Hello loves!
Now, apart from school, school, more school and surprisingly even more boring school, my life has been awfully boring lately. I swear, my classes are making me lose braincells. I'm in living hell. But anyways, I hope you all have had a great past week. Also, sorry the update is a little late, my sleep schedule has been utterly non-existent in the past week which led me to waking up at half nine this morning compared to my usual six or seven a.m. But before I say anything else, I did take a huge bunch of inspiration for this chapter from the brilliant show Once Upon A Time. I swear, that show is my life but just to clarify, I do not own it in any way.
Now let's get on with it! For the second time, I own nothing.
~*•°•*~
Aria Gerard didn't like Dahlia.
Of course, that wasn't surprising. Despite bringing her back from the dead, she had held her prisoner ever since, tried to brainwash her against everyone she loved and practically used her as a battery.
She didn't want to know what the witch could've done to Freya.
Now slightly more at ease, Aria responded to Freya's question, "Hi Freya, I'm Aria."
Freya's defensive nature slowly deflated slightly until she was looking at Aria with slight concern, "How are you here?"
It took a few moments for Aria to respond, "Dahlia." She settled on at last, not oblivious to the way Freya winced lightly at the name, "She pulled me back from death."
"Why?"
That was the question she'd been waiting for. Dreading, even. How could she answer it? She knew that Dahlia wanted access to her magic, she knew that Dahlia wanted to channel her. But why was the question she'd been asking herself since day one.
"I don't know."
Freya seemed to sigh before she looked around the alley, "You need to leave as soon as you can." She said shortly before turning around.
"Wait!" Aria yelled quickly, Freya turning around in confusion.
"Why… why are you here?"
Freya's eyes darted to the ground, "I'd rather not say." She said quietly, "All you need to know, is that I'm a prisoner just like you."
"Well why can't we work together? Work together to get out of this hell hole? Please, I'm going insane on my own." Aria practically begged.
Freya looked at her blankly for a moment before closing her eyes for a moment as she sighed. They opened again and she looked around nervously before walking closer to Aria, leaning up to whisper in her ear, "Meet me in the Bayou tonight. But don't come if Dahlia suspects anything."
The witch was gone before Aria could say anything else.
~*•°•*~
As Aria returned to the Compound, she barely managed to make it seem like she hadn't been anywhere before Dahlia returned. Eyes lifting from the Grimoire she was reading perhaps slightly intensely, she nodded in recognition before looking back down to the book, barely managing to finish her sentence before the book was ripped out of her grip and placed on the table.
Masking her nerves, Aria looked up at Dahlia in confusion.
"Because you've managed to establish a foothold in the living world, it's time I begin training you. As powerful as you are and as much potential that you have, you are a novice. Untrained. I have to fix that. Now, we're first going to start with something simple. Awareness of your surroundings is key when performing magic,
"It isn't about what you see, dear, it's about what you feel inside." Dahlia explained before handing Aria blindfold, "You will have to dig deep if you want to pass tonight's test and this blindfold will help you to do just that."
Aria gave Dahlia a wary look before taking the blindfold and weighing it in her hand, slowly standing up from the sofa, blinking in surprise as a moment later, the Courtyard was completely lacking any sort of tables and chairs that had been there a moment before.
"What am I meant to do?" She asked hesitantly, eyes darting back up to the witch.
Dahlia smirked, clicking her fingers and watching as the blindfold suddenly tied itself around Aria's head, "Simple. Find me."
Aria's eyebrows creased together in confusion and she turned around blindly, "Over here." Dahlia called out from one corner of the room.
Aria spun around again before sighing in annoyance, "How am I meant to find you when I can't even see?" She demanded.
"Magic comes from emotion, simply think of a moment that makes you seethe with anger, and use it to fuel that magic."
Think of a moment that made her seethe with anger… It was difficult to choose one. The Originals turning up out of nowhere and suddenly claiming the rule over New Orleans after abandoning it for little over a century. Klaus biting Thierry before acting like a benevolent leader and giving them his blood to cure him. Taking her home and, by consequence, her family because no one wanted to live under his rule. Klaus practically killing Tim in cold blood and causing her best friend grief beyond words.
"Getting warmer."
Actually no, that was unfair, Klaus wasn't the source of everything that had gone wrong in her life. Granted, he was a big part, but not the biggest. No, the French Quarter witches were. They'd been meddling with her life since she was born, they'd tried to murder her in cold blood as a baby! And ever since then, they'd completely denied her all possible contact with them, all possible association with them! Of course she didn't want the association, not by a long shot, but they'd denied her ever since she was a child. Denied her training, comfort, knowledge of any sort that she was a witch to begin with!
"You're getting closer."
Everything she'd ever wanted growing up as a witch, a friend, a mentor, someone that would help her with her magic was denied whilst all the other French Quarter witches didn't even have to try. It was all just handed to them, they got everything and still it wasn't enough! They initiated the Harvest Ritual to gain more power than they already had when there were so many other ways they could've done it and avoided slaughtering five teenage witches in the process. They were so desperate for more power that they didn't even know what they had! They didn't even care!
Aria ripped her blindfold off when her hand made contact with something and her eyes widened as she saw that she was grabbing onto Dahlia's arm. The thousand-year-old witch looked positively delighted. It terrified her.
"Ding dong. There's the anger. I can feel it in your nails."
Aria immediately let her grip loosen from Dahlia's arm and her own dropped limply to her side, "I'm sorry. I lost control."
Dahlia ignored her apology, "And now, you need to think of a moment of happiness, to reign in some of that anger."
Eyes closing as Aria took a deep breath, blocking out the sounds around her before focusing on one rather recent memory after a moment or two of thought.
Aria had been led by Kol through the woods that surrounded the old plantation and though she felt understandably unnerved by going to the place her father had once been a slave at, Kol assured her it was worth the wait. Besides, at least the building had been burnt down. She didn't need to know that he'd made sure each and every wall was nothing more than rubble before bringing her here.
"Kol, I don't like this." Aria murmured as Kol's lip twitched.
"Which part?"
"The part where I can't see a bloody thing." She snapped, a barely noticeable stutter in her voice.
"Well then be glad… we are almost there." He trailed off as they entered the clearing.
Aria looked around once Kol removed his hands from covering her eyes in confusion, "A clearing?"
"Seems we're early." Kol mused before walking over to a spot in the middle of the clearing. He sat down and, with a slightly confused glance, Aria sat next to him.
"Early for what?" She asked curiously after a moment, "It's night. Apart from the stray bird or two we probably won't see anything."
Much to her annoyance and confusion, Kol smirked, "Just wait."
Aria sighed but listened to his words and rested her head on the ground, letting out a bored breath.
Kol laughed slightly before sighing, lying down next to her and choosing his words carefully, "Considering my manic aunt is keeping you trapped in a crazy dimension where you're unable to see anyone but her apart from when she allows you out to do her bidding, and considering you told me she can't see what you're doing in the living world now that you're dead yourself, I thought some relaxation time was in order."
"And how is this relaxing?" Aria questioned, eyebrows furrowed, "We are literally sitting on the spot my father was a slave."
Kol gave her a remorseful glance before he looked over her head and smirked, "This is why."
Before Aria could question what he meant, small bright spots began to gather at the corners of her vision. She looked around the glade in surprise before a disbelieving laugh fell from her mouth. Fireflies. Hundreds if not thousands of them were slowly gathering around them and literally lighting up the woods.
"Fireflies." She muttered, barely hearing Kol continue.
"I once overheard you talking to Davina about how when you were young, your father would bring you to these woods and show you the fireflies, despite his dislike of the actual Plantation. You said that it would lift your mood almost instantly."
Aria's eyes flittered over to Kol in surprise, "And you remembered that?"
Kol shrugged, "Thought it might come handy when the time came."
"Time for what?"
"The time for you to admit you fancy me."
Aria's eyes widened as a scoff fell from her mouth, "Oh really? And how did you come to that conclusion?"
"Name one person besides my family who doesn't." Kol smirked cockily.
"Davina." Aria answered instantly.
Kol paused for a moment and, as much as she tried to cover it up, Aria began laughing. At his mildly wounded expression, her laughter slowly grew and before she knew it, she'd fallen over and was actually rolling around on the floor. There was a distant scoff from Kol before she found herself pinned to the ground.
"Aria, you're hurting my ego."
She snorted, "With an ego as big as yours, you can afford to be taken down a peg or two, Mikaelson."
"Is it fun having a brain that works that fast when it comes to insulting people?"
"Very." She smirked.
"Admit that I'm handsome, Little witch." He demanded.
"No." Aria replied stubbornly.
"Admit it."
"Nope."
With a positively manic grin, he began tickling her sides as her shrieks suddenly rung through the forest.
"Stop it! Stop it!" She demanded.
"Only if you admit I'm handsome."
"You're about as handsome as Diego!"
"Because I know you hate him and don't find him even remotely attractive, I won't stop."
"I swear, I'll hex you in your sleep!"
"It'll be worth it. I've got a beautiful witch wriggling underneath me." He smirked, not missing a beat.
"KOL!"
"Nope."
Her teeth clenched and she tried glaring up at him, "Fine." She growled, "You're handsome."
The tickling stopped immediately and Kol settled beside her. Aria let out a loud sound of relief, drawing it out as her eyes closed in respite. When they opened again it was to the sight of Kol looking down at her with a, dare she say, soft expression.
"That's better."
A small smile graced her mouth as her eyes opened again. It was probably the most confusing memory she had, yet it had worked as Dahlia said it should have. She was calm again, her anger almost non-existent for the first time she could remember.
Growing up with Marcel, there would always be some little issue to be angry about. The French Quarter witches, or the vampires falling out of line. And however minor, it was almost always there, simmering just underneath the surface. She wasn't complaining, she'd had a more than happy childhood, but the anger had always been there.
Now, it wasn't.
"It's gone." She whispered, looking up at Dahlia with wide eyes, "All the anger is gone. It's never been gone before."
"Your power was always unsettled. You didn't know how to reign it in. And now you do."
Yes, she might hate Dahlia. Yes, she might be terrified of her. And yes, she might be planning on double-crossing her. But even Aria wouldn't deny that the lessons she'd been given would pay off in the future.
Her thoughts were interrupted when Dahlia began to speak again, "Now, that was good. But it still seems like something is holding you back." She said as she began to slowly circle Aria. It put the teenage witch on edge.
"Holding me back?"
"Yes. I don't know what it is, and I'm not entirely sure you do either. But there is something. Something you're continuously thinking about."
"I'm not thinking about anything."
Dahlia stopped circling her and stopped in front of her, eyes narrowed in contemplation as her head tilted to the side.
Aria's mind was racing. She hadn't been lying when she'd told Dahlia that she wasn't sure what was holding her back. She didn't think there was anything holding her back. But either way, she had to come up with something quickly. She didn't fancy Dahlia digging around in her mind – granted she wasn't sure if the witch could do that, but she didn't want to risk finding out.
"How do you make magic look so easy?" Aria blurted out after a moment. She wasn't oblivious to the glint in Dahlia's eyes, no doubt thinking that she'd gotten to the root of the problem, nor was she oblivious to the slight suddenness of her question. Rather, she was counting on both of those things.
"It starts with a respect for the power itself. Then the belief you deserve such power." Dahlia said simply before going back to circling Aria, eyes narrowed, "If that is what's holding you back, then let go of it."
~*•°•*~
Hours later, in the woods of the Bayou, Freya circled Aria, a gentle smile on her face.
"Being outside will help you let your magic loose. You won't feel the need to keep it tethered so as not to let it run away from you, rather you'll be able to let it loose so it can mingle with nature. You need to keep trying, it'll come to you eventually. But you don't need to be afraid of your power, Aria. You don't need anyone's approval."
~*•°•*~
"Whoever it was that made you feel this way in the past, that you were somehow flawed and unworthy in your powers. You need to take that pain, the fear that they were right and use it as the root of your power. Let it drive your magic and prove them all wrong! But you need to stop thinking about it so much. Magic is about emotion. Summon up that moment, that made you so angry, you would've killed if you could. That is how magic is made."
"You do that?" Aria asked nervously.
"I do. Listen, Girl, magic is power. Until you can take power, you're not learning anything." Dahlia said coldly.
~*•°•*~
"You can do this, Aria."
"I can't. I'm sorry, Freya, but I'm wasting your time."
"You're not wasting my time. It's in you, Aria, you just need to try. But you need to stop thinking. Conjuring magic is not an intellectual endeavour. It's emotion. You must ask yourself, why am I doing this? Who am I protecting? You need to feel it in order to control it rather than letting it control you."
~*•°•*~
"You just need the right motivation. Every time you've exhibited the strongest bout of your power, it has been spurred by instincts. So today, we're going to push those instincts until you master them." Dahlia said, coming to a stop in front of Aria.
Eyes questioning, Aria looked up at the witch, "What are you talking about?" She asked warily.
Dahlia ignored her question and held her hands out before beginning to mutter phrases underneath her breath. Aria's eyes widened and her arms automatically went out to steady herself when she found herself and Dahlia in what had to be the middle of nowhere standing on a rickety bridge.
"What the hell are you doing?!" She yelled.
Dahlia gave her a dark smirk from her spot on the nice, safe, lovely ground. A spot she couldn't reach because the bridge wasn't long enough. Hell, it was barely holding onto the wooden poles attaching it to the ground.
She screamed as she heard a snap behind her, managing to turn around and see that the bridge was quite literally falling apart. With her on it. She knew that she was technically dead, but she also knew that Dahlia had been the one to save her from ultimate death. And if she'd stopped Aria from dying, then she'd also be able to kill her. It was simple logic.
"Control your power, Girl. Use it to protect yourself. And use it now!" Dahlia yelled.
From that moment, everything happened at once.
Aria's eyes screwed shut in fear as the final rope snapped on the bridge and she went falling through the air before… nothing. Her eyes snapped open almost instantly and widened as she saw she was standing on one of the boards that was floating above what had to be inches from the bottom of what she now realised to be a freaking ravine.
Incredulous eyes darting up to Dahlia, "Seriously?! How the hell is that meant to help anything?" She shouted.
"You mastered your instincts." Dahlia said simply.
Aria glared up at the witch furiously before she found herself back in the Abattoir on sweet, sweet ground. She sighed and let out a breath of relief and tried desperately to refrain from being the kind of person who got down onto their knees and kissed the ground in relief.
Dahlia moved to stand in front of Aria, crouching down slightly, "All it takes is one tiny mistake, one tiny accident and your powers go from being your family's salvation to their worst nightmare. You need to be able to control them and your instincts. Because you can't love somebody you don't understand, Aria. And do you know what happens when people don't understand something? They learn to fear it. And then they look at it like a monster. You need to know how to control your instincts, and when to use them."
Worst nightmare…
Can't love somebody you don't understand…
Learn to fear it…
Look at it like a monster…
But… Marcel did love her, didn't he? Of course he did.
Right?
Aria felt sick.
~*•°•*~
In case it wasn't clear, this chapter is basically a big training session with both Dahlia and Freya teaching Aria. And just to be clear, Dahlia is training Aria so that she'll have access to more power whilst Freya is training her so that they can both escape Dahlia.
As Always, SecretMidnightRose