Obligatory disclaimer: I freaking wish I owned this ! The closest thing I'll claim is being Satan's little sister :) I just take the characters and play with them.

No, your eyes do not deceive you, I have updated two days in a row! This one's a short one but it's important because she's thinking everything over and to be honest, it was exhausting to write. Clai (Ziny-DiNozzo) and I have an agreement about her posting a sequel to a one-shot so this means you not only get lots of updates from me but a new one from her! So you should thank us, we're awesome :) (for the record, Clai- 11:59pm, I barely made it!)

Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed- Kelly, Clai, ladysmirnoff, campkgurl, luvlexi714, kirei28 and kikky, as well as to those who added me to their favourites or subscribed! A huge thanks also goes out to all of you for your support through the copying crap.

An hour or two later Meredith awoke feeling refreshed and realizing that she had just had the best sleep in a while in Addison's arms. Not wanting to move and wake her as she looked exhausted too, she just sat and thought about everything that had happened lately. She had drowned, her mom had died, she had split with Derek and she had developed a great friendship with Addison. Addison had become her protector and her confidant, in some ways understanding her more than Cristina ever could. She made sure that she took care of herself and was one of the best things that had happened to her. She had been drinking less and that was definitely Addison's influence.

Molly and sweet little Laura had come to play a huge role in her life, welcoming her into the family with open arms. She had just gotten to know Lexie and had been getting along quite well with Susan. Drs. Bailey and Weber had grown increasingly protective of her and even Derek had started to give her space. So much had happened in so little time and she hadn't had a chance to think about it. Here in Addison's arms, where she was comfortable, she slowly started to go over the last few weeks.

Derek. Oh, that man! McDreamy one second, McAss the next! Meredith shook her head. He had swooped in and broken down her defenses after that night at the bar and then crushed her heart into tiny pieces when Addison had shown up and she had found out he was married. Yet still she pined for him, craved him, leading to her becoming a real dirty mistress at prom. Then he had divorced Addison and she had chosen him over Finn and his plans because it was Derek that she truly loved. Down the road she could see them with kids and a house on his land, even if she would never admit it to him. She had fallen into the Bay, drowned, came back to life and then that was it. He was done, he couldn't go through losing her again, he couldn't help her breathe and get over her near-death whatever. Instead he had to leave her alone, to abandon her and blame everything that had ever gone wrong in their relationship on her! Yet still after all that, after him calling her a whore after the second time and causing her harm, her heart still beat a little faster when he was around. She knew it was wrong, knew it was a habit but it still did and she had no doubt that if it weren't for Addison's presence, Derek would have come after her and they would be together again.

Now Susan was gone and there was no longer anyone she could count on for mothering, except for Molly. Molly was a spitfire just like her mother and Meredith had no doubt that she would be over at the house as soon as she possibly could be, making sure that Meredith was out of bed and not moping around. Her heart twisted a little at the realization that Susan was gone. There would be no more walking into the kitchen in the morning to see her restocking her cupboards, no more talks about how big Laura was getting. Sure, she had really disliked Susan at first but the woman had grown on her and she had been an awesome fake mommy!

She let out a sigh as she thought about Thatcher. That man would never redeem himself in her eyes after what he had done. She understood completely that he was irrational with grief from his wife's death but to strike his own daughter... even she, Meredith dark-and-twisty-I-probably-deserved-it Grey, got that that was wrong! Of course now she was worried about how he would treat Lexie and Molly in his grief.

She had a nagging feeling that he had exchanged words with Addison, as she had had a lot of things to say about him considering that she had talked to him twice previously and for no more than 10 minutes each time. Meredith couldn't help but wonder exactly what had been said between the two; Addie looked stressed even now in her sleep. As much as she wanted to know what had happened she didn't want to find it out from the nurses so she resolved to just ask Addison when they got home. Speaking of home...

"Addie, wake up. It's getting late, we should go," she shook Addison's shoulder gently.

Addison opened her eyes groggily. "Hm... what?"

"It's late, we should go home and get some food. There's leftover chicken from when Sus-" Meredith choked up and couldn't finish Susan's name. Addison hugged her again tightly and then they got off of the gurney to head upstairs, Meredith tucked securely under Addison's arm.

As they made their way to and from the locker rooms, no one said a word to them about what had happened, sensing that the duo needed time to themselves. Besides, after Addison's outburst they had been reminded of why she was called Satan.

The ride back home was filled with comfortable silence until they walked through the front door and saw the message light on the machine flashing. Not wanting to deal with anyone until the morning, Meredith unplugged the machine and the phone before wandering into the kitchen to lean on the counter next to Addison.

"Who was it?"

Meredith shrugged. "I don't know, I didn't listen."

"Mer..."

"Drop it Addie, I'll listen to them in the morning, okay?"

Addison sighed. "Fine, but first thing, okay?"

"Yes, mother."

Dinner was eaten in yet another silence before they went their separate ways to bed, the threat of dealing with the day's aftermath tomorrow looming over them.