CHAPTER 1 – The First Distortion(1)

There was a blinding light followed by a deafening explosion when her Hexenbeist power met its demise.

That was the last thing Adalind Schade remembered before the nothingness of the void consumed her consciousness.

"Ugh!" An unknown period of time later, Adalind awoke from the splitting headache plaguing her temple. Rubbing the aching area with her fingers as she push herself up to sit down, she opened her eyes and looked around.

She's still in the Bremen Ruins but for some reason, everything seems different, a lot different than what it was before she had her consciousness cut. Some trees seem to be taller and some vegetations and bushes a lot thicker than what she remembers. However, her thoughts were immediately interrupted by the sound of a groan from beside her.

Her brain immediately snapped to full awareness. That's right! She wasn't alone when that blinding light and that explosion caused by the death of Hexenbeist power swallowed her. Nick Burkhardt, the Grimm who forced her to swallow his blood and caused all of these was also caught by that explosion. And looking down to her side, her suspicion was confirmed.

The Grimm was lying beside her and is on his way to regain consciousness.

Consumed both by fear and confusion, Adalind scrambled to her feet and ran back to the path she'd took earlier, retracing back to where she parked her car. However, reaching the road and discovering that he car was nowhere to found. It serves as the first hint that something else after the death of her Hexenbeist had transpired.

Adalind tried to call her Mom, Sean, or any of her Wesen friends but her phone wasn't working. Hence, left with no other option, she walked the side road for an unknown amount of distance before spotting a cab.

Her utmost priority at the moment is to head home. Meet Sean and her Mom which are both probably waiting for her return. She's dreadful to break to them that she'd not only failed her mission but had also lost her powers. It will surely not end well for her but she's hoping for the best. At least she's convincing herself that they'll be a little sympathetic though probably unlikely.

However, arriving to her mother's house, the one who answered the door was a middle-aged woman she'd never seen before. Adalind immediately asked who she is and where's Catherine Schade in which she answered with 'I lived here' and that she never heard of that name before.

Adalind didn't probed further. She looked like a hooligan with her messy outfit and bloodied mouth. She knocked someone home's door in the middle of the night. So of course they're assuming the worst character from her.

Therefore she left, confused where to head next.

"What the hell is going on?" she asked to the emptiness in front of her. Something supernatural had happened after the Grimm killed her Hexenbeist power. She's not that stupid not to figure out that the place where she is right now is no longer the Portland she knows. The only question is what kind? Is she thrown inside a dream or a hallucination or is it something else?

Asking those to herself, she suddenly passed by on something that answered her queries. She passed by a house which residents had probably left for a trip or vacation so the newspapers are piled up near their mailbox.

She simply glanced towards it but when she did, her eyes could no longer look away. With widened eyes, she read the newspaper's date.

It's 2031.

'2031!' The date screamed inside Nick's head as Rosalee drove him towards a place she claimed to be his current home.

When he woke up in the Bremen Ruins after that light or explosion cut him off, he immediately called Monroe and Rosalee to check on Hank. However, his phone ceased working. Therefore, he decided to simply return there himself but returning to the road, he found his car gone. Initially, he thought Adalind must have taken it as a form of petty revenge but her car wasn't around too. There's no way she can drive two cars at the same time. His second assumption was it was stolen.

However, when he rode back to the city through a cab after walking for a while, the things he was observing, from the interior of the cab to the buildings the vehicle passed by outside, started to feel that though they are familiar, are also alien and odd.

And when he began stopping on the places where he should go, that's when things started to piece together and start to make no sense. First, Adalind's house where he's supposed to meet Monroe, Rosalee, and Hank was gone. As in the entire house was gone. What replaces it was an establishment meant more for business rather than residence.

Next he went to was his house. If something supernatural had truly happened to him and maybe even to the entirety of Portland, his first priority is to ensure that Juliette is safe.

But his home had also met the safe fate as Adalind's house. Not that it's also gone like what happened to hers but it is now homed by a family he'd never seen or met before. And when he asked them who are they and how long they'd been living there, they answered 15 years and mentioned that they bought it from a policeman who moved away to a new house with his wife when their son was born. The matriarch who met the seller way back that time even said that Nick looked like him and asked if he's a relative.

Nick simply answered 'Sort of' and took his leave.

By that time, he quite pieced together what or what might exactly is going on. He's no Detective if he can't figure it out at this point regardless of how ridiculous it might appear.

There are only two possibilities. He was either thrown into another dimension or displaced into another timeline, to the future, after killing Adalind's Hexenbeist power, with the latter being the most likely possibility. And since it had become Wesen-related matter now, his next destination was towards the only two people who can offer assistance to this kind of matter. But Monroe's house might be empty or occupied by another family now. Assuming that he pursued Rosalee and they got married and had kids, they might have moved to a more accommodating home. So the only place where there's a high possibility of meeting either one of them is the Spice Tea Shop. A lot might have change all throughout the years but Rosalee, honoring her brother's memory, will never abandon or sell the shop.

And fortunately, he was right. Rosalee was there. She was experimenting into a new concoction that she stayed despite the late hours.

"Nick!?" she exclaimed upon seeing him.

She'd aged. She's still that brilliant brunette he knows but the middle-age years had already caught up on her.

"I need your help," he said and explained what he believed is going on in which she confirmed to be correct. Since that night at the Bremen Ruins, 20 years had passed.

Of course, she freaked out at first. But with the figure of 20 years being associated with a Grimm, she immediately calmed down and thought of a solution.

So here they are now, on the road to meet his future self. Rosalee suggested that if there's someone in this timeline who can help him, it will be none other than him and his family. She called Monroe and instructed him to go to his house.

Rosalee tried to contact his future-self next but the one who answered was his wife telling Rosalee that his future self is on the airport, fetching someone and that he left his phone at home. Rosalee told her that she's bringing someone important to them who needed their help and his wife replied okay.

However, Nick noticed something odd from Rosalee's behavior as she talked to his wife. When she called and realized that it was her that answers the phone, Rosalee forces herself to not utter her name. She also refused to make her talk to him.

Nick asked if his wife is Juliette. Rosalee answered 'No'. It's someone else they know. "The two of you never worked," she coldheartedly said.

Nick was saddened that he and Juliette never made it but for some reason, he didn't find it surprising. Probably deep down, since becoming a Grimm and entering the world of the Wesens, he knows that it will crumble down someday and it broke his heart that it actually ended up that way.

Nick asked who his wife is but then Rosalee answered that she can't tell him now because he will not only not believe her but given the timeline where he came from, he might not handle the truth either.

It both confused and frightens Nick. Who could be the identity of his wife that the current Him might find it unacceptable? Then Rosalee suddenly asked. "Um Nick, when you were thrown here. Were you alone or was Adalind with you?"

"It's highly likely," Nick replied. The explosion came directly from her and her Hexenbeist power. If he was caught up by it then surely she was too. "But I was alone when I woke up so I can't be certain."

"If she's here, we must find her," Rosalee said with urgency.

"Yeah, of course," Nick nodded. "As much as I hate having her around. I can't leave her to rot here."

"It's not just that," she said. Expression growing more concern.

"What do you mean?" Nick frowned.

"Later. I'll explain everything later. What I know about you from where or rather, from when you came from is worth 20 years. I can't just dump it all to you in one go right now. We go to your house first, meet your future self and your family. And next in our priorities is finding Adalind."

Nick was about to respond but suddenly…

Ring! Ring!

…her phone rang.

"Kelly?" She frowned upon checking the caller's ID.

"Kelly?" Nick repeated, wondering. Rosalee knew someone with the same name as my Mom?

"It's your son," she looked at him and clarified. Then she answered the phone, "Hey K, what is it?"

"Oh crap!" Adalind cursed under her breath. When she thought this night couldn't get any worse, she was proven so damn wrong.

Right now, a group of street rats are surrounding her. And their intentions are pretty obvious.

"Stay away from me!" she warned menacingly. However, deep down she knows it's simply nothing else but unsubstantiated tough exterior.

She's currently powerless.

If she was still a Hexenbeist, dealing with these lowlives wouldn't even pass as an exercise.

"Don't be like that sweetheart," the one in front of her called and raucous laughter echoed around her.

Adalind braced herself. Feet apart, unearthing everything she knows in hand-to-hand combat through her panic. If she can at least take down one of them, it will give her a leeway to run away.

But then, a voice of a male youth suddenly boomed from the corner. "Hey! Why don't you pick someone your own size?"

All of them turned to the source of the voice and a teenage boy with dark hair emerged from the shadows.

"Stay out of this ki…" One of the scumbags tried to threaten but before he could finish his sentence, the teenage boy kicked a rock which directly hit the scumbag's forehead, knocking him out cold instantly.

"I don't have time for this," he said, "I have a curfew," and lunged to the remaining men.

He easily handled all the remaining scumbags down. His skills are impressive. He's not just a street punk. Observing how he fights, it's obvious that he's well-trained for combat.

But that's not all. She nearly missed it because she's only a Kehrseite-Schlich-Kennen now but she's certain that this young man had also used Telekinesis in his fighting style. He would either use it to freeze in place an attacker while he's occupied by another or to intensify the power of his kicks and punches.

He's concealing it behind ordinary attacks but there's no mistaking it. He's a Zauberbeist.

"Hey Miss, are you okay?" Taking down the last of the scumbags, the teenage Zauberbeist asked her as he approaches her. "You shouldn't…"

But then he suddenly stopped in track when he gained a clear view of her face.

He gaped followed by an exclamation that literally shook Adalind's soul. "Mom!?"

The young Zauberbeist called her 'Mom'.

"What are you doing here!?"

Initially, Kelly was confused. What the hell is his mother doing in this kind of place in the middle of night?

"What did you just called me?" His mother asked.

But when that question was raised. Those words filled with disbelief and confusion softly escaping her lips. Kelly reconsidered that initial judgment.

Is this really her?

She looked very different. Not in terms of appearance. She is literally the exact copy of his mother and she also looked to be around her late 20s, same again as his Mom despite her actual age actually being 46. Instead, what greatly discriminate her from his mother, Adalind Burkhardt, is how insecure, indecisive, and desperate she looked. His Mom is the most confident woman he knows. The complete opposite of this one.

Thus, Kelly did what he can do in the situation to be certain. He scanned her. It's a trick taught by Diana where he can use his Zauberbeist power both to identify a person's identity as well as to gauge their combat capability.

The same time he was done, the woman then suddenly approached him and asked, "You called me Mom. Is your mother Adalind Schade?"

The result then registered. "Whoa!" And Kelly exclaimed to what it displayed.

Kelly intently stared at her in dead silence. His eyes riddled with disbelief. "Oh my god, you are her." The only difference is she's only 26 years old. What the hell is going on?!

"I can explain what's going on," she said. "But please, tell me. Are you really Adalind Schade's son?"

Kelly nodded. "Yeah, I am."

Hearing that, she sighed heavily in relief. "Please help me. Bring me to her."

"I can do that but you have to explain what's going on first right now. Who are you? You're Adalind Schade but you're not my Mom."

After telling her future son, who introduced his name to be Kelly, everything she believed had happened and from what timeline she came from including that he also arrived with the Grimm, they immediately hit the road to meet her future self.

"Wow, a Maybach," Adalind complimented on the car. "This is one pricey car you have."

"Actually it's your car. I just borrowed it for the night."

"This is mine?"

"Oh yeah. One of your three actually. You also have an Aston and a Ferrari Dad bought you during your 10th anniversary."

Three cars. Each with the minimum of 5 zeroes. Wow, they sure are pretty loaded. Which raise the question now.

"Um, Kelly?"

"Yeah?"

"Who's your father?" Or more accurately, who is her husband?

Kelly swallowed hard when 2011 Adalind suddenly asked about his Dad. "Um…about Dad? Um…"

"Yes?" she insisted.

He's Nick Burkhardt. Kelly wanted to say. However, he can't since she's from 2011 and worse, she's from that night in the Bremen Ruins.

2011 was not the best year between his parents. No one in the family and their closest friends are alien to their former animosity to one another and the incident in Bremen Ruins was the worst of that. During that time, neither would hesitate to hurt the other with his mother more than willing to resort into any underhanded method to either hurt or kill his Dad. His Dad had also killed his Mom's Hexenbeist power during that night, the most precious to her back then.

This woman beside him is the living remnant of that time of hatred. If he tells her right now that years later the two of them will be married with kids, she will surely freak out.

Ring! Ring!

Fortunately, his phone rang. And taking advantage of this sudden interruption to sway away from her probing, he answered it without looking at the caller. "I have to take this," he said and swipe the screen and answered. "Hello?"

-WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU!?

But when he did, the loud and angry scream of his Mom boomed against his eardrum. And jerking in response, he distanced the phone away from him.

-I TOLD YOU THAT YOU SHOULD BE HOME BY 10. YOU'RE STILL IN THAT BITCH'S HOUSE, AREN'T YOU!?

The phone was not on loudspeaker but her voice was loudly and clearly heard within the car. Even 2011 Adalind flinched upon hearing the familiar voice angrily screaming from the other line.

Kelly's face paled and fearfully replacing the phone back against his ear, he said, "Hey Mom. No, it's not what you think."

-We warned you, young man! She reminded, teeth clenching. -Your Dad and I might be permitting your relationship with her but it doesn't mean you two can do whatever you want! You should have been home an hour ago!

"Really Mom, it's not that," Kelly insisted. "I was already on my way home but I meet some trouble on the road."

-Trouble? Her voice turned worried. -Why? What happened?

"Can you shift to videocall?" Kelly requested. "There's someone I want you to see."

-What? Who? His Mom asked but didn't insist further as she did as he asked. "What is it?"

When the dark screen surface reflected her face, he positioned the phone in front of his Mom's 2011 version. "I met someone you might now," he said.

Upon seeing her through the phone, her future self's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

"Hi," Adalind nervously greeted.

Followed by an exclamation. "What the hell? Kelly!?"

"Yeah?"

"Who is that woman and why does she looked like me!?"

"Mom, she's you," Kelly explained briefly.

"What nonsense is that? I'm right over here, how can she be me?"

"She's you but not the 'You' you from here. She's the 'You' from 2011."

"2011? I don't understand."

"Remember the night at Bremen Ruins during that year?"

"How can I forget?"

Adalind frowned. When Kelly reminded her future self about that night at the Bremen Ruins, Adalind noticed that she doesn't sound angry. On the contrary, she reacted like she's reminiscing a pleasant memory. 'What the hell?' That was when that damn Grimm ruined them.

"She's from that night. She said that after the death of her Hexenbeist power, there was an explosion and when she woke up, she's already here. 20 years since that night."

"What!? How was that even possible?"

"I don't know too. That's why I'm bringing her home. Maybe you and Dad could figure out something."

"Are you sure she's me? She could be a poser or a shapeshifting Wesen trying to trick you."

"I'm certain, I scanned her. She's genuinely you except that she's only 26 years old."

Her future-self nodded. "Let me talk to her."

Kelly handed her the phone.

"Hey?"

"Hi," Adalind greeted back.

"I'll be honest, this is so unbelievable but, I've been through a lot of weird things over the past decades so I guess this is just another Tuesday for me."

"Sound like I've been through a lot."

"You have no idea."

Adalind then took the opportunity to observe her future-self. No wonder Kelly immediately recognized her. Even after the passing of 2 decades she barely aged. However, the composure of the 'Her' of this timeline is a world apart from the current her. There's peacefulness on her, calm, and an overflowing confidence that's not pulled from her nature as a Hexenbeist.

Above all, she looked happy.

Adalind then glanced to Kelly then to the fancy vehicle they are riding. 'She had everything. Everything she wanted in life. Everything I wanted in my life.' Adalind couldn't help rejoicing inside. Just a few hours ago, she thought she'd lost everything but now, she's seeing the future where everything she could ever wish for -love, family, wealth- are all hers.

It's overwhelming.

"By the way…" Then, her thoughts were interrupted when all of the sudden, Future Adalind asked her, "Were you the only one who got pulled here?"

The younger version of his Mom shook her head in reply but it was Kelly who verbally answered. "Da…" he almost said 'Dad' but managed to stop himself. "…The Grimm also crossed along with her."

"Yes, Nick Burkhardt is also here!" The younger Adalind exclaimed venomously. "I don't know where he is now but he was with me when I woke up."

Hearing that, his mother woged. Since younger Adalind is no longer a Hexenbeist, she wasn't able to see it but Kelly did. "Kelly?" His Mom looked at him and the side of her face twitched.

"Yeah," Kelly replied, and decoding his mother's gesture, they switched back to normal call and replaced the phone against his ear.

-I'm safely assuming you haven't told her.

"Of course."

-Good. You shouldn't. That woman is the lowest impression your father had on me and he isn't wrong. Don't tell her anything not until you get home. She might snap. It's too dangerous.

"Yeah Mom, I understand."

-By the way, your Aunt Rosalee called your Dad's phone earlier. She said she's with someone who needed our help. When I asked her who, she said she'll just explain when they get here. With what my past self said, I believe it might be the younger version of you Dad. Call her to confirm that. I'll try to contact your Dad over here through Diana.

Kelly nodded and said softly, "Yes, I'll do that."

-Alright. She said and then added -And oh by the way…

"Yeah?"

-Knock her out.

"What? Why?" Kelly was shock. His mother is telling him to knock her younger self unconscious.

-An insurance. She said. -Something might slip from you on your way here and I don't trust her to be rational when that happened. It's wiser to completely eliminate the odds instead. Moreover, you're going to contact Rosalee. You can't have her around when you do that.

"It's uncomfortable but yeah, I'll handle it."

-Good. If something else came up, I'll call.

"Alright Mom, love you."

-I love you too. Be careful.

"Hey K, what is it?"

-Is the person you're bringing to our house the 2011 version of Dad?

"What?" Rosalee was shocked. "How did you know that?"

-First thing first, can he hear me? Kelly whispered almost inaudibly.

"No, he's not there yet," she confirmed.

-Good.

Kelly then explained what happened while he was on his way home and saved what he thought back then was a random girl. Then there's the talk between his Mom and her past self.

"Thank God," Rosalee sighed heavily in relief knowing that Adalind is safe. "How is she?"

-She's fine but Mom told me to knock her out, so I did.

"That's probably for the best," she reassured him.

-By the way, what did you tell Dad?

"Just the overview. How about you?"

-Same here. You know how it was back then.

"Who doesn't?"

-So, I'll see you two back home then.

"Alright, be careful."

-You too.

"What was that?" Nick asked as she puts down the phone.

"Um…a relative of mine staying in town for the week got herself into some trouble and Kelly helped her." Rosalee lied. "He called to tell me that she's okay."

"Is-is my son a Grimm?" Nick asked hesitantly.

Rosalee nodded. "Yeah, he is."

Nick was saddened. He knows that it's nigh-certain that a Grimm will be sired among his future children but he still kind of hope that he wouldn't. He wished that they would be born normal and lived a normal life far from the madness of the Wesen world. But just like what happened or what will happen with him and Juliette, the future didn't go the way he wanted. At least what the current Him wanted.

Their drive continued and deep in thoughts, Nick missed to realize that they'd finally arrived to their destination. "We're here." Rosalee announced as she turns the engine off.

Snapping out of his thoughts, Nick immediately raises his head up and his eyes went wide in disbelief. "This is my house?" He asked Rosalee as they exit her car.

Calling it a house will be an insult. This residence is a freaking mansion. Like one of those houses owned by royalties from European countries. How the hell did he even afford to purchase this?

"Yeah, you've been living here for 10 years." Rosalee specified. "C'mon, she's waiting for us."

Rosalee lead him towards the front door but before they could reach it, she stopped and faced him. "Nick, before we get in there. Promise me that whatever happened, you will remain calm. Can you do that?"

"Rosalee, I don't understand," Nick couldn't help but to be nervous. It's been bothering him. Since meeting her in the Spice Tea Shop and revealing his identity, she'd been tense all the time. Most especially when she tried to call his future self and the one who answered was his wife. Her state of alarm further intensified. And until now, he couldn't still figure out the reason why. Does it had something to do with the identity of his future wife that she'd been refusing to disclose from the moment he asked? Just who could she be?

"Just promise, okay?"

"Alright, I promise."

Sighing deeply, she resumed to the front door and Nick followed behind her. Beside the door was a scanner, in which Rosalee pressed her palm against.

"Accepted!" A computer voice responded. Then, as the door unlocked, another voice, belonging to a female, boomed next from the speaker. "Rosalee, is that you?"

"Yeah, it's me."

Nick paused for a moment. At that moment, he feels like the universe had acted to take his breath away. That voice just now was the voice of his future wife. The woman who said 'I do' to him in front of the altar and promised to love him forever. Rosalee said earlier that she's someone they knew though he failed to clarify if they'd known her exactly during the time where he came from or from the years later. Because to be honest, he's only acquainted to a very few from the opposite sex. He could not think of anyone he already knew that could have ended up as his lifetime partner. He sort of sensed some familiarity from her but due to the speaker distorting her voice into a robotic tone, his attempt to identify her fails.

"I'm at the living room," her robotic voice said.

"Okay." Rosalee replied and then told Nick, "Let's go."

The door opened, letting them enter. And once both of them are inside, the door closed automatically and locked again.

"Impressive security," Nick commented and not just towards the hand scanner beside the door. Earlier outside, he noticed the surveillance cameras surrounding the house. The door itself is a composition of tough layers of steel while the walls are nearly a couple of feet thick.

"You learn from experience not to take chances anymore. Though at this point, all of these are barely necessary."

Again, Nick wanted to ask what she probably meant by that. However, he decided not to insist. She promised that explanations will be given later. But for now, the first thing to do first is to meet his family. Starting with his future wife.

She was standing in front of the fireplace with her back on them when he and Rosalee entered the room and Nick was filled with anticipation knowing the identity of the woman his future-self had married.

She's blonde. The first thing he noticed was her wavy golden hair. Next was the thick grey sweater and leggings that perfectly hug her well-proportioned body. She's someone too gawked at. Nick can figure out that much.

However, when she turned to face them, the dreamy image Nick had in his mind shattered when her identity is revealed. Instantly, it was replaced by horror and panic.

It was Adalind! And he's inside his house.

"What are you doing here!?" Nick roared, reaching his waist for the gun that wasn't there.

Right now, Nick's mind is filled with the worst images imaginable. He imagined his family suffering, harmed by her. He doesn't know how she got here? How she bypasses the tight security his future self reinforced into his home. But she is here and there's nothing good about that fact.

Realizing that he actually does not have a weapon, he tried to charge towards her but Rosalee stopped him.

"Nick no!"

"What is she doing here?" He screamed at Rosalee, struggling from her hold. "Oh my god, what had she done!? Where's my family!?"

"Nick calm down!" Rosalee insisted. "She's not a threat."

"How can you say that?"

"Because she's your wife!"