26: The Rave

Sky stands holding Ariel's hand as Deaton holds out a jar and syringe to Scott. They -- along with Stiles -- were making final preparations before they went after Jackson at the rave tonight.

Scott squints at the label on the jar he had been given, "Ketamine?" he asks.

Deaton nods, "It's the same stuff we use on the dogs, just a higher dosage," he tells him. "If you can get close enough to Jackson, it should slow him down enough to buy you some time."

Stiles raises his brows, "Ketamine for the Kanima," he looks around at their unamused faces, missing Sky's lip twitching upward. He sighs, "Yeah, that wasn't funny."

Deaton places another jar on the table containing grey ash and looks to Stiles, "This is some of what you'll use to create the barrier. This part is for you, Stiles. Only you."

Stiles falters, "Uh, that sounds like a lot of pressure. Can we maybe find a slightly less pressure-filled task for me?" His eyes flicker around before stopping, "Wait. Can't anyone help me?" he asks.

Deaton pauses and glances at the girls and Sky winces, realising they had kept Ariel's situation from them, but it wasn't her place to tell. She feels Ariel squeeze her hand and take a breath before nodding at Deaton, letting him know it was okay to tell him.

Deaton looks back at Stiles, "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 to cause me any trouble," he tells him.

Stiles nods, eyebrows still furrowed in confusion, "Okay, so why can't Ariel help?"

Scott blinks as if also realising what Stiles was asking, looking at the girls with a frown.

Ariel grimaces, "Stiles -- " she tries.

Stiles stares back at her for a moment before his eyes move between the guilty faces, putting the pieces together, "You're --?"

"She's one of us now," Sky quietly tells them.

"What?" Scott exclaims, staring at Ariel with wide eyes.

Sky winces, smiling sheepishly, "Oh, did I not mention that little bit of information?"

"No," Scott deadpans.

"I'm sure I mentioned --"

"You didn't!" exclaims Stiles, waving his arms around.

Ariel shrinks under the attention, shuffling closer to Sky and Stiles notices, taking a breath. Hurt flashes across his face as he frowns, "Why didn't you tell me? Tell us?" he asks softly. They were supposed to be his friends. Sky one of his best friends.

Sky looks at the ground, letting Ariel speak up, "I'm sorry, Stiles. I asked her to keep it between us whilst we figured out what was going on with me. We were going to tell you as soon as I had more control," she answers quietly.

Stiles nods, opening his mouth to ask a flurry of questions before he stops, deciding against it. He clears his throat, looking back to Deaton, "Okay, so just me," he sighs. "Then what? I just spread this around the whole building and then either Jackson or whoever's controlling him can't cross it?"

"They'll be trapped," Deaton confirms.

Scott shrugs, "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," says Deaton.

Stiles shakes his head, "If you mean light myself on fire, I don't think I'm up for that."

Deaton thinks for a moment, "Let me try a different analogy," he suggests. "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," he says.

"Force of will," mumbles Stiles, still looking sceptical.

Deaton gives him a serious look, "If this is going to work, Stiles, you have to believe it." he tells him.

Stiles nods, looking at the jar, "Mm-hmm."

"Don't underestimate the Force,"  adds Sky, lowering her voice, leading Stiles to crack a smile.

***

Stiles and Sky walk fast on the way out of Stiles's house. Sky had gone with him whilst he went to get ready to keep him company, feeling bad about keeping things from him. They were going to pick up Ariel and Scott on the way to the rave.

As they get to the bottom of the stairs, they nearly collide with Stiles's dad in their rush.

"Hey. Can't talk, got to run," says Stiles, pausing when he catches the downcast look on the Sheriff's face, grabbing Sky's arm. "Hey, wait, wait, wait, wait. What's wrong?" he asks.

The Sheriff sighs, clearly upset, "Nothing."

Stiles nods awkwardly, "Oh," he mumbles. "Where's your gun?"

"I left it at the station along with my badge."

Sky's eyes widen along with Stiles's, "What?"

The Sheriff waves them off, "It's all right. You know what? We'll talk about this later."

"Dad --" Stiles starts.

"Don't worry about it," Stilinski tries to brush off again.

"Dad!"

Stilinski stops, "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," he tells them.

Stiles pales, "They fired you?"

Stilinski shakes his head, "Nah. Look, it's --" he hesitates. "It's just a leave of absence. It's -- it's temporary. "

Stiles fumbles, "Did they say it was temporary or -- "

"Actually, no," Stilinski admits. "You know, it's fine. Don't worry about it though. Hey. We're going to be fine."

Stiles swallows, "Dad. I don't get it. Why -- why aren't you angry at me?" he asks.

His dad looks down at his hands, "I don't know," he mumbles. "Maybe I just don't want to feel any worse than I already do by having to yell at my son," he says as he turns and walks away.

Sky looks towards Stiles, heart cracking as his face crumbles into guilt as what just happened sets in.

"Oh, shoot," he mumbles.

Sky says nothing as she steps towards him and hugs him tight, no words exchanged between them as she lets his head rest on her shoulder.

***

The four are quiet as the jeep comes to a stop outside the rave. Sky had quietly updated Ariel on what had happened with Stiles as she rested her head on her shoulder. She usually wouldn't speak a word of it to anyone for Stiles but found she couldn't keep anything from her girlfriend. Luckily, Ariel was nothing but understanding of the solemn mood and just listened.

Scott also must have noticed with Stiles being uncharacteristically silent, "You okay?"  he asks him.

Stiles glances at him as they climb out of the jeep, "Yeah," he replies. "Why?"

"You just didn't say anything the whole way here," Scott points out, glancing back to Sky questioningly, only for her to avoid his gaze.

Stiles shakes his head, "No, I'm fine. Just grab the other bag," he tells Scott as he grabs a bag of mountain ash.

"I can't," Scott reminds him. "Remember Deaton said you have to do it alone."

Stiles sighs, looking between them, "Okay, this plan is really starting to suck," he mutters.

Sky goes to reply, but stops as Scott's head whips sideways as he catches a scent, "Not here. Not now," he grumbles to himself, rushing up to the building.

Sky frowns and sniffs, huffing in frustration when she realises whose scent Scott caught and pulls Ariel towards the building. She notices Ariel's confused glance as they walk to the door.

"C'mon, princess." she mutters. "I smell an Argent."

***

Allison tenses as she sees Scott walking towards her on the dance floor, Sky and Ariel not far behind, "Matt, give me a second, okay?" she tells her date before standing and walking toward him.

"What are you doing?" Scott asks straight away as he frowns at her.

Allison waves her hand towards Matt, saying, "You told me to go out with him."

Scott shakes his head, annoyed, "No, not here. You don't get it," he tells her. "We have a plan."

Allison's eyes widen, "You have a plan?" she asks. "Okay, okay. My father and Gerard, they're coming here."

Sky scowls, "Are you kidding me right now, Allison?"

Scott wears a matching scowl, "What did you tell them?"

Allison flinches, looking between them, "I -- I told them --"

"Allison!" Scott urges.

Allison's face falls, "I -- I had to tell them."

Scott's face drops in realisation, "Oh, my God," he mumbles. "They know it's Jackson," he looks back at his sister and friend.

Allison grabs his arm, making him look back at her, "People are dying, Scott. What am I supposed to do?"

Scott frowns at her, "You're supposed to trust me," he tells her, as if the answer is obvious. "Trust us."

"I trust you more than anyone," Allison argues.

Sky waves a hand at her, "Obviously not. We had a plan!"

"So do they," Allison tells them.

Scott looks at his sister, "This isn't going to work," he tells her.

Sky shakes her head, "No," she argues. "We can't do nothing."

"What do you want me to do?" Allison almost cries out. "Okay, I can fix it. Please, please, Scott. Just tell me."

Scott just shakes his head at her, "Just stay out of the way," he says, turning and rushing away.

"Scott!" Allison moves to go after him.

Sky moves to block her from him, but is surprised when Ariel beats her to it, eyes glowing purple, making Allison flinch back in shock, "Stay out of the way," she orders, grabbing Sky's hand and pulling her after Scott.

Sky blinks at her, impressed, "You okay?" she asks.

"I'm fine," Ariel reassures. "Just instincts, I think. She is an Argent after all."

Sky pulls her to a stop, "Right," she nods. "I need you to stay and make sure Isaac and Erica get Jackson whilst I get Scott, okay?"

Ariel nods, determined, "I can do this."

Sky sends her a grin, "Oh, I know you can."

***

Although anxious about leaving her girlfriend there, Sky trusts Ariel's ability to take care of herself as she runs out of the door after her brother. She steps out into a deserted alleyway, spotting him standing there, fumbling in his pocket for his phone.

Sky stops right next to him as he looks up at her, "What have I told you about going places alone --?" she starts, trailing off as headlights come into view, obscuring their vision.

Sky brings her hands up in panic as an SUV speeds toward them. Scott grabs her tightly as it smacks into them, throwing them back with a bone-cracking thud.

They lay still.

***

Meanwhile, in a small supply room, Ariel helps Erica and Isaac prop Jackson into a chair. Suddenly, the door swings open and they all jump to attention.

Stiles whips inside. He raises his hands when he sees their defensive stances, "Just me, just me. Is he okay?" he points to an unconscious Jackson.

Isaac steps forward, "Let's find out."

***

Drifting back to consciousness, Scott notices he's sprawled across a concrete floor. He turns his head to one side and sees the familiar body of his twin still out a few feet away.

"You probably recognize this device," A voice speaks up. Scott blinks and tries to focus on it.

Victoria Argent takes out a vial of wolfsbane, "Pot used to be smoked in a rolled up piece of paper. These days, it seems like all you kids are given a free vaporizer with your medicinal marijuana card. Hmm,"  she empties the contents into a machine. "This type of wolfsbane is one of my favourites. Lovely smell. You probably won't think so," She turns on the machine, and it starts to let out fumes.

"What? What are you doing?" Scott breathes out, still glancing back and forth from her to his sister.

Victoria laughs cruelly, "Isn't it obvious?" she asks. "I'm killing you."

She continues, "It's going to look like an accident. Like you had an asthma attack and couldn't get to your inhaler in time. Your school records show you have a pretty severe case of asthma. I do hope Sky wakes soon. It would be a shame if she missed it."

Scott struggles, "But Sky doesn't have asthma," he points out.

Victoria shakes her head, "Don't worry about that. They won't even find her body. It will be a typical runaway case. She's rebellious enough."

Scott feels himself weaken as he breathes in the wolfsbane, his wolf form starting to show, "Stop!" he groans as he watches Sky's unconscious form also struggle to breathe, blood dripping from an injury on her head, fangs peeking out of her mouth.

"Too late," Victoria smirks. "Looks like it's working."

***

"Are you the one killing people?" Stiles asks Jackson's possessed form, Ariel grasping his arm next to him.

"We are the ones killing murderers," came the monotone reply.

Stiles purses his lips, "So all the people you've killed so far -- "

"Deserved it," it ground out.

Ariel takes a breath, feeling off for some reason but guessing it was the unusual situation, "Well, who did they murder?" she asks.

"Me."

Her face screws up in confusion, "Wait, what? What do you mean?"

"They murdered me," it repeats. "They murdered me."

***

Victoria looks down at the twins as they slowly turn, mock sympathy coating her voice, "It'll be hard for your mother, I know. I'll be sure to bring her a cake or something."

"Allison --" Scott starts to say.

Victoria nods, "Hard for Allison, too," she agrees. "But I think this is easier than her seeing you eventually get shot in the head by her own father. Really, it's all for the best."

Scott claws against the floor as he tries to get closer to Sky, seeing her stir. But he's forced to stop as a heel digs into his back.

"Ah, ah," tuts Victoria. She shoves him down.

***

Stiles pulls Ariel back as they, Erica and Isaac cautiously inch back from Jackson as scales rapidly begin forming on his arms, skin changing right before their eyes.

"Okay, all right. More ketamine," Stiles panics. "The man needs ketamine. Come on."

Isaac shows him an empty bottle, "We don't have any more."

Ariel's eyes widen, "You used the whole bottle?" she asks, incredulous. She bites her lip, "Um -- okay, out, everybody out!" she ushers them towards the door.

The others naturally follow her, "Go, go, go, go!" says Isaac as Jackson starts to rise from his chair.

"Out!" shouts Ariel, but they weren't fast enough as a transformed Jackson bursts out of the side of the room.

"Great," she mumbles. "We lost him."

***

Scott flips onto his back,  still trying to reach Sky, who is struggling to open her eyes even halfway.

Victoria watches them in amusement, "Alpha, beta," she muses. "But what are you two, Scott? Omega's. Don't you know the lone wolves never survive without a pack? I've heard the cry of an omega. It's a miserable sound. The howl of a lone wolf."

Scott is staring at his twin as he grinds out his reply, "I'm not."

Victoria leans forward to hear what he's trying to say, "What? What is it?"

"I'm not alone."

And with his last breath, he lets out a roar as loud as he can, seeing the rising of Sky's chest come to a stop.

***

Outside, Derek perks up at the sound of the roar as he stands with the others. The barrier separating him from them. Ariel turns in the direction of the sound in confusion.

"Scott?" he wonders.

Derek turns at the sound of a growl and his eyes widen at the sight of Ariel's eyes appearing as she gasps, confusion and pain etched on her features, not knowing what her instincts were telling her.

Stiles gapes in confusion, "What?"

Derek immediately rushes to the barrier, "Break it," he demands.

Stiles shakes his head, confused but worried as Ariel's pained gasps get worse, "What? No way."

"They're dying!" Derek shouts.

Stiles's eyes widen, "How do you know that?" he asks.

"I just know! Ariel knows! Break it!" he demands again.

Stiles moves forward and quickly breaks it, heading to help Ariel as Derek runs.

***

Scott, unable to open his eyes, blindly reaches out and manages to feel the tips of his sister's fingers.

". . . I'm sorry," he whispers to her as darkness clouds his vision.

The door then bursts open as Derek crashes into the room, finding Scott and Sky on the floor but no one else in sight.

A knife plunges into his back as Victoria appears behind him and he roars out in pain. She rips the knife out and prepares to strike again, only to cry out as a strong clawed hand grabs her wrist in an unbearable grip. She looks up to see dark, angry purple eyes.

The owner of those furious eyes pushes her back into a now fully transformed Derek, who uses his teeth and claws to attack violently.

In the unclear fog of wolfsbane, Victoria manages to slip away in the midst of their fight, and using the rest of his strength, Derek goes towards the twins lying on the ground.

Ariel storms towards them and drops to the ground next to Sky, bruising her knees but not caring. She puts her hand to her chest and lets out a strangled sound at the lack of movement.

Jaw clenched, she uses her strength to lift up Sky and rushes out without a word, determined to find help -- Derek following closely behind with Scott.