A few notes:
1. If you've forgotten, please re-read the prologue because this actually continues from it.
2. While I've done my history research, it's nowhere near thorough so please forgive any historical errors.
3. Please remember that because this is happening in the past, all vampires mentioned in this are going to be weaker than what we usually see on the show simply because they're younger. The Originals at this point are all younger than even the Salvatores vampire-age wise.
Thanks to all who reviewed/faved/followed! You people are awesome :D
xoMarie, ShiloCoulter, guest, TwistedMidnight, An Amber Pen, DarkGoldFish123, mythzzrosenov, Sassi15, federica01, karenluevano98, WendyBird21, neverlands-star, guest 34, [the other] Guest, PunkyZebra, Sarmoo123, LeafDragonSamurai, J199, Aiah, independentReble, JessyeJesigirl, PersephoneLovesHades, Elizabeth Mikaelson, okaloosa, obsession degres, Amandla123 and Sariko-chan723
Disclaimer: I do not own the Vampire Diaries TV series or any of its characters; those belong to the CW network and all other respective owners. This is purely for entertainment.
Part II: Blood & Dagger
Chapter 10: Lapis Lazuli
Slovakia 1112
The sun was beginning to rise, the huntress' eyes adjusting easily to the new light as she sauntered up the steep incline. The hut was coming into view now, a few of the horses emerging from the barn as they made their way out to the fields to graze. She spied her cousin watching her from the upstairs window, his right hand grasped firmly onto a blade as he toyed with it, swinging it about in his hand. Yet he never took his eyes off of her, his dark orbs following her every move. She smirked when she arrived, knowing that the older boy must not have had a good catch since he had returned to the house so early. She pushed the door open as her cousin came down to meet her, a glint of envy in his eyes.
"Out all night, Veronica? And how many of the vile beasts have you been able to entice with your... charms?"
The blonde smirked as she played with a stray strand of her hair.
"Three. And dear Ethan, it is hardly my fault that your blood is hardly as enticing as mine. Slow day?"
Her cousin bared his teeth at her, but the gesture meant nothing in their line of work.
"Well at least I don't have dear Jennel for a sister. After everything she's done, I'm surprised that uncle kept her around so long," he mocked, "Yet she tries so hard every day. Speaking of which, where is she anyway? Weren't you two together?"
Veronica's eyes grew dark.
"Well well, no need to be so bitter about it. We all know that it was hardly Jennel's fault that she's a lighthouse for trouble, or that you're such an amateur hunter for that matter," addressing the second part of his statement, she rolled her eyes, "Oh please, we only keep up the team fiasco to humour father, we all know I prefer very different ways to lure prey."
She shot him an innocent smile before flipping her hair out behind her and heading upstairs. The older hunter glared at her before rolling his eyes at his junior's antics and heading outside to welcome the rest of the returning family.
The horse slowed to a steady walk as she pulled at the reins, finally coming to a stop a short distance away from the house. Sighing, its rider swiftly dismounted before running through the standard equipment checks and then allowing the animal to join the others in the field. Her feet made no sound as she moved towards the door, suddenly very conscious of the silence around her and quietly hopeful that everyone had already gone to bed. Fingering the wood for a moment, Jennel pushed the wooden door open, wincing when her shoulder reminded her that it had been abused. She walked into the house silently, hoping not to attract attention from her family. Unfortunately, hoping seldom ever worked for her.
"Jennel."
The brunette spun around, a stake already in hand. When she saw her adversary though, she immediately dropped the weapon and fell to the ground.
"Father."
The huntress kept her face low, determined to avoid a confrontation.
"Why are you late? The others returned hours ago."
The man's rough voice reverberated through the quiet house, echoing loudly. Jennel knew her family were upstairs though; she could hear the whispers and their light footsteps.
"I was caught up," she provided, ignoring the second half of his statement and hoping he would not press it.
The huntress shifted her weight slightly, trying to lighten the burden on her injured shoulder. The movement was not lost on the other though, his eyes narrowing by just the slightest degree. Jennel swallowed.
"What did you do?" he growled, his voice a low hiss. The brunette suppressed a sigh.
"It got on me, a slight slip of hand."
She did not even blink when his palm flew into her cheek. The sting was familiar and she could feel a tell-tale burn at the back of her eyes but her face remained perfectly impassive. If she showed weakness, it would only make him more displeased with her and that was the last thing she needed.
"It won't happen again."
The balding man stood up from his seat, staring at his youngest daughter with nothing but resentment in his gaze. After the two shared a tense moment, he finally cleared his throat and spoke once more.
"Given your unfortunate circumstances," he spat the term like she might as well have gotten herself killed, "you will be of little use out in the field. In that case, you have an assignment."
The teenager finally looked up from the ground, frowning before she nodded.
Pleasure. That was the core of his world now. He revelled in it, what he could do, what he could make others do. Compulsion. He could control whoever he wanted, make them do anything that he wanted them to. Power. He was faster than them, stronger than them, but most of all, death. He had the power of death. At that one moment, before he sank his teeth through skin and flesh, before he drained his victims of life itself, he held the ball, he controlled their fate, he decided if they lived or died, and in that, he found power. He was Kol Mikaelson, Original vampire, and now, he revelled in the kill.
It had taken all of 20 seconds in the tavern, looking at the redhead with just the slightest bit of interest before she had followed after him. He was almost amused by how easy it was. It did not help his already inflated ego with girls quite literally throwing themselves at him but then again, which hunter would not appreciate a free meal, even if he did crave for a little more challenge. As he drew the last drop of blood from the wounds on the girl's neck, he pulled away, dropping her limp body on the ground.
"How unsatisfying," he spat, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.
Rebekah watched him impatiently from higher up in the trees, casually playing with a stake.
"Now now brother," his sister chimed, her tone almost chiding, "you know you should not play with your food. Are you quite done here?"
Kol smirked, looking up at the blonde Original.
"Bekah, you should really learn to loosen up a bit," Kol chided, "What reason is there in being one of the strongest beings in the world if you're going to spend all your time sulking and taking everything so seriously?"
The younger of the pair glared at her older brother, launching the stake right at him. He grinned, dodging the projectile easily as it imbedded itself into a tree.
"Of course you do," he laughed before changing the subject, "Have you courted yourself a few new boyfriends? Do tell me how you do it baby sister. You never seem to run out of admirers chasing after you like lost puppies."
The blonde hopped off the tree and in a split second, she had pinned her brother to the ground, fangs bared and ready. Kol chuckled.
"No need to be so nasty about it," he drawled, completely at ease with the situation, "So, when are you going to tell me why you came looking for me? Did you have another row with Nik? Or has Elijah finally decided to give you a lecture about your many relationships?"
Rebekah pouted before scrambling off of her brother and glaring at him childishly.
"Is it really so impossible to you that I could just be longing for the company of my older brother?"
Kol frowned in faux concentration before responding.
"Now let me think... Just a moment... Well, yes actually."
Rebekah slapped her brother on the shoulder playfully as he snorted.
"Hurry up now, you'll miss your own welcome party!"
Kol frowned. Welcome party?
"Bekah... what did you do?"
"Well I thought it would have been nice to give you a hand with integrating yourself with the local townsfolk and besides the chief looked all too pleased with welcoming the new 'lord'", the quotations around the term were almost audible in her tone, "Or are you just going to wipe out their entire population like you did with the last place you decided to settle in?"
"Now sister, why would I want to associate myself with those commoners?" Kol raised an eyebrow, faking a wince as if he were disgusted by the very idea.
"Come on Kol. I thought you wanted some entertainment? Or is playing with these children here", Rebekah waved a hand casually at the dead redhead, "really such a thrill to you?"
Kol rolled his eyes.
"I don't see what my homicidal tendencies have to do with your desire to throw a party in the name of welcoming me."
Rebekah bit her lower lip before quickly amending her strategy.
"Humour me?" she asked, not forgetting to put on her best puppy-dog eyes and adding a pout into the mix just for good measure.
Kol looked at her curiously before bursting into laughter. She really was hopeless.
"Just this once then," Kol finally relented, rolling his eyes in mock annoyance. Rebekah squealed in glee before bounding forward to embrace her brother. He stiffened immediately but then chuckled and returned the hug for just a short moment before they parted.
"Lead the way then baby sister."
Rebekah stuck her tongue out at him before the pair ran off together into the woods.
Jennel tugged on the hem of her dress, feeling more uncomfortable than ever. Playing with the pendant on the vervain necklace she was seldom seen without, she headed down the path, noting the fact that the sky had already gone dark. When she had heard that she was getting an assignment, this was not what she had envisioned. Honestly, she felt insulted. Her father had justified his decision based on the fact that she had gotten herself injured – personally, she would not have called a bruise, no matter how large it was, 'injured' per se, more like inconvenienced – and was no longer "combat effective". She rolled her eyes at that thought before swinging her shoulder in a wide arc in an attempt to ease the dull ache that had descended upon it. But Jennel was not one to fret, she did not mind the pain; it was an occupational hazard after all, not that she liked it.
The house was in view now, guests already flooding the grounds dressed in their best. The huntress narrowed her eyes before sparing a quick glance at the lake right beside the new home. She used to come to this clearing when she was troubled. Now, it was someone else's property. She sighed; she must have done something drastic to offend the universe. Taking a deep breath, Jennel put her game face on, instantly transforming into the quiet, demure little girl that the town had come to know her for. No one would have thought vampires existed, let alone that there was a whole family of people living in the squat town who spent their lives hunting them.
She would just get this assignment over and done with; she never did like formal gatherings. As she got closer to the establishment, she was growing more and more restless. Given, the house was beautiful even by the town's shabby standards. It was also larger than most of the little houses scattered across the area. More effort had clearly been put into its aesthetic appeal, the plants around it were cropped short, eye-catching flowers – a waste really with winter in the wings – growing on the lush green grass. The wood work that made up the establishment's various walls were neatly cut and smoothed, with carefully wound metal running up some of the walls' edges, tangling with one another to form patterns. Not too far from the house, a horse stood, grazing. Jennel could not tell if it belonged to the new owner or if it had simply decided to come by to feed on the grass.
She rolled her eyes at it all though. Who in the world, with even the slightest semblance of sense, with this kind of wealth would pick this place out of all the towns on the whole face of the planet to settle? She did not even think anyone outside of the residents of the town itself even knew that it existed. And what arrogance too, throwing a party to welcome themselves. Who did they think they were? The brunette was silently fuming for some odd reason but she knew that the emotion was not very justified at all. Her neighbours, they were obviously rich; they were free to leave, go anywhere they wanted in the world, do whatever they desired. But she would never have that, her fate had been decided before she was born; she had exactly one thing she was good at and one thing she was meant to do her whole life. And she knew, one day, it would kill her; there was a reason why she had never met her grandparents.
Jennel sighed, composing herself. She would get this done quickly, then she would go home, tell her paranoid family that there was nothing wrong with the newcomers other than egos that have inflated larger than the moon and her life would continue in its mundane little cycle. She nodded to herself, yes, that would be exactly how this day would go.
Kol watched the flocks of people come onto his estate, a polite smile plastered on his face as he greeted them. Rebekah had disappeared into the crowd sometime after the party had begun and he had not seen her since.
His first impression of the little settlement and his new neighbours, to be honest, was not very pleasant. Their reactions to his arrival were very much like what he was used to – the women fawned over him, mothers brought their daughters, all dressed up in long, elaborate gowns and wearing sickly sweet smiles as they started attempting to get into his good books; the men were threatened, both by his charms and boyish good looks and even more so by the fact that he outranked them all in wealth and status. But what really ticked the Original off was the fact that they were blatantly talking about him in his own home. Just about every single conversation was about him and while it was flattering that almost the entire maternal population would die happy if their daughters married him, he was still annoyed to his wits end. Oh, Rebekah was not going to be happy when he caught up with her.
The Original looked up at the open front door, figuring that almost all of the guests would have arrived by now and attempted to dissuade himself from butchering his unwanted company. Silently detaching himself from the center of attention, Kol moved to the edge of the crowd before whispering under his breath.
"Shut the door."
A tall male moved from his spot near the edge of the room, walked robotically over to the door, grabbed the edge and moved to close it. Just as it was about to click shut, a hand bolted out and caught the edge, blocking the motion. The compelled vampire frowned, still hardwired to complete his command and started applying force. Interestingly enough, the hand held firm.
"Leave it."
The Original muttered the command as the vampire moved back to allow entry to the newcomer, bowing politely in apology. A slim brunette slid in, a shy smile on her face and ice in her eyes.
Jennel stood on the edges of the forest lining the perimeter of the estate, checking through once again for all her weapons and gear and watching the crowd. Nothing major had happened so far – the mothers had brought their daughters as if they were selling their cattle and the men looked like they were resisting the urge to abruptly stand up and declare that the man be staked. Jennel chuckled lightly at the unintended pun. If she found anything today, she might just do them the favour.
She had been watching the house for about ten minutes now, making sure she knew all the entry points and also getting a better idea of the social hierarchy that would have already been established. She had spotted the sister of the new resident – or who she assumed was a sister anyway – but not the man himself though she did know for a fact that, based on how the locals were behaving, the man either had to be very good looking, filthy rich or possibly even both. But she did have a good idea of where he was in the house – there was a particularly high density of females in a specific spot – so she knew where to look out. After a short moment, she took a deep breath and started towards the hut, noting briefly that she was running late. She could not be bothered though; she was sure no one would notice.
The huntress neared the house, spying a tall male heading towards her. His hair was charcoal black, slicked back and he was well-built, clearly strong. It took her a moment before she realized it was one of the townsfolk. Who exactly though, she was not entirely sure; her family did not fare very well in terms of socializing.
She looked at him and smiled apologetically, sending a message across. However, his eyes seemed to skim over her and he continued on his way towards the door. Jennel frowned. The man proceeded to grab the edge of the wood, moving to close it as the latter instinctively shot her hand out to stop him, growing suspicious. But still he did not seem to notice her. Instead, she felt her muscles tense in response to a threat she had been hardwired to identify and the bones in her arm ache as they resisted the steadily increasing force. Then abruptly, he pulled back, pulling the door open with him as he bowed in apology.
Most would think the man had genuinely not seen her but there was something odd but equally familiar to her about the way he was acting. Compulsion – she could recognize it anywhere. She shoved her thoughts aside as she put on the best smile she had in her arsenal, meeting him in the eyes politely and memorizing his features. She was sure of the man's vampirism – he was too strong even for his size – but then again, one could not exactly compel a vampire could they? She brushed it off though; he would be dead before the next sunset. Removing herself from the situation, she slipped into the crowd, her eyes picking up anything and everything. She spotted the newcomer easily, immediately understanding what the big fuss was about.
He was good-looking to say the least, with sandy brown hair that was darker at the edges. Likely only in his early twenties, he was well-built though not as buff as the other, and sported a smirk that looked at home on his features. There was also something about the man that exuded a certain charm, almost as if people would naturally be attracted to him, and his eyes were a deep brown; filled with hidden depths, the mystery somehow serving to make him more attractive. He was clothed in a dark brown, knee-length tunic with sleeves that ran all the way to his wrists, and a pair of black chausses. His clothes fit him snugly, a signature of the upper class.
It took the hunter less than five seconds to memorize everything about the man before she was heading elsewhere. Sure, she was supposed to be checking him for anything suspicious but it would be stupid to approach him upfront. Besides, any vampire she had ever come across would not have been able to take the crowded room without showing at least a bit of blood lust – even the man she had met by the door was now standing alone in a corner and shifting uncomfortably, his eyes following the movements of those closest to him. She moved around much slower than she would have liked but took note of everything. He was far too comfortable in the situation – she had to raise the stakes, but how? Having had drowned herself in her thoughts, Jennel reacted too late when she collided into a burly, young man. She pulled back immediately, her hand flying to the blade she had strapped under a hidden fold in her gown. When recognition hit though, she retracted her hand immediately, bowing in apology.
"Forgive me, Lord Jozef."
The man watched her for a moment, his sea blue eyes narrowing by just the slightest bit. Jennel bowed respectfully before backing away and attempting to head in the other direction. She felt the man grab her arm before she could get out of range and resisted the urge to curse. Steeling herself, she took a deep breath before turning back to face him, careful to keep her head low.
"Miss Lenova," the man remarked, "I must say it comes as quite a shock for me to see you at this formal gathering."
"The invite cited at least one member from each family. It would have been rude for us to have ignored this opportunity to welcome our new neighbours," she whispered, carefully suppressing the irritation bubbling in her. It must have worked because Jozef grinned.
"I must say it is indeed a good day when a new family comes into our little town, don't you agree?"
"Of course," she responded quietly, resisting the urge to pry his fingers from her wrist. Of all the things she disliked, being trapped was somewhere near the top.
"Ah, have you met our new acquaintances? Mister Kol Mikaelson, and his sister Rebekah Mikaelson," Jennel filed both names into her mind, "They are quite an interesting pair. But even so, I don't entirely understand what all this fuss is about," he waved a hand towards the rest of the room in a manner that was oddly derogatory.
"No, I have yet to have the pleasure of welcoming them. But seeing as they appear to be very much occupied at the moment, it would be rude to interrupt."
Jozef laughed; it was a loud and entirely forced sound.
"There is always time to meet with the chief's son and his lady friend. Why fret?"
She sighed, immediately detesting where this conversation was heading. She knew for a fact that Jozef did not even like her and she sure as hell did not think of him any better. In fact, Alexia – one of her cousins –had deduced that the only reason he was paying any attention to her was because as the chief's son, everyone else was open to get. There was no competition here in their little town, even with the addition of the new siblings. Jozef outranked them all and if he wanted something – or someone – he would get it and most would be happy to oblige. Most except them: the daughters of the quiet little family. But while there were quite a number of unmarried females in her family, her sisters and cousins did not get it half as bad as she did. Sophia, the only one of them who was younger than her, only recently turned fourteen and while she may become eligible for marriage in one or two more years time, she was too young at this point. Most of the others were older or the same age as Jozef, leaving her the sole target of his unwanted attention.
Lucky for her though, their lifestyle was hazardous and any partners either had to already be in the know or be open to it. Jozef was not one of those people and no one could honestly see him choosing to put his life out on the line so he was out thankfully. It was during moments like these that she appreciated the fact that her family had such an odd structure.
"I am not—"
He tightened his grip on her arm and tugged her forward, as if she was a particularly stubborn mule but said mule simply dug her heels into the ground, jerking them to a stop. He glared at her, all semblances of his prior good mood evaporated into the wind.
"I don't think I like your attitude, Jennel. I told you to come with me."
She froze, caught between trying to keep up her image and fighting back. So she chose something in the middle.
"I apologize but I must go," she insisted firmly, meeting him in the eyes. Polite escape, the only thing they had been taught with regards to dealing with other people.
"But you just arrived," he protested in a way that the hunter could only describe as childish, "could we not talk a little more?
Jennel did not bother replying and instead gave a quick shake of her head before excusing herself, heading in the direction of the backdoor. Jozef watched her, his eyes growing dark.
Kol was shocked – the brunette had looked at him for all of three seconds before she had apparently lost interest and headed elsewhere, he was confused – the compelled vampire, though forbidden from employing his full strength, should still have been strong enough to have at least caused her pain while on his mission to get the door closed and yet she had stood firm, but most of all, he was intrigued. She had worn plainly normal clothing, as if she were coming home instead of visiting the house of someone who was quickly becoming a respected individual. She had arrived more than half an hour late and still appeared to not show even a shred of remorse, not even bothering to acknowledge his existence.
Sometimes, mortals were just rude. Hell, he felt insulted if that was even possible to be aroused by someone he had never even talked to.
Rolling his eyes, the Original let out a sharp breath of air to numb the odd blow to his ego, his gaze following the disrespectful twit as she slid through the crowd, paying attention to everyone except the owner of the house. Again, he tried to remind himself that some lesser mortals just did not get how impossibly powerful and good-looking he was, or something like that. Poor comfort really, but he did not exactly care. Maybe he would catch up with her later and do something that would ensure she would never dare ignore his presence again. And then maybe eat her. He was getting kind of hungry.
He continued following her trek with his eyes and watched her bump into a beefy lad that the Original recognised as the son of the town head. She apologised quickly but the boy would not let it go and caught her before she could leave. What ensued was not what he had expected. Apparently, the boy had a liking for her – what exactly about her, Kol did not need to ask to know – but she was rejecting him with adamance that could rival Rebekah. The child was obviously well-off so what exactly was stopping her, Kol had no idea. He shamelessly listened in to their conversation and came to the conclusion that the male wanted her to come along to greet him but she was trying to reject him. Ah, lovers' quarrels, how uninteresting.
And then the oddest thing happened.
One moment, he had been watching the two at loggerheads, trying to decide whether to stop or encourage the internal debate going on in his head as to who would taste better (he was inclined to kill them both), and then Jozef – the male's name apparently – jerked her forward and she reflexively pulled back, the recoil revealing something he had definitely not been expecting; a necklace to be specific that had slipped from under the collar of her dress.
Lapis lazuli: the mark of a witch.
The blue stone winked at him, only serving to confirm its identity. Only two kinds of people would wear such a rare rock: vampires who had had a witch cast a day-walking spell upon it, or witches. The stone was a special element in nature, serving as one of the best absorbents of spells and the only material so far capable of holding and retaining the day-walking spell. He had heard of witches that casted protective magic on these trinkets, wearing them to ward off the supernatural beings that reigned upon the higher shelves of the food chain.
He smirked; maybe this town was not as mundane as he had thought. As a precaution, he listened to her heartbeat and then quickly ruled out the vampire option. Witch indeed then. But why in the world would a witch – a servant of nature – come to a party to welcome a vampire? Maybe that was why she had not come up to greet him; her senses must have alerted her that he was not human. Well, if she was a witch, she might be of some use to him; he had been keeping an eye out for their kind during his travels, knowing full well what these beings were capable of. And to think just this afternoon, he had been musing about how boring life had currently become.
With renewed interest, he watched her finally manage to escape and turn off towards the backdoor. Disengaging himself from the one-sided conversation he had been dragged into with a lady in her late teens, he followed after her, his signature smirk on his face. It would take some persuasion to convince one of their kind to help a vampire, but he was an Original and that package happened to come with some privileges. Besides, where was the fun without some challenge? Pushing the door open, he welcomed the scent of fresh air and the nearby lake, his eyes zooming in on his target.
Jennel had no idea where she was going. All she knew was that if she did not leave, Jozef was going to lose an arm. She was tired of this place, this town that was nothing more than a prison, where she had been forced into a life she had never wanted. Her father used to say that their family was enlightened, that they had the privilege of knowing the truth. But the truth was a heavy burden and with knowledge came sacrifice. Every night they would risk their lives to extinguish the vampire race, every other day they would head into town, limit all human contact, play the roles they had been taught to perfect. They would never have a normal life, they would never have a normal family; they would never be free to be happily oblivious to the dangers lurking in the shadows, they could never be themselves except around the select few that had joined their crusade. Irritating as Jozef was, a life like his would have been almost blissful. What simple lives the other women lived, worrying over matters as trivial as whether their hair was straight and proper, or whether the butcher's son had yet to set his eyes on anyone. Sometimes she scoffed at them, other times she wished she could have it too.
She abruptly stopped, knowing that she had yet to complete her task and could not go far. Cursing, she twisted around before jerking to a halt. The sight before her was the lake that neighboured the house, the soft breeze playing with her hair. She took a calming breath, taking in every bit of the familiar scent. The air here was a little different than anywhere else in town; it carried the refreshing taste of clear fresh water and it smelt green, the kind of scent one got when they uprooted a blade of grass, or tore a leaf in half: sweet and beautiful, the scent of nature itself. It was her little slice of a haven; she used to spend entire afternoons here, when sleep evaded her, lying down on the field and looking up at the afternoon sky. She often thought that her family – who spent most of their waking hours at night hunting – had forgotten about the little things in life, almost felt sad for them sometimes. Her peace and quiet though, was broken by a silky yet husky voice.
"Does the party not suit you?"
Jennel started, barely stopping herself from grabbing and launching a stake at the source of the voice. She frowned at the intruder, baffled by how close he had gotten without her notice. She always heard people coming.
"Well?"
He cocked his head to the side, a mischievous glint in his eyes. Jennel finally realized that it was the man she was supposed to be investigating. Maybe luck really did exist.
"It's okay," she whispered, lowering her gaze in a way that she knew made her look particularly vulnerable.
"Ahh, she speaks."
Jennel frowned, suddenly defensive.
"Well, what about you, Mister Mikaelson?" she retorted, still careful to keep a tight lid over both her volume and tone.
"Please, call me Kol," he offered, taking her hand and bringing it to his lips, never breaking eye contact with her. Jennel's eyes narrowed by just the slightest bit. Playboy.
"Well, Mr Mikaelson," she chimed, twirling her hair around a finger and deliberately avoiding his gaze, "I would find it a shame if you missed out on your own party."
She pulled her hand away from her hair as if she had just realised she was toying with it and smiled hesitantly. The newcomer smirked and Jennel mentally gave herself a pat on the back for her acting. She had taken a long time to perfect her shy-girl image, picking up bits and pieces from watching the townsfolk and seeking advice from Alexia who had given her the idea about the hair-twirling. She thought she would never understand why anyone did that. But according to her elders, in order to be good vampire bait, it was either that or flirty and she could not pull off flirty to save her life
"To be honest," Kol continued, "I have very little regard for such gatherings. This was but the wish of my sister and as her older brother, I am merely humouring her," he chuckled slightly at that before flashing a grin. "After all, I find much more interest in finding out about the local coven. It has been a long time since I last bumped into one."
The man smiled brilliantly at her, his eyes narrowing almost in a threat that she for once, did not recognise.
"What are you talking about?" she responded instinctively, genuinely confused, and immediately cursed her reaction; it had been out of character.
The man frowned but then recovered almost immediately, staring at her in a way that made her feel like he was analyzing her, gauging her responses. A moment passed before he relaxed, apparently deciding to drop whatever it was he had been asking. Jennel instead turned away from him to look out at the clear water in a pitiable attempt to salvage the situation.
"So then darling," Kol started again, apparently deciding to ignore the rejection, "why are you out here all alone?"
Jennel gained a strange urge to snap at him for the unwanted nickname but kept her remark to herself. She could not afford to further damage her cover. Instead, she heaved a sigh. There was no way in hell that she was going to talk about her life with a stranger, let alone the stranger she had been assigned to check out.
"I like this lake; I used to come here fairly often."
The excuse was awfully pathetic though she was not exactly lying, and she knew that her façade was tearing itself to shreds; her voice had been too loud and her tone a little too harsh. The Mikaelson fellow did not seem to notice though. Instead, she watched as he slowly frowned, as if confused by her behaviour. She could not blame him; if their positions were reversed, she would be confused too.
"But what could possibly be so fascinating about water?" he pressed.
Jennel shrugged, keeping her gaze firmly locked in front of her in an attempt to gather her wits.
"Don't you find it interesting? The water: it gives life, sustains it. It's absolutely essential for survival. And yet at the same time, it's deadly, one wrong move and it will swallow you whole."
There was complete silence; Jennel could hear her own heartbeat in her ears. She sighed, suddenly feeling a wave of melancholy wash over her. It was in no way the complete story but there were very few people that knew that she liked lingering around the lake, let alone those that knew why. It was odd but she almost wanted to keep talking, rant about her stupid teenager problems to this stranger as if it would make her feel better. It had been a long time since she had really talked to anyone outside her family and she thought maybe it would feel nice, having just a bit of a life outside of the vampire hunting. But she caught herself.
Instead, she felt the weight of the blade strapped on her thigh and remembered her mission. It was fate that he had come up to her and Jennel was not one to go halfway. She ran her finger over the slit in her gown, cut to allow her to gain easy access to the weapon under it. Then she heaved a sigh and took one step forward, toward the sea of pebbles that guarded the edges of the water. Her target looked up at her but made no move to follow. She walked onto the pebbles, looking very much like she simply wanted to get closer to the lake. Usually, the hunter was more than capable of manoeuvring any terrain and she adjusted to changes easily. But most people were not hunters and this was too good a cover story to let go.
Leaning her weight unnaturally, she allowed herself to slip on the wet rocks. Immediately, her instincts blared at her, every fibre of her being filled with the urge to act out to catch her. She ignored them all though as she pulled the blade out and made a long gash in the palm of her left hand. In less than a second, the blade was back in its hiding spot as she crashed into the rocks, her injured hand pressed onto the smooth stone. No harm, no foul.
She played pain easily enough; her shoulder had protested violently against the sudden motion. The man came up to her naturally and Jennel cradled her left hand gingerly to her chest, groaning. Her hand was freely bleeding now. If he was a vampire, there was no way he could resist this. He bent down next to her, closer than she was comfortable with, and stared at her wound, frowning. The hunter watched him carefully with bated breath. It was time for the moment of truth. Then, when she was convinced he was going to throw up, he abruptly rose and offered her his hand. Jennel reached her right hand up to him and he pulled her to her feet easily.
"Careful darling, that looks deep," he warned, still smirking.
She smiled sheepishly, "I've had worse."
Jennel shrugged but smiled at the man anyway. So he was not a vampire after all. She suddenly felt rather guilty for putting him through all that. She made a show of looking up at the sky and frowning, as if it was getting late.
"I best be going, my father does not like it when I'm out too late. Until next time then, Mister Mikaelson," Jennel lied smoothly; most of the time, her day started when the sun went down. The man smiled, still looking at her in that odd way.
The hunter turned to leave, mentally cursing herself for not having had found a less bloody way to test if he was a vampire. She was pulled out of her reverie when Kol called out to her again.
"I did not catch your name."
Jennel turned back to face him, a smile on her face.
"Jennel Lenova."
Kol watched the girl walk slowly away, his curiosity having had peaked. When she got a reasonable distance away from him, he hissed, releasing the iron-tight grip he had had on the hem of his tunic. His fangs had grown the moment the girl had somehow cut herself on, what Kol was fairly certain, blatantly un-sharp rocks. She had then practically waved the blasted injury, in all its bleeding glory, at him. It was not that he had trouble controlling his blood lust but Kol had had very little restraint over the years, feeding off of and killing whoever he wanted and his system was not very used to leaving a bleeding person be. His body had in turn, reacted just as any hunter's would, giving him the tools to kill if he so chose to. But he did not want to kill her, not yet. The girl was interesting. She had made a very convincing show at being a shy girl next door – one that he might have believed if she had not had a hundred and eighty degree change halfway through their conversation – but the vampire knew better than that.
It had been extremely faint, so faint in fact that he doubted he would have caught it if he was not an Original, but when he had bent down next to her, still contemplating whether or not he should just eat the girl since she had denied his witch-theory, he had caught a whiff of what he distinctively knew to be vervain. He knew that the herb did grow in these parts but even if the teenager spent her entire day frolicking in the woods, a past time that was practically unheard of among the female population, the scent would not have stuck unless she spent a lot of days frolicking in the woods and vervain was neither the most common plant in the region nor the strongest smelling. In fact, the girl smelled more like oak and maple, two of the trees that made up most of the woods here and whose scents had very conveniently covered up the vervain. Thinking a little harder, Kol decided that maybe she did spend all her time in the woods. What exactly she was doing though, and why she had vervain – regardless of whether it was deliberate or not – was something the Original felt almost compelled to find out.
Jennel Lenova. There was something extremely off about the girl, from her resisting the vampire, to the vervain, and to her pretty little witch necklace. Even her name was not normal in this part of the world – it had no Slovakian roots at all.
Smirking, Kol turned to return to his party, a new challenge in his sight.
Game on.
Jennel stood before her family, her steely gaze locked on the ground and her face the perfect picture of nonchalance as she waited for instruction.
"Report."
Her father's gruff voice silenced the remnants of conversation that had lingered in the room as the other occupants directed their attention to the brunette. Most of her family had already left for the usual hunt, only the adults as well as Veronica, Leon and Alexia had returned early. Jennel looked up slightly, acknowledging the command before beginning on her findings.
"The newcomers are clean. Sliced my hand wide open and he didn't even flinch." The huntress paused momentarily, clenching her fist as she felt the rough fabric she had used as a crude tourniquet scratch against the skin. "I did find a vampire suspect though: Burly, black hair, late twenties, tan, green eyes, about six foot two. I think he is one of the townsfolk but I'm not sure as to who." Jennel stopped, contemplating whether or not she should divulge the whole story. Vampires could not be compelled. That was lesson number one, the most basic of facts that they knew. She would be a fool to question it but she was so sure. The huntress took a deep breath and then acted on a whim, "But he looked like he was compelled."
The look she got immediately made her regret voicing her suspicion.
"You of all people should know that vampires cannot be compelled."
The whispers silenced as Jennel lowered her head again, heaving a quiet sigh.
"I know that," she murmured, a hint of exasperation tainting her voice, "but he had all the signs. I would not be reporting this if I was not at least ninety percent sure."
"Ninety percent is not good enough."
Jennel narrowed her eyes, looking up at her father.
"I am absolutely sure that he is a vampire and I am absolutely certain that he was compelled." The huntress' voice came out clipped, a clean surface hiding something much darker. She could feel rage bubbling up inside her and swallowed harshly to quell it. There was no point in getting angry now; anger was blinding, without direction; useless.
Her father rose from his seat, his lips pressed in a thin line and his features a careful wall of controlled rage. Jennel did not back down though, staring at him straight in the eyes. A tense moment passed before the silence was broken.
"Veronica, Leon, Alexia," the three's heads snapped up immediately, "find and capture him. Let's test Jennel's theory shall we?"
Moving almost as one, the three pushed off from where they had been leaning against the back wall, and turned to head downstairs to retrieve their gear. Alexia pat Jennel on the shoulder as she passed, offering her own silent comfort. Her elder sister and cousin did not show any sign that they knew her though. Figures.
A pregnant silence filled the room for a few moments as Jennel engaged in a staring match with her father. The remainder of the family watched the two carefully, as if waiting for an inevitable explosion. They were so focused that the entire room let out a communal jump when the front door slammed shut as the trio left. Neither of the two showed any visible reaction though, refusing to back down. A strained moment passed before the head of the household spoke again.
"My sisters," he whispered, turning to face the other adults in the group, "leave us."
The three huntresses rose from their seats in one swift motion before heading upstairs to their rooms in a line. Barely a second passed after the last door clicked shut that a palm flew straight at the teenager, a hot, sharp pain surging through the skin and leaving it with an unpleasant sting.
"What is the meaning of this? Do you think so highly of yourself? Compelled vampires?" he scoffed before starting up again, "And how dare you talk back to me? You dare rebel against me, against your family?"
Jennel felt the tears pool in her eyes. It was a reflex, she reminded herself, a reaction to the pain from the slap, and she blinked it away.
"He was compelled. I was not trying to prove anything. Whatever happened to being prepared for any situation?" Jennel deadpanned, her voice devoid of all emotion even as she cited the lesson she was once taught.
She had evidently hit a nerve when her father raised his hand again, his face flushing red in anger. The pain never came though as he demonstrated a rare moment of hesitance. Jennel raised an eyebrow, prompting him to continue. A heartbeat later, the man slowly lowered his hand, his face bleached of all emotion.
"Get out of my sight."
Jennel frowned in shock; that had not been what she was expecting.
"Get out!"
The huntress did not need to be told again, rising from her position, giving a curt bow and leaving. That had been a low blow. A very specific person had taught her that lesson and after she had left, it had become a touchy topic for all. She could not afford to feel guilty though. She slid silently into her room, closing the door behind her.
He was running.
He could still hear them though; the pair – comprised of a blonde male and female – was doing a remarkable job at keeping up with him for mere humans. Or at least he thought they were humans. He frowned slightly, thinking back to his earlier statement. It was weird how he was now thinking of people as a separate group, as if he had not been one less than a week ago. He turned back to look at them again, unable to help but feel the slightest bit of familiarity. It was a small town to say the least and practically everyone knew everyone. He deduced that they had to be townsfolk but working as a baker's assistant, who spent most of the day in the back, had not exactly turned him into a social butterfly. His pursuers abruptly split up, the male continuing to hound him whereas the female had branched off into a route between two houses. Why were they even chasing him? He turned back to face the front again, sliding into a sharp turn down the main road in an attempt to shake off the male. It hardly did anything.
But then again, he was currently forbidden from using his full speed, something about not wishing that their cover be blown. He had accepted it back then – not that he had had a choice – but now he deeply regretted not voicing some sort of objection. His thoughts abruptly shifted to the man he had been taking orders from. He had happened to meet him out in the woods a few days ago but soon found out that the latter was not exactly amiable. His memories after that were sketchy; all he knew was that he had to obey whatever he said. There was not even the threat of punishment or some sort of reward and there was definitely no loyalty (he hardly even knew the guy) but he had to obey, no questions asked. It made no sense.
Skidding, he turned another corner before whipping back around to face his attackers. One, two, three, four... He counted slowly to himself, waiting for the duo to show up. He could not keep running, it was clearly getting nowhere and the sun – never would he have thought he would one day need to be worried about that – was about to come up. Listening to the footsteps, he hesitantly let his instincts take over, knowing full well that a fight was inevitable. Besides, it would be easier to take down one at a time then both together; maybe, just maybe, he could even avoid killing them. A piercing pain in his gums signalled the growth of his fangs and the blood surged to his eyes, heightening his senses.
Then it was gone: the footsteps, the racing heartbeats, the mildly laboured breathing. It was all gone and all that was left was silence. He frowned, feeling himself seemingly come down from a high as his fangs retracted and he looked around the corner he had turned into. The path was deserted, not a single soul in sight. He slowly emerged from the lane, confused, when he heard a voice from behind him.
"Looking for someone?"
The blonde female that had been chasing him gave him a sweet smile before easily dodging the frenzied swing he launched at her. She sent a net she had seemingly pulled out of nowhere at him and the vampire instinctively darted out of the way, the edges of the trap grazing his skin and burning it. Vervain. Baring his fangs, he dashed over to the girl with his enhanced speed – or the limit in which he was allowed to use it at least – aiming for the neck. The girl simply smiled at him, then at the very last minute, rolled out of the way. He skidded to a stop, spinning on his heels, as he felt a stake plunge into his chest. Groaning, the vampire took a deep breath before blood surged to his eyes again, his predatory instincts taking over as an immense rage flared up inside him.
"You missed," he announced, showing his teeth, before reaching out to her.
But inches before he could touch her, he felt strong arms wrap around him and jerk him backward, a prick piercing into his neck as he crashed to the ground. Blurring to his feet, he turned to retaliate but was instead greeted by an arrow going straight into his gut, courtesy of a new redhead. Doubling over, a whip shot out and snaked around his ankle, yanking his legs from right under him as he stumbled and fell to the ground in a defeated lump. The new girl kneeled down slowly beside him, just out of reach, as his vision began to swim from what he suspected to be vervain. She smirked as he felt her two accomplices pull at his arms and legs, binding him.
"We don't miss," she whispered before rising as his world went dark.
Jennel's eyes fluttered open when she heard the creak of the wooden floorboard outside her door, her hand tightening around the knife she had hidden under her covers.
"Jennel, they've returned."
The solemn voice of her eldest sister, Alexandra, had her bolting upright, weapon still in hand. She nodded swiftly and her sister left the room, her wispy blonde hair blowing out behind her. Left to herself, Jennel rubbed the last remnants of sleep from her eyes before swinging her legs around and standing up, sliding the weapon into its sheath. Glancing around the room, she quickly grabbed all the various sheaths and strapped them to their usual spots. She then haphazardly smoothed out her hair and left the room, closing the door behind her. Ghosting down the stairs, she exited the building and headed to the neighbouring barn. The sun was just beginning to rise, the morning sky painted with a gradient of baby pink and orange. The air was even cooler now, yet another sign of the coming winter. Glancing up at the sight, she guessed that the chilly season would be early this year.
Pushing the wooden doors open, she joined the rest of her family who were gathered around the main floor. The hunting trio were casually standing around the entrance to the stairway that headed downstairs, speaking to her father. A few short minutes passed before they dispersed into the crowd and her father turned to face his family.
"Jennel, Cynthia, come."
The two spared a quick glance at one another before stepping forward and following the man down into the cellar.
The barn of the Lenov family – a convenient alternative to inviting monsters into their home – was built for a very specific purpose: to store animals. It had taken their ancestors a long time before they had figured out that the best idea would be to build downwards, where they would be able to keep the sunlight out and their skeletons locked away from the prying eyes of the public.
The hallway, supported by cobblestones that made up the walls, floor and ceiling, was dimly lit by the occasional torch sluggishly burning away, the stone smoothed from years of use. At the end of the passage, two crude metal doors, leading to their respective rooms, guarded against unauthorized entry – and escape. Intricate contraptions they were, built after years upon years of trial and error. The most obvious feature was the fact that the door was almost impossible to open from the inside, with the added precaution that it could only swing into the room. A series of bolts and barricades acted as warning signals, creating a loud clang when the door was unlocked. It was a simple system really, with a lever that had to be pulled up, connected to two metal rods, one of which would hit a stationary metal bar to create the sound that could carry through the entire barn and a little of its radius.
The rooms themselves were tiny, made of the same stone as those outside. They were bare of any significant features, with torches lining the walls on all sides. There was little difference between the two except for their center pieces which were a single reinforced chair or stake respectively to hold the caught creatures down. The claustrophobic setting did well in causing discomfort in the inhabitants, hence encouraging cooperation. Finally, to top off the cake, the entire compound, save for a small segment of alley right before the stairs, was saturated with vervain which formed a layer over accessible surfaces from floor to walls, to stake and doors. A fresh coat was applied once every two years and after years upon years of repetition, the herb had practically seeped into the stone and the entire cavern carried such a strong scent of the plant that even humans could detect it, ensuring that even breathing would inflict maximum damage.
It was vampire hell at its finest.
Jennel and her cousin followed closely behind the man as they continued their trek, pausing in front of one of the doors. He reached a hand up to a metal slit and swiped it open to reveal a small rectangular hole before stepping back and waving his daughter forward. Jennel moved toward the door slowly, peering inside before pulling away and sliding the metal back in place.
"It's him."
Her father's only response was a short grunt before he motioned to Cynthia to move forward.
"I'll give you a chance to prove your theory."
Narrowing his eyes, the man reached over to the handle and gave it a firm jerk, the metal pulling back with a loud bang before the door jutted open. Jennel bowed gratefully, surprised by her father's uncharacteristic generosity, before following Cynthia into the room as the door slammed shut behind them. The latter, who was trained specifically in interrogation, looked completely at home in the setting, immediately falling into her role. Jennel on the other hand very rarely participated in such events, much preferring the more direct approach of spot-and-kill.
The catch was tied to a wooden chair, the ropes soaked in vervain and searing the skin. His head hung low and his eyelids drooped, a sign that he had been drugged. He pulled against his restraints slightly, inciting a soft groan as vervain dripped out of the twine. The ropes used on these creatures were not your typical fishing or hunting tools; these soaked up liquid like a sponge. He looked up as the two entered, his eyes narrowing either in distaste or to focus his vision. She was not entirely sure and she was pretty sure she was not supposed to care.
"You."
Jennel looked him right in the eye and smiled.
"Me."
Keeping an eye on the captive, the huntress moved to take the spot in front of the trapped vampire while her cousin moved towards his side. The vampire shifted uncomfortably as the former stopped next to a table.
"Why are you doing this?" the man's voice, rough from the effects of the vervain, reverberated through the room, echoing creepily across the cold stone.
He received no answer.
A deafening silence descended upon them before it was broken by the younger huntress pulling a dagger from a sheath and stabbing it into the table, hard enough that it now stood upright. Jennel heard the ropes pull taut as the vampire struggled but she ignored it, instead focusing her attention on the knife. They were no longer people. They had sold their souls to the devil in exchange for immortality. Another knife went into the wood. She registered the fact that Cynthia had started talking but again she ignored it, focusing on her thoughts. Vampires, they were mindless killers who lived off the stolen lives of others. They should not exist. The table shook again. She would not allow them to exist. She would protect the innocents, destroy the condemned. That was her mission, her purpose, her life. She would show no pity for them, no guilt, no hesitation. She took a deep breath, almost physically feeling a wall drop down in front of her as she blocked out all emotion; sentiment was a hindrance and she needed to be focused. She reached over and pulled one of the blades from its spot, stalking towards the pair in front of her.
They are not human, I have to kill them.
"So your name is Carter? Alright Carter, why don't you tell me a little more about yourself?" Cynthia coaxed.
"What do you want to know?"
Jennel watched the monster, looked at its steely gaze, the shell of whom was once a man.
They are not human, I have to kill them.
"Do you have any friends? People you are close to?"
The vampire shook its head.
"No."
Cynthia chuckled, grinning.
"You've been answering with a lot of 'no's, Carter. I'm starting to think you're hiding something from me."
They are not human, I have to kill them.
Jennel smirked. Picking up the cue as she advanced, spinning the knife out of habit. The vampire remained silent.
"I really don't want to have to hurt you, Carter. I thought we agreed to be friends," Cynthia chimed, smiling. Still, the vampire remained silent. The blonde simply laughed. "I won't be able to stop her," she warned, waving a hand at Jennel, "and she's known to be ruthless."
They are not human, I have to kill them.
Jennel took the prompt and smiled, launching the blade. It lodged right into the vampire's right shoulder and it doubled forward, wincing. She grinned at it before moving towards the table again, pulling out another blade before she started pacing along the perimeter of the room.
"We don't want to hurt you, Carter," Cynthia tried again, "Just tell us what we want to know and we'll set you free."
The vampire growled, gnashing its teeth at them. They are not human, I have to kill them. Jennel chuckled before sending the next blade into its other shoulder. She pulled the last dagger from the table as she continued circling.
"Maybe I should be more direct," Cynthia suggested, "Have you been compelled?"
"I can play with you all night," the brunette supplied from the side, still spinning the blade. She frowned when she noticed the creature shrink away, as if it were trying to distance himself from her.
They are not human, I have to kill them.
"Why don't you just tell me?" Cynthia continued, "Then we can end this and you won't have to suffer anymore."
The vampire grunted, its breathing speeding up as it shifted uncomfortably.
"You really don't learn, do you?" Jennel growled, sending the knife into the vampire's leg as it howled in pain. Jennel watched the blood trickle from the wound and turned away, shutting her eyes for half a beat before she opened them again. They are not human, I have to kill them. She stared at the red liquid unseeingly. That was the blood of innocents', stolen from them by these beasts. The vampire squeezed its eyes shut, hissing. Jennel sauntered back to the table and lodged two more blades into the wood, letting them soak up the vervain.
"Carter," Cynthia started up again, "I can't help you if you don't let me."
Jennel pulled one of the knives from the table and launched it. The weapon flew true, going straight into the space between two sets of rope and right into its target's abdomen. It yelled, jerking forward in pain before screaming again as vervain dripped out of the rope.
"I won't stop unless you talk," Jennel remarked in a sing-song voice, pulling the last knife from its spot. They are not human, I have to kill them.
When there was no response, she glared at it before shrugging and spinning the blade around in her hand, ensuring that the weapon was in plain sight.
"I can't tell you."
The brunette paused, glancing over at Cynthia who immediately seized the chance to attack.
"Why can't you tell us, Carter? What's stopping you?"
"I can't tell you." The vampire sounded almost desperate now. Jennel almost laughed at that thought; it could not be desperate, vampires could not feel anything.
"Did someone tell you not to?"
Jennel moved away from them, keeping the knife in clear sight.
"I can't tell you. He told me that I can't tell you!" it screeched, "Throwing your knives at me is not going to work!"
Cynthia moved, crouching down next to him and looking at him straight in the eye.
"Who's telling you?"
"I can't tell you!" the vampire snapped, frustration and desperation warring on its features.
"Okay then," Cynthia smiled, before getting back to her feet.
"Thank you for your cooperation. Jennel will cut you loose then you will be free."
The vampire hunched over, looking away from both its tormentors as Cynthia sauntered over to the door and knocked on it a few times. The heavy metal creaked before swinging open as the hunter stalked out. Jennel walked calmly over to the creature, smiling.
They are not human, I have to kill them.
"Interesting..." Jennel murmured to herself, watching the spinning blade in her hand, "Tell me, Carter, how were you compelled?"
The creature glanced up at her, shifting uncomfortably.
"You'll never find him," its voice was almost desperate, "You can't even hurt him; you have no idea what you're up against."
"Oh really?" she chimed, still watching the knife in her hand.
"Just stop, you and your friends?" it almost laughed, "You can't win!"
Jennel finally looked up at it before leaning in towards the vampire and whispering into its ear.
"We'll see about that."
Then, she drove a stake right into the vampire's heart.
"You're free now," she hissed, stepping back and watching the monster desiccate for a moment, before stalking out of the room and slamming the door shut behind her. Oh, they would find him alright. It was only a matter of time.
Game on.