It is a seventeen hour drive from Pittsburgh to New Orleans, Phoenix has not woken up since she collapsed. Klaus tried to feed her some of his blood as he seen her arm desiccating but as soon as it slid down her throat, she instantly starting choking and spitting it back up. Thankfully Marcel had an empty needle just in case they needed to vervain her, Marcel kept driving as Klaus got in the backseat.
He grabbed the needle out of Marcel's jacket and took off his suit jacket while is covered in his own blood, he picks up one of the blood bags from the floor and injects the needle into the top hole where usually a tune would go in for a blood transfusion. He draws enough blood in the needle to fill it up before laying it on Phoenix's lap, Marcel is looking at him from the inside mirror. Klaus lifts up Phoenix's arm that is desiccating and punctures the skin with the needle, he pushes the blood in and watches as her skin slowly gains back its color.
Ten minutes later, they pull up outside the Abbatoir and Klaus picks up Phoenix in his arms. Her dress draping over his arms, her arm loosely hanging over his neck with her head on his shoulder. As he walks in the home, he sees Elijah and Hayley come from out the kitchen.
"Thank god you found her" Rebekah announces from the top of the stairs.
"Yeah thank god or she would have died" Marcel says.
"What do you mean died" Freya asks appearing from the library as Klaus lies Phoenix on the couch.
"Well it appears that she is desiccating. Klaus tried to feed her his blood but she only spit back up, human blood is the only thing that helps" Marcel explains.
Klaus bends down in front of Phoenix and strokes the back of his hand delicately against her cheek, he notices the change in her facial features. Her cheeks that were usually plump and large have sunken in, her eyes are bags underneath them which she tries to cover up with makeup. He can see the bones structure in her sternum and chest, Elijah walks over placing a hand on Klaus's shoulder.
"Look at her Elijah. She's weaker than before" Klaus states.
"But why would she be desiccating" Hayley asks?
"It has to be the baby. The baby must be feeding from the magic in her blood and it's killing her" Freya explains.
"Then how do we stop it" Klaus asks?
"We have to deliver the baby but she is only six months, the baby would be three months premature and may not make it" Freya explains.
"I don't understand. Hayley didn't have this problem when pregnant with Hope" Marcel says.
"Hayley conceived Hope when she was a werewolf or technically human. This baby was conceived after Phoenix became a vampire" Freya states.
"So our best option is to let the pregnant continue or we risk early birth and my child may not last" Klaus asks?
"Son" a weak, hoarse voice states.
Everyone looks down to see Phoenix brown eyes that are usually full of life are dull and tired, no passion and even her hair looks less vibrant.
"What did you say love" Kol asks?
"The baby...it's a boy. You have a son" Phoenix says looking away from Kol and turns to Klaus, his eyes shine bright blue as his lips part and his eyes drop to her stomach.
"I get a nephew" Kol beams happily.
"Oh god" Phoenix states as her stomach churns, she raises her hand to her throat before covering her mouth. She coughs dryly, her chest burning and when she pulls her hands away she sees small specks of blood in her hand. Elijah gracefully pulls out his handkerchief and hands it to her, she wheezes and wipes off her hands. Klaus places his hand on the small of her back to comfort her, he feels her tense up at his touch and looks at him with fear in her eyes.
"You're not taking my son away from me" she snarls.
"Little witch I would never think about it separating you two" Klaus says.
"Good. Because I will die protecting him" Phoenix says.
"Excuse me can you guys leave us girls alone. Klaus please get her some blood" Rebekah says pushing through her brothers and sitting beside Phoenix.
"It needs to be warm or my body will cough it back up" Phoenix raspy voice states.
"Alright I will see what I can do" Klaus says and stands up and walks away followed by Kol, Elijah and Marcel.
"Honey are you alright" Rebekah asks squeezing Phoenix's hand.
"I feel like crap. I'm always starving, there are people after my baby. And it looks like I'm going to die before I even get to meet my own son" Phoenix says rubbing the brink of her nose.
"We will do everything in our power to protect you and our nephew" Rebekah pledges.
"Don't worry about saving me. I know I won't live to see Thanksgiving or Christmas" Phoenix says slinging her legs off the couch so she is sitting up.
"You need to rest" Hayley suggests.
"I don't have to rest. I have to find out why everyone is hell bent on killing my baby. He didn't do anything" Phoenix says as pushes on the arm of the couch and stands up, pressing a hand on her lower back.
She feels dizzy as the room spin, she takes one step before swaying to the side. She raises her hand to her head before she feels herself falling, she hits something hard and looks up to see Klaus with his arm around her waist. The glass of blood in his free hand, Rebekah takes the glass out his hand and sets it down before Klaus picks Phoenix up in his arms and sits her back down on the couch.
"Can you please stop treating me like I'm some weakling. I am strong enough to handle this pregnancy, if I can lose a baby and still preserve than I can carry a baby" Phoenix bites at everyone.
She reaches forward and wraps her hand around the mug and brings it towards her lips, after a few sips she feels slightly better and manages to stand up on her own.
"Where are you going" Klaus asks?
"Since you have taken me against my will. I am going to go change out of this dress. Just because I am here Niklaus doesn't mean we can just go back to the way things were before. Let me make this very clear for you. Yes I love you and will always love you" Phoenix says seeing everyone leave out the room and letting have their space.
"But I still hate you. I hate you! Because if I don't hate you then I have to hate myself for ruining our relationship and I think I deserve better than that, our son deserves better than that" Phoenix says and walks away leaving Klaus pondering at her retreating backside.
-X-
Klaus is in his bedroom standing on the balcony looking up into the night, the full moon leaving his blood tingling and the pull towards Hope and Phoenix growing stronger within him. He remembers the last time it was a full moon and he was on his balcony, raising the glass in his hand up the sky in remembrance.
"Wherever you are Camille. Rather you have curved the inevitable wrath of the devil himself and have a front row seat at what many people call heaven. Or rather all your deep, dark secrets you have kept within to hurt have scorched your soul beyond repair. I prefer to think of you as my own personal angel, you are not forgotten and you are missed everyday" Klaus says before taking a swallow of his drink when his ears pick up on a second heartbeat in the room.
"Lovely speech Niklaus. Not at all candid as your previous speeches. This one actually shows...dare I say it, your morality" Elijah says.
"Have you come in to gloat at all of my failures in life. All of the loved ones put to death at my cost" Klaus asks?
"Not at all brother. I am strictly here to tell you that you can not give up on Phoenix. History has taught us that you are meant to be" Elijah asks?
"Yes history! History seems to have an eye for irony and bloody mockery. Once again, Phoenix life is put in danger. Rather she admits it or not, subconsciously she knows she is dying because of me. Because my son wishes to consume the essence of his mother" Klaus says turning around to face Elijah who places one hand in his pocket and steps closer to him with one hand out.
"Have you ever thought that maybe Phoenix knows the cautions of carrying your son to full term and doesn't care. She is just like you Niklaus in every term of the word equal, even Hayley who is an hybrid like you is not equal in power to you. But Phoenix is, even before becoming a hybrid. Family is everything to her, your son means everything to her just like Hope means everything to you. She will die for him as you will die for Hope" Elijah says.
"There is no saving her Elijah. She is only going to get worse the farther the pregnancy prolongs" Klaus says.
"Then cherish the moments you have with her now" Elijah states.
"I can't do this without her Elijah"
Klaus looks at Elijah with unsure tears in his eyes, Elijah pulls him into a hug just like when he thought he was dying from Marcel's bite.
"You have to be strong brother. Your son will need you after the passing of his mother" Elijah says before releasing him and walking away to let his brother decide on what he needs to do.
-X-
Phoenix is sitting in her bedroom with one leg out the other foot tucked against her knee, in a tank top and black sweatpants. Her hair pinned back in a bun as she runs her fingers over the thick, green leather old book on her lap.
"Let's see if there is any truth to my dream" she says places her hand on the interlocken triquetra symbol in the middle of the book. She exhales and flips the book open to the first page, the inside cover she sees it is carved with the initials S.C, but it looks like it was done with a jagged rock or claw. Flipping through the book she stops to see what appears to be a family tree, with a little paragraph ahead of it.
The magic of the Tri-Crescent witches date back as early as the 1600s. Each year a new generation of witches are born and each year, some male and some female. There are some rare witches who are capable of performing spells with the help of objects but can not practice magic on their own. Our coven has brought back many witches of different ancestors, this links all of the Tri-Crescent witches from one blood line.
Phoenix looks down to see the line starts with someone named Patience Broadstone in 1602 before it goes through over a hundred generations, each child born has their names or initials if the name is too long. The more recent ones has pictures, she pauses when she finds a picture of a little girl swaddled in a white cloth with her birth date.
"Leia Rosetta Charleston born August 3rd, 1803 death unknown" Phoenix reads and raises her head, she runs her hand across her growing stomach as her son kicks swiftly against her side making her wince slightly.
There is a knock at the door and based on the heartbeat and smell of the warm blood pumping she knows it's Freya.
"Come in Freya" she says, Freya walks in and closes the door behind her.
"I just came to check up on you and the baby" she says sitting down on the right of Phoenix, she looks down at the book she is holding and raises an eyebrow.
"What do you have there" Freya asks, Phoenix pushes the book in Freya's hands and points to Leia.
"The Charleston heir ends after the birth of Leia" Freya says.
"Yes that is correct" Phoenix says.
"But there is no death date. So where is she" Freya asks?
"I think I am her" Phoenix says and Freya turns her head to look at her shocked.