Hello there fellow Beauty and the Beast fans. First story on these two. Hope you guys like it!

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters in this story or any other registered brand that may appear in the chapter.

Chapter 1

The comeback

Seas of people. Honking cars. Big advertisements on even bigger buildings. The smell of fast food, gas and stress in the air. Things that Cat had sort of -but not really- missed. Welcome to New York.

'Home sweet home.' She thinks with a sigh, as a suit-wearing man bumps into her shoulder, clearly way too in a hurry to even apologize, or have manners. Exasperated, she shoves her hands in the pockets of her black leather jacket and weaves her way through the crowd.

She can't help but observe the people around her, a habit acquired after years of always securing her surroundings.

It's early October, the fall mood already rooted into the population. Brown raincoats flood the streets, the preoccupied workers either yelling at or scrolling through their phones. Young girls taking pictures of themselves holding Starbucks cups.

'What's that word again? Selly? Sa-'

"SELFIE!" One of the girls squeals before snapping a picture.

'Ah, selfie, right. I bet that's a pumpkin spice latte she's holding.'

Rolling her eyes at the cliché-ness of it all, she continues her way until she reaches the cafe where she's meeting Tess. A little bell rings as she comes in, and she surveys the space, quickly locating her friend all the way in the back, two cups in the table before her.

"Hey there girly." Tess smiles at her as she reaches the table. "Took you long enough."

She smiles apologetically. "Hey. Yeah, sorry about that. Got kinda fazed with all that out there." She shrugs off her jacket, and places it in her lap. "I swear, I hadn't missed that frenzy at all. And can we just talk for a second about how every single girl below 30 only drinks that pumpkin spice thing?"

"Speaking of drinking" Tess interrupts, signaling to the table with her hands "I got you your favorite." She finishes with a wiggle of her eyebrows.

Grinning like a mad woman, Cat brings the steaming cup to her lips, taking a sip of the delicious heaven that is a macchiato. "Hmmm." She happily licks her lips. "You're awesome. Thanks, I needed that."

Tess barks a laugh. "I swear, your obsession with that coffee will always escape my understanding."

At the slight glare Cat gives, she puts her arms up in surrender and quickly adds "But, it's still better than those, what are they called again? 'Moccha thai latte'? Like, what are those things?"

Cat chuckles lightly after taking another sip. "I don't know, but apparently, and don't ask me what this means 'cause I have no idea, they are very 'tumblr'." After sharing a laugh, she says "I have no clue what's in right now, but I'm sure Heather could explain it all with plenty detail." She frowns. "If she still speaks to me." She finishes with a sigh.

Sensing the sour mood, Tess reaches a hand to Cat's shoulder. "Hey, c'mon, don't do that. She's your sister Cat. It'll take her some time, but she'll understand why you had to leave."

Looking up at her with a sad smile, Cat puts her hand on top of Tess's. "I hope you're right." Blinking a couple of times to clear her head, she changes the subject. "Anyway, we have to get our head in the game. We didn't come back just to see what lipstick color Kim Kardashian is wearing lately."

Tess snickers. "Aww man, those Kardashians crack me up." At Cat's raised eyebrow, she clears her throat. "But yeah, you're right, no more silly distractions. What's the plan?"

"Well, we need to know everything they found in the crime scene. About the killers, about the victim..." She slightly winces at referring to her own mother as just a victim, which doesn't go unnoticed by her best friend.

"Hey, c'mon. I know this must suck for you, but we gotta treat this as objectively as possible if we wanna do it right."

"You're right." She shakes her head and fixates her eyes on Tess. "We need those police reports. So it's either hacking into the NYPD's database, or breaking and entering a precinct."

Rolling her eyes at the ridiculousness of that sentence, Tess states. "Well, I'd really rather hacking into it, but I'm not entirely sure I can without being detected. Give me a couple of days to try and figure it out. If I can't, we'll go with plan B."

Cat nods solemnly. "Okay. Meanwhile I'll canvas the precinct to find the weakest points. We're going to find out what really happened to my mother once and for all." She says with a flame in her eyes.

"Girl, you get hella scary when you do that." Tess informs, leaning back into her chair and looking at her mockingly. She only sticks her tongue out in return, earning her a laugh. They dive into a conversation about the sick obsession everyone has with their phones, and for a moment, she forgets what she's really doing back in this city, and pretend she's just a normal girl with a normal best friend.

Only for a moment though.

Six years ago

"I can't wait to start! It's gonna be so amazing mom!" Cat says half jumping with excitement. Her mother, Vanessa, laughs at her and shakes her head at her childish ways.

"I know, I know. College is exciting, I get it. But honey, remember that it's not only fun and games,okay? Don't be disappointed when you actually have to open a book." Vanessa says with a smirk.

Rolling her eyes, Cat weaves her arm through her mother's and strolls down the street with her. "I know that mom. Geez, don't you remember that I'm a nerd? I love the idea of college books. It's not really about the parties, it's about trying new things out and being in my own and figuring out my future and-"

Her mother's laugh cuts her off. "Oh honey, you are gonna do so great in college. I was just like you, you know? And those were some really good years." She says nostalgic.

"Well, since I also want to be a scientist, I guess it's a good thing we're alike, huh?" Cat's says with a bright smile.

She looks around, taking in the streets she's known all her life. She'll be leaving for NYU in a couple, so she's determined to squeeze every last magical minute out of this place before she parts. Hence, her strolling around at almost midnight with her mother.

Her mother. Her saying that they're alike is one of the best compliments she could ever hope for. Not only was Vanessa Chandler a brilliant scientist, expert in genetics and biology, but a kind, caring person, and moreover, a loving mother. Cat and her sister were raised believing they coul be anything they wanted to so long as they worked hard, and knowing that no matter their passions and decisions, their family would always support them.

To Cat, that support is the fuel that's driven her life and shaped her as who she is. If there's something she's sure of, is that her parents and her sister would always take her side. And really, who could ask for more?

She's losing herself in thoughts of huge libraries with thousands of books and football games so loud you can't even hear yourself, when her mother suddenly halts.

"What is it mom?"

"Shh."

"Help! Somebody please help!"

Someone's shouting. It's coming from deep in the park. Her mother doesn't hesitate and quickly jogs to where the voice is coming from. She trails behind her, and they find a man in a suit frantically looking around.

"Hey! We heard screaming, is everything okay?" Vanessa inquires while Cat stays quiet.

The man looks startled at them, and shakily explains. "My friend he needs help. We-We were just talking and suddenly he collapsed and he's not waking up and I-I don't know what to do! You've gotta help him please!

"It's okay." Vanessa said in a calm voice, trying to ease the stranger. "I'm a doctor, I can help him. Take me to him." The man nods rapidly and starts walking, both women following him.

Cat looks around, feeling uneasy. She can't quite put her finger on it, but something's just not right. She's about to say something to her mother, when suddenly the man stops and points under a tree. Vanessa hurriedly walks over to the lying man and kneels beside him.

Checking for pulse, she says "Sir, can you hear me? I'm a doctor and I'm here to help. Can you open your eyes for me?"

"Well, if you ask so nicely." The man, obviously not unconscious open his eyes and grins at Vanessa. Confused, she's about to turn around when she hears the click of a gun being loaded.

Cat stares in mute horror as the scene unravels, unable to do anything but silently cry in fear. Vanessa gets up slowly, as does the man lying on the floor, who dusts himself of before walking over to his partner.

"Honestly, I wasn't quite sure you were going to fall for it. But then again, always the good citizen huh?" He says icily as he too points a gun at Vanessa.

"What do you want?" She says through gritted teeth. Cat looks over at her mother confused. She doesn't sound scared, no, she sounds angry, furious even. Did she know these men?

"Darling, there's nothing you have that could get you out of this." Vanessa closes her eyes tightly, only to open them and glare at them. "Oh, look at that. She's a feisty one. Such a shame."

It all happens in a blur. Cat hears more than sees the guns being fired, followed by her mother falling to the ground. She screams, and finally regains her ability to move, running to her mother. She takes her head in her hands, the lifeless expression of her mother looking back at her. She screams again and cries harder, the sobs shaking her whole body while she hugs what's left of her mother. There's blood everywhere she looks but she doesn't care, she just holds her.

"Pity we have to kill that one too, she's a pretty one."

She barely registers the men talking, just lets her instinct kick in and starts backing off. She keeps dragging along the grass until her back hits the tree. Her eyes widen in realization. She can't run. No one has heard her screaming. Her mother is dead and now she's gonna die too because she wanted to go for a stupid walk in the middle of the night. This is all her fault. Closing her eyes, she awaits the inevitable, waits to hear the shot.

But she hears a growl. And then screams.

She opens her eyes. Blinking away the tears she tries to make sense of what's happening. Someone, no, something is attacking the suited men. It's fast and strong and relentless. The sounds it's making are clearly animal, yet it's moving on two legs and looks like a person. Like a man.

It's over before she can really register it, the two corpses of the men lying on the floor, their necks broken. Whatever killed them is standing above them, breathing heavily. She doesn't know what to do, let alone what to feel. It saved her, but it also scared her. She's about to be stupid and ask him who he is, -what it is-, when his head snaps up. It looks over it shoulder, barely setting its eyes on her, and with a final growl, it speeds off into the night, disappearing from sight.

She's stuck yet again, her mouth agape. In the corner of her eye she sees her mother's body, and her brain starts functioning again. She goes to her and kneels, bringing her head into her lap and slightly combing her fingers through her mother's dark hair. She calls 911, tells them where she is and just waits there, caressing her mother's face.

Once the cops arrive, they take her mother away, and a paramedic makes sure she's okay. She's not, but her health apparently is, and so the cops bring her over to her father and her sister, who are crying when they reach for her and envelop her in a hug. She tries to hug back, but her body won't move without her minds order, and her mind is only focused on one thing. A detective asks her what happened, and she looks at him, blinks, then simply says one word.

"Yellow".

The detective looks weirdly at her, like she's gone crazy. Says something about being traumatized and needing rest, and about going to the precinct once she's slept and eaten something. He offers his condolences for their loss and then leaves. But all she can think about is yellow.

His eyes. Yes, his. It was definitely a man. Or at least looked like a man.

And his eyes were yellow.

She jolts awake with a gasp. Blinking rapidly, she looks around trying to make out the space in the dark. She's in her room. Closing her eyes with an exasperated sigh, she pinches the bridge of her nose and combs her hand through her hair, swiping the sweat from her forehead.

She tiredly looks at her beside clock, reading in bright, red numbers that's 4:36 in the morning. She kicks the covers off herself and pads her way into her kitchen, hissing when her feet make contact with the cold floor. She fills a glass from the tap, and the sits on a stool, elbows in the counter, eyes towards the window.

It has been a while since she last dreamt of her mother. After her death, all she got was nightmares, barely slept a wink for months in a row. Tess liked teasing her about being a zombie ninja. With time though, she also started dreaming about the good parts. The nightmares went away, and she finally got some emotional (and physical) rest.

But she had never dreamt of that dreadful night. The night that not only took away her mother, but her innocence and the rest of her family too.

After lying down with her eyes closed for over two hours, she finally made her father believe that she was okay to go into the precinct. She told the detective everything, emphasizing the yellow eyed-man-creature that had saved her.

All she got was an appointment with a shrink.

Everyone kept telling her that it was okay, that she was traumatized and her mind was playing tricks on her. That they understood. Ha! Sure they did. She spent a month and a half trying to get someone -anyone really- to believe her. The cops were a lost cause, and the shrink didn't really care. That only left her family.

She told them over and over again, and each time she'd get the same response: a sad smile and a pity look. One night, after another nightmare, she wondered out into the hallway. Everyone was supposed to be asleep, but there was light coming out of Heather's room. Quietly as she could, she made her way there and peaked through the slightly ajar door. Her father and her sister were talking, more like whispering if you asked her, worried expressions on both their faces. She didn't understand everything they were saying, but she got enough.

"She's crazy dad. Literally crazy. I mean, monsters? Really?"

"I know sweetie, I know. We'll have to talk to her doctor."

Cat snaps her eyes shut at the memory and brings the glass of water to her forehead, a futile attempt to lure the headache away. That was the night she decided to leave. She was not crazy, she has never been. No one believed her, but that was okay, she didn't need them to. But she couldn't live somewhere where people thought she was a nut job. So she packed up a left.

But now she's back. And she has people who believe her. And she's no longer a teenager with a trauma and full of fears.

No, she's back with a purpose, a vengeance if you will. She's here to find out the truth, and there's no way she's leaving without it. She'll find out who killed her mother and why. She'll figure out what was that thing the saved her.

One way or another.

Well, that wasn't that bad was it? Don't be shy and tell me what you think!