AN: Happy New Year!
Chapter 2 Introduction
Next day
"I'm so glad you're back" said a very happy Rosalind
"Me too … ow…"
"What happened?"
"Nothing serious, I just got bitten"
"We'll deal with it"
"We'll deal with it later … now, we have to get everyone over here, including Trubel and Adalind" said Monroe
"This does not look good" said Hank when he and Lee arrived "I think it's infected" said Wu
"How does it feel?"
"It hurts"
"You could have blood poisoning" said a very worried Rosalee "and I think we should get you to a doctor"
"No! First we have to tell everyone what we discovered back in Germany"
"I know you're here watching us, show yourself" said Nick suddenly
"Aaa Nick?! Who you're talking to?" Asked Hank his partner while exchanging worried looks with Lee
"He knows what he's doing" said Monroe now seated on the stairs
"It's this about … YouKnowWho from yesterday?" Asked Rosalee and Adalind
"What happened here yesterday?" Asked Trubel
"Rosalee and Adalind are right … we had an surprised encounter back in Germany" said Monroe "and it's clearly we're not the only ones" continued Nick
"She said her name is Artemis and you said to not talk about this over the phone" said Rosalee
"Yeah, well … she really is Artemis"
"The goddess Artemis?!" Asked Hank
"First Wessens and now gods?! What's next? Atlantis resurfacing?" Said Wu a little disbelieving
(I am Artemis and, I can, probably help you) Adalind remembered what Artemis said to her "please, don't tell Nick my secret"
"Don't worry honey, I won't say a word, it's not my business and yes, I can communicate telepathically"
AN: Clearly, Nick and Monroe never found the stick
"Calm down Grimm or, you're gonna choke and, yes gods are real as well"
" … "
"Hello everyone!"
"So it's true"
"WOW! I cannot believe … we are in the same room with an actual goddess"
"For you and your history, yes, but for me, just a princess from Atlantis" said Artemis trying to suppress the memories from back then but, unfortunately for her she needed their help and to gain their trust she had to tell them her story
"Wow! Now we have two Grimms, lovely" said Artemis with her poker-face back on
"So, Grimm number one and Wolf, do you remember what I told you back in the Black Forest? This is the right time for my story"
"Yes, we remember … how could we possibly forget?! And why the Hell, you're still calling us Grimm and Wolf? We do have names you know …"
"You're very brave WOLF" said Artemis grinning
"Yeah right!" Said Monroe trying to stand up only to fall right after
"Monroe? What's wrong?"
"Huh? I, uh I don't know, uh …"
"Hey, hey …"
"He's passing out"
"Come on … get him down"
"Must be his arm"
"Oh my God! I knew it!" Said Rosalee as she unwraps the bandages on Monroe's arm "It's blood poisoning … quick, we need a tourniquet, somebody …" Hank wastes no time and takes off his belt to use it as a tourniquet while Wu calls 911
"Now what? We can't wait for an ambulance … we HAVE to get him to a hospital"
With all the chaos, the gang forgot that Artemis was there as well and, honestly that pissed her off a little
"MOVE AWAY!"
" … "
"Just move away and let me heal him before it's not too late … you don't want him to die, do you?" With that she gracefully moved next to Monroe to put her hands on Monroe's arm and started to whisper something in an unknown language "A blatu blante buitos buion! A blatu blante buitos buion! A blatu blante buitos buion!"
"Do you trust her?" Asked Trubel
"Not yet, but now she's our only hope and it looks she knows what she's doing" answered Nick
"LOOK! The wound starts to disappear"
"Vanished! Not even a scar!"
"Anyone want to take a stab at explaining that? Not me" said an astonished Wu
"I've never seen anything like that"
"What did you do?"
"What happened?" Asked Monroe
"HER"
"Did she really meant that she can help me?! But how? What can she do?" Adalind was thinking
"Actually, not me … my aunt Hecate, IF she finds you worthy" answered Artemis telepathically
"Now, that this crisis is gone, can you listen …"
"Back in the catacombs you took something … I saw you …"
"Clearly you're feeling better! What is wrong with you humans these days … I wonder, it's so hard to say a simple thank you?"
"You're right, I'm sorry for being so rude! You just saved my life! Thank you!"
"So, back to my story!" Said an amused Artemis with her left eyebrow arched "And to answer your question, Wolf, what I took from the catacombs was this cup" (AN: imagine a wine glass, slightly bigger and golden)
"This belongs to my brother Dionysus; whoever drinks from it can become like me, immortal"
"And also this little wooden box, which I give it to you Grimm, trusting that you'll use it wisely"
"As I said before, your history messed up everything; true, I am the daughter of Zeus but not twin sister of Apollo, in fact he was my husband and twin-flame … we also, had a daughter, Aradia … and, by the way, nowadays, being a virgin is not the same as back then, you know?
"Aradia?! The first known witch from the Wiccan religion?" Asked Adalind
"Yes, the same one"
"But …but in that legend, Aradia is the daughter of Diana, the roman goddess and … Lucifer …"
"Lucifer?! The Devil? Or just name coincidence?"
"Nice, very nice! … This is the response I got from the Roman Empire for my actions!?" said Atemis angrily "As for Diana, well, same person different names"
"Just like Apollo and Lucifer mean the same thing … did you know that Apollo was also known as Phanaeus?"
"Which means bringing light" said Rosalee "As Lucifer means Bringer of dawn"
"Well, I'm not saying you should stop believing in what you believe now, heaven and hell as well; no, on the contrary you are free to believe in whatever you want"
"What about the chant from before?" Asked Trubel
"One of the many tricks I've learned from my husband" said Artemis smiling
"You know, this is the first time we see you smiling" said Nick
"It must be very hard telling us your story"
"Because I used to hunt and, occasionally, get hurt, I was 'forced' to learn few tricks
"I think it's better if I'll show you" After she said that, her eyes started to glow white and on her forehead appeared a red half-moon
"This way I'll be calmer while you're out hunting with your girls knowing that you can protect yourself"
"You know this happened rarely … I'll be safe, I promise; besides I do have a life to return to …"
"I wish I could accompany you … or together with Aradia … but, it's my duty to guard the gates … I still don't like that you have to go hunting for those rogues"
"Please, be careful … even if it's peace now, I still don't trust those so called royals"
"I will, my prince, I will"
With that they kissed and both went to their duty to protect Atlantis and all her inhabitants
Back to reality
"Oh my God!
"And I thought that my life is complicated"
"What just happened?"
"What did we just saw?"
"That was Apollo?"
"Doesn't he look like someone we know?"
"You just saw a memory" Artemis said lost in her thoughts "And I want to show you another one"
"Mommy, what's happening?" Asked a scared, 10 years old Aradia
"Hecate, please take Aradia and go to our safe-house … I'm going to find my husband"
"My dear Artemis, I am so proud of you" said Hecate "You can find him in the control room, he's waiting for you". With that she took Aradia and disappeared form the palace
"Luci?!"
"Honey?! What are you doing here? You must go to the safe-house, I'll catch up with you later"
"No! You're lying! Something's going on and I demand to know it"
"You know how much I love you and, clearly, cannot lie to you … Father decided to sink Atlantis"
"What?! But that means … NO! I cannot let you do this"
"Where is Aradia? Please, live, take care of you … I'll find my way back to you"
"She's with Hecate, they went to the safe-house"
"Good! Now remember! I loved you, I love you and always will"
"I love you too and, always will"
"Right now, I'm happy you were cursed … we'll be together again someday and I hope, will be in time of peace, true peace"
"But …"
"No, just go … tell Aradia that I'm sorry and I love her"
With that, they shared their one last kiss as she teleported away from Atlantis but, still not far away since she was able to see her home sinking along with her love
"My love, we will see each other again but, I don't know if I'm strong enough without you" with that she went to the safe-house to her daughter
"Mommy! Where's daddy?"
"I am afraid it will be just us for awhile … Daddy loves you very much and he promised we will be together again one day … we just need patience"
Back to reality
"…" everyone was crying
"This really happened?" Wu asked, finally finding his voice
"And it gets even 'better' "
"Now, I think I understand … why there is a feline like symbol … " said Monroe
"Please explain from the beginning, we have to understand too, you know … " Said Wu interrupting Monroe
"That cross on the map is actually a catacomb … there we found a hidden chamber, prepared by the knights for Artemis"
"On the floor is written 'when the right time comes, She will, again, walk among us" continued Nick
"Clearly, this IS the right time since you're here with us … but why?"
"Because I …"
"You lost Aradia as well" said Adalind
" … Yes … I could not take it anymore and I asked my aunt to help me perfect a sleeping spell; a spell that I should be free from when my husband is in grave danger, or even dead for awhile … by the looks on your face, I know you had to deal with something similar"
"That is how you really look like?" Asked Nick
"Let me ask you something: do you know why, as wessens, you're different from the rest of the humanity?"
"We don't know for sure …"
"As you were able to see … I still am human but different, my true form is that you saw in my last memory"
Right after she finished her sentence there was a bright white light and after it disappeared in her place was a strange creature … feline humanoid around 2 meters and half with bright and curly red hair and the deepest blue eyes someone has ever seen before.
"Amazing!"
"Impossible!"
"And it's not just me … my brother Ares looks like a wolf, my sister Aphrodite like a fox, Athena like an owl and so on … but, we're not the only ones, there are the Egyptians, Mayans and, of course, the Japanese gods … "
"Adalind, you'll understand pretty soon what I meant when I said that aunt Hecate can help you but only IF she finds you worthy, meaning to use your Hexenbiest abilities without the woge
"So, you're saying that somehow we're your descendants?
"Yes"
"What about us? Asked Nick and Trubel
"I'm sorry I don't know … I never was interested in genetics, Athena on the contrary … "
"What about … him?"
"He, Lucifer, was and still is what you call today an angel; mind you, without the wings business"
"Any more questions?"
" … "
"Actually, yes … what about the Royals from nowadays?"
"They are the direct descendants of my enemy from back then … my family … we were at war with our own kind because they decided to control humanity, experiment on them and use them as slaves … they also forgot our roots, traditions … it was important the science for the not spirituality like I was raised"
"No one was winning, just collateral damage, lots of; so Father decided to end the war with a peace treaty … for a century or so, it was peace, truly was but, deep down we knew that something was wrong so Father decided to build a wall around Atlantis"
"Please, when you'll take me to this captain of yours?"
"Of course, we will" said Nick "But, only tomorrow; now it's late and we're going home to sleep"
"Do you have a place to stay?" Rosalee asked Artemis "You could stay here, if you'd like"
"Thank you! That's very kind of you"
When Nick and Adalind arrived home, they briefly talk about his trip to Germany before Adalind brings up an interesting subject
"Hey, uh, while you were gone, I was thinking that the stuff we made for me was just a suppressant"
"Yeah, I know"
"So, what happens when it wears off?"
"If you become a Hexenbiest again?"
"Yeah, how would you feel about that? We just never talked about that before."
"I don't know"
"I mean, we have Kelly to think about now"
"What are you worried about?"
"That you'll throw us out or kill me"
"Well, I could say the same thing about you … Look, if and when that happens, we'll just deal with it … I mean, you're not what you used to be and, we have a son"
"Yeah"
"I don't want to talk about this anymore … lets' just go to bed"
Eve wakes up in the middle of the night and goes to review footage from when Andrew Dixon was shot where she notices Rachel Wood looking up at the area where Marwan Hanano was just before Dixon was shot.
The next morning, Renard is just about to drive away after getting coffee, but he notices Eve suddenly standing in front of his car, so he slams on the breaks; Eve telekinetically unlocks and opens the passenger door and gets in the car.
"Juliette?"
"Nick would've told you by now"
"Eve … I understand you're working with Meisner now"
"We didn't see it"
"See what?"
"That he was gonna be assassinated"
"Yeah, well no one saw that coming"
"We should have … you wanted him to be mayor … you supported him … why?"
"He was a good man"
"Somebody asked you to"
"His team"
Eve reaches for the door to get out "Wait! We're done?"
"For now"
"You know, there's a lot more we could talk about … That went well … "
"That ugly b*tch! And she dare to call herself a hexenbies ... Ughhh!"
Back at Hadrian's Wall's compound, Eve runs a search on Rachel Wood.
Later, Renard meets with Rachel in a restaurant
"Sorry I'm late! I got to show you something"
"They love you"
"But I didn't save Andrew's life"
"But you got his killer"
"Did I?"
"Of course you did … and the newspapers say so, so it must be true … Look, Dixon served a purpose for a greater good"
"You killed him to further your own agenda"
"Most agendas include death … There's more than one life at stake here and you're doing the right thing by joining us"
"No, I haven't joined anybody yet"
"To win, we think you'll need to have a family"
"Are you proposing? Or are you pregnant?
"No and no … You don't need me for that … You already have a daughter"
"How do you know about that?"
"And Adalind's the mother"
All this time, Eve sits nearby, listening in.
After Nick and Hank finished today's case, they went to Monroe and Rosalee's place to bring Artemis with them to the precinct
"Hello!"
"Hello! I'm ready! Let's go!"
"Wait!" Said Monroe from the living-room "We're coming as well"
At the precinct Nick. Hank and Wu entered their captain's office while he was talking on the phone
"Sorry Captain but, we need to talk" said Nick while Hank closed the door
"Something came up, I'll call you later" said Sean
"So, what's the problem? Do you have something new about the case?"
"No, we already finished the case … we want to talk with you about something else … remember when I asked you for a few days off the grid?"
"Yes, what about them?"
"Well … Monroe and I went to Germany, the Black Forest exactly"
"Long story short, we discovered what the knights have hidden 800 years ago"
"What? How? What is it?"
"You won't believe it … we're talking about a 'who' actually …
"A person?! Still Alive?"
"Exactly"
At the exact same moment, Monroe and Artemis walked inside and the moment when their eyes met, Sean had a brief vision about him kissing this mysterious woman for the last time "Sorry to disrupt but she couldn't take it anymore and, it's understandable if you ask me
"Luna meu?!" (My moon)
" … Soare mea!" (My sun)
"What was that?"
"Probably, their native language?!" Said Rosalee
"It's really you! I've been waiting so long!" Artemis said as she went to hug her lost love. Surprisingly for the viewers (suddenly forgotten) not only Sean accepted her hugging him but, also he responded by hugging her back with the feeling that he's doing the right thing; meanwhile the gang returned to their respective homes leaving Artemis alone with the captain
"Amazing! You really are Artemis!"
"Yes, I am; you want to know something funny … for the first time in my long life I have no idea what to say"
"What the hell Arte?! Get yourself back together … wou've waited for over five thousands years to simply break NOW into pieces!"
"I do have an idea … are you hungry?"
"Hmm… starving actually" said Artemis grinning
"Do you prefer something specific?"
"Japanese, please"
"Japanese shall be then"
At the restaurant, while waiting for their food
"May I ask you something?"
"You already did … but, let me guess … why Japanese"
"Exactly"
"Honestly, it reminds me a little, of home … my husband and I were really good friends with Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi … you probably know them from the Japanese mythology … it's at their home that we discovered how good the sea-food is"
"Please, tell me more"
"All at the right moment, my dear" said Artemis with a hint of saddens in her eyes that Sean recognised pretty well"
"Saved by the food"
Somewhere, not far away from them, someone was watching them… watching every move, every gesture simply everything
"I've never seen that woman in my whole life … interesting, the raw power coming from her … it's unimaginable". Sadly for this mysterious woman, her thoughts were heard by our favourite goddess and said goddess was grinning like the Chesire cat
When they were almost done eating, Sean realised that he won't see her again so, he had to come with an excuse
"I know it's a little awkward but do you have a place to stay?"
" … why?"
"Because, if you'd like, you can have the guest room"
"I'd love to … thank you" said Artemis sensing no ill-intention from him "You're very kind"
If he was regretting asking her few minutes ago now, he was proud of himself "What's wrong with me? Why in her presence I act like a fool but at the same time seems normal and why the hell my gut is telling me that I can trust her with my life? … So many damn questions … I have to keep her close to me … being next to her it calms me, it feels like I'm taking a long walk at night with a full moon"
"Is she really the goddess Artemis? What's the connection between her and the woman that keeps appearing in my dreams lately?"
On their way home, on the radio was one particular song that reminded Artemis of how she felt after losing everything "In assenza di te" by Laura Pausini.
Because Sean knew what the song meant and seeing her lost in her thoughts he decided to turn off the radio, action rewarded him with a silent thank you
"We're home!"
AN: That's it for now! Stay tuned for the next chapter