"Come on, Alec," she laughed at his hesitation. "Ghosts don't bite. Maybe they do, but you'll just have to find out for yourself."
"The Elders told us to steer clear of this place if we have no reason to be here."
Carter mocked Alec's serious tone and said, "The Elders won't know we're here, silly."
Alec swallowed the lump in his throat. The dim moonlight was their only light source in the dark night and he wished to stay in its company but Carter yanked at his arm impatiently and jerked her head at the rusted gates. She raised her brow as if she was challenging him and whipped around before she sprinted for the witches' old burial ground. The tinkling giggles trailed after her in the silent night. Alec sighed and ran a trembling hand through his ruffled hair. He shoved his hands deep into his pockets before he hastily followed Carter. She had climbed over the brick walls with ease and was nowhere to be seen. Alec had climbed over and landed in the shrubs with a low hiss as they scratch at his skin. He peered into the blinding darkness, in search of a streak of bronze hair. He could feel his heart thump wildly against his ribcage as he called out for Carter. The old cemetery always made him anxious.
"Boo!" Carter jumped from behind with a boisterous laugh. "Since when do I have to force the fun out of you Alec?"
He grimaced. Alec slid his trembling hands back into his pockets to hide his anxiousness and followed Carter blindly, who danced her way along the abandoned road, then she stopped suddenly. Her bronze hair cascaded down her shoulder as she threw a glance over her shoulder at her sombre friend. The canopy above casted dark shadows onto her grinning face, there were small patches of light invading the darkness but it was barely any help. Carter's bright eyes gleamed in the shadows like a stalking cat. Alec's uneasiness began to grow. The cemetery held a mysterious essence, dead yet alive. He pushed aside his growing fear and accompanied Carter in her drunken state; although she worries Alec more when she is sober than she is drunk.
"Let's go back to my house." Alec reasoned. "If your brother knows I let you in here, he'll murder us both."
Carter groaned loudly. "What is it with you Alec? It's only a bit of fun."
A scream pierced the silent air. The leaves in the canopy rattled in the sudden gust of wind and the unearthly shadows turned into distorted creatures. Carter paused. She noticed that Alec was ready to flee but he caught her eyes and closed their distance with his hands around hers. His hulking figure shivered in fear beneath the jacket as he towered over Carter by a few inches. The winds began to howl eerily and she fell to the floor at the immense pain that struck her. Alec paled. She gritted her teeth and clutched her head which throbs painfully. The eerie gusts of wind were unnaturally cold for a summer night and it carried a sense of magic with it, a strange sensation. Carter gasped breathlessly at the incessant drilling in her head and let out a scream. Alec frantically wrapped her in his arms and as he tried tirelessly to stop the pain with spells but she continued to thrash and squirm. He could feel the beads of sweat trickling down her temple after several treacherous minutes. Alec recited the last healing spell he memorized – unsure whether it will work. And she stopped. Relief washed over him as he found Carter's troubled eyes. They were free of tears. Alec chuckled weakly; he should've known that Carter isn't one to cry.
"What happened?" Alec asked breathlessly.
"The magic was powerful…" she muttered. "They tried to strip me of my magic."
"They?"
Carter could still hear the dulling screams. Alec helped her to her feet and she quickly started towards the labyrinth of monuments and family stones.
"Find the Elders."
Before Alec could react, Carter had already bolted into the labyrinth. Her breathing came in rapid pants as she weaved around the colossal monuments over the graves, following the man's painful screeches. She could hear another pair of feet sprinting along the ground behind her and cursed aloud at Alec's idiocy but she didn't stop to tell him off. Carter dashed past the last row of gravestones before she burst into a clearing in the core of the cemetery. The torches of fire blazed brightly under the moonlight and the eerie howls of the winds carried the strange incantations to her ears. Carter observed her surrounding with a bewildered look, every elder in the community is present. They stood on their knees between the flaming torches each, arms rested by their sides and their lips murmuring rapid recitations. Carter shuffled back hurriedly but paused when the writhing man on the altar shrieked again. There was a woman sitting by his head with both her hands pressing into his temples, he growled once more and the pain in his body made him arch towards the sky. He struggled to breathe through the immense pain. Carter could feel his magic being stripped away unwillingly and she knew everyone else could too, it was only the matter of saving him from this cruelty.
"Where's Carter! Don't do this… please. Where is she?" His throat is raw from the screaming and every breath felt as if a thousand minuscule needles are jabbed into his throat.
"Oliver!" Carter shrieked and raced to the altar.
An arm snaked around her waist and pulled her close. Alec's cheek pressed against her temple and his breath prickled her naked skin. Carter thrashed in his hold as he dragged her away from the ritual and held her prisoner on the edge of the clearing. She is strong but Alec is stronger. The girl stopped fighting and let her heart clatter to the ground as she watched her brother die before her eyes. "Oliver's the only family I have, Alec. Don't do this to us."
He said nothing. The Elder, Camilla, glanced over at the duo with a small smirk on her lips as if she enjoyed seeing Carter squirm restlessly as she stand on the sidelines while her brother waste away with every breath. Carter only glared at her menacingly. She watched her dying brother, the tears glistened in her eyes but she was too stubborn to cry. Alec struggled with Carter's lack of protests and fight for her brother, her silence was deafening. The Carter he knew fought for everyone she loved so hard but now she was slumped against him lifelessly. Camilla pulled out the sacrificial dagger from its sheath and raised it over Oliver's heart. The ruby embedded into the hilt of the dagger gleamed in the wash of moonlight as she brought it down to Oliver's chest and plunged it deep into his heart. Carter gasped violently and screamed as she frantically clutched at her chest to remove the immense weight that landed on her.
"Breathe."
Carter jerked away from Alec with a hiss. "You knew, didn't you?"
She crawled to her feet and ran from Alec in disgust. He was tempted to chase after her, knowing that he could catch up to her easily, but hesitated as Camilla started towards him. The hem of the robe she wore scraped along the leaf-littered ground as she walked. There was a subtle hint of arrogance and royalty in the way she moved and it disturbed him. Camilla glanced at the trail of stirring leaves Carter had left.
"Is she going to be a trouble, Alec?"
"No Grandmother, her magic is pure."
"Then leave her be."
Carter squirmed in the harsh warmth that penetrated the glass panes. She groaned into her pillow and remained on her stomach as the heat continued to burn her naked back. Somehow, she always welcomed any numbing pain that disrupted her heartache. The dreams never left. It always hovered in her subconscious mind. It horrifies Carter to even sort through the events in her mind. No one had answers to her confusion: Why did no one save my brother while he was brutally murdered on the altar? Watching Oliver struggle to draw his last breath brought a stab of pain in her chest, and Carter relives it every waking moment. She jostled off the bed and slipped on a pair of grey cotton shorts and the oversized shirt that was crumpled on the ground. Her fingers pulled at her knotted hair absently and let it rest on her shoulders.
She moved over to the glass window panes to observed the bustling city in silence. Carter loved the normality in the on goers' lives. It was constant. And that's what Carter wants so desperately, but being a witch only lower the odds at normalcy. She raised a finger as if to trace the city, it is so full of life that she felt the need to bask in its glory. It was the main reason as to why she chose Brooklyn. There are enough distractions for her to last a lifetime, and that's what she needs.
The phone on the bedside table began to buzz incessantly. Carter frowned at the device but made no move to answer it. Whatever it was, it can wait. The ringing died but returned not soon after. Carter glared at it and snatched it from the table in two strides of her long legs. Her nostrils flared in anger at the disruption of her peace.
"Who is it?"
"Your one and only." the voice on the other end of the line announced. "And I am the bearer of good news."
Carter sighed in relief and pushed back her loitering fringe. "Brilliant. I can't stand the bad news you bring to me every other week, Lenny."
"This darling witch dug her way all the way to China." Lenny joked light heartedly.
"Well?" she pressed eagerly.
The amusement from her voice had vanished entirely as she spoke. "Kol Mikaelson wants to raise the dead."