Hi there everyone!

You can't believe how happy I am to finally have some time to write! This chapter is a pretty long one and I've posted the next one already. See it as an early Christmas treat ;)

Oh and I didn't really had much time to check for spelling errors, my apologies.

As usual: enjoy reading!

CALLIOPE

"What happened to your nose?"

She looked at her right, seeing Derek Shepherd's eyes locked on her swollen nose.
"Oh, I eh…" she looked at the letters on the patient chart, trying to find anything else than 'my wife accidentally slammed a door into my face', "Sort of ran into a door."

Shepherd stared at her and gave his typical nod an a small: "huh"

Meanwhile Callie tried to avoid his eyes and stubbornly stared at the chart.

"How is she?" he asked.

When Callie kept starring at the chart he added: "How is Arizona?"

The orthopaedist stopped pretending to read, when he pronounced her wife's name.
"Good," she muttered, caught in the routine of answering that question and grabbed another patient chart and muttered: "her leg is healing well."

Derek's head tilted a bit to the right and he added another: "huh"

"Will you please stop doing that?" she suddenly blurted, trying to focus on another patient chart.

"Stop what?" he asked friendly.

"Watching me in that typical Shepherd-way, with your head slight to the right, those questioning eyes and the constant "huh" as an answer."

The neurosurgeon gave her a gentle smile: "I just noticed that every time I ask you how Arizona is, you answer that her wound is healing well…"

"Because it is healing well," Callie placed the pile of patient charts back on the nurses' station .

"Callie, I'm not asking about her leg," he said, "there's more than the leg."

She stared at him for a few seconds: "If you would have said that to me a couple of days ago, I would have answered that the leg is everything…"

"And now?" he asked carefully.

"She…" she gave him a warm smile: "she started to fight, to hope, to dream."

Derek gave her a smile: "I am really happy to hear that, Callie."

Callie smiled, still amazed by her last words: "So am I, Derek."

When she was about to visit her next patient, she turned around to see Derek walking into one of the elevators. She sprinted towards it, placed her arm between the doors and entered, seeing a glimpse of her bruised nose in the reflection of the doors.
She was relieved to see there were no other people in the elevator.
"I have to ask you for a favour," she gasped, still exhausted from her sprint.

Derek raised his eyebrows.

"Can you help me with Mark's funeral?" she swallowed when the words left a strange taste on her tongue.
The doors closed with a small 'bing' and Callie stared at his thunderstruck face.
"You were his best friend," Callie said, recognising the feeling underneath his empty gaze.

After a couple of seconds Derek sighed: "No, Callie you were. I was the one who forbade him to see the love of his life."

Callie sighed desperately: "Please Shepherd, I can't do this all on my own."

He stared at his shoes and eventually said: "I'll help you."

"Thank you," she said, staring at her shoes too, "Is tonight okay for you?"

He gave a small nod.

"7 o'clock, my place. Is that okay for you?"

He nodded again.

She stopped before the PEDS ward.
It was a strange melancholic feeling she felt every time she had to go in here. It used to be a cheerful place, but for Callie, the absence of her wife made it have a sad impression.
She placed the chart underneath her armpit and took a deep breath before entering.

She knew the PEDS ward well and walked towards Claire, one of the elder nurses: "Can you tell me where dr. Karev is?"

Claire gave her a warm smile: "He's still caught in surgery, but it shouldn't take long…"

Callie smiled at her: "Thank you, Claire."

"You're welcome dr. Torres," the nurse answered.

Callie stared at the hallway, which was painted in bright colours, in oceans and forest, inhabited by smiling animals. The walls of several rooms were covered with colourful drawings. Callie noticed she was subconsciously searching for her wife, for the sound of her heelys that announced her arrival.

"How is dr. Robbins?"

Callie forced her gaze back to the friendly face of Claire.

"She's doing good, Claire."

The nurses' lips formed a bright smile: "That's good to hear. We really miss her here. She was an excellent head of paediatrics."

The orthopaedist gave her a polite smile: "I'll tell her."

"Do you think she will ever come back?"

Callie's mind slowed down, realising she had no idea at all how to answer that question.

When Claire pointed her head at something behind Callie and said: "Ah, dr. Karev's finished with his surgery," the Latina sighed of relief.

They were scrubbing out after a smooth surgery.

"How is she?"

"Good. She's doing good."

Karev gave a small nod en continued to wash his hands: "How's her incision?"

Callie grabbed a towel and dried her hands, still trying to figure out how to behave towards Alex: "It's healing well."

She stared at his hands, how they slowed down and how he finally stared at the cold water flowing over his hands. When he noticed she was staring at him, he cleared his throat: "I eh… I've got patients…"
And left the room without drying his hands. Callie stared at the small drops of water he left on the floor.

ARIZONA

Callie came home early and found Arizona sitting on the floor, playing with Sofia. It made her smile to see them both.
"Oh hi," Arizona said happily when she saw her wife entering the room.
"Hi," the Latina walked towards her daughter and placed a small kiss on her forehead and then walked to Arizona. For a brief second they stared hesitating at each other, until Arizona looked away and focussed back on the house she was building with Sofia. She still didn't want Callie to touch her in that way. Callie stared at them for a while and sat down next to Arizona, who quickly asked how her day was, so the uncomfortable silence was broken.
"Good. I operated on a fifteen-year old with a pretty complex shoulder fracture. Surgery was a success."
Arizona gave a small smile and tried to swallow the jealousy that overwhelmed her when she realised Callie must have been on PEDS today. Her PEDS…

When Callie noticed her wife's smile, that didn't reach her eyes, she quickly asked: "How was your day?"

When Arizona looked up, the Latina's stomach turned. She already opened her mouth to avoid another conflict, but Arizona smiled: "Good. I walked a bit and then Sofia came home and we've built this beautiful house. Oh and I called the physiotherapist you advised."

She watched a wide smile appear on her wife's face: "You did?"

Arizona smiled: "I've got an appointment at 9 o'clock tomorrow."

Callie raised her eyebrows: "You're awesome," she said before walking towards the kitchen unit. On her way she heard Arizona say: "I know."

"What do you want to eat?" Callie asked, looking into the refrigerator.

Arizona pulled herself up: "Mexican, I want something spicy…"

Callie's left mouth corner curled up and she cursed her dirty mind.

Arizona almost let go of the seat when she saw her wife's face and realised what she had said: "I didn't mean…"

The Latina smiled at her wife's reaction: "I know… Do you think Derek likes spicy?"

Arizona, who had finally managed to grab her crutches, dropped them and held on to the seat, her panicky eyes found Callie: "Why're you asking? You're not…?"

"What?! No, of course not, Arizona," Callie chuckled at that last thought and grabbed a saucer, "I've invited him for tonight."

She saw the blonde looking relieved: "Oh…," her smile grew bigger, but after a couple of seconds it disappeared: "tonight? You've invited Derek Shepherd tonight?"
"Yes, he'll help me with… Marks funeral…"

Arizona was about to protest, but when she heard Marks funeral, she gave a small nod.
"You could have warned me, you know," she said softly.

Callie closed the fridge: "I didn't plan it, I just ran into him and I knew I couldn't do this on my own…"

"How's his hand?"

Callie turned around and saw Arizona staring at the place where her left leg was supposed to be.
"At eighty per cent."

Arizona carefully touched her scar and mouthed: "Eighty per cent…"

ARIZONA

Callie smiled when she opened the door and Derek Shepherd stood in the middle of the hallway.
"Hi," she placed a quick kiss on his cheek, "I hope you like chicken picata?"

Derek smiled: "Of course."

His eyes scanned through the room and finally met her. She saw his eyes flashing to the space underneath her left leg, only for a few seconds, but long enough.
"Derek," she said, her eyes too flashing to the blue bandage his hand was wrapped in.

CALLIOPE

"Have you told Addison?" she asked.

His eyes flashed from his plate towards hers.

"That's okay, I'll…" she took a sip of her red wine, "I'll tell her."

Derek sighed: "Thank you."

"Have you got any idea where we should bury him?"

Derek stared at her and after a couple of seconds he whispered: "Next to Lexie."

Callie gave a small nod and saw Arizona staring at Derek's hand. Since his arrival, she kept anxiously staring at it. Callie could see Derek saw her staring, but he ignored it politely.

"Have you got any ideas for the music?" she hated to ask these questions, but somebody had to.

Derek looked up, gave a small nod and met Arizona's gaze, he looked down at his hand and said: "I know…"

She looked up: "I didn't mean to… it's just…"

"I know… when I see… when I see your leg, it's just like…"

She gave a small nod: "Just like…"

"Out there, in the woods…"

Callie stared at them and tried to understand the silence that followed, but knew her efforts were in vain.

ARIZONA

"You're okay?" she asked when Derek had just left.

Arizona gave her wife a small nod: "You're okay?"

Callie started to clean up the kitchen: "Yes, I'm feeling better. I'm actually doing something for Mark…"

Arizona bit her bottom lip: "That helped me too when Tim died…"

"Sure you're okay?"

Arizona nodded and watched her wife cleaning the cooker. "You did a good job."

Callie snorted: "Yeah, right…"

"I mean it, Calliope," she hopped closer and held on to the other side of the cooker.

Tears appeared in Callie's eyes: "Really? Because I think I've made a serious mess of it all… I couldn't save your leg, I couldn't save Derek's hand and now I can't even organize a funeral…"

The paediatrician hopped closer and grabbed her hand: "You didn't save my leg, but you saved me. You gave Derek 80 per cent and for as far as I heard today, you're going to give Mark a beautiful funeral…"

Callie looked up: "Really?"

"Really…" she placed a quick kiss on her wife's forehead, "Come on you silly, our daughter is waiting for her good night kiss."

CALLIOPE

She took another deep breath and looked at the blue eyes that were following her through the room.
Arizona gave a small nod.
"I can't do this, Arizona…" her voice trembled, "I can't tell her…"

Arizona looked for her crutches and came standing next to her wife.
"Do you want me to do it?"

Callie quickly blinked away a tear and gave Arizona her phone.

"Are you really sure?"
The Latina sank into the seat and watched her wife.

Arizona leant against the kitchen table and watched the Seattle skyline, while waiting.

"Callie?"

Arizona watched her wife, who anxiously stared back.

"It's Arizona, Addison…"

"Arizona? Is everything okay with Callie?"

"Yes," she closed her eyes, "She's fine…"

The paediatrician turned around: "There's something you have to know."

The background noise disappeared and Arizona figured out Addison must have searched someplace calm.

"It doesn't sound like good news."

Arizona took a deep breath: "That's because it isn't."

"Can I speak to Callie?"

The Latina's eyes flashed towards Arizona.
"She asked me to tell you that…" she swallowed, "Mark died."

Arizona heard the door closing, before Addison started to cry.

ARIZONA

"Come on Sofia, we really got to go, we're running late."
She hopped towards the wardrobe and grabbed their coats.

"Where's Mama?"

Arizona watched her daughter and gave her a gentle smile: "She left early for work," she lied, not really quite sure where Callie was on her day of.

Sofia frowned: "But when we were building the house yesterday you said I could finish it with Mama, because she didn't have to work!"

Arizona raised her eyebrows while walking towards her daughter: "Did I say that? I must have been a little bit confused…"

Sofia grabbed her coat: "You weren't confused, because Mama said it too…"

Arizona gave Sofia her red cap with white snowflakes. "Do you remember all that?"

Sofia gave Arizona her cap and nodded.

"Woaw, you're a pretty smart young lady, but you're also running very late for school."

"Does that mean I can be a doctor too?"

Arizona placed a small kiss on her daughters forehead: "If that's what you really, really, really want to."

"I really, really, really want that, Mommy. I want to be a doctor just like you and Mama and Christina and Daddy and Lexie…"
Arizona smiled gently: "Okay young lady, but then you'll have to start getting to school on time."

Sofia grabbed her schoolbag and opened the door for Arizona: "Come on Mommy, we're running late!"

She sank back in the seat, when the door opened.
"I brought Sofia to school," she said, when Callie quickly ran towards Sofia's room.

Her wife ran backwards into the living room: "You did?"

Arizona laughed: "No, I'm hiding her underneath our bed. Of course I brought her to school."

"All on your own?" Callie stood in front of her.

"Not all on my own, Sofia was so very kind to place one foot in front of another and kept repeating that action, so she actually walked to school, so it wasn't entirely my work."

"You walked that whole end to kindergarten?"

Arizona smiled, finally realising what she had done: "Technically I hopped."

"Arizona! That's a kilometre, you know that, right?"

"And a kilometre back… ask my right leg"

Callie smiled and sat down next to her: "I'm so proud of you!"

Arizona smiled and thought back at her little talk with Sofia: "You know, our daughter is way too smart for her age."

Callie smiled: "You sound so surprised; she has my brains after all…"

"She asked where you were, so I told her you went to work, but she remembered it was your day of…"

"She did?"

Arizona nodded: "You'll have to finish Barbies house tonight, because there's no way she'll forget…"

Callie laughed, but grabbed Arizona's hand: "I'm sorry I left this morning…"

Arizona looked at her: "I can't blame you… I got you hostage for months now. This apartment has no space to be on your own."

Callie nodded: "That's what I wanted you to talk about. Before the… before your leg…" she looked at was left of her wife's left leg.
Arizona looked at her: "Before the amputation."

Callie swallowed: "Before the… amputation… you said Sofia had to play more outside, because we had to take her to the park the whole time… so, I've been thinking. Do you want to move?"

Arizona smiled: "Yes, of course I want to."

She watched Zola and Sofia playing.

"Addison is coming over tomorrow…" Callie said, "She's staying at our place."

Derek nodded: "Is she okay?"

"I think so," Callie said.

Arizona turned around to see Derek staring at the place where her leg should be: "I should have my prosthetic in a couple of days."

He blinked and focussed back on her face: "My surgery is in a couple of days," he said, giving Callie a gentle smile.

"So there's a chance I'll be scrubbing in with you in the future, dr. Shepherd?

"There is," he said, giving Callie a hopeful look.

So the funeral is getting really close now. Just like Derek's surgery…

Anyway, I've posted the next chapter, so please let me know what you think of it…