Disclaimer: I do not own American Horror Story. I only own my OC.

A/N: I didn't think I would update so soon but here's another chapter. It's short but I hope you guys still enjoy it. I'm once again rewatching old seasons of AHS. Right now I am Season 8. Guess that's why I had a need to update this story again.


"She had a strange feeling in the pit of her stomach, like when you're swimming and you want to put your feet down on something solid, but the water's deeper than you think and there's nothing there." ― Julia Gregson, East of the Sun


Chapter 13: Mommy dearest

"I'm telling you, Zoe..." Layla soberly began telling the darker blonde. The two teens were on their way back to Robichaux's Academy with Layla now in the passenger seat and Zoe once again driving. "He was scared...like really scared when he went inside the house with her."

Since leaving Kyle behind with his mother the curly blond's fear had stuck with her. That's why she kept insisting to Zoe that something wasn't right. Zoe's mild responses did nothing to help. Not even listening to What The Water Gave Me by Florence and The Machine on the car radio eased her worries. Layla ended up turning off the radio entirely.

"It's his mother, Layla." Zoe tried to reason with her yet again. There was a brief pause and then she added extra reassurance with a softer tone. "It's the first time he's seen her since the accident. I think him being skittish is normal because he's been with us and Misty. His memories with her should be returning, so he's probably settled by now"

"If you say so." Layla muttered in reluctance. The green eyed witch could have persisted in her worry but she knew by now that it would be an endless loop. She decided to let it go for the moment.

"Besides, Alicia has my number in case anything happens." Zoe swiftly reminded her.

Layla nodded her head, remembering that Zoe had given the older woman her number before leaving.

Zoe had done this was a way for Alicia to communicate with her once Kyle returned home. Despite the immense joy Alicia must have felt at seeing her son, Zoe knew that she must have also been confused. And it wasn't like Alicia could talk to just anyone about her son coming back to life. If the Spencer woman were to mention her son was alive and not dead as the police had told her, it would have been to one of the girls who visited her earlier that day. Especially since the visit had been about Kyle.

Layla was just glad it hadn't been her number that was given to Alicia. As much as she wanted to keep track of Kyle's well-being, she didn't want to speak with Alicia more than she had to. Zoe, however, didn't seem to share the same dislike that Layla was doing her best to stop from festering. But Layla did no complaining when Zoe gave Alicia her number.

There was silence in the car up until Zoe turned into the familiar street that led to their academy. Layla suddenly saw the moving truck parked in front of the house next door to their academy as they passed it. She quirked an eyebrow. "New neighbors?" Up until now that house had been unoccupied. It was a big house, almost as big as Robichaux's, so she wondered who moved in.

Zoe had seen the moving truck too and she now wore a curious look. "I guess."

When Zoe parked the car Layla saw that Cordelia's personal car wasn't there. So that meant she was out. That would mean there wouldn't be any questioning as to why Zoe and her had taken the extra car they had for emergencies. Maybe it was too much to hope for but Layla still thought that perhaps neither Cordelia or even Fiona noticed the missing car.

Layla wasn't up for a lecture at the moment, even if it was deserved for taking the car without permission. When Zoe and her entered the academy she expected them to be confronted even with the knowledge that Cordelia wasn't there. And they were...but by someone else and it wasn't because of the car issue.

"You two like him."

Layla stopped in her tracks, followed by Zoe. Nan's voice had Layla looking her way with furrowed brows.

Nan was in the main room, sitting on the couch with a book on her lap. Processing what Nan said made Layla want to blush. She thankfully was able to somewhat stop her blush from spreading. Layla continued to calm herself as she and Zoe exchanged looks for the briefest of moments. That went on until Zoe narrowed her eyes at Nan.

"Excuse me?" Zoe questioned with a small frown.

"You're both thinking about a boy. I can tell." Nan nonchalantly brought up. She directed her gaze onto Zoe and released a puckish smile. "And you're also thinking about"

Zoe was quick to cut Nan off because she knew how that sentence was going to end. The darker blonde witch didn't need Layla to know those thoughts about her. "You know it's rude to get into people's heads like that."

Nan rolled her eyes. "You think I like having to hear other people's thoughts all this time? I don't."

Zoe's response was a simple one since she didn't personally understand the struggles that came with being Clairvoyant. "So stop."

"It doesn't work that way." Layla sympathetically added into the conversation. She really did wish Nan the best when it came to fully controlling her power to read people's thoughts.

"She's right." Nan agreed, glad that at least Layla was able to understand how difficult it was to be Clairvoyant. Queenie could at times be understanding too, but she didn't have as much patience with her like the Bradshaw girl did. At least Zoe wasn't as harsh to her as Madison had been in the past. "I wish I could." She reached into her bag for her red headphones. "These help."

They were noise canceling headphones. Cordelia had been kind enough to buy it for her when she first arrived at the academy. The older witch expected her to use them less and less as she learned to control her powers. But although they weren't a permanent solution, they did help. Nan put them on and set the volume to the highest there was. She then continued reading her book.

The girls looked at each other again until Layla eventually shrugged her shoulders to Zoe. They took Nan's lack of attention as their cue to leave, and they did just that.

Layla and Zoe only made it halfway up the stairs when they ran into Queenie. She wasn't by herself though. There was a middle aged woman that neither Layla or Zoe knew. The woman had short brown hair that was done neatly and was wearing a maid's uniform. Layla immediately found that to be a bit odd because Spalding was the butler of the academy. There wasn't a maid but perhaps Cordelia or maybe Fiona hired more help?

Zoe was thinking the same thing, so with that in mind, she pushed aside her confusion. She politely greeted her fellow witch. "Hey, Queenie."

"Hi, Queenie." Layla nodded her head in greeting. She waited until Queenie returned their greetings before she spoke again. This time she made her curiousness known. "Who's this?" She quietly asked as she eyed the woman with sudden wariness. The Bradshaw girl had never seen this woman before, and even with not knowing her, she was getting a major bad vibe from her.

"My slave." Queenie answered with a cold tone.

Zoe furrowed her eyebrows slightly, not entirely sure how to process her comment. She knew that the coldness in Queenie's voice wasn't aimed at either Layla or her based on the way Queenie was glancing at the older woman with aversion.

Layla blinked rapidly needing a moment to fully gather what they had been told. Queenie's firm reply staggered her and perplexed Zoe. When Layla was finally able to find her voice her response was filled with bewilderment. "Huh?" She obviously felt the severe dislike Queenie had for the woman...she could practically taste the dislike and it was bleh. The dislike was strong and it went both ways.

Layla focused more on Queenie's feelings than the woman's. She tried her best to figure out what was happening. Even with trying to figure things out on her own she still came out empty handed. She let out a sigh.

"I'll explain later." Queenie replied knowing that this would need a full explanation and not just a quick one. She really wanted to share with both Layla and Zoe about why this woman deserved to be treated harshly because of her messed up beliefs. Queenie hadn't forgotten about how she hit her head with a candlestick the other day, and what she called her earlier today. Nan and Madison had been present for that and she saw their shocked expressions when the woman called her by that name. Queenie herself had been more mad than shocked. She sure wasn't going to let go of the grudge she had for her anytime soon.

The woman muttered something that none of the girls were able to hear clearly but her glare showed the verbal irritation they missed. Queenie wasn't at all fazed by the way the woman was scowling at her. Before the older woman was able to retort anything, Queenie ordered for her to go into the kitchen and Layla and Zoe watched as the woman begrudgingly did as she was told.

Queenie nodded at them before she went into the main room.

Once it was just the two of them again on the academy's stairs, Layla looked at Zoe. Her expression showed exactly how she was feeling. "So...?" She drawled.

Zoe was just as bemused. "I don't know. We'll have to wait until she tells us later."

"Did you...?" Layla pointed to where the middle aged woman walked off into the kitchen.

"Get iffy vibes from her?" Zoe finished with narrowed eyes. "Yeah, I did."

Layla was going to say she got full on bad vibes but iffy for the meantime was close enough. They'd learn more about who this woman was later on.

This time the girls went upstairs without running into anybody else. There were no words needed to know where exactly they were headed to. Layla's bedroom. The moment the Bradshaw girl opened her door she immediately heard Orion let out a loud happy sounding meow. The black cat was on her bed, appearing to have been waiting for her to return.

Layla took a seat on her bed and when she did Orion jumped onto her lap. "Hey, Orion." She cooed the black cat that was seeking for her affection. She happily began petting him.

"He really missed you." Zoe said in awe, and slight surprise. She slowly took a seat next to her, not wanting to annoy the black cat. She was happy that Orion hadn't stopped to just stare at her with those intense eyes of his. Although the staring was a lot better than hissing.

Orion's overall loving attitude towards Layla had Zoe somewhat bemused at times but she really was growing accustomed to the way he was only ever really nice to Layla. As long as he wasn't hissing at her, or trying to scratch her like he did with Madison, Zoe wasn't about to go complaining to Layla about the way Orion behaved with her.

"I wasn't gone that long." Layla softly told Orion as she continued petting him. His loud purring made her giggle. "Don't be so dramatic."

"He can't be the dramatic one here. That's all Madison." Zoe joked with a smile. Given the stressed out day they had, a little lighthearted joke was needed. Layla smiled as well but it was soon replaced with a frown.

"Where is Madison anyway?" Layla asked. Madison hadn't made her presence known to either of them since they arrived at the academy. It wasn't like Layla was expecting Madison to politely greet them or anything. Madison wasn't one for proper greetings. Except she found it weird that Layla hadn't even gotten a glimpse of the blonde actress when upstairs. She wasn't in Zoe and hers bedroom because when they had passed the bedroom the door had been opened, and there was no Madison there. She'd been there at some point because Zoe had closed the bedroom door when she left early in the morning with Layla.

Maybe Layla was overthinking it, and she was probably being silly, but that not having Madison there with her usual bitchiness worried her for some reason.

Zoe became thoughtful before she shrugged her shoulders. "She's probably out."

That somewhat made Layla feel a bit better. What Zoe said did sound like something Madison would do. She definitely was the type to go out at the last minute. Layla just wondered where she'd gone. It wasn't like she could call her. Well, she could but most likely Madison wouldn't answer her. What would be the point? She could only hope that she'd come back before it caused too many issues with Cordelia or Fiona.

Layla watched Orion nestle in her lap as her petting came to a halt. Her green eyes then switched over to Zoe. "So what else were you thinking about?" She went on to ask.

Zoe's features were of puzzlement now. "What?"

Layla shrugged her shoulders. "Well, Nan said you were thinking about something else. What was it?" Zoe just stare at Layla with slightly wide eyes causing Layla to turn sheepish. She tried giving the darker blonde a smile, letting her know she had a change of mind. Of course she had to continue talking because why not make a bigger fool of herself? "Never mind you don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

Zoe was flushed. "Uh..."

Layla was quick to notice (and feel) Zoe's flushed state but she didn't read much into it because she automatically assumed it had to do with Kyle. Which it did, but if Layla had thoroughly analyzed Zoe's feelings she would have understood the whole reasoning behind her flushed state. That it had more to do than just her feelings for Kyle. Amusingly, due to Layla's naivety though, she was still unaware of Zoe's feelings for her.

The Benson girl continued to struggle with her response. "Well..."

Zoe was interrupted by the ringing of her cellphone. She was beyond relieved that she could use that as an excuse to not answer. The darker blonde quickly reached for her cellphone and answered it.

"Hello?" There was a pause and then Zoe answered as kindly as possible. "Oh, hey, Alicia." That right away had Layla paying extra close attention. She even leaned a little more further towards Zoe causing Orion to move out of her lap with a disgruntled meow. The Bradshaw girl though didn't notice. She was waiting for Zoe to reply to whatever Alicia was telling her. When she did Layla felt her disquieted.

"We'll be right over." Zoe said and then ended the call.

Feeling Zoe's disquieted made Layla want to know what was going on. She straightened her posture, giving Zoe space. "What's going on?"

"That was Alicia." Zoe let out a sigh. "She told me about Kyle coming back to her but that she thinks he's not himself."

"He came back from the dead." Layla gravely said. "Not that she knows that but of course he's going to be different."

Zoe pursed her lips. "Yeah but she thinks it's not him at all."

Who wouldn't be after finding out their supposed dead son wasn't actually dead? Layla thought solemnly. "So we're going over?" She asked. The Bradshaw girl really wanted to go over to check on Kyle. She found herself to be more worried about him than his panicked and very bewildered mother.

Zoe nodded her head. "She invited us for dinner."

Layla bit her bottom lip from anxiousness. She was aware that if they were to leave now, when they had just returned, it would probably raise suspicion. Especially if they were to leave and not return before Cordelia. However, neither Layla or Zoe could just ignore Alicia's call about Kyle. They needed to check up on him. So with that a decision was permanently made.

"This is totally not going to be awkward, or weird." Layla finally commented, trying to be sarcastic. The sarcasm was light and she didn't sound as bitchy as Madison would have but the attitude was there alright. Not that the attitude was aimed at Kyle, because it wasn't. It was aimed only at his mother, and Layla knew this was due to weird feeling she got from her. Although she had no idea why exactly she felt this way towards her. She just did.

Zoe could already imagine how things were about to go once they arrived at the Spencer house. Awkward and weird fit the image she had perfectly. But she suspected something like this to maybe happen. She looked at Layla with a serious expression. "We should leave now. It's going to get dark soon."

Layla nodded her head agreeing. "From the looks of it Fiona isn't here. Maybe we'll return before either her or Cordelia notices we're not here."

Zoe held onto the same optimism as her. "Yeah, maybe. If not...well..." She couldn't really finish that sentence because she couldn't come up with something that would explain their absence.

"We'll think of something." Layla offered calmly. Although she had no idea right now what she would say either, perhaps she'd think of something along the way. She looked over to where Orion was watching the two of them with what appeared to be interest. "Wish us luck, Orion?" The darker haired teen said in a soft voice.

Orion in return meowed lowly before he jumped off the bed. Him walking out of the bedroom with his tail up high had both girls shaking their heads.

"That wasn't very comforting." Zoe muttered.

Layla let out a huff. "Nope, it sure wasn't."


It was pitch black when Layla and Zoe finally arrived at the Spencer residence.

The atmosphere was definitely eerie even with the few surrounding houses that had their porch lights on and the street lights. From the second Layla got out of the car she felt her stomach drop from uneasiness. The feeling didn't go away even when they reached the front door. Unlike with the other houses the front porch light to the Spencer house wasn't on.

That was weird especially since Alicia had invited them over for dinner. They would have expected she'd leave it on for them.

The Bradshaw girl got a bad feeling in her stomach but it wasn't enough to take a hold of Zoe's hand and run away just yet. Layla let out a sigh as she rang the doorbell. A few seconds passed and when there was no answer she pressed the button again. She furrowed her eyebrows when the door remained unanswered.

"I'm just gonna knock." Zoe said and did just that. She only knocked once because after the first knock the door slowly opened itself. It had been unlocked this whole time.

Now that was even more weird...and it left Layla feeling chary. She was able to gain courage when she looked at Zoe. The darker blonde gave her a quick nod and Layla returned it. They both cautiously entered the Spencer residence knowing they couldn't just leave. Both girls came over for a reason and that was to check up on Kyle.

Layla cleared her throat and chose to speak when they were further inside the house. "Hello?" To her disappointment there was no answer and it had her gulping.

"Alicia?" Zoe called out. "It's Zoe and Layla."

Once again there was no answer.

When they walked into the living room the teen witches saw that the TV was on but with no program. The lights in the living room were also on but they were low and that did nothing to lower the creepiness.

The kitchen was their next stop and still there was no sight of either Alicia or Kyle. Layla and Zoe looked around kitchen until they walked over to the door that was next to the fridge. Zoe opened the door only for her and Layla to see the lights in there were turned off. Needing the reassurance that she'd be okay with going in there, Zoe reached for Layla's hand. Layla didn't let go of her hand as they walked into the dark hallway. Their hand holding seemed to be a natural thing.

However, the hand holding ended when they came to the end of the hallway. There was a bedroom with the door opened and the lights were on inside. What Layla and Zoe saw next was horrifying. It was a gruesome scene right from a horror movie.

Alicia was on the ground, her face a bloody mess. Or what was left of it. The woman's face was literally smashed in. Both girls quickly turned around only to come face to face with a blood covered Kyle. The curly blond was holding a trophy. Layla right away thought this was the murder weapon based on the blood on it. Aside from the blood that was on his face, Kyle had on a blank expression as he stared at them.

The first to scream was Zoe and then Layla. The darker haired teen's scream wasn't as loud as Zoe's but the scream nonetheless made Kyle drop the trophy. He backed up, stumbling. Kyle proceeded to fall onto his knees. His expression was now one of distressed emotion as he began to tremble.

Layla moved towards him, nervous but also worried. Zoe shook off whatever fear was there as she followed Layla's moves. They stood in front of where Kyle was now kneeling on the floor.

Kyle gazed up and with a relieved sounding cry he hurriedly reached for their hands. Both girls, despite having been spooked by him, didn't pull away when Kyle huddled closer to them. Even with the blood that was all over his face they could tell he was just as scared based on the whimpers he was letting out. Layla felt his emotional pain the most because of her Pathokinesis and it made her want to cry with him. She could tell that he was taking their warmth as well needed comfort.

Something must have happened to have caused him to kill his mother in that brutal way. But what exactly? Layla wondered. She felt the same type of puzzlement come from Zoe, along with shock. Which made sense. Even with their confusion, the shock from what was happening stuck.

After Kyle's whimpering had come to a stop, Layla and Zoe stared at each other with wide eyes. It was obvious what they were each thinking at that very second.

What were they going to do now?