A/N: To clarify some things; Lauren doesn't have any actual powers in this story, but she is strong, and can heal herself. Also, there are no consequences when Charlie uses her blood because of her Human side. Hope that clears things up.

Enjoy this one.

Chapter3: Dead-ish

Dennis Household

As soon as they got home, Lauren decided to cook something to eat for them all while Bo cleaned up. It had been such a long day, and Patrick kept complaining about how starving he was. So, she made a pot of spaghetti and meatballs. Patrick's favourite. Bella had managed to place a boundary around the house, and it only allowed in people of their immediate bloodline.

So, no cousins allowed.

The four of them sat at the table, eating quietly. "You know, when I saw all of you laying on this floor earlier, I didn't think we'd have one of these dinners again. Really glad that's not an issue now" Lauren poured herself a glass of wine.

"I second that…" Bo noticed that Patrick was frowning at his food. "… Something wrong there bud?" She didn't understand what he was doing. Normally, he'd have had a third plate by now.

Patrick swallowed his food, not able to understand what was going on. "There's no taste!" He took the pot of sauce that Lauren kept in the middle of the table and poured more over. "There, maybe that'll do!" He smiled, taking another mouthful. But, it was still the same. "Ugh! It's like eating cardboard!" He pushed his bowl away.

"Wow, don't hold back!" Lauren said sarcastically. "I've made this for you a thousand times, and I've never heard so much as one complaint. What's the difference now?"

He sighed. "I dunno Mom, I'm sorry. It just, doesn't taste right" he hated it too. Normally, he loved everything his Mother cooked. She was a culinary wizard. But right now, he wasn't feeling it.

"Tastes fine to me" Bella barely got her words out due to her mouth being full of food.

Patrick watched his little sister continue to stuff her face with his favourite meal. And he was so jealous that he couldn't eat it. He was starving. But he couldn't keep eating it and have it taste so abnormal. "I'm just gonna grab a bottle of water and head upstairs. Maybe it's just all the stress of today. A nap might help. May I be excused?" He was taught to always ask first.

Bo nodded, "Sure…" she watched him grab a water and then walk upstairs to his room. "… Maybe you should've examined all of them before we left the clinic. Do you think the resurrection messed up their senses?" She wasn't sure.

And neither was Lauren, "Hard to say. Until Ethan, Shay and Charlie say the same thing; it could just be Patrick's body adjusting to the trauma. Let him sleep it off, if he's still the same later then I'll take him to get checked. We're probably worrying for nothing" it was better to tell herself that.

It made it easier to navigate this situation.

"So, if he's done with his food; can I have it?" Bella pointed to her older brother's bowl. "Why waste perfectly good spaghetti, right?" She was all for doing the right thing. When her Parents gave her the green light, she picked up Patrick's bowl and started pouring the contents into her own. "Sweet!"

Bo laughed, watching her youngest tuck in again. "Well, hopefully we can start to get back to normal. And once we do, we can come up with a plan of action for Ronan. But, our Family's wellbeing comes first" she kissed Lauren's cheek.

"Couldn't agree with you more. Last thing we need is something else to go wrong" Lauren finished the rest of her wine and poured another for herself. She couldn't help but think of that old saying after she said that.

Be careful what you wish for.

Sasha's Apartment

Shay was still disappointed at the fact her big brother decided to blow off his Girlfriend to do research on Fae Metal Smiths. It a was boring. Besides, Ronan wasn't going anywhere. They had plenty of time to do all this. One thing she'd learned about dying for real though, was that she took her relationship with Sasha for granted. Due to the fact she never feared for her life, Shay always expected Sasha to be around for her.

But that wasn't the case. And she had some major life changes to implement. She sat on Sasha's couch while her Girlfriend made them some dinner. "So, remind me again why you didn't wanna sleep at my place tonight?" She flicked through the channels of the tv with the remote. There was nothing on.

"We've been over this Shay!" Sasha didn't know how many times she had to say it. "I love your place. It's homey, and cosy. But, I really don't feel like running into your Mom in the middle of the night when I need to use the bathroom. It's embarrassing" she loved the Dennis family, but she always felt uncomfortable when she and Shay would do their thing while everyone was in the house.

Clearly though, Shay didn't get the importance. "Which one? Because if it's Bo then she gets it! She knows what it's like to spend quality time with her lady while having a roommate. And if it's Lauren, then she won't care. As long as we don't break anything again" her Parents were cool with it.

"I still feel so bad about that antique lamp!" Sasha sighed sadly. She offered to pay for it, but Bo and Lauren refused. Plus, it was worth way more than she could afford. "But while we're on the subject, don't you ever wonder what it'd be like to have your own place?" She stopped what she was doing and walked to the couch.

Shay frowned at herself. "I do have my own place; it's called my bedroom!" She got nothing but an annoyed glare from her Girlfriend. "Honestly, I have thought about it. But, not even Ethan's moved out yet. There's safety in numbers you know" she liked being close to her family.

"I know. And I get it. If you're not ready to move out then, I can wait. But just know, whenever you do decide to take that leap; I know someone who might be willing to put you up for the foreseeable future" Sasha smiled cunningly, leaning in.

Raising an eyebrow, Shay played along. "Yeah?"

Sasha nodded, "Yeah, I really think you'd like her…" she gave her a soft kiss. "… Grown up talk aside; dinner's ready. So, move you're ass!" She turned away and walked back to the kitchen.

"I'm just gonna go wash up…" Shay jumped up and ran to the bathroom. She washed her hands, and then dried them. But as she looked in the mirror, she noticed something on her chest.

It was the stab wound she got from Ronan's special dagger. A faint red line still remained there. It should've healed by now. "… What the hell?"

And being that there was no sound in the bathroom, Shay's heightened senses could hear nothing. Not even her own heartbeat. That wasn't right. She pressed her hand on her chest, she felt no thumping coming from her heart. "I have to be going crazy!" She checked her pulse, and it was the same thing.

Nothing.

"Babe? You coming out or not?" She heard Sasha call from the kitchen.

Shay turned around in a panic, she didn't know what to do. Did she stay for dinner and tell Sasha what was going on? Or did she skip out on her and tell her Parents? She didn't want to be branded as a horrible Girlfriend. On the other hand, whatever was going on with her wasn't right. Or normal. Not that she'd ever been that.

She made a split decision right then and there, and she knew Sasha was going to hate it. Mostly because if she ever found out that it was a lie, she'd kill her. Maybe that wasn't a problem anymore though. She took her cell phone out, and brought it to her ear on her way out. "What? Are you serious? Okay, I'll be right there!" She faked a phone call.

Sasha got up from her kitchen island. "What is it?"

"That was my Mom, it's Trick; he's awake. I've gotta get over there!" Shay went to grab her jacket, when her Girlfriend offered to come with her. "No! You stay here. I'm sure once he's all better he'll be back home and then we can have a real party. Don't worry, I'll call you if anything happens. Love you!" She kissed her cheek, then ran off out the door.

Not knowing what to think, Sasha just stood there. "Love you too"

So much for Date Night.

The Dal

Ethan was in the middle of doing his research on the Metal Smiths when Kayla decided to turn up at the Dal. He hadn't told her what happened today, mostly because he knew how worried she always got and this would just make things worse. He was alive, so she didn't need to get upset over nothing.

"Really sorry to hear about Trick…" Kayla walked into the Lair with two beers in hand, she knew he was doing something for his family and she wanted to help. She had nothing else better to do. "… Is he gonna be alright?" She sat next to him.

"I hope so…" Ethan exhaled. "… We'd all be devastated if anything happened to him. But Charlie especially, she'd be crushed. But you know, he's a tough old man. I'm sure he'll pull through just fine" he smiled.

She handed the beer to him, "If he's anything like you, then of course he will. Here's to him making a full recovery" she held up her beer, toasting to Trick's health. Maybe it helped, or maybe it didn't, but it was hope at the end of the day.

He knocked his bottle against hers gently, then took a swig. Only, as he was about to swallow it; all he could taste was something disgusting. It was so bad, that he had to spit it out. "Shit!" His face was a picture. "What the hell's in that?" He read the label. It was the same brand of beer he always drank.

"Whoa! Baby, what's wrong?" She saw his face, so she put her beer down and looked at him. "Are you okay?"

Ethan didn't want to worry her, so she just smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. I guess it was just a little too cold…" that was a shitty excuse, but all he could think of. Suddenly, he heard his phone ring on the table. He picked it up, seeing it was sister. "… Perfect timing little sister. What's—"

"Don't talk, just listen; I think there's something seriously wrong with me dude!" She sounded panicked. "I was at Sasha's and we were about to have dinner. So I went to the bathroom to wash up, and when I checked the mirror; my wound from Ronan's sword was still on my chest. Actually, it's still there! That's not even the freakiest part!"

He walked away from where Kayla could hear him. "What's the freakiest part?" He quickly checked his own chest and saw his own wound. That should've healed ages ago. This wasn't right.

She took a second to speak, but finally did. "I don't have a heartbeat!" She told him. "I know, it sounds crazy. But I checked, thoroughly! I felt my chest, and my pulse; nothing. E, I think I'm a Zombie! A fricking Zombie, man! You have to check yourself, I think something went wrong when Charlie and Gramps brought us back" that was the only explanation.

He felt his pulse, and wouldn't you know; he felt nothing. As if he was dead. "I think you might be onto something sis. Look, calm down and meet me back at the house. We have to tell Mom, and see what she says. Who knows more than a Doctor, right? I'll be there soon" he hung up the phone.

"Everything okay?" Kayla asked, getting his attention.

Ethan turned around, not knowing what to say. So he just said the first thing that came to mind. "Yeah, just more family drama…" he wasn't exactly lying. "… Uh, I gotta go. But, would you mind sticking with the research? We really need to find a Metal Smith in the Colony that makes Sacrificial blades. Can you handle that?" He grabbed his keys.

Kayla smiled, nodding. "Sure. But, are you sure everything's okay?"

He made his way to her, kissing her head. "Everything's great. I'll call you later" with that he took off out the door in a hurry.

Dennis Household

With Patrick upstairs, and Bella reading a book on the couch; Bo and Lauren were left with the washing of the dishes. They didn't mind. Although, Lauren hated wasting food she'd spent time cooking. "Shame Shay and Ethan aren't home, they could save me the trouble of throwing this away" she dropped the leftovers in the trash.

"Huh?" Bo was lost in her own head. She didn't know what to think at the moment. Her Grandfather was fighting for his life in hospital, and her kids were the victims of a Sacrificial ritual gone wrong. She was just glad that with them alive, Ronan couldn't finish it. "Sorry, I was somewhere else. What did you say?" she went to wipe more dishes.

Lauren wasn't bothered about moaning about the leftovers anymore. "Doesn't matter. Bo, you know if something's bothering you, you can talk to me. We're married, that's the kind of thing we're supposed to do. Are those rules suddenly lost on you?" she leaned against the counter, to face her.

Bo chuckled, "No, they're definitely not lost on me…" she leaned forward and gave her a peck, then placed another dry dish on the adjoining counter. "… I'm worried about nothing anyway. We have the kids back, Ronan can't get what he wants with them alive; so, it all worked out"

"But?" Lauren knew her too well.

Damn it, she had her. "But…" Bo started. "… That doesn't mean he won't come back to try and finish the job. Maybe even take you and me out this time, that way no one can stand in his way. I just wish I knew what he was planning" she frowned, thinking about it.

"I don't think we'll ever know. And as for him coming after us? Let him try. We killed his Father, his Uncle, and sent his Mother packing. I think we can handle a little runt like him" Lauren wasn't worried in the slightest.

Suddenly, the door burst open as Ethan and Shay walked in. And they didn't look happy at all. Almost like they were scared of something.

"What's up with you two?" Bo asked.

Shay looked at her big brother, not knowing how to say it. "Uh, that's a mighty fine question Mom. Umm, where's Charlie?" she needed to see if it was happening to her too. But when her Mother told her that her sister was still at the hospital, she changed her question. "Okay, what about Patrick?"

Lauren pointed to the stairs, "In his room. He wasn't feeling well at dinner. Poor guy didn't even finish his food, which isn't like him at all. He just kept saying it tasted funny. It was hard not to take offense" she still wasn't over it.

That's when Ethan realised, it wasn't just the beer that tasted awful then. It was happening to Patrick too. "I'm gonna check on him. Shay, why don't you fill them in on what we've discovered…" he walked away when his Mother asked if it was regarding the Metal Smiths. He turned to her. "… Actually, it's much worse" he walked the stairs, going to find his brother.

All eyes were on Shay, as she smiled awkwardly. Not wanting to cause panic. "Umm, you're gonna need your stethoscope…" she looked at Lauren, who just tried to question it. "… Trust me, don't bother asking questions. We haven't got time. Just, go get it. Please Mom" she watched her walk away.

Bo approached her, "You wanna tell me what's going on?" She didn't like this one bit.

Shay stammered, "I wouldn't even know how to. Let's just wait for the others. It'd really help if Charlie was here though. But, I know she won't wanna leave Grandpa. We'll have to make do without her…" she saw Lauren descend the stairs with her medical kit in hand. "… Let's do this"

"Do what, exactly?" Bella was lost.

Ethan chose that moment to enter the living room with Patrick, who kept feeling his chest. "You need to examine us. While we were out, we noticed something troubling. For starters, this…" he lifted his shirt, revealing the faint scar in-between his pecks. "… Should've healed when you brought us back. Shay has it, and Patrick does too. We're not sure about Charlie since she isn't here"

Lauren understood that, but there was something else she was having trouble with. "So, why do I need my stethoscope?"

Shay took Bo's hand and placed it over her chest, "Tell me what you feel"

Well, for one thing; Bo felt weird. But, now that she actually focused she could feel nothing. Absolutely nothing. No rhythm, no pounding, nothing. "I don't understand…" she was confused. "… Why can't I feel your heartbeat?"

"Because I don't have one…" Shay said. "… None of us do. Care to listen for yourself?" She looked at Lauren, who came close to her with her stethoscope and listened closely. The look on her face told Shay everything. "And all this time you thought us being Hybrids was a medical marvel. Freaky right?"

Lauren pulled away, checking Ethan and Patrick who showed the same symptoms. "This's impossible. It's like, you're still dead; and yet, you're also alive. Almost like you're caught in between. Does this have anything to do with what happened at dinner earlier?" She turned to Patrick.

"Ethan said he can't taste anything either…" his brother told him all about the beer he spat out for no good reason. "… Mom, please say you can fix us?"

Not knowing what to do, Lauren took a second to think. One thing she knew, she couldn't do anything here. She needed to run more tests. That, and they had to know if Charlie was exhibiting the same symptoms. "Okay. Here's what's gonna happen; we're gonna go back to the Clinic, run some tests, do some more examinations, and take it from there"

"What about Charlie?" Bo asked, trying not to freak out.

"We'll talk to her when we get there. Let's go!" Lauren clapped her hands and her kids broke apart, grabbing their jackets and headed for the door.

Clinic – Later

All she heard a few minutes ago, was a phone call from her family telling her to meet then in her Mother's lab. So naturally, Charlie went to meet them straightaway. Leaving her Grandfather in the hands of a capable nurse.

When she got to the lab, she saw Shay on a gurney while her Mother conducted some tests on her. She also noticed Ethan and Patrick sitting beside her. "Uh, what's going on?"

"Hard to explain right now, I need to check something!" Lauren got to her quickly, and checked her chest for the wound. But Charlie had no faint scar, and as she checked her heartbeat and pulse, it was thumping strong. "She's clear. Strong heartbeat, and no scar" she let the others know.

Charlie just kept frowning. "No scar? What're you talking about?"

Shay jumped off the gurney. "Long story. But, to give you the short version? Looks like when you and Grandpa brought us back, it didn't quite work as well as we thought. We're still dead, but you're clearly not. And now I'm pissed!" She folded her arms in anger.

Bo got in the middle of her, "Okay, there's gotta be a simple explanation for all this. Charlie, you're our current Blood Mage, can you shed some light on this for us?" She was hoping since Trick taught Charlie everything he knew about being a Mage, that she'd be able to help.

"Off the top of my head?" Charlie gave a shrug. "I don't really know. Wait? You said when Grandpa tried to bring us back, that only I woke up. Right?" Her Parents nodded. "He must've only been able to bring me back because we're connected through our powers. As for why you guys are dead-ish, I'm still trying to think" she turned away, thinking hard.

"Well, you might wanna think fast; because we can't go on like this!" Patrick hated it.

They were basically Zombies.

Bo placed an arm around his shoulders, "It's gonna be okay buddy, we're gonna find a way to fix this. I promise" she kissed his cheek.

Shay scoffed, "Might not wanna make promises you can't keep Mom" she didn't mean to be disrespectful, but this situation really sucked.

Suddenly, Charlie came back. "I think I know what happened…" they were all ears. "… After I woke up, that's when Grandpa started getting weak. It could be that when we combined our powers, it was enough to revive your souls, but not enough to reanimate your bodies fully. Grandpa passed out right after, to bring back one Hybrid is hard; but three? I might not even be strong enough for that"

"So, you're saying we can never be brought back properly? That were just gonna be walking corpses for the rest of our immortal lives?" Ethan ran a hand through his hair, this was unbelievable.

Bella comforted her big brother. "I don't think she's saying that…" then she had an idea. "… What if I help Charlie do the resurrection again?" Everyone frowns at her. "I mean, I have magic. I've brought back animals before" she remembered all the times she used to bring back dead butterflies and birds.

She was just starting out then. Ah, youth.

"I don't think this'll be the same as bringing back a butterfly sweetie…" Lauren loved her for trying though. "… What're we gonna do?" She had no clue.

Bo decided to take charge. "We're all smart people. Some of us, smarter than others. And by that, I mean you are all smarter than me…" she was okay with it. "… I'm sure if we put our heads together we can come up with something" she really had to think hard.

What the hell was Ronan up to with this?

Ronan's Penthouse

Even though his Mother was banished all those years ago, she still kept her wealth. And Ronan had lived a good life. But as fas his Family life went, it wasn't so good. His Mother constantly felt depressed from the loss of her Husband. His Father. The Father he never got the chance to know. All because of his cousin and her abominations that she called children.

Of course, it wasn't their fault that their Mother banished his own. But he didn't care. Because of her deep depression, Zee never returned to her glory. Everything he learned, he learned from history books that depicted his Mother as a powerful Greek God. It freaked him out a little when he saw his Mother's original gender was Male.

But he got over it quickly. He didn't care what she was, at least he was born. But like all lives, hers ended. Two years ago. And ever since that day, he vowed eternal hatred for Bo and her Family. He'd been planning this for months. Waiting for the perfect time to strike.

Due to the choice of his weapon, he had to wait a few weeks to get it ready. But when it was finished, he smiled from ear to ear. For the first time in history, he had constructed a weapon powerful enough to kill a Hybrid. As long as he had it, no one would dare cross him.

But suddenly, he saw the blade begin to glow red. Only, it was flickering. Something was wrong. One thing he'd noticed about this blade, was that it let him see the people he'd sacrificed. He picked it up by the hilt, and grasped it tight. Closing his eyes, he saw images flash before him.

Ethan.

Shay.

Charlie.

Patrick.

All alive.

Ronan frowned, that wasn't possible. He'd done his research, he knew Trick wouldn't have enough power in his old age to bring the four of them back to life. So, he wasn't worried about him stepping in. But now he was seeing them alive. Well, that wasn't staying that way.

The good thing about this blade, was that once stabbed with it; it connected with its victims. He closed his eyes again, focusing on their four souls. But it was strange, he could only feel Ethan, Shay and Patrick.

As if Charlie was out of his reach. It didn't matter, he could make do with the three of them. He wasn't done with them just yet.

"Try coming back from this!" He whispered smiling.

Clinic

In the last couple of minutes, everyone had offered possible ideas to fix their problem. Except for Shay, she just wanted to know if being dead meant she couldn't sexually perform. She was a Succubus before anything else. "Seriously though! What happens if I'm with Sasha, and we start off great; and then I can't…" she waved her hands around awkwardly to her Mother. "… You know!"

Bo shushed her, "Shay, I think we have more important things to deal with right now than worry if you have a rare case of Fae ED, okay?" She didn't want to be the one to talk about this. Lauren was the doctor, this should be her thing.

"Oh really, we both know if it was the other way around; you'd be blowing a gasket!" Shay turned her head away from her Mother. She knew she was in the right. As usual. Though, people loved to prove her wrong.

Suddenly, they both heard a loud groan come from Ethan. "E?" Shay got to her brother's side, he kept touching his chest. "What's wrong? Hey? Talk to us!" She tried to help him, but he began to bleed from his chest. "It's his scar-" she tried to comfort him but was immediately cut off when she felt a sharp pain in her own chest.

Looking down, she saw blood seep through her shirt.

Patrick was next, so Charlie grabbed him. "Mom? What'd we do?" She watched her siblings begin to bleed from their mouths as well as their wounds.

Lauren was at a loss. She took in the sight of three of her children convulsing in front of her. Bella tried to calm Shay and Ethan down while Charlie had Patrick. Bo approached her, wondering the same thing as her.

What the hell were they supposed to do?

A/N: Oooh, no! What's happening?! Let me know your thoughts.