Chapter Nine: When Love and Hate Collide
"Can't stop the hurt inside
When love and hate collide
I don't wanna fight no more, I don't know what we're fighting for There's a time and a place and a reason
When we treat each other baby, like an act of war
I could tell a million lies and it would come as no surprise
When the truth is like a stranger, hits you right between the eyes
And I know I got a love to believe in
All I know got to win this time."
-Def Leppard
Ooo0ooO
(Anna's POV)
When my eyes opened in the morning, there was a chill in the air that made me shiver. I sat up, looking outside through the balcony doors. The sky was gray and I could smell rain.
Moving quietly so I wouldn't wake Klaus, I slipped out of bed and got dressed. I paused at the bedroom door, looking over my shoulder. He looked so peaceful, as he always did when he slept. It pained me to know what kind of burden he was carrying on his shoulders.
But now I had a job to do. I looked at Klaus once more before I made my way out of the mansion.
It took me about an hour to drive out to the bayou and another fifteen minutes to make my way to the cabin where Klaus and I had left Hayley and Elijah. I moved through the trees slowly, watching and listening.
Then I saw Charlie, standing at the edge of the lake with his arms crossed over his chest. I sighed with relief.
"Anna."
I turned around and my brows lifted. Patrick stood a couple of feet away, his expression both sheepish and cautious. I froze when the blonde haired women moved to his side.
"Uh, Anna, this is my mother. Eve, this is Annabelle," Patrick said, gesturing.
I stared into Eve's eyes, which were neither blue nor green, and felt a little uneasy. It was clear she was in charge of the wolves said to live here. She was the female Alpha. But my gaze then fell back to Patrick. "You didn't mention your mother before," I said with a pointed look.
"Sorry," he muttered, his eyes lowering.
A hand touched my shoulder and I looked up and smiled. "Hi," I said to my brother.
Charlie grinned. "Hi. Wow," he paused, lowering his hand to my stomach. "Anna, how much longer do you have?"
I opened my mouth to answer but was cut off by the sharp look Eve sent my brother's way. I looked at her, then him.
"Anna!"
I turned when I heard my name being called again. I saw Hayley approaching with Elijah, who looked relieved. When he reached my side, he reached out and squeezed my shoulder gently, his dark eyes serious. I merely nodded at him before reaching out to grip Hayley's hand briefly for reassurance.
"I'm sorry," I began. "I don't think there's anything I can say…"
Hayley gave me an understanding look. "We get it. Your fiancé is a dick, but he's your dick. It's fine. No harm, no foul."
I winced theatrically at her choice of words as Charlie chuckled.
"There are more important matters at hand," Eve interjected, her eyes narrow.
I turned to face her again. "I apologize," I said, my tone stiff.
"Come on," Charlie said, nudging me towards the cabin. "The journals are inside."
I followed them and took a seat on the steps while Charlie handed me the journals. I skimmed through them, looking at the family trees and descriptions of lineage. I saw how my bloodline divided into other bloodlines, one of which Hayley came from.
When I was done, Eve began to talk. She told me the story of the werewolves who once lived in New Orleans, in the Quarter, and how the vampires drove them out when the Mikaelsons were driven out by their father.
I shivered again at the mention of Mikael's name.
Eve continued. She said how a few wolves survived and lived out in the bayou, living in secret. She then began to explain how more wolves were going to come because of the babies I was carrying. When I asked why, she said that there were many prophecies that surrounded the twins.
My heart froze when she broke off, saying how a majority of the tales were based on my daughter, although she did not know why. The stories said she would bring the end to the vampire race. Eve speculated that this was due to another prophecy, one that foretold the return on an old evil that would create new evil in its path.
When she finished, I felt like the breath was knocked out of my lungs. How could this be? How could a baby, or babies, lead to the destruction of an entire supernatural race? What did the prophecy mean by old evil?
My skin grew colder. Although I knew Silas was gone, I also knew that a kind of evil like him still lingered. I felt in down in my bones, a feeling that I had been denying and burying away since there was already so much danger I was facing now.
"What can we do?" I asked, looking the older woman in the eyes.
She shrugged. "The wolves want one thing, the vampires another. The witches are a threat to both. War is almost here and any movement can unleash it on the Quarter."
Ooo0ooO
(Klaus's POV)
A sudden chill wrapped its fingers around my heart and squeezed, drawing me out of my thoughts. I had been back in the Abattoir, doing damage control with Marcel. After the encounter with Tyler, I was wary of an alliance between the two.
My instincts were right, which made me anxious and angry. I smelled Tyler all over the places where Marcel usually spent his time, although I acted as though I could not tell.
Part of me wanted to hunt the young Hybrid down and to end him once and for all, and another part told me to wait. I found myself listening to the latter.
When I had woken up, I was not all too surprised to find Annabelle gone. I knew she would want to return to the bayou. I decided not to follow her, knowing that Hayley and Elijah would watch over her.
I focused in on the cold, trying to reach out to Anna. I rubbed my arm, the one tattooed with the soul bond, noticing how the lines were a dull, icy gray color.
Suddenly, the wind shifted directions and I stiffened. I looked up. About twenty yards in front of me stood Marcel, before Tyler emerged with a smirk on his face. The other daywalker vampires were spread out across the street, each of them eyeing me with a mixture of malice and hunger.
"Niklaus Mikaelson," a voice called out.
To my left approached the witches. I had not encountered them since my brother had killed Agnes. I clenched my jaw, my gaze not straying from Sophie Devereux. She looked murderous.
"It is past time you paid for your actions against the witches," Sophie declared.
"What do you think you're doing, Sophie?" Marcel demanded, stalking forward.
Sophie's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Finally doing what's right," she snapped.
When her gaze met mine again, I stiffened all over again. Her eyes were odd, as if out of focus, clouded somehow. It was as though she was moving and talking, but like one moves and acts when they sleepwalk.
Another chill tremored down my spine when a tall witch emerged from the shadows. Her lips curved in a smug smile. It seemed impossible. I had watched Anna snap her neck, had heard the bone break. Yet there she stood.
Then I realized I was dealing with a force that was beyond the kind of magic I had encountered before. This was a deep, old, powerful magic, similar to the kind my mother had practiced.
I couldn't control the shiver when I thought of Ester.
"Remember me, Klaus?" the witch asked. "Of course, I didn't look like this… You might remember me as Celeste."
My eyes widened. "That's not possible," I whispered.
"Oh, but it is. Who do you think has been pulling the strings behind the scenes? Now we have the vampires ready to fight and the witches are under my control. The only thing we need now is…"
"The werewolves," I finished quietly, dread crawling into my chest. "Annabelle."
Celeste's smile was as cold as ice. "Precisely."
Ooo0ooO
(Charlie's POV)
Anna, Hayley, and I walked back into the bayou side by side, each of us alert. Anna walked with her shoulders back, spine stiff and her eyes scanning the small houses with a commanding air.
I saw a woman emerge, with the long black hair, and she flinched when she saw us. She backed away in alarm and I watched as Anna lifted her hands in a gesture of peace.
"It's okay," she told her. "We just want to talk."
"I will not talk with the likes of you!" the woman hissed.
Hayley stepped forward. "Look, lady-,"
I grabbed Hayley's arm and gave her a tight smile. "Easy there, killer," I said jokingly.
Anna moved forward, watching as the rest of the werewolves emerged from their homes. They watched her with shocked expressions, some were even fearful.
"I know many of you know who I am," Anna began in a loud, clear voice. "My name is Annabelle Davis, and I'm Niklaus Mikaelson's mate. I carry his children, and I am set to marry him. But first-," she lifted her hands to her stomach, cradling it gently, "I need all of you to listen to what I have to say."
I watched as Elijah slipped away, not before he looked at me and I nodded at the silent look in his eyes.
"My blood, my family's blood, runs in many of your veins. We all know of the Original werewolves and my ancestor was one of them. That is the blood that bonds us. I know many of you fear the vampires that have taken over the Quarter and more of you fear the Original Hybrid." Anna paused to draw in a breath. "But I believe we can live together. I don't want there to be a war, not between vampires and wolves, or vampires and witches. I will not raise my children on the soil that has been soaked with so much blood. But I need your help. I need all of you to stand with me to find peace with the vampires and witches. If we do not do this, many of you will die. I can say this with absolute confidence. I know you know of the prophecies. But prophecies can be stopped, if we only turn from the path that will lead us towards them. So I ask you, as a werewolf, and as a mother, to join me to stop this war. Let there be peace once more in New Orleans."
Silence hugged the encampment. Then there was movement. I watched as Patrick stepped forward, his hazel eyes gleaming. "I will stand with you," he declared.
I saw a few more step forward. Worry tugged at the corner of my mind. I wanted to believe that this was for peace, yet it seemed like my sister was taking charge of the wolves in preparation for war. Although her words spoke of peace, deep inside I knew peace would not be achieved so easily. Whether or not she knew it, Anna was the werewolf leader, their Alpha. And she was leading them against the one person who was the reason for the divide. The one person who had created turmoil within the Quarter upon his return.
Klaus.
Ooo0ooO
(Elijah's POV)
I did not know what I would find when I returned to the Quarter. The air was oddly quiet and cold. Everything around me seemed to be lying in wait.
Then I saw them. A huge mass of vampires spearheaded by Marcel and Tyler Lockwood, then another mass of witches lead by Kate, all of whom were facing down my brother.
I flashed over to him. He didn't react to my sudden appearance, since his gaze was locked on the witch. His body was tense, like a lion ready to attack. His eyes gleamed like they did before he shifted forms, with specks of gold swimming in the blue.
"Hello, Elijah," the witch purred.
I stilled. The voice was no longer Kate's, but one that was hauntingly familiar. "Celeste."
"Been a long time, lover," she said with a slow smile.
Then it all made sense. The two forces were bearing down on my brother, yet the true threat was the one I had left behind in the bayou. The wlves would soon arrive, and after that war would erupt.
And Klaus and Anna would be trapped on either side, pitted unknowingly against each other.
My mind flashed to the painting Davina had had in her small apartment, the one depicting a battle, with fire and wolves, with Anna and an unknown figure. Fear sprouted in my chest, seeped into my veins.
"No," I breathed.
Ooo0ooO
(Hayley's POV)
The wolves shifted when the sun went down. The full moon had passed, so they were no longer able to stay in their human forms. Only Patrick was able to stay as a human, thanks to his fancy charm thing.
Anna didn't shift, knowing she could, but it was too risky now that she was entering the last few months of her pregnancy. Charlie and I stayed on either side of her as she led the pack down the path that would lead them back into the heart of the Quarter.
My nerves hummed and I clenched my fists. I wish that Elijah had stayed, but I knew he probably went to find his brother, maybe even his sister. We all had a different role to play if we wanted this peace thing to work, but I had my doubts.
I knew Anna was determined but even so, there were so many factors that stood in her way, Klaus being one of them. I cursed myself for being so on the fence about him, knowing it hurt Anna in some way to see me dislike him. But that couldn't be stopped, I knew my instincts, all of which told me he was bad news. Even though he was good to her, for the most part, everywhere he went, trouble followed.
I grew more and more tense as we closed in on the town. Even Charlie's eyes glowed gold, his jaw clenched. Anna was the only one who looked calm, but I knew she was good at hiding her emotions. I sidled closer to her.
Suddenly, Anna stopped dead in her tracks, her eyes huge and skin pale. She looked like she was ready to collapse.
"Anna?" Charlie asked worriedly.
"Klaus," she breathed.
The wolves behind us began growling and snarling, and when I looked up, I saw a sight that chilled me to the bone.
From one side of the Quarter, witches emerged from the buildings, with their magic causing the air to crackle and snap. One led them, a tall, dark skinned woman with a benevolent smile on her face.
Then from the shadows emerged the vampires, their fangs gleaming in the streetlight. Marcel had Klaus in his grasp and Tyler was holding Elijah. Both Mikaelsons were gagged, hands bound.
I saw Klaus's eyes widen in fear when he spotted Anna. When he lunged forward, Marcel struck him down. Anna cried out as if she had been the one to be hit.
Behind him, Tyler smirked, his eyes blazing.
Ooo0ooO
(Anna's POV)
I watched in horror as Klaus was knocked down by Marcel. I could feel his fear as well as how weak he was. It felt as though vervain had replaced the blood in his body and it was struggling to heal itself, and I could feel all of it.
My heart fluttered in fear when I saw the trap that I had walked unknowingly into. Behind me, the wolves snarled and snapped their teeth, in front of me the vampires hissed and the witches watched with clouded eyes.
"No," I said softly. "No."
Then an ear-splitting howl erupted, shattering the silence, and the wolves lunged forward, their bodies blurring as they attacked the vampires and the witches.
"No!" I screamed.
But it was too late.
Ooo0ooO
Author's Note: Hello again! I am so, so sorry about the huge delay with this story. Long story short, my life has been very busy since I'm getting ready to graduate college and I haven't been able to devote any time to any of my stories. I hope that I can begin updating more, but I won't make any promises.
Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I'm going to take the plot in a different direction, since I have a few ideas up my sleeve that I hope you'll enjoy. And if you still have suggestions for baby boy names, I'll take them. If you have kept up with the actual show, you'll understand why I'm not taking girl names anymore. Sorry if that's a spoiler!
Please review!