Ah, Poisonnwine, thank you so much! It's people like you who keep me writing. Your review was so lovely and it really meant a lot, so thank you. And thanks to insertnameherex and Sgdp1261, as usual; your reviews are much appreciated, and I hope you're enjoying the story. (I mean, as much as you can enjoy tragedy - by the way it's great to see so many people who like reading tragedy, I was beginning to worry it was just me).

Oh. Warning for this chapter. Something happens in this chapter (some of you have probably already figured out what) which might be upsetting. It's not very graphic, but if you're not sure you want to read it, feel free to PM me and ask about it or just skip it (it will be mentioned later on anyway, so you don't necessarily have to read this chapter).

That said, here you go. Let me know what you think.

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December 20th

It was so dark. The sky was cloudy, the closest streetlamp had been smashed, and the lights from the party were far behind her. Spencer wasn't sure how far she'd run. She'd just kept going stumbling over her own feet in the dark, knowing she had to get away as fast as she could. But no matter how fast or how far she traveled, she couldn't forget what she'd seen. For one brief shining moment Aria had been hers, but that was over now.

She stopped at a park bench, sinking down onto it and trying to steady her breathing, which was uneven due to exertion and the sobs that intermittently wracked her body. Despite her best efforts, the scene kept replaying itself in her mind. Aria, embracing Mr Business. It shouldn't matter that it was him specifically; the most important thing should be that Aria was with someone who wasn't her. But for some reason it made her even more angry that it was him.

Aria had gone out with him for a couple weeks, during which time Spencer had been really worried about her. She'd never seen Aria so distant, so removed. And there were those bruises that just kept popping up, with excuses ranging from stairs to doorways to an exuberant Dalmatian she met on a walk one day. No matter how hard Spencer pushed, Aria hadn't opened up about it. Spencer had been so relieved the day Aria broke up with him that she'd wrapped her up in a hug and held on for so long that Aria almost started hyperventilating.

So maybe it did matter that it was him she was with now. He didn't deserve her. He shouldn't be with her. Spencer was aware that she herself wasn't good enough for Aria, but it was different. She had nothing but the best intentions, and she would back off at once if she thought it was best for her. But this guy, he was… he was like a predator. He followed her around, waiting to catch her at her weakest and confuse her with his flashy words and meaningless credentials. Kind of like a peacock, waving its fancy tail about in hopes to distract females long enough to pounce on them.

At that point she gave up trying to figure out whether he was a lion or a bird, because something even more important occurred to her. She'd been so surprised that she hadn't noticed it before, but the more the image played out in her head, the more certain she was. He'd been looking at Aria, almost hungrily. And she'd been looking at him, too, but… it hadn't been like that. Her eyes weren't shining, twinkling, even glimmering.

Spencer felt her heart stop for a second, and then start pounding. Aria hadn't looked at him with love or even lust in her eyes. Maybe Spencer had misinterpreted it. Maybe it hadn't been what it looked like. Maybe she still had a chance.

She jumped to her feet and started sprinting back to the party. Her lungs were burning and she thought she was getting a stitch, but she didn't care. Aria may not love her, but she didn't love this guy either. Somehow this gave Spencer a spark of hope, and that was enough to fuel her flight to the party.

She was still a couple of minutes away (at least at the pace she was running, which was significantly slower than her starting pace) when a sound stopped her short. She stood, hands behind her head as she tried to get her breath back and stop the aching in her limbs, and peered through the gloom. It had sounded like.. not quite a scream, but a cry at least. A girl's voice. Someone in shock or pain or fear.

Her eyes fell upon a shadowy shape behind the nearest building. At first she couldn't quite make it out, although it filled her with a sense of inexplicable terror. But as her eyes adjusted to the dim light and she was able to figure out what was happening, the terror swirled into fierce anger and she marched forward, ignoring the possibility of danger to herself.

"Get the hell away from her," she snarled.

The guy turned around, shocked. He'd been crouched above Aria, holding her down as he forced himself on her. She was crying softly, no fight left in her, although the scratch above his eye showed that she'd tried to defend herself. He straightened up, pulling out of her and zipping up his pants.

"This doesn't concern you," he growled.

The sight of Aria lying there, helpless, terrified, ignited something in Spencer that she was unable – and didn't even try – to control. It was powerful, primal. He had hurt Aria, her Aria, and there was no way he was walking away from this. It was as simple as that.

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Confession: I've never written a scene like this before. It's delicate subject matter and I wasn't entirely sure how to handle it. So be sure to let me know what you thought.