Juliette stood on the sidewalk in front of the home she used to share with Nick. At one time, this place was filled with laughter and love. Now, it just reminded her of all the times he had betrayed her. All the times he hadn't put her first, the missed dinners, the parties with friends, and making her drink that potion just so he could turn back into a Grimm. When really, it had been his fault he'd lost it in the first place.
She was really sick of having to suffer just to make things better for Nick and his friends. It wasn't fair. And now, now that she had something for herself, now that she was the special one, they wanted to take it away from her.
Well, more fool them. They could try, certainly, but this bitch had claws now. And since they had been so kind as to dispose of Adalind for her, there was no one to stop her from getting her revenge on all of them.
These thoughts warmed her, as she walked up the steps to her old home, and knocked on the door.
"Let the games begin." She thought, holding in a chuckle.
There was no reply to her knock, so she just decided to get this over with and let herself in.
It had seemed like they would never be ready to confront Juliette, but when the mass of people descended on his house, dividing up tasks, getting things done in a relatively short amount of time, Nick allowed himself to feel some optimism for how this might turn out.
Adalind was still upstairs resting, as Henrietta had ordered her to stay there until they were ready to roll, so to speak. Nick was just glad that she was out of sight for the moment, and so he could put her, and the tangled knot of emotion she stirred in him, out of his mind.
Henrietta had prepared the suppressant, adding her own blood to it, as a way of bonding Juliette to her. She said that it would not hurt Juliette, and would make it easier for her to control her and ease her into her powers, so he didn't argue.
Hank and Wu had arrived around the same time as Monroe and Rosalee, and he could tell by the overnight bags each of them had, along with the bags of groceries, that they had all stopped at home to grab a few things first.
Renard was the last to arrive, having gone home to shower and change, and he too was toting a posh looking overnight bag. Part of Nick might have had a few snide thoughts at his Captain's obviously expensive tastes, but the man was seemingly willing to entrench himself with the rest of them, so he kept his less than charitable thoughts to himself.
He had a few moments, while the others were buzzing with activity around him, to sit on his sofa and try to catch his breath.
He had no idea how he really felt about this whole snafu. He hadn't had time to weigh and measure his decisions as much as he would have liked to, and was mostly running on instinct thus far. It seemed as though it might work out alright, however, since Henrietta believed that in giving the suppressant to Juliette, she would at least be able to stop her from descending even further into darkness.
What would happen when the baby was born though? That was one of his biggest worries. He and Adalind had been at odds for so long, that this new, helpful person, carrying his child, was not someone he recognised. She had done some truly heinous things, and though he was starting to see things from her side, he still couldn't forget the pain she had caused him and Juliette. And Hank, and Wu, and…
But then, the same thought kept coming back to him.
He had stolen her baby.
He had actually stolen a new-born baby from her mother, and felt morally justified in doing so.
The thought made him feel nauseous with guilt now. Now that he had felt his son moving under his hand, had made a connection to him. Now that he felt like a father.
He could tell himself that it was the only way, that it was all to protect Diana, but with the benefit of hindsight, he knew he was wrong. In more ways than one. He was wrong that it was the only way, and he was wrong that he was acting purely for Diana's benefit.
In sending Diana away with his mother, a part of Nick was hoping Adalind and all the hassle and suffering she brought with her would disappear too. How could he be so blind? Adalind loved her daughter unreservedly, unselfishly and completely.
It was there, in her eyes, every time she had looked at her baby girl. And it was there in her eyes when she came to his door, panicked and hysterical that Sean had given her baby to Victor.
Adalind was not wholly unreasonable. Though he massively disagreed with her actions and the motivation behind them, he could see why she had come after his aunt, and Hank, on Renard's orders. She had loved him, had believed he loved her, and his aunt was a Grimm. The stuff of nightmares to Wesen children, and her kind's natural enemy.
He felt so conflicted.
He was hopeful that he and Juliette might be able to work something out, but he wasn't sure, at the same time, if he really wanted to. She had broken his trust significantly. And then there was his son. Nick already loved him, but the way he was conceived was hanging over his head.
He could admit, to himself only, that he felt horribly violated. She had had sex with him without his consent. When Juliette was raging about what had happened to him, she didn't seem to notice, or maybe it didn't even occur to her, that he would feel so violated. Everyone else seemed to skip over it too. They just focussed on the loss of his powers as a Grimm, and yes that was another thing that hurt him, more than he ever thought it would or could, but still.
Adalind had used magic to get him to sleep with her, without his consent, and it was horrifying. He had had no idea that it wasn't Juliette. He had no reason to think it wasn't her, and so while she may argue that he should have been able to tell by the way she moved, or spoke, his mind hadn't gone there. Why would it? He had had no idea until then, that such a thing was even possible!
When Elizabeth had presented the potion as a way of him getting his Grimm back, he had hesitated, but not for the reason that the others probably thought. Sure, he was worried for Juliette, what it might do to her, and he would never pressure her into doing it if she felt she couldn't, or just didn't want to.
But secretly, he wasn't sure he would even be able to do it. Adalind had made him feel vulnerable in a way he hadn't felt since, well, probably since Oleg Stark. Even the thing with the Baron hadn't been so bad, because he'd been in an altered state of mind for most of it. And it was an attack, a Wesen attack that had been thrown at him.
But both Adalind and Stark had crept into the place he had felt safe, and then shown him that he wasn't, and never would be.
And now that same safe place, the home he'd lived in for over six years, was under threat again. Not just from the royals, but from the woman he'd shared a life with.
He realised there and then that he didn't want to live here anymore. He hadn't felt safe here for years, and the stress of that had been wearing on him for a long time.
It would probably help with the Adalind and baby situation too, that if they had to co-parent or something, it was in a new place, with no bad memories haunting its halls and bedrooms.
"Nick!" He was suddenly snapped out of his intense introspection, to find Monroe kneeling in front of him, his eyes wide, and definite worry in his expression.
He glanced around and saw Trubel, Hank and the others spread about the room, some sitting, some standing, but all looking equally concerned. He didn't see Henrietta, Adalind or Rosalee, though, and he frowned.
Monroe seemed to read his thoughts, because next he said, "Rosalee's upstairs with Adalind and Henrietta. She made a tea for Adalind to help her with her pregnancy symptoms." He said, and he got up off his knees and sat down next to Nick.
"Are you alright man? You seemed to space out, really badly, on us there." He asked, and Nick heaved a great sigh.
"Yeah, I'm ok. I just sat down to try and get things straight in my head, and…." He trailed off, not knowing how to explain what he was thinking or feeling.
"And you fell down a rabbit hole." Monroe declared.
Nick thought that was a very good analogy, and nodded.
"It's ok man, take all the time you need. We've got things all set up now." Monroe went on to explain the preparations they had made, and Nick himself made an effort to pay attention, and be in the moment.
He did feel somewhat better, having admitted some things to himself that he had not given form to before, even in his own, private thoughts. But for the moment, he needed to focus on the here and now, and what they were trying to accomplish.
He let Monroe lead him around and show him things, and then went back to the living room where the others were waiting. Monroe went upstairs to get the three women, and once the whole group was gathered, they went over their plans, one more time.
When everything was as ready as it was ever going to be, Nick got out his phone and made the call.
It felt like they all collectively held their breath as they listened to Nick's phone on speaker, ringing and ringing, and then there was a voice they all recognised.
"Nick."
Maybe because of years of coming into this house and calling out to the man she had shared it with, almost automatically, Juliette called out when she came in.
"Nick?"
"In here!" She heard him call back, his voice coming from the living room. She walked out of the vestibule, and around the corner to face the windows. Nick was standing in front of one of their couches, Monroe and Rosalee with him, and Hank was by the windows. She looked around to see if there was anyone else. After all, Nick must have stashed his baby-mama somewhere, but she couldn't see or sense that bitch anywhere.
"Hey, Monroe. Rosalee. Hank. Nick. Anybody else?" Juliette asked, her tone flat and suspicious.
Rosalee, always the peacemaker, spoke up. "Juliette, we all know this is-it's a little bit awkward, but, really, it's for the right reason."
"Fixing me?" Juliette questioned. As if there was anything to fix!
"Yes." Nick said simply, and Juliette seethed internally.
Juliette paced slowly in front of them, her mind assessing. "Such good friends. But how did this happen, this special medicine? How did you suddenly figure it out?"
Hank spoke for the first time. "The books." He said, his eyes wary as they followed her movements.
"From the trailer? I supposed it's for the best I was… interrupted. I guess I may have overreacted a little when I found out that whore was pregnant with... a little Grimm." She said, her words conciliatory, but her tone implying nothing of the sort.
Nick looked at her, his face earnest and beseeching. "Juliette, this will work." He insisted, and she took that as more evidence that they had neutralised her prey for her.
Juliette nodded thoughtfully. "So that means you've tried it on, what, a Fuchsbau? No. A Blutbad? I doubt it. Wouldn't that mean you'd have to try it on a Hexenbiest to make sure it works?" She asked, and she saw the uneasy glances they exchanged. Fools.
Nick stepped forward. "Juliette, take it. And we can—"
Juliette almost laughed at his stupidity. "Oh, it's "we" again?" She said. As if she hadn't been the one to leave, to declare it over before he even knew what was happening.
Monroe spoke next. "Look, Juliette, we're just trying to help you get back what you lost." He told her, shrugging, not knowing what else to say to make her understand. He knew that they were going to give her the suppressant one way or another, but he hoped, he really hoped, that she would decide to take it of her own accord.
They'd filled a jar with water as a diversion, so that they didn't risk the real potion if she turned out not to be cooperative. Rosalee now handed that to Nick, and he proffered it to Juliette.
"Take it. Please." He practically begged her.
Juliette stared at him hard, before she reached out and took the jar. "Well, all right. Let's just get this over with." She looked intensely at the jar, and the room started to shake. Nick felt a spike of worry for Adalind and the baby she was carrying, before he reminded himself that she was with Henrietta and the others, and was well protected.
"Juliette, stop." Nick told her firmly, and it seemed to snap her out of whatever trance she was in.
Juliette looked up at him, her expression full of scorn and hate. "Do I look like I need anybody's help?" She threw the jar in the air, and held it there with her power.
Rosalee, playing her part to the full, rushed forward. "No, Juliette! It's all we've got!" She pleaded. She tried to snatch the jar from the air, but Juliette used her power to throw her one time friend into a wall. Rosalee landed awkwardly half on, and half off the couch.
Monroe, enraged at the sight of his mate hurt, woged, and went to attack their former friend. She dropped the jar, letting it smash, and as he began to swing at her, she smacked him back into the same wall as his wife. The two of them clung to each other, shocked and horrified at how quickly things had escalated.
Hank, seeing all this, pulled his gun and pointed it at Juliette, ready to defend his friends. She snorted derisively at him, before telekinetically yanking it from his hands, and throwing it across the room.
Juliette retracted and scowled at them all, her contempt coming off her in waves. "When are you all gonna learn that I like who I am?"
Nick had had enough, not thinking clearly, so upset that it had come to this, he didn't even bother getting his crossbow, and instead pulled his gun and pointed it at her.
"Well, we don't." He declared, angry and hurt.
Juliette woged, and Nick thought that the face of her hexenbiest was somehow less frightening than the woman underneath it.
"Well, that's just too damn bad. You made me. Now get used to it." She declared, and he could feel her power forcing him to turn his gun on his best friends. Monroe and Rosalee looked back at him in fear, their faces reflecting the horror he too felt, at what she might make him do.
"I think that's quite enough." Henrietta's calm voice suddenly interrupted the tense scene. The surprise made Juliette lose control of Nick, and as she turned to face the elder biest, she caught a glimpse of Trubel, crossbow in hand. She only had time to raise her hand, before the young woman she and Nick had taken in fired two bolts in quick succession, both hitting their mark.
Juliette felt the pain of them piercing her flesh, and then seconds later, nothing at all.
