~Shoot to Thrill~

By: Aerys Krystie.

Theme: AU – after Season 2.

Plot: Shooting a rogue hunter wasn't something on Jackson's bucket list.

Warnings: Language, OOC, OC, pre-slash, violence.

Disclaimer: Everything of and referring to Teen Wolf is not mine. This is a fan-made, non-profit story. Please support the official release.


"Wait, why do we care?"

Derek growled as Jackson asked possibly the dumbest question he'd ever heard. All of them should care about another hunter showing up in town. They could just be passing through, but if they were there for a hunt, then it affected all of them. The Argents didn't know why the hunter was there, especially as there hadn't been any attacks or any reason for them to know about Beacon Hills.

"Calm down, Hale," Jackson said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "He hasn't done anything threatening towards us, right?" Derek frowned, wondering where Jackson was going with that. "Therefore, he isn't a threat and we're fine. If you continue to worry about every little thing, you're going to go grey."

There were times, still, when Derek questioned why he bit Jackson. Sure, as a fully realized werewolf, he was a strong packmate. He was the fastest of the pack, even kicking Peter's ass. His loyalty was a little questionable at times, though, especially during times like that. Being told that there's another hunter, who they don't have a tenuous treaty with, should put the fear of god into the pup. It wasn't until that moment that Derek remembered Jackson had no experiences with hunters before.

"All right, Jackson," Derek said as he stood up. Jackson tilted his head, looking far more adorable that he should be. "You get to tail the hunter."

Jackson frowned and Derek was certain he was about to ask why. Instead, a smile spread over Jackson's face. "Sweet!" He jumped to his feet. "I've been meaning to work on my sneak skill," he said and stretched his arms above his head. "This should help with that."

Stiles frowned. "Sneak skill?" he repeated, a definite excited edge to his voice. "You played Skyrim?"

"Hell yeah," Jackson said with a grin. "I should probably listen to your recommendations more often. The story is so good! I can't wait—"

"This isn't a game, Jackson," Derek stated, seeing the clueless gleam in Jackson's blue eyes.

"No shit, Alpha Killjoy," Jackson muttered with a roll of his eyes. "If it was, I'd be in leather, wielding a bow."

Unable to stop it, Derek imagined Jackson in a leather outfit with a bow in hand. It was a surprisingly good image that his mind conjured. However, the few seconds that he was silent for was enough for Stiles Scott, Isaac and Jackson to get into a heated discussion about the game. Derek shook his head, telling himself to remember that he was dealing with teenagers. Unless it was certain death, their minds would always be on something else. To be fair, even if it was certain death, they would probably be thinking about which cave or crypt to sneak into next.

Derek got the feeling that he wasn't going to get them to focus again and shook his head. "Jackson, don't forget that you're tailing the hunter," he said as he headed for his bedroom, catching the smile that Jackson threw him, letting him know that he heard.

He knew it was his fault for turning teenagers, but sometimes he wished they would focus on what was important. An unknown hunter was a massive danger to all of them. Somehow, that thought didn't seem as serious as discussing when the next video game in the series would be out. Derek assumed he was the same when he was around their age. It would take time, but they would eventually grow up.


Jackson yawned as he sat on a bench, checking his phone. The hunter he was trailing was in a bar at the moment. As much fun as that sounded, he wasn't sure if the hunter knew who he was. He decided it was better safe than sorry and decided to wait for the man to leave. The Argents had spoken with the man, who said he was passing through. That was good enough for Jackson, but he knew how paranoid Derek was when it came to hunters.

While he understood the paranoia, Jackson didn't like that he had stupidly accepted the quest. As good as it was to work on his skills and get them up to where the others had them, Jackson wasn't as confident as he was when he left the loft. He had lied to his parents, telling them that he was spending time with Derek, just so they wouldn't worry about him. Telling them that he was stalking a hunter would probably have him on lockdown and his father saying some choice words to Derek.

His phone vibrated in his hand and he saw Stiles' number show up. The human wanted to know what part of the game he was on and Jackson grinned, replying that he was retrieving some horn for the old people. Jackson still couldn't believe that he was enjoying the game as much as he was. Video games was something that never really took his fancy, as he needed to make sure he was good enough for his parents and girlfriend. Becoming a werewolf made that pretty much a guarantee.

His homework became stupidly easy for him, finishing it quickly every night. After that, he had a few hours to kill and had asked Stiles for recommendations. Jackson remembered playing some games from his childhood, but they were usually sports games. He was almost certain that he played an RPG before, the terrible graphics blowing his young mind at how awesome they were. He tried to remember what the game was and couldn't.

Before Stiles' answer came back to him, Derek sent a message, asking how the stakeout was going. Jackson huffed and hunkered down further on the bench. He glanced over his shoulder, realizing that no one had left or arrived in the last ten minutes. He was going to assume that was normal for a Saturday. People would show up early and wouldn't leave until closing. He sent back that it was boring.

Jackson inhaled deeply when he heard someone approach the bench and frowned at Chris Argent. The hunter sighed and sat beside him, handing him a takeaway coffee cup. Jackson narrowed his eyes slightly and Chris rolled his eyes, taking a sip of the coffee. Grinning, Jackson took the cup and rested against the back of the bench. He would question why Chris was there, but he was just grateful for the company.

"He's still in there, then?" Chris asked and Jackson nodded, drinking the coffee and sighing happily as the warmth coiled in his stomach. "How long has he been there?"

Jackson checked his phone. "Three hours. I didn't think it would be this boring." He finished the coffee and threw the cup into the bin beside the bench. "Thanks for the coffee."

"I figured a peace offering was needed. It's the full moon, after all." Chris looked up at the night sky and Jackson pouted a little. The full moon didn't have much effect on him and he was assuming that was thanks to the kanima incident. "How are you feeling?"

"Like I'd rather be stealing shit in a game than sitting here, staring at an empty road," Jackson answered and groaned. "If I'd known it was going to be this boring, I would have demanded a partner for the night."

"Well, you got one, now." Chris grinned and Jackson cocked an eyebrow. "Thanks for the vote of confidence, kid."

"I'm sure you're a very capable hunter, Chris," Jackson said with a shrug. "But we're watching one of your kind. If he does anything, can you pull the trigger?"

"We'll find out, won't we?"

Jackson cocked an eyebrow, but said nothing. He wasn't expecting that answer and he realized he wasn't sure what he was expecting from the hunter. Killing a human was probably very difficult for a hunter, regardless of who they threatened. Yet, killing a werewolf, who probably had the same kind of connections that humans held in such high esteem, was much easier. Jackson doubted he would ever understand it.

They sat in silence for a long time, Jackson checking his social medias. He sent messages to Stiles and Isaac, mostly telling Isaac not to save over his game. Isaac promised he wasn't, as he didn't like playing as a wood elf and Jackson rolled his eyes. There was something about bows that drew him in and he was waiting to get his smithing up, so he could create a dragon bone bow and arrows.

As the night went on, Jackson realized that he hadn't heard any howls from the pack. The night was completely devoid of pack activities, which Jackson was going to assume was because of the new hunter in town. He caught Derek's scent and smiled, tilting his head back into the hand on his neck. He looked back at Derek and the alpha ruffled his hair. Chris glanced back at Derek and nodded his head in acknowledgement.

"Anything?" Derek asked, sliding his hand along Jackson's shoulder.

"Isaac doesn't like wood elves," Jackson said with a scoff and Derek sighed. "Aside from that, the bar has been quite busy, but no one has left."

As though to prove a point, the door to the bar opened. The three at the bench turned around and stared at the hunter, who stared right back at them. The man tilted his head, running his eyes over the faces and landed on Chris. He curled his lip back in a sneer and Chris stood up, holding his hands up to show that he wasn't a threat. Jackson turned around, kneeling on the bench and taking in the bearded face of the man. Nothing about him really screamed that he was a hunter, aside from the stench of gunpowder, gun oil, silver and wolfsbane.

"I'm leaving tomorrow morning, Argent," the man said, the sneer still in place.

"You said you'd leave tonight, Greg," Chris stated and looked at the bar. "This doesn't look like you're leaving."

"I wanted to see what this town had to offer." Greg's dark eyes slid over to Jackson and then Derek. "I didn't realize you kept them as pets."

Before Jackson could growl at the man and rip his throat out, Derek placed a hand on his shoulder. Jackson huffed. "You almost sound jealous about that, old man," he said instead and grinned as Greg glared. A low growl from Derek made Jackson swallow his next set of words. His alpha was warning him not to escalate the situation. As this was his first time dealing with a hunter as a werewolf, Jackson listened.

"At least the alpha knows how to keep them on a short leash." Greg tilted his head and smirked. "Or maybe the pretty one is keeping the alpha on a short leash."

Derek growled and Jackson appeared disgusted. Yeah, he wasn't blind or stupid, Derek was handsome and when he smiled, it was like the sun breaking through storm clouds, but Jackson had standards. He wasn't going to sleep with the first good looking man he saw. The second good looking man he saw was a different story. He was going to assume that Derek wouldn't use his power over his betas to coerce them into sex. He really hoped that Derek wouldn't do that.

"Can I kill him now?" Jackson asked and Greg glared. "Hey, you just implied that either me or my alpha is taking advantage of a situation. You don't get to be offended when I ask to kill you."

"Don't, Jackson," Derek warned without taking his eyes from Greg.

"Pissing off werewolves during a full moon, Greg?" Chris asked and shook his head as he stepped around the bench and was almost shoulder-to-shoulder with Derek, as though protecting Jackson. "That's low."

Between the small gap between shoulders and arms, Jackson saw a smirk twist Greg's face. "No," he said with a shake of his head. "This is low."

Chris cried out as he was shot in the shoulder, dropping to his knees. Derek growled, but didn't move as the gun trained on Jackson. The beta tilted his head and rolled off the bench, grabbing Chris and dragging him under it. Chris hissed as his shoulder was forced to move and glared at Jackson.

Another shot rang out and Derek roared, Jackson saw his feet move away from the bench. Greg laughed and there was a snarl of pain. Chris groaned. "Back, my back," he said and Jackson frowned. "I'd shoot him, but my shooting arm was shot." Jackson blinked and lifted Chris's shirt, seeing the pistol there. He shrugged and grabbed it. "Try to maim him. Arm or leg."

"Okay," Jackson breathed and raised his head over the bench, only to duck as a bullet ricocheted off the top.

"Line up the shot and squeeze the trigger. There will be a kickback, but that shouldn't be a problem," Chris explained as he pressed his hand to his shoulder.

"Okay."

Jackson moved around the bench, lining up the shot. He pulled the trigger the moment Derek was out of the way and Greg fell to the ground, a bullet hole in his forehead. Jackson's eyes widened and he dropped the gun, while Derek spun around and glared at him. Swallowing, Jackson sat back and waited for the pain he was about to receive from his alpha for taking the life of a hunter.

A hand landed on his head and Jackson flinched. When it petted him, he looked up and Derek's lips twitched into an almost smile. "That was a hell of a shot," he said.

Chris stood up and stared at the corpse of the hunter. "That was a good shot. I doubt even I'd be able to get it that perfect," he said and sat on the bench.

Jackson glanced between the pair. "I was aiming for his leg."


After cleaning up the mess and explaining to Noah what happened and why a human had a bullet in their brain, Derek took Jackson back to the loft. Once the adrenaline left his body, Derek needed to make sure that Jackson was all right. Taking a life was never a good thing and he needed to know how it would affect Jackson in the long run. Jackson kept rubbing his arms and he was nervous, as though he was waiting for the anger of his alpha.

"Are you all right?" Derek asked as Jackson paced the loft.

Jacksons stared at him, but didn't stop moving. "Why aren't you angry? I just killed someone!"

"In defense of an ally and your alpha, Jackson," Derek explained, hoping Jackson would see that it was, almost, a good thing. "If you hadn't shot him, I might be dead."

Jackson froze and stared at Derek for a long while, before he shook his head and wiped the tears that gathered in his eyes away. "Don't say that!" he hissed and went back to pacing.

"Would you prefer that I yelled at you, because you did the right thing?" Derek asked and Jackson placed his hands on his neck, glaring at the floor. "I want an answer, Jackson."

"I don't know! Okay? I don't know what's meant to happen here! I've never killed someone as a werewolf, before. I don't know if it's a good thing or if I should be chained down and beaten until my name is Toby!"

Derek frowned and tilted his head. He stepped in front of Jackson and hugged him, expecting the beta to pull away and glare. The frown disappeared from his face as Jackson returned the hug. "Taking a life isn't something you get over quickly, Jackson." The beta ducked his head. Derek gently massaged the back of Jackson's neck, feeling him shiver. "You don't have to suffer alone. Just remember that you have a pack."

Jackson sniffed and nodded, his hands tightening their grip on Derek's hips. "I really didn't mean to kill him. I think I'll just stick to killing people in video games. At least there I can shoot for the thrill of it."

Derek tilted Jackson's head up and gazed into his eyes, watching the emotions pass through. He was going to assume that mindless violence was something Jackson needed. "Okay. Don't stay up too late. There's training tomorrow morning." Jackson smiled and nodded, going to the bedroom he shared with Isaac. The next few months would be hard for the new beta, but Derek hoped he trusted the pack enough to let them help heal him.


End.

Thanks for reading. Hope y'all enjoyed it.

Until the next one!

Peace.
Auska.