STILES and I were at the Sheriff's station.
"Oh, what the hell is this?" The Sheriff groaned after he took a bite of his food.
I laughed and looked at Stiles, "I told you he wouldn't want it."
"Veggie burger," Stiles answered his dad.
"Stiles, I asked for a hamburger," Mr. Stilinski reminded his son.
"Well, the veggie is healthier. We're being healthy," Stiles told him as he held up his salad.
Noah sighed and opened his container of what he thought was fries, "Oh, hell, why are you trying to ruin my life?"
"Okay, I'm trying to extend your life, okay? Could you just eat it, please? And tell me what you found," Stiles responded.
"No, I'm not sharing confidential police work with teenagers," The Sheriff denied his son's request.
"Is that it on the board behind you?" Stiles asked.
Mr. Stilinski looked behind his then back at us, "Don't look at that."
Stiles kept looking at the board, "I--"
"Avert your eyes," Noah instructed Stiles.
"Okay," Stiles replied.
"Hey!"
"It's--it's just--I see arrows pointing at pictures," Stiles said while moving his around to look past his father.
"Okay, okay, stop. Fine. I found something. Mechanic and the couple who murdered. They all had something in common," The Sheriff informed us.
"Wait, all three?"
"All three?"
Stiles and I asked.
The Sheriff looked at me then back at Stiles and nodded, "Yeah. You know what I always say. One's an incident. Two's a coincidence."
"Three's a pattern," Stiles continued.
"The mechanic, the husband, the wife--all the same age. All 24," Mr. Stilinski explained.
"Wait a minute, but what about Mr. Lahey?" Stiles wondered.
"Isaac's dad isn't anywhere near 24," I added.
"Which made me think that either "a", Lahey's murder wasn't connected or "b", the ages were a coincidence until I found this, which would be "c". Did you know that Isaac Lahey had an older brother named Cameron?" The Sheriff asked as he handed Stiles a folder.
I leaned closer to read it, "Died in combat."
"But if he were alive today, take one guess as to how old he'd be," Noah said.
"24," Stiles and I answered.
~
The three of us finished our food.
We weres standing in front of the board thinking about how the murders could be connected.
"Now what if same age means same class--I mean, did you think of that?" Stiles suggested.
Stiles and I looked at The Sheriff.
"Yeah, yeah," The Sheriff replied.
Mr. Stilinski paused, "Well, I would've. I mean, I--look, I just got Lahey's file two hours ago."
"Two hours? Dad, people could be dying," Stiles reminded him.
"Yeah, I'm aware of that. Thank you," The Sheriff told his son.
They both stopped and looked at the board.
"Same class...maybe you should check the yearbooks," I suggested.
The Sheriff went and grabbed files and yearbooks.
He placed them on his desk and we all picked up a file.
"Okay, this is it. Class of 2006. They all went to Beacon Hills," Stiles told us.
"Including Isaac's brother," The Sheriff added.
"All right, but so what if they all knew each other, you know? I mean, two of them were married, so maybe they all just hung out," Stiles responded.
"Well, they could have had the same classes together. They could've--" Mr. Stilinski started.
"What?" Stiles asked.
"The same teacher," The Sheriff told us turning around the file so we could see it.
"Harris," Stiles whispered.
"Wait, they were all in his class?" I asked Mr. Stilinski.
"All four. And I don't know how Mr. Lahey fits in, but this--kids, this is definitely a pattern. All right, give me the 2006 yearbook. These names, we need faces," The Sheriff answered me before picking up his phone.
"Which ones?" Stiles asked.
"Everyone in that chemistry class. If the killer's not done killing..." Mr. Stilinski started.
"One of them's next," Stiles finished.
"Yeah," The Sheriff replied.
He was still on the phone, "Yeah, it's Stilinski." Mr. Stilinski said once someone picked up on the other end.
~
Derek, Isaac, and I were walking up to the door of the clinic.
Scott opened the door, "What's he doing here?" he motioned to Isaac.
"I need him," Derek replied.
"I don't trust him," Scott voiced his skepticism.
"Yeah, well, he doesn't trust you either," Isaac responded.
"Guys, seriously?" I shook my head at them.
"You know what? Derek really doesn't care. Now, where's the vet? Is he going to help us or not?" Derek asked.
"That depends. Your friend, Jackson. Are we planning to kill him or save him?" The vet questioned.
"Kill him."
"Save him."
Derek and Scott answered.
"Save him," Scott corrected my brother.
Scott turned to look at the vet, "Save him."
Derek, Scott, Isaac, and I were standing across from Dr. Deaton as he placed a tray of bottles on the medical table.
I was standing behind Isaac and Derek, looking through the space between them.
Isaac went to reach for one of the bottles but Derek harshly grabbed his hand. I pushed my way in between them and ripped Derek's hand off of Isaac.
I looked up at him to make sure he was okay. He nodded and smiled at me softly. I looked down and realized I was holding his hand and I let go slowly.
"Watch what you touch," Derek told him after looking at me.
Isaac leaned on the table, "So what are you? Some kind of witch?"
"No, I'm a veterinarian," Dr. Deaton answered.
Isaac nodded.
"Unfortunately, I don't see anything here that's going to be an effective defense against a paralytic toxin," Deaton informed us.
"We're open to suggestions," Derek replied.
"What about an effective offense?" Isaac suggested.
"No, we already tried. I nearly took its head off. And Argent emptied an entire clip into it. The thing just gets back up," Derek responded.
"Has it shown any weaknesses?" Dr. Deaton questioned.
"Well, one--it can't swim," my brother told him.
"Does that go for Jackson as well?" Deaton asked.
"No. He's the captain of the swim team," Scott informed us.
"Essentially, you're trying to catch two people," Deaton turned around and grabbed something from a draw before showing it to us, "A puppet...and a puppeteer," he placed the coin onto the table, "One killed the husband, but the other had to take care of the wife. Do we know why?"
"I don't think he could do it, kill the baby I mean. The wife was pregnant and Jackson's mom died when she was pregnant too. I just don't think he could," I explained.
"How do you know it's not part of the rules? The kanima kills murderers. If Jackson kills the wife, then the baby dies too," Isaac added.
"Does that mean your father was a murderer?" Scott asked.
"Scott!" I scolded him while shaking my head.
"Wouldn't surprise me if he was," Isaac said as he stared at the wall.
I reached down and held his hand in comfort. He looked at me and smiled.
"Hold on. The book says they're bonded, right?" Deaton started and Derek nodded at him, "What if the fear of water isn't coming from Jackson but from the person controlling him? What if something that affects the kanima also affects its master?"
"Meaning what?" Isaac asked.
"Meaning we can catch them. Both of them," Scott answered.
~
Stiles pulled into a parking space at the school and opened his door.
"There's got to be some other way to get tickets, right?" Scott asked as the three of us got out of the jeep.
"It's a secret show. There's only one way, and it's a secret," Stiles reminded him.
"Hey," we heard someone yell from behind us.
The three of us turned around.
Matt walked up to us, "Any of you guys know why no one's getting suspended after what happened the other day at school?"
"Just forget about it. Nobody got hurt," Stiles replied.
"I-I had a concussion," Matt informed us.
"Well, you look pretty okay to me," I told him.
"Well, nobody got seriously hurt," Stiles added.
"I was in the ER. For six hours," Matt shook his head.
"Hey, do you wanna know the truth, Matt? Your little bump on the head is about this high on our list of problems right now," Stiles exclaimed while bending over and bringing his hand a couple of inches above the ground.
"Are you okay?" Scott asked Matt.
"Yeah, I'm fine now. So you didn't get any tickets last night either," Matt kept talking as Stiles and I rolled our eyes in annoyance.
"Are they still selling?" Scott questioned.
"Uh, no, but I managed to find two online. You should keep trying. Sounds like everyone's going to be there," Matt responded.
Stiles watched Matt walk away, "I don't like him. Hey, are you sure about this?"
"Last time, whoever's controlling Jackson had to kill somebody because he didn't finish the job, so what do you think he's going to do this time?" Scott started.
"Be there to make sure it happens," Stiles continued.
He sighed before the three of us started to walk towards the school.
"Scott, you could've just asked me for money to get the three of us tickets," I informed him.
"Oh...I didn't think of that," Scott replied.
"Yeah, clearly," I responded.
~
Dr. Deaton was holding up a bottle of medicine and I needle.
"Ketamine?" Scott asked from beside me.
"It's the same stuff we use on the dogs, just a higher dosage," Deaton placed the objects on the medal table, "If you can get close enough to Jackson, it should slow him down enough to buy you some time. This is some of what you'll use to create the barrier. This part is for you, Stiles. Only you."
I looked over at Stiles as he scrunched his eyebrows.
"Uh, that sounds like a lot of pressure. Can we maybe find a slightly less pressure-filled task for me?" Stiles asked while picking up the glass jar.
"It's from the mountain ash tree, which is believed by many cultures to protect against the supernatural. This office is lined with ashwood, making it difficult for someone like Scott or Nova to cause me any trouble," Dr. Deaton explained.
"Okay, so then what? I just spread this around the whole building and then either Jackson or whoever's controlling him can't cross it?" Stiles questioned.
"They'll be trapped," Deaton answered.
Scott looked to Stiles, "Doesn't sound too hard."
"Not all there is. Think of it like gunpowder. It's just powder until a spark ignites it. You need to be that spark Stiles," Dr. Deaton added.
"If you mean light myself on fire, I don't think I'm up for that," Stiles responded.
Deaton sighed, "Let me try a different analogy. I used to golf. I learned that the best golfers never swing before first imagining where they want the ball to go. They see it in their mind and their mind takes over. It can be pretty extraordinary what the force of your own will can accomplish."
"Force of will," Stiles nodded while looking at the jar on the table.
"If--if this is going to work, Stiles, you have to believe it," Deaton explained.
Stiles took a deep breath and nodded, "Mm-hmm." He smiled at us.
~
Stiles and I ran out of his house to find the Sheriff getting out of his car.
"Hey. Can't talk, got to run," Stiles rushed towards the jeep.
I looked at Mr. Stilinski and knew that something was wrong, "Stiles..."
Stiles turned around and looked at his dad, "Hey, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. What's wrong?"
The Sheriff turned around, "Nothing."
"Oh," Stiles looked at him, "Where's your gun?"
"I left it at the station along with my badge," Mr. Stilinski answered.
I backed away from them a little so they could have some privacy.
"What?" Stiles asked.
"It's all right. You know what? We'll talk about this later," Noah replied.
"Dad," Stiles sighed.
"Don't worry about it," The Sheriff answered.
"Dad!" Stiles nagged.
Mr. Stilinski sighed, "It was decided that the son of a police chief stealing police property and having a restraining order filed against him by one of the town's most respected attorneys did not reflect well on the county."
"They fired you?" Stiles said lowly.
"Nah. Look, it's--it's just a leave of absence. It's--it's temporary," Noah stuttered.
"Did they say it was temporary or--" Stiles started to ask.
"Actually, no," Mr. Stilinski admitted, "You know, I-it's fine. Don't worry about it though. Hey. We're going to be fine." He started to walk away.
"Eh--dad. I don't get it. Why--why aren't you angry at me?" Stiles stopped his dad.
"I don't know. Maybe I just don't want to feel any worse than I already do by uh, having to yell at my son," Mr. Stilinski answered before walking into the house.
Stiles was just standing there and he sighed, "Oh, shoot."
I walked up to him and grabbed his hand to get his attention.
He looked down at me, "I'm sorry you had to be here for that."
He tried to look away from me and I grabbed his face with my hands, "Hey--hey! You're dad's going to be okay, and so are you. You'll get through this, and I'll be here to help you."
He finally looked at me, "Everything in my life doesn't make any sense, everything except for you. I remember one day in class in 1st grade, we were all drawing and Jackson took my favorite marker. I yelled at him to give it back, but he wouldn't. Then you walked up to him and somehow, managed to convince him to give it back to me. I knew from that day on that I wanted to be your friend. When we did become friends, it was one of the best days of my life. What I'm trying to say is that I don't want to be just your friend anymore, I want to be more than that."
I just looked at him with my mouth open, I was trying to think of the right words to say.
"Oh god, I'm sorry--I just--I thought by all the--I just totally--" Stiles ranted quickly.
I smiled at him, "Ask me."
"What?" Stiles paused to take a deep breath.
"Ask me to be your girlfriend. If you don't soon, I'll ask you out first," I responded.
"Mae...will you be my girlfriend?"
"Of course I will," I smiled at him.
It took him a second to realize that I answered but when he did he grabbed my face and smashed his lips into mine.
I pulled back after a couple of seconds, "Not that I want you to stop, but we have to go."
"Right," Stiles smiled at me before we both got in the jeep and pulled out of his driveway.
~
Stiles pulled into the parking lot of the rave and the three of us got out.
"You guys okay?" Scott asked us.
"Yeah, why?" Stiles questioned.
"You just didn't say anything the whole way here," Scott replied.
"No, I'm fine. We're fine," Stiles answered as I nodded.
"Let's grab the other bag," Stiles said as he reached into the back of the jeep.
"We can't. Remember Deaton said you have to do it alone, " Scott reminded him.
"Okay, this plan is really starting to suck," Stiles groaned.
"I'll still be with you for moral support, I just can't touch it," I smiled at him.
Scott moved forward, "No. Not here, not now."
"Scott?"
"What?"
Stiles and I asked.
Scott ran away from us.
"What am I supposed to--plan officially sucks," Stiles yelled after him.
~
Stiles began to pour the mountain ash around the building.
I heard Mr. Argent speak, "Derek. Back off."
"No, no, no, no," I shook my head.
Stiles looked back at me, "What's wrong?"
"It's Derek...Stiles, I have to go help him. I promise I'll be right back," I told him quickly as I began to walk away.
"Just be careful, okay?" he pleaded.
I nodded at him, "Yeah, I'll be right back."
"Back off? That--that's really all you've got?" I heard Derek reply, "I got to be honest, Chris. I was really expecting more from the, uh, big, bad veteran werewolf hunter."
I ran faster towards the sound of my brother's voice, I was almost there.
"Okay, then. How about, Didn't anyone ever tell you not to bring claws to a gunfight?" Chris responded.
I heard people pull back on their guns and I ran faster, I just had one more corner to turn.
"Yeah, that one sounded pretty good," I heard Boyd say.
"Derek!" I yelled as one of them pulled the trigger on their gun.
I pushed him and Boyd behind a dumpster, as we were covering our heads.
I came out from behind the dumpster and grabbed a gun from one of the men and hit him with it.
Derek rolled off the dumpster and knocked out more men.
Boyd and I were unarming the other guys, when I saw two people hold up tasers towards Derek, I ran and pushed him out of the way.
I screamed in pain as the electricity shocked me from my sides. Derek ran over and ripped them out of me knocking the two people together. I fell to my knees and tried to catch my breath.
~
Derek, Boyd, and I were leaning up against the dumpster.
Boyd and I got hit.
"I think I stopped healing," Boyd gasped.
"I did too," I added.
"Bullets--they're laced with wolfsbane. You guys gotta go to the car," Derek told us.
"What? I'm not leaving you," I stared at my brother.
"What about you?" Boyd asked.
"I have to find Scott. Go. Go!" Derek yelled.
Boyd got up and ran.
"Is there any way I can convince you to leave?" Derek questioned me.
"Not a chance," I answered him honestly.
~
Derek and I saw Stiles standing near his jeep and ran over to him.
"Hey, um," Stiles started.
He looked at me, "Is that blood? Why are you bleeding?"
"It's nothing, I'm fine," I lied.
"She got shot, with a wolfsbane bullet. Can you please try and convince her to get in the car?" Derek corrected.
"Mae-"
"No, Stiles. I'm not getting in the car," I told him quickly while glaring at my brother.
"So we kind of lost Jackson inside, but it's--" Stiles stopped.
Isaac and Erica walked out of the building and looked down at the mountain ash.
"Oh, my god. It's working. Oh, this is--Yes! I did something," Stiles cheered.
I smiled at him but groaned once I moved the wrong way.
My vision faded quickly and I was now in a room with the same walls that Jackson had run through earlier. I turned and saw a vapor fill the air. I could feel my throat closing up and I began to cough violently and fell to the floor. Once I looked up again, I was back in front of the building with Derek and Stiles.
Derek and I heard a growl.
"Scott." We both said.
"What?" Stiles asked us.
"Break it," Derek told him.
"What?" Stiles asked again, "No way!"
"Scott's dying!" Derek and I yelled.
"Okay, what? How do you know that?" Stiles questioned.
"Oh, my god, Stiles, we just know!" Derek kept yelling.
"Stiles! Break it!" I motioned towards the mountain ash.
Stiles broke it and Derek and I ran to where we heard Scott.
Derek and I burst through the door and were hit with wolfsbane mist.
I felt a sharp stab in my back, "Ah!" I turned around and knocked the knife out of her hands.
Mrs. Argent pushed Derek up against the wall and tried to fight him.
"Derek!" I tried to get to him but the wolfsbane was making me really dizzy.
She threw Derek to the floor and ran out.
We both moved over to Scott. We grabbed him and carried him out.
~
Scott was laying on the medal table while Dr. Deaton examined him.
Derek and I were sitting next to each other.
"Thank you," Derek said to Deaton.
I grabbed my brother's hand and rested my head on his shoulder, "It's only going to get worse."
"How do you know that?" Derek asked me.
"Because I saw it," I responded while seeing flashes of someone drowning.
It was all going downhill from here.