Magic Bullet

**Magic Bullet** is the fourth episode of Season 1 and the *Teen Wolf* series.

## Synopsis

Kate Argent arrives in town and is attacked by the Alpha. While fighting it, she shoots Derek. Now, Scott has to get one of the special bullets she used to save Derek.

## Plot

Kate Argent has just arrived to Beacon Hills and is on her way to the Argent House when she hears a news report on the radio about the Sheriff's department still investigating the animal attacks happening recently in town, which makes her laugh sarcastically before turning it to a music station. The Alpha, in its beast form, chases behind her, which takes her a few moments to notice. However, when she does, she looks out her windows at the scene around her, nearly running into oncoming traffic after being distracted from the road.
While she's stopped, the Alpha jumps onto the roof of her SUV and punches through the driver-side window to pull her out by the arm. She struggles against him and reaches into the backseat for a shotgun, which she uses to shoot through the ceiling. The Alpha is hit and lets go of her before he retreats, and she barrel-rolls out of the passenger door, landing in a defensive position so she can quickly scan for the Alpha. When she doesn't see it, she stands up, shoots a warning shot, and loudly shouts, "Come on!" before it cuts to the title card.
Scott awakens in bed when his enhanced hearing picks up gunshots nearby. When he hears the Alpha howling, he immediately jumps to his feet and gets dressed before he sneaks out of the house.
The scene cuts back to Kate in the warehouse district, where she's just popped the trunk of her SUV to swap out her shotgun for a sniper rifle, which she loads with a bullet that she plucked out of a wooden box with a blue flower stamped on the front.
The scene then cuts briefly to the Argent House, where Chris Argent is walking out the door with a duffle bag. A sleepy Allison catches him on his way out and asks him what's going on, so he tells her that Kate texted him and asked him to pick her up. Allison brings up that it's 2:00AM, but Argent lies and says that Kate got a flat tire but is otherwise fine before sending her back to bed.
Meanwhile, Derek is tracking the Alpha by following the trail of blood left from where Kate shot it. He senses something and looks up to find the Alpha watching him from the roof of the nearby warehouse. It growls at him before it scampers away, and Derek glares at it as he leaps up to follow its tracks. Kate grabs a flashlight and rushes over to the building with her rifle strapped over her shoulder while Derek jumps from surface to surface until he makes it up onto the roof where he just saw the Alpha.
Kate aims her gun in his direction from several yards away and watches as Derek leaps from roof to roof to chase the Alpha, finally shooting him just as he's leaping onto another building. The bullet hits him right in the left forearm with such force that he's thrown off-balance, falling onto the nearby awning before landing hard on his shoulder on the ground.
Kate looks satisfied by this outcome and picks up her flashlight just as Argent arrives to pick her up, and Derek groans and catches his breath as he recovers from his fall. Argent immediately tells Kate to get in the car without any other greeting, just as Scott, who has just caught up to them, eavesdrops on their conversation. Kate tells Argent that there were two werewolves, one of which tried to attack her, but scolds her on shooting one of them, since they need one to lead them to the other, which they can't do if they're dead. Kate argues that she can't help him kill either of them if they kill her first and informs him that the one she shot has about 48 hours to live, if that, which alarms Scott, though he doesn't understand what she's talking about.
Behind the warehouse, Derek has just pulled himself into a seated position and rolled up the left sleeve of his shirt to reveal that his bullet wound is not only not healing, but is also glowing bluish-purple and smoking.
The next morning, Kate comes into Allison's room, and the two squeal giddily as they hug each other. Kate remarks on how Allison has turned into a "runway model" in the year since they last saw each other and asks if she has a boyfriend, leading Allison to reply that she kind of does. When Allison grabs one of Kate's duffle bags to help her unpack, Kate grabs her roughly by the arm and tells her not to touch that one, which alarms Allison and embarrasses Kate. She apologizes for being so rough, and Allison tries to shrug it off by changing the subject to Kate's car and whether it is okay. Kate assures her that it's fine and that she just needed a jump-start, which Allison instantly realizes is a lie, but she keeps this discovery to herself.
At school, Scott is filling Stiles in on everything he learned in the previous episode while they sit in class, including that Derek wasn't the one who bit him, but Stiles has a few questions-- "If Derek isn't the Alpha, then who is?" "Did the Alpha kill the bus driver?" and "Does Allison's dad know about the Alpha?" Unfortunately, Scott doesn't know the answers to any of these questions, and he's quickly distracted when the teacher passes back tests. Scott's has D- written across the front, along with a note that remarks on him not working up to his usual standards, and Stiles jokes that he needs to study more before asking if he needs help with it. Scott informs him that he and Allison are studying together after school, which Stiles takes to mean they'll be hooking up and insists that Scott cannot squander the opportunity to get laid.
A pale, sweaty, and generally sickly-looking Derek is walking through the hallway, where he musters up the strength to approach Jackson and asks him where he can find Scott. Jackson assumes that Derek is Scott's drug dealer and tells him he'll tell him where Scott is if Derek tells him what he's been selling him. Derek realizes that Jackson thinks he's dealing steroids, and Jackson remarks that he should "stop sampling the merchandise" because he looks wrecked. Derek impatiently states he'll find Scott himself, but when Jackson tries to bully him into answering, Derek loses control, grabs Jackson by the back of the neck so hard he stabs him with his claws for a moment until he realizes what he's doing and rushes away.
He overhears Allison asking for Lydia's advice about sex with regards to her date with Scott after school, and Derek realizes where he can find him. After school, Derek stops Stiles while he's driving out of the parking lot in his Jeep, and when Scott sees that Derek has showed up while he's unlocking his bike, he rushes over to demand what's going on. Derek briefly explains that he got shot and can't heal because it was a special kind of bullet, and Scott realizes that Kate must have been talking about Derek when she said the Werewolf would die in 48 hours.
When they realize they're making a scene, the boys help Derek into the car while Derek insists that Scott needs to find out what bullet Kate used when he goes over to Allison's house to study. When Scott asks why he should help him, Derek reminds him that he needs him and his help, so he reluctantly agrees to do what he's asked, though Stiles complains that Scott is leaving him to deal with Derek alone.
Scott leaves to meet up with Allison and confirm that they're still studying, and she agrees that they are, though she questions him on why Derek was there, and why Scott was talking to him if they're not friends. Scott lies that Derek just needed a ride from Stiles and declares it a long story before telling her that he'll meet her at her house. When Scott is grabbing his bike to leave, he sees that Jackson is staring at him suspiciously from across the parking lot.
Allison arrives to her house at the same time Scott does, and his unconvincingly lie about how he managed to get there so fast causes her to become suspicious about his bizarre behavior. Scott claims he's simply stressing out about school because his grades aren't as good as they usually are before Allison invites him inside, assuring him that her family won't be back for hours.
Scott attempts to keep up the pretense of studying, but he and Allison end up making out on her bed before they can even crack a book open. He pulls away after a moment to make sure he's not pressuring her into something she doesn't want to do, but Allison assures him that he isn't before kissing him again. Scott gets so into it that his fingernails elongate into claws, and it takes all his focus just to make them shift back before Allison notices his distraction. Stiles calls him, and though Scott doesn't initially answer it, he tells Allison he needs to call him back and walks into the hallway.
Meanwhile, Stiles is driving with the quickly weakening Derek in the passenger seat, and he tells Derek not to bleed on his seats before assuring him that they're almost to his house. Derek begins to panic and insists he can't go home, since he's too weak to defend himself and the hunters might come back for him. When Stiles asks him if he's dying and wonders aloud what will happen if Scott can't get his "magic bullet," Derek vaguely replies that he has a last resort as he rolls up the sleeve of his injured arm to examine his wound. The blood vessels around the gunshot wound are starting to turn black, as is the blood that is leaking out of it, and Stiles becomes so nauseated by the sight that he tells Derek to get out. Derek, not in the mood, tells him to start the car, and when Stiles retorts that in his condition, he could just leave Derek for dead in the woods, Derek glares at him and threatens to rip his throat out with his teeth if he doesn't start the car. Stiles, clearly terrified by him, reluctantly does as he's told.
Back at the Argent House, Scott has just picked up a photo of Allison and Kate from the bedside table and asks Allison who the older woman is. Allison briefly explains that Kate is her father's sister, but that she was more like a sister to her because they spend so much time together. The topic is changed to Allison's attempted hobbies prior to her move to Beacon Hills (photography, painting, and poetry), and when Scott asks her what she's good at, if not those activities, Allison takes him to the garage and makes him promise not to laugh before pulling out a compound bow and aiming it at him.
She explains that she was nationally ranked, but lost interest in it despite her father wanting her to continue on with archery. Scott then takes notice of the large amount of guns and other weapons hanging on hooks behind locked screen cabinets, and Allison swears that her family isn't actually a separatist militia group like they must seem-- in reality, her father is a legal arms dealer who sells guns to law enforcement. Scott, more nervous now due to his knowledge of her father being a hunter, asks her if she plans on going into the family business, but Allison says that depends on whether or not he thinks she's hot with a gun. Scott admits she's hotter without it before they begin to make out again, only for Argent and Kate to return from the grocery store. Though Allison and Scott hide behind the other car, Argent catches them anyway and asks if they'll help with groceries.
Afterward, Scott asks Allison if she wants to keep studying, but Argent makes it clear that it's time for him to leave, so he sheepishly walks to his bike to head home. However, Kate comes out and tells her brother, "Oh, come on Chris, really? They were making out in the garage, not shooting amateur porn" before inviting Scott to eat dinner with them. It's obvious that Argent is not fond of this plan, but admits to Scott that it will be a good chance for them to get to know each other better.
At the dinner table, Argent tries to test Scott by offering him alcohol, which he declines, and Kate tries to put him at ease by asking him about lacrosse, as she knows little about it. Shortly afterward, Scott excuses himself to go to the bathroom to take Stiles' call. Stiles demands to know where he should take Derek, and when he remarks that Derek is starting to smell like death, Scott tells him to take him to the animal clinic. Derek takes the phone from Stiles and asks Scott if he found the bullet, but Scott insists that the Argent House is like the "frickin' Walmart of guns." When Derek reminds him that he's dead without it, Scott remarks that it's not sounding like such a bad thing, leading Derek to reply, "Then think about this-- The Alpha called you out against your will. He's gonna do it again. Next time, you either kill with him, or you get killed. So, if you wanna stay alive, you need me. Find the bullet."
Scott frantically starts to look around, eventually trying to open up a locked door that causes an alarm to go off. Kate appears and tells him he looks like a lost puppy before directing him to the bathroom in the guest bedroom and returning to the dining room. Fortunately, this is the room where all of Kate's bags are kept, and Scott quickly closes and locks the door before rifling through the bag and finding the sniper rifle rounds she used against Derek, which causes his eyes to glow gold just by looking at it. Scott then takes a photo of the wooden box they were kept in on his phone, which has a blue flower stamped on the front with a description in French, which he sends to Stiles.
At the animal clinic, Stiles receives the message and asks Derek if "Nordic blue monkshood" means anything to him, and Derek informs him that it's a rare strain of wolfsbane before telling Stiles to instruct Scott to bring him a bullet, because he'll die without it. Scott reluctantly does what he's told before returning downstairs and telling the Argents that he should get going, but Kate insists that he stay for dessert so she can learn more about him. Victoria brings up the fact that Scott works works for the town's veterinarian, causing Argent to ask Scott what theories Dr. Deaton has about the animal attacks. When Scott guesses it was a mountain lion, Chris goes into a long speech about rabid dogs which is clearly a reference to werewolves to see what Scott knows, adding that his own father had to kill a rabid dog because "Something that out of control is better off dead."
Derek has taken off his shirt at the clinic to reveal that his blacked blood and blood vessels are traveling even further up his arm, which grosses Stiles out tremendously. Derek then informs him of his last resort-- since he'll die if the wolfsbane infection reaches his heart, he needs Stiles to cut off his arm with Deaton's bone saw before that happens.
Back at the Argent House, Scott is about to leave, and Allison apologizes profusely for how awkward and uncomfortable their family dinner was. Scott claims that it's not as bad as the dinner where his parents told him they were getting a divorce before admitting that this dinner was maybe a close second. Allison leans in to kiss Scott even knowing that her father is watching, but before Scott can leave afterward, Kate interrupts them and says she needs to talk to Scott.
She brings him inside and demands to know what he took from her bag, but Scott stammers that he doesn't know what she's talking about. She points out that her bag was closed when she left her room, and then it was open after Scott used the bathroom in there before asking him to turn out his pockets. Allison looks appalled, and when Kate asks Scott to prove her wrong, Allison interrupts and says that she'll prove her wrong as she pulls a condom out of her pocket, which she apparently took from Kate's bag earlier. Scott looks both relieved and horrified when he sees the look on Argent's face. However, it allows Scott to leave without any further questioning, and he smiles before grabbing his bike and heading to the animal clinic.
Meanwhile, Derek has tied a tourniquet around his arm and has given the bone saw to Stiles, who looks woozy and totally unwilling to do what he's being asked to do. Derek incredulously asks him if he faints at the sight of blood, but Stiles exclaims that he doesn't, though he'll likely faint at the sight of a cut-off arm. Derek threatens to cut off his head if he doesn't do it, scaring Stiles enough to take a deep breath and try to bring himself to amputate Derek's infected arm. Before he can, Derek throws up a profuse amount of blackened blood, which he explains is from his body trying to heal itself before insisting that Stiles needs to cut his arm off now. Just before Stiles can do it, Scott arrives with the bullet, much to his relief.
He hands Derek the bullet, but when he lifts it up to look at it, he passes out and collapses onto the floor, and the bullet rolls and falls into a vent in the floor. Scott desperately tries to pluck it out, but his fingers aren't long enough, and Stiles is frantically trying to awaken Derek with little success. Scott finally manages to get the bullet out by extending his claws, and Stiles punches Derek in the face to wake him up. Derek quickly gets to his feet, bites open the bullet, and uses a lighter to burn the wolfsbane inside into ash. He then picks up as much as he can and rubs the ashes into his wound, going so far as to stick his finger into the bullet hole to spread it faster before he once again falls to the floor and writhes in pain as the wound finally heals itself.
Satisfied that Derek will survive his wound, Scott demands that since they did what Derek wanted, he now needs to leave them both alone, and threatens to go to Argent and tell him everything if he doesn't. Derek can't believe that Scott would trust them, but Scott insists that they've been a lot nicer to him than Derek has, which is saying a lot, after what just happened. Derek then decides to show him how nice the Argents are by bringing him to Beacon Crossing Home, a long-term medical facility where his uncle, Peter Hale, has been hospitalized since the fire.
He brings Scott into Peter's room and shows him Peter's burns, which shocks Scott, since Peter is a werewolf like them. Derek then goes on to explain that six years earlier, he and his sister Laura were at school when the Hale House caught on fire while eleven people were trapped inside, and Peter was the only survivor. Scott has trouble believing this and lamely responds that they must have had a reason, but even he doesn't seem to believe his words. Derek argues that the Argents were the only ones who knew about them, and that despite the Argent's Code that states they only kill werewolves with absolute proof that they've killed innocents, there were members of his family who were human who died in the fire as well. He insists that it's what the Argents do, and it's what Allison will eventually do as well. Just then, Nurse Jennifer appears and demands to know how they got in there, and Derek assures her that they were just leaving.
Later that night, Allison calls Scott and leaves him a voicemail apologizing once again for what happened and asking him to call her back when he can. Downstairs, Kate and Argent are discussing the werewolves from the previous night. She states that the wolf who attacked her was large, with a broad body and immense strength, while the one she shot was lean and fast. Argent assumes that Derek is the one she shot, but Kate asks him how they know that it's just the two of them. Argent admits that they don't know it, yet, but that if Derek survives his wounds, he'll lead them to the Alpha. "Take the pack leader, and take the pack," Kate remarks with a smile, but Argent insists that they have to do it by the Code, which makes Kate scoff in exasperation. When Argent reminds her that they have a Code for a reason, Kate assures him that she knows that and states that she always plays by the rules as she takes a large match and strikes it against the fireplace bricks to light it before tossing it onto the logs inside. The smirk on her face suggests that she was the one who caused the Hale Fire, though Argent doesn't seem to be aware of this.

## Cast

### Main Cast

* Tyler Posey as Scott McCall
* Crystal Reed as Allison Argent
* Dylan O'Brien as Stiles Stilinski
* Tyler Hoechlin as Derek Hale
* Holland Roden as Lydia Martin
* Colton Haynes as Jackson Whittemore

### Supporting Cast

* JR Bourne as Chris Argent
* Jill Wagner as Kate Argent
* Ian Bohen as Peter Hale
* Eaddy Mays as Victoria Argent
* Desiree Hall as Nurse Jennifer

### Guest Cast

* Walter Hendrix III as Parent
* Joshua Reid-Davis as High School Student (uncredited)

## Continuity

* Kate Argent makes her first appearance in the series in this episode, and is revealed to be the younger sister of Chris Argent and the paternal aunt of Allison Argent, though she is described by Allison to be more like a sister to her.
	+ This episode also implies that Kate was behind the Hale House Fire for the first time in the series.
* Peter Hale also makes his first appearance in this episode as the uncle of Derek Hale after Derek brings Scott McCall to the long-term care center where he has been receiving treatment. Peter is revealed to have been in a coma for the last six years as a result of the severe second and third-degree burns he sustained over most of his body in the Hale House Fire.
	+ It is also stated that there were eleven total people inside the house during the fire. Though Derek tells Scott that Peter was the only person inside who survived (which Derek believed to be the truth at the time), there was actually one other survivor who will not be revealed until Season 3's *Chaos Rising*.
* This episode also is the first appearance of Peter's nurse, Jennifer, who will continue to play a minor, but significant role throughout Season 1.
* This episode marks the first time Wolfsbane is used in a Hunter's weapons, and the first time the ashes of burned wolfsbane are used to cure a Werewolf who has been poisoned by it. Both of these facts will play a role in future episodes.
	+ The wolfsbane used in this episode is Nordic Blue Monkshood, but there will also be other strains that are introduced as well, including purple and yellow forms of wolfsbane.
* It is revealed that, in addition to being a Hunter family, Chris Argent is also a federally licensed arms dealer, which will also play a role in the rest of the series.
* It is implied for the first time that Kate was responsible for setting the Hale House Fire, which will be confirmed later in the season.
* Derek claws Jackson Whittemore in the back of the neck on accident in this episode, which not only exposes him to wolfsbane as well, but also inadvertently transfers memories of the Hale Fire into Jackson's mind using the Werewolf memory-sharing ritual. Both the wolfsbane poisoning and the shared memories will continue to afflict Jackson throughout the season.
* Jackson once again assumes that Scott is on steroids because of his recent athletic improvement and mistakenly guesses that Derek is Scott's dealer. Jackson first suggested Scott was on steroids in *Wolf Moon*.
* Scott is awakened by the howl of the Alpha, which subconsciously draws him out of bed to find him for the third time so far in the series. This happened for the first time in *Wolf Moon*, and again in *Pack Mentality*
* Allison catches Kate and Chris in a lie in this episode regarding Kate's car troubles, which begins her suspicion as to what her family is hiding from her that will continue until *Co-Captain*.
* This episode marks the first time that the Argent Family Hunter Code, including the fact that they only kill werewolves who have spilled innocent blood, is mentioned, though their original Code, "Nous chassons ceux qui nous chassent," or "We hunt those who hunt us" will not be fully revealed until *Code Breaker*.

## Trivia

* The title refers to the bullet stolen by Scott McCall from Kate Argent, the so-called "magic bullet" needed by Derek Hale so that he could burn the rare strain of wolfsbane inside and use the ashes to cure himself of wolfsbane poisoning.

## Locations

* Beacon Hills Warehouse District
* Argent House
* Beacon Hills High School
* Beacon Hills Animal Clinic
* Beacon Crossing Home

## Soundtrack

* "My Darling" by Lucy Swartz
	+ Kate drives into Beacon Hills and is attacked by the Alpha.
* "Shake Shake" by The Wildbirds
	+ Allison excitedly greets Kate when she and Chris finally arrive to the Argent House
* "I'll Be True To You" by Research Material
	+ Scott and Stiles have a conversation in a classroom at school
* "Poisoned With Love" by Neon Hitch
	+ Scott and Allison make out in her bed after school, and Scott almost starts to transform into a werewolf from the excitement
* "Setback (Kickdrum Remix)" by The Constellations
	+ Stiles attempts to take Derek home, but Derek refuses to go due to fear that the hunters will come back for him and insists that Stiles take him somewhere else by threatening him.
* "Scared But Not That Scared" by 1, 2, 3
	+ Allison shows Scott her compound bow in the garage and explains that her family are licensed arms dealers who sell weapons to police departments.
* "The Wolf" by Miniature Tigers
	+ Allison saves Scott from Kate's interrogation by pulling out a condom and admitting she stole it from Kate's bag
* "Of the Mountains" by Dan Deacon
	+ Allison finds leftover shattered glass from where the Alpha smashed Kate's driver side window of her car and becomes suspicious.

## Gallery

*Teen Wolf Wiki* has 36 images related to ***Magic Bullet***.