North Starr

81

"There's something wrong with it," Stiles replied.

"It's broken. And it wasn't a magic bullet. It was a regular bullet that blew out a regular windshield." He motioned to several other cars. "Just like that one, and that one, and that one."

Stiles reached forward and grabbed a piece of glass. "Magic bullet."

Melanie let out a sigh. "Come on, Stiles. We have school tomorrow."

DEREK'S LOFT

Melanie called her brother and got his voicemail. "Dude, come on. Answer your phone. I think we've got a problem here in Beacon Hills. I think the Ghost Riders are coming, Derek, and I'm scared. I'm really scared. Call me when you get this."

She sat on the couch and ran her hands through her hair as she let out a long sigh.

---

The next day at school, Stiles overheard Melanie ask, "Why would I want to ruin your yearbook photo?"

"Maybe because you haven't signed up for your own photo yet?" Malia retorted.

"Yes I did," Melanie argued, showing the papers.

"It's blank."

She stared at it, clearly confused. "Uh..."

"Or maybe you're sublimating the stress of graduating and starting the next school year by avoiding key milestones," Scott guessed. "Psych paper."

Lydia nodded. "Oh."

Melanie frowned at her friends. "Hey, the deputy searched the car. No slugs, no exit hole. And the address Alex gave Stiles' dad, it's an abandoned house. Come on! Missing parents, suspicious guy on horseback, magic bullet. Who's comin' with?"

"I've got to retake my photos," Malia replied.

Lydia shook her head. "Yeah, not interested."

Scott sighed. "I cannot miss anymore classes. I missed 38 last semester. And Lydia's mom is the only reason I'm still in school. I can go after school."

Melanie scoffed. "You know what? Forget it. I'll take Liam. Stiles?"

Stiles nodded. "You don't have to ask twice." He looked over to see Liam who was kissing Hayden. "Yeah, we're not taking Liam."

Melanie let out a sigh. "If we can't get anyone else, we just may have to."

Sydney walked over and asked, "Hey, can I get a candid?"

"Uh, no," Melanie said.

Stiles set Melanie down on his lap and wrapped his arms around her waist. Lydia sat on the right side of Stiles. Scott and Malia were behind the three of them.

"Everybody smile," Sydney said as she took their picture.

---

During World History, Lydia heard a song associated with a certain monster she'd read about.

---

Scott, Melanie and Stiles had just arrived at the Turner family's house in Stiles' Jeep. The three climbed out and walked up to the front steps to the house, which looked completely abandoned and disheveled. Stiles, Melanie and Scott frowned at the sight of it as they considered what they were dealing with.

"That's not creepy at all," Stiles and Melanie muttered.

The three walked inside the house, and Scott turned on a flashlight in his hand as they looked around. Just like with the exterior, the first floor of the inside of the house was completely empty and looked like it has been vacant for decades; everything was covered with dust and cobwebs, and there were no personal belongings to be seen. The floorboards creaked under their feet as Scott, Melanie and Stiles walked into the dining room, where two plates, two water glasses, and two wine glasses were sitting on the table, which like the foyer and living room, was covered in dust and bits of dried up leaves. After visually examining the room with the flashlight, Scott looked at Stiles and Melanie with a concerned and confused expression.