A/N: I'm sorry guys for the delay. I'll try to make them faster. I hope you enjoy this one :)

She was so cute today, Calliope. I think today is the first time I haven't had to force her out of bed or wrestle her clothes onto her in ages. She was already awake by the time I woke up. She was up and packed, waiting eagerly for me to come make her breakfast. She'd even gotten out the cereal and milk and spoon, but she knows better than to climb up and get a bowl. I don't think Sofia's ever been more excited. We got her climbing onto the bus on video for you. I couldn't let you miss her very first day of school. That would be too depressing.

She's really worried that you're going to call while she's at school and she won't get to talk to you, so I have to remind you to call at night when you can. I know you can't always help it though. The anxiety has started to fade from her eyes a little bit.

But not mine. If anything, my anxiety is getting worse. I thought it would fade, but it's not. And now she's going to school and I'm going to be alone more often than not now. Used to be that I was only alone when Mark had her. Speaking of Mark, he and Lexie are doing very well. We've decided to just have Sof keeping calling her Aunt. She didn't see a need to change it, Lexie. It's been nice to have another girl to hang out with. They practically live here, so we've become a family.

We've heard from you three times in as many weeks, which is heaven sent Callie. It makes me miss you all the more, but I don't think I could survive it without hearing from you. I know it won't last forever, but I'll take everything I can get while I can get it.

That was the last time she'd written in the notebook to Callie. It was nearing the end of September and Sofia had been in school for a little over a month. Arizona had never really thought about what it would be like to send her daughter off to school. She had never been more proud. The tears had welled up in her eyes as Sofia climbed the too big steps onto the bus and she'd waved as the bus pulled away. Arizona had seen a change in her daughter. The little girl had friends now, projects and artwork to make, things to keep her mind off the fact that her Mama was no longer at home. However, for Arizona the novelty had worn off. The once persistent presence of her daughter had given way to a ceaseless loneliness as her only distraction had disappeared.

She didn't have anyone to talk to. Mark and Lexie didn't understand this. The lunch table had gotten quiet as Owen and Teddy were also trapped overseas. And she didn't know what to write to Callie anymore. Her cases hadn't been spectacular recently and there was really nothing to report about the hospital except the dismal lunch table, and Callie didn't need to hear about that .She and Mark would discuss Sofia occasionally and that was about it. With her being in school though, they just had to make sure that one of them was home to get her off the bus at 3:25. But aside from that, Arizona shied away from talking. She'd come to appreciate Mark in her life, but he was a constant reminder of Callie and right now she didn't have the strength to deal with him. So she'd started eating lunch alone, or she spent a brief ten minutes wolfing down a salad while he munched an apple before darting away, claiming patient needs.

A phone buzzing made her sit upright in her bunk in the oncall room. After some scrambling she answered, pushing escaped hair out of her eyes. "Hello?"

"Did I wake you?"

She would know that voice anywhere. "No," she smiled. "Just closed my eyes for a second between surgeries."

"Good."

Callie's voice sounded dry. Arizona frowned, "Are you okay?"

A tired sigh met her ears, "I'm okay. I'm exhausted. I'm sorry I haven't called recently. We've been really busy."

"It's okay, Calliope," she said. "We understand, I'm just glad to know that you're alright."

"Teddy is gone, Arizona," it rushed out of Callie's mouth.

The blonde was stunned. "What?"

"I'm so sorry, Zona. We were raided two weeks ago and she disappeared. No one has seen or heard from her since," Callie sounded grim.

She didn't realize that tears were leaking out of her eyes. "I don't–"

"Owen has been leading search parties, which has left us shorthanded, demoralized, and he is devastated."

All this time, she'd been worried about Callie while she had friends over there too. She had friends who were in danger. And now one was gone, missing. "Is she alive?"

"We don't know," Callie said.

"Why not? Where is she? What happened?" Arizona sent her questions through the phone in rapid succession. "What do you mean you got raided?"

"We were bombed and infiltrated," Callie snapped. "What else do you think I meant? You grew up in a military family, Arizona. You aren't a stranger to this."

"I'm a stranger to my wife being overseas!" Arizona snapped back. "What happened?"

"It was chaotic, people were everywhere. It was dark and we didn't know who was on our side and who was on the other side. People got hurt; Teddy isn't the only one missing."

"You mentioned search parties, have they gotten any leads?"

"We abandoned that post, that night. We left a lot behind. The search parties have brought back any supplies that weren't taken, but we think the missing are being held hostage."

Arizona leaned back against the wall. "Isn't there something you guys can do?"

"Don't you think we're trying? It's been two weeks, Arizona. We're trying. We're also trying to help all the other people who are injured and dying. It's not like we just lay around in the sun all day!"

Arizona could hear the heat in Callie's tone rising. This wasn't how she wanted their phone calls to go. "I'm sorry. I know that's not what you're doing," she said, softly. "I know you're trying. I'm just…I'm scared. You said people got hurt. Are you okay? Were you injured?"

"I'm fine, Ari. I just really want to come home," she could hear Callie's voice beginning to break. And there was something that Callie wasn't telling her.

"So just come home."

"Arizona," Callie's voice was suddenly strong and unwavering, tense. "You know better than anyone that I can't do that."

"Please baby," Arizona pleaded. The nightmares of black polished coffins swam before her eyes.

"Arizona." The warning was in her voice.

"Don't come back in a coffin, Callie."

"I won't."

"Don't. I can't do it again." After a few moments of silence, a screeching alarm sounded on the other end of the phone. "Callie?"

"I have to go. I'm sorry. Tell Sof and Mark that I love them. I love you."

"I love you, Calliope." The line went dead. "Be safe."

She let the phone fall from her hand to the sheets. The anxiety that had been weighing on her shoulders was now pressing down on her chest. Teddy was gone, she could be dead. As she really let it hit her, the tears flooded her cheeks. Teddy was gone, and it could have just as easily been Callie. Her fears were beginning to build, her nightmares were starting to come true.

Her best friend was gone.

When she walked out of the oncall room, she saw the Chief standing by the nurses' station. Making a decision, she headed towards him. Her footsteps echoed in her ears. They were only missing three people, but the hallways felt empty, and knowing that Teddy was truly missing made her feel all the more empty inside. "Chief?"

"Robbins?" Webber looked up from his chart. "Robbins, are you okay?

"Ha–have you heard about Teddy?" she couldn't keep her voice from quivering.

"Dr. Altman? No, what's happened?"

Before she could answer, Cristina came running up. "Sir!"

"Yang?"

"Dr. Altman is missing," she blurted out. "Owen just got off the phone."

He swung his head back to Arizona. She nodded solemnly, willing the tears back.

For the first time in a long time, Mark and Arizona talked at lunch. And after she had debriefed him; he watched her pick at her salad, pushing various pieces of almost green lettuce around. "Eat it."

Stunned at his bluntness, she looked up. "What?"

"Eat the salad, Arizona."

He rarely called her Arizona. It was always Robbins. She stared at him blankly. She didn't have much to say.

"Your wife is at war. Your best friend is missing. Your daughter is in school. And you've hardly eaten anything in the past several months. You have to take care of Sofia. You have to give Callie something to fight for. How much weight have you lost?"

"I'm fine, Mark." She didn't want to worry about herself right now. She couldn't. All she could think about was Teddy and her heated chat with Callie. She hadn't meant to get like that. Callie needed to know that they loved her, and that they just wanted her to be safe. And with that alarm going off. Had Callie heard her say that she loved her? Was Callie angry?

"How much?" His directness brought her back to their conversation. He took her arm in his hand, grasping firmly enough to assure her of his seriousness.

Her eyes downcast, she mumbled an answer, "Thirty pounds."

"Thirty pounds!" Mark roared. "Arizona, you didn't have thirty pounds to lose."

"I don't have an appetite," she said softly.

"Eat the salad, Arizona," he growled. He watched her eat every bite with a satisfied grin.

"Are you happy now?" she grumbled as she sat aside the empty plastic bowl.

He beamed at her, "Come on, Blondie. You know you need to look good for her when she gets back." With a wink he got up and left, avoiding her swipe of irritation. Throwing another leering grin over his shoulder, he saw the genuine smile creeping over her lips.