Klaus sat there in that tiny airplane seething in anger. How was it that he hadn't completed his very simple plan? He had completed neither step 2 or 3...No that had been the stupid white knight quarterback.
Was he really angry that he hadn't been the one to snap Caroline's neck...Yes, yes he very bloody God damn was. Who the hell did Matt think he was anyway? Swooping in like that, he had it bloody damn well sorted, thank you very much. Not that he would ever admit it, but it had bruised his ego. There would be changes coming, and bringing Caroline home was only the start. He thought back on all of the evening's events that had led them to their current circumstances.
What the hell were they doing here?
Was all Caroline could think as Claire confirmed the existence of the real Matt and the real Klaus. Then horror filled her, Markos was closing in on her and now Matt and Klaus were here within his grasp as well. She couldn't let that happen. As the emotions fell away from her face she only knew one thing she had to protect them at all cost. There could be no loose ends even if that loose end was someone that considered her a friend. If it came down to a decision between Matt and Klaus or Claire, she knew exactly who she would choose every time.
So she slammed her hand into Claire's chest and pulled out her heart. She was sorry she had to do it, but she also wasn't. She would protect the unknowing pair of imbecile men who were standing in the alley way with her and she didn't really care who she had to kill to do it.
She studied them both as Claire's heart fell out of her hand, Matt's clear look of shock cut like a knife. There was a judgement and disappointment in his gaze, one she hadn't seen since he found out she was a vampire, and it hurt. He didn't understand that everything she had done tonight and in the previous years had all been to protect them. Every single horrible thing. How did you explain to one of your best friends that every time you killed someone, it came from a place of love? No one in their right mind put murder down as an act of love, but she did. He would never understand, and that put her on the defensive.
Klaus on the other hand simply shrugged. As if to say it didn't matter that she had killed someone right in front of them, and somehow that made her more defensive. It should matter, he should be shocked and disgusted. He should not be willing to accept that this is who she was now. What was wrong with him, that he would think ripping the heart out of an innocent bystander was okay?
She couldn't take the silence any longer, and Markos could be anywhere. So she did the only thing she could do, she pushed forward.
It wasn't the what had happened that shocked Klaus, but rather the who had done it. His Caroline. She had ripped the heart out of that vampire. His first thought was it seemed wrong, nothing like her in the slightest. Shock over took him for a moment, as he stood frozen in that alleyway. However, he had to admit he was impressed, being a world champion heart puller himself.
But in his second thought, he remembered watching Caroline murder an entire coven of witches to protect Bonnie. So maybe this really wasn't as far of a stretch for her as he had original thought. He let it all fall through him with a shrug, as if to say it didn't really matter to him that she had just committed murder. And it really didn't. What was wrong with a little murder? Someone had to make the hard decisions. This was still his Caroline, and she could be as murderous as she desired. Plus, in just a few short seconds Step 2 and Step 3 of his plan would take place.
"We need to go, it's not safe out here." Caroline stated and pushed past the still stunned white knight quarterback and into the throng of people rushing out of the club from her first murder of the evening or at least the first he knew about anyway.
She marched ahead and the two were all but helpless to follow her. For several blocks she marched on.
No one said a word.
The white knight finally seemed to regain some sense of himself after being overcome by shock in the alleyway.
"Care"
She turned on them then and all but hissed "Kelly."
Stopping in front of a high rise building, one of those modern monstrosities that didn't seem to fit into this city at all. No character, no charm, only oppressive metal and boring non-descript features.
She pushed through the door and was immediately greeted.
"Ahh Good Evening Ms., your home early, the evening not up to your standards I take it." said a portly middle aged man behind a desk as they entered.
Caroline slowed to lavishly stroll through the lobby, her whole demeanor changing in an instant. She laughingly called out to the man as she passed by "Oh on the contrary, this evening was full of interesting surprises."
As they stood before the elevator waiting, Caroline turned around and cheerfully waved to the portly man.
"Goodnight Edvard."
"Goodnight Ms. Williamson." The man said back.
Caroline felt herself cringe, although she managed to keep a seamless mask across her face. Please do not have let Klaus hear that, but she knew he had. She knew if she turned to look at him right now, he would have that stupid grin on his face. The one she either wanted to slap off or kiss off his face depending on her mood.
So she said the first thing she could think of as a distraction "Don't worry I don't have to kill him, he is compelled to always see me as being alone."
Klaus heard the words she said but barely took them in. Williamson...huh. Williamson, Mikaelson. They were practically the same. It would seem someone had been thinking about him, when she came up with her newest identity. His knowing smirking grin split his face. Her attempt to hide it, only confirmed the theory for him. She could have used Mikaleson if she had wanted to, that thought didn't bother him in the slightest.
As they stepped into the elevator, Caroline refused to look at him. Stepping passed her as he entered he said "Williamson..huh."
As the elevator began to rise so did his hopes, maybe Steps 2 and 3 would not be needed. Perhaps she would agree to come back with him all on her own. After all, one of the biggest hurdle they had faced to her admitting her feelings for him had been her over judgmental stance on his proclivity for murder. It would seem she was well past such judgements now, and he had in the years since Bethany' s birth tried to be reasonable about his murderous habits. Set a good example and all that. Truth be told, he had been down right boring in the murder department. It would appear they would be even better matched than ever before.
She would not look at him. She would not look at him. "Shut up Klaus."
"Well you know what they say impersonation is the sincerest form of flattery, love."
She refused to respond to him. Why the hell was this elevator ride taking so long. Being trapped in this tiny steel box, she felt the crushing weight of being this close to him, to both of them really. No one was ever meant to meet Kelly Williamson, or any of her other identities for that matter. As the elevator rose so did her anger level, they had both ruined a perfectly good identity. She had like Kelly...damn it. Now she would have to start all over again, unless Markos managed to catch them all first. What the hell could they possibly be thinking coming here?
By the time the elevator doors opened to allow them entrance to her penthouse apartment, she was all but enraged.
As the doors opened, real and true shock finally hit Klaus. Caroline murdering someone right in front of him twice that evening, he could understand. Hell he almost appreciated it, but this. This he could not understand at all.
The apartment was a disaster. Clothes thrown around everywhere, old food containers and blood bags haphazardly left about, and he didn't think there was a single place where an almost empty bottle of alcohol didn't sit. If one could manage to look past the mess, and that was a big if. The apartment itself was almost worse. Ultra-modern, all cold angles and hard edges, massive open space loft style floor plan.
There was nothing warm or comfortable or even feminine about the place at all, nothing about it said it was any sort of home. That alone told him exactly how far Caroline had spiraled. After all someone's home was the truest reflection of their inner self. Her bedroom in Mystic Falls had been warm, inviting, comforting. This...this there were truly no words for. Even words like cold, isolating, and void didn't seem while descriptive enough.
He and the quarterback back shared a glance as they exited the elevator, an understanding passing between them.
Klaus had never been willing to accept Elena' s assessment until this moment. He assumed the doppelganger was over dramatizing things, but this look into Caroline's inner psyche, had him wondering if maybe things had been under dramatizing instead.
As soon as the elevator doors shut Caroline rounded on the two men hissing "What the hell are you doing here?"
A look of disgust and almost hatred in her eyes that Klaus was intimately familiar with, revealed two things to him all at once.
1. They were not dealing with an emotions off Caroline. There was too much anger in her eyes for her emotions to be off.
2. The message from Bethany had not been understood. Or had been promptly ignored.
She continued to hiss and snarl at them "I swear the next words out of your mouths had better be, we found a way to defeat Markos." She stopped her sentence just short of the threat that was in her tone.
Matt shook his head, he had yet to find the words to navigate this nightmare. Klaus simply just walked past her, he figured he would let the quarterback field his one, he had more important things to attend to.
So you're telling me, you what decided to pop in for a nice visit? Maybe have lunch and catch up with an old friend...Well I can tell you, she doesn't exist anymore the person you're looking for."
"Care."
"Kelly."
"Fine, I don't care what you call yourself. We came because we need to tell you."
Abruptly Caroline cut off his next words "Is someone dead?"
"Well no."
"Does Markos have the amulet?"
"No but."
"Then there is no reason for you to be here. I certainly don't need nor want you here."
"And is there something I can help you with?" This time turning to Klaus who was meandering around her living room.
"Not at all, love. Just wondering who your interior designer was, and if you had the good sense to rip their heart out."
Seriously was he judging her, and her lifestyle? He was. He had the audacity to flounce into her life and pass judgment. She was posed to tell him exactly where he could shove his opinions, when Matt spoke again.
"Care." this time Matt said her name as a plea.
It was all too much. Their being here, destroying the new life she had created for herself with their presence, not that she didn't plan to give this all up after tonight anyway. Didn't they understand anything; didn't they understand what a temptation their being here was. It would be all too easy for her to run into Matt's arms, break down into tears and let his friendship comfort her. Or for her to run into Klaus' s arms and say take me home, I will let you protect me. Didn't they understand that in order for her to survive, she needed to forget them, needed to pretend like they didn't exist. She was incredibly alone, and it had to stay that way, especially with Markos being so close. Her devastation at knowing she would have to walk away from them again, manifested itself as rage. All of which set its sights on Matt.
"KELLY." Caroline roared. This time grabbing Matt around the throat and pushing him up against the elevator doors.
Matt's eyes flashed a brilliant yellow, the threat to his airway revealing his hybrid nature.
"Fine Kelly." Matt croaked out.
Surprised spread around Caroline's face "You're a hybrid." as quickly as the surprise came, it left. Leaving only a sneer "When did you decide to drink the Klaus Kool Aid? You and Tyler must be so happy together."
True and real pain overtook Matt, seeping out of his eyes but only for a moment "Tyler's dead."
Caroline kept that perfect sneer upon her face as her inside shuttered in horror. Tyler was dead. She knew that. How could she have possibly forgotten? In that moment the wave of rage at their presence here broke, it was replaced by the need to protect, but they could never find that out. She needed them to leave right the hell now, she needed them to be safe, and in order for that to happen she needed them to see her as not Caroline. The only outward sign of her internal battle was a slight loosening of her grip around Matt's throat, only enough for him to pull her hand away.
Matt thought for a moment that the mentioning of Tyler had broken through to Caroline. He had never been more wrong.
"So you couldn't hack it alone so you ran out and got yourself sire bonded to Klaus." Caroline hurdled at Matt.
Those were words Matt had no idea what to do with. Sure, Caroline was a mean girl back in her human high school days, but by the time they left Mystic Falls she had grown so far past that. All those mean girl qualities had come from a place of insecurity as a teen. These words were meant to be vicious, were meant to strike at him like a knife. Meant to make him bleed, and it worked.
How could she say that to him? How could she be so callous about Tyler's death, someone he knew she had been in love with. Who the hell was as this person?
Caroline tried to think of the worst possible things she could say, and said them. She needed Matt to turn his back on her. She needed him to see her as a lost cause. It was the best way to protect him, if she did this right he could be gone before Markos even knew he was there. Because she knew if Matt figured out how close Markos was to finding her, he would never leave her to face the monster alone.
There was a loyalty ingrained into Matt, this would not be easy. She needed him devastated, broken in order to make him turn his back. Klaus, she would deal with him later. So she set her sights on Matt, and continued to throw everything horrible insult she could at him. She mocked him, she mocked Tyler's death, mocked his hybrid status, anything she could think of, and she hated every minute of it.
"How's that sire bond working out for you? Is that how he got you to come here to find me? Are you Klaus's cute little puppy now?"
Finally, Matt yelled at her. "I am not fucking sired."
He had actually yelled at her, it shocked her even though that had been the entire point. Not that it showed, no, the whole time she had kept that perfect sneer locked across her face. She had him on the ropes now, and she knew it, she just needed to continue to twist the knife a little further.
"So you were STUPID enough to come here on your own, that's even worse. Or did you stop caring once you joined team Mikaelson. Rebekah must be thrilled at what a good boy you have become." as she imitated the sound of an owner calling their dog.
"You always were weak; I don't know why we ever agreed to let you carry a piece of Bonnie."
As fun as it was to watch Caroline verbally abuse the quarterback, and it was in fact down right abuse, there was a point where even he felt pity for the poor bastard. Finally, he cut in, the poor quarterback needed a time out, and it was time Caroline picked on someone her own size.
"Well of course he is, love. And of course I am referring to the stupid part of your earlier question."
Klaus grinned at her, as she turned her back to Matt and brought her full attention to him.
Her eyes were like daggers as she stared at him. "Don't even get me started on you."
"Why I am hurt love, you don't seem even the slightest bit happy to see me." Bring his hand to rest on his chest, and inhaling a deep breath as if she has physically wounded him.
"Why would I be happy to see you?"
"Well you seemed quite happy, more than happy one might say when I left you last."
Had Klaus really made a sexual innuendo about their tryst in the wood all those years ago. He had. First the judgieness about her lifestyle, and now he wanted to bring up her "happiness". God sometimes all she wanted to do was hit him. What was about him that made her want to strike out in random acts of violence?
As though he could read her mind, Klaus's eyes flashed yellow "Careful love, you know I bite."
"Of course I was happy, you left." She hissed now.
Another sarcastic deep inhale of breath "You wound me, love."
"Stop calling me love, dammit" every time he did her brain went a little more fuzzy and she needed to keep her wits about her. Not to mention that stupid grin, that said he understood a lot more about her then she was letting on.
"Ahh I see we are back to you covering your feelings with hostility."
Yes, he was purposefully goading her not only to give the quarterback a much needed break from the onslaught of her abuse, but to see how far he could push her before she lashed out.
He had been observing and searching from the first moment they had walked into this nightmare of an apartment, was all lost? Was his Caroline really gone?
No, he didn't think so, it wasn't one single thing but a culmination. Now that he had a moment to think about it the murder of the man at the club it felt like a pre-calculated move, the vampire clearly protective, but the biggest piece of evidence had come from right here inside this horror show of an apartment.
Tucked in the corner, so easy to overlook, was a meticulously kept bag, Well-worn but obviously well cared for bag. It was the one thing that seemed out of place in this life she had constructed for herself. And he would put good money down that if he looked inside it, it would hold all the mementos Caroline had left from her life in Mystic Falls.
So did he believe his Caroline was gone? No. Was her light extinguished? No. It was however buried far beneath an ominous darkness she had coated herself in. It was a coping mechanism and yes thanks to years in Cami' s therapy chair he knew what that meant. This particular one he was intimately familiar with; he had employed it for the years Mikael had hunted him. Better to be soulless and unsavable then admit to the constant loneliness and isolation that surviving this way of life created. The question now was could that coating be broken?
He knew if pushed hard enough the answer would show itself, it was all a matter of the right buttons to push. And if there was anything he was well versed in when it came to Caroline it was how to push her buttons.
She had told them Caroline no longer existed, well we will just about that Klaus thought to himself, as she spat out a "Shut up Klaus."
Not nearly the witty comeback he would have expected from her. Klaus grinned even harder it would appear he was already winning, and he hadn't even warmed up yet.
Caroline began pacing and snarling like an animal back into a corner, as though she understood that they were locked into a battle of wills. Locked into a battle that would decide her entire future.
Klaus supposed they had in fact backed her into a corner, and like any animal the fight or flight instinct had kicked in, and it seemed as though Caroline had chosen. Fight.
"So how are you doing, love?"
"I said stop calling me that, and I was doing great before you decided to stick your huge ass nose where it didn't belong, and since you brought up the last time we saw each other. I thought we made a deal about you not showing up places."
"Actually, there is nothing wrong with the size of my nose, and our deal was I wouldn't show up in Mystic Falls. We are not in Mystic Falls now are we. Furthermore, and of course I am not judging here, you know I love a good removal of the heart, but I do not remember you being so lax in your judgement about it."
"I wouldn't have had to do that if the two of you hadn't showed up, so really that death is on you. What can I say Klaus, I have changed." This time she answered with cool indifference.
No that wouldn't not do. He needed her enraged, anger had always been the key to getting Caroline to admit to things, even if she didn't realize it. So he struck again.
Raking her with an up and down sneer and thinly veiled look of disgust "Yes, you most certainly have."
REALLY, He was judging the way she looked now. Caroline seethed. Who in the hell did he think he was? First, her apartment, her lifestyle, and now her appearance. He was the one that brought up their sexual history, now he wanted to look at her like she no longer held any appeal to him. Excuse me, she looked fantastic, DAMN IT. And who was he to judge her? What else did the all mighty Klaus feel the need to judge her on? Maybe her technique for ripping out a heart was next. At any rate he had managed to frazzle her again, and her thoughts were nowhere near what she needed them to be, in order to win a verbal sparring match with Klaus. She needed to get her head on straight.
Yet all that came out was a pathetic "Oh Shut up Klaus."
"Ahh I see it's one step forward and two steps back, but I must ask you love. How is that allure to darkness treating you?"
As an automatic response she started "There is."
Caroline stopped mid-sentence. She knew that if she answered this question the same as she once had, it would be the thing that damned her. They would never leave if she didn't convince them that she was not who she once was. She was Kelly now and she had better start acting like it. Caroline was gone. It was time to put this game to an end.
She stopped pacing and turned fully to Klaus, giving Matt her back as she corrected herself. She locked eyes with Klaus and smiled "I rather enjoy the darkness, it's so very freeing. Free from all those pesky morals. The darkness suits me. I actually prefer it."
And there it was the slip up he had been waiting for, he didn't even listen to the rest of her words as soon as the "There is" came out of her mouth. He didn't think she noticed that he caught her stumble to answer the question. But it was all he needed to make a decision.
Again an all knowing grin split his face, Oh his Caroline was in there. She had just shown him that there was a crack in the dark shell she coated herself with. No she was not beyond saving; she was not broken beyond repair. And no she was certainly not this Kelly person she claimed to be, No deep down she was still his Caroline. Yes, she was damaged, but who wasn't. She could find her way back, he had faith in her.
Clearly it was time for Steps 2 and 3 now. No more need to waste any more time here, it was time to bring her home.
It would seem that Matt had picked up on the same sign, as he stepped up from behind and snapped her neck, catching her body as it fell.
"Let's get her home." Matt said, hefting Caroline over his shoulder.
And that was how he had ended up here on this tiny airplane seething. Caroline stretched out between him and the quarterback. He watched as Matt delicately reached over and snapped her neck again. He had already decided there would be no more neck snapping once they exited this plane. He would decide exactly how they dealt with Caroline from here on out. No one else would have a say.
He had already called Rebekah before getting on the plane, and told her to make sure there was injectable vervain available. He would need to weaken Caroline, for any sort of breakthrough to happen, not keep her unconscious. He was confident that he could bring her back, that he could convince her New Orleans was the safest place for her.
However, there was a nagging doubt in his mind. What if she proved to be a danger to Bethany? What would he do then? These were questions he had never allowed himself to ask before. He knew if it came down to a choice he would have to let Caroline go, maybe that was why he had never truly gone after her in all these years. Bethany came first and if it came down to Bethany's safety, then he would have to let Caroline go. Even if it meant watching part of his heart walk away. He pushed those thoughts from his mind.
He would have everything; he was Klaus Mikaelson. He was hell bent on having the woman he loved and his child, safe and protected in his city, and this Markos person would not take that from him. Caroline herself would not stop him, no matter how wicked she pretended to be.
He didn't care how big and bad this Markos was. He was the world greatest evil, and it was time Markos figured that out. He had kept himself on the sidelines for far too long.
It was time for the world to remember exactly why it feared Klaus Mikaelson.
Bethany awoke with a new found confidence, she had a plan. Not some poorly thought out fairy tale plan but a real one. One that would protect Caroline and her Uncle Matt while they were here.
She stretched out her body, hitting her hand on the book she had fallen asleep reading, her grandmother's new book. Okay well maybe not new but new to her anyway.
Although she hadn't appreciated her father's keeping it from her, she could almost understand why he had. It was in a word… advanced. The spells in there. Well they were sure to draw attention. She debated with herself on whether to share it with her Auntie Davina, while she got up and ready for the day ahead. She eventually decided against it for the time being, best to get first things settled first. She had a little over 6 hours before her Dad, Uncle Matt, and Caroline arrived, so…. On with the plan.
Step 1. Take the barrier spell and the travelers knife to her Auntie Davina. Or should she have someone start getting a guest room ready for Caroline.
Okay, rewriting the plan…
Step 1. Prepare the guest room.
Step 2. Take the barrier spell and the travelers knife to Auntie Davina.
Step 3. Help prepare everything for the spell.
Step 4. Decide on a key for the spell.
Step 5. While she was out, make sure something awesome was delivered for lunch. Why? Because first impressions mattered and she had already made a hot mess of that, so the least she could do was make sure Caroline felt welcomed and comfortable when she arrived, and what says that better than great food…was she right or was she right.
Step 6. Call Auntie Davina to enact the spell.
Step 7. Call her Mom to let her know about the spell, before she freaked out about not being able to get into the city and make sure she got a key.
Step 8. Learn everything she could about Markos.
Step 9. Figure out a way to defeat Markos.
Step 10. Bond with Caroline.
Okay so maybe step 10 was more of a hope really, but she really wanted Caroline to choose to stay with them. She wanted..Ugh, she mentally chided herself, there she went with the happily ever after idea again. And she was getting way ahead of herself…she needed to focus on Steps 1 through 7 first, then turn her focus to Steps 8 and 9, and hopefully Step 10 would just fall into place. Yes, that was what she would do.
As she walked out of her room, and down the hall, she could already hear her Aunt instructing someone to set up the room next to her father's for a guest.
Great. Step One…complete.
She stopped in the kitchen to grab coffee, how people could survive this world without coffee, she couldn't even fathom it. If she didn't have her morning coffee with a little blood mixed in it, she was worthless for at least 2 hours after waking up. Not to mention grouchy, like supremely grouchy, in a way that made a grizzly bear seem like a teddy bear. Grouchy.
Her Uncle Elijah was already there, they exchanged Good Mornings, made some small talk and she had just concluded telling him about Steps 2 through 6 of the aforementioned plan, when her Aunt swept into the room.
"Good Morning, everything is being made ready for our guest."
As the time of her Uncle Matt arrival got closer and closer you could visibly see the stress melting off her Aunt. It was like she began to glow the closer and closer she knew he was.
"Our niece was just filling me in." Elijah said.
"Thank you for taking care of that Aunt Rebekah, I am going to meet Auntie Davina soon but I'll be back well before everyone gets home." Bethany smiled.
"No problem sweetheart, and make sure you do, because I don't feel like hearing from your father that I let you go traipsing about the city unprotected."
Bethany opened her mouth to retort but her Aunt simply waved her off.
"You and I both know you're not a child but your father is bound to be in overprotective mode right now, so do me a favor and be here."
"Yes, please listen to your Aunt, I would really rather not listen to another screaming match." Elijah threw in, nodding his head.
Bethany laughed "I promise to be here."
She stopped to give both her Aunt and Uncle a hug before continuing out the door.
As she walked down Bourbon St, she was serenely happy. Maybe even happy go lucky best described her mood. With everything going on maybe she should be more worried, more apprehensive, there was in fact a big bad evil out there. But she just couldn't bring herself to feel that way. Don't get her wrong it wasn't that she didn't take the threat of Markos seriously because she did. She knew he was out there, knew that he would come for her eventually, if not sooner now with the arrival of Caroline, and Uncle Matt. That if given the chance he would kill her to obtain her gifts. She knew all of that, but maybe she was native, because happiness still flowed through her.
She had faith, and if her Auntie Davina had taught her anything, it was that nature always found a balance. Nature always found a way, and that things happened as they were supposed to. There was a reason things were starting to come together here and now. A reason why her spell had forced her father to reveal the truth to her. Or maybe she needed her blundering mistake to have a greater purpose, but in the depths of her soul she didn't believe that. After her mistake her confidence had taken a major hit, but after the evening last night with her aunt, it had been renewed. Mikaelson women did not wallow, come hell or high water they found a way. Even her grandmother had found a way to protect her family, and didn't wallow after the death of her youngest son. Not that Bethany wanted to do something crazy like create a spell that created vampires, it was just an example of the strength of the Mikaelson woman. And then there was her own mother. Bethany had been handed down strength in spades from the woman in her family, and she was determined to make them all proud.
Bethany was a Mikaelson, and Mikaleson's protect what was theirs. So she would. After last night she had decided to claim them as her own, Uncle Matt was already hers but Caroline, all their friends, they were all hers now. So she would find a way. She had no doubt that nature would provide it, she simply needed to find it. Steps 8 and 9 might take some time but she would do it. She was nothing if not determined to make sure a way to defeat Markos was found, she would never get to Step 10 without it.
Step 10 wasn't really just about bonding with Caroline; it was about all them. Giving her Uncle back his family, allowing the other she hadn't met yet a chance to stop running, for Caroline to find a home here with them. Yes, Yes, she knew all of those were fairytale happily ever after thoughts, but she couldn't stop herself. And in this story she had every intention of being the Fairy Freaking Godmother. Thank you very much.
The New Orleans witches were the most powerful ancestral magic coven there was, there had to be a way Bethany simply needed to find it, and if anyone could help her find it, that person was Auntie Davina.
She had made her way through the city and to the cemetery, where she knew her Auntie would be held up in the Claire Family crypt.
The door opened for her before she even had time to announce herself.
"Hi B, Come on in. I was wondering when you might show up." Davina called out.
"Hi Auntie" Bethany smiled.
"So where do you want to start?"
Bethany looked at her Auntie a bit confused, she hadn't yet told her Auntie anything yet.
Davina picked up on the confusion instantly "Remember I am the one who set up the spell for Rebekah, and since she is here I am assuming you had a very long conversation."
Bethany nodded with understanding and she did, she had a ton of questions… but that was Step 8. She still had a lot to do before she got there.
"Trust me I do, but that is not the reason I am here."
Auntie Davina listened as she launched into the whole sordid story, everything starting with when she first started her fairytale spell to the fact that Caroline, her dad and Uncle Matt, would be arriving in oh about 5 hours. She concluded by pulling out her grandmother's book and the travelers knife and going over exactly what the spell would do.
"And that's it that's everything." Bethany let out in swoosh, like she had forgotten to breath.
"Well I am not exactly sure which part of that to focus on first." Davina paused for a moment.
"Super proud of your resourcefulness in getting that spell to work, not at all happy that you made contact with someone so closely connected to Markos, pretty pissed at your dad actually, because as far as I can see it's his fault, (According to Auntie Davina pretty much everything was her dad's fault) you didn't know you shouldn't make contact with whatever her name is. Again, impressed with the barrier spell idea, so let's just go with that one."
Bethany smiled. Leave it to her Auntie, to not mince words. No one could put things into perspective like her.
Smiling at each other the two women launched into preparing everything they needed for the spell, and linking the traveler knife. Auntie Davina set about contacting all the heads of the 9 covens, the spell would be most effective if they all did the spell together.
3 hours later Bethany left the Claire family crypt, Steps 2 through 4 completed.
With 2 hours to spare until everyone should be arriving Bethany set out to complete Step 5, making her way back into the French Quarter.
Everything was going exactly to plan, Auntie Davina had added an invitation only cause to the spell as the key, once the spell was enacted, unless you were invited in by one of heads of the 9 covens of New Orleans you were not getting into the city. She even said she would call Bethany's mother so she could invite her, which took care of half of Step 7.
Her mother would still want to hear from her. She had missed the full moon with the pack, and while the Crescent wolves could control their change thanks to the unification ceremony her mother and Jackson had done at their wedding, it was still something the pack celebrated each month. It was also when dignitaries from other packs came to visit, whether it was to discuss grievances or potential alliances or other pack business, it was always concluded with a run under the full moon together. A way of showing harmony, strength, and celebrating that they were pack, even if they might not be from the same one.
While she had a very good reason for not being there, her Aunt Rebekah's visit. Which she was sure her mother would understand, she also knew her mother would be disappointed that she had missed a monthly family tradition. You know kinda like how human families had big weekly family dinners, only theirs involved fur and running under the moonlight, or sometimes when no one was visiting just the Crescents laughing around a bonfire.
Those full moon celebrations held some of Bethany's favorite childhood memories, running around chasing Riley and Andrea, learning to hunt and track with Jackson, running alongside her mother feeling the true freedom of being in wolf form. Her father had even joined in on the full moon that happened to fall on her 16th birthday.
Her wolf heritage was as important to her as her Mikaelson heritage. The Crescents were a unique pack, with a long and powerful history. She knew when the time came for the next alpha to rise, whichever of her siblings it was, they would proudly continue that legacy.
Stopping in at one of her favorite bistros Bethany set up for lunch to be delivered, as she exited back out onto the street, her super happy state continued. Alright Step 5. Complete. Now just two little phone calls to complete for Steps 6 & 7, and she still had over an hour to be back. Everything was going along exactly as she had planned it, it was as if fate was shining upon her today, and that was when fate or God or the universe or whatever you want to call it spit right in her face.
There she was blissfully strolling along, confident in herself, in her plan, when the bottom fell out. She wasn't a big believer in the other shoe dropping theory, things happened in life and you had to deal with them. They didn't happen because things were going too well for you and life needed to find a balance, that's not how things worked. However, right now fate could take that other shoe and stick it right up its you know where.
As a breeze blew past she caught a scent, not just any scent. No this one smelled like pine trees and crystal clear lake water. As the breeze blew again bringing more of that scent to her nose, she felt her knees weaken. There was only one person in the world who smelled like that, and he wasn't supposed to be here.
Will. Willard. Willard Matthew Cates.
She knew her Mom and Aunt had said love was a choice, but she certainly didn't feel like she had any choice on how her body responded. Automatically, she raised her nose trying to catch the direction the scent had come from. Turning her entire body in the direction her nose told her to go.
And there he was about a block and half up from her, she did the only thing she could think of. She ran. Yup, she ran like a big fat sissy.
She ducked into an alley way a few feet up from her, her back pressed against the wall of the building, taking deep calming breaths. Will was here. Will was here. Her mind spun, her knees quaked and her stomach did that butterfly thing. What was he doing in her city? Luckily, she was downwind of him and his back had been to her, so he shouldn't know she was here, if her luck held out she could slip away and he wouldn't be the wiser.
Their short fling 2 years ago had been one of those white hot, all consuming passion kind of things. Complete with fluttering stomachs, fairytale dreams and considerations about forever. He was the one she had thought about introducing to her family, he was the one she had considered uprooting her life for. Okay, to be fair it was a THEY had considered not just her. Their talks about the future had not been a one-sided discussion of sacrifice, after all they each had their own legacies to live up to. He was not just any wolf, he was a Cates, a long and proud alpha line from the Pacific Northwest AKA the Wolf Lake Pack. He might be the second son but he could still end up as the Alpha, and well with him being who he was and her being who she was, any relationship between would come with implications to the other packs. It had been the one and only time she had ever wished she didn't have a legacy. There had been some serious discussions between them. But like she had told her Aunt Rebekah, life and obligations had killed that baby bird. They had both eventually agreed that it hadn't been the right time, that they were both not ready for everything a relationship between them would entail, and the outside pressures it would bring. Was that the right decision? 2 years later she still wasn't sure.
What she did know was he was the one she still compared every guy to, the one she had allowed to creep into her heart, and there she had chosen to keep him. Was it the same for him? She didn't know, it had been two years, he could be married to someone else by now. Didn't that thought make her want to become an ice cream guzzling ball of tears.
No, no she pushed that thought way, she would not be reduced to that over a guy, even if he was perfect. Okay, okay so he wasn't perfect but he was damn close at least to her. He had the most beautiful thick shoulder length black hair, wide shoulders and his body was well muscled, but not in the way that said he was obsessed with going to gym, or overly he cared about how he looked, but in the way that said "Yes I can certainly pick you up and carry you across the threshold of our happily ever after." Honestly she preferred a guy who had some meat on his bones.
Oh and his eyes, they were like pools of milk chocolate with little specks of caramel drizzled in. Alright, maybe she was getting hungry, she thought to herself. And to top it all off he wasn't just beautiful on the outside, he had the inner beauty to match. He was intelligent, and sincere. He was devoted to caring for his pack, whether that be through a show of strength to defend them or kindness to the weaker members. He was everything an Alpha should be.
Why was he here? Did he still think about her? Had he asked about her? Was he staying long? There was only one person she could trust to ask these questions. Only one person she knew she could ask without word getting out that she had asked. She pulled out her phone, and turned her back to the entrance of the alleyway as it rang.
A sleepy female grunt was all she got as a reply.
"You are in sooo much trouble." Bethany practically yelled.
"Whaaat."
"You…Trouble." she growled out again.
"You know I don't wake up before noon on the days following a full moon. How am I in trouble? You're the one who didn't come out to the bayou for the full moon. Why weren't you here anyway? Mom was upset." the groggy voice answered.
"My Aunt's in town." Bethany answered getting distracted from the reason why she called.
"Oh, okay Mom will understand that." The voice said, starting to fall back asleep.
"Don't you dare go back to sleep on me….you have a lot to answer for Missy."
"What the hell B….sleeping time."
"Will Cates." Bethany answered.
"Oh shit." Well that succeeded in waking up her baby sister. Finally.
"You didn't think to tell me he was here? No, No I had to practically run into him here in the city. Now I'm hiding in an alleyway like some kind of FREAKING IDIOT."
All Bethany heard was a sound somewhere between a laugh and a giggle.
"Not Funny, Andi."
"I know I know" Andi said, becoming serious, awake, and apologetic all at the same time.
"Sorry sis, I thought it was just the Alpha and his wife coming, and a few higher ups. I didn't realize the heirs were going to be here."
"Sooo…"
"What I said I was sorry."
"No, stupid…did he saying anything about me?"
This time it was a real genuine laugh that exited her sister "Still stuck on that little crush are we?"
"Shut Up Andi." Bethany was beginning to lose all of her patience.
"So…come on don't make me beg."
"Alright, Alright, actually there isn't much to tell…he was all silent and stoic all night, didn't say a word, even when Mom and Dad and the Cates left to go talk privately."
That was odd Bethany thought to herself, just as her sister seemed to vocalize her thoughts.
"I don't know sis, it was weird. The whole evening was weird. Mom and Dad were super hush hush after the meeting. And when Riley and I asked about it later they said it was something about Will being accepted to some Master's program at Tulane. But a private Alpha meeting just so their kid can have permission to be in our territory, that seems like a bit much even for the Wolf Lake pack."
And in reality it was total over kill even for a pack as strict and old school as Wolf Lake, and they were definitely old school. Their pack members hadn't been allowed to leave their town and they had zero contact with other packs until Lucas Cates had taken over as Alpha. They believed in exclusivity and privacy above all other things. But her mom and Jackson had always been open and honest with them about all pack dealing, so what was really going on?
Andi's voice broke Bethany out of her internal musings "Rumor around the pack is that Wolf Lake might be talking unification."
Bethany's mouth dropped in shock, unification was a big deal, like supercalifragilisticexpialidocious big deal.
After a moment of silence, she recovered from her shock, and pushed the thought of unification and everything that went with it from her mind as she realized she had 45 minutes to get home. She didn't have time to think about what a unification ceremony between their packs might mean right now, but she would definitely revisit it later.
She said goodbye to her sister and told her she loved her and to let their Mom know she would call later.
As she turned around to exit the alleyway, she found Will leaning against the building just inside the entrance to the alleyway. Her brain went completely fuzzy. How the hell had he managed to sneak up on her?
Their eyes locked, and slowly a shy smile spread across Will's face, Bethany stood there unable to move unable to think. What did people do in this situation? What did people say in moments like this? Slowly, she felt her own smile mirror his.
She opened her mouth to speak and literally nothing came out. Nothing.
Her mind spun, starting with "hey do you still think about me and compare everyone to me? Because I do." felt like a really heavy way to start a conversation with a guy you may or may not have been in love with for the last two years. Yup, let's not launch that dagger right way, Bethany thought.
Will stood there as silent as she was, which in no way helped her brain to function properly, because the longer she stared into those beautiful eyes, the less coherent her thoughts became.
Finally,…Thank God, a non-comitial "Hey." left her mouth. That was good, very good. Play it cool B, she thought.
"Hey." Will responded in the same tone.
Hey, you still want me? Bethany thought to herself. Although outwardly she said nothing.
"I didn't mean to blindside you, but you weren't out in the bayou on the full moon."
And you missed me, and desperately wanted to see me. Bethany wanted to finish for him, but only responded with "Ya I have family in town from my Dad's side."
"That's good," Will nodded. "Um, so I am assuming that was Andrea on the phone and that she told you I got accepted to Tulane."
And you're moving here to be closer to me and you can't live without me, once again Bethany only responded with "Ya it was, and ya she did. That's fantastic news, I am really happy for you."
She was so proud of herself she was doing so well with this whole calm, cool, and collected thing. Bethany broke their staring contest and looked down at her phone and realized the time. She had just about 35 minutes to be home.
"Um I don't mean to be rude, but my family has another guest coming into town soon, so I really have to run."
"Ya no problem I didn't mean to keep you."
Tell me you want to keep me, Bethany's mind begged, but she smiled and said "Oh don't worry about it."
Will turned to exit the alley, but then he turned back to her "Do you mind if we grab coffee sometime you know clear the air, I don't want things to feel awkward between us, and this feels kinda awkward to me."
AWKWARD. He had called this conversation awkward, there was literally no way to romantically interrupt or spin that. Bethany felt a little bubble of hope inside her burst. Still she held onto calm, cool and collected, as she nodded answering "Ya that sounds good. It's a date."
She mentally face palmed herself. Well there went calm, cool, and collected. Her ex gets done calling their interaction awkward, and she goes ahead and says the word date, like she expects something. God, dating was stupid.
In a scramble to correct that embarrassing mistake "Umm I mean not date date, but ya let's do coffee." she smiled, doing her best to cover her embarrassment.
"Great, I'll text you later." Will replied as he turned back towards the entrance of the alley and exited back on to the street.
"Ya." slipped past Bethany's lips as an afterthought, he was already walking away.
Really he would text her later. Texting is what you did when you didn't actually want to speak to a person, or you wanted to avoid the amount of time it took to have a real conversation.
And COFFEE, let's not get started on all the ways meeting for coffee wasn't even slightly romantic. Nothing said let's be friends more than let's meet for coffee. Now if he had said let's meet for pancakes that would have been something. Oh god what if he wanted to be friends, what if he wanted to tell her he had moved on, all sorts of what if's ran through her mind.
She was quite utterly deflated, okay maybe she was being unrealistic. No she was being totally unrealistic and she knew it. It's not like she actually expected some huge declaration of love if they ever saw each other again. This was not a movie. It had been two years, what did she expect the guy to sit around pining for her? It would have been nice, she thought but definitely not realistic. She hadn't expected that at all but she would have settled for not the word awkward.
She was just gathering her wits about her when Will reappeared in the entrance of the alley.
"Hey, B."
"Ya" She responded a little shocked to see him pop back up. What else could he possibly have to say?
She wasn't exactly sure she could take it if he said something like it was nice seeing you again, or something else prim and proper. You know the kind of things that you say to old classmates you ran into; after which you promptly forget them.
He looked at her with a serious and solemn half smile and said "By the way I still love you."
And then he was gone, walking back into the crowd of people on the street.
Bethany stood there, frozen her only thought WHAT THE HELL.
Bethany came running through the back entrance of her house, through the kitchen down the hall to the steps that led to the courtyard with exactly 10 minutes to spare, or at least she had thought.
As soon as she was standing at the top of the staircase, she realized her father was walking up the stairs with a dead woman in his arms. Okay not actually dead, but her neck was clearly broken.
So her Aunt had been right, Bethany thought. Speaking of her Aunt, they made eye contact for a moment, and there was a brief look of relief on her Aunt's face.
Then it was gone, as her Aunt instructed her father to head to the bedroom next his, to deposit Caroline.
Bethany looked at the woman's face as her father passed by her, so this was Caroline.
A/N- Thoughts? Hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. Please Review
Cora