Dark Paradise
Chapter 21 – Après Moi, Le Déluge – Part 1
••• ••• •••
Hayley smiled and nodded in thanks as Mara walked into the living room and handed her a glass of water, while the three of them all looked at Davina's drawings which were placed on the coffee table revealing the dark force she'd been sensing for months. An evil, impending doom that had haunted the young witch –only she'd been drawing a picture of Celeste; a witch who had been dead for a very long time and who also happened to have been involved with Elijah before her untimely end.
"Witches…" Hayley breathed shaking her head back and forth as she took a drink from her cup of water.
"The Italians call them Strega, the Yoruba of West Africa call them Aje –meaning mother. Where my mother was from they called them hexa; here we call them witch. Over the centuries vampires have fought them and fought beside them, bedded and burned them. Whether adversary or ally they have been a force to be reckoned with. Here in the New Orleans… their ancestral magic anchors the city. There's never been one all-powerful witch until Davina," Elijah gathered his thoughts out loud as he continued to stare down to the drawings.
"Who is now tucked in, safe and sound down the hall-" Klaus' words were immediately cut short as he dropped to the floor with a groan of pain clutching onto his head before Mara gasped and broke the concentration on the defense spell.
Rushing to his side, she spilled apology after apology as she helped him to his feet and he shot her angry look.
"I'm sorry!" she repeated, rubbing her forehead as she breathed, "I'm so sorry."
"What's going on?" Elijah questioned, looking between the young witch and his brother.
"Oh, you haven't heard?" Klaus replied as he walked over to the bar to pour himself a drink he explained, "Apparently Davina isn't the only witch who believes something bad is headed for us."
As he raised the glass of alcohol to his lips, he pointed at Mara with the other hand and stated, "That's the second time today you've bested me. I much prefer seeing that power used against my enemies."
"Then stop sneaking up on me!" she exclaimed shaking her head back and forth as she held her hands down at her sides, constantly moving her fingers and not quite able to hold still.
Everyone's attention was drawn over to Hayley as the werewolf started laughing and nearly choked on her drink of water. As she scooted forward in her seat still sputtering from the breath of liquid she'd inhaled she nodded remembering what had happened earlier that morning as she recalled out loud, "She almost sent him through a wall!"
Mara and Klaus both shot her matching unamused expressions which only made her laugh more before she cleared her throat and gave Mara a serious expression as she added, "But seriously… don't just come into my room at night and sit in the chair while I'm sleeping… it's creepy. You about gave me a heart attack."
"I was just trying to make sure you were alright!" Mara defended, "I swear, it's like everyone is out to get you and I just woke up last night with this feeling like something bad was going to happen so I went to check on you." Jutting a thumb over in Klaus' direction she continued, "And then he snuck up on me."
Abruptly stopping with the glass in his hand almost to his lips he argued, "I was not slinking about the house; I wasn't sneaking up on anyone… I simply walked into the room."
Mara rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest; all morning Klaus had been all but poking fun at her for being on edge. But something was wrong, she could feel it in the air and apparently, it was something his hybrid senses weren't keen to and he wasn't taking her seriously.
Elijah looked around the room, he was also feeling a change in the air –only not the same kind. Hayley was as safe as she could possibly be in the compound with not just him and his siblings, but a powerful witch who'd laid her life on the line for the pregnant werewolf a number of times.
And now despite everything that was happening; all of the danger they faced –Hayley was smiling and laughing, given it was at Mara's expense, but it was a look he hadn't seen on her much. His brother had more than surprised him with the way he'd come around to the idea of being a father and wanting a home to raise his child in. Not to mention, he'd also seen the change in Klaus with the more Mara was around. Despite all of the danger in their current situation; he was also well aware of the good changes that had come to be along the way.
Mara's eyes fell back to the drawings as she quietly realized, "Wow… she was really beautiful."
"And a portent of evil according to our volatile artist in residence," Klaus said as he stepped beside Mara and looked down the drawings as well.
"Yes," Elijah sighed, "Perhaps Davina's mistaken what she calls evil for power. Celeste was certainly very powerful in her day."
"Yeah, but that was hundreds of years ago, right?" Mara asked.
"Two hundred years ago." He nodded looking at her before he shook his head and admitted, "I don't understand why all these sketches now?"
Eyeing Mara, Klaus brushed against her as he walked over to the couch and sat down. He smirked at her and shrugged, "Why do witches do anything?"
Moments later the sounds of glass breaking and what sounded like a body being thrown against the wall echoed from the side of the house Davina's room was on. They were all aware that Marcel had been trying to make peace with her –but the teenage witch was having no part of it.
"That's going well," Klaus remarked as he sat his glass down on the table next to the drawings.
"Yes, well if you were trying to win the girls trust perhaps poisoning her one, true love wasn't the most splendid idea," Elijah pointed out causing Hayley to lower her head and stifle a laugh.
Nodding Mara agreed, "Yeah, that was definitely the worst way to go about it."
"Oh, are there any more inopportune deaths you'd like to wave in my face?" Klaus asked motioning with his hands in front of him as he spoke.
"Give me a month… I'll make you a list," Elijah replied without missing a beat, his words even earning a small laugh from Klaus –that was until more sounds of glass shattering rang throughout the large house.
Leaning forward in his seat Klaus said, "Young, old, dead or alive… witches are a pain in the ass." He finished his sentence with reaching for his still half-full glass, but just before he could grab it, the glass moved on its own just out of his reach.
He turned his head and looked to Mara who stared back at him with raised eyebrows letting him know she didn't appreciate the comment.
He opened his mouth to say something but before he could there were more sounds of glass breaking, he and Mara both looked to the ceiling before she turned and headed for the stairs with Klaus right behind her.
As they reached the witch's room and went inside Klaus angrily asked, "What is with the racket?"
"Davina!" Marcel yelled with a helpless expression as she coughed and coughed again until dirt finally started to spew from her mouth and all over the light colored bedspread.
"Bloody hell…" Klaus breathed as he walked up to the end of the bed and watched her continue to cough as more dirt poured from her open mouth.
Mara stood a few steps behind Klaus with a shocked expression on her face, she'd never seen anything like that before in her life. "Davina?" she questioned, but the teenager's coughing fit only increased and with it, the entire compound started to rattle.
Lamps fell from tables, books flew off their shelves and artwork formerly lining the walls came crashing down to the floor. Marcel looked around confused and grabbed a lamp on the bedside table to try and steady it during the rumble.
"Is this… is this an earthquake?" Mara asked, her eyebrows lowered in confusion as she spoke.
Walking past her out of the room Klaus stood on the interior balcony overlooking the open space on the first floor. The vampires were all standing around as the contents from the tabletops were jarred off onto the floor.
"What the hell is going on?" Rebekah called out as she walked out to the middle of the floor and looked up to Klaus as Mara joined him at his side and looked around.
"Davina…" Klaus muttered the answer to his sister's question under his breath as he shook his head thinking she was doing this in protest of the prior day's events.
"I don't think she's doing this on purpose," Mara admitted turning to face him as she said, "That feeling I've had today… the closer I'm standing to Davina the stronger it is. The power radiating off of her is so strong I can see the energy in the air around her, but it's not like it was before with her… it's out of control, it's chaos."
His eyes locked with hers and realized she had –had every right to be on edge and jumping like she'd been doing since late the night before. Being in the same house as Davina she could feel the shift the air –in ways that non-witches couldn't.
Mara let out a gasp of surprise as Klaus quickly grabbed her and pulled her back against the wall right outside of Davina's room, before she could even ask why he'd done that, a large, decorative station fell on its side crumbling into pieces in the exact spot she'd been standing before he moved her.
Blowing out a heavy sigh, she leaned her head back against the wall and closed her eyes trying to catch her breath after the scare. Only opening them when she felt an arm slide around her waist and looked over to see it was Klaus as he stood protectively beside her, ready to move her out of danger if the earthquake continued to almost bring the compound down around them.
After it finally stopped, Klaus went back in the room to see about Davina. He wasn't entirely convinced she'd wasn't doing this on purpose and Mara took her phone out. Wanting her sister there for more than one reason. On one hand, if Davina was acting out maybe her sister could get her calmed down and if it really was out of her control Mara felt like Emmalin might be able to help keep her calm.
••• ••• •••
Feeling the sun on her face, Emmalin scrunched up her face and let out a whiny groan. When she heard a chuckle from beside her, she cracked an eye open and saw Kaleb lovingly watching her. He brushed some hair out of her face as he quietly said, "Wake up, pretty girl."
"No," she whined, her voice groggy with sleep as she snapped her eyes closed and pulled the comforter over her head, causing him to laugh again.
"Yes," he argued, pulling the comforter down. He hovered over her, laying a hand on the side of her face, "Besides you should never hide that pretty face, love."
Emmalin smiled at him as he leaned down to press his lips against hers for a gentle kiss. He pulled back a moment to look at her, then chuckled when he saw specks of glitter on her face and in her hair.
"What are you laughing at?" she questioned with an amused expression on her face. She loved seeing him like this; laughing, smiling and carefree. She knew he worried when she worked a spell for Klaus, it's not that she wanted to, but he didn't make it easy to say no. Plus she couldn't just leave her sister alone to deal with the monstrous hybrid.
She hated how her boyfriend worried though, she hated seeing that look on his face, but in these moments that look was gone and all she could see was how much he cares for her. It made her feel a way she has never felt before.
"You are covered in glitter," Kaleb answered with a chuckle. He brushed a few pieces from her hair, then glanced around for a moment, before leaning toward her and whispered, "I think the lights worked. Your fairies visited last night."
Emmalin laughed out, then playfully pushed his shoulder, "That was not fairies, goof, that was you. You are the one who poured glitter everywhere."
He laughed along with her and raised his hand, causing the glitter on the bed and the floor to levitate. He gave an innocent shrug as he stated, "You can't prove that."
She shook her head at his comment, a chuckle escaping her lips as she laid her hands on either side of his neck and pulled him toward her as her lips crashed against his.
As she thought about what he did for her the night before, she couldn't help but fall more for him. It had been a while since she even thought about the whole fairy thing, and even though it was painful thinking of it now, it was nice losing herself in those memories for the moment. It was nice to remember a more simple time, to remember her mother. She even loved the fact that he asked about her past. He wanted to know about those memories, he wanted to hear all of her stories.
As the two continue to kiss, she ran a hand down his back, slipping it under his shirt and running her hand over his bare back. Feeling the skin on skin contact just made her want more. It made her want to do something she had never done before.
She had some heated make-out sessions before, but never went all the way, but with Kaleb she wanted it all. She wanted his mind, his soul and his body.
Feeling her run her fingernails across his back, he let out a groan before forcing himself to pull back and break the kiss. It's not that he didn't want her, since laying eyes on her all he wanted was every part of her, but he didn't want to rush things between them.
He wasn't a virgin, he had been with a few girls through the years, but what he has with Emmalin was more than just physical. With her he was still experiencing a first, he was falling in love for the first time and because of that, he wanted to take it slow with her. He didn't feel the need to rush into the bed with her, he just wanted to be around her. He wanted to know everything about her and feel that connection between them bringing them closer and closer. He didn't want her for a few blissful hours, he wanted her for life.
"We should get out of this bed," Kaleb suggested, even though it pained him to say. He wanted nothing more than to stay in bed with her all day, doing things to her that he has been imagining since the beginning, but that would come later.
"Or we can stay in bed," Emmalin mumbled, before pressing her lips against his and pulling him closer to her.
"Mm, no. No, I think we should get a start to the day," Kaleb said back, forcing himself to break the kiss again. The longer he was against her, the more she was kissed him, the harder it was to stop things. With their connection, every touch set his body on fire. He couldn't get enough and was close to forgetting his original thoughts.
He laid a hand on the side of her face, running his thumb over her bottom lip, "We should grab some food, take a shower..." When she moved her head to the side to kiss the inside of his wrist, causing goosebumps where her lips landed, he continued, "A cold shower."
"Or we can-"
"No," Kaleb said, interrupting her. He had a good feeling he knew what she was going to suggest and if she actually said they should shower together, he would not have been able to say no.
"Okay, yeah, that's fine," Emmalin softly said as she gently pushed him back to sit up in bed. She was trying not to feel rejected, but couldn't help but feel that way. She knew how he felt about her, or at least she had a good feeling of how he felt. It was like she could feel how he felt when they were together, but she couldn't understand why he didn't want to go that far with her. Was there something wrong with her?
"Hey, love, look at me..." He began to say as he lightly grabbed her chin, turning her to face him. He saw the look on her face and didn't want her to get the wrong idea. As if reading her mind, he said, "There's nothing wrong with you- trust me, all I want is you, but I don't want to rush this. I don't want to rush your first time."
"How did you-" She began to ask, wondering how he knew. She had never told him.
"I knew," he said, giving her a smile. He leaned forward to softly kiss her lips, then rubbed his nose against hers as he added, "And I want that moment with you, but now is not the time. When the time is right, we'll know."
"You are almost too good to be true," Emmalin said, pulling back to smile at him. "You really are my Prince Charming."
"I told you, you bring out that part," Kaleb said back. He wasn't always this way, but there was just something about her that brought out that nice, protective side.
She gave him a quick kiss, before whispering, "I like all of your parts."
"I like your parts too," he whispered back with a grin before he lowered his head and began to nibble on the side of her neck, causing her to squeal out in surprise.
She playfully pushed him away with a laugh. "That tickles!"
"Noted," he said with a wink.
She smiled at him as she ran a hand through her hair, seeing all the glitter fall out. "I think you're right. We should shower. I am covered in glitter." She laughed as she stood up from the bed.
"It was those pesky fairies," Kaleb joked as he stood up as well.
Emmalin shook her head and chuckled at his comment, before turning around to face him. She nodded her head toward the head of the bed, where the twinkling lights he bought her were hanging. "Thank you for the lights, by the way."
"You are very welcome, love," he said with a smile.
She walked around the bed to walk over to him, laying her arm loosely around his neck, "And thank you for last night. For listening to me ramble all night."
"I love to listen to you ramble," he said, kissing the tip of her nose. "Feel free to take a stroll down memory lane anytime."
"I would love to hear your stories too," she said. "I feel like I am always talking about myself. I want to hear about your life too, remember?"
"I know," he said with a nod. "Maybe next time."
"Or now," she suggested. "Tell me something now. Anything, like, what kind of stories did your mom tell you?" She shot him a teasing look as she joked, "Was it fairies? Are you a closeted fairy fan too?"
"No." Kaleb laughed and shook his head. "Trust me, I'm not a closeted fairy fan."
"What then? How did your mom get baby Kaleb to sleep?" Emmalin questioned as she looked up at him with trusting eyes.
"Just uh, just regular stories," he said, turning away from her and opening one of the dresser drawers. Since he started staying with her more, he brought over some of his clothes and she cleared out a few drawers for him to use in her dresser.
"Like regular children nursery rhymes and stories? Things like that?" she questioned.
"Yeah. That," Kaleb answered as he pulled out a clean shirt to wear.
"Well, what about when you got older?" Emmalin asked.
"I don't know, I guess, superhero stories," he said, slamming the drawer shut and causing her to jump. He turned around to face her as he harshly questioned, "What does it matter?"
"I was just curious. I want to know you, Kaleb. I want to know everything." She gave him a sad shrug, then quietly added, "I'm sorry for asking."
As she went to walk past him, he reached out to stop her, laying his hand on her stomach to bring her to a stop. He laid his head on the side of hers as he whispered in her ear, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean..."
Pulling back to look at her, he laid his hands on either side of her face, "I didn't mean to be angry with you. It's just... you had a great childhood, you have all these great memories, and not everyone had that."
"Oh," Emmalin breathed out, realizing what he was saying. He was right, she did have a great childhood, but she realized not everyone was that lucky, even Mara described her childhood totally different from her. Now she was even more curious about what kind of life Kaleb led.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, causing him to shake his head, letting her know she didn't have to apologize. Besides the last thing he wanted from her was pity.
Before either one could say anything else, something happened that took them both by surprise when they began to feel the floor shake. Kaleb pulled her closer to him, wrapping his arms around her head and trying to shield her as some books fell off her bookcase, and a few decorative figurines and pictures fell from her desk.
When he saw the flower vase that sat on the shelf above their heads begin to fall, he threw out a hand, causing it to fly across the room and slam against the opposite wall. When she jumped in his arms from the impact, he pulled her closer as he whispered words of comfort to her. He didn't mean to scare her, he was just trying to protect her.
"I'm sorry, love. I'm so sorry," he whispered in her ear as the ground stopped shaking under their feet.
She pulled back to look at him as she shook her head, letting him know it was okay. She glanced around for a moment, seeing the mess around the room. Thankfully, other than some of her stuff being on the floor, there wasn't much damage to the room.
"Was-Was that a-"
"Earthquake," Kaleb finished for her, seeing how scared she looked. He nodded his head, "Yeah. Yeah, it was."
"Why?" Emmalin breathed out. "What caused it?"
Before he could answer, she heard her cell phone ringing. She stood in place, too shaken to move, causing Kaleb to give her a tender kiss on the top of her head before he walked over to the bedside table to pick up her phone.
He glanced down, seeing it was her sister Mara calling. He walked back over to her, holding out the phone as he said, "I think we're about to find out."
••• ••• •••
"We need to prepare –according to Sophie Deveraux, as Davina self destructs she'll cycle through four stages that signify the four stages that bound together the harvest," Klaus explained as he walked down the sidewalk next to Father Kieran.
He glanced over his shoulder when he realized Mara was no longer at his other side, she'd fallen a few steps behind them; slowly walking along as her attention kept being pulled up to the dark clouds gathering in the city sky above them.
Since her childhood, she'd been drawn to storms. Both Emmalin's and her own favorite time of years was the springtime. Her sister loved it for all of the plants coming back to life after winter, the blooming of nature. Mara, however, loved the season for its frequent thunderstorms.
But this was different, it wasn't just a storm there was something far more sinister than dark clouds brewing on the horizon and she felt like she'd somehow landed her and her sister smack dab in the center of it all.
She was shaken from her thoughts as Klaus grabbed her arm and pulled her back up to his side, keeping his hold on her so she wouldn't fall behind again –he already felt like the city was starting to crumble around them.
"The earthquake?" Kieran guessed. He'd had a feeling it wasn't a natural event.
"Ah, yes." Klaus nodded, "The earth stage comes first."
"Earth stage?" he repeated back coming to a stop before his forehead lined with concern and he questioned, "What comes next?"
"Wind." Klaus answered, "Each stage is worse than the last… gaining power with each new element."
"Then after the wind is water," Klaus continued to relay the story they'd gotten from Sophie earlier that day after Elijah had brought her back to the compound for answers on what was happening with Davina.
"Rain?" Kieran questioned.
"Flooding," Klaus corrected.
"How bad?"
"Quite bad actually, but that's not the worst of it."
Looking at the hybrid with a confused and also worried look, Father Kieran dared to ask, "What's worse than the flooding?"
"Fire," Mara spoke up when she had his attention she thought back to what they'd learned and sighed as she explained, "Since it comes last… it's going to be the worst. We're not just talking about the French Quarter, we're talking about the entire city burning."
"But, I didn't take over this town to watch it burn to the ground," Klaus said, cutting off the end of her sentence as if the city burning down around them wasn't a choice.
"You know a way to stop this though, right?"
Klaus glanced over at Mara who's jaw tensed in anger and she stubbornly folded her arms over her chest before he turned back to Kieran and admitted, "Yes, but you're not gonna like how. They witches will need to complete the harvest."
When he saw the expression on Kieran's face he quickly said, "The witches say Davina and the others will be resurrected."
"You can't believe a word witches say," Mara gruffly replied, then rolled her eyes as Klaus looked over at her and she corrected, "These witches at least. How do we know they're not just lying to get what they want?"
Almost as if the winds were on cue, gusts of hard winds blew the streets carrying trash and a few hats with it.
Mara groaned in pain as she turned her face away from the direction the stinging winds were coming from and over nature's roar she heard Klaus point out, "I don't think we've got the time to wait and see."
••• ••• •••
After talking to her sister, the couple quickly showered and made their way to the compound. According to her sister, the earthquake was because of Davina. All the power she took in after the failed harvest attempt was becoming too much for her.
The power from her and the other harvest girls was supposed to go back into the earth, but since Davina got it all, it was slowly killing her, and if that wasn't bad enough, she'll also cause destruction around them; like the earthquake earlier, which was only the beginning.
Emmalin came to a stop in the courtyard, seeing a few vampires sitting around. She knew none would mess with her- or at least she hoped not, but being around them still made her nervous. When she felt Kaleb grab her hand, giving it a squeeze, she felt herself instantly calm down. She turned her head to the side to look at him, seeing that he was looking right back at her.
"There you are," they heard a voice say, causing them to turn their heads and see Rebekah walking toward them.
Emmalin gave her a small smile and nod in greeting. Vampires still might her feel uneasy, but after working with Rebekah and Elijah in the bayou, she was a little more comfortable around the blonde. Despite what they were and the fact that they should be enemies; at the end of the day, they were both just a girl who wanted a full, happy life filled with love and laughter, but instead was pulled into a world they did not understand. Once she got passed the part that she was an original, Emmalin could see her as someone who could become a good friend.
"Rebekah, this is Kaleb-"
"The boyfriend, right?" the blonde interrupted. When Emmalin nodded her head, she flashed him a smile as she said, "Cute."
Nodding her head toward the side, she continued, "Now come on. No time to waste."
"Where's my sister?" Emmalin questioned as she and Kaleb followed along behind Rebekah. She was surprised her sister had not come out to greet her yet.
"She's with my brother talking to Father Kieran," Rebekah answered, causing her to let out a small scoff. Of course, her sister would be with Klaus, that is where she had mostly been lately anyway. She wanted to be happy for her sister, but she couldn't. As much as she hated to admit it, she could notice little small changes in Mara already and that did not sit well with her.
The blonde ignored the noise as she added, "They're updating him on Davina."
"How is Davina?" Emmalin asked.
"Not well," Rebekah softly said, coming to a stop in front of the bedroom door. "And it's going to get worse."
"What can we do?" Kaleb questioned.
"Try to keep her calm," Rebekah answered. "At least until..."
"Until what?" Emmalin asked when she paused.
When the blonde didn't answer and instead looked away, Emmalin gasped as she realized what she was saying. They needed to keep her calm so she didn't destroy the city or them until it was time to complete the harvest.
"We can't do this!" Emmalin hissed, not wanting Davina to overhear them.
"I'm sorry, but we might not have a choice," Rebekah said with a pained face.
"There has to be something," Emmalin pleaded, feeling Kaleb pulling her toward him to comfort her. "Maybe-Maybe there is something in my grimoire. There are so many spells in there I still haven't read yet. Or maybe my uncle has a book, he has a whole library filled with books, there has to be something. There has to be!" Her voice growing more desperate the more she talked.
"Hey, pull it together!" Rebekah said a little harsher than she meant. When she saw the look on Emmalin's face, her face softened as she added, "We have to remain calm too; for Davina. If we get hysterical, it'll only make things worse."
Emmalin nodded her head, realizing she was right, and felt Kaleb rub a hand up and down her back. He was seconds away from snapping back at Rebekah, but he could tell she didn't mean to speak that way to them. They were all on edge, worried about Davina, and worried just how much worse things could get. It was a stressful time, causing a weird energy in the air.
Rebekah reached out to open the bedroom door, then looked back at the couple as she said, "Remember to remain calm."
The three made their way inside, seeing Davina laying in bed with her eyes closed as she rested for the moment. After what happened earlier, she felt drained. She couldn't understand what was happening to her. What would cause her to throw up dirt and make the earth shake?
Emmalin watched the young witch slowly breathing and felt her heartbreak for her. No one should have to go through this and especially someone this young. It wasn't fair and it wasn't right. There was still so much she didn't understand about magic, but she couldn't understand how something like this would be okay; that a coven would murder their own just to keep their power. It didn't seem worth it to her. She would give up her powers over and over again if it meant saving a life.
She turned her head to look at Rebekah, asking her for a damp washcloth, before she took a few steps toward the bed. She carefully sat down beside Davina, brushing her hair aside the way a mother would for a child.
A few seconds later, when Rebekah joined them in the room again, she took the cool cloth from her hand and began to wipe the sweat from Davina's forehead, causing the young girl's eyes to flutter open.
"Hi," Emmalin whispered.
"Hey," Davina sleepily said as she blinked a few times, trying to force herself to wake up. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay," Emmalin said, shaking her head. Thinking she meant the earthquake and what was going on now, she added, "You can't help what is happening to you. The power you have-"
"No," Davina interrupted. "I mean, at the church, when I knocked you out. I'm sorry," she repeated, meaning when she and Mara came to the church to help her escape.
"That's okay too," Emmalin said with a smile. "I know it is hard to know who to trust in this world."
"I don't think I can trust anyone again," Davina said as her face fell. At one time she thought she could trust Marcel, but he lied to her. He never told her that the last remaining elder was killed and he was buddy-buddy with Klaus again, even though he killed Tim just a few short hours ago.
"You sound like Mara," Emmalin joked, a small chuckle escaped her lips. When a small smile appeared on the young witch's face Emmalin asked her what.
"When I talked to Mara, she told me I sounded like you," Davina explained. "I told her I never wanted this, I wanted to be normal."
"That does sound like me," Emmalin softly said. "When I first found out what I was, I wanted no part of it, I wanted to keep living my normal life, but now, I like this life. I want to use the power I have to keep the balance. I want to use it to help people; like you, Davina. And I know Mara would want to help you too."
"I like Mara," Davina said with a small smile. "She brought me white hot chocolate."
"She used to do that for me too when I was young and upset," Emmalin said, smiling back. "She can be trusted, Davina." Despite the crowd she was hanging with lately, Emmalin had no doubt her sister would still do the right thing. She knew she could still be trusted. "We both can."
"I can see that," Davina said with a small nod. "I think I can trust you two."
"Good," Emmalin said. "And because of that, I want to be honest with you, Davina."
She glanced behind her at Rebekah and Kaleb; who had stood back and remained silent as she spoke to the young witch. She turned back to look at Davina as she added, "We want to be honest with you."
"About what?" Davina asked confused.
"Davina, what's happening to you, is just the beginning," Emmalin began to say. She explained what happened earlier, the earthquake and her throwing up dirt was the earth stage.
"Then comes wind," Rebekah added as she took a step closer to the bed. She sat down on the other side and continued, "And since each stage is more intense than the last. Let's just say you'll blow the roof off this place."
They could tell Davina was already getting upset, but they owed it to her to tell her the truth. Emmalin reached out to grab her hand, hoping to comfort her as Rebekah explained about the other cycles, but nothing could keep the young girl calm when the blonde vampire revealed they wanted to complete the harvest.
"No!" Davina called out as tears filled her eyes.
"The witches say you'll be resurrected," Rebekah pointed out, hoping that wasn't a lie.
"They're liars!" Davina cried. "They'll say anything to get what they want. Just like Marcel, just like you." She turned her head to the side, looking at Emmalin as she continued, "You said- You said I could trust you. You said-"
"And you can, Davina," Emmalin interrupted. Her own vision blurred as her eyes filled with tears, before saying, "I don't want this any more than you do."
"Then fix it!" Davina cried. "Fix me!"
"I'm trying, I swear I will try," Emmalin said back. She wrapped both of her hands around hers, "I promise I won't give up, Davina. I will keep trying."
"Don't let this happen, please don't let it happen to me," Davina cried out, getting even more upset and causing the wind to pick up outside.
Emmalin jumped in surprise when the shutters slammed against the house repeatedly. She felt Kaleb walk up behind her and lay a comforting hand on her shoulder. When Rebekah stood up from the bed announcing they needed to give her something to calm her down, it only caused Davina to cry and struggle more.
"Davina, Davina!" Rebekah called out to the teen. "The more upset you become, the faster you deteriorate."
As the young witch continued to cry and the wind got worse outside, Emmalin reached up to lay her hand on top of Kaleb's, drawing power from him, before she laid her other hand on top of Davina's head, whispering a few words, which instantly made her calm down.
She blew out a relieved breath as the wind stopped blowing outside. She kept her hand on top of Davina's head, then looked over at Rebekah, telling her to find something to give her. She knew she couldn't keep the spell going for too much longer, but it would at least keep her calm enough until they gave her something.
Minutes later, after they started an IV drip to keep her sedated, Emmalin stood up from the bed, then stumbled a little from the spell. Kaleb quickly wrapped his arms around her, keeping her steady as he asked if she was okay.
"Yeah. It just took a lot to keep her down. The power that is flowing through her, it's too much than one person can handle. It was fighting against me," Emmalin explained.
Kaleb glanced behind him, seeing a box of kleenex on a table and grabbed a tissue. He turned back toward her, placed the tissue under her nose to catch the blood, before saying, "If we don't get that power out of her soon, she's not going to make it. None of us are."
"I know," Emmalin whispered as tears filled her eyes. "I need to search my grimoire-" She began to say until the saw the look on her face, causing her to ask him what.
"You're not going to find anything," Kaleb said, hating that he was having to tell her this. "There is no other way to save her. There is only one way. And that's-"
"Don't," she pleaded, her voice barely a whisper. She knew what he was going to say, he was going to say the only way to save her was the harvest, but she couldn't support that. She had to believe there was another way.
She wrapped her arms around his middle and buried her face in his chest, "For now, please just don't say that. Just don't."
"Okay," he softly said as he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer to him. He rested his head on top of hers and blew out a breath. He knew how this was all going to end and he hated it.
He hated that someone had to die in order for the others- and himself, keep their powers. He hated that he had to disappoint his girlfriend and tell her there was no other way around this. He hated in order to save all of them, to save their city, a young girl must be sacrificed- but most of all, he hated that the person who must die was an innocent, sixteen-year-old girl, named Davina Claire.
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A/N - Thank you to everyone reading. Special thanks to NicoleR85, CaptainTana, geminigurl89, and SmellYourScentForMiles for taking the time to leave a review. You'll never know how much that means to me :)