A/N: Lorelei and Nick find themselves involved in a different kind of wesen business, and Nick learns that his little sister is capable of taking care of herself.
"And you're sure it doesn't unlock anything in the trailer?"
"Yeah, I'm sure." Nick said, although he was focused on writing his entry into the Grimm journals.
It was late in the afternoon and the Burkhardt siblings had met up at the trailer to discuss the key. Lorelei had also encouraged Nick to start writing down his interactions with wesen for future generations. He was currently outlining his experience with the klaustreich and the seltenvogel.
"And a real ass." Nick said out loud. He laughed and Lorelei joined him.
"I don't think you should add that." Lorelei told him.
"I know, I know. What's the word I'm looking for….mean? No, catty." He chuckled to himself again. And Lorelei rolled her eyes. "Big no…Got it, sadistic…and treacherous."
"That sounds much better." Lorelei said and Nick looked up at her.
"It does." He said, shooting her a smile. He finished his entry before looking back up at Lorelei. "So, how much did Aunt Marie tell you about the key?"
Lorelei sat back in her chair, kicking her feet up. "Not a whole lot. Its really old, I think she mentioned something about the crusades. I got the impression there may be more keys out there. Oh, and of course she stressed the importance of making sure it doesn't end up in the wrong hands. She didn't give examples though."
Nick nodded, leaning back in his chair as well. "If there are other keys, they may include other parts of the map. But what was so important that they had to hid it?"
Lorelei shrugged. "I don't know, maybe the Holy Grail. Were you able to figure out a location?"
Nick shook his head. "Nah, it doesn't give much away."
Lorelei chewed on her lip, deep in thought. "If it was hidden by crusaders, it would be somewhere in Europe. Or maybe even in the Middle East. Whatever it is, it's important."
Nick agreed. The two sat in silence for a bit, before Lorelei spoke up. She had been putting off telling him, but her relationship with Katie was getting more serious. Lorelei was due to meet Katie's parents next week. "Hey Nick."
"Hmmm." Nick looked up from the journal he was reading. "What's up?"
Lorelei let out a slow breath. "I, have a girlfriend." She said slowly.
Nick looked surprised. "Oh really." He said, as a smile started to cross his face. He closed the journal and lent forward. "Tell me about her."
Lorelei returned his smile. She had been a little worried about telling him, not sure how he would react to her dating. "Uh, her name is Katie. She is a sophomore, studying architecture. Uh, she works at the café on campus. That's how we met. And she's an…." She trailed off mumbling something the older Burkhardt couldn't hear.
"I'm sorry, what?"
Lorelei took a deep breath. "She is an eisbiber." She said more clearly.
Nick's eyebrows shot up. "You're dating a wesen?" he asked, looking surprised.
Lorelei nodded. "Yeah. She didn't know I was a Grimm when she first asked me out, but I told her on our first date. And she seems cool with it. She's even introduced me to some of her friends, all eisbibers. They are nice and accepting. They think its kinda cool they can tell people they are friends with a Grimm." Lorelei told him. "I'm actually meeting her parents next week."
Nick sat back. "Wow, meeting the parents already, how long have you been seeing each other?"
"Only a few weeks. But she's a lesbian and they are reported to move pretty fast." Lorelei smiled, deciding to tease her brother. "Who knows, we may be engaged by Christmas."
"Oh, ho. I don't think so." Nick said, giving her a stern look. "No marriage until you graduate college."
"I already did that." Lorelei sassed back.
"Well then, no marriage until you get your PhD. I know you're aiming for that." He said, his smirk indicating he was only partially serious.
"That'll be years away."
"Exactly."
Lorelei rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. We'll see." She bit her lip. "But you're cool with me dating…and a wesen at that?"
Nick smiled at her. "Yeah, I'm cool with it. As long as she treats you well and makes you happy. Otherwise…" he made a slash movement across his throat and the pair started laughing.
Since Lorelei's class for the day had been cancelled and she was running low on her bedtime tea blend, she decided to visit Rosalee at the spice shop. She was lucky enough to get a park close by. After making sure her car was locked, she walked up the footpath and upon reaching the door was surprised to find the closed sign. That was weird, Rosalee was usually opened by now. Lorelei peered through the door, trying to see in, however the main lights were off, and it was dark. However, she could hear talking from coming inside and light shining from the side room.
"Rosalee?" she called out, knocking on the door. She heard the voices quiet down. She knocked again. "Rosalee, It's Lorelei."
After a moment, she saw a figure step out from the side room and make its way to the door. As the figure got closer, Lorelei could see that it was Rosalee. She opened the door a bit and peered out at Lorelei.
"Hey." She said softly, glancing behind her, back into the shop. "I'm sorry but I'm closed today sweetie. Something has come up."
Lorelei was immediately suspicious. Something seemed off. She glanced in the direction Rosalee had been looking in and leaned closer to her. "Are you ok?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.
Rosalee gave a strain laugh. "Yeah, yeah. I'm fine. Just, you know, one of those days." She said. "We should meet up this weekend. You can tell me how meeting Katie's parents went."
Lorelei was becoming more and more suspicious. She narrowed her eyes at Rosalee, as she felt around for the dagger strapped to her hip. "What's going on?" she asked, noticing that Rosalee was unable to meet her eyes and was even glancing out into the street as though keeping her eye out for some kind of danger.
"Seriously. Everything is fine." Rosalee repeated, but Lorelei wasn't buying it. Without another word, she pushed her way into the shop, dagger in hand. "My god, you are freakishly strong."
Once Lorelei entered the shop, she did a quick once over and was surprised to find Monroe and another man in the side room.
"Hey Lore, what are you doing here?" Monroe asked in a jovial tone that indicated to Lorelei she had walked into something suspicious.
Rosalee had finished locking the door back up. "Lorelei, sweetie, put the dagger away." She said in motherly sounding tone as she stepped up beside the young Grimm. She sighed. "Lorelei, this is Ian. Ian, this is Lorelei. She is the younger sister of the man we were telling you about."
Lorelei sized up the unknown man. He was looking at her with as much suspicion as she was looking at him. Rosalee and Monroe seemed the trust him, so she would too. She put her dagger away.
"You have two Grimm's in Portland?" Ian asked looking incredulous.
"Yes, we do." Rosalee stated, pushing Lorelei further into the room.
"You're wesen?" Lorelei asked him, still sizing him up.
Ian nodded. "What are you doing carrying a dagger around?" Monroe asked her.
Lorelei shrugged. "Girls gotta protect herself."
"Can we trust her?" Ian asked, gesturing to Lorelei. "I am not even completely comfortable involving the other Grimm. How old is she anyway? How old are you?"
Lorelei straightened up. "I'm almost nineteen." She told him, wondering what her age had to do with anything. "Will you tell me what's going on? What's with all the cloak and dagger?"
Rosalee filled Lorelei in about the situation, while Monroe called Nick and Ian continued staring Lorelei down, as though waiting for her to attack him.
"Ok, so Ian is a leader of the resistance, also known as the Laufer, who oppose the Verrat who are an organisation that serve the seven royal houses, who are not wesen but still stick their noses in wesen business. And the Verrat are responsible for some of the shit that's happened in the past hundred or so years including the White Terror, Hitler, and the Arab Spring? Have I got that right?"
Rosalee nodded. "Yeah, pretty much."
"And Grimm's have been mercenaries for the royals?" Lorelei directed this question to Ian, who nodded. "No wonder you are extra wary of Grimms, I'm sure you've been fucked over by them past." She paused for moment; however, she didn't miss the hint of a smile that crossed Ian's face. "And you are being hunted by the Verrat?" Again, Ian nodded. He hadn't said much, Rosalee had done all the talking.
Monroe came back in. "Ok, uh, Nick is on his way. Lorelei, you better leave. He will freak out if he finds you here."
"I'm not going anywhere." Lorelei said indignantly. "I want to help Ian. For too long Grimms have been on the wrong side of history. I want to change that."
A little while later the door to the side room slide open, and Monroe stepped in with Nick behind him. The minute Nick saw Ian he had his gun drawn ordering Ian not to move. There was a moment of panic as Rosalee and Lorelei stepped between Nick and Ian. Ian raised his good arm in the air to show he was unarmed.
"This man is wanted for murder." Nick said, keeping his gun on Ian.
"Well, I guess he is just trying to do the right thing." Ian said sarcastically, his comment directed towards Monroe.
"Nick, put the gun down. We can explain." Lorelei said slowly, keeping her hands up as though she was interacting with a dangerous animal.
"Lorelei, move." Nick said sternly. "I found his passport next to the bartender that he shot." He started to move closer to Ian and so did Rosalee.
"Ian lost his bag, when he was shot." She said, emphasising the shot part. "That's how the guy who shot him, got his passport."
Nick looked incredulous "That's what he told you?" he said.
"When was this bartender shot?" Lorelei said, now having moved to stand in front of Rosalee.
"Four hours ago." Was Nick's reply.
Monroe spoke up this time. "Then it can't be him, Nick. We've been with him longer than that."
"Ian's been here since I opened the shop this morning."
"Clearly he wants you to find me because he can't." Ian added. "That's why he shot this bartender. If you arrest me right now, then he'll know exactly where I am."
Nick looked at Rosalee. "Did you check him for weapons?"
"He doesn't have any." Rosalee told him. "He came here because my brother was supposed to help him."
Finally, Nick lowered his gun, seeming to have deemed the Ian was not an immediate threat. The tension in the room seemed to have dropped dramatically.
"Well, Nick Burkhardt meet Ian Harmon." Monroe said. "Ian, Nick."
"Pleasure." Ian said.
"The man who's trying to kill you, what's his name?" Nick asked as he holstered his gun.
"Edgar Waltz." Ian told him. "He's an enforcer for the Verrat."
Nick looked confused. "The Verrat. I thought they only operated in Europe."
"Their influence is spreading. They occupy positions of power everywhere. Politics, industry, organised crime. Anything that is corruptible is susceptible to their influence." Ian said, slowly making his way closer to Nick. "Even law enforcement."
"Nick, these guys make the Spanish Inquisition look like SPCA." Monroe told him. "And Ian's resistance group the Laufer, is the only thing that stands in their way."
"This world is on the brink of war. The turmoil in the Middle East, the crises in Europe, the Arab Spring, all of it is tied together." Ian continued. "Agents of the Verrat, working for the seven houses have infiltrated the highest levels of all governments."
Nick looked confused again. "The Seven Houses?"
Ian looked surprised that Nick didn't know about the Seven Houses. Lorelei guessed Ian had assumed that being young was the reason Lorelei didn't know much. He seemed to expect Nick to know. "The Seven Royal Families. This is not a new struggle. It's been going on for centuries. With this struggle, the Royal Families recognise opportunities to gain more control. People driven by fear, choose stability over freedom, when their neighbours start to die."
"My parents were part of the resistance." Lorelei glanced at Rosalee. "And my grandparents, my brother. I never wanted to be involved. It always seemed so far away."
Ian started talking again, this time addressing both Nick and Lorelei. "Your people changed the balance of power when they decided to work for the Royal Families."
Nick shook his head. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Grimms, Nick." Lorelei told him, he glanced at her, giving her a weird look.
"Evidently you don't know how valuable you are, how valuable your sister is to the Royals." Ian glanced at Lorelei. "I haven't known you long, but it is obvious that you have wisdom far beyond your years, Little Grimm."
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Nick frown. "Look, I don't mean to be insensitive, but right now I am trying to find a murderer, and not get a wesen history lesson." Nick said with an incredulous and slightly awkward smile on his face.
"Nick, Ian needs your help." Rosalee said. "We have to get him out of here before Waltz finds him. The only reason he's not dead is because the bullet went through his pack first."
"But he lost his papers." Monroe continued. "And without them, he can't leave."
Nick stared at Monroe for a moment before he clocked on to what Monroe was trying to say. "Are you talking about getting false documents to get him out of the country?"
Monroe let out a sigh. "I'm sorry." He said, looking down.
Nick sighed as well. "This just keeps getting better and better."
"Rosalee's brother was the last stop for wesen trying to get out of the country." Ian said. "He was going to help me."
"Alright, if all of this is true, then the most important thing for me to do is find Edgar Waltz. I can't promise anything else yet." Nick said.
Ian nodded. "Ok, yeah, fair enough." He replied.
"Does Waltz know about Freddy?"
"No." Ian said with a slight laugh. Nick looked at him, causing Ian to look unsure. "If he did, I would be dead by now." He looked at Monroe, Rosalee, and Lorelei. "And so would they."
Nick stood up. "Ok, stay here for now." He said, before looking at Rosalee. "Do you know where we can get him new papers?"
"I think so." Rosalee said, looking towards Monroe and Rosalee. "We were looking through the shop and found a bunch of fake passports of my brothers. I know the man who did them, his name is Reginald…"
Nick cut her off. "Don't tell me anymore. Ok?" He looked towards Monroe and Ian. "I'll call you when I get something."
"Thanks Nick." Monroe said, patting Nick on the back as he made his way out.
Nick paused and turned back towards Lorelei. "Is there any point on telling you to go home?" he asked her.
"Nope." Was her reply.
Nick stared at for a moment. "We will be having a chat."
"I have no doubt." Lorelei answered. He simply shook his head and left.
Rosalee headed out to see her brothers contact, while Monroe and Lorelei waited at the shop with Ian. Lorelei continued asking Ian questions about the Verrat, the Laufer, and the Royals. She had learnt more from Ian in a day than she had learnt from Aunt Marie in almost two years. "And there is also the Wesen Council, who are wesen who enforce wesen law?" She asked.
Ian nodded. "That is correct." He seemed to be warming up to Lorelei the longer he spent with her. She was certainly more open to learning about wesen history compared to her brother. He was also learning more about the young Grimm as well. The more he learnt, the more he realised how much the Royals would love to get their hands on her. She would be a valuable asset to them.
While Ian and Lorelei were talking, Monroe was pacing. As he tended to do when stressed out. "Are you always this animated?" Ian finally asked Monroe.
"Well, you made me miss my yoga, so…" he trailed off and returned to pacing.
"You care about Rosalee." Ian wasn't asking, he was stating it as a fact.
"I do. I care about all my friends. Even the ones you don't like."
"I don't dislike him. He's just…a Grimm"
"Well, we're all equals." Monroe said, moving to face Ian. "Isn't that what you're fighting for?"
Before Ian could answer, Monroe's phone rang and answered it. After a brief introduction, Monroe turned to Ian and asked if he had heard of a freidenreden. Ian directed Monroe to put it on speakerphone.
"Yeah, you're on speaker with me, Ian and Lorelei."
"Who asked you about a freidenreden?" Ian asked.
"Waltz called me." Was Nick's reply through the phone.
Ian looked worried. "Does he know you found me?"
"No, I don't think so. He wants me to meet him at 10pm. He asked me if I knew what a freidenreden was. I said I did, but I don't"
"It's a truce – a white flag meeting. You both come unarmed, and you both leave of your own accord."
Monroe interrupted. "Dude, you can't seriously be thinking of meeting this guy unarmed." Monroe said, the concern obvious in his voice.
"He will honour it." Ian told them. "They have a great belief in the sanctity of rules. Nick, one more thing. Once the truce is over, the minute you walk away, anything goes. So, watch your back."
The call was ended, and Ian glanced at the other two. "Waltz is getting closer. This place isn't safe anymore."
Lorelei let out a sigh. "We can't go to my place. I live in a dorm surrounded by college kids. And we can't do Nick's, Juliette will be there." She looked up at Monroe and he stared back at her for a moment before groaning.
"Fine, we can go my place." He said, not looking happy about it.
"Thank you." Lorelei said, pulling him in for a hug.
"You're lucky I love you." He murmured into her hair.
Lorelei smiled. "Love you too." She pulled back and glanced at Ian, who had a small smile on his face. "You guys should head out. I'll wait for Rosalee."
Monroe did not look happy about that. "Uh, no, no way. You are coming with us. What if Waltz shows up?
"I agree with Monroe. You would be better off with us." Ian told Lorelei.
"You guys. I am not completely helpless. I was trained by Marie Kessler. I am a Grimm. And it wouldn't be the first time I've taken on a hunjager, on my own." She told the two men, who looked surprised. "And spoiler alert, I won. If anyone tries to hurt someone I care about. I'll kill them."
Both men still looked surprised and although Monroe was still looking sceptical, Ian seemed to have a little more faith. They eventually left, however. Lorelei quickly slipped out to her car and went around to the back. Once it was open, she opened a secret compartment in the floor and looked over the weapons she had stowed in there. After she had loaded up, she returned to the shop, slipping back into the side room.
Lorelei kept glancing out the window, waiting for Rosalee return. Eventually she did, however Lorelei saw someone following her. She contemplated moving to the main room to greet Rosalee, but decided to stay hidden in case the person following her was Waltz. Not long after Rosalee entered Lorelei heard to bell again, signalling someone had followed her in. She listened to them converse and at first it sounded as if the man was just a customer, however Lorelei had a bad feeling. Eventually she heard the man ask "Where is he?"
Yep, must be Waltz. Lorelei contemplated what to do. She had no doubt that he was armed. If she wasn't careful, Rosalee could be hurt. As could she. The last hunjager she encountered preferred to use brute force as opposed to guns. She didn't want to get a lecture from Nick if she got shot. It would be hard to explain to certain people.
Waltz told Rosalee to call Ian, to see whose life he valued more. Lorelei heard Rosalee make the phone call and it sounded like she reached Monroe. At one point it sounded as if Waltz was on the phone. Lorelei took a chance and glanced out. They were on the other side of the main shop. Waltz was facing the direction of the counter and Rosalee was facing her direction. Rosalee saw Lorelei and her eyes widened. Lorelei raised her finger to her lips, indicating Rosalee should stay quiet. She then slipped out of sight again. Although Lorelei couldn't see, she had no doubt Waltz had the gun in hand.
When she heard they had at least fifteen minutes, she felt slight relief. She had a bit more time to come up with a plan of action. She needed to separate him from his gun, without either her or Rosalee getting shot. She still had the element of surprise. She could try to just knock him out. Lorelei glanced around her immediate area, hoping to find something. She didn't want to move around too much, in case Waltz heard her.
The clock was ticking, Lorelei was running out of time. There was nothing nearby that was heavy enough to knock out a hunjager. And she didn't know if back up would arrive by the time fifteen minutes was up. If Rosalee wasn't here, Lorelei would have already taken Waltz down. But she didn't want her friend to get hurt.
"You may think I am a monster, but what I am is necessary." This time when Waltz spoke, it sounded as if he was right beside her. No doubt just outside the side room. "No society can exist without order. Free thought is not free." Oh god, is he giving a villain monologue? "There's no such thing as revolution. The oppressed always become the oppressors, and the cycle repeats itself over and over. The only way to win, is to stay out of the cycle." He paused. "You don't understand a word that I say."
"I'm sorry, I wasn't listening." Came Rosalee's sassy response.
Lorelei decided that now was the time to move. Her footsteps light, she slipped out from her hiding spot, coming to stand behind Waltz. "I was. I suppose it's a matter of opinion though."
Waltz spun around, gun in hand, pointing towards Lorelei. However, she was already moving, A punch to the throat, then the nose. Her hand reaching out to grab the hand he was holding the gun with, she directed it away from herself and Rosalee. Lorelei spun them around, moving to slam Waltz's arm against the doorway separating the main room and the side room. There was a loud snap and Waltz yelled out in pain, dropping the gun. His face changed and his gaze met Lorelei's. "Another Grimm." He growled. Lorelei didn't know if he was more surprised or in pain. She didn't give it much thought, heading straight for the gun. Waltz followed, however he let out another yell of pain when Lorelei kicked back from her bent over position, her foot hitting him in the face. A crunching noise followed.
Losing her balance slightly, Lorelei saved herself, tucking herself into a roll, grabbing the gun as she did so. Once she landed, she spun around and stood up, gun in hand and fired off three shots. Waltz landed heavily on the ground, a look of surprise on his face, two bullets to the chest and one in the centre of his forehead. "Lorelei, oh my god." Rosalee said, rushing over to her, as Lorelei put the safety on the gun.
At that moment, Nick, Monroe, and Ian came bursting in the door. Nick with his gun drawn. The three men looked at the scene in surprise. Waltz, dead on the floor, Lorelei with a gun in her hand and Rosalee besides her, no worse for wear.
"Lorelei?" Nick asked, looking shocked.
She held the gun out to her brother. "Told you I can take care of myself."
Before Ian got away, he helped Nick and Monroe cover up Lorelei's crime. They moved the body, while Lorelei helped Rosalee clean up her mess at the spice shop. She kept apologising to her friend for the mess she had made, but Rosalee kept shushing her, reminding Lorelei that she had saved her life. Before he had left, Ian pulled Lorelei to the side, offering her a position within the resistance. Lorelei had thanked him, but insisted she needed to focus on her studies. Ian seemed to understand. "You take care, Little Grimm." He said, smiling fondly at her.
Lorelei thought she would be able to avoid her brother for a few days, but the next morning he showed up at her dorm. Coffee in hand and an unreadable expression on his face.
"You killed a man." Were the first words out of his mouth.
Lorelei signed and sunk down on the sofa. "It's not exactly the first time I killed hunjager."
Nick looked at her in surprise. "This has happened before?"
Lorelei nodded. "Yeah, last year in Baltimore." She told him. "One attacked me as I left work one night."
Nick sunk down beside her. "You shouldn't have been involved in this in the first place."
"My friends were involved." Lorelei said. "And I kind of barged my way in. I thought Rosalee was being held hostage or something."
"You should have left and called me."
Lorelei sighed again. "Nick, I'm not a little girl anymore. I'm a Grimm. I was born to do this, just like you were."
"I'm your older brother. I'm supposed to protect you, keep you safe." He said, a pained expression on his face. "You went up against a murderer. And yeah, you won but it could have ended badly. Plus, you killed him."
"You're right. It could have gone badly. And yeah, I killed him. But you can't arrest every bad wesen we come across. You heard Ian, the Verrat are powerful. They probably would have found a way to get him out." Lorelei told him. "And what about that guy, Stark. Jail didn't hold him." She let out a breath. "I don't like the idea of killing people, but sometimes, that may be our only option. And I know it contradicts everything you know as a police officer. But when it comes to bad wesen, sometimes we need to be the judge, the jury, and the executioner. To protect the people of this city, including the good wesen. Like Monroe and Rosalee."
Nick sighed and leaned back. "I can't lose you."
"I understand. I feel the same way. And I promise to be careful, when possible. But you can't keep me from doing the job I was born to do…. Especially if you keep dragging my friends into it. Ok?"
"I still don't like it."
"I know."