Chains clinked as Thea tried to ease the ache in her shoulders. She was in pain from head to foot, all of it a dull throb now. The blindfold had been tugged sharply from her head, leaving her to stare blankly at cold stone walls, alone with her thoughts and the memories of the horror that had gotten her here.

She didn't know how long it had been since they had snatched her from her living room, since they had ripped the magic from her chest, but that didn't matter. All that mattered was that her family was safe, that no matter what happened Stacie didn't sacrifice herself to save her. They wouldn't let her do that, Aubrey wouldn't let her… maybe they'd find another way to rescue her, but if they didn't then that was okay. At least they were safe.

Her mind wandered to Sam. He'd be okay without her, right? He had the boys and Stacie, he had Aubrey, Beca, and Chloe. They'd make sure that he wasn't alone when she was gone. She hadn't been able to reach him before Alice's hand had wrapped around her throat, but she hadn't seen Calamity since they'd gotten here… he was okay, Sam would protect their family from Gail's daughters. He was the strongest man she knew.

Everything would be okay. They'd work this out without her, they'd survive even if she wasn't there to help them. Her family was going to be okay in the long run.

"Look what I found skulking around the place…"

Thea's head snapped up, watching in horror as Serenity dragged a woman into the room by her hair. No… that wasn't just any woman. It was Stacie.

"No." Thea whispered, "No Stacie… what've you done?"

Stacie grunted as Serenity threw her forward, hitting the ground in front of her struggling mother as she tried to free herself to protect Stacie.

"What I had to." Stacie smiled sadly at her, wincing a little as she rubbed at her wrist, "It's okay Mom."

"No." Thea shook her head furiously, tears welling in her eyes as she tugged weakly at the chains around her wrists, "I won't let you do this."

"And what exactly are you going to do about it?" Alice hummed, eyebrow raised tauntingly as she and the rest of her sisters joined Serenity, "She made her choice, she's here to swap places with mommy dearest."

"No!" Thea spat, eyes blazing angrily, "I won't allow it. Let her go!"

"You're powerless Althea." Charity smirked, "You're weak even with your magic and now… there really isn't a point to you is there?"

"Leave her alone." Stacie growled, going to get to her feet but emitting a gasp of pain as a foot slammed into her back, forcing her to the ground again, "I'm here now… just let her go, that was the deal."

"She's right." Alice mused, "We did have a deal…"

Stacie watched as Alice stepped behind Thea, every muscle in her body tense as she clenched her jaw against the fear swelling inside her. She would never let them see how terrified she was of them.

"One Conrad for another…" Alice's fingers ran down Thea's arms, Thea still twisting fruitlessly as she tried to free herself. She couldn't let Stacie do this, she couldn't let her daughter give her life for hers. She couldn't lose another daughter.

"But now I have you…" Alice raised her eyebrow, Stacie's eyes locked with hers as her chest began to pound, "I don't have to hold up my end of the deal do I?"

Alice's hands moved quickly towards Thea's head, intending to strip her of her memories while her daughter watched on. But Stacie moved faster, a green vial flying from her hand and landing at Thea's feet, consuming her in a plume of purple smoke. As it cleared, the chains that once bound her mother tightly in place fell limp with a clatter, Alice staring at the empty space in disbelief. Thea was gone, safely out of harm's way as Stacie reached to grab the second transportation potion from her boot where she had hidden it.

She wasn't fast enough this time, Calamity on top of her and wrestling with her to get the potion from her grip. Stacie grunted softly as she tried to throw her off, wrist flicking as the weight on top of her lifted, but only for a moment, Calamity replaced by Charity and Serenity, one clawed hand tight around her throat, another roughly pulling at her fingers, bending them sharply backwards until the potion slipped from her fingers.

Stacie choked on the breath re-entering her lungs as she was dragged roughly to her feet, arms pinned behind her back by Charity, glaring daggers at Alice who forcefully gripped her chin in her hand, Stacie's potion held in front of her tauntingly.

"That was a very sneaky little trick." She sneered, "I'm almost impressed. But you're not going anywhere Anastasia, oh no…"

Stacie watched as Alice crumbled the potion in her hand, a wisp of purple smoke following the shards of broken glass to the floor.

Shit.

She was trapped.

Her plan had been to grab Thea and take them both out of here with one potion, but she'd packed a second just in case she'd had to make a move like that to make sure her mom got out alive. She'd never intended to stay with them, to sacrifice herself so willingly, she'd promised Aubrey she had a plan…

Stacie writhed against Charity, hissing softly as Alice's fingers dug harder into her chin. She could still get out of here, Stacie still had a chance. She flicked her wrists again, Charity flying backwards into the wall as Stacie moved her fist towards Alice's face. But they were ready for her. The chains that had once held Thea snaked forward at a frightening speed, winding around her swinging arm and yanking so that she fell forwards.

Before she could rail against them, find a spell that would at the very least free herself if not turn the chains on the witches controlling them, Stacie found her wrists bound tightly above her head, crying out as they squeezed her wrists until there was an audible snap. Tears stung the corner of her eyes as she kept struggling, trying to channel healing magic into her broken wrists as Hunter whistled in alarm, her feet barely touching the ground.

"Now then…" Alice watched Stacie's fearful fighting with cold amusement, Hunter squeaking as Charity trapped him in a small glass box, a minute replica of the one Stacie had almost drowned in, "Are you going to be annoying the whole time? Because we have a lot to do, we can't be spending all our time babysitting you to make sure you're behaving…"

"Leave him alone!" Stacie snarled as she watched Charity shake the container that Hunter was trapped in like a snow globe, "Get off him!"

"Make me." Charity sneered.

Stacie started to struggle harder, ignoring the blinding pain in her wrists as she did, fingers extending as she tried to summon something, anything, that she could throw at the smug vampire taunting her familiar. Alice sighed dramatically, stepping forwards again and resting her hand on her chest, Stacie's attention snapping to her as a sense of dread filled her.

"I wanted to do this later…" Alice pouted a little, "But I have far too much to do, so it'll have to be now…"

Thea grunted as she landed in a heap on concreate. The cold breeze of the spring air stirred her from the aching of her body, frowning a little as she lifted her head. Where was she? More importantly, where was Stacie?

"Stacie…" Thea mumbled as she looked around her, stomach swooping as she realised she couldn't see her daughter anywhere, "No… no Stacie, please…"

Her eyes found a familiar green sign, the gold lettering of "Vampire Hunters Inc." calling her forwards. She had to get inside, to get Aubrey and Beca and Chloe, and go and rescue Stacie. She couldn't leave her there with them.

Finding strength from somewhere, Thea pushed herself shakily to her feet, one arm around her waist in an attempt to soothe her throbbing ribs, the other steadying herself against the front of the building as she staggered to the door. Almost there. Just a little further and then they could save Stacie.

Her hand grasped the handle tightly, pushing the door open and half-falling into office. Thea felt three pairs of eyes on her as her knees gave way underneath her, any strength she had found now gone. A pair of arms slid under her armpits as she collapsed, Thea's head resting on Beca's shoulder as she helped her to the sofa.

"No…"

Thea lifted her head to see Aubrey stiffly moving her limbs, Chloe's hands steadying her as she took a stumbling step forward. Thea recognised those movements… a freezing charm…

"No…" Aubrey whispered tearfully, "No, where is she, she said she had a plan, Thea where is she?!"

"I-" Thea shook her head, pursing her lips together, "I don't know. I think… I think they got her."

"No." Aubrey shook her head furiously as Chloe tried to soothe her, looking as groggy as Beca did, Beca gently pressing a healing potion into Thea's hand, "No she can't be… she promised me-"

Aubrey's sentence ended with a scream of agony, knees buckling as she clutched at her chest. She could feel a pair of hands catching her, could half make out the sound of Chloe's voice, but the pain was so white-hot, so debilitating that it blinded her, shutting everything else out. In that moment, she could see Stacie, see her writhing and screaming, her own cries of agony mingled with Aubrey's.

Alice's hand was in her chest, Aubrey could feel it like it had plunged into her own, writhing and grasping and tearing as she tried to catch her breath but each twist and slice of Alice's fingers seemed to drive what little oxygen she had from her body. Aubrey had never been in this much pain in her life, and it was only magnified by the fact that she could feel every ounce of agony that Stacie was in too. Why was this happening? What were they doing to her?

And then, as abruptly as it had begun, the pain disappeared. Aubrey collapsed into Chloe's arms, pulled tight to her friend's chest as she sobbed heavily, trembling and panting from the exertion of having that much pain rolling through her.

"Bree? Are you okay?" Chloe whispered into her hair, eyes full of fearful concern as Aubrey gripped the front of her t-shirt.

"N-no…" Aubrey shook her head, "I- I can't- I can't feel her anymore…"

Aubrey tried as hard as she could to reach through her soulmate bond for Stacie, to find a trace of something that would let her know that she was okay, but all she found was a crushing emptiness. It was as if a piece of her soul had been ripped from her, chest tight as she tried to understand the implications of that.

"W-why can't I feel her?" Aubrey looked like a frightened child as she turned to Thea who was crying softly.

"They took her magic…" Thea whispered, "Your bond is rooted in it, without her magic… you can't reach her anymore."

"No…" Aubrey slumped forward, head bowed as she wept, "No they can't- she needs her magic I-"

"Aubrey your chest…" Beca frowned softly, "Does that hurt, do you need something for it?"

"What?" Aubrey mumbled, looking down to see the angry red scar stretching from her collarbone down into her t-shirt, "Oh…"

"Snap." Thea muttered, pulling her jacket open a little so an almost identical scar was revealed.

"They… they're going to kill her." Aubrey shook her head, pushing herself shakily to her feet, "We have to go, we have to go now, she can't defend herself without her magic, I can't…"

"You should never have let her go." Thea was starting to shake a little as she watched Aubrey with an expression none of them had seen before, something akin to cold contempt.

"What?" Aubrey frowned a little, feeling anger starting to swell inside her.

"You heard me." Thea's eyes grew dark as she got to her feet, staring Aubrey down, "How the hell could you let her go?!"

"Let her?!" Aubrey growled, "You think I let her do this?! She used a damn freezing charm on me, she drugged Beca and Chloe, none of us had a say in it! You're the one that left her there!"

"How dare you!" Thea stepped forward, teeth gritted together, "You didn't think to use your damn bond to channel the magic to break the charm?! You had options, I have been beaten and tortured, they stole my magic too, what the hell was I supposed to do when she threw that potion?!"

"Oh please!" Aubrey's eyes were narrow as she matched Thea's hostile stance, glaring her down, "It's your fault we're here in the first place! You're the head of the damn Council and you've given us nothing to help take Gail's daughters down, if you weren't so inept-"

"Enough!" Chloe stepped between them, voice raised as she glowered at both of them, "Stop it! None of this is anyone's fault! You're both scared and hurting, we all are, but that does not give you the right to talk to each other like this!"

Thea opened her mouth and then promptly closing it again as her angry words died on her tongue. Aubrey turned away from her, expression full of pain and guilt as she ran a hand through her hair.

"Stacie made a decision." Chloe's tone was calmer now but contained no less emotion as Beca rested her hand on the small of her back, "She- she decided to go. There's nothing that can be done to change that now. I don't like it any more than you do, but that's the way it is. So instead of screaming at each other, can we just… can we figure out a way to fix this?"

Beca gently pulled Chloe into her arms as the tears that she had been fighting back started to overwhelm her. This was not something that any of them wanted, she and Chloe had woken in a panic to find Aubrey unable to move and Stacie missing and that had terrified both of them to the core. This was the worst case scenario for all of them.

"I don't think they'll kill her." Beca stroked Chloe's back as she addressed all of them, jaw square, "They've had so many opportunities to kill us before now… it doesn't make sense that they would, they're building to something big, something that involves us. So, as fucking terrifying as it is that she's alone and without her magic… we have time."

Thea sank into the sofa, exhausted and in pain despite the fact that her injures had satiated a little with the healing potion that Beca had given her. Aubrey swallowed the lump in her throat as she joined Thea, head resting gently on her shoulder as she sniffed, unable to stop the tears running down her cheeks.

"I'm sorry." Aubrey whispered, "I'm really sorry, I-"

"It's okay." Thea wrapped her arms tightly around Aubrey despite the aches in her body, "I'm sorry too. I know this isn't your fault, I shouldn't have blamed you. That girl is… wilful, once she had that idea in her head nothing could have stopped her."

"Did… did they hurt her while you were there? Do you think they're hurting her now?" Aubrey was shaking a little as Thea shushed her, her head buried in the crook of her neck.

"Don't torture yourself with this Aubrey." Thea stroked her hair a little, glancing over at Beca and Chloe who looked similarly distressed, "It won't do any of us any good to think about the what ifs."

"We should get out of here." Beca sighed heavily, Chloe lifting her head from where it had rested on her shoulder, "We're sitting ducks without Stacie and her magic, we know they can get in here."

"But where do we go?" Chloe frowned, "Our own home isn't safe… where else is there?"

"The Academy." Aubrey pulled away from Thea, clenching her jaw tight as she brushed her tears from her cheeks. She had to pull herself together. They'd never be able to rescue Stacie if she kept falling apart like this.

"I thought Chloe and I couldn't go there?" Beca asked.

"You couldn't." Aubrey got up, digging through her bag and pulling out a brown parcel, "Not until they had these amulets made. They're stronger than the necklaces you're wearing now, but I'd keep both on just in case."

She handed the box to Beca who passed on of the amulets to Chloe, settling the other around her own neck. She looked curiously at the gold setting, turning it in her fingers as the stone within it glowed green.

"There's a lot of jewellery wearing in this vampire hunting business…" She mumbled.

Chloe giggled softly as she took Beca's hand, pressed into her side. It was the little things that soothed her now, when the world was terrifying and things seemed a little dire, all it took was Beca's fingers brushing over her hand or her spine to give her the strength she needed to get through it.

"Where are the boys?" Thea ran a hand through her hair, trying to push back the blanket of exhaustion long enough to check the rest of her family were okay.

"They're at the Academy too." Aubrey was packing books and potions into her bag, trying to make sure they had everything before they left, "We wanted to make sure they were safe while we tried to rescue you."

"Thank you." A soft smile tugged at Thea's lips, "I just want to lie in Sam's arms for a bit, I'll feel better then."

A look was exchanged between Aubrey, Beca and Chloe, their stomachs dropping. Thea didn't know… and they had to be the ones to tell her.

Aubrey sighed heavily as she set down the blade that she had been carefully wrapping to stow in a bag, going back to Thea and gently taking her hand in hers as she sat next to her.

"Thea… while Alice and Calamity were attacking you, Veracity was doing the same with Mike and Liv, and Charity with Tony and Leo."

"What?" The colour drained from Thea's face, her hand starting to shake in Aubrey's, "Are they okay?!"

"Leo was a little beat up, but he's okay now. Tony found him like that when he got home." Chloe smiled softly, sadness in her expression as she knelt in front of Thea, gently rubbing her knee as Beca sat on her other side.

"Liv… she lost the baby." Aubrey shook her head a little, her stomach churning. That wasn't even the worst of it.

"Oh god…" Thea hung her head, tears welling in the corner of her eyes.

"I went to check on Tony and Leo while Stacie went to try and save Mike and Liv's baby." Chloe could see Aubrey faltering a little, "When no-one could get in touch with you and Sam, Beca and Aubrey went to check on you."

"We-" Aubrey tried to maintain her composure as the memory of what they had found flashed in her mind's eye, "We-"

"We were too late." Beca's gaze met Thea's, hating the way she could the realisation hitting her like a two tonne weight.

"No." Thea's voice was barely above a whisper, her body seeming to crease inwards with grief, "No, please…"

"I'm so sorry." Aubrey shook her head, tears running freely, "Sam died."

"No!" Thea choked out a sob, crumpling as they watched on, trying in vain to soothe her. How could they? She had lost the love of her life.

"No, he can't be. It's a mistake, a trick, I- I need to see him, I can fix this." Thea started to try and get up, but Beca stopped her, hand squeezing her shoulder.

"Trust me Thea." She sighed softly, "You don't want to see him like that. They- they butchered him. That's not how you want to remember him, trust me on this."

"I-" Thea's head drooped as she started to shake from head to foot, sobs starting to overwhelm her, "He can't- I need him, he can't-"

"I'm sorry." Aubrey murmured, "I'm so sorry Thea."

Thea seemed to disintegrate in front of them, the hearts of everyone around her breaking. Thea was a strong, formidable woman, one that all of them inspired to be like in some way. When she had been appointed to the head of the Council none of them had even thought to question the idea, there was no better person to lead them, any of them, through a crisis.

But now, after being attacked in her own home, after her family had been under siege, after having her magic forcibly ripped from her, after losing her husband of more than thirty years and after her daughter had sacrificed herself to save her… Thea was broken, and none of them could blame her for that. All they could do was watch on as her hollow and heart-wrenching sobs echoed around the office, any attempt to soothe her seeming futile in the face of all the horror and trauma she had been through.

"Did… did he say anything to you?" Thea mumbled, voice hoarse when her sobs finally subsided enough to find her words again, "Was he alive when… when you…"

"He said…" Aubrey swallowed thickly as Thea's eyes found hers, heart breaking as she saw the pleading desperation for something that made this any less awful, "He said… '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'."

Thea let out a shaky gasp, shaking her head a little, "It doesn't feel real… he can't- he can't just be gone."

"I'm so sorry." Beca sniffed a little, grateful for Chloe's hand gently caressing her thigh, "I swear, we're not going to let them get away with this Thea."

"They already have…" Thea sighed, wiping at the tears on her cheeks, "They destroyed my home, killed my husband, hurt my family… things will never be the same again, they've broken it all…"

"No." Chloe shook her head a little, taking Thea's hands in hers and frowning softly, "No Thea. Maybe things won't be exactly the same, there's nothing we can do to bring Sam back, but that doesn't mean that it's broken for good. We can fix this, we always fix things… it just takes time. Trust me."

Thea looked up from her hands, heart heavy in her chest as she looked at Chloe, at all of them and saw the same grief reflected back at her. They had all lost something important today, they had all been through hell, they were all lost and in pain… how the hell were they supposed to come through this?

"Let's… let's go to the Academy." Thea mumbled, head dropping again as she sniffed hard, "I want to see the boys…"

"Of course." Aubrey nodded a little, "Give me five more minutes to pack up and then we're gone. We'll figure this out. We're getting her back, if it's the last thing I do."

"Mom…"

Tony was at his mother's side in an instant, supporting her against him as he took her from Beca. Michael was quickly next to them too, the brother's sharing a look as they realised what this meant for Stacie.

When they had arrived at the Academy, the Dean had been more than happy to accommodate them. A set of rooms had been provided for them to work out of, several with beds in for the Conrads and their guests, and for Aubrey and her team when they arrived. They had a huge library, a weapons cache, centuries of ancient texts kept safe under their protection spells, all of which was available to them whenever they needed it. They were all exhausted and grieving, but the second they saw Thea and the barely healed injuries it was like someone had lit a fire underneath them. They had to rescue Stacie.

"Are you okay?" Tony asked softly, easing Thea onto a nearby bed and gently moving her hair from her face, "Can I get you something?"

"I'm okay." Thea smiled sadly at Tony, cupping his cheek in her hand, "You're so much like your father…"

Tony pursed his lips as he pressed his face into Thea's hand, "I'm sorry mom… I'm sorry, there was nothing we could do."

"It's not your fault." Thea shook her head, tears rolling down her cheeks, "Any of you… I just want to sleep now, I'm exhausted…"

"Of course." Aubrey's arms wrapped around herself as she nodded, "Get some rest Thea, I'll get someone from the med wing to come and see you later. We'll start figuring things out, we'll loop you in when you've rested a little."

"No." Thea shook her head, "No there's something you need to know. Something I should've told Stacie a long time ago. Something… something Sam has been pushing me to tell her for years."

"What is it?" Beca pushed gently, watching Aubrey stiffen, her expression unreadable.

"I…" Thea sighed heavily, "I should've told her. Maybe she wouldn't have been so reckless if I'd just told her…"

"Mom." Michael sat next to her, taking her hand in his, "Just tell us. It's okay."

"Okay." Thea nodded a little, "I… I guess it's pretty simple really. But it changes everything…"