The Shape Of Things To Come

[Groagaldr]

Hellfire — The Catacombs

Ash: That little shit! Do you want Uncle Savage to kill him? Because he will.

Beck paused her story to consider it.

“Hmm, maybe if he could just maul him really good? Then Carter can be disfigured and crippled for the rest of his pathetic life.”

She schemed vengefully, and then she talked about bitchy Britney, who Ash interjected that a well timed cheating scandal or maybe some melted implants could fix.

“Yes! She does cheat — we wouldn’t even have to frame her. And that rack is totally fake. You don’t just come back from summer break with balloons like that.”

Beck replied, and then she eased into the part where she used her powers at school. Which she knew she wasn’t supposed to do, but they were being so mean, she just wanted to get even. She had gotten the last laugh, but also detention. She tried her best to look suitably chastened, so maybe she wouldn’t get in too much extra trouble. Surprisingly, her Aunt wasn’t that angry, and commiserated with her about her horrible day. Relieved, Beck scooted over to Ash for the hug that was offered. It was the most comforting thing in the world, always had been.

Her aunt told her that first of all, she’d take care of the detention thing, because live frogs, wink wink. Beck smiled wickedly and hugged Ashley a little tighter. And then Ashley reminded her that one day she would be Queen and could crush the kids at school under her heel.

“Yeah, I guess that’s true.”

She allowed, and then Ashley went on to explain why she wasn’t supposed to use her powers at school. Now Beck couldn’t give a dead rat’s ass if she got kicked out or not, but when Ash started talking about how her Dad would want her to be able to solve problems without using her abilities, she guessed she could see the logic there.

“Fine...”

She replied sullenly. Her Aunt told her that her dad had been a great diplomat, and she had been the general, but she believed Beck could be both and not even need a king at all.

“But.... what if I wanted one? I mean like you and Uncle Savage are perfect together and you watch each other’s backs and you love each other and I bet you’re never lonely....”

Which Rebekah often was, sometimes even with Teddy and a ghost or two around. She could never seem to make any friends that weren’t dead. Or, you know, had to be her friend by default because they were duty bound to. Beck even considered on occasion if her Aunt Ash and Uncle AJ would be so nice to her if her parents were alive, or if they just made the best of a situation they were stuck in. Either way Beck loved them more than anyone else, but still she had to wonder.

Ash: Now. Would you like to have dinner with Uncle Savage and me? We're having McDonald's!

“Oh YES! I love McDonald’s! I want a double cheeseburger with extra bacon and the biggest order of fries they have!”

Ash: Well, actually, I think AJ is having a steak made for him...so you could have that too, if you're tired of McDonald's.

Beck made a face.

“Who gets tired of McDonald’s? It’s the greatest.”

She squealed a bit when she was tickled.

Ash: You can get an apple pie AND a milkshake...

“Yum. I can’t believe Uncle AJ would rather have steak.”

She said, as her Aunt pulled her to her feet. Ashley suggested that after dinner they could pick out a Red Guardsmen to drive Rebekah to school and show up Cater Bowie. Beck grinned widely and hugged her Aunt again.

“You’re like my best friend, ya know? Oooh! Can it be that tough looking redheaded guy with the tattoos? He’s soooo hot. And his muscles have muscles, which will make Carter look like a shrimp next to him.”

She said, and then her gaze suddenly snapped over to look at Archer, her expression the dawn of an idea.

Everybody KNOWS gingers have no souls!

She thought, and wondered why she hadn’t realized it earlier. She took her rose over to lay next to her mom, on the pedestal where the urn of her dad’s ashes sat. Then she turned back to her pet.

“Time to go back to your den, Teddy Bear.”

Teddy stirred and huffed in protest, rolling onto his back and ‘playing dead’, which always made Beck giggle. She walked over and scratched his belly a bit, and then knelt to kiss his snout.

“See ya later.”

She said as she walked out with her Aunt, but this time she was talking to Archer.

 

[Valkyrie]

The Catacombs

When Rebekah told her about the boy at school who had broken up with her - which clearly indicated he had brain damage - Ashley asked her if she wanted AJ to kill him. It wouldn't be hard - though Savage might get indigestion. She'd just make sure to have some antacids ready.

Beck: “Hmm, maybe if he could just maul him really good? Then Carter can be disfigured and crippled for the rest of his pathetic life.”

Ashley smiled.

"Nice. Make him live with his mistake. An excellent decision, my little princess."

They also cooked up a plan to melt the implants of the bitch who was spreading rumors. Let's see her smug face after that. Ashley hated to see Rebekah unhappy, especially when it was at the hand of the little shits at her school. And even though she hadn't wanted Rebekah to use her powers outside the mansion, she was just a girl. This wasn't the time to be harsh with her. After all, she hadn't even hurt anyone.

So she opened her arms, and pulled Rebekah into a hug, stroking her hair and kissing the top of her head. Ashley would deal with the detention, because it was ridiculous. And then they had a talk about why Rebekah had to stay at school. She wasn't happy about it, but she accepted it. Learning to deal with the awful spawn at school was part of the lesson of how to be a good Queen. One that didn't need a king.

Beck: “But.... what if I wanted one? I mean like you and Uncle Savage are perfect together and you watch each other’s backs and you love each other and I bet you’re never lonely....”

"Aw, baby..."

Ashley rubbed her back.

"Uncle Savage is amazing - he would do anything for me, and I can trust him completely."

She pulled away enough to look Rebekah in the eye.

"You need to be a good Queen on your own, so that you are respected, until you find someone like Uncle Savage. You don't want to choose the first guy you fall in love with..."

She smiled.

"Choose someone who doesn't want to be king. Choose someone who makes you a better Queen."

Ashley nodded to her.

"Because Queens rule at Hellfire. Don't ever forget that."

Then she moved on to a much more exciting topic: that they were having McDonald's for dinner and did Rebekah want to eat with her and AJ?

Beck: “Oh YES! I love McDonald’s! I want a double cheeseburger with extra bacon and the biggest order of fries they have!”

Ashley did give her the option of eating what AJ was going to, a steak. She had a swell of pride, however, when Rebekah made a face at that suggestion.

Beck: “Who gets tired of McDonald’s? It’s the greatest.”

"I know, right?!"

Ashley's eyes flashed with excitement as she told Rebekah she could have an apple pie AND a milkshake.

Beck: “Yum. I can’t believe Uncle AJ would rather have steak.”

Ashley waved a hand in the air.

"Must be a shifter thing."

Ashley got to her feet, then helped Rebekah up. She had another idea to perk her daughter up - letting her choose one of the younger Red Guard to drive her to school and show up that dumbass boy in her class. That made Rebekah smile, and she hugged Ashley. Ashley returned the hug, resting her head on the top of the girl's. All would be right in her world now, at least for today.

Beck: “You’re like my best friend, ya know? Oooh! Can it be that tough looking redheaded guy with the tattoos? He’s soooo hot. And his muscles have muscles, which will make Carter look like a shrimp next to him.”

"Absolutely."

She gave Rebekah another squeeze.

"I love you, baby girl."

Ashley was silent as Rebekah laid the rose near her mother and father, then took her hand as they left for the Red Wing.

 

[Pathfinder]

The White Tower

Kelly: "So you know I'm here for the child. I have to admit Erika, it's rather ballsy of you to try and conceal a future Sorcerer Supreme from me. As if you could. As if you have the power to."

The White Queen's blood boiled. Of course she wasn't here to pay respects. Of course she wasn't here to THANK Erika for raising her fucking grandchild for the last sixteen years. She was a monster. Erika was an only child now. Alone. And her mother was too busy positioning herself. Maybe the old Erika would have curtsied to her, but Erika was not a little girl any longer. Her mother didn't scare her any more - she pitied her.

"Continue to underestimate me, Kelly. It will only continue to serve me."

Her mother moved closer.

Kelly: "Logan requires guidance. More than you or that king of yours can give. I may have been distant, but as you know, this is nothing I don't see, my dear."

Erika flipped her mother the bird.

"Oh see this bitch. "

Kelly: "You're stressed out. At your wit's end. Logan is nowhere NEAR the level of mastery he should be. It's as if he doesn't use his powers at all."

Erika snarled back at her mother. There was a good reason for that - Erika had bound Logan's magickal powers years ago. He was in no shape to channel the energies he could channel with ease. He would self destruct. Die. And she couldn't lose another memer of her family, unless it was her mother.

"Because I'm not a slob. I know what I'm doing Kelly. And I've been doing it for the last sixteen fucking years. I haven't needed or wanted you. These kids will never know you. Not as long as I'm breathing."

Kelly: "Then hold your breath, Erika. I'm not going anywhere."

She was about to rip her mother a new asshole until Zach walked in, illy timed.

Zach: "Did Logan get home while I was out? He knows what his curfew is. And if he's been drinking again I think you should hex him with a week long hangover."

It was a good idea. She just wished it hadn't been said right at this moment, in front of her mother. And Zach probably didn't either. His face confirmed it as he did his best to navigate the situation.

Zach: "Mrs. King-Cassadine how lovely to see you again after so long. My my, whatever anti-aging spell you're using is quite effectve. You look younger than I remember."

Even Zach's corniest lines made her horny. He was such a peace maker, a diplomat, and in the bedroom he had taken such control. It drove her crazy.

Kelly: "My goddess, you are precious, Zach. See Erika? That is how you greet your mother.."

Erika rolled her eyes, knowing what was coming.

Kelly: "Next time don't attribute my natural and enduring beauty to my magick. Some of us were just born this way."

"And maybe it's Maybelline."

Kelly: "I was just telling my daughter that I think it's time to meet my grandson. He's out----drinking? You said?"

"She really wasn't telling me anything Zach. And I can' think of a worse influence on these kids than you. I haven't seen Logan tonight, he probably is very likely drunk, but if your parents murdered each other you'd probably want a drink too. And cut the shit, Kelly. I was free basing cocaine by the age of twelve under your guidance."

She was getting angrier.

"But I digress. You will be leaving The White Tower and the Hellfire Mansion immediately, either against or in alignment with your will. And if I see you here again, I will kill you on sight - On second thought."

<< BOOM! >>

Erika cast out her hands as a powerful blast of silver mystic flame BLEW through the area barreling right towards Kelly with the speed of a freight train. She knew her mother would dodge the blast, but she needed to draw a line in the sand. She may have felt like a failure of a mother, but she sure as hell wasn't going to let her own mother dig her claws into Logan. As the flames dissipated, she was left alone with Zach, immediately falling apart in his arms.

"This is bad, Zach. Really bad. We have to leave. We can't let her get a hold of him. Somewhere her eyes can't see. We have to find a blind spot. She'll put ideas into his head. She'll turn him against us! I....I can't lose him. Not to HER, not to anyone."

The White Queen wept in The White King's arms.

 

[Black Widow]

Hellfire -- The Catacombs

Cameron: Something tells me we aren’t in Kansas, anymore.

Haleigh was too floored at first to have any to say to that. But when Cameron suggested her daughter was talking to a ghost, Haleigh scowled at him.

“It’s probably you she’s talking to, then. It’d be just like you to haunt my teenage daughter after turning me into that.”

She replied, pointing at the titanium likeness of her in the room. She listened to her daughter, her beautiful, sweet, sassy daughter, and tried to talk to her, to no avail. She asked Cameron why her daughter couldn’t see or hear her, but he didn’t answer, and instead asked questions of his own. Like why did her daughter cared what Ash thought, and why would Ash be an ‘Aunt’ to her and Alek’s child.

“I don’t know, Cameron!”

She snapped, irritated. He came over to her, and touched her stomach, for the first time since she’d become pregnant. She looked up at him, feeling conflicted, that the gesture was somehow comforting and disconcerting at the same time. He was the father of her son, but he’d been acting like her enemy since the moment she’d told him she was pregnant. She backed away from his hand and turned to look at something, anything else. He tried to offer his best guess as to what happened.

“Great, so I’m stuck here. With you.”

Meanwhile, her daughter was still talking to the ghost, and there was mention of sneaking into clubs and getting fake I.D.s, and even though it was stuff Haleigh and the other legacy kids had done in their own teenage years, she instinctively wanted to put a stop to the plot she was hearing about here. They heard the Red Queen’s voice, and then saw her.

Rebekah. My daughter’s name is Rebekah.

Haleigh tried to get Ash’s attention, but again there was nothing. So what Cameron had posited was true, then. All they could do was watch. Because if the Valkyrie couldn’t see them, probably nobody could. But at least that meant they weren’t dead. Well, maybe their futures selves were. From the conversation between Ash and Rebekah, they gleaned just a little bit more information.

“So this is probably Alek in here.”

She said, leaning down to look closer at an ornate red and gold urn on a pedestal next to her statue. She gave Cameron a dirty look, just knowing he was the reason Alek was a collection of ashes. An immense sadness came over her, discovering they’d ended up in a place with no Alek. She felt even worse when she realized that it meant her daughter was an orphan here.

At least she could take solace in the fact that Ash seemed to be caring for Rebekah, and much better than Haleigh would have expected. Sure, Ash had made that deal with Alek to allow her unborn child to become the Red Princess, but it wouldn’t have surprised Haleigh to find that if her and Alek weren’t around to protect her daughter, she might’ve been made to disappear too. But seeing Ash with Rebekah now, it was almost as if she treated her like her own daughter. Haleigh would have to thank her later, somehow.

“Come on, let’s go to the control room and see if we can figure anything else out. Maybe we can find the other children on surveillance.”

She said to Cameron, after Ash and Rebekah left them alone in the crypt.

 

[Orion]

Hellfire - The White Tower

Zach was expecting Erika to be alone, so he called out to her as he entered the tower. When he found her mother was there as well, he tried to smooth things over, hoping flattery would distract her from what he’d said before.

Kelly: My goddess, you areprecious Zach. See Erika? Thatis how you greet your mother...Though...Next time don't attribute my natural and enduring beauty to my magick. Some of us were just born this way.

“Ah, yes of course, well you know I’ve grown cynical since I started to notice the grey creeping into my beard.”

He admittedly with a smile as he stroked the coarse hair on his chin as he arrived at his Queen’s side.

“I start to suspect some of you might be cheating a little.”

He joked, and Erika stuck in a barb about Maybelline, which Zach was about 60% sure was a makeup company. Kelly remarked that she thought now would be a good time to meet Logan, which provoked a skeptical look from Zach.

“Sixteen years ago might have been the more appropriate timing, Mrs King-Cassadine.”

He replied shrewdly. He was a diplomatic man, and forgiving, but he didn’t like the domineering way Kelly was attempting to approach them. He was protective of Erika and Logan both. If Kelly had come back apologetically, asking permission to return to their lives, that would be one thing, but it was clearly not the case.

They might not have been doing the worlds greatest job raising Logan, but they were doing their best, and it was extremely inappropriate for Kelly of all people to suggest her guidance might be an improvement, which was the message Zach gleaned from the way Erika was responding to her mother. So if his Queen wanted to blast her own mother out of the mansion, Zach would not object. Over the years he’d gotten to know Erika very well, and he trusted her judgment.

Sensing the turmoil in her, he took Erika into his arms as soon as her mother was gone. She told him this was bad, and that they needed to leave to prevent Kelly from getting a hold of Logan. She was concerned that her mother would put ideas in his head and turn him against them. He rubbed her back gently as he breathed in her sadness.

“Hey, hey. Logan’s young but he isn’t stupid. He’ll see through her act. She’s not going to come out of nowhere after sixteen years and be easily accepted by him.”

He assured her, and then he brushed her hair back out of her face and wiped her tears away with the pad of her thumb.

“And we have a support group here at Hellfire. Our Court will stand with us, because I know Heidi won’t want Carolina to be accosted by your mother either. And the other Regents know she’s bad news. They only ever put up with her because Cameron wanted it and Haleigh talked them into it. I think Ava would even emerge from seclusion to keep Kelly from returning.”

He added, and then his hand slipped under her chin to lift her face and catch her eyes with his.

“We aren’t going to lose him, I promise you. He’s going through a rebellious phase right now, but it’ll pass, just like that month he wanted to be a superhero when he was ten.”

 

[Pathfinder]

She fucking hated her mother. Why couldn't she just be dead like the rest of them? It was a harrowing moment for Erika, realizing that it was not her mother being embarrassed by her daughter, in fact it was the opposite. Kelly was the final stain left standing of The King Family. And if Logan had ANY chance of surviving and not killing himself and the people he loved, he would need to avoid Kelly King at all costs. She was more than prepared to throw a great deal of The White Court's resources into pursuing as a full time job. She was serious. And yet, she could help but still feel scared, though Zach tried to ease her mind.

Zach: "Hey, hey."

He was rubbing her back.

Zach: "Logan's young but he isn't stupid. He'll see through her act. She's not going to come out of nowhere after sixteen years and be easily accepted by him."

"You know that's not true, Zach. He hates me. The second my mom detects my binding, she's going to break it. And she's going to force him to use power that he isn't old enough or strong enough to control, and either way it's going to be my fault. Because if I had just trained him all this time, he would be so much stronger than her. But not training him has given him a life. One too meaningful for him to see. You KNOW him, he's just like Cameron. Just wants to fucking show off, to be the best. To be a God. He barely goes to school, he barely says a word, the only time he speaks is through music, and that music is Lana Del Rey depressing. She's going to be a T Bone to a Dog, Zach. I just know it."

Erika grabbed Zach's face, appreciating the man she saw before her. He was still so devestatingly handsome, his face withered wiith light laugh lines and impressions of age. He finally looked as distinguished as he always wanted to. He was settled into himself, at least physically. Mentally, Erika was pretty sure she was holding this kid thing against him as hard as she could because she didn't want to do this alone. But he was such a good man. He was the only man in Hellfire she trusted to guide Logan. And she loved that man.

Zach: "And we have a support group here at Hellfire. Our Court will stand with us, because I know Heidi won't want Carolina to be acosted by your mother either. And the other Regents know she's bad news. They only ever put up with her because Cameron wanted it and Haleigh talked them into it. I think Ava would even emerge from seclusion to keep Kelly from returning."

"Well, it would be about a decade too late for that. She's dead to me, Zach."

Out of all the people Erika thought she could have relied on in Hellfire, Ava was at the top of the list. And she turned her back almost immediately - jealous that Cameron and Haleigh had not given her their son, despite her not being able to have a child herself with John. She never got over it. The Black Court didn't even exist, except for official court business, and it was hard to trust people you never saw. A lot of trust was tied into body movement.

"And don't get me started on Carolina. I've been such a bad aunt to her. And she loved Cameron so much. My mother could get Carolina wrapped around her finger in seconds. She'll know what to say, and I'm sure Carolina would just as soon see me dead. I've made such a mess of things."

Zach: "We aren't going to lose him, I promise you. He's going through a rebellious phase right now, but it'll pass, just like that month he wanted to be a superhero when he was ten."

"Well, sometimes his mother masqueraded as an Avenger. Of course he wanted to be a superhero."

One of Haleigh's dumber ventures, but still rather entertaining, looking back.

"Look...promise me, that we fix this together, alright? I need you."

It was another one of her desperate cues to Zach. It was the truth, she needed him there.

 

[Prophet]

Haleigh: "It's probably you she's talking to, then. It'd be just like you to haunt my teenage daughter after turning me into that."

Cameron smirked looking at the statue. He knew it meant Haleigh was really dead because it was what The White King would have done should he ever had to have turned on her. She couldn't jump into a clone, or another body. But he resented the fact that she thought he was so driven by his hatred of her.

"Well since you clearly don't care, perhaps I should remind you. We have a son. Have you thought about that yet? Or have you already become a true blue Hallbjorn? Where is he?"

For a moment he attempted to reach out with his mind before remembering that he had no powers here, which was endlessly frustrating. He wouldn't have killed his wife if not for the ultimate benefit of his son. Haleigh wasn't connecting the dots. Clearly seeing her child with Alek had driven her insane. He implored her to use reason.

Haleigh: "I don't know, Cameron!"

He tried to appeal to her, placing his hand on her stomach, his heart racing as he attempted to sense his son within her, but she recoiled. He was officially shut out. She avoided his gaze as he told her what he thought happened - that their son had brought them here for some reason, but as The Red Queen entered and displayed a very motherly and lovely prowess with Haleigh and Alek's daughter--

"Rebekah. My daughter's name is Rebekah."

She thought of nothing but Alek and Rebekah, and of course he could give her the space to enjoy seeing what her daughter would look like as a burgeoning woman. He got the power of seeing it and experiencing it before she was even born, but he could not help his jealousy. Her happiness. How much she loved the child. It made Cameron angry.

Haleigh: "Come on, let's go to the control room and see if we can figure anything else out. Maybe we can find the other children on surveillance."

"If they're not alive I'll figure out a way to get my power back and destroy this reality brick by brick."

He ignored her comment's about Alek's pathetic little urn at her foot. He didn't know his daughter well, but he knew if he were to die - she would build him a monument. He wouldn't be some sad little pedestal. The two moved through the catacombs with ease as they had been raised in them and they never changed, and found their way to the control room. All was quiet as Haleigh immediately moved to the feeds. The good thing about both of them was that it was impossible to discern if they were powerless or not, naturally proficient in gifts given to them by their abilities, he let her take the lead as he watched the screens, before hearing two female voices and the sound of heels clicking against the floor.

"Somebody's coming."

The door opened to reveal Heidi Scarborough, his beloved Knight with a woman he recognized immediately as his daughter, causing The White King to drop to his knees in reverance of her beauty and poise.

"Carolina."

He was confused and enthralled. She was so beautiful. So perfect. He could sense their body language, Heidi and Carolina's relationship was more maternal than he anticipated and caused him to wonder.

"Where is my sister? And our son, have you seen anyone?"

He turned to his wife.

 

[Black Widow]

Hellfire -- The Catacombs

Cameron suggested her daughter was talking to a ghost, which provoked a scowl from Haleigh, and a bitter reply as she pointed out that she was a cold dead sculpture in this crypt. She had wanted to see some inkling of remorse from him, but the man who had been her husband only smirked at his own handiwork. He was pleased by what he saw. She shook her head, dismayed at how quickly and resolutely he’d interred their union.

Cameron: Well since you clearly don't care, perhaps I should remind you. We have a son. Have you thought about that yet? Or have you already become a true blue Hallbjorn? Where is he?

She snapped a glare back on him.

“Where is he?? In my womb, Cameron. Perhaps it’s you who needs the reminder. If I didn’t care, I wouldn’t still be carrying him, would I? So you can take that ‘true blue Hallbjörn’ snipe and shove it up your ass, because nothing is as black-and-white as you make it out to be. I made a crazy-fucking-stupid deal to give you something I thought you wanted, and it ruined the illusion of our marriage. Yet before I say I'd give anything to put us back the way we were I have to stop, because undoing this would mean my children cease to exist. And I’ve learned more about my darling husband in the last six days than in the preceding six years. So as royally fucked up as everything is, maybe it’s for the better. Have YOU thought about that, yet?”

She turned back to her daughter, who was telling no one in particular about her day at school.It irritated Haleigh that she couldn’t reach her child here, that her daughter was left to talk to ghosts and that Haleigh was stuck with no one to interact with but a man who she’d thought had loved her. Yet now she saw the truth, that he’d stand at her grave and smile, that he really didn’t give a rat’s resurrected ass what kind of damage that did to her daughter. He was the last person she wanted to even look at right now, but he was the only one who could hear her questions.

He didn’t have any real answers, which only made her angrier. He tried to touch her stomach. A week ago that would have made all the difference in the world, but now all she think of was the horrible nightmare. She drew back from his touch, and looked at anything other than him, as he tried to come up with a theory as to why they were here.

Ash came in and consoled Rebekah, while Haleigh and Cameron learned a little more about the timeline they were in. Haleigh was surprised to find Ashley had taken the mantle of raising Rebekah and done so well with it. She would have expected Ash to have resented the Red Princess, and being left to raise Alek’s child. Haleigh smiled to herself when she realized she shouldn’t be so shocked. Ash always managed to rise to the occasion when it really mattered most.

Ashley and Rebekah left for dinner, and Haleigh suggested going to the Control Room next to try and find more information. Maybe they could find their answers in the surveillance system, maybe they could spot the other children. Cameron threatened to destroy this reality if the other children weren’t alive. Haleigh scoffed at that.

“If they aren’t alive, it’s probably because two people who would’ve fought to protect them are collecting dust in that crypt back there, and who do you think had a hand in that?”

She asked him accusingly.

“Do you ever think you should stop, for five fucking seconds, and consider the possibility that there’s been ENOUGH destruction already, in this reality, and in the one we came from?”

She finished, and they entered the control room, where Haleigh crossed to look over the watcher’s shoulders, glancing from one screen to the next. It was quiet in here, as the feeds played simultaneously and the watchers all wore headsets to listen in on whichever channel they were really watching. Haleigh scanned for familiar faces, until Cameron mentioned that someone was coming.

“Heidi.”

Haleigh said, when her Knight walked in with another woman. Heidi didn’t look a day older, but she did seem different here. She didn’t look down on the young woman she was with, in fact she seemed to really care about her ward, a shocking prospect when Haleigh knew that Heidi rarely ever cared about anyone beyond what they could do for her. Cameron recognized the girl, and called her Carolina. He fell to his knees at the sight of her, and it pained Haleigh to see. Worse still was the realization that he would never have the kind of love for her own daughter that he already held for Elena’s, despite only knowing of Carolina for what, a week?

Haleigh went back to the cameras. The Black Wing was dark and mostly devoid of activity. The Red Wing had Ash and Beck getting ready for dinner. Savage was down in the garage, working on a cherry red motorcycle. Jack was in the Aqua Ring, doing his scientific stuff. Haleigh started to look through the White Wing feeds, when Cameron asked about his sister and their son.

“Erika is with Zach in the White Wing. I don’t see anyone here who could be our son.”

She replied, trying not to think about the possibility that her son wasn’t here.

Heidi: I’ll have the shift report.

 

[Fathom]

Hellfire -- The Aqua Ring, Mezzanine Lab

Heidi, Jack and Carolina discussed Beck’s pet, which Carolina correctly noted would only be allowed on the Red Court. Even Jack had to admit his Court was nigh a zoo, between his winged Queen and lupine King, plus Calder’s... friend? Lover? Partner in crime?

Carolina: Her eyes are amazing. I once offered to do her makeup, but she just glared at me.

“How rude! Do you want to feed her to Bruce?”

Heidi asked with a wicked smile. Jack scoffed twice, which was the closest noise he could make to a laugh.

Jack: I know you’re joking, but it’s still disturbing to suggest feeding Chimera to a Neptune.

He said, and then they went back to a less jocular topic, Beck and Teddy, plus the possibilities that the Red Princess had at her fingertips. Heidi didn’t much care about any of that, so she let Carolina and Jack discuss it, and when they were done she suggested heading out for dinner. But first they needed to check in on the control room, because if she neglected her Knightly duties, the Queen would have a fit.

Carolina: They should have made you Queen instead.

Heidi gave a sigh and a nod.

“Yes well, such is my plight. Ever the Knight, Never the Princess. I’m always getting passed over by others. At least when you ascend to the throne I can be happy that my little urchin finally has the reign.”

She said affectionately as they left the Aqua Ring. Carolina tossed a goodbye to Jack and suggested to Heidi that they bring him back some food, because he’d forget to eat. Heidi smiled, because it was true, but also because Carolina was still sweet enough to think of others. She would make a great Queen, and Heidi looked forward to serving with distinction again. They walked into the quiet control room, lit by the various screens and naught else. Before disturbing the watchers, Heidi turned to Carolina and took hold of her Princess’ hands.

“Carolina, darling. I hope you know I’ll be supportive regardless, and Jack will always encourage you to make the wise choice no matter what he would prefer personally. But whether you decide to be a master of business like your father, or a marine biologist like your uncle, Jack and I both love you and we will always be proud of you. And your parents would be too, if they were here to see you now. So whatever you do, make sure it’s something that you find rewarding and fulfilling, and don’t try to please any of the rest of us, because it’s your life, and it’s not about us.”

She gave Carolina a smile and squeezed her hands before letting them go and turning to the Supervisor and telling him she would have the shift report. He caught her up on all the happening of the past eight hours. There was nothing truly notable except the return of the White Queen’s mother, but even that was not something that needed to be dealt with, as apparently Kelly’s daughter had expelled her as quickly as she’d arrived, though not before some argument about Logan.

“And the White Prince, where is he tonight?”

Supervisor: The Good Room in Brooklyn.

“Brooklyn?! Ugh.”

She said, and then she turned to Carolina.

“What are the chances your grandmother would descend into the bowels of the city just seek your brother out? Or I suppose the better question is: how likely is it that the Queen will interrupt our dinner and command me to fetch her errant fosterling?”

 

[Persuasion]

The Aqua Ring, Mezzanine Lab

They were discussing the unique particularities of the Red Court, which reminded her of the time that the pretty Red guard with the lion eyes and reptile tail had glared at her when she’d suggested doing her makeup. Carolina had been about 16 at the time and going through a makeover phase. How Heidi had put up with the electric blue eyeshadow she’d never know.

Heidi: “How rude! Do you want to feed her to Bruce?”

Jack: I know you’re joking, but it’s still disturbing to suggest feeding Chimera to a Neptune.

Carolina smiled at their banter, but then shook her head and shrugged.

“She always glares, I don’t think we can kill her for that. Plus it was years ago.”

And then she smiled again.

“One day I’ll win her over.”

Heidi had to do work before they could go to dinner, which made Carolina’s expression turn bitter. Her “Aunt” Erika should never have become queen: Carolina was Cameron’s oldest child, the queendom was her’s and as her guardian, Heidi should have been regent.

Heidi: “Yes well, such is my plight. Ever the Knight, Never the Princess. I’m always getting passed over by others. At least when you ascend to the throne I can be happy that my little urchin finally has the reign.”

Carolina smiled at the pet name.

“When I am Queen, I will make you my princess.”

She said goodbye to Jack as they left the Aqua Ring and headed to the control room. She was about to find an empty chair she could wait in while Heidi did her thing, when she was surprised by Heidi taking her hands.

Heidi: “Carolina, darling. I hope you know I’ll be supportive regardless, and Jack will always encourage you to make the wise choice no matter what he would prefer personally. But whether you decide to be a master of business like your father, or a marine biologist like your uncle, Jack and I both love you and we will always be proud of you. And your parents would be too, if they were here to see you now. So whatever you do, make sure it’s something that you find rewarding and fulfilling, and don’t try to please any of the rest of us, because it’s your life, and it’s not about us.”

She smiled, and put her arms around Heidi in a quick hug.

“I love you, Aunt Heidi.”

Heidi gave her hands another squeeze before letting them go.

“It might be my life, but there are quite a few demands on it that regular girls don’t have to worry about.”

Heidi turned to her duties, asking where Carolina’s brother was.

Supervisor: The Good Room in Brooklyn.

Heidi did not seem to approve of his choice.

Heidi: “What are the chances your grandmother would descend into the bowels of the city just seek your brother out? Or I suppose the better question is: how likely is it that the Queen will interrupt our dinner and command me to fetch her errant fosterling?”

“Kelly-“

She refused to consider the queen her grandmother. Her father had not gotten along with his mother, plus she hadn’t lowered herself to be around either of her grandchildren.

“Considering she hasn’t made an appearance in 16 years, why would she start now? It is highly likely that Erika will task you with this, especially if she knows we’re out together.”

Her eyes narrowed.

“Bitch.”

She said it under her breath.

“If she does, I’ll help you. If he’s asleep he can’t put up any resistance.”

Carolina’s relationship with her brother was complicated. She loved him - he was her family - but they weren’t close. His mother had killed her mother, and part of her never forgave him for that. Or for the fact that he was the only one that was really considered a King by her father’s family. He could coast through life while she had to do everything perfectly.

 

[Prophet]

Nothing else mattered in this moment. Not the irony that he was essentially having the same reaction to his daughter that Haleigh just had to hers, in her own way of course. Nothing. His daughter was alive. She was healthy. She was beautiful, and she was safe within the walls of Hellfire, though surprisingly not under the care of his sister, who was being consoled by Zach Armani in something called The White Tower.

Haleigh: "I don't see anyone here could be our son."

"If Carolina is here, he will be too. She wouldn't let anything happen to him. Or Rebekah for that matter."

Carolina: "One day I'll win her over."

He had wanted a child so badly. An heir - somebody to carry on his name and to continue his path towards total and complete world domination. At least that's what he told himself. In reality, he just wanted to be a father. He wanted to be better this his own, a man who admonished him at birth and was never seen again. He wanted picture perfect, in his own way. Though white picket fences would be replaced with wrought iron gates, he still thought he could have it. He had gotten everything he ever wanted. And when he found out his wife was pregnant, he couldn't have been any happier, but then she pulled the rug out from underneath him.

Haleigh was not an apron wearing mid wife who had dinner ready every evening, he had never wanted her to be, but she was supposed to know him. She was supposed to know what was sacred to him. When he found out they were pregnant, his mind went to rennovating The White Wing, of finding the best doctors, of showing sonogram pictures, or laying in bed with his wife thinking of baby names. Her mind was something different - it went to Alek. She treated it as an act of service, of giving him something he wanted, like it was a coffee or somebody's head on a spike. He had overreacted, but she also showed no regret to him, like it was crazy for him to assume that bringing a life into the world, especially one in Hellfire was sacred and that she could just continue to act like things hadn't changed.

Heidi had to do work before they could go to dinner, which made Carolina’s expression turn bitter. Her “Aunt” Erika should never have become queen: Carolina was Cameron’s oldest child, the queendom was her’s and as her guardian, Heidi should have been regent.

Heidi: “Yes well, such is my plight. Ever the Knight, Never the Princess. I’m always getting passed over by others. At least when you ascend to the throne I can be happy that my little urchin finally has the reign.”

Carolina smiled at the pet name.

“When I am Queen, I will make you my princess.”

She said goodbye to Jack as they left the Aqua Ring and headed to the control room. She was about to find an empty chair she could wait in while Heidi did her thing, when she was surprised by Heidi taking her hands.

Heidi: “Carolina, darling. I hope you know I’ll be supportive regardless, and Jack will always encourage you to make the wise choice no matter what he would prefer personally. But whether you decide to be a master of business like your father, or a marine biologist like your uncle, Jack and I both love you and we will always be proud of you. And your parents would be too, if they were here to see you now. So whatever you do, make sure it’s something that you find rewarding and fulfilling, and don’t try to please any of the rest of us, because it’s your life, and it’s not about us.”

His heart both swelled and shrank as he watched Heidi so in love with his daughter.

"My Knight is truly a cut above the rest...and we've possibly not been giving her the credit she deserves."

[pausing]

"And please God don't let my daughter become a dolphin trainer. Business all the way."

he smiled, and put her arms around Heidi in a quick hug.

“I love you, Aunt Heidi.”

Heidi gave her hands another squeeze before letting them go.

“It might be my life, but there are quite a few demands on it that regular girls don’t have to worry about.”

Heidi turned to her duties, asking where Carolina’s brother was.

Supervisor: The Good Room in Brooklyn.

Heidi did not seem to approve of his choice.

Heidi: “What are the chances your grandmother would descend into the bowels of the city just seek your brother out? Or I suppose the better question is: how likely is it that the Queen will interrupt our dinner and command me to fetch her errant fosterling?”

“Kelly-“

She refused to consider the queen her grandmother. Her father had not gotten along with his mother, plus she hadn’t lowered herself to be around either of her grandchildren.

“Considering she hasn’t made an appearance in 16 years, why would she start now? It is highly likely that Erika will task you with this, especially if she knows we’re out together.”

Her eyes narrowed.

“Bitch.”

She said it under her breath.

“If she does, I’ll help you. If he’s asleep he can’t put up any resistance.”

Carolina’s relationship with her brother was complicated. She loved him - he was her family - but they weren’t close. His mother had killed her mother, and part of her never forgave him for that. Or for the fact that he was the only one that was really considered a King by her father’s family. He could coast through life while she had to do everything perfectly.

"So...our son is at a dance club in Brooklyn, my daughter hates her Aunt, my mother is still fucking alive, and your daughter speaks to ghosts and lounges on a zombie polar bear. Jesus."

[pausing]

"I think I've seen enough of this reality. I'd like to see our son and figure a way out of here."

 

[Apostle]

He sat on the 6, leaning back in his chair, in one of those very basic yet very expensive white tee with this sleeves rolled up a bit, a pack of cigarettes rolled up into the sleeve on his left side. His black shit kickers tapped against the floor as he was coming down from his high. The gig had been good and paid pretty well, not that money mattered to Logan. He would never run out of that, so it meant pretty much nothing to him. He did it for the experience, to feel human among a house of fucking ghosts and corpses. To feel alive. Music was The White Prince's passion, and he felt his parents had worked hard enough for him to be one of those rich people who had enough to resources and time to pursue it. Speaking of time.

11:11

He glanced at his white apple watch, realizing now was a good a time to make a wish as any - he was still feeling a bit euphoric and stoned. He wished he could bring his mother back. Cameron's imprint was all over Hellfire, in everything. So much was known about him personally, but his mother was another story. She was as enigmatic as his grandmother, Diana - another person ripped from him, this one before he was even born. They were The White Court, and he looked so much like them. He wanted to leave his father a mystery for Carolina to figure out, though she seemed pretty hopeless.

"And I know that I do not have a clue, I am just a young buck....with a bad, attitude..."

The music from his air buds filled his mind as he continued to think of her - of Haleigh. He remembered for a time when he was younger, he felt a lot more powerful. Like he could destroy anything. And then he lost it. Sometimes, when he looked up at the moon, he could almost remember it, almost feel it. But it never fully came. So he leaned into his other abilities, and he had become very adept at time manipulation, or warping temporal fields, of teleporting through time and space, which was exhilirating in itself, because it meant that Logan could bring her back. If he could just go far back enough in time, he could stop her from dying. Bring her back with him. Have his mother. But he couldn't go back that far, despite his many many attempts, and the tomes on the time and space continuum that littered the floor of his bedroom. The most he had ever gone back was two weeks, and even that had been a struggle. Time was not an easy task for most to grasp, let alone control. But he wouldn't stop trying.

"Bing bing bing."

He looked up to see his stop flashing across the screen of the subway car as he exhaled, half resolved to just ride the train straight into Hell, if only so he didn't have to go home. Pulling an all white flash from his pants, he took a long swig. She was surely going to be pissed at him, but then again she always was. Erika was ALWAYS trying to control him and Zach was always trying to placate him, like he was some kind of fragile fucking dove. It annoyed him, so he resolved to make their lives a living hell. Stumbling down the street he entered Hellfire, taking a long swig defiantly in the main foyer, before tossing the flask into a potted plant, making his way to The White Tower, figuring it was better for him to go to them - he fucking hated people in his room.

Like clockwork, Aunt Erika was a huddled mess in Zach's arms. He rolled his eyes and spoke loudly as he entered the tower.

"LUCY! I'M HOOOOOMMMMEEE!"

Erika: "...We have to find a blind spot. She'll put ideas into his head. She'll turn him against us! I...can't lose him. Not to HER, not to anyone."

Logan smirked, a little too drunk to pick up on the nuances of the conversation between his surrogate parents.

"Whoah whoah whoah, all I did to that girl was finger her in my DJ booth, she's not going to take me away from. Jesus, Erika are you really that insecure?"

He looked at Zach.

"And you. Can you either fuck her or at least give her some kind of empathy homeopathic remedy to quell the crazy? Shit is getting REAL stale around here..."

[pausing]

"Wait a minute am I gonna be in trouble for something I didn't even do?"

 

[Black Widow]

Hellfire -- The Control Room

Haleigh watched as Heidi gave Carolina some surprisingly selfless advice. It was more like Heidi to give guidance that served her personally in some way, but against all expectation it seemed Heidi must have grown to truly love the girl. Heidi, who often seemed more attached to her little sea creature pets than to anything human.

Cameron: My Knight is truly a cut above the rest...and we've possibly not been giving her the credit she deserves.

“Your Knight?”

It had been Haleigh who’d brought Heidi to Court, and no matter what Cameron believed, Haleigh knew that it was more likely that her mother would come back to haunt them than their Knight would turn against her. The day Cameron tried to pit Heidi against her Queen would apparently be the day he learned that, to his sorrow. And the day Haleigh had to doubt the loyalty of her Knight would be the day Heidi died. She hoped that day would never come, but Haleigh could not suffer treachery, not with her children at stake.

Heidi and one of the surveillance supervisors discussed the goings on of the club and the location of the White Prince. Heidi then went on to discuss the matter further with Carolina, asking if ‘the Queen’ would want her to go get Carolina’s brother, and it was a surreal thought to realize Heidi and Carolina were talking about Erika as Queen. Cameron summed up the whole thing in a few words and said he wanted to find their son and get out of here, But before Haleigh could make a wry reply, she caught sight of someone entering the mansion.

“That’s him.”

She said, her gaze locked on him as he crossed from one screen to the next. It was their son, she knew it in her soul. One of the surveillers announced the arrival of the White Prince.

Heidi: Thank the Gods. Let’s go before they call to command me to rehydrate him again. He only likes me doing that when he’s hungover.”

Through a flatscreen wasn’t enough, despite the high resolution. Haleigh had to see him, so she moved for the White Wing at once. Somehow even without her powers, she reappeared in the White Tower in the blink of an eye, and Cameron was right beside her.

Boy: Whoah whoah whoah, all I did to that girl was finger her in my DJ booth, she's not going to take me away from. Jesus, Erika are you really that insecure?

“Son....”

Haleigh said softly, her hand guarding her stomach. He was too young to be feeling up girls, he still only a little gummy bear to her, and even seeing him as a teen couldn’t make him older than the six days he was to her.

Zach: Logan, you will NOT speak to your Aunt that way.

“Logan...”

Haleigh echoed, at a loss for any other words.

Logan: And you. Can you either fuck her or at least give her some kind of empathy homeopathic remedy to quell the crazy? Shit is getting REAL stale around here...

Zach: Watch your mouth! Erika is worried about you, this isn’t a joke.

Logan: Wait a minute am I gonna be in trouble for something I didn't even do?

Zach: Yes, let’s discuss what you didn’t do. You didn’t allow your security detail to do their jobs and stay with you. You didn’t come home in time for curfew. You didn’t call to tell us where you were, or that you’d be late. Logan, we don’t make these rules just to annoy you, they’re for your safety! There are too many people in this city who would murder you if they knew who you are, who your parents were.

The wrong people are raising our children, Haleigh thought to herself. Not that they weren’t all doing the best they could, and not because she wasn’t grateful that the others had stepped in to care for her kids when she was gone. But because her children were suffering the loss of their parents. She had sensed it in Rebekah’s melancholy in the crypt, and she could feel it now in Logan’s rebellion.

“We orphaned our children, Cameron. It should be us here, to raise them and protect them.”

She told him grimly, and then she shadowed Logan, reaching for his shoulder. She had to reach upwards. He was taller than she was, and still clearly growing.

“Logan, son....”

She said, hoping beyond reason that he might hear.

 

[Fathom]

Hellfire -- The Control Room

Carolina said that Chimera always glared and they couldn’t kill her for it, which made Heidi swell with pride. What a proper Queen Carolina would make, fair and magnanimous. She should be cautioned, though. It was a balancing act, being merciful. It was good she’d have a Knight who would watch for those who might take advantage of Carolina’s noble nature.

Carolina: When I am Queen, I will make you my princess.

Heidi smiled briefly, and then her expression grew grave.

“You’re most generous, darling, but you mustn’t do that. If I’m your princess, you’ll be sorely lacking a Knight, and there’s none other than myself that I trust to fill the role.”

She replied, as they made their way to the control room. When they arrived Heidi took her adoptee’s hands, and made sure to tell her she should follow the life path she chose for herself, one that would make her happy, and that she shouldn’t try to please all the rest of them. Carolina gave her a hug, something Heidi had long since come to cherish. Being truly loved had turned out far more rewarding than anything else, Heidi had finally found.

“I love you too, Carolina.”

Carolina: It might be my life, but there are quite a few demands on it that regular girls don’t have to worry about.

“Pfft, regular girls are boring, you will be a Queen and a Goddess among the flat-scans. But that doesn’t mean you should live your life for duty, or that you are chained to your heritage. I will put Hellfire at the bottom of the sea if it makes you unhappy, and your father’s company has been well managed throughout your youth, so only assume as much of your legacy as it pleases you, Princess. The rest will be taken care of, as necessary.”

She replied, and then it was time to fulfill her own duties. The White Prince was out in Brooklyn, no doubt to vex his King and Queen yet again, since that had become his favorite pastime of late. Heidi was grateful Carolina had never been so reckless. Still, it was probably going to fall to her to go retrieve his Highness, and that was going to be wrinkle up their dinner plans.

Carolina offered to help, and Heidi was about to suggest they just jump the gun and get him before they got comfortable at the restaurant, but then one of the staff spotted him coming home and announced it. Heidi turned to Carolina with relief.

“Thank the Gods. Let’s go before they call to command me to rehydrate him again. He only likes me doing that when he’s hungover.”

 

[Persuasion]

The Control Room

Poor Heidi. She had dropped everything to raise Carolina, and found herself stuck in the same old position ever since. When Carolina knew she could have been so much more. She resolved to make sure Heidi was made princess the day Carolina became queen, and told her so.

Heidi: “You’re most generous, darling, but you mustn’t do that. If I’m your princess, you’ll be sorely lacking a Knight, and there’s none other than myself that I trust to fill the role.”

"You and Jack are the only people I can trust. I don't know what I would do without you both."

It was true. Carolina knew the two of them would never betray her - and that everyone else in Hellfire and beyond most certainly would. When they reached the control room, Heidi was her usual selfless self, and told her she should do what she wanted with her life. Of course, it would be nonsense for Carolina to abandon all her responsibilities. That might do for Logan, but not her. She hugged Heidi, her second mother, because her unconditional love meant more to her than anything else in the world save her father's.

Heidi: “I love you too, Carolina.”

She smiled, but a little sadly commented on the responsibilities she had that other girls didn't.

Heidi: “Pfft, regular girls are boring, you will be a Queen and a Goddess among the flat-scans. But that doesn’t mean you should live your life for duty, or that you are chained to your heritage. I will put Hellfire at the bottom of the sea if it makes you unhappy, and your father’s company has been well managed throughout your youth, so only assume as much of your legacy as it pleases you, Princess. The rest will be taken care of, as necessary.”

"I want to make my parents proud."

She smiled.

"All of them."

Heidi got to work so they could escape for dinner, her brother as usual a wrench in the works. Happily he decided to stroll in so they didn't need to go out and fetch him.

Heidi: “Thank the Gods. Let’s go before they call to command me to rehydrate him again. He only likes me doing that when he’s hungover.”

"Yessss."

Even going with Heidi, Carolina hadn't been looking forward to babysitting her little brother again.

"If Erika was any real sort of parent, she'd give him extra hangover as a lesson. You'd never have let me get away with that garbage."

But as usual, Logan was treated as special. Carolina wasn't sure if it was because he was a boy, or because his powers were more like their father's and his sisters than Carolina's were, or both. Or if it was because her father had been married to Logan's mother when he was born. Though from what Carolina heard, it wasn't much of a marriage.

Carolina grabbed Heidi by the hand.

"Come on mama mermaid - the hibachi is calling my name!"

 

[Prophet]

Zach: "Logan, you will NOT speak to your Aunt that way."

Haleigh: "Logan..."

They were in The White Corridor immediately upon seeing their son, who was as equally gorgeous as all the children in Hellfire now seemed to be, though it pained him to leave Carolina. She had The White Knight to protect her, and it seemed as if Logan had Erika, which meant he needed him more. The name filled him with joy and regret. Logan Pembrooke had been an associate of The White Court for both of them growing up. He had shown both Haleigh and Cameron kindness, nurtured their relationship, rooted for them, stood up for them against Diana, until Diana had him killed. Naming their son Logan was the only logical and meaningful way to honor him, and it sucked him in the gut. Logan would have been disgusted with what they turned into.

Logan: "And you. Can you either fuck her or at least give her some kind of empathy homeopathic remedy to quell the crazy? Shit is getting REAL stale around here..."

Tears filled in The White King's eyes for a moment, because he knew too well what it was like growing up as the only boy in Hellfire. He could see the pain in his son's eyes. Not having a father, having people around him trying to tell him what to do, to groom him into who they wanted to be, when he felt like he always had the right answers, if only people would listen. Cameron had done his fair share of reckless partying in his youth, so he could never condemn his son for doing the same, but he could certainly blame himself for not being there. He wanted a son because he wanted to raise him. And now, he had been left in the hands of his sister, something bittersweet as he looked at her tear soaked face. She had obviously been trying, and it made him feel somewhat at peace. She was going to be around. She wasn't going to leave. She had pulled herself together enough to become the White Queen and raise their son as her own. But he couldn't figure out just why she had abandoned Carolina.

Zach: "Yes, let's discuss what you didn't do. You didn't allow your security detail to do their jobs and stay with you. You didn't come home in time for curfew. You didn't call to tell us where you were, or that you'd be late. Logan, we don't make these rules just to annoy you.

Logan: "I know. You make them to give yourselves a sense of purpose in your otherwise completely unextraordinary lives. But go on."

Zach: "They're for your safety! There are too many people in this city who would murder you if they knew who you are, who you parents were."

He watched as Logan's nose turned into a snarl. He had so much rage, and though Cameron was without his powers, he could sense the DEEP well of power within Logan.

Logan: "You two are so fucking stupid, I can't. Nobody wants me DEAD, Zach. My death would have only meant something if it hurt my parents. And in case you haven't noticed, they're fucking dead. This whole PLACE is dead. It's NOTHING like it was. So stop pretending like I'm some kind of fucking asset to be protected, like this PLACE is worth protecting anymore. I can protect MYSELF!"

He wanted to hug him, but he couldn't. He couldn't touch his son. Feel him. Comfort him. He moved closer to Haleigh, though his eyes never left Logan.

"He looks exactly like you."

Haleigh: "We orphaned our children, Cameron. It should be us here, to raise them and protect them."

Cameron nodded. He wanted to touch her. To hold her hand, but he had lost that privilege and he didn't know what to do, or even say really.

"We haven't died just yet...though I'm not sure what we are going back to once we leave here. If we ever leave here at all...we can fix this. We have to fix this."

Erika: "You're right, Logan. You CAN protect yourself. You want the marionette strings cut, I will be more than happy to oblige. But I won't have you use your parents death as some kind of get out jail free card from being a decent human being. Your parents are dead. And it fucking sucks. But it doesn't give you the right to treat everyone around you like shit. It just doesn't. I have broken my BACK to keep you safe, to keep the ONE good thing that they did together alive. Maybe not prosperous, but ALIVE. THIS?! [gesturing towards Logan up and down] This is not what they would have wanted from you and you know that. They were Titans. Mavericks. Renegades even - but they weren't fucking stupid."

His sisters words echoed through his mind, as she spoke with so much emotion and pain. He had not given her much credit over the years, and while this may have been an alternate version of her, that side existed in reality.

Logan: "Murdering each other over who's uglies they were bumping seems pretty fucking stupid to me, E."

"God...were we like this? Were we really ever like this? I just want to help him."

Erika: "You know NOTHING, Logan David King. You are a BOY. As much as you want to be a man, you are NOT. Being a man does not come from having a dick in your pants and the idea that you OWN everything around you. It comes from being...hm, I don't know like The White King in front of you who has never once left your side, or his sense of duty, of loyalty. It comes from understanding that not everything is about you and your pain, and that sometimes you have to do things you don't want to do. Like check in. Like let the people who take care of you know how you ARE, what you are DOING. You know what? Maybe I shouldn't cut the strings, maybe I should make them TIGHTER. I want you in your ROOM, Logan. NOW. And you are not to leave unless Zach or I say so. And trust me, it will be painful if you TRY."

Her fingers flickered with her magickal signature as Cameron exhaled deeply.

"This is too much for her. It's too much for both of them. Goddammit, how do we get out of here."

He cried out to nobody in particular.

"LOGAN! Logan it's Dad! We learned our lesson! Please...PLEASE send us back to our bodies?"

 

[Black Widow]

Hellfire - The White Tower

Haleigh had never felt more helpless and frustrated than she did standing there, watching Zach and Erika argue back and forth with her son. She had never thought herself to be empathetic at all, but she thought she could feel Logan’s pain in that moment, and she wanted nothing more than to comfort him. Cameron marveled that Logan looked exactly like her as he moved closer to stand behind her. She looked over her shoulder at her husband and gave him a faint smile.

“He sounds like me too.”

She replied humorously. Logan was headstrong, brazen, with more swearing than a sailor. There was no question that he was a challenge to raise. Haleigh’s mouth tightened then, as she realized that the wrong people were raising him. Even Rebekah and Carolina had gone to parents they weren’t supposed to have, and regardless of how well the others seemed to be handling their charges, it still wasn’t right. She told Cameron that they’d orphaned their children, that it should be them here in the place of the others who’d stepped up to take care of the kids.

Cameron: "We haven't died just yet...though I'm not sure what we are going back to once we leave here. If we ever leave here at all...we can fix this. We have to fix this."

Haleigh tried to reach for her son, tried to communicate with him, but found her attempts unsuccessful. Erika tried her hand with Logan, who had a witty remark for everything. Haleigh didn’t know whether to be mad or proud.

Logan: "Murdering each other over who's uglies they were bumping seems pretty fucking stupid to me, E."

“Out of the mouths of babes....”

Haleigh interjected, looking back at Cameron again.

Cameron: "God...were we like this? Were we really ever like this? I just want to help him."

“Me too.”

She admitted, as Erika dressed Logan down and sent him to his room. Cameron remarked that it was too much for Erika and Zach both. Haleigh took a pensive breath.

“They’re doing the best they can, all of them. It’s impressive they’ve managed as well as they have, really. They didn’t choose this, WE did.”

Haleigh replied gently, and Cameron tried to get Logan’s attention.

“It’s no use, he can’t hear us. The only way we can fix this is to prevent it.”

Haleigh shook her head, turning from the retreating form of her son to face her husband once more.

“Cameron... I want to apologize for my part in all this. I never meant to hurt you—”

She caught herself.

“No, that’s not true. I did mean to hurt you, when you came back, I tried my damnedest to make you feel as much pain as I did. When you left, it hurt me to realize you didn’t feel like you could talk to me. I used to think our marriage was strong enough to withstand anything, and it hurt to see the truth. Then when I found out about Elena, and Carolina....”

She stopped to give him a bitter smile.

“Well, by then I was beyond ‘hell hath no fury’.”

Nearby, Zach pulled Erika into a consoling hug, and the gesture made Haleigh pause as she watched them embrace. It reminded her that over the past week, Alek had done that for her, whenever she was worried or frustrated. She wanted the comfort of his arms now, she wanted to tell him about their daughter and to hear the conviction in his tone when he promised that he would never let this happen. She looked back at Cameron again.

“It doesn’t do any good to beat a dead horse. You love Elena, and I love Alek. And even if we still love each other, it’s never gonna be the way it was before. Too much has happened. All we can do is figure out how to make it work from here, for the sake of our son. For your daughter, and mine, so they can grow up with all their parents.”

 

[Prophet]

Haleigh: "He sounds like me too."

He did. Cameron watched him transfixed. The entire universe here was a garbage fire, but something about looking at his son, that just made him want to bow in reverence. He was so much like Haleigh, but Cameron could see himself as well. It was like the most beautiful combination of him and his wife that he had ever seen, and his shame was apparent. He made sure to note to Haleigh they weren't dead yet, that they still had a chance to fix this.

Logan: "Murdering each other over who's uglies they were bumping seems pretty fucking stupid to me, E."

Haleigh: "Out of the mouths of babes..."

"And foul mouth teenagers. God...were we like this? Were we really ever like this? I just want to help him."

Haleigh: "Me too."

Why did it feel so good for her to say that? It was the first thing they had agreed on in several days, though it felt like a lifetime. He watched his sister with such regret. This...nurturing part of her was alive in his own timeline, he just didn't like to see it. She was crazy. Absolutely insane. Prone to murder and abject horror. But she was beautiful and she was his sister, and he knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that no matter what was going on in the real world, she had his back and was trying to help him. And it was in that moment that Cameron realized that he might be depriving his son of his own "Erika". Regardless of her parentage, Rebekah was Logan's sister. And those relationships were complicated. He was the only one with siblings in Hellfire. The only child who had to share the spotlight, so to speak. His family was fucked up. Beyond measure. But there was something to be said for their unit still being in tact after so many years, after all the death they had seen. The Kings understood family and they took care of their own. And the very existence of Rebekah made his stomach turn. But he couldn't help but to admit to the feelings he felt when he saw her. He saw her as family. Haleigh was his family. Whatever came from her womb, he would protect with his life - even her child with Alek.

He wanted to get the fuck out of here before he was faced with another painful revelation, calling out to his son, hoping to stoke the audience of the gods. This was too much now for him.

Haleigh: "It's no use, he can't hear us. The only way we can fix this is to prevent it. Cameron...I want to apologize for my part in all this. I never meant to hurt you--"

The White King's cobalt blue eyes darted towards his wife's face, his eyes confused.

Haleigh: "No, that's not true. I did mean to hurt you, when you came back, I tried my damnedest to make you feel as much pain as I did. When you left, it hurt me to realize you didn't feel like you could talk to me. I used to think our marriage was strong enough to withstand anything, and it hurt to see the truth..."

"Haleigh, that's just not fair. All I have been trying to say this whole time, is that I was hurt. I've never denied you anything you've ever wanted. Ever just once. But there was this part of me...and YEAH, I should have talked to you about this, but I didn't so fuck me right? There's this part of me..that sometimes thinks that the things you do, your extracirruculars if you will...are where you want to be more. That you want to be with them more than you wanted to be with me..."

[sighing]

"So it was confusing. You tell me you can get pregnant, we fuck like animals in our bedroom talking about ruling the world together, you find out your pregnant, and not even ninety seconds The Red King is inside of you. I am not about to keep you from pleasure Haleigh, but it felt like you were just doing the next "chore" for me so that you could go do what you really wanted to do...be with Alek."

Haleigh: "Then when I found about Elena, and Carolina...Well, by then I was beyond 'hell hath no fury'."

Cameron snarled a bit.

"Rough when the person you love suddenly has this perfect out to go to, isn't it?"

Haleigh: "It doesn't do any good to beat a dead horse. You love Elena, and I love Alek. And even if we still love each other, it's never gonna be the same way it was before. Too much has happened. All we can do is figure out how to make it work from here, for the sake of our son. For your daughter, and mine, so they can grow up with all their parents."

"Haleigh, I love you. Please...just stop. This has to be something we can fix. There has to be a way back to each other. You're my soulmate. Every time I see you, I want to consume you. Want you to consume me. If there's the smallest hope that you would keep me as your husband, I would do whatever you ask."

[flatly]

"I just need to know there's a chance."

[composing himself]

"That being said. Carolina is my daughter. And I have a past with Elena. But I don't get Carolina without Elena, and I won't tear a mother from her daughter. Whatever Elena wants, within reason, I will give it to her. Because she has earned it. Would you expect anything less from me with our son?"

 

[Black Widow]

Hellfire - The White Tower

Cameron: Haleigh, that's just not fair. All I have been trying to say this whole time, is that I was hurt. I've never denied you anything you've ever wanted. Ever just once.

Haleigh scoffed. Except a divorce. She thought bitterly, but she let him go on.

Cameron: But there was this part of me...and YEAH, I should have talked to you about this, but I didn't so fuck me right?

She gave him a sharp look, but still didn’t interrupt. He told her that he sometimes thought she wanted to be with the others more than him, and she shook her head in disbelief. She hadn’t married any of the others. She hadn’t let Kelly inject her with nanites so she could have children for the others. Why was he ignoring that? She was trying to listen patiently, but it was getting really rich, at this point. To hear him complaining about her and Alek, when he spent the weekend going down on Heidi, chatting up Juliette, and running off to Mexico to play house with Elena and their daughter. That was the final straw. She brought up Elena and Carolina, and was honest about how furious it had made her.

Cameron: "Rough when the person you love suddenly has this perfect out to go to, isn't it?"

She darkened, losing her cool. He could be so cruel sometimes.

“Perfect, is she? So unlike your filthy whore of a wife.”

She shot back hotly. After a beat she exhaled heavily, and acknowledged that it didn’t do any good to beat a dead horse. He loved Elena, she could see that, even if he tried to avoid admitting it. She loved Alek, a truth she’d stopped being afraid of saying just a couple of days ago. And no matter if Haleigh and a Cameron still loved each other, things had drastically changed, and she didn’t see how they could ever go back to the way they were before. They needed to figure out how to make this new dynamic work so they didn’t risk orphaning their children.

Cameron told her he loved her and pleaded with her to stop. He was convinced he could fix this, and that there was a way back to each other. He insisted she was his soulmate, and it was something that she had believed herself for so long that there was a part of her that still wanted that to be true. But he had threatened her, hurt her in ways almost no one else could. Yet here he was again, asking her for hope, swearing that he’d do anything she asked. She looked at him. Not unkindly, but her eyes said she doubted his words were anything more than what he thought would sway her.

Cameron: "I just need to know there's a chance."

She didn’t say anything, and he continued after a moment of regaining his composure. He told her that Carolina was his daughter, and that Elena was part of the package deal to get Carolina. Haleigh understood that much. But she didn’t like hearing him say he’d give Elena what she wanted, that she had earned that from him. He asked her if she’d expect anything less from him when it came to her son.

“No. But it’s no mystery what Elena wants, Cameron. She wants YOU, and she doesn’t want to share you, with me or anyone else, Is that within reason? She wants to lead you down a dangerous path, with these notions of being the sole king and ruler. My mother walked that path, right to her grave. And Elena still foolishly believes Diana was better than any of us.”

She grimaced at the topic. She hated her mother, hated that her mother had such power over her and the rest of them, hated acknowledging that Malice had ever lived. And she hated Elena for wanting to resurrect Diana’s memory, and mold Cameron in her image. Of all the shit she had tolerated lately, it had been his tilt towards that which had prompted her to try to kill him. Cameron becoming more like Diana threatened them all, and none more than her own children.

“There used to be nothing I wanted more than you. And Then there were these children. Even before I saw them as teenagers, even before I saw them on the sonogram this morning, I knew there was nothing in this universe I want more than them — both of them. Every second only strengthens the feeling. I love you, Cameron, but I would kill you, I would kill anyone —everyone— to protect these two. Do you understand me?”

She asked him calmly, not to threaten him, but to make sure he accepted her warning. She wanted her children to know their fathers, but if either of them became a threat to her children’s health, physically or psychologically, she would not hesitate, even if it broke her heart to do it. When she was sure he was fully aware of her conviction in this regard, she turned her thoughts toward the ruins of their marriage. What would it take to rebuild? She had no answer at the ready for him.

“I need some space, Cameron. And you need some time to spend with your... daughter, Carolina. Let’s take a break, relieve the pressure. I’ll stop pushing you to sign the divorce papers, if you’ll stop finding ways to agitate and harass me. After the babies are born, we’ll reassess the state of our marriage.”

She allowed cautiously.

“But stop messing with me, or it’s for damn sure over.”

She reiterated.

 

[Prophet]

Hellfire - The White Tower

Haleigh: "No. But it's no mystery what Elena wants, Cameron. She wants YOU, and she doesn't want to share you, with me or anyone else. Is that within reason? She wants to lead you down a dangerous path, with these notions of being the sole king and ruler. My mother walked that path, right to her grave. And Elena foolishly believes Diana was better than any of us."

It was not something he couldn't see or didn't believe. He just...as of late felt very differently about it than he had before. Elena was so agreeable. So sure of who he was that it made him question his own belief in himself. He wanted to fix things with Haleigh. He loved Haleigh, but he also knew where he had sunk to on the level of things. It was not hopeful.

Haleigh: "There use to be nothing I wanted more than you. And then there were these children. Even before I saw them as teenagers, even before I saw them on the sonogram this morning, I knew there was nothing in this universe I want more than them - both of them. Every second only strengthens the feeling."

"A sonogram..can...I want to see them, Haleigh..."

Being here, seeing what their abject vanity and greed had gotten them? It made him soften a bit on Alek and Haleigh's daughter. She was beautiful and as smart as any of them in Hellfire, and though her very existence made part of his stomach turn...to see her raised by Ashley..to see Ashley take that on, as yet another thing she had to deal with because of Alek, it didn't sit right with him. If he wanted this Logan in his life...he would have to make room for not only Rebekah...but Alek.

Haleigh: "I love you, Cameron, but I would kill you, I would kill anyone - everyone - to protect these two. Do you understand me?"

"Haleigh....I don't want to hurt anyone. Let alone my child. YOUR children. I just...this is insane. It's an insane thing just as much as it is a blessing. As it is glorious. I want to try and be better...but I don't know how to.."

He had grown up destroying anything weaker than him. Destroying anything that threatened him and his family. Alek and his unborn daughter was no different. But to see her alive and in the flesh, spending her days talking to ghosts like Archer Fairchild...it was no way to live. It was no way for any of these kids to live. He was a monster. Someone primed to become a god among men. But he really did not want to do to any child in Hellfire what had been done to him and his siblings. His family. But he did not trust himself.

Haleigh: "I need some space, Cameron. And you need some time to spend with your...daughter, Caorlina. Let's take a break, relieve the pressure. I'll stop pushing you to sign the divorce papers, if you'll stop finding ways to agitate and harass me. After the babies are born, we'll reassess the state of our marriage."

He exhaled deeply. At first it felt like a weight lifted off of him, but seeing this scenario, of how they failed, in real life...it made him realize that he was still trying to manipulate his wife.

Haleigh: "But stop messing with me, or it's for damn sure over."

"I think it was over right before we got to this place, Hales...I have always loved you...but this thing..this whole idea of parenthood and kids...it made us realize that we have desires and views...about family..about what that looks like...that is different than what we always thought when we NEVER thought it would be something we'd have to deal with..."

Was he really saying this?

"I...love Elena...and I think you love Alek...and I think they are both going to have to be a part of our lives. They...give us something we just can't get from each other...and...I really hate it...but, Haleigh...look at these kids. They need all of us...We're gonna fuck it up without them. If you really want a divorce from me...I will give you one..but it means big changes for the club and our lives...is that something you're willing to see through? What does that even look like?'