Sophia's POV
I sat next to Nik, each of us with a book in our lap and Elijah was sitting across from us in one of the armchairs also with a book and while he seemed particularly focused on his book Nik and I hadn't been real into our own since we woke up this morning feeling like it was cloud nine after the night we spent together and I found my mind drifting back to it often...the feel of his lips moving along with mine, the bruising feeling left behind which healed as we had blood-shared...the intimacy of it all, the way our flesh moved against each other...
"So, this is what you do the first time we're back together as a family?" Rebekah's voice broke me out of my vivid thoughts and I hid behind my book as I hid the blush as if they'd been reading my mind. "Vampire book club?"
"Reading edifies the mind sister, isn't that right Elijah?" Nik smirked looking up at Elijah over his book and my smirk grew as I looked over at him, my feet up in his lap.
"Yes that's quite right, Niklaus"
"And what's this business?" Beks asks as she gestures to the dead girl on the table and I looked over my book at her with a slight raised eyebrow.
"This is a..." Elijah began and gestures as though he's searching for a word. "...peace offering"
"I presumed, after so much time desiccating in a coffin that my big brother might be a bit peckish"
"And I explained to my little brother that forgiveness cannot be bought, I'd simply prefer to see a change in behavior that indicates contrition and personal growth" Elijah protests against Nik's words and I smile when I see Nik roll his eyes guiltily while Elijah gestures to the girl lying dead on the coffee table. "Not this nonsense"
"Well, I couldn't very well let her go to waste, could I?" I decided to speak up since I'd been the one to accept the girl Nik had brought in for Elijah, she had after all seen where we were staying and Hayley so it wasn't safe to just send her on her way and I was famished after last night's leisure activities and grinned when Nik's hand rubbed my leg affectionately.
"Well, I suppose I'll go fetch the rubbish bin because she's staining a two hundred-year-old carpet" Rebekah complains before she leaves to fetch some cleaning supplies and I looked down at the girl seeing her blood dripping onto the floor.
"Ah, yes" Elijah said after noting this as well and I chuckled a little going back to reading my book feeling Nik's hands travelling up and down my leg slightly distracting me before I looked up and saw Hayley walk into the room, hand on her stomach as she walked into the kitchen and stared with envy since that should be me, I should be the one pregnant right now.
"Soph" I snapped my head towards Nik only noticing now that I had been staring towards the kitchen and that Elijah had set down his book and followed Hayley into there.
"What?" I asked thinking he asked me a question but he just stared at me. "Sorry" I sighed hanging my head as I let out a sigh and pulled my legs up placing my arms on my knees before I brushed my hair behind my right ear so I could listen in.
"Listen, I know I'm the only one in this house that actually drinks milk but would it kill any of you to make sure it's on the grocery list?" I hear Hayley complain and frown since maybe I really should restock the food supply, that is my responsibility after all to provide food for her and my child.
"Speaking of, add bleach" I hear Rebekah add before she stomps through the kitchen and into the living room where she begins to clean up the mess that I guilty left behind, granted Nik helped as there was also a bite mark on her wrist which was also bleeding.
"You know, I do hope Sophia and my siblings were hospitable to you, in my absence"
"In your absence, as you like to call it, which is a way-too-polite way of saying that your brother put a dagger in your heart...I have been attacked by French Quarter vampires, I've had to live in a house with a secret dungeon full of coffins and I was nearly murdered by witches who are convinced the baby I'm carrying is Lucifer" I frowned rolling my eyes since my baby was not lucifer. "Oh...milk" Hayley suddenly says as Elijah clearly brings out milk making my frown grow that he was providing for her, she was my responsibility so long as she's carrying my baby. "They've been fine especially Sophia, she and your siblings are weirdly protective, I know I have you to thank for that"
"I'm just happy to see that you're in one piece" Elijah replies and even though I couldn't see him I could tell he was smiling at her. "So, back to the murder witches I have some concerns"
"They're evil and my life is still magically linked to Sophie Deveraux, which is not comforting" Hayley protested as I watched Rebekah grab the girls arm and drag her off the table and start walking back to the kitchen to take her out back.
"Yes, I think it's time we took care of that little problem"
"I am all for it, as soon as they're unlinked we get to leave this crap town" Rebekah cuts into their conversation and I actually agreed with her. "Who do we have to kill?" she asked probably Elijah.
"Probably no one" Elijah replied and even I scoffed at the unlikelihood of that scenario, someone was bound to end up dead. "Alright, potentially everyone" he then corrected himself and I chuckled once before focusing back on my book noticing Nik was staring intently at his as Rebekah came back in with a bucket and scrub brush where she began to clean the rug where the stain of blood was slowly soaking through.
"Poetry about poisoned apples from dead trees" Rebekah suddenly says and I look over at her seeing her looking at Nik, staring at the cover of the book he was reading and I turned to Nik raising my eye at him. "Looks like someone's worried about impending daddy hood"
"Nonsense" Nik argued shaking his head. "Elijah's back, in his presence all problems turn to pixie-dust and float away!" I bit back a small laugh right as Elijah re-joins us in the living room.
"Strange, I don't recall any pixie-dust from the darkness of the coffin I was recently forced to endure" he argues as we all look up at him and watch as he opens Esther's grimoire and flips through it clearly looking for a particular spell.
"What are you doing with Mother's spell book?" Rebekah asked him.
"Well, in exchange for my freedom I promised the witch Davina that I would share a few pages from Mother's grimoire to help her learn to control her magic, I thought we'd begin with a little unlinking spell" Rebekah, Nik and I look at each other in confusion.
"Wait, you want to use her to unlink Hayley from Sophie Deveraux?" I asked him raising an eye.
"Sophie brought us here under false pretenses, she doesn't just want us to take down Marcel and his minions she wants to take Davina back, so she yoked her own cause to ours with magic threats and half-truths, well no more as of now our deal with Sophie Deveraux is null and void" he replied shaking his head and a smile broke out across my face since it was about time and I shared the gleeful look with Nik and Rebekah. "Niklaus, I need you to come with me, I need five minutes alone with Davina you need to make certain that I am not interrupted" he adds before he gestures to me and Rebekah and seems to think for a moment. "You stay here and watch Hayley" I raised my eyes at him as he turned and walked out without another word.
"How did I get elected super-nanny?" Rebekah complained as Nik stood up.
"More importantly, who put him in charge" he points out before he follows Elijah out of the room and I let out a sigh before I notice the book that Nik had put down, I reached over grabbing it and saw the bookmark opening the page seeing the poem that he'd clearly been reading.
I was angry with my friend;
I told my wrath, my wrath did end.
I was angry with my foe;
I told it not, my wrath did grow.
And I water'd it with fears,
Night & Morning with my tears;
And I sunned it with smiles,
And soft deceitful wiles.
And it grew both day and night.
Till it bore an apple bright.
And my foe beheld it shine,
And he knew that it was mine.
And in to my garden stole,
When the night had veil'd the pole;
In the morning glad I see;
My foe outstretched beneath the tree
I had spent so much time seeing the worst thinking he didn't care about the baby but maybe it wasn't that simple since I knew neither one of us had ever had the pleasure of decent parental figures in our lives to be able to take pointers on how to parent but I honestly hadn't even stopped to ask him how he truly felt about being a father as I was so caught up in my own insecurities, we'd talked about fears last night but he didn't say anything and while that annoyed me I couldn't blame him as I hadn't really been willing to listen.
I let out a sigh placing the book down on the table behind the couch before I looked at Rebekah letting out a sigh and got up kneeling on the ground next to her to help since the mess was majority my fault so I grabbed a scrub brush and started scrubbing at the red stained carpet but a couple minutes passed when both our heads snapped up hearing a shout of pain from the other room and I immediately dropped what I was doing and sped into the room to Hayley's side as she was grabbing at her neck.
"What the hell was that?" Rebekah asked her.
"Hell if I know, it felt like I was being stabbed" Hayley replied and I frowned brushing some hair away from her neck seeing a speck of blood on her neck but no wound given the blood of my child was running through her veins.
"This can't be a good thing" I said looking towards Rebekah and she nodded but Hayley seemed fine so she left but I stayed since I couldn't shake the feeling that it was something bad so I got Hayley to sit down fussing slightly over her since we had no idea what this was.
"Time for the demon spawn to snack" Rebekah suddenly announced walking back into the room with a basket full of apples and I rolled my eyes since that was just uncalled for.
"Can you not call her that?" I asked her since it made my child sound like an abomination.
"I'm sorry, have you picked out another name yet?" she asked and I scoffed rolling my eyes again. "Take one, the plantations lousy with them" she lowered the basket towards Hayley and she smiled a little taking one.
"How's your neck?" I asked her again and she frowned for the reminder and probably me fussing over her like this but I was worried.
"I feel fine, it has to be Sophie related" she shrugged and I let out a sigh of annoyance that she was probably right and Sophie probably just pricked herself on something or she was having another forbidden lovers affair with a vampire but I figured that was unlikely.
"Well do me a favor and don't die on my watch, I'll never hear the end of it" Rebekah complained and I huffed shaking my head, she was not dying.
"You know when I first met you I thought you were a real bitch" Hayley stated looking up at Rebekah and I couldn't help laugh a little.
"What changed your mind?" Rebekah asked her, an amused smile on her face.
"Oh I still think you're a bitch, I've just grown to like that about you" Hayley replied and we all shared a laugh.
"Well that's sweet of you to say, remember it when I'm gone" Rebekah suddenly replied and I frowned looking back at her.
"Gone?" Hayley and I both asked her.
"Where are you going?" I added since I didn't think she'd be leaving so soon.
"I only came to town to make sure everything was okay with Elijah, he's fine and he hasn't punished Klaus for daggering him so as usual they'll be thick as thieves and I'll be left to clean up the mess" she replied and I looked down with a regretful look. "It's time for me to fly the coop" she adds looking at me and I only nod since she deserved to be free of this mess.
"Oh" Hayley breathed out.
"Well on a different note I'd hate to know what you think of me" I suddenly said to break the silence and Hayley smiled turning to me.
"Well when we met I was running from Katherine and had to watch you and Klaus making doe eyes across a table at each other and you clearly didn't want me there" she replied and I frowned looking down.
"Yeah well I was a little emotional that day" I replied sharing a mournful look with Rebekah since she knew exactly what I was talking about.
"Well the next time we met I was magically made your surrogate" Hayley added making me laugh through the pain of that sentence before she raised the apple to her lips to take a bite but stopped looking like she was suddenly about to be sick.
"What's wrong?" I asked her.
"I don't know" she replied making me worry so I reached out and touched my palm to her forehead.
"Probably morning sickness" she passed it off.
"You're burning up actually" I told her feeling her forehead warm and so was her cheeks.
Third Person's POV
Klaus and Elijah tracked down a kidnapped Sophie to the cemetery finding her chained to the walls in a crypt and Elijah quickly snapped the chains freeing her questioning what had happened.
"Agnes stuck me with a needle, cursed objects were created a long time ago we use them so we don't get busted by Marcel for doing magic" she explained to them while rubbing her sore wrists. "The one she used is called the Needle of Sorrows, it was cursed in 1860 when..."
"Jump ahead a few decades and tell us what it does, love?" Klaus cut her off.
"It has only one purpose: to kill a child in utero by raising her blood temperature" Sophie told them and Klaus stared at her in anger as they realized what that meant.
"It's for a miscarriage" Elijah spoke up and Sophie nodded her head. "So, how much time do we have to fix this?"
"It will do what it's meant to by tonight's high tide and believe me it will work, I saw her use a similar object on a kid who went mad and killed a bunch of priests" she explained and that caught Klaus' attention who knew about Cami's twin brother.
"I'd like to have a chat with this Agnes, where can I find her?" Klaus asked her ignoring the feeling in the back of his mind that told him that Sophia probably wanted his help with Hayley if this thing was working.
"You won't, there are a thousand places she could hole up to wait it out" Sophie argued.
"That's precisely why we need to unlink you from Hayley, no more danger toward her or the child" Elijah replied revealing his plan to unlink to two of them and Sophie shook her head in confusion and defiance.
"No, what...if I am not linked to Hayley, I lose my leverage on you and your wife" she nodded towards Klaus. "We had a deal!" she exclaimed.
"We are not on the same side Sophie Deveraux, our deal no longer stands!" Elijah argued back glaring at the young witch and she looked back and forth between of them knowing she was at a loss.
Sophia's POV
We moved to Hayley to her room upstairs feeling as she continued to burn up and get uncomfortable while Rebekah and I took turns fetching wet clothes to cool her down running them over her feverish skin and couldn't stop pacing since Nik and Elijah had called and told us that Sophie had been stabbed by a cursed object that was used to miscarry and while they were still linked it was working on Hayley.
"Stop fussing will you" Rebekah snapped at her as she struggled to breathe through the feeling of being boiled, she had explained it as her blood literally felt like it was being boiled. "Elijah will be here any minute"
"I feel like I'm being microwaved" she protested and I paused my pacing for just a moment to look over at her.
"Hey just because you're carrying a baby doesn't mean you get to act like one" I scolded her since I didn't need to hear that right now, not when I was already freaking out and didn't have Nik here to calm me down.
"I'm sure my little niece is healing you as we speak" Rebekah added as she continued to dab the went cloth over Hayley's body while I resumed my pacing letting out a small sigh before I looked up hearing footsteps and saw Elijah come into the room with Sophie behind him.
"What the hell is she doing here?" I demanded glaring at Sophie.
"I'm trying to help" Sophie argued and my glare intensified since she called this helping, she's the reason Hayley's in this mess.
"Help?" Rebekah snapped at her. "You the reason were in this bloody mess, why aren't we unlinked from this witch already Elijah?" I smiled for the fact that she'd practically read my mind.
"Rebekah, let her do what she can" Elijah argued.
"I may know a way to slow the fever down but I'm gonna need some special herbs, I'll text you a list" Sophie said looking at Rebekah who angrily turned towards Elijah while I moved over to Hayley and continued to try and cool her down.
"Fine, happy to play the fetch girl" Bekah snapped walking out of the room slamming the cloth in her hand into Elijah's chest before she was gone and Sophie came over to start helping but I couldn't help glaring at her letting her look after Hayley while I moved towards Elijah.
"What's the plan, where's Nik?" I asked a little thrown that he wasn't the one that came back.
"He's finding Agnes" he replied and I frowned letting out a sigh as I looked over towards Hayley again conflicted by staying her or going and helping him in order to kill the bitch that did this but it was all coming down to Davina who Elijah had given the unlinking spell do and I wasn't overly confidant in the teen witch but it was the only hope we had.
When night fell and it got cooler outside we moved Hayley down to the pool sitting her right next to it so that the cool night air and the coolness of the water would be enough to keep her temperature down and when Rebekah finally returned Sophie got started mixing all the ingredients that she had gotten her to fetch while I kept running the damp cloth over Hayley's head but we were running out of time and it was starting to not even work as she was just burning the water right off her skin.
"She's burning up, we need to do this now!" I exclaimed and Elijah was suddenly right there, his jacket off.
"Get her in the water" Sophie yelled and Elijah wasted no time jumping straight in before wrapping his arms around Hayley and helping her into the water holding her in his arms
"I don't see how a midnight swim is supposed to help" Rebekah protested while I started pacing along the pools edge feeling helpless once again.
"Her temperature is sky high and the water with the help of the herbs should cool us down"
"Should!" I snapped glaring at Sophie with mistrust but she didn't say anything as she too jumped into the pool and approached Hayley getting her to drink the herb paste that she had made.
"You're gonna have to get her heart rate down" Sophie told Elijah.
"And how do you suggest I do that?" he asked her.
"Hold her, it's a natural human remedy to slow the heart rate and reduce blood pressure" Sophie told him
"This is never gonna work" Rebekah spoke up and I sighed looking up at Rebekah as we stood by the pools edge watching as Elijah held Hayley close, she'd be surprised since Nik always calmed me down so it had to work and one look at Elijah's face you could see the worry in his eyes for Hayley.
"Davina will break the link, we just need time" Elijah argued while Hayley clings to Elijah and groans as she gasps for breath which is making me anxious.
"I can't breathe!" Hayley yells and I freeze on the pools edge.
"Okay, take long deep breaths" Elijah told her but she was hyperventilating. "Hayley look at me!" he exclaims and gets her eyes on him. "Long deep breaths, just focus on the sound of my voice" she stares right at him, into his eyes and I share a small smile with Rebekah as we watch the two despite the situation, you could see the connection sparking between them. "You'll be okay, you'll be okay" he then whispers to her as she follows his words laying her head back in the water but suddenly screams and I flinch feeling Rebekah's hands on my shoulders as she continues to yell out clutching her stomach and I start shaking in fear that this was it, she was losing the baby and I started to tear up but Sophie suddenly starts to gasp although my eyes remain locked on Hayley as she continues to groan in pain
"I just felt it lift" Sophie suddenly says and I turn my head towards her hearing Rebekah sighs in relief next to me before I turn back to Hayley as she starts to calm down and Elijah looks stunned.
Hayley stands up on her own but is still leaning against Elijah cradling her stomach in her hands when Sophie removes one of her earrings and pokes her palm with it so Elijah grabs her hand holding it palm up and we see that Hayley doesn't get injured like she did the last time and I finally allow myself to feel relieved especially when I can hear the second heartbeat still coming from Hayley while Elijah and Hayley stare at each other for a second while before he quickly let's go of her hand and leads Hayley to the stairs of the pool.
"Elijah...as soon as your brother finds out that the link is broken, he'll kill Agnes" Sophie said stopping him and I glared at her since who the bloody hell cares, the bitch deserves it. "I know you don't owe me anything but please, don't let him kill her" she adds and I roll my eyes while Elijah zooms out of the pool and pulls his phone out of his jacket on the table. "Elijah, she's our only access to the power we need to survive, promise me that you'll stop him!" I turned and shared a look with Elijah as he dials a number into his phone and raises it to his ear.
"It's me, where are you?" he asks and I know he's talking to Nik. "No, don't hurt her I'll be there shortly" he hangs up and turns to Sophie. "I'll make you one last promise, I won't let my brother kill Agnes" Elijah promises him and I smile knowing how careful Elijah is with his word but Sophie doesn't and nods at him taking his word for it before Elijah picks up his jacket and shoes walking and I follow him knowing I needed in on this and that Hayley would be safe with Rebekah.
I waited for Elijah to get quickly get changed out of his wet clothes when Rebekah walks past me into Elijah's bedroom as he's finishing getting dressed in dry clothes and stands in the doorway.
"The unlinking worked, maybe now we can make plans-"
"Not now Rebekah, can we discuss this when I return?" he cuts her off and starts walking toward the door where I'm waiting in a hurry.
"I won't be here when you return" she argues and he stops turning to face her.
"That sounds like a goodbye" he questions and I frown.
"I guess it is, I only came to New Orleans to make sure you were safe, you are" she replies and I hang my head a little knowing that she was leaving and that I'd miss her. "I thought that I might be able to convince you to come with me but here you are, rushing into whatever Klaus and Marcel and the witches have cooked up and I finally get it" she replies tearing up. "You'll never leave this city, you'll never leave Klaus" Elijah looks at her, and then walks toward her.
"Then you should stay"
"This thing that you and Klaus, Sophia and Marcel have, I want no part of it" she argues shaking her head as the tears fall down her cheeks. "I just want to be free"
"Well, then go" he replies sadly before he kisses her on the cheek. "You are free!" he adds softly smiling at her before he leaves and I turn to Rebekah as she tries to compose herself.
"I'll miss you Beks" I smiled at her before I followed Elijah, the two of us getting into a car and driving over to St Anne's Church where Nik had Agnes.
"You're a piece of work Agnes but guess what...I'm quite a piece of work myself, you know I contemplated leaving bits of you artfully arranged outside your family's tomb, I thought it would leave a fitting message, don't...touch...my...family" I could hear Nik saying as we approached the doors and smiled a little before Elijah pushes the door open and we walk in.
"Leave her" Elijah tells him seeing Agnes in Nik's grasp but he pulls Agnes into a headlock and stands back as he watches us walk down the aisle towards him. "I gave my word" I see the Father stand up to greet us.
"You tend to give your word at the most inopportune times brother, we've been doing things your way all day" Nik snaps back glaring towards Elijah. "Come on, just one little snap and it's 'tootle-loo, Agnes' she deserves it!" I smirked a little as I began to walk forward again, my hands clasped behind my back.
"Niklaus don't make another move, you have asked for my forgiveness I will grant you that forgiveness but do not make me break my word" Nik glares at Elijah as he seems to consider it with the two of them staring at one another and after a moment, he finally lets Agnes go before holding open his arms wide.
"My noble brother, how was that for personal growth, eh?" he asks him stepping back from the witch. "Still, it is just like you to spoil all of my fun.
"Oh, not exactly" Elijah argues staring at Agnes before before Elijah suddenly attacks the men who had helped Agnes and rips one of their hearts out, before he throws a second man up into the air and does the same to a third as he rips out the man's heart then turns to Nik with a bloody heart in each hand dropping them to the floor before he pulls out his pocket square to wipe his hands as he usually does while Agnes stares in horror and Nik grins proudly behind her. "Now, I swore you would not die by my brother's hand" I smirk when I see his subtle nod. "I said nothing of my sister-in-law" I smirked seeing Agnes' eyes widen in realization before I zoomed forward and wrapped my hand around her throat grabbing Agnes in a chokehold and push her backwards.
"Nobody hurts my family and lives" I snapped glaring at her before I twisted my hand and snap her neck then turned and walked out to get back and check up on Hayley. "No one" I repeated not really feeling better but my baby was safe now and that's all I cared about but as I walked in the plantation I couldn't hear any movement or heartbeats the house was empty. "Hayley?!" I called out anyway in case I missed something.
"Where is she?" Elijah asked coming in behind me.
"She's not here" I replied as I began to panic again, with the link between her and Sophie gone meant she could leave...did she take off with my baby.
"Sophia calm down, we'll find her" he said trying to calm me down but it was pointless and he realised pulling out his phone to call Rebekah and check with her in case Hayley was with her.
"Goodbye means goodbye, Elijah"
"Is she with you?" he asks her straight away.
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"Hayley's gone, where is she?" he clarifies.
"WHAT?!" she exclaims right as Nik walks into the room looking rather anxious already.
"Marcel was here" he says before we even have the chance to tell him and my eyes widen before I shake my head.
"No" I say while Elijah looks stunned and absently drops the phone from his ear while I stare at Nik, fear reflecting in our eyes that the girl carrying our baby could quite possibly be in the hands of our enemy right now and who knows what was happening to her considering how much Marcel hated werewolves.