The Originals: Blood Dagger
Chapter Two: The Legend of Fenrir
Klaus lead the girl into his private sitting room, just outside his art room. She followed at a distance, trying to judge his emotions. He was not hostile towards her, nor was he angry. But knowing him, a sudden switch was possible. She noted the ornateness of the rooms they walked through, the light colors with the accents of well warn metals and leathers. The room smelled of paint, taking her back long ago. Crystalline eyes trailed over each window, finding each escape path if this did not work out. She risked a lot coming to see him. Knowing his anger towards her would not have settled in the time they spent apart.
"So," his rich voice said in the soundlessness of his rooms as he settled into a dark brown leather chair, resting his hands onto the high armrest, one booted foot over the opposite knee. He appeared to be unintimidating, but she knew the raw power he could have released. "To what do I owe the pleasure of a former lover's company?" he motioned for her to take a seat across from him on the matched couch. "Or is a curse to have you here?" he chuckled at her face.
She raised one dark eyebrow and scrunched her nose that his tone. He was trying to be austere towards her. It was the only way he would keep this whole thing civil. One look at her crystal blue eyes and all would be done for. One glance—one smell of her skin and it would be done. Her heart sped up as she stood before him, so like the girl he had met in Copenhagen, soft white knee length dress, jean jacket covering her shoulders, and black tights hiding the skin of her legs from his view. Conservative as always. She held her hands at her front, and he watched as she scouted for an exit. He could see the rise and fall of her plus at her neck, blue veins became more prevalent, making him want to take her blood.
She moved, snapping him out of his daze, coming to sit across from him, smoothing the front of her dress over her knee as she avoided his gaze. Long dark hair falling into her lap and into her face, making her icy gaze looked even bluer if that was possible. When she did not at him, all she showed was her tenacity and brashness for coming before him. "May if offer my condolences for the death of your friend?" she spoke softly.
"No you may not," he scoffed, "what are you doing here?"
"Something…bad is coming."
"No shit?" he laughed, "Someone has just murdered a girl of my acquaintances."
"Not just her; plenty more will die." She patted her knee as she looked into his eyes, "I know there is no cause for you to trust me, but I came to help."
"Of course I cannot trust you." He snapped angrily sitting forward, "how about you explain to me how you are alive, Astrid? You have not aged a day."
She blushed suddenly, a small smile about her lips as she looked away, tilting her chin down, "It has been so long since I've been called that." She looked up at him and giggled like a child, "it was always 'Fredericka' this or 'Freddie' that. But you never called me 'Fredericka' did you?"
"You asked me not to." He answered as he sat back, "my answer?"
"I know a few witches." She smirked.
He couldn't hold his dark laugh at her words, uncontrollable laughter fell from his lips, he leaned back and tried to fight it, "that's it? For the sake of vanity you've magically remained twenty five?" his laughter made her frown.
"Yes," she said annoyed at his laughter, "for centuries the Copenhagen Pack has been under my authority as alpha, after Christian's death. They trusted and answered only to me. You are not the only one who is special, Nik." She turned away from him.
"And what's so special about a twenty five year old wolf?"
"You're killer is one of them." She avoided the question and kept their gazed locked. "Weeks ago the veil between our world and the dead fell apart, your killer and many others in Copenhagen walked through."
"Who?" her aversion peaked his interest.
"One we know too well."
"Johan?" she bit onto her lip and nodded, "Christ," he fell forward onto his knees and covered his mouth with his cupped hands, "of course he's coming after me. I did take what was his."
"I belonged to no one," she snapped, turning back to him, "he had no claim to me."
"And yet you two were engaged—curious as to your definition of 'claim'. It was his ring you bore."
"And you're bed I chose to sleep in." she challenged, "Johan was chosen for me, and I chose you." Leaning back she rested her hand on the side of her face, "I didn't come all this way to bring up that mess. I came here to warn you."
"So warn me already and get out."
"Johan wasn't the only one, he brought the others too, and someone else."
"Who?"
"Your father," she said, "Mikael."
"Bullshit."
"That's not what my sources tell me. They claimed they both walked across the veil of death."
"That's so nice to know. You may leave, thank you immensely for this information, now get out of my home." He said coldly, irking her.
"Nik, I came here to help." She said, scooting closer, "like it or not you are massively outnumbered, having someone else who knows Johan as well as I do will only aid to your victory over him."
"Really now?"
"I'll give you information, I'll find you other to stand at your side, hell I will even do laundry for you just as long as I can be useful to you. I just want to be useful."
"As if I would ever trust you again, Astrid."
"You do not have to trust me, you just need to listen."
"No,"
"Why are you such an asshole." She groaned as she stood up, beginning to walk away before turning back and advancing on him, "you and I both know Johan is OCD, he only works in threes; today is the 18th you have three days until the 21st and then you'll find your next body. There will be evidence pointing to you for the murder and then you won't be able to escape police action. I suggest you find Johan in that time slot." She reached inside her purse, pulling out a small writing pad and a pen, "but just in case," ripping out a page and flinging it at him she huffed and turned away, "Call me when you find the body."
"Curious," he called out, stopping her from leaving the room. "How did your image box end up on poor Cami's body? I gave that to you, how would Johan get it?"
"I don't know," she turned back to look at him, "I left it in our house when I left Denmark fifty years ago; I've been in Wisconsin since 1960. He could have easily broken in before he came here."
"And the paining of the three of us, where was that housed?"
"In the Landejendom, where the new Pack Master lives."
"Interesting."
"Why?"
"No particular reason, goodbye Astrid."
"I'll be seeing you soon, Nik."
"Doubt that love."
Astrid tightened her hands on her person, he always needed to be the one to have the last word, and it annoyed her to no end. Biting down on her lip she walked out the door she had come through and showed herself out. Not before passing by Hailey, the dark-haired young woman she had heard all too well about. The wolf-girl watched her with hardened hazel eyes as she left. Not before staring her down with a crystal glair herself. Hailey lost the challenge and begrudgingly looked away. Astrid smiled and then left as swiftly as she came.
Copenhagen, Denmark 1705
"Spectacular." Klaus marveled as he followed Astrid through the corridor. It gave way into a large rounded out room, golden coffered ceiling and an ocular at the top, allowing light to pool into the room. The walls painted and wallpapered to the fashion of the Danish court, blues and golds.
"This is just the foray," she laughed as she took his arm, "our pack home may be under a mountain, but we lack nothing of modern taste." She pulled him towards one of the arches, their footsteps echoing in the empty space.
"Fredericka!" a woman shouted as they entered a solar, with seating available, a round woman dressed in a yellow gown ran into the room, holding a blue long-sleeved dressing gown of rosemail. She was a rather stout woman, with an ample bosom. "There you are girl!" she huffed, "Christian is looking for you, make haste." She then looked upon Klaus and then blanched, "goodness me, who is this? The stench of death about him." She rolled back and cried out.
"Margrethe please." Astrid sighed and covered the older woman's mouth silencing the scream. "This is Niklaus and he is not what he appears. Peace dear nannie."
Margrethe nodded, wide eyes and still wary of him before Astrid released her and took the dressing gown from her, "is this creature who we have hidden ourselves from?"
"Dear Margrethe I can assure you I am capable of speak on my own behalf." Klaus laughed, "But yes I am the creature you have run from."
"And you brought it home?" Margrethe groaned as Astrid tied herself into the gown, bring her hair out from under the collar. "You went out with the scouts against Christian's wishes didn't you?" She eyed astride unhappily, "and you brought a strange creature home."
"Standing here, love."
"He would like to make our acquaintances, nothing harmful."
"Fredericka has always had the habit of bring home in need creatures." A new voice said.
"Johan!" Astrid squealed happily as a strapping young man entered the chamber, setting to rights his vest. She ran up to him and launched herself into his arms, happily embraced by him. Unbeknownst to her Johan turned inward and smelled the curve of her neck. Margrethe shook at the action but did not state anything. Johan looked towards Klaus, and held him in suspicion before releasing Astrid and placing her back onto the floor. "Nik this is my good friend Johan Sebastian Iverson." She turned towards him and happily displayed her friend, "Johan this is Niklaus Mikaelson."
Johan was a medium height and build, like Astrid he possessed light skin and dark hair. His eyes however we the color of dirt, no other color existed in the deep brown of his eyes. Dressed in a fashion of men, dark padded coat, cloth pants, and knee high boots. His face was feminine, no facial hair, not even strong features.
"Welcome, Niklaus." Johan inclined his head and held out his hand. "Welcome, welcome." He repeated smirking.
"Many thanks," Klaus said, taking his hand and shaking it. "Klaus if you please it."
"Forgive me, but you are a creature we here have yet to encounter."
"He is a Vampire, Johan—immortal." Astrid smiled as she bounced between them, stars in her eyes, "but that is not all, he was born a wolf."
"Born a wolf and yet not?" Johan looked down into Klaus's blue eyes and wondered, the wheels in his mind spun as he attempted to understand. "Yet not, yet not—how is that possible?"
"Magic," Klaus admitted as he shrugged his shoulders, and then realized Margrethe was attempting to take his winter mantel off, shrugging out of it he continued, "My siblings and I are the first of our kind, I however was supposed to be a wolf."
"That is what I do not understand—this 'supposed to be'. You either are or you are not." Astrid too nodded in agreement, "Such an oddity. We here are born wolves nothing more."
"You do not need to kill someone to become a wolf."
"Heavens no!" Astrid said, "We turn at will from maturity."
"Pray tell, what Pack are you from?"
"My real father was a north American Wolf." He surprised himself, never before had he spoken so freely of his birth father. He had thought of the man often, wanting to know him, to know his wolf family. Klaus then realized the openness these people spoke to him as had affected him, making him divulge information he would not normally have to a stranger.
"The New World." Johan laughed, "På tværs af Atlanten," Astrid too laughed at the thought of America across the Atantic ocean, "you will find diluted bloodlines in the seamen who left our shores hundreds of years ago. The wolves of Denmark have remained the same in ability and bloodline, we are one of the Original Packs in existence ever since the gift was bestowed upon us."
"You refer to the change of the full moon a gift?" Klaus wanted to laugh, "My first shift was agonizingly painful—I would never want to shift again."
"The shift is painful, but never forced on a full moon." Astrid admitted as she smoothed her long hair down, "but the ability to shift at will is the true gift, the beauty and the power of the wolf is sublime."
"Klaus, are there more of you 'supposed to be' wolves?"
"No."
"Interesting, interesting, interesting." He said as he looked him over, "the stench of death about you but the spirit of a wolf exists behind your eyes." He noted the fire behind the blueness of Klaus' eyes, "I see why Fredericka brought you home. We were too wary of your stench to see what you are. I now see Christian was mistaken." If only this wolf knew he had the power in one bite to kill all other vampires.
It was strange to know this Pack had never come into contact with his kind before. With Kol running amuck years prior he was sure vampires would have lived up here. The night was longer up here during the winter, with plenty of backlands. Copenhagen was a crowded city, covered in muck and decay. It was easy to disappear in the city. Prime hunting grounds as well as hiding places. Yet this country was completely untouched by his kind.
"Fredericka." A man came into the room, wearing a white open shirt and black pants, no shoes. "Christian ask that you bring your guest to his chambers, the pack is growing restless at his smell. You have brought something unnatural into our home."
"Do not fret," Johan said as he turned to face the hostile man, "Klaus is a friend." His hand was placed hard against Klaus' shoulder, "Margrethe place him in my rooms for the duration of his stay." Margrethe scuttled off with her task, "you may leave." He dismissed the other wolf. Sighing he turned to face Klaus, and smiled, "once Christian understand you; the pack will follow." He held Klaus' gaze, but what caught his attention was the fact that he blinked three times before looking away.
"Very well then," Klaus agreed, just as Astrid had taken his hand into her own and pulled him alongside her, taking him into the door Margrethe had exited in. Leaving Johan alone in the sitting room. "Who is this erroneous Christian?" he asked as they were on their way. Wolves lingered the wall, outside the doors and guarded their children. Most of the men appeared to have returned to human form, pulling on their clothes. The women all held their children to them. The men all had worried and angry vibes running off of them, but the women; nothing. Klaus could sense the wolf in Astrid, but then realized in the time the serving woman had been before them, her wolf was not present.
"Our Pack Master." Astrid said happily, "the Alpha." She continued down a long vaulted hallway, more of the pack assembled and watched. "They are all lower in the hierarchy, they will not harm you."
"Nothing can harm me, love." He chuckled, he watched as she turned to smile at him, gently hitting him against the arm. At that moment, her pulse had picked up, the color in her skin brightened, her veins became bluer. His eye sight honed in on her clavicle, he wanted desperately to take her in his arms and push her against a wall—any wall, and drink her. His eyes threatened to turn blood red and his fangs ached. But he willed the feeling to drink her.
Upon reaching a large ornate door Astrid smoothed her hair once more, before turning to look him over. She bit down onto her lip as she dusted off his lapel and then fixed his cravat, "Christian is an Elder, he prefers his guests to appear put together," she sighed when he refused to allow her to touch his hair. Picoting on her bare feet she knocked on the door.
"Come in, Astrid." An elderly voice called.
Astrid pushed he door open and darkness engulfed them. She lead them well into another cavern, unlike what he had seen, this was all rock. The roughness beneath his boot and the cold alerted him to what he had expected when she lead him into the falls. He sensed the magic of this place, the hollowness, the sanctity of this room. Cutely Astrid had taken his hand and led him through the dark. Instead of admitting he could see, he allowed himself to enjoy the warmth of her smaller hand in his.
A fire in the distance was their destination. A small heating trey stood above it, with a kettle steaming on it. Astrid moved to retrieve the kettle and then moved about in the darkness to make a simple pot of black tea, Klaus continued until he reached what was clearly the most revered of all this Pack's possession. The mountain wall was covered in brown hand prints and paw prints. Thousands upon thousands of prints lined the wall. His senses picked up on blood. Each print was placed in blood. Looking at each one, another oddity hit him, they were all male prints. The paws were also large male prints. No female.
"This one is mine." Astrid said a few feet away from him, pointing to the daintiest hand and paw print on the walls. "When I was sixteen I shifted for the first time and was able to place my hand and paw on this wall."
"Are these your Pack's?"
"The ancestors," the elderly voice said from behind him. Astrid sunk to her knees and bowed her head in respect. Klaus turned to see a white bearded man in a red tunic and golden belt. His hair was swept back into a blow ponytail. His features were wrinkled, and yet he could imagine the striking man he must have been in his youth. He was nearly Klaus' height, but he hunched over with a hump in his back. "Out of all the packs in the world, not one has survived half as long, royal blood—human and wolf, run through our very veins." He smiled as he stood by the fire, "Boy come into the light; so these old eyes may look upon you."
"Christian?" Klaus asked as he approached the elder, Astrid remained on the floor.
"The very same." He laughed as he looked upon Klaus as the firelight bathed him, "I understand what the pack is worried about, but I see what Fredericka sees." He placed Klaus' chin in his hand and smiled, "I see the wolf inside of you, yet the death is coating you. What magic is this? Dark I can see, but what has it created."
"Vampire." He answered.
"Yet you are a wolf, I see the gift about you." He smiled and happily slapped him lightly on the side of the face, "tell me, what brings you to our borders?"
"My siblings and I are running from our greatest enemy."
"Yet you are such a strange creature, surly you have no real enemies." Christian asked, his eyes darted to the side, "Fredericka, darling, pour us a cup of tea, won't you?" he said.
"Yes, Christian." She said as she moved to do what was asked of her.
"Sadly no, there is but one; a hunter of my kind."
"Well then, you may find safety in Copenhagen, Niklaus. I see you are more than why you are, and less of what we feared; you are welcome to stay for as long as you like."
"Thank you, Christian." Klaus smiled.
"So," Christian gently moved to sit on a stood before the fire, Astrid was at his side, holding aa fine china cup, kneeling at his side, and then remaining as he took the cup. She looked at him from over the fire and seemed to be pleased, "what would you like to know?" he asked as he sipped his tea, "I can sense a confusion in you; is it your duality? The struggle within your soul?"
Klaus released a breath he had no idea he was holding, realizing he was releasing a weight within his gut. "all of it," he said as he knelt onto a rock in front of Christian, taking up a stray piece of wood, placing it into the fire and waiting until it had become lit, "I do not understand the sprit inside of me, I had no contact with the pack I would have belonged to."
"Unfortunately, the wolves who left our borders and traveled well into the new world broke with our traditions, their history is different; the history is in the bloodlines and they have changed so much. Our bloodline remains one of the purest. However I can tell you the story." Christian paused to cough, Astrid soothed his back and tended to his cup once more, before he settled. "The power you possess is the very same the gods of old gifted when the wolf Fenrir was bound and defeated. Odin split the spirt of the beast and placed it inside a blessed family, created the first pack of wolves in the north. Sons and daughters left the pack and started their own, but our pack remains. The spirt that lives inside of you is but a fraction of Fenrir—the fraction of a god."
Jackson walked the perimeter of the Pack Land alone. He knew he shouldn't have, should have upheld the very same rules he had given the pack earlier in the day. Hailey had called him hours ago to tell him of the strange girl who had paid a visit to the Original Hybrid. A dagger had been placed in the door, covered in the human girl's blood and the woman had been found inside the house. After no more than ten minutes in conversation with Klaus she up and left. With no speculation. Hailey thought this girl was the killer, a scorned former lover of Klaus'. But he had let her go with nothing but a conversation.
Fredericka was her name, and he was warned to keep his eye out for her. He knew she was keeping something from him, the way she warned of this woman, something was off. He didn't like that Hailey kept things from him. Ever since the loss of her child and her transformation from wolf to hybrid she has been understandably ridged. But they had an understanding before, a bond, and it irked him to no end that she now refused to confide in. She could have skulked around in misery, but she chose to spend time with the pack—her family. She became protective of the remnants of the Crescent Clan.
Admits his thought, a sound of a loan howl drifted into his ears. It was not a familiar sound. It was not a threat however. It was a call to meet. He should have called Hailey or the others, but this was his Pack Lands and if there was a murderous wolf in his territory, he'd deal with it on his own. Racing off he returned howl and learned of its location. The most northern edge of the swamp. He felt the wolf before he saw them, such immense power, dominate and in control. This was not an alpha to mess with. When he reached the edge of the woods, with nothing but badlands for miles outwards, he chided himself. Murderous wolf and open lands, not the best idea of a meeting place. He was alone, just like the human girl was, unawares of the danger. He caught the wolf's scent and tried to track, but it was moving. Close, very close.
Just as he was about to leave the boundary of the lands, a woman appeared in the clearing. She appeared in the middle of the field as if by the wind. Walking towards him with a confident strut. White dress, brown hair, and a jean jacket wrapped around her waist. She held up her hands as she approached him. Jackson remained behind the boundary line. If this was any respectable wolf she would not cross the marked line without permission.
When she was in perfect view, he noted a black purse, possibly could hide a gun. But she kept her hands up. A smile pulled on her lips as her crystal eyes softened from harsh to welcoming. Crystal eyes. Just as Hailey described, this was Fredericka Eriksdotter. The very same she-wolf that had just appeared in the Quarter.
"This is the boundary of your lands?" She asked with a raised dark brown, Jackson merely nodded as he approached her, standing on the line, "I won't cross it then." She smiled, "Fredericka Eriksdotter." She said with a slight bow of the head, showing him respect as the Alpha of a resident pack.
"Jackson Lefarouche." He answered with this deep voice, her crystal eyes widened at the sound, and he could have sworn she shivered at the sound, "Hailey tells me you've been so see the Mikaelson family?"
"Correct," she said as she placed her hands onto the curve of her hip, the shoulders of her purse fell into the crook of her elbow, "before you ask, no I am not the killer."
"Good to know, what are you doing on my lands?"
"I heard that this pack is in a crisis? I am curious, I believed the current supernatural leader of the French Quarter was a wolf."
"Francesca Guerrera is a manipulative bitch who took the power by the death of many. She seduced half my pack with moonlight rings."
"Oh, right." She nodded at the mention of the rings, "you turn only at the moon."
"From your eyes—you are royalty." Jackson noted the color, nearly white blue, a color so unique and uncommon amongst wolves. "My gran told me legends of the Curse." The legends of the European wolves who claimed to be descendants of gods and deemed American packs to be dirt beneath their shoes. Elitist wolves.
"I can assure you; this is not a curse. But our histories differ don't they?" she chuckled as she flipped her hair over one shoulder, "You don't believe your wolf ancestors migrated from Europe in the time of old—or descend from the wolf Fenrir?"
"No—my bloodline goes back to the beginning."
"As does mine, highness." She mocked, but then sighed and threw her hands up, "Lets agree to disagree and call each other 'cousin'." She brushed him off with a flash of the inside of her wrist.
"What does a European Royal want with a backwater pack?"
"I have been rogue for some time now, my pack remains in Denmark with a new Pack Master. It looks like I will be staying in New Orleans for a while, I was wondering if I could entice you into make a deal." She raised her right hand, "oh my honor of course, Jackson."
"Hypothetically what would this deal be?"
"As I am without a pack, I will be having trouble investigating much of the backwater territory for this killer. As this is your lands, maybe you wouldn't mind being my eyes and ears down here—for the time being."
"And what would I get?"
"I'll help reunite your pack—take care of the Guerrera Pack, and make you undisputed Pack Master—even Pack Master of Louisianan. Which is the dream of every Alpha, to be in control of a vast territory. I assure you it can be done. Only if you wish it?" her brow raised, "What do you think?"
It was a good deal. Since the power grab and the desertion of the pack, Jackson had been feverous to regain control. It was his right as alpha and not Francesca's. His blood connected him to the Pack Lands and not her. To have a royal of ancient blood backing his claim, would help. His gran would hit him in the back of the head if she was there. To put trust into a euro wolf was to get into trouble. She watched him as he thought. Her eyes speaking thousands of questions and words. She observed him, wondering what his answer would be. But there was a darkness in crystalline gaze, she knew the offer was too good to pass up—that she had given him a taste of every alpha's Achilles heal; power.
"I am aligned with Hailey Marshall." He said, "she is my—"
"Alpha Female," she snorted, "I can smell your desire for her; was that whom you were thinking of before I called for you?" she tilted her head to the side as she caught him, "She belongs to Niklaus Mikaelson does she not."
"She belongs to no one."
"I beg to differ," she laughed as she wrapped her arms around her waist, "I heard the rumors; he fathered a child with her."
"The baby died."
"And yet; she existed." She sighed, "You know as well as I do; once a male marks his territory it will be impossible for any other to weaseled his way into the female's heart. They had a child together, she is a hybrid like him—she remains with the original family. She has a choice to leave and be here," she pointed to him, "with her equal mate; and yet she does not. She has no free will, she will remain at Niklaus' side until the end of time, and he will never let her go. She will never be yours so long as he has a grasp on her."
"Yet he let you go?" Jackson attacked back.
She blanched for a moment and then chuckled, covering her mouth with her hand as her eyes darkened, "Listen, Pup." She dared to call him 'pup'? Jackson snarled at the nickname, "my former lover and I had no bond such as a child—I am a wolf; always have been and always will be. Your female will need some coaching to turn towards you. With a larger pack, she will come to lead it. I've seen her—watched her. A natural born alpha. He will have no hold on her once her instincts to lead will overpower her. She will come to you, just as your pack will come to you because like me, Pup, you are royal. Royalty is in the blood when it comes to wolves; you are born to be king. Your queen will come to your side when she sees the grandeur and the power of her mate." With each sentence, Jackson felt her spinning a take of truths. She knew the seduction was working, for he relaxed, his whole body became as pliant as his mind. "So," she stepped forward, crossing the boundary line into his territory, backing him up as she looked into his deep brown eyes. Biting down on her lip she boldly touched his chest, "Do we have a deal, Jackson Lefarouche—'the Fierce'?"
TBC...
Word Count: 5360
Page Count: 11