Title: Ties That Bind
Author: Cassandra E
Rating: M
Disclaimer: Not mine, characters belong to the lovely LJ. Smith and the CW, with the exception of new characters needed for plot purposes, those are mine.
Spoilers: Takes place after the events in episode 3.9 Homecoming for now. Also, I am sure show canon will change as it goes on, so this will probably be AU anyway in the long run.
Pairings: bits of Elena/Stefan, Elena/Damon, Katherine/Damon, possible Elijah/Katherine, Niklaus/Original Petrova, but mostly and eventual Elena/Klaus
Warning: Possible character deaths or redeath. I mean, come on, half of them are already dead. Anyway, don't hate me too much.
A/N: Just an idea I had. Ubeta'd for now, since I am trying to get out of a creative writing slump, so I am semi winging it. I cleaned it up as much as I could. So far, this story I have outlined up to chapter 7 and I am calculating it will be 20 chapters long, give or take. I will probably go back and revise any grammar and flow issues (hopefully my super beta will take pity on me later down the line).
Summary: AU. She lied to herself. Elena knew that by running, all she was doing was enticing the chase. There was no use escaping the past, when a dead girl's face stared back her every time she looked in a mirror.
Holy water cannot help you now
See I've had to burn your kingdom down
And no rivers and no lakes, can put the fire out
I'm gonna raise the stakes; I'm gonna smoke you out
Seven Devils, Florence and the Machine
Prologue:
The temperature dropped in the evening announcing the early arrival of fall in Mystic Falls. Not that this mattered to a ghost—they were beyond such trivialities. Ayana slept, though she was still able to sense the change of seasons through what magic she had left. A gust of wind rustled leaves on the forest floor near the mouth of the old cave, carrying whispers to her. Memories and regret clung like cobwebs in her mind as time passed and the world changed. Nevertheless, this limbo allowed Ayana to observe the world, how mortals made the same mistakes time and time again. It would be so simple to interfere, but that was not her place anymore—it never was. A balance must be kept, always. So she watched and slept, if one could call it that—finding stillness in her mind that allowed her to fall into a haze of a dream within dreams. Sometimes she would wake on her own, forget who she was and little by little the memories would come back into awareness.
Though there were times when she was awoken, startled into being. Like now.
"Ayana. Ayana," hands shook her from her slumber. She knew who it was before her eyes snapped open in anger. "Esther."
The blonde woman scolded her, "I have been looking for you, searching…and all this time you were here. Out of the places, you rest here." The last part said in sadness as she scanned the drawings on the cave walls. Her hand lightly reached as if to trace the rune letters of name in particular. Niklaus.
Ayana roughly pushed away and stood up. "Sometimes, Esther, the dead are allowed their sleep, or have you forgotten?"
"You must help me, Ayana, the balance has to be restored." Esther frowned, clasping her hands together in supplication. "I cannot have true peace until…I fix what I have forced upon my children."
"You made your bed, now lie in it, my lady," Ayana said. "Besides, the dead do not interfere in the business of the living."
Esther's lips tightened into a thin line of displeasure. "He broke the curse, he figured out that girl must live. He is free to do as he wills; he will destroy the world, Ayana! I must stop him. I should have done it from the start. He is too impulsive to know how to control…"
Ayana interrupted her. "I have always found curious how the children must bear the mistakes made by their family. I warned you and Mikael, so very long ago. I warned you, Esther!" Anger took hold of her, causing the earth around the cave to shake and tremor, causing rocks fall from the ceiling. She shook and curled her hands into fists, her stare accusing, "Leave me be, I wish to be in peace. Or do you forget that reason I am still here is because of you?"
Esther looked away, ashamed. "Mikael is dead and the weapon carved from the tree is destroyed. The doppelganger still lives. I…failed in…eliminating her. I did not consider other factors that would interfere in this matter. As long as she lives, Niklaus will burn down the world in his recklessness."
Ayana laughed bitterly at her old friend."Good riddance to that bastard. It was because of him you committed such foolishness. His damnable pride. You always hated that girl, did you not? You always envied her place with the wolves. She is the bane of your very existence and of your son's. To think if she would have lived, she would have been the source of great magic that would keep the balance between both worlds. The gods favored her and you ended her life to fix the mess you made. Did you not think that there would consequences, Esther? You should have never touched the girl or done what you did. The darkness you unleashed, that balance is forever lost and humanity now pays for it."
Esther narrowed her eyes, resentment shining through. "I had to protect my family! I warned her to stay away from my family. It is her fault Henrik was taken away from me. She destroyed everything, she placed my son's life in danger! She was an imbalance to begin with, Ayana, she never should have lived and now this particular doppelganger lives still."
Ayana countered back. "You forget, old friend, that Goddess spared and blessed her. She will always live on now and she will be reborn time and again. You never accepted the fact that he choose her over you, hmmm? In the end, your own son did as well."
Esther shrugged, hiding her anger in a mask of nonchalance. "It matters not now. What was done, was done. I am only trying to make things right once more. He must be bound again."
"In that case, so are the rest of your children. This isn't just about Niklaus, so don't presume to pull the wool over my eyes, Esther. I am dead and old, but not stupid. I do not know what agenda you carry, but I will not be part of it. I refused you before and I will refuse you again."
Esther changed tactics, pleading once more. "I need help in binding him, again, Ayana. I don't have magic strong enough to do so in this realm. The other witches…shun me. You were my friend once, your magic is still great, your line lives on…"
"Once was a very long time ago. We are friends no more," Ayana stated with an air of finality. A whisper of a familiar voice spoke to her, making her pause. The girl materialized out of nowhere, dark eyes and a long braid of hair trailing over her shoulder. She wore a one shoulder buckskin dress the color of ivory, trimmed in indigo blue; Ayana looked at Esther, then at the girl again.
The girl spoke softly, "She cannot see me. Only you. You must help him, Ayana."
"Give me one good reason why I must help…you?"
Esther answered without knowing who the question was directed at. It was true; the older woman could not see her. "He is my son, I caused this, I bound Niklaus to protect him, to protect others, I must restore the balance."
The girl glared at the blonde woman. "She's lying. Do not trust her."
Ayana asked. "You never did, did you?"
Esther frowned, confused at the question. "I never did what?"
The girl's anger melted away, smiling sadly at older woman, "Love him. Hers was a selfish love. She never loved him enough. He always knew that."
" That poor boy was just a pawn to you. Do not lie to me; I knew what you planned for Niklaus. You knew of the prophecy and girl's part in it. But Henrik's death changed things, is not so? You listened to Mikael's pride and your own."
Esther stiffened at the accusation. "We all make mistakes, Ayana. I am just trying to rectify them."
The girl said, "He can be saved. There is a way. He is darkness, but where there is darkness, there is light. It's there, Ayana, I know it is there. This was never meant to happen."
Ayanna shook her head. What Esther said was true despite her own personal feelings in regards to her son. Niklaus was an abomination and affront to nature, such a dangerous being should not exist. "The balance cannot be restored. You cannot undo what is."
"You do not understand. She is the balance. The girl must live." The girl smiled sadly, touching her throat in memory. "Just as I did not. You did foresee it after all."
Ayana nodded, agreeing. She hoped not to regret her meddling and would pray to the Goddess and the spirits for forgiveness. Maybe if she would have intervened and succeeded in convincing Esther long ago, things would've turned out differently. Maybe after all this was over, she could finally rest in peace. Bring them both peace.
Ayana looked at her friend, "Very well, I will help you, Esther. It will not be easy and it could cause more harm than good. What you are asking has never been done before."
Demurely, she bowed her in gratitude, but Esther's smile was one of triumph. "You won't regret this, Ayana. This is a good thing we are doing."
Ayana caught the bare whisper of bitter laced words as the girl began to fade away.
"I never did trust her. But she did slit my throat and killed my mother—so my judgment maybe slightly hindered in respect to Lady Esther. Be wary of her, Ayana. Love, even a mother's love leads to recklessness. I will help you when the time comes. "
And then she was gone.
The man sniffed the air, following the scent of decay and death. The wind made it easy for him, carrying it to him that all he had to do was follow. It didn't take long to find the shallow graves woods near the mountains. The area was quiet, given that the local animals had avoided scavenging the area. The scent of spilled blood still clung to the air, along with a familiar one. The man's eyes shifted to light amber as he recognized it. "Niklaus."
Rage nearly overtook him and he howled his frustration. The bastard had eluded him for the past eleven centuries. The last time he had been this close was during the 15th century, in England, but once again, with the help of his brother, Niklaus had once again managed to escape.
He mourned his fallen brothers and sisters a moment longer before following the scent further, when another scent caught his attention as he neared a shallow lake, a very familiar one, though it was not possible unless it was another doppelganger. He inhaled deeply, letting it fill his lungs, breathing her scent in. Yes, it was her. She had been here.
The man eyes widen in disbelief, he couldn't believe his good fortune. Oh, he will destroy Niklaus in the best way possible, but finding the girl would sweeten the deal considerably.
He pulled out his cell phone, dialing the number quickly, "Otto, yeah, get the pack together. I have a scent. Yeah, it was him. No, he had the consideration to clean up his mess this time. Have Xavier run a photo scan, she had to be near the area. Yeah, it's her. I am certain it's her. I don't care if he has her. She's mine."
No sooner had he shut the phone closed, when he saw her. His breath caught in his throat. She was still has lovely as ever. The last time she had appeared before him was when he killed the dark haired girl in Germany. His prey had shared a vague resemblance to her, but her eyes had been blue. He did not make her death an easy one after the assault.
She had looked down on him as she did now. Some things would never change.
The girl said with contempt in her voice. "I was never yours, Cimil. Even after all these years, you still don't see that. We will never belong to you."
Cimil chuckled, the shock wearing off. "That's where you are wrong, Iskra. This girl, she will fulfill the prophecy; you recall the prophecy don't you? The one you died before fulfilling? The best part is she will lead me to Niklaus. I will stop that abomination from destroying our bloodlines."
Iskra offered only silence as she faded away. Cimil smiled at her sullen retreat, speaking to the empty woods around him, in case she was still nearby. "Besides, I am not going to kill her, if that's what you are worried about, Iskra, you know why? She's not like the others, they were just…practice. This girl, she has your damned treacherous face and I am going to have so much fun with her. "