Good morning friends! How about that premiere, huh? The first fifteen minutes were so dull and I was like, "Oh no!" But then it picked up a little. I legitimately laughed out loud when Emily was like, "Now it's finally over!" Yeah, right. You just got two more seasons, babe. Try again. ;) Also, as will be evident in this chapter, the show and I are doing something very, very different with Ezra. Like we're not even in the same ballpark. As of today, since season 5 premiered last night, this story is officially AU. What whaaaat. :D

Thank you for your reviews on the last chapter! I really enjoyed reading them and I'm glad you liked a little bit of perspective from Alison. She was challenging but enjoyable to write. I also hope you like this chapter, because I don't know if it makes me sound like an ass (probably does), but it's one of my personal favorites. Have a lovely day and I'll see you soon! Or, hear from you soon. Technically I'm never going to see any of you, am I?

Eleven

April showers may bring May flowers, but the storm that's about to hit Rosewood this early Wednesday evening will be anything but a mere sprinkling. Right now, it's the calm before the storm. The winds are picking up steadily, but otherwise, the atmosphere outside is still; there are no birds chirping, no bees buzzing by, and not a soul in sight. It's as if they know what will become of them if they stay for the downpour, the inevitable onslaught of rain. Dark and thick grey clouds blanket the sky, full and aching with the desire to let loose. There's a low rumble of thunder from above, a white-hot flash of lightning, and another, much louder thunderous roar before the sky gives in. The clouds open like a portal and heavy raindrops pound the roof above her head.

Spencer's watching from the window, glad she's been home for a couple of hours because she would not want to travel in this. It's barely four o'clock and yet her house is dark as though it were the middle of the night. The lights that illuminate the room she's in dim a bit as rain pounds against the panes of glass and Spencer's praying there won't be a power outage. It would not only throw a wrench in her plan, but also remind her of a time she'd care not to remember. As much as she doesn't want to, whenever a thunderstorm plagues the town she is always transported to that awful night; lightning had lit up her kitchen to reveal the person she counted on, the person she depended on, with a look of guilt and shame on his face, as he stood there in the black hoodie of betrayal.

She shakes her head of these thoughts as that very same person enters the room, now, and his voice is still soft even against the pouring rain. "It's really coming down out there."

"Yeah," She agrees. "I hope we don't lose power."

"Want me to build a fire?" He offers and she nods.

"Sure," Spencer turns for the kitchen. "I'll make some popcorn."

They'd made plans to watch a movie, but by the time they were snuggled beneath a blanket on her couch, warm from both the fire and each other's company, they couldn't decide on what to watch. So instead, they'd flipped through the HBO channels and compromised by deciding to watch the sixth Harry Potter movie, even though it's only playing in Spanish. Toby asks, "Anymore hidden talents I should know about? I mean, you speak Spanish too?"

"No," Spencer disagrees. "But it's a romance language, like French, and a lot of the terminology is very similar. Plus it helps that I know the story in English, like I told you."

Toby shakes his head. "I don't think I've ever seen the entire series."

Spencer gasps and a popcorn kernel nearly lodges itself in her throat. "Are you kidding? Harry Potter was my life as a kid. Did you at least read the books?"

Again, he shakes his head. "I read the first two. I got bored."

She's even more scandalized by this. "You can't be serious! Everyone read Harry Potter!"

"Oh come on, Spencer, Chamber of Secrets was a drag," Toby argues. "And I couldn't pronounce that one about the prison, so I just gave up."

"Azkaban?" Spencer fills in. "It's not even that hard. It's pronounced the way it's spelled."

"I was like eight," Toby laughs. "Cut me some slack."

"Okay," She grins. "But how are you supposed to know what's going on if you aren't caught up?"

"I guess I won't," He shrugs. "It's fine. The movie's not really the reason I'm here."

If possible, her grin grows wider, because she knows it's true. Their alone time had been rudely interrupted yesterday and this is her way of trying to make up for it. She says, "I'm sorry about yesterday. I didn't mean to turn your living room into the Nancy Drew Headquarters."

Toby smirks. "It's okay. It didn't bother me."

"I know, but I still feel bad," Spencer insists. "I mean I didn't really have a right to invite the –A brigade over to an apartment that isn't even mine."

"Spencer, don't make it a big deal. It isn't," He tells her. "And I've told you before, you are always welcome. Your guests are too… Most of them."

She doesn't have to ask to know who isn't. Feeling cheeky, she says, "I'm glad to hear you say that because we've been talking about where to have our prom after party and you are the only with your own place…"

He glances at her, amused. "Oh really? We're throwing a party, now?"

"Well we've got to do something to celebrate, right?"

"Isn't prom the celebration?"

"Prom's just the beginning."

Toby chuckles, playing along. "And how many people should I expect?"

Spencer pretends to consider this. "Well our graduating class is about two hundred, but not everyone's going to prom…"

"So let's say about one-fifty, then?" Toby teases. "As long as that guy on your decathlon team doesn't come, I'm good."

"Andrew?" Spencer wrinkles her nose. "He's harmless."

"I don't like the way he looks at you."

"You say that about everyone!"

"Yeah, well, everyone needs back off."

"You're overreacting; isn't that what you tell me all the time?" Spencer challenges. "Alpha male, much?"

"You better believe it," He agrees and leans in to kiss her.

She's still holding the popcorn bowl, but her free hand curls into his hair. He tastes sinfully salty, but before she can indulge in this, he pulls away. "Speaking of prom, you bought the tickets, right? You didn't find some sneaky way to give the money back to me?"

"I got them on Monday," She informs him. "And if you think I'm not paying you back, you're wrong."

"Nice try," He disagrees. "We are not arguing about this."

"I know. Because I'm paying you back."

"You are not."

"Yes I am!"

"No, you're not. Let it go."

She reaches into the bowl and tosses a handful of popcorn his way. It beans him in the chin and he looks dismayed as he says, "You did not just throw popcorn at me."

"Really?" She replies, bouncing kernels off his forehead. "I think I did."

Toby scoops a handful from the bowl; two can play at this game. The kernels bounce off her nose and cheeks, a couple get stuck in her hair, and she laughs. "Hey!"

"Do not 'hey' me," He insists, throwing more. "You started it."

"You're going to regret it," Spencer warns him, popcorn flying from her hands. "I play to win."

"I wouldn't expect anything less," Toby says and things escalate from there.

The bowl eventually empties and is overturned on the floor. The movie's forgotten and there's popcorn everywhere, but they're not really concerned with that, right now. The moment the last of the popcorn is thrown, Spencer pulls Toby on top of her and reconnects their lips, because the preview she'd gotten moments earlier simply hadn't been enough to satisfy her. She can tell he feels the same; he responds in earnest, both arms curling around her torso, his hands everywhere at once. She knows relationships have their ups and downs and she and Toby had certainly had plenty of both, but she wishes they could always be like this. She wants to always be this happy and she knows, with all of her heart, she is only this happy when she's with him.

Just when she's actually completing her homework on time for once, Hanna's laptop fades into the blue screen of death. She curses at it endlessly for a good portion of an hour before calling in reinforcements. Most of the time, whenever she has a problem she can't solve, she consults the Internet. This time, unfortunately, the broken computer renders this impossible. She doesn't know anyone who can fix technology quite like Caleb can and since they'd mended fences somewhat over the past month, she calls him in for some repairs. By the time he arrives at her house, he looks like a drowned rat and it's only after he's shivering on her doormat that the storm decides to let up.

Hanna gets him a towel and hangs his coat above the sink. "At least the rain stopped, right? You won't get any wetter."

"Sure," Caleb smirks. "So where's this computer?"

"I don't think you'll be able to fix it," Hanna expresses solemnly. "The blue screen is a bad thing, isn't it?"

"It's definitely not good," Caleb agrees and at Hanna's panicked look, he adds, "But let me see what I can do."

"I'm sorry I called you," Hanna tells him, presenting him with the laptop as he sinks into a kitchen chair. "I'm sure you were busy with more important things, but I didn't know what to do."

"Well first of all, always back up your files to removable hardware," He insists, handing her a thumb drive. "Keep it. I've got like a hundred. And second, there's not much to busy myself with at a motel. The neighbors to my left run the TV all night and the neighbors to my right have sex at least ten times a day."

She's sure he's said it to lighten the mood, but Hanna can't help but feel sorry for him. "You're staying at the motel?"

"I was staying with Toby for a while," Caleb explains. "But then Jenna died and I didn't want to impose on him any longer, so when the motel had vacancy, I took a spot."

She nods softly in understanding, but she's seen that motel and it's certainly no Ritz Carlton. Caleb pulls what looks like a glasses case out of his bag and opens it to reveal a slew of miniature tools. "Okay, let's see what we've got."

He turns the computer off and unscrews the bottom, opening it up so the bowels spill onto the table. "Wow, your hard drive's fried."

"Is that bad?" Hanna asks again and Caleb nods.

"Could be worse, though," He tells her and begins working his magic. She watches him work steadily and then he asks, "So you going to prom?"

"Of course," She agrees. "Who would miss their senior prom? I just never thought I'd be going stag."

"Yeah," He says quietly, knowing what she's referencing. "Well call me crazy, but since I'm going stag and you're going stag… We could just go together."

Hanna hesitates before adding, "As friends."

"Right," Caleb nods all too quickly. "As friends."

He removes what looks like a piece of spy equipment from the laptop's insides and blows on it; about ten years' worth of dust flies off, but Caleb can spot the problem. A little tweak here, a little adjustment there and then he's placing it back within the computer. He pulls something from his little kit and places that inside as well, as a precaution, Hanna assumes, or maybe as a Band-Aid. Screwing the bottom back into place, Caleb flips open the screen and presses the power button. It illuminates as it's supposed to and clocks for a moment or two before the login screen pops up as if its past hiccup hadn't happened. Caleb grins and turns the screen to Hanna; he's done it again.

"Oh my god! You fixed it!" Hanna exclaims in excitement. "I thought I'd have to buy a new one!"

"No," Caleb disagrees. "I mean, it was bad, but it wasn't unfixable."

"Thank you!" She grins and when he stands, she embraces him. "You're amazing!"

"You're welcome," He expresses softly. "It was nothing, really."

She pulls back from the hug, but doesn't remove her arms from his neck and his don't fall from her waist. When Hanna looks him in the eye, she sees something she hadn't seen since he'd returned from Ravenswood. He's been apologizing over and over, trying to repent for his mistakes, but in her eyes, the nature of their relationship had been forever changed. When she looked at him before, she saw someone she didn't recognize, because Caleb had always been there for her until the day he wasn't. But now, there's something there she didn't see before, something that hadn't been there since he'd left her. She sees Caleb; she sees her Caleb, the one she'd fallen in love with, the one she'd begged not to leave.

He senses this change too, because a moment later, his lips are on hers and she isn't pushing him away. At least, not at first. She lets him kiss her, lets herself relish in what she's been missing for so long, before pulling away slightly. Caleb's immediately apologetic, saying, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean-"

"I don't want to go to prom as friends," Hanna admits instead. "I don't want to be just friends with you, Caleb. But I don't want to start over if you're just going to leave again."

"I'm not going to leave," Caleb says firmly. "I've told you, leaving Rosewood, leaving you, was the biggest mistake I've ever made. I love you, Hanna, and that's the only reason I need to stay here."

"Then why wasn't it enough last time?" Hanna implores. "Why didn't you stay?"

"Because I was stupid," He tells her. "I was selfish. I didn't put you first and I should have."

"You don't have to put me first all the time," Hanna shakes her head. "You're allowed to be selfish sometimes. But you have to give me a reason other than it's complicated."

"I'm sorry, Hanna," Caleb says. "I really, really am."

"I know," Hanna replies. "But I just need to know one thing."

"Anything."

"That girl- Miranda?" Hanna asks. "Were you two… involved?"

"It's complicated," He says and Hanna exhales heavily.

"Caleb!"

"No, I'm going to explain. I just want you to know I wasn't lying; it really is complicated," Caleb informs her. "Ravenswood is different than what you guys think. It has roots in the supernatural and everyone who lives there is very, very superstitious. They thought I came to them to fulfill some prophecy; they thought Miranda and I were soul mates."

Hanna frowns but wants to know, "Are you?"

"I don't think we're anything; Miranda's dead," Caleb sighs. "And I don't believe in soul mates. But if I did… I don't think she'd be mine."

Hanna then asks, "Miranda's dead?"

Caleb nods slowly. "I shouldn't have left and I shouldn't have gotten involved in the first place. But I never stopped loving you, Hanna. Not once."

"What a coincidence," Hanna says. "Neither did I."

She kisses him again and only then does that inner turmoil she's been experiencing since he'd left finally quiet.

"Okay, differentiation using the product rule. I suck at these."

"Em."

"Differentiate y where it equals x cubed plus seven x minus one times-"

"Em!"

"- five x plus two. I literally don't even know where to start."

"Emily!"

"What?" Emily shoots back and notices her friend's panic.

Aria's nodding out the window of The Grille. "Someone's watching us. Do you see them?"

Emily shakes her head at first, trying to follow the petite brunette's line of vision. "Where? I don't see anything."

"Over there, by the tree," Aria says under her breath as though the figure could hear her. "They're dressed in all black and acting really sketchy."

After a beat, Emily sees what she's talking about. Ducking behind the tree across the street is a figure in all black and it seems, from this angle, that their eyes almost glow. For a while, Aria and Emily try to finish their calculus problems without a second glance toward their stalker, but when they've finished, the figure is still there. It could be anyone, technically, but their minds immediately go to –A. Without hesitation, they call in the other two and keep an eye on the figure as they wait for them to arrive. It takes them longer than usual to respond to their S.O.S. text and when they finally arrive, it's clear to both Emily and Aria that the other two weren't spending their Wednesday night holed up doing calculus homework.

"Why are you so late?" Emily asks, eyeing Spencer. "Why do you have popcorn in your hair?"

Spencer plucks it from her curls and tosses it aground, irrelevant. "Don't worry about it."

"Hanna, your shirt's on backwards," Aria observes and Hanna shrugs, her hands on her hips.

"No it's not. That's the style," She insists. "What's going on?"

"There's someone over there," Emily nods again towards the tree. "Someone's watching us."

All eight eyes land on the figure and then, he or she takes off. Aria balks, "Wait! We have to follow them! It could be –A!"

Just as they begin to walk with a purpose down the street, a text is sent to Aria's phone reading, "Shot through the heart and you're to blame. You're never gonna catch me and you'll never know my name. –A."

They shake their heads free of the message, sure it's just –A teasing them as she enjoys to do. But they've almost lost her, so they begin to pick up the pace. Just then, they see the hooded figure at the end of the street and when she notices the four girls, she darts off. When they grow closer, they hear a voice. "Aria?"

Because of course Ezra Fitz knows they're there. And of course he's going to hold them up just when they've finally caught a break. "Ezra, I can't do this right now."

"Are you in danger?" He asks as the girls continue to move. "Why are you running?"

"We're following someone," Aria says shortly. "Please leave us alone."

"You're following someone?" He repeats, keeping up at a slight jog. "Are you following –A? Without being armed? That's insanely dangerous."

"Wow, Colonel Obvious," Hanna retorts. "Wouldn't have figured that out without you."

Spencer smirks but corrects, "It's Captain Obvious."

"Not anymore," Hanna disagrees. "I demoted him."

"Let me help you," Ezra insists. "You might need protection."

"Yeah," Emily deadpans. "Might need someone to take a bullet for us."

Ezra shoots her a look but Aria fields this instead. "We really don't need help."

"Well I can't let you go off into danger alone," Ezra refuses. "I'm involved, now."

Aria considers this and chances a glance at the firm other three before conceding. "Fine. Just, come on."

Immediately afterward, another text is sent her way. "I tried to reason with you, Aria, but you just wouldn't listen. Don't say I didn't warn you. –A."

Again, they're not sure what this is in reference to, exactly, but they let it go anyway. If they worried about every single text –A threw their way, all four of them would be permanent patients at Radley Sanitarium. Spencer and Emily hang back a bit, conversing about the newest addition to their sleuthing team under their breaths, because they just can't grasp that Aria had believed Ezra was being sincere. Emily wonders if Ezra is helping the elusive figure, Spencer wonders if Ezra is the elusive figure, and neither one of them trust him worth a damn. It doesn't matter; by the time they reach the corner of the street, they've completely lost the person they'd been following. Coincidence or not?

"Wait, I think I just saw her over there," Hanna says suddenly, pointing to the left. "Yeah, there's definitely someone running down that street."

And just as they're about to follow her lead, Emily glances over her shoulder and notices, "But there's someone going that way, too. I definitely just saw someone turn the corner and head into the alley."

"There's two of them now?" Aria questions. "Is this ever going to end?"

"We need to split up," Spencer declares. "Hanna and I will go left, the rest of you go right."

Ezra and Aria take off towards the alley and Emily shoots her friend a look, as if she's gone insane. Spencer reasons, "I really don't think Aria should be left alone with him, do you?"

Emily agrees; she'll have to give her this one. Without another word, they split up. Spencer and Hanna follow their hooded figure down one street, up another, and into the park. They're chasing her around trees, over benches and down beaten paths before finally, she comes to the end of the line. There's a gate sectioning off the playground that's under construction and a thicker patch of trees on the other side; this –A, whomever she is, is trapped. But when she turns around, it's clear she is not a she at all. There is no way the physique of the figure before them can belong to a woman. And when he peels off his hood, their suspicions are confirmed. For it's not any of their –A contenders beneath that hoodie. It's Lucas.

"Lucas?" Hanna questions in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"Why are you in a hoodie?" Spencer asks. "Why were you following us?"

"Lucas," Hanna then says, a bit softer. "Are you –A?"

"No," He insists. "I didn't mean to get your attention. I was just supposed to… I didn't mean it!"

"You didn't mean what?" Spencer probes cautiously. "What did you do?"

"What didn't I do?" Lucas breaks down. "I hate Alison! I hate her! And that bitch deserves worse than what they're doing to her. But I don't want to do it anymore. I can't."

"Mona said you're on the –A Team," Hanna says. "Is it true?"

"When she approached me," Lucas begins. "She never said we'd be… It wasn't supposed to be like this. Mona's crazy, we all know that, but she's not in charge anymore."

"Who is?" Spencer asks and Lucas frowns.

"I can't tell you!" He cries remorsefully. "I want it to stop! I just want it to stop!"

"It will stop," Hanna tells him sympathetically. "It will. We're trying to stop it, too. But you need to tell us who it is. You do know, don't you? Mona says she doesn't know."

"Mona knows," Lucas disagrees. "Mona always knows more than she's letting on. She's the one who told me."

"Who it was?"

"Why I couldn't get away," Lucas groans. "I don't want any part of this. It's not what I signed up for."

Spencer then wonders, "Are you afraid, Lucas, that they'll kill you if you tell?"

"Of course!" Lucas bellows. "You've seen how easy it is for them to kill everyone else. I don't want to die! There has to be another way out."

"Lucas, we're friends, no matter what you believe," Hanna insists. "We have been suffering under the same monster for two years. If you would just help us, just a little bit… If you could tell us anything you know, we could put an end to this. It could all be over tonight."

Spencer adds, "Tell us who it is and we can prevent anyone else from being killed."

But Lucas shakes his head. "It's too late. It's already too late."

"What do you mean it's too late?"

"Why? What's happening?"

Suddenly, the unmistakable sound of a gunshot rings through the air. Spencer and Hanna jump with the sound and a nagging feeling within both of them tells them something isn't quite right. A chill runs down their spines, the hair on the napes of their necks stands on end and when they glance back in Lucas's direction, he's gone. They whirl around in all directions, but there's no sign of him. There are no tracks on the wet muddy ground, either; it's almost as if he'd vanished into thin air. It's almost like he'd never been there at all. They can't dwell too long upon that, though. The gunshot has drawn them to the sound like a moth to a flame. They depart the park and sprint in the direction of the sound, fearing the worst.

Hearts pounding and breathing coming in quick, short gasps, Spencer and Hanna's feet pound against the wet pavement as they approach the alley into which their friends had disappeared. Their minds are on nothing but Emily and Aria and the thought that something horrible could have happened to either of them fills their stomachs with a pit of dread. Fear courses through their veins as they grow closer and hear the unambiguous sound of harsh, gut-wrenching sobs. When they round the corner, the first thing they see is Emily's wide-eyed, horrified visage, her face immensely pale. The next thing they see is Aria, crumpled in a heap on the ground, tears pouring from her eyes and her entire body shaking violently. And, finally, beneath her, a body; Ezra Fitz, with blood bubbling from his mouth, his eyes still open in shock, and a gaping hole in his chest.

There's no sign of –A, but that doesn't mean she doesn't leave the four girls with a message to remember her by.

"A tisket, a tasket, Fitz is in a casket. Got him this time! –A."