. "What? Fi, what is it?" She repeats the name to him and his face falls. "That's impossible," he says firmly. "No, that's impossible. That can't be what he said."

Malia and Ophelia share a look of confusion with one another. "Why?" the former questions. "Who... Who's Kate?"

Stiles closes his eyes for a second. "She's a hunter," he answers. "An Argent."

Realisation flashes across Ophelia's face. "Oh! Shithead's daughter, right?" She still refuses to say the eldest Argent's name aloud. Stiles gives her a brief nod. Then she pauses. "Hold on, I thought Peter killed her."

"Yeah... Until now, so did I."

It's not long before the steel door opens once more and they're reunited with their friends, Lydia included. Thankfully, everyone appears to be alive and well, aside from Scott who gratefully takes a drop of Ophelia's blood. Araya, seemingly now more than happy to help them find Derek, leads the two Alphas out of the building with guards flanking them to the rest of their friends.

Scott shakes his head in disbelief. "So, you're just letting us go?"

Ophelia rolls her eyes. "Please. It's not like they had much of a choice," she mutters.

"I sent four men out to where Kate was rumoured to have been seen." Araya stops walking and turns to face the pair. "None of them came back. Let's see if you can do better."

The hybrid rolls her shoulders back. "You have no idea who you're talking to, lady," she states confidently. "Kate Argent will wish she stayed dead." Araya smiles at her.

"You could've just told me she was alive," Scott says slowly.

"You wouldn't have believed me. Now I know what kind of Alpha you are."

Ophelia scoffs in offence. "You never asked me what kind of Alpha I am. I'm all for a bit of torture for people to find that out."

"I already know what kind you are, lobita," Araya replies with an arched brow. Scott refrains himself from smiling at his friend's taken aback expression. "And I also know where your next step lies."

Scott glances to Ophelia in confusion. "What next step?" he questions.

"When you take the bite of an innocent, when either of you make a wolf of your own, when you do that, then I will cross your border and come knocking at your door."

Whilst Ophelia hears Scott's heart uptick, she rolls her eyes again. "Yeah, sure you will," she muses sarcastically. Araya Calavera gives the two teenagers one final look in warning then turns her back on them as they join their friends waiting by the Jeep. The brunette sucks in a deep breath and claps her hand on Scott's shoulder. "Well, this was fun!"

Stiles meets them halfway with a curious expression. "So what now?"

"She thinks she knows where we can find Derek," Scott says. Stiles squints his eyes.

"She gonna tell us where?" Malia calls out.

Ophelia grins. "We get a tour guide!"

Right on cue, the sound of a motorcycle engine revving brings their attention to the top of the street where they watch the bike and its rider dressed head to toe in black drive over to them. The woman takes off her helmet and it's clear that a few of them recognise her. Stiles glances to Scott in confusion. "You know her?" he asks.

"Braeden," he responds. Ophelia's eyes focus on the three claw marks scarred on Braeden's throat and she wouldn't put too much money on it that they're from a werewolf.

"Who's Braeden?"

"She's a mercenary," Lydia answers Kira.

"Oh, I like you already," Ophelia grins.

A small smile adorns Braeden's face as she looks to the girl. "Right now, I'm the only one who's gonna take you to La Iglesia," she says with a smirk.

"The church?"

Stiles' brows furrow at Lydia's question. "What's the church?"

"It's not a place you'll find God."

Ophelia clasps her hands together eagerly. "Now this is my type of place!"

With Braeden leading them on her motorcycle, the Jeep is completely silent for the first five minutes of the drive. It's a suffocating kind of silence. From her position on Ophelia's lap, Malia plays with the girl's recently dyed brown hair and finally speaks up. "Okay, I'll ask," she begins, her voice cutting through the quiet like a knife. "Who's Kate Argent?"

Kira hesitantly raises her hand. "Uh, I'd like to know, too."

"Me three," Ophelia adds.

"Well, we were at her funeral," Stiles says as he gestures to Scott, briefly glancing to the four girls in the backseat. "So, I'd like to know how she got out of a casket that was buried six feet underground."

"She was never in it," Scott realises, his lips apart in disbelief.

Lydia stops staring out the window and faces the front. She takes in a deep breath. "She was Allison's aunt..." she reveals quietly. The strawberry blonde returns to the window. "And a total sociopath."

Kira sighs softly, immediately feeling terrible for having asked in the first place. She can see that the three who knew Kate want nothing less than to talk about a relative of their recently deceased friend. "You don't have to talk about it now if you don't want to," she assures them.

"Um, yes, he does."

Ophelia nods in agreement with Malia's blunt statement. "Yeah, sorry, but you can't say something like that then not say something more." She feels Malia start fiddling with her fingers and she smiles slightly.

After a second of reluctance, Scott dips his head. "Yeah, you're both right. You guys should know. You need to know."

"All right. Kate was the one who set the fire that killed most of Derek's family," Stiles explains. Ophelia nods along, remembering the many occasions where Peter had dramatically told her the story of the fire. She's heard Kate's name a few times over the last year, however, it hadn't come up often enough to properly understand who the woman was.

"Some of them survived," Scott adds. "Like Cora and Peter."

"A very angry Peter," Lydia interjects.

"Yeah, he's the one who bit and turned me," Scott tells Malia and Kira. "And bit Lydia."

"And the one who finally caught up to Kate and killed her," the banshee adds.

As much as Ophelia disagrees with a few of the things Peter has done, she supports his vengeful murdering spree related to Kate and her accomplices all the way. In her opinion, the Argent had it coming. If she was in Peter's position, she would have done the exact same thing; only much sooner.

Stiles blows out a breath of air. "And we saw her buried."

"No, we saw a casket, remember?" Scott corrects. "She wasn't in it." He starts informing them all what Araya had told him earlier. "The Calaveras heard that Kate had been killed by an Alpha's claws. They wanted to make sure she was really dead. Her body was healing. More and more, as she got closer to the full moon. She was coming back, so they switched out the bodies. They took her. If a hunter is bit, they have to take their own life before they change. The Calaveras, they treat the code like law. They make it their responsibility to enforce it."

"Good for her," Malia declares. "I wouldn't do it either."

Whilst Scott doesn't exactly disagree with her, he asks, "Would you kill half a dozen people to get out?" He forgets who is seated in the back.

"Yes," Ophelia instantaneously exclaims. Even though Malia stays quiet, it's clear she's thinking of the same thing.

Stiles rolls his eyes. "God help us all," he murmurs to himself.

"Because that's what she did," Scott finishes.

As they continue behind Braeden, the sun has started to set upon the horizon casting a golden glow on each of the faces inside the Jeep. Kira leans forward in her seat slightly. "So Kate's a werewolf now?"

"I don't know," Scott answers honestly, his eyes narrowed. "You know, there's a saying, sometimes the shape you take reflects the person you are."

Ophelia frowns. "I keep wondering why Whittewhore wasn't a snake instead of a lizard..." Stiles snorts loudly but quickly covers his mouth when he realises Lydia is with them.

The banshee rolls her eyes in amusement at the visible display of dislike her best friend still holds toward the boy currently in London. "What kind of shape is sociopathic bitch?" she deadpans. This time, it's Ophelia turn to laugh. Even though she's never met Kate, she's more than interested to lay eyes on the woman now to find out exactly what supernatural form she's taken on. Maybe she's the snake.

Unfortunately, Kate Argent's background story is cut short when the Jeep appears to hit something on the road that causes the vehicle to swerve for a few seconds before Stiles manages to pull it to a complete halt. In front of them, once Braeden notices that they've stopped she turns around to meet back up with them. "What happened?" she calls out.

Everyone exits the blue car to try and find out exactly what had caused the incident. "I don't know," Stiles shouts back, squinting his eyes so the blowing sand won't get in them. "It feels like we hit something."

"Scott, we need to get there by night," Braeden tells him urgently. "It's too dangerous otherwise."

As Scott hesitates, unsure of what to do, Ophelia waves a hand toward the mercenary. "Go," she reassures him. "We'll be fine."

"Not without you."

Stiles moves closer to him. "Dude, someone needs to find Derek," he reminds the werewolf. "We'll figure something out. We always do. Just go."

"Yeah, they've got me to fight a coyote off," Ophelia says. She purses her lips at the growl that comes from Malia. "Okay, or maybe another giant lizard."

As his friends give him final reassuring looks, Scott gives them a tentative nod and turns to join Braeden, only to be quickly stopped by Kira. The rest of the group return to the Jeep to give them some privacy. As the motorcycle finally drives off, Stiles pops the hood open to properly assess the damage to his beloved car.

Malia's eyebrows furrow together as she crouches to examine the undercarriage and taps Ophelia's leg to gain her attention. "What's up-" The hybrid's eyes widen as Malia yanks out something between the parts and holds it out for her to see. "What the flying fuck is that?"

"Stiles!" The boy stops what he's doing and runs around to them but stops short at what looks like a giant claw held in Malia's fingers. "I don't think we hit something. I think something hit us." He takes it into his hand to study it closer, and the more Ophelia stares at it the more she thinks it resembles a dagger or one of her fangs.

Ten minutes pass by and in such a short span of time they've already lost a considerable amount of natural light. The closer the sun is to leaving for the day, the more the group worries about exactly what they're stuck out in the middle of the desert with. "Maybe we should just walk," Lydia suggests.

From his position now on top of the hood, Stiles removes the tool in his mouth to point at her and defensively exclaim, "Hey, I will never abandon this Jeep. You understand me? Ever. Ever."

Ophelia watches Malia's eyes dart around as she stares out into the vast mass of land before them. "Work faster, Stiles," the werecoyote calls back. "There's something out here with us."

"Well, duh," Ophelia says casually. Upon feeling countless pairs of eyes now on her, she looks up from her nails. "Oh, I realised that, like, fifteen minutes ago." Her face falls at the exasperation each of them holds toward her. "What? I didn't want to worry you anymore; all of your anxiety is choking me to another temporary death."

Lydia sighs. "She's consistent," she mutters.

Another ten minutes pass and the moon takes over from the sun's shift. "Lydia, could you please hold the light still for a second?" Stiles remarks. "It's really hard to see anything if you keep shaking it like that."

The banshee stares at him. "I'm shaking it like this because we're in the middle of nowhere with your broken-down Jeep, and we're being attacked by yet another razor-clawed monster!" She pauses for a second before quickly adding, "And I'm terrified."

"Well, just be slightly less terrified."

Ophelia rolls her eyes at the bickering that continues on behind her and smiles at Kira who joins herself and Malia again, this time with her katana. The three girls survey the vicinity, on guard for anything that might try and attack them. "Anything?" Kira asks.

Malia shakes her head, her arms crossed against her chest. "It's too hard to see. We should've brought another flashlight."

They both turn to Ophelia when she snorts. "Guys, we literally have glowing eyes." She points to her scarlet irises. "These are heaps better than a bloody flashlight." Whilst Malia takes a second to concentrate and focus on activating her enhanced abilities, Kira walks over to the Jeep's headlights and places her katana in the beam of one of them. They watch in awe as the light reflects off the metal and toward the horizon. "I guess that works, too."

Ophelia's eyes narrow as she spots something hidden behind a rock formation. It's large and covered in bones. "Did you see that?" Kira questions them quietly.

Instead of replying, Malia's eyes flash cobalt and her fangs elongate as she roars, immediately taking off toward the creature. Kira sprints after her and Stiles blinks in surprise. "Guys, what the fuck?" he yells.

"Kids," Ophelia mutters. She waves a hand to Stiles and Lydia, signalling that she'll take care of it and speeds off after the girls. Instinctively, she follows Malia's heartbeat and scent which leads her into dozens of bushes. "Fuck me," she hisses as a thorn scrapes her arm.

There's no point calling out for either of them, it would just alert whatever is with them even more than they already have. She freezes in place when her nose picks up the familiar scent of blood. But this blood doesn't send a rush through her like usual. This blood spikes a fear within her that doesn't come often. It's Malia's blood. As she spins around to find her friend, Ophelia spots something move in her peripheral vision. She spins around but nothing's there. She can't hear it. She can't see it. However, when she temporarily moves her focus off Malia's blood, she smells it. Death hangs heavy in the air. Whatever is with her, it smells like death. Almost exactly like a vampire does.

She hears the rattling and clunking of what must be bones, then she feels the flesh of her stomach rip open. A roar leaves her jaws and she stumbles back just as the claw leaves her body. "Son of a bitch!" she yells in pain. Her heart thuds within her chest, adrenaline coursing through her veins as she scours the nearby area for whatever had just injured her. She feels her skin knitting back together at a rapid pace, but the creature is long gone. Her priority is finding Kira and Malia.

A branch snaps.

And then she catches the blood once more. Both girls burst through a nearby cluster of bushes and Ophelia's eyes widen in horror at Malia's physical state. She races over to her, hands gently clutching her upper arms as she stares at the deep gash on her side. "Are you okay?"

Malia pants heavily as she clutches the wound, blood dripping out of it as it heals at a fraction of the pace Ophelia's had. "Yeah," she breathes out. "Yeah, I'm fine." The hybrid rolls her eyes at her stubbornness and bites into her wrist. In too much pain to fight, Malia sighs and hesitantly places her lips to the blood pooled on her friend's skin.

Kira's eyes widen at the tear in Ophelia's shirt and the mass of blood that has begun to dry. "Woah, Fi, are you okay?" she asks in concern.

"All good. But we need to get back to Stiles and Lydia." Right on cue, they hear the Jeep start up in the distance and race toward it, all as eager as the other to get out of the open space.

And just as expected, they all receive a scold from Stiles like a parent to a child. "Okay, all of you... don't ever do that again!"

Malia looks to Ophelia and Kira, then back to Stiles in confusion. "Do what?"

"Recklessly run away straight into the face of danger!"

Ophelia scoffs when his eyes meet hers in the rear-view mirror. "I went off to protect them!" she shouts back.

"I-I thought you just took off," he tells Malia. "I thought you were running!"

She blinks. "I was running."

"No, I mean, like, I thought you were leaving."

"I thought you were being an idiot," Ophelia mutters. She yelps when Malia smacks her arm.

"I wouldn't leave without you guys," Malia tells him.

His eyes widen in surprise. "Really?"

Even Ophelia stares at her. "Really?"

Malia's features soften as she looks at the girl beside her. "I'd never leave without you." Her eyes flick up to Stiles in the front. "I wouldn't leave you, either." She glances between Kira and Lydia before admitting, "Them I would leave."

Stiles and Ophelia share a look whilst Lydia rolls her eyes and Kira quietly giggles. He purses his lips and says, "Yeah, uh, it's progress."

Ophelia wraps an arm around her, and Malia drops her head onto the girl's shoulder with a heavy sigh. As Lydia turns in her seat, she smiles at her best friend with the girl. But then her eyes lock onto Ophelia's shirt stained in blood. "Hey, what happened?" she presses in concern.

She looks back at the strawberry blonde with confusion, then her lips part in realisation when she catches where Lydia is looking. "Oh, it's okay, I'm fine. We're all fine now."

"You didn't see anything?"

Malia shakes her head against Ophelia's shoulder. "Barely," she answers. "It had a strong scent, though."

"Like what?"

"Oh, like death," the hybrid replies simply. "It was death."

Stiles' eyes widen and he blinks rapidly. "How delightful," he mutters, focusing on the road before them.

Thankfully, they finally make it to La Iglesia without any further complications, attacks, or breakdowns. The Jeep screeches to a stop before the rundown church and the group of teens jump out just in time to see Scott and Braeden exiting the rubble, supporting someone in the middle of them.

However, instead of laying eyes on Derek, Ophelia stares at a young boy that can't be older than seventeen. "Who the fuck is this?" she deadpans.

"Is that him?" Malia asks curiously, glancing to her friends for confirmation. "Is that Derek?"

Stiles' eye twitches as he stares at the boy, completely mind blown. "Uh... sort of."

As the boy in the green shirt finally lifts his head, Ophelia locks eyes with him and she realises exactly who it is. Her jaw falls open in utter disbelief. Now she's seen it all.

𝘚𝘰! 𝘐 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘭𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘖𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘴 𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯 3-4 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘧𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘫𝘶𝘮𝘱... 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘥𝘪𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 3𝘣 𝘢𝘯𝘥 4 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘞𝘰𝘭𝘧 𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘩, 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘱𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘖𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘧𝘪𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺. 𝘐𝘵'𝘴 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘸𝘢𝘺.

𝘐'𝘮 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘶𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘰 𝘦𝘹𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯. 𝘍𝘪 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘓𝘪𝘢𝘮 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱, 𝘴𝘩𝘦'𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘨𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘢 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 😪