Chapter Text
Stella awoke to the sun hitting her eyes, peeking its way through the kitchen window blinds. She winced as she got herself off of the floor. Spending the night slumped over case reports and falling asleep by the coffee table, still dressed in her rather uncomfortable uniform, certainly didn’t do her back any favours.
The case she’d been overseeing for the past few weeks had been a disaster and she was sure it was assigned to her as a punishment, for some transgression that she herself wasn’t even aware of. Every step of the way she found herself dealing with inexperienced detectives, who through their sloppy work, managed to traumatize the victims even further. Only four days ago did the team manage to get some solid leads, which prompted Stella to work herself harder than ever before. Truth be told, she wasn’t sure when was the last time she’d slept at her own place. The rest she did manage to get was in the form of short naps, fit in-between briefings and travelling all around the city. Dark circles started forming under her eyes, which prompted the other members of the task force to get concerned for her well-being, as well as her ability to correctly assess the problems they encountered. She’d brush it off time after time, and only gave in when one of her officers found her dozing off by the water cooler at the police station. With that, she finally came home last night and promised to take the next day off.
She looked around, her vision still blurry from just waking up – although the room around her was still a mess, it definitely was cleaner than she had left it. Papers previously scattered all around the floor were now placed into neat piles. The take-out boxes that used to adorn the coffee table were now sticking out of the slightly overflowing trash bin. Her coffee mugs now magically found their way onto the drying rack. For a moment the blonde felt as though she lost her mind, not remembering cleaning up. As she scanned the room some more she noticed a bright yellow note that’s been stuck to the fridge. She made her way over and immediately identified the handwriting as Dana’s. A warm smile spread across her face as she started reading the scribbled message...
“Hi ;)
I cleaned up some when I swung by in the morning. I’m running errands right now and should be back by 11. Not sure if you’ll be home then but if you are – I’m going to cook us something since I know it’s been a while since you’ve eaten anything homemade.
Love, D”
Tears involuntarily started falling down Stella’s cheeks. The love that her redheaded partner could make her feel, even with just a simple note, was unparalleled to anything she has experienced in her life. Stella found herself being able to trust her partner completely, something she only did once before. The detective couldn’t exactly pinpoint what was different about Dana. All she knew was that they loved each other completely, without regrets, and that was all she needed to know.
She was shaken from her thoughts by a loud grumbling noise coming from her stomach. Not remembering when was the last time she ate, she decided to snack on something light to hold her off until her partner got home. She slowly opened the fridge and glanced through the shelves. Her gaze fell on the salad she picked up last night on her way back from work. She hastily grabbed it out of the fridge and munched on it as she looked through more documents relating to the case.
***
Stella called her office, and after making sure her presence wasn’t necessary, she decided to take a shower. She still had about 2 hours till her partner got home, giving her enough time to get ready for her arrival. Even though they knew each other for quite some time and the need to impress each other has dissolved a bit, Stella still wanted to look as presentable as she could. She dragged her tired body upstairs to the bathroom, where she hastily undressed and stepped into the shower. She revelled in the soothing effect the hot water had on her aching muscles. After washing away all of the previous day’s filth, she found herself slightly dozing off and decided to step out, not wanting to risk falling asleep altogether. She wrapped herself in a fluffy bathrobe and made her way into the bedroom where she sat upon the edge of the bed. She closed her eyes just for a moment, to soak in every last bit of comfort the shower has provided her. Before she could open her eyes again she found herself slumping into the pillows and drifting into slumber.
***
Stella’s eyes shot open at the sound of glass shattering downstairs. She rose up from the bed and immediately felt a wave of anxiety wash over her. Her heart was beating out of her chest, her vision was blurry and narrow. She stood in a wide stance, like a deer in headlights, with her feet planted firmly into the carpet, for what felt like hours. She got pulled out of her trance by the sound of heavy steps heading up the stairs.
“Dana???” Stella called out, her voice small and laced with panic.
What she heard in response could only be described as a low growl but it wouldn’t do it justice. It was unlike anything the woman heard in her entire life. She didn’t know who, or rather what, was creeping towards her but she wasn’t going to take her chances. With a shaky hand, she blindly reached for her nightstand, searching for a letter opener that resided there, while keeping her eyes peeled on the bedroom door. Realistically speaking she knew that her chances of defending herself with the tiny blade were slim, but they it was still better than nothing.
The door swung open with impossible force, staggering Stella. Her eyes fell upon something barely resembling a human. As a matter of fact, the mass standing before her didn’t bear any similarities to any animal known to the blonde either. Its eyes were a colour of deep red, with blood seeping from them like waterfalls. Its limbs were twisted in all directions. At the end of each one stood massive silver claws that seemed to glow under the rays of sun pooling into the room. What could only be described as its fur, was black and matted.
The creature raised one of its paws towards the blonde and a low grumble escaped its throat.
“Stop right there.” She said firmly while waving the blade at the beast. I don’t even know if that… thing can understand me she thought to herself as she felt her arms shake. She was a seasoned detective, having been in life-or-death situations more times than she could count. Somehow this encounter was different, the anxiety engulfing her in an unparalleled way, genuinely making her feel as though she was about to lose her life. She kept her eyes focused on the monster, which took another step toward her, and with an anxiety-laced voice she nearly shouted “I said stop right there!”
The creature kept grumbling at her as she tried to keep her hands steady enough to keep her letter opener pointed in the right direction. They seemed to be stuck in this pose forever until the monster took another step towards Stella and lunged at her, making both of them tumble down to the floor. The beast gripped Stella’s hands and tried to knock off the tiny blade out of her hands. The blonde struggled against the creature but finally managed to aim her tool at the beast’s abdomen and take a few well-placed slashes and stabs. The creature wailed loudly as it tumbled down next to the detective. The blonde quickly rose up and ran downstairs, towards the kitchen, where she had left her phone. She grabbed it quickly, almost sending it tumbling down to the kitchen tiles. She dialled one of her last contacts, an officer named Collins, with her shaky hand. She tried to steady her breath to sound more collected on the phone but before she could do that she heard a low male voice on the other end of the line.
“Good afternoon Detective Gibson, to what do I owe the pleasure” he said, with his signature smirk in his voice.
“Collins, I need you to send someone over to my house. Someone… something...” before she could finish her sentence her knees buckled and she tumbled to the floor, losing consciousness.
“Ma’am? Ma’am is everything all right? Are you there?”