A Grimm Comes to Town

Posted originally on the Archive of Our Own at http://archiveofourown.org/works/50609911.

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Archive Warning: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Category: F/M, Gen
Fandom: Grimm (TV)
Relationship: Nick Burkhardt/Adalind Schade, Janelle Farris/Hank Griffin
Character: Nick Burkhardt, Juliette Silverton, Adalind Schade, Monroe (Grimm),
Rosalee Calvert, Bud Wurstner, Theresa Rubel
Additional Tags: Trubel
Language: English
Stats: Published: 2023-10-06 Completed: 2023-10-07 Words: 30,903
Chapters: 10/10

A Grimm Comes to Town

by wittyretort77

Summary

An older, more experienced and more deadly Grimm comes to Portland. This new Grimm
doesn't share Nick Burkhardt's moral compass. Nick has to find a way to stop him from
hurting more Wesen, all while dealing with the aftermath of the spellwork Adalind has
done in year's past leaving him all but incapacitated. This story takes place after the series
finale, but ignoring the epilogue.
 Chapter 1

Bud Wurstner stepped into the Portland Police Department stopping just over the threshold. A
portly man, wearing the uniform of the refrigerator repair shop he owns, his name patch sewn onto
the chest by his wife. Ever so briefly, it appeared as though Bud was going to turn around and walk
back out the exit, but he steeled himself and went to find Nick Burkhardt.

It didn't take Bud long to find Nick as he was exactly where he was expected to be, sitting at his
desk busily working at his police computer.

Bud approached but stopped several feet short, as though there were a line representing an
imaginary office wall surrounding Nick's desk. He leaned his head awkwardly towards Nick,
lifting one foot off the ground to lean in even further, and very gently called, "Hey, Nick."

Nick looked up from his monitor and smiled as his eyes met Bud's, but his smile quickly faded.
The context of his position as a Detective for the Portland, PD can often bring about very serious
things and his mind began going to those dark places that only a Detective and a Grimm can go.

He stood from his chair and walked towards Bud, "Hey, Bud, is everything okay?"

Bud stopped leaning, put his foot back on the ground and gave Nick an apologetic look, "What?
Oh, yeah, yeah. I'm sorry to bother you in your office, I thought about calling but I was driving past
anyways and figured I could stop in and talk in person, if that's okay." Bud often spoke with a lot
of apologies. He, like a lot of Eisbibers, were always a bit nervous and afraid of offending those
they were speaking with.

Nick sat down on the edge of his desk, "Well, it's unusual, but it's a slow night here. I was just
working on paperwork. What's going on? You need Grimm help? Detective Help?"

Bud waved his hands in front of himself a couple times, "Oh no, nothing like that. I don't know if
you know this...well, how could you know, I certainly didn't tell you. Not that it was a big secret or
anything. I just hadn't gotten around to it."

"Bud...?"

"What? Oh yeah. So the wife and I bought a new house..."

As soon as Bud said 'new house' Nick immediately began making up excuses in his mind as to why
he'd be unable to help Bud move, even though he knew he'd relent and help anyway.

"... and coincidentally the kids will be staying with their grandparents, my in-laws, this weekend so
my wife insisted we have a kind of housewarming party, you know?"

Nick nodded, "So, you've already moved in?"

"Yeah, last weekend."

Nick breathed a mental sigh of relief. He liked Bud, but no matter how much you like someone,
helping them move isn't on a list of fun things to do.

Bud continued on, "It'll be Saturday at eight. Do you think you and Adalind will be able to make
it?"
Nick smiled, "Well, we'll have to find someone to watch the kids, but yeah. It's been in a while
since we've had a night out like that. Besides, in all the time I've known you, Bud, I've never met
your wife."

Bud smirked, "Yeah, I think that's why Phoebe, that's my wife, wanted to have this party. She's
never met a lot of my," Bud gestured finger quotes, "friends."

It was that gesture that made Nick aware that, actually, this kind of was Grimm business. Nick had
a circle of Friends that all knew of Nick's special abilities, abilities that very few people in the
world shared. That he could see the not-so-metaphorical monsters that were inside of people.
Wesen. A kind of animalistic people. There are some Wesen that aren't so animal like, but all are
invisible to the normal human eye, except to Nick and other Grimms. When a Wesen becomes
emotional their hidden nature can be seen by Grimms, whether the Wesen want to be seen or not.
Some are better at controlling this impulse than others. Wesen refer to this exposure as a Woge.
When Wesen choose to, their hidden nature can be seen by anyone, Grimm or not, sometimes
referred to as a 'Full Woge.' Most Wesen know to go 'Full Woge' under only the most extreme
circumstances. Those who don't practice discretion become targets from their own kind to protect
the secret that Wesen are living among humans around the world. Bud is an Eisbiber and when he
Woges his face takes on an appearance one could describe as resembling a beaver. Nick discovered
Bud was an Eisbiber when he Woged out of frustration when attempting to fix Nick's refrigerator.

It was a generational responsibility for Grimms to seek out and kill Wesen. Though Nick had taken
a different approach and did his best to enforce the law and put Wesen who broke the law in jail,
only killing them when no other option was available. Unlike a lot of Nick's ancestors, he left alone
the Wesen that weren't hurting anyone or anything. Nick's mother and aunt, both deceased, had
been Grimms. Nick only knew one other living Grimm, Theresa Rubel, otherwise known as
Trubel. Nick had taught her what it was to be a Grimm when he barely understood it himself. He
wasn't sure he'd ever fully understand it.

Over the years, as a Grimm and as a Detective for the Portland, PD, he'd had to seek assistance
from a select group of people who knew he was a Grimm and what it meant to be one. People who
he had grown close to and was proud to call his friends. He had requested Bud's help more than
once and Bud had given it without hesitation. It appeared Bud's wife finally wanted to meet the
circle of friends that had put Bud's life in danger on more than one occasion.

"Bud, I think I understand. So, the other people you're inviting, they'll know I'm a Grimm? I don't
want to cause any problems." Wesen often didn't react well to knowing Nick is a Grimm. His
ancestors have brutally killed Wesen around the world for centuries, sometimes entire families
including the children. Bud had initially been terrified of Nick when it was discovered that he's a
Grimm. But with time, Bud got over his fear and now considers Nick to be one of his friends.

Bud looked behind himself to make sure no one was in ear shot and said, "Oh yeah, yeah, Nick. I
know you don't want me to broadcast to the world you're a Grimm, so I'm only inviting friends and
family who already know. Though, some you haven't met... yet. So I can tell the wife you'll be
there?"

"Sure thing. I'll call Adalind here in a couple minutes."

Bud rocked on his feet a little and decided he'd accomplished his mission and was about to turn to
leave but stopped and said, "Oh, I know I said it's a housewarming party, but we're not expecting
anyone to bring gifts or anything. We have everything we need already. I guess if you wanted to
bring beer or wine that could work. I'll see you Saturday."

As Bud turned to leave, Nick called out, "Bud! Which one do you prefer?"
Though Bud had just spoken the words, 'beer or wine,' it took him a moment to realize what Nick
was referring to, "What? Oh! Um, well, I know I prefer beer but I'm pretty sure if I said beer my
wife would kill me. So, I guess I better say wine. Though it doesn't have to be the fancy expensive
kind. Not to suggest that you can't afford the expensive kind. Though I guess I don't know what
kind of salary a Detect-"

"Bud! It's fine." Nick grinned. Bud could go on for a while like that if you let him. It was best to
head it off when you could get a word in. "I'll pick up a couple bottles. You're inviting Rosalee and
Monroe?"

"I haven't had a chance to talk to them yet, but of course. I'm sure they'll have the same problem as
you though. Getting someone to watch the kids"

Nick smirked and said, "Actually Bud, I think I have someone that can help us out with all that. So,
I'll talk to Monroe and Rosalee for you."

Bud looked thoughtful for a moment, "What about Hank and Wu?"

Hank was Nick's partner at the Portland PD, he was neither Grimm nor Wesen, but after working
together for a long while, Nick was forced to finally tell Hank about the Wesen world. Sergeant
Wu was the last to be told.

Nick looked over his calendar and said, "Wu has to work Saturday night. Hank is out of town. A
family thing. I assume that you don't want me to invite the captain." Nick pointed towards Captain
Renard's office which sat empty at the moment. Sean Renard is a Zauberbiest, the son of a
Hexenbiest, and technically, a prince, his father having been a king, now deceased. Renard had
fought side by side with Nick, but also against him, leaving their very complicated relationship
strained to say the least.

Bud nodded his head, "You assume correctly. I'll text you the address and see you Saturday night."
He turned and walked out.

Nick picked up his cell phone and made a call. When the person answered, Nick attempted to
sound as serious as he could, "Trubel, I need your help." He strategized that if his tone made it
sound initially worse than it actually was, he might get what he wanted with very little opposition.

"Yeah, Nick. What do you need? Do you need Grimm help?" Trubel owed a lot to Nick, when they
first met she had been homeless and wandering the country thinking she was crazy for seeing the
things she was seeing. Nick took her in, gave her a room and a bed, but more importantly a home
and a family. There wasn't much that Trubel wouldn't do for Nick, except maybe what he was
about to ask for.

Nick replied, "Well, it's kinda Grimm related. I need you to watch the kids this Saturday night."

He had never asked her to watch the kids before, so she was confused, "You want me to watch
Kelly and Diana?"

Nick grimaced and was glad that Trubel couldn't see his facial expressions as he added,
"Well...yeah, them and the triplets..."

The word, 'triplets' had barely left his mouth when he heard Trubel moan, "Ahhh, all five kids?
Nick, come on! You know I have a hard time saying no to you, but five kids?"

"Trubel, I can't tell you about it yet, but if all goes to plan, Saturday night will be a pretty big night
and you know that Adalind and I rarely get to go out, and Rosalee and Monroe haven't been out
since the triplets were born. Think about it, they'll owe you one and I'll owe you one, too"

"Fine! But make sure there's some food. Pizza maybe? Or Chinese?"

Nick finally released the grimace he'd been holding for too long and said, "I'll make sure there's
food. I promise."

Nick hung up and called Adalind.

"Adalind, guess what. You and I have plans Saturday night."

 Chapter 2

When Saturday evening arrived, Nick paced through his loft that Adalind had in the past, half-
jokingly, referred to as a fortress. He had all the time he needed and then some to prepare Diana
and his son Kelly for the night with Trubel and the triplets, but he still felt rushed. He'd picked up
the wine, changed his shirt a few times, finally deciding on the shirt he was currently wearing,
packed up the diaper bag and toys, all while Adalind showered and prepared herself for the night
out. Nick checked the bathroom mirror several times. He wanted to look nice, but not too nice. He
knew Bud's housewarming wouldn't be overly formal, but knew more was at stake tonight than a
simple party.

Diana, who wasn't quite five years old, yet looked nearly twice her age due to the magical nature of
her mother's pregnancy, looked remarkably like her mother with the same straight blonde hair. She
stood in the bathroom doorway looking at Nick's reflection in the mirror and very plainly stated,
"You look nice."

Nick tilted his head to look at Diana in the mirror and said, "Thank you. I want to look nice for
your mom tonight."

Diana smiled, "Why can't I go to the party with you and mommy?" Diana had a habit of asking the
simplest of questions that still had to be answered with the utmost care. Magically speaking, Diana
was more powerful than nearly anyone Nick had ever met, but still had the mind of a child. She
could be very dangerous.

Nick turned around to meet her eyes and replied, "Well, as much as mommy and I love you and
Kelly and as much as Monroe and Rosalee love their triplets, sometimes adults just want some time
with other adults, to talk and laugh and maybe have a drink or two. Or three."

"Will daddy be there?" Nick had fathered Kelly, who was a little over a year old, but Adalind had
conceived Diana with Captain Sean Renard who had shared custody of their daughter, though this
was not his week with her.

"No, he won't. Your mom and I are going to see a friend of mine. Your dad doesn't know my friend
all that well. Your dad has different friends." He gave Diana a smile and hoped that was a
satisfactory answer for her.

It seemed as though she was about to ask another question when Adalind stepped down from the
raised bedroom in their loft. Nick could hear her heels clacking on the concrete floor.

Diana's face lit up in a smile that reflected so much joy and innocence that it could make one easily
forget how powerful she is, "You look very pretty, Mommy!"

Nick looked up and when his eyes met Adalind's, he put his hand gently to his heart and said,
"She's right, you are very pretty. Lovely in fact."

Adalind bowed her head to each of them, "Thank you very much" She had tied her hair back in a
tight bun and was wearing a tight fitting gray dress that came down to her knees.

Nick began to wonder if he was underdressed with just his jeans and button up shirt, "Should I
change? I feel like we don't look like we're going to the same place." He began looking at himself
in the mirror again.

Adalind began folding more clothes to put into Diana's overnight bag and looked at Nick, "Are you
Okay? I don't think I've seen you preen and primp yourself like this before. It'll be fine, we're going
to Bud's, not the mayor's."

Nick was about to reply but noticed Adalind wasn't really listening anymore. She was looking
around the room pointing in different directions and Nick knew she was making a mental tally of
all the things the kids might need and determining to herself if those items had already been moved
into the bags they were about to put in Nick's SUV.

"Okay, I think we have everything. We have everything, right? Anything we've forgotten?" She
began pointing around the room again.

Nick came up behind her, put his arms around her waist and reminded her, "It's for one night,
they'll be with Trubel and they'll be at Monroe's and Rosalee's. They'll be fine."

Nick helped Adalind and Diana put their coats on and while he put his own coat on, Adalind put
Kelly into his baby carrier, a dance they'd done hundreds of times. Nick picked up the bags,
Adalind picked up the baby carrier and they all got into the freight elevator that would carry them
down to the garage. Just as the doors closed, Nick patted his coat pocket to feel for an item he'd
been carrying around for days. When he gripped it in his palm he took a deep breath and sighed as
they descended.
 Chapter 3

When they arrived at Monroe's and Rosalee's, they were already running late to Bud's party. Trubel
was there and was eating a slice of pizza. Even though Trubel had a reputation for indulging in the
least healthiest of meals, she always remained in fighting shape. Nick noticed that Trubel had cut
her jet black hair down even shorter than the previous time he'd seen her. Nick assumed she cut it
short because long hair can become a liability in hand-to-hand-combat or she just liked it that way.

With the pizza slice gripped in her teeth, the crust flopping up and down as she walked, she went to
Nick and hugged him for a brief moment and when she let go, Nick couldn't help himself but
double check that there wasn't any pizza on his shirt. Trubel looked down at Diana and, without
saying a word, she wiggled her eyebrows and bobbed her head towards the kitchen and Diana
knew immediately there was pizza and soda to be had. Diana didn't need anything said as she
wandered off to help herself.

Nick saw the whole thing and decided tonight was a night to ignore Trubel's brand of
mischievousness. "I'm sure you'll refrain from giving the infants soda tonight, right?"

Trubel, as deadpan as she could manage, replied, "What? You mean those baby bottles I filled up
with root beer are gonna go to waste now?"

Nick cocked his head from side to side looking around and asked, "Where's Rosalee and Monroe?"

At that moment Monroe came shuffling down the stairs, "We're up here, just finishing up. All the
triplets are asleep if you can believe it." Monroe was slightly above average height, his hair a mess
of half combed curls and a face full of facial hair. His beard cut short, but still longer and scruffier
than the stubble that Nick normally sported day-to-day. A professional clocksmith, Monroe is a
Wesen known as a Blutbad. Translated, it means 'blood bath,' due to the reputation of how
ferocious a Blutbad can be. One could easily compare his kind to that of a wolf man, the kind often
depicted in television and movies. Monroe, however, referred to himself as a reformed Blutbad.
Adhering to a strict vegan diet and a Pilates regimen. Like Nick, he would only take a life as a last
resort, to protect himself or others.

For the occasion, Monroe was wearing jeans and boots and had put on a button up shirt over top of
a t-shirt. Neither of the shirts, he was fairly certain, had any baby spit-up on them. In his mind,
having two clean shirts to wear out was a minor miracle. As he reached the bottom of the stairs he
turned to Nick and said, "Dude, you gotta check this thing out before I put it in back in the box."

He turned the corner as Nick followed him. "So, I found this clock in storage, right? Been there for
who knows how long." Nick saw on Monroe's mantel a cuckoo clock with carved wooden tree
leaves lining the sides of the housing and a carved two-dimensional wooden beaver standing on its
hind legs on the roof.

Monroe often got enthusiastic when talking about clocks and time pieces in general. He said, "This
was made somewhere between ninety to a hundred years ago. You see the beaver on the top?
That's what makes this clock unique. It's a Herbert Herr cuckoo clock, right out of The Black
Forest. By 1870 beavers were hunted to extinction in Germany. I guess they're making a comeback
now. But in the 1920's? There wasn't a beaver anywhere to be seen. So to find a cuckoo clock out
of Germany with a beaver on top, let alone the original beaver on top? That's a rare find.

"Now I know you said that Bud said he wasn't expecting gifts for his housewarming, but when I
saw this, I couldn't think of a better place for it than with Bud's family. What do you think?"
Nick, who knew next to nothing about clocks and antiques nodded along to everything Monroe had
been telling him, said, "Knowing Bud, he'll love it. And his wife... well... she'll go cuckoo over it."

Monroe raised an eyebrow, "Dad jokes? That's where we're going tonight?" He lifted the clock
from the mantel, "Here, help me get this in the box and load it into the back of your SUV."

As Monroe and Nick began cleaning up, Rosalee made her way carefully down the stairs with her
hands busy hooking one last earring into her ear lobe. Wearing a black satin dress that went down
to her ankles. Her brown hair parted down the middle and brushed neatly to each side. Rosalee is a
Wesen called a Fuchsbau. Best compared to a fox when she Woges. She had met Nick when he
was investigating the murder of her brother. She inherited a spice shop from him which she now
shares with her husband of over two years, Monroe, whom she met through Nick.

Rosalee saw Adalind standing in the foyer and Trubel not far off jiggling plastic toy keys above
Kelly making him giggle. She smiled at Adalind and said to her, "You're looking nice."

Adalind smiled back and did a mock curtsy, "Thank you. You're looking good too." Adalind
always felt a certain amount of unease around Monroe and Rosalee. Not because they'd ever been
rude or unkind, but just the opposite. Monroe and Rosalee know about Adalind's past and how
terrible she had been to Nick in the first few years they'd known each other. That she had tried to
murder Nick's Aunt Marie, later tried to murder Nick, and then nearly killed his partner, Hank, in
an extortion scheme to acquire an ancient key from Nick. Lastly, she used an ancient spell to make
herself temporarily appear as Nick's former live in girlfriend, Juliette. Appearing in that way, she
was able to fool him into sleeping with her as part of the spell to strip Nick of his abilities as a
Grimm and, as a result, she accidentally impregnated herself with his child, Kelly.

Adalind is a witch-like Wesen, one of the kind that don't have animal attributes, called a
Hexenbiest. When her kind Woge, their appearance could best be described as a living, dried up
corpse.

Hexenbiests are often thought of in the Wesen community as the antithesis to Grimms. For a
Grimm to be in the same room with a Hexenbiest in years past would usually only end one of two
ways, with the death of one of them or the death of both of them.

But knowing all the terrible things Adalind was guilty of, Rosalee and Monroe had been kind and
supportive when she came back to Portland pregnant with Nick's baby. Their kindness made her
feel even more guilty about the things she'd done and it increased her unease around Nick. She
loved Nick. But a past as ugly as theirs was tough to overcome, and she often wondered when Nick
would realize what a mistake he'd made taking her in when she had no where else to turn. Not that
she had ever said any of this to them. Instead, she smiled and did her best to fit in.

Rosalee couldn't quite read Adalind's facial expression, but saw she was lost deep in thought,
"Adalind? Are you okay?"

Adalind lied and made a comment about their attire for the housewarming.

Rosalee accepted Adalind's answer. She then turned to Trubel and pleaded, "Please tell me you're
okay with this. I love you, Trubel, and I know how incredibly capable you are, but it's five kids!"

Trubel turned to her and in faux outrage said, "I know! Five kids! Are you all insane?" She changed
her demeanor back to normal and said, "Don't worry, I'll be fine. They'll sleep most of the night
anyway, right?"

Every adult in the room cringed at Trubel's comment, and Rosalee whispered to her, "Trubel! Don't
jinx it!"

Nick reached out to the front door to open it for Monroe, who was carrying the box containing the
antique clock. No sooner had Monroe's foot crossed the threshold when began the sound of a
baby's cries coming from upstairs. A moment passed, and then the sound of two babies' cries.
Finally, all three babies crying could be heard. Trubel looked to all of them with panic on her face
as they all filed out the front door towards the SUV. "Guys... Guys... You're not gonna leave me
like this are you? Guys!?"

Rosalee called back, "See you in a few hours, Trubel."

 Chapter 4

When they arrived at the address Bud had given Nick, the street, along with all the available space
in Bud's driveway, was filled with parked cars. "This is what we get for arriving late. I'll have to
park down the street." Nick found the first available space and they all got out and walked to Bud's
front door. Nick with his two bottles of wine and Monroe with his boxed up clock.

Rosalee pushed the doorbell and a moment later Bud opened his front door with a big smile and
welcomed them into his home. Behind him, the house was filled with several people talking among
themselves with quiet music being played in the background. Bud collected their coats and hung
them on hooks on the wall that were clearly meant for his kids who were currently staying with
their grandparents.

Nick leaned in towards Bud and, while handing him the two bottles of wine he brought, spoke
softly, "Now, Bud, you're absolutely certain about this right? I can go get my sunglasses out of the
car if you think anyone here might react badly to me being here." The way Wesen identified Nick
as a Grimm was if they Woged and Nick saw it, his eyes would become pitch black to Wesen. As
Monroe once put it, 'It's more like infinite darkness.' It only lasts a few seconds, but long enough
for a Wesen to panic. If Nick donned his sunglasses the infinite darkness would be more difficult
to notice and less likely to cause an incident.

Bud replied, "No, no, you're fine, Nick. Everyone here knows you're here, though not everyone
here knows what you look like, so not everyone knows you're you. Well... you know what I mean."

Before Nick could reply, Monroe came out from behind him carrying the box with the clock in it,
"Bud, I know you told Nick you didn't want gifts, but I saw this and thought of you immediately.
It's straight out of the Black Forest." Monroe led Bud further into his home to explain the rarity of
the clock.

Rosalee smiled at the wonder that Monroe still felt and exuded when it came to timepieces from
around the world. She turned to Nick and Adalind and commented on Bud's new home, "Pretty
nice place."

Nick looked around and saw this home was somewhat larger than the previous one Bud lived in,
but what was more noticeable was the backyard. In the rear of the house was a pair of glass patio
doors and, beyond those, a set of patio furniture and tables. Beyond the patio, Nick could see the
backyard extended for quite a distance before it connected with what looked like pretty dense
forest.

A woman walked up to them and said, "You must be Nick." She smiled and extended her hand and
Nick took it into his. At first, Nick was expecting a handshake but instead she held on and stood
close to Nick, "I just wanted to introduce myself, I'm Phoebe. Bud's wife. I am very happy to
finally be able to meet you."

Nick nodded, "I'm glad to finally meet you at as well, I'm sorry it took this long. Bud talks about
you a lot." He used his free hand to introduce Adalind and Rosalee.

When Phoebe saw Rosalee, she released Nick's hand and said, "Rosalee, I believe we've met
before. You have the spice shop, right?"

Nick took Adalind's hand and led her further into the house, leaving Rosalee and Phoebe to get
better acquainted. He looked down at Adalind, "I recognize a couple people here, but I wouldn't
say I know them. What about you?"

When Adalind turned to look around to see who she might know, someone called out her name.
She turned in the direction of the voice to see a client of the law firm she worked for. She hadn't
represented him directly, but she had assisted from time to time. Adalind turned on her charm with
a smile, "Mr. Hobbes, how are you?"

"Please, Adalind, call me Kevin. We're not working right now. Have some wine." He picked up
two glasses of wine from a nearby tray and handed one to Adalind and Nick. He gestured to the
woman standing next to him, "This is my wife Rebecca."

Adalind used an open palm to gesture to her client, "Nick, this is Mr. Kevin Hobbes. He owns a
chain of florist shops in Oregon. Mr. Hobbes... sorry... Kevin... this is Nick Burkhardt."

Nick and Kevin shook hands, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Kevin." Nick couldn't quite turn up the
charm the way Adalind could, but he did his best.

Kevin looked to Adalind and asked, "So, how do you two know each other?"

Adalind stopped for a moment. Her mouth slightly agape as she looked up at Nick and back to
Kevin. Clearly unsure how exactly to answer this question.

Nick made the decision for her, "Actually Kevin," he sat down the glass of wine he was holding
and took the glass Adalind was holding and sat it next to his, "there's something really important I
have to talk to Adalind about. We'll be back shortly."

He took Adalind by the hand again and steered her back to the hooks their coats were hanging on.
He grabbed his and put it on and then helped Adalind with hers.

She asked, "Um, where are we going?"

Nick looked at her and said, "Like I said, there's something I need to talk to you about." Then he
calmly led her out the back patio doors. The air was cool, but not cold. Nick was grateful for the
fair weather. He guessed that it was just cool enough outside that everyone else at the party was
remaining indoors. He and Adalind had the patio to themselves. He looked up into the sky and was
struck by the clear night. He gestured at it, "Check out that sky."

Adalind walked ahead of Nick a few steps and peered at the quarter moon, "It's beautiful. Bud
picked a great location to live. She saw a seat in front of her and wiped it off with her hand before
turning around and sitting down to face Nick.

As she was distracted by wiping off the seat of the chair, Nick reached into his coat pocket, pulled
something out and held it behind his back. When Adalind had finally gotten comfortable she
looked up at Nick and raised her eyebrows, "So, what did you want to talk about?"

"I owe you an apology."

"For what?"

Nick sighed and did his best to hold his gaze with Adalind's eyes. "I haven't done a very good job
of communicating with you how I actually feel."

Adalind broke eye contact with Nick, "Oh."

If Nick's hearing hadn't been exceptional due to him being a Grimm, he likely wouldn't have heard
her say anything at all. But he had heard, and wasn't sure her intent, so he asked, "What?"

"It's okay, Nick. I've been kinda waiting for this conversation for a pretty long time. I've always
known that things were too good to last and given our history it was a miracle it lasted this long."
She wiped a hand across her cheek, "But I don't need to hear the, 'It's not you it's me,' speech. I get
it."

Nick was a bit stunned and confused, "What? Adalind, I'm not saying that at all. This isn't really
going how I planned. Can I start over?"

Adalind wiped at her cheek again. She looked up at Nick and nodded.

Inside Bud's home, Monroe and Rosalee had managed to find one another and each were holding a
glass of wine. Rosalee was the one to notice Nick and Adalind going out the back door and asked
Monroe, "Where are those two going?"

Monroe had just finished putting a cracker in his mouth so that when he said, "I don't know" it
came out as a stream of vowels. However, it piqued his curiosity and he kept his eyes on Nick and
Adalind. Rosalee had bent over to get a cracker herself when Monroe swallowed and, without
looking away from Nick, gently grabbed her arm to stand her upright again as he said to her, "Nick
just grabbed something out of his pocket and he's holding it... there, do you see it? Is that... Is that
a..."

Rosalee finished the sentence for him, "Ring box?! Did Nick say any-"

Monroe didn't let her finish her question, "Not a word."

They both squinted as best they could out the backdoor patio glass and then they began to look
conspiratorially around themselves. They both turned their heads to look behind them to see if
anyone was paying any attention to them, but the other people in attendance were all lost in their
own conversations. So, together, in one fluid movement, they both took one giant stride towards
the back patio door. If anyone had been paying attention they'd have thought the two were
preparing to tango. But they stopped and began angling their heads in an attempt to get a better
look at what Nick was holding behind his back.

Rosalee turned her attention to Adalind, whose face she could see pretty clearly in the light. She
noted, "Well, Adalind's facial expression isn't giving anything away. Should we dare to take
another step closer?"

Monroe bobbed his head up and down in uncertainty and then said, "A small one, but that's it."

They clasped both their hands with one another and took one last step forward.

Monroe had been eyeing what he believed to be a ring box but Rosalee had been watching
Adalind's face for any kind of sign of what their conversation could be about. When she saw
Adalind wipe her cheek with her hand, she asked to no one in particular, "Is she crying?"

Outside on the patio, Nick attempted to salvage his apology, "Adalind, I've noticed a lot of times
how you aren't comfortable around me. Even just now, inside, I saw how you struggled to tell that
guy how you know me and that is entirely my fault. I haven't communicated to you how I feel. Or
at least, not as well as I should have. Like, about a month ago, you were cooking and I saw you
reach for some kind of seasoning and the shaker slid across the table into your hand. It was
obvious you didn't mean to do it, but I saw you glance over at me to see if I noticed. You looked so
afraid."

"You saw that? Your back was to me."

Nick smirked, "Remember, I was playing with Kelly and that playset he has. I saw you in the
mirror on the playset. Just dumb luck. But I pretended not to notice because I didn't want you to
feel you have to walk on eggshells around me. You shouldn't have to be afraid of how I'll react."

Adalind stood up, "Nick, I appreciate your apology and I forgive you," She wasn't mad, but Nick
was right, she didn't like to be a Hexenbiest around Nick. The topic was making her uncomfortable.
Often, she wished could shed herself of being a Hexenbiest because she knew from experience that
kind of power can corrupt. She simply did her best to use it and display it as seldom as she could,
"Can we go back inside?

"No, actually we're not quite done yet." He smiled, took one hand out from behind his back and
motioned for her to sit back down again.

Inside, Monroe and Rosalee were staring transfixed at what was unfolding outside. When one of
Nick's hands directed Adalind to sit, Monroe finally got a clear view of what was in Nick's other
hand, "Ohmygod, it is a ring box."

Monroe and Rosalee had already been standing very close to one another, but when Monroe
confirmed it was a ring box they somehow found a way to step even closer to one another.

On the patio, Nick had been quiet for a couple moments, trying to gather his thoughts. He felt he
had screwed up pretty badly. Making Adalind think he was about to break up with her and then
apologizing about egg shells. His mind was racing. Adalind, tired of waiting, got his attention,
"Nick?"

Nick looked up into the night sky and then back down at Adalind, "Okay Adalind, I haven't really
been saying exactly what it was I was trying to say so I'm just gonna go for it."

In one fluid motion, Nick pulled the ring box out from behind his back while dropping down to one
knee. As his knee touched the wood of the patio, the ring box popped open to display a diamond
ring.

Adalind had been immeasurably confused about the entire conversation. At one point, she had
been mentally packing up her things in Nick's loft and wondering where she could move to. The
next moment, Nick was giving her a fairly tender apology. The moment after that, however, she
couldn't have been more unprepared for. At no point in her time with Nick had Adalind ever
allowed herself the fantasy that one day he would want to marry her. To believe such a thing would
fly in the face of everything she had ever known about Grimms and Hexenbiests, in addition to
their own personal history of hostility towards each other. So, when she saw Nick crouching down
to one knee her first inclination was denial. When she saw the ring box coming from behind his
back, time seemed to slow down to a crawl, allowing her mind to fully and firmly articulate that it
was completely and absolutely impossible. The notion by itself was patently absurd. That, strictly
speaking, there's no feasible way this could be happening. Every fiber of her being was telling her,
shouting at her, that she can't be seeing what she thinks she's seeing. So, she involuntarily
vocalized the mountains of denial she was feeling at that precise moment.

"No!"

"No?!" Monroe and Rosalee said in near unison.

Rosalee finished the thought by saying a little too loudly, "Is she insane!?" grabbing the attention
of other people in attendance. Those who had overheard her outcry looked at her, saw that both she
and Monroe were staring out at the patio and followed their shared gaze to see Nick, down on one
knee, facing Adalind in what was, without a doubt, a marriage proposal. Within moments,
everyone had stopped talking and began watching.

"No?" Nick asked, but Adalind was staring at the ring and didn't seem to have heard his query.

A moment passed. She looked up from the ring to Nick's face, her eyes wide with shock. Unsure of
what just happened, she muttered, "What?"

The terrible realization dawned on her and her mind raced to correct herself. She attempted to deny
that she had meant to say 'No' at all. More loudly than she had intended, all that would come out
was, "No!"

She shook her head because she knew she was saying all the wrong things, but then her words
began to run together as she waved her hands in front of her, crisscrossing them back forth trying to
communicate even more emphatically, "Nonononono... I mean...ummmm."

She took a breath to calm herself. She stopped waiving her hands around to instead clasp her
fingers together in her lap in an attempt to gather her wits, and with as much dignity as she could
muster together she said, "What I mean to say is, please... continue."

Nick, not wanting to waste his opportunity, continued on, "Adalind, I know we didn't come
together in the best of ways. To say it wasn't conventional would be too much of an understatement
for me to bear. But nothing about our lives is conventional. Not how we met. Not how we got
together. Not how we live our day to day lives. But I love our lives. I love our son. I love Diana."
He paused for emphasis, "I love you."

Adalind whispered, "Oh, Nick." Her eyes welled up with tears and she began wiping at her cheeks
again.

Nick paused and took a deep breath. He closed his eyes and when he opened them again he said,
"Adalind Schade, will you..."

"YES! Oh my god, yes!" Adalind got off her seat and brought her face to Nick's and began kissing
him in quickfire succession. She kissed his cheeks and his forehead, with no regard at all for the
lipstick she was wearing or at Nick nearly losing his balance in the barrage. After a few more
emphatic 'Yeses,' Nick stood up and he placed the ring on her finger. She looked at it and looked at
him and they kissed one more time, this time properly, on the lips.

When they separated, she asked, "So... I can tell people?"

At the word, 'people' they both instinctively turned to look inside Bud's home through the patio
doors and saw that the people attending the party had stopped what they were doing and were
staring at them. Everyone was smiling. Everyone except Monroe and Rosalee. The look of shock
that they were wearing made both Nick and Adalind grin.

Nick leaned towards Adalind and replied to her question, "You can shout it from rooftops."

Nick opened the patio door and allowed Adalind to step through first. As soon as she was inside,
she raised her hand so everyone could see her new ring and shouted through her smile, "I'M
ENGAGED!"

Everyone at the party applauded their engagement. Nick took a bow and with Adalind at his side
he stepped over to Rosalee and Monroe and said to them, "Surprise!"

Monroe, still wearing a look of shock, was the first to reply, "You dog! Why didn't you tell me?
How long have you been planning this?"

Rosalee punched Nick lightly in his arm, smiled up at him and said, "I can't believe you did this
without telling anyone! Did Trubel know? Did anyone?"

Nick put his hands up, palms out, as if to say, 'don't hit me anymore, I give up.'

"The only person who knew was the guy at the jewelry store. I bought the ring a few weeks back
and I kept trying to decide how exactly I wanted to do the whole proposal thing and then Bud
dropped this opportunity in my lap."

Monroe stepped forward and gave Adalind a hug and then turned to Nick and gave him a hug too,
"I am so happy for you, brother. Really, I am." Monroe released his hug, "I doubt it has to be said,
but I'm gonna say it anyway. This is probably the first time in history this has happened. A
Hexenbiest and a Grimm engaged to be married? We're gonna be telling our grandkids about this
one day."

At that moment Bud approached Nick and Adalind, "Is what I heard true? I stepped out to get some
ice and I come back to hear you two just got engaged? At my party? This is great!"

Adalind gave Bud a hug, "Thank you Bud." when she let go she turned to Nick, "Let's celebrate."

"Hey, we had glasses of wine didn't we?" He grabbed Adalind's hand and led her back towards
Kevin and Rebecca Hobbes. Nick picked up the glasses of wine he had left there several minutes
ago and he looked at Kevin.

"So, Kevin, earlier you asked how Adalind and I know each other. Well, she's my fiancé."

Kevin chuckled a bit but then saw the cocksure grin on Nick's face, that's when he realized Nick
had been planning this retort possibly since the moment, maybe even before, Kevin asked the
question. As Kevin let out a belly laugh his face became distorted as he Woged and took on a
badger like appearance that Nick knew as a Drang-Zorn. Kevin slapped Nick heartily on the
shoulder and laughed some more. Kevin's face returned to his human appearance. He wiped a little
at his eyes and said, "Well played, sir. Well. Played."
 Chapter 5

When the four of them arrived back at the home of Monroe and Rosalee, they did their best to
approach the house quietly as it was quite likely all the infants may be asleep. They were all in
such happy moods however that there were many hushed giggles and whispering among them. A
couple of times Monroe, who would later admit he had too much to drink, attempted to shush the
other three, "Shhhhh, shhhhhh."

Rosalee was the first to sneak through the front door. They all found Diana asleep on the couch and
Trubel was asleep in a chair in an awkward position. Rosalee did her best to tiptoe to Trubel. She
knew that the last thing you want to do is startle a sleeping Grimm, but it had to be done. She
attempted to whisper, "Trubel" and nudged at her leg a few times. Groggily, Trubel woke up and
after a few moments her vision cleared and she saw Rosalee standing a couple feet away in what
Trubel assumed Rosalee thought was a safe distance. But when she turned her head she saw Nick,
Adalind and Monroe standing in the open front door waiving at her to come outside.

Rosalee whispered, "Come outside, we have big news."

It took Trubel a few moments to locate and put on her boots but she quietly stepped outside.
"What's going on?" As they stood in the porch light she couldn't decide which one of them to look
at and it was clear they didn't know which one of them was supposed to provide the 'big news.'

Monroe spread his arms out and whispered in a shout, "Well, Nick, you gonna tell her?"

"Tell me what?"

Rather than say anything, Nick gently grabbed Adalind's hand and raised it so that Trubel could
see the ring on her finger. Nick wiggled his eyebrows and motioned his head at the ring.

Trubel rubbed at her eyes and took another look, "No way." Then, in a whispered shout, she
repeated herself, "No way!" She took a step forward and wrapped her arms around the shoulders of
both Nick and Adalind, hugging them both. "Congratulations, guys. Oh my god, this is amazing."

She released them and backed away to say ironically, "So, I guess the party went well."

Monroe, who wasn't necessarily drunk, but certainly couldn't pass a sobriety test, whispered back
to her, "Oh, you have no idea. After these two got engaged it wasn't long at all before it got, well, I
don't want to say crazy, but something close to it. Let me put it this way, it was certainly historical.
I saw two Coyotls, an Indole Gentile, like, three Reinigens, a Hexenbiest," Monroe pointed at
Adalind, "and a Grimm," Monroe pointed at Nick, "All dancing together at one point. I've never
seen anything like it before. Even if Nick hadn't been there, it would have still been a really unique
night. Obviously, there were several Eisbibers there, a drang-zorn and after that I kinda lost track."

Rosalee added, "I saw a Steinadler at one point."

Monroe smiled and continued, "But they were all in the room with Nick and laughing and having a
good time and celebrating an engagement between a Hexenbiest and a Grimm." His smile faded a
little, "I'm sorry you couldn't have been there Trubel."

Nick chimed in, "Well, there's always the wedding, right? I'm sure we'll have a unique crowd.
Maybe not as diverse as Bud's party. But pretty good."

Adalind spoke up, "How were the kids? Did you have any problems?"
Trubel looked Nick dead in the eye and without looking away, as deadpan as she could manage,
she said, "No, after I gave them all their root beer baby bottles they went right to sleep." But then
she looked at Adalind and said, "Diana was a big help. She was able to feed the triplets all by
herself while I fed Kelly. Of course, she's able to feed them by floating the bottles over their crib..."
She checked the time. "It's been about ninety minutes since I last checked in on them, so if any of
you would like to volunteer to do it, you're welcome to. Kelly is upstairs sleeping in the bassinet."

Nick took a step towards Trubel, "Would you mind staying the night here with Diana and Kelly?
I'd kinda like to have some time with Adalind tonight. You know, to finish celebrating."

Trubel smiled at him, "You know I know what that means, right?" She punched his shoulder as her
way of agreeing to look after the kids.

Adalind let her know they'd pick up the kids in the morning as it would be time for Diana to spend
time with her father. "Oh, and I'd like to be the one to tell her that me and Nick are getting married,
so everyone try to keep that to themselves until after I speak with her tomorrow, okay?"

Everyone nodded their understanding. Monroe, Rosalee and Trubel went back inside as quietly as
they could. Nick and Adalind got back in the SUV and drove home to their loft/fortress.

When Monroe, Rosalee and Trubel got inside they went to the kitchen area and sought out the left
over pizza and soda. They sat at the table for a minute in silence as they chewed their food and
drank what was left of the root beer.

Rosalee looked at Trubel and said in a near exasperated sincerity, "Trubel, thank you so much for
watching all the kids tonight. You have no idea how much Monroe and I needed this. If there's
anything we can do for you, just let us know."

Trubel should her head, "No, you guys don't owe me anything. I mean, five kids... wow. But no,
you guys and Nick have done so much for me, I can take one for the team and change a diaper or
four."

Trubel's eyes shifted down towards the table but she wasn't looking at anything in particular as she
spoke more to herself than to Rosalee or Monroe, "Can you believe they're getting married? I can't
stop thinking about Juliette... and Eve." Juliette was Nick's previous live in girlfriend and was there
when Nick took Trubel in and gave her a home. Trubel felt almost as indebted to Juliette as she felt
to Nick. When Adalind had stripped Nick of his Grimm abilities, Juliette voluntarily took part in a
spell to get them back. Nick's abilities returned within a day or so, but over time Juliette suffered
the major, and the completely unexpected, side effect of being turned into a Hexenbiest. In the
weeks after her transformation, her personality became more and more hostile towards Nick and
his circle of friends. Attempting to kill Monroe and then later attempting to kill Nick. If Trubel
hadn't been there to stop it, Nick would likely be dead now. But worst of all, Juliette had conspired
with the royal family to lay a trap for Nick's mother so they could kidnap Diana. They beheaded
his mother and left her head in a box for him to find when he got home.

After the chaos, and after Trubel had shot Juliette with poisoned darts that should have killed her,
Juliette was somehow saved and put through mental reconditioning by the secret government
agency, Hadrian's Wall, that Trubel had been working with. Juliette's mind was forced to become
compartmentalized and she became a new person. Eve.

Eve remembered everything Juliette had done, but she behaved as though the heinous acts had been
committed by someone else. Juliette. Referring to that personality in the past tense. Eve is still a
powerful Hexenbiest, but no longer vindictive. One could say she had become almost robotic.
Trubel took a sip of her root beer and said, "You know, when I first met Juliette, I assumed she and
Nick were married. I made things kind of awkward when I mentioned it. And before she became a
Hexenbiest, I kind of assumed that one day the two of them would get married."

Rosalee nodded in understanding and replied, "I agree. If you had asked me back then, I would
have predicted the two of them would have tied the knot for sure. But we shouldn't talk about this
here. We may be accidentally overheard," she pointed in the direction of the living room and the
couch that Diana was currently sleeping on.

Monroe looked at Trubel, "Hey, where have you been staying lately? Did you get an apartment in
Portland?"

Trubel shook herself out of her haze and responded, "I fixed up the HQ for Hadrian's Wall. It's all
mine now. HW still operates globally but on a much smaller scale. So, they gave me a small
budget and basically handed the Portland HQ over to me to fix up and use how I want. It's not
nearly what it used to be, but I was able to secure the entrance. It's not like I'm retired... It's like...
it's more like I'm on standby for the foreseeable future."

Hadrian's Wall was originally tasked with stopping a Wesen uprising. An uprising led by an
organization calling itself Black Claw. They wanted a world ruled by Wesen and would kill any
Wesen who refused to join their cause when asked. Nick was able to put a stop to the uprising in
the Portland region, but only after they had raided and trashed the Portland Hadrian's Wall
Headquarters, killing everyone inside at the time.

Monroe wasn't sure where to start with what Trubel just said so he first asked, "Is Hadrian's Wall
worried about another Black Claw uprising?"

"Nah, but I think it's more like they want to be prepared just in case that or something else happens.
They shut down most of their facilities. They're keeping a handful open around the world. I
honestly don't think they would have left this one to me if Nick hadn't been here. Portland has
strategic value not just because it's on the coast but because Nick is one hell of a Grimm. They
know I'm loyal to him, so they're loyal to me. If that makes sense."

Monroe nodded, "Yeah, I think it does actually. You're happy living in it though? Place is kinda
big for just one person."

Trubel chuckled, "The hard part is keeping it clean. I've shut down most of the place, since there's
only one room being slept in. Beyond that, I need the kitchen, bathroom and a way to power my
laptop."

Monroe caught the tone in how Trubel mentioned the laptop and realized, "They didn't give you a
big enough budget to replace that giant computer screen thing, did they?"

Trubel shook her head, but couldn't hide her grin as she said, "Can you believe they left me
hanging like that? We could have had some really awesome movie nights down there."

Rosalee stood up and her body forced her to do a yawning stretch. When she got her bearings she
said, "I'm heading to bed. It's been quite a night. In the morning you and Monroe can watch the
kids while I cook everyone breakfast, okay? Trubel, you can have the couch, we're going to carry
Diana upstairs and put her in the spare bedroom. And by 'we' I mean Monroe."

Monroe didn't comment, he stood up and did as he was instructed. Very carefully, he picked up
Diana and made his way to the bedroom. Rosalee followed.
Trubel laid herself on the couch, but it took a while to fall asleep. She was happy for Nick, she
truly was. But she also felt his life was far harder and more complex than he deserved it to be.
More than that, she mourned the loss of Juliette. She was gone, but not really gone and it was all so
confusing. To look at it in the right light, Adalind was to blame for nearly all of it. And now Nick
was marrying her. Seeing Adalind now though, it seemed, in a way, that she had changed almost as
much as Juliette. To be a better, more compassionate and loving person. Before she finally dozed
off, Trubel wondered if there was a correlation.

When Trubel awoke the following morning it was to the wonderful smell and the melodic sound of
bacon sizzling. She had to resist the urge to run to the kitchen and steal bacon directly from the
pan. Instead, she chose to remain calm and walk to the kitchen like she wasn't ravenous for the
breakfast that Rosalee was cooking up. She checked the time and saw it was still pretty early in the
morning and therefore wasn't surprised to not see Monroe in the kitchen. Trubel reasoned he was
likely still asleep. Trying to keep her voice low as to not wake anyone upstairs she told Rosalee,
"Good Morning." and without having to ask, Rosalee handed her a mug of coffee.

"Monroe is still asleep?" She asked between sips of coffee.

"Yeah, he had Felix sleeping on his chest. At least I think it was Felix, I didn't check."

Trubel strolled back into the living room area just in time to hear a light rapping on the front door.
When she went to answer it she found it was Adalind, "Hi, Trubel. Just here to pick up the kids.
They awake yet?"

Trubel opened the door wide enough for Adalind to step inside and replied, "I don't think so, if
they are they haven't made a sound. Rosalee is in the kitchen making breakfast. You want Diana
and Kelly to eat here or are you gonna take care of that somewhere else?"

Adalind sniffed the air, and smiled at Trubel "I think it would be cruel to take them away after they
smell breakfast cooking."

As she took off her coat to hang it up she saw Diana coming down the stairs with Monroe not far
behind her carrying one of the triplets.

Diana was wearing a long t-shirt that went all the way down to her ankles. Her eyes lit up when she
saw Adalind and it was clear that she was about to say something, perhaps too loudly, and Adalind
quickly put her finger to her lips to signal Diana to not be too loud. Diana got the message and
when she reached the floor she wrapped her arms around her mother's waist and said softly, "Hi,
Mommy."

Adalind hugged Diana back and looked at Monroe, "The others are still asleep?"

Monroe, still looking like he could use more sleep himself, yawned and nodded his head.

Adalind looked back down at her daughter and made sure she made eye contact with her before
telling her, "There's something important I need to talk to you about before all the babies are
awake, okay?"

"Okay, mommy."

"Let's sit on the couch and talk." Adalind led Diana to sit and sat down herself. Diana pulled her
legs up onto the couch and pulled the giant t-shirt down over both of her knees. She looked to her
mother with warmth and smiled.

Adalind, who had been thinking about how this conversation would go the whole car ride over
suddenly realized she had an inkling of how it felt to be Nick last night as he struggled through his
proposal. "So, Nick and I had a long talk last night. The two important things that you need to
know is that Nick told me that he loves both of us. You," She pointed at Diana, "and me," she
pointed back at herself. "The other important thing is that Nick asked me to marry him and I said
yes." She waited for some kind of reaction from Diana.

Diana had verbalized more than once that she wanted her mother and her father to be together. Both
Adalind and her father, Sean, explained to her how love and marriage work as best they could to
one as young Diana. Diana asked, "Is that why Nick was fussing so much in the mirror?"

Adalind smiled, she hadn't actually thought of that but agreed with her daughter, "Now that you
mention it, yes, I think it was."

"You love Nick." Diana's words fell somewhere between a question and a statement of fact.

"Yes, I do. And he said he loves me and that he loves you." She didn't want it to sound like she was
trying to replace Sean with Nick as a father, so she caressed her hand down Diana's hair and added,
"There's no love quite like mommy and daddy love, but Nick still loves you, and that's very
special."

"You don't love Daddy." Again, Diana's words managed to straddle the line between statement and
question but there also wasn't any anger or resentment behind them which Adalind was very
grateful for.

Adalind chose to be careful with her words, "I care about him because he's your daddy. But no, it's
not love. Remember, I said you needed to know just those two important things. I said that,
because nothing else is going to change much. You'll still be spending just as much time with your
Daddy as before. I'll still be living with Nick and Kelly and you'll be staying with us just as much
as you do now."

"Okay, mommy." She hugged her mother and when she pulled away she asked, "Can we eat now?"

Adalind was relieved that Diana had taken the news so well. After they got up from the couch, as
soon as Diana's back was to her, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath through her nose and
breathed out through her mouth to calm her nerves. Then she opened her eyes and followed Diana
into the kitchen.

Monroe was rushing out of the kitchen holding his baby at arm's length, "This diaper needs
changed so I assume all the others do too. I'll be back in a few minutes."

Trubel saw that Diana was sitting at the table and realized that she better start getting Kelly ready.
So she excused herself and followed Monroe up the stairs.

Adalind leaned against the counter and Rosalee commented, "I saw you two talking on the couch.
How did it go?"

"I think it went okay. Maybe I was more nervous than I should have been."

Rosalee, whose hands were very busy making vegan bacon, scrambled vegan eggs and french toast
did her best to console her friend. "I think Diana is good at rolling with the punches." She looked
over at Diana and asked, "Diana, how do you feel about Nick?"
Diana kept a mostly neutral face and replied, "I like him. He's nice to mommy."

Rosalee nodded, "I think that's a fair assessment." Rosalee gently hit Adalind on her shoulder with
the back of her hand and in a mock demanding tone said, "Tell me about the proposal. I've been
dying to hear the nitty-gritty."

Adalind shook her head, "If I'm being honest, it was a lot to take in. I was in such shock I don't
really remember a lot of what Nick actually said. I never, ever," she looked Rosalee directly in the
eyes and reiterated, "and I mean ever... expected Nick to propose."

Rosalee continued to pile up slices of french toast and asked, "But everything between you two has
been good, right?"

"Yeah! It's just, you know, with everything..." She did a sweeping motion with both arms to
suggest something large. Rosalee nodded her understanding and Adalind continued, "Don't get me
wrong, I said yes emphatically. I would have said yes even if he asked by passing me a note like in
grade school saying, 'Will you marry me? Check this box.' But when he said he loved Kelly, Diana
and me, my heart melted." Jokingly she added, "And if you tell anyone I said that I'll deny it."

Adalind continued, "We always say the best day of our lives are when our kids are born and that's
absolutely true. Nothing can top that." She glanced at Diana who was waiting patiently for her
food. "But last night is going to be a close second to having my kids."

Rosalee put her hand briefly on Adalind's shoulder, "Monroe and I couldn't be happier for the two
of you. Now, to try this breakfast." She began placing plates on the table, "I've never made vegan
french toast before so I'm not sure how it will be. The vegan bacon though? It's actually really
good."

Diana began eating and while she did, Monroe, Adalind, Trubel and Rosalee all combined forces to
bring the remaining children downstairs to be fed from various bottles and breasts and, in the case
of Kelly, some french toast cut up into tiny pieces after he'd finished his bottle.

When things calmed down and she was able to get a few bites of food for herself, she looked at her
daughter, who had begun drawing with her crayons, and her son whose fingers were still sticky
with syrup as he ate bites of vegan bacon. For the first time in a long time, Adalind was beginning
to look forward to the future. Imagining to herself what her life could be like as Mrs. Adalind
Burkhardt. Years ago, the thought of giving up her last name, Schade, for marriage would have
been ridiculous to her. Marriage and Hexenbiests don't mix well and she had felt a connection to
her last name. But over the years, she'd changed her mind about a lot of things and having had her
last name said to her with sickly sweet venom by various members of the royal family had a lot to
do with it.

It was odd how comfortable she felt now that she was wearing Nick's engagement ring on her
finger. Calm, at ease, like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders she didn't even know she had
been carrying. Nervous tension had melted away and she felt content. Something she didn't think
possible and, therefore, never wished to have, had fallen into her lap and she was going to grab it
tight with both hands and see where life takes her.
 Chapter 6

(Several months later)

Nick was driving his SUV, towing his new (very used) trailer onto a lot of land he'd purchased a
few years back under an assumed name. The trailer itself was also purchased in a way that could
never be connected back to him. His fiancé being a crafty lawyer, she was able to assist with the
anonymity. The last trailer he'd had on this land, previously his deceased Aunt Marie's, had been
set ablaze by Juliette when she was a vindictive Hexenbiest. She had destroyed a lot of the
materials that had been passed down through multiple generations of his family. Primarily, the
Grimm books. Several handwritten tomes outlining all the Wesen his Grimm ancestors had come
across over several centuries in various languages. The tomes often contained the easiest ways to
deal with some Wesen. Thankfully, not all of the tomes were destroyed in the fire, and, since then,
Nick had acquired twenty more Grimm tomes from Monroe's Uncle Felix who had been murdered
because he had been in possession of them.

Since the fire, Nick had been storing the books in Rosalee's Spice and Tea shop basement. He
knew his friends would keep the tomes safe, but also knew having the Grimm books put them at
risk. He'd been wanting to relocate them as soon as he could, but trailers weren't cheap and he had a
wedding to pay for.

The land he owned was fairly remote and, to the outside observer, would just look like acres of
forest. He chose not to place the new trailer near the old one, opting instead to delve a little deeper.
Having the old one, burned out as it was, had the unintended and advantageous consequence of
playing a decoy just in case anyone did in fact come looking for Nick's trailer.

As he was detaching the trailer from his SUV he heard the snapping of a branch being stepped on.
He pivoted on his heels to find Trubel clumsily making her way through the trees.

"Trubel, what are you doing out here?"

She began clumsily untangling leaves and vines from her jacket, "Monroe told me you'd be up here
and we need to talk."

"You couldn't have called?"

Trubel grimaced a bit and said, "Not about this, no. It's pretty bad."

Once Nick finished setting up the trailer, he told Trubel to get into his SUV and they'd talk on the
way to Rosalee's spice shop, as he hadn't yet picked up his Grimm books.

As they made their way back onto main roads, Trubel began, "First, there's still a lot I don't know.
You know that HW has me staying in the Portland area to be near you. They call on me once in a
while to do stuff. But lately... Things are getting weird Nick."

"Weird how?"

"Apparently Eve is back with HW. I don't know how long she's been working for them. But they've
had her on an assignment tracking someone. That much they were willing to tell me. I guess Eve
lost track of this guy a couple months ago back in Minnesota."

Nick was surprised, "Eve lost track of someone? That alone is cause for concern if the guy is that
good, or maybe just that lucky."
Trubel nodded, "Since then, they've had no idea where he was, then he popped up on their radar in
Seattle a few weeks ago. That's when they tapped me to go look for him. I was closer than Eve
was. But Nick, here's where it gets weird. HW knows I can handle myself, but they ordered me to
not approach and simply confirm if the guy is or isn't in Seattle. To get some kind of confirmation.
With so little to go on, it's no wonder I never saw him. We have no idea where he is and apparently
this guy is super bad news. All they would give me is a photo of the guy and the location he was
last seen. Well... supposedly seen anyway."

She looked out the window as they drove past what, she assumed, was farmland, "I have some
contacts inside HW. You know, the kind that gossip? They didn't know anything about this guy
either, other than he's leaving a trail of bodies everywhere he goes. HW has always been really
'need-to-know' but whatever this is has people spooked."

Later, when they arrived at the spice shop, after they'd stepped out of the SUV, Trubel showed
Nick her cell phone so he could see the picture of the man she was supposed to be tracking. Nick
asked, "And the last place he was seen was in Seattle? Any reason to believe he's coming to
Portland?"

As they stepped through the door of the spice shop, she replied, "I mean, I can't even confirm he
was ever in Seattle."

Rosalee was behind the counter helping a customer. Nick tapped Trubel on her shoulder, without
saying anything, he pointed to the customer whose back was to them, and then to his eyes and to
Trubel's eyes. Nick knew that the vast majority of Rosalee's customers were Wesen and the last
thing he wanted to do was cause alarm if a customer Woged when not just one, but two Grimms
were in the shop. Trubel nodded and they both did their best to avoid eye contact with the man
Rosalee was selling tea to.

Rosalee saw their interaction and did her best to hide a smile as she talked to her customer about
how best to prepare the tea and that using sugar, while making it taste better, did make it less
effective.

After the customer left, Trubel and Nick approached Rosalee. Nick smiled and said, "Hey Rosalee,
I'm here to pick up all the Grimm stuff from the basement. But before I go down there, Trubel, can
you show her the pic you showed me?" Trubel held her phone up so Rosalee could see it. It was a
picture of a man in his fifties, maybe even early sixties. Caucasian, he had black hair but it was
heavily grayed on his temples and in his full beard, making it difficult to pinpoint his age.

Rosalee asked, "Should I know this guy?"

Nick replied, "We have no idea. Supposedly he's somewhere on the west coast and is extremely
dangerous, but we don't know his name or anything about him. According to the people Trubel
work for they think he was last in Seattle, but Trubel couldn't confirm it."

Rosalee said, "Text it to me and I'll ask Monroe and a few others just to be safe, but I've never seen
him before. Any idea what he's done?"

Trubel texted the picture to her and replied, "The people above me are being really tight lipped
about it, but I guess he's killed a lot of people."

Rosalee looked down at her phone and said, "So, I guess I should act with a bit of urgency on this
then. I'll ask around."

Nick and Trubel worked together to gather all his Grimm possessions and load them into his SUV.
As they were driving back to his trailer, he said, "Other than this guy, that may or may not be
coming to Portland, how have you been?"

Trubel scratched at the back of her head. Instinctively she wanted to simply say, 'Fine,' but she
knew Nick's question was more than a simple pleasantry. He was genuinely concerned for her
welfare and had been since the day they'd met. He wasn't grilling her like a suspect, he wanted to
know how she is in life. After taking too long to answer, Nick was about to repeat the question, but
Trubel cut him off, "Things are going pretty well. I mean, I have a steady paycheck."

Nick knew there was more to it and asked, "But?"

"But... I've been realizing lately that I can't keep living in the bunker forever. That's not really a life.
At first, it sounded cool. Go to bed when I want, eat when I want, come and go as I want. I get the
occasional order from time to time, but for the most part I can do whatever."

Nick came to realize what Trubel was getting at, "It's lonely."

"Yeah, I guess that's the best way to put it."

Nick glanced at Trubel before putting his attention back to the road, "You could get an apartment.
Then maybe you could make some friends. Maybe even date."

Trubel snorted out a derisive laugh, "Date? You really think..." She was about to say, 'anyone
would date a Grimm' but remembered Juliette and Adalind.

Even though she didn't finish her sentence Nick had a notion of where she was going and said with
confidence, "Yes, Trubel, I do. I would recommend it be someone who already knows a bit about
our world. Rather than a 'Kehrseite.'"

Kehrseite is the word commonly used in the Wesen community for people who aren't Wesen and
have no knowledge of it.

Nick continued, "However, I think even if you did meet someone who was fully aware of our
world, having a date over to the bunker might kill the romance a bit."

Trubel shrugged her shoulders as if in defeat, "I guess you're right about that, but people like us,
we can't just have a regular place. That loft you have is really secure. Places like that don't grow on
trees."

Nick checked his mirrors, he had to always be on the lookout that he wasn't being followed when
he made his trek to the trailer and if he suspected for even a moment he was being tailed he would
begin taking random turns. "As a matter of fact, I'm currently in the market myself for a new place.
You're right, the loft is fairly secure, but it's also impractical. Remember, when I bought it, Adalind
and I weren't together, at least not romantically, and we thought Diana was with the Royals. But
now that she's with us, Diana needs a real bedroom. Kelly needs a real bedroom. I've gone over the
place a dozen times and there's simply no way to build more space. What if, if I do actually find a
new place, you buy the loft?"

Trubel didn't hate the idea, but said she had to give it some thought.

Nick drove the SUV onto his land and pulled up next to his newly purchased trailer. He and Trubel
unloaded all the boxes of weapons and tomes and placed them in the trailer haphazardly. They
began separating and organizing, however, it was clear they were missing several components to
make it work. Shelving and cabinets. The Trailer had some basic storage, but not the kind to store
maces and axes and the many handwritten Grimm books. Trubel looked at Nick, "We're gonna
need furniture too." She looked over at the bed and said, " I mean that'll be nice for when we have
long nights here, but some chairs would be more practical." Trubel was pointing out that, often,
when they needed to refer to the Grimm books, they could be there for lengthy amounts of time
combing through all the tomes before they found what they needed, if they found it at all."

Nick looked around the trailer, taking mental measurements of the size as he made a mental list of
the things he knew he'd need. At that moment, his cell phone rang, Nick answered, "Burkhardt."
He listened and finished with, "I'll be there in twenty."

He looked at Trubel, "I have a body." He handed her a key to the trailer. "I've made copies for all
of us. How are you getting out... wait, how did you get here in the first place?"

Trubel pointed in a general direction, "I had my motorcycle. I pulled it in and hid it behind some
bushes."

Nick nodded, "Smart. I plan on camouflaging this place as soon as I can get more spare time. Make
sure to lock up whenever you decide to leave."
 Chapter 7

When Nick arrived at the crime scene, Hank was kind enough to have a cup of coffee waiting for
him. Nick thanked him for the coffee and said, "What do we got?"

Hank, a black man, tall and broad. He could easily be mistaken for a linebacker. He said, "It looks
like a robbery. Victim was stabbed and his wallet and phone were stolen. Wu is attempting to ID
the vic through fingerprints."

It wasn't common for Nick to be called to a murder scene in the city. Normally, he found himself in
out of the way places. But the body in this case was simply in an alleyway in downtown Portland.
Surrounded by various restaurants and boutiques, Nick asked, "Any witnesses?"

Hank shook his head, "None that have come forward yet." He pointed to the crowd that had begun
to form on the other side of the crime scene tape. "Just a bunch of lookie-loos so far as I can tell.
But we have our people asking around about it."

Nick had a bad habit of not putting on his gloves, instead he'd hold them in his hand and push
things around with the latex as needed. He crouched down next to the body and began examining it
as best he could. The stab wound to the heart was difficult to miss, "Whoever did this wasn't
messing around. It's directly to the heart. The medical examiner will have to confirm but it looks
dead center to me."

Sergeant Wu stepped over to them, "So far I've been unable to get a name. His prints don't appear
to be in the system."

Hank nodded, "Well, let's have our people go over the alley as best they can. See if they can find a
murder weapon and look for any kind of surveillance."

At the word, 'surveillance' Nick began looking around himself for any obvious signs of security
cameras in the area. But they were surrounded by dumpsters and garbage cans. Not exactly the
kind of place to keep cameras focused on. Perhaps they could find something from the main
streets.

Nick added, "Go ahead and have the body taken to the ME."

As he stood up, by happenstance, he glanced into the crowd that had gathered at the crime scene
tape and saw what he thought was a familiar face. As the familiarity registered, he turned again
back to the crowd. Was it his imagination or did he really see the man Trubel had warned him
about only an hour ago? He began walking towards the crowd but it was a busy street in general.
Cars and pedestrians were still going about their daily business. Through the crowd he thought he
saw him once more crossing the busy intersection, but he still couldn't be sure. Nick began walking
faster, trying to shorten the distance between them.

Hank began to call out, "Nick! Nick, did you see something?"

Nick stopped, he still couldn't be certain he'd seen anything at all. So he called back, "I don't know.
I thought maybe..." But then he saw him. It was a reflection in the brown tinted glass of a bar. He
was staring directly at Nick through the reflection while using the crowds of pedestrians and
vehicles as cover. Clever, Nick could easily not have noticed. Nick yelled to Hank, "Call for
backup, now!" and began sprinting to the bar, but the traffic was too much. Cars, buses, delivery
trucks, all speeding past and Nick couldn't get a clear route. By the time he arrived, the nameless
man was gone. Next to where Nick surmised he must have been standing was a garbage can. It was
filled near to the top and he could see that between all the disposed of paper plates, bags and cups,
he could make out what he thought was a wallet.

Hank caught up with Nick, followed by Wu. Drew Wu, short and slender and of Filipino descent.
He'd been a sergeant since before Nick found out he was a Grimm. He had also been kept in the
dark about Nick being a Grimm longer than anyone in Nick's inner circle. He used to be a
Kehrseite, someone who wasn't Wesen, but after being attacked by a Blutbad with a rare
Lycanthrope disease, Wu contracted a disorder that no one had ever seen before. Now, when he
becomes threatened he morphs into a primal version of himself. Almost neanderthal like. Over
time, he's managed to get some control over it. But, in extreme circumstances it can completely
take over.

When Wu caught his breath he said, "Um, Nick, care to fill us in on what you saw? Should I be
putting out an APB or something?"

Nick shook his head. "Cancel the call for backup." He saw that Hank was actually wearing his
gloves and asked that he grab the wallet out of the trash.

Hank shook his head in disgust, "You know, you really need to start wearing yours so I don't
always have to be the one reaching into garbage cans."

Hank retrieved the wallet easily and opened it to find that if there had been any money in it before,
it was certainly gone now. But they were able to retrieve his ID. "Zachary Gray. He lives about
twenty or so minutes from here. Wu, have someone go through the rest of the can, see if they can
find his cell phone."

Nick was listening, but he was also looking around the area to see if he could spot the nameless
man watching him again. He motioned for Hank and Wu to step closer. As he spoke softly to them,
he continued to scan his surroundings, checking reflections and even rooftops. "The guy I saw, I
don't have a name, I only have a face and I was told by Trubel that he's extremely dangerous. At
first, I wasn't sure, but I saw his reflection on the glass," he pointed to the bar behind him, "and I
got a pretty good look and I'm pretty sure it was him. He was watching me. Given that the wallet
was in the trash can, we have to assume he took it and that he killed our vic. If the phone isn't in the
garbage we have to assume that he's still in possession of it. Once we have a number we can try to
track it.

Wu asked softly, "Is he Wesen?"

Nick shook his head quickly, barely perceptively, "I don't know. All I know is that he's allegedly
killed a lot of people. We need to get to the vic's address now and see if someone can get us his cell
number and try to track that phone. If someone finds the phone, text me."

Later, Hank and Nick pulled up to the house that was listed as Zachary Gray's home. Before
walking up to the front door, they looked around the property and saw no obvious signs anyone
was there. Nick rang the doorbell and they waited. A few moments later a young woman, very
slender, white, taller than average with very long, straight, dark brown hair answered the door.
Nick assumed she couldn't be any older than twenty. She asked, "Can I help you?"

Hank wore his detective badge on a chain around his neck, he held it up so she could see it more
clearly and said, "I'm Detective Griffin, this is Detective Burkhardt. We need to ask you a few
questions." He didn't give her a chance to respond before asking, "Do you know Zachary Gray?"

"Yes, why? Is he in trouble?"

Nick cut-in, "Could you tell us your name and how you know him?"

"I'm Sam... sorry... Samantha... Gray. He's my brother."

Hank continued, "I'm sorry, Sam, Zachary was killed today in what looks like a mugging
downtown."

There were many aspects of being a detective that were unpleasant, but telling someone a loved
one had been murdered is one of the worst responsibilities. Nick and Hank couldn't afford to get
bogged down into the emotional drama of it though. It can be draining psychologically, but there
was also a time factor to consider. The sooner they got answers to their questions, the sooner they
might be able to catch a killer.

They allowed a moment to pass for the news to sink in as Samantha realized they were being
serious. She covered her mouth with her hand, her eyes began to fill with tears. Then, she Woged.

Nick recognized her as a Scharfblicke. An owl-like Wesen. The feathers that appeared on her face
blended seamlessly into the hair on her head. Nick waited for the inevitable, for her to see that he
was a Grimm. He didn't take any pleasure from it, but it did sometimes have the advantage of
moving a conversation along.

Once she saw that Nick was a Grimm, Samantha stopped crying and took a step a back, her eyes
wide with fear, she glanced at Hank and it was clear to Nick that she was trying to decide what to
do. So, Nick took the initiative. He caught the door before it closed and said, "Samantha, please
remain calm. I'm not going to hurt you. I'm a Grimm, but I'm also a cop and I want to catch
whoever killed your brother."

Samantha glanced at Hank again. Nick saw that she was struggling with deciding what she could
and couldn't say in front of Hank. Nick took a step forward and said, "It's okay. Hank is a... Hank is
a... Hank, I'm drawing a blank here. What's the phrase for you knowing what you know?"

Hank, who couldn't see what Nick was seeing and had been caught up in what was unfolding
before him, had to think for a moment himself, then quickly said, "Kehrseite-Schlich-Kennen" The
term Wesen use for non-Wesen who know about Wesen.

Samantha's face returned to its typical non-owl like appearance, though she continued to look
fearful.

Nick looked around behind him at the street. At the moment, there weren't any passing cars, but he
said, "I'm feeling a little exposed out here. Can we come inside and talk?"

Samantha opened the door a bit wider, as she walked stiffly further into the house, it was clear to
both Hank and Nick that she was struggling with a fight-or-flight response. Nick assumed her
adrenaline must be pumping pretty hard, he could see her hands shaking. He did his best to
continue speaking in a calm manner and to not make any movements that would frighten her.

Nick looked at Hank and without saying a word, Hank understood that this was going to be a
Wesen and Grimm interaction, so Nick was going to have to take lead. Nick suggested they all sit
down. She pointed them to her couch and asked if she could get them anything, but Nick was quick
to decline. Primarily because he could see in her eyes that she was still frightened and he didn't
want her to run off while pretending to get a glass of water. She sat down in a chair opposite the
couch.

Her voice shook as she spoke, "What can I do to help?"

Normally, Nick would try to power through and ask whatever questions he had, but in this case,
Nick could see that Samantha was more frightened than just about any Wesen he'd ever
encountered, simply because he's a Grimm. He was impressed that she was at least attempting to
remain calm, though it was clear in her voice, her eyes and her shaking leg, that, inside, she was
anything but calm. Instead of asking questions, he chose to first calm her down as best he could.

"Samantha," He said, "I am so sorry to have frightened you the way I have. I had no idea that
you're a Scharfblicke... am I pronouncing that correctly?" He knew the correct pronunciation but
mispronounced it intentionally to see if she'd correct him and she did. He could see that she was
beginning to calm a bit. At least her leg wasn't shaking as hard and fast as it once was. "So, let's
start with the obvious stuff first. Can you think of anyone who would have wanted to hurt your
brother?"

At the mention of her brother, Nick could see that for just a moment, because of her fear of Nick,
she had actually forgotten that her brother had been killed and her eyes began to well up with tears
and she was becoming too emotional to speak.

Nick turned to Hank, "Do me a favor, go outside and call Trubel, ask her to text the photo to you.
She'll know what you're talking about. I forgot to have her send it to me."

As Hank stepped out, Nick slid off the couch, and while remaining crouched, he took Samantha's
hand in his. She flinched at first but was able to open her eyes enough to look at Nick. He said, "I'm
going to do whatever I can to find the person who did this."

She nodded and took her hand back. At first, Nick thought she was pulling away, but instead, she
leaned forward and put her arms around his neck and hugged him. Not exactly the detached
professionalism that was expected of a homicide detective. Nick saw no way to get around it and
just let it happen.

Samantha said, "It's so hard hearing that my brother was killed while also having what I've been
taught is the scariest and most deadly type of person holding my hand, trying to console me. My
emotions don't know which direction to go. Thank you for being patient." She released Nick from
her hug and sat up. The occasional tear would stream down her cheeks. Nick saw she wasn't quite
ready to answer questions, because first, she had some of her own. "So, is there like a Wesen
division of the police department?"

As Nick sat back onto the couch his first instinct was to say no, then realized that technically, he,
Hank, Wu and his boss Captain Renard were all informed about Wesen and worked a lot of the
Wesen related cases. He said, "Not officially. There's only a handful in the department that I'm
aware of that know. My partner being one of them."

Samantha began wiping at her face, Nick saw a nearby box of tissues and got up to retrieve them
for her. The simple act of him handing her a tissue box caused her to shake her head, "I was taught
to run if I ever saw a Grimm. To run as far and as fast as I possibly can. Our parents hammered that
into us from when we were in diapers. They said a Grimm had killed my grandparents on my
mother's side."

She blew her nose.

When she was done, Nick said, "I"m sorry to hear that. I currently know one other Grimm and she
wouldn't hurt you either."

Samantha asked, "Currently?"

Nick nodded, "Yeah, my mother and my aunt. They both have passed away."

Surprisingly, Samantha was now the one expressing sympathy to him for having lost family, "I'm
so sorry. Were they like you? I mean, would they also not have hurt me?"

Nick briefly raised an eyebrow in thought. "I'm pretty sure my aunt wouldn't have. There was a
time I wouldn't have been sure about my mother. When she found out I was friends with a Blutbad
and a Fuchsbau, well..."

Samantha interrupted, "You're friends with a Blutbad and a Fuchsbau?!"

Nick chuckled a bit, "Yes, and when they first met my mom, let's just say it didn't go well, but she
adapted and came to accept them."

Through her grief, Samantha smiled and said, "This is the craziest stuff I've ever heard. A Grimm
friends with a Blutbad and a Fuchsbau."

Nick was happy to see that Samantha had stopped crying, though her face was still wet and her
eyes were still red. So, he added, "As a matter of fact, the Blutbad is going to be the best man at my
wedding."

"And let me guess... You're marrying a..." Her eyes began darting around as she tried to come up
with the most ridiculous Wesen she could think of.

Nick answered for her, "A Hexenbiest."

Samantha's expression of skeptical wonder changed to that of just skeptical as she said, "Okay, now
I know you're lying."

Nick saw he was losing her. She actually looked a little angry, "Other than inviting you to the
wedding I don't know how to convince you, but yes, I'm marrying a Hexenbiest."

Samantha sniffed loudly and blew her nose again. She looked at the ceiling as a few more tears fell
from her eyes. She wiped them away and said, "You actually had me going there for a minute.
Don't get me wrong, I get why you're saying this stuff. You're trying to calm me down. So I'm not
mad."

Nick interrupted, "If Hank can confirm it when he comes back inside, will you be convinced by
that?"

She nodded and they both sat in silence for another minute before Hank reentered the room. He
said, "Check your phone, you should have the picture now."

Before Nick could respond, Samantha asked, "Hank, who, and what, is Mr. Grimm here
marrying?"

Hank didn't understand the line of questioning at first and asked, "What? You mean Adalind?"

Samantha replied, "Right. Is she Wesen?"

Hank sat down on the couch and said, "Oh yeah. She's Wesen, alright."
"Well, what kind?" Samantha insisted.

Hank looked at Nick, "Did I miss something important? What's going on?"

Nick said, "Go ahead and tell her, Hank, she doesn't believe me."

Hank looked at Samantha and said, "She's a Hexenbiest."

Samantha, still skeptical said, "And the best man, what's he?"

"A Blutbad. Is there a reason this all came up?" Hank looked at Nick and tilted his hand in the air
as if to say, 'What's going on here?'

At that moment, Nick suddenly had a thought and his facial expression became deadly serious. He
looked at Samantha, staring unblinkingly into her eyes and asked, "You're not one of those Wesen
who hates mixed marriages are you?"

Samantha who had finally calmed down, started becoming nervous again. "No! God, no. I believe
people should love who they love."

The tension in Nick's eyes vanished, he smiled and as he leaned back in his seat, he said, "Good."

Hank spoke, but so softly Samantha could barely hear him, "Two good friends of ours were nearly
killed by a group of those fanatics. That was a scary day."

Samantha had been hearing their words, but was only just understanding the depth of their meaning
and asked, "You guys really protect Wesen?"

Nick nodded but also shrugged his shoulders at the same time, "Wesen are people. We protect
people, most often though, from other people, including other Wesen. Do me a favor, please don't
go around telling people about me. It hasn't gone well in the past."

Samantha nodded and said, "Sure."

Nick said, "First, I need you tell us your brother's cell phone number. It's possible the killer is in
possession of your brother's phone. And, like I was asking before, can you think of anyone who
would have wanted to hurt your brother?"

Samantha provided the cell number, and Nick texted it to Wu, who would begin a search for the
phone. Nick and Hank asked a lot of standard questions about Samantha and her brother, Zachary.
But, other than his place of employment, which was back downtown, she wasn't aware of anything
that could be thought of as helpful.

Nick showed Samantha the picture of the unnamed man on his phone and asked if she had seen
him, but she hadn't. "I believe he may have been involved, but I don't know anything for sure yet.
If you see him, do not approach him. You run, you call me or call 911." He handed her a business
card with his name and number on it. "Do you have anyone you can stay with for a few days?"

"I have some friends, yeah. Why?"

Nick attempted to give Samantha a reassuring look, "I have no reason to believe that the killer will
come here, but he did have access to this address, same as we did, through your brother's wallet.
Just to be safe, you should be somewhere else for a little while. Don't pack a lot of stuff, just grab a
few things and go. You had mentioned your parents earlier, where are they?"
She wiped at her face and said, "Cancer. About five years apart. They left us this house."

Nick reached out one more time, and he and Samantha hugged again before he left. As he was
walking down the front stairs, he turned to Hank and said, "Don't you dare tell a soul about that."

Hank replied, "Your secret is safe with me. You big softy." He grinned mischievously.

Shortly thereafter, Hank and Nick arrived back downtown and parked in front of the boutique that
Zachary Gray had worked at. When they stepped inside, they found a store filled with various
merchandise, t-shirts, coffee mugs, post cards. A lot of touristy memorabilia. They walked up to
the counter, flashed their badges and asked to speak with whoever was in charge.

A moment later, a haggard older man stepped out to greet them. As unkempt as his gray hair and
beard was, it was off-putting at how cheerful he was when he greeted them, smiling as though he
was trying to sell them a used car. "I'm the owner, Lucas Bello, what I can do for you gentlemen?"

They introduced themselves and provided the news that Zachary had been murdered just a few
blocks away. Lucas' smile faded. "That's terrible. His sister must be beside herself with grief. I only
met her a few times, but those two were very close."

Nick asked, "How long had Zachary worked here?"

Lucas looked up and thought for a moment and said, "I want to say it was somewhere between
three and four years. I have records if you need me to verify."

Hank shook his head, "That likely shouldn't be necessary, we're just trying to get an understanding
of his background. Had he been acting strangely at all recently? Mention anyone that might have
been hostile towards him?"

Lucas, shook his head, "No, not at all. This wasn't his dream job, but he liked working here. He
was always very friendly with the people who came in. I can't think of any reason why anyone
would want to hurt him. Didn't you say you believed it was a mugging?"

Nick replied, "We have to rule out every possibility." Nick showed Lucas his phone with the
picture of the nameless man on the screen. "Does this man look familiar to you at all?"

Lucas had to fish his reading glasses out of his shirt pocket and after he placed them on, he took a
better look at the phone, "No, can't say I recognize him. But hundreds of people are in and out of
here every day."

Nick took his phone back and said, "Well, he's a person of interest. If you see him, please notify us
immediately." He handed Lucas a business card. "Can you tell us what time yesterday Zachary
left?"

Lucas reached under the counter and pulled out a clipboard with layers of paper attached,
"According to the schedule he was done here at nine last night. I wasn't here though, I worked the
day shift."

Hank pointed at a security camera and asked, "Would we be able to get the footage from last
night?"

Without the owner's consent, they'd need a warrant so Nick and Hank were relieved when Lucas
said he'd have it prepared.

Nick said, "Excellent. We'll have Sergeant Wu stop by and pick it up later. Is there anyone here
that worked with Zachary last night?"

Lucas double checked his clipboard, "No. See, everyone here typically works in the day time. The
evening crew won't be here for another few hours. But I can get you their names and numbers if
that helps."

Hank nodded, "That would be a huge help. We'll have Wu pick that up with the security footage."

As they were leaving Nick called Wu, put him on speaker and updated him on the investigation.
Then asked, "Any news on the cell phone?"

Wu replied, "Yes, but you're not gonna like it. We tracked the phone to a different trash can three
blocks away."

Hank responded, "We need to pull any surveillance we can between the murder scene and the two
trash cans."

Wu in his usual sardonic tone said, "I thought you'd say that. I have people on it."

Nick hung up and looked at Hank, "This investigation is going nowhere until we have some video
footage to look at. I'm heading home for now. Call me when we have something."

Nick was feeling a bit grimy since having picked up the trailer and moving all those boxes, so he
wanted to shower. He wasn't surprised when he got home and found the loft empty. Adalind was
working and she often took Kelly with her and this week was Sean Renard's week with Diana. He
took his shirt off and was about to step into the bathroom when his motion sensor alarm went off.
He walked to his security monitor and began toggling through different video feeds when he found
what he was looking for.

A car had pulled up to the front of his loft garage door. A person stepped out of the driver's side
door and looked directly into the camera so Nick could see that it was Eve. He pushed a button and
the garage door opened. Eve sat back down in her car and drove it into the garage.

Nick put his shirt back on and waited for Eve to make her way up. When she stepped out of the
freight elevator Nick spoke first, "I assume you're here on business."

Eve was wearing all black. A black shirt with a black coat over top of it. Eve had a selection of
wigs she could wear and she was wearing a black wig as well. Nick felt the all black ensemble
gave Eve an imposing figure. Especially challenging for someone as slender as she was.

Eve nodded as she looked around the loft to see if anything had changed since she'd last been there.
The only things that could be considered new were the children's toys. Kelly had been an infant
since she was last there. Now he'd become a toddler and the toys on the ground reflected that.

She pivoted and looked at Nick, "Trubel told you about the man we're after." It wasn't a question,
but she was seeking confirmation.

Nick didn't deny it and simply asked, "What can you tell me about him?"
At first she didn't say anything. Then she asked if she could have a glass of water. Nick got her a
bottle of water out of his refrigerator. She drank half of it before she looked at him, but then she
turned her back to him and said, "He's unlike anything I've ever seen before. Cold. Calculating.
Powerful. And, Nick, he's fast. So fast. You know how people bring up the cliche of playing Cat
and Mouse. Well, that's what he does, but the whole time he has you believing that you're the Cat.
I've been after him for months and he's always a few steps ahead. But sometimes he lingers behind
a little and gives the impression that maybe he's tripped up, stayed in one place too long. You think
he's finally made a mistake, but no. He's just having fun. I've seen so many people dead at his
hands. I wasn't the only one tracking him. I'm just the last one left standing." Since becoming Eve,
she'd been able to keep her emotions in check in a near robotic way. But when she lay dying after a
violent confrontation, Nick healed her with a stick. The stick was later found out to be a broken off
piece of a magical Staff. When it healed her, it did something to her mind. She still identified as
Eve, but the compartmentalization of her mind had been compromised. It became more difficult to
keep her emotions separated.

Nick could see in her eyes that she was struggling, so he took a few steps towards her and put his
hand on her shoulder. She pulled away and turned back to look at him. "You have to stay out of
this, Nick. He's too dangerous."

"I can't do that. We believe he may have killed someone in Portland. I think I saw him today at a
crime scene"

She put her hand to her forehead and said more to herself than to Nick, "Of course he's killed
someone else." Then to Nick she said, "He'll likely kill more people before he leaves Portland and
goes who knows where."

Nick sat on a stool and said, "What is he? What makes him so dangerous?"

Eve, almost shouting, replied, "He's a Grimm, Nick! But he's not like you and Trubel. The way he
moves, it's like he knows what you're going to do before you do."

Nick thought back to when he first saw his mother after he thought she'd been dead for years. At
first, he didn't recognize her and attempted to attack her. But she dodged and blocked every punch
he threw her way.

He stood up from the stool, his eyes widened as the realization set in, he said, "So, you're telling
me there's a psycho Grimm here in Portland and what, is killing people... killing Wesen,
indiscriminately?"

Eve nodded. "We think so. We can't always verify the people he's killing are Wesen. Maybe
they're not every time."

Nick tilted his head up and asked, "Have you fought him?"

Eve turned away again, "He's almost killed me... twice. All told, I've spent about three weeks
healing up from my encounters with him. If I hadn't been a Hexenbiest, I don't think I'd have
survived at all. There were four of us against just him and he tore through us like we were amateurs
in less than five minutes. My only advantage right now is that I'm pretty sure he thinks he killed
me last time."

Nick began processing all the information Trubel had told him earlier that morning and his
expression changed to that of puzzlement, "Why all the secrecy from HW?" His facial expression
changed again to that of disappointment, "He worked for HW during the whole Black Claw thing
didn't he?"
Eve snorted a brief laugh and said, "I knew you'd see between the lines. You're not a detective for
nothing."

"So, what... HW is embarrassed that someone in their organization has gone rogue? They want to
take him down before they get any more egg on their face? Is that it? Or, and I really hope for their
sake I'm wrong about this, they don't care all that much, because it's only Wesen he's killing?"

Eve did her best to speak with confidence, "I'm fairly certain it's the first one. HW is doing what
they can to track him down, but he knows their methods. He's trained with a lot of them. Fought
side by side with a lot of them. We can't be certain, but we think he wants you next, Nick."

"Me? I get that I'm a Grimm too, but is there something beyond the similarity that he would want
to come after me?"

Eve turned to Nick and stepped toward him, "Nick, I know and you know that you had a team of
people working with you to take down Black Claw in Portland. But, Nick, all of that information is
need-to-know at HW. To a lot of people, you single-handedly defended a major city. You got all
the credit for killing Conrad Bonaparte. HW management thinks he's impressed by you."

Nick took his phone out of his pocket and said, "Give me his name, I'm putting out an APB on
him."

Eve shook her head and said, "You can't do that. If he finds out the police in the region are looking
for him he'll simply vanish and possibly kill several cops in the process."

Nick put his phone back in his pocket, "Fine, but tell me his name. I can at least tell the people in
our inner circle." Nick used his fingers to draw a circle in the air, but he did it out of the frustration
of his limitations.

Eve waited a moment for Nick to get a hold of his temper and said, "According to HW, the name
he gave was Charles Spencer. He was supposedly raised in Alabama. So far as we know, he has no
living relatives. I have some files that say he'd mentioned to people that his parents had been killed
by Wesen. Not sure which kind though. I also have a psychological profile drawn up by HW that,
in summary, says not to believe anything he says."

Eve drank the rest of her water, sat down the empty bottle and said, "After HW took down Black
Claw, they started cutting loose a lot of operatives. He was one of them. So far as we can tell he's
been traveling from random place to random place killing any Wesen he happens to come across
and takes whatever cash they have on them so he can support himself. He's been trained by HW to
avoid surveillance and to not leave evidence. He's a ghost. He knows how the game is played and
worst of all, he enjoys it."

An idea came to Nick, "Sounds like what we need to do is change the rules."

He took his phone out of his pocket and as he was about to dial, it rang. He answered and from
what he was being told, Eve could see he was both disappointed and angry. When he hung up, he
said, "They found another body. I have to get to the crime scene. But first, I need you to do
something while I'm out."
 Chapter 8

When Nick arrived at the crime scene, he was the one to supply coffee to Hank. They had a nearly
unspoken alternating agreement. Nick, feeling like he was repeating himself, said, "What do we
got?"

They were in a skater park so it was no surprise to Nick when Hank informed him, "We have a
roller skater. Body found at the bottom of one of the deeper pools. Can't be certain, but it looks like
a broken neck. Could simply be an accident though." He sipped the coffee that Nick had handed
him.

This time, Nick put on the latex gloves and began searching the body for any kind of ID but when
he got a look at the skaters face he said, "This kid can't be that old. Maybe fourteen? Fifteen? There
may not be an ID to find." It wasn't uncommon for skaters to not wear protective gear like they
should and it appeared this skater didn't like wearing any either. But there was a skateboard several
feet from the body so maybe it was an accident after all.

Nick looked up at Hank, "Any witnesses?"

Hank pointed at a crowd of onlookers, many of whom were holding skateboards, and said, "I was
about to go find out."

Nick followed him to the crowd and while they walked, he looked around. The skatepark had no
visible surveillance that he could see, it had complete public access. It was a good fifty yards to the
nearest business or residence.

As they neared the crowd Nick began feeling like he was being watched. He stopped and glanced
in every direction he could but didn't see anything out of the ordinary. However, the feeling didn't
go away.

He jogged a bit to catch back up with Hank and when they got to the crowd, Hank asked loud
enough for everyone to hear, "Which one of you called this in?"

A small hand raised itself up from inside the crowd. A black girl that couldn't have been older than
thirteen. Her clothes a few sizes too big for her. The hood of her jacket was up. She stepped
forward and it was obvious she didn't much like being the center of attention. She folded her arms
across her chest and wouldn't look them in the eyes.

Hank asked her, "Did you know him?"

She nodded her head but didn't look up.

Hank continued, "Can you tell us his name?"

She spoke so softly that Hank couldn't make out what she said, he was about to ask her to repeat
herself when Nick said, "She said, 'Tony.'"

Hank gave him a side eyed glance as if to wordlessly say, 'That Grimm hearing of yours.'

Hank looked back at the girl and asked, "What's your name?"

She managed a brief glance into his eyes and said, "Tabitha. Everyone calls me Tabby or Tabbs."
She still spoke very softly but Hank was able to make out the words this time.
Hank took a step closer to her to help aid in hearing what she had to say as he asked, "Tabitha, may
I have your last name for our report?"

She nodded and simultaneously said, "Barlow."

Hank asked, "Did you see what happened? Do you know if anyone did?"

The other skaters behind her began shuffling their feet and one of them halfheartedly raised his
hand to try to get their attention. Nick looked at him and nodded his head, "Did you see
something?"

A white kid with a piercing through his lip and fairly long black hair that he kept having to brush
away from his eyes as he spoke stepped forward. Nick assessed he was probably a bit older,
sixteen, maybe seventeen, he said, "Nah, we were all here skating together. But we were all feeling
hungry and went to the corner store," he pointed at a store that could be barely be seen in the
distance, "But Tony was short on cash, so he stayed behind. We were gone maybe twenty minutes,
thirty tops. When we got back we found him like that. I wanted to tell you that I did touch his body.
I've seen those CSI shows and I don't want to cause any problems, but I had to make sure that he
for sure wasn't breathing and didn't have a pulse. Tony was a good kid, it sucks this happened."

Nick nodded and thought maybe he understood what was going on, so he asked, "You're the oldest
one here? You look out for the kids that skate here, is that right?"

The kid replied, "Well, I mean, not in any kind of official way. Kids get hurt here sometimes, a
sprained wrist or ankle, but never anything like this." He pointed in the direction of Tony's body.
"I've occasionally had to help a kid or two get home after a bad spill and the kids here know to ask
me for help if need be. I've been skating here for three years, maybe."

Hank asked so everyone could hear, "Can anyone tell me Tony's last name?"

When no one spoke up, Nick followed up asking, "Does anyone know where he lives?"

Tabitha meekly raised her hand again. Nick asked for the address but she didn't know it. So softly,
that even Nick had to bend down to hear her, she said, "I'm not sure he lives there, but I've seen him
coming down the front stairs a few times. I can take you there."

Hank waved down Sgt. Wu and he came trotting over to meet them. Before Hank could speak he
said, "I have some video footage you two need to look at when you get a minute. What do you
need?"

Hank told Wu he could go ahead and take Tony's body to the medical examiner and then he
pointed to the kid that had touched Tony's body and explained the situation. He then turned to the
kid and said, "Sergeant Wu here is going to take your personal info down in case we need to follow
up with you about anything. So you know, you didn't do anything wrong, but we need to document
everything. Okay?"

The kid nodded his head and walked off with Sergeant Wu.

Then he looked at Tabitha and said, "Could you show us the way to what you think is Tony's
home?"

Tabitha, being as small in stature as she was, didn't walk very fast and it took several minutes to
walk to the house that was only a few blocks away. When they arrived, Nick asked, "Can you wait
here? I would prefer to walk you to your home when this is over."

Without saying a word she sat down on the bottom step of the front porch and began playing with
the strings of her coat.

Nick and Hank walked up the stairs and before they knocked, Nick took out a pair of sunglasses. It
was late afternoon and the sun was still out, but only barely. He placed them on and said to Hank,
"Just in case."

They knocked and waited. Just when they thought no one was home both a man and woman
opened the door together. They both appeared to have gotten home not long ago. The man was
wearing a shirt, tie and slacks, the woman was wearing a sleeveless blouse and a knee length skirt.

To Nick, it felt like the day was on a loop, the man who answered asked, "Can I help you?"

Hank, still wearing his detective badge on a chain around his neck, held it up again so they both
could see it more clearly, he said, "I'm Detective Griffin, this is Detective Burkhardt. We need to
ask you a few questions."

Nick didn't allow them to speak before he said, "May we have your names, please?"

The man put his hand on the door frame, pulling the woman's slender frame closer to his chest. It
was clear he was feeling protective. But he answered Nick's question, "My name is Isaac Seidel
and this is my wife, Sasha."

That was the easy part. Now came something much more troubling. Hank asked, "Do you have any
children?"

This time it was the woman, Sasha, who spoke, "Our son Tony. Why? Is he in trouble?"

Nick answered her, "I'm very sorry to tell you that Tony was killed in the skatepark today."

To deliver news like this twice in the same day was emotionally draining to Nick. A girl lost her
brother and these two people lost their son. When working homicide long enough, it can cause one
to build up a thick skin. Death is seen every day. But some days, that thick skin isn't enough.
Especially when it came to the loss of a child.

Nick and Hank stood for a moment while the Seidels absorbed the news they'd just been provided.
Sasha was the first to react, covering her mouth and then turning her body so she could embrace
her husband. He put his arms around her and put his chin in the crook of her neck as they mourned
the loss of their son. As Nick expected, they Woged. The sunglasses became completely
unnecessary as neither of them were looking at him. Nick recognized them as Lausenschlange. A
snake like Wesen with greenish skin that more resembled scales. When they ended their Woge,
they both turned to face Nick and Hank as Isaac asked, "Can you tell us what happened?"

Hank answered, "At this time we're still gathering all the facts, but so far, no witnesses have come
forward and it's possible it may have been a simple accident. However, we are still investigating."

Nick looked at Hank and motioned with his head to look after Tabitha who was still waiting
patiently on the bottom stair. Hank lifted an eyebrow as if to wordlessly ask, 'Wesen?' and Nick
nodded. Hank then said, "Excuse me, Nick has some questions and I have something I have to
attend to." He walked down the stairs to sit with Tabitha.

Nick said, "Can we talk inside?"

Sasha wiped at the corner of her eye and said, "Of course."

Nick stepped inside and closed the door behind him, he said, "The girl outside, her name is
Tabitha. She thought that Tony lived here but wasn't sure and didn't know Tony's last name, so she
volunteered to walk us over."

Before he could continue Sasha said, "I'd like to thank her before she leaves if that's okay."

Nick nodded and said, "That would be fine. Just know, she's probably the shyest person I've ever
met. That she helped us must have been pretty hard for her."

Nick took off his sunglasses and said, "But the reason I mentioned her and why we came inside
was that I didn't want her to hear the rest of what we need to talk about. Can we sit down?"

The couple were clearly uncomfortable, but did their best to accommodate Nick and directed him to
sit at their dining table. He sat on one side and the Seidels sat on the opposite.

Nick continued, "Now, like my partner Hank was saying, this very well may have been an accident
and I don't wish to alarm you, but in case it's not an accident, I wanted to ask a few questions."

"Can you think of anyone who would have wanted to harm your son? Any rivalries he may have
had. Any fights he'd gotten into?"

The Seidels looked at each other as if to confirm neither knew of anything and then turned to Nick
and shook their heads.

He took out his phone and pulled up the picture of Charles Spencer and showed it to the couple,
"Have either of you seen this man before?"

They both looked closely and then looked at each other again to see if they recognized him, but
neither did. They shook their heads. Isaac asked, "Do you think he had something to do with Tony's
death?"

Nick replied, "We're not sure of anything right now." He pulled at his collar as if it were getting
warmer in the room, but really Nick was struggling with how best to bring up that he's a Grimm
without causing panic. "At the next thing I'm going to say, I don't want you to be alarmed," he took
a deep breath and finished, "but I'm a Grimm."

They both Woged again and when they saw Nick, Sasha jumped out of her seat and stood behind
her husband and said, "What do you want?"

Nick saw they were staying in their Woged state for now and said, "I apologize for alarming you
and for having to give you the news this way, but to get the bottom of the investigation, there are
things I need to know. For example, I'm not completely familiar with Lausenschlange physiology.
How possible is it that your son could have simply had a bad spill and broken his neck while
skating?"

Sasha, still in her Woged state put her hand to her mouth and said, "Oh my god, is that how he
died?"

Nick nodded and added, "The medical examiner hasn't taken a look at him yet, but based on what
we saw, that would be the apparent cause of death."

At last, the Seidels relaxed and went back to their non-Woged appearance. Sasha apologized to
Nick and sat back down in her chair.
Nick wouldn't accept her apology, "Please, you have nothing to be sorry for. I understand the
Grimm reputation." Nick didn't intend it as a double entendre, but it came out that way.

Isaac looked up at the ceiling in thought for a moment, Nick guessed he was deciding how honest
he should be about their physiology with a Grimm. But then he looked at Nick and said,
"Lausenschlanges are extremely flexible. What you're describing isn't impossible. But, it's also far
from likely. Tony has only been skating for a year or so and he's gotten really good. That famous
skater, Tony Hawk? He was Tony's hero. So, between how good he was, and how flexible we are
as Wesen? No, I don't see how what you're describing could have happened."

Nick said, "We're still waiting for the medical examiner to confirm everything I've told you, but the
information you've provided me will likely help a lot."

Sasha had gotten better control over her emotions and said, "The man you showed us, how does he
fit into all this?"

Nick sighed a deep sigh and said, "As of now, maybe not at all. Here is what you need to know.
I'm a Grimm. I have a friend who lives in the region, she's a Grimm too. Contrary to what you've
heard about us, we don't go around arbitrarily killing Wesen. But from what little intel I have on
this guy," he pointed at his phone, "he's a Grimm who does."

Sasha gasped and Isaac clenched his fist and Woged again briefly. Nick looked into Isaac's eyes
and feared Isaac was going to let his temper get the better of him and said, "I'd like to text you this
picture, however, I need you to give me your word," he looked at Sasha, "both of you, that you will
not approach him if you do see him. That you will run away and call me instead?"

Making this promise rubbed them both the wrong way, so Isaac asked, "And what will you do
about him?"

Nick leaned back in his chair and said, "I'm going to do my best to arrest him. But failing that...
Well..."

Isaac was skeptical and said, "So, a Grimm is gonna, you know, another Grimm?"

Nick looked him in the eye and replied, "Your son was what, 14 years old?"

Sasha answered for Isaac, "He just turned last month."

Nick said, "I'm a father myself, and if he was actually responsible for the death of your son, then...
yeah. My goal is to put handcuffs on him. But I know and you know... sometimes... that just isn't
an option."

Sasha and Isaac nodded their head in understanding. Isaac placed his hand on Sasha's shoulder and
looked at Nick and said, "In that case, you have our word."

Nick nodded gratefully and asked, "Would Tony have had anything on him that would have led
anyone to this address? We couldn't find anything when we looked."

Isaac looked to Sasha to see if she had any idea what Tony would have had on him, "I can't think of
anything, why?"

Nick stood up and glanced out the window to see Hank was actually in conversation with Tabitha
about something. Nick responded to Sasha, "In an abundance of caution, I would advise that you
stay somewhere else for a few nights, just in case that Grimm does know about you and where you
live."
Isaac took a deep breath through his nose, "I don't like the idea of hiding like a coward."

Nick, who'd expected that response had something prepared, "Well, you won't be hiding like a
coward, you'll be staying safe and, if you're willing, you'll be helping to coordinate finding him and
catching him."

Sasha stood up from her chair and walked over to Nick and asked, "And how exactly would we be
doing that?"

Nick went over his plan with them. When they'd all exchanged contact information they stepped
outside to join Hank and Tabitha.

Sasha stepped over to Tabitha and asked, "So, you knew Tony?"

Tabitha stood up from the step and took a step back and nodded. Sasha continued, "Nick tells me
you helped them to find our house. I just wanted to say thank you." Her eyes began to well up with
tears and she said, "It just means so much to us that you would help like that. If I may, I'd like to
hug you."

Tabitha, who still hadn't made eye contact with any of them, stood for a moment and then raised
her hand up to show her thumb and forefinger very close together and Sasha quickly understood
and said, "A small hug, you got it."

Sasha bent down to hug Tabitha and just as Tabitha's chin touched Sasha's shoulder, she Woged.
Nick recognized her as a Willahara, a rare and very timid Wesen. It became clear to Nick why she
was so shy. He attempted to avert his eyes as quickly as he could, but it was no good. Tabitha had
seen that he's a Grimm. She pulled away from Sasha in such panic and fear that Sasha also saw the
last few seconds of Tabitha's Woge. She looked behind herself and saw that Nick was standing
there and caught Tabitha before she could get too far. Sasha said, "No, no, baby, he's not going to
hurt you. I promise!"

Willaharas are so rare because they're hunted not only by Grimms but also other Wesen. They're a
rabbit like Wesen and it's believed by many in the Wesen community that to place the amputated
foot of a Willahara beneath your bed makes it more likely you'll conceive a child. A barbaric
practice. For this reason, it's very rare for them to Woge around anyone. But Tabitha is very young
and likely doesn't have the restraint of an adult.

Nick wasn't sure if it would be wise to tell a Willahara that the person that just hugged her is a
Lausenschlange but it appeared that Sasha was about to do so anyway. First, she looked at Hank,
and said, "Nick tells me you know all about us?"

Hank nodded, "Still getting used to it, but yes."

Isaac commented, "Well, if you're still new to it that would be understandable."

Nick scratched the back of his head and half jokingly said, "I wouldn't say he's still new to it."

Sasha pointed at Nick while speaking to Tabitha, "See? Nick is friendly and won't hurt you. And I
know you're concerned about us," she Woged and Tabitha's eyes widened in fear and Nick felt
justified in his conclusion that it was bad idea.

If Hank hadn't been standing directly behind Tabitha it's likely she would have run off, never to be
seen again, but when she turned to run, Hank put his hands on her shoulders and crouched down to
her level. Hank didn't know what kind of Wesen any of them were, as he couldn't see anything that
Nick had seen, but he was able to piece some things together based on everyone's reactions and
said, "I know you've been taught all your life to run as fast as you can if you ever see a Grimm, but
Nick, he's not going to hurt you. And Mr. and Mrs Seidel? They're not going to hurt you either.
And believe it or not, if they tried to, Nick," He nodded his head at Nick and Nick smiled a barely
perceptible smile, "he would protect you. And I would, too. I promise."

Tabitha looked at all the people around her. She saw a mix of smiles and looks of concern but no
apparent threats and so she nodded and ever so quietly said, "Okay."

Nick looked at the Seidels and said, "Don't linger here too long. Grab some stuff and go."

They nodded in appreciation and went back inside.

The sun was setting and the street lights were beginning to come on. Nick put his hands in his
jacket pockets and said, "Well, Tabitha, let's get you home."

Hank and Nick walked her home. Nick said to Hank, "Sorry I had to have you watch Tabitha, but
there was some stuff I didn't think she should overhear. I want to talk to her parents and this time
you should be there so you can hear what I'm planning." When they arrived they all had a very
familiar conversation with Tabitha's mother and Father and, this time, Hank learned it all himself
as well.
 Chapter 9

As they walked back to the crime scene where they had left their vehicles, Hank pointed out that
they weren't all that far from Samantha Gray's home, "It can't be more than what, a five minute
drive maybe?"

Nick nodded, "I was thinking the same thing. I was planning on driving by and making sure she
actually did leave like I asked her to."

Hank asked, "You think the Seidels left their home, too?"

Nick shrugged his shoulders and confessed he wasn't sure. "It's a big ask. They're proud people and
being asked to hide, it can have an effect on the ego. But I'm pretty sure I got through to them. I can
only hope that the Grimm had nothing to do with this or that Tony didn't have any kind of personal
info on him that would have led back to their home."

Before Hank could respond, Nick's phone rang. He answered it and said, "Yeah, he's with me.
We'll be there in ten."

When he hung up he looked at Hank and said, "We have another body. It's in this same area."

After they each got back to their vehicles they both drove to the scene separately. When they
arrived, Wu walked up to them and said, "The captain is asking for updates and I have that video
footage all queued up and ready to be reviewed, but first you'll want to see this." Wu lifted the
crime scene tape high enough that Hank and Nick could bend under as they found the body of a
white male stuffed behind a dumpster of a neighborhood bar, his neck had been torn to shreds.
Nick crouched down for a better look. The victim was wearing a simple pair of roughed up jeans
and a t-shirt of what Nick assumed was a band he'd never heard of. The front of the shirt was
soaked in the victim's blood.

Hank expected the answer to be 'no' but asked anyway, "Any ID?"

Wu replied, "No, but we don't need one in this case. I know this guy. Arrested him a few times for
dealing. Nothing big, he mainly deals in things like Ecstasy. I think he was on parole. His name is
Matthias Winn. Typically goes by Matt."

Nick gestured at the bar, "Anyone see him inside?"

Wu shook his head, "Thing is, the guy behind the bar said that Matt was in there pretty frequently,
obviously a parole violation, but hadn't seen him at all today. Maybe he was on his way in when he
was attacked?"

Nick stood back up and said, "And let me guess, there's no surveillance of any kind back here."

Wu said, "I'm starting to see a pattern here."

Hank said, "We've seen what we need to see here. I think we should go talk to the people in the
bar."

The bar was named, 'The 8-Ball Bar.'

Nick expected the place to be filled with pool tables but found it to be just a bar. He looked again at
the sign to see if maybe he'd misread it, but no, it was definitely the outline of the billiard ball with
an '8' on it. Hank lifted his badge so everyone could see it and Nick took his badge out of his
pocket and did the same.

Hank called out, "Is there anyone here who knew Matt?"

The bartender raised his hand and a few others along the bar did as well. Nick said, "I got the
barkeep, you talk to the others."

Nick stepped over and asked the barkeep's name. He told Nick it was Alan but advised that even
though he'd served Matt drinks, other than discussions of sports, mainly Hockey, he didn't know
anything about his home life or anyone that would want to hurt him. Nick showed him the photo
on his phone and the barkeep said he'd never seen him. Nick was getting frustrated. When Eve said
this guy was a ghost, she wasn't exaggerating. Nick couldn't be sure he was responsible for any of
the deaths they're investigating. All the questioning he was doing could be for nothing. Maybe
Nick was wrong about having seen him earlier that morning. Maybe the guy wasn't even in
Portland. He felt like he was chasing his own tail.

He walked over to Hank who wasn't having much luck either.

As they left the bar Hank looked at Nick and said, "Are we even sure these deaths are related?
Other than them being Wesen I see no real connection.

Wu overheard and said, "Guys, I really need you to see this video."

Wu put his laptop on the hood of Nick's SUV and said, "I had our techs sift through footage of as
many feeds as we could get without needing a warrant. Thankfully, we had a handful of business
owners willing to help voluntarily."

Nick and Hank stood waiting for Wu to hit play when Nick asked, "Well, was any of it actually
helpful?"

Wu bobbed his head a little and said, "Maybe?" He hit play.

The video played and Nick saw crowds of people bustling down the sidewalk. Wu pressed the
pause button and pointed at the screen. "There is our vic. Looking at the time stamp, I'd say he'd
just left work a few minutes beforehand."

Hank said, "He doesn't look like he's in any trouble. The guy is staring at his phone."

Wu said, "Well, here's where things get interesting. In a second, this other guy in a hoodie is going
to walk past him and suddenly stop and turn around." Wu hit play again.

Moments into the clip, whatever Zachary saw on his phone must have hit a chord, because he
Woged. Nick could see it, but neither Wu nor Hank would have had any idea. The man in the
hoodie had been walking in the opposite direction and passing Zachary just as he Woged. Nick
pinched the bridge of his nose and said, "Half a second."

Hank said, "What?"

Nick shook his head and pointed back to the screen. The man in the hoodie stopped dead in his
tracks just as Zachary had passed him. He stood there for just a few seconds, then spun on his
heels. Finally, Nick could see his face and even though the video was fairly grainy, he was pretty
certain it was Charles Spencer. Spencer walked after Zachary, but then the available footage cut out
and there was nothing suggesting there had been any confrontation between the two of them.
Hank asked, "So, what was that about?"

Nick explained. Just half a second was all that Zachary would have needed and he'd likely still be
alive right now. He Woged just a moment too soon and Spencer saw it.

Hank asked, "But why would he have Woged?"

Nick shrugged and said, "Who knows. Something on his phone. A break up text, a sports score
saying his favorite team lost. Anything that could have gotten his hackles up. I don't think that it
even matters."

Nick's frustration was beginning to boil over, "This guy killed at least one innocent person today
because of a poorly timed Woge and the way Eve describes him, he's unstoppable."

Wu asked, "Eve? Is she back in town?"

Hank put a hand up and said, "We'll explain at the office. We've been out in the field almost all
day. Hopefully the ME will have something for us on the first couple cases."

Hank and Wu went back to the station and Nick planned to join them, but first he wanted to follow
up on Samantha Gray.

When he pulled up to the curb he could see that all the lights were out. He was fairly certain no one
was home. But even in the near darkness, with only the street lights lighting his view, the
reflection on the door's glass didn't look right. He stepped out of his car and took a few steps up the
stairs and saw the reason. The door was partially open. Not much, but enough to distort the
reflection. He went back to his car, pulled out a flashlight and secured the vehicle.

As he approached the front door he pulled his Glock-17 out of its holster and carefully joined it
with the flashlight he was holding. He leaned in and opened the door the rest of the way with his
shoulder. He pointed his handgun/flashlight combination into the doorway. Back and forth,
sweeping through every section he could while still remaining, technically, outside the premises.

Finally, he decided that he had no choice but to call out. He shouted, "Samantha! This is Detective
Burkhardt. Your front door was open. I'm coming inside." After he announced he was entering the
home, he actually did the opposite and took a step backwards. He remained motionless. Listening
for any kind of response. He focused all his attention on his Grimm hearing. However, the only
noises coming from inside the house were the electronics and heating. He took a step forward
again and this time examined the door frame. It wasn't obvious at first glance, but the door was
definitely forced open.

Nick took a step forward but stopped again. Now he could hear something. Breathing. Soft
breathing. But it was coming from behind him. He turned as quickly as could but it was too late.
Someone, or something, shoved him hard. He tripped on the entrance way and he fell sideways
through the door. As he hit the ground, his gun and flashlight slid on the hardwood floors. His
temple collided awkwardly with the bottom most stair leading to the second floor. His shoulder
was pressed to his ear and as he attempted to straighten up to defend himself he was kicked hard in
his back. Twice he'd been hit and Nick still didn't know who was assaulting him. He couldn't stop
himself from reacting to the pain he felt in his back, he let out a guttural cry of pain.

He got his bearings as best he could and rolled away from the stairs, further into the house, near
where he and Hank had sat on the couch earlier that day.
He attempted to get to his feet while also looking around for his Glock. He could see the light from
his flashlight, but it had rolled under the couch. Before he could get to his feet something hit him
between his shoulder blades and he sailed across the room. His knee landed hard on the stone
hearth of a fireplace. He knew it was no time to make jokes, but he thought to himself, 'I'm gonna
feel that in the morning.' This time he chose to play possum and try to draw out whoever was
attacking him. He lay still, listening for footsteps. Anything at all, but, nothing. After some time
passed, he decided his attacker had chosen to either leave or not fall for the possum-trick. He stood
up slowly, monitoring his surroundings as he did so. He had to use the mantel of the fireplace to
keep from falling. It turned out his knee didn't need to wait until morning after all, it hurt like hell
now.

He looked around and saw no sign of anyone. There wasn't even a sign of a struggle. All the
furniture remained exactly where it was. If Nick hadn't been the victim, he'd have thought nothing
had transpired here tonight at all. Then he remembered, there was the door that was forced open.

Nick reached into his coat pocket and took out his phone. He needed to call for backup. As he
worked the screen, he attempted to hobble to the couch. He only made it a step before something
collided with him from behind. In the half second it took for Nick to fall forward and hit his head
on the floor, connecting at nearly the same exact spot that his temple had collided with the stairs,
he thought to himself that it was impossible for anyone to have hit him that hard and that fast from
a room he'd only just verified with his own eyes was empty not a second before.

It's possible Nick had lost consciousness momentarily from the last blow to his head, he couldn't be
sure. But as he stood up to try to defend himself, he again saw no one around him. His phone was
missing, his gun was missing, the flashlight however, was still under the couch.

Then from behind him he heard, "So, this is the famous Nick Burkhardt. Or is Nick short for
Nicholas?"

Nick turned his head first, as that was much easier from the pain he was experiencing than turning
his whole body. His back and knee were in bad shape. As Nick attempted to turn the rest of himself
around to face his attacker the voice continued, "You'll probably be pissing blood for a few days,
but you'll live."

Nick asked, "So, you're Charles Spencer?"

Spencer wasn't much taller than Nick, but underneath the jeans and the hoodie, Nick could tell that
Spencer was lean. His hair and beard, though longer and scragglier, was much like the picture Nick
had on his phone, black with a lot of gray peppered throughout. The room was dark but Nick could
make out his face through the distorted light that spilled out from underneath the couch. Spencer
lifted an eyebrow and said, "Oh, so you've heard of me? I guess that's not surprising. But please,"
his eyes widened as he smiled and said, "call me Charlie."

Nick took a limping step forward, every passing moment made him realize his knee was in worse
shape than he had thought just the moment before. "Well, Charlie. Can I ask, why the hostility?"

Charlie's smile faded away and he said, "You know, when I came to Portland, I figured it might be
kinda fun to tussle with you for a round or two. See what you got. Nothing drastic. Just all in fun.
But then, I started to get the impression that you're not quite the Grimm I thought you were. I left
you that wallet on purpose. Thought you'd beat me to the kill. After all, you have a car and I'm on
foot. I had no idea if anyone lived here other than that Zachary guy, but I played the odds and lo
and behold there's a woman living here. Is it his wife?" He pointed towards the kitchen, "Found a
stack of mail in there with Samantha's name on them."
His face turned more serious as he said, "I looked around and I'm pretty sure that the Samantha
lady is still alive and kicking. Now, why would that be? You gonna tell me she didn't Woge when
you told her that her husband died?"

Nick was about to respond but Charlie cut him off, "Shut up, I'm not finished yet. So, I figure, I'll
give you the benefit of the doubt. Maybe, just maybe, you're coming back tonight. Take care of her
when your detective, buddy, partner, guy isn't with you. That would make sense. So, I sat back. I
mean, I knew she wasn't home, but did you know she wasn't home?"

Charlie clenched a fist, "Then you called her name. That's when I knew. Maybe you expected her to
be here, maybe you didn't. But you weren't here to kill her. So, tell me, traitor, why'd you let her
live?" The anger didn't leave his face but the tone of his voice changed to that of near friendly
when he said, "Okay, I'm done now, you can talk."

Nick took a breath. He was sore, but he was beginning to get a second wind. To buy more time he
attempted to keep the conversation going, "You mean kill a person who hasn't done anything
wrong? That's what you wanted me to do?"

Charlie spat on the floor, "Person? It ain't no person! It's a thing. I can't even call it an animal cause
at least animals are good for something. You can train 'em or eat 'em."

This time Nick successfully interrupted, "Was it you that killed the skater and that guy at the bar?"

Charlie sneered at Nick and said, "Maybe. Let me think. Skater rings a bell, but a guy at a bar?
Well, which bar? Cause I visited more than one today." He smiled as if to say, 'Sounds like you
don't know about all of the ones I've killed.'

Nick felt foolish saying it, but with as much authority as he could, he said, "In that case, I'm
placing you under arrest for the murder of..."

Charlie laughed. A loud, hard, belly laugh and smiled at Nick as though he were in on the joke.
"That's good. Like you could arrest me. Besides, that wasn't murder! That was extermination."

Nick took another step forward, this time with every intent of grabbing Charlie and subduing him
on the ground as best he could. His knee thankfully didn't give way. But Charlie pivoted and was
behind Nick before he knew it had happened. Charlie reached down and grabbed the shin of Nick's
good leg and yanked backward on it hard. Nick's jaw collided with the hardwood floor with
devastating effect. For a moment his vision was filled with bright colors and swirls.

Nick attempted to sweep his good leg out at Charlie's, but Charlie easily avoided the blows. Charlie
stomped on Nick's good ankle and his ankle made a violent crunching sound, Nick yelled out in
pain. Charlie reared back and kicked Nick in his chest and gut multiple times, too many times.
Nick was gasping for air. As he lay on the floor unable to stand, barely able to breathe, he looked
up and saw Charlie holding Nick's cell phone. He said, "I'll be honest with you, I don't know where
the gun slid off to. It's probably under the couch with the flashlight." He dropped the cell phone so
that it should have landed directly on Nick's face but Nick managed to catch it with his Grimm
reflexes, for all the good that did him. Once the phone was in his hands and it was out of his field
of vision, he barely caught a glimpse at the heel of Charlie's shoe coming down directly onto his
face.

It would be hours before Nick would wake again.

 Chapter 10

The following morning, at Saint Joseph's Hospital, a handful of people were gathered together,
impatiently biding their time in a waiting room. Trubel was sitting in one of the chairs, leaning
forward, her left leg bouncing up and down. Adalind was only a few seats over holding her
sleeping toddler, Kelly. Monroe was pacing back and forth in a nearby hallway. Hank was
attempting to get coffee out of a vending machine that looked like it had been there since the
1970's.

Whenever they heard footsteps in the distance they'd all stop and look in the direction of the sound
hoping it would be someone with an update on Nick's condition. But, so far, all they've been told
was that Nick was in surgery and had been for hours.

Finally, the doctor came out and walked over to them. He told them Nick's current medical
condition, advising that the surgery went well, but that he was still unconscious and likely would
be for quite a while. However, they could visit him in his hospital room if they wished.

When they entered his room, Nick was attached to a lot of tubes and IV's. His face was nearly
unrecognizable from the swelling around his eyes and a large amount of medical tape and
bandages on his face from his shattered nose.

The only one to have seen him prior to surgery was Hank, no one else was prepared to see how bad
the damage was. Adalind's eyes filled with tears, as did Monroe's, but Trubel was the one who
seemed to be taking it the hardest. Until she had seen it with her own eyes it was such an abstract
notion that Nick was hurt. To see it in front of her, the sound of the machines, the breathing tube,
the cuts and discoloration, nauseating yellows and purples spread throughout his face, neck and
chest. Now that it was real to her, tears began streaming down her cheeks. She started pacing in a
small area of the room. Her body refusing to let her keep still, so, to force herself to be motionless,
she grabbed a chair and dragged it to the side of Nick's bed. She sat down, then slowly and
carefully, she took Nick's hand in both of her own. Leaning forward in her chair, she touched the
back of his hand to her forehead and when she felt his skin against hers, what little control she'd
had over her emotions couldn't be held any longer, as the grief washed over her, she closed her eyes
and she wept.

Monroe looked at Hank and through anger and grief he said, "A Grimm did this to him?"

Hank grabbed Monroe by his jacket sleeve and led him into the hallway and said softly, "We don't
know. We honestly don't know much of anything at this point. Or at least, we can't prove
anything."

Monroe's anger was beginning to boil up through his grief and he said, "I'm gonna kill whoever did
this, Hank!" Hank couldn't see it, but Monroe Woged. The anger getting the better of him.

Hank did his best to calm Monroe down, "Monroe, we will get this guy. If he did it, we'll catch
him. You and I both know that Nick would rather this guy end up in prison... if possible."

"Excuse me," said a voice Monroe didn't recognize. He turned, still in his Woged state, and saw a
young woman.

Hank asked, "Samantha, what are you doing here?"

She was still looking at Monroe who had only just removed his Woge and had stepped back so that
she and Hank could talk.

Samantha Gray was in a small amount of awe at Monroe, "You're the best man?"

Monroe felt a little off guard and flustered and said, "Yeah, what of it?"

Samantha turned back to Hank and said, "The police notified me about what happened at my
house. I felt terrible and rushed down here as soon as I could. How's Detective Burkhardt?"

Hank said, "The doctors say he's stable for now. But it was touch and go there for a minute."

Monroe, unsure of who Samantha was, said, "Do you know the guy who did this?"

Samantha shook her head, "No, Detect... Detective..." She was attempting to explain that Nick had
saved her life simply by telling her to not be home. She attempted to reel in her emotions, but her
eyes began welling with tears again. She had cried so much since yesterday. The loss of her brother
had taken a major toll on her and now finding out that Nick had nearly died in her home while
trying to protect her... and that he's a Grimm... and that a Blutbad was standing here grieving over
the near loss of his friend. None of it made sense to her, but it also made so much sense to her at
the same time. Having met and spoken with Nick and learning what a decent person a Grimm
could actually be. Finally, after wiping away more tears, she Woged from the frustration of how
much crying she'd been doing, which caused Monroe to briefly Woge again out of reflex.

Hank, who had no idea either of them had done this, filled in the gaps as best he could by
explaining to Monroe that it was Sam's brother who had been killed that led Nick to her home.
Hank turned to her and said, "Sam, none of this is your fault. Nick is probably going to be
unconscious for a while yet. Your home is still a crime scene and even if it wasn't, I'd still suggest
it wasn't safe to be there until we catch the person who did this to Nick."

After she reverted to her typical appearance, Samantha asked, "Do you know who or what it was
that did this?"

Monroe said, "He's a Grimm."

Samantha didn't understand his meaning at first and said, "Nick? Yeah, I know."

Monroe shook his head and said, "No. The person that attacked Nick, that man, is a Grimm."

Samantha raised her hand to her mouth in shock, "So, there's two Grimms in Portland?"

Monroe pointed into the hospital room and said, "Three, actually. Trubel is at Nick's bedside. I
don't think you could pry her away from there with a crowbar." Monroe was doing his best to use
some levity to break the tension that hung in the air and it worked, a little. Samantha's eyes were
beginning to clear up.

Samantha attempted to peer into the hospital room but all she could see was the foot of Nick's bed.
She said, "Nick told me about her. That she won't hurt us just because we're Wesen?"

Before anyone could answer, Adalind stepped from the hospital room carrying Kelly and said,
"Monroe, can you help me? I didn't bring enough baby stuff. I need to go buy diapers and wipes."

Monroe barely let her finish her sentence, "Of course! You can never have too many diapers and
wipes. Come on."

As Monroe and Adalind walked off, Hank turned back to Sam and said, "I would normally
introduce you to Trubel, but I don't think Monroe was overstating it much. She's tough as nails that
girl, but... well, when it comes to Nick..."

He didn't have to finish his sentence. Samantha nodded in understanding. She said, "I'm beginning
to think he has that effect on more than just, what did you call her, Trubel?"

Hank sniffed out a brief laugh. He was so used to calling her that, he sometimes forgot it was a
nickname. He said, "Yeah, that's what everyone calls her. I was trying to get a coffee out of the
machine earlier, but screw that thing. You want to go get some real coffee?" The two of them
walked off to find the closest coffee shop they could.

Inside the hospital room, Trubel had sat up and wiped away her tears. She then leaned forward and
spoke to Nick, not sure if he could hear her or not and said, "It drives me crazy that you're the only
person who does this to me. Don't get me wrong, if it were Monroe or Hank or Rosalee in this bed
instead of you, I'd be upset and angry and I'd probably shed a couple tears, but dammit, Nick."

Her lip trembled a bit as she tried to hold back more tears, "You have to pull through and get
better!" She sat in silence for a moment and then sighed and said, "You made me need you in my
life and I don't think I'll ever forgive you for that." She took a deep breath and blew it out through
her mouth and said, "Okay, I'll probably forgive you, just... maybe not right now. Wake up first and
then we'll talk about it." She squeezed his hand in hers and whispered a plea both to Nick and to
whatever powers-that-be that could be listening, "Come on."

When Adalind and Monroe returned carrying a freshly filled diaper bag, Adalind judged that
Trubel hadn't left her seat since she and Monroe had left.

Adalind turned to Monroe and asked if he could hold and watch Kelly for a few minutes. Monroe
was all too willing to help. Adalind then turned to Trubel and said, "Hey, how about you and me
go for a walk?"

Trubel shook her head without looking up and said, "No, I'm not leaving. Not until I"m sure."

Adalind asked, "Sure of what? That Nick is going to pull through?"

Trubel wiped at one of her eyes, perhaps a bit too hard, and nodded her head.

Adalind crouched down next to Trubel's chair, placing one of her hands on the armrest and said,
"You know I love Nick. But, I have complete faith in him. Maybe too much faith, I don't know.
But, you and I know Nick isn't going to let this take him away from us. He's going to pull through.
I'm not saying we leave the hospital, I'm just saying we take a walk around the hallways. Clear our
heads. Maybe get a soda?"

Trubel sat for a moment in silence, then sighed and said, "Okay."

Adalind was convinced it was the offer of a soda that did it, but was glad to get Trubel on her feet
and walking around.

As they made their way around the hospital, Adalind said, "I'm really glad that you're here for
Nick. And not just because he's in the hospital right now. I mean, all the time you've spent living in
Portland. He's different when you're around."

Trubel nodded and said, "He likes having another Grimm in Portland."
Adalind smiled and replied, "No, I don't think that's it."

Trubel looked confused and asked, "What do you mean?"

Adalind wore a mischievous look on her face and said, "I know that what I'm about to ask is going
to seem like a really rude thing to ask someone, but... Have you decided what you're going to get
Nick and I for our wedding present?"

Trubel looked at the floor as she walked, shaking her head, she said, "I haven't a clue what to get.
What do you get the Grimm and Hexenbiest who has everything?"

Adalind grabbed the sleeve of Trubel's jacket and she paused with her in the hallway, "I may be
really presumptuous with what I'm about to suggest, but I have an idea of what both you and I
could get Nick as a present. It's crossed my mind more than once, but after today, I'm convinced
it's perfect."

Trubel lifted an eyebrow and simply said, "What?"

Adalind began walking again and said, "Okay, keep an open mind..."

In the coffee shop that Samantha and Hank had found, they located a secluded spot to sit and sip on
their coffees while they talked.

Samantha was the first to speak up, "I hope I wasn't intruding by visiting the hospital."

Hank waved away her concern, "No. Besides, we're just playing the waiting game now. Nick is
doped up with who knows how many kinds of drugs. Even if he were fully healthy, he couldn't
wake up for a while yet with all that stuff running through his system."

Samantha shrugged and said, "I just didn't know what the proper social protocol was. Given that he
nearly died in my house, I felt like I should at least check in on him. Plus," she hesitated for a bit, "I
can't believe I'm about to say this out loud, I was genuinely concerned for a Grimm's well-being."

She sipped at her coffee again and then asked, "So, you're totally okay with all of this? Our," she
used one hand to signify finger quotes, "'secret world?'"

Hank leaned back in his chair and said, "I've known about it for a few years now and there have
been days when you could ask me that and I'd say, 'Yeah, absolutely' but then something happens
and I realize I'm nowhere near okay with it. Like that Woge thing you do. Sometimes, I'll just be
looking at random people and thinking to myself, 'Are they doing it right now and I just can't see
it?' But if you phrased the question differently and made it more about people. Like, am I okay
with people being Wesen? Living and working side by side with them? Buying each other beers
or," he pointed at their cups, "coffees? I wouldn't hesitate for a moment to say that I'm more than
just okay with it."

He smirked and said, "Turns out I've been the godfather to a Coyotl for years and just didn't know
it. Knowing that she and her father are Coyotls doesn't change anything. I love her just as much as
ever."

Samantha said, "I'm not gonna lie, what you're saying sounds nice, but we're taught to never, ever,
and I mean ever, tell any Kehrseites about Wesen because we'll be hunted down and killed."
Hank nodded and said, "Oh yeah, I know. The first few times I saw a Woge, I didn't know what
was happening. Scared me so bad I slept with a shotgun for I don't know how many nights and I
nearly quit the force."

Samantha asked, "How did you turn yourself back around?"

Hank finished up his coffee and wiped his mouth with his napkin and replied, "Nick. It wasn't
really the ideal moment, it was literally life and death, and, as quick as he could, he explained it to
me and we saved my Goddaughter's life."

Samantha took another sip of her coffee and said, "A Grimm saving the life of, yet, another Wesen.
To be honest though, sure, we're taught to run if we ever see a Grimm, but no one I know has ever
seen one. There have been times I wondered if maybe my parents made it up, like to make sure I
didn't misbehave as a child or something. But they were so adamant that my grandparents were
killed by a Grimm when my mom was just a kid. So, when I saw Nick, it was a violent mix of
disbelief and being terrified I was about to get my head cut off, and also having just heard that my
brother had been murdered... Well, it wasn't a pleasant sensation."

Hank didn't know how to respond to that, so he didn't say anything at all. Silence hung between
them for a few moments as Samantha sipped at what was remaining of her coffee. Finally, she said,
"Why was Detective Burkhardt at my house last night?"

Hank looked out the nearby window at the pigeons crisscrossing around passing pedestrians' feet,
doing their best to peck at the scraps of food occasionally dropped on the pavement. He said, "That
was just Nick being Nick. He wanted to make sure that you'd gotten out of there okay. We were
supposed to do it together. He had mentioned it not long before, but then we had another crime
scene and we needed to talk to the medical examiner and I went back to the station and didn't even
think that Nick had gone without me. Hell, he probably went without me on purpose. Probably
thought it was his responsibility. A Grimm."

At Hank's mention of a Grimm, Samantha wasn't sure whether Hank was referring to Nick or the
man who attacked him. It seemed to be an all encompassing statement. That a Grimm had to be the
one to police other Grimms.

Hank continued, "I've been a cop for a while. It's dangerous work and sometimes we lose good
people. They have all these psychologists we can talk to. But there's so much we can't talk about,
Wesen and whatnot. When you've done this long enough, you hear about survivor's guilt, but
nothing prepares you for it. I'm doing my best to not get sucked down into something like that
again. But I keep thinking to myself, if I had realized just a bit sooner that Nick was too late getting
back to the station, maybe I could have been there to help." Hank looked back at Sam and said
softly, "I can't get torn up by all the 'maybes' though. I have to stay in the now and focus on what's
next. Cause whoever could do this to Nick? He's dangerous."

Samantha asked, "So then, what do you do about whoever attacked Nick?"

Hank said, "Nick was working on a plan, actually. But he wouldn't pull the trigger on it until he
was sure about everything. Up until last night we weren't sure if the killings were committed by the
Grimm or if they were even related. I'm hoping that once Nick wakes up he can tell us if it was the
Grimm that attacked him. I know Monroe spoke like he knew for sure, but, we don't."

Hank tilted his head to the side before he said, "You know, when we were all sitting in the waiting
room, Monroe had to call his wife every now and then, to give her updates. I heard him say to her
that he should go out to your house and try to sniff the suspect out. You know, track him by scent
or whatever." Hank let out a low whistle, "Rosalee wouldn't have any of that. I know it's tearing
him up inside right now, but she's right. He shouldn't do that until we're prepared to handle
whatever it is."

Samantha furrowed her brow a bit and then said, "I didn't get to see the damage, but from how
you're making it sound, Nick is still in really bad shape. He'll need time to recover. Weeks?
Months? How can you take on a Grimm without Nick? That Trubel girl, you think she can do it?"

Hank replied, "Like I said before, she's tough as nails. So, maybe? I hate to keep saying it, but we
don't really know what we're up against. For all we know there was more than one attacker. I do
know one thing though, Nick likely won't need all that much time to recover. We just have to get
him conscious."

Samantha didn't understand, "What? Do Grimms heal faster than other people?"

Hank bobbed his head from side to side, gesturing, 'kinda, sorta' and said, "Grimms do heal a little
faster than most, but" he paused for a moment for dramatic effect and then said, "not like Nick."
He twisted his fingers over the corner of his mouth and Samantha understood the gesture to mean
that his lips were now locked and he wasn't permitted to say anything more.

In Nick's hospital room, Monroe was pacing again. He had been gone for a few hours, in part to
give his wife Rosalee a visit to make sure her and the triplets were okay and he also had to stop by
Nick's loft. Adalind had told him that she didn't know precisely where Nick had placed Zerstörer's
Staff but so far as she knew, it was in 'the tunnels.' The loft has a secret exit that leads down to what
Nick believes are old Shanghai Tunnels, one of the many tunnels scattered throughout Portland. In
the past, Nick had used the Tunnels to hide 'the stick,' the broken off fragment of Zerstörer's Staff.
Recently though, since the stick had been reattached to the Staff itself, Nick had been storing the
Staff back down in the tunnels again. However, Adalind didn't know exactly where and Monroe
had been unable to locate the Staff anywhere in the passage.

Monroe stopped pacing and looked at Trubel who was seated back in the same chair, holding
Nick's hand. Monroe asked her in near exasperation, "Is the Staff possibly at the trailer?"

Trubel shook her head, "I was only up there for an hour or so unpacking boxes. But I didn't see the
Staff anywhere."

Adalind shook her head and said, "Monroe, I know what you're getting at, but even if we had the
Staff, we couldn't use it here. Can you imagine the reaction that would get if someone noticed?"
Back when 'the stick' was the only part of the Staff they had available, they'd used it to heal major
injuries just by touching it. However, it only seemed to work when Nick was holding it at the time.
It would react violently if anyone else attempted to take it from him.

Monroe started pacing again and said, "I know, I know. But we have to assume that the Staff could
heal him, right? When it was just a stick it could. So the Staff..."

Before Adalind could reply, Kelly began stirring in his carrier. Adalind turned on her mommy
charm, smiling and cheerful, she stooped to pick Kelly up and Monroe stopped her. He offered to
take Kelly for a walk around the hospital. If he was going to be pacing around, he may as well
make himself useful.

After Monroe left, Adalind walked around to the side of the bed opposite Trubel. She carefully
took Nick's free hand in hers, she had to be extra careful due to the IV attached to him.
Trubel asked her, "What did you mean when you said you might have too much faith in Nick?"

Adalind's eyes had been welling up with tears again. She dabbed at them with her finger and
replied to Trubel, "I meant that sometimes I feel like he's unbeatable. I mean, I've fought him. Sean
has fought him. Not to mention the hundreds of other Wesen and whatever else the world has
thrown his way and he just keeps getting back up and refusing to quit. It's hard to put into words,
because I care about him and I love him, but he doesn't make me worry about him. I have faith that
when all is said and done, he'll be home at the end of the day. Maybe that's arrogant, but it's how
he makes me feel. He makes me feel safer than I've ever felt in my life."

Trubel nodded her head and said, "The part about making you feel safe? Yeah, I can see that." It
went unsaid, but Adalind got the impression that as resilient and strong as Trubel had been in the
years before she met Nick, she probably didn't know what it felt like to be safe until she met him.
Being able to let down her guard for the first time, maybe ever.

They were silent for several minutes when there was a soft knock on the door. It was Hank and the
woman who Adalind had seen in the hallway earlier. Hank asked if they could come in and
Adalind said, "Of course," in a tone that told him he was being silly for even asking.

As Samantha walked into the room, she wasn't necessarily trying to hide behind Hank as he
introduced her to Adalind and Trubel, but she was trying to use him to block her view of Nick. She
felt so awkward and also afraid to see what Nick looked like in his hospital bed. Once the
introductions were done however, Hank clearly had every intention of sitting down and Samantha
couldn't very well hide Nick from her field of vision after that. So, finally she looked in his
direction and did her best to not gasp too audibly from the sight. She looked at Adalind and said,
"I'm so sorry this happened to Detective Burkhardt."

Adalind waved away her formality and said, "I'm sure if he were awake he'd want you to call him
'Nick'. It's nice of you to be here, but," Adalind struggled with how to say what she wanted to say
without it sounding rude, "um, why are you here?"

Samantha pointed her thumb towards the room's door and said apologetically, "I can leave, I don't
want to..."

Before she could finish her sentence Adalind said, "No, no. I'm not asking you to leave, I'm asking
why you're here. Just asking out of curiosity." Adalind looked up in thought, smirked a bit and
said, "Now that I think about it, if more people knew he was here, the room would probably be
filled wall-to-wall."

Hank chimed in, "Wu would be here if he could, but he's canvassing the neighborhood, trying to
find witnesses. And I know Bud would be here in a heartbeat. Maybe even his wife and kids."

Samantha asked, "What are Wu and Bud?"

Adalind changed her expression to that of puzzlement and said, "You know what, I don't think
we've ever come up with an official name for what Wu is, have we? We should make one and put a
chapter in the books."

Hank decided to answer Samantha's question, "Bud is an Eisbiber and Adalind is right, we don't
actually know what to call Wu. But, technically, he isn't actually Wesen."

Samantha didn't know what to make of that so she decided to finally ask what she'd been wanting
to ask since the previous night, her curiosity getting the better of her, "When Nick was in my home,
I was more scared of him than I'd probably ever been scared of anything. So, to calm me down he
started telling me about himself and he mentioned that he's getting married soon. Are you his
fiancé?"

Adalind didn't reply, she just lifted her hand high enough so that Sam could see the ring.

Samantha nodded, but then stood there, clearly uncomfortable in the center of the room. She
wanted to move, but she also wanted to ask so badly if Adalind really and truly is a Hexenbiest.
She decided it was a bad idea and in a quick jerk she turned her body so she could walk to a chair
in the corner but didn't make it a step before she jerked back to face Adalind. Samantha raised a
finger as if to say, 'One more thing,' but then pursed her lips as though the words outright refused to
leave her mouth.

Adalind, sensing the question Samantha wanted to ask... Woged. Her Woge can take a lot of
adjustment to get used to. Her face morphs into an appearance of a dried up old corpse. Her teeth
look rotten and ready to fall out. And when she Woges she has an involuntary muscle spasm that
causes her lower teeth to clack against her upper teeth a few times, but on a crooked hinge so that
her teeth both clack and scrape together awkwardly. The sound can cause those that hear it to
cringe.

Samantha let out a little yelp and Woged out of an instinctual reaction. The nose of her face
becoming more beak-like as the owl feathers spread along her face and neck. Her eyes, a little
larger in her Woge state, widened even more out of fear.

Adalind returned back to her former appearance and a moment later Samantha did as well. Adalind,
who knew there was a possibility the Woge would scare Samantha, let out a little chuckle and
smiled at her. Samantha then understood there was no animosity, it was just Adalind's idea of a
little joke played at Samantha's expense to help lighten the mood. Samantha relaxed where she
stood and said, "I'm still struggling to get used to this."

Trubel, who'd been sitting in silence watching the interaction, said, "Don't."

Samantha didn't understand Trubel's meaning and began to ask, 'What?' but Trubel continued,
"Don't get used to it. I haven't. I don't want to. It helps me to appreciate what we have in this
room."

Samantha nodded in understanding and just then, Monroe walked quickly into the room holding
Kelly at arms length and said, "Someone needs a diaper change." He handed the toddler over to
Adalind and when he turned around to face the rest of the room he jerked his thumb to his chest
and said, "you guys understood it wasn't me who needs the diaper change, right?"

Everyone rolled their eyes, but Hank laughed a little at the joke. Monroe turned to Samantha and
said, "Sam, what can you tell us about yourself?"

Samantha, feeling a little on the spot said, "Well, um, I had been going to school for journalism.
But... I've had to put that on hold..."

Monroe realized his mistake. Samantha had just lost her brother and she can't go home for who
knows how long. He thought perhaps that the reason Samantha was really visiting Nick in the
hospital was that she didn't have anywhere else to be for a little while. He put his hand on
Samantha's shoulder and said, "It was your brother right? What was his name?"

And for a little while, Monroe and the others allowed Samantha a chance to talk about herself and
the love she had for her brother. Reminiscing about growing up with him. How the two of them
had to work together to keep up with the bills and the struggles of maintaining the house after their
parents had died. She shed some more tears as she mourned and spoke of the loss of her brother.
But she also told them about the good times. Like the pranks they used to play on each other. The
movie quotes that she and her brother would use to make each other laugh in even the most solemn
of occasions. She even laughed a few times as she recounted his antics for her new friends. It didn't
last long, but for a time, everyone let go of their grief and began thinking about the people they
loved, the good times they'd had together and what they meant to each other.

When it seemed she was finished, Monroe asked, "So, the people you've been staying with, they're
good people?"

Samantha replied, "Yeah, I think so. They're college friends."

Monroe nodded, "What did you tell them about why you needed to stay with them?"

Samantha looked at her feet and shrugged a little, "As much of the truth that I could that would
make sense to them."

Monroe nodded an even bigger nod than before, "So... they're not Wesen."

Samantha shook her head, "Nope."

Before the conversation could continue, Adalind shouted, "Oh my god!"

Everyone looked in her direction. She was looking at Nick, who, for the first time in over a day,
was looking at her.

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