Family Ties – Chapter Six
AN – Thank you for all the responses and liking of the dreams! I've said it before but this is a slow burn, I really want this to be believable and also somewhat true to what was seen in the show. Changes are coming though and I hope you continue to enjoy.
I do not own any characters or stories from the tv show Grimm. Some dialogue is lifted from various episodes in Season 3. No infringement or copyright is intended. It's all for fun, no profit being made here.
Warning – This chapter contains a scene with crude sexual language, description of violence and injury, and a potentially triggering situation. Nothing explicit but please be aware as you read.
-G-
Adalind stretches as they pull into another backroad gas station. She's not really sure where they are and at this point, she's not caring. All she wants is to be able to spend some quality time not in a car.
"I'm going to fill up, we shouldn't need to buy any supplies here but if you need a restroom break, take one now," Kelly instructs as she undoes her seatbelt. "Try not to attract any attention." Adalind can't help but roll her eyes at that last bit. As if she wants anyone taking notice of them. Kelly moves efficiently to the pump as she releases Diana from her carrier, picks up her bag, and heads to the sign declaring women. Inside she finds it's one of the rare bathrooms where there's a larger cubicle with toilet and changing table separate from the others. She locks them in and settles Diana on the table whilst quickly going herself, happy her powers allow for to keep her child safe on the high surface. Diana stretches, kicking out her legs and gurgling happily and Adalind thinks she's happy to get out of the car as well.
Once done, and Diana is all clean too, she dawdles a minute or two more, just to give them both time to move before getting back into the close confides of the car. She tickles her daughter's tummy and smiles as her little legs kick out again.
"Ok, little one, I think we've probably lingered enough," she scoops her up and glances around the space to check if she's left anything before going to rejoin Kelly.
It's as she walks across the lot that she becomes aware of the stare. She hunches her shoulders and hugs Diana closer as she keeps her steps confident. She can see Kelly at the car and focuses on her so can't miss the way the Grimm straightens with attention.
"Hey, pretty lady," A voice calls out and Adalind looks over her shoulder to see two men walking quickly towards her. "Where you headin'?"
She shakes her head as she keeps walking, seeing Kelly start towards them as well.
"Hey, I'm talking to you!" A hand clams down on her arm and she spins to face her follower. "You planning on ignoring me, sweetheart?" His breath stinks and Adalind scrunches her face up in disgust, moving Diana higher against her chest with the movement.
"Ugh, a kid," the other man gripes as he looks at what she's holding. "Well, Johnno might like that." A third man appears over his shoulder. They crowd her and she hears Kelly call out a warning to leave her alone. The man with his hand on her just leans closer.
"I heard you get tighter after having a kid. Bet you've got a pretty little cunt. I'll have it weeping for my cock in no time."
She cries out in anger, revulsion and shock. Woging, she pushes him away but his grip on her arm makes her stumble to the ground after him. Adalind twists so she lands on her hip, Diana snuggled into her chest to protect her from the impact. She hears the grunts and slaps of a fight and knows Kelly is taking care of the other men but scrambles to her feet as the brute to her side gets to his.
"You bitch," he snarls and that's when the ground rumbles. The lights overhead spark and leads to the gas pumps jump and whip around the space. Adalind holds Diana closer and screeches, letting her anger free.
His body is blasted back, hitting first one of the pumps, the crack of bones breaking loud in the night air, then forced further away and being impaled on the end of the metal fence at the end of the lot. Blood sprays the ground and his head lolls to one side, lifeless. She retracts as the ground settles and looks to Kelly as she joins them.
"You ok? Both of you?" Adalind nods and turns to get into the car, ignoring the bodies at their feet. Kelly moves just as quickly and within moments they're back on the road again.
They drive in silence for awhile as Adalind calms and finally feels settled enough to let go of Diana and put her in her own seat. She brushes her fingers along her daughter's chest and smiles for her, even as she exhales heavily.
"What did they say?"
"Nothing I've not heard before, not really," she replies and that's true. She's used her body as an enticement and a weapon. You can't run in the circles she has without getting propositioned, in both polite and less so ways.
"Doesn't make it ok," Kelly responds and she nods in agreement.
"I know. I know my past and what I've done. What I had to do. Doesn't mean I want to do anything like that again." Not if she can help it. Her actions had made sense at the time, though looking back now she sees how little control she had in many of the situations she found herself in. Still, she knows better now and can do better. Especially when she focuses on her daughter.
"Well, you did good protecting yourself and her," Kelly praises and Adalind meets her eyes in the mirror. "Still, next time try not to make such big, flashy movements. That kind of thing gets noticed, especially when lights flash and things move in unnatural ways."
"Wait, you think I did that? No, I was focused on that asshole. And getting him the hell away from us." Now she thinks about it, those were unnatural incidents. She slowly turns to her daughter. "It was Diana," she breathes out. There's a pregnant pause and then Kelly is nodding her head.
"She was protecting you, is using her powers whenever there is a threat around the two of you."
"It's why it's unstable," Adalind continues as she thinks it through. "As you grow with your powers you learn to channel and focus where you want your energy to go. Right now, she's too young for that but she still has awareness and access to her power. It's like she's pushing it out to help but lacks the true intent needed to get specific results." Oh, her little girl. Adalind rubs her tummy and bends to give her a kiss.
"We're going to have to find a way to teach her about her powers, and soon."
-G-
The knock on the door is sharp and both Victor and Kenneth look up from the papers they are studying.
"Enter!"
"Sir, sir." He bows to both seated men.
"Senor Rispoli, what news?"
"Sir, I have information about the plane." The details are explained quickly and both royals take a minute to process the information.
"The influence of the resistance has spread further than we thought," Kenneth remarks and Victor nods.
"Well, they had to land somewhere."
"We're checking west of Manitoba, from Alaska to Mexico."
"The resistance could have taken them anywhere. Why go all this way," Victor muses and both men look to him.
"Sir?" Rispoli queries and an idea takes form in Victor's mind.
"Maybe it's Adalind. Maybe she wanted to go home. Check Portland."
-G-
Whether because of the gas station incident or being part of the plan, it's only a few more hours before Kelly is pulling into a town and driving to a back street. All the houses are small and look run down but Adalind can see little touches here and there that show people live here. Hanging flower pots and piles of bikes and children's toys. They pull into the house at the end of the street, small with broken shutters but what looks like a fairly solid front door.
"We'll get you two settled inside then I can bring the bags in," Kelly instructs and Adalind nods, gathering what she has in the back seat before turning to unclip Diana's car carrier from its holding. She's fast asleep inside so it's best to carry her in the whole thing rather than potentially wake her by removing her.
Adalind doesn't look around as they walk up and Kelly produces a key to open the front door. She cocks her head at that but doesn't question her companion. They walk inside to a hallway, stairs to the left and corridor leading down to more rooms.
"It's two bed, one full bathroom with a water closet next to the kitchen. One of the bedrooms should have a crib in it and that's yours. You can look around while I get our things." She nods and then walks slowly down the hall, noting the door on the right leading to a living room before the doors at the end leading to a L-shape space that has both kitchen and dining room. It's small and smells a bit musty but it's clean and she thinks it has that appearance of being thoroughly ordinary. Nothing to see here, just a run-down house on a run-down estate in a small town in the middle of who cares, America. Somewhere where everybody's lives are so routine and ordinary that no one would ever suspect there was a magical baby being hidden amongst them. She hears Kelly close the door and turns to meet her in the hallway.
"Everything ok?" Kelly nods and proceeds to take three of the bags and head upstairs. Adalind follows, careful not to bump Diana in her carrier and wake her up.
"You two are in this one," Kelly indicates the room to the left. "I'm right across the hall and the bathroom is between us." Adalind spies a crib squashed in next to a queen-sized bed but both look clean and the thought of laying down in a bed is tremendously appealing.
"Is there anything else we need to do or can I get us settled in?" She indicates Diana with a nod of her head and Kelly smiles at her.
"No, you go and get some sleep. I'm going to do a quick recon and double check before I do the same." Adalind pauses as she realises that, whilst it's been fleeting, she actually has had some sleep since they left Portland. She doesn't think Kelly has slept or rested at all.
"Can I help so you can get to sleep too?"
"I've survived longer periods than this awake," Kelly states. "Thank you for the offer but you need to concentrate on that little one. You should sleep while she sleeps, that's a new mom rule. I'll be fine." She turns and heads back down the stairs and Adalind has nothing else to do but go into her room, settle her daughter then get into bed herself.
Changing clothes feels like a luxury after being in the same outfit for so long and climbing into clean sheets, if a bit scratchy, is something else she relishes. Diana hasn't woken from her shift from carrier to cot and so Adalind lays down and tries to empty her thoughts so she can sleep.
Colours twist and swirl in her dreams and a familiar face talks as power thrums through her being. Waking with a start Adalind gasps and wonders what the hell she's just seen.
-G-
Nick stares as the faces ripple and retract, lowering his gun as he sees the threat has passed. The girls continue to sob as he warns Trubel and Hank calls it in. Using his presence and questioning to distract them lets Trubel slip out and they can get everything processed properly.
He's feeling mad at the younger Grimm whilst also impressed and worried but also maybe just a little bit in awe. She managed to keep two Wesen at bay, by herself, and keep them away from the innocents in the room. She probably didn't even need them busting in at the end. Still, he had a job to do and a crime to report and victims to help.
It takes hours to get everything sorted, from the CSU checking over the bodies to ambulances for the victims and then Hank checking his car, in case the dramatic entrance into the warehouse caused any, God forbid, damage, before driving back to the precinct to write the report.
Compared to other Wesen cases this one is easy to write up, with solid leads to put into the statement and evidence that supports it.
"That felt too easy," Hank comments as they both submit their reports and Nick nods.
"Well, we did have some help," he replies.
"You think she's going to stick around?"
"I hope so. She's got so much potential and I really think I could help her."
"I'm thinking you could. But as there is nothing left to do tonight, I am heading home." Hank shuts down his computer and swings his coat off his chair and into his hands. "You should do the same."
"I will, I just want to check one last thing." His partner nods and takes his leave and Nick looks around the mostly empty office space before turning back to his computer.
Inputting the data, he looks through the search results and is happy to see the truck was discovered, checked and has no further investigation attached and has been returned to the owner. He makes a note of the owner and the address, just in case, then moves to copy his partner and head home.
"You still here, Burkhardt?" Franco calls out as he walks out and he spins as he answers him.
"Not anymore! Hope you have a quiet night." Making his way to the car park he settles behind the wheel going to start the ignition before leaning back into the headrest and sighing. Work being busy is good, it's what his focus should be on. It's just not where his head is at. Having Trubel come into his life, having the opportunity to help and guide her is awesome as well as being unsettling with the sense that it may be putting some distance between him and Juliette.
And then he has thoughts of his mother, Adalind and her daughter, float in and out randomly. Trying not to worry whilst also staying aware so he can warn them of any potential danger heading their way. It might be strange but he really doesn't want anything to happen to them, all three of them. His mother, obviously, but also the child, who is innocent – she can't help who her parents are, whichever Royal fathered her can't be all that great if they had to run, and then the mother. Adalind. He's had so many mixed emptions surrounding her, for all the time he has known her, but he was honest when he said they can move past it. Only time will tell how they do that.
He checks his phone to see no messages, glad he doesn't need to stop off on the way home, before bringing out his other, new phone. Powering it up he waits to see if anything comes through, thinking of the experience in his dream.
It had been so strange but had felt so real. One of the most surreal experiences of his life so far and yet, he felt in his bones it had been real. That had actually been Adalind and they really had a conversation. Even though he had no idea where she was but knew it was nowhere near him. Although, was what happened even a possibility if she was close-by? He just didn't know, all he had was his feelings and they were telling him what happened, did happen.
The phone in his hand chimes and he looks down. The start of the message was the first line of the rhyme from his childhood and then some commentary but he skipped over that to the end of the message and exhaled noisily.
There it was, typed in the small text and staring up at him from the screen
Purple gaze. It had been real. Shit.
Driving home in a daze he tries not to overthink anything, it's not like he hasn't been involved in magic and enchantments before. It just hadn't felt like that. He'd been aware of dreaming and knowing something more was happening. Been aware of her. And he hadn't felt threatened or in any danger. Just that they were in this, whatever this was, together.
He finds Juliette and Trubel both still awake though the hour is getting late and they talk for a few minutes before his yawns take up more of the conversation than his words.
"Okay. You look like you could use some sleep." Trubel leaves and Juliette looks at him.
"You kind of do," she agrees and Nick nods but really isn't feeling like sleeping. He has no idea what he might see when he closes his eyes and so restful sleep right now seems more like a dream that what he might see once he does go to sleep. Still, there's only so many ways to stay awake and even fewer reasons to give to his girlfriend about why he's trying when he's clearly tired so Nick gives in and goes to bed.
-G-
He's panting, body exerted and excited, the scent of her, of them, surrounding him. He can feel her figure, pressed so intimately against his and all he wants is her closer. Every part of her.
"Nick," she moans his name and he clutches her nearer, harder, faster.
Magic seems to flow around in the air and to touch each other is electric. It feeds this thing between them and he just wants more.
"Ah," she cries out as his mouth settles at the juncture of her neck and shoulder and sucks hard. She flips them so she's hovering above him, blonde hair falling around their faces and creating darkness until that's all he sees.
-G-
AN – So, let me know what you think!