willow | d. hale [on hold]

37 | herself

"And so did Stiles," Noah added.

Derek was crouched over on the ground, holding back a pained groan as he eyed the lone figure lying in a heap on the floor. In an attempt to keep an Oni from hurting Stiles, Willow got in the way. It ended with her head being smashed into one of the support beams.

"Stiles may be gone," Derek said, watching as she took in a slow breath. "But he forgot something."

"Is she alive?" Kira asked, seeing the blood on her forehead.

"She is," Derek said, slowly walking over to her.

"But is she herself?" Allison had to ask. "Why would he leave her? He's been taking her everywhere."

"I don't care why," Derek told her. They all had valerian root in their system, and Derek wasn't going to let her get away now that he had her.

They watched as Derek gently turned Willow onto her back. "Willow," he called softly, brushing his thumb along her cheek. She let out a quiet noise, signaling that she was waking up after being knocked out.

When Willow did open her eyes, she looked up at Derek, seeing so much care in his eyes. But then she slowly looked away before frantically searching the room. Searching for Stiles.

"Wh - where is he? Is he done with me?" she asked, her breathing picking up speed. Derek thought she looked scared. "Please. Please don't let him take me again."

"We're not. Not again," Derek said, holding her hands to keep them from shaking.

"Willow," Scott called, cautiously walking over to her. "Is this really you? Are you back?"

Tears welled in her eyes as she stared at the floor. They could all tell that she was struggling mentally. Allison, in particular, felt a familiar ache in her chest. She recognized the look on Willow's face — one she had had on her own at one time. It was the look of someone who had been so manipulated that she couldn't tell which thoughts were her own and which were put there by the Nogitsune. And now she was desperate to sort them so that she wouldn't hurt anyone.

"I don't know if I am," Willow whispered, her voice breaking. "I don't know."

☽︎

Willow was confined to Derek's loft as the others left. She didn't say much at all to anyone, not even Derek. They weren't sure why Stiles finally left her alone. They weren't sure if it was another trick — like the Nogitsune was giving Willow false hope, letting her think that she was finally free.

"What are you doing?" Peter asked, walking over to the table that Derek was standing at. He also eyed the huge gash that covered Derek's shoulder and shoulder blade. It still looked fresh even though a few hours had passed. "And, more importantly, why aren't you healing?"

"It's from one of their swords. It'll heal," Derek muttered, not looking away from the task at hand. He was setting up a chess set, trying to make sense of Stiles' message.

"Why not have Willow heal it?" he asked.

Derek glanced toward his bed. Willow was sitting on the edge and staring at her hands, deep in thought. "I don't want her to use her powers. For all we know, it could be like a beacon, telling Stiles exactly where she is."

Peter was fairly sure that the Nogitsune already knew. In fact, he was fairly sure that it wasn't Willow sitting on that bed, though Derek wouldn't hear it. He was too desperate for it to be his Willow to hear any other possibilities.

"So you're playing chess?" Peter questioned, glancing at the board. It was clear that Derek didn't want to talk much about Willow.

"Back in his room, Stiles had a board with my name on one of the pieces. Willow's too, even if it was already off the board. If this is a game to him, then I need to figure out the plays."