Chapter 36
Klaus' phone buzzed at the same time as his siblings who were in the same room as him. "Message from Damon?" he asked them, who nodded, reading the text they'd all received from Damon.
"So we head there for lunch," said Elijah, "I will get my research together regarding the Adfectus Witch."
"You mean Ottilie," remarked Kol, frowning. "She's still Ottilie, even if she has some crazy super powers…."
Elijah sighed, "yes of course, Kol, I mean Ottilie. I just meant that I have information regarding Adfectus Witches that the Salvatores might wish to have."
Later that morning, Stefan opened the door to welcome the Mikaelson family into his house, where they found Bonnie, Matt, Tyler and Caroline, all chatting to each other with little Ottilie resting on Lexi's lap, snuggled in a blanket.
Klaus smirked at Damon, "so when you said 'this doesn't leave this room', what you really meant was 'let's tell everyone'…" He gestured at the group.
Damon shrugged. "Stefan and I talked about it, and realised that the best way to protect Ottilie is to have as many people possible protecting her, and they deserve to know why they're protecting her, don't you think?"
Klaus looked around, noticing his siblings already digging into the food that had been laid out on the large antique table, Bonnie laughing with Caroline, Matt and Tyler, and Lexi holding Ottilie tightly to her. Damon was right, Ottilie needed them.
Stefan stood awkwardly next to Damon and cleared his throat nervously.
"Speech!" teased Tyler and everyone rolled their eyes at him.
Stefan smiled good humouredly, "thanks for coming over at such short notice, everyone" he said, "there's something that Damon, Ottilie and I need to talk to you about, and it's verey important to us that you're here."
Damon nodded, and continued, "we recently found out that our little Ottilie here, is an Adfectus Witch." He studied the room watching for their reactions. Bonnie's mouth fell open in shock, Tyler looked confusedly at Caroline and the Mikaelsons remained stony-faced.
"What's an Adfectus Witch?" asked Caroline, her face showing her confusion. "I mean, we knew she was a witch, but what's an Adfectus one?"
Bonnie, shaking herself out of her stupor, spoke quietly. "They're the most powerful witches ever recorded," she said, "in fact, it's said that they're so powerful that there can only be one of them alive at any one time. They're supposedly not bound by nature like normal witches. I didn't think they actually existed."
Elijah cleared his throat. "On the contrary, Miss Bennett," he said, "they very much do exist, and have done for centuries. My family and I had the pleasure of meeting a few over the years. We did believe, however, that the lineage had died out some centuries back. Thankfully, we have been proven wrong." He gestured at Ottilie, still sitting with Lexi. "If I may, I'd like to recount some information regarding the Adfectus Witch?" he asked, not waiting for an answer before continuing. "Adfectus Witches are as Miss Bennett says, not bound by nature. They draw their power from the emotions of those around them, and so are never powerless, but are in fact, limitless. Where there is life, there is emotion, and therefore, for the Adfectus Witch, power. They can heal the most dire of injuries, they can perform the most complex of spells with ease, and they can defeat the deadliest of foes."
Damon looked at his daughter in awe, shocked that such a tiny human could yield so much power.
"It comes with a hefty price, however," said Elijah, watching Damon's gaze snap up to focus in on him. "Such is the immense power of the Adfectus Witch, that the nature witches placed a curse on the original witch and any subsequent Adfectus Witches. They would never be able to access the true extent of their powers due to a human affliction that would make it deadly to do so. Over the years, these afflictions have ranged from lung diseases to general poor health. In Miss Ottilie, I believe it is her heart condition."
Damon's face fell and his friends looked over at the little girl in sympathy.
"What does that mean then?" choked Stefan.
"It means that should she ever try access the full extent of her power and succeed, it will kill her." Said Elijah, soberly.
Lexi held Ottilie close to her, whose face was showing no trace of emotion for someone who'd just been told that their inherent powers could be a death sentence.
"So she just never uses those powers, right? Problem avoided!" suggested Tyler, missing the scathing look Damon threw in his direction. What an idiot, he thought. Stefan laid a comforting hand on Damon's arm, feeling him trembling.
"Unfortunately not," said Klaus, now stepping forwards. "It has come to our attention that there is an Upgraded Original Vampire looking for Ottilie as we speak."
Matt began to choke on the coffee he'd just taken a sip of. "What the hell is an Upgraded Original Vampire?" he managed to ask, recovering from his coughing fit.
"It's basically an even better version of us," said Rebekkah, "they're faster, stronger, and their bite kills faster, even a hybrid." Matt looked at her in horror.
"There's one in Portland by the name of Marcel Gerrard," said Klaus, "and he undoubtedly wants Ottilie for her powers. Even without tapping into the full extent of her majic, she is far more powerful than any standard witch." He smirked at Bonnie who glared at him.
"We believe that he is behind the attack on the vampires at the carnival," said Elijah, "and that he wanted the vampires out the way to leave Ottilie unguarded so that he could get to her. My sources tell me that he is working with another witch, and is attempting to build an army of super hybrids. Ottilie is the only one with the power to sire these hybrids to him, and so she is essential in his plan. As such, he will stop at nothing to get her."
"We won't let that happen," said Caroline, confidently. Stefan smiled widely at her and Damon nodded gratefully. The others agreed that they would do everything in their power to protect Ottilie from Marcel, and Damon and Stefan thanked them whole-heartedly, relieved that she had the best people around her.