Authors Note: So I've gotten a few message about how slowly I update. It's not the lack of reviews, while those help and encourage me, I update slow for a few reasons. I work a 9 to 5, take care of my cousin and my grandma and have 2 other stories I write. I am very grateful for my loyal readers and I appreciate all the love and support you give me. All I can say is to please bear with me. This sadly, is a cliffhanger but the second part will be posted later this week so there's always that to look forward to. I hope you enjoy this update.


[Lydia's POV]

The noise should have been what I was focused on but it wasn't. I was taking a shower one minute and the next I was back on the lacrosse field wearing my homecoming dress with people on all sides cheering me on but I spotted Maggie right away screaming out to me. She was thrashing and trying to be heard but nothing came out of her mouth. I felt panicked and anxious as I looked around for more familiar faces but no one else stood out. I tried to read her lips but she threw her hand out, pointing like a warning of something approaching. I turned around slowly and just like the nightmare that I had to endure, there he was. Walking towards me like a man on a mission, dead eyed and vicious as he grew closer. I could hear my heart beating loudly in my chest as I turned to run but I was quickly tackled to the ground. I clawed at the grass but it merely tore away in my hands as if it were terrified itself. I shot up in bed as his teeth sank into my neck.

I was breathing heavy and crying as I pushed my comforter off my legs. When I looked down at my pajama clad legs, I noticed dirt and grass on my sheets. That's when the smell hit my nose. The smell of putrid, burnt flesh covered in stall earth sitting right next to me.

"You aren't real. Leave me alone." I said not bothering to look at him.

"Not yet I'm not which means I unfortunately can't leave you alone, at least not yet." Peter Hale sat up in my bed and I closed my eyes tightly to try and rid him of my mind.

"What do you want from me?" I asked trying not to sound as terrified as I actually was. He reached up and caressed my face, letting his disgustingly long fingernails just barely scratch my face like he was reminding me he could hurt me again.

"Only every single thing I ask." He seethed into my ear giving me uncomfortable chills. He jumped out of my bed suddenly and pulled on my hand leading me out of my bed. I knew I had to be dreaming.

"This whole thing is about timing. What I need you to do has to be done on the next full moon. Do you know what the full moon in March is called? It's called the worm moon." Peter explained just as I felt something cold and slimy crawling through my toes. I freaking out just a bit as his grip on my hand tightened.

"They call it that because it's the last full moon of the winter and the worms literally crawl out of the earth as it thaws. It's like a rebirth." He was covered in dirt and worms now. He pulled me down the rest of the stairs and towards the living room.

"Is that how Maggie survived? I heard she died and came back...maybe she's the one who should be helping you." I offered but he chuckled.

"No Maggie was brought back because of her magic. She is something special and you'll find out what your connection with her is but right now she needs me and you're going to help me so I can help her." Peter explained.

"But the full moon is Wednesday...that's my birthday." I said remembering my party.

"Exactly. Lydia's party is the party of the year, everyone wants to attend. So we're going to make it a very special event." He said as I watched myself through the glass doors serving people, like I was getting a sneak preview at what my party would look like.

"Maggie and I aren't exactly best friends. What makes you think she would come anyway?" I said staring at the people and trying to pinch myself to wake up.

"You'll invite her personally. It's very important that she attend. Besides, maybe it's time you two got closer. After all, you do have an unspoken bond." He tucked my hair behind my ear and I blinked back tears.

"And what if I don't?" I challenged but after just a beat of silence the people that were happily partying outside the glass doors were now a bloody mess, bodies piled and torn to shreds.

"I think it's best we make a plan and stick to it that way no one gets hurt." Suddenly the people were back on their feet and staring at me, expecting me to do whatever this monster told me to do.

"Why me?" I asked desperately. He kept saying I was connected to Maggie and even though I felt something underneath all the bluster and animosity, I just couldn't wrap my head around it.

"Lydia Martin isn't just beautiful and incredibly intelligent, she's immune." He chuckled like it was a joke but I shook my head confused.

"Immune?" I questioned.

"Oh that's right they haven't told you yet. I bet you've felt like the last to know for a long time. It doesn't feel good does it? You certainly deserve to know everything. Well not everything but it's probably best if I just show you." He disappeared into thin air and I looked around the room confused. There was no longer people outside the house, no random dead guy creeping me out. I was alone for a moment but it was only a moment. I felt like I was being watched, stalked from another window and as I slowly turned, my eyes caught sight of a giant beast with glowing red eyes. I started to back away slowly, panic setting in as I began hyperventilating but as it bared it's teeth and darted through the window towards me, I let out a piercing scream that could wake the dead.

[Maggie's POV]

My eyes shot open in the dimly lit room, breathing heavy and feeling the stinging pain in my chest where my scar rested as a reminder of my father's attack. It only took me a minute to realize I was in Stiles bed. I glanced down at my hand and my fingers were laced with Stiles as he sat in a chair on the floor, feet resting on the nightstand and head drooped to the side as he drooled on himself. He had respected his father's wishes and stayed out of the bed but I felt bad that I had passed out. I had cried for over an hour thinking about the Argent's coming after Derek and Scott. The thought of losing either of them made my whole body quake with fear. Stiles held me the entire time. I don't even remember him putting me to bed but I looked from his peaceful face to our hands once again. It was nice holding onto his hand. I pulled my hand from his slowly, not trying to wake him and slid out of his bed. I walked into the bathroom and tried to clean myself up as much as I could before walking down the stairs to the kitchen.

I locked eyes with the Sheriff...John in regular clothes and remembered that he had gotten fired just last night.

"I was just making some breakfast. There's some juice in the fridge." He pointed towards the fridge with a spatula. It smelled of pancakes as I walked to the fridge. I sat down at the table and sipped it.

"I'm sorr-" John cut me off.

"If you apologize one more time, I'm going to hit you with this spatula." He turned towards me as he pulled the last of the pancakes off the griddle and walked them towards me.

"Look, I was hard on you the other night and maybe I was a bit too harsh." He sat down next to me and I shook my head.

"You weren't. You were right to upset with me. I shouldn't have been in bed with Stiles. It was inappropriate and I took advantage of your hospitality." John let out a heavy sigh.

"See I don't like that word. I hate myself for using it. Hospitality is what you would have for a guest in your home but you're a guest, Maggie. You're family." John looked at me as I chewed on my lip.

"I know how much you care about him and I'm glad he's finally getting his act together and seeing further than a girl who doesn't give him the time of day. But I guess I just don't want either of you getting hurt." He reached out and put his hand on top of mine.

"I've been really stressed lately with all that's going on and I shouldn't have taken it out on you." He said firmly.

"Well with kids like Stiles and I driving you up the wall, it's bound to happen." I shrugged earning a smile.

"You know you'll always be like a daughter to me, Maggie. Sometimes parent's say things they don't mean but at the end of the day we still love you guys to death." He patted my hand and I nodded.

"Thank you for showing me what it's like to have a real father." I said earning a taken back look but a quick smile to follow.

"Eat those pancakes before Stiles comes barreling down here." He got up from the table and walked to the fridge. It was nice to know that things weren't completely broken with John and I.

"You know, they're going to realize pretty fast that they made a huge mistake." I spoke up putting pancakes on my plate.

"Who?" He asked still in the fridge.

"The town consul. You're the best Sheriff Beacon Hills could ask for." He turned around and gave me a nod of appreciation before handing me the butter. We sat and ate for a few moments before I heard Stiles feet padding quickly across the floor above us.

"Maggie!?" He came barreling down the steps and stopped when he saw us.

"I'm here and I'm eating your pancakes." Stiles looked between me and his dad and when John finally stood up chuckling, Stiles came down the stairs to join me.

"Son, you've got to get to school soon so hurry it up." John patted him on the back as he passed him to go back up the stairs. Stiles nodded confused before sitting in front of me.

"Did I miss something?" His eyebrows were up and I just smiled. He kept his eyes on me as he cut into some pancakes.

"Are you feeling up for school today? I could probably talk my dad into-" I reached over and touched his hand.

"I'm fine...thanks to you." Stiles turned his hand up and held onto mine, running his thumb over the back of my hand. I didn't let my hand linger in his too long now that he was awake. I ran back upstairs to change and get ready for school and somehow Stiles managed to be ready and waiting. He was trying to talk to his dad but the moment John spotted me, he rushed Stiles towards the door.

"You kids try and have a good day." John waved at me and Stiles let out a defeated sigh as we walked out and got into the jeep.

"He hates me." Stiles breathed.

"He could never hate you." I dismissed.

"Maggie, I got him fired. He could barely look at me just now." Stiles hit his steering wheel with his palm.

"They'll realize it was a mistake and he'll be back in that chair by the end of the week. Come on Stiles, look at me." I said turning in the passenger seat. He rolled his eyes to the side and finally met my gaze.

"You and your dad have the best father and son relationship out of the whole lot of us. You may drive him nuts but he loves you more than life itself. Once he's back as Sheriff, I'll personally tie you to a chair so you can't commit anymore crimes." Stiles chuckled.

"You want to know something I learned last night?" Stiles said as we pulled into the school lot and hopped out of the jeep.

"Other than I'm a mess?" I questioned earning a look as he opened the door to the school and held it for me.

"You aren't a mess. You get really bad feelings and most of time they're justified so that can make anyone a little edgy." Stiles explained away my breakdown last night but I knew we were in for it. Something was going to happen. The Argent's wouldn't stand for what Derek did and to know that Victoria tried to kill Scott, even when Chris had once said they didn't kill kids meant that war wasn't too far off. Plus now that we knew Jackson was the kanima and we couldn't stop him without knowing who controlled him, he would more than likely end up killing someone else.

"Did you hear me?" Stiles snapped me out of it.

"What? Sorry I was kind of spacing." I admitted. Stiles narrowed his eyes at me as I stopped in front of my locker.

"You okay?" He asked.

"What did you learn last night?" I changed the subject and he rolled his eyes.

"I learned that I really like holding your hand." He said catching me off guard. I tried not to blush by burying my head in my locker trying to look busy.

"Oh yeah?" I cut my eyes at him quick and he held onto the door of my locker.

"Yeah, I mean I don't have a whole lot of people to compare it to. Heather let me hold her hand in like preschool but stopped when I became fascinated with glue." Stiles rolled his eyes up to the ceiling recounting the childhood story and I laughed. I actually knew who he was talking about and was insanely glad when she moved away after our first year of grade school together.

"It's good to see you smile. I like your smile." Stiles held my gaze and for a moment it kind of seemed like he was moving in to do something.

"Maggie! There you are, I've been looking all over for you." Stiles and I both jumped as Lydia walked over to us.

"I didn't do it?" I said unsure of why Lydia would be looking for me.

"Look, my birthday party is tonight." Lydia smiled at me and I glanced at Stiles.

"Happy Birthday." I said politely earning a smile.

"Thank you, I was actually hoping you would come by the party tonight. It starts at 10." Lydia kept her eyes on me as I stood flabbergasted.

"Seriously? I don't think I'm really up for having pig's blood thrown on me or anything." I said rolling my eyes. Stiles hit me in the side with the back of his hand and I straightened my body back out.

"Look, I know we aren't close and were pretty terrible to one another but I don't want to be your enemy anymore." Lydia explained.

"Well that's kind of a relief." I said listening to her heartbeat to hear that she was genuine. When I cut my eyes towards Stiles, he seemed equally surprised we were being so cordial.

"I appreciate the invite but I actually have prior engagements to go to." Remembering that I told Derek I would help him with Erica, Isaac and Boyd during the change.

"But you have to be there!" Lydia's eyes went wide and she grabbed my arm as if she were about to beg. I was a bit thrown by her insistence. She let go of my arm and tried to compose herself.

"Please Maggie…I'm making an effort here. Everyone else thinks I'm crazy and you're the only one who seems to actually care how I'm doing after...what happened." Lydia kept her eyes on me and I let out a heavy breath. Derek would probably be mad but I felt obligated to Lydia. It was my father who screwed up her life.

"Starts at 10?" I asked. She shook her head slowly letting a smile slip back onto her mouth.

"Okay, I'll be there." I threw my hands up and Lydia's smiled got wider sticking her chest out confidently.

"Great. See you tonight." She said before turning and started down the hall. I let my head rest against my locker door and Stiles clicked his tongue to his teeth.

"So…that just happened." I watched Lydia walk down the hall and she seemed fine, almost too fine though. It was strange to think that Lydia had thrown up the white flag.

"Maybe we could go together? I mean I'm going too so it could be like a...date." I looked over at Stiles with eyebrows raised.

"You want to take me on a date...to Lydia's birthday party?" I questioned out loud and he pulled a face.

"Ye-no what? That's not-" Stiles tried to cover.

"I'm just saying, we should go on a date." I could hear how fast Stiles heart was beating and knew he was serious.

"Is this because of Isaac or do you actually want to take me on a legit date?" I questioned turning my body towards Stiles. The feelings I was getting off of Stiles was nervousness, he was anxious with just a hint of lust but with Stiles he always seemed to radiate the slightest amount of lust. I typically chalked it up to him being a teenage boy.

"No it's not about Isaac. I just...you and I both know there have been a few things...lingering. We don't talk about them but maybe we should. Maybe we should try and see what happens." Stiles took a step closer to me and I swallowed hard. It was hard to breathe with Stiles so close to me but I couldn't bring myself to take a step back. I enjoyed him in my personal space.

"Okay." I breathed. Stiles eyes went wide.

"Okay...seriously? Wow I didn't think you'd say yes. I thought for sure you'd find some excuse to shut me down." Stiles was in disbelief.

"Well you're right. There have been a few things we should probably talk about. I guess we don't really know how all this going to play out so there's no point in leaving it up in the air." I explained. Stiles smiled at me.

"Then I'll pick you up at Scott's around 9:00. We can talk beforehand." Stiles said but I shook my head.

"I have to at least check up on Derek and the others, make sure he'll be okay on his own. Can I meet you at Lydia's?" I asked watching him eagerly shake his head.

"Yeah of course. We can talk after. I mean spring break starts tomorrow right? Maybe we could even go on a few more dates if tonight isn't horrible." Stiles suggested making me smile. He was pretty optimistic about a date with me which made me blush.

"Alright then I'll see you there." I hesitated meeting his gaze but when I finally did he just returned the smile. We walked to class together in silence. As excited as I was, I knew that anything could happen tonight and getting my hopes up would only mean setting myself up for disappointment. I found it entirely too hard to focus in class though. Everything always seemed to pile up on one day. It was quite annoying.

"Hey...pst." I glanced over and Scott was looking at me.

"You look like Derek when you think that hard." Scott whispered making me roll my eyes. He turned back to his notebook.

[Derek's POV]

I opened the box that held the restraints I was going to use on Erica, Isaac and Boyd tonight with them linger around the railcar. I told them not to go to school just in case they started to feel the change coming on. Maggie had come over right after school to make sure Boyd had fully recovered but I could tell she was hovering close to make sure I didn't need help. Isaac leaned down and traced the pattern of the lid of the box.

"What does this mean?" He asked but before I could answer, Boyd spoke up.

"It's a triskele." Erica and Maggie came out of the railcar and looked at Boyd, just as Isaac and I did.

"The spirals mean different things. Past, present, future. Mother, father, child." He explained further.

"Wow Boyd, bonus points." Maggie said with a smile.

"Do you know what it means to me?" I challenged.

"Alpha, Beta, Omega." Boyd had been doing a lot of work helping me figure out how to stop Jackson. I had to let someone help me leaf through my families books and records and Boyd seemed to be genuinely interested in the history of the wolf.

"That's right. It's a spiral, it reminds us we can all rise to one or fall to another. Betas can become alphas but alphas can also fall to betas or even omegas." I explained.

"You mean like Scott?" Isaac's disdain was noted.

"Scott's with us." I said simply.

"Really? Where's he now?" He looked around the railcar like a smartass.

"He's looking for Jackson." I raised my voice.

"He's not going to have it easy tonight either, none of us are." Maggie tried to calm Isaac's attitude but he'd been moping since she decided to stay with Stiles the other night instead of here.

"There's a price for this kind of power. You get the ability to heal but tonight you're going to want to kill anything you find." I handed him the chains and he took them.

"It's a good thing I had my period last week then." Erica smirked. Maggie shook her head.

"What about you? Where are you going?" I asked Maggie earning a confused look.

"What do you mean? I'm here to help you." She shrugged.

"She did get invited to Lydia's birthday party though...lucky bitch." Erica teased making Maggie hit her playfully.

"The last place I need to be is a party. I'll probably just text Stiles and let him know I couldn't make it." She played it off like she didn't want to go but I could tell there was something else.

"What's going on?" I asked handing the chains off to Boyd. Maggie sat down on the steps and shook her head.

"I just I've been having these dreams...about Peter." She paused taking in my surprise.

"But it's like I'm not really having them, I'm just there. It's like he can't see me or touch me but he knows I'm watching or something." She explained.

"It sounds like maybe they're someone else's dreams. Who is he talking to in the dream?" Boyd asked.

"Lydia." Maggie bit her bottom lip. It made me think of mother. She would be able to explain a nightmare down to what you were wearing or symbols you recognized. I saw a lot of our family in Maggie. Some days it was hard to make comparisons because I'd always think she was doomed like they were but I knew it had to be different this time. I would give my life to protect her. The wisdom and need to nurture like my mother, the fighter and rebel that made up Laura and the stubbornness that embodied Cora even at such a young age. There was no doubt she was a Hale but any open connection she seemed to be having with Peter was something to worry about.

"I know there is some sort of connection with Lydia and I. I don't know what it is but I feel it. Whatever tether Peter put on her before you killed him is still there and I'm not sure how I can even begin to help her. I just know I'm not going to let her get hurt by this again." Maggie added.

"Is being protective a part of the shift?" Isaac questioned.

"No I'm pretty sure that's just being a Hale." Erica snorted. Maggie smiled at the mention of being a Hale and I kept my eyes on her.

"You should go to the party." I said clearly catching all of them off guard.

"Um…yeah what? Are you serious?" She shook her head as if she'd heard me wrong.

"Yes I'm serious. You should keep an eye out for Scott and the others since Jackson is still out there. Plus if you're instincts are telling you something is off with Lydia then you need to be close." I explained walking towards her.

"Derek's right. Besides, someone should be having fun." Erica rolled her eyes.

"Actually that sounds like a terrible idea. We don't know how the full moon will effect her and she can't take on the kanima alone." Isaac let the chains hit the floor in front of him.

"Do you think it's a bad idea because she might get hurt or because she might finally work things out with Stiles?" Erica smirked at Isaac who shot her a glare that spoke volumes.

"It's a bad idea." He said firmly but Maggie put her hand on his arm.

"I appreciate the suggestions guys but I'm not sure I even want to go." Isaac seemed to relax upon hearing that and I let out a sigh. I was ready to smack him in the back of his head but before I could say anything Boyd beat me to it.

"Go. Keep your eyes open and if you happen to enjoy yourself for 5 minutes then so be it. You can handle yourself better than anyone." Boyd didn't have a whole lot to say but he had a lot of principles. I liked that about him. He had heart and character, I assumed it was because of his ROTC background or because he was the man of his house but I made me feel reassured that he always kept Maggie's best interest at heart. He never let me sell her short or doubt her.

"Well put, Boyd." Erica smiled proudly at Boyd. They'd grown closer. Maggie let her eyes move from Boyd back to me. I gave her a reassuring nod of approval and she mimicked my motions.

"Fine…I'll see you all in the morning then." She rubbed the back of her neck like she was going to hurry out but she made sure to walk over to Erica, Boyd and Isaac giving them words of reassurance about tonight before hugging them. She ran over to me and hugged me tightly.

"You call me if you need anything. I will leave the party with Lydia on my back if I have to. Just call." She said with her arms still firmly wrapped around my neck. I patted her back.

"I will. Be careful and if you feel like you can't control yourself then you have Scott get you the hell out of there." I pulled out of the hug and looked at her. She shook her head before giving me a quick smile. She waved at Erica, Boyd and Isaac before heading up the stairs. We all collectively waited to hear her car pull onto the street before talking.

"Let's get you chained up." I picked up the chain but I picked up on Isaac's resistance.

"Either say your peace or help out." I said not even bothering to look at him.

"What if the Argent's get her? What if she wolfs out in a house full of our classmates? What if she gets hurt? There are a million things I feel like we overlooked and yet here were are, about to chain ourselves up and be useless. I told you that I wanted to protect her and I meant it." Isaac said as I started to chain Boyd's wrist down.

"I know you meant it but you can't protect her tonight. You have to protect yourself." I explained getting both Boyd's arms secure before moving over to Erica.

"Listen, If she's here when you three turn, you could kill her. Trust me when I say, it's better for her to be away because if she sees you struggling she'll want to help relieve your pain. That's just the way she is. You haven't learned to control it yet and once you do, you'll be fine to be around her." I explained carefully as I locked Erica's wrists down.

"I'm going to need you to hold her down, can you do that?" I asked him making sure his head was here and not with Maggie.

"Yeah I can do it. I don't know why she gets the crown thingy though." He questioned.

"Because she can withstand more pain than both of you." I could smell Erica's fear but she looked at me proudly.

"Are you ready?" I asked her letting her get one last moment of peace before I fitted the crown to her golden head and started to turn the screws. Erica's screams became louder and more shrill the deeper the nails grinded into her skull. Boyd looked away and I tried to go as quickly as I could. Almost an hour passed before I finally got Isaac situated into a seat away from the two of them as they thrashed around at the end of the car. Isaac kept taking deep breaths and I knew he was starting to feel the changes.

"How do you not feel this?" Gritting his teeth.

"I feel every second of it. I just know how to control it." I said locking his wrists down.

"Then how do you control it?" He pressed.

"Find an anchor, something meaningful to you. Bind yourself to it and keep the human side in control." I explained to him.

"What's it for you?" I looked up at him and thought for a moment what it had been all these years. Knowing that it was my fault that my entire family was burned alive, that my stupidity cost them their lives. My self hate and anger to those responsible has kept me human since I was young but for a split second, Maggie popped into my head. The thought of living through all of this, spending time and holidays with her, developing a bit of normalcy seemed ideal. It was the first time I thought my anchor could be something other than anger and that gave me hope.

[Stiles POV]

I had a good portion of my shirts on my bed and I kept floating between 4 of them. I'd never felt so much pressure to put a shirt on in my life. I floated from the year books on my desk back to the shirts and knew that I had a few hours before it was time to head to Lydia's but I couldn't shake the nerves. I was excited to actually have a legit date with Maggie but on the flip side, I felt bad knowing my dad would be sitting at home...watching TV and not being the Sheriff. He was surprisingly coy about the whole thing but I knew it was just eating him up. The worst part is that he kept trying to convince me that it wasn't my fault but when they specifically specify that you have an unruly, criminal son and you're supposed to be in charge of a whole town it doesn't just kind of confirm it.

"Hey what are you doing?" Dad walked by my door and stopped.

"Um...homework." I said continuing to flip through the pages. He nodded and kept walking but only for a beat before coming in and shutting the books.

"Dad, I'm just trying to satisfy my own curiosity." I breathed.

"Look, they brought Harris in for questioning this morning and they're working on a warrant to arrest him for the murders." Every time he used the word they, I could see the twinge in his face. It was killing him to not be directly involved.

"They also have tire tracks that match his car by where the couple's trailer was. Same car was seen parked outside the hospital where the wife was killed. Apparently he's got some sort of bumper sticker, a quote by Einstein about imagination and knowledge." I connected the dots instantly.

"Imagination is more important than knowledge, yeah I saw the same car parked outside the rave." I shook my head.

"That makes you a witness, you'll have to give a statement." Dad said but I wasn't convinced.

"That just doesn't make sense. Mr. Lahey and the concert promoter don't fit that theory." I shook my head and pulled open another book.

"I thought you hated this guy?" He asked as I flipped through the pages.

"I don't hate him, he hates me and yeah if he did it then lock the psycho up but if he didn't that means someone else might get killed." Dad let out a heavy sigh before sitting next to me.

"Hey...hey, you don't have to solve this for me okay?" I looked over at him. He gestured to the bed and I turned my chair towards him.

"What's with all the shirts? Planning a vacation?" Dad joked.

"No I'm trying to figure out which to wear to Lydia's birthday party tonight." I ran my hands over my head in frustration.

"That explains the 200$ worth of women's jewelry on the credit card." Dad narrowed his eyes at me.

"No I'd already spent money last month trying to figure out what she might want. The women's jewelry is for Maggie but I don't really think she'll like any of those so I'll probably just return it." I huffed.

"Jewelry for Maggie? Why are you buying jewelry for Maggie?" He pressed.

"I asked her out on a date." I watched his eyes get wide suddenly.

"Seriously? Well that's great son. That's the best news I've gotten all day." He clapped me on the back.

"Really? I thought you were against Maggie and I together." I pinned my eyebrows together but he laughed.

"I'm against you two sleeping in the same bed when you both clearly have feelings for each other. They don't take your badge for that, they kind of take the kid away and I've just gotten used to ya." He shoved my shoulder and I suddenly felt like I was the last to realize something.

"We're supposed to meet at Lydia's party tonight, sort of like a pre-date. I don't know though. I mean I kind of think she has a thing for someone else. It's like she gets all hot and cold when it comes to how she feels about him." I rubbed at the back of my neck and dad grinned.

"Your mother used to be like that. She cared about everyone so of course I naturally assumed she was into every other guy except me." He explained with a thoughtful smile.

"How did you know you were on her radar?" I asked curiously.

"I knew she was worth the chance. It took me 20 minutes to get the courage to ask her but by the time I walked over to talk to her she let out an exhausted sigh and said one thing I'll never forget." He shook his head.

"She said it's about time, Stilinski." He looked at me and I laughed.

"Then she threatened me and told me if I hadn't come over to ask her out then she might hit me." It was nice to talk about mom with dad and it not be sad or under false pretense. It made me miss her but it was the memories like that that made me happy.

"Wear the green one. Sometimes Maggie's eyes have flecks of green in them." I chuckled lightly knowing dad had no idea just how green her eyes could get. I looked over at him and his gaze had shifted to the desk where I left the yearbooks.

"What? What is it?" I asked.

"Look at the swim team." He mumbled. I looked down and noticed the swim team contained most of the victims, including Mr. Lahey.

"I'm going to call this in. You change and get to that party." I stood up and shook my head head.

"Are you sure I can't-" He cut me off.

"Son, I couldn't have done this without you. Thank you and good luck tonight." He put his hand on my shoulder, giving it a squeeze before walking out of the room. I looked back to my bed and grabbed the green shirt. I took a quick shower before changing into the green shirt dad had suggested and giving Scott a call. I still hadn't gotten a text from Maggie so I decided to send her a text while sitting in Scott's driveway.

Text to Maggie:
Hey we're still on for tonight right? No last minute life threatening things going on? I mean other than the obvious.

Scott came out of his house and my phone beeped.

Text from Maggie:
I didn't think it was possible to ramble via text. I left my clothes at the new house, I had to run out to grab some. I'm getting dressed now. I'll meet you there in a bit.

I smiled and looked over at the text as Scott jumped in.

"What are you smiling about?" He asked looking less than thrilled about going to this party. I realized I hadn't exactly had the chance to tell Scott I was making the big move on Maggie and wasn't really sure about how he'd take it.

"Well we need to have an important talk." I said pocketing my phone.

"If you're talking about Maggie then I already know. She was freaking out about Nathan taking the wrong boxes to the new place and took off without a shirt on. My mom almost had a heart attack so...yeah. Congrats, don't blow it." Scott's attitude was not going to bring me down. Knowing that Maggie was as nervous as I was made me feel a bit more at ease.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence Scotty. Cheer up though because I have good news. Dad and I made a breakthrough with who might be controlling the kanima." Scott hit my arm.

"Dude! You told your dad!?" Scott started freaking and I cut my eyes at him as I started towards Lydia's.

"Yes, I told my dad about werewolves and murderous lizards...NO! We were looking for the common thread. We figured out that it had something to do with water, the fact that all the victims were on the swim team and the way the kanima reacted around the pool." I explained.

"So whoever's controlling the kanima really hates the swim team." Scott said.

"Hated the swim team, specially the 2006 swim team. So it could be another teacher or a student back then. Who are we missing though? Who haven't we thought of?" I asked. We bounced ideas off each other before parking out front of Lydia's and heading inside. There weren't many cars out front and with the exception of some music being played there wasn't a whole lot of noise within the house. Lydia greeted us at the door and told us to try the punch but Scott headed towards the backyard. My guess was to see who had arrived but once I caught up with him, it wasn't hard to count the whooping number of attendees.

"Ah Jackson's not here." Allison walked up looking equally as unhappy as Scott's.

"Yeah no one's really here." I said looking around. Lydia was pouting over by the punch fountain and I actually felt pretty bad for her.

"Maybe it's just early?" Scott suggested.

"Or maybe nobody's coming because Lydia's turned into the town whack job." There was no point in sugarcoating it. Lydia had fallen from grace as far as the popularity scale ranged.

"Well we have to do something because we've completely ignored her for the past two weeks." Allison said making Scott snort.

"She's completely ignored Stiles the last 10 years." He took the shot and I shrugged my shoulders.

"To be fair, I like to consider myself not exactly on her radar but that doesn't matter because Maggie's my date tonight." I smoothed out my shirt proudly.

"Really? When did that happen? Where is she?" Allison questioned surprised.

"It happened earlier today when Lydia held up the white flag and asked her to come. I sort of slipped in and made the big move." I smiled smugly.

"She's running late." Scott added.

"That's really great Stiles. I'm happy for you both." I could tell Allison was a little bummed that Maggie hadn't called her.

"We don't owe Lydia a party." Scott sighed making Allison snap out of it.

"How about a chance to get back to normal? She wouldn't be the town whack job if it wasn't for us." Allison defended finally breaking through to Scott a bit.

"I guess I could use my Co-captain status to get the lacrosse team here." That brought some people to mind.

"I also know some people that could get this thing going, like really going. I met them the other night and they really know how to party." I pulled out my phone and started back inside to make a few calls. I decided to send Maggie another text.

Text to Maggie:

We're here. I'll save you a dance.

I waited a few minutes in case she texted back but she never did.

[Scott's POV]

Within 20 minutes of calling the lacrosse team, people started showing up. Lydia's mood lifted considerably but I still wasn't feeling it. I knew it had to be the full moon but I was still pissed that Allison and her family ruined our plan. It was a great plan. One of the better ones we've come up with and it went south because of them. I knew I shouldn't be mad at Allison but I couldn't help it. The full moon was hard enough to control, I didn't feel in the mood to deal with relationship drama. I was also still pretty sore from her mom trying to kill me but I guess since she didn't know there was no point in bringing it up now. Stiles had drifted over to the punch bowl and back, pacing around waiting for Maggie but she still hadn't shown up yet. I occasionally glanced over and got caught staring at Allison who was talking to Lydia.

"So are you going to apologize to Allison or what? I mean you could continue to creepily stare at her but she might leave." Stiles said leaning against the pillar I sat in front of.

"Why should I apologize?" I questioned confused.

"Um because you're the guy? It's like what we do." Stiles rolled his eyes.

"I didn't do anything wrong." I shook my head.

"Then you should definitely apologize. You see, any time a guy thinks he hasn't done something wrong, it means he's definitely done something wrong." I looked up at Stiles.

"And you know this from your 5 seconds of dating Maggie, who hasn't even shown up yet?" I snapped. Stiles puckered his lips out and nodded.

"That the full moon talking, buddy?" He asked making me feel bad.

"Probably...don't worry about Maggie. She wouldn't stand you up." I tried to reassure him but he shrugged.

"Maybe something happened with the betas. She could have gotten caught up taking care-" I cut Stiles off knowing where he was going.

"Derek would call me if he needed help with them. It's not safe for Maggie to be there when we don't know how she's going to handle it." Stiles held my gaze.

"She wouldn't pick Isaac over you, trust me." I said firmly. He took it at face value and took a sip of his punch.

"Why do you care about Allison and I anyway?" I asked seeing the surprise on his face.

"Because! Scott, something has to go right here. We're getting our asses kicked if you haven't noticed. People are dying, I got my dad fired, you're going to be held back in school, I'm apparently the last to know that Maggie and I belong together and she has apparently gotten cold feet which is funny because she's half werewolf. If on top of watching this crash and burn, I have to watch a stalker like Matt get Allison, I'm going to stab myself in the face." I felt him before I saw him as he walked into the party slowly.

"Don't stab yourself in the face." I said standing quickly.

"Why not?" Stiles asked staring at me.

"Because Jackson's here." Stiles head snapped in the direction I was looking at just in time for Jackson to stare at us. Lydia approached him slowly and handed him some punch. He kept his steely gaze on us as he sipped from the glass. The party was in full swing and the more people started to pile in and dance, the more I felt like I had to keep my eyes on Jackson. Stiles had slipped away to call Maggie when I started to feel a slight shift in my control. I shook my hand out and Lydia dropped a cup into it.

"I can't drink tonight." I said quickly.

"Alright what is with the two of you? I don't care if you two have to keep your love affair secret but right here, right now seems like the perfect time to just have a good time." Lydia's words made a lot of sense. I was able to control myself and there was no point and avoiding Allison if I was in control.

"You know something? You're right." I sipped the glass and Lydia smiled.

"Maggie's still coming right?" She asked curiously.

"Yeah she's on her way now. She should be here any minute." I said before taking a long swig of the punch. It was actually really good. Lydia tipped the glass and I downed the whole thing.

"Have fun Scott." She spun on her heel and left me standing there looking for Allison who disappeared during the short conversation Lydia and I had. A surge went through my entire body and I felt a bit loop at first. I knew there was no way I could get drunk but I figured I'd have two glass max on that punch just in case Jackson decided he wanted to do anything crazy.

[Maggie's POV]

I finally decided on an outfit after taking entirely too much time to get ready, getting at least 3 texts from Stiles and when he finally called, I was too nervous to answer. I took one last look in the mirror and smoothed on the black skirt I decided on, running my hand over the white shirt I'd picked and fluffing my hair out. My hands kept shaking and I tried to pretend they weren't. A date with Stiles is something I didn't think would ever happen but he just went for it. I knew if I started to over think it, I wouldn't go and it would hurt his feelings. I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself down as I walked out to the car. I thought I caught a glimpse of a pair of red eyes in the trees making me halt. The eyes started to multiply and I knew there wouldn't be a group of alphas just hanging out in the woods. I closed my eyes tightly and opened them only to see that there was nothing there. I checked my phone and didn't see any messages from Derek.

There was no reason to worry. All I had to do was get to Lydia's and enjoy myself. I hadn't really felt any differently and was almost to Lydia's when I felt a surge of pain in my scar. I let out a gasp and hit my breaks before hitting the curb as visions of Peter popped into my head. I winced as I rubbed at the painful reminder and wasn't sure why it was suddenly burning. The only explanation was the full moon. I didn't realize I was parked in front of Lydia's house. It seemed like I had just gotten in the car but here I was. I got out and could hear the house booming with noise. I could hear people in the backyard and music shaking the walls. I didn't bother knocking as I walked into the front door to see just how packed the house was. I hadn't gotten too far into the door before someone bumped into me hard.

"S-sorry." It was Allison and she looked upset.

"Hey! Are you okay?" I asked knowing that it was a stupid question. She probably knew by now what Derek had done and hated me.

"I...I don't know. I just...I think..." She touched her head and held a hand to her stomach.

"Allison, what happened?" I touched her arm and she looked at me, concern written all over her face.

"I just had a vision or something. I'm not sure what it was but it was but it felt so real." She was clearly shaken but what is the likelihood that Allison actually had a vision?

"Do you want me to find Scott?" I asked but her eyes quickly shot to mine.

"No...no I'm fine. I can handle it. I just need some fresh air." Allison walked towards the front door and closed it softly behind her. Something wasn't right. I made my way through the house trying to find Scott and tell him how freaked out Allison had looked but someone grabbed my arm and pulled me into the kitchen.

"There you are! You're late!" Lydia smiled at me.

"Yeah sorry, I was trying to find something to wear." I said looking around Lydia to see if I could spot anyone.

"Well you look fabulous but seeing as how you were late, you have to take a birthday shot with me." She held out a shot glass with purple liquid in it. I glanced around at everyone else who had a pink.

"What's wrong with the drink?" I eyed it suspiciously and Lydia cocked her eyebrow.

"It's not poison, I'm just keeping the good liquor for myself but I'll share with you as a toast to our new friendship." She poured herself a shot and I kept my eyes on her. I smelled the liquid and couldn't pick up any scent other than alcohol and grapes.

"To my birthday and our new friendship." She held up her glass and I clinked it against hers.

"Happy birthday Lydia." I said before downing the liquid. It burned the whole way down and made me feel warm instantly. I could feel Lydia's eyes on me as she handed me a regular glass of punch.

"Have fun, mingle." She started back through the crowd and I tried to shake off how strange the encounter was as I looked for Scott. When I finally spotted him he waved his hand at me.

"Hey it's about time you got here." He said looking me up and down smiling.

"You look really nice. Stiles is going to freak out when he sees you." I blushed and forgot for a moment about what happened with Allison.

"Something is going on okay? I don't know what it is but Allison was pretty freaked out." Scott got serious instantly.

"Where is she? Is she okay?" He looked over my shoulder and I put my hand on his arm.

"She walked out front to get some air but you should check on her. I'm going to look for Stiles-" Scott shook his head.

"Stiles will be fine, you need to keep an eye on Jackson so he doesn't do anything bad. I'm going to find Allison." Scott almost ordered.

"If you see Stiles-" He cut me off again.

"I'll tell him to come find you. Just stay put." Scott pushed through the crowd and I kept my eyes on Jackson who didn't seem to be doing anything but sipping his punch. I hoped Stiles would find me so I could apologize for being late but a voice broke through my thoughts.

"This is what we died for? We sacrificed ourselves, gave you our magic, all so you could take orders from some omega werewolf." I looked to the left and dropped the glass to the ground. Caroline was standing there, arms crossed over her chest and anger painted across her face. I couldn't find my voice. I was too in shock.

"Y-you-you're d-"

"Dead? Yeah it would appear that loving you is literally fatal. I was so young, I could have done anything. I had to get brutally murdered all so you could come to some stupid birthday party? I LOVED PARTIES!" Evie stood across the pool, arms thrown to her sides as she yelled. I backed into the pillar and held onto it.

"This isn't real. This can't be real." I closed my eyes tightly trying to shake the images but when I opened them blood was splattered over the walls, fence line and the pool was filled with body parts.

"Oh!" I covered my mouth and felt my lungs struggling to get enough air.

"This is your reality Maggie. Innocent lives, people you love, children...they die because of you." Karen was holding a bloody baby blanket and I felt the hot tears streaming down my face. Classmates were strung out through the yard. The pool was a deep crimson as it started to boil as if the water were being boiled.

"Don't worry sweetheart, daddy will protect you." Peter next to the pool holding my mom's head in his arms.

"What have you done?" Her dismembered head whispered as I fell to the ground right next to the pool. The plastic cover had gone over it, sealing the boiling blood underneath when a hand shot up, trapped beneath it. I jumped back until I heard Peter laugh.

"Aren't you going to save your friends?" He questioned making me look into the pool. Stiles was trying to claw his way out of the pool but was being boiled alive.

"STOP! STOP IT! PLEASE HELP HIM!" I screamed and cried as I clawed at the cover. Scott popped up next and then Allison, Lydia and Danny. I cried staring into their terrified eyes as they struggled beneath the plastic. I finally snapped out of it when I felt arms around me pulling me back.

"Maggie! HEY! MAGGIE!" It was Danny. He had pulled me into his lap and everyone was staring at me.

"You're okay. It's okay." He rocked me back and forth for a moment but I saw blood on my hands. I scrambled backwards out of his lap and skidded over the cement trying to run and find a bathroom to clean the blood off my hands. I locked the door and heard Danny yelling behind me but I tried to tune him out. No matter how much soap I used, no matter how hot the water was...I couldn't get my hands clean. I glanced up in the mirror and saw Peter's face smiling.

"There there sweetheart, I always knew you were a daddy's girl." He laughed in the reflection and I punched the mirror as hard as I could but it merely shattered. I kept scrubbing away at my hands trying to catch my breath but it almost seemed impossible.

[Stiles POV]

"I don't know where you are but could you at least give me a call and let me know you're alright. I'm really worried here Mags." I left another voice mail before bumping into Scott.

"Hey, I still can't reach her." I said but Scott shook his head.

"She's here. I just saw her but I need to find Allison. She should be out by the pool." Scott gestured outside and I patted him on the shoulder before rushing out there. It seemed like people were getting more and more crazy as the night ran on. Making out, screaming laughing at things, I even saw a kid making out with a tree but I stopped in my tracks when I saw a couple sitting in a patio chair going at it so hard that she was actually straddling the guy.

"Whoa, keep it PG people." I said but stopped instantly when the brunette whipped her head back. IT was Maggie and she was straddling Isaac.

"Maggie? What the hell are you doing?" I asked feeling the heat rise in my face from anger. I balled my fists up as she swung her leg back over and adjusted her shirt.

"I was trying to make out with Isaac but you've kind of killed the mode." She adjusted her bra and Isaac wiped his lip staring at me.

"You look surprised." Isaac said as I clenched my jaw.

"Why would he be surprised? Peter told him this would happen. I spent years wasting my time thinking that you were the one person I needed above everyone else." I never told Maggie that Peter had said that. Scott must have blabbed to her.

"You were right before. You are worthless and weak. You will always be a fragile human and I don't need the burden of your life over my head. I'm not going to let you take me down like you did with your mother." As the words came out of her mouth, I held her gaze. Her eyes were cold and distant. It's like her tongue was a blade and it took it's swipes fast and deep into my gut. I felt a lump growing in my throat and I felt the distinct prick of tears welling but I refused to get upset in front of them.

"Ugh I can't even stand to look at you. You're pathetic." Maggie spat turning away from me and Isaac laughed smugly.

"Wow…that was harsh. Tough break." He gripped the back of Maggie's hair and brought his mouth back down on hers. I closed my eyes tightly before turning to walk away but before I even got back to the house I caught sight of my dad.

"I JUST CAME FROM A FUNERAL! PEOPLE WEAR BLACK AT FUNERALS!" He was yelling at some kid holding a handle of his favorite liquor. He shoved the kid and turned towards me. I felt everything around me go quiet as he looked me over.

"It's you...it's all you. You know every day I saw her lying in the hospital slowly dying, I thought how the hell am I supposed to raise this stupid kid on my own. This hyperactive little bastard who keeps ruining my life." He growled. I felt the hole growing in my chest and I wished the world would open up and swallow me. I glanced around at the other kids and they were all staring at me as my dad gave me the worst verbal beating I'd ever received.

"It's all you...Stiles." He said made name like it was laced with poison that had been slowly killing him for years. He held the bottle up at me, pointing.

"You killed your mother, you hear me?" My entire world shattered in those 4 words. It was a fear that I'd never said out loud and now my father had thrown it right in my face.

"You killed her and now you're killing me." Dad froze for a moment before rearing back and throwing the bottle towards me. Out of instinct I covered my face bracing myself for the heavy bottle to shatter against my body but when my back hit the pillar I opened my eyes to see he wasn't standing there. People weren't staring at me and there was no shattered glass on the ground. Tears had streaked my face and I had quickly wiped them away before anyone could see me. I grabbed another punch and slid down the wall finding a comfortable spot to sit and drink all the shitty things that just happened out of my mind. Scott eventually found me and kept badgering me about where Lydia was but I didn't bother answering.

"STILES! I need you to sober up alright! Drink this, please. Something is happening." Scott held out a bottle of water but I turned my nose up to it. I just wanted to be left alone. I didn't care if the world was on fire, I just wanted to sit here and sulk. I tuned out Scott and the girl he was talking to until she grabbed me by my shirt and dunked me into the pool water.

"How do you feel?" She asked as I spit water out of my nose and mouth tasting the chlorine as it burned through my sinuses.

"Like I might need to revisit my policy on hitting a girl." I sputtered.

"He's sober." She patted my shoulder and left Scott and I alone.

"Look the punch was spiked. Whatever Lydia put in it has made everyone start seeing things. I just thought I saw Allison making out with the kanima." Scott explained.

"You mean Jackson?" I corrected.

"No I mean the psychopathic lizard version of Jackson." I cringed at the visual. It clicked in my head pretty quickly that seeing my dad wasn't real. He disappeared into thin air but Maggie and Isaac hadn't.

"Allison took off and won't answer her phone but Maggie said she was freaking out earlier. We need to find Maggie and Lydia before something bad happens." Scott explained.

"Have you tried calling Isaac? He was pretty attached to her face when I saw her earlier." I fixed my wet shirt and Scott shook his head.

"That's not possible." He dismissed.

"Look, I clearly saw them making out so yes it's very possible." I argued.

"Derek wouldn't let them out tonight. He locked them up and Maggie arrived alone looking for you. I'm telling you it's impossible that you saw them making out because Isaac was never here." Scott explained making me eye him strangely.

"Are you serious?" I asked making him roll his eyes as he helped me to my feet.

"I've got to find Maggie." If I saw my dad freaking out on me and Maggie making out with Isaac, I can only imagine what Maggie saw. Scott and I both jumped when we heard a scream from inside.

"Maggie." Scott said knowingly before we raced back inside. I suddenly felt panic set in.


Next Chapter: Derek and Lydia go missing, Allison world gets turned upside down, Maggie loses control and Stiles and Scott figure out who is controlling the kanima. Now it's a race to find the others and stop the kanima from killing anyone else before it's too late. Maggie quickly learns that the full moon won't be what triggers her wolf.

~SPECIAL THANKS~ Miss E Charlotte, BrittWitt16, xXxPrincessofDarknessxXx, aliciasellers75, katiesgotagun, alicestilinski, Charl0tt3, Rose, GeishaXnoXHimitsu, XxXLIFEafterDEATHXxX, CourtneyxWolf725 and Abigail because I love all of you, you're amazing and I appreciate all your support and feedback.