Her mind is Tiffany-twisted, she got the Mercedes Benz
She got a lot of pretty, pretty boys she calls friends
How they dance in the courtyard, sweet summer sweat.

Some dance to remember, some dance to forget

Cole stalked down the dingy motel hall, trying to focus on what she could hear. She felt like shit. Her head was pounding, her body burning. Every once and a while she swore she could see the flickering light of flames through curtains of rooms, or around a corner.

She could just grasp onto fleets of a conversation as she continued.

It led somewhere to the left, if they were real.

As she drew closer, the familiar voice became clear. She felt some relief. Then her brain clicked.

Lydia.

She could also now make out Allison, and Stiles voices speaking.

They were harshly interrupted by a high pitched mechanical whirring. She cringed in pain, her hands coming up reflexively to cover her ears. She took a moment, dulling her hearing back down, then she broke into a sprint. She heard a door crash open.

"What are you doing?!"

She could hear Stiles exclaim in clear shock.

The room wasn't far. She darted around the corner and a few doors down.

The creaky old wood door was left ajar.

Just inside, the figures a large man fighting with a much smaller one over what was clearly a piece of machinery. They were barely illuminated by the one construction lamp in the corner, but Stiles had a fairly recognizable shadow. Bald, skinny, and spazzy.

She shot for the big one.

As she whipped into the room, Stiles fell away, a large saw with him. He fell within inches of it as it came unplugged.

As she got to the wolf she could now recognise as one of the twins. He began to turn his claws on himself. He struck down at his own stomach.

Cole managed to reach him before any real damage occurred.

When her hands came up to meet his, clamping with immense force, Ethan's eyes grew wide.

She watched his pupils dilate, as he suddenly fell away from her. He stumbled to the floor, with a grunt. He stared at her hand. The room was silent for a moment.

"What the hell?"

Cole looked around the room, hoping for an answer herself. She found Allison and Lydia just beside the entrance, where she must have dashed past them without notice. They were staring at her. Her eyes shot to Stiles. Same.

"What?" She barked out, probably harsher than necessary. Whatever, they were tripping her out.

"Are you….Good?"

The question was vague but the way they were looking at her was clearly riddled with concern, and probably fear.

Cole realised her claws remained out, and her eyes still shone brightly as she looked between them. Her ragged breath probably wasn't anymore settling.

She took a deep breath, willing harder than usually necessary for her wolf to take a backseat. Her eyes faded as she straightened up, and her nails returned to their overgrown, but normal state.

"Good… no. Better than him? Oh yeah."

Cole gestured to the oversized teen on the ground.

Ethan looked around at all of them before getting up to take off back towards his own room, despite Stiles objections.

"Leave him. Any chance you guys know what the hell is going on?" Cole bit grabbing Stiles as he headed towards the door. He jerked back comically to her side with a huff.

They shook their heads no.

"Besides that 5 more people are supposed to die? What now?" Lydia asked unhelpfully, looking between all of them.

Cole chose to ignore the comment as it sounded much more like sarcasm than a real lead.

"Me and Stiles can find Scott and Boyd. You and Lydia should get Isaac and your sister. We have to get you all out of here." Allison stated firmly, almost with confidence as she looked towards Cole. She held the gaze until Cole gave her a nod of confirmation.

"Off we go then." Cole replied, motioning towards the exit.

Cole let everyone else out first, Allison and Stiles leading. She pulled the door firmly to get it to close with a click.

The first pair headed down the hall towards the last places they had seen their friends. Cole motioned towards Lydia for her to follow back in the direction of their rooms.

Cole waited until the others were out of earshot before speaking, her gaze remaining ahead.

"I've seen this before."

Cole didn't realise how oblivious Lydia was to what had happened. The redhead looked up towards Cole with an innocent confusion.

"What? How?"

"This has happened. On your birthday, when you poisoned everyone with wolfsbane."

Lydia's expression dropped as she looked away. There was a brief flash of guilt across her face, before confusion overcame it.

"How did you know that?"

Cole shrugged, with a sideways grin.

"I was there. Someone had to make sure nobody died."

Lydia looked at her with… anger? She wasn't quite sure.

"Then you should know well whose fault it was. Not Mine."

Her tone was sharp. Oh, so Cole had offended her. She supposed it made sense the whole thing was a sensitive subject.

"I'm sorry Lydia. I wasn't trying to suggest you did anything. You just seem to have an...attraction to this sort of thing."

Lydia looked away once more, staring off into the parking lot. Cole rolled her eyes dramatically before taking a strained tone.

"I hate to break it to you but you being some kind of death radar isnt going to stop because we dont acknowledge it."

She was silent.

Cole moved to speak again but Lydia stopped dead, causing her to skid to one herself.

"Do you hear that?" Lydia continued to gaze off into the lot, but Cole noticed the glossy look her eyes had taken. Her mouth hung slightly agape. Cole's tone softened instantly, though she was firm.

"What do you hear Lydia?"

Cole put a hand on Lydia's arm to try and calm her. Almost instantly the girl began walking past her, into the dimly lit, mostly empty lot.

"A baby's crying."

Her voice was low, and breathless as she kept walking, looking confused. Cole shared the expression, following Lydia. She walked until she reached a sewer grate.

"There's water running."

She spoke as she dropped down to her knees, leaning closer to the rusted metal. Cole stared at her further confused, when Lydia began to look inside, seeming to grow more and more frantic. She began to shake.

"Oh my god. She drowned her baby!"

Cole had come to a stop behind her with wide eyes, trying to see whatever it was she did. There was nothing she could hear or see, and definitely no babies. Her hand came down to rest on Lydia's shoulder, when the other girl whipped around to her, startling her back a few steps. Her eyes had lost their glassiness. She spoke to Cole now, rather than her quiet mutters before. Her tone was heavy, though she was not quite herself again.

"Someone's drowning."

Cole reached her hand out to help her stand once more.

"Show me where."

Lydia took the hand, standing, and leading in the direction they had been headed originally. She led Cole at almost a sprint up the stairs, bringing her to what she believed was Isaac and Boyds room if she could trust her memory.

Without stop, Lydia opened the unlocked door and lead her inside. They could see the bathroom, illuminated by the only light on, across the way. Lydia continued straight in there, leading Cole straight to Boyd.

Drowning in a tub, with a safe on his chest.

Cole rolled her eyes. It wasn't fair she had to deal with everyone having a bad trip while she was high herself. She whipped around to Lydia, her eyes already glowing.

"Move."

Lydia responded immediately, backing out of the room towards the beds.

Cole turned back to the tub. She reached into the water, her hands gripping tight, collapsing parts of the metal. She breathed in hard, and tore the safe out.

With her lack of control, it did as she thought and flew out. She hadn't expected it to lodge in the wall but maybe she was stronger than she thought.

Boyd still failed to emerge. She reached in to grab him. Her hand clamped down sharply around his wrist and his eyes shot open. She drew back, shieling herself as he came flying out of the water, gasping for air.

She looked down at her hand for a moment.

A screech from Lydia caught her full attention, forcing her into the bedroom.

Cole resisted her urge to laugh at the scene.

"Could you let me find one?"

Cole teased, looking on as Lydia crouched by the end of the bed, skirt lifted. Underneath was a fear stricken Isaac who seemed to look right through them. Lydia did not find it so funny.

"Just do something."

Cole thought for a moment before looking down at her hands again. Maybe they were actually hot and she wasn't hallucinating. No, she had touched Lydia. It hadn't seemed to bother her. Seemed like a question she would reserve for a future occasion.

She walked over to the bed, crouching beside Lydia. She reached out to touch Isaac, her hand grasping his shoulder. They could see in his eyes as the curse of the hallucination was broken. His eyes began to dart around as he returned to himself.

"Well, we got one of theirs. Let's hope they found my sister."

They hadn't found her sister. She was not happy. Scott was fine, and they left the other wolves locked in a room together.

Lydia suddenly reached out, taking a less than comfortable grip around her wrist. When Cole looked into her eyes, she knew. She followed without a word.

Cole began to regret not calling Mara, not that she would have even arrived for a few more hours. She was terrified. Leila never ignored messages, none of them did. She knew better, and that led Cole to think she wasn't able to. Judging by what Boyd and Ethan had done right before Lydia found them, her anxiety grew by the second.

She was vaguely aware of the voices trailing her as she followed Lydia, trying to pick up a scent.

They found themselves at the front once more, and Lydia dreamily pulled her down the stairs towards the parking lot. There was something else too. The smell of gasoline.

Cole looked up from scouring the ground as the voices around her stopped entirely and she bumped into the redhead, dropping her hand.

Her heart sank into her stomach.

Leila was standing about 20 feet from her, just beside the bus they had arrived in. She had taken one of the flares out of the emergency kit, holding it high above her head. It was lit and she was soaked.

"Lei…" Cole began, but she couldn't get another word out before her sister's dark tone stopped her.

"There's nothing here for me."

The finality in her sister's tone made her chest ache. Leila wouldn't look at her, eyes trained on the ground. Cole tried not to let her voice reflect her fears. Tried to be calm and clear, like Lei prefers.

"We've been poisoned. This isn't you"

"No Cole, I don't belong here."

Cole's head tilted, as she looked on in confusion and desperation. Lydia, who she now realised is the one who had grabbed her, replied, trying to mirror the calm tone.

"She's right, Leila. You've all been drugged. You aren't thinking straight."

Tears could be seen falling from Leila's eyes as the statement seemed to have the opposite effect wanted. Her voice grew more shaken.

"I remember the way Talia used to look at me. Everyone else would look at me the same if they knew the truth."

She sounded sickly as she sobbed the last part. Cole felt hot tears rolling off her own cheeks, as her stomach twisted.

She knew Talia used to treat her sister differently. Never cruel or mean, just…. Disinterested. Cole always wondered when she was younger. She had chalked it up to jealousy at the way the young girl favoured Peter so, until her older sister had shared the truth with them.

She definitely hadn't known the toll it took.

"Ever since we came back, I can't get away from it. I have no place here. I've never been a great wolf. I can't sort out smells for my life. I may as well be deaf since I'm never paying attention anyways. Talia knew it. I've always excelled in planning, tracking and fighting. It's a sick joke. Every day here is a reminder of that"

Lelia looked up finally. Her eyes held Cole's, a pained expression across her delicate features.

"I have no place in this world. Since I was born, I've been pushed from person to person. I know it won't last. I can't keep doing this. Kate wanted me dead, Talia didn't want me, and soon you'll all realise you don't want me either. I'm not a wolf, or a hunter. I'm nothing. Worthless."

The last part came out choked. Cole spoke the second she stopped, tone shaky from emotion, but her expression was hard and tone sure.

"You're not." Cole stated firmly. She began to edge her way towards Lei, feeling the accelerant now below her feet begin to soak through her chucks.

"You're Leila HALE. You're my sister. Their opinions never mattered, and they're both six feet under anyways. Blood means nothing. We couldn't let you go if we tried, especially Peter. We're pack for life."

Leila let out another choked sob, stepping back. Cole slowed even further.

"I have no pack. I'm not a Hale, I'm not a Lovell, I don't have an alpha…..I'm not like you. I'm alone."

Cole was inches from Lei now. She breathed deeply, trying to remain as calm as she could. Building her courage. She prayed internally Mara wouldn't totally kill her, though she was definitely in line to be maimed if not by her sister, then Peter. The situation seemed to excuse the betrayal.

She reached her hand out.

"You are. They couldn't tell you. If anyone ever knew they could use it against us."

Leila searched her sisters eyes, her brows slightly furrowing. The tears seemed to halt, and her voice much less far away.

"What are you saying?"

Cole looked behind her for a moment, her eyes lingering on Allison. Everyone was panicked, tears streaks to be seen in the low light. Allsion had her hands over her mouth, eyes not leaving the flare. Cole hoped the Kate comment had gone over her head at least.

She turned back to her sister, who looked frantic. She considered lowering her voice but Scott would no doubtedly hear anyways. They had heard everything else at this point. Another deep breath. No more stalling.

"When… you were brought to the house that day…. Peter answered. You were JUST born. He was probably the second or third person to have even held you. He sent one of the kids to get Talia and was left alone with you. In that moment, as he rocked you, something happened. Maybe it was because he was the first person to hold you calmly, maybe it was something about your genes…. When he got you that day, you imprinted on him."

Leila stared blankly, the glaze over her eyes fully gone now. It gave Cole the chance she needed. She grabbed the flare, tearing it from her sister's hand without giving her chance to react, and hauled it further than necessary. No need to risk it.

Cole returned her attention to Lei, who just collapsed into her arms, sobbing once more. Cole looked up at the dotted sky, the smell of gasoline overwhelming as she wrapped her arms around her sister tightly. SHe rested her chin atop the soaked brown curls, finally feeling like she could truly exhale.

What a silly notion.

Lydia's piercing shriek sent Cole's blood cold. She turned to look, but felt hands grabbing at her jacket, and suddenly her and Lei were in the air. Then they were on the concrete with a hard smack. Her head was spinning.

She thought for a minute the fire was another hallucination, especially when she began to think she might have seen a figure standing within it. Cole stared on, as Leila began to wriggle from her tight grip to right herself.

Cole looked around for a moment, finding Allison on the ground to her other side.

She must have pulled them both out of the way.

Another look found the flare that she had thrown so hard, laying soaked not far from the bus. It couldn't have gotten back there. Not without help.

Everyone looked like death, but the crisis seemed to be averted for now. No sense leaving with only a few hours to sunrise.

Cole knew she'd have to call Mara, but she reasoned it could wait till she got some real sleep. Everyone was safe, and accounted for. For now.

The flames died down rather fast without any real fuel.

Cole looked around evaluating their options. She rose to her feet, brushing off her jeans and offering her sister a hand. Lei looked at her confused as she began towards the bus. The rest of them shared the same look. Cole stopped and turned back to the group.

"There's 5 hour Max until we leave for the meet. I don't really plan on going back in that motel, and if i don't sleep, there still will be 5 murders happening here."

She continued without waiting for a response, and her sister followed. Everyone else looked back and forth, then at the hotel, before shrugging at each other, and following.

Cole had almost fallen asleep with her head pressed against the window in a way that would surely leave an imprint, when she heard Leila ask something.

"Where are Boyd and Isaac?"

Cole jumped awake at the sound of screeching metal as the bus doors were opened. She blinked blearly through the blinding sunlight, raising her head off the window. She rubbed at her cheek as she looked around. Everyone was awake now, and staring blindly ahead at the loud intrusion. Coach stared back at them, expression unreadable, but clearly not happy.

"I don't want to know. I really don't want to know, but in case you missed the announcement, the meet's cancelled, so we're heading home. Pack it in. Pack it in!"

He yelled the last part at the line of students outside, who began loading on with all their stuff.

Cole watched closely when Ethan was the first to enter, passing Lei, then her, and sitting beside Stiles. The boy looked like he'd jump out of his skin. His best friend behind him perked up, leaning over to hear.

" I don't know what happened last night, but I'm pretty sure you saved my life."

"I'm pretty sure it was me, but not that it matters that much."

Ethan seemed to ignore Cole's comment and continue.

" So I'm gonna give you something. We're pretty sure Derek's still alive. But he killed one of ours. That means one of two things can happen. Either he joins our pack…"

"and kills his own."

Scott supplied darkly. Cole rolled her eyes with a snort. The Alpha's had a certain flare for dramatics. It might scare some, but wasn't very sneaky. As far a Cole was concerned, nothing won a fight like a wildcard, and they had plenty.

Ethan nodded at the guys.

"Or Kali goes after him, and we kill him. That's the way it works."

He got up and walked further back in the bus, finding a new seat, as Scott slipped into the seat with Stiles, who was muttering curses after the alpha.

Cole retired her attention forward, as Leila switched into her seat as well. She hoped she could still catch a few hours on the trip.

She heard the coach call out to Ethan from the front of the bus. As he walked down the aisle, Cole turned at Lydia's voice, and the eiree tone of it.

"Coach, can I see your whistle for a second?"

Lydia looked up towards him as he approached, taking on that look that was becoming all too familiar.

" What's that?"

He kept trying to go straight past, focused on his mission. Lydia simply took the whistle and sat back down.

"Hey, Eth... I'm gonna need that back. Ethan…"

Cole watched closely as the Coach continued past, and Lydia looked closely at his whistle. She put it to her lips to blow, covering it with her hand as they all looked on in confusion. When she pulled away, a fine purple dust sat in her palm.

"Wolfsbane."

She stated simply. They all looked on in horror, but Stiles had bit of awe at the same time.

"So every time the coach blew the whistle on the bus, Scott, Cole, Isaac, Leila, Boyd…"

"and Ethan."

Lydia added. Scott looked deeply annoyed.

" We all inhaled it."

Stiles nodded slowly at his best friend.

"So that's how the Darach got in your heads. That's how he did it."

Leila let out a laugh, and teased him.

"He? What if it's a girl?" Her sister deadpanned.

That seemed to dumbstruck him for a moment. Cole sent a greatful look in Lydia's direction. Without her, things would have ended very different. She found herself smiling when the redhead looked away, her face matching her hair.

As Leila and Scott laughed at Stiles annoyance, Cole took the time to go over to Lydia, and grab the whistle.

It was like Coach could sense a disturbance in the universe.

"Hey, hey, hey, hey! Hale!"

He yelled after her as he made his way back to the front of the bus, despite all the stuff causing him to trip. Frequently.

Cole looked right at him as he headed over. She gave him the best smile she could in her exhausted state, and crushed the high pitched glorified toy in her fist. She mouthed his next words mockingly as he screamed at her.

"YOU JUST GOT YOURSELF DETENTION AGAIN."

Hope you enjoyed! Let me know what you think?