Author's note
I'm sorry it took me so long to update. It's been a crazy and stressful year. I had to write my dissertation, decide what I want to do next year and had little time and inspiration to write. But, I've finished my dissertation, decided what I'll be doing next year and I finished my exams. Hooray. I just hope that I will now be able to update on a regular basis, through I won't make any promises. I have some ideas for my own stories that I would like to work on, so I'll be focusing on that as well. Anyhow, thanks to everyone who stuck by this story and welcome to the new readers.
Thank you for reading/following/favouriting/reviewing, it's much appreciated (especially reviews, I love to know what you think and whether you like the changes or not)
"Always and forever," the words left Evanna's mouth, confirming what Nik had just uttered. It was a promise, made long ago, before they had become immortal. It was a promise of family and love, of having each other's back and of supporting one another. It had watered down over the centuries, but the words still held a certain meaning for the family, especially now.
"What are you going to do now? Do you still need to sacrifice two dozen people?" Rebekah inquired, letting go of her sister.
"No, Roxane told me that there is an expression triangle in Mystic Falls. I will go there," Evanna replied.
"Mystic Falls? We're not very popular around there, sweetheart," Nik informed his youngest sister.
"It's where it all began. It's rather poetic, don't you think? Going back to the place where it all started? Not to mention that my powers will be strongest there, given that I was born there," Evanna mused, more to herself than to her siblings.
"What is this expression triangle you keep talking about?" Elijah inquired.
"In simple terms, expression is the manifestation of your will, enabling you to do anything. The common opinion of witches has discredited it as magic because they believe it expands the limitation of both ancient and modern witchcraft. It is perceived as a dark form of sorcery that supposedly draws on energy that is so malicious it would demolish the world if it were to be called into existence. The reality of expression is an entirely different matter. The thing about expression is that it becomes more controllable if you can contain it within a triangle. Sacrifices then serve as a focus to the power. Someone created this triangle in Mystic Falls, though for what purpose, I have yet to find out. You need to understand that expression is a very volatile and extremely temperamental sort of magic. It takes centuries to perfect it and if you do not know what you are doing, it can easily take over and become corrupt. That is why most witches abhor it, they fear it, and label it as dark magic. It's easy to demonise that which you do not understand. I've learnt that the world isn't divided into forces of darkness and forces of light. It's all just varying shades of grey. It doesn't take away that expression is a dangerous force of nature and should only be used in times of dire need. And it's this kind of power that I will need to channel to bring people back from the Other Side," Evanna explained, hoping that her family would understand the dangers and the need for the magic.
"Silas," Niklaus said, connecting Eva's story to what had happened in Mystic Falls before he had left.
"Silas?" Evanna asked in disbelief. That wasn't good. That wasn't how it was supposed to be. She had put magic in place, a millennium ago, to ensure that Silas would not threaten her family. Yet somehow, her spell had misfired. She had failed Katerina and Caroline.
"Yes, he somehow came back, though I've been told that it is now solved," Klaus explained, not completely understanding Evanna's question.
"No, that wasn't supposed to happen. You mean to tell me that you do not remember?" Eva inquired hesitantly.
"Remember what?" Rebekah asked, confused about Eva's worried tone.
"When you were still human, two people visited our village. They were from the future, looking for Elijah to ensure that Klaus would not look for the cure." Evanna wasn't sure how much information she should divulge, so she danced around the details of the two vampires' visit to Mystic Falls around the year 1000.
"You mean to say that people travelled back in time, to stop the search for the cure?" Niklaus inquired, his voice rising.
"Yes, but I did a spell to make sure that you only remembered when the search started, that you would continue living as if they had never visited us at all, but it appears that it backfired. You cannot recall the past."
"It backfired? How is that possible? You are the most powerful and remarkable witch in all of history," Elijah stated.
"I am now, but I wasn't then. I was sixteen and pregnant. Perhaps Kyra thought it would be fun to interfere with my magic," Eva said, thinking back of that night and knowing that she felt as though something had gone wrong, but it had been too late to fix it, because Caroline and Katherine had already gone back to their time.
"You mean to say that the Silas problem could have been diverted but because your daughter wanted to play, while she was in your womb, deterred it?" Klaus' tone was one of anger.
"Do not blame my daughter for it, she wasn't even born yet, Niklaus. It is what it is. And as Ayana told me many times over, things always happen for a reason." Eva's tone matched that of Klaus, she would not stand by and have him blame her own child.
"Who were they?" Rebekah asked, trying to divert the tension from the question whether her niece was responsible or not.
Evanna wondered whether she should tell them or not.
"It doesn't matter," she said, not wanting to cause pain to any of them while she was unaware of the fates of the time travellers.
"Do we know them now?" Elijah inquired, doing the math.
"I don't know, I haven't exactly been up to date with your doings from the past couple of years," Evanna pleaded ignorant, hoping that they would buy it. She didn't know the details of the happenings in her siblings' lives, but she had a general idea of what had occurred. Her magic allowed her to visit the past, to see things that had happened, but she'd only get flashes, little pieces of their lives and it was up to her to puzzle it together.
***My Immortal ***
"Miss Petrova is no long walking among us, though it is of no fault of my own," Niklaus let his sister know.
"Katherine's dead? What? How?" Eva had always liked the Petrova doppelganger, loving her brashness and her survival instincts. She'd been fun to hang out with, mostly because her moral compass didn't exactly point north.
"The cure," Rebekah explained, "it was shoved down her throat and she died of old age."
Evanna looked at Elijah, wondering what he had to say about it.
"You at least got to say goodbye, right?" Eva inquired, hoping that after five hundred years, he bid his adieu to the woman he had loved.
"No." That one word was filled with pain, hurt, regret and was it shame she detected?
"No?" Eva asked, looking at Nik for some kind of explanation.
"Rebekah and I went to Mystic Falls, Elijah was welcome to join, but he remained here, with the little wolf," Niklaus told his youngest sister.
Evanna stepped forward and punched Elijah in the face. The sheer force of Eva's power smacked him to the floor.
"You son of a bitch," she shouted, anger lacing her words, "Katerina Petrova is the love of your life, you even defied Nik for her, and you couldn't even take the time to say goodbye? You git." She stared him down, the disappointment and anger slowly fading away. Eva knew that Elijah felt miserable about his choice, but he would not get off this easily. Katerina would have wanted her to give him hell for it.
"She deserved better, Elijah," she said in a more compassionate tone, offering her hand to help him up.
Elijah accepted her hand. Eva didn't let go, instead opting to hug him.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, comforting her brother in his loss of Katerina.
"I should've been with her," Elijah murmured, the pain and regret made his voice quiver a bit.
"You should've, but you can't change the past. We can only look to the future and hope to be forgiven," Eva mused. She decided then that she would bring the great Katherine Pierce back from the dead as well, no matter how much power it took. The doppelganger was part of her family, whether they remembered it or not.
"Not to burst your bubble, Eva, but Katherine is dead, she won't be able to forgive Elijah," Niklaus interjected.
Eva let go of Elijah and turned towards her other brother.
"Haven't you learnt by now that even death isn't permanent when I have a say in it. I will simply have to bring her back as well." Eva saw that her hybrid brother was about to start an argument about it, but she wouldn't have it.
"Don't, Niklaus. You will simply have to accept the fact that Katerina Petrova is coming back to the land of the living and you will not harm a single hair on her head. You are partially to blame for this mess, and you will let me solve this."
"Fine," Klaus sighed, resigning himself to this fate. There was no arguing with Evanna, not when she was so convinced of her being right.
Eva paced around, trying to figure out how to proceed. Going back to Mystic Falls changed her plans slightly. She hadn't anticipated having to go back just yet. And she wasn't sure whether to take everyone along. If he was going to be in Mystic Falls, she wasn't sure whether she wanted her brothers anywhere near him. Goddess knows what they might try if they knew the truth. There was still the matter of Davina. If she had to leave, Eva needed to know what Davina wanted. Returning to New Orleans wasn't high on her list of priorities.
"Evanna?" Marcel asked, interrupting Eva's train of thought.
"What is it?" She sounded a bit harsher than she intended.
"Davina wants to talk to you."
That got Eva's full attention. Perhaps that problem was going to solve itself.
"Where is she?"
"I'm right here," the young girl said, stepping into the courtyard.
"I take it you have already reached a decision," Evanna guessed.
"Yes, but I need to know what exactly you will do."
"What are you going to do, Eva?" Rebekah inquired.
"Release the hold of the ancestors on Davina, free her from the coven," Eva explained.
"Genevieve won't like that. This might hamper the truce we have forged," Elijah stated, always being rational and thinking about the consequences of the actions of his siblings.
"You think I give a damn about what she likes? This is not her decision to make," Evanna uttered, not caring about how her actions affected others.
"Eva, please, we are trying to have some peace here," Elijah responded, annoyed by the careless attitude of his sister.
"Peace? You think you'll have peace? War is coming, Elijah," Eva replied.
"Yes, with some ancient evil that we didn't know existed until today. You should've told us, Eva," Niklaus interjected.
"And what would you have done, Niklaus? For millennia, she has remained in her tomb, slumbering, waiting. You don't even know where to look. You are no match for her alone, Nik. She would've destroyed you. Or have you forgotten what happened in Amazonia?"
"That was her?" Rebekah uttered in disbelief.
"Yes and no. The reality is a lot more complicated and right now is not the time to discuss it," Eva stated, a hint of finality in her voice.
She turned towards Davina.
"I'm planning on placing you in a deep slumber. It will not be a pleasant experience, Davina. You will be put in ice cold water in order to put you in a trance-like state, slowing your heartbeat down to the bear minimum. You will be extremely close to death. I will then guide you to where you need to go in order to break the bond with the ancestors. It's a difficult task, and it is easy to get lost when you do not know where to go. But, the danger lies in what comes after the dissolving of the connection. I cannot bring you back, that will be your responsibility and yours alone. Once you're pulled under, there is no guarantee you'll come back," Eva explained, wondering whether the young witch would go through with it.
"And what is it that you need of me?" Davina asked, seemingly unfazed by the news.
"Once you're pulled under, I need you to convey a message to someone. It is a tedious enterprise, because it will pull you in deeper and it might lead you astray."
"How will I know who it is?"
"I'll guide you," Eva said, keeping the surprise from her voice.
"Alright. When can we begin?" Davina inquired.
Eva moved closer to Davina until she was standing in front of the young woman.
"Davina, are you sure you want to do this?" Eva looked into the eyes of the witch, amazed at her strength. "I can do this now, if that is what you want, but you may die, you do realise that, right?"
"Yes, I'm aware, you've told me so on multiple occasions. But, I'd rather die right now, than live in fear of the ancestors. I believe you, Evanna. You've been honest with me, and I'd rather throw in my lot with you, than with the coven."
A small smile tugged at Eva's lips.
"You're a brave woman, Davina." Eva whispered, while grabbing hold of Davina's hands and squeezing them gently.
"Let's get this over with then," Davina said, squeezing back.
"We'll have to go someplace else," Eva said while turning to her siblings, "where did you bury Esther?"
A little over an hour later, Eva had everything prepared for the ritual. She'd conjured up what she needed and was lighting the candles she'd positioned on the ground. The youngest Mikaelson checked the water to make sure it was cold enough. The witch then turned to Davina. "Are you ready to do this?" She asked one last time.
"Yes," Davina stated, confidently stepping into the circle.
"I'll need someone to assist me," Eva said, looking at the people gathered. Rebekah stepped into the circle as well.
"I'm probably best acquainted to help," she said with a small smile, referring to their time growing up and the lessons Esther had presented them with.
"Probably. No one else enters the circle," Eva instructed her siblings and Marcel. She had no need for someone interfering with the carefully laid out protections.
"Step into the tub, it'll be cold," Eva instructed the younger witch. Davina did as was told and stepped into it, wincing slightly from the cold.
Eva grabbed the smudge stick she'd made earlier and lighted it. Sage and sandalwood filled the air surrounding them. The witch then grabbed a potion she'd made and smeared it on Davina's brow.
"Give me your hand," Eva asked.
Grabbing an athame, she gently pricked Davina's finger, letting some blood spill on a rope. Another bit of blood was put into one of the bowl. She then pricked one of her own fingers, letting it spill as well. She healed the cuts and then tied one end of the rope around Davina's wrist, the other was placed around her own.
"The rope acts as a visible tether, look at it as a chain, anchoring you to the world of the living," Eva explained, noticing Davina's confused look.
"Now, comes the unpleasant part. You need to lie down now," Eva instructed.
Once Davina laid down in the cold tub, Eva went to stand at her head.
"I'll push you under, try not to resist because it won't be of any use. I won't budge," Eva stated, "just let it pull you under, okay?"
"I'll do my best," Davina replied. Her body was already suffering from the freezing temperatures.
Eva took a deep breath and gently pushed the girl under. The girl struggled a little, attempting to come up for air, but Evanna was more powerful than the young witch. Once the fight had left Davina's body, Eva loosened her hold.
Verba audite, voca te
transgressionem eam imperio
Via apparet, transit.
Eva slowly let the power flow, closing her eyes and focussed on breaking through the veil. She felt the resistance ebb away as she showed her strength. Davina had been allowed passage.
"Beks, hand me the bowl with the lily, please," Eva demanded.
"Verba audite
Voca te
In mentem devenit
Animus sanguinis mei
The witch instructed her sister to grab the athame and allow some of her blood to drop on the lily of the valley. Once that was done, she told Rebekah to put it down before she lit it on fire.
Quae perdita est, inveniam te
Sequitas sanguine, lilium convallium
Evanna continued to chant the two last lines. Timing was of the essence here. If Davina was left in her slumber for too long, she'd die, but pulling her back to soon, all of this would've been for nothing. The lily was almost reduced to ashes. Eva once more asked her sister to grab the other bowl with the fir, hawthorn, rowan, blessed thistle, rosemary and mandrake. She also asked for the jet stone. Once she had it, she set fire to the jet stone and added it to the bowl.
Tempus fit
Eam demitte
Tibi impero
A small wind went through the clearing, the whispers of the Spirits resonated. They weren't pleased. Davina's body started to contract. It would seem that the Spirits didn't want to let go of her. Eva continued her chant, infusing the words with more power.
Referte, referte, referte, referte, referte, referte
It almost became a cadans, a prayer, slowly building in power, trying to entangle the intricate web the ancestors had spun around the young witch. Eva was growing tired of the game the Spirits had set up.
Finite.
With that last world, the candles extinguished and a final cry of the Spirits pierced the clearing. Evanna had bared her teeth in a show of power, letting them know that she was having the final word. But, Davina remained dormant. Eva could still hear the very faint heartbeat and wondered whether the girl would make it out alive.
"Eva, can't you do something?" Marcel asked.
"I did all I can Marcel, it is up to her now," Evanna replied, hoping that Davina would awaken.
Finally, after ten minutes, the girl stirred, spluttering up, gasping for air.
"It's okay, you're okay," Eva said gently, offering her hand to the younger girl. She conjured up some warm towels, to help keep the shivers at bay.
"There was a girl, she was in chains, but alive. There was a flower by her feet. She smiled at me and then she told me she hadn't forgotten. Was she the girl you needed to contact?" Davina whispered. "Yes. Thank you for doing this."
"Just don't ever make me do that again. I feared the Spirits wouldn't let me go a second time. How did you manage that?" The girl said once she'd stepped out of the tub.
"You are a lot stronger than you know, Davina. And I have more power at my disposal than them," Eva informed the younger witch while reaching for the jet stone that still remained in the bowl. Everything else had been reduced to ashes.
"I'm free now, aren't I?"
"Yes." Eva handed her the stone, having turned it into a necklace. The witch led Davina out of the circle and toward Marcel.
"Who is the girl, Eva?" Elijah wondered.
"Her name is Freya, we met a long time ago. She has been imprisoned by her aunt. I hope to figure out a way to liberate her, but I needed to know whether her mind was corrupted," Evanna carefully danced around the truth, divulging part of the story, but leaving out the most essential part. After centuries, telling the whole truth seemed like a difficult thing to do. Perhaps she'd grown too fond of her secrets.
"How exactly are you planning on doing that?" Nik inquired.
"One step at a time, Nik. I'll go to Mystic Falls first, through I'm not sure whether we should all go," Eva uttered, considering the possibilities.
"Genevieve will be out for blood, now that Davina is no longer part of the coven," Marcel interjected.
"I guess I'll just have to set her straight," Eva stated, feeling the redhead move closer to the clearing, the power of the ancestors in tow. "Why don't I do that right now, she's already aware of what we have done." The witch cleared her things with a simple flick of her hand and turned to the direction from which Genevieve approached.
"Hello Genevieve," she uttered once the redhead was close enough to hear her.
"You just incited a war," the other witch all but shouted, adding some potency to her threat by unleashing some magic.
"How about we talk about this?" Elijah offered, "I'm sure we can reach an agreement."
Eva felt the shift in the air and she pulled Elijah back before the spell could hit its mark.
"We're beyond diplomacy here, Elijah." Eva stated.
"We had an agreement, you broke it," Genevieve replied, preparing another piece of magic, but Eva was faster.
"You want war, Genevieve? Because I can sure as hell bring it to you. Right here, right now," Evanna said nonchalantly, while making a show of her power, directing some mental strikes at the witch.
"You should've stayed out of our business, Evanna. This does not concern you. You are not part of this coven," Genevieve replied, though she was already fighting off the attacks Eva had sent her way.
"But I am. The ground you stand upon, is the very ground where my mother is buried and her bones feed your magic. She has joined the ranks of your ancestral spirits, so guess what?" Evanna said, a wicked gleam in her eyes. She was ready to strike.
Genevieve remained quiet for a moment, contemplating her next move.
"What do you want?" The witch decided to take the diplomatic road, much to Eva's annoyance.
"Giving up that easily, Gen? That's disappointing," Eva pouted, "but, never look a gift horse in the mouth, right?"
"You let Davina be. No retaliation. The truce remains, you won't have that coven of yours interfere with vampire business and in return, I leave you be," Eva considered what else she could ask for, now that it was offered.
"And I want Tundé's grimoire. And Celeste's," Eva added as an afterthought.
"I don't have those," Genevieve replied, accepting the terms.
"Then you better find them, sweetheart. Less you want me to break up what's left of your coven."
"Evanna, I think that's enough," Elijah tried to reign in his sister.
"But I was just getting started," the witch sighed. "Fine, it's not like I'll be around anyway. I would like that knife, though," she already knew what she was going to do with that. "Before I leave town," she uttered before leaving the others.
Eva wandered around aimlessly, until she settled on one of the crypts in the cemetery. She liked cemeteries, she'd always found comfort with the dead. The witch sat down, crossing her legs and slowly let her mind wander. Eva brought down one of her mental barriers, reaching out to capture the essence of her fallen brothers. There was very little to grapple with and she had to exert her power, moulding it into an echo. She forced herself to let the events take over, letting the past years wash over her. She felt the crushing weight of Finn and Kol's death as well as the consecutive death of their bloodline. It left a vile taste in her mouth. It ached, more than she cared to admit. Over the centuries she had let her humanity erode, allowing pieces to be chipped away. She wasn't afraid of the dark, no, she relished in it. Eva was a goddess walking around mankind and she had little regard for trivial and ephemeral things. She knew she could be careless and some would consider her evil for not giving a damn about human life. But she was what she was, a witch whose powers were limitless. Because of her immortality, emotion, which she considered to be such a human thing, had become something foreign to her. Yet, moments like these, reminded her of what it was like to be human; to feel so deeply and strongly that you felt helpless and small. Inconsequential almost. And Evanna wasn't used to feeling helpless and inconsequential. No, she was a ferocious creature, ruthless and wild. She balanced on the edged, never fearing the fall. But the loss of her brothers stirred the humanity that was buried deep within the witch. It was a painful reminder of what once was and what may never be again. After wallowing in her self-induced moment of grief, she decided that it was time to take action. The witch jumped off the crypt and made her way to a bar. She needed a distraction.
Evanna walked into Rousseau's, opting to take a seat at the bar. Sighing, she watched the people at the bar, wondering whether any were worth her time.
"Bad day?" A pretty blonde asked.
"I've had worse. Can I get a bourbon, neat?" Eva asked while continuing to watch the people. None of her really caught her fancy. She wished Kol were here, he'd be able to lighten her mood and talk her into sleeping with one of the humans assembled in the bar. But, he wasn't and she was left to her own devices.
"So, what brings a pretty girl like you to New Orleans?" She hadn't even received a drink and already someone was chatting her up. She gave him a once-over, deciding that he got five minutes to proof he's not a complete waste of her time.
"Family. My brothers seem to find themselves in a bit of a pickle, and I'm here to help them out."
"Last time I checked love, we were doing just fine," Niklaus stated, choosing to interrupt whatever the nitwit hitting on his sister was going to say next.
"Just fine?" Eva scowled at her brother before continuing. "Besides, who said I was talking about you? I seem to recall that I have some other brothers as well, and some of them find themselves eight feet underground." She looked at the man sitting next to her and decided he wasn't worth it. She stood up, motioning to the bartender.
"Klaus," the woman said in surprise.
"Friend of yours?" Evanna asked her brother, a hint of amusement in her tone.
"Cami, this is Eva, Eva, meet Cami," Klaus introduced them.
Cami was about to say something, but Eva was impatient, waving her off.
"I don't care about you. I just want my drink. And get one for Nik as well." Eva didn't wait for a reply and moved to find a table in the crowded place. She sent out some suggestion and made someone leave so that she could take their table instead.
"You're being rude, Eva," Niklaus chided, setting down the drink.
"I hadn't realised that Elijah had rubbed off on you, Niki." The girl gave him a wink before grabbing her drink and taking a sip. She let out a moan.
"I'd forgotten how good this is," she said, relishing the small burn of the alcohol.
Nik observed his little sister carefully. She seemed fine, composed. Yet he knew that underneath her exterior a storm was simmering. There always was with her. Evanna was not a patient woman, there had always been a restlessness about her, like an electric current, waiting to snap. She could live in peace for decades, enjoying the quiet life and other times, there couldn't be enough mayhem and chaos to satisfy her. He liked to think of his sister as someone who stood on the edge of a cliff, sometimes basking in the glow of the sun and the view, while at other times, she jumped into the unknown, into the swirling blues of the water and stirring up trouble everywhere she went. She was fearless and brash, impulsive and wild. His sister had incited wars, bedded kings and queens. That girl was a force of nature, moulding the world to her will. But seeing her now, after believing her to be gone, all he could think about was the six year old girl that stood by his bed, scared of the thunderstorm ravaging through their village. She had been so innocent, untouched by the darkness that haunted their family. The girl who used to chase butterflies and run wild through the woodlands in pursuit of some fluffy creatures was gone. The world had changed her, the loss of her daughter and husband scarring her to the bone. Niklaus wondered whether his sister was more broken than he was, even though she hid it so well. He understood her thirst for blood, her craving for power. They were the same after all, both needing the control. But she was better than him, Klaus was aware of that. Even after all those hardships, after all the loss and pain, she still shone brightly. Perhaps it was because she clads herself in darkness that her inner light shines all the more.
"Penny for your thoughts?" Eva's voice shook Nik from his musings.
"We both know that you can read them," Nik responded, a hint of humour in his tone.
"Never with you, Niki. You're allowed the privacy of your own thoughts. I do my best to keep out of your minds. I love you too much to cross that boundary."
"I was thinking about Mystic Falls, when we were still human," Nik admitted.
"Do you ever miss it?"
"Not really. I like what I am now. Fearless, strong, ageless."
Eva could understand where her brother was coming from.
"You?"
"I miss the simplicity that came with being human. Your life had meaning because it was finite. Every moment counted because you never knew when it was the last. But I wouldn't want to go back. It's in the past and it should stay there." The image of that night came to her, unbidden. The blood drenching her hands, the magic thick in the air. Killian's lifeless body. Her screaming little girl. And she, on her knees, begging for the end, to make it stop. The pain surged through her, the trauma of that pivotal moment in her life had never truly left her. But, now was not the time to relive the past. It took all of her will power to shove the memory back into the dark and hidden corner of her mind, never to be opened again.
"Sometimes we all want to forget the past. Get a chance to start fresh," Nik offered.
"A fresh start?" Eva cocked an eyebrow at her brother, wondering where he was going with this.
"I've made a lot of mistakes, Eva. You of all people know that. Perhaps you coming back provides me with the opportunity to make things right. I'm trying, sister. I am."
Eva heard the sincerity in his tone.
"What brought this along?" She hoped it wasn't the baby.
"Someone once told me, everybody capable of love is capable of being saved. Perhaps there's still a chance."
"For redemption?" Eva wondered whether it was possible. She had long ceased to believe in heaven and hell. Besides, she never wanted to be saved. But she knew her brother and she knew what was on his mind, all though he did not put it into words.
"For not being the villain."
"You were never a villain, Nik. Darkness does not equate to evil, just like light does not mean goodness. Love is such a human emotion, Nik. I don't think that person was talking about saving you from your evilness. It's about salvaging what little humanity we have left. It's okay to feel sometimes. It's okay to hurt sometimes more than we can bear. Or to love so fiercely, it just pours out of you. I hate feeling so small and inconsequential, so helpless and human. But it also motivates me, drives me. I know you like to think that love is a vampire's greatest weakness, Niki, but it's also our greatest strength. Love is what pulls me through when I'm hitting rock bottom. You, Beks, Elijah, Kol, Finn, you are what gets me through."
"So what, I just feel and suddenly I'm redeemed?"
"You allow yourself to feel, you forgive yourself and try to move forward."
"How am I supposed to forgive myself?" There was a helplessness in Klaus' tone.
"By accepting who you are, by accepting that we are not going to leave you. Always and forever, Niklaus. And when you realise that, you might be able to not feel so miserable and broken all the time," Elijah uttered. He and Rebekah had made their way to the bar, in search for their brother and sister They hadn't expected to find them having a heart to heart, but then again, Eva had always been able to bring out the human side of Nik. They were the same after all
"You think I'm broken brother?" Niklaus' tone hardened
"The very definition of broken means that it can be fixed," Rebekah stated, not liking the harder tone. Just when they thought they were getting somewhere, he closed himself off again. This was typical Niklaus. Whenever they hit a sore spot he would lash out and try to make them feel as miserable as he was feeling.
"Well, perhaps I don't want to be fixed."
"Enough. Let's talk about something else. Like Mystic Falls," Elijah suggested, knowing that they wouldn't get any further with Niklaus tonight. But, he was feeling rather hopeful, especially with the return of his younger sister and the promise of the return of Finn and Kol. And the fact that Nik was lashing out and closing off meant that something had hit its mark. Perhaps one day, his brother would be ready to forgive himself.
"What's the plan, Eva?" Nik went along with Elijah's suggestion, no longer interested in the previous topic. There was only so much self-reflection he was willing to endure for one day.
"I haven't come up with one yet. I'd like to contact Qetsiyah first, to make sure that I'm not going to trespass on her domain and see whether she's willing to lend a hand or not. It might be easier to have someone on the Other Side to help out," Eva rambled. She was making it up as she went along.
"Who's Qetsiyah?" Elijah inquired.
"So you guys hunted for the cure and made amok with Silas, but you have no idea what the stakes were or how the cure came into being in the first place?" Eva asked, wondering what her siblings had been thinking, looking for magic without knowing the full effects of it.
"Isn't she that witch who cursed Silas or something? She created the cure, right?" Nik offered. The name had sounded familiar and due to Evanna connecting it to Silas and the cure, he figured it had something to do with it.
Eva sighed, taking another sip of her drink before explaining the history in full.
"Qetsiyah is one of the most awesome witches in all of history and probably one of the most powerful witches to have ever walked this earth. She's also a tad bit crazy, but I have the highest respect for her. Qetsiyah didn't just create an immortality spell. She created the Other Side, or as I like to call it Supernatural Purgatory, in order to keep Silas from reuniting with his true love, Amara, in the Afterlife. She basically created a prison world, a different realm, especially designed for dead supernatural beings, keeping them apart from the human afterlife. That is quite the feat, not to mention taking the whole concept of revenge even further than just the land of the living. But anyway, Qetsiyah created this world, and I believe that Finn and Kol are there, since they are supernatural beings. And because I wish to bring them back from that world, I need to converse with Qetsiyah and discuss the fabric of her world. I need to make sure that I'm not trespassing or destroying anything that she has built. Besides, it would be easier to bring them back with the help from Qetsiyah. And I'll need the location of the anchor," Eva realised that she would need to find out where Kol and Finn would wind up after passing through her.
"The anchor?" Rebekah asked in confusion.
"A spell for creating the Other Side would need a powerhouse. You can't just create something like the Other Side out of thin air. So, Qetsiyah needed to anchor her spell to this world, in order to ensure the passing of the supernatural beings to the other realm. She found nothing better than to use the newly immortalised Amara. It's a faith worse than death. For two thousand years, every dead supernatural had to pass through Amara to get to the Other Side. From what Roxane told me, the position of anchor is a fate worse than death. It's a bit petty of Qetsiyah to take it out on the other woman, but whatever floats her boat right?" Eva remembered something else that Roxane had said.
"That sounds fairly simple," Nik concluded. Eva shook her head in disagreement.
"I fear there might be a problem. Someone created an expression triangle in Mystic Falls. And Rox informed of a recent infestation of Travelers in Mystic Falls. Roxane believes they are trying to bring back their leader, Markos. The stability of the Other Side is not guaranteed, I'm afraid." The witch didn't mention her past relation with the Travelers and their former leader, Markos.
"Travelers?" Elijah wondered, never having heard of the term before.
"Travelers are a cursed sub-culture of witches."
"They are witches?" Niklaus asked for clarification.
"Sort of. Witches are supposed to use their powers according to the laws of nature. Qetsiyah turned away from this notion by creating the immortality spell. It went against what witches stood for. Traditional, conventional witches believe that the balance of nature should be kept. Travelers did not. They wanted to use their powers to do great things. Travelers were all for pure, unchecked, raw, powerful magic, similar to expression. After the whole debacle with Silas and Qetsiyah, there was a schism between those adhered to the laws of nature and those that didn't, even bigger than before. The conventional witches feared the powers of the Travelers and thus cursed them, with the help of the Spirits. The Spirits are the dead witches that can help their fellow living relatives out when they feel like it. It became impossible for Travelers to practice traditional forms of witchcraft and for them to gather as a tribe. They found a different way of practising magic through the use of passengers. They could take over another person's body and gather without witches noticing." Eva clarified.
"Does that make mother a Traveler?" Rebekah inquired.
Eva shook her head.
"In order to become a Traveler you need to be born as one. Just because you don't adhere to the natural law, you don't automatically become a Traveler. Travelers are cursed witches, unable to perform traditional magic. Esther was just an unconventional, renegade witch, still able to perform traditional magic."
"How come you know so much about this?" Nik asked.
"I've been trying to find out what happened to me, I've met a lot of different people in my life. I even had a friend who was a Traveler. She told me everything I needed to know about Travelers and their organisation."
"There's one thing that's not clear to me. Why bring back this Markos?" Elijah asked.
"He's like the second most powerful Traveler, after Qetsiyah. But then Qetsiyah was banished from the group because she was a bit of an overachiever. That's why the Bennett witches aren't cursed. Her line continued on, producing powerful witches."
"Should we be worried about Markos? How powerful is he?" Rebekah asked.
"As far as I know, he died in the sixth century, yet he was almost succeeded in breaking the curse. It is said that he know how to do it, but he was unable to pass on the secret because he was ambushed and killed by his former lover." Eva indulged some of the information, leaving out her role in his demise.
"How do you know this information? Have you met him?" Nik asked.
"Nik, he died in the sixth century, that's like four hundred years before I was even born. So no, I didn't meet the guy. I only heard stories about him." I was lying, but I hoped my siblings wouldn't be able to tell. I had performed some time travelling spells that hadn't always worked out as planned. But that wasn't something my siblings should know about.
"Alright, so, will you contact Qetsiyah now, and figure out the rest of it after talking to her or do you have something else in mind?" Elijah went back to the practicalities of reuniting his family.
"I'll have to do it in Mystic Falls. Contacting spirits with ancestral magic swirling around is not the safest idea. They might interfere, especially because most abhor what Qestiyah has wrought."
"Are we all going back to Mystic Falls then?"
Eva mulled it over for a moment. If Markos was truly back, having all her siblings there would not be a good idea. In times like these she wished Kol were here, he'd be able to advise her and help her in her decision.
"Yes, but not all at the same time. I need for you and Elijah to make a detour," Eva decided that she would take Rebekah with her and that her brothers would get some things for her.
"A detour? What are we, your errand boys?" Nik almost sounded offended.
"I have some things stashed around the world for some rainy days, and I think it might be best to bring them to Mystic Falls where they can be put to use."
"Why does that not surprise me?" Elijah said with a smile.
"It'll be fun, you'll need to break into Versailles. And Hampton Court," Eva said, a mischievous glint in her eyes.
"I guess your trysts with royalty has been put to good use," Nik stated with a wink.
"Where better to stash your valuables than in the palaces of kings? I'll have to draw some maps, you do not want to get lost."
"We'll better get a private plane ready then, to make sure we can easily get from one continent to the other. Will we be needing a big bag?" Elijah asked.
"Not necessarily. There just some small trinkets and books."
"Alright. When do we leave?"
"How about tomorrow?" Eva suggested, looking at her siblings.
"We should be able to arrange everything by then," Elijah agreed. The others nodded.
Eva leaned back in her seat. She felt pleased with the arrangement, but she knew that there was a long road ahead. And it won't be an easy one, but at least she knew where to start.
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