Hi folks, here's a little missing scene one shot. I think it was a few one shots ago I was asked for Jude's thoughts about Callie being taken that night she went to Helen's but I've also had some more recent requests (apologies for not giving individual credit to the requesters!). I've also had a few requests for Jude's thoughts about the Quinns. Going to hold off on that until I see how the show handles the mutism, but for now here is that earlier one shot. Hopefully that will suffice! I will probably be posting more Quinn related missing scenes in Letting Them In - as for this thread I imagine it will remain a one shot unless anybody gives me a flash of inspiration!

I hope you enjoy and that you will leave a review if you did - if not, I would thank you for reading anyway :)

Stef placed Callie's bag in the trunk of Elaine's car before closing it down and turning to the girl behind her.

"Tomorrow - I promise. I'll fix it even if I have to knock on the door of every judge in town." She cupped Callie's cheeks in return for a non-committal nod, even though she was trying her hardest to pass off at least some confidence. Seeing the doubt in her eyes, but knowing there was nothing more she could do about, she kissed her forehead and hugged her in firmly hoping her actions would be more reassuring than her words.

As they pulled apart she ran a hand down her arm and watched as she climbed in, tossing her back one more wave. Then the car rolled off, sweeping Callie away, almost as fast as Elaine had arrived. She cursed the darkness, spitting her anger to the stars, before wandering back to the house. She promised herself she would keep a lid on her frustrations as long as the kids were in earshot but the chewing on her lip made her fear how successful she would be. They were all still gathered in the hall, Lena clasping Jude into her stomach as he stood, shell shocked, with his eyes fixed on the door. As Stef came in she flicked her hand and Lena released him, swapping the duty and making sure he knew there were still enough love around him, even if Callie had gone. She helped him remove his backpack which he had still clasped firmly in his embrace with Lena. As she pulled him in he tried to hold back the stinging tears battering the back of his eyes.

"Listen. This will all be figured out, guys." Lena turned to assure the stunned pack. How about you go finish dinner?"

"Yeah, come on, guys. She'll be fine." Brandon tried to reassure his siblings, placing his hands on Mariana's shoulders. "This is Callie. She's tougher than anyone I know." As the boys turned back toward the kitchen, Mariana headed over to Stef.

"Come on, Jude -" she offered holding her hand out as Stef gave him a kiss on the head and urged he go towards her. He finally slipped away and Mariana waited until he was in front before gently massaging his shoulders as they went into the kitchen.

With the kids finally gone and the pressure suddenly sweeping off, Stef placed her palm over her face.

"How did we let this happen?" she asked through a husk, her façade swiftly falling, as Lena shook her head.

"I don't know...I guess we just had no need or any thoughts to spare for renewal, what with the proceedings going through and without the warning prompts. I can't believe it's even been that long since we last did it!"

"We got too damn settled." Stef cursed. "We know this system! We knew this could happen! Why wasn't I on top of this? All the million and one things to do with the adoption and I let our license expire?" her voice ramped up with passion, exaggerated by her efforts to keep the volume low. She paced and stormed across the room back and forth before Lena grabbed her arm.

"Blaming yourself isn't going to help, not to mention as we're both responsible. We'll handle it, we just need some time."

"Callie doesn't have time, Lena! She has minus 5 minutes left!" she shot back sharply with her quiet but deadly tone. Lena threw her a warning look grabbing her arm again as she pulled it away to her pocket, too distracted to register any of Lena's calming techniques.

"What are you doing now?" Lena asked, her patience with her wife's temper growing thin and the stress of her own worries replacing it.

"Calling Bill."Stef replied bitterly, tapping through her phone.

"Bill? Stef, what is Bill going to do? He's not even their social worker anymore."

"I am well aware of that." she replied, still dialling furiously before Lena pulled down her phone against a frustrated huff.

"Will you calm down for even a second? The kids may not be here but they're not exactly far. The last thing they need is you screaming down the phone at someone who can't help us anyway." she scolded her firmly as Stef finally cooled, sharply expelling the contents of her lungs and flopping down to the sofa, her hands pressed firmly against her face.

"I can't just sit here, Lena!" she pleaded. "One of our babies is spending the night God knows where with God knows who - and it's our fault! We let her down. We promised we would protect her and be here for her and then we let her literally get ripped away from our dinner table." Her voice was desperate and her eyes bulging. The vision took Lena back to the day they found Callie gone. She had the same panic in her face, the same mix of guilt, confusion and terror.

"Honey, we haven't lost her." Lena replied as softly as she could to respect Stef's clear anguish. "This isn't like last time. It's just paperwork."

"And so is what's crippling the adoption." Stef replied with a sigh, the anger gone but the concern and frustration still prevalent as she rested her face on her hands. Lena pushed aside any verbal response. She knew Stef's stages of process and she knew any moment now she was about to do the swing down from her hotheadedness. She sat beside her instead and placed a hand on her wife's knee. As expected, only a few heavy breaths passed before Stef gently knocked her knee against Lena's.

"Sorry." She finally admitted with a tone that proved Lena's prediction had been right. "I'm just so fed up of making promises that we can't keep. These kids have had so many promises and -"

"And they know we love them, babe. That's all we can guarantee them right now and it's all we need to guarantee them." She assured her, squeezing Stef's knee. Stef nodded in response, leaning back against Lena and bouncing her phone up and down in her hand. She wasn't sure if that would be enough to calm her, but it was all they had to work with right no. Securely out of anger and hysteria and now rounding off solemn reflection, she arrived at pro-activity. That was at least usually the most fulfilling stage.

"I'm going to call Roberts. She is usually flexible about things with the kids.." She turned her phone round and began to search through the names. Seeing her cue to go Lena gave her a kiss on the head and eased herself off the sofa.

"Speaking of those kids...I'm going to go check on them. This won't be an easy night for anyone." Stef acknowledged it with a head nod as Lena headed back to the kitchen.

There was a chilling stillness as she entered the room. No sounds other than scraping of cutlery and the faint sound of reluctant chewing as the kids tried to focus on eating. She searched for the words to say, some reassurance or pearls of wisdom but she was struggling to find anything. The concerns she'd only temporarily suppressed to try and get through to Stef were now making their own break, as well as the overwhelming sympathy she was now feeling for her babies. She paused to clear her head as she took back her seat at the table.

"Dinner still warm enough? We can heat it up again." she asked, hoping that at least a change in subject may do some good. There was just a mumble back with a general consensus that it was fine, whether it was true or not.

She looked at Jude who had done nothing more than push around his food since she had returned, and she imagined it was probably all he had achieved since returning at all.

"I can't believe they would do this." Mariana grumbled, finally saying what was on everybody's minds.

"Right? License or not she's obviously safe and happy here if the adoption is happening." Jesus pitched in, now finding it easier now the silence had been broken.

"You know how these things work, guys." Brandon provided the voice of realism. "The paperwork keeps people in jobs."

"People like Elaine?" Jesus added bitterly.

"More like Elame." Mariana snarked before there was a clatter and Jude's fork was dropped. They all turned to him, his face firmly looking down at his plate as he attempted to pick it up again but it slept slipping through his hands until he left it fallen just off his plate and pressed his palm hard against his forehead.

"Here, honey - do you want some water?" Lena offered, holding out the jug.

"Can I just go upstairs?" he replied moving his hand round to his temple and not raising his eyes to even look at Lena incase they exploded.

"Of course, babe." She squeezed his arm gently as he wasted no time in hopping down and striding out as fast as he could.

"Was that our fault?" Jesus winced guiltily as Lena threw him a sympathetic look.

"No, honey. I think he just needs a little bit of love tonight." Mariana studied his chosen exit route and thought back to how broken he was the night Callie had run away. Regardless of what Lena said she still felt a bit of guilt swelling through her for their part in his departure.

"Uhm, can I be excused too? I'm really not hungry." She asked as Lena mulled it over. Sensing she may be wanting to help her brother, she gave her a small nod and squeezed her wrist gently with approval.

"I'll hang onto your plate, maybe we can warm it up later." She added as Mariana nodded with gratitude before heading up the stairs.

Mariana tapped lightly on Jude's door, waiting for any sign of approval. She imagined he may be crying or wanting some space but part of her knew that more than anything he probably wanted Callie. She hoped she could at least provide a fraction of the comfort like she hoped she had thinking once again to that night. After a third knock she pushed the door gently and was momentarily concerned to see an empty room. As the hair on her neck prickled, her own door caught her eye and what now seemed obvious flooded through her mind. She walked across and opened the door gently. She was rewarded by Jude, as expected, lying facedown on Callie's bed.

He had a piece of paper in one hand and the other draped over the back of his head, playing with his hair. His eyes were teary and transfixed on the paper even though she was sure his face was too close to the words to focus.

"Is that your essay?" She asked as he perked round, quickly wiping his eyes.

"It's not important." He sniffed as she moved over to the bed and leaped up.

"I'd ask to read it but I'm looking forward to hearing it tomorrow." She replied, ignoring the self-deprecation.

"I don't know if I even want to read it. What does it even mean now?" he added, his voice vulnerable but not quite crying. It was clear he was trying to hold it together rather than looking for pity, but the pain he was feeling was more than just being separated for the night. It felt like a foreshadowing of possibilities he had tried to ignore but had now come crashing down on top of him like the gavel that had condemned them to this fate. He pulled himself up as she climbed onto the bed.

"She will come back tomorrow." Mariana stated as they adjusted their positions and she pulled him close to her side.

"We don't know that. I know that's what Moms said but they said this adoption problem wouldn't matter too - just like they said on my adoption that this would be fixed. I know they mean it but they can't make it true - no matter how much they try. It just doesn't work."

"But you're part of the family, Jude. They got that to work. Some things just take longer." She tried to reassure him as his head dived down again, unconvinced. He wanted it to be true, so much, but part of him was just scared to be set up for the fall once again. Seeing his anguish Mariana tried hard to think back. She knew this felt familiar but it was feelings she had long pushed away.

"Our adoption took ages, you know." She started as Jude looked to her nervously from the side.

"I barely remember the details why. I mean, a lot of stuff I don't remember in detail, mainly from when we first came here, but even the whole timescale has blurred a little."

"I thought you did remember the time before you came here though?" He asked, genuinely intrigued.

"Well sorta - I remember bits. Feelings. Certain nights and the main bits, but it's still sort of a blur. I do remember the fear though - and the doubts - and they didn't really go away. Sometimes they still don't. I remember every night thinking that it would all be ripped away again and I remember that by the time the adoption came, those feelings got worse. We'd been here a few years and most of my memories were here...but that meant I was even more scared of going back to the unknown. It was a bit like finding a piece of the puzzle every day - it was all fitting together - but then every time Moms were on the phone I freaked out in case it was a social worker or someone calling with some news about our Mom. Those moments it felt like my jigsaw was almost complete but I suddenly couldn't find a piece and there was no guarantee I ever would." Her voice quivered a bit, the thoughts haunting long cleared places in her mind but she tried to re-focus on the reason she had gone down this road in the first place. She looked down at Jude's eager eyes - still waiting for the conclusion.

"All I'm trying to say is; it's scary! But then when it's over it is just a memory. You are only left with the full picture. If anyone can get a license off of a judge it's Mom. She'll probably go so Mama Tiger on him he'll probably have to blink to check it's not his own Mom...if that doesn't prove they're Callie's Moms, what will?" She lightly joked, though part of her could actually see that scene unfold. Feeling Jude loosen ever so slightly, it was clear it had at least had some effect as his hands twitched around the edge of the paper. They sat for a few quiet moments, Mariana holding him tight against her side before they were interrupted by a gentle knock. Lena was stood leaning against the door frame with a kind smile on her face, tucking her hands into a crossed position on her chest.

"Can I have a quick word with Jude, Mariana?" She asked politely as her daughter nodded and bounced forward, shimmying off the bed.

Lena glazed her arm as she passed while Jude wiped one of the un-spilled tears still gently congregating in his eyes.

He pursed his lips, keeping his eyes on the essay as Lena slowly wandered over.

"Do you think she'll be OK alone?" He finally asked, even the sight of Lena apparently drawing out his fears. She placed herself on the edge of the bed and a hand on his knee.

"I think that Callie will cope just fine." She assured him.

"She's never been in a foster home without me before." His pace gradually quickening as he looked up. "I know that sounds stupid because she has been to Juvie and Girls United but she's never been in a house alone. I have!" He explained, his eyes showing the pain he was suffering from this realisation almost as clearly as his words. "It was so lonely. Those nights when she wasn't there. In those other places she had other people..."

"Sweetheart - " Lena calmed him, clasping her other hand on top of her other to apply firmer pressure to his knee. "Callie will be fine. She knows all of us are here for her whether she is physically with us or not. For all we know she may be in a house with other kids..."

"Who could be mean to her! She always takes so long to settle -"

"Jude, It's only temporary. She won't even need to settle -"

"Only if you can get the extension -"

"It's temporary anyway. If we can't get the emergency extension then yes, it'll take a little longer to get the permanent but Callie will still come back to us. We've never failed to pass and not even the system would prevent approved parents who legally adopted the child's brother from willingly fostering. I promise you Jude, whether time is on our side or not we will bring Callie back to you. Back to us."

He rolled his head back against the wall, Lena's words answer slowing down their to-and-fro and her last statements finally drawing out a tear.

"Please don't promise me." He whispered. "I know you mean it...but..." Lena breathed out deeply watching it fall and looking at the shadows that all of those broken promises had cast. He was right. Promises right now meant nothing to him, but maybe something else would. She reached over and pulled him off the wall, dragging him in close. He didn't leap into her hold but he didn't fight it as he palmed another tear off his cheek.

"Alright...you know what?" She began, raking a hand through his hair and moving her head close to his so that her words fell straight into his ear. "No more promises - let's just talk with facts. You said you are the only one of you who has been alone in a foster home, right?"

"Yeah..." he replied as Lena quickly picked it back up.

"And the first thing that Callie did, the day after she arrived at the very first opportunity she had, were did she go?"

There was a small pause before Jude responded, a small whimper of understanding being planted for the first time.

"To come get me."

"To come get you. The second time, she was at Girls United and she was thinking of independent living. As soon as she had time to realise what it would mean to be living alone what did she do?"

This time there was a longer pause but any delay in answer was counteracted with an increase in confidence.

"She came back home."

"She came. Back. Home." Lena let the words sink in a moment longer even though she knew the responses that would be gathering in Jude's head. Lena saw a figure appear at the door and flicked a glance towards it before quickly refocussing. There was now an added bonus to this conversation - it could possibly reassure more than one of her loved ones.

"And Stef..." She added forcefully, hoping it would catch more than one ear. Jude took the change in tone as an opportunity to finally maneuver his head to look into Lena's eyes. "You know what first thing she did when she found out Callie was gone, what both of us did? Both the time she ran away and the time she went to get you?"

"Went to find her." He replied, still following his trend of growing investment.

"And brought her back. One way or another." She finished off, stroking his hair back again. I can't promise what will happen or what further issues are going to get in the way, Jude, but I can certainly remind you that so far we have a 100% record of Callie coming home." She was lifted to feel the tiniest hint of a head nod under her hand that was holding him. It enthused her enough to look to Stef whose look of gratitude and assurance confirmed that her double message had got through. She was rewarded with the subtlest of winks. It wasn't Stef's usual, neither a cheeky glimmer of humour nor a playful flirtation. It was clear she was still scared and they hadn't figured this one out yet, but it was a seal that she would keep a little faith. Giving herself a boost off the wall she walked over, arms still folded until she reached the bed. She glanced her hand on Lena's shoulder before taking the other side of Jude and slowly embraced him, momentarily splitting his head from Lena's shoulder to kiss his forehead before squeezing the two of them tightly into a bunch. Jude wrapped his arms up so he was holding on to both and briefly closed his eyes.

Mariana's words echoed in his head and he thought over them, safe inside his loving cocoon. For as long as he and Callie were separate there would be a piece of his jigsaw missing, but at least he knew for sure that there were people looking for it to help him put it back together.

Any feedback would be much appreciated and shout out to TheTBone for the genius of creating (and letting me steal) #Elame - the hashtag that keeps on giving.