Thanks to all the reviewers—I'm so excited you like the story. I plan on doing one based around the last episode (airdate 5-7-06) as soon as this one gets to a point where I can start another and focus on both adequately:- )


They knocked, but Grace didn't come to the door.

"Grace? Grace, it's your favorite aunts in the world… come open the door, sweetheart!" Izzie called out.

Meredith was still crying, all the drama from the day taking its toll on the doctor; she fumbled with her keys, struggling through the tears to find the correct key to the house. "Damn it, Iz, find this key for me, I can't see!"

Izzie grabbed her keys and found it effortlessly. They entered the cool house quietly. The place was completely silent, and it gave Izzie the chills. "Grace Addison Montgomery-Shepherd, you get down here right now, I am so not kidding!" She shouted, her voice slightly echoing off the walls of the living room. There was no reply. "Mer, I need you to keep calm, and look down here for her. I'm going upstairs, and once you find her, you scream as loud as you can where you are."

"Where is she, Iz?" Meredith was so worried that her hands shook. They never shook. She was a surgeon, she had to have steady hands--she had no choice. But her hands, they were shaking, and that only meant one thing. She couldn't deal with the fear.

Izzie couldn't answer. Adrenaline pumped through her body as she ascended the stairs, leaping up them calling her niece's name. There was still no answer. She checked Derek's room, the master bathroom, in the closet and under the bed. When Grace was 9, there was a huge string of storms in April, and the lightning scared her to death. Derek was worried, and called Izzie to come check on her. Grace was hiding under the bed, and she told her aunt that when she got scared, she found the most comfort holding her baby blanket under her dad's bed. But she wasn't there. Izzie's heart stopped as panic stormed through her. "GRACE!" she yelled, rushing through the hall and into Grace's bedroom. There she was. She was lying on her bed, face up, under her blankets. Her eyes were closed, her face pale. "Gracie, sweetie, why aren't you…" she paused, noticing that her chest was rising slowly. Her breathing was shallow. "Grace?"

Izzie stepped forward, and remembered her pact with Mer; "MER! She's here, in her room…"

She heard Mer pound up the stairs, heard her cry in relief, "Why hasn't she…" she paused, leaning against the doorframe. "Isn't that one of Addison's old necklaces?"

Izzie nodded, from her spot next to Grace, "Mer… she isn't responding. Her breathing is shallow, her heartbeat is weak… call 911, hurry!" Izzie threw back the blankets, and gasped. Grace's wrists were open, blood slipping out effortlessly from the wounds. "Oh, God!"


Grace's eyes flew open as she sprung from her bed. She wiped the cold sweat from her head, 'It was only a nightmare!' she thought, and smiled. She looked at the clock, and was slightly shocked it read 4 p.m. That meant she'd gone on the ferry. She'd gotten that phone call. But what had happened next? She couldn't remember. She ran to the shower and turned it on, throwing herself into the steaming water.

"Grace!" Meredith called, taking her key out of the lock. She heard the shower running, so she and Izzie picked up the boxes they'd hidden on either side of the door, in case she was in the living room. They carried the boxes into the kitchen and placed them on the table, a small smile playing on both their lips. It was a relief to them, to be able to do something to correct this horrible day. She was a good child, brilliant, and beautiful. And brave, yes, they couldn't forget brave. She had characteristics of all of them—Cristina's strength, Preston's confidence, George's timidity, Izzie's compassion, Meredith's smile and humor, and Derek's intelligence. She was their rock. And she deserved more than what she's gotten, the bad luck that seemed to follow her and appear in a big lump on her birthday.

"Do you think she's going to like this?" Izzie placed the homemade cake in the fridge before grabbing the gifts and moving them into the laundry room. It was all planned out. They were going to go shopping, keep her distracted. They would know it was safe to come home when Derek called. They were to do anything to keep her gone—spend any amount of money, go to the movies, or go on a small road trip. It didn't matter, all they had to do was keep her away while Derek and George decorated the house and collected her friends. Originally, they hadn't had a party in mind. They were just going to dinner. They were going to have a good time. But now, with all that had happened… they had to do something outstanding to cheer up that poor girl.


Derek finished closing the young woman's head, and congratulated everyone, as he always did. "You all did beautifully. Thank you all for your assistance, Ms. Harmon and I both appreciate it greatly." He smiled, and rushed to the sinks to wash up, ready to run home and see his daughter.

"Dr. Shepherd?" A timid new intern, Dr. Neller, had just put her head inside the door.

"Yes, Dr. Neller, what is it?" He smiled brightly, but the smile faltered when he say her eyes glisten.

"The chief is on his way down. He says it's important, and you aren't to leave here or speak to anyone at all until he sees you," she looked away before she continued; "He says to make sure you understand this includes Grace, and Meredith, and Izzie. Sorry, sir."

His face paled. Something was wrong. "Oh, it's not your fault, doctor, there's no reason to apologize. You're just the bearer of bad news, not the cause. It's fine. Go do something medical. Maybe Dr. Bailey will let you in on a surgical case if you stay out of her way…" He knew Dr. Neller had some bad luck where Bailey was considered. Bailey had some of the best surgical opportunities, and was very restrictive of who got the best cases. She had her favorite interns, and Dr. Neller had been much too confident with her abilities, much too peppy, and it hadn't sat right with Bailey, as it never did.

The intern smiled politely and nodded, before exiting as wordlessly as she'd entered. He looked back into the sinks, continuing to scrub his already clean hands before ripping off his mask. How is it possible for one more thing to go wrong today, he thought? He jumped when he heard Preston clear his throat.

"What is it?" he sighed, facing him.

Preston had been crying. He couldn't lie to him about this. There was no avoiding the devastation. "Derek, I've got horrible news…"


Sorry to leave you hanging, but I've had horrible cliffhangers the first two chapters. I've got to make it interesting! Keep the reviews up, everyone, I really do appreciate it!