Carmilla woke Friday morning as she often did; alone. She reached a hand to Laura's side of the bed and found it still warm, and as she looked to the clock to see what time it was, heard the toilet flush followed by the sound of running water. She turned to her back and stretched with one eye towards the bathroom door, smiling when Laura returned and stopped in her tracks.

"Tease," she joked and ran back to bed and jumped on top of her.

Carmilla rolled her to her back, looked down and smiled; "Who's teasing?" she all but growled.

"You are," she laughed and kissed her before looking at the clock; "You need to be up in half an hour."

"So…" she started as she leaned down to kiss her neck; "that means I have half an hour to enjoy you before we have to get out of bed…" she trailed off at the sound of three knocks at the door, a pause, two more, another pause, and finally three more. "Fuck…" she hissed; "can't we just have one drama free day?"

"Carm? What's wrong?" Laura asked in concern as Carmilla rushed from the bed.

"That's Rick's knock," she explained as the knocking pattern repeated. She grabbed her t-shirt from where she'd left it the night before and threw Laura her's as well; "And that specific pattern means someone's dead," she rushed over quickly and kissed her; "Not someone we care about but someone connected to us," she clarified. "Can you let him in while I go to the bathroom?" Laura nodded numbly and slipped her t-shirt over her head. "No matter what, we leave this afternoon, understood?"

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," she affirmed and kissed her again.

They'd almost made it to the weekend drama-free. Almost.

"Damn it," Carmilla thought as she left the bathroom, crossed her bedroom and exited to find Laura making their breakfast and Rick seated at the table. She walked up behind Laura at the counter and kissed her neck before making herself a cup of coffee.

"Coffee?" she asked Rick.

"Laura already made me one, thanks," he replied.

"So, who's dead?" she asked as she took a seat across from him.

"Carm!" Laura hissed as she'd almost dropped the bowl of cereal she was carrying.

"What?" she asked innocently and kissed her cheek when she sat down.

"You couldn't wait until I was sitting before you asked?"

"You want full disclosure?" she asked with a shrug; "This is full disclosure," she offered and looked back to Rick.

"Bruce Smith," he replied sadly. "We transferred him yesterday and he was found dead in his cell this morning. We told the warden not to put him in with the general population," he sighed. "What happened Tuesday? What he was accused of? It was all over the news."

"I don't understand," Laura said quietly.

"Your Dad was right about what happens to men like him in prison," Carmilla replied flatly; "Given he managed to say something bad enough to make a guy like Kyle snap, is it really any surprise?"

"Have you been following the news?" Rick asked.

"No," Carmilla laughed; "You know I avoid it at all costs."

"Yeah, well, you might want to start," he answered. "There was a house fire in West Van Wednesday night. Bruce's house…"

"So any evidence was destroyed?" Carmilla asked.

"It's more complicated than that," he said; "He had a girl held captive in the basement," he shook his head and sighed as he ran his hands over his face. "She set the fire hoping someone would call the fire department and she'd be found," he shrugged; "That's the theory anyway… the only thing she's said so far is that she wants to talk to you," he nodded in Carmilla's direction; "Both of you."

"Rick? What is it? What's wrong?" Carmilla asked.

"Isn't that enough?" Laura sighed.

"More than," agreed Carmilla; "But none of this couldn't have waited until we come back on Sunday," she said before looking back to Rick; "Out with it, what's up?"

"Aside from the reporters waiting outside?" he asked as he took a manila envelope from inside his jacket; "They probably want to ask you about this," he said as he pushed it over to the two of them.

Inside they found a letter with two cheques attached, each of them for half a million dollars.

"Dear Misses Karnstein and Hollis," Laura read aloud; "Please accept this gift as a token of my gratitude for aiding in the arrest of Bruce Smith. Finally I, and my family, can put my daughter's memory to rest. Miss Hollis I understand you are currently attending university and I hope my gift aids in that endeavour. Miss Karnstein; I understand you have attended university in the past and I hope, perhaps, once you've completed your fighting quest, you'll return. Good luck to you both, sincerely, James Sheriden."

"Rick… I can't…" Carmilla started.

"I told him you'd say that," he interrupted; "Look, this guy lost his only daughter to this monster and he's rich, like, Donald Trump rich," he shook his head as Carmilla went to interrupt again; "He's already sent similar cheques to all of Smith's victims and made a generous donation to the Vancouver Police Fund."

"But…"

"He can afford it," Rick assured them.

"I was going to say this could've waited until Monday," Carmilla clarified and studied him a moment before continuing; "How worried are you?"

"On a scale of one to ten?" He asked, she nodded. "Six."

"What's a six?" Laura asked.

Carmilla chuckled and pulled her laptop over. She opened her documents folder and chose two to print off. "Those are for you," she told Laura and nodded to the printer. "We don't deserve this… wait…" she shook her head; "You already knew who was following us!" she accused and stood from her seat to pace. "Damn it Rick!" she shook her head as he had yet to deny it. "As soon as I realized he was following us I told you… how long did you know?"

"Carm… I…" he stuttered.

"How. Long?" she demanded.

"Since the airport," he admitted and looked down.

"Did you know who he was? What he'd done?" Laura asked quietly as she sat back down.

"Not at first," he replied and shrugged; "We assumed it was another of Deanna's lackeys."

"Another?" Laura said and looked to Carmilla.

"Why do you think I don't go out much?" she offered and sat back down. "When did you know who he was?" she asked Rick.

"We didn't know for sure until Laura gave us the name," he frowned and looked to Laura; "How did you know his name? He usually goes by an alias."

"The night Danny made a pass at me at the bar he was there," she replied; "We were talking when Danny got there. He introduced himself," she shrugged; "I guess he saw the whole blow out with Danny," she shook her head; "He showed up at the gym a few days later…" she trailed off and took Carmilla's hand; "If you're both so worried why are we going to a cabin in the middle of nowhere?"

Rick laughed and looked at Carmilla; "You haven't told her?"

"What?" Laura asked and looked to Carmilla again.

"Let's put it this way," she said as she opened up her pictures folder on her lap top; "if there's ever a zombie apocalypse," she opened up her pictures and scrolled through until she found the one she was looking for; a twenty foot high fence; "this is where we're running."

"I don't…" Laura stammered.

"That fence runs the entire perimeter of the property and the only weak spot," she said as she brought up a picture of the cabin itself; "is where it ends at the mountain. It would take most normal people at least a week to make it that far…"

"Not to mention the motion activated cameras set up in a ten mile perimeter around the cabin and ten miles along the outside of the fence," Rick interrupted.

"There are two set of monitors," Carmilla explained; "one at the cabin and one," she pulled up a picture of an older, grinning, man and his family; "is with Kenny and his family. They take care of the property year round and live just outside the main gate. There's no road from the gate to the cabin and only three ways in; ATV to the lake and boat across, ATV directly there, or walk," she smiled; "ATV the whole way there is fastest and walking would take you a good six to eight hours."

"This cabin," Laura said; "it's yours, isn't it?" she asked.

"Technically, it's Frank's," she corrected; "but my Dad left it to him when he died," she smiled and looked to Rick; "Is there anything else?"

"Yes," Laura interrupted; "Why are you both so worried?"

"Because, whether she found out Bruce was following you and took advantage of the opportunity or she somehow put you in my path because he was following you…"

"You don't honestly believe…" Laura tried to interrupt.

"No, I don't," Carmilla assured her; "but the point is, she's done it before," she shook her head; "Actually that wasn't my point, my point is, she's not one to do not do her homework. She had to have known who he was and what he was capable of. Maybe she was only using him for information or maybe she was hoping I'd get killed," Laura paled; "The point is: she's scared and I'm afraid of what she's going to do next."

"Which is why I don't think either of you should leave the gym alone until this over," Rick informed them.

"I don't think that's necessary," Laura replied.

"I agree," Carmilla said quietly and looked to Laura; "with Rick."

The two stared at each other a moment and then Laura turned to Rick.

"Set up a press conference for Monday," she said calmly and looked to Carmilla; "We'll go out and talk to them now, briefly, but face them, full on, Monday night after we've talked to…" she looked back to Rick; "I'm sorry, what's her name?"

"Her name is Laura," he replied.

Laura shook her head and looked back to Carmilla.

"Why not just answer their questions now?" Carmilla asked.

"Because we want it on your terms and preferably with a camera crew there so they can't twist anything we say," Laura replied, "We go down now, maybe answer a few general questions and then announce the press conference on Monday."

Carmilla searched her eyes a moment and then looked back to Rick.

"Did you come in the back way?"

"There's a back way?" Laura asked in surprise.

"By the water," Rick nodded and then explained; "I have a dock a few miles down," he said as he stood; "You two have a lot to talk about," he smiled; "Try to have a good weekend?"

"That's the plan," she replied and smiled as Laura kissed her cheek.

Carmilla got up and gave Rick a hug; "No more secrets," she told him and met his eyes as she stepped away; "it's not just my life on the line anymore."

Rick smiled as he nodded.

She watched him leave then walked back over to Laura and turned her and her chair before straddling her and kissing her softly. She felt Laura's hand sneak beneath her shirt and leaned down to kiss and nibble her neck.

"Hey…" Laura said softly and gently pushed her away; "we don't have time for this."

"We always have time for a little of this," Carmilla countered and kissed just below her ear. She sighed as she felt Laura's teeth graze her pulse point before she bit down and starting sucking. "Hey…" she said as she pushed her away; "what do you think you're doing?" she asked through her laughter.

Laura met her eyes then looked to the small hickey on her neck.

"Giving those idiots out there undeniable proof that I'm with you of my own volition," she replied and leaned in to kiss the spot; "but it needs to be bigger…" she nipped it slightly; "and besides…" she sat back and pulled her t-shirt aside; "I owe you one."

"Yeah but it's not just reporters who are going to see this," Carmilla argued.

"And why would you care?" Laura countered; "I love you Carm and this is my way of shouting it from the roof tops…" she trailed off as she leaned back in and went back to work on the hickey.

"At least they can't say you're just with me for my money anymore," Carmilla joked and sighed.

Laura kissed her mark one last time before meeting her eyes.

"I never cared about the money," she said seriously; "and I know you don't think of all the little things you've done for me as spoiling me rotten, but you have…" she leaned in and kissed her softly; "but I'd love you even if you gave me nothing…" she kissed her jaw; "if you were broke… it wouldn't matter…"

"Damn…" Carmilla sighed as she heard her alarm go off in the bedroom.

"Told you we didn't have time," Laura teased.

"You know what?" Carmilla said with a grin. "Fuck it. Let's talk to the idiots and leave for the cabin."

"Carm, no…" Laura said and then smiled when Carmilla pouted; "You're already taking the weekend off and you're training has been messed up enough this week."

"Since when did you become the voice of reason?" Carmilla teased as she stood.

"Since I know how much winning this fight means to you," Laura replied as she stood and took her in her arms.

"You're right," Carmilla sighed and leaned her forehead against Laura's; "I hate it but you're right," she kissed her; "But one promise this weekend?" Laura smiled and nodded; "No fight talk or talk about what we have planned for Deanna…" she moved some hair from Laura's forehead; "Just you and me… in love… and enjoying all that's supposed to mean…"

"Deal," Laura replied and kissed her. "Now go get dressed."

"Yes dear," Carmilla replied with a smirk, which earned her a playful swat to the behind from Laura.

She went to her bedroom to change, Laura to the spare bedroom as that was where she still had all her clothes. She sighed as she walked to the dresser; she wasn't sure Laura really had any idea how much danger she was really in. She fished around her sock drawer for a couple of small boxes and put them on the bed before quickly changing into her standard workout gear. Laura joined her as she was finishing tying her shoes.

"I was going to give this to you tonight but then I thought why bring it all the way there just to bring it back?" she said as she sat next to her and handed her a flat gift wrapped box.

Carmilla regarded her a moment and then unwrapped the gift to find a stunning silver picture frame with the words; "Forever together," inscribed along the bottom. It was what was inside the frame, however, that instantly brought tears to her eyes.

"How?" she choked out quietly.

"You're Dad's obituary was on the same page as my Mom's," Laura explained. "I'd already asked my Dad to bring down my scrapbooks and we were looking at them when you were working out Tuesday afternoon," she reached for her hand and laced their fingers; "I told my Dad that I thought you might like to have it when he told me he had your Mom's," she shook her head; "I'm sorry, I didn't know."

"This is incredibly thoughtful," she said as she wiped away a tear. "Thank you."

Carmilla didn't know what else to say. She was incredibly moved by the gesture.

"I'm sorry," Laura said quietly as she took her hand; "I didn't mean to make you sad."

"No it's…" Carmilla sighed, put the gift aside and grabbed the smaller of two boxes beside her; "maybe they're the reason this all started but if she'd just left us alone after we ran," she sighed again; "But the woman is stubborn and persistent," she said as she handed her the box; "which is why I got you that," she smiled; "Go ahead, open it."

Laura smiled and then gasped softly when she opened the box to find a very expensive watch.

"Go ahead, take it out and turn it over," she urged.

Laura shook her head slightly but did as Carmilla asked. She smiled and ran her thumb over the inscription on the back; the date they met.

"See those round metal disks on the watch band?" Laura nodded. "They're GPS tracking nodes; break one off and I'll know where you are in minutes."

"Seriously?"

"Yes," Carmilla replied; "There's another GPS node inside the watch itself that I can activate remotely if you go missing."

"You think that's likely?" Laura asked quietly as she turned the watch over and examined its face.

"She was paying Bruce for information," she shrugged; "I wouldn't put it past her," she shook her head; "You don't have to accept if you don't want…" she trailed off as Laura handed her the watch.

"Put it on for me?" she asked as she offered her wrist.

Carmilla smiled and set the alarm, but didn't turn it on, before putting it on Laura's wrist.

"What did you just do?"

Instead of answering Carmilla opened the second box to reveal a men's version of the same watch, set its alarm, but again, didn't turn it on, before putting it on.

"I set the alarm for nine PM," she smiled and took Laura's hand; "If I make it into the house…"

"When," Laura corrected.

"Every night at nine o'clock, no matter what I'm doing, I'm going to take fifteen minutes, maybe more, to just go out and look at the moon and think of you," she smiled and kissed Laura's hand; "Not that I won't be thinking about you all the time but if you do it too…"

"We'll be thinking about each other at the same time?" Laura asked, her amusement and affection clear.

"Go ahead, say it, I'm a sap," Carmilla joked.

"Carm?" Carmilla turned to face her at her change of tone; "I love it. Thank you."

"And my watch has the same features as yours," she explained further; "so you can activate my GPS anytime and know exactly where I am."

"Isn't that against the rules or something?" Laura teased.

"Maybe," she shrugged; "I won't tell if you don't," she added with a wink. "C'mon," she kissed her and then stood; "Let's go face the vultures."

Laura nodded, stood and kissed her again.

They made their way downstairs and after stopping briefly to tell the trainers she'd be right back and for Laura to invite Dark to go shopping with her, they made their way outside to face the reporters.

"Want me to tell them to go away?" Dark offered.

"No," Carmilla replied more calmly than she felt; "we're going to invite them to a press conference Monday night."

"Really?" he asked in surprise.

"Really," Laura replied; "No more running," she kissed Carmilla's cheek; "We've nothing to hide."

They walked out unhurriedly toward the place the reporters had set up camp. As they approached they could see them talking amongst themselves before they focused on them.

"Miss Karnstein, is there any truth to the rumors that you were tested for narcotics and steroids on Tuesday?" one reported shouted.

"Yes," she replied simply. "Next question?"

"Why?"

"There was a possibility that I had been given something against my will or knowledge," she replied.

"Miss Hollis, is it true your father begged you to leave with him?"

"No," Laura replied with a laugh; "He loves Carmilla and knows that she loves me. Next question."

"Is it true that James Sheriden has gifted you both with half a million dollars?"

"Yes," Carmilla replied; "along with similar gifts to all of Smith's victims."

The reporters seemed stymied; clearly they hadn't expected Carmilla to be so forthcoming.

"If you have any further questions you can ask them Monday at the press conference," Laura announced; "Carmilla has a big fight in a week and her training has been interrupted enough this week. Please, I ask you to leave us alone until then."

"One last question?" a brave reporter ventured.

Carmilla nodded.

"Is that a hickey on your neck?" he asked.

"What?" Carmilla said in shock and turned to Laura; "You little brat!"

"What?" Laura replied innocently, playing along; "I owed you one for this," she said as she moved her tank top aside to reveal the hickey Carmilla had left the night before. She turned back to the reporters; "Good day to you," she said, waved to them and turned to walk back to the gym.

The three managed to hold their laughter until they got back into the gym but only just.

"I'll be right back, I'm going to grab my wallet," Dark said when he caught his breath.

Laura nodded and then turned to kiss Carmilla softly.

"Need me to pick anything up while I'm out?" Laura asked when she broke the kiss.

"No, we're good," she replied and smiled; "Thanks for taking Dark with you."

"I like the company," she shrugged; "Besides, I understand why."

"Do you?"

"You're worried someone will approach me if I'm alone," Laura started, Carmilla nodded; "And you're worried that they'll try to turn me against you."

"No," Carmilla replied; "I mean they'll try but I don't want you to have to deal with it."

"Fair enough," Laura replied and kissed her; "Do I think you're being overprotective?" she asked as she indicated her new watch; "Maybe a little but I get it," she shrugged; "If I have this, if I don't go out alone, you don't have to worry about me."

"I'll always worry," Carmilla admitted and let Laura draw her into a hug.

"Oi! Karnstein!" Carmilla looked over to trainer who'd interrupted them; "If you're taking off this afternoon you've got five minutes to get your ass on that treadmill!"

The rest of the day passed drama free and Carmilla and Laura were packing the Jeep before they knew it. They took down the roof, the process taking only a few minutes as they worked together, without words and in complete harmony. They didn't talk much during the six hour drive, Laura having nodded off around the halfway mark and stayed that way until the change in terrain jolted her awake.

"Sorry," said Carmilla; "We're almost there."

"I missed all the scenery," Laura commented sadly as she rubbed her eyes.

"You can see it on the way back," she offered and returned her attention to the rapidly degrading road. About a half hour later she came to a stop outside a large imposing metal gate. She parked the Jeep and got out to punch in the code to open it and then got back in the Jeep as the gate opened, drove through and waited a few minutes before driving another ten minutes to a collection of large storage sheds. She pressed a button on the remote attached to her visor and pulled into the largest of the structures.

"Why is this place so, I don't know, fortified?" Laura asked as she climbed from the Jeep.

"I'm not sure," Carmilla replied. "The land was passed down through my Dad's family, always to the eldest son, but my Dad was the first to really do anything with it," she paused as she lifted the cooler from the back of the Jeep. "Ironically it's as nice as it is because he kept hoping Deanna would come up here."

"She never did?"

"Couldn't stand the bugs," she grinned; "Maybe Will and I made it out worse than it is." She nodded her head to the next building over, its door had opened the same time she'd opened the first. She walked inside and deposited the cooler into the back of the ATV.

"Huh," Laura said as she put her bag alongside the cooler; "I was expecting more of a four-wheeler type thing but this is more like dune buggy."

"We have a couple of the other kind too but this is the easiest way there with supplies," Carmilla explained.

"Why didn't you and Will run here when you ran?" Laura asked as they made a second trip from the Jeep to the ATV.

"We didn't know Dad left it to Frank," she replied. "I think my Dad was starting to suspect something was up with Deanna, that she'd sell this place off the first chance she got if he left it to her. So he left it to Frank with the condition that these precautions be put in place and that it passes into Will's possession when he turns twenty-one." She smiled and handed Laura a helmet. "We contacted Frank about nine months after we ran and he said we were welcome to come here anytime," she shrugged and helped Laura with the strap; "He never came up here himself… we found a note my Dad left for him, asking him to watch out for us."

"So if he'd come up?"

"That's not a 'what if' I like to dwell on," Carmilla replied before putting her own helmet on and motioning Laura into the buggy.

She got in, did up her seatbelt and then reached over and helped Laura with hers.

"Ready?" she asked.

"More than," Laura replied, a blush barely visible beneath the face mask of the helmet.

They didn't talk much during the rest of the trip except for the few times Carmilla stopped to point out things like the trail to the lake and the tree fort she and Will had built when they were younger.

"Wow," Laura said in awe as they pulled up to the cabin an hour later; "I don't think your pictures did it justice."

Carmilla looked to the cabin and smiled; yes, it was impressive. Her father had hired an architect to build the cabin right into the side of the mountain. It was three floors and could sleep twenty in a pinch. There were four bedrooms but every single couch in the place was a hide-a-bed. The front of the cabin, the part that overlooked the lake, had two patios, one on the main level and a second from the second floor master bedroom.

"You hungry?" Carmilla asked as she took off her helmet and reached for the cooler.

"I am. What's for dinner?"

"Barbeque Tequila chicken with veggies and rice," Carmilla replied with a smile.

"Sounds good," Laura replied as she put her backpack on and then grabbed Carmilla's bag. "I'll take these to the bedroom."

"It can wait," Carmilla replied.

"It's okay, I can manage," Laura chided.

"It's not that," she replied with a smile as she unlocked the cabin's door; "I asked Dark to come up and get the place ready, and knowing him, he's left us some incredibly embarrassing surprise in the bedroom."

"Why didn't you just ask Kenny to do it?" Laura asked as she followed her inside and deposited their bags on the nearest couch.

"Dark needed a couple of days away," she shrugged; "and I don't know if I'd feel comfortable asking Kenny or his wife to come get the cabin ready for me to have sex with my girlfriend."

"Is that the only reason you brought me here Ms Karnstein?" Laura asked with a raised eyebrow as she sauntered over to her; "To try to seduce me?"

"Didn't realize I had to try," Carmilla replied, her voice low as she leaned in to kiss Laura's neck.

"True," Laura sighed; "but you didn't answer my question."

"It's not the only reason," she chuckled softly under her breath; "but it's one of the big ones." She leaned back and searched her eyes a moment; "I'm being selfish," she shrugged; "I want you all to myself for a change," she kissed her softly; "No interruptions," she kissed her again. "No emergencies," she kissed just below her ear; "Just the two of us," she leaned back; "We can talk, go swimming, do nothing… whatever…" she kissed her again and then took her hand to led her back outside; "No set plan," she continued as she let her hand go to pick up the last box and carry it inside; "Just doing whatever," she looked Laura up and down slowly, almost tripping at the cabin's entrance because she wasn't paying attention; "whenever we want," she managed to finish, hoping Laura hadn't noticed why she'd tripped.

"Do you need any help with dinner?" Laura asked as she followed Carmilla to the kitchen.

"No, I can manage," Carmilla replied.

"Mind if I take a shower?" Laura asked.

"Let me check if the hot water is hot," she replied and went to run the kitchen tap. Went it didn't heat up immediately she turned to Laura; "The pilot light must be out," she smiled crookedly; "we can shower together after dinner?"

"That sounds like a better plan anyway," she replied and went to kiss her.

Carmilla quickly emptied the cooler's contents into the fridge, putting aside what she planned to cook for dinner, and then made them a pitcher of Sangria. She gave Laura all she could carry and then took the rest out to the balcony off the kitchen. They set everything down next to barbeque, and while Carmilla took the cover off it, Laura poured them each a glass of Sangria.

"For the Sangria we missed out on a week ago," Carmilla toasted.

"Should we be drinking this?" Laura asked after taking a sip.

"There's only enough alcohol in it to taste it so it shouldn't mess with your meds any," she smiled and kissed her; "Besides… I want you sober the first time I make love to you," she kissed her again and then turned to unlock the barbeque.

"Why is the barbeque locked?" Laura asked as she took a seat at the table to watch Carmilla work.

"When you've been woken up one too many times in the middle of the night to find a raccoon licking the grill, no matter how well you cleaned it, you come up with some impressive measures to stop them," Carmilla explained, smiling when she noticed Dark was thoughtful enough to hook up a propane tank. She turned it on and lit the grill a few seconds later. She closed the lid and turned to Laura. "I'm going to go light that pilot light."

"Okay," Laura smiled as Carmilla came over and kissed her briefly.

She made quick work of the pilot light and returned to find Laura at the balcony railing looking out over the water. She walked up behind her, put her arms around her and propped her chin on her shoulder. Laura seemed to melt into the embrace making them both sigh contentedly.

"I don't remember the last time I was this relaxed," Laura commented.

"Before you met me I'm guessing," Carmilla joked.

"In some ways, I guess," Laura laughed softly and turned in her arms; "but I was never this happy." She smiled. "It's not the place, though it is beautiful here, it's you, Carm, you make me feel safe and happy and content, no matter where we are, or what we're doing, I know everything will be okay because we have to have our happy ending."

"You make it sound so simple," Carmilla said, sighing as she leaned her forehead against Laura's.

"I know it's not simple, Carm," Laura said and gently pushed her away; "I know you think I'm some nineteen year old naive little girl from a small town and that I couldn't possibly understand…"

"Laura, hey…" Carmilla said soothingly as she took her by the elbow to stop her from walking away; "Maybe I do think those things but it doesn't mean I don't think you can't handle all this stuff or that I think any less of you because of it," Laura turned to her; "I just rather you didn't have to. My life isn't perfect and it's not going to be anything resembling easy for some time, but having you…" she shook her head; "You make it easier. You give me a new a reason to fight. You motivate me," Laura let her put her hands on her hips and pull her closer; "First it was about justice for my parents and what she did to Will and I. Then it was about keeping her from Will and his money. Now?" she smiled; "It's about having the normal life I've always dreamt of because I finally have someone I want to share it with." She ran her thumb along Laura's cheek, the younger girl leaning into her touch. "You make all this worth it," she finished as Laura leaned in to kiss her again, but before she let herself get too distracted she ended the kiss, which earned her a pout. "We have to wait a couple of hours before the water is hot enough for a shower and I, for one, desperately need a shower," Laura leaned in and sniffed her neck.

"You smell fine to me," she countered.

"All the same," Carmilla laughed as she pushed her away; "I did an intense workout this morning and I need a shower," she heard Laura's stomach growl; "And we're both hungry," she kissed her briefly and stepped away; "Besides, we have all weekend, what's the rush?"

Laura took her seat at the table again as Carmilla started getting their dinner ready.

"There's no rush, Carm, if you're not ready," Laura said quietly.

"What on earth?" Carmilla thought and looked up from the vegetables she was cutting; "What makes you say that?"

"I don't know, maybe 'cause you keep stopping us when things are getting interesting," Laura said shyly and looked down to cover her blush. "I mean," she looked up; "given what you've been through I can understand if you're not comfortable being touched…"

"It's less a comfort thing, as you mean it, than a, I'm just not used to be touched, thing," Carmilla replied honestly. "I mean, my Dad wasn't overly affectionate and Deanna, well, you get the idea," she shrugged; "You've been getting me used to your touch since the day we met," she smiled at her and then went back to work on the vegetables; "Never too much, always little things," she blushed; "I started craving your touch and wanting to be close to you." She shrugged. "I was also a little worried what you'd think of my scars."

"We all have scars, Carm, you just can't always see them," Laura replied quietly; "And it's the scars you have that can't be seen that worry me most."

"How much of my journal have you read?" Carmilla asked as she prepared the chicken.

"About two thirds," Laura replied. "I was thinking," she continued; "Carm, I think you should publish them anyway."

"Really? Why?"

"Subject matter aside, you're a compelling writer," she smiled; "I swear I feel like I'm right there with you." She paused a moment, considering her next words. "I was thinking... I'll have my cast off while you're away, and since I don't have classes to worry about, maybe I could type it up for you? And then we could fill in any blanks when you get back and have it published right around the time they air the finale?"

"Can I think about it?" Carmilla asked, stalling for time; she wasn't sure how she felt about it. Yes, she'd meant her journals as a backup plan but now she wasn't sure how she felt about the world at large knowing even more intimate details of her life.

"But I thought that was the plan?" Laura asked, looking a little crestfallen.

"It was, it's just…" she shook her head; "You'll understand when you read the second journal."

"Fair enough," Laura replied with a smile; "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"You said you've only been completely clean for the last year?"

"I was still smoking weed up until a year ago," Carmilla replied, somewhat relieved at the easy question; "She hurt Will and I both pretty bad the night we ran and we were both given painkillers," she sighed; "When those ran out I started buying them on the street. It was part of the reason we ran out of money so fast." She turned and put the vegetables and rice on the barbeque followed by the chicken. "I'd been out for about a week when we met Bob. A week later, after my first paycheque, I was high as a kite again. I hid it for a while, only Will and Dark seemed to figure out something was wrong. Then Bob confronted me and got me off the meds." She shook her head. "That's when I discovered weed helps with pain, and for the record, most of my journals were written while stoned."

"Seriously?"

"It helps slow everything down enough that I can write it down," she replied with a smile; "You might not have figured it out but the wheels are always turning and it gets exhausting. I also suffer from certain amount of chronic pain from what Deanna did to me, the weed helped."

"So how do you cope now?" Laura asked.

"Training helps," she replied as she turned the chicken, "When my brain gets spinning too fast a good run will usually calm it and since I've been seeing a physio and chiro regularly, the pain is usually at a minimum," she shook her head and laughed; "It's ironic really, part of the reason I'm such a good fighter is from what did Deanna did," she turned to Laura to find her looking bemused. "I always had to be on my guard. Learned how not to get hurt and to act more hurt than I was to get her to back off. It taught me how to read people when they fight, predict what they're going to do before they do it and look for a weakness to exploit."

"So what's your plan for Danny?" Laura asked as she watched Carmilla transfer their food to their plates.

"Keep her at a distance with leg kicks, to start, slow her down a bit," she replied as she put their plates down and then sat beside her. "Next I'll start picking her apart. She throws these big, looping, haymakers that, if they connect, would hurt, but she's so obvious about it it's easy to get out of the way." She smiled. "And then, just when she's getting comfortable I surprise her, probably near the end of the round in case it doesn't work so I can get myself out of trouble."

"You're not going to tell me what you're planning?" Laura asked neutrally.

"Wouldn't want to ruin my air of mystery," she joked, but seeing that Laura wasn't smiling she explained further; "If it works it's going to be very cool and I don't want to ruin the surprise."

"So it's not because you think I'm going to warn Danny?" Laura asked her tone now unreadable.

"Of course not," Carmilla laughed and kissed her temple, "I trust you Laura."

"Why do you keep trying to send me away then?" she asked sadly and looked down at her plate. "It's almost like you don't want me around."

"What, aside from asking you to go to your Dad's for your own safety, have I ever done to ever give the impression that I don't enjoy every single minute I spend with you?" she asked as she took her hand. "I want to be with you Laura, despite all the shit in my life, not because of it. I wish," she sighed and looked down; "sometimes I wish we'd met after all this was over," she looked back up to her; "And maybe I'm little scared because I was so distracted by you, by us, that I missed that we were being followed for so long."

"How did you notice anyway?" Laura asked.

"Eat. Before it gets cold," Carmilla said before replying; "There's a lot of empty stretches of highway to the airport so any other car on the road sticks out. And then I saw his car when we left the restaurant." She studied her a moment. "Laura, I don't want you to go, I really don't. When I say those things…"

"It's because you're scared?" Carmilla nodded. "Of what Carm? Being happy?"

"No, of you getting hurt," Carmilla replied; "From the moment you stood up to Deanna you became a target whether we are together or not," she motioned to Laura's plate and then started on her own food. "She has tried, sometimes successfully, to turn every single person who has come into my life. Bob saw through it right away, filed for guardianship, and got in touch with Frank to get us our money." She smiled as she savoured her first bite of her favourite chicken dish. "Next she tried Brody, and then Dark…" she laughed; "She didn't have any luck with either of them but Dark had a little fun feeding her false information for a few weeks before she caught on." She chewed her food and watched Laura for a little while before she continued. "I should have known Danny was a plant the minute she showed up at the gym."

"You think Deanna got to her before she started working out there?" Laura asked in surprise.

"I don't know," she shook her head; "See, part of the reason I'd prefer you not go out alone, or any of us really, is that sometimes things get said in casual conversation with strangers that wouldn't normally get said if you weren't alone."

"What does that have to do with Danny?"

"Somehow Deanna found out about the Ultimate Fighter and starting sniffing around trying to find out more information," she shook her head again and took a sip of her Sangria; "I went off the grid in a major way when I started training full time," she laughed; "I think I've left the gym more in the last month than I have in the last year combined." She sighed again. "But that's why I should have known something was up. I wasn't leaving the gym and although I didn't talk to Danny much it would've been easy enough for her to overhear things." She took another mouthful of food. "I don't know though. From what you've said about Danny I'm starting to wonder why she's doing it."

"Because Deanna has her convinced you're the bad guy?"

"Maybe," she shrugged; "I'm going to talk to Danny after the fight, find out what's going on."

"If it's bugging you, why wait?"

"I don't want anything interfering with the fight," she replied as she refilled their glasses; "Now enough about the real world," she started as she held her glass aloft; "To us."

"To us," Laura agreed as she tapped Carmilla's glass with her own.

It was a couple of hours later and the two were snuggled up on one of the lounge chairs on the patio watching the sun set behind the mountains. Carmilla lay with Laura in her arms, one hand under the back of her shirt rubbing circles.

"I like it here," Laura said quietly.

"Me too," Carmilla replied and kissed the top of her head.

"No," Laura said and looked up to her; "I mean I like it here, in your arms."

"I like having you here," she said and kissed her. She felt her shiver a bit and pulled away. "Are you cold?"

"A little," Laura admitted; "It really cools off quickly when the sun goes down, eh?"

"Yeah," she kissed her again; "C'mon," she said, pushing her slightly to indicate they should get up; "Let's get this stuff put away and call it a night."

"And by calling it a night you mean?" Laura asked as she sat up.

"I mean, putting this stuff away," she sat up and took her in her arms again; "taking a nice hot shower…" she leaned in and kissed Laura's neck; "and then finishing what we didn't have to time to finish last night…"

"So it really has been a time thing?" Laura laughed.

"Mostly," she replied with a grin; "I didn't want to stop last night but it was already getting late and I still had to get everything ready for the weekend."

"Wait," Laura said as she stood; "you got back up last night?" she asked, Carmilla nodded. "What time did you come to bed?"

"Around two," she admitted.

"So you'd rather stay up late getting stuff ready for the weekend, when I could have just as easily done it this morning, instead of taking advantage of the very turned on and willing girl in your bed?" Laura teased.

"Laura," Carmilla started as she stood and took her in her arms; "I know we've only been together a week and maybe it's too soon to be admitting this but…" she paused to search her eyes; "I can't see a day, not for the rest of my life, where you're not in it," she kissed her to cover her admission; "So really? Why not wait until we could fully enjoy our first time?"

"Maybe we should wait until I get my cast off then?" Laura joked.

"We could, if you want to," Carmilla replied.

"Wait," Laura laughed; "that's what you meant when you said at least it's not my right arm!"

"No, I meant it was literally a pain in the ass having my right arm casted," she replied; "Seriously," she said as she stepped away to turn the barbeque on high, "it took me almost two weeks to figure out how to wipe my ass properly with my left hand," she joked.

"Is that why your left is stronger than your right?" Laura asked, causing Carmilla to drop the wire brush she was holding.

"How did you figure that out?" she asked as she picked up the brush.

"I've held pads for you," Laura replied simply.

"Right," she turned to her; "that stays between us."

"You don't think your trainers have figured it out?"

"No," she replied; "I fight like a right handed fighter. All my techniques are done right handed."

"Why though? If you're stronger with your left?"

"Because the two years I had to use my left arm while my right one healed doesn't trump a lifetime of doing everything with my right," she explained and smiled; "Besides, my left hook is my secret weapon. No one ever sees it coming and because I'm a 'right-handed' fighter no one has figured out yet that it isn't a fluke."

Laura had gathered their plates and utensils while Carmilla cleaned the grill, closed and locked it. Carmilla grabbed the plates and glasses, Laura, the empty Sangria pitcher and made their way inside. Carmilla put what she was carrying into the sink and turned the hot water on long enough to determine its temperature and then quickly rinsed off the plates.

She turned to find Laura watching her, a soft smile on her face. "How did I ever get so lucky?" she thought. Her whole life had been a series of misfortunes before now. All bad luck and no good. She hooked Laura's backpack on her shoulder, grabbed her own bag with the same hand and then reached for Laura's hand with her free hand. They were no more words that needed to be said. Not tonight anyway. They both knew how the other felt and that was all that mattered.

She led her over to the stairs, Laura stopping them to turn off lights as they went, and then made their way upstairs to the master bedroom. She turned on the lights to find that Dark had really outdone himself; every available surface was littered with tea lights and the bed was scattered with rose petals. Carmilla laughed when she noticed what lay in the middle of the bed.

"I see what you mean," Laura laughed as she went to pick up the impossibly large dildo from the bed; "I mean, is this actually usable?" she joked.

Carmilla laughed as she put down their bags and took two towels from her own; Laura had a point, the thing was nearly a foot long and probably six inches around.

"Not comfortably anyway," Carmilla said as she took it from her; "It's heavy enough though, I suppose you could use it as a weapon."

"Oh god, can you imagine that headline?" Laura laughed; "Man killed by enormous dildo!"

"So, shower?" Carmilla asked as she tossed the toy aside.

Laura nodded and knelt to search through her bag a moment, standing when she'd found the bag she used to cover her cast. Carmilla held her hand out to her and led her to the bathroom.

Laura stopped the minute Carmilla turned on the lights, she understood why, the bathroom was stunning. Surrounded by glass it was almost as though they were outside. If that weren't stunning enough the large old fashioned tub set by the window and the glassed in shower were also incredible. Carmilla hung the towels on the rack next to the shower and then took the plastic bag from Laura to cover her arm.

As she leaned in to kiss her she took the hem of Laura's shirt, broke the kiss long enough to lift it over her head, and then pulled her close. She started kissing down Laura's neck as she felt her trying to take her shift off and leaned back so she could. Laura pulled her close as she fumbled with her bra, Carmilla undoing hers with little difficulty.

"Need a hand there, Pup?" Carmilla teased and stepped back.

"No fair," Laura said with a pout; "you've got two hands."

"All the better for you, don't you think?" Carmilla asked seductively as she undid her bra and slowly slipped it off her shoulders. She undid her shorts next, let them fall to the ground and stepped out of them as she reached for Laura's shorts.

"You like undressing me, don't you?"

"I do," Carmilla agreed as she let Laura's shorts fall to the floor and then knelt to take off her, already damp, underwear; "It's like getting to unwrap the same gift over and over again and being excited like it's the first time every time."

"You'd think it would get boring," Laura said as she watched Carmilla slide her own underwear off; "opening the same gift over and over."

"When said gift is you?" Carmilla asked as she stood straight again and drank in every inch of Laura's perfect little body. "I look forward to it," she said as she held a hand out to her again. She opened the door to the shower and turned the water on, testing it with her hand until it warmed up. "C'mon," she urged; "We've only got about a half hour of hot water."

They washed each other between kisses and sighs, turning their backs to each other so they could wash their more intimate parts without embarrassment before leaving the warmth of the shower. Carmilla towelled Laura off and then tried to stand still as Laura did the same for her.

She took Laura's face in her hands when she was done and smiled.

"If you're not ready…"

Laura interrupted her with a kiss.

"I'm nervous," she said when she broke it and stepped back with her right hand out to her; "maybe a little scared," she admitted; "but I'm definitely ready," she finished as Carmilla let her lead her back to the bedroom.

"Candles?" she asked as they approached the bed; "Maybe just enough that we can actually see one another?" Laura smiled and nodded. Carmilla lit a few candles on each of the bedside tables while Laura went to turn off the main light. She looked over to her and found herself momentarily stunned by Laura's beauty; the way she moved, almost shyly, as she went to turn down the covers, almost like she still wasn't entirely comfortable being naked around her.

She walked around the bed to where Laura was sitting, reached down and tilted her chin up.

"Do you have any idea how ravishing you are?" she asked as she gently pushed her backwards onto the bed. She slowly crawled on top of her as Laura moved more fully onto the bed, kissing her pulse point before continuing; "I swear I could've ripped off that little white sundress you wore to the airport and made love to you on my dining room table."

"Ah but for the ill-timed head wound," Laura chuckled.

"I was working up the nerve to kiss you, you know?" Carmilla asked as she kissed her way up her neck to her lips.

"You should have," Laura said before Carmilla kissed her.

Carmilla kissed her way down Laura's chest her to her left nipple looking up to find Laura watching her as she circled her tongue around it and then took it between her lips. Laura closed her eyes and moaned as she arched towards her. Carmilla ran her right thumb over Laura's lips as she continued to tease her nipple with her teeth and tongue, then slowly ran her hand down her neck to her other breast, fondling and pinching the nipple as she moved to kiss Laura's open mouth.

Laura rolled her to her back and pulled away to search her eyes. She smiled softly and leaned down to kiss her before slowly, almost agonizingly so, kissed her way down Carmilla's chest to her breast, her right hand following her to the other. But Laura's right hand didn't stop there long and continued down her side to her hip and then to the inside of her thigh. As her hand inched higher she worked her way back to Carmilla's lips, kissing her deeply as she felt Laura's fingers touch her for the first time.

She rolled Laura back to her back, making sure that Laura's hand didn't move while she did, and started kissing her again as she maneuvered her hand between Laura's legs, the younger girl's gasp turning to soft sighs as they began moving as one.

Carmilla felt tears stinging her eyes as her orgasm approached; she'd never felt so alive, so loved, as wanted as she did in this one moment. She felt Laura clenching around her fingers and knew she was close too so she slowed her movements and added another finger inside her, moaning low in her throat as she felt Laura mirror her actions.

"Oh god, Carm…" Laura moaned as she broke their kiss.

"I love you, Laura," Carmilla said as she buried her head in her neck, her orgasm washing over as she felt Laura shake beneath her.

She gently took her hand from between Laura's legs as she felt her do the same and then slid off to the side to nuzzle into her side, her leg thrown over both of Laura's.

"That was… wow…" Laura sighed and turned to Carmilla; "Hey…" she said quickly and turned on her side to wipe away Carmilla's tears; "why are you crying?"

"For the first time in my life," she admitted softly; "I'm crying because I'm happy."

A/N: Sorry for the delay folks and I'm sorry but it'll likely happen again. I've been working too many hours and ignoring my other story for too long. Hopefully I'll have another chapter to you before next Tuesday but I can't make any promises. Hope you enjoyed the fluff!

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