A Very Merry Christmas, my loves!
I own nothing, the very long A/N will be at the end of the chapter.
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
It would've been a strange scene to walk in on.
Marcel Gerard – self acclaimed king of the Quarter – was lounging on an armchair behind Thierry, occasionally glancing at the options his protégé was listing off, whilst said vampire sat on the floor in front of a small table, entirely covered with scraps of paper, screens and maps as he decided where they should go. Evanna was sat with them, only several feet away on another chair. She was fiddling with a strand of her hair - she'd been doing that a lot recently. Marcel put it down to nerves considering she'd never really gotten used to her vampirism while she was young, and now that she was forced to come to terms with it, for lack of a better term, it was making her a little... unusual.
Thierry just called it boredom.
Davina, meanwhile, was resting on Aria's legs, watching the ceiling and counting the cracks in boredom. She'd go on the trip – that had been decided – but it had quickly been made clear that she found such tasks as picking an actual destination for said trip, rather tedious.
Aria meanwhile, was dangling upside down, her head barely brushing the floor whilst her hair was in tangles on the rug beneath her.
"How long have you been planning this?" Davina asked out of curiosity, eyebrow arched like she didn't really want to know the answer.
Thierry shrugged noncommittedly, "Harvest interrupted the trip a couple years back, then the Mikaelsons. This is almost three years overdue, and everything is gonna go according to plan."
Aria rolled her eyes, the mere mention of the Harvest unable to get her unnerved anymore. Maybe she should be worried that the only thing that seemed to scare her was Dahlia, maybe she should be worried that Finn had been unnervingly kind to her in the past two days. Or maybe she should just worry that she'd almost killed both him and Elijah when they'd met in the bell tower. No such worries presented themselves, and she supposed that in some dark way, she was rather glad to be feeling so numb to everything. Numb was better than anger, better than tears, better than grief, better than guilt.
Guilt that she'd watched as Kol-
"So what ideas have we got?" She asked loudly, interrupting the conversation between her father and uncle.
Attention snapped to her, and Marcel grinned. She was too tired to wonder why, or realise that it was the first time she'd spoken in hours. All that was on her mind was getting the hell away from this place as soon as she could so that she could just take a moment to think, just take a moment to breathe and let go of this damnable suffocating feeling in her lungs, crawling up her throat, and-
"How 'bout New York?"
Aria considered it for a moment, then shook her head, "Too big. Too many people."
"Yeah, I agree." He mumbled distractedly, pushing a pile of maps off the table.
"Uh, so… small towns, right?"
They all nodded.
"Not that one… Definitely not… What about this one? Mystic Falls?"
Aria scrunched her nose up and shook her head wildly as Marcel snorted. Davina looked just as clueless as Thierry.
"It's just not a good idea, T."
The vampire slouched, brushing the table clear of the few remaining screens and maps. "Well, I'm done. I got nothing."
"What about Portland?" Davina spoke up.
Attention turned to her, "Portland?"
"Oddly specific."
She shrugged, "We want to relax, right? It's a big place, plenty of quiet spots, and even better, I haven't heard of many covens there."
"Many?"
She shrugged, "Well, there is one. And they're crazy powerful. But it's their turf, there aren't many other covens around. Do you know how rare that is?" At the silent room, she sighed and laughed, "Super rare! Come on, do you really expect to go anywhere without any witches at all?" She scoffed, "Marcel, you know that would be impossible. Live a little!"
Marcel was silent for a moment before a grin tugged at his mouth, "Let's hit the road."
~*•°•*~
6 hours later.
"Ugh, nope. Next." Davina groaned, wriggling her fingers as the radio station changed.
"Come on, witchy, that one was good." Thierry groaned, rolling his eyes as Davina changed the station once again. Aria recognised the song before the lyrics started and giggled quietly, resting her head on Davina's shoulder as she let her eyes close. Before she started to tune the world out, she vaguely heard the opening lyrics.
"How does a ragtag volunteer army in need of a shower, somehow defeat a global superpower-"
"Ugh, no! No more Hamilton in my car, stake me already!"
Evanna covered her laugh with a cough, and Marcel sent her a small glare before rolling his eyes and letting his head fall back. Aria smiled at her father's theatrics before she let sleep take over her, leaning on Davina who was, undoubtable, singing along.
~*•°•*~
"Finally! I was going insane in that car."
"You were asleep for most of the journey, Aria." Davina reminded, a fading smile on her face, "Is it your dreams again?"
Aria stared at her friend for a long moment, before turning away and glancing around the bustling street they'd arrived on. Portland was decidedly different than New Orleans. But whilst it was a nice change to not be around what seemed like infinite numbers of witches, vampires and werewolves, it was also unsettling. That wasn't to say she couldn't feel any power, though. Between both hers, Davina's, and the lingering essence of Evanna's, she was perfectly comfortable – she wasn't being starved of the magic.
But there was something lingering in the air that scared her, almost in the way Dahlia had scared her. But it didn't feel right, comparing this feeling to Dahlia's power. Lord, the witch was powerful, of course. She'd resurrected her, pulled her back from death, calling her weak would be a stupid move. Only this power, this thing that she was feeling now, it didn't belong to a specific person she could see. It didn't belong to a person at all. It was like a disembodied sense.
Goosebumps spread across her body and she shivered. Something was off. Oh, Lord, that was wrong. No, no, that felt wrong. That magic that she was sensing… it didn't belong in Portland. There was a lingering seal over it that she could sense – she'd safely assume that it was the seal of the Coven Davina had talked about, but the magic beneath it was so arcane. She couldn't explain it and she wouldn't even try, but it felt so perfectly like… it felt like-
"You ready, 'Ari?"
The sense disappeared and Aria blinked, smiling at Davina before nodding.
"Yep." She glanced over Davina's head to a still-complaining Thierry and gave her friend a small smile, "He still complaining about how he'd 'rather meet the sun' than listen to another round of Hamilton?"
Davina gave her an equally amused smile, "He simply doesn't understand the culture."
"Only 'cause he was around back then." Marcel mumbled beneath his breath. Aria smothered a laugh, and Davina smiled good-naturedly and nodded along to his words. Perhaps it was best not to mention that he was the only one of them that had actually been alive back then.
"So what do you wanna do?"
"Don't mind."
"Well, I've never stayed long." Thierry shrugged, "The witches in this place do not mess around. But I might know a couple of places. I'm not sure if they'll be of much interest to you two, but-"
"Well, me and 'Ari could go off and wander." Davina suggested, far too quickly for it to be considered safe for anyone.
Thierry looked to Marcel, who looked to Evanna, who was already looking at him. It was a little funny, and Marcel looked a bit like a deer caught in headlights, but Aria had picked up on the fact that puppy eyes won him over fairly quickly a long, long time ago.
It was only a matter of time before she won again, right?
~*•°•*~
Davina was doing this on purpose.
"Oh, this one's pretty." She announced, picking up a small glass statue and holding it up to the light.
"It is rather beautiful." Evanna agreed, taking it from Davina and turning it over in her hand.
"I know right?"
"It's glass. It could break in seconds." Thierry groaned. He was leaning on a pillar in the middle of the small, small shop and evidently getting rather irritated rather quickly, "So, please, for the hundredth time, stop picking them up, because you're gonna end up tripping and breaking it."
Marcel sent Thierry an unimpressed look, that quickly turned equally tired when Davina did trip up over one of the floorboards, just catching it before it hit the floor and shattered. She gave a nervous laugh, and tucked her hair behind her ears to avoid making eye contact. Evanna rolled her eyes and very gently set her own back on the small table before gravitating over to the corner of the shop where another few small trinkets were on display. Did Davina and Evanna have some sort of bet going on? One on Thierry?
Aria wasn't quite sure.
"Is he always so pleasant? Or does he just really try when I'm around?" Davina muttered beneath her breath, arching her brow in question as she passed her friend.
Aria didn't care about covering her snicker - Thierry was used to it after all - but he definitely heard. Unless he had an eye problem he needed to get sorted out.
Thierry was tracking Davina's movements around the shop with narrowed eyes, and every time she picked something up, his back straightened, as if he was hopeful that she'd drop it and they'd get sent out of the shop. But every time she put it down, she handled it more delicately, and his disappointment was more intense. Marcel was very obviously just as amused as Aria was, leaning on a shelf beside his daughter and tracking the movements of his friend and younger ward.
"20 dollars she drops the next one." Marcel whispered down to her.
"I don't need money."
"What do you want?"
"Movie marathon. All Christmas movies."
"Christmas was a month ago."
"I don't care. Christmas movie marathon, or I'm out."
"If I win?"
Aria snorted, "I don't know." A small grin curled her mouth, "Ooh, maybe I could call Rebekaaah." She teased, drawing out the name in a singsong voice.
Marcel laughed before he leant back and eyed her, "Alright. Deal. You win, we have a movie marathon. I win-"
"And I will call Rebekah!"
Rebekah was her favourite for a reason. And she would have so much fun playing matchmaker.
"I feel like you win in both these scenarios." Marcel mused. Aria shrugged.
He lifted a small length of her hair curiously, "I think you're due for a haircut, kid."
Aria raised her hand to her hair self consciously, smoothing it down, "It's not that bad."
Marcel gave her a questioning look before his eyes flickered over to Davina and he tensed. Aria looked over to her friend and watched eagerly as she lifted another very breakable trinket off of the shelf. Marcel reached down and took Aria's hand as they both shook on their deal, each equally unaware of everything going on around them; barring, of course, Davina.
The small witch, spun the small china dish in her hands, and took a step toward the window to see it in better light, before smiling to herself and moving placing it down on the table.
Marcel swore, and Aria snickered.
"So, Marcel." Came a voice to their right.
Marcel startled, and let out a small yelp, managing to hit a book or two off of the shelf he'd been leaning on; bending down and cleaning them away with a sheepish smile at the store owner's narrowed glare in their general direction.
"Yeah, D?"
"I know you said no to us going off on our own-" Davina began, before Marcel interrupted her.
"Because we are in a different city that you have never been in before. I'm not the best dad, but I know enough to not let you go off on your own when I can't find you."
"You let us in New Orleans!"
"Yeah. Because I can utilise every vampire in that city to find you. Here? Not so much."
"What if we promise to be careful?" Davina begged.
"Don't care. The answer's no."
"They're clever kids, Marcel. Let them go off for an hour or two, and have them call you if anything happens." Thierry inputted, coming to hover in front of the trio. He set his eyes on Davina, who stared back with equal sass, "Although you lose my niece, witchy, I'll tell you what, you're not stepping back in my car."
Davina raised a single eyebrow in challenge.
~*•°•*~
"Okay! So, where should we go first?"
Davina was an interesting person. One moment, she could be some powerful, confident, dangerous Harvest Witch, and the next she'd be, well, an over-excited puppy. It was dizzying, "Uhh... I don't know." Aria dragged out.
Then again, she'd never actually been to Portland, so there weren't many places she was aching to see. But then again, looking over at Davina, she'd say that the little witch was thinking the exact opposite, "Do you have anywhere you want to go, D?"
Davina squealed in excitement, and grinned, grabbing Aria's hand before taking off down one street, and then another, and then through an alley, all far too quickly for Aria to take a minute to breathe properly or even take any note of which way they were headed. Evidently, Portland hadn't just been the first name that sprung to Davina's mind when she'd offered it up as an option.
"So, do you remember when I was stuck up in the attic and you came rushing in that one time begging me if I knew how to get rid of a spirit?"
"Well, I wouldn't say I was begging."
"Yes you were." Davina said shortly, "But back to the point, you felt something. You said that you felt something. Something that was powerful, and dangerous. And I didn't understand what you meant! But, Gods 'Ari, I do now! Because I felt the same damn thing! And Aria." Her voice dropped seriously, "It's coming from here."
"D, this isn't our turf. Whatever you feel belongs to the witches here."
"But I feel like something is going to happen, and it's big! 'Ari, you have no idea how big this thing is going to be. I know that sometimes you like just, you know, letting go of all your weird 'Gerard responsibilities'." The voice she put on was a little more than funny, "But this... 'Ari, I haven't felt something this big since I met the very menacing Original that was stalking you."
The hope that Aria felt in that moment was cruel.
So was the excitement.
But there was no way she was going to push it away, not if it compared to Kol.
Obviously, when they'd first met, she'd instantly disliked him - she was raised by Marcel Gerard, after all - but even back then, she couldn't deny the excitement she felt whenever he appeared. It was the one interesting thing in her life that hadn't felt like a pure, undiluted sense of power. Klaus was practically begging to be channelled, and Elijah was constantly hanging around with all his... noble-ness. It was a bloody miracle she hadn't reached out even the smallest bit. Rebekah... well she actually liked Rebekah, so she hadn't really thought about using her life force for personal gain. But Kol... Kol was dead. And even as insensitive as it sounded, being dead meant that the ability required to channel him became significantly more than the ability she actually had.
Power isn't enough. If I don't know anything, I can't do anything.
The resounding smile she gave Davina was answer enough.
~*•°•*~
Despite the promise - that technically had never been broken considering it had never been promised verbally - they had made Thierry and Marcel not to split up, the witches did exactly that.
Davina promised she wouldn't be gone too long, she just felt that they might stand a better chance of finding this... sense if they split up. But they would circle the small area they found themselves in - not too far from where Marcel, Thierry and Evanna undoubtedly were - and then meet in the park she was currently sitting in. It was no secret that whilst Davina was powerful - arguably more so than the average witch - Aria had a knack for sniffing magic out. Therefore, making it far easier to track down any such sense that might be powerful enough for Davina to sense possibly all the way in New Orleans. Then again, maybe she'd just sensed it when they arrived. Either way, Aria was done long before Davina. Leading to her, sitting on this bench, alone.
Which was why she felt it before anyone else did.
Her magic swarming the air, clashing with the foreign power she'd never been exposed to before. New Orleans magic was tricky, you had to be raised there to understand it. Of course, you could practise magic there, but the magic of the city she cherished so much was specifically reserved for its children. Now obviously, she'd felt other magic before; Marcel wasn't cruel. He didn't never kept her locked in her room like Rapunzel. But this was strange magic, it was powerful in a weird way. It wasn't quite traditional magic, but it wasn't any she'd ever come into contact with before.
Maybe she ought to expand on her knowledge, if she could only recognise traditional magic.
She didn't need to make a conscious choice to lash out when the magic spiked. It just sort of… happened. But it didn't mean she didn't feel guilty when there was an audible grunt of pain from the other person that was probably hiding just behind the corner.
Then again, what creep had been watching her for the past five minutes?
"I just can't have a minute to myself, can I?" She mumbled.
Aria stretched her legs out and then jumped from the bench, taking a sharp turn into the alley a few feet away. She leant against the cool wall on her left and crossed her arms over her chest as she arched an eyebrow, looking every bit confused as she felt.
"You're... a boy."
The boy in front of her let out a rough laugh - he sounded almost offended - and stood up, taking a moment to steady himself from the onslaught of magic she'd just thrown at him.
"Who are you?" She repeated.
"I could ask the same thing."
He didn't seem aggressive – strange, considering how he'd almost suffocated her a moment ago – but then again, people seemed to be changing at the toss of a coin recently, so it would be better if she kept her guard up. But he didn't look aggressive, either. Dirty blond hair that curled below his ears, young face. She was struck with the thought that he was not a boy, he was an entire man.
"Then again-" He continued, "I'm fairly sure I already have my answer, Gerard."
Her eyes narrowed on instinct and she cocked her head to the side in curiosity. He smiled at that small movement, and it occurred to her that for all his clear power, he was probably only a couple of years older than her. Damnit.
"This way please."
She'd give it to him, he was doing a very good job of hiding the pain he was in. The spell she'd used was just an old one she'd found in one of Kol's Grimoires she'd stashed for safe-keeping. And if it could hurt Klaus Mikaelson – which he had made sure it could several times over, assuming that was what the multiple identical spells in his book meant – then it would effortlessly hurt a human. Unless this one had perfected a protection spell.
She doubted it.
But never the less, she followed him down the street, only unconsciously taking note of specific points of interest that might help her should she need to get back to where she'd been moments ago without the help of the witch in front of her.
"You know who I am. I didn't catch your name."
"Didn't offer it."
"Well, do you mind?"
"Not really."
Ominous much, witch?
Aria rolled her eyes, "Fantastic. Now that the introductions are out of the way, where are we going?"
"You'll know when we get there."
"I've never been here before."
Maybe he doesn't know me as well as he's staging? Not everyone knows every little part of me and my life, right? A strange feeling bubbled in her stomach, and it only took a moment to realise it was excitement. Had the Originals began to become such normal parts of her life that their existence had become so… boring? Had the famed Hybrid become normal? Well, that was a realisation if she'd ever had one.
"And yet you're all alone?"
"I value my privacy."
A moment passed.
"So, do you think-"
"All the time! I'm a pretty good thinker, you know. Then again, I tend to overthink a lot, too. You win some, you lose some, I guess."
"Not what I meant. Do you think-"
"Yep."
Aria hit him over the back of the head, "I'm trying to ask you something."
"Ask away."
"Thank you."
"You're welcome."
Lord, did he have a quick brain. Is this how everyone sees me?
"You know what? It's not important. Let's just stop talking."
"Technically, I wasn't."
"Don't care."
They slipped into silence again. A small part of Aria's mind registered that she should probably be feeling some semblance of worry as they continued walking without a known destination, but she honestly couldn't summon up any such emotion.
"So, names?"
Their place was slowing down and the witch turned to face her, a boyish smile on his face, "I'm Luke. And it's nice to officially meet you..."
So he knew her but he... didn't know her? Aria could work with that.
She thought, for what felt like a long moment, but was probably only a second or two, before deciding on a name, "Rebekah."
His eyes narrowed – playfully – but he nodded, "Alright then. Rebekah." He tested the name out under his breath before nodding to himself and slowly starting to walk away, "Watcha doing here, Rebekah."
She didn't appreciate the emphasis he put on the name, but she let it slide as she started walking with him, slowly picking up pace. He wasn't going to hurt her. He was just having his fun. And this was the most fun she'd had in weeks. -Might be good not to tell Finn.
"Nothing much. Sightseeing. Family bonding. Trying to hunt down an anciently powerful magic source. The usual."
He snorted. Loudly, "Ambitious."
"Not particularly."
He eyed her strangely, "Tracking ancient magic? You could pick something easier to waste your time on. Ever built up a Talisman collection?"
"I tend to stay away from the collections. I don't typically like painting targets on my back."
"Anyone in particular looking to catch you?"
"The usual. Unicorns, Leprechauns, Elves. You know how it is."
"Oh, of course." He laughed at that, "I know the feeling. I just got a Banshee and a Voodoo Master off my back. Tough as hell."
A dark, tangible hand crept up her throat and stole her breath for the briefest of moments.
The boyish smile of the witch in front of her slipped, and though it took Aria the fewest of seconds to snap out of the darkness, she wasn't blind to the way his palm was stretched out perfectly and resting against his thigh, not curling slightly at his fingertips.
They began to walk again, slowly, and even though she didn't quite know where they were going, it was nice just to walk for a minute.
"I was kidding, by the way." The boy said after a moment of silence, "If you haven't realised, I'm not really known for my fluency in... wit."
"Well, the way I see it, there are two types of people in this world. Those who understand sarcasm, and-"
"Idiots." He finished.
She raised an eyebrow and turned to face him, "Pretty good. How'd you figure that?"
His face looked far too distant for the light-hearted conversation, "Knew someone that used to say that." He took a beat, "Do I need to worry 'bout you turning psycho and picking my coven off one by one?"
Aria drew out a long breath before shaking her head, though the longer she took to answer verbally, the more the witch began to laugh – albeit after a short moment of genuine curiosity.
"Hang on, what Coven are you in?" She asked curiously.
He forced out a laugh, "It's complicated. Too complicated to get into right now. You probably don't really care all that much, anyway. It's difficult to understand. You wouldn't get it. It's private witch business." He blabbered.
Aria's smile slipped, "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand."
"Yeah, right, of course. It's just a Coven. And what's in a name, am I right? I just mean that Covens here are different to the ones in your Quarter, you know?"
"Not really."
"Well, I mean you have the French Quarter Coven, the Tremé, the Ninth Ward, it's just not the same. I don't think you'd-"
"Understand?" Aria finished, "Yeah, I get it, that's exactly what you said." Her head tilted to the side and her eyebrows knitted together in confusion, "But it's just a Coven question, it's not a big deal." She tilted her head to the side, "Why are you making it into such a big deal?"
"Well, you know. Covens are just... different in New Orleans. Ya know? Plus, I heard about all that drama with the Night Grove Coven a whole decade ago."
A dull hum filled her brain, and it quickly turned into a high pitched ringing that echoed in her ears.
"What did you say?"
Her tone was anything but sharp, quick, and dangerous.
It was more... confused. Horribly confused, and horribly scared. Weak.
"What did you say? Just now?"
After a blank moment, Luke flashed her that boyish smile of his, "I said, Rebekah, I think you're such a strong girl for growing up in New Orleans." He turned, and began walking down the street again, smile widening, "You want me to say it one more time for good measure?"
"No. What did you say about the Covens?"
"The Covens? Um..." His eyebrows drew together, as a car drove past them. Aria was reminded that they were painfully exposed, "Hey, you know what? I'd love to hear more about The Quarter, actually." He moved to step closer to her, but Aria stepped back on instinct.
Aria spared a glance around her, taking note of the lack of people. Well, she thought, that could quickly change, now couldn't it?
"You know, I-I think I should leave."
"Oh Rebekah, don't be like that."
He smiled at her, again, and took a step toward her. She supressed the instinct to step back, and narrowed her eyes.
There was something about this witch. She just couldn't quite pinpoint what exactly it was. Was she just completely wrapped up in the fact that Davina had felt something comparable to Kol? Or had she actually found something worthy of note?
Her eyes scrutinised him, every little inch, trying desperately to understand what was going on. His magic was... bloody hell, it was strange. It was normal. But too powerful for this Luke person to just be a normal witch in an unnamed Coven. Was that the part she was suspicious of? His clear hesitancy to name his Coven? Or was it because he knew about Night Grove-
That was it.
"Who are you?"
It was a risky question, and she was expecting a bold answer. But she could've sworn that she could count the amount of people who knew that name on one hand. There was no way in hell that this 'normal' guy knew about it. She hadn't lied to Kol - or any of the Mikaelsons - when she'd said that she knew every nook and cranny of the Quarter. But along with that knowledge of her home, came the knowledge of the people that lived in it. Hell, if she hadn't been directly involved, then she would have figured out what happened sooner or later-
No. No. Stop it. Stop thinking about it. Stay on track, Gerard. Luke. What does he know? How does he know? Find out.
"I don't-"
"Who are you?"
"Rebekah."
Aria's head tilted to the side as he continued stuttering, "I-I-Rebekah."
"Who. Are. You?"
"Rebekah, I'm just a normal guy trying to be your friend."
"Then how did you know about Night Grove?" That question expected an answer. Gods, Aria needed an answer, she wanted to make sense of how he knew. But he didn't give her an answer. And in her panic, in her terror, in her grief, she exploded.
"You're not a normal guy. And you're definitely not my friend."
Maybe it hadn't been the best idea to run off with a stranger.
Luke gave a weak laugh and held his hands next to his head, "Look, witchy, I don't wanna hurt you, okay? Just... chill out, and let's talk."
"I don't wanna talk." Aria said calmly, sounding completely unaffected. She didn't look unaffected.
"Well, I do. So why don't we all calm down and just... talk?"
"Who are you?"
"Luke. Look, leader of my Coven sensed powerful ass witches in town, wanted me to check it out."
Aria eyed his hands stretched above his head, some small corner of her mind telling her, screaming at her to think rationally.
"And then?"
"I don't know." He was obviously lying, "But you're… I don't know, you're nice." Aria snorted, "You're not a threat!"
"Not a threat, huh?" Aria scoffed dubiously, her hand twitching, letting the air around them swirl even more dangerously.
"Alright, I get it! What I mean is… you don't wanna hurt me. You've had the whole day. Nada. Not even a little peek in my head!"
Her eyebrow arched, "You can do that?"
He paused and then groaned, "Ah, shit." He mumbled, "You can't do that."
"Teach me."
"Are you kidding? Are you stupid, no, no way! If I'm not dead now, I will be then."
"Unless you're about to tell me that it's some ancient secret spell in your 'Coven', then I think it's the least you can do. And if it is - some secret spell that is - then be prepared for me to call you out on your plain bullshit."
"Wow. That's how this is? Fine. Maybe it is bullshit." The witch said, "But my Coven wouldn't even be in this mess if you didn't open the door."
Aria froze. The sneer dropped from her face. He couldn't know. No one knew what she had done that night. What she had seen. What she'd felt, "What do you mean?"
"The door." He repeated, like she knew exactly what he was talking about. She did.
Aria did not want to speak of that night. To think of it. It hurt. Her veins were fire, and her heart was aching for something she knew she'd never get her hands on again. This witch knew more things than he should know. She forced herself to laugh, "You're saying what, exactly?"
"You proved your power when we fought – you're damn clever. But you still lost."
Well, that irritated her far more than it should have.
"I did not lose in a make-believe fight! We haven't even fought yet! If you want a fight, believe me I am more than willing to give you one, but do not delude yourself into thinking that you've won against me in something that didn't happen. Besides, I assure you, that if I did have to take you out, I would be able to do so in seconds, and you wouldn't even have time to react! I did not lose anything!"
"You're sure about that?" He questioned, not acknowledging her outrage.
"Other than my temper? Pretty sure, yeah."
He scoffed. It instantly brought a smile of amusement to her face. Wow, he was really trying to get himself hurt today, huh?
"Listen witchy, I'm not planning on hurting you. And yeah, you're welcome in advance. But as long as you leave, like right now, and-"
"Oh please! Just because you've done one good thing in your awful life-"
"My awful life? Well that's uh, that's something, isn't it?"
"Careful."
Hm. That's a scary word, isn't it? Careful.
Aria took a deep breath and brushed her hair back before opening her eyes and looking back at him, "How about this, Lukey?" He raised an eyebrow, "You keep your nose out of my business, and I keep my foot out of your arse. Deal?"
Luke crossed his arms, "This isn't your turf, witchy. I have morals, but not all witches do here. Do you seriously have a death wish?"
"Too bad you need me alive, then."
Luke stared at her. For a long moment.
"Says who?"
Now, a real smile pulled at the corners of Aria's mouth, "No one in particular. But you're pretty powerful yourself Mr I-Won't-Name-My-Coven-For-Unknown-Reasons."
His boyish smile mirrored hers.
"Meaning that-"
"If I was told to kill you, I would have done by now." He finished, "Hm. Clever."
His hands slowly lowered, "So, you're not gonna kill me?"
The atmosphere around them spiked for the briefest moment, but then it settled and, finally, he could breathe again.
"No." She said quietly, "I won't kill you. But that doesn't mean that I won't seriously hurt you if you ever - and I mean ever - talk about the Night Grove to me or anyone else. Like ever."
He gave her a single, terse nod, and they started walking again. Back to the park.
"I don't want your sympathy, you know." Aria said after a moment.
"And you don't have it. It's just... Look, I think... I think that there's a fine line between good and bad. No one is ever fully good, just like no one is ever fully evil. Not to be a Harry Potter nerd or anything, but what matters is the part we chose to act on."
"Look who's full of analogies today."
"I think I got one more." He drew in a long breath, "You can use a spear for a walking stick, but that'll never change it's nature."
"Ooh, that's a good one."
"I know right?"
After a brief pause, Aria spoke, "About what you said earlier, about the door-"
"I shouldn't have said it."
"Luke, I didn't know what was going to happen." She admitted quietly, "When I realised, I shut down so that I wouldn't experience the full horror of it."
The witch stayed silent for a moment before smiling lightly, "Just promise to remember me when you become an all-powerful Sorceress."
Aria snorted and rolled her eyes, "Those aren't real. And besides, there's no chance. Luke who?" A second passed, "Actually, Luke who?"
He gave her another one of those lopsided smiles of his, "Parker."
Aria cocked her head to the side in thought, "Where have I heard that name before?"
"Doubt anywhere. My coven's got a lot of people, I'm not very important."
"Parker." She tested out the name and he laughed, "I like it. Suits you. Anyways, I have something for you."
"A gift?" He asked teasingly, raising an eyebrow, "Did you bring the antidote as well?"
"Ha." Aria made a face, and turned to walk over to a waiting Davina, "No, it's not a gift. Surprisingly enough, I like you a decent amount. It's a warning. Do me a favour, and please do not come to New Orleans."
~*•°•*~
By the time they arrived back in New Orleans, everything was dark and Thierry and Davina were practically asleep.
It had been a short goodbye between her and Parker, although she wasn't sure if it could count as a goodbye if it involved several threats and promises from both sides. Long story short, whilst she was welcome in Portland again, it probably wouldn't be a very advisable trip.
But he was now banned from the city of New Orleans.
It was nice to see Marcel getting along well with Evanna for a change, and it seemed like even Thierry was warming up to her. Although, as per usual, she couldn't be all too hopeful for Thierry and Davina to warm up to each other. They just... clashed. Maybe she should just stop trying.
"You want me to carry her up?" Marcel asked quietly, gesturing to Davina in the car whose head had now lolled to the side. Thierry was in the front, snoring loudly, but she was making very little noise. It was funny. Aria nodded and smiled, mouthing 'thank you' before he and Davina disappeared. Wow, she was gonna get whiplash one of these days. That left her alone with Evanna.
It was slightly awkward, but her mother broke the silence, "I hope you had a nice time. I did. Thierry isn't that bad once you get to know him a little more."
There was a hitch in Thierry's snores, and Aria tensed, hoping that her uncle wasn't awake, but when he continued snoring - even louder, how was that even possible? - she started laughing, Evanna following not long after.
After another second, Marcel was with them again and, after a hug and a kiss on the forehead, he got in the car.
Evanna smiled at her, and turned to get into the other side of the car, before she tensed as arms circled around her.
"Is this... okay?" Aria asked hesitantly.
The smile that lit Evanna's face could have put the sun to shame, as she hugged the young witch back with a surprising strength.
"I did have a nice time." Aria mumbled, squeezing once more before she stepped back and smiled before heading into the building, watching the car drive away.
~*•°•*~
Aria pulled back the covers of her bed and grabbed the pillows, pushing them down so that they'd be more comfortable. She paused after a second and frowned, turning her head slightly to listen better, "The Hell?"
"Hello, Miss Gerard."
She startled and turned around, locking eyes with Elijah. His eyes were narrowed and she mirrored his expression, "You better have a good reason for this. Breaking into my apartment is a dick move, Mikaelson." Her eyebrows creased, "Although how did you get in here?"
"The deed is currently in Mr. Vanchure's name, you may want to remedy that."
Shit. She hadn't thought about that, actually.
Guess she'd at least learnt something.
"Although, I'm here for another reason. Bearing in mind that I do not want to run around blindly…" He waved his hand around as he searched for the right word, "Accusing you. However there is something I believe warrants questioning. You are many things, Miss Gerard, but I've never known you to be a liar when it comes to witch business. Of course, you are an adequate liar, but your beloved witches is typically where you tend to draw the line."
"It is?"
"Certainly." He paused briefly, and leant back in the chair, folding his hands on his lap. He was going to be staying there a while, "So, then. It's with slight confusion that I've recently learnt of a relationship of sorts between you and a witch in another Coven, a Regent. I'm not leaving until I know every exact detail of your relationship with Josephine La Rue."
Y'all didn't think Aria would actually get a real break so soon, did you?
*queue evil author laughter*
Theatrics aside, um... hi.
So, wow, this will be difficult. Um, surprisingly, this has somehow been the most difficult chapter I've worked on yet. Mostly because of the sheer amount of info I had to dump in this chapter - although, fair warning, most of this will make very little sense until, well, pretty much when little miss Josie LaRue is introduced. Basically, this is the chapter I've had to introduce several things by and - surprise surprise - there was still a surprising amount I had left to tell.
But most importantly, my update schedule will be changing to once every two weeks. Which is why, from New Year, updates will. be. consistent. I swear. Hopefully, they'll be slightly longer, and... well, better overall, but the new schedule will really be an improvement. Between Halloween, Bonfire Night, Christmas, new friends (who are brilliant), some exams for one of my least favourite subjects and the most ridiculous number of tests, I've been a little overwhelmed. And, honestly I just haven't been in the best mental state to be writing recently.
But on from all that, I hope you all liked the chapter! And thank you so, so, so much to everyone that's been reading, favouriting, following, and reviewing, you're all brilliant and far more than I deserve. Xx.
As Always, SecretMidnightRose