The Hunt for Sviederbach

Disclaimer: I do not own Shake it Up

A/N:

Chapter 21 (Sensing Danger)

Aveline stared at the silver jumpsuit in the closet, it was a skintight suit that was highly resistant to tear and bullets. It was a very futuristic suit. Surely, it would protect her from certain harm. She moved her hand over her bandaged wound on her side, wincing as her touch signaled the pain through her body. She whimpered and drew her hand away, scowling at the wound. It burned more than the scratch from the wolf. It was healing though, which was a good thing.

She didn't have any further scars on her body that she could see, so that was something of a calming aspect for her. What would Ander think, though, if she wound up with terrible scars? Frustration sparked in her eyes, fighting with her sorrow and anger for dominance. She couldn't lose him, she just couldn't. After everything she was going through, he was the only man she trusted with her life. She couldn't afford to let Martin take him from her!

The suit was a nice fit for her form, and it didn't hurt the wounds when she put it on. It was sleek and comfortable, as well as durable. She had Estelle zip it up along her back, then went to grab some clothes for travel. "So you're going for your grandparents, right?" Estelle asked. Aveline nodded and grabbed a red dress, wasting no time putting it on.

"I hope they're okay." Grandpa Kashlack could handle himself very well, so she wasn't too worried in regards to whether he would be okay. It was her grandma she was concerned about, the woman may be tough, but she was a bit fragile at the same time. "Martin's going to wish he never touched my family. I don't care what the bastard's up to, he's going to regret ever bit of this, I promise you."

She stared at herself in the bedroom mirror and inspected her dress, twisting around to look at the bottom frills. Why had she decided to put this on? It wasn't a travel dress, it was a damn ball dress, but nothing else looked good enough. Plus, she had a sinking suspicion that she should dress heavily. She didn't know why that was, but she learned to start following her gut. Even Estelle was smirking at her, laughing. "Still don't know why you want to go out there in that." Aveline narrowed her eyes and lifted her shoulders.

"I'm calling it a hunch." She could still move freely. She grabbed her quiver and bow from beside the bed and strapped it around her back. "I miss Ander still, Estelle…my mom and dad too…" Estelle reached forward and put her hand to her shoulder, comforting her with a smile. "If I don't make it, could you look out for my brothers and sister?"

"I won't have to Aveline, you're going to be just fine."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence." She hugged Estelle. A warmth descended upon her chest, and her cheeks began to glow, lighting her eyes with determination. Estelle was right, there was no sense in getting down. She could do this! She just needed to look after Astor, make sure nothing bad happened to him, and make sure she stayed alive long enough to save her family. "I guess it's time to try and figure out where Grandma and Grandpa lived before moving to their apartment…" This wasn't going to be easy without being able to talk to them. To make matters worse, they couldn't finger through their bedroom because she was certain Martin might have vicious attack dogs, so to speak, waiting at the castle.

Thirty minutes of pondering led Astor and Aveline to Rocky's office once again, as Rocky suggested that it could be in the records where their home had been. It was another twenty minutes of searching before they even found any indicator of location, but evidently they lived off Hershey Avenue somewhere on the outskirts of Chicago. The thought had crossed her mind over whether or not this was certain, so she wanted to take a second opinion, and decided to contact Kashlack's brother, Hennick.

When she picked up the phone, Astor gave her a dirty look, "Why couldn't you have done that first?" She smiled nervously and lifted her shoulders.

"I just wanted to look." She turned her back to him and waited for her grand uncle to respond. The truth of the matter was, she was stalling, and felt ashamed of the fact. She had a growing pit in her stomach, urging her not to go, or to break the rules and have Rocky go with her, but she still didn't want to take that risk. "Besides, we still have plenty of time…"

Aveline glanced over her shoulder to see her brother glaring at her, his arms crossed over his chest, and his foot tapping impatiently on the ground. Her slight distraction in focus was broken when she heard an elderly voice over the phone asking how he could help her. "Hey, Granduncle Hennick, it's Aveline. I have a question. When Mom and Dad first arrived in the US, do you remember where their first house was? I know they moved out due to mold, so…do you remember?"

"Their first home? Well let's see…that was a long time ago…" The man hummed. Aveline heard footsteps and listened to the wheels of a chair sliding out, followed by a drawer opening up. Hennick often kept everything in his study at the house, and he kept records from well over sixty years ago. Granted he was seventy one now, the oldest thing he had was a baseball card. Hennick sounded tired and stressed, which she understood well. "Let's see here, if I still have that letter from your grandmother…see your grandfather was busy finding work at the time, so your grandmother was the one who kept all the relatives informed…"

"Oh, I didn't know that."

"Yes…" She moved her eyes towards Astor and smiled at him, he still looked impatient and irritable. Finally the sound of papers shuffling ended with Hennick letting out a cheerful gasp. "I found the letter. It says here, they moved to a small home on 1201 Hershey Avenue, out in the country due to Squitza's anxiety over being in a newer town with a bunch of people. The children are 'getting along well' and Kashlack was struggling to find work to support them. The house had a funny smell to it…"

"That's the place? Thank you Uncle!"

"You're welcome, hurry and find them dear."

"I will." She hung up the phone and looked back to Astor with a toothy grin. "Are you ready to go see Grandma and Grandpa?"

"Yes, and don't talk to me like I'm a kid…let's just get this done…" She watched him grab the teleportation device from her pack and begin studying it. Her heart began to sink as she lowered her phone into the pack, still hanging from her shoulder. She'd not realized that Astor was going through hell too, or she knew it, but she didn't know just how much this was affecting him. A lot of what she felt, he was feeling too. She knelt to his level and met his baggy eyes, and slowly hugged him.

"It'll be okay Astor, we can do it. I wasn't trying to talk down to you, I know you're going through a lot, but if we stick together, we'll get through it. Okay? We just need to relax and get through all of this…we can't lose as long as we work together. You're growing, and I'm proud of you, cause you're my little brother. Like mom and Uncle Flynn needed each other, we need each other, and I won't soon forget that." He smiled and she quickly put in the address for the teleporter to find.

"Now why did you have to go and get all mushy, sis?" Aveline laughed at the blush arriving on Astor's face. The device activated and Aveline tightened her hug on her brother. He hugged her back and exhaled. "I love you sis-sis, and let's just forget that I used that old nickname…"

She closed her eyes, smirking deviously. "Okay Ast-y, we'll forget it."

"Hey!"

"Love you too."

The device put them a full block away from the address, confusing the two at first, until they found an address sign. "1100 Hershey avenue…" Aveline tapped her chin and looked towards the right, 1102 was in that direction, while 1098 was to her left. "Okay Astor, I say we take the right path."

"All right." As they began walking, a sudden jolt shot through her body, forcing her to stop and stare down the path with an irrational fear. Astor continued to walk several feet before stopping and looking back at her. "What's wrong?" What lay ahead were several abandoned homes, all shaded by overgrown trees and grass. It was quite early in the morning, but the path ahead looked dark and rather creepy. This wasn't something that would ever stop her, but for some reason, she didn't want to continue. Her heart rate was increasing and her palms were filling up with sweat. Astor turned fully towards her and tilted his head. "Aveline, come on, we need to get moving."

"Right, we do." She shook away her fear and pressed onward with the determination and knowledge that Astor and her grandparents were depending on her. She balled her fists up and narrowed her eyes, flaring her nostrils in and out to try breathing. She needed to calm down and quell whatever anxiety was beginning to threaten her sanity. "Astor, draw your sword."

"Why?"

"Something tells me we're going to need to be prepared. Something worse than traps…" She heard Martin's voice come over the radio, stating that there were no traps that lay ahead for this task, he didn't believe traps were needed here. It was a straight shot to her grandparents, and he believed only that she would find them with his grandfather. She didn't want to make the effort to trust him, however, one thing Martin seemed not to be was a liar. "I'm still going to prepare just in case." She pulled her bow and an arrow from her quiver, glaring anxiously from side to side.

"Aveline, do you want to sit this one out?"Astor asked curiously. "It's just Martin's grandfather, so…I can go get grandma and grandpa." She shook her head and brushed him off, pressing on ahead of him. She ignored his concerned gaze and glared at a dusty brown home in the distance. It was old, looked like it could crumble into dust with the slightest touch of a finger. "Ave? Slow down, take a breath."

"No damn it, I'm going to get Grandma and Grandpa. I have to."

"Sis…I'm worried about you, you're acting different. I can tell something's bothering you, so what is it?"

"Nothing."

"Aveline, we're a team. If you're scared or something, I need to know…" She couldn't afford to fear anything, not when Astor relied on her. If she was frightened of the unknown, then what would that mean for him?

Martin's voice came over the radio once more, he sounded like he was watching something. "Hey, if you need an extension to calm your nerves, I'll be happy to give it. I'm in the middle of my westerns, so I wouldn't mind not flipping back and forth between them." She raised an eyebrow and stopped walking, unable to find words to react. She heard gunfire from a television set and slowly looked to Astor. Martin cleared his throat. "Yes, I have an obsession with westerns, sue me. John Wayne and Clint Eastwood are still legends, can you believe they still air their movies? It's amazing! Anyway, do you need an extension to calm down? You don't need to be so nervous this time. I'm not worried about your grandparents, so I haven't put anything out for you here. Other than my grandpa, all you have to do is go in and get your grandparents, then leave."

"I'm fine Martin. I don't need help, and I most certainly do not need it from you."

"Suit yourself."

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