Always and Forever:
A Sort Of Sequel To Always Getting Over You
Girl in New Orleans:
"Click on that one!"
"Stop backseat driving!"
"Just…just click on it, Bekah!"
"Stop!"
I huffed in annoyance as I threw myself back against the couch with my arms crossed over my chest and pressed me lips into a tight line as I pointedly look away from my twin sister. Rebekah peeked at me from the corner of her eye before she sighed heavily with a roll of her eyes and she shoved the laptop she was holding onto my lap begrudgingly. I grinned happily as I shifted to get comfortable on the couch we were both occupying and she leaned into my side with a small smile so that we could both see the computer screen.
"You're a real baby when Stefan's not here to entertain you." Hayley commented in amusement from the couch opposite us as she looked up from the book she was flipping through leisurely.
"We should be focusing on your baby." Agnes, one of the witches from the French Quarter coven said from the armchair next to the werewolf and I glanced over at them before turning my attention back to articles I was searching through.
"I told you Agnes, I feel great!"
"You are overdue for a check-up."
"What am I gonna do? Pop into the Quarter for a quick ultrasound? A pregnant werewolf escorted by a witch? Nothing to see here!"
"A lot of women would kill to have a child." Rebekah snapped in a tight tone of voice without looking away from the computer and I glanced at her in concern, taking note of the way her lips twitched in displeasure and her hands clenched into fists.
"It strikes me as odd that you're not taking better care of yours." I added in a forced casual tone as I reached over to link my fingers through my sister's, knowing exactly what she was feeling. The heaviness in my stomach where I wish a children could grow, the dull ache in my heart that was missing the love of a child. It was a pain my sister and I had shared for the last thousand years.
"I know a doctor out in the Bayou, off the beaten path. Now, I took the liberty of making an appointment for you. Tonight, after-hours, just us. Vampires will never get word of it." Agnes told the pregnant werewolf with a kind smile and I looked over my shoulder to catch her eye, raising an eyebrow at her pointedly in an effort to get my opinion across.
"Okay, fine. Bayou-baby-doctor it is." Hayley agreed reluctantly with a roll of her eyes and I stifled a small grin, happy that my unborn niece was being taken care of. Rebekah nudged my side with her elbow to get my attention and I turned back to the laptop screen that showed satellite photos of the French Quarter.
"Please, sister, tell me you're not still at it with the internet search. How does one begin, anyway? Just type in 'anonymous attic?'" Nik asked mockingly as he sauntered into the parlour with a smirk on his lips and I pursed my lips angrily as I avoided looking in his direction, still upset about how he acted the night of the gala.
"Someone has to find Elijah, even if we have to search every bloody attic in New Orleans." Rebekah sniped back at him without looking up from the screen and he strolled over to the bar in the corner of the room in order to pour himself a glass of scotch.
"Like looking for a needle in a rather large pile of needles."
"I remember details about the attic Marcel took me to. There were shutters on the windows behind Elijah's coffin."
"Well, that should narrow it down immensely. And where's the third musketeer, Rhea?"
I stiffened when he spoke to me directly but didn't utter a word as I pointedly crossed one knee over the other without looking away from the computer screen. I could feel his eyes burning into the side of my head as he walked around to stand in front of me and I silently nudged my twin sister's side with my elbow, causing her to snap her head up in remembrance as she glared at our brother for the both of us.
"Rheanna would like me to inform you that she is longer speaking to you. Until you adequately apologise for your…What was the word?" she asked in puzzlement with a small frown on her lips before her cerulean eyes lit up in recollection and she snapped her fingers as she pointed at the Hybrid standing in front of us. "Oh, right!... Deplorable behaviour the other night, I will be translating any and all required remarks."
"Rhea, that is ridiculous!" Nik complained with a roll of his eyes as I lifted my head to glare at him and I leaned over to whisper something in Rebekah's ear as her eyebrows rose in surprise.
"Oh, I can't say that out loud!" she stated with a startled laugh as she pushed me away and our brother looked in between us in frustration as he swallowed all of his scotch in one gulp.
"Fine. Then, Rebekah, where is Rhea's more rational counterpart?"
"Stefan went to run an errand in Baton Rouge. Something about antique vanity mirrors, I don't know."
"He decided that now was the appropriate time for a road trip?"
"Caroline asked him to pick up an antique vanity table from a store in Baton Rouge. Would you like to say 'no' to Caroline when she's on a mission?" I asked him spitefully as I narrowed my eyes with annoyance clear in my expression and he winced at the thought of crossing the neurotic blonde vampire.
"So, you two are going to search through every attic in the French Quarter? Myself, I prefer actual strategy as opposed to mind-numbing labour. Marcel's delay in returning our brother makes me suspect he's no longer in charge of the situation. If Davina's loyalty to Marcel is strained, perhaps the young witch will be open to discussing a new alliance." Nik told us smugly with a smirk on his lips as his blue eyes sparkled mischievously and I scoffed in disbelief even though his selfishness was totally predictable.
"As usual, your power grabs are more important than rescuing your brother." I stated bitterly as I handed my sister the laptop without taking my eyes off of my brother and he raised his half empty glass in my direction with a victorious smirk on his lips as he got me to speak to him.
"I prefer to think of it as killing two birds with one stone. Rob Marcel of his secret weapon, bring our brother home." he said airily as he took a sip of his drink while meeting my eyes and I scowled at him as Rebekah smiled tightly with an unimpressed expression.
"Well, sincerely, from the bottom of my heart," I started to say in a cheerful tone as I stood up from the couch and I plastered a fake smile on my lips as I approached my brother, "I hope your stone drops on your head and gives you a painful concussion."
I patted his cheek condescendingly as he glared at me angrily but I ignored him as I walked around him and headed towards where Hayley was sitting with an amused smirk on her lips. I raised an eyebrow at her in silent question as I held my hand up slightly and she nodded once in ascent so I placed my hand on the small swell of her stomach as I leaned down slightly, "Be good for your mother today, my little niece. She already has enough to contend with in this family."
I entered St Anne's Church for the first time since in nearly a hundred years and a small smile spread across my lips as I looked around with a wistful expression. I could remember coming for Sunday services back in when we all lived in New Orleans. Our entire family would sit in the front pew, playing the part of devout disciples as we listened to the priest speak earnestly and I knew that Rebekah, Nik and Kol were only there ironically in order to fool everyone, but Elijah and I went in the hope of gaining absolution.
Sunlight refracted through the beautiful stain glass windows as I strolled down the main aisle of the church and my gaze landed on the priest sweeping away debris in front of the alter.
"Church is closed. If you want your horror fix, go take a ghost tour." The priest called out drily with a trace of bitterness in his voice as he glanced up from his work momentarily and I tilted my head to the side curiously as I continued to walk forward.
"I don't much care for ghosts. I am, however, fascinated by window shutters. I've been on a town tour of them all day. I noticed the windows of your attic have shutters." I said nonchalantly as I stopped in the middle of the aisle with an earnest expression and the priest paused in his cleaning to look at me in confusion as he set the broom against the wooden pew.
"Are you really interested in shutters?" he asked incredulously in disbelief as he crossed his arms over his chest and I breathed out a chuckle as I ran a hand through my honey coloured hair.
"I can assure you it's my current life obsession." I replied honestly as I thought back on the list of possible locations Rebekah had texted me earlier that morning and he raised an eyebrow at me in question as I pursed my lips thoughtfully, "What's your name?"
"Father Kieran. And you are?"
"Mildly curious. What happened here?" I asked in a sorrowful tone when I noticed the faint red stain of blood on the far wall and I inhaled deeply as I was almost overwhelmed by the chemo signals present, the anxiety and anger, the fright and pain mixed together.
"St. Ann's used to be the heart of the neighbourhood. It's been abandoned for a while now... since the night of the massacre. Nine seminary students were killed... by one of their own, before he slit his own throat. You're standing on blood."
"I'm not squeamish." I assured him in an absent voice as I slowly strolled around the priest to study the altar and he turned around to follow my movements as I ran a hand over the dusty podium. "I'm sorry for your loss, Father."
"Excuse me?" he asked in surprise as I turned around to look at him and my lips quirked at baffled expression on his face. It was clear that no one had bothered to console the man, instead only condemning him for letting one bad apple slip through the cracks but I knew that it was never that simple. Mentoring newly turned vampires, shaping them into capable and functional predators but not killers, was one of the main indulgences I'd permitted for myself during the last thousand years and I knew how badly it hurt when one of those acolytes passed on.
"Those ten students were under tutorage, and I know the bonds that can form under those circumstances. I am sorry for your pain, and your suffering." I murmured quietly in a sincere tone of voice as I met his gaze unwaveringly and his tense stance softened slightly as he studied my expression. "This church has seen enough of it to last a lifetime."
My mind wandered back to the winter of 1914 when half of the parish was massacred in a blood bath during Sunday morning services the one day our family decided to skip mass because it was Rebekah's birthday. We sat around the table set up in our garden as we ate brunch together in amidst bouts of laughter, nibbling on delicate pastries and exotic fruits while sipping coffee out of fragile chine. Meanwhile, the devout parishioners who attended church were being slaughtered in a house of God.
"Thank you." Father Kieran said genuinely with a small nod of his head as his eyes sparkled with gratitude and I returned the gesture with a small smile as I looked around the church once more.
"Please, Father, where's your attic?"
"I'm sorry. Truly, I am, but I can't tell you that."
"Then I am truly sorry, but this is a matter of life and death. And I can't take any chances. Please forgive me, Father." I said apologetically with a saddened expression on my features and I moved at vampire speed to stand right in front of him as he gasped in surprise at my sudden close proximity. I gently cupped one side of his face as I tilted his head so that we made direct eye contact and I watched his pupils dilate as I spoke in a soothing voice in order to compel him, "Where is the attic?"
"Past the sacristy, up the stairs." He replied in a monotone voice as he fell victim to my mind compulsion and I felt a trace of guilt but I knew that I would do anything in order to keep my family safe.
"Thank you. Now, forget I asked that question. I left after our discussion, and you feel better about what happened. It still saddens you, but you no longer feel guilty for someone else's actions." I compelled him compassionately with a smile as he stared at me with a dazed expression and I removed my hand from his cheek as I headed in the direction he had instructed me to go.
The stairway to the attic was narrow as I quietly made my way upstairs in case the young witch in residents was volatile and I approached the closed door at the top of the staircase landing as I focused my hearing on the other side of the door but I couldn't hear any heartbeats from inside. The door squeaked as I pushed it open to reveal a makeshift bedroom and I raised an eyebrow with a victorious smirk on my lips. I tried to enter the room but I was unable to cross the threshold and I sighed in defeat as I realised that I needed an invitation because it counted as a residence. My gaze swept over the bedroom curiously as I placed my hands on either side of the doorframe until it landed on the open coffin to the side of the room and I winced as I looked at the grey skin of my desiccated older brother.
Elijah's oak brown eyes flew open as though he could sense my presence and his gaze looked around wildly before making eyes with me as I offered him a small smile. A small gasp escaped me when I felt a probing invade my mind and my eyes closed of their own accord as I let the invisible block I'd created fade so that Elijah had access to my conscious.
My eyes fluttered open as I felt a gentle breeze on the back of my neck and I frowned in confusion as I looked around the familiar surroundings that looked remarkably like the alley behind the Rue de Main opera house. There was a noticeable pressure against my ribcage, a sensation I hadn't felt in nearly a century and I looked down at the 19th century finery I was wearing, complete with corset held together under my bosom.
"What the bloody hell?" I whispered to myself incredulously as I reached up to touch my honey coloured hair with a frown on my lips and I glanced around at the horse and carriage to the side of the abandoned alleyway.
"Rheanna, language, please!" Elijah chided teasingly from behind me and I spun around quickly to find him approaching me in evening attire with a roguish half-smile on his lips.
"Elijah!" I exclaimed excitedly with grin as I ran towards him and threw my arms around him as he caught me around the waist so that we wouldn't topple over. I closed my eyes as I enjoyed the feeling of my brother's arms holding me, a haven of safety and protection that I had relied on for the last thousand years. I sighed in relief as I pulled back from the embrace to cup my brother's cheeks with my gloved hands and I instinctively checked him over for any wounds even though I knew he was safe in his coffin. Elijah smiled at me indulgently as he gently plied my hands from his face and I looked around at our surrounding in confusion as he placed my hand in the crook of his elbow. "What is all this?"
"You don't remember? We went to the opera house together. It was our first excursion into New Orleans' society after Klaus removed the dagger from Rebekah. They were bickering constantly and we needed to escape their petty squabbling before we committed unspeakable acts of violence against our siblings. It's a memory that only you and I share. Also, I needed to know it wasn't another one of Davina's tricks."
"Well, how are you even awake?"
"Davina removed the dagger, unaware that doing so even once would negate the dagger's power. In a few hours, I shall be as good as new!"
"So, pop me into the attic and we can find a way to get you out!" I ordered him in a demanding tone of voice as though it was the obvious solution as I waved an arm comical out to the side in emphasise.
"I'm afraid I'm not quite ready to leave yet, Rheanna." He told me nonchalantly as he started leading us down the alleyway into the back entrance of the opera house and I raised an eyebrow at him in question as he removed my hand from his arm before heading towards the miniature bar in the back foyer. "This girl, Davina, she's... curious. Wilful, too. She reminds me greatly of another young witch I had the pleasure of knowing." He said teasingly with a wistful smile as he looked over at me and I smirked back at him know that he was speaking of me when I was young. "Soon, I shall be able to speak to her, perhaps to even propose a truce of some kind. So, if we can end this war between the vampires and the witches, we'll be able to eliminate the threat to Hayley and her baby. Perhaps then Niklaus and our entire family can finally know peace." He said hopefully as he poured two tumblers of scotch for the both of us and he smiled faintly as he strolled back towards me with one of his glasses outstretched. "In the meantime, I need you to look after Hayley. She is our family now, so I need her and her unborn child to fall underneath our protection." He told me sternly with a determined glint in his oak brown eyes as I accepted the glass from his hand and he held his own up in a silent toast as he inclined his head towards me, "Swear to me, Rheanna."
I opened my mouth to answer him but suddenly everything turned dark –
I blinked my eyes open slowly to adjust to the light as I was returned back to reality and I shifted in the doorway as I looked towards my brother's open coffin with a determined expression, "I swear."
"Rebekah, are you here?" I called out loudly as I jogged up the front steps of the Bayou medical clinic that Hayley had visited earlier that day and I pushed through the door as I looked around for any sign of life. The voicemail message I'd received had been vague enough to annoy me but dire enough that I felt the need to rush out to the Bayou and it hadn't helped that the message had abruptly ended in the middle of a sentence.
"In the back room!" my sister replied instantly as I headed to the direction her voice had come from and a sense of relief washed over me now that I knew that she wasn't harmed. I entered the examination room with a small frown on my lips as Rebekah turned around to face me and I glanced at the woman in a white lab coat passed out on the floor next to a used syringe.
"What happened here?"
"Here? I'm not sure. But Hayley's missing."
"What do you mean she's missing?" I asked in a hard tone of voice as I took a threatening step towards her even though my anger wasn't directed at my sister and she narrowed her cerulean blue eyes at me as she rested her hands on her hips.
"What do you think I mean? There's blood and bodies everywhere, someone's ripped a lot of witches to shreds, and there's no smart-aleck pregnant girl." She answered sardonically with a tight-lipped smile as she tilted her head to the side and I sighed in distress as I pinched the bridge of my nose in between my fingers.
"I'm sorry. It's just, 'Lijah asked me to look after Hayley and obviously I'm already not doing a very good job of it." I told her apologetically with a small shrug of my shoulders as I meet her gaze earnestly and she smiled slightly back at me as she nodded in understanding.
The two of us searched the clinic in a companionable silence, looking around for any clues as to where Hayley could be and I ran a hand through my hair in frustration when I couldn't find any trace of the witches plans. The sound of air displacing reached my ears as I spun around to face the door in it was a threat but relaxed instantly when I saw Nik standing in the doorway with an impassive expression.
"Wow! You abandoned your quest for power to help out your family! Having an off day?" Rebekah asked drily with a raised eyebrow as she came to stand next to me and I rolled my eyes at her pettiness as I crossed my arms over my chest.
"Who took her, Rebekah?" Nik asked her calmly without blinking at her comment as he held his hands behind his back and I sighed at how used to resentment and sarcastic remarks our family was becoming.
"I don't know."
"What do you mean, you don't know? And who killed her attackers?"
"I don't know! I had an arrow in my heart. If it wasn't Hayley who killed them, then – "Rebekah started to say but was cut off abruptly by wolves howling in the distance and we all shared a knowing look between us. "Lovely. Maybe her cousins will know where she is."
My sister offered him a sarcastic smile as she pushed passed him on the way to the front door and I shook my head at her as I noticed the hurt expression on Nik's face that he quickly attempted to hide. I linked my arm through his, silently giving him the support he needed but would never ask for because I knew that he was worried about both Hayley and his unborn child and he glanced at me in surprise as we started following our sister outside.
The front door squeaked loudly as we exited the clinic onto the porch and my gaze instantly went to the brunette werewolf stumbling out from behind the pickup truck in the driveway. My eyes widened in surprise as I took in the tattered, dirty clothing she was wearing and the dazed expression that was plastered on her features as she staggered forward.
"Hayley!" I called out in relief as the three of us rushed down the front steps of the building and the werewolf lifted her head with an exhausted expression when she heard her name being shouted.
"Hayley! What happened? Tell me what happened." Klaus demanded in a concerned tone as he stood in front of her with his lips pressed together in a hard line and he gripped her upper arms gently to stop her from swaying in place.
"I can't remember." Hayley answered groggily as she glanced over his shoulder towards where Rebekah and I were standing together with our arms intertwined and Klaus' forehead furrowed with worry as he anxiously examined her for any injuries.
"You've completely healed. There's not a scratch on you."
"One of the perks of being a werewolf, remember?"
"No, not that fast."
I shared a look with my sister as I ran over to stand besides Hayley and I offered her a small smile as I wrapped an arm around her protectively, "Leave her alone, Nik! She's exhausted." I scolded him gently as I started leading her back towards the clinic and he glared at me for a moment but I just gave him a pointed look as he stepped back to let us past. "It's the baby. The vampire blood—Nik's vampire blood- in your system. It can heal any wound."
I helped Hayley sit down on the steps leading up to the porch as they all looked at me incredulously but I ignored them as I sat down next to her with my arm securely around her shoulders to offer her support.
"Your own child healed you." Rebekah marvelled out loud in awe as she stood in front of us with her arms crossed over her chest and I noticed Klaus smile slightly at the thought out of the corner of my eye. My sister sat down on the werewolf's other side with a confused frown touching her lips and she turned her attention to the most important subject at hand. "How did you escape? Outnumbered, unarmed? Those men were ripped to shreds!"
"I think it was the wolf. I think it's trying to protect me." Hayley told us quietly in an unsure voice as she looked between us for an answer but I had none to give her as I squeezed her shoulders comfortingly.
"The witches were supposed to protect you! When I get my hands on Sophie Deveraux—" Klaus started to threaten angrily as he pointed a finger in our direction and I couldn't help but agree with him as the need to protect my family surged through me.
"It wasn't Sophie, it was Agnes." The brunette interjected firmly as she meet his fierce glare unflinchingly and a small smile spread across my lips at her tough demeanour even in the face of danger.
"Fine! Agnes, Sophie, it's all the same to me! I'll slaughter the lot of them!" he promised darkly as he dropped his hand to his side and I had no doubt in my mind that he would in fact murder all of the witches in New Orleans if it helped his cause.
"Not if Elijah gets there first." I said sternly with a hint of warning in my voice as I kept my gaze locked on my brother and he stiffened slightly at the mention of our older brother but he met my eyes evenly as he read the silent plea not to do anything reckless in the meantime. Curbing the bloodlust of Niklaus and Kol had always been a burden that Elijah and I shared, trying to keep the carnage to a minimum as not to draw the attention of Mikael.
"Elijah? Did you find him?" Hayley asked hopefully as she shifted her body around to face me and I offered her a small smile as I nodded slightly in answer to her question.
"He's been in touch, and he has a plan. All he asks is that we take care of you." I told her truthfully as I reached out to tuck a strand of brunette hair behind her ear and she smiled brightly with honest affection in her eyes but she ducked her head in an attempt to hide her expression from everyone.
"Hey, so... can we go home now? I'd really like to sleep for a few days..." she trailed off as she stood up from the step with some help from Rebekah and I chuckled under my breath as I followed her lead with a sigh escaping me.
Hayley went to take a step but her knees buckled underneath her weight as her eyes rolled back in her head and Klaus sped over to catch her around the waist before she could hit the ground. I gasped in worry as he scooped her up into his arms bridal style and he shifted her in his arms as he whispered soothingly, "Ooh, I've got you, love. I've got you."
I gently brushed the hair out of her eyes as I shared a knowing look with my sister and she smirked victoriously at the compassion our brother was showing the mother of his child. I intertwined my arm through Rebekah's as we started following after him and we both had the same thought running through our mind, 'Maybe there's hope for our brother after all.'
