North Starr

48

At the sheriff station, Parrish looked at the brunette and said, "Melanie, I know this is hard."

Melanie slouched in her seat and sighed before saying, "I already told you. Those guys came out of nowhere. They jumped us and attempted to steal our car. It looked like one of them had a knife and I think they might've been wearing masks, but I wasn't sure. Everything happened so fast. As soon as he was able, Scott called Argent."

He sighed. "Okay, that's enough. Thank you, Melanie."

---

As Melanie was making her way home, she got a text from Scott telling her to meet the others at the Animal Clinic.

She decided to run to the clinic, deeming Scott's message urgent.

When she got there, she noticed that Stiles had arrived and ran to help him. Her aching legs, lightly throbbing feet and heaving chest as she gasped for air seemed like nothing when she saw the state Stiles was in.

Kira and Melanie walked in, both supporting Stiles, and Lydia stumbled slightly, so Scott rushed to support her.

Lydia looked up at them. "Something's happening. I had this sudden rushing feeling, like we're running out of time."

They made their way into the operating room and Stiles said, "Yeah. Yeah, I kind of got that feeling, too."

After a moment of trying to catch her breath, Melanie asked, "Where to?"

"The school," Scott answered.

Once again, they climbed into the Jeep and drove to the school. Stiles climbed out and stumbled to a railing and Melanie ran towards him. Stiles turned slowly to face his friends and said, "Scott, hold on. 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 with it. Stick with the plan, okay?"

Melanie frowned. "It's a stupid plan."

Scott nodded. "The plan is to save you. That's the plan I'm going with."

They walked to the front door and Scott opened it. Melanie exhaled, preparing to see the lockers and instead, saw snow. "What the hell?"

Scott frowned. "Oh, this is definitely not part of the plan."

They stood near each other as they observed their surroundings. A bandaged soldier wearing an old bomber jacket appeared. Melanie automatically grabbed Stiles' hand.

The Oni materialized before them and Melanie glared at them.

One Oni came close to Melanie and she kicked at it, causing it to stumble slightly. The Nogitsune stepped closer to them. "Like I promised, Stiles, we're going to kill all of them. One by one."

Scott's voice took on an angry tone. "What the hell is this? Where are we?"

"Between life and death."

"Bardo," Lydia stated.

Melanie's eyes narrowed further as the Nogitsune continued. "But there are no peaceful deities here, Lydia. You're dying, Stiles. And now everyone you care about is dying, too."

The brunette stared angrily at the Nogitsune. "I think not."

Stiles smiled lightly at Melanie, then frowned. "What? What do you mean?"

A smirk grew on the Nogitsune's face. "I've captured almost all the territories on the board, Stiles. The hospital. The sheriff's station. And now the Animal Clinic."

The Nogitsune paused a moment before saying, "Do you know the ritual of seppuku, Stiles?"

He shook his head. "No, and I don't want to."