Chapter 25

(season 4, episodes 3&4)

After hours of trying to woge on her own and having no luck, Lily made her way to the Spice Shop. She had to get this under control and the only person she felt she could trust with it, was Rosalee. The Fuchsbau seemed to genuinely want to help her every other time Lily had come to the shop, and hoped she'd be willing again.

The lights to the shop were on and she knew someone was there. The sign said closed, but it wasn't the first time Monroe and Rosalee had closed early because they were doing something. Lily only hoped she could at least speak to Rosalee.

She knocked on the door and heard rusting on the other side. She heard both Monroe and Rosalee in startling detail. Lily still hadn't gotten used to her senses.

Rosalee unlocked the door and opened it. She was surprised.

"Lily, hi," she said as she opened the door pass the initial crack. "Is something wrong?" she motioned for Lily to come inside.

"No, I just wanted to-" Lily paused when she noticed herbs and books on the counter, and Elizabeth. "I'm sorry. I didn't know you were in the middle of something."

"No," Rosalee said quickly, "No, it's fine. We're just trying to find out what Adalind did to Nick." She offered openly. "What's up?"

Lily glanced amongst those gathered and it was clear she didn't want to talk with everyone else in the room. But, on the other hand, it wasn't as though she had to be worried that anyone would rat on her. That was an odd sensation… trust…

Her eyes shifted back to Rosalee and as confidently as she could say, Lily replied, "I need help learning how to woge."

Monroe and Rosalee were surprised by the declaration, while Elizabeth couldn't hide her confusion.

"Surely by now you've learned to control it." Elizabeth said, drawing attention, "If you take after your mother, then-"

"Not just her." Lily felt the need to say.

Elizabeth's brows came together and she narrowed her eyes on the young woman. Without bothering to ask or warn any of them, Elizabeth woged into the same creature that greeted Lily and her mother that night all those years ago. While surprised by what she saw like the others had been, Elizabeth was much better at controlling herself.

She returned to normal and looked Lily over once more. Her face was nearly blank.

"That's interesting." She said simply.

An awkward silence spread between them. Eventually, Rosalee offered to give Lily a hand and led her towards the side room where she usually put together her concoctions.

"Okay," she said as she turned to face Lily, "Have you been able to control it at all?"

Lily shook her head. Rosalee did her best to keep from looking surprised.

"Have you woged at all, aside from that first time?"

Lily reluctantly nodded.

"And none of it on purpose, either."

"Oh," she mumbled. Rosalee was beginning to understand how dangerous the situation was and felt herself glad Lily had come to her. "Alright, well, um…" she hesitated. Rosalee had never had to tell someone how to woge before. It took her a moment to think of the words. "Okay," she clapped her hands together causing Lily to eye her curiously. "There's this… feeling," she touched her stomach, "it's kind of like an itch, but not. Can you feel it?"

Lily fought the urge to be sarcastic about the vague comment and instead focused on trying to feel whatever Rosalee had described. Her eyes drifted to the floor and she searched herself for the odd sensation . It took a moment, but eventually yes, she felt something that may have been what the Fuchsbau was talking about. Slowly, she nodded.

"Okay, good. Now, focus on it, and let it just wash through you."

Again, Lily fought the urge to say anything. She didn't want to be rude, but she felt a little strange in her current situation. So again, she did as she was told.

Lily focused intently on the strange tingling itch she felt in her stomach and tried to make it grow. She fought with it for a moment or two before Rosalee noticed she was becoming frustrated. She told Lily to calm down and relax into the sensation. She compared it to a massage. Even if a masseuse was working on your foot, if you relaxed enough, you could feel it everywhere. Same principal.

Lily rolled her eyes and closed them. She took in slow breaths and again focused only on the tingle. Like Rosalee said, Lily relaxed into it as best she could. Soon, she felt it spread through her body completely, from the deepest pit of her stomach to her fingertips. She even felt it radiate in every follicle on her head. There were no words to describe how strange, yet appropriate, it felt.

"Oh my god," Rosalee mumbled.

Lily opened her eyes to see Rosalee looking at her with some kind of fascination she didn't understand. Lifting her hands, Lily realized she'd woged.

"You're… beautiful." She said. Lily shifted uncomfortably under the compliment, but thanked her for it regardless. "Go look in the mirror."

Rosalee pointed to the wall not far away. Lily stepped towards it, but was horrified by what she saw. She jumped back with a frightened gasp and slammed her back into a support beam as a result. A few bundles of herbs tumbled from their hooks on the beam and the Maahes immediately vanished leaving Lily staring at a face she'd seen a thousand times before.

"What's wrong?" Rosalee asked in a slight panic.

Lily looked to her with wide eyes as she tried to calm herself down.

"That was utterly terrifying." She said honestly. Rosalee's brows came together. She was about to ask why when Lily spoke again. "Is that really what Wesen see when they see a Grimm?"

Rosalee's eyes went wide and her jaw snapped shut. How did she not think that would happen? Of course it would.

"You saw the eyes?" she asked.

Lily nodded profusely.

"Is that really what a Grimm looks like?" she asked in shock as she pointed sideways at her reflection.

"Yeah," she nodded. "But yours are different." Lily's brows came together and she tilted her head to the side in confusion. "The gold. Normal Gri- most," Rosalee didn't want to make Lily feel like she wasn't normal, "Most Grimms are just jet black, but your iris's glow."

Lily slowly began to nod. Her eyes drifted back to the mirror and while she saw only herself, she could almost see the black, demon-eyes too. The fear she'd been shown through the years suddenly made sense.

"Try it again," Rosalee said, "But maybe this time, actually watch it happen. That way, your eyes won't be as much of a shock."

Lily again nodded and squared herself against the mirror.

She took a deep breath and went through the same motions. The second attempt seemed much easier and this time she watched herself transform.

Lily watched as the silvery fur sprang forward like a ripple in a pool of water. It spread across her body in seconds and left behind an animal, like everywhere it touched was affected. Doing her best to ignore her eyes, Lily inspected the rest of her. She stepped closer to the mirror.

Her nose had flattened and widened just a bit and taken on a feline appearance. Her lips were black and whiskers now sprouted from just above them. Her ears poked out through her dark hair and it caused her to pull it away. They were pointed now, almost like an elf, and coated again in fine silver fur.

Her hands she'd seen every transformation before, so she instead opened her mouth. Dangerous, deadly canines glinted in the light. They were easily over an inch long and could definitely take a chunk out of someone.

Hesitantly, she looked at her eyes. They were no less terrifying than the first time she'd seen them, but now she was prepared. Ignoring the sinking feeling in her gut that those horrible eyes did in fact belong to her, Lily inspected them.

They were black like Rosalee said, but so much more. They were hollow and fathomless, like tunnels that led nowhere good. And they weren't just black. They looked like no light could penetrate it, like the black was visceral and thick. It looked like the black could actually consume you. But, as though that weren't strange enough, her irises were gold and not just that, they glowed. They glowed with a demonic, almost unnatural glint and that coupled with the sea of unending black that surrounded them, Lily definitely understood why Wesen would fear her.

"Whoa,"

The new voice caused her to tear her eyes from the phantom image on the mirror she couldn't believe was herself. Standing in the doorway that led to the main belly of the shop was Monroe and Elizabeth. He was the one who spoke and had a look of astonishment. Elizabeth, however, was smiling.

"You look like your mother." She said.

Lily offered a grateful, but sad smile in response and turned her attention once more to Rosalee.

"How do I stop it?"

"Just let it go." She replied as she continued to stare at Lily's brilliant silver coat.

Lily did as she was told and slowly the fur disappeared once more. She had to practice now that she knew what to do. She couldn't hide her gratitude. It was a small step, but a step regardless and Lily couldn't explain how much more confident she was now that she had accomplished woging on her own.

To Rosalee's surprise, Lily suddenly lunged forward and wrapped her arms around the young Fuchsbau's neck. She hugged her tightly.

"Thank you," she sighed with relief. "Truly, thank you."

"No problem." Rosalee replied with a light smile. After the initial shock of the hug, Rosalee returned the sentiment.

They soon parted and Lily found herself offering to aid them in anyway she could. Part of her felt obligated to do so. Elizabeth thought the offer was adorable and told her she was free to stay. It caused Rosalee and Monroe to agree as well.

Despite the incident with the wolfsangel brick, everything else –regarding the spell- went along without a hitch. Though, everyone other than Elizabeth was bothered by it. Still, the witch urged both Rosalee and Monroe to go home for the evening. Woging in their face only ensured they would gladly leave the hag alone. Lily decided to leave too since it was clear she was no longer needed, but Elizabeth had other plans.

"Lillian," she called as the young woman threaded on her jacket. She paused and turned to face the Hexenbiest. "Would you mind staying just a bit longer?"

Rosalee and Monroe shot one another worried glances. They couldn't help it. There was something mildly frightening about Renard's mother, unsettling even. Lily felt it too. She wasn't as openly frightened of her as the others were since she'd spent time with Elizabeth, but she was well aware that the woman was dangerous and acted accordingly.

"Of course." She nodded. Lily began to remove her jacket once again.

Monroe and Rosalee said their farewells and left Lily alone with Elizabeth, despite the unease they felt. At least they knew the pair had history. When they were gone, Lily turned her attention back to Elizabeth. She lingered for a moment, fully aware that there was nothing she was needed for.

"Was there something you needed help with?" she asked despite knowing the answer.

Elizabeth again smirked while her eyes remained on the potion.

"I only wished to talk to you." She replied. Finally she looked up, but her eyes danced along Lily for a moment. She took everything in before meeting her gaze. Lily cocked a single brow. "How long have you had feelings for my son?"

Both of Lily's brows rose high.

"Pardon?"

Elizabeth mused over her confusion for a moment. She let her eyes wander once more before turning her attention to the potion again.

"Perhaps you're not aware of it yet."

"Or," Lily offered with a light edge, "Feelings don't exist."

Elizabeth let out light laugh and shook her head. She found something amusing that Lily did not. It caused her to glare at the witch, regardless of what she may be able to do.

"He is being released in the morning." She went on to say. Elizabeth looked up and her smile hadn't faded. "I thought you may like to know."

Lily wasn't amused, which only added to Elizabeth's enjoyment. Annoyed, and not wanting to linger anymore, Lily offered her final farewell and with a gentle nod, Elizabeth let her go without fuss. She continued to smile to herself, however, even after Lily was gone.

Two mornings later, Renard stood on his balcony with Elizabeth, overlooking the bay in his new home. They spoke briefly about Diana and where she may be hiding. Renard wished he could give his mother more, or at least warn Kelly that she'd be coming, but there was literally nothing he could do.

Elizabeth still smiled as she looked at her son's half-transformed features. She was a bit proud of her work, and she should have been considering she brought him back from the dead.

"Have you heard from Lillian?" she asked randomly.

Renard's brows furrowed and the Zauberbeist vanished.

"No," he said as though it should have been obvious. "Should I be expecting a call?"

That damn smirk returned to her lips as she mused over something unsaid and shrugged a single shoulder.

"Perhaps." She continued to grin, "You're aware she has feelings for you, right?"

"Oh, I'm sure," he nodded. The response surprised her enough she glanced to him while he continued to stare outwards. "Contempt and mild hatred, most likely."

She narrowed her eyes and examined him like she had Lily the last time they saw one another.

"Interesting." She muttered.

He looked down at her curiously, but Elizabeth didn't seem as though she was going to elaborate. Truth was, she saw the same 'something' in Renard as she did in Lily. It was going to be a very interesting reveal if/when it finally happened.

Lily was leaving the hotel she had scoped out a few days prior. After bribing the desk clerk, she learned that her target came and rented the same room every week. Good. Predictable was good.

As she neared her car, her phone began to ring. She answered it without bothering to look at the number.

"Hello?"

"Lily, hey." Rosalee greeted.

"Hello." Lily smiled. She couldn't help it. She was beginning to like getting phone calls from them. "What can I do for you?"

"Well, Monroe and I were going to make dinner tonight and we were hoping you'd come along. Nick, Juliette and Hank will be there, too."

"Um," Lily was surprised by the offer, but felt herself agree anyway. And for once, she wanted to. "Sure, I'd love to."

"Great." Rosalee exclaimed. "Is eight o'clock okay with you?"

"That's fine." She smiled. "I'll see you then."

Rosalee said her farewell and Lily ended the call. When she'd been invited to Nick's, she initially been apprehensive, but now, she was actually a little excited. This was a new sensation, and she liked it.

When Lily arrived later that evening to Monroe and Rosalee's home, she brought with her not only a bottle of wine, but something for Nick as well. Well, it was more for Trubel.

"This," she dug into her pocket and pulled out a thin, silver thumb-drive, "is for Trubel."

"Okay," he said with a light, uncertain smile as he took the device. "Uh… what is it?"

"My books." She answered. He, and Juliette who'd come to his side during the conversation, were a little surprised.

"Really?"

Lily nodded and smiled.

"For a few months now, I've been working on scanning my family's books into my computer. They've become so old that I'm afraid a few of them are falling apart. And, since Trubel doesn't seem to have any books of her own, I thought she may appreciate this."

"Wow," he mumbled. He suddenly felt like he had to be careful with the piece of tech. "Uh, thanks. You didn't have to do this."

She shrugged, but kept the smile. Lily felt Trubel could benefit from her own set of books and she doubted Nick's faired much better than her own. Besides, this way, Trubel had something incredibly portable to take with her no matter where she went. She didn't need to carry around a library. Ain't modern technology grand?

The night progressed in a normal fashion. Lily would speak to everyone; answer their normal how are you questions. She did the same with them and found herself having fun.

Weird.

But the night wasn't meant to remain pleasant. It wasn't meant to remain lighthearted and fun.

Brilliant glowing orange suddenly filled the living room, stunning those inside. On insitinct, they each raced for the fire and were horrified by what they saw. A large, wooden and burning wolfsangle lit up the night. Those who knew what it meant began to shake with either fear or rage. This was too close.

Lily began to shake. She had to remove herself from the intense symbol of hate. While she wouldn't normally have patience for this kind of bigotry, it hit a special chord with her and the rage it brought on was blinding.

When Monroe took Rosalee inside and Hank began to douse the wolfsangel, Lily found her way inside too. She just couldn't look at it and had to try and calm down. As Monroe paced and bellowed his rage, threatening to woge out of pure anger, Lily had taken to sitting in the corner with her head in her hands. She had to calm down.

"Well, they're all Wesen so it's not really your problem anymore." Monroe yelled. He wasn't doing it to be mean, he just couldn't lower his volume he was so distressed.

"I'll do it." Lily said. The odd, strangled tone of her voice caused the others to look at her.

"What?" Hank asked.

Filled with determine ire, Lily finally looked up. Hank, Juliette and Nick were a little taken aback.

"I'll do it." She repeated as she bared pointed fangs. "I've had enough of these ridiculous groups." A growl began to form to her words. "I'll find all of them and deal with them myself."

Her declaration was chilling and only aided by the woge she inadvertently triggered.

"Uh… Lily," Hank mumbled.

She eyed him curiously before looking down.

"Damn it!" she snapped.

Her anger was understandable, but no one had expected her to change. She decided to excuse herself to try and calm down while they continued to speak.

Nick soon declared that he wanted to become a Grimm once more.