Stacie groaned softly as the sound of her phone vibrating on the bedside table woke her up. Who the hell was calling her at… three in the morning? They'd been in bed less than an hour, what was going on? She frowned at the caller ID, putting the phone to her ear as Aubrey stirred next to her.
"Tony?" Stacie mumbled, "What's up?"
Stacie sat bolt upright as her brother's voice could be heard getting more and more hysterical. Aubrey was awake too, but before she could try and get any information from Stacie who was trying to calm her brother long enough to get some information from him her own phone started to ring. She picked up her phone to see that Michael was calling her, answering it quickly.
"Mike?"
"Aubrey, I need- fuck, I need Stacie, why isn't she answering?!"
"She's on the phone with Tony. What happened?"
"I- I- I can't get hold of mom and dad… Liv she needs- she needs Stacie, she needs her now, Aubrey the baby…"
"Alright, alright Mike, just breathe for me a little." Aubrey looked to Stacie who had gone pale as she listened to Tony, her hands shaking, "Give me two minutes, we'll figure this out, just hold on."
"Just hurry. Please."
Aubrey muted the call for a moment as she turned to Stacie, waiting as Stacie did the same, swallowing the lump in her throat.
"Um, Tony he- he needs me, he just got back from his assignment in Vienna and that guy he's been seeing, Leo he- I need to go." Stacie wiped at her cheeks as she tried to pull herself together, "Is Mike okay?"
"No." Aubrey shook her head, seeing no sense in lying to Stacie right now, "No he's not, it sounds like Liv and the baby in trouble. He can't get hold of Sam and Thea, he needs you."
"Oh god…" Stacie ran her hand through her hair, "Tony said Mom and Dad weren't answering too, I- shit, how do I be in three places at once?! I- it's not like them not to pick up when one of us calls, what if something happened to them too, I- I-"
"Hey." Aubrey got up and gently took Stacie's trembling hands in hers, "Breathe Stace, we'll figure this out, but we can't while you're panicking like this."
"I-I-" Stacie shook her head, bile rising in her throat, "How- how can I be in three places at once Bree?! They all need me, how do I do this?!"
"Is everything okay?" Chloe's head appeared around their bedroom door, concern etched in her sleepy features, "We heard yelling."
"The Conrad's are in trouble." Aubrey gave Stacie's hand a squeeze as she turned to Beca and Chloe, "People are hurt, we don't know what's going on with Sam and Thea, it's bad."
"How can we help?" Beca leant against Chloe, looking equally as concerned.
"It sounds like Liv needs you the most." Aubrey turned to Stacie, a soft smile on her face as she tried to reassure her a little, "So you go to Mike and Liv's. Chloe could you take a bag full of healing potions and poultices to Tony and help Leo? And then Beca and I will go check on your parents, I'm sure they're just asleep or something."
"Okay." Stacie's voice was small as she nodded slightly, "Yeah okay. Thank you."
"Here." Chloe tossed Stacie's jacket to her from the back of the door, "We've got this. We'll call you when we know something."
Stacie nodded again, running a hand through her hair, "My bag is downstairs, it has transportation potions in as well as anything you guys might need."
"We got it." Aubrey nodded, "Go, we'll get what we need and head off."
Stacie kissed her cheek softly, giving Aubrey's hand a grateful squeeze before stepping back and snapping her fingers, disappearing in a swirl of warm lights.
"Right." Aubrey ran a hand through her hair, moving the phone to her ear again, "Mike? Stacie will be there any second, we're going to check on Tony and your parents."
"She's here. Thanks."
Aubrey turned to Beca and Chloe as she tried to push away her welling sense of panic, "Okay, let's get going."
They moved quickly downstairs and gathered supplies, Beca giving Chloe a quick hug before pulling back and cupping her face in her hands, "Be careful okay?"
"I will." Chloe nodded, hands resting on Chloe's wrists, "You guys too."
"Always." Beca grinned, "Mostly anyway."
Chloe shook her head fondly, taking the transport potion in hand and smashing at her feet, disappearing into the now familiar cloud of purple smoke. As it cleared she tensed a little, hand resting on the stake she had hastily crammed into the waistband of sweats. Tony was looking her way as she crossed the room towards him, frowning in confusion.
"W-where's Stace? Why are you here?"
"She's with Mike and Liv." Chloe smiled softly, moving the rucksack off her shoulder as she lowered herself to the ground next to Tony and the man cradled against his chest, "It sounds like Liv's in a lot of trouble so she sent me instead."
"Oh." Tony frowned heavily, "Is she okay? The baby?"
"I don't know." Chloe sighed softly, "But right now we're focusing on you guys. Are you hurt?"
"No." Tony shook his head, "No I'm fine, I came home to find Leo all beat up and- he's really hurt Chloe…"
"Okay." Chloe nodded, hand gently resting on Leo's shoulder as she turned her attention to him, "Hi Leo, I'm Chloe. Can I look at your injuries?"
"Sure." Leo mumbled, his face bruised and bloody as he winced a little, turning in Tony's arms a little as Chloe gently looked him over, "Are you a nurse or something?"
Chloe looked at Tony with a confused expression, Tony biting his lip a little.
"Leo's human…" Tony sniffed, "He doesn't… he doesn't know about any of this. I thought I was protecting you baby, I'm sorry…"
Leo grunted softly as Chloe probed at a gash on his hip, pulling a poultice from her bag to apply to it as she passed him a potion.
"Protecting me?" Leo frowned, "From what?"
"This…" Tony sighed, waving his hand as he summoned a small ball of light. Leo watched in shock as it danced and swirled before him, "I- I'm a witch. I fight demons and vampires and other creatures that want to hurt people like you. My whole family does, so does Chloe I- I just wanted to keep you safe Leo, but I ended up just putting you in harms way, I'm so sorry…"
Tony extinguished the ball of light as he cupped Leo's cheek, sniffing softly, "I'm really sorry…"
"So…" Leo looked to Chloe, expression unreadable, "You're a witch too?"
"No." Chloe grinned, gently encouraging the potion towards Leo's mouth, "Drink that, it'll fix up your ribs. I'm… well I'm a vampire. Just not the kind that Tony hunts down."
"There are different kinds?" Leo frowned, drinking the potion and grimacing at the test, "Oh gross… what the hell was that?"
"A healing potion." Chloe giggled, "They're not the nicest things to drink."
"So… so you're a witch?" Leo looked up at Tony, "And all that magic stuff is real?"
"Yeah." Tony swallowed thickly, "Are you mad I kept it from you?"
"No…" Leo smiled softly, "No I- I'm surprised don't get me wrong but… it's kind of hot actually. You're like a magical James Bond…"
Tony laughed as he brushed Leo's hair from his eyes, "You're really not mad? Because if you wanted to leave when you're healed, and never call me again, I'd get it."
"No way." Leo shook his head, "It'll take a lot more than this to scare me away from you."
"You guys are adorable." Chloe beamed, bandaging Leo's arm as they seemed to remember she was in the room, "How are you feeling Leo? Any unbearable pain?"
"No." Leo shook his head as Tony helped him sit up, "Thank you."
"It's nothing." Chloe shrugged, crossing her legs underneath her, "I'm glad you're okay, Tony talks about you a lot."
"He does?" Leo grinned as Tony went a deep shade of red, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.
"I guess…" He mumbled, kissing Leo softly, "You're really hot, I tell everyone that we're dating."
Leo laughed as he rested against Tony's shoulder, their hands joining as he sighed softly, "I am kinda hot."
"Can you tell me what happened Leo?" Chloe's voice was full of humour as she got them back on topic.
"Um…" Leo frowned a little as Tony's arm tightened around his shoulders, "I wanted to make dinner so that when Tony got back from his business trip he had some decent food to eat. He has all these ready meals in the freezer but they're full of crap, he needed something that had actual nutrients in it. Anyway, I figured I would crash here, surprise you…" Leo looked up at Tony for a moment, sniffing softly as Tony stroked his cheek,
"I was woken up by this crash and then this woman just… appeared, I figured she'd come in through an open window or something. She said something about me needing better taste in men and then… she attacked me. She was crazy strong, it was insane I- I thought she was going to kill me…"
Tony kissed the top of Leo's head as Leo pushed back tears, clearing his throat a little. Chloe's expression was one wholly of concern as she reached out a squeezed his hand.
"I've been there. Some of the people we come across are really strong and the damage they do…" Chloe sighed softly, "But we always win in the end. And there is plenty we can do to keep you safe, Tony's kind of badass. What did this woman look like?"
"Kind of tall?" Leo shrugged a little, "She had a blonde streak at the front of her hair."
"Charity…" Chloe growled softly as Tony frowned deeply.
"One of Gail's daughters?"
"Yeah." Chloe nodded, brow furrowing, "We should get you guys out of here. We'll head back to the office until we can figure something out."
"Can we go to Mike's first?" Tony asked, concern knotting his brows together, "If Liv's hurt he's going to be a wreck."
"Yeah." Chloe nodded, "Good idea."
"Wait, can we circle back? Who's Gail?" Leo looked confused as Tony helped him to his feet.
"Honey I wish I had the time to explain that right now…" Tony chuckled a little, "But it's a really long story. Let's get somewhere safe and then I'll tell you everything I promise."
"Sure." Leo leant against Tony, exhausted from the trauma of the night.
"Did anyone get hold of Mom and Dad?" Tony asked, a level of vulnerability in his expression as Chloe shook her head.
"Bree and Becs went to check on them, I'm sure they're okay." Chloe gave his arm a squeeze, Tony swallowing the lump in his throat as he nodded.
"Yeah… yeah I'm sure you're right." Tony forced a smile, "Okay, let's go see Mike and Liv."
"You want to make a portal, show off for your boyfriend a bit?" Chloe grinned, nudging Tony with her shoulder affectionately.
"Portals?" Leo looked at Tony, an excited gleam in his eyes, "You can make portals?"
"Oh yeah." Tony grinned, "It's kind of my thing."
"You're so cool…" Leo beamed, looking at Tony in awe.
"I know." Tony winked at him, Chloe chuckling softly.
"Come on." Chloe gently prompted them, "Let's get out of here."
Stacie was already moving towards Michael before she had finish apparating in, trying to suppress the swelling anxiety in her chest as she saw the blood staining his clothes.
"She's here. Thanks." Michael mumbled, hanging up the phone as he saw his sister, Olivia's head resting in the crook of his neck as she breathed raggedly, tears in Michael's eyes as he looked to his sister for help, "Stace… the baby."
"I know." Stacie smiled softly as she knelt next to Olivia, "I know, I'm here. I've got you guys."
Olivia whimpered as Stacie rested her hand on her arm, features contorted in pain, "I tried- tried to keep them safe… I'm sorry…"
"No." Michael shook his head, kissing the top of her head, "No you don't ever have to apologise okay? Stacie's here now, we're going to be okay."
"It's too late…" Olivia whispered, crying as she gripped the front of his t-shirt harder, "I- I'm miscarrying…"
Michael looked up at Stacie who nodded softly, grief and guilt in her expression as she held her hands over Olivia's stomach.
"I can heal the injuries but… they're gone, I'm sorry."
"Oh…" Michael mumbled, holding Olivia a little tighter, "I'm sorry Liv. I was trying to get to you, I should've tried harder, I'm so sorry…"
"It's not your fault." Olivia buried her face in his neck, "I wish I'd been stronger for both of you. I should've been stronger."
Michael shushed her gently, crying into her hair as Stacie continued to heal her injuries, a lump in her throat as she silently cursed herself for not getting here sooner.
"Neither of you are to blame for this." Stacie tried to soothe them a little, lifting her head to smile softly at them, "I know this is awful, I'm so sorry about this. But whoever did this, we'll make them pay for it I promise."
"She was so strong Stace." Michael shook his head a little, sniffing softly as Olivia continued to weep into his shoulder, "One minute we were asleep in bed, the next there was this crash from the living room and I- I-"
"She?" Stacie felt her stomach swoop as she glanced up from her task, "What did she look like?"
"Cruel." Olivia sniffled, "In hauntingly familiar way… I swear I'd seen those eyes before. She had a mullet, I never understood why those came back in style."
"Shit…" Stacie mumbled, biting her bottom lip as she moved her hands to Olivia's shoulder, "That's Veracity, she's one of Gail's daughters I… shit."
"I knew that gaze was familiar..." Olivia whimpered, "It's those freaking eyes… I still see them in my nightmares."
"What did she want from us?" Michael frowned, "She just… these chains came out of nowhere and I couldn't move, I tried so hard… and then she just kept hurting Liv, kept beating her and burning her and- I couldn't do anything…"
Stacie's eyes roamed over the chain link bruises up and down Michael's arms, her heart tugging as she realised just how hard he must have been pulling at them. She had healed Olivia's injuries, watching as Olivia curled up tighter into Michael's embrace.
"She hurt you too." Olivia sighed, "Let Stacie look at your ankle."
Stacie moved so that she could look at it, wincing in sympathy as saw how badly broken it was. She held her hands over it, watching as Michael hissed a little at the pain he was in as his bone reset.
"Almost done." Stacie reassured him, "We need to get you guys out of here, we'll go back to the office and figure out our next move."
"Aubrey said you were on the phone with Tony, is he okay?" Michael felt his big brother instincts rise to the fore as Stacie looked to him again.
"I don't know. He said Leo was hurt, but it wasn't life threatening, Chloe's with them. Bree and Beca went to Mom and Dad's to make sure they're okay." Stacie furrowed her brow as she rubbed at the headache that was forming.
"What about Ellie?" Michael was trying not to focus on the uncertainty around his parents too much, instead putting his focus onto the youngest member of the Conrad clan.
"She's at the Academy right?" Stacie ran her hand through her hair, "I'll call them, make sure everything's okay."
"Who are we calling?"
Stacie turned to see Chloe, Tony and a man that must be Leo coming through a portal into the living room. She smiled tightly at Chloe, relieved in part to see that her brother and his boyfriend were okay, but still carrying an overwhelming sense of fear about her mom and dad, and the guilt that she had forgotten to check on Ellie.
"The Academy, we should check on Ellie."
"Right, of course!" Chloe nodded, "I can do that if you want? In case Aubrey tries to call you."
"Yeah." Stacie nodded, "Thanks Chloe."
Chloe waved her off, pulling the number for the Academy up as Tony joined his siblings, gently easing Leo to the floor.
"Hey, are you guys okay?" He asked, a hand resting on Michael's shoulder gingerly as he frowned at the bruises on his arms.
"Not really." Michael sighed, Olivia still weeping softly as he held her, "We um… we lost the baby."
"Oh man…" Tony wound his arm around Michael's shoulders, "I'm so sorry."
Michael gave him a small smile, gently rocking his weeping girlfriend as he tried to soothe her. Leo lent forward and rested a gentle hand on her shoulder, smiling warmly at her as she looked his way.
"My sister miscarried last year, I know how hard this can be. If you need anything just let me know. Both of you."
"Thanks." Olivia managed a soft smile, "That's really kind of you."
"Ellie's okay." Chloe rejoined them, "No-one's tripped any alarms or tried to break through any barriers at the Academy, she was sound asleep in her bed."
"Thank god…" Stacie mumbled, running a hand through her hair, "But that doesn't help us figure out what the hell Veracity wanted with Mike and Liv."
"Or Charity with Tony and Leo." Chloe sighed, Stacie's expression full of alarm as she got to her feet.
"What?! What… what the hell is going on?!"
"I don't know." Chloe could see that Stacie was spiralling a little with the knowledge that Gail's children had attacked both her brothers, "But we'll figure out Stace, we just need to get everyone back to the office where it's safer and then we'll be able to start making sense of things."
"No, the office isn't safe." Stacie shook her head, hands beginning to tremble, "They've gotten in there twice, attacked us in our own home, we can't keep them safe there… and then there's Alice and Calamity, where the hell are they?! What if they're at Mom and Dad's and we've sent Beca and Aubrey right into a trap?! What- why haven't we heard from them?! It's been nearly a half hour Chloe, what if-"
"Hey, hey." Chloe put her hands on Stacie's arms, squeezing them to ground her in the moment, "Take a deep breathe Stace. I know you're panicking, I know this whole thing is really scary, but you need to try and calm down, keep a level head until we know what's going on."
Stacie was shaking in Chloe's hands as she squeezed her eyes shut, trying to ground herself, "I- I just need to know they're okay…" She mumbled, feeling Chloe squeeze her arms again.
"I know. Me too." Chloe's voice was gentle, "But they'll call when there's news, you know they will. Bree will call you any minute to tell you they're okay, you'll see."
Stacie's phone began to ring, her eyes snapping open as Chloe looked a little startled at the timing of it all.
"Huh… maybe I'm the magic one…" She chuckled.
"Beca?" Stacie answered the call, "Are you guys okay?!"
"Is Mike with you still?"
"Y-yeah. Tony too, Chloe brought them over… Beca what's going on? Where's Aubrey?"
"You need to bring them over. It's- it's bad Stace, I'm sorry."
When the purple smoke cleared, Aubrey and Beca found themselves stood in the eerily quiet front of hall of Sam and Thea's home. It was an unsettling kind of silence, one that weighed heavy in the air and made every stand on end. Aubrey was tense as she gripped the stake in her hand a little tighter, Beca growling softly as her fangs dropped of their own accord. That could only mean one thing.
"Blood…" Beca mumbled, "And a lot of it. We should be careful."
"Yeah." Aubrey nodded, a lump in her throat, "Can you tell if anyone's alive in here?"
"No." Beca shook her head, "Not with your heartbeat as well. We'll just have to go in."
Aubrey nodded again, the two of them in tight formation as they walked through the dark house. It was a strange house to be dark and quiet when both Thea and Sam were so warm and full of life. The last time they had been here was Christmas, it had been a time of family togetherness and happiness but now… now it seemed like they'd stepped into a cold and empty void, one that terrified both of them more than they'd ever be willing to admit.
As they stepped into the living room, Aubrey's breath caught in her throat. It looked like a bomb had gone off, furniture was scattered across the room, wooden furniture smashed, glass shattered, fabric torn. Blood was on the walls, the carpet, splattered on the ceiling, driving Beca's vampire instincts into overdrive as she struggled momentarily against the monster that howled inside her as her fangs sharpened.
"Bree…"
Beca's eyes had fallen on something that made her stomach drop, Aubrey's gaze following hers to the same spot. She let out a small gasp, rushing forward and practically skidding across the carpet as she cupped a bloody cheek in her hand, pulling potions from Stacie's bag with the other. Beca's jaw clenched tight as she moved over to them more slowly. She could hear the thready heartbeat from here and it made her own break; they were too late.
"Just hold on Sam." Aubrey mumbled, trying to swallow the lump in her throat as her hands trembled, "You're okay just hang on."
Sam's breathing was shallow as he fought to keep his eyes open, deep cuts running the length of his body, looking like he had gone ten rounds with a bear. One arm was horribly mangled, hanging from him, his left eye was swollen shut, and his leg was broken in three places. Aubrey had pulled a yellow vial from the bag, moving to press it to his lips but Sam stopped with her with his good hand and a shake of his head.
"No." He mumbled, smiling sadly at her, "It's too late Aubrey… it's okay."
"It's not." Aubrey frowned deeply as she tried to give him the healing potion again, "It's not too late. Just drink this, I can wrap your arm and splint your leg until Stacie can heal them, and then-"
"Aubrey, listen to me." Sam didn't have the time to argue with Aubrey about this. There were things he had to tell her, "We got home from the Council… they were waiting for us. Alice and the- the one with all the tattoos. Thea and I- they overpowered us, they were too strong-"
Sam grunted as he adjusted his position a little, hand resting on top of Aubrey's as she tried to give him the potion again. Beca sat next to him, her hand resting on his good shoulder as she gave him a soft smile.
"The tattooed one, she lept at me and tore into me, I couldn't do- do anything to get her off…" Sam pursed his lips as he shook his head a little, "Alice- she took Thea. They have Thea, you- you have to rescue her."
Aubrey could feel bile rising in her throat as a tear streaked down Sam's cheek. They had Thea?
"We will." Aubrey nodded, "I promise, we'll get her back." Aubrey gave his hand a tight squeeze, "But you need to take this so you can help us, Thea's going to need you. We all are, just drink it Sam, please…"
"It's too late." Sam shook his head, the sad smile returning to his face, "I'm not upset about it, I've spent… the last thirty seven years with- my soulmate, with our f-family. I have no regrets… none except- I wish I could walk Stacie down the aisle to you."
Sam cupped Aubrey's cheek as she clenched her jaw against the loud sob trying to break free. She couldn't let Sam slip away like this, not just for Stacie and her brothers, but for her too. Sam was everything she'd wished her father could have been for her, he was the kindest, sweetest, most loving man she had ever known. He didn't deserve to die like this.
"There has to be something." Aubrey bit her lip, voice cracking a little, "I have all of Stacie's supplies, I can call her, Beca could-"
"It's okay." Sam cut her off as Beca tensed a little at the thought of turning Sam. She didn't want to do that, not to him, "I don't want eternity, I don't even want another day… promise me you'll rescue her? That you'll tell her I love her?"
"I promise." Aubrey nodded, unable to hold back her tears anymore, lip tugged between teeth, "I will do whatever it takes to get Thea back."
"You're a good kid." Sam smiled at her, "I know… I'm leaving my little girl in good… hands…"
"I will love her until my dying breath." Aubrey took Sam's hand in both of hers, holding it tight, "I swear I will protect her and care for her even if it costs my life. She's my whole world Sam, I've got her."
"I know." Sam mumbled, eyelids growing heavier, "I know you will. Tell Thea… to take her time. Savour her time with her… family before joining me. I'll wait forever and a day… to see her in the next life."
"Rest Sam." Beca gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze, Aubrey's words lost to her as she tried to swallow the lump in her throat again, "We've got it from here. You're family's safe with us."
"You're family too." Sam turned his head to look at Beca, "You all are… be careful girls. Don't- don't do anything r-reckless. Stacie needs- all of you now."
"We will." Beca nodded, pursing her lips together, "We're okay Sam. Let go… get a long earned rest."
"Thank you." Sam whispered, head lolling as Aubrey's fell forward to rest on his torn chest, shoulders shaking as she sobbed, "Till we meet again… Thea my love."
Sam's last breath left his lips, Aubrey sobbing loudly as he went limp underneath her, her heart broken in her chest as Beca rested her hand on her shoulder. Beca was devastated too, Sam had always been nothing but kind and warm with her and the fact that he considered her family… that meant more to Beca then she would have ever been able to explain to him.
"We- we need to call Stacie." Beca mumbled, wiping at her cheeks, "She needs to know. They all do."
"I- I can't tell her." Aubrey screwed her eyes shut as she tried to calm herself, "How… how do I tell her that her dad is dead and her mom has kidnapped by the strongest and evilest people we have ever come across. How do I tell her and break her heart like that?"
"We have to." Beca sighed heavily, resting her head on Aubrey's shoulder, "I hate it too, believe me I do but… we have to tell her so that we can rescue Thea and put an end to this whole mess. We have to make them pay for this, and for that Stacie needs to know."
"You're right." Aubrey sniffed hard, "I just… I need a minute…"
"I'll call her." Beca lifted her head, giving Aubrey's shoulder a little squeeze, "Get her to bring brothers over, we can all deal with this together."
"Thanks." Aubrey whispered, sniffling as she wiped at her cheeks furiously, "She needs me to not be falling apart, I just need a minute…"
"It's okay to be heartbroken too Bree…" Beca frowned a little as she squeezed her shoulder again, "You loved him too. Don't deprive yourself of dealing with your grief, trust me it's not a good idea. Otherwise you end up a two hundred and odd year old vampire with major commitment issues."
Aubrey cracked a small smile, letting her head rest on Beca's hand for a moment, "Okay. I'll bear that in mind… once we've sorted this mess out I'll make sure I'm not repressing anything."
"Good." Beca smiled at her, "I'm um… I'm gonna call Stace okay?"
Aubrey nodded as Beca got to her feet, sniffing still as she pulled her phone from her pocket and called Stacie.
"Beca? Are you guys okay?!"
"Is Mike with you still?" Hearing Stacie's voice immediately brought tears back into Beca's eyes. She sounded exhausted and stressed already and Beca was about to make her day so much worse…
"Y-yeah. Tony too, Chloe brought them over… Beca what's going on? Where's Aubrey?"
"You need to bring them over. It's- it's bad Stace, I'm sorry." Beca sighed softly, "I- I can't explain it all on the phone, it wouldn't be fair. Just- we love you okay? We'll see you in a minute."
"O-okay. See you soon."
Stacie hung up first, Beca pinching the bridge of her nose as she leant against the wall. This was awful, this whole situation was just fucking awful. Beca didn't know how they were going to recover from this, how they were supposed to rebuild Stacie and the rest of her family after such a cruel and unnecessary blow. But they would. They always did, Beca reminded herself. If anyone could fix this then it would be them. Once they tore Alice and her sisters apart.
Beca looked up as she heard a whooshing sound, her eyes meeting Stacie's as she and the rest of people that had be gathered at Michael's house stepped through one of Tony's portals. She looked distraught and fearful, her eyes searching Beca's face for any kind of definitive answer for what had happened. Aubrey was at her side, eyes red from crying as she forced a small smile onto her face.
"Hey…"
"What is, what happened?!" Stacie tried to push past Aubrey and into the living room, but Aubrey stood firm shaking her head a little.
"You don't want to see what's in there Stacie…" Aubrey whispered, feeling her heart break more as Stacie struggled against her.
"I need to know what's going on Bree! I need- I need to know they're-" Frustrated tears ran down Stacie's cheeks as she tried to get to the living room, to the room where some of her fondest memories of her family lay.
"Stacie…" Aubrey pulled her against her, hands cupping her face as she turned Stacie's attention to her and not the devastation that lay behind her, "I'm so sorry. We were too late, your dad… he didn't make it."
"No." Stacie shook her head, expression crumbling as she bit her lip, "No there has to be something I can do, I can fix this, I-"
"I'm sorry." Aubrey was crying again as she stroked her cheeks with her thumbs, "I'm so so sorry baby… he's gone."
"No." Stacie tried to push past Aubrey again, "No I have to see him, I have to see him Aubrey, let me go!"
"You don't want to see him like this Stacie, trust me." Aubrey tried to keep Stacie from the horrifying reality of Sam's injuries, but Stacie wrenched herself from her grip and into the living room.
She crumpled to her knees as she saw her dad, her sweet, loveable, goofball of a father, torn to shreds, butchered like an animal. She sobbed loudly, falling forward into his lap, and weeping as she hugged his waist, like she had done as a child when she was distressed. Except now her dad couldn't comfort her, he couldn't make this better, he couldn't ease the aching pain in her chest because he was gone… her dad was dead.
Aubrey moved towards her but Michael's hand on her shoulder stopped her in her tracks. He smiled sadly at her, his own tears flowing as he shook his head a little.
"I've got her. Just give her a minute okay?"
Aubrey nodded, arms wrapping around herself as she watched Michael lower himself to rub small circles into Stacie's back, her grief echoing around them. Beca was grateful as Chloe's arms wrapped around her waist, head resting against hers as she snuffled. Beca could be strong if she had Chloe to her, she could manage her grief and the situation around them as long as Chloe was there to hold her like this.
"I'm sorry Tony." Chloe pressed a soft kiss to Beca's cheek as she turned her head to look at Tony who was wrapped in Leo's arms. Olivia had moved gingerly over to Aubrey, her arms resting around her as her hand gently rubbed her arm in an attempt to comfort her, "Your dad he- he's the nicest guy I've ever met."
"Yeah." Tony nodded, slumped against Leo as he wept silently, "Yeah he really was… he- he didn't deserve that."
"No-one does." Beca shook her head, sniffing hard, "No-one but the assholes that did this."
"Alice and Calamity?" Chloe asked, Beca nodding a little.
"Yeah. How did you know?"
"Veracity was at Mike and Liv's, Charity at Tony's… I figured Alice and Calamity wouldn't be missing out on whatever this was." Chloe sighed heavily.
"Jesus." Aubrey looked up at the ceiling as she bit her lip, "What… what happened tonight? Why did they do this?"
"It can't just have been to grab Thea." Beca shook her head, "Can it? Would they have gone out of there way to split us all up like this just for fun?"
"Wait…" Tony lifted his head, "They have Mom?!"
"Yeah." Aubrey nodded, "Yeah Sam said Alice grabbed her and vanished as Calamity…" She couldn't finish the sentence. The mess around her did it for them.
"Fuck." Tony shook his head bitterly, "FUCK. What are we going to do? How do- how do we get Mom back?"
"Oh I'm so glad you asked…"
They all span round, Beca growling lowly as Alice stood in the middle of the living room, grinning cruelly at them all. Stacie was on her feet, an energy ball in each hand as rage became evident in every line of her. She threw them both at Alice, but they passed straight through her, hitting the wall on the far side of the living room.
"Please." Alice snorted, "You think I'd be stupid enough to be in the same room as you after tonight? Astral projection is really a very handy power to have…"
"I'll kill you." Stacie snarled, "I swear to god, I'll rip chucks from your body until there's nothing left!"
"My my… someone has quite the temper." Alice arched her eyebrow, "Surely you raised her with better manners than that Thea?"
The focus of the room was snapped to the mirage of Thea that appeared before them, Aubrey at Stacie's side as her knees went weak at the sight of her mom. Thea was badly bruised and beaten, a blindfold tied tightly around her head as she hung limply from her wrists. Thick chains were wrapped around them, presumably suspending her from a wall either side of her, Thea's breathing shallow and painful looking as pulled weakly at them.
"Say hello to your kiddies Thea… they're all here to see how weak you are." Alice sneered, Thea grunting as she tugged her head away from the hand Alice stroked down her cheek.
"Let her go." Michael lacked his usual calm and level-headed demeanour after the events of the night, shaking with anger as lightning crackled between his fingers, "Let her go, or we'll make the last moments of your pathetic existence ones of pure agony."
"Such bad manners…" Alice frowned, tutting softly, "Honestly Thea what have you been teaching them? Such irresponsible parenting deserves to be punished don't we think?"
"Leave her alone." Stacie's hands clenched tighter, "I swear you hurt anymore-"
"Shhh." Alice smirked, "You'll want to be paying attention to this…"
Without any further warning, Alice's hand pierced Thea's chest. Thea screamed and arched against the pain, hands grasping uselessly at the air as she twisted in a vain attempt to free herself from the pain being inflicted on her. Her children could do nothing but watched as Alice held her hand inside Thea's chest, seeming to revel in the screams of pain she was emitting. Eventually, as Thea fought for the breath she couldn't quite seem to catch, Alice withdrew her hand, a shimmering ball of light grasped tightly in it as she turned back to her audience.
"Now…" She smirked, "Pop quiz. Who can tell me what this is?"
"Put it back." Tony growled, Leo's hand resting protectively on his shoulder, "You have no right…"
"To mommy's magic?" Alice pouted at him tauntingly, "I think I do. After all, I do hold it the palm of my hand."
"We will hunt you down…" Stacie was trembling with anger, eyes burning with a hate none of them had ever seen before, "You won't get away with this, we're going to kill you, far more slowly and painfully than we did your mom, you'll spend centuries in a pain you can't even begin to comprehend."
"You are adorable." Alice cooed, placing the ball of light in her hand into a container to her left, locking it tightly once she had, "Really, I can see why Girl Wonder is so smitten with you."
Aubrey said nothing but did move closer to Stacie, stance protective as she glared at the witch before them.
"Now, there is a way you can have what's left of mommy dearest back rather than me wiping her memories and dropping her in a desert somewhere…" Alice played with her fingernails looking a little bored as she glanced up from them, "It's simple really. We'll give you Thea… if little Stacie Conrad comes to us willingly on her own."
"No way." Aubrey cut in before Stacie could answer, "Not a chance in hell."
"I don't believe it's your decision Blondie." Alice huffed, "You have twelve hours little Conrad. Either you come and take your mom's place, or she ends up in some god forsaken desert with no memories and no chance of survival. If you want to do the right thing, there's a portal waiting open for you at the corner of Eighth and Mercer. I'm sure we'll be seeing you soon."
"Don't-" Thea croaked, anything else she might have said lost as the apparition disappeared.
Stacie rounded on Aubrey, anger in her expression, "I'm going, there's no discussion about this Aubrey, I'm going to save Mom."
"No you're not." Aubrey shook her head, understanding where Stacie was coming from and why she wanted to do this, but she couldn't let her, "You are not sacrificing yourself like this."
"Like hell I'm not!" Stacie yelled, eyes blazing, "This is my decision Aubrey, not yours. She is my mom, this is my family, just because you wouldn't lift a finger for yours-"
"Hey!" Michael cut in, frowning softly as Aubrey seemed to physically flinch, "Stace… we can't let you do this. We all want to bring Mom home, but she'll kill us if we let you do this. She wouldn't want this."
"I don't care!" Stacie growled, "This is my call! I'm the one putting her life on the line, there's nothing anything of you can say that's going to change my mind! You don't get it!"
"I do…" Chloe smiled softly as she put her hand on Stacie's arm, "My first year of college, I was down in Georgia and my parents got into an awful car crash here… I wasn't here when they died, there was nothing I could've done but… it's stayed with me all this time. I would sacrifice myself in a heartbeat to bring them back Stace, to even just have five more minutes with them but… it wouldn't be the right thing to do. It's the emotional thing to do, and that's never the right call. We will find a way to rescue Thea, we will bring her home but… not like this. Please Stacie, not like this."
"I- I-" Stacie pursed her lips as Aubrey moved forwards again, Stacie finally letting her wrap her in her arms as she broke down. Her family had been torn apart and there was nothing she could do to change that, no matter how much she wanted to, "I just want my mom back… I want my dad, I want this whole night to never have happened…"
"I know baby." Aubrey mumbled into her hair as she held her tightly, "I know… I'm sorry Stacie, I wish I could change this for you, I wish I could fix it."
Stacie wept in her arms as Aubrey hugged her tightly, pressing soft kisses into the crown of her head as she cried with her. They were all crying, each of them lost in grief and a sense of profound loss and hopelessness as they tried to see a way forward. Because it certainly wasn't by sending Stacie there on her own, that was not an option. But what else could they do?
"We… we need to get you guys somewhere safe." Chloe cleared her throat a little as she gave a sad smile to the others, "Somewhere Alice and the rest of them can't get to you until we can figure out how to rescue Thea and take them down."
"What about the Academy?" Olivia offered, head resting in the crook of Michael's neck as she stroked her hand up and down his still bruised arm, "If they don't Ellie's there, or if they can't get in, it seems ideal."
"Good idea." Aubrey nodded softly, Stacie's weeping far less soul wrenching as she leant against her, "You guys can stay there, we'll clear things with the Dean. Then I'll ring Mom when we get back to the office, keep the Council in the loop while we try and figure things out."
"There's a Council?" Leo frowned, Tony chuckling softly as he cupped one of his cheeks in his hand, "God this whole magic thing sure is complicated…"
"Yeah." Tony nodded, "But I'll try and explain it you once we've had some rest. I'll get us to the Academy, I've got a portal license for the grounds because I use them to teach sometimes, Mike and I can talk to the Dean. You guys just focus on Mom, let us know when you have a plan."
"Are you sure?" Aubrey frowned a little.
"Positive." Tony nodded, "You're not the only one with pull with the Dean y'know?"
"Fair enough." Aubrey smiled softly, "Take care okay? Let us know when you guys have settled in."
"Of course." Michael nodded, "What… what about Dad I- I don't want to just leave him here…"
"The Council will know what to do." Aubrey reassured him, "They'll prepare all the rights and the ceremony for when we've rescued Thea, they've done this before."
"He'll get full honours right?" Michael mumbled, "Even if he didn't have a seat on the Council? Because- because it's the least he deserves…"
"I'll make sure of it." Aubrey's voice was thick as she felt Stacie begin to shake again with tears, "He gave his life for the greater good, he dedicated his life to helping innocent people… no way I'm letting him get anything less than full honours."
"Thanks." Michael smiled tightly, "Seriously I- thank you."
"He was a good man." Aubrey held Stacie tighter, "A truly good and honest man. It's the least I can do."
Once they had returned from Sam and Thea's home, Vampire Hunters Incorporated found their office in disarray. It looked it had been ransacked, and as they stepped through the damage a sickening realisation settled on them; the barrier to Thea's private collection had been broken, and all the ancient and dangerous magic that had been in their protection was gone.
"Shit…" Beca mumbled, "This… this is why they split us up like that. They knew it would suck up a huge chunk of time as we tried to figure out what the fuck was going on…"
"This is not good." Aubrey shook her head, having just finished a phone call with her mother who was temporarily taking over duties as the Head of the Council until Thea had been rescued, "The protection spells for the Academy were in there, if they wanted to break in there now…"
"There's no sense in catastrophising." Chloe gently cut in with a soft smile, "We work with what we know, we figure out where they're keeping Thea and then we go and get her. Chances are that we can recover what they've stolen at the same time."
Stacie had said nothing, curled up on a sofa as she stared into the middle distance, grief weighing heavy on her. Aubrey sat next to her, taking one of her hands in hers as she gently brushed her hair from her face.
"We'll find her Stacie. I promised your dad we would, I intend to keep that promise."
"Okay." Stacie sounded a little unconvinced but that didn't stop her moving until she was curled up in Aubrey's arms, sniffing softly as she rested her head on her shoulder, "I'm sorry for getting mad at you for stopping me going after them on my own."
"You don't have to apologise." Aubrey shook her head a little, fingers running through her hair, "Not ever okay? You're grieving, you're scared, you want to rescue your mom, how can I be mad at you for any of that?"
"I'm glad I still have you…" Stacie whispered, "I couldn't lose you too."
"You're not going to." Aubrey promised her, "I'm right here, I'm not going anywhere."
Stacie took a few minutes in Aubrey's to try and feel strong again, before pulling away a little and giving her a small, grateful smile.
"Thank you." She kissed her cheek softly, "For just… for being you." Stacie sniffed again as she sighed heavily, getting up from the sofa, "I'm going to make us all something to drink, and then we can… use what's left to try and figure out where Mom is."
"What a shit day…" Beca mumbled as Stacie disappeared upstairs, leaning against Chloe as she sniffed sadly, "A really fucking shit day…"
"Yeah…" Chloe sighed, "It really is. But we'll get through it together. We always do."
About half an hour later, Stacie sighed heavily, letting the book in her hands fall to the desk with a soft thunk, head in her hands.
"This is ridiculous… I- I don't even know where to begin looking, what if we all went through the portal together? Hit them with everything we have?"
"They'll be expecting that." Aubrey shook her head, "If we do that we could be killing Thea before we've even had a chance to throw a single energy ball."
Stacie got up from the table, pinching the bridge of her nose as Aubrey followed her, concern in her features as she rested her hands on Stacie's shoulders.
"We have a solution, they gave us a really clear one Bree…" Stacie mumbled, "We could a figure a way around it, a way so that I wasn't actually sacrificing myself-"
"No." Aubrey shook her head, resting it on Stacie's shoulder, "It's too dangerous, you know it is… your dad would never forgive if I let you do this."
"I just want to save the one parent I have left…" Stacie's voice was small as she turned to look at Aubrey, "Is that so wrong?"
"No Stace…" Aubrey shook her head a little, resting her forehead against Stacie's, "Of course not. Just- just promise me you won't do anything reckless? I couldn't bear the thought of you getting hurt or- just promise me?"
Stacie pulled Aubrey into a deep kiss, tears running down her cheeks as she did, "I'm sorry…" She whispered against Aubrey's lips as she pulled away, "I wish I could promise you that…"
Aubrey's heart thudded in her chest as she realised she couldn't move a single muscle, eyes filling with panicked tears as Stacie cupped her face in her hands.
"I have a plan. I promise I do, I- I have to do this Bree… I'm so sorry." Stacie bit her lip, hating the lengths she had to go to in order to rescue her mom, but knowing in her heart of hearts that it was the right call to make.
She glanced over Aubrey's shoulder to where Beca and Chloe were slumped against each other, fast asleep thanks to the sleeping draught she had slipped into their coffees. She had debated doing the same to Aubrey, but she had to be able to apologise to her, to say goodbye properly. She couldn't leave without saying goodbye, she knew now how much it hurt not getting to say goodbye.
"I love you so much." Stacie sniffled, "And I know you're mad at me right now, I get it, if the situation was reversed I'd be furious with you… but there isn't another way to do this Bree. I have to rescue Mom, I know you understand that. You are my everything, I promise everything will work out, you just have to trust me here. The sleeping draught will wear off in about an hour, two at the most, and I should be back by then, but if it's just Mom then… then know that I will never ever stop loving you Aubrey Posen. Not for a single moment, not even in death."
Stacie kissed Aubrey again, forcing herself to pull away as she took a shuddering breath, cupping Aubrey's cheek as she gently wiped a tear away and forcing a watery smile.
"I love you." She whispered, turning her back and walking out of the front door.
In her head all Aubrey could do was wail in despair as she remained frozen in place, helpless to do anything but watch as Stacie left to sacrifice herself to Gail's daughters. No… she couldn't do this, she couldn't leave, she couldn't go headfirst in certain danger…
A tear slid down Aubrey's cheek. Stacie couldn't be gone… it couldn't end like this for them.