Disclaimers: All original property is owned by Showcase, and we do not infer that any characters, creations or the concept of 'Lost Girl' are our property and the following fan fiction has been written purely for entertainment purposes only.

Pairings: Bo/Lauren Set directly after our story "Faeral", the third story in an AU plot line.

Rating: M (Contains scenes of violence, sexuality and nudity)

Faery Tale: Chapter Eleven

By: The Rainbowwriters

"I know it's vague but..." Bo watched as her grandfather studied the phone with a distinct frown on his face. When she had arrived at the Dal with the news of what was going on, he'd immediately ushered her downstairs into his private alcoves. "But whatever did this, hurt Kenzi."

The Blood King shuffled over towards one of the book shelves in his back room shaking his head slightly as he picked up a large volume from the second shelf and carried it back over to sit down opposite where Bo was stood near his old desk. At any other time Bo might have noted with a fond smile that her 'World's Best Grandfather' photo frame, that held a picture of her with the Falls in the background, was sat proudly in the middle of his desk on a square of velvet.

"In light of what happened to Kenzi, unfortunately it could be any number of things." The older fae mumbled as he ran his finger down the index before flipping to a specific section.

If he had been looking at his granddaughter's face he would have seen the strange shade of green she seemed to go instantly when he spoke.

"In light of what happened to Kenzi? You, you said that like something other than these two encounters have happened to Kenzi." Bo jumped on the choice of words immediately.

"The Norn incident Bo." Trick looked up, confusion filling his face as he saw how thrown she was by his answer. "As much as we all like to believe such events happen without consequence..." He frowned harder. "Bubbling black substances and ominous words are rarely fleeting gestures of good will."

"Norn incident?" Bo eyebrow arched up as a muscle in her cheek visibly tweaked. "Kenzi went, she cut the tree, she got Dyson's mojo back. What bubbling black substance are you talking about?"

"She hasn't told you." Trick breathed out as the realization of the situation hit him. "I had assumed by now she would have."

"How about you tell me?" Bo gave him a thin concerned smile.

"Though the event did go much as you described from what she told me, your friend missed out the part that included her disturbing and breaking a glass jar, that splashed over the floor and her arm I believe." Trick recounted the brief information he'd gotten from Kenzi. "Something that the Norn called a 'gift'." He explained to Bo.

"When we make Kenzi better, I am going to kill her." Bo snarled to herself as she took in the news. "Okay, so considering the Norn incident, what do you think it might be?"

"Well I was suggesting more that considering the Norn incident it is not necessarily you that this underfae may be drawn to." Trick countered, looking up at the succubus with a worried frown.

"I'm not even going to ask if you know what black bubbling substance it was, because it sounds so nice I'm sure there are a hundred ugly things it could be." Bo frowned with him. "Okay so if it is an underfae that is attracted to Kenzi, what kind do that and kill small wildlife?"

"Quite a number." Trick began trying to make a mental list of the best choices. "In explanation of her current state some have a paralysing bite, others with a venomous spray that they use to confuse and intoxicate their prey. Others still have a combination of both, and the very nasty kind, well let's just hope it's not one of those." He closed the book and looked at Bo. "From the photograph I have to say it seems like a very messy kill, it may cross off a few creatures from my list as they would always eat all of their kill, bones and fur."

"Which means what?" Bo was hopeful he would have something to add so that she could get back to Lauren's considering this thing was centring on Kenzi.

"That it could be young, inexperienced, unaccustomed to killing." He pointed out looking at the photo seriously. "Or..." He paused frowning more, his face taking on a more disturbed look as he handed her back the phone having seen enough.

"Or..." Bo repeated instantly.

"It is not an it, but a pack of its." Trick barely had the words out by the time Bo was backtracking towards the stairs in a jog.

"Call me if you come up with anything... anything." She stressed knowing that he'd logically need time to figure this out. "I have to get back to Lauren's." She waved a hand at him in thanks as she went up the stairs two at a time.

-x-

When Bo finally walked into Lauren's apartment, she tried to calm her racing thoughts that had threatened to overwhelm her as she raced there from the Dal. First had been the news that Kenzi hadn't told her about her entire encounter with the Norn, and then had been her grandfather's honest concern over what it could 'actually' be. She'd been disturbed already at the thought that something or a dozen 'nasties' that could be living in her basement, but the idea that one or more underfae, possibly an entire pack, could be hunting Kenzi because of what the Norn had 'gifted' her, well it made Bo's skin crawl with fear.

The last thing she wanted to do was concern Kenzi with any of this, all the younger woman needed to do right now was get better. Bo was more than happy to take on whatever it was that was hurting them, if only she could figure out what it was and she really hoped now that she had a sliver of information it would help Lauren in some way with her treatment.

The scene that met her as she closed the door didn't give her any immediate sense of relief. Kenzi was still on the couch under a thick quilt, in fresh clean scrubs that was visible at her shoulders. She appeared to be asleep or at least sedated, her body no longer twitching and flinching as it had been when Bo had left.

Lauren, in contrast, was bent over the microscope at her work desk, frowning at something as she made a note on a clipboard nearby before she stood up and headed over to the Succubus.

"We have to talk." Bo began knowing that getting the information shared between them was more important then a careful lead up. She made a quick glance at Kenzi.

"I gave her something mild to help her body relax, I didn't want her hurting herself with the spasms." Lauren followed her lover's eyes, feeling her stomach do a flip flop at the brunette's first words.

"Trick told me something, that might explain what is going on." Bo nodded thankful for the explanation of the younger woman's current state. "When Kenzi went to the Norn, it wasn't all chainsaw massacre and then here's what you came for like she told me. Kenzi broke a bottle, a bubbling black goo of some sort spilled on her arm and apparently the Norn called it a gift." She watched the frown that pulled down the corners of Lauren's mouth. "He thinks maybe whatever was in that jar is attracting this underfae. He's worried that the kill was so messy that it might even be a pack of something. I came back here immediately because this thing might not be at my house for long if its lost its Kenzi."

Lauren seemed to take a moment to take in what Bo was saying, nodding at the new information but Bo could instantly see that it did nothing to relieve the lines of real hard worry on the blonde's face that were already there when she arrived.

"We have another problem Bo, and I don't know how to tell you." Lauren shook her head as she glanced back at Kenzi.

"Just tell me." Bo gave a soft sigh not sure what Lauren could have to tell her but knowing it just needed to be said at this point so she could formulate some sort of plan.

"Kenzi's blood tests don't make any sense." Lauren turned and walked back to her desk and picked up her clip board.

"And sense how?" Bo questioned following her over.

"I've been a doctor for eight years, nearly six of those I have spent studying the fae, " Lauren began with a soft annoyed sigh. "And I have never seen anything like this." She looked at Bo, "If Kenzi were a fae Bo, I would be afraid that she was dying."

"But she's not a fae." Bo said the obvious and somehow stupid sounding statement. "I get it..." She put up her hand when she saw Lauren's look of 'that's what I just said', knowing that her shock at the word dying had made her brain fall out. "What do your results mean since she's not a fae?"

"No, you don't get it because what I mean by that is that her blood contains decaying fae DNA." Lauren flipped over a sheet of paper on her clipboard and showed her lover a graph, which naturally meant very little to the brunette. She pointed to the erratic lines that were all over it, and at the bottom was a small undulating red line. "See this, this shouldn't be here, at all." She pointed with her pen. "This is dead fae DNA, I would tell you exactly what it is but you don't need that level of information right now, other than to know it is in Kenzi's blood and I can only guess now that it is there because of the Norn."

"So whatever was dropped on her, is in Kenzi's bloodstream, contaminating her, doing this?" Bo made the small leap though she didn't have a clue about any of the science that might back her up.

"It's as good a guess as any and maybe better then some of my options." Lauren was glad to cross out some of the concerning ways she was afraid that the decaying DNA had been deposited inside Kenzi's body. "It's more than possible that whatever this liquid was is making Kenzi the equivalent of a beacon for these underfae, drawing them in." She breathed out. "Right now I'm thinking blood transfusions, full spectral DNA analysis at regular intervals to get an idea of what it is doing in there to her body systems." She tried to hold her lover's eyes and give her some hope but she knew right now she didn't have any. "To be honest I don't know what I'm thinking yet."

The two of them seemed to stand there in silence for a long moment, both contemplating what they were going to do next when Kenzi gave a groan from the couch.

"Kenzi?" Lauren hurried from the desk back to Kenzi's side, taking the young woman's wrist in her own and reading her pulse as she kept her eyes on Bo when her patient didn't give her any direct response. She was silent for the time it took to check Kenzi's pulse, counting off the beats as she watched the second hand of the large faced clock behind Bo's shoulder. "Wait..." As she thought about time, her brain started to actually process what Bo had just told her. "If something got spilled on Kenzi when she went to the Norn, that was..." She paused as she did the mental math. "A long time ago, medically speaking at any rate. If that substance was fae in nature, we have no way of knowing what harm it may have done to Kenzi's system, human and fae DNA are fundamentally incompatible." She pulled out a digital thermometer from the breast pocket of the green scrubs she was wearing and used it to get a reading from the brunette's ear. "We thought that Kenzi was sick because of something the underfae attracted to her did, but the events might not be that closely linked. Her illness could just be because of what is happening inside of her."

All of these facts made Bo sober more to the reality of what was going on. For days Kenzi had been sick, tired and hungry all the time it seemed, and they had just rolled along like it was nothing more than a hangover. She didn't understand why her best friend hadn't told her what had happened at the Norn, but she wished right now she had a time machine to go back and make her tell her well before now.

"What can we do with what we do know?" Bo had closed her eyes to take a centring breath before she opened them to look at Lauren as she fussed with the younger woman more.

"I need you to move her to the bed for me, and I've made a list of things I need from the compound. I made it before I had the information you brought back from Trick's, I'll add a few things to it." Lauren thought on her feet. "Do you think you could go get them for me?"

"Anything." Bo nodded, her fear of what was hunting Kenzi having turned into the even more frightening idea that something was inside of Kenzi hurting her. "What did Hale say?"

Lauren paused, both her thoughts and movements stalling for the first time since Bo had come in and met her lover's eyes.

"I... I haven't talked to him yet." Lauren shook her head realizing now that she'd been due into the lab hours before.

"I'll talk to him." Bo moved around the couch over closer to her. "I'll make sure he stresses to his cronies that you are working."

"I don't care, let them judge me." Lauren held her head up as she ran a hand over Kenzi's hair.

This was the only thing since the terror of finding Kenzi had began earlier in the morning, that brought a smile to Bo's face.

"I'll get everything you need and be back before you know it." Bo kept the smile and reached out to put her hand over Lauren's. "And we'll figure this out." She vowed letting her gaze drift to her best friend. 'We have too.' She thought nervously to herself.

-x-

Bo stood in front of Hale's desk, knowing exactly how the look on his face expressed the whirling of thoughts in his mind as she finished her explanation of what was going on. He'd initially been ready to playfully remind her that when his doctor was due to be at the lab bright and early, morning time with the succubus was no excuse for tardiness but when she'd started by explaining that Kenzi was sick, his entire demeanour had changed.

"I know that it's a lot to take in but can you sign this paper and get your minions working on getting these supplies and equipment ready and on there way to Lauren's?" Bo stuck the list from the blonde under his nose on his desk.

"If Kenzi is that sick Bo bring her here." Hale shook his head making the offer clearly as he stood up. "Protocol be damned, she is the Human Ambassador." His voice was a barely controlled tense snap. "I'll send an ambulance, a helicopter." He offered looking at the Succubus with clear concern.

"Hale, were you listening to me?" Bo gave him a sad, but understanding frown. She knew right now that he hadn't managed to get passed the idea that Kenzi was in danger. "I think Lauren would have brought her here if she thought that was a good idea, but she has dead fae DNA in her bloodstream... I think Lauren's afraid that bringing her before she knows what is going on is dangerous."

"But... but if my little momma is sick..." He sank down into his seat frowning hard.

"Look you get your people moving, then call Lauren and argue about where Kenzi should be, but little momma needs this stuff now." Bo moved around the desk picking up the phone receiver. "Hale, I know... I mean I think I know how much Kenzi means to you, this is me after all." She gave him a soft smile remembering how proud the Ash had been to walk into his coronation with the brunette on his arm. "Neither of us would do anything less then everything we can to help her." She wiggled it at him

The young Ash took the phone from her but put it down in its cradle and picked up the list from the doctor.

"They'll move faster if I'm there yelling at them." He pointed out moving towards the door. "Bo, Dyson should know about this." He added softly as he pulled open the heavy oak door holding her eyes as she moved to follow him.

This revelation momentarily took the speed out of her steps, as Bo realized that considering this was due to what the young woman had done to restore the wolf, he did deserve to know.

"Yes." She looked at the Siren with a frown. "Want to flip a coin?"

"The lab staff will only jump when I ask." Hale offered knowing that her last visit with him hadn't gone well but as far as he could decide, avoiding Dyson wasn't going to help her either.

"You're better at this job then you think." Bo glared at him and headed in the other direction away from where he would be heading to the lab.

-x-

Bo waited impatiently as the security door was unlocked and pushed into Dyson's room as soon as there was enough of an opening for her slim body. She still had an intense amount of anger towards the wolf bubbling right at the surface, anger that was right now being fuelled by the fact that because of him Kenzi was contaminated by some unknown Norn gift and could be, as she wasted time with him, dying. The anger even managed to mask the other still heavy and hard emotions that seeing Dyson stirred within her. But still Hale's words had been true, the wolf did have a right to know what was going on. He had always supported and protected Kenzi, and she tried to keep her brain from focusing on how this was another way he'd let someone down.

"Dyson?" She called out her voice loud, when she didn't find him in the main sitting area and the bedroom door was partially closed.

"Bo?" Dyson appeared a few seconds later, the biggest difference was that his arm was no longer in its large cast but was secured to his body in a full arm sling. "What's wrong?" He frowned hard at her, unable to believe he was seeing her twice in two days. "What has happened?"

"Kenzi is sick." Bo knew he would be able to tell by her face that the word was completely too small for what was going on. "She's... her blood is all messed up, and she's unresponsive."

"What?" A look of complete confusion filled the wolf's face. "But she was here, yesterday... I didn't... there wasn't anything..." he shook his head obviously unprepared for what the succubus had just said.

"Apparently a bottle got broke at the Norn's and something spilled on her. We think it's that causing everything." Not wanting to prolong her time in the claustrophobic feeling room Bo condensed the facts into the bare minimum, even if it didn't really seem to make much sense.

"The Norn?" He scrunched his face up more in non-comprehension of Bo's words then disbelief. "Something happened to her at the Norn's, she didn't tell me anything was spilt on her."

"She didn't tell anyone, well no, she told Trick about it." Bo hated to admit that she hadn't known but it was a fact. "Apparently a bottle got broken, she knocked into it and some black goo was splashed on her arm. Of course being Trick being Trick assumed Kenzi would tell me at least." She summed up the disappointments of the last few hours and then let out a frustrated sigh, realizing she had to explain things a little more in fairness to the wolf. "She hasn't been right since the Garuda, tired, sick stomach and then hungry, very hungry, and then all hung over like... we thought it was... well you know how Kenzi can drink when she decides its time to celebrate."

Dyson kept silent but nodded softly.

"We've also been finding dead mice in the club house, today we found a raccoon dead in the basement. Trick thinks whatever was spilt on Kenzi may be attracting some kind of underfae to the house." Bo went on in her explanation. "Then this morning I found Kenzi unconscious on the island covered in blood, we don't know what happened because she hasn't regained consciousness enough to tell us." the succubus felt her inner core fill with coldness as she said the words.

"What can I do?" Dyson looked down, every word about what was going on making him feel more and more useless considering where he was.

"Keep getting better. Use this down time to rack your brain, think of fae or underfae you've ever heard of that matches what's going on. You know more than I think I ever will." She summed up her own lacking as far as the world of the fae was concerned.

"I will." Dyson nodded. "Is she here at the lab? I could..."

"No." Bo stopped realizing her initial barked no had been a little sharp, "She's... You know Kenzi hates hospitals. She might not be conscious, but I don't want her waking up somewhere scarey." Bo turned away and glanced at the door, again feeling the pressure of the walls begin to press in a little. "Lauren is doing tests, looking after her."

Dyson watched the succubus for a moment and then stepped away from her towards the window giving her a lot of space.

"Bo, if any one can help Kenzi, it is Lauren, she's the best." He said, his voice soft as he kept his gaze away from her.

"She is." Bo nodded, "But I have to get her supplies..." She took the space Dyson offered and backed up to the door. "Hale has promised to keep you updated on any changes."

"That's all I ask." The wolf gave a nod.

Giving a sharp knock on the door Bo waited for it to be opened, a heaviness settling in the room.

"Bo I'm..." Dyson began turning to look at the succubus as the door opened.

"Don't." Bo raised her hand to stop whatever his words were going to be, whether it was an apology, or words of sympathy and hope, she wasn't ready to hear them, not from the person who a part of her blamed for at least some of this. She quickly slipped out of the room and hurried away to find Hale.

-x-