A/N: And again a HUGE THANKS! to Merlyn Pyndragon for her work on this fanfic. And another HUGE THANKS! to all you readers. This wouldn't be possible without you guys :)
A continuous knocking at his door woke Wu up. Checking the alarm clock on his night stand, he then rolled flat on his back, moaning. 6:30 am? Really?
He felt like he had just collapsed on his bed, and in thinking about it, he actually JUST collapsed on his bed an hour ago after a night of surveillance.
The knocking continued, leaving the impression on Wu that there was maybe a man-sized woodpecker in the hallway, trying to hammer a hole into his apartment.
Wait a minute! Man-sized birds?
Wu sighed after he realized that his own thought woke him better up than the knocker at the door.
Yeah, Wesen! Grimm! Royal! All the stuff they've told him at this weird Spice Shop down in the Pearl. And this woman he vaguely remembered as the relative of a victim in a robbery gone bad, with the reddened eyes and full of rage, throwing an armchair at him after she woke up.
Wu rubbed his face, again moaning, and finally sat up.
Now that he was awake, he wouldn't find the rest he needed. Not now. With a little luck it would be a quiet day at the precinct and he could "examine" the holding cells while Lenny was out for lunch break.
Throwing on his bathrobe he left his tiny bedroom and stopped at the door, taking a look through the peek hole. He sighed again.
"Really? Man, it's six-thirty!" he said through the locked door.
"I thought that was the usual time for getting up for you guys," came the answer. "Got up early today, you know? Couldn't sleep."
Wu took a deep breath. "What do you want?" he asked then.
"Give you another lesson in ... well, you know in what."
Wu shook his head in disbelief.
"Look, I got you some breakfast. How about a donut?"
And suddenly the misty morning seemed to clear.
Wu unlocked the several locks and opened the door. "Why didn't you say that in the first place?" he asked, peeking up at his unsuspected guest. "Cream filled?"
Monroe nodded and presented a paper box with the logo of a local bakery. "As I've said, I was up early. Farmer's market and stopped by this bakery. They had this special offer and I thought it was funny."
Wu let his guest in, suddenly feeling hungry. "Never heard of them," he told Monroe, looking at the logo.
"Really?" Monroe entered the apartment and looked around. "Hm, I see you repaired the door. Sorry about that, by the way. Don't know if Nick ever told you that he ... well, that was back then when your favourite foods were paperclips and furniture. How's your couch, by the way?" He glanced over to the sofa underneath the framed posters of two of Wu's favourite classic movies.
"Got a new one. Half the filling was missing from the old one," Wu answered, frowning. "Wait a minute. You were here?"
Monroe placed the box on the round table at Wu's dining section and nodded. "Rosi, Nick and I. Rosalee gave you a cure for your unhealthy appetite. Tried the same with Hank, who was affected too, but Adalind already had altered her spell. So, all Nick could do was kill her."
It WAS too early, Wu decided. Had he just heard Monroe telling him Nick killed that lawyer and later suspect in the murder of her own mother?
"Adalind? As in Adalind Schade?" he asked, confused.
"The same." Monroe nodded and pulled a second bag out of his pocket. "Brought coffee too. I didn't know if you have any. It was always a topic between Nick and me while we were roomies, you know?"
Wu blinked with his mouth open.
Monroe smiled. "Where's the brewer?"
Wu pointed at the door behind Monroe. The Blutbad turned and left the living room. Wu could hear him rummaging in his tiny kitchen.
"I have coffee," he finally said, remembering that he didn't have a coffee grinder.
"I see," came the answer.
Wu moved over to the table and looked at the box, suddenly wondering what Monroe found so funny about it.
"I usually like my coffee to brew itself," the Blutbad returned to the livingroom. The coffeemaker in the kitchen bobbled and boiled.
Wu investigated the outside of the box. "Why did you think this would be funny?"
"The name, man," Monroe pointed at the box. "Those donuts are called 'Dirty Wu'. I thought you might be the inspiration."
Wu blinked, thinking he probably had mistaken something. "Excuse me, what?"
Monroe opened the box, revealing a bunch of mini-donuts. "They are called 'Dirty Wu'. Or 'Dirty Wus' in the plural I guess. You never been to Pip's Original?"
Wu shook his head. "Well, I'm not the only Wu in Portland. Ever checked the yellow pages?" he looked up and took one of the donuts.
But true, it was weird. Maybe he should pay a visit to this bakery, he thought, to find out why they named their goods after living persons. Taking a bite off the pastry, he corrected the maybe to a "he HAD to go there!"
"And?" Monroe asked.
Wu was busy chewing but nodded enthusiastically.
My, this little donut was good!
Monroe stood there for another moment, before he moved one of the chairs and sat down. Looking up to Wu, he sighed. "I'm worried for Rosalee and Juliette," he confessed. "Sorry, man, if I woke you up. I thought I would go to the farmer's market early to distract myself but ..."
Wu swallowed the remnants of the donut and nodded. "Didn't work out the way it should, huh?" he asked and took a seat opposite to Monroe. "Been there myself. So, don't worry about waking me up. I can maybe manage to get a nap at the precinct later. Not a problem."
Monroe smiled humorlessly. "Love does weird things to you, doesn't it?" he said.
Wu smiled dryly. "It breaks your heart and puts it together the wrong way every day," he nodded.
Monroe sighed.
Wu looked at his unexpected guest for a moment. Seeing him in this depression made him sad too. Thinking about it, he finally decided to try to light the day up for Monroe. "Hey, may I ask you something?"
The Blutbad nodded. "Of course. That's the deeper thought about all of this," he answered.
Wu smiled. "Are there woodpecker-like Wesen out there too? Thought about it when I woke up."
Monroe blinked. "There are," he finally said.
Wu raised his eyebrows in an awe. "Really? Like a Woody Woodpecker or something?"
And suddenly a deep chuckle emerged from Monroe's throat. "Woody Woodpecker?"
Wu grinned, relieved that he brought a little lightness back into Monroe's day.
"Think about it, man! That would be fun!" Monroe said, starting to laugh he shook his head. "There are woodpecker-like Wesen, yes. They are called Kopfnagler, but they definitely do not have that laugh or a red plume on their heads."
Wu grinned. "Kopfnagler? What does that mean?" he asked.
And Monroe started laughing really hard.
Sean just came home for a change. He had spent the afternoon at the town hall, meeting with a council of representatives around the mayor. Topic was a replacement for the commissioner, as the current one, Hammond, was getting on in age and would retire next year. Usually Sean would have turned this meeting down in the first place, as to make himself more interesting. But with his own cousin in town, not really knowing what Viktor was up to other than poking and provoking him, Sean decided it would be better to get there in the first place.
He knew he was one of the candidates but he didn't know if he wanted the job. Head of a precinct was, especially after Nick's awakening, very satisfying for him. The third precinct had become the lead among the local precincts, including the sheriff's bureau. But as commissioner he would loose the direct contact to the policemen and -women, and, of course, to the local Grimms.
Sean sighed. Grimms as in plural. He hoped Nick would somehow make it back to Portland but so far he hadn't heard anything from Christian. And Juliette? She might hope losing the Grimm after giving birth. There were ways to get rid of those powers, there were ways to put them back into the box after they kicked in, yes. But as long as Nick wasn't around, and with a baby in the coming, Juliette would be better off embracing her Grimm rather than trying to lock it away again.
Had he known this before? Somehow, he had to confess, after they both had fallen for each other as victims of Adalind's fatal spell, Juliette didn't taste like a human. It wasn't what Nick, oh so innocent and happily deep in love with her, had so often told at the precinct. There was more. Sean never really understood; Juliette was somehow different and it hadn't surprised him very much to learn that she was a Grimm too.
Sean shook his head to get rid of those thoughts. The loathing for each other were gone, his at last with his nightmare about Juliette's rapid ageing in his bed. But he felt responsible. If he hadn't overestimated Adalind's ability to get the key, if he hadn't given in to the family to get the key in the first place, none of this would have happened.
But he also would still be alone, a little voice in his heart whispered. He still would be lonely instead of having some connections to the local Wesen community.
This was something he'd never expected. His mother had always warned him about revealing himself. It would be too dangerous and Wesen would fear him. Now some Wesen in Portland knew about him being half Zauberbiest, but only Rosalee and Monroe knew that he also was a Royal, and something had changed. Last night, when he was at a grocery store, an Eisbiber family greeted him, smiling, and the Drangzorn clerk in the late shift told him that he was relieved to have at least one Wesen in charge at the local authorities. It felt different to be in the open after all that time hiding himself, and he was really wondering where all the hate against his kind had gone. But maybe, Sean thought, maybe it was that the same Wesen now greeting and smiling at him, knew him before. Yes, he was part Zauberbiest, and with that not the most likable Wesen. But he had proved what he was capable of, that he could do good, help the community.
What if the same people found out about him being part Royal?
Sean grimaced. Better not to think about it. But it felt surreal that now the part of him he grew up loathing, was now the part of him people were identifying with.
His cellphone rang.
Sean frowned, pulled out of his thoughts so abruptly, and looked at the screen. Starting, he blinked and hesitated a moment before he accepted the call. The burner phone he had at the precinct was not at home. He had to take the call from here.
"I hope you have some good news," he said, leaning his hip against a dresser.
"Sort of," came Christian's answer. "I heard from my friends. The escape worked. Not the way we set it up but it worked."
"So, the Grimm's free?" A relieved sigh came from Sean's lips, starting from the bottom of his heart.
"As far as I know. But I doubt they will be on the booked flight. They weren't able to get to the car. They had to flee on foot."
That was not what Sean had expected. He had sent Christian a lot of money to buy false documents, book the flights and a car with supplies for both.
"So the soon-to-be-mother is with the Grimm?" he asked.
"Yes," Christian answered. "But ..."
Sean frowned again. "What?"
A sigh came from the phone. "I'm burned," Christian told him. "I went too far this time. And I'm really sorry, Sean."
He frowned again. "What do you mean?"
"I'm standing in front of your apartment building," Christian answered. "I cannot go back. Things happened over the past few weeks that made it impossible. At least ... I killed someone last night to get ..." He paused, taking a deep breath. "Sean, I fear we have a problem. From what I've read in the book we have a huge problem. Eric had a Zauberbiest put a spell on the Grimm to be able to control him. And I ... I found what they used. Sean, this is ... I read the book on the flight here and ... We don't have any contact to Nick or Adalind now. But they need to know! Eric poisoned the Grimm, and if ... Sean, I don't know what to do!"
The meeting at the town hall was forgotten.
"Come in, I tell the concierge to let you come up," Sean ordered, his heart pounding hard and fast.
Poisoned? A book? A murder?
Slowly something else sunk into his mind. A name: Adalind!
Juliette had to confess that she never felt more alive than right now, hiking in the deep woods, breathing the smooth air after the last rain. Sunbeams were shimmering here and there through the trees. The rain left a foggy cloud of glittering water drops behind, while the sun baked the trees, ferns and bushes, making the woods steam. The insects, which had bothered her before the rain, were gone now, only their buzzing still audible. Birds were singing, small animals rustling in the old leaves and ferns.
"When I was younger I was drawn to the woods," Rosalee told her.
Juliette slowed down and let the Fuchsbau walk side by side with her. "I grew up in Seattle. Tons of woodland, but it never felt like here," she said.
Rosalee nodded. "I know."
"You lived there before you moved here to take over the shop, right? You told me." Juliette smiled and shifted the weight of her backpack a little.
Rosalee nodded again. "You know, I was in huge trouble for a long time. Always thought my parents were expecting too much from me." She sighed. "My dad wanted me to become a doctor, to take over his practice."
"He was a physician?" Juliette asked.
"Apothecary. He never had the chance for a full study. But he dreamed."
Juliette pulled a face. "Let me guess, you thought you should fulfill his dream but you couldn't."
"Not my way, I fear. Too much pressure."
Juliette nodded, staring down to the ground right before her but more watching herself from the inside.
She'd heard this so often during her own education! She was the first doctor in her family, so she didn't get the pressure from her parents. In fact, she moved out right after high school to college and from there to vet school without letting her parents know about any details. She didn't want the arguments she definitely would have had if she had let them know. Why only a vet when she also could have gone for physician? Why medicine at all, coming from a family with business background?
Rosalee stopped at her side, looking at her. "Everything's okay?" she asked.
Juliette pulled a face. "Just not so good memories, I fear," she answered. "And you were supposed to become a doctor then?"
Rosalee untangled herself from a snag before she answered. "Actually my dad tried and he was lucky to get an international stipendium. He went to Europe back then, registered at the university in Hildesheim," she started to explain. "But there he also got involved with the council. Did you hear of that?"
Juliette nodded. "I read about it in one of Nick's books. Unfortunately most was in German. It's sort of a regulation bureau for Wesen, right?"
"It's more like a government for us. My family always was interested in politics. One of my ancestors served as councilor for one of the Royal families a couple hundred years ago," Rosalee said. Suddenly she looked down, her cheeks becoming pink. "Actually my first boyfriend was the leader of one part of the resistance. He was here some time ago and caused a lot havoc."
Juliette nodded, thoughtful.
She herself didn't have the best taste in old lovers. Maybe better than Nick, who's first girlfriend she had the chance to meet three years ago when they bought the house and moved in together. Nick had still stuff stored at said girlfriend's apartment then, and Juliette drove with him to LA to get it. Not the most pleasant memory, she had to confess.
Rosalee shrugged again. "Anyway, my father was suddenly involved with the council and served for a couple of years. And because he did what he thought had to be done at the time, he lost the money and didn't go back to university after he broke with the council. Instead he came back here and founded the Spice Shop. He already had all the needed papers for doing that." Rosalee sighed. "After my brother Freddie didn't turn out that well, my parents decided to get me interested in medicine. And I was, but I underestimated the pressure of the education. First it only was to keep me awake to learn, later to calm down and get some rest."
Juliette closed her eyes for a moment.
This story she had heard so often! And she'd seen it during her own education. Medicine, no matter if human or animal, was pretty hard to learn, and the pressure the students had to go through during their education caused more than one breakdown at a time. So many of her fellow students felt at one point simply the need for drugs. While Juliette herself worked with the pressure, she could understand why others couldn't stand it.
"So you became addicted?" she asked. "I'm sorry to hear that!"
Rosalee smiled a sad smile. "Yeah, I was. And I had to fall down pretty hard before I got to my feet again I fear. That's why I left Portland and went to Seattle. I was with people not good for me back then. And trying Jay then ..."
"Jay?" Juliette frowned. "What's that?"
"For humans it's a very mild sedative, for Wesen it's highly addictive. As I've said, not the best time of my life."
"But now you are sober, and you have a supporting system with Monroe, Nick and me." Juliette took the hand of the other woman and smiled. "I am so proud to call you friend! And, does it really matter to become a physician? You are helping others the best way you can."
Rosalee smiled a little. "I'm sorry," she said. "Sorry for letting you down, for leaving you after Nick was gone. I didn't mean to."
Juliette nodded. "I know. I think we all were in a shock and I understand why you did it." She smiled sadly and looked ahead. "We should move on. It isn't too far now."
Rosalee hooked her fingers behind the straps of her backpack. "Why so deep in the woods and so far away from every road? There's not even a path out here," she wanted to know.
"There's a stream close by, I think that's the reason." Juliette explained. "And there is a path to the next parking spot. I didn't want to go that way because ... Well, after all we heard I think it's very likely that the path is booby trapped."
"Your uncle is pretty spooked then, huh?" Rosalee followed Juliette's lead now, walking close behind her.
"I would say so. And we don't know what to expect from the girl Jim talked about," Juliette continued.
Actually she felt a little jealous. Maybe the little girl Juliette had inside her still wished herself at Norman's side to brave all challenges and face any adventure. To learn now that he was living with a girl he'd picked up at Jim's ... she didn't know what to think about this.
For a little while they walked in silence, listening to the natural noises of the deep woods: birds singing, wind rustling on leaves and branches, little animals hushing and the buzzing of insects. Here and there they still could hear water dropping from the last rain. The sun high above them was beaming down and heating the dark woods, so the women opened their windbreakers a short time later after the clear air became clumsy and muggy again. Surely it would start to rain not too much later.
Juliette listened for the sound of the stream she remembered from her visits here. There were some rapids and a little creek with lots of trouts. When she was a kid and her father went here for fishing,the best time was when he made fresh smoked trout for dinner.
"How are the wedding plans going?" Juliette broke the silence a while later.
"We are not that deep into it. Monroe made his proposal, I agreed and we called our relatives. Monroe's parents aren't that thrilled to get a Fuchsbau as daughter-in-law."
"That's sad," Juliette commented.
"Well, my sister isn't that thrilled either. Blutbaden and Fuchsbaus aren't supposed to be best buddies, not to mention married."
A rustling in one of the bushes nearby made Juliette move her head, trying to make out what was there.
Rosalee sniffed and took a step back. "I think we are near now," she said.
And in the next moment someone jumped out of the bush and at the Fuchsbau, tackling her to the ground. A female voice roared, and Juliette jumped to help her friend, gripping a high raised arm with a long knife before she could even make out who was attacking Rosalee.
Another rustling and she saw a man jumping out of another bush, coming for her.
"Rosalee?" Juliette cried before she was pulled aside.
A thump of someone getting hit. Juliette wrestled with the man and finally managed to face him. Staring in light blue eyes, so much like her own, she realized who was holding her.
"Get off me! Let me go!" she screamed.
The other attacker and Rosalee fought. The Fuchsbau somehow managed to roll, so her attacker was now underneath her. That didn't necessarily mean Rosalee was in a better position now.
"Get the knife! Kill her!" the man, still holding Juliette, ordered.
That was enough! Juliette kicked him hard and wrestled herself free before jumping to Rosalee's side. Pulling her friend back she got herself between Rosalee and a girl or young woman with black hair, still holding the knife.
"Are you insane?" Juliette cried, shielding Rosalee with her own body. "Uncle Norman, stop her before someone gets hurt!"
And the man with the light blue eyes came to his feet again, still protecting his injured part. "Teresa and I are here to save your life, Julie! Get away from that beast! She's dangerous!"
Juliette breathed hard, still shielding Rosalee. She felt her friend wogeing and shook her head. "Rosalee is a Fuchsbau, yes, but she's my friend and came with me to help!" she said hard, trying to keep an eye on both of them. "Attacking her is attacking me, Uncle Norman!"
The girl looked at him.
And Norman stared at Juliette with disgusted surprise. "You are friends with them? You are ... You are one of us!"
