The skies were clear and being able to fly in a straight line in the sky meant that I was the first to arrive at the old house where I immediately spotted Bonnie with a woman whom I assumed was her mother, fluttering my wings and landing unsteadily as I was still not exactly used to flying this thing, but I managed to grip onto a branch with my talons and hold on, settling with a ruffle of feathers to see a salt pentagram on the ground.
Still having some time, I decided to check in on Rebekah who was holding Elena hostage still, letting my spirit float down to the ground through the tree roots and underneath the earth to the caverns below. I could feel the heat of fire before I was even a spiritual presence there, alarmed and tried to scream in terror but of course, I had no voice. Instead I sensed Elena trapped in a cave where Rebekah could not enter, so she had just decided to set the place on fire.
It triggered the memories of the flames that had taken my family for me, remembering their screams and I felt a terrible pain swell within me as the fire continued to build, accelerated from the gasoline so I pulled my magic to act upon it, dousing them slowly and all at once so that it was very clear that it was no accident that the fire would suddenly just disappear. Rebekah was pissed, but after a moment she seemed to recognise the fact that it was magic as Elena stared in wild eyed bewilderment. As much as I hate the whole tragic heroine thing she had going on, no one deserved to die a death like this. Not even her, so this was about as merciful as I was willing to be. Bekah, you and I will be having words when I wake up.
"Lia?" Although still slightly pissed at Bekah for almost letting her brother kill Mattie, I couldn't help but want to reassure her that I was still here. With a final push of magic, I lit every single candle within the cave so that both she and Elena were bathed in a smooth gold light before I then pulled away, returning to where the crow was still perched, waiting for me to come back so that I could see what was going on.
Esther had finished with the preparations, five torches now lit to represent each of her children whilst Finn stood in the middle, preparing for the moment when the moon was at its apex so that Esther could channel it's power into breaking the spell that had first turned them all into vampires. Turning his head, Finn seemed to hear something as I continued to watch, studying the weave of magic as Esther channelled it from Bonnie and her mother, getting a sense for everything and figuring out a way to stop it. "They're coming, mother." They? Oh right, guess the cavalry had finally made it. About time boys, I could have flown around the entire time it took for you to get out here.
"No. It's too soon, the moon is not high enough." Esther worried before telling Bonnie and her mom to go hide so that they would be safe before she then turned, facing her other three sons as they all walked towards her. "My sons, come forward." She stepped into the circle of salt, the torches blazing brightly as Finn lifted an arm to naturally shield her, telling her to stay beside him. "It's okay.
They can't enter." Proving her words to be true, Kol attempted to cross the outside of the salt diagram only for the torches to blaze brighter, a barrier keeping him from passing through to reach his brother and mother.
"That's lovely." He began, starting to pace as he sneered at Finn darkly. "We are stuck out here whilst the favourite son plays sacrificial lamb. How pathetic you are, Finn."
"Be quiet, Kol." Narrowing her eyes at her youngest son, I continued to watch quietly as the flames continued to brighten and flicker, thick folds of magic gathering to her as she already prepared to enact the spell. "Your brother knows virtue you cannot even imagine."
"Whatever you think of us, killing your own children would be an atrocity." Elijah said to her, and when I listened to Esther's reply I felt a pang of anger and sadness that even their own mother had given up on them.
"My only regret is that I did no let you die a thousand years ago." She was the one who turned them, so this was all her own fault to begin with. Now she was happy to just kill them off like this just because she hadn't been able to control them from running wild? She really makes me sick, and the spike of my emotions allowed me better control over what magic I had at my disposal.
"Enough. All this talk is boring me." Klaus drawled, drawing my attention towards him. "End this now, mother, or I'll send you back to hell." At least Klaus was still Klaus, even in the face of possible death. Strangely, I'd actually come to rather like how straightforward he was with things, I mean, he did always give people fair warnings about things like not to get in his way or he would kill you. If people died, it wasn't for lack of warning, though that violent streak in him was something that could probably use some work. His temper too. The insecurities as well, actually…basically, Klaus was admittedly a walking disaster, but he was a charming one and despite that, he had his merits too, and that included Elijah and Rebekah.
"For a thousand years, I've been forced to watch you. Felt the pain of every victim, suffered while you shed blood. Even you, Elijah, with your claim to nobility you're no better. All of you. You're a curse on this earth stretched out over generations." Hearing such words from your own mother, I couldn't even begin to imagine how devastating that must feel and I was glad that Rebekah wasn't here to have received them. They would have destroyed her. "If you've come to plead for your life…I'm sorry. You've wasted your time." No pleading necessary here, I'm not going to let you get your way this time.
As Esther began to chant the spell, I made my own move to try and stop her by either blocking the spell completely or at least stalling for as long as it took for Stefan and Damon to deal with the witches. I knew they wouldn't hurt Bonnie since she was Elena's best friend, which meant they'd go after the mother instead. They had to cut off Esther channelling from their bloodline, which meant that they had to make her into something other than a witch. Meaning, a vampire. It was rather ingenious, really, but if they don't hurry up, Rebekah and the others would be killed.
Watching as the crow, I fuelled my magic into the earth and air, joining with the fire as I became one with the elements present. The torches burst, giving a spark of energetic vigour before dimming, causing Esther to frown slightly, still murmuring and chanting. They sparked again before going out all at once, forcing her to stop chanting as she lost her connection to the fire that she was using to also help channel the spell through to her children. "What is this?" Looking around her, I watched with smug satisfaction as I set fire to the salt pentagram, causing her to yelp and quickly move into an open spot to avoid being burned, Finn also jolting in alarm.
From my body, my lips began to move in a silent murmur as I chanted with words ancient and long since lost to civilisation, a language that had not been heard by anyone in thousands of years. It carried upon the air, magic melding to each and every word as I whispered life into the spell. It was haunting, my voice suddenly rising from the looming night as Elijah and Klaus both whirled around, searching for the source but my voice came at all directions, layering itself in the delicate whispered tones of power that only I possessed. "You cannot stop me, Druid Priestess. This is the will of nature, to restore balance!" Yeah? Well I've got a will of my own, and I'm pretty damn stubborn. Besides, I'm literally connected to the earth right now. You can't preach to me about what it wants.
The fire of the pentagram intensified, climbing higher as the wind howled and my voice grew more intense, echoing with thunderous rapport to nature's surroundings. Esther desperately tried to fight against me, channelling from both the Bennett witches in order to take back control but when she felt the spirits of their ancestors fleeing from her, the connection severed, she cried out in desperation. "No! Sisters, do not abandon me!"
"Mother!" I watched as Finn lunged for Esther before pulling her away from the fire which burst all at once as I forced them both to flee, wanting them out of here and far away so they couldn't mess with my friends anymore. Guess Abby Bennett was now dead in transition. It made me feel horrible for a few moments, but there really hadn't been any other way to stop this, and it's not like I cared anything about some stranger who ran out on her own daughter, so I soon felt a lot better. The three remaining brothers were slightly overcome with unease and shock, uncertain of what exactly had transpired as the lingering echoes of my voice died away, the wind settling and once all was quiet, Klaus called for me.
"Ophelia?" Giving a caw from the bird's beak, I flew down from my perch and swept over the ground, flapping my inky black wings as I aimed straight for Niklaus and he instinctively lifted up his arm to block his face but I settled on his wrist instead, wrapping my great talons around his thick coated sleeve. He blinked at me, staring at the bird who had just came out of nowhere to land on him until slowly he begun to figure it out. "Is that you, love?" I cawed at him again.
"What are you on about? It's just a bird." Turning a beady eye on Kol, I glared at him as best as I was able to as I began to feel my magic fall asleep once more, drawing itself back into the earth though I still had some time left. When Klaus brought his hand up in order to touch my feathers I nipped at his hand, wondering what the hell was he thinking. I'm not a pet bird, so don't even think about stroking me. Elijah looked bewildered still but came to recognise that it was not a far fetched explanation as to the behaviour of a wild crow being so seemingly docile.
"Is that truly you, Ophelia?" In answer I lifted myself off of Klaus's wrist in order to swoop up to Elijah's shoulder, fluttering my wings to settle once more as Elijah turned his face to look at me, having lifted his arm so that I had more of his shoulder to balance on. "You came here to help us." He said to me quietly, as if marvelling at why I would go so far for them. "This was your doing."
"Tell us how to wake you up, love." Klaus said to me intently as Kol looked between us all like we were all mad. "As lovely as you are sleeping like an angel, I find myself missing your fiery witticisms and conversation." Unfortunately, there was nothing that any of them could do and before I could offer them any kind of reassurance through magic or motion, I felt myself being pulled away from the crow's body as my time ended and I was pulled back to my own body before I could assimilate too much with the bird.
The moment I returned I drew in a deep breath, almost as if I were about to wake up but then I sank back into slumber, rather exhausted. I slept until someone returned, hearing them quietly enter my room with a click of the door opening. Knowing each person by their energy, I knew exactly who it was. "Hello again, love." Klaus. I was starting to think he was becoming something of a fan of mine. "It seems you were our saving grace tonight, and for that I thank you. Although I expect you're none too happy that Kol was also saved through your interference of my dear mother's plan to kill us all." Hearing the bitterness lacing his tone, I couldn't help but feel my heart flutter for him with sympathy.
Drawing in a slow, steady breath, I felt the bed sink where Klaus sat down beside me, placing his hand down at my side so that he was leaning over me lightly, and as I exhaled I allowed a fraction of my magic to pour into the flowers around us. Most had closed for the night, the petals folding in as if sleeping, but I woke them, and as each of the many hundreds of flowers opened, they released small orbs of golden light like fireflies, glowing with a bioluminescence which lit the room in an unearthly glow. Then the butterflies began to form, made from the same golden light and creating sparkling trails in their wake. They filled the room and I could feel the wonder of Klaus's expression as he watched the rather beautiful expression of magic that I made for him, trying to comfort him in any small way I could. "You can hear me." He realised, suddenly looking at me and looking closer, his hand jumping to my face. "You can hear me, love, can't you?" A butterfly landed on my cheek, resting with a soft flutter of wings.
Klaus gently lifted it away, letting it move onto his fingers before it then flew away and the room continued to glitter like a paradise as the flowers bloomed under the moving starlight and gleaming wings, magic circulating the room as I allowed it to channel itself through me. "Is this all for me, sweet Ophelia?" Sounding less contrite than before, Klaus's voice had taken on a soft tone reminiscent of a purr, his lips now lingering close to my cheek as he moved to be closer. "Your way of telling me that everything will be alright. I must have done or said something right for you to worry about a villain like me." Don't give yourself so much credit Klaus, you're not as dangerous as you make yourself out to be. "Whatever my mother did to you, I promise you that she will pay. It had to have been her, it couldn't have been a coincidence. I expect she did not anticipate you being able to still use magic even like this." Hell no, and I'm still kinda proud. "Thank you, sweet Ophelia, for saving us."
Then he kissed my forehead, the light touch of his lips taking me by surprise as I had not expected such an open display of gratitude, and dare I say it, affection. His lips were subtle and pliant, cool yet warm at the same time against my skin. It was a simple kiss, but it made me flush on the inside all the same. It was a tender moment, the sweetest I had ever seen Klaus allow himself to be, but then Kol ruined it by intruding. "Not interrupting anything, am I brother?" I'm fairly certain I heard Klaus growl, which made me laugh.
"What do you want, Kol?"
"I'm leaving. Since mother still has us bound together, I'm going to spend as much time as possible enjoying this new world before she finds another way to kill us all. Just thought I would let you know so that you wouldn't worry." That snarky tone of his pissed me off just listening to it, and being unable to move I couldn't even have the satisfaction of smacking it off him. I still owe him one for hurting Matt. "I thought you had eyes for that blonde? Yet here I found you sharing intimacy with a girl who can't even reject your advances. Not very noble of you, dear brother."
"Weren't you leaving?" Klaus drawled, getting up in order to face his brother, pointedly standing himself between me and Kol so that he couldn't reach me as my magic began to fade once more, the lights and butterflies blinking out of sight one by one. "Because if you are, I suggest you hurry up about it."
"Touchy subject, is it?" Kol continued to push, clearly smirking sadistically. "Can't decide which one you prefer? Personally I would go for the blonde one, but I guess redheads do pose a certain challenge. I've always enjoyed the ones with a temper. Tell you what, brother, I'll let you decide which one you'd prefer, then I'll have the other one. I'm certain I can get them to break." I heard Klaus snatch at his brother's front and a crashing sound of a body being slammed against a wall, threatening to break it completely as Klaus snarled with a dark edge to his voice.
"If you say one more word about Caroline or Ophelia, then I shall remove your tongue from within your skull. Are we clear?" If I hadn't completely exhausted myself today, I would have found a way to make Kol pay for such a disgusting comment about Caroline and I. He really was just a terrible person. In my view, he was even worse than Klaus since Kol had no agenda, just his own sick fantasies and desires he wanted to satisfy. At least Klaus's actions and often villainous deeds had a purpose, so you could more or less guess what he wanted. With Kol, it was anyone's guess.
"As you wish, brother." Letting him go, Klaus remained rigidly glaring at Kol who let loose a laugh before disappearing with a whoosh of sound. Listening to Klaus take a deep breath, he turned around in order to come back to me, but then someone else appeared. Elijah.
"I see Kol wasted no time in stirring up trouble, even in light of tonight's events." Elijah said morosely as he too came over to my side. "You were very heroic tonight, Ophelia. It has been a long time since this family has ever needed a champion, but you were exactly that." He said to me almost teasingly, lightly brushing his hand against my face in a show of friendliness. "I regret that I cannot stay here to watch over you."
"So you are leaving as well." Klaus noted, understanding Elijah's meaning.
"I believe it is time I did a little…soul searching. Besides, mother and Finn will not give up so easily, and as much as I would like to believe in Ophelia's strength despite being trapped like this, I do not believe that she is not risking herself by using such magic whilst like this." Elijah rather wisely speculated, something I had not even considered. I really should be more careful, I mean, I was practically helpless like this. If someone came in and decided they wanted to kill me, I don't know how much strength I would have to stop them depending on how strong they were. I could still affect the natural world and the elements, but not people. I was frail and weak, and I needed to conserve my strength from now on. "I will attempt to track them down and find out what they plan to do next. Whilst I am gone, you should ensure that our Ophelia is well protected."
"She will be safe here, brother. You can be sure of that." Since when did I become their Ophelia? The familiar term made me smile and almost glow inwardly, so I sighed happily which caused the brothers to look at me quickly. For a moment they were silent, waiting to see if I would do anything else to give them a sign of waking, but I settled once more and they were disappointed. Sorry guys, but not yet. They exchanged a sombre farewell, yet there was a hint of fondness and perhaps even forgiveness in Elijah as he left, leaving a kiss upon my forehead just as Klaus had done as he said goodbye to me, promising that he would be back soon and that he hoped I would wake before then.
Then it was just Klaus and I, alone in the house until Rebekah came back a while later, but in between that time, Klaus sat with me and talked as if I were awake and able to respond, easing into a mundane conversation that I enjoyed listening to. It lulled me back to sleep, something I never thought would happen in a million years, and yet here we were like it was the most normal thing in the world, and honestly? I'm not sure I minded it.