Heartless to Heartfelt
Authors Note/Disclaimer: I do not own The Vampire Diaries or The Originals or Legacies. All credit goes to the writers and creators.
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This is not my favorite chapter I have written, but there are definitely some parts I really like. So I hope you enjoy it.
Chapter 13
"Just a few things, it doesn't make sense to unpack it all."
Stefan raised his eyebrow, since when did his girlfriend like to live out of a suitcase. Katherine was usually the first out of the two to unpack her belongings and settle into a place. It didn't matter if they were staying two days or a month. It was just her way, no wrinkled clothes because that would be a disaster according to her. "Not unpacking? What has gotten into you?"
Katherine picked up two of her jackets to hang them in the wardrobe. "We'll have to leave soon, once Caroline has had a chance to speak to Josie. It makes little sense to unpack then to repack."
That bothered Stefan, the fact that she was already thinking of leaving even though they had just arrived. "Babe," He wasn't sure how to approach it. He knew that Katherine didn't regret their time away from the family because she knew what they were doing was important. The time was worth it if they could save their nieces. He knew that this had nothing to do with them leaving again. This had everything to do with Elena and what she had said. It irritated him. The fact that even after all this time, it was Elena that could get into Katherine's mind and make her self conscious of her place. "You," He felt the hand on his arm and turned to see Bonnie and Caroline.
"We've got this." Bonnie reassured, whatever Elena had said would be nothing but a distant memory in a short moment.
Caroline nodded in agreement. "You go spend some time with your nieces. We'll fix your girlfriend."
"Excuse me, I do not need fixing. I'm Katherine Pierce."
Bonnie raised her eyebrow. "That is the very reason you need fixing...sometimes."
"If you are attempting to cheer me up, then you are failing, Bonnie." Katherine sighed when the witch took a hold of her arm and dragged her over to the sofa. "I'm fine."
Caroline took a seat on one side of the vampire and Bonnie took the other. "You're not fine. Whatever Elena said to you means nothing, Kat."
Katherine leaned back, she didn't want it to mean anything. She didn't want to be vulnerable, or to question her place within this family because she felt like she earned her spot. She had shown loyalty in the very moment Elena chose to stand against them. But it didn't stop the thoughts, it didn't take away the seed that Elena planted because in the end she knew that she always lost everyone she cared about and the fear that she could lose this family was always there with or without Elena. "I'm fine." If she repeated those words enough then surely soon she would feel it.
Bonnie took the vampires hand in hers and squeezed. "You are wild, impulsive and incredibly rude at times,"
"If this is supposed to help then,"
"Let me finish." Bonnie reprimanded her, smirking when she saw the sour look Kat wore. "You are intelligent, brave and a free spirit,"
Caroline had to smile at that. "Bonnie is a workaholic when it comes to magic, and I get wrapped up in being a mother that sometimes we forget to have fun. You remind us with your free spirited nature that we can be spontaneous and fun every once in a while too. You drive us to show our youth especially when you drag us out on the town and make us live."
Bonnie felt Katherine's head drop to her shoulder, and she rested her head on top of the vampires. "You better unpack or I'll do it for you."
"You wouldn't," Katherine grumbled.
Bonnie merely laughed, the last time she had unpacked for Katherine she had stuck an onion inside her closet and it had stunk it out. "I will if you don't." Bonnie threatened light heartedly. "This is our home now. It is the place you belong."
Caroline leaned against Katherine, taking her other hand. "You are a valued member of our family and we would never let you leave us."
"We might bicker, annoy each other and fight occasionally but at the end of it all, that is just a part of us being sisters."
Katherine breathed deeply. "It feels like we have been family for the longest time and it might seem silly to you, but it still feels unreal...like I could lose it all."
"But you won't." Caroline promised her. "You will never lose us Katherine; and I know you'll never leave us."
Katherine raised her eyebrow at that. "And how do you know?"
"Because the only time you willingly leave us is when you are looking for ways to save my daughters and I know that is hard for you, it's hard for us too. Especially the girls. But you do it for them and I'll never be able to repay you for that."
Katherine used her leg to bump Caroline's. "I'd do anything for any of you."
"And we would do anything for you." Bonnie told her. "Does that sound like a family that is destined to disperse at some point? Does it sound like a temporary family that will eventually kick you out?" Bonnie didn't wait for Katherine's reply, nor did she want it. "No it does not. We are your family, forever."
"Yes, you are stuck with us, Kat. No matter where in this world you are, this place right here. The people here. We are your home. The place you can always return to." Caroline promised, her eyes flickering to her daughter who had entered the room. Though Caroline was not surprised. Josie had the tendency to seek out anyone who didn't feel good, and she would provide them with comfort.
Katherine smiled as Josie pushed her way onto her lap. "Hey, sweet girl."
Josie snuggled closer. "I love you, Auntie Kat."
"I love you." She looked over when Bonnie nudged her shoulder. "What?"
"That's you. Auntie Kat. Let that sink in."
Caroline nodded in agreement. "Let it, because that is one thing she'll never be to my girls. She had her chance and she chose wrong, and in the end I won, my girls won because they got an Aunt who literally goes to the ends of the earth for them."
Katherine looked down at the little girl in her lap. "I'm okay."
Caroline and Bonnie looked at each other, both with a small smile on their lips. "We believe you."
Stefan walked into the room to find Lizzie and Davina curled up on the sofa. "And here I was thinking we were playing hide and seek," He lent against the doorway, he had been playing with the twins until Josie declared she was done, he knew that she had gone in search of her mother and aunts but Lizzie was supposed to be hiding. "Did you desert me too, bug?"
Lizzie sent him a cheeky grin. "Sorry, Uncle Stefan."
Stefan rolled his eyes. "You are not."
"At least you didn't continue searching," Marcel muttered from across the room. "It took me a solid two hours before I realized she was using her magic to keep me confused. I kept thinking I could hear her, or smell her...turns out she was sitting in a kitchen cupboard eating all of my favorite chocolate."
Stefan tilted his head in Marcel's direction. "That sounds like Lizzie."
"Does not." Lizzie defended herself.
Marcel looked over at her, the cheeky little devil. "Are you telling me that is not what you did?"
"I didn't eat all of it. I left you some..."
"The crumbs, you left me the crumbs."
Lizzie giggled, hiding her smile in the cushion that she had on her lap. "It was yummy."
Stefan took a seat across the table from Marcel. "So you've been her latest target?" He knew exactly what it was like to be on the receiving end of Lizzie's pranks, or to go looking for a snack only to find it all gone. She was a master of sneakiness.
"Yes," Marcel sighed. "I walked out of my bedroom the other day straight into a patch of slime." He saw the sympathetic look on Stefan's face. "Wait for it, not done...she then flung more slime at me. It got in my mouth, and on my clothes...I didn't realize how hard it was to get slime out of clothes."
"If you think she's bad on her own...her partner in crime is here now. Lord help us all."
Marcel looked back down at his book. "Maybe it's time I move out."
Stefan laughed. "Even that wouldn't save you. I lived in a hotel for a weekend, just needed a night of peace. I woke up to them inside my room. You can't escape them."
Marcel placed his book on the table. "This family...honestly."
Lizzie jumped up from the sofa and walked over, pushing herself onto Marcel's lap. "Marccccceeeel, you love me. I'm the little sister you always wanted."
"I think I was perfectly fine being an only child..." He felt the cushion hit the back of his head of Davina. "Alright fine, having four sisters is the joy of my life." He rolled his eyes. "I got more peace when Klaus was an asshole and trying to...
Lizzie gasped interrupting him. "You said a bad word. I'm telling mom!" She squirmed off his lap, heading for the door.
Marcel groaned, standing up. "Don't you dare." He set off chasing her, knowing the lecture he would endure from Caroline about swearing in front of the children.
Stefan chuckled. "Living here could provide entertainment."
Caroline pulled the little girl onto her lap, needing to hold her daughter while she did this. While she asked this. Hoping that her embrace was enough to make the little one feel safe. "Josie, honey. I need to ask you a very important question." Caroline brushed the dark hair out of the little girls eyes. "I want you to know that you are safe right here with me, okay?"
"I know, momma. What's wrong?" Josie felt uneasy at the tone of her mother's voice, always more perceptive to that kind of thing.
Caroline felt terrible for what she was going to ask her daughter. For forcing the sweet little seven year old to remember something that was probably very traumatic for her. She knew the alternative was having Bonnie invade Josie's mind for the memory but Caroline knew she would never be able to agree to do that without Josie's permission. Her little girl had the right to privacy even at this age.
The truth was she didn't even want to ask Josie, because doing so she would be the one to bring her daughter pain. The same daughter she was fighting so hard to protect, to help forget that awful time. "Josie, when you were away from momma," She paused when she saw Josie's face pale, and that feeling dread seeped through her body, she didn't want to cause her any pain.
Katherine could see the hesitation in Caroline's eyes, and the fear when Josie begun to pull away from her mother. She understood that Caroline didn't want to bring Josie any pain and nor should she have to. It was her job as a mother to protect and comfort her. And right now it was clear that she was worried that Josie would feel betrayed by her and the relationship would become strained. Katherine knew she could not let that happen. "Hey, JoJo, when I was a little girl..."
"Which was a mighty long time ago."
Katherine glared at Bonnie but it held no malice as it brought a giggle from the little girls lips. "Mm, yes, thank-you, Bonnie. That was really helpful." It was said with sarcasm but it was the truth. Bonnie making Josie giggle made the little girl relax a little easier. "When I was little I fell down running after my sister and I broke my arm. It hurt and I cried a little until one day it was all better. As good as new," She gently shook her right arm around. "Have you ever broken a bone, sweet girl?" The movement of Josie burying her head into Caroline's chest made Katherine feel guilty. "JoJo, can you answer my question?"
"No,"
Caroline ran her fingers through Josie's hair, they knew that Josie broke a bone it was in the letter, this meant that the no was clearly a sign that she didn't want to talk about it. "Sweetie,"
"No," Josie's voice trembled, as she gripped her mothers jacket.
Bonnie leaned across, placing her hand on the little ones knee. "I know it's hard, baby, but remember how Aunt Katherine was looking for something important. If you tell us when that happened it could help us find something."
Josie shook head, pulling her knee away from Bonnie and curling further into her mother. "No, I don't wanna." She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to force the picture of him away.
Caroline looked at Bonnie, giving her a slight nod. It was permission to ask Josie the question. She didn't want this but it had to be done. In order to save the girls and keep them both alive, Josie would have to endure this bit of hurt and that bothered Caroline, it pained her.
Bonnie took a deep breath, hating that she had to do this because she honestly wasn't sure she could handle seeing the memory inside of Josie's head, of having to witness it happen to a sweet small child. "JoJo, if you cannot tell us then I can look inside your mind. I can find what I need. Would you let me?"
"No! No!"
Caroline held her daughter tightly. "Hey, baby, Aunt Bonnie wouldn't let you feel it or see it, it wouldn't hurt."
"No!" Josie pushed away from her momma and sprung from her lap, feet hitting the floor. "I don't want to."
Caroline reached for her. "Josette,"
"No!" Josie used her magic to push her momma and Auntie's away, slamming them back into their seats. "I said I don't wanna!" Josie's words were spoken with force and stubbornness and for a moment it made her seem wise beyond her years.
"JoJo," Bonnie tried to force her way through her nieces magic.
"Josette, honey. Stop, it's okay." Caroline attempted to sooth her daughter, while also attempting to force her own worry, uncertainly and slight fear aside. Josie was the twin that didn't use magic often, she was the twin that certainly never used it on family. "Josie,"
Josie, my sweet Josie, be a good girl for daddy. If you're a good girl then daddy doesn't have to do this like this.
Her eyes squeezed shut, sending that memory spiraling back in her mind. "No!" Josie forced them back again with her magic and then spun around running out of the room.
"Nik,"
Klaus's feet carried him across the street, autopilot, guiding him to the person he had thought was dead. He...his brother was here, right before him. Hope was standing in between them, she had hugged him and yet Klaus couldn't bring himself to think that this could be real. That Kol could be here...alive.
"No," Kol took a small step back, creating a small space of distance. "Impossible. You're daggered, resting deep in the ocean." Kol breathed deeply, his expression becoming almost unreadable. "This must be a mind trick. Freya," He hissed her name. She must have done something before releasing him. It was the only logical explanation, he was foolish to let her go. He should have killed her, breaking her arm was not enough.
Klaus could see the fear, the unease in Kol's eyes, even though his brother was trying hard to conceal it. "Brother, it is me. Freya is not here." He gently nudged Hope behind him. Not that he ever thought Kol would hurt his niece, at least not intentionally. Though in this moment Kol was in denial of something that was clearly right before him, and from experience Klaus knew that Kol could get volatile if he thought his mind was being altered.
"A trick. You're gone...I'll never find you." Kol squeezed his eyes shut, trying to make the illusion disappear, only to open them and find Klaus standing in that same position. "What has she done to me?"
"I'm here, Kol, right here." Klaus stepped forward and grabbed his brother in a tight embrace, before he could push him away. "I'm here brother. Davina brought me home."
"Nik," The disbelief flowed from his mouth. "You're here."
Niklaus was relieved when Kol finally returned the hug, squeezing his brother with a fierceness that would shatter a humans bones. "I'm here, and you're alive." This moment was enough to fill Klaus with contentment. All the family he could ever need, that he wanted, was safe, alive and home within New Orleans. For the first time in years Klaus felt at peace. "You're alive." There was no denying the relief that spread through his body. "How are you here?"
The words feel from Klaus and Kol's mouths at the same time, both thinking the same question. How was the other before them?
"They daggered you. They buried you."
"You died." Klaus rested his forehead against Kol's, holding the back of his brothers neck. "You're alive." The simple words brought much joy to his heart. "Little brother,"
Kol breathed deeply, feeling as if a weight was lifting from his shoulders. They were together again, his brother was right here in front of him. Relieved. He felt the relief spread through him. "You didn't leave me."
Klaus smiled, squeezing the back of his brothers neck before pulling him into another hug. "I promised I would never leave you, and I do not take promises lightly."
"Niky, you can't go. You can't."
Klaus knelt down on the ground in front of his brother, the fear in Kol's only served to break his heart. "It's only a few nights, Kol. I'll be back."
"What if you aren't?" Kol's hands fidgeted nervously in front of him. "What if you never come back? What if you leave me? I don't want to be alone...father scares me and mama..."
Klaus grabbed onto his brothers hands. "Worry less, brother. It is a few nights, and you will not be alone. Rebekah is staying, as is Finn. You'll be okay."
That did little to ease Kol's mind, Rebekah was little just like him and Finn was always with mother. "You can't leave me."
"Niklaus. Brother. Come." Elijah's voice floated in from outside the house, the excitement indicating he was ready to leave.
Klaus felt Kol squeeze his hands tightly. "I will never leave you Kol. I'll come back to you."
"Promise?"
"Yes, I promise." Klaus smiled, letting go of his brothers hands to stand up and grab his small bag. "And even when I am not here, brother; I am still right here." He pointed to Kol's heart. "I never leave you."
Kol stepped forward and wrapped his arms around Niklaus's waist. "I love you, Nik."
"And I you, brother. Now be good, and look after our sister. I'll see you in a few nights."
Kol breathed easier, the hug his brother wrapped him in making him feel safe just like it had when he was a child. "We're together." His mind flashed back to when Hope had run up and hugged him, his niece. He had almost forgotten. Hope and Nik were together. They were reunited. "Hope's here." He pulled away from Nik to look down at his niece. "You two are together. You..."
Klaus looked down at his daughter, a smile crossing his lips. "We are together. Just as it is supposed to be." He couldn't help but raise and eyebrow when Hope crossed her arms.
"You have some explaining to do." She told them both, her words showing how much wiser she was then her years. "You thought he was dead? And why were you in the ocean? Daggered? I thought you said slumber? Did you lie?" Hope's questions rolled off her tongue, confused by this sudden turn of events. "Wait, I didn't ask you how you came back from the dead. Mommy and everyone think you are dead."
Klaus only smiled at her. "We have all the time in the world for answers, little wolf." They were together now, and they would be forever. Klaus knew he wouldn't let anything tear them apart again.
"Your phone, brother."
Klaus reached into his pocket, not bothering to check the call id as he held it to his ear. "Yes?"
"Josie took off from the compound. We're searching...Klaus, Caroline needs you."
"Where is she?"
"I'll send you her location."
Klaus hung up the phone, eyes darting to Kol. "Take Hope back to the house. I'll be home soon."
Kol frowned, he could sense the change in this brothers demeanor and tone of his voice. "What's happened?"
"I have to find my daughter." He heard his phone ping, and cast one last look at Kol and Hope. "Go home." The words were commanding as if he expected Kol to obey and he knew his brother would.
Kol looked down at Hope, his brother was gone. "His daughter?"
Hope rolled her eyes. "Being dead means you miss things."
"I wasn't dead...well maybe just for a bit. What could I have missed?"
"Let me fill you in. Come on." Hope grabbed his sleeve and tugged him down the path.
Elijah moved with precision speed, snapping her neck and watching as her body dropped to the dirt beneath her feet. He hadn't wished to believe it to be true, but when he returned to the house and noticed that they were all gone. Freya, Hayley and Rebekah. It had started to become clear. There was only one reason they would not contact him, that they would try to force him out of the picture. Hope. They had her. It was on the only natural conclusion.
They had faked her kidnapping in order to run away with her. Traitors. He thought they understood this new life, the one he was trying to build for them. Did they not understand that he was the only one who would be able to keep her safe?
Hayley had been his first thought. She would never leave her daughter, which ultimately made her the first target.
"What have you done, Hayley?" Elijah knelt down, lifting her body into his arms. "Why would you attempt to hide her from me?" He turned around. "Don't worry, darling, you are going to reunite us and then I will deal with my sisters. You all need to remember that no place is safer for Hope then with me."
Elijah let his eyes trail over her face, feeling a small pang of emotion in his heart that he immediately pushed down. He had loved her once, more then he had ever allowed himself to love another and it was because of that he had tried to free her from Niklaus. To give her the fairytale family. They could have raised Hope together, as a couple but it was her who jeopardised it all. Why did she want Hope to know such evil? Why did any of them want the sweet innocence child to be reunited with Niklaus?
It only made him realize that he was truly the only one who cared for Hope and her safety.
Freya stepped outside the doctors office, her arm firmly in a cast. She had wanted to escape New Orleans before seeing a doctor but she could barely drive into town, her dominate arm the one that was affected and causing excoriating pain. Kol had told her to run, and she had every intention of doing that now. The family she had once always dreamed off, was one she would now never be apart of. Her own fault, and she had accepted that.
In her mind flashed Hope, and the guilt wracked her body. Her sweet little niece. One she would not see, at least not for the foreseeable future.
"Go away...pleaseeeee!"
"Freak! Freak!"
Freya took a step forward to peak around the corner when the force of emotion and magic together almost knocked her over.
Her eyes immediately fell on the little girl surrounded by three teenagers, one of whom was throwing rocks. "HEY! Leave her alone." Freya shouted, causing the teens to turn in shock that they had been caught. "Shoo, get out of here. Now, before I call the police." She watched as the teenagers started to scram.
"Freak!" One of the boys hissed as they ran off.
Freya watched them leave, making sure they were gone before she turned her attention back to the small child. She could now see why they had been attracted to her, she was admitting a purple glow from her eyes. Magic. "Hey, sweetie." Freya crouched down in front of her. "Hey, you're okay. They are gone now." Freya kept her voice soothing as she attempted to calm her down, but the little girl simply tried to force herself back into the brick wall, her hands were balled into fists. "Shh, deep breath." Freya demonstrated by drawing in a deep breath. "You're okay, just breathe."
"I...I ca...I can't..." Josie gulped, struggling for air. It was unlike her to speak to a stranger but momma wasn't here. And she could feel that this lady had magic to...maybe she could help it go away. Josie really wanted it to go away. She hated it. "The magic...I don't want it to...make it stop." It was hurting, it was trying to escape her body. All the magic, it wanted out. It wanted to do what Josie didn't want. "I don't wanna..." She didn't understand why this was happening, it wasn't supposed to do this. Daddy had said it wouldn't do this not till she was a really big girl.
Freya saw the panic, and that along with the fear only made the glow intensify. The wall behind the little girl started to vibrate. "Hey, you're scared and your magic is feeding from it, sweetie. Do you understand?"
"Auntie...Auntie Bonnie says that but I'm scared...and I..."
Freya eyes flickered from the wall back to the girl. "Hey, I'm going to help you. What's your name? I'm Freya."
"Jo...Josie."
"Well, Josie, it is very nice to meet you. Can you try to take a deep breath for me, please?" Freya leaned forward, frowning when she flinched back. "It's okay. I'm not going to hurt you. This will help, okay?" She saw the hesitation in Josie's eyes, and she couldn't blame her. They were strangers to each other, nothing more and the clear distrust was flowing through the magic. "It won't hurt. I promise." She gently touched her palm against Josie's, using her magic to flow through the little girl taking a hold her magic just as Dahlia had done to her when she was a child. Only Freya knew she would release her hold on Josie once the little girl was calm and ready to feel it again. Dahlia had held onto hers for years.
Josie breathed deeply, the tears falling from her eyes when the magic stopped pulling and the weight felt lifted. It was okay, it felt better. Calmer. She felt like before...before daddy had taken her away from momma. She wasn't going to hurt anyone now. "You stopped it." Her voice still trembled slightly.
Freya calmly rubbed circles on the little girls palm. "You can open your eyes, Josie."
"No. I saw them. They were purple." That scared her. It always scared her. He had been so happy but it only scared her. It was a monster. She could never let her momma or Auntie's see it.
"If you show anyone, Josette, they will not love you. You must keep it hidden."
"Yes daddy."
It was easy to not let people see because she didn't use magic, and she didn't get angry. She had never let anyone see it. Not even Lizzie, and Lizzie knew all her other secrets. And Daddy had given her the little bunny and she wore it every day just like he said, it was on her bracelet...Josie used her fingers to touch her bracelet, why wasn't it there? It was always there.
Freya slowly eased herself down so she was sitting cross legged in front of Josie. "They won't be anymore, sweetie."
"But how do you know?"
"My magic is holding yours, it's okay. I'll hold it till you are ready to feel it." Freya waited for a moment till Josie finally opened her eyes, tears still flowing freely and breathing a little ragged. "Hey there, brown eyes."
Josie's eyes immediately fell onto the black cast and drew her knees up to her chest, hugging them with her arms. Purple. She remembered choosing a purple one, and trying very hard to write her own name on it, only back then she didn't know how to write her name properly.
Josie bit her bottom lip, she knew momma didn't mean to make her sad but she did. She didn't want to remember that, what daddy had did to her, she had tried so hard to forget. To make it go away.
"Josie, where are your parents? I'm sure your mom or dad are looking for you." The logical thing to do was to locate the girls parents, they could help calm her down, the magic could be released and Freya could move on, get out of this town before her brother came back to hurt her.
Josie wanted her momma, she wanted to hug her and tell her sorry. She didn't mean to use her magic on her or her Aunties. She didn't mean to hurt them. But she couldn't let momma see. He had always said momma wouldn't love her if she did that. If she saw the truth. "What happened?" Josie looked through blurred eyes at the cast, unable to peel her eyes from it.
Freya looked down, the image of Kol flashing through her mind. The fear welling back up inside of her, the thought of him springing at her again to break yet another bone, or perhaps kill her. "I fell down. All patched up now. What brings you out here, sweetie?"
Josie bit her bottom lip. "I got scared."
Freya hummed. "I get scared too sometimes. It's not a nice feeling. What scared you?"
Josie looked up into the woman's eyes, this woman wasn't family, this was a stranger. Momma had told her to never talk to strangers but sometimes strangers were the best people to talk to...at least Josie thought so because strangers weren't family. "Momma asked me a question about my daddy and I got scared...and mad...and my magic got mad..." Josie's bottom lip trembled. "And then I got more scared."
Freya saw the panic, the terror and she felt the jolt of the little girls magic trying to release itself. "Hey, it's okay. You're safe now."
"My momma needs to know about it to find something, but I don't wanna tell her. And Auntie Bonnie wants to look in my head but then she'll see everything. I don't want any of them to see it." Josie's lip trembled and she closed her eyes shut as the tears begun to fall again. "I don't want them to see what daddy did."
Freya felt her heart break when the little girl broke down into tears right before her. Who was this little one, and where were her parents? "Hey, shh. It's going to be okay, Josie." She gently placed her hand on top of the little girls, giving them a light squeeze. Just what had this little girls father done to her? At this young age she shouldn't be facing this much fear and anxiety.
"But they wanna see. I don't want them to see it. Not momma. Not Auntie Bonnie. Not anyone in my family. No one." Josie cried.
Freya stood up, gently picking Josie up off the ground, the little girl wrapped her arms and legs around her and cried. "Okay, honey, okay. It's going to be alright."
"Josette!"
Freya turned at the sound of another voice, a blonde lady now running towards them. "I think your mom just found us."
"Josie. Baby. You're okay." Caroline took her daughter from Freya, hugging her with a tight but gentle embrace. "Oh god, you're okay. I got you. I got you." Caroline kissed Josie's cheek, the tears now freely flowing from her eyes. The tears she had been trying so hard to hold back until now when she finally felt the relief. Never had Josie ever run away before and Caroline hadn't felt that terrified since Alaric had taken her. "I love you, baby. I'm so sorry, so sorry."
Josie held on tight to her mommas neck, face buried in her shoulder. "I'm sorry, mommy. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you."
Caroline shook her head. "Oh, no, you didn't hurt me baby. I'm fine. Are you okay?" Caroline pulled back slightly. "Let me look at you? Are you...did anything..." Her voice was frantic as she searched Josie's face and body, smelling the air for blood.
Josie nodded her head slowly. "Freya helped me."
"Freya?" Caroline spun on her heel to face the woman who was now standing a few paces away from them. If it was the name alone then perhaps she wouldn't have connected the two, but seeing her face, Caroline remembered seeing her in the distance back when she had tried to catch a glimpse of Hope. This was the woman who had masterminded a plan to take Klaus away from his daughter, this was the woman who had caused immense pain and tore a family apart. "You should be grateful that I am holding my daughter." She told the woman before her, because if Josie wasn't here then Caroline knew she would have not qualms going after the witch.
Freya frowned, unsure what she had done to deserve that, she didn't know this woman and all she had done was help her daughter. "I..."
"I know who you are Freya. I know what you did." She saw the uncertainty flick through the woman's eyes. "I'm Klaus's partner." She watched the news register with her. "You are..."
Josie was a little confused, she could see that her momma was getting angry. "Momma, Freya helped me. I was scared, momma and the magic wouldn't stop."
Caroline drew her eyes away from the woman and back to Josie. "What do you mean, baby?" Fear in her spiked. Josie rarely used magic, and only did so when it was a forced predicament. Bonnie had been worried in the past about how it would affect Josie's control in the years to come.
"It wouldn't stop." Josie mumbled, her bottom lip beginning to tremble again. "Freya stopped it. She helped, momma."
Freya didn't know what to do, a part of her was ready to run, eager to get as far Caroline as possible. Kol had already broken her arm, the fear of what could come next was taking over. But the little girl with brown eyes that was staring intently kept her from moving. Josie's magic was being retained by her. "Her magic was spiraling, she didn't have it under control."
Caroline raised her eyebrow. "She does now."
"Only because my magic is keeping a hold on hers. Restraining it." She saw the terror in Caroline's eyes. "Don't panic. I'll release it, I was just waiting for Josie to be calm enough to do so." The last thing she wanted to do was keep this little girls magic from her. It was what she had been forced to do with Hope and she regretted it every day. The fights with Elijah had been explosive but in the end, the fear of losing the only family she had won, and she did nothing. It was yet another one of her regrets.
Caroline looked back down at her little one. "Hey, are you sure your okay? I didn't mean to make you upset, sweetie. I...I'm sorry."
Josie buried her head back in her mothers shoulder. "I don't want to talk about him and I don't want Auntie Bonnie to look, momma. I don't wanna do it."
Freya felt Josie's magic tugging, it was clearly upset because the little girl was. "Josie mentioned that that her Aunt was going to look inside her mind, it's none of my business..."
"You're right. This is none of you business. Why are you here? New Orleans is not your home." Caroline spat the words at her, the bitterness clear in her voice.
Freya felt those words pierce her heart, yet she did nothing but nod. It was the truth. "You're right. New Orleans is not my home and this is not my business; but I think you would want to know," Freya knew from experience what Josie would be feeling right now. "She told me that her Aunt was going to look inside her mind. Josie doesn't want her to see it, any of it. She's protecting you and them, and herself. She doesn't want you to see it, or to hurt for her." She bit her bottom lip. "Think of it like being at your most vulnerable, hurt and afraid, would you want the people you love to see that? To live through that moment?"
Caroline leaned her head against Josie's, hating that Freya's words held a lot of sense. "I...no, but there is no other way. If there was another option, I would take it."
"Hey, Josie, now that you have your momma. Do you think I could let your magic go?"
"No." Josie mumbled, shaking her head.
Freya gave her an encouraging smile. "I think you can do it, you are much calmer and I'll be right here if you need me to stop it again. Okay?"
Caroline looked down at her little girl, her baby. "You can do it, sweetheart. Momma is right here."
Freya reached out her hand, seeing the hesitation in Caroline's eyes as if she expected something to happen. Distrust. It should have bothered her, but Freya knew she would have to get used to people seeing her this way. "I'm not going to hurt her. It's the only way." She gently look Josie's palm, her grip on the magic released. "There you go." She took a few steps back, creating distance between them.
"Caroline, Josette,"
Freya took quiet a few steps back, pushing herself into the brick wall. The voice of the voice slamming into her. "Klaus," A sense of relief flooded her body, that he was among the living. Elijah's plan hadn't worked, Niklaus was free. That relief was quickly squashed by the anger that stirred within his eyes with one look in her direction. Fear, it spiked within her and she pushed her body back into the wall.
Kol might have broken a bone, but Klaus...after all that she had put him through...he would end her life. "I'm..." A choked sob escaped her lips.
"You," The word came out in a deep menacing growl. The last sibling he thought he would lay eyes upon would be Freya. "You," He took a threatening step forward, watching with satisfaction as she tried to melt back into the wall. That instinct in him, the one he had been trying to keep buried flared up inside. He wanted to hurt her. To make her feel the pain that he had felt. His heart feeling joy at the sight of her tears.
"I'm sorry." Freya gasped out the words through her sobs. The weight of her choices seeming to impact her all at once. What had they done?
"You are are going to pay for what you did."
Josie could see that Freya was crying, just like she had been when those boys were being mean to her. Josie didn't like it. She didn't understand why Klaus was angry. Did he think that Freya hurt her...she didn't. "No! Freya didn't hurt me." Josie wriggled out of her momma's arms and ran towards Klaus. "Klaus," Josie tugged on his arm. "Daddy,"
Klaus's head dropped, his gaze focusing solely on the little girl. "What did...I..." He stumbled over his words as he lifted Josie up into his arms, bringing her close to his chest. That word repeating over and over in his mind...Daddy. She had used that word. He completely forgot about Freya in that moment, all attention on his littlest lady. "You called me..."
Josie smiled shyly, feeling a little self conscious. She hadn't meant to call him that just then, it just slipped out, she was supposed to talk to Lizzie first. "I didn't...I'm sorry."
Klaus shook his head, that was the last thing he wanted her to be. He couldn't explain in that moment how that word made him feel. "Don't be...Josie, I'm so proud to be your daddy." He kissed the top of her head and held her close to his body.
Josie buried her head in his shoulder, the happiness rolling through her body. She had wanted to say it before...he did all the things that daddies were supposed to do. He loved her. Not like her other daddy. Klaus's love was good, he wasn't mean to her and he was always helping her, and taking care of her. He was the daddy she wanted. "I love you, daddy."
"I love you, little lady."
Caroline pressed her hand against her lips, eyes taking in the moment. Her heart racing, not out of anything other then happiness. Her baby had called him daddy. That was everything. He was everything that she ever wanted for her girls. A man who would love them, care for them and protect them with every inch of being. Klaus was the man she wanted her girls to look up to, to know that this was a real father.
She let her eyes flicker briefly in the direction of Freya. "Go." She didn't say it out of forgiveness, or because she thought that Freya didn't do anything wrong. The only reason Caroline said it was right before her. Klaus and Josie. Caroline knew within herself that Klaus would never forgive himself if he did anything to hurt a member of his family. Despite who he was before, right now he had evolved and changed. If he did anything he would regret it later. Freya did deserved to be punished but that punishment didn't need to be physical. As for Josie, Caroline knew that the witch deserved just a little credit, not much, but just a little for helping her baby. "Go." She told her one last time before walking towards her partner and daughter. Freya's punishment could wait for a different day. This moment right now, was one worth everything.
Klaus's eyes connected with Caroline. "She called me...she called me daddy." He spoke breathlessly as if he couldn't believe it.
Caroline smiled. "I think she made a wonderful choice."
"It's heaps different from home, Uncle Kol." Hope tugged him into the compound. "So many people live here. Not just Mikaelson's and..." There was so much she wanted to tell him.
Kol tuned out the moment they entered the courtyard, his eyes were zoning in on one of the people he was desperate to be reunited with. Staying away from her had been difficult but he didn't want her anywhere near the family members he had been after. Not wishing for her to be caught in the crossfire. "Davina,"
Davina dropped the book she was reading to Lizzie, her eyes finding him across the other side of the room. "Kol?" The air felt like it was beginning sucked from her lungs as she laid eyes on him for the first time in years. Standing in his original form, the look of longing in his eyes, that she only recognized because she felt the same way whenever she stared at pictures of him. "You're alive." At first the words came out in a rush of relief as she stood up from the sofa. "You're alive," Davina closed the distance between them, confused by this turn of events. "How are you alive? I don't..."
Kol felt relieved, wishing that he could pull her into his arms but her eyes told him it wouldn't go over well. She had every intention of receiving an explanation. "When the veil dropped, I slipped through. I returned."
Davina frowned, the veil; Bonnie had spoken to Klaus and Caroline about that when Bonnie sighted Finn. That was years ago. "You...You've been alive all this time?" It felt like the life was being sucked from her body, she had mourned him, cried for him and tried her hardest to revive him and he had been alive for years?
Davina slid down the back of her door, the picture frame cradled in her arms. The tears fell and her breathing was frantic as she tried to gasp for air in between the strangled sobs. "I...I...I need...you." She spluttered. She needed him to hold her, to sooth her, to remind her that everything was going to be okay. He always had the confidence that she could take on the world, it was what she needed from him right now. "I need you. They took him...and I...Kol, I need you." Davina tightened her grip on the picture frame holding it to her chest, eyes squeezed shut despite the tears that continued to fall. "I need you. I need you to come back to me. I can't lose anymore people." She cried. "I miss you...I miss you."
"You bastard!" Davina reached up and slapped him across the face. "How could you?! I grieved for you. I loved you!" The tears welled in her eyes, and attempted to stop them from falling.
Kol new it wasn't going to be easy to explain his absence to Davina. For her understand the pain he had felt thinking Nik was lost to him forever, that his family had tore his niece from her biological father. "Davina, love, I..."
Davina shook her head. "I wondered if you crossed the veil, but I thought if you did you would call or find me...because that's what I would have done for you...but you let me think you were dead!" Her voice broke, and the first tears dropped. Her feet moving backwards when he reached for her hand. "How could you?"
"'Vina?" Lizzie questioned, as the teenager suddenly turned around and headed at fast pace towards the stairs. "Davina?..." Lizzie looked up at the mystery man, her eyes narrowing. "I don't like you." She told him sternly. "You're a butthole." She used her words to insult him before running after her sister.
"Davina, please." Kol took a step to follow after her, he understood that she felt hurt but he loved her. He needed to explain.
"Leave me alone, Kol!" Davina disappeared up the stairs.
Kol froze; he knew that Davina would be angry at him for not contacting her. He wanted to explain to her, to tell her why he had been gone...but in his mind he knew that no explanation would be good enough. She was right, he could have called. He could have told her that he was among the living and yet he did nothing. He allowed her to grieve and for what? It was nothing other then cruelty to make someone you love grieve you.
His eyes focused on the stairs she had disappeared up. "I'm sorry." He didn't know if she would hear him but he needed to say the words. For her to know.
Klaus laid Josie down in her bed, stepping back to allow Caroline the space to pull off her shoes. His eyes lingered on the little girls face, his emotions torn on how to feel about this situation. He knew that Lizzie and Josie's survival was essential, he couldn't bare the thought of anything happening to them. But he understood from Josie's point of view why she didn't want her family to see what she had gone though. Even now as an adult he would never wish for his siblings to know the pain he endured as a child. He had gone to many lengths to keep it hidden from them, and for them to find out after all this time. He didn't want that.
Though what he had gone through made it easier to identify with Josie.
He wrapped his arms around Caroline when she finally stood up, she leaned heavily into his embrace and he held her tightly. "I got you."
Caroline breathed deeply, allowing a few tears to drop from her face. "I was terrified." She admitted. Josie had never run away from her before. That feeling of not knowing where her baby was and if she was okay, it had made her feel physically sick. "Nik,"
Klaus rubbed her back, his eyes never leaving Josie's peaceful face. "We've got her. She's alright." He reassured her, although he knew that they were both aware that this was a bigger problem that would need to be dealt with.
"I hate this. I hate what he has done to us." Caroline buried her face in his chest. There was no denying that she was an independent and strong woman, but with Nik she felt like she could be vulnerable. She knew that he would comfort and protect her in her weakest moments. "I'm scared to know..." It was clear that things had happened with Josie and Alaric, but she didn't know any of the details. and it scared her to know that they would find out all of the details. "Josie's my baby and I...I couldn't protect her Nik."
Klaus pulled back from her, looking down into her eyes. "Caroline, this is not your fault, love. Alaric is responsible for his own actions. You found her and you have kept her safe and you have loved her immensely. You are a wonderful mother, Caroline." He allowed her to bury her head back in his chest. "This is hard, not just for Josie but for you, and this family too."
Caroline held onto him, the tears flowing down her cheeks. "What are we going to do?"
Klaus took a deep breath, he knew exactly what they were doing to do. He didn't like it, and he certainly didn't want to be the one to ask but he knew for Josie he would. The little girl was terrified of her Aunt seeing what had happened, because that monster had burned into her mind that she would not be loved if they knew what happened. He could not ask Davina, she was child still, and should not bare witness. "We are going to ask...Freya."
"Absolutely not." Caroline pulled back, wiping the tears away from her eyes. "No. Nik, what she did..."
Klaus only smiled, though it held no brightness. "I may not trust her, like her or wish for her to be apart of our lives but for Josie, I'd do anything." He placed a hand on her cheek, using his thumb to wipe away the tear under her eye. "Josie doesn't know Freya is family. Perhaps, she'll let her view it." Though his sister had committed a terrible act, if it would benefit his daughter in any way, he would ask for help.
"We'll find another witch, any other witch." Caroline told him, despite what Freya had done for Josie today, she didn't want that woman anywhere near her daughter. Not after what she had done to her own brother, to her niece.
"I don't trust her when it comes to me, love, but I think I know enough to know she would not hurt Josie. I actually think she would want to help."
"You don't know anything of her, Nik."
Klaus nodded in agreement. "I do not know much, but from Josie's recount it seems that Freya helped when everyone else would have walked by."
"I don't...I don't want her here, I don't want her near you."
Klaus leaned down and kissed her lightly on the lips. "I love you."
"I love you."
"I'll be okay. Once she's done as asked, she can leave. New Orleans cannot be her home." While he knew he would tolerate Freya for a short time, for Josie's well being, he couldn't allow her to live in the same city as him. He didn't have that patience, nor that feeling that he was willing to forgive. Although once his head had cleared from the initial reaction to seeing he, he knew that he did not feel the want or desire to hurt her, he simply did not want her in his life. Perhaps a decade from now that would change, but now...space was needed. "Caroline, if we are going to help our girls, then I'll do this. I'll do whatever it takes."
Caroline pulled him back to her, holding him tightly. "You are..." She looked up so their eyes connected, this wasn't the first time she had noticed the change in Klaus. It was the very reason she let Freya go. Before his time daggered he would have hunted Freya down, he never would have thought about asking for her help. He had evolved. "You are amazing, you know that?" And she meant the words she spoke, he was an amazing person. Despite all that he had gone through he was willing to push it all aside to help Josie, to help their girls.
Klaus lent his forehead against hers. There was only one reason he was considering this, only one reason he was going to talk to Freya. "I'd do anything for this family."
Stefan entered the kitchen to find Davina sitting at the island, a tub of ice-cream in front of her and spoon in hand.
He wasn't surprised to find her awake, after the surprise reunion with a boyfriend she thought was dead, it was only natural that sleep did not come easy. In fact he would find it quiet odd if she was tucked up in her bed sleeping soundly without a care in the world.
"Mind if I join you?"
Davina glanced up, slightly startled. Her hearing was not as heightened as the normal vampire but still she should have heard him, or at least heard something to indicate that she wasn't alone. She blamed her thoughts. To long in her mind. "Have at it." Davina pushed the tub into the middle of the island, watching as he grabbed a spoon and leaned forward on the counter to scoop some ice-cream out of the tub.
"Mm, vanilla, my favorite." Stefan knew he could have got someone else. Anyone else would have been preferable to Davina then him, after all he had only spoken a sentence or two to her since his arrival but everyone else had a bit going on so the least he could do was step up his Uncle game. A teenage niece, he could handle it...at least he hoped he could. "Boys, huh?" He popped the spoon into his mouth.
Davina cracked a small smile, scooping up some more ice-cream. "Does a 1000 year old vampire class as a boy?"
Stefan shrugged. "When he makes you cry, you can call him whatever you desire."
Davina pulled the spoon from between her lips. "Have you ever loved someone so much, that you thought you'd die if they did?"
"Katherine. I died trying to rescue her from what I believed would be her death. That woman is everything to me. I died, and woke a vampire."
"Kol died and I broke. I hurt so much. I cried endlessly." She blinked, trying to stay focused. "I tried to bring him back and when I couldn't...I wished I went with him so that we could be together."
"Except you didn't die,"
"No. Klaus choose around that time to proclaim that we were family because of Kol."
"I see."
Davina scooped up more ice-cream. "I still grieved and I still love him even now. It is strong enough that if we were to swap positions and it was I who died and then returned to the land of the living, I would have at least picked up the phone and called him. Did he though? No. He let me think he was gone forever. That I would never see him again." The angry was seeping into her voice, the bitterness.
Stefan could see the pain in her eyes. "Davina,"
"I understand why he did what he did. I know he was hurt, he thought his brother was gone forever but I grieved him. I thought I had lost him forever and I had to find a way to live with that."
"You moved on." He saw the tears drop from her eyes as she slowly nodded her head. "When I thought Katherine was gone forever, I had to move on too, Davina. It's a natural thing."
Davina tried to wipe some of her tears away with her sleeve. "I haven't got a new boyfriend. I haven't met anyone I am remotely interested in...but I am learning to live."
Stefan scooped up some more ice-cream. "For me it was Lexie. It wasn't a romantic love but she was my best-friend. She taught me that life was worth living."
Davina's eyes met his, shining with tears. "Mom and Dad are making me act my age. I've never been just sixteen before. I'm in school. I have friends and today I became a cheerleader."
"Dear god, tell me that was not Caroline's idea."
Davina giggled. "No, my best-friend is the captain but mom was really happy when I told her...to happy."
"That sounds like Caroline." He smiled. He knew from Caroline that Davina did not call her mom nor did she call Klaus dad but something had clearly changed. "It sounds like you are making the most of it."
Davina shrugged; picking up some more ice-cream. "It's different. I've never had rules before, or chores. I've never had sisters, a brother, or proper parents...not even friends, like just plain human friends." It was a completely new experience to have a best-friend who knew nothing about who she really was. While the secret keeping wasn't fun, it was nice to have someone who didn't expect anything. "I've never been to prom before and it's not really my thing but I want to go," She paused, a frown forming on her features. "I wouldn't be allowed to take him. He is older then..."
Stefan chuckled. "Kol's forever frozen at eighteen. He'd be able to take you Davina, if that's what you want, he'll certainly be able to act the part."
Davina shrugged, wiping a few of the stray tears away. "Prom doesn't even matter. I don't think I want to take him. I'm too angry. He was alive and he choose not to call. What does that say about us? About his love for me?" More tears fell, and Davina felt furious at herself for crying over him.
Stefan put his spoon down and walked around the counter, although she was sitting in the stool, he wrapped an arm around her shoulder and she allowed her head to fall into his chest. "You know, honey; this is a lot to handle and you don't need all the answers in this moment. It's okay to be angry with Kol. It's okay to be upset."
A sob escaped Davina's throat as she leaned heavily on him. "I love him."
"And that is okay. You can love him, Davina, and still not know what the future holds. Listen, you have an eternity ahead of you, but that does not mean an eternity with Kol. However amazing he may be, and however strong your love is, if it is meant to be then it will be. And if he loves you as you deserve then he'll wait, he will give you time to figure it all out."
Davina pulled back, wiping at her eyes with her sleeve. "I..."
"You are more then just a girl in love with a boy. From all that Caroline, the twins and Bonnie have told me, I know without truly knowing you, that you are bright, intelligent, funny, devoted, strong willed and beautiful, not just on the outside but inside where it counts, young lady." He brushed the piece of dark hair behind her ear. "Take it from a guy who has loved a very small amount of women in his life; love will find its way to you whether you want it or not but its up to you to decide whether or not its the right time to pursue it."
Davina gave him a sad smile, but a thankful one. "Thank-you,"
Stefan reached over and grabbed a couple of tissues, passing them to her. "You're going to be okay, Davina." He helped her off the stool. "Try to get some sleep. Give your mind a moment to rest."
Davina nodded slowly, after crying she felt a little more tired then she had before and she headed for the hallway, only to turn back when she heard the lid being snapped back into place. "Goodnight, Uncle Stefan."
Stefan looked up, a smile gracing his lips. "Night, honey."
"Elijah is becoming a problem." Esther walked in between the coffins, her eyes taking in the details of every last one. They had been designed and crafted for each of her children, a place where they would rest until the end was to come. "We must remove him from the situation."
Finn weighed it in his mind, while it seemed to be a ludicrous idea to allow two of his five siblings to be within their mothers clutches, he would be lying if it didn't sound slightly inviting. It would certainly give reassurance that Elijah would not try to take Hope from Niklaus. The least he could do for his brother was insure that they stayed reunited. "Should I collect him, mother?"
"Yes, I think it would appropriate." She ran her hand along the top of Rebekah's coffin. "Bring Elijah back to me."
Finn nodded slowly, this was not for his mother...this was for Niklaus. "And what will you be doing?"
Esther smiled. "Those twins could be a future problem, the source of power Josie displayed was not supposed to take hold yet, lucky for this..." She looked down at the necklace she wore. "I know just the person to solve it. He'd love to help."
Thoughts? I would love to hear what you are thinking when it comes to this story.
Much Love. x
