I do not own The Originals.
2. The In-between
At first, there was nothing but an infinite tunnel of empty space, then, Evangeline began to become aware of her own body. She started off slowly, her mind recalling the obvious facts. My name is Evangeline Langdon. I am 18 years old. My parents are Penelope and Daniel Langdon. She continued to list things in her head whilst regaining feeling in her hands and feet.
Then, suddenly, she was choking. She felt saliva build up quickly in her mouth and soft material coating her tongue. Strong hands held her up in a sitting position and she leaned sideways, spitting onto the ground.
"There, there, love," someone said, their hand patting her back in a soothing way. "It's okay, I've got you now,"
Evangeline instinctively began to push away the stranger, but they held onto her as she gripped the ground and coughed harshly again. She realised that the doughy mixture in her mouth was soil and dirt.
"Wh –" she began to say but cut herself off as pain shot to her throat. It was dry and scratchy. Instead, she looked up at her saviour. His face was darkened by the night but even under the midnight canvas dotted with white specks, she could see his handsome features – delicate jawline, a smile that lifted one side of his mouth higher than the other, slightly tousled brown hair and finally, deep brown eyes that locked onto hers.
"It's alright, love, you're safe with me,"
Before Evangeline could protest, he slid his arms underneath her and lifted her limp, tired body. She let her head fall against his shoulder. "What happened?" she whispered, wincing slightly as her throat seared with pain.
"My dear old brother killed you, sweetheart. He didn't even consider that you were of significance but then again, he's always been the one to make rash decisions, so what more could you expect?" Evangeline felt a gentle shaking of his chest. He was laughing. "But luckily, I'd known more than a few witches in my time and I knew exactly who you were the moment I laid eyes on you, Evangeline."
Evangeline turned her head and recognised her house. The kind man paused in front of it and smiled down at her, "Which room is yours, darling?"
"Up the stairs, on the left, far end," she mumbled before her head dropped again and she lost consciousness.
~()~
A loud, constant beeping invaded Evangeline's ears. Her arms reached over and picked up her phone, sliding to turn off the alarm. Then she sat up, glancing around her bedroom. Everything was perfect and pristine, just as it always was in the morning.
She moved herself to the edge of the bed, an aching pain all over her body. She stretched out and continued with her daily morning routine. In the bathroom, she took a bit of time to examine herself in her full length mirror. Her body was aching but there were no visible marks or bruises and her hair was in its usual disarrayed brown mess. Her green eyes had faint dark circles around them but other than that, she looked completely mundane. Evangeline put on her makeup before grabbing her school bag and heading downstairs. Her mom was already awake, as per usual, and making some toast for her.
"Morning, Eve," she greeted, setting down a cup of tea. "I didn't hear you come home last night, did you have fun at that festival?"
Evangeline's eyebrows furrowed slightly before she nodded, "Yeah, um, it was great." She lied, taking a large sip of her tea. It singed her throat slightly but she didn't mind. She felt like she hadn't eaten in days on end. Then, she took mouthfuls out of her toast and swallowed it down.
Her mother gave her a confused look but brushed it off, "Okay well, I'm going to take a shower. Don't be late for school." She kissed her daughter on the cheek lightly and went back upstairs.
Evangeline finished her breakfast and left, taking an apple with her. She drove to school, listening to the local radio station. Everything seemed normal. Maybe someone put something in my drink and I hallucinated.
The school morning dragged on tediously, but the unsettling feeling in her stomach was still present at break.
"Eve, seriously, you've been spaced out all morning," Cassie said, stopping in front of Eve to capture her full attention. "Are you okay?"
"I, er, didn't get much sleep last night," she mumbled.
Cassie's grey eyes widened slightly, "Does that mean what I think it means, naughty Evie?"
Evangeline giggled and hit him gently, "No! I just had a weird dream,"
"Was it a weird sex dream?"
"Well I can tell you that there was a smokin' hot guy and he held me in his big strong arms,"
"Ooooh, I'm intrigued," Cassie said as they sat down at their usual table outside.
Evangeline smiled, shrugging, "It's nothing really, I just remember that I died or something, then I was choking and this guy saved me,"
"Eve I'm disappointed – I was expecting a long detailed recollection of a hot passionate night where he caressed –"
"Oh my God, Cassie shut up!"
"Mmm, you know you love my sexual fantasies,"
Evangeline's eyes caught onto something in the shadow of the school. She strained them to look further and recognised the man from her 'dream'. He was dressed casually, a dark jacket and jeans, and all the students passed by him without batting an eyelash.
"What are you looking at?" Cassie followed Eve's gaze, only to be met with no one.
"That's the guy from my dream," Eve said, standing up and taking her bag with her. "I'll be right back,"
"Eve? Eve there's no one there!" Cassie called out after her but Eve walked straight up to the stranger. She grabbed the front of his jacket and pulled him around the corner, pushing his back against the wall.
"Wow, usually I'm the one who plays rough but, I guess I can try something new," he shrugged and smiled, not even attempting to push her away.
"You're not… real… I mean, last night was a dream. I was tired and confused."
"Real? Darling, you've got your hand on my chest. If I'm not real, then wouldn't that make you kind of crazy?"
She exhaled through her nose, letting her hand fall away. He straightened out his jacket. "So, who are you, and why are you following me?"
"My name is Kol Mikaelson. And I wanna help you." Kol introduced, his eyes locking onto hers again.
"But I don't have anything I need help with," she replied.
"Nothing at all?" he said, raising his eyebrows slightly, "What about revenge on my brother for killing you last night? Or I could help you find out more about your heritage?"
Evangeline's mouth fell open slightly before she regained herself, "I didn't die last night. I'm right here, and I'm alive."
"Sweetheart, who do you think dug you out of the ground where my brother compelled the undertakers to carelessly dump your body? Without me, you might never have gotten to see your family and friends again." He stated to her. "And now, I'm offering you my help again, an offer that I rarely extend to anyone."
"Am I supposed to feel special? Why me?"
Kol hesitated, weighing up his options before continuing, "Well, if I'm going to be honest, I need something from you in return,"
Evangeline rolled her eyes, "Oh of course," she said loudly. "I knew you wanted something. No one ever does anything out of the kindness of their hearts, do they? Well, the answer is no. I don't need your help."
The friendliness on Kol's face disappeared in an instant, "I saved your life, you know,"
"Whatever," Evangeline turned away from him but he grabbed her swiftly and pressed her back into the wall. He put his hands either side of her head and leaned in close, she could see his teeth grinding together in frustration.
"You don't understand, Evangeline. I might be dead but I can still hurt you." He threatened in a low voice.
She kept her calm as best as she could, "What do you mean you're dead?"
"You really are clueless about your past, aren't you?" He muttered, before pulling back and releasing her from the human cage he formed around her.
"What do you know about my past?" She asked, her hands still glued to her sides. She was afraid that any sudden movements would set him off again.
He sighed and held out his hand, "Come, I'll show you."
"I'm not truanting school with a man I only just met!"
"But I thought I was, and I quote, 'a smokin' hot guy who held you in his big strong arms'?" he smirked.
"I… You know it's rude to eavesdrop!" Evangeline exclaimed, blushing a little.
"And it's rude to keep one waiting." He gestured his extended hand.
She sighed, taking his hand and he grinned. "You're the type of guy who always gets what he wants and throws a tantrum when others don't comply,"
"Oh? And why would you assume that?"
"I'm good at reading people," Evangeline responds, her hand was loose around his but he held onto her tightly as they walked.
With Kol leading them somewhere, Evangeline took some time to truly admire New Orleans. The beautiful buildings and traditional cobbled floors made it one of Evangeline's favourite places, though she was quite biased in her judgement as the only other place she'd been was New York City when she was younger.
"What are you glancing around for? You look like a curious lost puppy." Kol said with an amused expression on his face.
"This is a gorgeous place and I like to appreciate it from time to time."
He didn't reply. She only felt a tugging on her hand as he pulled her out of the way of a pedestrian who seemed to come out of nowhere.
"Oh sorry," she said to her as the lady brushed past. The woman looked back at her as if studying her face but Kol pulled her hurriedly along. Then, as quickly as the lady had appeared, she seemed to fade and vanish. "Kol, did you see that?"
"Just keep walking; I'll explain when we get there,"
She obeyed him, keeping up with his paces.
After turning several times through the memorial garden they stopped by a grave stone that read:
Felicity Grace Hill
Beloved and beautiful sister.
1799 - 1826
"Am I supposed to know who this is?"
"Felicity was your great great grandmother," Kol said, a sad feeling passing over him as he remembered his past with her. He shook it off immediately. "And she was also a very powerful, very special witch."
Evangeline turned to Kol, "So you're saying I'm a witch?"
"Precisely. And being a direct descendant of Felicity, I believe you're already showing signs of becoming the next High Priestess."
"High Priestess? You're kidding me, right?" She glanced at Kol, seeing that his expression was deadly serious.
He ignored her and preceded with his explanation, "The High Priestess is the most power witch of a Coven. She's a born leader who's independent and strives to protect her sisters. To obtain this authority, one must kill the previous High Priestess and take her place however, rarely; a witch can be born with the powers naturally."
"I'm guessing Felicity was a natural-born Priestess thing?"
Kol nodded, "She's the only one I've ever met."
"So, why would you think that I'm so special? I mean, from what you've told me, it could easily be my mom or her mom…"
"Evangeline, you brought yourself back from the dead." He stated.
"How do you know someone else didn't do it?" Evangeline questioned. "Maybe someone else brought me back."
"Then how do you explain the fact that you can interact with me? Evangeline, you're bridging the gap between the supernatural plane and the living. When I'm standing next to you, everyone else can see me too, you're bringing life to a ghost. But when I'm far enough away, only you can communicate with me and see me."
"This is crazy,"
"No, it's not. And you know it's not. That lady in the street we bumped into – she's the ghost of a dead werewolf, wandering around New Orleans. When she walked by you, you felt her brush against you but when we walked away, she disappeared again. You see, Evangeline, that's one of the gifts that Felicity also possessed. She could give life to the dead,"
"If I can give life," Evangeline said, glancing at Kol. "Can I also take it away?"
Kol seemed to be taken aback by her question, but he nodded.
Evangeline looked back at the grave stone. So everything that Davina's family had been saying was true, everything about the supernatural and witches. That means that Evangeline had truly died last night, and she wasn't going to let someone get away with murdering her and threatening Davina. "Kol, tell me more about her powers."
A/N - Hello! Thank you again for reading, as you can see, I brought Kol back in my story! I wish they did on the real show as well. Anyway, we shall find out more about Evangeline and her past sooner or later but I hope you've enjoyed this so far. Review/Favourite/Follow!
