Well folks, I'm back again with another instalment. I'm going to try and just bash through this story now before I lose momentum. Huge thank you as always to my lovely reviewers and to those hitting the follow/favourite buttons. Joannrbb, thank you for sticking with me, I'm glad you're still with me after the long gap. Mustwe, I'm glad my little cameo hasn't put you off, I know it was likely going to get mixed reactions and a warm welcome to Tyorlean and Metaz, so chuffed you've found my stories and took the time to comment.

Chapter Twelve

For several lingering moments, like a wraith looking out onto a bygone world in which it found it no-longer belonged, she watched silently from the shadows, simply drinking in the sight that had once seemed as probable as a fairy tale springing forth from its parchment; the very real vision of a mother and daughter cruelly parted exchanging warm words and touches of comfort. There was a time where she could never have dared hope that such a thing was possible but she had made it so and now at least she could take that knowledge with her, come what may. The two women she held dearest in her heart would remain safe with each other. Finally, she had achieved something in her several millennia of existence.

Beside them at the oversized oak table, sat wise old Auntie Meg of whom she had actually grown rather fond during their long journey back to Earth, pouring tea for the three of them out of an ancient-looking teapot Lauren had come across that must have once belonged to Trick- with hairline cracks around the rim, a slightly leaky spout and be-speckled in pink flowers, it never ceased to amaze the blonde how much utter rubbish lay still undiscovered cluttering up the departed barkeep's shelves.

Dyson, Kenzi, Dagny & Kostas had made a discreet exit some time earlier to allow the small reunion their privacy, taking the littlest members of the Dennis-Lewis household with them for a bite to eat and a nap.

"…I still can't believe it…" she heard her daughter gush, "still, I just wish my mother had come with you."

"Ask and ye shall receive, child."

Saoirse's head instantly whipped around at the familiar joking tone that emerged from the corner as Athdara stepped slowly into the narrow glow of the several candles that lined the cavernous space, their light hardly bright enough to reach the vaulted ceiling.

"Mother!" she cried as her face broke into a broad grin despite the tears of relief that suddenly crowded her eyes.

Lauren watched distantly and with no little relief herself as her former lover came fully into their modest sphere of sanctuary, the tall and imposing woman seeming to almost dominate the surroundings. Still, even in the dim illumination the doctor took note of the slightly forced lightness of the Griffin's gait as her arms reached out towards their daughter. Peering closer, the shades of sleek, hard musculature remained discernible through her signature figure-hugging apparel but Lauren could just make out the marginally deeper lines etched around the other woman's eyes, the tiny marks that trailed out from the corners of her mouth and the further greying around her temples. She was still an undeniably attractive specimen, she contemplated but she had aged. There was a definite tiredness that marred Athdara's movements although the blonde could see she was trying valiantly to hide it for Saoirse's sake through the tight hug that the Griffin seemed disinclined to break anytime soon.

Tactfully, she turned her attention back to her tea and tried her best not to overhear what may have been intended as private words between the two.

"I have missed you my darling girl," she heard Athdara say after having pulled back from the bruising embrace, opting instead to stroke the young woman's face with gentle fingertips, "y'know, I had almost forgotten how beautiful you are? Just exactly like your mother."

"I've missed you too, mother" Saoirse replied gleefully.

"Even though I'm impossible to live with and that your Mom is so much more fun?" Athdara asked, probably semi-sincerely but Lauren could also hear the tingle of laughter behind the older woman's words.

"Even then" said Saoirse, enjoying the rare opportunity of giggling at her mother's expense, "I have loved getting to know Mom and Bo and spending time with them but never think I don't love you too every bit as much" the young woman continued earnestly. Athdara swallowed hard and her voice faltered a touch;

"That's all I've ever needed to know darling. I am so pleased that you're happy here. You are surrounded by so much love, my precious girl. You are so lucky" she whispered, barely audible from the table but the words spoken next still reached out their tendrils to squeeze around the doctor's heart, "I know I haven't said enough, I know I've had to be hard on you over the years…" she trailed off, "but I am so proud of the woman you have become. My warrior. Never forget, your mother loves you with everything she is. Promise me that, huh?" she finished lightly, gripping Saoirse's shoulders playfully.

"Of course," said Saoirse blithely, "I love you Mum."

"Good, now that we have that settled, would you allow your old Mum to fight beside you? Warrior to warrior?"

"Really?" Saoirse bounced on the balls of her feet.

"I would be honoured to fight alongside my daughter if she allows it and of course, your other mother. This is her fight." She finished with a subtle wink in the blonde's direction.

Lauren's brow furrowed. Perhaps with her daughter's youth and inexperience she just wasn't quite picking up on the subtle clues behind Athdara's speech but something was wrong. Slyly, she raised her gaze to meet that of her Auntie Meg's who had been busying herself by pottering around with the tea things and setting a fresh brew. The single response of a raised eyebrow was less than helpful; it was clear that Meg knew more than she was letting on but was choosing to keep her own council.

As soon as Saoirse had bounded off up the stairs to join the others at Meg's insistence that she too could do with putting something substantial in her stomach Lauren did nothing to mask her grimace at the heavy way Athdara lurched forward to lean against the table beside her, folding her arms fast against her middle. Something was desperately wrong.

"How is Bo?" she asked quietly. "I know that's where you've been 'Dara. I know you." She said simply at the surprised quirk of Athdara's eyebrow.

"She's holding on," she nodded, "for you."

Lauren cast her a dubious sideways glance;

"What aren't you telling me?"

Athdara chuckled. Lauren was never a fool but further still, she seemed to always have an uncanny knack of seeing right through her in a way in which no one else had ever been capable. She sighed, seeing no need to spare her the truth;

"It's not good Laur'…I won't lie to you. But, she's strong and she knows she has you to live for now. She'll hold on."

"Christophe told her we were dead, didn't he?" she asked, though it was really more of a statement of a fact she already knew to be true. "You helped her." She said, not waiting for a reply, "and you gave her too much." She said after a pause, her hand coming to an easy rest atop Athdara's knee as she examined the other woman's slumped posture, something that was anathema to the Griffin's usually proud, erect stance. "I've never seen you like this."

The griffin simple remained silent. She knew the doctor's oversized brain had already worked out that something was amiss but neither did she need to know the full story. She had gotten herself into this fix and she would take the consequences.

"'Dara, what did you do?" the blonde asked firmly.

"What I had to." Athdara replied gruffly. Lauren took a moment to gather herself;

"I thought you said you couldn't interfere. That you wouldn't come back here. That's why they sent Saoirse here instead." She watched curiously as Athdara's larynx bobbed up and down in its casing a few times as the other woman clearly struggled to come up with a response that was both honest but pleasingly vague as well.

"I couldn't just sit back and let the two of you go through this and do nothing. As strong as our daughter is, she has not the experience to guide you through this as the Elder's hoped. Yet they would rather risk the destruction of not only herself but possibly the colony and maybe even the world at large than admit they made an error in judgement." She stared down at her booted feet as she finally unfolded her arms to press her hands hard into the wooden surface currently supporting her weight.

"'Dara, what did you agree to?" Lauren asked cautiously, the fear that rose sharply at the back of her making her uncertain as to whether or not she truly wanted the answer.

"I'm the fly in the ointment Lauren. While I exist in this realm or the other, I will always be a threat, or a hindrance," she paused, finally meeting the blonde's gaze, "and Saoirse will never have the chance to thrive on her own power. So, I made a bargain with the Elders…and then I broke the rules by going to see Bo," she chuckled mirthlessly, "in short, I will be dealt with as soon as this is over. For now, you have my sword at your disposal." She said before coming to a kneel in front of the woman she had pledged her life to long ago, unsheathing a sword from some hidden scabbard behind her back.

"I come to you Karen Beattie, not as a Griffin or a Warrior but simply with what remains of my honour. All that I have left is yours to do with as you wish. I will fight and if necessary, die at your side as little more than a human if you will allow it, dearest Lady. This sword I have carried with me these three thousand years is yours, to do with as thy will." She said, the weapon glinting in the low light where the scarred blade had been split that terrible day when Athdara had given up her very soul for a mere mortal before being re-forged anew when she had been permitted to reclaim her wings. The Griffin kissed the tip of the rounded pommel before offering up the hilt for Lauren's grasp. But Lauren shook her head and instead joined Athdara on her knees;

"You owe me nothing 'Dara, you owe us nothing. I was wrong to come to you before." Athdara made to shake her head but the blonde gripped her chin firmly, "You don't have to fight for me but I accept your sword on behalf of our daughter. How about that?"

"I think that is a very worthy cause…and I may have a plan if you'd like to hear it."

XXX

Bo fought to hold on in the darkness. She had not broken as quickly as Christophe had gambled on though for the life of him, he could not understand why! The last time he had popped his head in on his prisoner it had appeared only a matter of time before that vast darkness within was set to burst forth. The Succubus had rolled listlessly from side to side against the agony of sorrow and guilt and all those other lovely things that concocted to make a powerful Queen go supernova.

Dammit, where had it all gone wrong!

He slapped his palm hard against the damp brick wall, flicking the little specks of musty dirt off his fingers, sneering at the pathetic creature that crumpled before him in the corner, blinking painfully in the bright torchlight he flashed in her face. Her face looked pale as the moon in the abruptly stark white beam. He came to a halt directly in front of her and dropped to a squat, careful not to get any mildew from the squalid floor on his Armani pants.

"Why haven't you given up yet?" he said, the particular way he was eyeing her reminding Bo of the look Lauren would get when she was examining a particularly icky specimen; a mixture of utter fascination and contemptible frustration. "Either I have overestimated your love of your own family or I have underestimated your power," he continued scornfully, "while I find the former unlikely given the exquisiteness of your fear when I tasted you," he said, leaning forward to trace his tongue sickeningly around the shell of the Succubus' ear, making Bo squirm, "but I find the latter impossible."

"They're not dead, I didn't kill them you jackass!" Spat Bo, absurdly pleased at the brief look of shock that traced across the man's face. Little victories, as Lauren would say.

"Oh?" he replied, regaining his composure, "you so sure about that?"

"Oh yeah, bigshot, you've lost!" She laughed, "I'm not afraid of you anymore."

"And how exactly did you come by this information?" he asked and Bo could sense the mask slipping and she knew she still had to be careful. This could still turn into Christophe's flashpoint but neither could she quite bring herself to stop from mentally rubbing her hands together in glee. "Not that it matters anymore. You see, I don't just feed off of fear. I can instil it too Bo, did you know that?" he asked lightly, "you and I still have a lot of fun left, Succubus."

The without another word he clapped his hands to either side of Bo's head, wild electricity shooting in great bolts through her skull as images flooded her mind. Images from her own nightmares. Images that she had terrorised herself with for years that he had dug up from the dark recesses of her brain. One after the other they poured in searing her in so much pain that she screamed and writhed but still he would not let go. His palms were stuck fast against her temples as his laughter thundered maniacally around the cell, lit up sparks of white-blue lightning.

"You still don't get it Bo, do you? But you will…you're mine…"

Alright, I know that it's turned into a little bigger of a cameo than I intended but I reckon Lauren needs all the help she can get…and Athdara can bring even more help with her, can't she?