First thing's first, we see a throwback to Chris Argent as a teenager as he begins to explain his past experience with the Oni.
Scott points out how the Oni only went after the werewolves and Lydia, the ones with connections to the supernatural.
We see the bloodbath that was Chris's past with the Oni, and how the Oni killed the leader of the Yakuzas by impaling him multiple times.
Chris tells the teens to find a man who goes by Silverfinger, as he shows them the broken Oni mask he owns and the credits roll.
—
Kira sneaks into her room and remembers Scott showing her his alpha face after they rode his bike, and then we see Scott and the twins heading to school on their bikes. Scott asks them if they're gonna be doing this all day, and they make it clear that they're going to be protecting him because he's the Oni's next target.
The twins hover as Scott searches his locker, telling them that he needs to talk to Stiles and Noel alone so they can catch Stiles up on what happened last night.
The twins refuse at first, but Scott insists "Yes, just the three of us. Alone, that means no wolf hearing."
We cut to Stiles explaining what he endured alone that night to Scott and Noel, and we see that overnight, the words in Stiles' writing in the chemistry classroom were erased.
Stiles says that's fine, because he still has the key, but he searches his key ring and finds that he actually doesn't. He insists he had it that morning, and asks Scott and Noel if he showed it to them.
Scott says he only heard about it but didn't see it, while Noel says with a sad expression that he thinks he had his earbuds in when Stiles found the keys, so he didn't notice him finding them in the moment.
Stiles insists that he's not lying, and Scott begins to doubt what Stiles is saying. Stiles points out the mischief night prank they played on the coach that was his idea, and the similarities between that and Barrow's bomb, but Scott tells Stiles he probably isn't the one going around trying to kill people.
Noel puts a gentle hand on Stiles' forehead to check his temperature, saying "You feel a little hot, maybe you should go home and lay down. I'd feel a lot better about this whole situation if you went home and slept for a little while."
Stiles closes his eyes and nods as he pulls away from Noel's palm, admitting he hasn't been sleeping well as he takes one last look at the empty board.
—
Scott asks the twins if he could possibly not be the one the Oni are after, and he sees Kira descending the stairs at the school before we cut to Chris telling Allison and Isaac about Silverfinger, who will henceforth be referred to by his real name, Katashi.
Chris suggests they use a rare vintage gun to entice Katashi out of hiding, and tells Isaac and Allison they only have until nightfall to figure out how to protect whoever the Oni are after, whether it's Scott or someone else.
—
At Derek's loft, we see him picking up empty solo cups and throwing them into garbage bags. He's obviously not happy with the fact that he's alone to deal with the mess of Danny's party, silently working with a frown on his face.
As he works, though, footsteps begin to approach, and Derek calls out with a hint of a smile "We can't keep meeting like this."
"Well you can't keep kissing me and then immediately leaving me only to return with dramatic flare a week later," Noel responds as he walks on screen, arms wrapped around himself as he shrugs off his backpack and drops it by the front door.
Derek's smile becomes full as he drops the bag of garbage in his hand, turning to face Noel and walking toward him.
They meet each other in the middle, standing chest to chest for a beat before their lips press gently together and their hands find comfortable spots on one another's bodies. Derek's hands are on Noel's hips, and Noel's arms are around Derek's neck, holding each other steady as they kiss and press their foreheads together.
Once they've kissed their fill, Noel pulls back his head but keeps their bodies together, saying gently "You said you wouldn't wait for me the last time we kissed like this."
"Can you blame me for lying?" Derek asks and kisses him again, Noel laughing into the kiss as he tightens their embrace. He pulls back after another beat of a kiss, licking his lips and casting his eyes downward.
"Derek... You and I, we-" he begins, but Derek cuts him off, saying "I'm sorry. Noel, I am so sorry for leaving you again. I should have taken you with me or told you why I was going, it was so stupid, especially right after you did what you did to save my sister. I can never repay you for what you did to save her."
"Repay me by staying," Noel bursts out, moving his hands to hold either side of Derek's face. "Stay here. Help me protect Scott from whatever these things are. Be here when I need you, that's how you repay me."
Derek seems hesitant, trying to find a reason to say no, when Noel holds his face in his hands and begs against Derek's lips "Be mine again, Derek, please."
Derek's eyes flutter closed, and he leans his forehead against Noel's with a nod. He puts his own hand on Noel's face, running his thumb over Noel's cheek and promising "I'm yours. Noel, I'll only ever be yours."
Noel smiles and kisses Derek, and we fade out to the police station just as Derek pulls Noel in closer.
—
Agent McCall finds a security photo of Scott and Kira on his laptop at the station, before we cut to the hospital where Stiles is checking in with Melissa. He gets a room and tells her his problems, and after calling her mom as she tucks him in, we go to the Argents and Isaac as they learn Katashi isn't going to go through with their initial plan.
—
The twins, once again, flank Scott, as they find their bikes aren't operational and he goes to pick Kira up.
Chris and Allison hype Isaac up and convince him he can carry through their alternate plan, and after a kiss for good luck, Isaac goes in with newfound courage.
—
After Scott and Kira go through the motions of locking down Scott's house, they have a discussion about not wanting each other to get hurt. Kira shows Scott her book of mythology and the passage on Kitsunes, as Melissa goes over Stiles' file and compares it to his mother's. They're essentially identical.
—
We go back to Noel and Derek, sitting on the couch in Derek's loft, the space clean and just as we saw it before the party. Derek has an arm slung across the back of the couch as Noel sits tucked contently into his side.
"I've been meaning to ask," Derek says and looks down at Noel, looping his arm fully around his shoulders and tracing a thumb along the back of his hand as he asks "When I gave up my status to save Cora, did you feel something change about us?"
Noel knits his eyebrows together, asking "Do you mean the alpha-beta bond? No, it didn't change at all for me. I still feel the same comfort when I look at you."
Derek seems relieved, nodding before suddenly looking even more confused. After a pause to process, he mutters through a sigh "So I just lost Isaac plain and simple, then, didn't I?"
"You almost lost me," Noel admits, holding Derek's hand and lacing their fingers together. "You can't keep leaving us like this, it's driving us away. Two of us are dead, one jumped to another alpha, I don't know if Jackson's even technically yours, and I've always had a foot in both worlds. There's no way you can get Isaac fully back to you, but you have me. I still feel our bond, I always have."
Derek listens carefully and lets his head hang just slightly, looking up at Noel as his eyes blaze icy blue. "You're okay having someone with eyes like this as an alpha?"
"Since when has the color of your eyes ever mattered to me?" Noel asks and holds Derek's face, letting his own eyes turn gold as they gaze at each other.
"No matter what your eyes look like, you made me. Can you still feel the bond the way I do?" Noel asks as he stares into Derek's eyes, and both their eyes fade to their respective natural shades of green as Derek answers "I don't know if you understand; I feel it more."
"Really?" Noel asks as he pulls back, looking curious. "I always assumed it was an identical two way street. Kinda like we were walking in the same direction on opposite sides of a window."
"It's sort of like that, but any comfort you get from my scent or my touch or hearing me, I get back threefold from you. Every time you laugh, I feel the same joy. When you cry, I feel compelled to cry with you. When you're in pain, I feel it, no matter where you are," Derek explains, touching his nose to the top of Noel's head and closing his eyes as he takes in a deep silent breath.
"That's why you came running last night after Isaac broke my arm. You felt it, and you heard me," Noel says and looks up, gently smiling when Derek brushes their noses together. He nods, saying "Of course I heard you, you cried out for me."
"No, I just yelled out in pain," Noel corrects, as Derek laughs softly. "You don't realize it... Cute."
"Realize what?" Noel asks, as Derek explains "Of course you cried out in pain, but it was a cry for help as well. You were scared, and confused, and in pain, and your instincts dealt with that storm of strong emotions by calling to me. You didn't process it, but your instincts knew that you needed me, the way you howled was basically a bat signal in the sky for me. That's why I wanted to ask about the bond, because it still seemed intact on an instinctual level, but I had to confirm you could still feel it."
"I heard you howl back to me," Noel reveals and shyly looks away, admitting "It kinda calmed me down. That's all instinct?"
"Instinct or your crush on me. Who's to say?" Derek teases as Noel hits his shoulder, laughing at the joke and saying "Well either way, thank you for saving me. You're a regular knight in shining armor. But now we need to be ready to save Scott, the sun's already setting."
Derek looks out the window, sighing and kissing Noel on the forehead. "A few more minutes," he pleads, trailing kisses from Noel's forehead down to his lips.
Noel beams and nods, agreeing "A few more minutes" as he kisses Derek sweetly.
—
As Isaac distracts Katashi's men, Allison and her father try to find Katashi himself, and Kira goes more in depth into Kitsune mythology. Scott's dad eventually comes home and shows the two teens their photo on his laptop, and then it's back to Isaac and the Argents negotiating with Katashi.
—
Scott has an argument with his father, and as the Oni arrive, they stab him in the chest. Moments later, Derek and Noel burst in, ready to fight.
Melissa runs to find their stash of mountain ash, as the twins break in the window ready to fight as well.
The five werewolves fight as hard as they can, but still manage to be overpowered by the Oni, as Kira hides and Melissa makes a mountain ash barrier once the Oni is on the other side of the front door.
Kira tries to touch the mountain ash barrier and gets her hand shocked, as Chris asks Katashi what the Oni are (and Katashi says grimly that they're unstoppable demons).
—
"All the baseboards are ash wood?" Derek asks as he and Noel stand with Scott, Scott nodding and telling Derek it was Deaton's idea. He then asks Derek and Noel where the hell they came from, and Derek says "Noel said we needed to protect you. So we found you and camped out."
"Noel?" Scott asks and turns to face his friend, as Noel shrugs and holds his hands up innocently before going to find someone else to talk to.
Melissa yells to Scott that his dad isn't doing well and needs immediate medical attention, but Scott emphasizes that they can't leave before sunrise or the Oni will get them. Melissa urges that McCall won't make it that long, and begs him to get some kind of help. Scott suggests they call Stiles' dad.
Melissa wonders aloud what works on Oni since guns don't, which Katashi answers by saying Oni are like a natural disaster that can only be endured, not fought.
—
Allison asks the best method for endurance, and Katashi says one of them already found it.
He indicates the 5 on Isaac's ear, a Japanese Kanji for "self." Katashi explains that the mark means whoever has it is still themselves, and the Oni are only looking for someone possessed by a dark spirit.
—
Back at Scott's, Aiden eggs Kira on and asks her to tell them what she is, but Derek and Noel walk in together and Derek says "She's a kitsune, idiot. Use your eyes."
Kira and the twins look at Derek in shock, as Noel looks proud of his boyfriend. "The younger ones give off an aura, she just hasn't learned how to conceal hers yet. She probably doesn't know what kind she is, either."
Katashi explains there are thirteen types of kitsune, but emphasizes that the dark kitsune, also known as the Nogitsune, is the one to fear, as it feeds off pain and tragedy.
Scott tells Kira she can't be who the Oni are after, because the aura he sees around her isn't evil, but Kira still has her doubts. Scott assures her that he's seen the bad guys, and she definitely isn't one of them.
We cut to Derek watching the Oni just outside the door, as Aiden says they weren't going to hurt Kira.
"Not yet, anyway. Not until it comes down to that and you have a knee jerk reaction you can't take back," Noel says and turns to face the twins as Derek stays facing the Oni.
"Why do you two think we're here? We're trying to protect Scott," Aiden says, Ethan agreeing "We're fighting for him."
"I'm sure you are. I'm sure you'd kill for him," Derek says and turns to face the twins. He then asks "But are you willing to die for him?"
The twins look at each other, almost nervously, as Katashi explains how he lost his finger in a Yakuza ritual of penance.
He returns the broken Oni mask to Chris and apologizes for his lack of further information, but urges Chris to let the Oni destroy the Nogitsune if it truly walks among them, even if it's his own daughter.
—
The Oni begin to try to test the mountain ash barrier for weak spots, shaking the whole house in their attempts to get in. Noel jumps every so often, gripping Derek's hand for comfort and in anticipation as the Oni begin to break through the barrier.
—
Melissa and McCall have a short scene before Scott calls Allison, begging her for any information, since the Oni are about to break through the barrier. Allison relays what she knows, and Scott tells Kira again that they can't be after her.
"Scott, you're gonna have to do something," Derek says and pulls Noel behind him, as the Oni break through the barrier and approach.
"Don't do anything," Scott commands, reiterating after the twins question his choice of action. Reluctantly, everyone stands down, as Scott takes Kira's hand and brings them both to the Oni.
After a few tense moments, Scott and Kira both receive the Kanji that proves they aren't possessed, and the Oni leave. Derek and Noel kneel down beside Scott, as we go back to Stiles at the hospital.
—
He leaves his bed in search of Melissa, and as McCall is brought in on a stretcher, Scott runs to find Stiles. Stiles finds himself alone in a dark room, where Oni surround him, and move to give him the Kanji. But he stops them and pulls a firefly from one of their chests, the other two moving to try and kill him.
Scott finds Stiles and asks him if he's okay, to which Stiles responds "Yeah, fine. What's been going on?"
They both leave the room as the firefly on the ground turns to smoke, and the credits roll.