Jack fidgeted against the wall of the school hall, scowling at the amount of fairy lights and streamers hanging from the rafters. Her heels clanged together as she adjusted her stance once more. Her ringed fingers brushed the silky green fabric of the dress Claire had lent her.

She had to give Claire some credit - she knew how to plan an outfit together. Jack hated it but not because she didn't look good. She wasn't having fun. She'd had a bad day, let alone a traumatic week.

She couldn't get Yuric's screams out of her head.

The witch blew a strand of her dark choppy hair out of her eyes. Claire had plastered some make up on her, things Jack couldn't pronounce nor bothered to. All she knew was when she walked past the mirror at Claire's house - which was the whole wall, because she was from a wealthy family - her face shimmered and her eyes were lined to a sharp point, illuminating their vibrant emerald hue. Her mouth was sticky with the dark gloss Claire had slapped on her lips. In Jack's defense, Claire had pinned her down and smeared it on, so a lot of her face was sticky before Claire went back over and fixed it.

The giddy fairy bounced over, her hair in natural perfect ringlets and a big smile on her face. Her bright pink, fluffy dress hit Jack first before Claire's body did, giving her a fierce hug.

"Come on Jack!" Claire squealed over the loud music. "Come and dance with us!"

Jack shook her head, seeing Karen waving them both over from the dance floor. "No thanks Claire, keep going."

"Come on!" Claire tried to pull her towards the floor that was just beginning to stick with spilled drinks and dropped food. Jack scowled at the sight of the wasted goods. "You've been against this wall all night!"

"Fine," Jack said, "I'm getting a drink."

"That's not a dance!"

"I'm going to dance with the drink!" Jack waved Claire off, who laughed and bounced back to Karen. Jack wondered how Claire was jumping in her super-high stiletto shoes let alone walking. Her own shoes were a small strapped black wedge. She was barely an inch higher than normal but they were the only fancy shoes Jack had.

She didn't like going to events like a formal that begged everyone to wear their best and most expensive clothes and jewels. It only reminded her just how not-rich she was.

Jack didn't like the feel of the green silk dress Claire had given her. Yes, it hugged her like her favourite jumper. It was almost identical to the shade of her eyes and it looked great against her naturally tanned skin. But it wasn't her. Jack wished she was back home where she could comfortably be herself, but quickly regretted the thought.

Home wasn't a good place this week. Her mother's madness had gripped her tighter since they all returned on Sunday with a bloody Lily from their forest rescue.

Jack had seen it build and build over the years Freida hadn't had the ten rings on her hand. Her grandmother's way of controlling their large grove of magic, and there was only one set. When Andromeda died, Freida had them. When Jack first showed signs of her magic, Frieda passed them over to her - and she'd been slowly losing her mind since.

It was only this morning when Freida's madness gripped her in a trance. Her magic had curled around her frizzy, knotted hair and around her neck, hypnotised by whatever she was envisioning, and Jack had been careless and touched her arm to see if her mother was okay.

Jack, while swirling her newly poured water, fiddled with the black choker she'd added to Claire's outfit suddenly. When she'd shown up at Claire's house to get ready with her and Karen, they were shocked to see the bruise forming on her neck but didn't ask about it.

Frieda had pinned her to the wall, reciting the same prophecy she'd woken her and Lily up with only last week.

The storm has come! The inferno is ashes! The cyclone has quietened, and now the earth has roared, it needs to be silenced!

Jack had used a nearby vine to grab a bucket of water, one her mother was using to soak some fresh apples, and poured it over her to loosen the grip she had around Jack's neck. Freida had jumped away and only stared at her daughter coughing and bringing air back into her lungs. Jack ignored the fiery anger and hurt in her belly, and grabbed her bag for Claire's and left a few hours early.

She'd knew her mother was going insane - but Jack never expected Frieda to lash out at her. Nor to have such sanity, such clarity, in her eyes when she did.

Jack turned, grasping her water to stop her hands from shaking at the memory, and blinked in surprise when she saw Ryan walking over. She narrowed her eyes, skeptical, when he stood in front of her with his hands in his trouser pockets and a curious expression on his face.

"Hey Jack," Ryan began, "do you know where Lily is?"

"This is the second time you haven't asked me how I'm going." Jack deadpanned, fiddling with her itching black choker. "She said she wasn't coming."

Ryan sighed. "Sorry, I just hoped she'd be here."

"Based on what?"

"Laura said Claire was giving Lily a dress," Ryan frowned, stroking the blue tie he was wearing. "I thought that she was coming, then."

Jack raised an eyebrow. "You think that just because Lily had a dress she was coming?"

"Well, yes."

"You do realise there's probably more to her not coming than a lack of dress, right?" Jack couldn't believe her ears, already exhausted by talking to him.

Ryan clenched his jaw, blue eyes bright. "Is she still injured from...from Sunday?"

"You mean when that rogue almost killed her and she broke his army?" Jack's lips curled to a wicked smirk. "Oh yeah, you wouldn't know how she is, because you didn't visit her."

Ryan shifted his feet, Jack scowling at how she could almost see her reflection in the shine of his expensive shoes. "Look, I had pack business to attend to-"

"That's a bullshit reason and you know it, Croft." Jack scowled at him.

"I was also interrogating Isaac and Yuric." Ryan said, watching Jack flinch at the mention of the rogue's name. He hadn't forgotten how her magic had broken him, made their biggest enemy cry and scream in pain with a flick of her hand.

"Speaking of Isaac," Jack cleared her throat. "Why's he here exactly? Shouldn't he be in your cells?"

The two turned to see Isaac standing at the edge of the formal, watching everyone dance. He had a few friends around him but not nearly as many as he did before people found out that he was the reason Poppy was kidnapped. He was in a suit, like most of their year, but looked like he wanted to be anywhere else. Me too, Jack thought.

"He didn't kidnap Poppy." Ryan scowled at the sight of the vampire. "He didn't know that Poppy was going to be held hostage for Lily. And, despite how much I hate him, I believe him when he said he didn't mean for anything to happen to Poppy."

Jack raised an eyebrow. "You believe that? Really?"

Ryan stared the witch down. "He likes her."

"I feel sorry for her." Jack rolled her eyes and sipped her water, eyeing the werewolf in question dancing happily on the floor. "Poppy seems to be doing well, despite everything."

"They didn't hurt her." Ryan frowned. "They didn't even touch her. They only tied her up and drew the knife when Lily arrived. Poppy said it was just so Lily would obey their commands."

Jack rolled her eyes again. "She practically had a party then?" She shook her head, wincing when she felt the pain of her bruised neck. "No one forgets trauma like that. It's not that easy to shake."

Ryan frowned at the witch, not used to how uneasy she was. "Look, Poppy's fine. Isaac's in the clear - we did take his PlayStation to see if it would lead us back to the rogues, but-"

"Wait, what do you mean back to the rogues?" Jack interrupted.

"We only caught Yuric." Ryan admitted. "We didn't catch the others, we lost them in the forest."

"You what!" Jack shouted, drawing some eyes onto them. "What do you mean you only caught one?!"

Ryan hissed. "Will you keep your voice down?!"

"There's a hundred rogues out there that are hell-bent on killing Lily, and probably me after..." Jack drifted off realising they might want vengeance for Yuric's paralysis and groaned. "Today's getting worse and worse!"

"Jack-"

"You suck at your job." Jack scoffed. "And you're a crap friend to Lily too. You should have been there for her this week."

Ryan narrowed his eyes. "Just because you've had a bad day doesn't mean you can take it out on me." He snapped, and walked away. Her words still rang in his ear though and he knew she was right. He should have been there for Lily. With only one glance back at his partying friends and fellow students, he left the formal and made for Lily's house.

Jack glared after Ryan and put her water down. The setting sun glinted of her rings, their jewels flaring to life under the light, so similar to when her magic coiled around her fingers. She heard someone laugh on the dance floor and Jack looked up to see Andrew stumble out of the crowds with a grin on his face, making his way to the tables.

"Alright Croft," She muttered under her breath. "I'll take it out on someone else."

Jack ditched her water and marched across the formal to where Andrew was standing, looking at something on his phone. People moved out of her way as she walked to the smiling alpha, who stilled when she approached. He always noticed her, but he was only beginning to notice how everyone stilled too - like the power in her blood, in her smile and stance, begged to be known.

"Something funny?" Jack said sweetly, her eyes roaming over his dark suit and white shirt, a crisp green bow tie hanging undone over his broad shoulders.

"Alice's babysitter said she's fallen asleep on a pizza trying to wait up for me." Andrew smirked, a shiver going down his back at the intensity of Jack's gaze. His eyes roamed over Jack's dress, from her lean legs to her small chest, and smirked a little wider. "Having a fun night?"

"Why didn't you tell me that you only caught one rogue?" Jack's voice was as sweet as honey but her eyes were cold.

Andrew's amusement died. "Who told you that?" He demanded.

"Oh, just your loyal best friend Ryan." Jack twisted a strand of her hair around her finger, unafraid to throw Croft under the bus. "He seemed devastated that Lily couldn't be here tonight, he's left to go and see her."

Andrew's jaw clenched, eyes flashing black as his instinct snarled at the back of his mind. "He's meant to be here, protecting the pack, and protecting me."

"It seems he has a certain red-head on his mind."

"I'm going to find him." Andrew went to walk away but Jack grabbed his arm. They locked eyes. Jack's fingers curled into his bicep, rings glinting, and she didn't flinch under his gaze, now more animal than human.

"What did Yuric say?" Jack asked, cocking her head to the side.

"That's none of your business, Jack."

"Come on Andrew," Jack scoffed. "It's me, I'm not gonna tell anyone."

"You think you have a higher place than my pack?" Andrew lied. "You don't, you're not above my wolves."

Jack loosened the grip on his arm a fraction. "Where'd that come from?" She blurted out in shock.

"You seem to be confused, so let me enlighten you." Andrew stepped closer to her, ignoring his heart beating a little faster or the way the look in her eyes was fracturing something inside him. "All our flirting? Just an act to get you to do what I needed you to do. I was pretending, Jack, and now I have what I need and I don't need you."

Jack narrowed her eyes. "Are you drunk, what flirting? And I didn't do anything for you Andrew. You're not my alpha - and what do you mean you have what you need? You have one rogue, there's a hundred more out there that want Lily dead, and probably me too, and you're-"

"Lily saved my sister's life so I'll always be in her debt, but why should I care about you?" Andrew interrupted.

Jack's grip on his arm tightened again. "I'm the only reason you have Yuric." Jack hated how her voice was starting to roughen, her throat needed to heal. She was talking too much. "Have you forgotten who brought him down?"

Andrew's eyes faded back to their icy blue as he looked between Jack's hand and her eyes, those beautiful green eyes that held a greater power than he bore. If he was to be alpha, to have people move out of his way like they did for Jack, he had to show he was superior. He remembered her abilities, the fear of what she could do fueling his words. "Are you going to paralyse me too, Jack? Just like you did with Yuric?"

Jack flinched, yanking her hand off his suit. Andrew straightened himself up, looking down on her, making sure the crowd saw she was beneath his gaze. "Did you really believe you'd be worth something to anyone after all this?" He snapped, seeing the pain in Jack's eyes, knowing he had pushed a button at the mention of Yuric. "You're a witch. I'm an alpha. Why would I share anything with you? You're not my equal, Jack, and I'd never stoop to your level."

Jack glared up at him, her fists clenching. Andrew saw the gleam of magic swell around those jewels but it was nothing compared to the fire in her eyes. She matched his glare, scowling at him. "Liar." She hissed, her throat burning thanks to her mother's bruising.

Andrew stepped back seeing the magic around her hands form, scrunching his nose up at her, and left her presence without another word, the crowd parting immediately for him. Jack was breathing heavily, his words reeling and settling before she could shove them out of her mind. Was it really all a lie? It couldn't have been - he listened to her, he saw her, right?

Jack lifted her head when she saw Laura approaching with Tricia and Renee, all in Claire's leftover dresses. Laura looked like a star with her long blonde hair and soft fringe lining her caramel brown eyes, especially with the white, knee-length sparkly dress she was wearing. Tricia and Renee were in the same one-shoulder full dress, but Tricia wore a gold one and Renee's was red, which offset her dark skin and silky black hair. All of them wore flowers around their wrists unlike Jack; corsages.

Jack frowned when the trio reached her, both praising and cursing Claire's fashion sense that made everyone look great. "Hey," Laura greeted.

"Hey Laura." Jack said, clearing her sore throat. "Tricia. Renee. You all look great."

Laura smiled. "Thank you."

Renee flipped her hair over her bare shoulder. "Thanks - we picked these up last week, didn't we Trish? Found a brilliant designer in Widderin, the next town over. Great woman, tailored these for us."

Jack raised an eyebrow at the lie. "I know Claire gave them to you."

Tricia frowned. "What are you talking about? We had them tailored last week, like Renee said. Why are you making things up? Just because you don't look as good as us."

"Who wears chokers anymore anyway? They're so last year." Renee sneered.

Jack couldn't be bothered to fight the lie even if her face burned in anger. She ignored them and stared at Laura, who seemed to be the most sane out of the three. "Did you need something?" She breathed out, examining her chipped nails. Claire had put a clear coat on but Jack had picked it all off in the car over.

"I just saw you talking to Andrew," Laura waved to her alpha, who was back on the dance floor. "Is everything okay? He walked off in a huff."

"Fine." Jack shrugged, really regretting coming to the formal. "I was asking about the rogues."

Tricia grinned. "Well, our Alpha got them all, there's no need to worry for your precious girlfriend. Andrew will keep us all safe."

Laura sighed at the comment, knowing that while she apologised when she said it to Jack during the lock down, Tricia never would. Jack's fists curled up again, wanting to remind them just who had taken down all the rogues, and who had handed Yuric over on a screaming silver platter. Andrew hadn't done anything. He'd just taken all the credit.

"We're just worried." Laura interrupted her thoughts. "Tonight's meant to be fun. We've put so much work into this formal and it sucks to see people not enjoying themselves."

"You've done a great job, Laura." Tricia praised and Laura shook her head.

"It wasn't just me, Trish."

"You're the head of the committee. The committee followed you, did all that you asked, so you get the credit." Tricia gave Jack a glare out of the corner of her eye. "Not anyone else."

Jack scowled, about to show Tricia just how much credit Jack deserved, when Renee got up in Jack's face. The witch fearlessly stared down the werewolf, daring her to try and prove Tricia's point and see where it would land her.

"If it's about the rumour that Andrew has a crush on a little witch," Renee hissed, "then you should know it's fake. Only wolves can be an Alpha's partner, and you're a weak witch. He wouldn't go after you."

"Renee." Laura warned, seeing how quiet with rage Jack had gone.

"And besides, Andrew only dates white girls like Laura." Renee's dark gaze roamed over Jack's tanned skin. "Not Latin ones."

"Renee!" Laura hissed, eyes wide.

Jack stared coldly at Renee as fury froze her bones. "I don't care who he dates, because it'll never be me. I'm proud of who I am; witch, Latina, my skin, my power, me. All of it - you're a fool for believing any shit Andrew says."

The witch brought her hands together in front of her and stared at Laura, who was unnerved by the gleam in Jack's eyes. She'd never seen her cry or break but whatever Andrew had said, combined with Renee's false words, stuck with Jack. It scared Laura.

"Tricia's right." Jack said with a smile. "The formal is beautiful; the lights, the streamers, even the flowers you have on every table."

Laura hesitated. "Thank you."

Jack looked at them all and turned, leaving them standing there. With a single wave of her hand, her magic leapt off her rings and shot to all the flowers in the hall - and sucked the life from them. They wilted and browned, the heads falling into plates of food and leaves crumbling into drinks. Corsages fell apart on people's wrists, and Jack grinned at the chaos. That almost made the formal worth it.

Jack felt satisfied at the yelps of fright and alarm as she made her way over to Claire and Karen, who were talking near the drinks table and looking worried, searching for Jack. She tried to push all her emotions to the side, put a smile on her face, but Karen saw right through her.

"Are you okay?" Karen asked, resting a hand on Jack's arm. "You're cold."

"I'm fine." Jack waved her off, fidgeting with the scratchy choker. "Andrew just confirmed something Ryan said."

"What?" Claire narrowed her eyes, eager for the gossip.

"They didn't catch any of the rogues." Jack swallowed to ease her burning throat. "They only have Yuric, all the rest are still out there."

Claire eyes widened and Karen gripped her hand. "Lily." She breathed, suddenly afraid for their friend. "Where's Lily?"