Chapter Four:

Silver Lining

when the world surrounds you,

I'll make it go away

Lauren stared at the clock, it wasn't even ten in the morning yet and already it'd begun. The two of them really did seem to be cursed for some disaster. Turning back, she watched as Bo scrambled in the clothes covered in blood, glaring at the wall with a phone in one hand and her other tightly tugging down her shirt.

She probably would have found the situation funny, even kind of sexy if Bo's anger at whoever was on the other line, didn't appear so distraught.

From the bed, Lauren sat up, covering herself in her sheets as she did. She'd woken moments before when Bo had begun shouting at the phone as she re-entered the bedroom. The doctor hadn't heard her leave the bed.

"Start from the beginning," Bo demanded, her free hand tugging on her boot. At some point, Bo had gone to the bathroom and grabbed her clothes and the phone. Lauren wasn't sure why she returned back to the bedroom. Habit, maybe? But something about the way Bo kept looking over her shoulder, towards Lauren's figure, said otherwise.

Lauren curled up tighter in the sheets, Bo was either ignoring her or wasn't aware that she was awake. Whatever the reason, she was sure that it had to do with what was happening.

"What do you mean by that?" Bo shouted, her knuckles going white with grip on her phone. "How can she be missing? She was at the Dal!" There was a pause and as Bo's expression grew tighter, Lauren's stomach twisted nervously. Quickly, she moved closer to Bo and reached out to touch her shoulder. Bo jumped three feet before turning back to Lauren, apology written over her features.

She hadn't noticed Lauren waking up.

"It's okay," she affirmed, grabbing Bo's free hand and squeezing it tightly. At the contact, Bo's body visibly relaxed enough that she stopped looking ready to throw the phone at Lauren's bedroom wall.

The relief didn't last long and too soon, Bo ripped her hand away to switch the phone to that hand. "How long? Why didn't you call me?"

Lauren's expression froze as she remembered the night before. Whoever it was, had probably been ringing all the night and the two of them had ignored the call and missed the rest of them.

"Eight times?" Bo dropped her head, "Right. Sorry, I didn't realize...if I'd known I would have - it's none of your business what I was doing!" With those words, Lauren was sure she knew who was on the other line. Anyone else would have received some sort of respect from her or a vague answer. Dyson was the only person to whom Bo ever spoke like that.

"Bo, what's happening?" Without replying to the receiver, Bo glared at it and switched it off, pushing the phone into her jacket pocket before shrugging the leather on. Flicking her hair out, she turned to glare in Lauren's direction. The moment she saw Lauren's face, though, her shoulders dropped before she placed her head into her hands. "Bo?"

"Kenzi was kidnapped," she whispered, "because of me." Reaching forward, Lauren wrapped her arms around her and pulled the woman back onto the bed completely as she held onto her. Slowly, she felt Bo wrap her arms around Lauren, seeking comfort at what had happened.

"It wasn't your fault," she assured.

"It was though. It happened because of what I did last night with Dyson and Hale, and because I..." she trailed off, realizing what she was about to say.

"Came here." Lauren finished.

"It's not like that," Bo tried to begin as she pulled away, "I mean, I liked being here with you, I really liked it, but-"

"You don't have to explain," Lauren said, trying to be understanding, but even Bo could see that she'd hurt her, "if you hadn't come here, you would have gone and picked up Kenzi, taken her home and been there when they tried to kidnap her. I get it." Bo dropped her head guiltily, trying her best not to show how much she regretted coming to Lauren the night before.

But she could see the regret clearly and a selfish part of Lauren wanted to kick Bo out and refuse to talk to her until she apologized. But Lauren knew that now was not the time to be selfish, not with Bo. And there was no point doing that anyway. Bo would never mean the apology because this, this was about Kenzi. Lauren could pretend all she liked, but Kenzi would alwaysbe the first person in Bo's life.

"Any other night," Bo whispered, "everything would have been perfect."

"But we're not, are we?" Lauren replied, "Something will always come between us."

At the bitterness, Bo grabbed Lauren's hand and searched her eyes for comfort, "but it doesn't mean we should stop trying, it just means that we have to try again later...doesn't it? Isn't there some saying...if you repeat an experiment enough times, the results will change?" Lauren smiled regardless of the situation. The metaphor was completely wrong of course, there were outlier results but that was more complicated than what Bo was saying - which was also kind of cheesy. But Bo's heart was in the right place.

Instead of correcting her, she leant forward and kissed Bo's lips gently before slowly pulling away, "Go. Rescue Kenzi. I'll be here if you need me."

"I don't know where to begin," she admitted. Lauren took in a breath at the comment. That was why Bo hadn't rushed off. She didn't know where to start looking, or to even begin to comprehend the fact that Kenzi was missing. So instead she had remained with Lauren, in the hopes of finding the answer there.

Slowly, Lauren reached forward and cupped Bo's face, tracing her thumb along her cheek, "this is what you do, Bo. You find people. Pretend that it isn't about Kenzi and instead about finding a missing person." Bo's mouth went to open before Lauren pressed her thumb against it. "I know you need Kenzi right now, I know you're lost, but this happened before remember? With Baba Yaga. And even though you were lost then, you got her back. This time will be no different."

Bo's hand reached up and grabbed at Lauren's wrist as she slowly nodded. Her eyes glimmered in the light, brimming with tears but refusing for them to fall. Lauren smiled at her again and allowed her hand to drop and run down Bo's body.

"Now think, where do you usually start?"

"I...I need to go to the Dal," Bo said as her mind began to focus.

Lauren smiled, almost proud of Bo's strength and ability. "I'd suggest going home first. Your clothes are in no condition for another fight if you get into one." Bo nodded and rose off the bed, "Do you know who took Kenzi?" Lauren asked as Bo went to take a step towards the door.

"Yeah, the guys from last night I think. I'll talk to Trick, see if he saw anyone and then I'll see if I can get any information about where they're hiding." She gave Lauren another smile before she headed towards the door. This time, Lauren hoped, it wouldn't be a near death experience to get Kenzi back. She'd rather not have Bo go through that ordeal again. But she knew without a sliver of doubt that Bo would do it all again just as easily, if she knew Kenzi would be back in the clubhouse by sundown.

"Come back safely," Lauren said as she watched Bo leave. Her voice suddenly got the better of her and spoke without conscious thought, "I...need to talk to you about something I've been meaning to tell you for a while."

The succubus paused at the doorway and turned to face her with a shaky smile, "I'll do my best. I'd like to have that conversation too, I think."

Lauren smiled. "Me too."

There was a pause before Bo dropped her eyes and shuffled her feet momentarily. "Lauren?" she called.

"Yes?"

"Thank you."

There was something in those words that Lauren feared, they sounded too close to 'goodbye' for her liking. She paused, staying in the bed until she heard the sound of her front door opening then closing behind her succubus.

The apartment became too quiet after that. Lauren couldn't bring herself to do anything but drag herself to the shower and clean up the mess the two of them had made. Eventually she was able to calm herself and eat something that could be described loosely as breakfast, before she busied herself with research by burying her mind in it.

Until Bo brought back something, or asked for her help, there was nothing she could do to help. However, regardless of how she tried to research, her mind kept wandering.

There was something about the knowledge that they'd kidnapped Kenzi that made Lauren worry so much for Bo. If there were drugs involved, who knew what the men were capable. Bo had been lucky catching them off guard last night, but quick retaliation gave the sense that they were more than just 'well prepared'.

Giving in, Lauren grabbed her phone and quickly dialed the only person she knew would have all the knowledge that Bo had been oblivious to.

"Lauren." There wasn't a question, just a statement that it was her on the line. Resisting to grind her teeth, she took in a breath and began.

"I want you to tell me everything that happened."

"Sorry?" Lauren glared at the wall, her fingers buried into the depths of her pants pocket as her other hand clung to the phone. There was no doubting that Dyson knew exactly what she wanted, the way he all but laughed proved that.

Taking in a small breath, Lauren found her calm easily. No one got under her nerves like Dyson, not even Kenzi's 'Dr Freeze' comments, but there was no winning in losing her cool to him. "I need to know what mess Bo got herself in," she stated, "If they've captured Kenzi, then Bo needs everyone to work as quickly and efficiently as they can and for this I need you to tell me everything. I need to know what type of area the three of you found them in, I need to know the drugs they were using, I need samples, but mostly I need to know what type of fae they were. If Bo goes up against them and they're prepared..."

"So, she was with you last night?"

"That's none of your business," Lauren snapped, despite herself.

Dyson chuckled regardless of the situation. Finding a way to wind Lauren up always gave him some humor. "Funny, that's what she said to me this morning."

"I know, I was in bed with her when that happened," Lauren replied rather smugly. When Dyson didn't reply, she couldn't help but grin before she snapped back to the matter at hand, "Now, tell me everything." She hated that she had to repeat herself, and loathed how Dyson was enjoying riling her up, but even though she'd managed to point out rather crudely what he was missing out on, she found only small satisfaction in it.

Any other day, she would make a point to hold onto the memory of Dyson's bitter silence…but not today. Today even that silver lining would have to wait.

"I'm not looking for a fight, Lauren. I want to find Kenzi just as much as you do. Bo needs her, she'll fall apart without her."

Nodding into the receiver, Lauren managed to say, "I know." But what Dyson said, they both knew, didn't touch on what would truly happen if the fae were to harm Kenzi. Nothing would ever be able to stop Bo from going rogue and taking vengeance. "Please Dyson. I just want to help, for Kenzi...for Bo."

"Of course." He paused briefly, "I know this situation isn't to be taken lightly, but I have strong faith that Bo will get her back." At the passive-aggressive attack, Lauren felt cold anger run down her spine.

"As do I," Lauren defended, "she went up against a Garuda and won, not to mention everything else she's gone through, but sitting around, doing nothing and just waiting for Bo to come back with Kenzi, isn't going to help her or ourselves." Lauren shut her eyes and sat down in the chair, "what if this time is different, Dyson? What if this time she gets into a fight and doesn't win? Without Kenzi she's even less rational, even more..."

Stupid, they both thought, but neither of them dared to say out loud, because as 'stupid' as Bo was, she came off rather clever at times, there was no doubting that, but she was stubborn, hard-head and noble. The latter being her greatest and worst attribute.

"I know. I think that every time she goes out."

Lauren smiled, "we should just keep her locked up, so she doesn't get into any more trouble."

"We should," he agreed laughing, "but she'd kill us first." Lauren laughed, smiling into the phone.

"I may not always agree with you Dyson, but I'm glad someone like you cares for her as much as I do," she told him. It went quiet after words and instantly Lauren felt herself wonder if she should have said anything at all.

"You're not so bad yourself Doc," he replied honestly, "how about I bring the file over and tell you everything?"

"I think that would be best."