Burn Amongst Humanity [D. Hale ]

|LVI|

"Riddled"
__________

"Is he okay?" Derek asked as Casey walked out of Beacon Memorial and she made her way over.

"Yeah, he's okay. They found him in the coyote den, he will be fine. They are keeping him overnight, watching to make sure that he doesn't just walk out on his own. Sheriff Stilinski is staying with him, I'm in charge of the station until tomorrow." Casey said as she checked her watch. "Never mind, I guess. I'm in charge of the station until 9am." Casey corrected herself as she was shaking her head. "Jump the Jeep, then you all should get home."

"You all?" Derek asked and Casey cleared her throat and then out from behind the Jeep came Beatrice and Tye, who were looking guilty. "How the hell did I not sense you two?" He asked in confusion.

"Beatrice's alpha teaches their pack how to mask their scents." Casey said and she was walking over to her car.

Casey had gone through multiple huge cups of coffee, four stacks of paperwork and filing evidence into their digital system for most of her shift and then, she felt someone shaking her.

"Branson." Casey was being shaken more. "Branson!" Casey jumped up at the yell and her reaction time, it had sent poor Jordan Parrish's head onto her desk. "Ow, ow! Branson!"

"Casey Branson!" Sheriff Stilinski shouted and Casey looked up as she was staring at him, as Derek walked into the station behind him.

Casey looked down and she jumped back at once, letting Jordan out of the arm lock as she was shaking her head quickly, holding up her hands in surrender. "Oh god, I'm sorry Jordan. I'm so sorry." Casey said and Jordan looked at her as Casey was shaking her head and she sat down at her desk, as she was shaking.

"I got it Sheriff." Derek said quietly and Sheriff Stilinski sighed, before he nodded.

"Branson." Casey looked up. "Get some sleep, that's an order." Sheriff Stilinski stated, as Casey was nodding a bit and she grabbed her jacket.

Casey walked out of the Sheriff's station after punching out and she silently got into her car and Derek looked at her.

"I didn't mean to hurt him, I had no idea what the hell I was doing." Casey looked up at him. "You believe me on this, right?" Casey asked as Derek was nodding at the words as he swiftly got into the car next to her and he spotted that both of her hands were shaking.

"Casey, just breathe. You didn't do it on purpose and Stilinski knows that already. It wasn't your fault." Derek said quietly and she was trembling as he reached out and he grabbed one of her hands in his. "Look at me, Casey."

Casey looked over at him as now, she was shuddering as she shook her head and she put her hands over her ears, as she slammed her eyes shut. "Casey? Casey, what's going on?"

"I can still hear them. The screaming from the fire, the howling, I can hear it. I smell the smoke, see the charred remains whenever I cook." Derek was looking at Casey who was burying her head in her arms. "I killed them. I could have gotten them out, if I had just gone sooner." Casey whispered.

"Casey, stop it." Derek growled and she was looking up, as his growl had managed to catch her attention. "You might see the fire, but you are not responsible for it." Derek murmured and she was still shaking all across the board, trembling and she looked up as he looked over at her with icy blue shining eyes. "Your father is going to rot in hell for it, Kate is dead, and so are the rest. It isn't on you."

"It feels like it is." Casey mumbled.

"That is because you are completely exhausted from lack of sleep, way too much caffeine and now, you just almost put a new head-shaped dent into your desk because you freaked out and someone made the mistake of waking you up." Derek pointed out and she nodded a little bit, as she held out her car keys. "I'll drive, you just sleep." Derek murmured and he took the keys and then Casey with a loud yawn, got into the passenger seat.

Already just by the time that the car started moving, Casey was asleep with her head against the window as Derek was shaking his head at her, as he was driving carefully away from sheriff's station.

Derek gently shook Casey and then jumped back, as she shot awake like a cannon. "Just me!" Derek said at once and Casey moves her hand away from her gun, resting at her side. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." Casey said quietly and she got out of the car, wincing and swiftly she shook her head. "I didn't hit you, did I?" She asked as Derek shook his head and she sighed.

"Sheriff Stilinski is right though, you really do need some more sleep every night." Derek said and she looked at him, as she sighed heavily.

"Easier said than done, when you're the Emissary to a pack of werewolves and a former hunter. You know as well as I do how hard it is." Casey said and Derek nodded a little. "You have a look in your eyes like you know about something. What do you know, that I don't?" Casey asked as he sighed at the words.

"I think that Barrow, when he was at the power station... Used Kira's foxfire that she accidentally produced, to power up and also, using it to awaken the Nogitsune... The dark spirit that I think is inside of Stiles." Derek said as Casey looked at him. "I have been around 90% sure, ever since I jumped the Jeep earlier." He said and she was nodding.

"I was going to say, that it... This isn't normal, not even for Stiles Stilinski of all people." Casey said as Derek was nodding slightly. "Have you already seen Kira to talk about it?" She asked and he shook his head.

"I was going to go now to see her since they are out of school, to talk to her." Derek said as then Casey nodded at the words. "You should just stay here and rest." He said and she held out her hand for the keys to her car.

Derek handed her keys over and she looked at him as she locked the car as she pocketed the keys. "Don't get yourself hurt." Casey warned and he looked at her with confusion. "You're not exactly great with electricity, Der, remember?" She said and he smiled a little.

"You're hilarious." He noted and Casey's eyes flashed, as she turned and walked into the building.

|Beacon Hills Memorial|

"Were you actually sleeping?" Derek asked and swiftly, Casey got off of the motorcycle that Tye had driven her on.

"Not when I got your phone call. I got four hours, I would call that a win." At the words from the deputy, Kira's eyes widened at them as Casey was looking over at her. "To put it in perspective, I usually get four hours of sleep, every three days." Casey remarked as Kira's eyes went even wider.

"You two, you should probably wait out here." Derek noted as Casey was raising her eyebrows. "Casey, you should wait out here with Kira." He said and she nodded.