Hi everyone! I miss all of you. And I miss this damn show. I randomly typed this up this morning incorporating a certain angle that the beginning of Season 5 could have taken. I really appreciate the follows/reviews on some of my unfinished works, and I am definitely considering picking one back up. Let me know what you think about that, or just drop a line and say hi :) Hope all of you are well.

Happy reading!

"So? Was there any lead?"

Jasper rampantly paces the gaping room in front of the fire place. He holds the cell up to his ear in one hand, the other in his pocket.

"No," Liam replies with shortened breath on the other line. He sounds like he's walking at a heightened pace. "Honestly Jasper, how do you just go and lose your girlfriend anyway?"

"You're one to talk," he viciously whispers. "You left Kathryn alone to be sent off in the wrong limo when you knew she was fucking pregnant-" Jasper stops himself and clears his throat, pinching the bridge of his nose with his index and thumb.

"Well at least Kathryn is safe," Liam replies sternly. His breath is back at a stable pace. "And we know that Len is too. She's been in contact with James, and she even text you the night of her disappearance."

"Yeah, the 'don't come looking for me' text was really reassuring. Makes me feel a whole lot better."

"But as for her location," Liam continues. "No one has seen her since the bloody wedding. Not my mum. Not Cyrus. Not Robert or Willow. Not even James knows exactly where she is. But what you're not understanding is that she doesn't want to be found. Just give her some time."

Jasper adamantly shakes his head, his eyes wildly examining the flames before him. Everything Liam was saying was going in one ear and out the other. "She can't just run away from me. I'm her fiancé- or pre-fiancé.. well, actually it's pretty confusing.."

"Oh, don't you get it Jasper? This is just what Eleanor does. Something doesn't go her way, so she rebels by being self destructive and running off."

There's a silence on the other end of the line before Jasper states, "Not the Eleanor that I fell in love with."

"I'm sorry mate, I really am. Just try to have trust in James who's in constant contact with her. It can't be all that bad. Look Jasper, I'm just getting to Kathryn's. I'll let you know if I hear any-"

Jasper uses his index finger clasping his cell phone shut. He takes a seat at the wooden table adjacent to the fire place. As he slides the cell a few inches away from him, it lets out a text tone. He lunges after it flinging it open.

I'm sorry I haven't written. I just need some time away from everything.

I'm with a safe and with a trusted friend.

I promise I'll come back for you when I'm ready.

-Lenny xx

Eleanor stares at the blue outgoing text on her screen re-reading it over and over. She waits for the typing bubble to appear next to her text, but it never does.

She lets out an exacerbated sigh reaching for the bottle of vodka next to her. Grey Goose had become her only trusted friend over the last few days. She clutches her stomach aggressively rumbling for the fifth time that morning.

Eleanor had lost track of the days. She wasn't sure whether it was a Monday, or it could very well be a Friday for all she knew. She takes a swig of the dwindling vodka with no chaser.

The time difference did not seize to bother her post travel, as she was drunk pretty much around the clock. Frankly, everything since the moment Willow said 'I do' was a fucking blur. That god awful plane ride in that god awfully tight dress was the most recent concise memory she had.

And that was five days ago.

She bolted immediately after the ceremony. To be honest, Eleanor believed Willow and Robert complimented each other perfectly. Clever, cunning, charming, manipulative. And the successful wedding of the gruesome twosome wasn't the only cause for her fleeing the country.

Shortly after the ceremony, Eleanor also came to learn that that whore Kathryn had gone and gotten herself knocked up. For whatever reason, Liam is adamant it's his. Their whole relationship from the jump was disproved by his twin sister. She was their older brother's girlfriend before he was presumed dead.

But it would be brutally uncharacteristic for any of her family members to remain loyal and not turn on each other at one point or any other. It was only a matter of time before she and Jasper were targeted next.

And that's exactly why she left. To protect the both of them.

If she didn't have to see that retched palace ever again she'd be as happy as a clam. It was apparent more than ever that her late father's wishes to abolish the monarchy was warranted. He saw Robert for who he was, even as a young boy, and his preconceived fear of him being the future King was validated.

And here Eleanor was, without her father, without an ounce of trust left in her body for any member of her family.

And the only person on the planet who she did in fact trust, she ran away from.

She felt more alone than ever.

Whenever she was forced to think about Jasper, there was one simple way she vindicated her actions. She would rather temporarily leave his side to 'heal' in privacy than have him see this side of herself. The side that she hadn't seen since before her and Jasper started dating. The side to her that she was when they first met.

The dark, alcoholic, drug addicted, self-depraved scared little girl.

A few beer cans rustle beneath Eleanor's feet as she makes her path to the bathroom through the filth around her. She grimaces entering the bathroom at the harsh lighting. Her resemblance in the mirror leaves her lightly horrified. Her hair was still styled the way it was at the Royal wedding. However, it was now in tangles and knots. What appeared to be permanent mascara glued to her eyes streams down her face and a general dark patch of makeup stands out around each eye.

Her own body odor makes her queasy. Maybe not showering for 5 days straight wasn't the most hygienic route to go, but she had bigger priorities to attend to right now..

Like making sure she had more vodka as her current supply was dangerously low.

She jiggles the bottle pulling it closer to her face. There was at most another shot or two left. Picking up the tiny mirror from beneath the bed, Eleanor racks up two hefty parallel lines of cocaine. Using the cut end of a Burger King straw, she snorts them one after the other.

The sound of the front door handle jiggling causes her to jump in her seat. She viciously rubs her nose against the back of her palm as her other hand tries to screw the tiny cap of the vile containing the coke. "Shit," she hisses as the vile tips to its side, dumping its contents across the mirror and a bit on her lap. It was too late for her to clean up.

"Len?" A voice appears on the other side of the bedroom door as it slowly opens.

Eleanor has a guilty expression, with the contents of what looks like baking powder dumped on her lap and a tad on her face.

"Eleanor, I told you that you can't do that here. This is my uncle's house."

"I know, I know. I'm sorry." She brushes the contents from her lap. Next she grabs the bottle, swaying the two shot's worth in front of her. "But could you please.. pretty please get me more-"

"I can't continue to enable you, Len. This whole time you've been wasted. I'm worried about you."

"Oh come off it," Eleanor says with a change of attitude. "You know I can't go out there, I'll be spotted within minutes."

"Well, maybe that's a good thing. Have you spoken to anyone in your family? Jasper maybe?"

Eleanor aggressively rises to her feet sending the tiny mirror shattering to the ground.

"Oh don't you bloody dare use Jasper against me to try and guilt me out," she warns through gritted teeth. "DO YOU REALLY THINK I WANT ALL OF THIS?!" She references to her surroundings and herself. "DO YOU?!"

After an elongated concerned look and dramatic sigh from her friend, Eleanor regains her composure.

"I'm sorry." She sits back on the bed placing her head in between her legs. A few tears well up in her eyes.

"It's- it's okay. I'll run to the store, okay Len? I'll be right back."

"Jasper again?" Kathryn asks with a coy smile leaning against the front doorway.

Liam guiltily nods his head with half of a laugh putting his cell back in his pocket. "I'm sorry you and I haven't been able to spend any time together, it's just that-"

"It's fine," she interjects with a solemn tone. She's bites her lip staring at the ground while lightly rubbing her belly. "It does seem as though once things start to go in our favor, something pops up to ruin it, doesn't it?"

"I'll make it up to you. I promise. We should-"

A muffled ringtone emerges from his jeans as Kathryn lets out an involuntary sigh. Her big doe eyes examine his face as he lightly grimaces. He fingers the phone from his pocket as his other hand holds up one finger.

"I'm sorry, it's just- this could be Eleanor. I'll only be a moment."

Kathryn gives a half nod folding her arms together. Liam brings the screen closer to his face noticing it's an international call coming in from America. After choosing to accept the fare with the click of a button, he raises the phone to his ear.

"Hi..hi Liam? Look, I know you never thought you'd hear from me again. And frankly, I thought I would never speak to you again either," the nervous voice on the other line speaks. "But it's about your sister. I think you need to come to California. I-I would have contacted Jasper first, but I don't have his number and-and-"

They halt their anxious banter to catch their breath.

Kathryn's closely examines the stunned look on Liam's face. His mouth hangs slightly ajar as if he wanted to say something, but his brain simply couldn't connect the words. His relaxed lower lip tightens into a genuine smile that suddenly appears.

He avoids eye contact with Kathryn while rubbing the back of his neck. He visibly gains the gumption to reply to whoever it was on the phone.

"You did the right thing by calling. Jasper and I will be on our way. Oh, and.." Liam turns his back to Kathryn looking up into the night sky.

"It's really great to hear from you, Ophelia."