Warnings: mentions of death and blood.

++

'I don't know any of the names on this list.' Rosalee sighed. 'I know who was at the wedding, but--'

'There's got to be a connection, all right? Somebody who was at your wedding has to know someone who was on Trubel's list.' Juliette replied.

'How am I supposed to know who everybody knows.'

'Without asking them?' Briar questioned.

'We should go over your wedding guest list.' Juliette suggested.

'I'll have to get it. It's on my computer.'

'No, you sent me a copy! I think I still have it!' Juliette said, walking over to the computer desk. 'If I can find it -- good thing I'm so messy.'

'Do you want me to call Monroe's parents?'

'And let them know what's going on?' Rosalee yelled. 'No, no. I already thought about that. They'd be on the first plane here.'

'Is that a bad thing?' Briar asked.

'I don't want to have to put them through that. Until we know something, one way or the other.'

'Well, let's just hope it isn't the other...' Briar muttered.

++

'I don't know.' Rosalee sighed. She was now surrounded by stacks of paper, but hadn't appeared to make any real progress. 'I can't make the connection. Because I don't know the connection I'm looking for.'

'Bud was sure someone at the wedding knew Shaw.'

'Yes, but I don't know Shaw.' Rosalee complained.

'Kind of like when Nick's mom brought Adalind here. You know, she didn't know that we knew her, and Adalind didn't know that she was Nick's mom.' Juliette said.

'Yeah, if we could only know what we didn't know before it just all blows up in our faces.'

'I keep thinking about Adalind. She was a hexenbiest, Briar's a hexenbiest, and their mum was a hexenbiest.'

'So?' Rosalee groaned.

'So...both Adalind and Briar must have been born that way.'

'Yeah, we were.' Briar confirmed.

'But she lost her powers and then got them back, so...' Juliette suggested.

'So does that mean that you don't have to be born a hexenbiest?' Briar finished, raising a sceptical eyebrow at Juliette. 'You could become one?'

Juliette nodded.

'I think so, and what I know, which isn't very much.' Rosalee added. 'Just that apparently the transformation is pretty gruelling.

'Mm-hmm.' Juliette mumbled.

'And the ones that are made and not born are even more deadly--' Rosalee continued. 'Why?'

Juliette's eyes awkwardly shifted over to Briar - who motioned at Juliette in a way that said she should come clean - and then back to Rosalee.

'I'm asking,' Juliette said, pausing as she tried to figure out her phrasing. 'Because...that's what happened to me.'

'What?' Rosalee exclaimed. 'How?'

'It was a side effect of Adalind's curse.' Juliette sighed. 'I've only known about it since yesterday, but please, don't focus on me -- right now you're more important.'

'Yeah, you don't need another thing on your plate.' Briar added. In response, Rosalee nodded slowly.

'What am I not seeing here? What am I missing?' Rosalee said.

'Bud didn't know everyone who was at your wedding, and he didn't have the list of names.' Juliette suggested. 'He and Trubel found out that Shaw was in the wesenrein, and somehow Shaw found out you and Monroe got married.'

'Well, then we need to talk to Bud, because five of these people have plus-ones that I've never met before.' Rosalee decided.

++

'Well, what can I do?' Bud chuckled awkwardly.

'We need your help.' Juliette replied. 'You said that someone at the wedding told Shaw about Monroe and Rosalee.'

'Yeah, yeah. It has to have been.'

'Then who?' Rosalee asked, showing Bud the list. 'Because this is the list you made with Trubel, and this is my wedding list. I can't figure this out, because I don't know these men on your list!'

'Well, let me take a look.' Bud sighed. A moment later he pointed at a photo. 'That's her. She was at the wedding.'

( The Woods - Later )

'Riken!' Nick called out, pointing a gun at the man. The rest of the group had fanned out, and was surrounding the rest of the wesen rein members.

'Monroe!' Rosalee yelled out, as she ran down the hill towards her husband.

'Rosalee!' Monroe replied, voice muffled as she embraced him.

'The tribunal is over.' Nick stated.

'Nick, thank god you--' Bud stuttered, then realised his (apparent) mistake.

'Oh, I don't know him either.'

'So you're Burkhardt?' Riken asked, before woging angrily.

Nick said nothing at this, opting to stare him down with no remorse.

'You got it back.'

'That is the rumour.'

There was a pause, as Riken considered all of his options.

'You may be a grimm again, but you're not gonna be able to arrest all of us.' He stated.

'You're right. Some of you will be stupid.' Nick replied.

'Take them!' Riken ordered. So, the wesen rein members attacked, but were swiftly brought down by a rain of bullets.

'On your knees!' Sean ordered, and the men in front of him complied. As the other members of the group ran away into the bushes, following the survivors, Nick and Briar made their way down the hill towards the men Sean had stopped.

'Could you please keep an eye on them, while I go and help Juliette?' Nick asked, as Briar knelt on the ground next to the captured men.

'Nope!' Briar replied, flicking their wrist and trapping the members with a mass of nearby roots. There was a chorus of enraged shouts, as they struggled in vain, hands sinking into the ground. 'I am coming with you. Besides, Juliette's more capable than you think.'

'Oh, don't I know it.' Nick chuckled.

++

When they found Juliette she was covered in dirt and blood. Next to her was the prone body of a teenager in wesen rein robes with, most curiously, the back of his head exploded.

'How the fuck?' Nick asked, at the same time Briar said 'Holy shit.'

'I don't know....it just sort of happened.' Juliette replied. 'A burst of massive power from stress, I suppose.'

'Sorry,' Nick replied, incredulous. 'You're saying you did this?'

'Yes, that is what I'm saying. It seems Rosalee was right, born hexenbiests are indeed deadlier.'

Nick said nothing at this, opting instead to let this information take hold in his head. So, Briar walked around him and held out a hand to help Juliette up. Juliette took her hand and stood up, brushing the dirt off her clothes.

'Come on,' Briar said, taking Nick's hand with their other one and slowly ushering him to turn around. 'Let's go home.'

( Monroe and Rosalee's House )

'Monroe and I just wanted to thank all of you for what you did.' Rosalee said. 'We wouldn't be here without you.'

'I certainly wouldn't.' Monroe added.

'Well, let me just say that,' Bud toasted. 'I wouldn't be here either. So, there's a lot of thanks from me too.'

'Yeah, you should have seen Bud out there - he was awesome. He really stood up to those sonsof--'

'Monroe...'

'Right, sorry, I just wanted to say that... from the bottom of my heart I appreciate you.' Monroe said, struggling. He then quieted himself and began to cry.

'Oh, honey.' Rosalee murmured. 'It's okay.'

Around the room the others all looked on sadly, sharing the anguish.

'We're overwhelmed by all the support you've given us. We couldn't ask for better friends. We can't possibly thank you enough.'

'What she said.' Monroe added, kissing Rosalee's head.

'Well, you both deserve every bit of happiness.' Juliette complimented.

'Well, I suggest we toast to your honeymoon.' Sean stated.

'At last!' Wu celebrated, lifting his glass up and toasting it with the others.

'We'll miss you guys.'

'Yeah, we will, but I think I'm ready to spend some alone time with my wife.'

[A/N]

WE GOT THERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh man, this took me so long to figure out. So so, long. I am very sorry for the wait.

9.2.24