Cruel || The Banshee and the Beta ➼ TEEN WOLF

Chapter 40 - Outsmart the fox

Lexie sat in Stiles' room, firmly planted on one of his stools as he sat opposite. In between them was his chess board, the one that still had the colorful post-it notes on top, names written all over them. Glancing down at the arranged board worriedly, Lexie swallowed the lump in her throat, already knowing there was gonna be a deeper meaning behind this game. 

"You and Stiles play chess all the time, right?" she clenched her jaw, not knowing whether to speak so casually with the dark spirit. But she was scared that if she didn't comply it would kill her there and then. So she nodded and glanced away, not bearing to look at Stiles' face once more. The deep bags had grown under his eyes, and his face was much paler. Not to mention his hair looked like thorns. "But you're always the one to win?"

"Yes," she croaked out timidly, finally looking across at the smirking fox, or void as Kira's mom had called him. He had a hand pressed against his knee as his eyes scoured the chess board once more before looking up at the Banshee. 

"You ever played professionally?"

The girl cocked her head to the side, trying to understand what trick he was trying to pull this time by delving deeper into her personal life. But as she stared back at Stiles and his lifeless daunting eyes, she couldn't understand. So she just answered honestly, "A few times."

"Won them?" she watched him quirk an amused brow, he knew full well she had won every single chess game she played. Mostly because she was in middle school when she played, and her opponents were the exact same age as her, so it wasn't too difficult. Their IQs were all pretty low. 

"All of them."

Stiles cracked his knuckles before leaning forward in his seat, "So let's see if you can beat me." the girl took in a deep breath, spotting that she was white and that he was waiting for her to start the game. If she wanted, she could refuse to play, sit there and not give in to the spirit. But she had a feeling she had no choice. 

So, the skilled chess player reached forward and moved her pawn two spaces before looking up and waiting for him to play. "What are you doing?" she asked, watching as he moved the pawn opposite two spaces as well. His gaze returned to her, a devious smirk on his face as he waited for her to play. Her fingers rested on her knight before her brows furrowed in concentration. "Is this all just a part of your plan or are you playing chess with me just for fun?"

Once she had moved her knight, the smile on Stiles' face grew and he proceeded to move his knight, pressing it onto a square with a small thud. "I enjoy chess." she grabbed her bishop and sent it gliding across the board, stopping a few spaces in front of his pawns. 

He watched her play with an evil glint in her eyes and it made her grit her teeth together angrily. This chaotic spirit didn't seem like the type to like chess. "It is a game for the trickster." she murmured, watching him move his pawn close to her bishop. She met his bluffing face, slightly conflicted on what to do next. It had the face of Stiles, and she never had trouble beating him, but this time seemed different. 

 Hurriedly, the redhead moved her bishop back slightly, before watching him send another one of his pawns forward. She decided to do the same and it earned an amused chuckle from void. "You're exactly right. It's full of twists and turns. Traps." he put emphasis on the word just as he swept off one of her pawns, replacing it with his. It shouldn't of made her smile, but it did, because he hadn't seen what she had.

"But that's not how it works. You can't just improvise." she chastised, meeting his eyes confidently, spotting a flicker of confusion spread across his face. "Chess is full of logic, you have to determine your steps, every single possible outcome." she moved her knight and took his away. With her index finger and thumb, she wiggled the black pawn around in her fingers tauntingly, watching Stiles' features sink. "You can't just do that on a whim."