Disclaimer: Carmilla the web series was created by Jordan Hall and Ellen Simpson, and is based on the novella Carmilla by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu. Hellboy was created by Mike Mignola. This odd little blending of the two, however, was created by me. Here's hoping it works...

Before they could discuss anything else, Carmilla had to first explain Mattie's statement to Hellboy and Abe. Given that Mattie herself had said (in not so many words) that she was dead if anything happened to her necklace, Carmilla didn't really feel like she was betraying any secrets by saying that the necklace held a piece of Mattie's heart in it, which let her survive otherwise fatal injuries, like staking. (In theory, also decapitation, though as far as she knew, Mattie had never tested that.) She knew she could trust Hellboy and Abe with the information. Whether or not it would 'accidentally' be left out of the official report remained to be seen.

"Why would you carry something like that with you, where it could even be destroyed by accident during a fight?" Abe asked incredulously once she was finished.

"Yeah, I've asked her that a few times, myself, over the years," Carmilla agreed.

"To try and keep from winding up in a situation just like this," Mattie said flatly. "I've no doubt that she, or one of her power-hungry minions, would have sought it out and worked their way past any safeguards I employed to get their hands on the one thing that would let them have me in their power."

"Well, given that it happened anyway..." Hellboy said, waving his left hand in a 'let's move this along' gesture.

"Right." Carmilla knew she needed to start focusing. "Do you know what she did with your necklace? Maybe we can-"

"It's currently hanging from around her neck," Mattie interrupted. "It wouldn't even take her a second to deal with me."

"So there's no point in asking you about anything new," Carmilla decided. "Fine. Let's stick with what we already know. You arranged for Spielsdorf to be taken, right?"

Mattie didn't say anything, but did incline her head slightly in a nod.

"So the current total's at four," Carmilla continued. "Have you been watching the Hollis girl's videos?"

"No, though I'm aware of them." She paused, then admitted, "Mother was not happy." She felt safe enough saying that, as it was anything but a secret.

"I'm sure. She didn't... hurt anyone, did she?"

"Not that I'm aware of." She gave Carmilla an apologetic look. "I couldn't really help you much even if I wasn't being blackmailed, honestly. Being mayor, I have too much to keep busy with to pay much attention to what goes on at Silas, these days."

"What about that Bree girl?" Hellboy asked suddenly, surprising the two of them.

"What about her?" Mattie replied, giving him an odd look.

"Would she be willing to help, or would your 'Mother's' control of her still be in full effect?" he clarified.

"Mother's always kept a close eye on her, ever since she was 'recruited' from Nonnberg Abbey," she said, looking unconcerned. "She couldn't manage to shatter the girl's faith, and that tends to clash rather severely with her programming. She does keep a close eye on her, though, so I wouldn't count on any help from Miss Vale."

"Wait, so... That's not an act she's putting on in the videos?" Carmilla asked, surprised. "With the Religious Studies and such?"

"I would presume not. I'll admit, I don't really pay much attention to her, either."

"She did say in the eighth video that no one ever let her forget she was just 'The Replacement', didn't she?" Abe mused. "Not just a way to make Miss Hollis feel guilty, then?"

Mattie shrugged, still looking uncaring, and Carmilla started feeling a bit guilty, herself. After her death, she'd at least had Mattie there, right from the beginning, to talk to, to help her when she needed it, to teach her. If Bree had been alone, with her conditioning in such danger of failing that she required frequent (likely horribly uncomfortable, invasive, and quite possibly painful) booster shots, so to speak... "This is all my fault."

"No," Mattie immediately disagreed. "Mother could have just let you have that one and moved on to another. She still had two years to fill her quota, after all. She decided to bury you, she decided to take someone with a deeply rooted faith, and she was the one who buried you in such a random spot that we didn't figure out where you were until it was too late."

Carmilla's eyes widened. "What?"

December 31st, 1944

Silas University, Styria

"What are you doing?" Somehow, Mattie just knew she wasn't going to like the answer when she found Bree in Mother's study, looking over several maps.

Bree didn't even look up. "I thought you were at the New Year's celebration," she said, sounding almost annoyed.

That caught Mattie's attention immediately. Whether because she was so well-mannered or due to a need for acceptance, Bree was usually polite and respectful when she talked to her, or Mother. Really, the only one she didn't seem to like very much at all was their newest recruit, William Luce. (Truthfully, Mattie agreed with her entirely where he was concerned. He was only there because Trevor had slipped up and gotten himself killed by a human with a brain in New York back in the 20s, and they'd needed a new guy to act as bait.) "It was boring." Really, there were only so many times you could celebrate a new year before you'd seen pretty much all the possible variations. "Now, what are you doing? You know Mother doesn't like any of us being in here."

"Yes, I do. So maybe you could keep an eye out and let me know when she starts heading back?"

"Or I could start slamming you through the wall until you answer my question." She really didn't like being ignored, and having it come from the supposed 'replacement' for her beloved sister was all the worse.

Bree sighed impatiently and finally looked up at her, clearly realizing she wasn't going to be left alone until she talked. "I'm going through Mother's paperwork, as well as her files from previous sacrifices." Indeed, mixed in with the various maps scattered across the desk's surface were a number of file folders and notebooks.

Mattie's eyes widened. "Do you want to die?" she asked, stunned. One did not touch Mother's files, and one absolutely did not touch her personal notes. There were several rules against that.

Bree considered the question for all of two seconds. "If I knew for certain where my soul would be going? Maybe."

Having been raised by Benedictine nuns after the deaths of her family, Bree's faith was so much a part of her that even Mother hadn't been able to get rid of it. As such, Mattie knew that being what she was - an 'unholy abomination', as Bree herself had once put it, who was now injured by the artifacts of the very faith that she cherished - made her life a living hell. Had the girl not had the gall to try and take Mircalla's place, she might have had a bit more sympathy. "What could possibly be so important that you'd actually defy Mother, to say nothing of risking bringing her wrath down on your head?"

"I'm trying to find where she buried Mircalla."

Mattie had been walking closer, to get a better look at what Bree was doing, but that simple sentence stopped her in her tracks, stunning her speechless. Bree was...? Why would she...? It took a little while, but she finally found her voice again. "Why?"

"Being buried like that, unable to move, unable to do anything but lay there in the dark...? That's one of the most horrible things I can imagine. I don't care what she did to anger Mother, she doesn't deserve that. No one does. Plus..." Bree sighed, looking down. "I'm not stupid, Mattie," she said, looking at one of the maps without actually seeing it. "I know she's the one everyone wants here. Mother's favorite, yes? Maybe if you had her back... things would be better."

Bree being Bree, Mattie believed both of those reasons. "And maybe Mother would let you go?"

Bree looked up, giving her a ghost of a pained smile. "Do you really think she'd do that? Especially after I disobeyed her like this?"

"In a manner of speaking. And given that you'd have saved someone from imprisonment, I have a fair idea of where your soul would go."

That earned her a definite smile, though far more sad. "Great. So, maybe you can help me? I didn't dare ask before, because, well..." She gestured around the study that Mattie herself had pointed out Mother didn't like them being in, especially unsupervised. "But you're here, so... Maybe this would go faster with two of us doing the looking?"

"Maybe it would," Mattie agreed, walking over to the desk. "I look forward to being able to introduce the two of you. Mircalla always liked the idea of having a younger sister."

Bree started, looking at her in surprise, and Mattie realized that had been the first time in a long while that she'd actually referred to Bree as her sister - and unprompted, no less. The blonde was smiling, just a little, as they got to work.

"How long have you been at this?" Mattie asked after a while. One of the notebooks on the crowded desktop was actually Bree's, and page after page of it was filled with notes and calculations, half-formed thoughts, and cryptic short questions. She clearly hadn't begun her little project that evening. "And how have you kept it hidden from Mother for so long?"

"I wanted to know what happened to her from the first time I heard anything about her," Bree admitted with a slight shrug. "It wasn't until the Great War broke out that Mother's invasions of my mind became infrequent enough for me to scrape together the idea to actually try and find her. I've had to be subtle about it, though. Patient. Waiting for any scraps of information. I'm sure you know what I mean."

She did. Bree wasn't the only one who'd wanted to know where their missing sister was interred. Naturally, though, Mother had kept her on too short of a leash to actually do anything about that. She hadn't even considered that Bree, the 'good girl' of the family, might be willing to break the rules so brazenly. Hopefully, neither had Mother. "Wish I'd known sooner that you were looking."

"Like I said..."

"Quite." She paused. "Why begin actively investigating now?"

"Allied bombing runs," Bree said succinctly.

Mattie felt a chill run down her spine. She didn't typically pay much attention to human politics, and their conflicts could at times be amusing, but rarely held her interest. (Nothing against them; she'd just seen too much death over the centuries to be affected by it, anymore.) A war of the current scale, however, was something different. Something new. This was a war that would affect even her and her family, particularly if the fighting wandered too close to Silas.

Somehow, though, she hadn't thought to extend that thought to Mircalla.

"You think she's in danger?" She skimmed through one of Mother's journals with greater urgency. She knew, as the Allies pressed closer and closer to Germany itself, strategic bombing was becoming more and more common in the surrounding areas, including Austria. She'd thought that was confined more to oil refineries and urban areas, however. She hadn't considered the rail lines that ran throughout the countryside.

"I think I'd rather err on the side of caution, in this case," Bree replied, and for once, Mattie agreed with her completely.

It was almost midnight - and Mattie was becoming increasingly nervous about what they were doing, with only her training keeping her from jumping at any unexpected noise her overly sensitive ears picked up, convinced Mother would happen upon them at any moment - by the time they'd identified what certainly seemed like a likely resting spot for Mircalla. It was also in Styria, and the idea that she'd been so close to Mircalla all along and not known it was maddening. It didn't matter, she told herself. If they were right, she knew where to find her sister now. Hopefully, Mother wouldn't have the heart to reinter her - as Bree had noted, Mattie wasn't the only one who missed her - otherwise Mattie would have to hide her, somehow. "Alright. It shouldn't take me more than two or three hours to get there, depending on road conditions." She'd rather just assume her avian form and fly, but she had to consider that, after so long, Mircalla might not be able to travel under her own power, and there might not be any locals around to feed from. As such, a vehicle was an unfortunate necessity.

Bree was frowning at the map. "That is dangerously close to the front lines, the last I knew."

"I'll be careful."

"Oh, will you?" They both froze. "It would seem to be a bit late for that, wouldn't it?"

Mother was standing in the doorway, regarding the two of them impassively.

Bree looked at Mattie, eyes wide. Given that she was the family's good girl, she'd never really gotten in trouble with Mother, and as such clearly had no idea what to do. Fortunately for her, she wasn't the one Mother was focusing on. "Honestly, Matska. After all this time, I expect better than this from you. That you brought Sabrina in on this little misadventure of yours... What did you promise her?"

Bree blinked, then opened her mouth, most likely to confess that it was the other way around, and she was the one who'd brought Mattie into her rule breaking. Because ducking the blame and letting Mattie take the fall wouldn't even occur to her. That was one thing that, for obvious reasons, Mother had never encouraged any of her children learn.

Mattie stepped forward and began speaking before Bree could even make a sound. "Is that really important?" she asked casually, doing her best to appear unconcerned. It wasn't easy - and likely wouldn't stand up to any intrusive mental scrutiny - but she'd had a lot of practice over the past centuries. However she personally felt about Bree, she wasn't about to throw anyone - especially someone who'd taken the risks she had to try and find Mircalla - to the wolves. Literally or metaphorically. (One could never tell how some situations would go, with Mother.) "You're back awfully late. I was starting to think you wouldn't get back in time to celebrate the new year with us."

Mother walked into the room, her expression still giving them nothing to work with. "Or did you perhaps hope I wouldn't?" she asked softly, and Mattie had to fight not to gulp audibly. It was never a good sign when Mother got quiet like that. "Having Sabrina request as many up-to-date records of the latest Allied bombing runs as I could get my hands on was a nice touch. I doubt I would have believed any of the rest of you really cared about the safety of our students." Sure enough, she was holding a thick manila folder, stuffed with papers.

Mattie's respect for Bree edged upward just a little. That had been fairly clever, and explained why she'd obviously believed she had plenty of time before Mother returned to search her study thoroughly.

"Oh, you did get them?" Bree had, at least, shaken off her paralysis, stepping toward Mother and reaching out to take the folder. She instead ended up tugging at it, Mother not letting it go. "Um, I need that, please," she said, tugging again.

Mother turned to look at her slowly, visibly reassessing the situation. That was really all they needed, Mattie thought dourly. "I wasn't aware you knew anyone within the Allied Command," she remarked, trying to bring Mother's attention back to her, at least until she could figure out a good way out of this situation.

"A concerned university president can get a lot of answers," Mother said vaguely, still looking at Bree, who hadn't let go of the folder. Mother abruptly released it, making Bree stagger back a step. Wasting no further time, she immediately began reading through the papers. Clearly, Mother had decided that giving her what she wanted was the most expedient way to find out what their goal was, and if Bree was as innocent as she'd believed.

Everything was like a chess game, with her. Make a small sacrifice now to help set up the checkmate later.

"Anything the rest of us need to know?" It took a lot of effort for Mattie to not look at Bree, who potentially held Mircalla's fate in her hands.

"Not really. The bombing seems to be moving farther north. Our German students will actually be safer here than they would at home." She seemed almost amused at the idea. All things considered, so was Mattie.

Almost.

Bree abruptly froze, then darted over to the desk, slapping the folder down on it and looking back and forth between whatever paper she'd been looking at and one of the maps. She scribbled out a few calculations, paused infinitesimally, then wrote them out again. And again.

That could not be a good sign. "Bree?" Mattie asked, stomach sinking.

"Is there something you'd care to share?" Mother added, the same hint of satisfaction in her eyes that always appeared when she was about to win a game of chess.

The pencil Bree was holding snapped in her grip. "You fool," she said quietly, staring down at the desk.

Mattie's eyes bugged - one did not insult Mother and get away with it, and she knew that hadn't been directed at her - and Mother's expression cooled even further. "Excuse me?"

"You complete and utter fool." Her head snapped up and she glared at Mother, an emotion Mattie didn't quite recognize glittering in her eyes. "Did you stop and think about her at all? Did it even occur to you to get her out of harm's way?"

Mattie felt cold. No, no, no, no, no...

Mother looked profoundly unamused. "What are you talking about, Sabrina?"

"Mircalla. Or did you completely forget about her?"

"Of course I didn't." The hostility in her posture began seeping away, replaced by trepidation. "Why?"

Bree paused before answering. "I was really hoping I was imagining things, at first. That report, talking about a bombing meant to take out a train in Styria. It wasn't like they plotted out the coordinates of every crater, after all. But then it mentioned finding charred wooden remains, presumably from a coffin. It had taken a direct hit."

Mattie dropped down into the chair in front of the desk, while Mother grabbed onto the back of it, as if she needed help staying upright. Her expression was... blank. Not the mask of concealment she frequently wore, but just nothing.

Bree's eyes flashed with genuine anger. "You killed her," she accused. "You may as well have just staked her yourself, and saved her decades of torment."

Mother winced. That wasn't something Mattie had ever seen her do before, but right then she was in no shape to appreciate it.

Looking disgusted, Bree stalked past them and headed for the door. She paused before she left, though. "Was it worth it?" she asked softly, not looking back. "Whatever lesson you were trying to teach Mircalla. Was it worth her life?"

She walked out, not bothering to wait for an answer. One wouldn't be forthcoming, in any event, Mother still looking stunned.

You killed her. The cold within her began crystallizing, hardening into something that might have been hatred. Bree was right. It was Mother's fault that Mircalla was dead. And she didn't yet know how, or when, but she would make her pay for that.

Once and for all.

2014

For a long moment, Carmilla was honestly at a loss for words. "She was... trying to find me?" she eventually managed.

"We were, yes," Mattie corrected mildly.

"Well, yeah, but I'd kind of expect that from you," Carmilla replied. "You probably started looking the first time Mother's attention wandered far enough, and kept at it every chance you got."

"She knew I would be, so she kept me on a short leash," Mattie said apologetically. "I wish..."

"Me, too." Carmilla smiled sadly. "But you were always there for me, ever since I was first changed. She'd never even met me. She still hasn't, in fact."

"She might not have had your best interests in mind," Mattie warned. "Chances are you would have just wound up at Silas with the rest of us."

"I would not have cared about the why, trust me." Anything would have been preferable to that damned coffin. "So. That lead to your next attempt on Mother's life, I take it?"

"Of course. I would have staked her then and there if I thought I could have gotten away with it. But we both know she's not that easy to kill. I don't know if she has something that functions like my necklace, but... Well, you know how many of us have tried killing her even during your lifetime."

"Too many," Carmilla agreed sadly. So many siblings lost...

"No matter how good of a chess player she is, statistically speaking, one of us should have at least come close, caused some kind of lasting damage. Even if only by accident."

"Well, she's never faced off against the kind of firepower we have at our disposal." It was a little odd, talking to Mattie while using the word 'we' to reference a group that didn't include her. "I'll be in touch."

Mattie pulled her into another hug. "Please be careful, Mircalla. I don't think I could stand to lose you twice."

"I will." Or as careful as she could bring herself to be, given the circumstances.

Mattie let go and stepped back. "And be careful if you approach Bree. Just because I don't blame you for what happened to her, that doesn't necessarily mean that she won't."

Oh, good. Because things hadn't been nearly complicated enough, already. "I'll keep that in mind."