Author's notes: hi all! I was working on the next chapter of The Missing Piece when I heard the sad, sad news. Thought we could all use a little doccubus magic at a time like this, so I updated this instead. (Many thanks to those who left a review for The Missing Piece - I'll reply as soon as I can!)

Caution: it's...long. I don't know why the word count increases with each chapter of this series. Anyway, I hope you'll like it. (Sometimes I know not what I write OTZ).

Reviews/comments most welcome, and would be much appreciated.

After the third guy nearly pukes on her, Bo Dennis is ready to scream and drag Kenzi back to their dorm. Coming from a conservative home, she did have a lot of fun at her first freshmen party, but that was two weeks back and this was their ninth venture.

She fidgets in her new clothes, almost regretting trading her comfortable flannel shirts and jeans for tight leather. She felt a bit insulted at Kenzi's insistence on changing her wardrobe at first, but she's since admitted – grudgingly – that she looks great in leather.

Loud cheers interrupt her thoughts and she knows Kenzi's beating everyone at beer bong again. At least someone's having fun, she sips her beer morosely as she looks around the room. Her eyes linger at a fair hair stranger sitting on a couch, and she feels that her day is finally getting better. They'd certainly be a complete change from Kyle, her high school boyfriend who dumped her right after…that night.

She takes a deep breath and walks towards the couch.

x

"Hi."

Lauren Lewis looks up from her phone and is transfixed by the stranger's eyes. She returns the greeting, and when they smile at each other, she's glad she came to this party.

"Lame party, huh?" The girl plops down on the couch, handing her a beer.

"Uh…" Used to keeping her opinions to herself, she stalls on her answer. When the girl lifts an eyebrow, she decides to talk about something else. "That girl over there sure can hold her liquor. It's a wonder how someone so small can drink so much – it'd be fascinating to study her rate of alcohol metabolism."

She realizes she's been geeking out again as soon as the other girl laughs, and she ducks her head ruefully, silently cursing her awkward social skills.

"Hey, I'm sorry," a warm hand touches her arm. "I wasn't laughing at you. It's just that…you're cute. Let me guess – science major? Probably pre-med?"

She nods with a blush.

"I've got an idea," the stranger says. "Wanna go on a torchlight tour and explore the labs? Y'know, your future homes?"

Lauren tries to stop her grin from widening further, but she has a feeling that it's a lost cause. "S-sure. But uh…"

The girl's already up from the couch, her hand extended, waiting for Lauren's. "But what?"

"I never got your name."

"Oh, is that it?" The girl teased. "It's Nadia. Shall we blow this joint now?"

She smiles and takes Nadia's hand. As they walk out of the room, they giggle at a leather clad couple who's getting hot and heavy on another couch.

"I heard that his name's Dyson," Nadia whispers. "Guess he kisses like the vacuum cleaner too."

"Poor Kenzi."

"Says her best friend who's sitting here sipping on a Long Island Tea."

"Hey, it's not my fault she went into debt for all those shoes," Bo protests. "I tried to hold her back but she didn't listen, so I guess she's meant to learn her lesson the hard way."

"Well, we do have to thank her – without her friends here, we wouldn't have been able to experience the life of the filthy rich." Dyson grins and raises his glass.

"Why, you may be right, my darling husband," she drawls and leans in for a kiss. "We're such naturals at playing a young married couple, aren't we?"

"Ahem." The couple look up to see a man grinning at them. "I'm Mitch – the owner of this club. Mind if I join you?

Shit. They didn't expect the club owner to visit the pool area, but before they can say anything, Mitch waves his hand. "Don't worry about it. We're supposed to be very strict with who gets in, but I'd be most happy to make an exception for you."

"Oh." They responded in unison.

"Don't mind the fuddies duddies around here – most of us are pretty open-minded and have a very inclusive approach," Mitch helps himself to the wine and leans towards Bo. "It's what yuppies are into today, right?"

"Uh…" She was still recovering from the fear of getting Kenzi into trouble. "What do you mean?"

"What I mean," he was definitely veering very close to her now. "What I mean is we can offer you more experiences, to expand your horizons, so to speak."

"My wife over there," he points to a close by table, "and some of our friends – men and women – would like to give you your own welcome party tonight. One with many happy endings, if you catch my drift?"

Bo's eyes widen at the proposition. "We uh…we didn't realize."

"Oh, I did," Mitch replies with a wink. "We knew right away you're our kind of couple."

She's curious and definitely interested. Her experiences have broadened widely since she went to college, and she's keen to broaden 'em some more. Eager to say yes, she turns to Dyson – only to see his cheeks redden with anger.

"Unfortunately I have a uh…an early morning. Maybe another time." He storms off with that, and Bo sits in shock for a second before she gets up hastily. She bumps into someone's chair, and mutters a quick apology as she runs after him.

x

"How rude." A middle-aged woman sitting at the table complains as she gestures to the waiting staff for help. "Dearie, I told you this club is going to pieces. They just let anyone in nowadays."

"Mom, it's okay." Lauren's too focused on wiping juice off her shirt to roll her eyes at her mother's typical commentary.

"Well, darling, come to think of it, that shirt doesn't fit you anyway. Maybe that girl did you a favor."

"Mother," Lauren says, exasperated.

"Lauren," her mother imitates her tone. "I mean, really, as a Lewis, the least you could do is dress like one. Isn't your brother absolutely dashing in his suit? Maybe we should pick you a new shirt later to match the necklace. It does look exquisite."

"Yeah, he's perfect," Lauren mutters. Deciding not to bother, she throws the serviettes on to the table and leans back on her chair. "He can change the world, we know."

She feels her brother squeezing her hand, and returns his quick wink with a resigned smile. They haven't been in touch as frequently, and he's been a little cagey lately, so seeing him again is worth putting up with her mother's antics and comments – even if it's her birthday. She touches the necklace and mouths a "thank you" to him.

"Now now, there's no need for that kind of talk. All I'm saying is you don't have to actually dress like a broke college student just because you're pre-med…"

Years of training enable Lauren to tune out her mother's ramblings, and she nods on autopilot while she her eyes glance around the area. Something next to her chair catches her eye, and she picks it up from the ground. It's another necklace, only this is attached to a labrys instead of a pendant.

"Be right back." Ignoring her mother's protests, she runs to where the girl headed, putting her track experience to good use.

All she found at the parking lot were cars. The valet didn't have any recollection of the girl who ran passed them, and Lauren was unable to give him any information beyond 'brown hair' and 'running'. She looks at the back of the necklace to search for a name or a number.

Ysabeau.

She's not sure she trusts the Lost and Found staff to handle something this personal, and leaves her number at the desk instead.

"Bo, it's graduation prom! You should definitely splurge on a new one." Kenzi half-drags her best friend to the boutique.

"Kenzi, prom is so high school – this is just an excuse for college students to have another party while they can," Bo responds. "Also, did you forget the last time we went on a shopping spree? You had to work the entire summer at the club, and – "

She doesn't finish the sentence. Although the country club 'mishap' happened a year ago, she couldn't forget what Dyson said in the argument, and things fell apart gradually afterwards.

It wasn't the only thing she lost. She never found her necklace either, despite spending hours on her knees, wet and cold, to search for it. The snooty staff at the Lost and Found desk was just as unhelpful, citing that they simply didn't have the resources to help non-members.

"Earth to Bobo," Kenzi waves at her. "Don't think about that D-man no more. You were right to end things – man, who'd have thunk he'd become such a broody stalker?"

"Yeah." Bo scrunched her nose. "The mate for life speech sounded like a Jungle Jeeves episode, too."

"Well, at least we know Ryan's not going to do that. You're going to have so much fun withhim, which is why we need to glam you up, gurl!" Kenzi points to a mannequin on the window.

And screams.

"What, Kenzi, What?" Bo looks at the window. "Oh."

She suppresses a laugh at her best friend's face, which had frozen in a silent scream, much like in a poster of a horror movie.

"Kenzi, come on," she gives her a light shake. "There was no way I could have afforded that dress, and you know it." She wisely decides to not mention that she's seen the dress before Kenzi did, and that she's visited the store several times to look at it.

"No!" Kenzi snatches her hands away from Bo's. "It's not okay! That dress was wonderful! It was spectacular! It was going to be your new start to, to…they must have a spare. They probably pulled it off the mannequin. Yes, they must.

"I'm going in."

Moments later, Bo thanks whatever higher power that she's in good shape. If she hadn't been strong enough to hold Kenzi back, her best friend would have been arrested for attempted murder (via strangulation). And they would have been in the police station, talking to some delinquent named Sylvie, instead of browsing in the store.

She isn't sure if it's pity or fear that made the owner offer them a discount on the other dresses, but she's not going to question it, since Kenzi seems slightly mollified.

And when her best friend dumps a pile of clothes into her arms, she plays her part in keeping her best friend calm by nodding and heading straight to the dressing room.

x

"Excuse me?"

"Oh – hello, dear. How can I help you today?"

"I'd like to return this, please." Lauren says as she places a red dress on the counter.

"This?" The owner looks at it and adjusts her glasses. "Why, is there a problem with it?"

"No, I just…don't need it anymore, thank you."

"Alright, miss. Let me look at the receipt. Oh, dear. I'm afraid it's over the return period by weeks. Are you sure there isn't anything we can do about it? I can adjust it for free, if that's what – "

"No. I mean, no, thank you. The dress is perfect."

And it is. Lauren had bought the dress the first time she saw it, thinking it would be great on Nadia. But a few days before she could surprise her girlfriend with it, she came back to an apartment filled with packed boxes and suitcases.

Nadia was sitting on the couch in the dark, and Lauren remembers how she resembled a statue. In tears, her now ex-girlfriend said she felt like she'd been in a dream for years, and now that she'd 'woken up', she barely knew herself – or Lauren.

After a soft kiss goodbye, Nadia left to find herself, and Lauren was left with a broken heart.

Three weeks after their break up, the dress is still perfect –Lauren's just sick of looking at it. She'd put it in the wardrobe at first, and had to move it to the study when she had to pack up her bedroom. She then had to place it into the closet when she packed the study, and on it on it went.

And now that everything of hers is in boxes and suitcases, it has nowhere else to go.

"Look, don't worry about the refund," she tells the owner. "If anyone wants it, it's theirs."

"That's terribly kind of you, young miss. In fact, there's a lady in the dressing room who was just looking for it. Why don't you wait a bit? You can see whose day you just made."

Before she could decline, the owner had already moved towards the dressing room, and Lauren sees a lithe girl grab the dress, squeal, and perform a rain dance of some sort. She smiles and leans on the counter – a 'mood booster' might be good for her after all.

A few minutes later, a brunette steps out with the red dress, and Lauren finds herself holding her breath. Before she steps forward, however, her phone rings.

She slides her thumb on the screen and greets the caller distractedly, keeping her eyes on the girl.

It's…

x

"Perfect." Startled, Bo turns around.

"I'm sorry, m'dear," the owner apologizes. "I just wanted to tell you that if you want this dress, it's yours."

"What? You mean it's mine if I decide to buy it?"

"No, miss – you don't have to pay anything. It's yours, free of charge."

"Why?" She thinks she hears Kenzi gasp and fall to the floor at the back, but ignores it.

"Someone requested that we gift it to whoever who wants it," the owner replies. "And if you don't mind me saying, it's perfect on you.

"In fact, the kind girl's just – oh. She seems to have left. She was standing right there just a second ago, maybe you can catch her…"

Bo rushes out of the store and looks up and down the street. She spots a blonde further down the sidewalk, but before she can chase after her, the woman steps into a cab and they speed off.

"Did you see her?" Kenzi asks when she returns.

"No." The car was too far ahead for her to see anything clearly.

On their way out, Bo picks up something on the steps – it's a necklace with a pendant that resembles a sun, and the owner says it doesn't belong to the store. No, she doesn't have any information on the blonde either – the girl had paid cash for the dress.

Bo leaves her number with the owner.

When she shows Kenzi the necklace later, the girl whistles and says it's no wonder the blond chick could afford to give away that dress.

"You would have killed at a medical drama, Dr Lewis. Just like I killed at my residency at Mass Gen."

Lauren looks up to see Evony Marquise, also called The Morrigan in the hospital for unknown reasons, walking towards her.

"What do you want?"

"Well, I thought I'd come over and feed you." The other doctor places a six pack of beer and a pizza on the bench. "But clearly, we have something more pressing to work on."

"I won't do it, Evony," Lauren waves off the offered plate and bottle. "Cheating on a clinical trial – that's typical Taft callousness."

"Oh, the hubris of young, idealistic doctors." The Morrigan rolls her eyes and pushes the drink into her protégé's hand. "It's been done before – it's not all bad."

"Excuse me? Although I'm very proud of my profession, I don't have to agree with all the methods of my superiors."

"Could your principles be any more outdated? The competition for research funds is stiffer and stiffer – once we get the grant, we'll just be more careful in the next phase."

"It's disgusting." Lauren shakes her head firmly. "I won't do it, and you can't make me."

The Morrigan senses that it's going to take more than a pizza, a few beers, and a guaranteed fellowship at a prestigious hospital. She sets the food and drinks aside, sighs, and joins Lauren on the floor – after covering her spot with serviettes.

"Look, I know what happened with your brother," she says softly and pats Lauren's leg. "You don't have to do anything that you don't want to."

"You're damn right I don't." Lauren looks away. Years have passed since she received a call from her mother – crying that he's been involved in some sort of pipe bombing incident – and they still haven't found him.

When the family spoke to the authorities, everything about her brother's behavior in the past months made sense to Lauren. The elder Lewis's spent an obscene amount of money to cover it up, and Lauren was the only Lewis left to carry on the family name. She hasn't left the state since, choosing to pursue her medical degree, internship, and residency in the same area.

On good days, she dreams of her brother coming home and proving his innocence. Things would return to normal and she'd be free to live her own life. She'd join Doctors Without Borders, travel to places such as Afghanistan and The Congo to help others, and maybe even meet someone there.

On bad days, especially when she has to attend family or business functions with her parents, she'd reach for her neck unconsciously, as if to remove some invisible collar. Then she'd remember that she'd carelessly lost her last birthday gift from her brother. After things had settled down, what she found in her suitcase, instead, was the necklace that she'd pick up at the country club.

And whether they were good and bad days, she'd drink more than she should, and resist the urge to scream at her brother's ghost. Mostly, she weeps.

"Hey." The Morrigan's cool hand on hers breaks her out of her reverie. "I meant it. You don't have to do anything that you don't want to. I just want you to be the best."

Lauren didn't grow up in the Lewis household for nothing. She knows exactly what those words mean.

"Oh, okay," she removes Evony's hand and gets up. "And morals? Ethics?"

"Overrated! But if they're important to you, I can respect that."

"It's just that Taft and your parents might not," The Morrigan adds casually, and Lauren stops walking.

"What are you…"

"Taft wants to see you, Lauren. He thinks that he can do a better job at convincing you."

x

A few hours and several shouting matches later, the doctor's clearing out her locker.

"Judging from all the noise coming from Taft's room, I assume you had the talk?" Evony asks.

"So you knew then." Lauren turns away from the locker at stares at her supervisor.

"About what? That you're brilliant? Of course I have, Dr…"

"Evony." Lauren shuts her eyes and grits her teeth. "Don't play games. You knew."

"I did."

"This is such Lewis family bullshit!" She yanks the stethoscope from her neck and flings it on the ground. The Morrigan, taken aback, steps back.

"I'm sorry," Lauren apologizes. "It's just…I could have excelled on my own merit, and I can't believe my parents would agree that…"at all cost"! It's all a ploy to make sure my career advances, at all cost! The early and easy acceptance, all those awards…all they care about is protecting the family name!"

"Lauren, if you're about to do what I think you are, don't," Evony says. "Go away for a few days to cool off – and if you feel this strongly about the trial, just withdraw yourself."

"No. I'm done." She slams her locker shut, and walks out of the hospital.

Her curious colleagues watch her get into her car, and before someone can ask what happened, the hospital doors swing open.

"Help! Someone help my mother, please!" A distraught brunette, carrying an elderly woman in her arms, cries out.

"Someone get a gurney!" A doctor rushes to her side. "Ma'am, we've got her. What happened?"

"I – I don't know! We were taking a tour of the town, and some lunatic lunged at us, and my mother, she, she stepped in front of me and got stabbed!"

It was all for nothing. Once, she could never stop thinking about who her father was, and what he looked like. Now, as much as she wants to, she can never get his face out of her mind – especially since he graces the cover of business magazines frequently.

The doctors managed to save her mother, and Aoife recovered smoothly, but it came with a hefty hospital bill. Bo was happy to pay it in installments, but then a blond chick with a tough girl attitude showed up, saying her 'boss' had heard about the stabbing and was happy to take care of the finances.

And if Bo didn't mind, he'd very much like to meet his long lost daughter.

Aoife warned her against it, but Bo paid no heed to her mother's caution. After spending two weeks and having all her ideals about her real father crushed, she rejected his job offer, even if it came with a lucrative salary and a plushy corner room at the high rise. She couldn't leave the smoggy and stuffy city soon enough, and the only highlight of the trip was meeting a business associate of her dad's on the ride home.

She steps off the train with a sigh and heads to the bus station. If there aren't any delays, she'd be home for dinner, and maybe Kenzi's finally learned how to order something other than pizza.

"Bo?"

"…Dyson? You look…different." On a closer look, he hasn't really changed – she just didn't expect him to age that much.

"Well, you look great," Dyson replies with a grin. "What are you doing here?"

"Just a transfer – I'm heading home. And you?"

"Had to take care of some business, but I'm done. I can give you a lift home."

She pauses, uncertain if exes should be in an enclosed space for that long.

"Bo?" Already ahead of her, Dyson stops and waves his hand. "C'mon, it's a long drive and I could use the company. Plus, it'll be fun to catch up."

O-kay, if you put it that way. "Sure, but on one condition – lunch is on me. I'm famished."

"Great. I know a place close by."

Dyson pulls up at a diner, and they see an ambulance parked at the front.

"Hey man, what happened?"

"A guy choked on a piece of food, and some doctor performed a tracheotomy on him." The paramedic shuts the door and prepares to drive off. "He's lucky she was around – would have been dead otherwise."

"Wow. Guess we missed some pretty spectacular surgery," Bo says. "Are you sure it's safe to eat here?"

"Guess we'll find out," Dyson says as he holds the door open for her.

A harassed looking waitress walks up to the couple before they have a chance to pick a table. "Are you here to eat or to watch?" she asks.

"Woah," Bo holds up her hands and peers at the nametag. "We come in peace, Crystal."

"Alright," the waitress responds grumpily. "Seat yourselves wherever you want."

"Geez," Bo huffs and brush some crumbs off the table. "I hope it wasn't her attitude that caused the choking."

"Don't worry, I'll help you out if it happens," Dyson jokes. "After all, I do know your neck pretty…hmm."

"Pretty hmm?" She asks, her attention on the menu instead of on Dyson.

"What happened to your necklace?" he asks.

"What do you mean?"

"The one you always used to wear," he says. "I've never seen you take it off."

"Oh, that." Bo rubs her neck. "I lost it a while ago."

"Pity – it was pretty," Dyson replies. "Wasn't it a family heirloom or something?"

"Yeah. I never told me grandfather about it." And if she has her way, she never will. To this day, she doesn't know if Trick was joking when he told her how the family got the necklace.

"Ya'll ready to order?" Crystal the waitress is back, and still as grumpy. "I don't got all day."

"Hey Crystal," another woman's voice calls out. "Why don't you take a break? I can take it from here."

"I'm sorry, guys," the new waitress says once she gets to the table. "She's having a hard day, with all the commotion, is all."

"Yeah well, you would be havin' a hard day too, if they just up and left you like that." Crystal responds as she rearranges condiments angrily on a nearby counter.

"Cool it, girl – you're just bitter that she didn't want any of your sugar."

"Oh sure, I'm good for drunken, heart to heart sessions about 'bad shit to forget'", Crystal retorts and slams the salt and pepper shakers. Bo can see salt and pepper escaping into the air from the impact, and covers her nose discreetly. "But I'm not good enough when she wants to head back to the city to become some big shot doctor again."

"Wait. You mean the one who saved the – oof," Dyson receives a swift kick to his foot and clams up at a death stare from Bo.

Nobody says anything for a few seconds, and Crystal starts to sob, drawing stares from everyone in the diner.

"You know what?" Bo says brightly. "I just remembered that we left something at home, so we'll have to grab something on the way. Thanks for everything, though!"

x

"I don't see why we had to leave." Dyson sulks as they pull out of the parking lot.

"Jesus, Dyson," Bo chides. "After you rubbed it in like that, I'm sure as hell not staying to find out what they do to our food."

"What? How was I supposed to know?"

She lets out an exasperated sigh and leans back on her seat as he goes into a defensive tirade.

"Dyson, wait," she touches his arm but there's no response.

"Dyson!"

"What?" He slows down and stops the car, looking at her as if she's gone mad.

"Didn't you see the car and the woman on the side of the road? We should stop and see if they need help."

"Oh, Bo." Dyson rolls his eyes and reignites the car. "Whoever it is can fix their own flat tire."

Bo stares at him and remembers all the reasons she never stayed friends after their break up.

"Why aren't you the most chivalrous and noble guy that I've ever met." She opens the door, steps out, and walks off without waiting for a response.

"Hey," she calls out to the woman and crosses the road. "Is everything alright?"

"Hey," the woman waves at her, scratching her head with her other hand. "I uh…have no idea what's going on. It was working fine until it wasn't."

"Okay. I own a temperamental Camaro myself, so I'm probably not the best person to touch it," Bo says. "I can ring for a tow truck and keep you company, if that helps?"

"That sounds great," the blonde smiles and holds out her hand, and Bo has the strangest feeling. "My name's Lauren."

"I'm Bo. I mean, it's Ysabeau, but everyone calls me Bo."

"Ysa – Bo?" Lauren repeats and scrunches her eyebrow, deep in thought. "Bo, Bo, Bo…"

"Bo! I remember." The blonde reaches into her bag and retrieves something.

She holds it in front of Bo questioningly, and Bo's eyes widen.

This belonged to your ancestor who was a warrior. According to her diary, it was from a healer who was always by her side.

The spell breaks.