Hello!
So, I'm really sorry if someone has already done this idea- but I promise this will be very different. Basically, this is set about 20 years after the events of season 3, so in around 2033. It primarily focuses on the four middle children of the girls, however don't think I'm done with our original Liars. And, remember in a few months (when season 4 comes out) I'm sure most of this will become AU, so keep that in mind in future. Also, like everything in the PLL universe, things are always changing. So, if your favorite pair isn't exactly "together" at the start, remember that anything can happen later on... *runs away to avoid revealing any spoilers*.
Hope you enjoy and please review if you can :)
MikaylaRose x

Summer 2021

Preface
A PERFECT GIRL IS LYING

Spencer, Aria, Hanna and Emily never thought that one day they would be sitting on the back porch, soaking up the sun whilst watching their respective children playing in the backyard. Many years ago, it seemed like the future would never come for them and every day was a struggle to get through, but now everything was perfect.

"Spence I'm sorry about Wren," Hanna said suddenly, looking to her friend who seemed a little distant.

Spencer shifted a little in her chair, looking across the outdoor table to her other friends who looked as concerned as Hanna.

"I'm fine, everything is fine," Spencer responded, almost robotically.

"You don't have to put on a brave face for us, you know," Aria said quickly, and Spencer shook her head.

"No, I'm really fine," she answered. "It was falling apart anyway; we couldn't just keep on going like everything was happy and nice when it wasn't. We were only together because it was easier than actually being with the person we wanted to be with."

"I know how that feels," Aria said under her breath, only Emily hearing her statement.

Spencer looked over to the backyard of her house where four of their children were playing. Four girls: Aria's daughter was the oldest of them, born a year before Hanna and Emily's who were born around the same time and last was Spencer's', born about a year after the others. They were running around playing what looked like "cops and robbers", however Emily's daughter Sara seemed to always be the cop. Spencer worried about Sara- the other girls picked on her a lot, and she hoped it was just a phase. She had spoken to her own daughter Jessica many times about being nicer to her, but it was hard enough trying to convince a four year old to eat her vegetables let alone change her social interactions.

"Well, speaking of the person you wanted," Emily began, slowly and leaning forwards a little. "Word on the street is that Toby's coming back."

"From Europe? Really?" Spencer asked, her eyes glistening.

"Knew that would pep you up," Emily smiled and Spencer blushed a little.

"Hey… it would just be nice to see him again that's all," Spencer replied, taking a sip from her glass, suddenly feeling quite giddy.

As the day began to end, the other girls gathered their children and left the Kingston house. It was three weeks until Toby Cavanaugh returned to Rosewood, and after much hesitation, Spencer finally called her old boyfriend- Toby seeming just as excited as Spencer did to catch up. They agreed to meet at The Grill, and Spencer spent hours getting ready, borrowing one of Hanna's dresses and Aria's favorite earrings.

"Spencer, hey!" Toby smiled, as the brunette woman entered the café.

Spencer smiled- Toby just looked exactly the same as when she last saw him almost ten years ago.

They spoke for what seemed like hours, Spencer explaining her split from Wren and talking about her two daughters Paloma- who was nine- and Jessica. Then Toby launched into his time in England, having gained a qualification in landscaping and hoping to start up his own business.

Spencer couldn't stop smiling as they spoke- it was like he had never left. She suddenly peered down for a second and spied something on Toby's hand that took her by surprise.

"Toby… are you married?" Spencer asked, gazing at the ring around his ring finger.

"Oh… um… yeah," Toby informed her, shyly and hiding his ring with his other hand. "It's been a few months now."

Spencer smiled slightly, however part of her was crushed.

"Congratulations," she said, plainly. "What's she like?"

"Great, she'll be in Rosewood tomorrow morning," Toby explained, slowly. "You'd get along with her really well; she's smart, funny and is a lawyer."

"I'll bet," Spencer said, through gritted teeth. "What's her name?"

"Sabrina," Toby informed her and Spencer rolled her eyes.

They finished their meals and Toby insisted on paying, before Spencer quickly left, not even taking down Toby's new cell number. It was stupid of her to think that her old boyfriend would still be single- nor was it right for her to be mad with him, after all she got married less than a year after he left.

"I can't believe he's married!" Hanna exclaimed, leaning across her kitchen bench as she and the three girls discussed Spencer' date with Toby the next evening. "I mean, I never saw that coming- besides, I always thought you two would end up together."

"I guess it just wasn't meant to be," Spencer replied, slightly sadly.

The three others looked at her with concerning eyes- none of them sure what the best thing to say was.

"Hey, anything's possible- Hanna and I ended up together."

The girls looked over as Hanna's husband Caleb entered the room, kissing his wife on the head before taking out some chips from the cupboard.

"Yeah but everyone knew you two would stay together," Aria exclaimed, "You're perfect for each other."

"If only," Hanna stated, suddenly touching her forehead and swaying a little.

"You okay?" Emily asked her, anxiously.

Caleb hurried over to her and took her hands, steadying her and feeling her suddenly warm forehead.

"Yeah, just been feeling a little woozy lately," Hanna replied, dazedly. "Must be something I ate."

After Caleb was sure his wife was okay, he left the room, Hanna being forced to drink about three glasses of water before he was satisfied. They sat down at the round table in the kitchen, each of them with their hands around a steaming hot cup of coffee.

"So are you going to see Toby again?" Aria asked Spencer, who shrugged.

"I don't know," she replied. "I saw him this morning on my way to work- met Sabrina for the first time."

"What's she like?" Emily asked.

"Does she have a massive wart on her nose like most witches do?" Hanna teased, taking a sip of coffee.

"No, she seemed really nice- unfortunately," Spencer informed them, plainly.

"Damn it," Hanna sighed, hopeful for her friend.

Suddenly, four ring tones went off at the exact same time, each of the girls looking at each other.

"Coincidence?" Emily proposed- the rest of them not as sure.

They hurried to their handbags on the kitchen bench and took out their cell phones, each of them looking down and reading the message in their heads: "Ali's old burial site, ten minutes- hurry my little liars."

They all looked up, each of them having received the same message.

"You don't think-?" Aria began, cutting herself off.

"It's not signed by anyone," Emily responded.

"Do we go?" Hanna asked, each of them seeming a little freaked out.

Spencer sighed, placing one hand on her forehead and the other up against the kitchen bench, taking a deep breath and closing her eyes.

"Almost ten years, almost ten years since anything," Spencer sighed, seeming visibly distressed by the message. "I thought we were free."

"This could be something else?" Emily pointed out, hopeful.

"It's never something else," Hanna countered, and the girls knew she was right.

They crept out of the house- not wanting to upset Caleb- and hopped into Hanna's car, the blonde driving the girls to the graveyard where so many of their misadventures had occurred before. They pulled up and locked the large SUV, the four of them slowly making their way towards the old grave site Emily, luckily enough remembering the way.

They reached the old gravestone, which still sat in front of the large hole in the ground with weeds and nettles all growing across it. It hadn't been touched in many years as no-one wanted anything more to do with Alison DiLaurentis after all that had happened.

"Now what?" Hanna asked, the four of them looking around the deserted landscape.

"We wait?" Aria proposed, trying to remain calm.

They waited for what seemed like hours, pacing around and jogging on the spot to remain warm. They felt like they were still a piece of a puzzle in someone else's game and it sickened each of them. Just as Spencer started insisting they leave, a figure approached them from up ahead, wearing a dark coat and a hood covering their face.

"Look!" Aria cried, pointing towards the figure as they approached them.

They moved cautiously back, slowly backing away as the figure walked further towards them, walking slowly past Ali's old open grave- each of the girls beginning to panic.

"Who are you!? What do you want?!" Hanna exclaimed, the four of them suddenly frozen with fear.

They felt more scared now than they ever had before and it was more than likely due to the fact they hadn't faced this sort of thing in a long time. It was like the beginning all over again.

The figure kept walking towards them before it stood almost right in front of the open grave. They were just about to lower their hood, when Emily stepped on something. She looked around, spying a long shovel lying across the ground. She quickly picked it up as the figure began to walk towards them again, reaching for something in their jeans pocket.

"We warned you!" Emily cried, stepping forwards and before she knew it, she had hit the figure right across the head.

The girls screamed- even Emily- who immediately dropped the shovel as the figure stumbled backwards, drowsy and confused before they tripped over their own feet and fell into the open grave, landing in the dirt.

"Em… what did you do?" Spencer cried, the whole graveyard falling silent.

Emily's eyes widened and she lifted her hands to cover her mouth, tears beginning to form in her eyes.

"I-I-I don't know," she stammered, the girls moving towards her and wrapping their arms around her.

They remained in a circle for a while, shaking with fear before they parted, arms linked as they edged towards the grave, peering over the edge to see a woman lying in the grave, the hood having fallen of her face to reveal someone Spencer immediately recognized.

"Let's get out of here," Spencer ordered, quickly.

She took up the shovel and wiped it off on her jacket before throwing it down beside the figure, the others looking at her boggled.

"She's hurt, we have to get help!" Hanna cried, sternly.

"After all that's happened in the past Hanna, we need to realize no-one is going to be on our side," Spencer exclaimed. "We'll all be convicted- without trial no doubt, and our children will have criminals for mothers."

"But we're already criminals, everybody knows that," Emily stammered, tears rolling down her cheeks.

"Yeah but people are forgetting," Spencer told them. "Hopefully, by the time the girls are older no-one will even remember what happened all those years ago- and if people found out about this now, it would bring up all those memories."

"Spencer I-"

"No Hanna! I won't have my girls knowing what I've done!" Spencer yelled, her eyes starting to water now too. "Now let's just get the hell out of here."

With that, Spencer led the girls away from the site, the four of them running back through the graveyard to Hanna's car and tearing off into the night, leaving the body and the girls' new secret behind.