the yeah yeah yeah's - head's will roll (a-track remix)

" dance till you're dead "

TRIGGER WARNING
This chapter contains scenes of sexual harassment

Everyone had been buzzing for the upcoming warehouse rave for weeks. Tickets were extortionately priced at $75, but I'd managed to club together enough money doing after-school shifts at the surgery and a couple of babysitting jobs. It was imperative that I did, because that was where we'd carry out our plan; we were going to attempt to catch the kanima's master.

I'd made it my mission to find someone there that could take my mind off of Derek. I was still in denial that I could ever be attracted to him, but that didn't mean I wasn't still desperate to get him out of my head. I decided I had to go out of my comfort zone, so I wore a tight black miniskirt and a stripy crop top. However, it was still the beginning of spring and there was a chill in the air, so I wore my favourite leather jacket to keep it out. The outfit was complete with a pair of slightly outrageous hoop earring and heels. I did slip a pair of Converse into my purse though, just in case I couldn't walk by the end of the night. Comfort was still somewhat of a priority.

Just as I left the apartment, I realised that I'd almost forgotten my present from Deaton. I decided it would be completely necessary, seeing as we would be dealing with the supernatural and someone could have been hurt. I slid it into my bag and smiled, feeling a million times less powerless than I had when I first arrived in Beacon Hills. I'd finally begun to take control of my life and helping my friends was part of that.

The walk was fairly short as Deaton lived towards the outskirts of town anyway. The cold air of the night nipped at my legs, causing goosebumps to rise. I regretted shaving my legs, craving the slight bit of warmth the hair would have offered.
The things people do to look good, I thought in a huff.

As I got further and further from civilisation, I began to regret not taking up Stiles' offer of a ride there. The streets were dark and barely illuminated by the artificial orange glow of street lamps. Fear gripped me as I realised that anything over two metres away was shrouded in shadows, where anything could be lurking.

A car full of men drove past, slowing down as they neared me. The driver honked the horn as another leaned out of the window and wolf-whistled at me.
"Hey, babygirl! What are you doing out this late?" The one in the passenger seat hollered. I tried to ignore them and keep walking, but I could see the hungry look in his eye with my peripheral vision. As they drove off into the night, I thought they were gone. I was filled with nervousness when I realised that they were doing a U-turn and coming back around.
"It's not safe for you to walk around alone. Why don't you get in the car and we'll take you where you need to go?" Another asked. They were driving alongside me now. I could tell that their friendliness was false and they had other intentions, so I sped up and closed my jacket tighter around me. I felt like a piece of meat on show at a butcher's.
"Maybe if we get there early we can find a way to kill the time!" They all laughed raucously.
"No, thank you," I said stiffly.
"Come on, girl! You're killing us! You can't show off legs and an ass like that and expect us not to want a piece! Just give us a chance, you won't regret it!"
"Trust us, we know how to show you a good time!" They wouldn't stop, and I felt tears began to brim in my eyes. I was scared for life.

Suddenly, everything seemed to go in slow motion as I heard the car door open. I turned and saw that one of them had stepped out of the car, swaggering over towards me.
"Baby, come back!" He managed to catch up with me and put his hand on my chest to stop me, the other gripping my butt tightly. "Why won't you just come play with us?"
"Because I don't fuck with dogs," I spat, a surge of courage filling me. Before I could really comprehend what I was doing, my knee collided with his junk and he buckled over in pain.
"You bitch!" He groaned, spittle collecting at the sides of his mouth.
"Oh shit, dude, are you okay?" His friends asked, piling out of the car to check on him. By then, I was already hurtling down the street as fast as I could. I could hear them shouting slurs in my wake, like "bitch", "whore" and "dirty skank". Ignoring them, I saw the warehouse coming up and continued towards it, not looking back. My heart was pounding but as I glanced behind me, I saw that they weren't following. I made it to the parking lot and stopped to catch my breath.

The pulsing music filled my ears as I stepped through the door. Bouncers offered to take my purse and my coat. I handed over the purse and considered doing the same with my coat, but after my close call with the men in the car, I decided I wanted to stay as covered up as possible.

The warehouse was filled with intoxicated bodies moving against each other to the steady beat of EDM. I could barely make out any faces as the lights were too bright, obscuring everyone's features. The whole place was a blur of movement.
After several minutes of looking, I spotted Allison and Matt to the side. I made my way over to them, pleased that I finally found someone I knew.
"Hey, guys!" I shouted over the heavy bass.
"Rose! I'm glad you made it!" Allison hugged me, but something seemed slightly off about her. She seemed almost sad.
"Matt!"I nodded, shaking his hand.
"You look amazing!" Allison gushed.
"Thank you, so do you!" I smiled, but I didn't feel amazing. I felt dirty.
"Do you want a drink?" Allison's date asked me.
"I'm good, thanks anyway!" I wanted to stay as alert as possible for when the plan was carried out.

Suddenly, I felt a hand wrap around my arm and pull me away. I looked up to find that the hand belonged to Stiles.
"See you guys later!" I called after them as they looked on in confusion. "What is it?" I turned to the boy dragging me along.
"They got him. They got Jackson,"
"What?" His words were lost in the music.
"They got Jackson!" He shouted nearer to my face.
"Alright, jeez, you didn't have to shout!" He glared at me, meeting my teasing grin.

We made our way through the bustling crowd to a more secluded part of the warehouse. It looked as if there would have once been offices of some sort there.
The two of us reached a door and Stiles pushed it open. Someone rushed over and a tussle ensued as Stiles, who was in front of me, tried to push Erica off of him.
"Nonononono, it's just us, it's just us," Stiles cried, causing the girl to retreat. We stepped into the room to see Jackson sat on a chair in the middle, out cold. He looked strangely peaceful. Almost childlike. In that moment, I felt sorry for him as I realised how horrific it must have been for him. He was killing innocent people and he had no control over it; all he could do was sit by and watch, trapped in his own body.
"Is he okay?" I asked, edging towards him slightly.
"Well, let's find out," Isaac strutted over and released his claws, preparing to strike Jackson.
"No!" I cried, but it looked like Jackson didn't need protecting as he grabbed Isaac's wrist and crushed it, all with his eyes shut. The boy cried out in pain and fell to his knees, dropping to the floor completely when Jackson released him.
"Okay, no one does anything like that again," Stiles said.
"I thought the ketamine was supposed to put him out," Isaac grumbled, clutching his broken wrist and making his way back over to us.
"Well, clearly this is as good as it's going to get so let's just hope that whoever's controlling him decided to show up tonight,"
"I'm here," Jackson growled from across the room. It wasn't his voice, though. It was deep and almost mechanical, like someone was talking through him. His eyes had transformed into yellow slits. "I'm right here with you,"
"Jackson? Is that you?" I asked hesitantly, edging closer towards him.
"Yes,"
"Rose, what are you doing?" Stiles said worriedly.
"Just trust me," I said quietly. "Are you the one killing people?"
"We're the ones killing murderers,"
"Does that mean all the people you've killed so far-"
"Deserved it,"
"We hear you've got a little rule book," I continued, moving the subject on from his incredibly questionable moral code.
"Anything can break when enough pressure's applied,"
"Okay, so the people you're killing are all murderers,"
"Each and every one,"
"Who did they murder?"
"Me,"
"Wait, what do you mean?" There was no way he was telling the truth. What does that even mean? Jackson definitely wasn't dead and how could the master be controlling Jackson if he was?
"They murdered me," He became increasingly aggressive, his teeth clenching. Black, shiny scales began to creep up his arms.
"Ketamine, the man needs more ketamine!" Stiles cried. I backed away quickly, knocking into Isaac in my attempts to get away.
"We don't have any more," He said guiltily, holding up an empty glass bottle.
"Let me see that," Stiles grumbled, snatching it away.
"Um, Stiles?" Erica whimpered, tapping his shoulder and pointing at Jackson. He was half-transformed and beginning to rise out of his chair.
"Run!" I cried. We scrambled to get out of the room and pushed our entire collective weight against the door to prevent Jackson from escaping. I guess he had other ideas because seconds later he burst through the wall and scampered off.
"Or, you know, you could just do that," I said. A sick realisation dawned on all of us as we exchanged a look, remembering why Jackson had come here in the first place. Someone was going to die.

•

We hurtled through the pile of dancing bodies, desperate to find Jackson before someone else did. He was absolutely nowhere to be found.

We finally reached the exit to the warehouse and headed outside. As I was running forward, I failed to notice the line of mountain ash surrounding the club until Isaac put a hand on my chest to stop me. My heart stopped momentarily as my head returned to the moment when the guy got out of the car. I went cold and still and all I could see was his leering.
"Be careful," Isaac said as he and Erica stopped. It snapped me out of my trance and I returned to the present.

Derek was standing outside talking to Stiles. I locked eyes with him and looked away quickly, realising that I was well and truly screwed. I liked him. A lot.
"Hey, uh, so we kind of lost Jackson inside but, uh..." Stiles said sheepishly, turning to see that the three supernaturals had stopped. "Oh my God! It worked! This is...yes! I did something!" Stiles cheered disbelievingly.

A distant roar sounded, turning my vision black. I was prepared this time and steadied myself. My entire body felt weak and I couldn't breathe. There was a woman talking but I couldn't make out what she was saying, like I was underwater. For some reason, this one felt different. It was like a heart-wrenching sorrow that ripped through me.

When I opened my eyes, my cheeks were wet with tears and everyone was staring at me.
"Scott," Derek caught on immediately.
"What?" Stiles asked.
"Break it," He demanded, referring to the trail of mountain ash.
"What?!" Stiles said again, appalled by the idea of ruining his hard work.
"Scott's dying!" I cried.
"Wait, what? How do you know?"
"Oh my God, we just know, Stiles! Break it!" Derek shouted. Stiles jumped into action split the mountain ash with his hands. Derek jumped through and sprinted off.

The four of us followed Derek, him seeming to know exactly where to run. We headed to the quieter part of the warehouse, to a secluded room. The door was bolted shut. As the three slower ones rounded a corner, we saw Derek kick it open and throw himself inside. There was a struggle and we arrived to see him grab Scott's limp frame, carrying him out. In the corner, a woman was lying with huge bite marks in her shoulder. He'd given her the bite.

Derek took him outside and laid him down on the ground.
"She put wolfsbane in the humidifier. His system is full of it," He said urgently.
"What do we do?" Stiles asked.
"Rose, do what you did with me!" Erica cried.
"B-but I don't know if I can,"
"Well, do you have any other ideas?" Derek snapped maliciously.
"No, but-"
"Then DO IT," I got down to the ground, tears forming in the corners of my eyes from being yelled at. Placing his head in my lap, I stroked is hair and opened my mouth to sing. Nothing came out.
"What are you waiting for?! He's dying!" Derek demanded.
"I know, I'm sorry, I-" I choked. "I can't just turn it on,"
"What do you mean 'you can't just turn it on?! Scott is about to die and you're complaining that you can't do it?!"
"Derek!" Stiles snapped as tears flooded my cheeks. He was right, though. My friend was dying and I was useless to stop it. I wasn't even able to control my powers. I was a failure.
"I'm so sorry," I whimpered.
"We need to get him to Deaton," Stiles said. "I'll drive,"

•

Deaton had been able to save Scott, who was lying on the operating table recovering. The wolfsbane had affected him badly.

Deaton left the room when he heard the door open, leaving Derek and I alone as the others had gone home.
"I'm sorry for yelling at you earlier," He said quietly.
"What?" I replied, failing to hear him.
"I'm sorry for yelling at you. It wasn't your fault,"
"It's fine," I said dismissively, when it really wasn't. I wasn't mad at him, I was mad at myself because everything Derek said had been true.
"No, it's not. I was too hard on you,"
"Honestly, it's fine. Just leave it,"
"But-"
"Drop it, Derek," I stood up and headed to the bathroom, not wanting to speak to anyone anymore. I just wanted to be alone.

If I couldn't save my friends when it counted then what good was I? My presence had been nothing but a burden to them ever since I arrived in this town. I was absolutely useless. Maybe they just needed to be done with me.

Boy, today was not my day.

•

dedicated to HannahV77, thanks for the amazing ideas xx